Nuffle loves Dinos!

Hi there all. This weekend saw another game of Bloodbowl and a new player entering the fray. It was great fun and an interesting experience for me.

The South Coast Saurus took on the Dark Templars new Nurgle team. I was .... well the crowd, the ref, the Saurus cheerleader and helper. I think you could say that I asked some good questions and made some 3rd party suggestions.

Now what is interesting is that I have actually learned a lot as a result. Because I had less emotional attachment I was more concerned with coaching some good practice. I was more detached and what I noticed is that: -

1. We looked at the action from a risk perspective - who was free to move? what did we want to achieve? as a result movement was in the right order - all the low risk stuff first. Michael (the Saurus coach) had a calm head and was much less aggressive than I play. Note to self - this is a good thing and I need some of that calm.

2. When the turn looked finished i.e. the Saurus had achieved what they desired, we asked the calm question - what else? Is it now worth Dodging that guy out to achieve a reposition? There was no down side and maybe an upside. These are good questions. Often I stop thinking when I achieve what I want and just hand over my turn. Calm is good.

3. Beating up the opposition is not the main focus. Michael is relatively new to gaming and as such was focused on the scoreboard and not just beating people up. This is not a game of 40k and as I look back I have learned that I need to think like this too.

4. Nuffle is not to be trusted! When Nuffle is with you it is a joy but ..... there were a number of occasions in the match when the Dark Templar set a plan in motion that relied on his 'Big Man' to deliver the first blow and follow up. Nuffle took this opportunity to trip him up!! and it was at the start of a turn so this burned rerolls. I can look back and see that I fell in the same trap myself with my Orc Troll! The 'Big Men' of bloodbowl should be moved much later in the turn. 'Really Stupid' can hurt a lot. I wonder - are they really worth having? I am unsure. Amazing what you see as a third party.

5. Bloodbowl is just great fun! I have come to understand that this is truly a fantastic game. It is simple and yet complicated. You become emotionally involved, it reaches inside of you and toys with the heat strings. You live the stories. I laugh out loud and enjoy the entire game. It is not often that this happens in life - so it should be treasured. Play blood bowl - its good for you!

Anyway the Dark Templar has done a detailed write up for those interested. All good stuff.

I also took a few pictures myself.

I just love the skinks.

The scorer of the first touchdown was 'Kinky' - a truly great name.

Here he is running in a score.

The interesting thing is that Michael used the skink speed to make the score. He first advanced the ball down the right.

This drew in the Nurgle big guns, but they are slow. Michael switched the play to the left and suddenly had the advantage. It was a really cool manoeuvre.

You can see here how there are a number of the nurgle boys are thrown out of position. Movement of 4 just doesn't get them back in the game. Suddenly the skinks are on the move and finally 'Kinky' does the business.

The second score was just sooooo funny because the Dark Templar just could not pick the ball up! Lets face it, if the ball is loose then trouble is just around the corner. This is one of the problems of playing a 'vanilla' team. There are very few skills available so no individuals are good a specific things yet. Big problem.

Again the skinks came into their own and this time the 'Redsnapper' skipped in and thieved the ball before running it in for TD!

It was just great to see. I soooo loved the goblin that I played with the orcs. Now it looked like there were several running around and causing the type of chaos that I love. I am seriously thinking about making changes to my orc lineup!! Troll - emmmmmm. More goblins - well I like the thought at the moment.

I was loving it.

But just after half time I had to go. I had to wait nearly 3 months for this day and then my wife accepts an invitation to be somewhere in the afternoon. "Well it is Easter" etc etc grrrrrrr. I had to go at 2.30pm so missed the end, much to my dismay. However it was a great session of bloodbowl.

The final score was 3-1 to Michael - well done sir and thank you for hosting such an enjoyable day.

Looking forward to the next big game. It should be my pro elves v the saurus. I am living in fear if I am honest!

