Blood Bowl Compendium 2

BLOOD BOWL COMPENDIUM # 2
WELCOME TO THE SECOND BLOOD BOWL COMPENDIUM

By Jervis Johnson
Originally published in Blood Bowl Compendium #2
Copyright Games Workshop Ltd. 1999
I see from the contents page that Steve thinks I have a ‘few wise words’ to share with you. Well, I don’t know about the
wise bit, but I can manage the words… on a good day, anyway! What I’d like to talk about is the role of the Commissioner
in running a league. This was sparked off by an email I received recently about Blood Bowl. The email concerned a set of
Q&A that I had answered, and the writer anted to know which of my answers were ‘official errata’ and which were ‘house
rules’ that I’d made up on the spot.
I have to admit that I found it very difficult to answer this question. This was partially because I’d answered the Q&A so
long ago that I couldn’t remember which was which, but also because I don’t think of the answers that I give in that way.
Basically, what you get in the Blood Bowl and Deathzone rules is my explanation of how I ran the Studio’s Blood Bowl
League. In effect, all of the Blood Bowl rules are my ‘house rules’ – they are not (contrary to popular belief) handed down
to me on tablets of stone on a mountaintop. As the Commissioner of the Studio League, I would enforce the rules I had
written down as best I could and would modify and change them, as I felt fit. If a question came up I referred to the rules
but if I found that the answer was unfair or just ‘felt wrong’, then I changed the rules without a qualm or second thought. If
the answer wasn’t there at all, then I just made up an answer on the spot. Sometimes it turned out that my first answer
was wrong (I know, I know, I found it hard to believe that I was fallible too), but when this happened I’d simply change my
mind later on and go over to the new ruling from that point on. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t change the rules willy-nilly –
you’ll soon lose all your coaches if you muck them about too much – but when something needed fixing I stepped in and
fixed it.
The point I’m making is, as the Commissioner of the Studio League, the buck stopped with me – I was the ultimate arbiter
of the rules and my word was law. But with this power went the responsibility of making sure the league was fun. What’s
more, Blood Bowl is designed on the assumption that all Leagues will have their own Commissioner who will act in the
same manner as I did and has the same powers and responsibilities. So, my words of wisdom to all Blood Bowl League
Commissioners out there is to take hold of your league and run it your won way. If rules need changing, then change
them. If coaches come up with rules questions then answer them. Be fair, but be tough. And if anyone says ‘Hey, Jervis
Johnson answered that question differently’, say to them ‘Jervis Johnson, what the hell does he know? This is my league
and we run it my way!’.
Have fun!
Jervis Johnson
MAKING GREEN MEAN

New, less-than-secret weapons for Orc and Goblin teams
By Guy Simpson (Gsimpson2@aol.com)
Copyright Games Workshop LTD 1999
SNOTLING PUMP WAGON
Penalty Roll: 7+
After a rather bloody display of Dwarf brutality – crushing nine unlucky goblins under a rampaging Deathroller, the Bog
Boyz Head Coach, Grot Bilegut, was heard to exclaim, "We’z gotta get wun of dem zoggin fings!" With a bit of brewed
inspiration, the next time the Bog Boyz took to the pitch they were accompanied by their "zoggin" Pump Wagon. The
Pump Wagon is very popular with Blood Bowl fans as it rocks and teeters while sputtering forward leaving a trail of broken
bodies in its wake.
A Pump Wagon is treated like a normal player, a very unique and highly annoying one, using the characteristics and skills
in a similar fashion to the dreaded Dwarf Deathroller. To reflect the contraption’s properties, the following special rules
apply.
The Pump Wagon is too large and unpredictable to be tackled, therefore it can ignore enemy tackle zones when it moves
– it never has to make Dodge roll. The speed of the Pump Wagon tends to be unpredictable as the crew squabble over
which of them is going to operate the pump. This means that the contraption tends to go forward in fits and starts,
sometimes quite quickly but at other times embarrissingly slowly. The Snotlings onboard steer the Pump Wagon by
leaning precariously to one side or the other. The Coach has little or no control over the Pump Wagon. To represent
this,place the Throw-In Template over the front end of the Pump Wagon and roll for its heading. Should the Pump Wagon
slam into any player, standing or prone, (friend or foe) the Snotlings sway back and forth from the impact, and the Pump
Wagon lurches onward in a new direction, until the determined number of squares have been moved. The Pump Wagon
fails a Block by getting itself knocked over, or if it careens of the pitch into the stands or dugout. The Pump Wagon may
never attempt to Go-For-It to move extra squares. Once the direction has been derermned, the Pump Wagon can move
D6+1 movement per Team Turn, simply roll for movement. The Pump Wagon must use all of its alloted move unless it
goes off of the pitch or is knocked over.
A Pump Wagon is most deadly when rolling over the top of prone players (friends or foes, Snotlings don’t discriminate)
who cannot get out of the way. To represent this, add +6 to the Armor roll to see if the prone player is injured. The use of
the Pump Wagon does not count as the team Blitz or Foul action.
The Snotlings onboard the Pump Wagon are too busy attempting to annoy other players, or frantically working the pump,
therefore the Pump Wagon may never attempt to pick up the ball or carry it in any way. Moving through a square with the
ball in it causes the ball to scatter. A Pump Wagon knocked over by a Block, Wizard’s spell, or Special Play card, or which
suffers an injury in any way, is considered wrecked for the rest of the game. Remove it from the play and place it in the
Dead and Injured box of the dugout. The Pump Wagon is considered damaged, but may be repaired before the next
match if the team has hired a Mekanik (see rules below).
Should the Pump Wagon rumble off the pitch and into the stands, roll four D6 to determine the numbe of crowd casualties
caused, then make an Injury roll for the Pump Wagon, to determine possible damage. If the result is Stunned, the Pump
Wagon is considered stuck in the stands for the rest of the game. A curious benefit of this crowd carnage is that the
fanslove going to games where there is the chance for high casualty counts on the field, or in the stands. Therefore, for
every 50 crowd casualties caused by the Pump Wagon, or any other secret weapon, the team’s Fan Factor is
permanently increased by one. Should the Pump Wagon go off into either dugout, roll a D6 to determine the number of
players and/or coaching staff (including Cheerleaders) that fail to jump out of hte way of the manic Pump Wagon.
Randomize the victims from the available personnel and roll for injuries for each of the victims. At the end of this carnage,
conduct an Injury roll for the crashed Pump Wagon. If the result is Stunned and the Pump Wagon is in the opponent’s
dugout, consider it stuck until the end of the game. If it is in the Coach’s own dugout, it is placed in the Reserves box and
can enter the game again at the next opportunity.
ANNOYING SKILL
The Snotlings aboard the Pump Wagon have the unique ability to annoy any adjacent player with their assorted sling-
shots, poky sticks, or thrown objects, into a distracted enraged immobility. The Snotlings may do this either before or after
the Pump Wagon has moved. Annoying other players is a free action, and does not interfere with any other actions the
Pump Wagon might do. The Snotlings may annoy any, or all adjacent opposing players. Choose the first player the
Snotlings attempting to annoy and roll a D6. If the score is greater than the victim’s Agility, then the victim is Annoyed and
loses their tackle zone for the rest of the Team Turn. If the score o fthe dice is less than or equal to the opponent’s Agility
then the Snotlings have failed to annoy their victim. Subsequent players the Snotlings attempt to annoy during the same
turn are subject to a cumulative -1 modifier on their Agility roll (e.g. -1 for second player, -2 for third player, etc...), which
represents the diminished efforts of the little buggers to concentrate their annoying efforts on more than one player.
BAT-WINGED LOONEY (GOBLIN DOOM DIVER)
Penalty Roll: 8+
After observing his tribe in a hard fought skirmish, the Bog Boyz Head Coach, Grot Bilegit, marvelled at the aerial
efficiency of his tribe’s Doom Divers. A thought occured to him – a very dangerous thing for a Gobbo, "We’z needz to get
wun of dem zoggin bat-winged loonies. Wif wun of dem fings we'z can kill dem zoggin geezerz in lotza armor. We’z won’t
need no zoggin frowerz to get da ball far ‘nough to score wun of dem tuchdurn fings!" The Doom Diver is a rather flashy
and thoroughly loony Goblin – the perfect sort of Blood Bowl player. The Doom Diver can be both an offensive threat,
ready to score any time. Or a defensive force to be reckoned swooping down from above.
The Doom Diver is a unique player as it consists of two necessary components, the Bat-Winged Loony and the Catapult.
To reflect the Doom Diver’s properties, the following special rules apply.
The Catapult does not count as an individual player for roster purposes, but does figure into the team rating. The Catapult
model, because of its design, occupies 2 squares upon the pitch, one with the catapult itself and a second with the
slingshot band and hook. The Catapult cannot be moved while it sits in an opponent’s tackle zone. The speed at which
the Catapult is moved is dependent on the Movement Allowance (MA) of the player moving it. The Catapult requires a
player with Strength 2 to move it. The Catapult may be moved by any adjacent player the distance of their MA. The
Catapult can be blocked by an opponent, hence its ST and AV characteristics. If it is Injured, place it in the Dead and
Injured box of the dugout and consider it damaged. A Mekanik may attempt to fix it before the next match, (see rules
later). The Cataqpult cannot be moved and fired in the same turn. A Catapult can be shared by more than one Looy,
however only one Loony can be launced from a given Catapult per Team Turn.
While on the ground the Bat-Winged Loony is just another goblin, albiet a snazzier dressed one, with the wings and all.
He may gain SPP’s, new skills, and suffer injuries as normal. What separates teh Loony from the other Goblins is his kit
and his ‘need’ to fly. A team may hire no more than four Bat-Winged Loonies. A Bat-Winged Loony lives to be launched
into the sky, either by his Catapult or by a Big Guy with the Thow Team-Mate skill. The loony may use his Flyer skill in
either instance.
When using the Catapult to launce a Loony, the following rules apply. The Loony must be adjacent to the Catapult,
directly behing the slingshot band and hook. The Coach must then declare his intended target anywhere on the pitch. He
then takes three target markers (prepared card discs an inch and a half in diameter), two of which are false and places
them (face down) on the board. The third marker with a stylised ‘X marks the spot’ is the true target. He may place them
in the desired squares, anywhere to the front of the Catapult on the pitch. The true target, is in this way slightly concealed
from the opponent, since it is extremely difficult to accurately judge where the target actually is simply by watching the
Loony as he spastically rockets into the air. Then a single Blocking dice is rolled to determine if there was a misfire. A
‘Skull’ result means the Catapult has misfired – roll on the Misfire Table below. On any subsequent launces from this
Catapult during the same game, both the ‘Skull’ and ‘Both Down’ results in a misfire. If there isn’t a misfire, the Bat-
Winged Loony is launched skyward, ending his turn. He will not land until the following Team Turn. At the beginning of the
Coach’s next Team Turn resolve the landing.
If the intended target is an empty square, and the Loony is attempting to land ‘softly’, follow these rules: Roll a D6, on a
result of 5+ the Loony lands bang on target. If the results of the roll indicate a scatter (not on target), then place the
Scatter Template over the target square and roll for the direction the Loony has drifted. Roll a D6 to determine how many
squares the Loony has over-shot. Once a final destination has been determined, make an Agility roll and apply Landing
Modifiers to the results of the roll. See ‘Landing’ in the Throw Team-Mates section of the Blood Bowl Handbook.
If the target square is occupied, or was when first declared, a Loony cannot decide to go for the soft landing if the player
he targeted has fled the target square. Follow the above rules to determine the accuracy of the Loony and his final
destination. But, because the loony has plummeted from the skies, spiked helmet first, he is very deadly. Should a player
be occupying the destination square immediately roll for their Armor with a +4 modifier, any subsequent Injury roll is made
with a +2 modifier. Then any players occupying an adjacent square to the target square must make an Agility roll to avoid
being hit by the Loony. Armor and Injury rolls if hit will be taken with a +1 modifier. Finally, resolve the fate of the Loony.
The opposing coach may make an Injury roll for the Loony, with a +2 modifier, to determine the extent of the Loony’s
injuries.
Should the Loony land in the stands, roll 2D6 to determine the number of crowd casualties caused. Then your opponent
may make an Injury roll, with a +2 modifier, to determine the extent of the injuries suffered from the impact. If the result is
‘Stunned’ the loony is just considered stuck spiked helmet first in the stands for the rest of the game. A curious benefit of
theis crowd carnage is that fans love going to games where there is the chance for high casualty counts on the field, or in
the stands. So, for every 50 crowd casualties caused bythe Loony, or any other secret weapons, the team’s Fan Factor is
permanently increased by one. Should the Loony land in either dugout, roll a D6 to determine the number of players
and/or coaching staff (including Cheerleaders) that fail to jump out of the way of the rapidly descending Loony.
Randomize the victims from the available personnel. Roll for injuries for each of the victims, with a +2 modifier. At the end
of this carnage conduct an Injury roll for the crashed Loony, again with a +2 modifier. If the result is ‘Stunned’ and the
Loony is in the opponent’s dugout, consider his spike stuck until after the end of the game. If the Loony is in the coach’s
own dugout, he is placed in the Reserves box and can enter the game again at the next opportunity.
DOOM DIVER CATAPULT SUMMARY
1. Loony is adjacent to Catapult, declare target, open space or occupied space, place target markers.
2. Roll Blocking dice for misfire, refer to Misfire Chart if necessary.
3. Next turn. Reveal target markers, roll D6, if result is 5+, Loony is on target.
4. If Loony is not on target, place Scatter Template over target square, roll D8 for scatter direction, and roll D6 for
distance. Loony may use Flyer skill to attempt to correct his flight path.
5. If going for ‘soft’ landing, resolve Landing Agility roll. Do not proceed any further in this summary.
6. If going for a player, single player in landing square requires Armor and Injury roll with +2 modifier. Adjacent
players may make an Agility roll to avoid being hit. If they are hit make Armor and Injury rolls as needed both with
a +1 modifier. Opponent rolls for Loony injury with a +2 modifier.
7. Failing to hit a player is not a turnover, but the Loony is subject to an Injury roll with a +2 modifier.
FLYER SKILL
A player with this skill, and equipped with the proper kit, has the ability to steer himself as he flies toward his target
destination. He can correct his flight path should he veer away from teh target. If the destination is off target, he may
attempt to head back towards the original target. Roll a D6 and move the distance back towards the target the number of
squares indicated by the roll. If this amount is more than the distance back to the target, he has over compensated and
lands in the new destination square (the full distance of the roll).
TARGET MARKERS
You can easily make some of these from thick card. Draw and then cut out three circles about one and a half inches in
diameter, with a target on one side, and a result on the other so that you may disguise which one is the true target
marker.
Goblin Mekanik
Cost: 60,000 gold pieces
This mechanically inclined, toolbox-packing Goblin may attempt to repair a damaged sectet weapon in between matches.
Roll a D6 for each repair attempted. On a score of 4+ the industrious little Gobbo suceeds and the weapon may be used
as normal in the upcoming match. Failure of this roll means that the Mekanik will have to tinker with the damaged weapon
until the match after the upcoming one. Because of this extra time, a cumulative +1 modifier is added to each additional
roll required until the weapon is repaired. A natural roll of 1 is always a failure.
MISFIRE CHART
1D6 Result
1-2 DAMAGED. Catapult is broken and cannot be used again until it is repaired by a Mekanik.
3-4 DISABLED. Catapult needs tinkering. A player must spend the next entire Team Turn working on it. It can then be fired ag
team turn.
5 BOUNCE. The Loony slips and is shot more or less horizontally forward, bouncing along on his belly until he htis somethi
D6+10 squares, and hits teh first thng in his path. If he hits a player, consider it a ST6 Block against the victim and resolv
outcome, the opponent may make an Armor roll to see if the Loony is injured.
6 WILD SHOT. Catapult slips in its mounting, spinning around and launching the Loony randomly into a high arc in the air. P
Template over the Catapult, roll for direction, then determine the distance travelled by rolling a D6+5 squares. Resolve th
the Loony had targeted a player. The Loony may not use the Flyer skill.
Bat-Winged Loony
Cost MA ST AG AV Skills Special
50,000 gp 6 2 3 7 Dodge, Right Stuff, Stunty Flyer Chaos
Doom Diver Catapult
50,000 gp - 4 - 9 None None Chaos
Snotling Pump Wagon

