11-16-2019, 05:28 PM
(This post was last modified: 11-18-2019, 02:07 PM by Fordhammer.)
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]The Ultimus Origins
Chapter One of "2D Documentary of Dots"[/div]
Just a season ago I transitioned from General Manager of the San Antonio Marshals with shadyshoelace to General Manager of the Baltimore Hawks with scorpxcracker. It has been a full seven months and 12 days since I created my NSFL profile. Walt Green was born March 4th 2019 9:58 pm. At least according to the website that’s what it says, though I’m pretty sure it was just after midday where I was. Both Walt Green, and my GM persona Taco MacArthur have spent those last 7 months in the pursuit of winning either an Ultimus or Ultimini. As many of you, I’ve committed a lot of time and energy into this league. Yet I don’t have the slightest inkling as to what the answer is to the following:
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]Where did the name Ultimus come from?[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]
I asked several other league members if they knew, but clearly the history of this league has not been shared as well as maybe it should be. It appears I needed to find someone who joined the league from the very beginning. I decided to ask the commissioner himself - @ADwyer87.
It has been over two years since the names were submitted and chosen, so forgive Dwyer if his memory is a tad off. The names did come from a competition, specifically the First ever Weekend Point Task. Yes that is correct. A whole other tangent from league history, there were Point Tasks and Weekend Point Tasks. The winner earned an extra 1 TPE if his submission was selected. A slight distinction though from Dwyer’s retelling is that the task was not to name the Championship games, but specifically the Trophies of the Championship games.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
NOLA is on a bye week and I’m walking down the streets of Hampburg, Germany with @IsaStarcrossed looking at potential sites for the Seawolves new stadium. Or maybe it’s playoffs and NOLA’s been eliminated. Our walk is peppered with questions and answers as we respond back and forth with each other.
“Why is winning Ultimus important for you?”
“Would knowing the origin of the Ultimus influence you?”
“In your opinion the name Lombardi is inconsequential for the Super Bowl?”
“Why, if the name doesn’t matter?”
“Is ‘legacy’ only important after winning a championship?”
With a side glance at me,
I leave Isa there in front of the stadium staring at Hamburg’s 1983 European Cup Championship banner.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]“Would it surprise you if players from even S2 do not know where the name came from or why?”
“Not really to be honest.” ADwyer[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
I suspect many you could care less that the trophy is named Ultimus, but just like Isa, many of you have never considered where the name Ultimus came from.
We are all competing for this trophy, and most of us don’t even know the history of where it came from. Of course, we are competing for a trophy, the NSFL is a competition to crown a champion every season. Trophies like the Lombardi and Stanley Cup have a deeply ingrained history most players of those leagues know and appreciate because they grew up learning and even rooting for the legacies of players and coaches who previously won those trophies. However, for most of the NSFL, the Ultimus is just bragging rights and a simple decal that goes under your name in every forum post you make. We don’t know the legacies attached to the trophy. While names like Montana and Gretzky are household names, players join the NSFL with no idea who Mike Boss or Angus Winchester is. In fact, this might be the first time many of the current league has ever heard of those names. As such the inherent legacy of the trophy we are competing for is dampened.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
Did you also know Ultimini wasn’t the original name of the DSFL Championship trophy? And it seems the original name wasn’t used very well either as evident by these responses from original DSFL members.
iamslm22 -
@Jiggly_333 -
Jiggly might not believe me, but the trophy actually wasn’t nameless the first few seasons of the DSFL. It was officially called Relicum. As far as I can tell, it was solely named by @Noble, leading to credence of the nickname “Noble Cup”. The North Division trophy was named Boreas, and South Division Trophy named Auster. I never heard from Noble, so I can only speculate that those names are also latin origins, and as such Relicum means 'future'. Perhaps as in the DSFL is the ‘future players of the NSFL’. Or something like that.
It is actually understandable that no one remembers the name Relicum. The DSFL began in S03 and by the start of S05, it was officially renamed Ultimini by the DSFL Rules Summit. In fact less than a month after the initial announcement officially naming the trophy Relicum, a user suggested naming the trophy to "Minius Trophy" in the Suggestion Box
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
Returning to the Weekend Point Task for naming the Ultimus, there were a number of other great submissions for Trophy names. Here are three I picked out.
