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Fan01_84_90 18/2/04 3:22 pm Page 84
Hit
’
Em Hard, and Hit
’
Em Often
A GUIDE TO BLOCKING IN BLOOD BOWL
By Ian ‘Double Skulls’ Williams
Blocking is one of the fundamental elements of Blood Bowl, and, for many of the ‘bashing’ teams it is absolutely
crucial to having a successful team. For many of the ‘flair’ teams it can be just as important to understand how
your opponent may exploit your weaknesses. Get your blocks wrong and you won’t win many games; get them
right and victory will be yours. This guide is intended to help coaches get the most out of their blocking.
The first thing you need to do is to understand the
strengths and weaknesses of your team and your
opponent’s. Try to block like Dwarfs when you are playing
Halflings, and you’ll probably lose, but going around
blocking everything in sight, can lead to disaster too. As
with everything in Blood Bowl, it’s all down to balance.
Chance of putting defender down with a 2 Dice Block
Attacker’s
Skills
Defender’s
Skills
None
Block Dodge Block/Dodge
None
56%
56%
31%
31%
Block
75%
56%
56%
31%
Pro
68%
68%
41%
41%
Block/Pro
84%
68%
68%
41%
SKILLS
The most important skill for blocking is Block. Block has
3 effects:
z
It massively reduces the chances of you falling over
when blocking. A 2 dice block without Block is 4 times
more likely to fail than one with Block. Players who do
the hitting need Block, otherwise they will burn team
re-rolls and cause turnovers.
Tackle isn’t included because it negates Dodge - so just
look at the appropriate defender column without Dodge.
Chance of falling over when blocking
3 dice
Defender’s
Choice
2 dice
Defender’s
Choice
2 dice
Attacker’s
Choice
3 dice
Attacker’s
Choice
Attacker
Skills
1 dice
None
70.4%
55.6% 33.3%
11.1% 3.7%
Block
42.1% 30.6%
16.7% 2.8%
0.5%
z
It increases your chances of putting opponents on
their backside. One extra pip on the dice doesn’t
sound much, but when rolling 2 dice it improves the
chances of putting your opponent on the ground by
36%. That means more opponents off the pitch and
more SPPs.
Pro
52.9% 39.5% 22.2%
4.9%
1.1%
Block/Pro
26.4%
18.5%
9.7% 0.9%
0.1%
STRENGTH
High Strength is important, but normally a skilled
Strength 3 player is better at blocking than an unskilled
Strength 4 player. An unskilled player making a 3 dice
block has less chance of putting an unskilled opponent
down than a 2 dice block with Block. On top of which the
player with Block has a considerably lower chance of
causing a turnover. Also a 1 dice block with Block on a
player with Dodge has a better chance of knocking them
down than a 2 dice block without Block.
z
Block stops you being put down by opponents that do
have Block; this is why so many receivers take Block.
It can also play havoc with an opponent’s blitz,
because he can’t guarantee either knocking you down
or pushing you back.
ARMOUR
The difference between AV7 and AV8 doesn’t sound like
much but it equates to a 50% higher chance of having your
armour broken. Similarly AV8 has 66% more armour
breaks than AV9. High Armour really is vital if you are
going to get hit. The combination of armour and skills
actually mean that an AV7 player with Block or Dodge is
still more likely to get hurt than an AV8 player without
either.
There are other skills that are important for blocking.
Dodge and Tackle are important because they affect the
amount of knock downs. At a later stage of development
Pro can also help out.
The table on the right really shows how dangerous it can
be to make 2 dice blocks if you don’t have Block. One
turnover in nine doesn’t sound like much, but what
happens if it’s the 1st block of your turn and you haven’t
even thought about the ball? What if you don’t have any
re-rolls?
ASSISTS
Make sure you understand who can give assists and who
can’t. Ending up making a 1 dice, or 2 dice opponent’s
choice block can be disastrous.
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Diagram 1.
In this example, neither B nor C can give an
assist against No.1 or No.2. So unless you have higher
Strength you can only make a 1 dice block.
Player A moves forward, from A to a, to give an assist
against No.1. Now B can block No.1 and then assist in C’s
block on No.2. If C were a Guard he could have given B an
assist against either No.1 or No.2, and then B could return
the
Diagram 3.
In the next example No.3 isn’t next to any
opponent, so can’t make a block, but if No.1 pushes
No.16 sideways then No.3 can block him in addition to
No.2 – this gives you 3 bites at the cherry, as well as
potentially allowing you to make a block with a player
who previously couldn’t.
Diagram 3
favour.
That would
mean that A
could
be used
3
elsewhere.
Diagram 1
16
2
1
1
2
B
a
C
Diagram 4.
Below, if B blocks No.1 then he can’t follow
up as he will no longer be able to assist as he will be
adjacent to No.3. So, by not following up, you are still
ensuring that C can block, without having to bring an
extra player in to give an assist.
Diagram 4
3
A
2
1
MAXIMISE THE NUMBER
OF BLOCKS YOU MAKE
The easiest way to win the blocking war is to hit them
more than they hit you. Want to knock that War Dancer
into the back of beyond? Hit him as much as you can. The
simple way to do this is to have as many players in contact
with your opponent at the beginning of your turn.
However, this isn’t very useful if they are all outnumbered
so make sure you have a reserve to commit.
Diagram 2.
You can see below a simple example of how
to maximise your blocks. If No.2 blocked No.16 and got a
push back, then No.1 can’t block him as he has to go
backwards. However if No.1 makes the initial block, and
only gets a push back, then he can follow and No.2 can
make another block. So you’ve just doubled your chances
of getting him down.