150,000 gp D6+1 7 1 9 Mighty Blow, Multiple Block, Stand Firm Annoying Go
BEER AIN'T EVERYTHING,

IT'S THE ONLY THING!
The Norse in Blood Bowl by Jervis Johnson
The long awaited Norse Team are here in all their beer swilling glory. Jerv quaffs a few ales to get in the mood
for a good punch up, er, game...
Originally published in White Dwarf #223, Blood Bowl Compendium #2, and Blood Bowl Magazine #1
UP NORTH
The Norse inhabit a cold and frozen land to the north of the Old World. Norsca's not all that nice a place really;
it is harsh winter for nine months of the year for a start, the summers aren't much better, the nearest neighbours
are Chaos Warriors, who will insist on mounting raids all the time – as if the parties weren't bad enough - and
because it's so difficult to grow crops, the staple diet is dried elk flesh and a local, very smelly delicacy called
rotted herring. it's little wonder then that your average Norse warrior therefore only thinks about two things:
"Where's my next pint?" and "How the hell do I get out of this place?"
And that's where Blood Bowl comes in. Let's face it, if winter is about to set in and all you've got to look
forward to is the neighbours calling round, or finishing off the last of the rotted herring, and then you hear that
the local Blood Bowl team are looking for players for the l.ustrian tour, what are yo going to do? That's right, u
you're going to break out your spare iron jockstrap, shoulder that last barrel of beer, and set off for the team
long-ship pronto!
So it is that Norse teams are a common and very, very raucous feature of most Blood Bowl tournaments and
leagues. The Norse actually make quite good Blood Bowl players; they are brutal, not too bright, very tough,
and they love a good punch-up - and that's when they're sober! After a few pints of strong Norse beer, these
charming features of t I he Norse character are, erm, emphasised, and of course the players' alcoholic daze
occasionally results in them forgetting all about little things like scoring touchdowns, in favour of duffing up
the opposing teams' players and trying to chat up their cheer-leaders.

***Did you know...
One of the best sequences of victories in the history o f the Asgard Ravens came during the players' strike of 2477. The Ravens won 5 out of 5 games during this period. 7be
owners had tried to draft in extra players, but failed, and were forced to field the Valhalla Chorus - the team's cheerleaders. As a member of the Lowdown Rats put it: "We don'
mind geddin' a beatin' sumtimz, but dose wimmin wuz danjerus!"
TEAM PROFILE: THE NORSCA RAMPAGERS
Team Colours: Blue & Bear Skin Players: Norse Head Coach: Magnus ‘Axeface’ Manglesson
For many years the Rampagers were known as the Vynheim Valkyries, but following the breakup of the NAF and the subsequent pulling out of their long-time backers
'Skalgrimm & Hoist Associates' (producers of 'fine rotted herring'), the Valkyries changed their name and went freelance. The new look team has proved every bit as brutally
effective as the old, and the players much prefer the new life-style as it means that they don't have to go home to freezing cold Norsca for any home games.
2442 Fishermen cut-off in Vynheim for the winter decide that their knockabout games of football should be made official, and a proper team is established.
Being a team of berserkers, they soon thrash the living daylights out of every two-bit team in their league, and go professional the next year with financial
help from Skalgrimm & Hoist Associates (Fish Processing Made Fun!)
2463 In a shock result the Rampagers (then still the Valkyries) trash favourites, the Reikiand Reavers, in the Blood Bowl final at Longship Stadium. Some
cynics suggest that it was unwise for the Reavers to play on ice without prior practice, and even sillier to play in flat-soled shoes and short-sleeved shirts!
The Rampagers modestly put it down to sheer skill.
2474 The Gouged Eye are more prepared when they meet Vynheim, but reckon without the quite extraordinary tactics of aptly-named ‘Axeface'
Manglesson, who accounts for all but one of the Gouged Eye's first eleven, leaving the rest of the team the simple task of running the ball up the field to
win.
2489 The collapse of the NAF leads Skalgrimm & Hoist to withdraw their sponsorship. The outraged team storms the company's headquarters, burning the
entire plant to the ground, and making off with most of the board who are later ransomed back for a huge sum. The Valkyries go into hiding and then
change their name to the Norsca Rampagers. Players in the new team deny any involvement in the incident, blaming it on 'those other Norse players what
were in the Valkyries'. Investigating officials decide not to press the matter after one of the party gets involved in an unfortunate 'team training' accident.
Present Following the sad demise of head coach Mad Jake McDeath - who died of apoplexy while bawling the team out after a 5-0 loss to the Moot
Mighties - the team is rejoined by ‘Axeface' Manglesson who comes out of retirement to become the new team's head coach. Under his exacting, if
uniquely brutal, coaching regime the
Rampagers start to go from strength to strength, and many pundits have now named them as a 'team to watch'.
Team Honours: Blood Bowl Winners: 2463 (111), 2474 (XM. Orcidas Team Of The Year: 2487 . Spike! Magazine Team Most Likely To Cause Total Mayhem: 2488, 2498.
Hall Of Fame: Gregor Lukash, Magnus 'Axeface' Manglesson, Stefan Spearstaff
Famous Norse Teams: Norsca Rampagers (ex Vynheim Valkyries), Arctic Cragspiders, Asgard Ravens

NORSE TEAMS
Norse teams have a well deserved reputation for ferocity both on and off the playing field. The average Norseman is a homicidal maniac at the best of times, largely brought about
by a life of and vast quantities of stomach-stripping drink. But melancholic solitude for half of every year
the Norse that takes up Blood Bowl is a truly unedifying specimen, interested only in beer, women and song off the playing field, and beer, women and bloody carnage while on
it!
Qty Title Cost MA ST AG AV Skills
0-12 Norse Lineman 50,000 6 3 3 7 Block
0-2 Norse Catcher 70,000 6 3 3 7 Block, Catch
0-2 Norse Thrower 70,000 6 3 3 7 Block, Pass
0-4 Norse Blitzer 90,000 6 3 3 7 Block, Frenzy, Leap Up
Re-roll counter: 60,000 gold pieces each
Norse gain skills in the same way as Human teams (I.e Norse Linemen as Human Linemen, etc.)
NORSE DRINKING SONG

Drinking, drinking, drinking.
Drinking 'til I'm drunk.
Standing up, falling down,
getting in a fight,
Punching someone's lights out,
falling on the floor,
Waking up next morning,
Then getting drunk some more!
(Repeat ad infinitum until someone asks you to stop,
duff them over, then start again!)
* * * Did you know..
Blood Bowl has a growing and very enthusiastic following in Norsca, which is hardly surprising considering the Norse love of
anything in the slightest bit violent. Norse teams are not renowned for their subtle tactics, and have been known to forget all about
the ball in their rush to inflict severe and, if possible, crippling damage on the opposition!
BRINGING LIZARDMAN TEAMS UP TO DATE

