I disagree about ADV 20 being worthless.....extreme but not worthless.  The ADV 0 guys focus on current and development to project what someone will do. Where the high ADV guys have an advantage is trading for prospects in their first season after being drafted, sometimes 2nd.  There hasn't been enough dev cycles yet to get a sense of how quickly and to what ceiling a particular prospect might have.  That is where the high ADV can exploit the 0 ADV guys in trades.

I've been moving towards low ADV myself.  I can do a good job once a player is in their 3rd season and sometimes in their 2nd season of estimating their potential.  However, I'm much less accurate when it comes to 1st year players. 

Yes, people over-value star prospects.....not all that much different with many real-life MLB teams.  There are plenty of exceptions (AL East), but you'll find that most teams rarely deal away their top guys they view as future stars.

They will if it gets them over the hump.  Some of the real difference is that future stars can pop up in the real thing from almost anywhere.  There are far fewer guarantees in the real draft than there are in HBD.  You can trade away stud prospects because most times those guys don't pan out.  And make no mistake, all big league clubs have dozens of guys that have a legit shot.  Some never get the shot.  Some get recognized a little late (like Nelson Cruz).  Some grow physically into a monster and make a plateau jump (Michael Pineda for example).

I think ADV would be useful if the development pattern of players was irregular.  In HBD if the development was plateau-based instead of a smooth curve, you might find players that develop early and stall.  You might find other who develop, regress then set the world on fire (Roy Halladay).  In that sense you'd have an advantage over those of us who have learned what the smooth curve (for the most part) looks like. 

It has it's pros and cons.   What I was saying without saying it was that I end up with extra cap space every season now because I won't overpay a guy for the next 4 seasons just because I have the cap space.  But I will sign some unsigned FA slug with options to 3.2m to send to AAA for emergency duty. 

As an example, Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Bert Garcia was acquired in trade but had options and was making 1m. I had the cap space so I figured he'd be a nice option in an emergency.   An emergency never came and he got 68 call-up AB in two seasons.   That's not utilizing "saved" money very well.

Same team:  Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Robinson Brock  Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Jose Marrero  Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Hideo Sung

Just under 1.5m for 46 BL AB. 

Regardless of the answers wanted in this thread- There is no reason to explain or tell anyone how adv. scouting works. Either you pay to see the projections more accurately or you don't. I am not contributing to helping someone figure out  a way to not pay for more accurate projections.