New Blood Bowl Team

In the middle of April our mini league will be joined by a third player Mr Michael Awdrey. He will be a welcome addition indeed. I believe that he intends to try out a team of Lizardmen. I have done a little reading and look like a fairly decent choice. There are Skinks, very agile, fast, dodging types with AV7. Then there are Saurus, strong ST4 & tough but no starting skills like Block (that could be interesting) and then a Kroxigor who looks to be be a real power house but with the Bone Head downside. On a roll of a D6 - 1 = stands around doing nothing. I think this is a good team choice for a new player. There is a good strong spine to the team and then you have the speedy Skinks. No need to worry about Throwing & Catching just yet. The KISS principle will apply - Keep It Simple Stupid. Knock things down let the Stunty Skinks pick up the pieces.

As a result myself and the Dark Templar also intend to start a new team. This will mean that the teams are starting out at similar levels so it should even things up a bit.

Nurgle is the team that the Dark Templar is going for. They look like a very 'different' type of team with a good mix of possibilities. Disturbing Presence is a concern as it reduces D6 rolling for Throws, Catches and Intercepts by 1 and you only have to be within 3 squares for it to apply. Where as Foul Appearance means you have to roll 2+ in order to throw a block. They have a Beast of Nurgle, an unpredictable monster but slow with MA4. They also have strength 4, AV9, Nurgle Warriors but they are also slow at MA4. They are also high cost at 110,000 each. Well rounded Pestigors with MA6. Then finally Rottors who are similar to the Pestigors but do not have Regeneration.

These two teams are quite hard hitting and I think the Skinks will be amazing. I loved playing the Stunty Goblin in my Orc team. He was a star so I think that they will cause a bit of chaos.

I have a choice of 3 teams, where I already own models.

Option 1 - Dwarfs - I love them, but so slooooow.

Option 2 - Elves - Very tempted - AG4 - improves all dodging, passing, catching and there are some good starting skills too.

Option 3 - Amazons - Very tempted - I love the models. They are AG3 and very Dodge oriented. Emmm - now that sounds familiar and  I have not exactly been having a positive experience with that combination. The models do need some more paint and that would be fun.

The Decision

I am thinking that the Elves are very different to the Orcs and Skaven that I have already played so I plan to give them a go. Thinking of a name - the Celestial Unicorns kind of captures the spirit. All that prancing about, leaping through the air and tossing the ball around and thinking that they are god like creatures totally up their own **** - I never did like the Eldar and sometimes it just shows ;-)

They are very interesting indeed having both Throwers and Catchers as well as Blitzers. But the models are costly.

Blitzers

I am used to having 2 Blitzers, this being similar to the Skaven. I feel sure that they will be a vital component. Their stats are MA7, ST3, AG4, AV8. They are 110,000gp each and come with Block and Side Step. Side Step is new to me. Basically if a model with this skill is 'pushed back' the team coach chooses which square the model is moved to and it can be any adjacent square - not just the 3 behind him. That will be interesting and make them more survivable.

I can only take 2 of them. I reckon they are a 'must have' and plan to take both in the starting roster.

Thrower

Stats of MA6, ST3, AG4, AV7. They also come with Pass. This is very similar to the Skaven but he has a better AG by one point. This makes him better at picking the ball up and throwing.

I can take 2 of them costing 70,000gp each. I think I will start with 1.

Catchers

These are new to me and man they should be awesome. Stats of MA8, ST3, AG4, AV7 and they come with Catch and Nerves of steel. The MA of 8 makes them vey quick and the AG4 will help them to Dodge about and Catch the ball. Catch gives them the ability to reroll failed Catches. Nerves of Steel means that they ignore the opponents tackle zone modifiers when Passing, Catching or Intercepting. Now that is cool!! It means that I can move my Thrower up as close as possible - Throw to my Catcher (no matter how well marked he is) who can Catch with no negative modifiers, and then run up to 8 squares with the option to GFI twice more. I basically need to keep a Catcher within 8 of the end zone at all times to give me a quick score option.

I can take up to 4 of them in the team and they cost 100,000gp each. I really want all 4 because I know how important it is to start gathering SPP's as early as possible. There just won't be enough money for that though. I want at least 3 rerolls and they cost 50,000gp each. I think I will have to settle for taking 2 Catchers at the start.