By Andy Meechan with prompting by Patrick Riley

The following rules are my personal amendments to the articles in the Blood Bowl Compendium. Feel free to add them
into your games whenever playing Lizardmen and the Compendium rules; of course you will have asked your opponent’s
permission beforehand...
BIG GUYS
What other races’ Star Players can play for the Lizardmen and who can hire or be hired by Lizardmen?
The Lizardmen team cannot hire other race’s Star Players, nor can the Lizardmen Star Plaers be hired by others; so
there’s no need to modify your Star Player cards! (they are Lizardmen, after all, and don’t particularly like many of the
other races!)
For Allied team rules, amend the table on page 35 of the first Blood Bowl Compendium as follows:
Team May Ally With

High Elf Human, Lizardmen, Wood Elf
Human Dwarf, Halfling, High Elf, Lizardman, Ogre, Wood Elf
Lizardmen High Elf, Human
WIZARDS AND WEAPONS
Does the Lustrian Team Wizard have any interesting abilities? A Slann Mage Priest can be hired and has the
same abilities as the High Elf Wizard. Slann Mage Priests are actually even better at ‘stargazing’ than High Elves.
But have the same ability in the game as tehy tend to plan things on a granderscale and thus find it beneath
themselves to make predictions for a single game.
Alternatively, you could purchase a Skink wizard for 75,000 who will cast ZAP! (and only ZAP!) once per match.
WELCOME TO THE CHEAP SEATS
Is there anything novel about Lizardman stadiums?
Skaven teams better beware! Visiting Skaven teams’ fans are likely to be sacrificed to the Slann gods and so
rolling a 6 on a D6, before the match, means that half of hte Skaven team’s fans don’t show (halve Fan Factor,
rounded up), they have mysteriously disappeared and the Lizardmen have many to sacrifice! If the Skaven go on
to lose the match, apply a further -1 to the Fan Factor roll as a few of the fans that did turn up were ‘ahem’
offered up to the gods. Winning allows the Skaven Coach to add another +1 to the Fan Factor roll as the team
returns triumphant to Skavenblight.
LEAPING LIZARDS!
It’s mentioned that the Kroxigors cannot gain other Physical Abilities (that’s fair), but can they lose the
BoneHead (anti)skill, if tehy roll a double when rolling for skills? Kroxigor are treated the same as every other
Big Guy: on doubles they cannot choose any skill, but can either add ST, AV or remove an unwanted skill... and
all this after double SPPs are required!
New Star Players

By Phil Lowles
Originally published in Citadel Journal #9 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2
‘Greetings Blood Bowl fans and welcome to a star studded evening here at the Blood Bowl Players Benefit Ball. All of the
big names are here- Griff, Morg, Varag and of course your ever present adventurous, intrepid, been where no Man has
been before, news reporters Jim and Bob.’
‘That’s right Jim.This is the Blood Bowl Players Benefit Ball and there is a great line up of events tonight. Firstly the
Skavenblight Scramblers accept the blood Bowl trophy and make a Squeech about their victory last season, then this
years rookie star players fresh from the colleges are introduced alongside some old favourites making a return to the
game this coming year and finally we have a great big dinner here at the Altdorf Conference Castle.’
‘Yummy, I can’t wait to taste it Bob. So without further ado we shall introduce this years rookies players. Hmm, pass me a
chicken wing will you Bob.’

Griegor Miessen
Griegor Miessen, not to be confused with the late great Sure-Handed Griegor Miessen of the Riekland Reavers, has been
living up to his namesakes ability at the Nuln College of Advanced Mathematics, where he has caught 320 passes last
year alone. This year sees a big move into the High Finance world of Blood Bowl. Rumour has it that several teams are
very interested in him but the Reavers have yet to make comment on their latest star. Perhaps they are not entirely sure
they want another Griegor at the club. Whatever team he eventually signs for there is no doubt he will be a big star in
years to come.
Roxanna Darknail
They call her the Sleek Fox at Naggaroth Young Ladies Finishing School. She has rushed 1255 paces this season and
scored a massive 46 Touchdowns and she surprisingly has 14 Casualties to her name. Many teams are interested in her
and a few even want her to play for them including the Nightmares, the Assassins and the Cowboys. Roxanna looks set
to race down the Blood Bowl fields during this years tournaments, setting new records in every aspect of the game.
Zorn ‘Sabre Tooth’ Ukzrag
Zorn is no rookie, but we have included him here because he is one to watch in the up and coming season. Zorn has
played for the Zharr-Naggrund Ziggurats for many years no and is second only to Hthark the Unstoppable in casualties.
The land of perpetual smoke is no easy place to live but Zorn has had a real go at it and is now one of the top Chaos
Dwarf Blockers in the business. This season he intends to double his casualties and gain world recognition for his talents.
Clearwater Everglade
The new Wood Elf sensation is Thrower Clearwater Everglade. His passing is so precise you would swear magic was
involved. At the Loren Forest College he bet he could hit a moving bird a hundred paces away with a football and walked
away 100 GP richer. Many top Wood Elf teams are bidding for Slearwater’s excellent throwing and one day he may be
the top Elf Thrower in the world.
Jobo Hairyfoot
The smallest rookie causing a stir this year is Jobo Hairyfoot. As Halflings go he is quite slim and athletic and has been
racing past the other Halflings at the Mootland College of Catering since he got there four years ago. Now he is ready for
the hardships of professional football. It is reported that he has signed for the Grasshuggers but no official announcement
has yet been made. Whoever he plays with he could be the best Halfling player ever.
Drumgrin Quickstride
Hold onto yourself. This is a Dwarf Runner and he is fast. Don’t laugh, wait until he has run past you and left you in the
dust then you can laugh if you feel like it. He has set a record at the Barak Varr All Dwarf College for all kinds of running
competitions and has scored 26 touchdowns for the Barak Varr College Team. In the upcoming tournaments he may well
be lining up for the Giants, warhammers, Grudgebearers or any of the other teams who are interested in signing him.
Drumgrin has a few things to think about so we will leave him for a month or two so he can choose.
Valen Swift
One of our old favourites is back after a 12 year absence from the game. Valen Swift, brother of Galadrieth Gladiators
Lucien Swift, has returned to play for the fallen Elflheim Eagles who were at a record low last year. Some critics say he is
better than he was before, having thrown 94% completions during practice this last month. Rumour has it that he has
rejoined the Blood Bowl circuit because of a bet with his brother. Whatever the reasons for his return it’s likely we could
see the Eagles return to the top of the throwing game once again.
Erik Kantona
Erik is undoubtedly one otf the most brilliant Blood Bowl players ever. Originating from Bretonnia, Erik has led a long if
infamous career. As a rookie, Erik was spotted by the coach of the Bright Crusaders. During the ‘Crush’, Erik barged past
Pgres, Minotaurs and untold other monsters to get through the door first and into the arms of a Bright Crusaders contract.
Erik soon started to prove himself as a gifted player, however his personality suffered from one flaw. An extremely short
fuse even for a Blood Bowl player. Erik’s career with the Bright Crusaders came to an end two seasons after joining the
team when his arguments with the board of directors over player sellections for the Cup Finals became physical. Several
directors lost teeth and suffered broken noses as Erik practiced his famous ‘drop kick’ seen so many times on the Blood
Bowl field. Unfortunately the blood Bowl field is where it should have stayed. In the aftermath Erik was sacked from the
Bright Crusaders and the directors used their positions of power to ensure that Erik never worked for a Bretonnian team
again.
Erik packed his bags and caught the next stage to the Empire where many teams were offering lucrative deals and
sponsorship, willing to risk the Bretonnian’s quick temper in order to have his superlative skills on their blood Bowl team.
Erik spent a season with Leitdorf United, but the team were unwilling to change their tactics to allow Erik to work his
magic in the field. Since then Erikk has taken a transfer to superteam Middenham United where he is due to start playing
in the next tournament. Officials say that secret deals mean we could see the Drop Kick on our fields during the next few
tournaments and we can’t wait to see that action!
Special rules: Kantona Kick (Penalty Roll +9)
Instead of making a block Erik may drop kick against an adjacent opponent. Erik makes a spectacular drop kick striking
the player as hard and as high as he can. When Erik does this he counts as having the same ST as the opponent, so
make a one dice block. On a pushed back result the player just steps back away from the wild attack and Erik falls to the
floor and must make an armour roll. On a knocked down result the opponent is knocked down and adds 3 to the armour
roll for the kick in the face. On an attacker down result Erik has missed completely and done himself an injury. Make an
injury roll for Erikas he clutches himself on the floor.
If Erik is standing adjacent to the edge of the pitch then he may make a Kantona Kick against the crowd. The crowd count
as having the same strength as Erik so it is a one dice block. If the result is a Push back then Erik has a quick tussle with
some fans before returning to the game. If the result is Defender goes down, then Erik has landed one of his famous
drop-kicks on a fan, your opponents fan-factor is reduced by one permanently. If the result is attacker goes down, the Erik
is mobbed by angry fans and is pulled off the field as normal, however, the crowd is so enraged at Erik attacking them
that they count as having the Mighty Blow skill.
Every time Erik makes a Kantona Kick he must make a penalty roll to avoid being sent off. Erik does not make a penalty
roll after eack touchdown. In this way a Kantona Kick works much more like a foul than a secret weapon. Erik currently
holds the record for the most sent off player, at 34 last year it is not likely to be beaten. He just does not know when to
quit!
NAME POSITION COST MV ST AG AV SKILLS SPECIAL TE
Valen Swift Phoenix Warrior 165,000 6 3 4 8 Accurate, Hail Mary Pass, Pass, None High
Safe Throw, Sure Hands
Drumgrimm Quickstride Dwarf Runner 140,000 6 3 3 8 Sure Hands, Thick Skull, Sprint, None Dwar
Sure Feet
Jobo Hairyfoot Halfling 60,000 6 2 3 6 Right Stuff, Dodge, Stunty, Sprint, None Halfli
Sure Feet
Roxanna Darknail Witch Elf 160,000 8 3 5 7 Frenzy, Dodge, Leap, Jump Up, None Dark
Sprint
Zorn Uzkrag Chaos Dwarf 140,000 4 4 2 9 Block, Tackle, Thick Skull, Mighty None Chao
Blow
Clearwater Everglade Wood Elf Thrower 140,000 7 3 4 7 Pass, Sure Hands, Dump Off, None Wood
Safe Throw
Greigor Miessen Human Catcher 150,000 8 2 3 7 Catch, Dodge, Sure Feet, Diving None Huma
Catch, Sidestep
Erik Kantona Human Lineman 150,000 7 3 4 8 Block, Mighty Blow, Dirty Player Kantona Kick Huma
OUT ON THE TOWN