@`xdave2456` gave this answer:
Or this submission from @timeconsumer:
Yeah sure DDSPF is what you were thinking about with that submission...
Though my personal favorite was from @Zoone16:
Six Star Memorial Trophy, has a bit of a ring to it even if its 4 times longer than Ultimus.
Finally here is @ErMurazor's full submission and his reasons.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
So why was Er’s submission selected? According to @White Cornerback, another league OG, the league, though I’m speculating it was only HO at the time, voted and Er’s received the most votes.
Here are the choices from that official ballot.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]League Championship Trophy ideas:[/div]
1. The Conqueror Cup ("After "Conquering" the NSFL, it is time to celebrate like the kings we worked our ass off to be. The stage is set for next year and the target is now on your back for the "Top Dog" spot.")
2. The SimBardi Trophy
3. Challenger Bowl ("Like the Super Bowl, and inspired by the similarities between the SHL and NSFL")
4. Ultimus Trophy ("I went with latin roots: Ultimus Trophy is the last trophy, the final trophy, the penultimate trophy.")
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]NSFC Championship Trophy ideas:[/div]
1. The Monarchy Cup ("The winner of the NSFC controls their own destiny like the "Monarchs" they aspire to be, improving at all costs")
2. Snowstorm Cup ("NSFC is in the more colder climates")
3. The Glacies Trophy ("I went with latin roots: The Glacies Trophy is the ice trophy, check the cities...they have ice and snow.)
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]ASFC Championship Trophy ideas:[/div]
1. The Supremacy Cup ("The winner of the ASFC will "reign supreme" over the competition and continue to shift the landscape of the NSFL")
2. Blazen Cup ("ASFC is in the more warmer climates")
3. The Solis Trophy ("I went with latin roots: The Solis trophy, they're also sunny places. Solis is the sun.)
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
Just as Lombardi and Stanley Cup are named after the legacies of people associated with those sports, now the league is entering its 20th season, perhaps it’s time to associate a name to the Ultimus.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]****************************************************************************************************************[/div]
Thank You to everyone I contacted for interviews, even those who’s answers didn’t make the final edit. Big Thanks to slm, white cornerback, dwyer, and @Eco for providing answers to the myriad of questions this rabbit hole created.
I’d love to continue documenting other parts of the league history, and am open to ideas or questions about the league you’d like answered.
To White Cornerback, @37thchamber and rest of the wiki team, please use/plagiarize anything that would benefit the wiki. Doing wiki edits myself scares me.
Chapter One of "2D Documentary of Dots"[/div]
Just a season ago I transitioned from General Manager of the San Antonio Marshals with shadyshoelace to General Manager of the Baltimore Hawks with scorpxcracker. It has been a full seven months and 12 days since I created my NSFL profile. Walt Green was born March 4th 2019 9:58 pm. At least according to the website that’s what it says, though I’m pretty sure it was just after midday where I was. Both Walt Green, and my GM persona Taco MacArthur have spent those last 7 months in the pursuit of winning either an Ultimus or Ultimini. As many of you, I’ve committed a lot of time and energy into this league. Yet I don’t have the slightest inkling as to what the answer is to the following:
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]Where did the name Ultimus come from?[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]
Quote:“I mean, clearly it’s from the Greek “Ultima”, meaning “the best”. Well Obviously our first commissioner is a long lost descendant of Alexander the Great.”- @`woelker11`, S17 class
Quote:“Well I was S13. So long before my time. Maybe it’s about an ancient explorer?”- @Bigred1580, S13 class
Quote:“I think Ballerstorm and Noble wanted some kind of latin sounding name.- @iamslm22, S02 class[/div]
I think it’s latin for last or something.”
I asked several other league members if they knew, but clearly the history of this league has not been shared as well as maybe it should be. It appears I needed to find someone who joined the league from the very beginning. I decided to ask the commissioner himself - @ADwyer87.
Quote:“Ultimus came from ErMurazor actually. We had a contest to name the NSFC, ASFC, and NSFL Championship games.
ErMurazor’s was selected by the HO, his submissions were Ultimus, Solis, and Glacies, if I recall correctly. Reasoning for the last two was because all the ASFC teams were in hot areas, and all the NSFC teams were in cold areas.”