C
B
A
Diagram 2
16
1
2
Always watch out for the bigger opponents...
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Diagram 6
Diagram 5.
Use secondary push backs to get extra blocks.
A is prone, having been knocked over last turn. B now
blocks No.1. As all 3 squares behind No.1 are occupied
you can choose which one to push No.1 into. Make the
secondary push back into A. A now stands up and D gets
to block No.1 with an assist. If he only gets a push then C
gets another chance to hit No.1 too. Secondary push
backs can be very useful if you are in a crowd, both for
freeing your own players and for putting opponents into
a vulnerable square.
3
1
C
A
B
Diagram 5
D
Diagram 6.
Use your blitzes to get extra assists. In this
example C can only get a 1 dice block on No.1. So B
moves up to No.3, who A then blitzes, but A finishes his
blitz move next to No.1, allowing C to make a 2 dice
block.
A
2
3
1
Diagram 7.
Sometimes you can blitz, and then ensure that
another player will have a chance of blocking the
opponent if you only managed a push back. In the
diagram on the next page B starts prone. He stands up, A
comes in for the blitz and pushes No.1 next to C, so that
C can now get a second block against No.1.
C
B
★★★
Did you know...
The worst tackle on record happened in 2488 when six players from
Khain’s Killers
tried to bring
down Elfheim Eagle Star Thrower, Valen Swift, once and for all. As Khain’s men piled on the
seemingly helpless captain, a stunned Elfheim crowd held its breath. Long moments passed as the
refs pulled apart the bodies, but when the dust cleared, the Elf was still standing. Swift protest to
this day that rumours that it was only a projection of him are untrue!
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Diagram 7
FOLLOW UPS
First of all you can follow up when you knock opponents
down. Against average or low AG opponents this is quite
an effective way of tying them down. Against high AG
players they may well just dodge away, but at least you are
forcing them to roll dice.
B
A
1
C
HIT THEM BEFORE THEY HIT YOU
What you want to do is ensure that those players you want
to be blocking with are next to an opponent at the
beginning of your turn. Now moving all your players to
man mark the opposing team is normally a good way to
ensure that you get knocked into the back of beyond.
Sometimes it can be a brilliant idea against teams that are
outnumbered or hopeless at blocking.
Diagram 8.
In the example below A knocks over No.1.
Should he follow? If No.2 is also prone, yes. That way both
those players are tied up and neither can make a Block
action. If No.2 is not prone then the question becomes
more difficult as you are giving your opponent the
opportunity to block you back. If A has higher Strength
then often it will be a good idea to follow up, as not only
will No.1 have to stand up but at least one other player
will have to be thrown in to get a 2 dice block against you.
Saying that, if No.2 has Block and you don’t it is more
debatable.
Some teams (eg. Dwarfs) can risk putting a lot of their
players next to opponents at the end of their turn. High
Armour, Block on most players and probably some useful
skills, like Guard and Stand Firm, can cause opponents all
sorts of problems in their own turn. Most teams are not as
tough as Dwarfs, but still need to make their blocks count.
Norse are the perfect example of this. Having every player
start with Block makes them very effective when blocking,
but AV7 means getting hit hurts.
Diagram 8
2
1
Some teams, notably tree-hugging Wood Elves, are so
fragile that they need to avoid any contact at all. Very often
they will try to stand off, so that you can’t hit them. So,
how do you drag your opponent into your blocks and
avoid getting hit back?
B
A
If you have the same Strength then
you ought to expect to have a 2
dice block against you. Normally
that means you either have some
other reason for tying those
players up, or are well protected
against getting hurt (Block, Dodge
and/or high Armour). Also you
need to consider what happens if A
does follow, and gets blocked. Will
your opponent follow up and give
B a chance of blocking him next
turn? This can be a good way to
bring the battle to you – sacrifice a
few linemen to get the opponent
where you want him.
Even stronger players will not be able to open the way if you manage to cage ’em.
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Diagram 9.
In this example, because you have No.1 and
No.2 surrounded there is little risk associated with
following up – and next turn you ought to be able to block
both of them. You could choose to follow up with A, safe
in the knowledge that No.1 is now pinned by D and
doesn’t have any easy dodges out. Normally this sort of
situation will only occur if you’ve already managed to
remove a few opponents from the pitch.
Diagram 10.
In the next example the ball carrier is
vulnerable to being hit from the direction of the arrow. To
get a 1 dice block your opponent will have to mark B and
C. If the ball carrier does get hit then he can only be
pushed into the empty squares to the right – so even if the
ball pops loose it’s very likely to remain in at least one of
your player’s tackle zone – and probably inside the cage.
With your opponent’s blitz used he may try to swamp the
players around the ball with additional tackle zones to
make your next turn harder – so hopefully you’ve
managed to suck in a sizeable proportion of his team. I
would not recommend this sort of play if you haven’t got
any team re-rolls left.
Diagram 9
D
C
2
Diagram 10
D
G
1
F
A
B
B
SUCKING THE OPPONENT IN
If you are up against some pansy Elf, or other cowardly
opponent who doesn’t want to get stuck in, then
sometimes you have to lure them on to you. On offence
this normally means giving them a chance of blitzing the
ball carrier. Make no mistake that this is a risky play, some
lucky blocks, and a bad scatter, can result in you getting
turned over and having the ignominy of being scored
against.
A
C
The Ogre’s ‘sucker in’ the Elves, as explained on diagram 10.
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