By Joel Hainstock
Blood Bowl coaches are some of the most devious men alive, and they will often go to any lengths to gain some small
advantage for their team before a big match. Luckily for them – and the fans – there are many organizations willing and
able to help a coach in his unjust cause. These groups range form mighty institutions such as the Bloodweiser company,
right through to the lowly Guild of Affiliated Bandits. Even thought the game has been saturated with money since the
collapse of the NAF, team owners are renowned for being tight with their money, and coaches are always looking to
generate cash independently through sponsorship deals and, when desperate, by gambling with the team treasury!
I decided that whilst the Special Play cards gave a fair representation of the lengths an average coach would go to in
order to win a game, there would always be someone out there despairing enough to go that little bit further. The rules
given below allow a head coach to visit special locations before and after a match in order to gain sponsorship, by
potions, bribe match officials and do many other things.
A coach may visit one of the special locations detailed below before the game, during the Hire Freebooters segment of
the Pre-Match sequence.
THE COLLEGES OF MAGIC
There are eight Colleges of Magic, each one devoted to teaching a particular type of Battle Magic, based on one of the
divisions of the Winds of Magic. The eight Colleges are Amber, Amethyst, Bright, Celestial, Gold Grey, Jade and Light,
and the attitude and style of each College differs greatly. The appearances of the Colleges themselves go a large way
towards identifying the nature of their owners. The buildings of the Celestial College are the tallest in Altdorf and intricate
glass domes from which the wizards can ovserve the skies top their many-fingered towers. The Bright College is a marvel
of architecture, its towers rise like pillars of flame high above the townscape of Altdorf. Although its towers are not so high
as those of the Celestial College, they are perhaps more impressive, topped by great beacons that burn all day and night,
causing an eerie scarlet glow over the College. Each College has offices in all of the Empire’s major cities, set up to
recruit apprentice wizards and trade magical trinkets to those wealthy enough to afford them. A team’s coach may visit
one of the Colleges before a match if he so wishes, and whilst there can purchase up to D6 of the following potions to use
in any subsequent match. Each potion costs 2D6 x 1,000 gold crowns, and may be used only once.
Potion of Strength: You may give this potion to a player at the beginning of any drive. That player has +1 ST for the rest
of the drive.
Potion of Agility: You may give this potion to a player at the beginning of any drive. That player has +1 AG for the rest of
the drive.
Potion of Speed: You may give this potion to a player at the beginning of any drive. That player has +1 MA for the rest of
the drive.
Potion of Resilience: You may give this potion to a player at the beginning of any drive. That player has +1 AV for the
rest of the drive.
Potion of Power: You may give this potion to a player at the beginning of any drive. That player gains the use of one
Strength skill of your choice for the rest of the drive.
Potion of Prowess: You may give this potion to a player at the beginning of any drive. That player gains the use of one
Agility skill of your choice for the rest of the drive.
Potion of Dispelling: You may use this potion when your opponent declares his wizard is casting a spell. If you roll a 5+
on 1D6 the spell has no effect and the wizard’s powers are exhausted for the remainder of the game. You may only use
one Potion of Dispelling against each spell.
You may use potions on any player except Star Players, Big Guys and Undead, who are either too set in their ways or too
stupid to gain any benefit. A player may only benefit from the effects of one potion at a time, and any extra potions he
takes are wasted.
Every time a potion runs out, roll a D6. On a 6 the player has taken well to the potion and retains its benefits for the rest of
the game.
THE BLOODWEISER CORPORATION

Bloodweiser are probably the largest and most powerful company in the Old World, their most famous product being, of
course, Bloodweiser beer itself. The company is one of Blood Bowl’s biggest backers, and every year they sponsor the
Blood Bowl Championship itself, the highlight of any season. The Bloodweiser Corporation in marketing mad, and seem
unable to resist plastering their name across every stadium, player and cheerleader that approaches them. Bloodweiser
have many plush offices across the Old World, but their headquarters in Nuln is more than likely the most over the top
building outside of Ulthuan. A set of one hundred polished marble steps lead up to a sixty-foot high revolving glass door,
set between tow overpowering marble pillars. Inside the palace-like erection is no less nauseating, red carpets lining the
floors with avenues of golden statues of former directors along every corridor. A head coach may play a visit to the
Bloodweiser Corporation in an attempt to relieve the company of some of its hard-earned profits.
Match Day Sponsors: If you visit Bloodweiser before the match you may try to convince the company to become match
day sponsors, having their products mentioned several times by the announcer for a not insubstantial fee, most of which
unfortunately goes to the stadium owner. Roll a D6, on a 4+ Bloodweiser agrees to become match sponsors. Both you
and your opponent may add +1 to the dice roll when it comes to working out your winnings at the end of the match. Note
that Bloodweiser will already be sponsoring all of the games that take place during the Blood Bowl itself, and so you
cannot gain match sponsorship for such games.
Player Sponsorship: You may attempt to procure a sponsorship deal for one of your players, claiming association with
such a talent will surely attract media attention. Roll a D6, on a 5+ Bloodweiser agrees with the deal. Until the
sponsorship deal runs out the team gains an extra D6 x 1,000 gold crowns when collecting their winnings and the player
in question receives 1 bonus SPP per game. The deal lasts until the sponsored player fails to score any SPPs (other than
the bonus one), after which Bloodweiser will pull out. Only one player per team may have a deal with Bloodweiser.
ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTING CONJURERS
Succeeding the Necromancers Broadcasting Circle and the Crystal Ball Service, the Association of Broadcasting
Conjurers are the current holders of the Cabalvision franchise, obtained for a record twelve million gold crowns! Having
acquired the services of the now legendary commentary team Jim and Bob, the Conjurers seem set to continue the
tradition of fine Blood Bowl coverage. Recently, however, they have begun to cover some of the less popular teams in an
effort to gain what they call ‘total coverage’. The Conjurers central office is situated in Middenheim, city of the White Wolf.
Middenheim stands alone atop an ancient core, a sheer-sided, iron hard pinnacle of rock that rises out of the surrounding
forests at the heart of the Empire. The city was built high to protect it and to enable its inhabitants to gaze out far over the
treetops, but it provides the Conjurers with the perfect site to broadcast form, projecting mental images across the Old
World without the obstruction of the mountainous terrain. The Association’s buildings consist of a series of hastily
constructed wooded extensions added to a renovated temple; all looking rather ramshackle form the outside. That
impression changes as soon as one enters the main doorway, for the temple’s dull stone walls are lifted by a multitude of
exquisite stained glass windows of all sizes, each depicting the triumph of Sigmar over one of his many enemies. A coach
may visit the Association of Broadcasting Conjurers in order to secure coverage of his team, either in their next match or
as a special feature.
Match Coverage: If you visit the Association before a match you may attempt to persuade them to cover the game on
Cabalvision. Roll 4D6 x 10, and if the result is less than your team rating you agree to a deal. If your match is being
shown on Cabalvision, then both you and your opponent receive an additional 2D6 x 1,000 gold crowns on top of any
other winnings you would normally receive.
Blood Bowl Focus: The most popular show on Cabalvision, Blood Bowl Focus covers the week’s main action and
highlights the smaller events that interest the fans. A coach can try to have their team featured on the next show, perhaps
an interview with one of the team’s best players, or an item on the head coach’s training methods. The Association will
pay a small recognition fee to any team they feature. Roll 4D6 x 10. If the result is more than your team rating, the
Conjurers agree to a short item. Small teams will find this especially useful, as the fans often warm to the underdogs,
probably because they are more likely to be beaten to a pulp! If you can roll over your current Fan Factor on a D6, you
may immediately add +1 to it. Note that a roll of 6 does not always succeed, so teams with a Fan Factor of 6 or more
cannot benefit from this coverage. In addition, a player will often try harder in training if he knows he is to appear on
Cabal, so one player of your choice will receive D3 bonus SPPs if you can first roll 5 or more on a D6.
BBBC
THE BLOOD BOWL BALL COMPANY