It has been over two years since the names were submitted and chosen, so forgive Dwyer if his memory is a tad off. The names did come from a competition, specifically the First ever Weekend Point Task. Yes that is correct. A whole other tangent from league history, there were Point Tasks and Weekend Point Tasks. The winner earned an extra 1 TPE if his submission was selected. A slight distinction though from Dwyer’s retelling is that the task was not to name the Championship games, but specifically the Trophies of the Championship games.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
NOLA is on a bye week and I’m walking down the streets of Hampburg, Germany with @IsaStarcrossed looking at potential sites for the Seawolves new stadium. Or maybe it’s playoffs and NOLA’s been eliminated. Our walk is peppered with questions and answers as we respond back and forth with each other.
“Why is winning Ultimus important for you?”
Quote:“Honestly for me, the point of all sports is winning championships. It’s about competition and working to be at the top. At the end of the day, winning an Ultimus is just that. It’s the championship, it marks your team as the best there is. For me, getting a championship for my team is far more important than any stat of number I can put out there."
“Would knowing the origin of the Ultimus influence you?”
Quote:“I’m not sure knowing the origin of the name of that championship changes that.”
We come around a corner and Hamburg FC’s stadium comes into view. I decide to keep poking him with questions, hoping he gives insight to my pursuit."
“In your opinion the name Lombardi is inconsequential for the Super Bowl?”
Quote:“It may be bad to say it, but I often forget that the trophy is even named the Lombardi trophy until they are presenting it after the Super Bowl every season…” Isa gives a soft chuckle before continuing, “I know, not very fun. I am interested in the story though, of how it became known as the Ultimus.”
“Why, if the name doesn’t matter?”
Quote:“The name doesn’t change the drive or the purposes of winning a championship. If it was named the Maxim Catalog Trophy, it wouldn’t change ‘why’ I wanted a trophy. That doesn’t mean history doesn’t mean anything. I mean is it cool that the [Super Bowl] is named after one of the best coaches of all time and that his legacy is carried on with it? Absolutely.
Yeah, I never said the name doesn’t matter. I just said it doesn’t make a ton of impact on the drive or reasoning for chasing a championship.”
“Is ‘legacy’ only important after winning a championship?”
With a side glance at me,
Quote:“Asking the hard questions. Not entirely sure how to answer that one. I mean I think legacy and history always matters… I just like history lessons to be honest. Until you asked, I didn’t even know there was a history behind the name.”
I leave Isa there in front of the stadium staring at Hamburg’s 1983 European Cup Championship banner.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]“Would it surprise you if players from even S2 do not know where the name came from or why?”
“Not really to be honest.” ADwyer[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
I suspect many you could care less that the trophy is named Ultimus, but just like Isa, many of you have never considered where the name Ultimus came from.
We are all competing for this trophy, and most of us don’t even know the history of where it came from. Of course, we are competing for a trophy, the NSFL is a competition to crown a champion every season. Trophies like the Lombardi and Stanley Cup have a deeply ingrained history most players of those leagues know and appreciate because they grew up learning and even rooting for the legacies of players and coaches who previously won those trophies. However, for most of the NSFL, the Ultimus is just bragging rights and a simple decal that goes under your name in every forum post you make. We don’t know the legacies attached to the trophy. While names like Montana and Gretzky are household names, players join the NSFL with no idea who Mike Boss or Angus Winchester is. In fact, this might be the first time many of the current league has ever heard of those names. As such the inherent legacy of the trophy we are competing for is dampened.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
Did you also know Ultimini wasn’t the original name of the DSFL Championship trophy? And it seems the original name wasn’t used very well either as evident by these responses from original DSFL members.
iamslm22 -
Quote:“It used to be called Solis? Trophy or something, but we in DSFL GM chat used to meme about it being the mini Ultimus - hence Ultimini.”
@Jiggly_333 -
Quote:“The “Ultimini” was originally unofficially known as the “Noble Cup” because of his role in the creation of the DSFL.
Dermo will deny it, but I was the first DSFL GM, I was there when it was created. The Cup didn’t have a real name for its first couple seasons.“
Jiggly might not believe me, but the trophy actually wasn’t nameless the first few seasons of the DSFL. It was officially called Relicum. As far as I can tell, it was solely named by @
It is actually understandable that no one remembers the name Relicum. The DSFL began in S03 and by the start of S05, it was officially renamed Ultimini by the DSFL Rules Summit. In fact less than a month after the initial announcement officially naming the trophy Relicum, a user suggested naming the trophy to "Minius Trophy" in the Suggestion Box
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
Returning to the Weekend Point Task for naming the Ultimus, there were a number of other great submissions for Trophy names. Here are three I picked out.