That means that the starting roster would look like this:-

My top priority after this would be to get the Apothecary first and then the other two Catchers. That will be a lot of cash! I think I would also be expecting to lose a player or two to injuries what with having such a low AV.

I have selected suitable models and commenced work upgrading the very basic job that I had done previously. I started by applying a wash to everything and that took the flatness out of them. A lot to do to get them looking good - but looking forward to that.

Any thoughts?

I know that the Elves will receive a bit of a pounding and it is likely to be difficult in the beginning when I have limited numbers but they should be completely different to any team that we have played so far.

Typhus gets his feathers!

Well the mighty forces of Nurgle continue to dish out some serious pain. Ouch!!

The latest battle was 2000 points each side and we were using the new Dark Angels codex, and a few new models. I took the Landspeeder Vengeance, Ravenwing Darktalon and the the Deathwing Knights. So basically all my new models - well you got to see how they play and reading the codex only goes so far.

I came to the battle determined to be defensive. My overarching plan was to assault the Knights and Belial from the Landraider having dropped a stasis bomb on the unit that I wanted to hit. Hopefully the nurgle leadership squad. Chaos have to challenge in melee and I thought this would be the best way to sink Typhus.

Everything else should delay, distract and disrupt to increase the number of turns that I would have shooting.

This all went a bit 'pear shaped' when we rolled for our mission and we ended up having to gain control of a relic that was placed at the centre of the board and we had 'night fighting' in turn one. A full turn of lost shooting - not what I needed at all.

The set-up was from the corners and we pretty much faced off, each eying up the other with the objective between us. I pushed my forces to the right attempting to draw out the nurgle forces.

Moving my vehicles like this left me with good sight lines to the objective. I just needed to break open that land raider and the fun could begin. I felt the best way to do this was to send in my Venerable Dreadnought whilst taking pot shots with my lascannons.

My Darktalon arrived in turn 2 and I sent him down the left to play with a pack of 36 zombies (cadian zombies) whilst waiting for his big moment - the delivery of the stasis bomb!

I knew that I needed to thin out the zombies before I could engage them in melee. I learned that lesson in a previous game. I could have three good turns to do just that and in the mean time just keep away from them.

Things started to go wrong when I lost my Dreadnought and Razorback early on. This took a lot of 'threat' out of my force. My Vengence Land Speeder took out a Rhino that was advancing on my right flank and spilled the marines who in turn were shot up by my Innterogator-Chaplain and the unit of 5 that he had joined. We took some damage in return and then the Chaplain charged.

Then the Helldrake made its appearance.

My quad gun opened up on it as soon as it arrived. It was the reason that I had brought it. I knocked lumps out of the Helldrake but it was still alive and proceeded to rip up the right flank taking out my Vengance Landspeeder and a couple of units of marines. I couldn't use the quadgun in my next turn as it had fired during the chaos turn. It did take out the Helldrake in the following turn but the Helldrake had served its purpose. A job well done but my god that Helldrake is as awesome to face as it looks. Well done Dark Templar it is superb!!

Meanwhile the centre of the board was developing into a real feast of action.

Typhus launched his Landraider past the objective blocking line of sight for most of my remaining guys. A second squad of chaos marines excited their Rhino and snaffled the objective, leaving the Chaos Sorcerer free to to join in with Typhus.

The Defiler tore open my Landraider which meant that the Deathwing Knights had to deal with it, and they did. I do like their weapons.

Now came the big moment. Turn 5 and it was stasis bomb time!! My Darktalon swept over the massed troops and successfully bombed the Chaos marine squad. My Deathwing Knights were where they needed to be to engage the leadership group. The Challenges had to come.

And guess what - they did but from the Chaos Champion and the Chaos Sorcerer. Typhus did not step up to the plate.

It is on days like these that legends are created. On this day, February 10th in the year of our lord 2013 Typhus acquired his tail feathers along with a wonderfully crafted yellow stripe that will ever be visible to the forces of the Dark Angels. It is positioned directly along his spine!! lol.

The game ended at turn 5.

It was a chaos victory 4 - 0. They had the objective (3 victory points) and had taken 'first blood' (1 victory point). But physiologically Belial had the pleasure of remaining on the field and witnessing Typhus quiver. A good feeling indeed!