The BBBC are the sole suppliers of balls to the stadiums which host Blood Bowl matches, and they are always busy, for
the game’s rules state that twenty-five balls must be provided for each and every match. From their modestly understated
offices in Rock Rapids – near Middenheim – the BBBC supply balls to stadiums throughout the Old World and beyond. As
well as producing the standard pig’s bladder ball, BBBC have also started to produce less orthodox items such as the
now infamous floating ball.
Floating Balls: A coach may purchase up to D3 floating balls to use during his next match. Each ball costs 5,000 gold
crowns, and must be used in the next match or else deflate and become useless. As with all sneaky tricks, this is a Goblin
idea – a normal ball filled with lighter-than-air marsh gas. The Goblins just love to see the expression on the other team’s
faces when their game-winning pass floats off into the great blue yonder. You may only attempt to use one floating ball
per kickoff.
When thrown, the ball counts as one band lower (i.e. Long Pass = Short Pass) but it is -1 to catch at the other end.
Whenever the ball is passed, or if it is on the ground at the end of a turn, roll a D6. If the result is a 1 (1 or 2 if it was a
Long Bomb) the ball simply floats away and the game has to restart with a new, normal ball. Floating balls scatter twice
as far as normal.
Explosive Balls: A coach may purchase 1 explosive ball to use during his next match. Each ball costs 5,000 gold
crowns, and must be used in the next match or else the clockwork devices will go rusty. Once included to promote a
passing game in some areas, the ideas has caught on and has proved popular with the deranged lunatics known as fans,
some even place side bets on when it will explode and who will be hurt! Explosive balls may only be used when your
team is kicking off. Since the opposition will not have agreed to use the ball, you must attempt to smuggle the ball onto
the field, avoiding the referee’s vigilant gaze, which will only succeed on a D6 roll of 5+. A failed attempt results in the
referee confiscating the explosive ball and the kick off proceeding with a normal ball. You may not attempt to use nay
other type of special ball after a failed attempt to smuggle on an explosive ball.
At the end of each turn, roll a D6 if a 1 is rolled the shaking triggers the explosives. Anyone holding it is automatically
injured (roll as normal) and anyone in an adjacent square is knocked over as normal (roll for armor as normal).
NOTE: Credit where credit is due, this is basically just an adapted version of Adam Morgan’s article "A Load of Balls!"
from Journal #15, I hope he doesn’t mind me including them.
ORCIDAS
Orcidas are another major organization with a vested interest in Blood Bowl, being the current sponsors of the sport’s
‘second major’, the Chaos Cup. The more intelligent members of a small and very unsuccessful Orc team, the Hooded
Toof, set up Orcidas about eighty years ago. Believing the reason they lost every game to be the fact the opposition was
always better dressed, the Orcs set out to bring about their domination of Blood Bowl by designing themselves some
swanky new kits. Although the team never improved, other Orcs were so impressed by the Toof’s flamboyant clothing that
they agreed to pay extortionate prices for the replica garments. The Toof’s head coach, Wakdig Biggob, realized he was
in the wrong business, and disbanded the team to begin full time production. Soon demand of Orcidas products became
so high Wakdig was forced to hire fifty local Goblins to meet the orders coming in not just from Orc teams, but other
traces and even fans desperate to emulate their heroes. Orcidas has continued to grow, and is now the largest employer
of Goblins outside of Zharr-Naggrund. Wakdig still denies any bias against the fairer races, even though after last year’s
Chaos Cup, the losers (the Orcland Raiders) received more prize money than the winners (the Dwarf Giants). Although
Orcidas’ main offices are situated at the center of the Badlands, every settlement of any importance has at least one
retailer of Orcidas goods, which a head coach may visit if he wishes.
Orcidas Clothing: A coach may buy any one player in his team a complete Orcidas kit for 20,000 gold crowns. Only one
player per team may have an Orcidas kit, and whoever has it gains the Flash skill as described below.
Flash (Physical Ability)
A player with this skill is so impressed with his own abilities that he believes he can never fail. Amazingly this outrageous
overconfidence actually makes the player a little better. Once per team turn the player may add +1 to any normal D6 roll,
so not Armor, Injury, Blocks, etc. A player must declare he is using this bonus before he makes the dice roll. However,
should the player ever fail in an action in which he has used the skill, his confidence will be shattered and therefore
cannot use the Flash skill for the rest of the game. Remember that a roll of 1 always fails regardless of how many
modifiers apply.
GUILD OF REFEREES AND ALLIED RULESKEEPERS
Those hard-faced, zebra stripped officials with the funny trousers and the piercing whistles are the NAF’s representatives
on the field of play. As such, they have a very important job to perform. It’s a pity then that the good name of Blood Bowl
referees has gown down so much in the public’s estimation. Many pretend they are rat gutters or sewer sweepers rather
than admit their real profession. Bribery is an uncontrollable problem; many officials have worked out the attractions of
taking a hefty cut of the game’s gate takings in return for not seeing certain rules infringements. Bribery is now so
common that the RARG have set official union rates for bribing a referee, and under an agreement signed last season,
clubs are not allowed to offer less than the going rate. The night before any match a referee will often stay in the RARG’s
local offices where guild official can keep a close eye on them. More often than not however, this practice merely allows
corrupt coaches the luxury of not having to find him first! A head coach may visit the match referee at the Guild before a
game in order to try and persuade him to see things in your favor. You may bribe a referee in as may ways you like, but if
he reports you to the NAF then you lose the benefits of all the bribes you have made, not just the one you are reported
for. As you can see multiple bribes are a risky and costly business.
Wide Zones: You can try to bribe the referee into allowing you to set up three players in the wide zone at the kickoff.
Doing this costs 2D6 x 1,000 gold crowns, after paying you should roll a D6. On a roll of 2 or more the referee accepts the
bribe, but on a roll of 1 the referee is insulted by the amount you offer him, takes the money and reports you to the NAF! If
the referee accepts the bribe then roll a D6 before each kickoff, and a 4 or more the referee turns a blind eye and you can
set up 3 players in each wide zone for that kick off only.
Twelve Players: You can try to bribe the referee into allowing you to set up 12 players on the pitch at the kickoff. Doing
this costs 2D6 x 1,000 gold crowns, after paying, you should roll a D6. On a roll of 2 or more the referee accepts the
bribe, but on a roll of 1 the referee is insulted by the amount you offer him, takes the money and reports you to the NAF! If
the referee accepts the bribe then roll a D6 before each kickoff. On a 5 or more the referee turns a blind eye and you can
set up 12 players on the pitch for that kickoff only.
Illegal Procedures: You can try to bribe the referee into not giving an illegal procedure if you forget to move your turn
marker along. Doing this costs 2D6 x 1,000 gold crowns after paying you should roll a D6. On a roll of 2 or more the
referee accepts the bribe, but on a roll of 1 the referee is insulted by the amount you offer him, takes the money and
reports you to the NAF! If the referee accepts the bribe then roll a D6 each time you are called for an illegal procedure. On
a 4 or more the referee overlooks the infringement and you may move the marker along and continue as normal. If you
roll less than 4 you must either surrender a reroll or suffer a turnover as normal.
Fouls: You can try to bribe the referee into overlooking some of the fouls your players commit. Doing this costs 1D6 x
1,000 gold crowns after paying you should roll a D6. On a roll of 2 or more the referee accepts the bribe, but on a roll of 1
the referee is insulted by the amount you offer him, takes the money and reports you to the NAF! If the referee accepts
the bribe then you will successfully argue the call against a sending off due to fouling or the use of secret weapons on a
roll of 5 or 6, rather than just 6. Note the referee will still expel you from the game on a roll of 1 as normal.
SPIKE! MAGAZINE
Heralded by some as the greatest work of literature the Old World has ever seen, Spike! Magazine is recognized by most
as a fairly reasonable volume detailing the current events in Blood Bowl. Spike! has a huge following, as it appeals to all
Blood Bowl fans from the refined High Elves to the most bloodthirsty of Orcs with its coverage of Blood Bowl events both
large and small. The opinions represented in Spike! have massive influence on the fans, and positive coverage can have
a major effect on a team’s fan base. Spike! Magazine is the sponsor of the Spike! Magazine Trophy – I’m clever, me! –
one of the season’s major tournaments. Each year, during the event, Spike! readers vote for the player and team of the
year, an accolade though of second to a player’s medal from the Blood Bowl final. Spike! has its head office in Altdorf, the
geographical and spiritual heart of Old World Blood Bowl, opposite the Altdorf Oldbowl, the finest stadium in the
Warhammer world. The Spike! building is a massive structure in the shape of a square, three stories high with a large,
leafy courtyard in the center. In the center of the courtyard is the Spike! Tower, a narrow column built of sandstone, over
seventy years ago during a period in which Spike! reporters had been banned form the Oldbowl for giving Blind Willy
Muller, the Reikland Reavers coach, bad press. The tower has a commanding view of the Oldbowl’s astrogranite pitch.
Reporters would watch the game from the top and have their report finished before all the fans had left the stadium. Now
the tower is one of the most beautiful sights in the capital city, the afternoon sun gloriously reflected off the sandstone
surface. A head coach may pay Spike! a visit if he so wishes.
‘Spot the Chainsaw’ Competition: Now almost an institution, Spike’s regular ‘Spot the Chainsaw’ competition, asks
readers to mark the position they believe the chainsaw to be, in a picture from a match recreated on paper by wizards.
Sounds easy? Well not really, since the offending item has been magically omitted form the picture. The first correct entry
to reach Spike! receives a VIP ticket to he game of their choice, and the rather dubious reward of going out on to the pitch
to give the referee the match ball. Making your way past twenty-two armored psychopaths desperate to try and rend each
other limb form limb, is probably one of the most unnerving of experiences, and most of the lucky ‘winners’ leave the field
fairly quickly! A head coach may try to persuade Spike! To feature his team in this competition, succeeding on a D6 roll of
4+. The extra interest the team will gain because of this means you may roll an extra 2D6 when calculating the gate in
your next match.
One to Watch: Every issue Spike! Magazine includes a ‘One to Watch’ segment, detailing a young player they feel is
destined to make it big in Blood Bowl. With a little enticement, it is possible you can have one of your own young talents
featured in this spot. This costs 10,000 gold crowns, after payment of which you should roll a D6. On a 5 or more Spike!
agrees to feature one Experienced player (i.e. one with between 6-10 SPPs) of your choice. That player is so inspired by
the article that he immediately receives D6-1 bonus SPPs, roll on the Star Player Roll Table if so necessary.
GUILD OF BANDITS AND AFFILIATED TRADES
Not so much an organized body as a group of like-minded thugs, the Guild has very little formal structure, its only real use
being to make banditry more predictable, as ‘independent ventures’ – as the Guild refers to the operations of non-
members – don’t tend to last that long. In an attempt at becoming more respectable, the Guild recently began offering the
services of its members to those who desired employees more discrete than mercenaries. The Guild has no official
leader, let alone central office. Rather, each city has a branch that more or less runs itself, most likely from some
disreputable tavern in a less than savory area of the city. A head coach may visit the Guild in order to hire some thugs to
‘rough up’ his next opponents.
Disrupt Training: You may try to hire some Guild members to disrupt your opponents training schedule during the days
before the match. The Guild will agree to this on a 4+ at a price of D3 x 5,000 gold crowns. The bandits will use all sorts
of tricks to make sure your opponents are under prepared, from attacking the players to puncturing all of their balls! Your
opponents must play against you with 1 less team reroll than usual. If your opponent doesn’t have any rerolls at all, they
you may play the match with one extra reroll.
Kidnap: You may try to hire some Guild members to kidnap one of your opponent’s players, which they will agree with on
a 5+, at a price of D3 x 5,000 gold crowns. Being notoriously unreliable, the bandits will attempt to kidnap one randomly
selected player from your opponent’s team. Roll 2D6, and if this beats the number of Star Player Rolls the player has
taken, then the kidnapping is successful and that player must miss the whole match. If you roll equal to or less than the
number of Star Player Rolls, then the kidnapping is unsuccessful and your opponent may use the player as normal.
Kidnapped players will be released at the end of the match.
CHAOS BLOOD BOWL TEAMS

By David Kay
Originally presented in Citadel Journal #29 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2
With the release of the new Realms of Chaos book, the ‘mixed’ Chaos Blood Bowl team doesn’t seem quite right anymore
(well, not to me, anyway!), so I’ve come up with two separate team lists, one for the Beastmen and one for the Chaos
Warriors.
Beastman Teams
From the deep forests and rocky crags of the Old World, the Beastmen gather. Sometimes they gather to play Blood
Bowl. They’re quite good at it, too. Gors form the bulk of the team whilst the elite Bestigor take on the roles of the Blitzers.
Young Ungor are used as Runners, and often-huge Minotaurs join in the fun for the prospect of a good meal – usually the
other team!
CHAOS BEASTMEN TEAMS
No. Player Cost MA ST AG AV Skills Learn
6-16 Gor 60,000 6 3 3 8 Horns Gen, Str
0-4 Ungor 60,000 6 2 3 8 Dodge Gen, Agl
0-2 Bestigor 110,000 6 4 3 8 Block, Horns Gen, Str
0-2 Minotaur 110,000 5 5 2 8 Horns, Mighty Blow, Gen, Str

Thick Skull, Always
Hungry, Wild Animal
Note from www.blood-bowl.net: the original article had the Minotaur as 6/4/3/9, this is just a way out there
misprint (especially since David Kay said in his article that the Minotaur is a standard BB minotaur). I now
return you to the original article.
Reroll: 60,000
Apothecaries/Wizards/Cheerleaders/Assistant Coaches: Same cost as for other teams.
Note that Minotaurs are from Jervis’ ‘Big Guys’ article (and follow those rules). Well, if it ain’t broke…
Beastmen may take Physical Abilities (Mutations) on the roll of a double for a skill.
Chaos Warrior Teams
Chaos Marauders, like their Norse cousins, are fanatical players of Blood Bowl. Every tribe has at least one team, and
there are many local leagues and competitions. It is the Chaos Warriors who play in the wider leagues, and they take the
best players from the tribes to aid them on the field. The Warriors keep order amongst their players, who are often from
rival tribes, by reminding them that they are all playing for the greater glory of Chaos (and if that tails, by a sound
kicking!). The Ogres of Norsca often join these teams, as well, because the pay and food are good, as is the violence!
Every Chaos Warrior team must have at least one Chaos Warrior on the team roster at all times. If there are no Chaos
Warriors on the roster, you must buy one as soon as possible. Whilst playing, if there are no Chaos Warriors on the pitch,
all Marauders play at -1 MA and -1 AG (to a minimum of 1) to represent the ill discipline that creeps in without the
steadying influence of a Chaos Warrior.
CHAOS WARRIOR TEAMS

No. Player Cost MA ST AG AV Skills Learn
6-15 Marauder 60,000 6 3 3 8 *Special* Gen
1-4 Chaos 100,000 5 4 3 9 None Gen, Str

Warrior
0-2 Ogre 120,000 5 5 2 9 Mighty Blow, Thick Gen, Str

Skull, Bonehead
Reroll: 70,000
Apothecaries/Wizards/Cheerleaders/Assistant Coaches: Same cost as for other teams.
Note that Ogres are from Jervis’ ‘Big Guys’ article (and follow those rules).
Chaos Warrior teams may take Physical Abilities (Mutations) on the roll of a double for a skill.
Marauder *Special* Skill
As the Marauders in the team have come from many different tribes, they could have any number of different
skills, depending on their training. To represent this, after you have purchased a new Marauder, roll a D6 on the
following table, to see which skill he has:
D6 Roll Result
1 Block
Sure
2 Hands
3 Dodge
4 Catch
5 Pass
6 Dirty Player
Chaos Marauders can choose from General skills only. However, any Marauder who starts with Dodge or Catch may also
choose from Agility skills. One that starts with Pass may also choose from Passing skills.
So, What About Daemons?

