Alternate

Alternate
Description	This Player is an Alternate... Player is replaced with an alternate reality version, stats are randomized.
Duration	Permanent
Target(s)	Player
Cause(s)	Solar Eclipse (Red) weather, Decree, or Blessing; DecreeBeta or WillBeta

Alternate is a Player Modification, first seen in the Season 4 Elections.

Effects

When a player gains the Alternate modification, their Player Attributes#Attributes which calculate star rating are completely randomised, along with their Fate number. Modifications, allergy status, and Soul will remain unchanged.

History

Season 4 Decree

In Season 4, one of the Decree options was called Alternate Reality, which had the description: Randomize the stats of one hitter and one pitcher on every team. This Decree ended up being one of the Decrees won in Season 4, activating with the following message:

• Alternate Reality passed with 52,343 votes and 23% of all decree votes.
  • The Alternates are called.
  • They take their places.
  • Reverberations build...

One batter and one pitcher on every team at the time was given the Alternate modification, and their stats were completely randomized.

Expansion Era

Wills

In the Expansion Era, Wills were offered to the fans for the first time as a new way to boost and affect their Team. Two Wills offered during the Era involved the Alternate modification:

Alternate, with the description "Call in an Alternate for a Player on your Team." was offered from Seasons 12-14. The following teams filed the Will: In Season 12, the Yellowstone Magic, alternating Cory Twelve; and the Dallas Steaks, alternating Gallup Crueller. In Season 13, only the Atlantis Georgias filed the Will, alternating Flattery McKinley, and no teams chose the Will in in Season 14.

From Season 15 onward, Alternate Trust replaced the Alternate Will, claiming it would "Call in an Alternate for a Player on your Team, with a mystery Benefit." These "benefits" were a range of permanent player Modifications.

In Season 15, three players received the Parasite Modification in addition to being Alternated: Elwin McGhee, of the Tokyo Lift; Yong Wright, of the Mexico City Wild Wings; and Baldwin Breadwinner, of the Hawai'i Fridays.

In Season 16, three more players were targeted by Alternate Trust, this time receiving the Careful Modification: PolkaDot Patterson, Socks Maybe, and Elijah Valenzuela of the Dallas Steaks, Chicago Firefighters, and Breckenridge Jazz Hands respectively.

The Modification which would've been given to Alternate Trusted players in Season 17 is unknown, as no teams filed the Alternate Trust Will.

In Season 18, the Alternate Trust Will was visually associated with the Reader, and gave players the Negative Modification. Yrjo Kerfuffle of the Houston Spies, Kelvin Andante of the Core Mechanics, Erin Jesaulenko of the Georgias, Greer Lott of the Canada Moist Talkers, Jessica Telephone of the Lift, Ren Hunter of the Charleston Shoe Thieves, Scarlet Caster of the Wild Wings, Brisket Friendo of the Seattle Garages, and Anathema Elemefayo of the New York Millennials were Alternated this season. Through Hunter and Friendo, it was also revealed that Alternating players with Attractor would "refresh" them, causing them to lose the Attractor modification.

Season 19's recipients of the Alternate Trust Will (Jaylen Hotdogfingers of the Boston Flowers, Caleb Novak of the Miami Dale, Socks Maybe (again) of the Firefighters, Amos Melon of the Moist Talkers, and Peanut Holloway of the Philly Pies) also received the Negative modification.

Blessings

During the Expansion Era, there were multiple Blessings that allowed Teams to Alternate multiple players on their team at once. The following Blessings involved the Alternate modification:

Blessing	Description of Blessing	Season(s) Offered	Team that won Blessing
On Deck	Call the Alternate for all Players in your Shadows.	Season 17	Chicago Firefighters
Shots in the Dark	Call the Negative Alternates (maintaining Star count) for 5 random Players in your Team's Shadows.	Season 20	Atlantis Georgias
Couldn't Hurt	Call the Negative Alternates (maintaining Star count) for the 2 worst Players on your Team's Active Roster.	Season 20	Hades Tigers
Lineup Alternate Trust	Call the Negative Alternates (maintaining Star count) for 3 random Players in your Team's Lineup.	Season 21, Season 22	Seattle Garages, Charleston Shoe Thieves
Rotation Alternate Trust	Call the Negative Alternates (maintaining Star count) for 2 random Players in your Team's Rotation.	Season 21, Season 22	Hades Tigers, Hawai'i Fridays
Handful Alternate Trust	Call the Negative Alternates (maintaining Star count) for 5 random Players on your Team's Active Roster.	Season 21, Season 22	Core Mechanics, Baltimore Crabs
Shadows Alternate Trust	Call the Negative Alternates (maintaining Star count) for your entire Team's Shadows.	Season 21, Season 22	Yellowstone Magic, Hawai'i Fridays
Alternate Bust	A random Ego-Boosted Player on your Team gets their Negative Alternate called (maintaining Stars) and they lose 1 Ego.	Season 22	Hawai'i Fridays

Path Bug

Starting in Season 18, Alternates were reworked so that if a newly Alternated Player had fewer Stars than before they were Alternated, their Player Attributes would be boosted until the amount of Stars after their Alternation were the same or higher than as before. This created a quirk where an Alternate's Patheticism — like other stats — would be boosted in an attempt to 'improve' them, despite higher levels of Patheticism — unlike other stats — lowering a Player's Star total. This was especially prevalent in Alternates with previously high Star totals. As the number of boosts an Alternate received was dependent on the difference between their pre- and post-reroll Stars value, Players with higher initial Star totals required a larger number of boosts, resulting in greater chances of Patheticism and Tragicness reaching its maximum. This is often referred to by Fans as the Path Bug, although it has not been confirmed by The Game Band whether it is a bug or intentional.