A very enjoyable day indeed. I have learned a lot, but more on that another time.

Battle Report - Dark Angels v Nurgle round 2.

The Dark Angels are licking their wounds after another defeat by Nurgle. Much closer this time and as usual much to learn.

I took the Aegis Defence Lines and lots of troops with the big old Quad-gun, Venerable Dreadnought, Vindicator, Rhino, Razorback and a couple of land speeders.

Aegis Defence Lines - This was my first time using them and what I have learned is that the set-up is very important!! Lets face it they can't be moved. Also just because you have the defence lines - don't think statically. Its important to maintain fluidity of thought and look for the best possible sight lines.

We rolled for the battle and got Vanguard Strike which meant we were playing corner to corner. This picture is the view The Dark Templar had from his deployment zone. The big thing here is the fact that there was lots of cover on the left due to the fact that we had a large wooded area and then we rolled for night fighting - yes indeed a dawn raid by Nurgle so the Dark Angels couldn't see for the first turn. I started to get a bad feeling.

However I also made a big mistake. I recognised the threat. Nurgle would come crashing through the wood and be on me before I could make use of my fire base. I should have placed the Aegis Defence Lines as far away from the wood as I could but I didn't.

I compounded the problem by placing the quad-gun in the worst place possible, right beside the wood. I also placed the Aegis Defence Lines in a straight line. The impact of this was that once battle was joined I had no line of fire. Note to self - make a 'V' shape to create supporting lines of fire and anchor the ends with a big old threat!

I also learned that 10 man squads can be broken down into 5 man 'combat squads'. I discovered this in the after match review. The problem with 10 man squads is that they have to shoot at the same thing and sometimes you need more agility. I could have sent the 5 man units out to slow the Nurgle advance. Anything to give me firing time.

I held a tactical unit in a rhino in reserve. I put the Devastators up high. Tactical squad and Command Squad on the right and then the Vindicator and Speeders to the left. I knew the direction of travel for Nurgle and wanted to give myself line of sight to the Rhinos.

Basically I put myself in a knot.

What I should have done was slide away from this position during turn one and move away from the wood into the far corner. Lets face it I couldn't see anything because of the night fighting. But I didn't.

The Battle

The battle itself was a blast and had its moments.

The Dark Templar set-up as close to the wood as the deployment zone would allow and we were off. The chequered flag was lowered and engines revved as the vehicles sped off to the safety of the wood. I moved the speeders and vindicators out and turn one was finished.

Then the fun started as two of the Rhinos got stuck in the wood (not part of the great plan) and then the 14 demons and the Great Unclean One arrived from reserve. The Dark Templar really wanted to apply the pressure and took a risk to get the  Big Boy in close. However there was a big scatter which resulted in me being able to place him anywhere I wanted on the board. - lol - hoots of laughter and joy.

Lets face it I put him along way from the Dark Angels army (right in the far corner of the board) and then shot him with the Quad-gun. It was sooooo funny!!

Then things got serious as the Nurgle forces arrived as expected. The leadership squad crashed into the Aegis Defence Lines - but then didn't get out of the Rhino! Huge mistake. If I could surround it and blow it up they would all be dead and I would have a winning position.

But where are those dice rolls when you need them? My tactical squad rolled low for moving through difficult terrain which was not a disaster as my Venerable Dread was also at hand but it too rolled really low and only moved 2 inches.

I destroyed the Rhino and everyone got out into the wreckage and the battle was truly joined.  The 14 demons arrived and survived the first round of shooting. I knew what was coming next. They charged the devastators and rolled 24 dice to hit with rerolls to wound. Incredibly only five hit!! Another laughter moment. However they hacked their way through my ranks for the next couple of turns.

The long slog of hand to hand then followed with the second and third units of Nurgle arriving together with the Nurgle Dread. I did take down the leader with his snazzy 'force stave'. I can't wait to see how this guy will turn out after painting. The Dark Templar has some cool ideas for him.

In the end I was beaten.

There were so many 'what if' moments and lots to be learned from both sides. A really enjoyable afternoon and a lot to think about. Thank you Dark Templar.