Well, if you want to form a daemonic team, good luck! The rules for the daemons are contained in Andrew Hall’s excellent
‘He Plays Like A Daemon!’ article. Just remember you can only have daemons from one Chaos God on each team. To
give yourself a choice, you might like to add Chaos Spawn to the list:
No. Name Cost MA ST AG AV Skills
0-5 Chaos Spawn 100,000 D6 4 1 10 Multiple Block, Stand Firm
Roll a D6 each time you want to move a Chaos Spawn to see how many squares it may move this turn. Chaos Spawn
can never ‘Go For It’ and cannot take the Sprint skill. Happy now? Good!
Conversion Ideas
How do you represent these new team members? Well, simply plunder the existing Warhammer range of miniatures for
the ones you are looking for. Snip any weapons off, and they’ll be fine for the Blood Bowl field! The existing Chaos team
boxed sets have a good selection of miniatures for both the Chaos Warriors and the Beastmen; so don’t forget to use
these! The more different types of miniatures you have in your team, the more ‘chaotic’ it will look.
Using the new Chaos Teams
The teams were tried out against each other and also against Humans, Orcs, Undead, Wood Elf, and Dark Elf teams.
Overall, the new Chaos teams fared well and my opposing players never felt that an inherently superior team was
overpowering them. The Beastmen proved to be very efficient at getting the ball, but without any Ungor were absolutely
useless at getting it anywhere. Most people considered the Minotaurs more a liability than a strength! Bestigor blitzers
backed up by Gors and especially the Ungors made a winning combination.
Dice rolls being what they were (especially mine!) Chaos Warrior team tactics often had to depend upon the spread of
skills that were possessed by the Marauders. If there were plenty of Block skills rolled, it became a hard hitting team,
whilst a combination of Catch and Pass altered the team’s strengths dramatically and therefore changed the entire feel of
play. My mates particularly enjoyed the random, chaotic feel of this team. No one played any less than three Chaos
Warriors in their teams just to safeguard against the effectiveness of their Marauders slipping should all the Chaos
Warriors be killed or injured. With the variety of skills provided by the Marauders and after just a few games by the Chaos
Warriors, no one bothered fielding any Ogres although the option is always there.
Here are a couple of sample teams that I used during my playtesting:
Beastman Team
2 Bestigor 220,000
7 Gors 420,000
1 Ungor 60,000
1 Minotaur 110,000
2 Rerolls 120,000
1 Apothecary 50,000
2 Fan Factor 20,000

Chaos Warrior Team
4 Chaos Warriors 400,000
7 Marauders 420,000
(3 with Catch, 2 with Sure Hands, 1 with Block, and 1 with Pass)
2 Rerolls 140,000
4 Fan Factor 40,000
PAST MASTERS
By Stuart Woods
Were you one of those Blood Bowl coaches masquerading as an autograph hunter at a Jacob Von Altdorf’s Testimonial?
Chances are, if you manage an Undead, High Elf, Wood Elf, Dark Elf, Dwarf, Chaos Dwarf, Skaven or Halfling team you
may have been on the lookout for a star player or two to strengthen your squad. You managed to book the Past Masters
for a one off match, but can you tempt them out of retirement one more time? More importantly, can you afford them?
HIRING A LEGEND
The Past Masters are totally unique, they are legends in their own lifetimes and therefore there is only one each of these
players available to each league that you play in (they may not be duplicated). As well as the rather high price tag, there
is also a possibility that they may not want to come and play for your team anyway!
If you do want to hire a Past Master, you must first roll 1D6 and consult this table:
2. Sorry not interested – the Blood Bowl legend refuses to play for your team.
6. Well I do rather miss wearing a codpiece – the Past Master will sign up.
Coaches may try to attain signings that they previously failed at the beginning of each of the four Major cup competitions
only. Should there be two or more Coaches (with enough money!) wishing to sign the same player, then the team with the
highest Team Rating gets the first attempt (roll on the table). If there are two or more teams with the same Rating then
you should each roll a D6 with the highest scorer going first.
When a Coach who has the first attempt hires a Past Master then he will be hired for his standard (if exorbitant) fee. If he
declines the first team’s offer but accepts the second, he will charge and additional 20,000 GCs accumulating by this
amount until he finally gets signed. This is because each subsequent offer has to be higher than the last to keep him
interested. If all of the interested parties fail to sign a Past Master then he is left over until the next season of play. Some
leagues allow the buying and selling of players between the teams. Should any Coach decide to sell a Past Master then
whatever the agreed fee, I would recommend a reduction of 30,000 GCs for each Niggling Injury the player is carrying.
AUCTIONING
When a Past Master finally retires or dies the team’s Coach may sell off the player’s old shirts, boots, gloves and trophies
and may add 50,000 GCs to his treasury to represent this. There are two exeptions to this rule which apply to the
following players:
Roger Mortis – Roger’s jackets with the immortal number 007 on the back are collector’s items. The Coach may add
75,000 GCs to his treasury instead of the usual 50,000 GCs.
Vinny Valhalla – If Vinny retires he will pass on his magical item, ‘Odin’s Codpiece’, to another Norse Catcher and
nobody else. If there are no other Catchers in the team at the time of Vinny’s departure then he will take it with him and
never return! Should he be killed, his Codpiece will be burnt with him in the traditional Norse manner.
FREEBOOTING
Past Masters may never be freebooted.
THE FANS GO WILD
When a Coach manages to sign a Past Master to his team, the fans will go absolutely wild. The Team’s Fan Factor
increasing by +1 for the duration that the Past Master is playing for them reflects this. Should the Past Master die, retire or
be sold then obviously the team loses this Fan Factor increment.
THE REF’S FAVORITE
In the Blood Bowl League that I play in, we have included four of the past Masters and sadly already three of them are
dead! We all realize that Blood Bowl is a dangeours game, but the Past Masters attract more than their fair share of
fouling attention. To remedy this and allow coaches just a few more games to use these expensive players, in I use these
rules:
Because the ref admires the Past Masters for having the guts to get back onto the pitch, he will send off any player fouling
then UNLESS they roll a double when doing so. In addition he will send off players assisting a foul on a score of 5+ on a
D6. These rules override any special play card that would allow unscrupulous players to foul without being noticed, but
have no effect should a star Referee be used with the Terrible Ref skill.
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Odin’s Codpiece: Vinny Valhalla wears this magical codpiece that increases his Armor Value by +1 (this has already
been included on his card).
Shower Attack: Norman may make one Shower Attack at half time on a randomly selected member of the opposition’s
team. Roll for an immediate injury (they have no armor on in the shower!).
Hypnotic Eyebrows: Roger Mortis can’t manage many facial expressions, but boy do those eyebrows move in a most
charming way! Roger may attempt to Hypnotize in exactly the same way as a Vampire. In addition he may add +1 to any
attempt on the ladies (Witch Elves, Maiden Guard etc.), they just love it!
Name Position Cost MA ST AG AV Skills Special
Jeremiah Kool Dark Elf 350,000 7 4 5 8 Block, Pass, Accurate, Sure None
Hands, Hail Mary Pass
Norman ‘Psycho’ Dark Elf 200,000 7 4 4 8 Block, Dauntless, Guard, Frenzy, Shower
Bates Diving Tackle, Strip Ball Attack
Dodgee Gitface Hobgoblin 170,000 6 3 4 7 Block, Dirty Player, Shadowing, None
Strip Ball, Leap
Vinny Valhalla Norse 180,000 7 3 4 8 Block, Catch, Nerves of Steel, Odin’s

Catcher Sure Feet, Sure Hands Codpiece
Roger Mortis Mummy 220,000 4 6 2 9 Block, Mighty Blow, Stand Firm, Hypnotic
Blocker Multiple Block Eyebrows
Hargin "the ‘Ard" Dwarf Blitzer 150,000 5 4 3 9 Block, Tackle, Pro, Thick Skull, None
Piling On
‘Dirty’ Ghurty Ghoul 140,000 7 3 4 7 Dodge, Catch, Sidestep, Sure None

Feet
Pipsqueak Gutter 120,000 9 3 5 7 Dodge, Nerves of Steel, Catch, None

Runner Sure Feet
Galrond Goldleaf High Elf 150,000 6 4 4 8 Block, Tackle, Shadowing, Guard None
Lineman
Larholen Swift High Elf Lion 170,000 9 3 5 7 Catch, Dodge, Leap, Sidestep, None
Warrior Diving Catch
Larvandrel Wood Elf 160,000 9 3 4 7 Catch, Dodge, Sprint, Diving None

Catcher Catch, Sure Feet
Herbert Hugebelly Halfing 120,000 5 3 4 6 Pass, Sure Hands, Dump Off, None
Dodge, Stunty
INTER-MATCH EVENTS IN BLOOD BOWL

By Boz
Originally presented in Citadel Journal #27 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2

After Blood Bowl matches what do the Coaches do? Hibernate? Surely not. What happens to the players? Do they go
home to their wives (human teams only) (now that’s confusing does this mean that Boz is implying that Elves are all
pansies and Dwarfs just too damn butt-ugly to have scored? – Ed), their little children and the dog, Fluffy? I think not, at
least not my butt-kickingly hard and manly Blitzer.
The Old World is a treacherous place at the best of times, with deaths fairly commonplace and giant rats no longer a
shock or a figment of the imagination of someone on hard drugs. The world of Blood Bowl is no exception – assassins are
an accepted method of altering the progress of a game, while the fame of the players has to leave them prone to attacks
from the sport’s more violent critics.
Or so I believed, but then I opened my lovely new box containing nice and crisp rosters, smelled the wonderful aroma of a
new game, and got down to reading the rules so that I could play this latest treasure of my gaming cupboard… and then
the shock came – there are no rules for players being mugged. Nor are there rules for those wonderful assassins I so
pine to hire. So, I decided to write some rules for them myself. I never got around to it. Until one day, many years later,
when I’m re-reading Adam Morgan’s article ‘Desperate Measures’ in Issue 14 of the Citadel Journal, and I’m reminded of
my former idea. But this time, I’ve got loads of time and I’m stuck for something to do. And, after much sweat and toil,
here are the fruits of my work.
After each match, just after each team has worked out its winnings, but before SPPs have been established, roll a D6 and
consult the following table to determine how many events affect your team:
No. Of
D6 Roll Events
1 1
2-5 2
6 3
Add these modifiers to the die roll:
Team Rating Modifier
0-125 -1
126-150 0
151-175 +1
176-200 +2
210+ +3
This represents the team’s increasing fame making them better known and therefore being prone to more extraordinary
events.
Now roll a D66 for each event, and consult the following table:
11. "I’ve come about the job…"