@`xdave2456` gave this answer:
Quote:NSFL League Championship Trophy: Ol' Tippecanoe, named after famous U.S. president William Henry Harrison
NSFC Champion Trophy: Ezekiel Bishop Memorial Trophy, named after the first player is NSFL history to retire
ASFC Champion Trophy: Outlaw&Sabercat Memorial Trophy, named because the Otters murdered them in cold blood
Or this submission from @timeconsumer:
Quote:ASFC Champion Trophy: The A-Cup
NSFC Champion Trophy: The B-Cup
NSFL League Championship Trophy: The Double-D Cup
The Sim is called Draft Day Sports. So Double-D Cup is short for The Draft Day Cup.
Yeah sure DDSPF is what you were thinking about with that submission...
Though my personal favorite was from @Zoone16:
Quote:NSFL League Championship Trophy The NSFL Six Star Memorial Trophy (After the 6 founding franchises)
NSFC Champion Trophy The NSFC Northern Shield (see: FA Community Shield)
ASFC Champion Trophy The ASFC Southern Bowl
eventually rename the conference trophies after coach/gm/mvp player in the 1st recipient team.
Six Star Memorial Trophy, has a bit of a ring to it even if its 4 times longer than Ultimus.
Finally here is @ErMurazor's full submission and his reasons.
Quote:NSFL League Championship Trophy - Ultimus Trophy
NSFC Champion Trophy - The Glacies Trophy
ASFC Champion Trophy - The Solis Trophy
I went with latin roots: Ultimus Trophy is the last trophy, the final trophy, the penultimate trophy.
The Glacies Trophy is the ice trophy, check the cities...they have ice and snow.
The Solid trophy, they're also sunny places. Solis is the sun.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
So why was Er’s submission selected? According to @White Cornerback, another league OG, the league, though I’m speculating it was only HO at the time, voted and Er’s received the most votes.
Here are the choices from that official ballot.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]League Championship Trophy ideas:[/div]
1. The Conqueror Cup ("After "Conquering" the NSFL, it is time to celebrate like the kings we worked our ass off to be. The stage is set for next year and the target is now on your back for the "Top Dog" spot.")
2. The SimBardi Trophy
3. Challenger Bowl ("Like the Super Bowl, and inspired by the similarities between the SHL and NSFL")
4. Ultimus Trophy ("I went with latin roots: Ultimus Trophy is the last trophy, the final trophy, the penultimate trophy.")
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]NSFC Championship Trophy ideas:[/div]
1. The Monarchy Cup ("The winner of the NSFC controls their own destiny like the "Monarchs" they aspire to be, improving at all costs")
2. Snowstorm Cup ("NSFC is in the more colder climates")
3. The Glacies Trophy ("I went with latin roots: The Glacies Trophy is the ice trophy, check the cities...they have ice and snow.)
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]ASFC Championship Trophy ideas:[/div]
1. The Supremacy Cup ("The winner of the ASFC will "reign supreme" over the competition and continue to shift the landscape of the NSFL")
2. Blazen Cup ("ASFC is in the more warmer climates")
3. The Solis Trophy ("I went with latin roots: The Solis trophy, they're also sunny places. Solis is the sun.)
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]*********************************************************************************[/div]
Just as Lombardi and Stanley Cup are named after the legacies of people associated with those sports, now the league is entering its 20th season, perhaps it’s time to associate a name to the Ultimus.
Quote:“If you want my opinion, the Ultimus should be re-named to the Preaux Bowl, after one of the best tacticians in league history.”[div align=\\\"center\\\"]- Jiggly_333[/div]
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]****************************************************************************************************************[/div]
Thank You to everyone I contacted for interviews, even those who’s answers didn’t make the final edit. Big Thanks to slm, white cornerback, dwyer, and @Eco for providing answers to the myriad of questions this rabbit hole created.
I’d love to continue documenting other parts of the league history, and am open to ideas or questions about the league you’d like answered.
To White Cornerback, @37thchamber and rest of the wiki team, please use/plagiarize anything that would benefit the wiki. Doing wiki edits myself scares me.