An amateur if somewhat avid Blood Bowl player, desperate to hit the big time, visits your management committee. You
give him a trial, and he proves to be an amazing player. He is so desperate for fame, however, that he agrees to join your
team for free, or for half price if you are a Big Guy team (those Big Guys are so stupid and stubborn).
12. "I’d like you to do a little something for me…"
A swindling con artist comes to ask you to fix a match. Roll a D8; this is the score you must get (7=0, reroll an 8). Roll
again to find the score you must try and force your opponent to get. Do not tell your next opponent that you have been
asked to fix the match. If you pull this difficult trick off, you gain D6+3 x 10,000 gps.
13. "Fancy trying your luck at my little game, sir, just a bit of fun?"
Whilst walking through a traveling fair, you take part in a bit of gambling. Roll a D6:
On a 1, you lose D6 x 10,000 gps. If you can’t pay this off in full, then the person you owe this to is treated like a loan
shark (after each game, if you roll 1-3 on a D6, he attacks one of your players – make an injury roll for them immediately).
If you roll 2-5, you come out of the game no worse off, but no better off either.
On a 6, you win the game. You may add D6 x 10,000 gps to your treasury.
14. Transfer for a bargain price
You are offered a player of your choice (not a Star Player, though) for his full starting price. However, he has had quite a
lot of experience, and starts off with two free increases (you should roll for these as soon as you buy him), which doesn’t
compromise his ability to gain SPPs at all – he should be treated as a Rookie in all other respects.
15. "My name ees Doctoor Smeeth…"
An Apothecary with a dodgy accent who claims to be called Doctor Smith approaches you. In Blood Bowl, however, a
false name is no reason not to hire someone, and after all, he is rather good. You may immediately gain a free
Apothecary (or if you already have one, he may be made a Level 2 Apothecary).
16. "Is it just me, or is there knocking coming from that coffin?"
One player from your team who has been killed at any time turns out in fact not to have died at all, but rather to have
been in a deep coma. While being buried, he realizes his predicament, and starts to frantically bang on the coffin lid. After
being let out, he rejoins our team. He must miss the next match while he recovers fully, but then he will play as normal.
Note however that you may use your Apothecary to allow him to play next match.
21. ‘Player of the Month’
One randomly selected player from your team (N.B. not Star Players) receives the prestigious ‘Player of the Month’ award
from SPLAT! Magazine (The number one Blood Bowl magazine – buy it now or you’ll be attacked by our small hit squad
of rabid, pet gerbils!). He immediately gains two MVP awards.
22. Hall of Fame
The player in your team who has the most SPPs is admitted into the Hall of Fame. He gains one MVP award for this
honor, and you team gains +1 Fan Factor.
23. "No, not that way, idiots! Look, like this…"
Your players are trained by a retired professional who teaches them many new tricks. You may purchase another reroll
for 30,000 gps, regardless of how much they normally cost a team of your race. However, you must buy this immediately
– you cannot wait until you have enough money in the treasury.
24. "Hey, those T-shirts went down well!"
Your sale of team T-shirts (‘This isn’t fat – it’s a fuel tank for a Blood Bowl player.’) went down brilliantly, and you gain D6
x 10,000 gps from them.
25. "Have you seen what they’ve printed about us?!"
The next team you play has been printing libelous stories about you. When you play them, it counts as a grudge match,
however, roll a D6. On a 3-6 you lose one Fan Factor permanently due to the damaging stories.
26. Uneventful Week
Nothing unusual happens to you for the moment, but this simply means that when something does happen, it’s probably
going to be worse than normal. The next time you roll on this table (even if it’s after the next match), add +1 to the ten’s
dice. Not that this effect is cumulative.
31. Win the Pools
You put a bet on the pools for your own match, and get it exactly right (a bit of cheating going on there, I feel, but the
administrators didn’t notice). You may add 20,000 gps to your treasury.
32. "You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours…"
You pay the Referee to allow you to use 12 players through out your next match. Note that if either team’s fans ‘Get the
Ref’ at any time during the match, this effect is immediately cancelled.
33. "Going cheap sir, only 50,000 gps to you…"
A pair of Knuckledusters is for sale. They may be given to one player. From now on, whenever he knocks another player
over, you may add +1 to both the Armor and Injury rolls (he can, however, still gain the Mighty Blow skill in addition to this
if he hasn’t already got it). This is permanent, and they cost the same as the value of the player himself.
34. "I work in the sewers. Here’s a little something that might help you, for a fee…"
Someone sells you a map of the sewer systems underneath the pitch for only 10,000 gps. You may use it to set up more
than eleven players on the pitch during one drive. Nominate as many of your reserve players as you like, and then
nominate a square on your half of the pitch. Now roll a D8, adding +1 for every player above 1, and consult this table:
1-3: Perfect! They may be set up on the square you nominated. Any extra players must be set up next to this square.
4-5: Oops! Scatter D6 squares away in a random direction (roll once for each player). If this takes them off the pitch, then
the crowd beats them up as normal.
6-7: Where’d they all go? Only half of the group makes it (rounding fractions down, the rest get disheartened and turn
back.) Any players that make it (decide randomly) scatter as in result 4-5 above.
8: Hey, where’d they all… Aaarrgh! Only half of the players make it. Decide whom randomly, as above. In addition, roll a
D6 for each of those who didn’t – on a 4+ they are attacked by an unknown monstrosity from the sewers. Make an injury
roll for them immediately (no Armor roll).
35. Healing Scroll
You may use this scroll ONCE to heal any one player of any injury suffered at any time of any type (not many restrictions
there, then). It costs 20,000 gps to buy.
36. Uneventful Week

As result 26 above.
41. "Getchor luvvely helmets here, hard as nails, going cheap…"
One of your players may be given a Magic Helmet (+1 AV) for 20,000 gps.
42. Apothecary Convention
Your Apothecary (if you have one – if not then treat this result as an Uneventful Week) attends an Apothecary’s
convention. Next match he may use all the abilities he has TWICE.
43. "Guaranteed pills to increase speed, fell of the back of a cart, guv…"
You purchase some pills for your players (highly illegal practice, but who cares!), which are a little bit dodgy to say the
least. You may use them for one turn. Roll a D6 when you use them. On a 1 or 2, you were sold impure material, and all
your players are at -2 Movement for this turn. On a 3 or 4, they are at +2 Movement for this turn. On a 5 or 6, they are at
+2 Movement and +1 AG for this turn.
44. Potion
You are given a potion, which you may use on one person who is ‘Badly Hurt’ during a match. Roll a D6:
1: They react badly to what turns out in fact to be a dangerous chemical, and unless you use an Apothecary, they will die.
2: They react badly to what is in fact a very dodge substance, and are thus treated as Seriously Injured.
3: They may be moved to the KO’d box.
4-6: They may be placed standing up on the square where they were injured.
45. "Gimme all your money or I’ll… oooh ****!"
Two of your players are walking home from the match when a gang of muggers sets them upon. Being Blood Bowl
players, they easily fend off what are to them comparative wimps, and in the process gain 20,000 gps. You may add this
money to your treasury.
46/51. Uneventful Week
As above.
52. Injury
One randomly selected player form your team is injured while he training. He must miss the next match.
53. Peaked
One of your players (selected randomly) gets about as good as he’s gong to get, and simply stops improving his game.
You should note down on your roster that he has peaked.
54. "Gentlemen, we have a leak." "Down the corridor, first on the right, boss."
(Sorry, sorry, I couldn’t resist that one) Someone has been selling particularly libelous stories about you to the press,
there’s a chance that they might even be untrue. Lose one Fan Factor permanently.
55. Bad Apothecary Convention

Your Apothecary attends a convention where he is fed with lies and superstition. You may not use any of his abilities next
match. If your team does not include an Apothecary, this result counts as an Uneventful Week.
56. Uneventful Week
See above.
61. "Revenge is mine! Ahahahahaha! Ahahahahaha!"
One of your players (choose randomly) is attacked in a revenge beating by a player he previously injured during a match.
Make an Injury roll for him immediately. If he is Badly Hurt, he must miss the next match. If he is Seriously Injured, he
must miss the next two matches. If he is Knocked Out, he must start the game in the KO’d box. Count any Stunned
results as KO’d. Results of Dead are quite self-explanatory, so I won’t patronize you by telling you about them.
62. "That bloke’s a druggie! Oi, druggie!"
One of your players (random) is exposed as being addicted to drugs. He must miss the next two matches while he goes
on a rehabilitation course.
63. "You’re nicked, matey!"
One player (decide who randomly) is arrested for a serious crime and must miss the next two games. In addition you
must pay 40,000 gps to bail him out.
64. Robbery
Roll a D8. On 1-7, you lose all of your winnings this match plus any money you had in the treasury. On a roll of an 8 you
manage to catch the thief and in addition to getting your money back, you receive a reward of 50,000 gps for catching a
wanted criminal.
65. Kidnapped Coach
The Coach of your team has been kidnapped. He may not Argue the Call next match, and you must pay 50,000 gps to
the kidnappers to get him back.
66. Assassination!
Someone has sent an assassin after one of your players (decide randomly) to tip the valance next game. Roll
immediately on the Injury chart for him, adding +1. Treat any results in the same way as for result 61 on this table.
Feel free to alter or change these rules in any way you see fit. After all, I’m not likely to come round to where you live and
give you a good seeing to… Or am I?
BLOCK AND TACKLE

By Robin Dews
Originally presented in White Dwarf #177 & #220 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2

Human teams offer a Blood Bowl coach an almost perfect combination of speed, strength,
resilience and agility. So says Robin Dews who ran a successful team called the Deathheads
in our Studio League. We asked him to convince us...
HUMAN TEAMS
Along with many others of the staff at the Studio, I jumped at the chance to get involved in the playtesting and
development of the new version of Blood Bowl. I normally fight Warhammer battles with an Empire army and, true to form,
have always fielded a Human team in Blood Bowl.
Although, they lack some of the super-strong or tough members of other races (such as Black Orc Blockers!) and can't
field so many special weapons as some other teams, their combination of strength, mobility and toughness makes them
excellent all-rounders.
PICKING A TEAM
Picking a Blood Bowl team really is a matter of personal preference, but there are a number of guidelines that should
always apply.
With a brand new team, try to have at least twelve players in your squad. This means that even when the inevitable
casualties or even deaths start to roll in, you will still manage to keep eleven players on the pitch. It is a favorite tactic of
Orc, Chaos, and Dwarf teams to try to grind you down in the first half by causing as much damage to your team as
possible and then overwhelming you in the second half by sheer weight of numbers!
Although there are tricks you can employ to reduce the damage, nothing will stop it completely and so your only real
defense is to have sufficient players in the reserve box to hold the line on the pitch.
At the start of the Studio Blood Bowl league, I therefore fielded the following squad:
4 Blitzers 360,000
4 Linemen 200,000
2 Catchers 140,000
1 Thrower 70,000
The Mighty Zug 120,000
Star Player
2 Rerolls 100,000
Fan Factor 1 10,000
Total 1,000,000
KNOW YOUR PLAYERS
Whenever you pick a Blood Bowl team (or an army for Warhammer or Warhammer 40,000 for that matter) there just
never seem to be quite enough points to go around! As I've explained, I wanted a squad of at least twelve players and I'd
also decided to include the Mighty Zug in my team form the outset. Although expensive (I could have included another
Lineman and a second Thrower or Catcher for the same price!), I wanted him in my squad for two reasons.
First of all, he would put some much-needed muscle into my front line when I came up against Orcs or Chaos teams with
their Black Orcs and Chaos Warriors. Secondly, big, tough Star Players like Zug inevitably attract a lot of attention (and
hopefully put the fear of God into your opponent). It would suit me fine if the opposing team concentrated their efforts on
knocking him down. With an AV of nine, he is difficult to hurt and with his strength of five would most likely be attacked by
at least two players at a time in order to even up the number of Block Dice they rolled. All this meant that for the cost of a
couple of average players, I could hopefully tie up two or more of the enemy and give the rest of my team the opportunity
to break through or outflank my opponent's line.
A similar logic applied to my choice of four Blitzers. These mighty players really are the stars of the Human line-up and I
always attempt to play with the maximum number at all times, particularly in the early stages of a league. The main
reason for this is that in addition to their movement of seven, they automatically come with the Block skill.
When you attack another player in Blood Bowl, in an attempt to knock them over of grab the football, it's called making a
block. What happens is that you compare the strengths of the two players involved and add in any assists they might
have. The attacker then rolls a number of Block Dice which determine the outcome of the block and range form merely
pushing back your opponent, to having your face smashed into the dirt as the result of a swift counter block.
In a standard attack, where the strengths of both players are equal there is a 33% chance of knocking down you
opponent (unless he has the Dodge skill in which case, your chance plummets to a miserable 16% or 1 in 6!). However, if
you have Block your chances increase to 50% giving you a considerable advantage in most attacks.
Whilst on the subject of initial skills, there are a couple of other important points to remember about Human players. The
first of these is the Human Catchers come already equipped with the extremely useful Catch and Dodge.
Catch allows you to reroll any failed catches, handoffs or interception attempts. Dodge not only allows you re a tell if you
fail to dodge out of an opposing player's tackle zone, but more importantly, it also modifies the results of the Block Dice.
Although on the surface, these skinny guys with their armor value of only seven might look a little fragile, they are in fact
worth their weight in gold pieces.
With their movement of eight, these players can zip around for up to ten squares, if you need them to 'go for it'. The
Dodge skill also enables them to sprint through your opponent's line and fan out into his backfield ready to receive
passes. This has the desirable secondary effect of forcing your opponent to run back some of his players to mark your
men thus weakening his front line.
Don't make the mistake of only using Catchers when you are attempting to score. Despite their low strength of two, if you
run them together in pairs, they can quickly reach and overwhelm most other teams' players. Even if they don't make the
attack themselves, their ability to slip into tight corners and lend that vital extra assist makes them just as valuable in
defense.
Of Human Linemen and Throwers, there's not a lot to say. Both are standard Blood Bowl players, with stats much like any
other comparable race. The only thing to remember is to either start your team off with two Throwers, or get a second one
in your squad as soon as you can afford it. Throwers have exactly the same statistics as Linemen but they come with two
solid skills in Sure Hands and Pass. Although at 70,000 gold pieces, they cost 20,000 more then a Lineman, that only
works out at 10,000 per skill and either of them could win you the game or save your bacon when you're in a hole!
SKILLS
As your team develops, there are a few skills that you should definitely go for. Your Throwers and Catchers will rapidly
gain Star Player points as they score most of your touchdowns. Accurate and Strong Arm make for a deadly combination
of passing skills. The +1 on the dice roll together with the one-band range reduction will enable you to pop the ball into the
waiting hands of any teammate. The other great Thrower/Catcher skill combination is a Thrower with Hail Mary Pass
working together with a Catcher with Diving Catch. Hail Mary on its own can easily get you out of a tight spot as it enables
your Thrower to place the ball anywhere on the pitch. Coupled with Diving Catch it becomes a game winner and is sure to
frighten the living daylights out of the opposing team's coach.
One final word on skills. Don't try to build a beat-'em-up team out of Humans. Compared to Orcs, Chaos, Dwarfs and
other high AV teams, you just can't hack it in a prolonged punch up. Sure, now and again you'll get lucky and put one or
two of the other team's guys in the hospital. However, if you try to make this a feature of your play, you'll end up with most
of your team stretchered off or worse!
Stay mobile, use Dodge as much as possible to protect your guys in a fight and concentrate on that combination of both a
running and passing game.
TACTICS
The versatility of the Human team means that unlike Orc or Dwarf squads, there is no real set pattern that can guarantee
you victory. The Human's special talent lies in the way that their players adapt to luck and circumstance. I've won many a
game in the penultimate or final down, by throwing a Long Bomb (pulled back to a Long Pass for Strong Arm and with a
+1 for Accurate) or watched my opponent weep in frustration as his attempt to Blitz my runner merely result in the player
being pushed closer to the end zone due to the ubiquitous Dodge skill.
That being said, there are some key moves that you should really learn by heart. The most important of these is essential
either when you receive the ball after a kickoff, or during the game if you manage to grab the ball from your opponent. It's
called forming a pocket.
The pocket is not too dissimilar to 'Da Cage', described by Orc coach Carl Brown in his 'Ere we go' article. The major
difference is that a pocket is a temporary formation, designed to protect the ball carrier until the runners are safely down
the field.
FORMING THE POCKET
As you can see from the diagram, the idea in the first phase of the attack is to create a safe zone into which you can
place a receiver. This can be a Catcher, but it's often better to send these guys running down the field and pass the ball to
someone with a little more muscle, like one of your Blitzers. Either way, do not pass the ball until the pocket is secure.
There are two reasons for this. The first is that should an accident occur (and they happen to us all!) and the pass is
incomplete you could be left with your opponent grabbing the ball off you in his turn. The second reason is subtler. While
your Thrower is holding the ball, your opponent still has no way of knowing the real direction of the play. The pocket could
be real or it could be a feint with the real run coming down the other side. As I've already emphasized, the real strength of
the Human team lies in its flexibility and you should take advantage of this by not committing yourself until you have to.
This will force your opponent to maintain a broad line of defense.
THE DIAGONAL RUN
For the next turn or two, your aim is to edge forward until you either have runners in the back field or you've reached a
point nine squares away from the end zone. From here you strike. Two Catchers working in tandem can either make the
run on their own, or if there are enemy players blocking the way, cross over and hand off the ball at the mid point. Again
what you are trying to do is maintain maximum flexibility so that the opposing coach has to cover every base. At the same
time you also maintain the capacity to switch you attack should the need arise.
ALL'S FAIR IN WAR AND BLOOD BOWL
As my team has developed and I've added Star Players and more skills, these tactics have been endlessly refined and
developed. However, the basic principles stay the same. Be fast... be flexible... be brutal!
NEW REGULATIONS II
By Jervis Johnson
STUDIO LEAGUE & DIRTY PLAYERS
Following a long, heads down, no-nonsense, let’s get this damned Chaos Codex finished session, I have finally returned
to other things, not the least of which is Blood Bowl (hurrah!).
The good news from the Studio League is that on the whole the new Big Guy rules (previous Compendium) have been
working out pretty well, as has Sigurd’s Injury Table. However, one thing that has become clear fairly quickly is that
something needs to be done about Fouling and dirty players (and suggesting longer in the showers is only the start of it! –
Ed).
This has mainly come about thanks to the efforts of one of the newer members of our Studio staff, who has learnt his
Blood Bowl skills out there, in the real world as it were, rather than being a member of the Studio League from the start.
What this has shown is that there was obviously a certain form of ‘peer group pressure’ which has stopped coaches
making out on certain aspects of the rules in the previous Studio leagues, simply because they knew ‘it wasn’t the done
thing’.
Unfortunately our new coach not being used to the rather more gentlemanly spirit in which we obviously play our games,
has shown a distressing tendency to stick the boot in – i.e. Foul! – at any chance he gets. AND, he grabbed the Dirty
Player skill as quickly as he could lay his bloodstained fingers on it! I ask you, what IS the sport of Blood Bowl coming to!
(A rather horrific and violent sport, Jervis? – Ed)
Of course, none of this will be news to you guys. Judging by the comments I’ve seen on the mailing list about dirty players
etc, but it proved rather a rude awakening for coaches here at the Studio, not least myself. But now the blinkers are off,
and foulers everywhere, especially those Dirty Players, had just better watch out, oh yes! Or at least the y better had in
the Studio league, where the following new rule will be taking effect just as soon as I get it pinned to the notice board! And
before I get flamed to death by irate coaches with dozens of dirty players in their teams, I know this new rule is a harsh,
knee-jerk reaction, but that’s they way I like ‘em! Ha ha ha ha (sound of evil laughter dwindling away into the distance).
I’VE GOT MY EYE ON YOU
Add this rule to the end of the rules on fouling. In order for it to work you will need a new counter, anything will do: bottle
caps, small coins, a bunch of keys, half-eaten sandwich etc., but the best possible ‘I’ve Got My Eye On You’ marker
(abbreviated to IGMEOY!) is a painted referee model. Once you’ve got a counter, put it beside the pitch when you set up.
Only one is ever needed per match. Here’s how it works:
The first time a coach commits a Foul, he must hand the IGMEOY counter to the opposing coach, who should place it on
their reroll track. All the time a coach has the counter on his reroll track, opposing players will be sent off for fouling if they
roll anything other than a double, but not if they roll a double as per the standard rules! This radically increases the
chances of being sent off, as they are under the watchful eye of the ref.
The coach is allowed to keep hold of the counter until his own team commits a Foul, at which point he must hand it over
to his opponent, who can then place it on his reroll track. In addition, the counter must be returned to the side of the board
(i.e. so that neither coach has it) when a half ends or a successful Illegal Procedure call is made against he coach with
the counter. In the case of the Illegal Procedure call, the counter is lost in addition to any other effect the call has.
And while on the subject…
ILLEGAL PROCEDURES
The way the rule is meant to work is that if a coach starts any ‘game mechanic’ before moving the down marker, then he
can be called for Illegal Procedure. Basically the only thing you are allowed to do without being called is to think about
things, as soon as you pick up a model, or roll a dice, or do something rules orientated, you can be called.
LEAP AND DIVING TACKLE
A player with Diving Tackle may throw a block at a Leaping player that lands in his tackle zone. The bit about ignoring
Tackle Zones under the Leap skill is simply to make it cleat that no Dodge roll is required.
NEW RACE RULES
HOBGOBLINS
A couple of you have commented that the background notes on the Hobgoblins makes great play about how stupid they
are but that isn’t really reflected in the rules. This is a fair comment and something that obviously ought to be rectified!
Therefore I’m going to impose the following rule on the Studio League for a trial period.
‘Hobgoblin Blood Bowl players are noted for their stupidity, although it has to be said that this isn’t a trait of the Hobgoblin
race as a whole. In fact most other races in the Warhammer World consider Hobgoblins to be sneaky gits who will stab
you in the back as soon as look at you, and will only fight if the odds are heavily stacked in their favor. This is actually
rather an accurate character assessment, and as a result only the really stupid ones get conned into playing Blood Bowl!
To reflect this, the coach of a team that includes any Hobgoblins must roll a D6 for each Hobgoblin player at the start of
the match. On a roll of 2-6 the player can be used normally but on a roll of 1 the player has either arrived late because
he’s forgotten about the match, or is having trouble tying up his bootlaces, or is doing something equally stupid, with the
result that he may not be used during the first drive of the match.
STUNTY GUYS
Some concern has been raised about the fact that the new Big Guy rules may make life a little bit more difficult than it
already is for Goblin and Halfling teams. This may well be true and if it is, I say ‘hurrah’, because that’s just the way I like
it!
This may seem rather cruel but one thin I’ve purposely avoided doing with Blood Bowl is making all of the teams even. In
fact I’d actually prefer it if Goblins and Halflings were LESS effective than they are at the present because this is the way
they are portrayed in the Blood Bowl background. Basically, if you’re the coach of a stunty team, you should expect to
lose ay games you play unless you happen to be up against another Stunty team. On the other hand, if you do win
against a, erm… taller team, boy is your opponent going to try and keep in quiet!
The fact that this isn’t really the case yet shows that I simply haven’t gone far enough making life difficult for the little guys.
But don’t worry; I’ll (we’ll?) get it right in the end…
Including Trolls as part of the lineup of a Goblin team does make a lot of sense, as there are close affiliations between the
two races, so I’ll happily go along with John Parson’s revised Goblin teams.
New Goblin Teams
No. Player MA ST AG AV Skills Cost
0-16 Goblin 6 2 3 7 Dodge, Right Stuff, Stunty 40,000
0-2 Troll 4 5 1 9 Mighty Blow, Regenerate, Always 100,000

Hungry, Really Stupid
Note: this means Trolls should come off the Big Guys team list.
I don’t agree with Treemen being included in Halfling teams, however, as the two races aren’t all that closely connected in
the Warhammer World. I also think they should be kept out of the Wood Elf team. Although these races are closely linked,
the Treemen are a sentient race in their own right who can choose to ally with the Wood Elves or not as they see fit.
VETERANS
The idea of allowing coaches to include players in their team, who have already accumulated SPPs, is rather a good one.
However, to stop players exploiting this ability in a boring manner to, say, give all of the Chaos Warriors the Block skill, I’d
suggest that each veteran you take for you team after the first is NOT allowed to take a skill you’ve already chosen for
another veteran player in the team (i.e. all the vets have to have different skills).
FINESSE TEAMS
On Jan 29th, Aaron C. Thies worried that:
Jervis has mentioned something about dropping the cost of some Elven skill players so that they could start with 12 or 13
players. Big deal. What are they going to do in three games? In five? In ten? Time will catch up with them; Orcs (even
Humans) will slay them.
Does this ever become a problem in the Studio League? I notice that Skaven and Human teams ten d to win most of the
Tournaments – how do the Skaven stay active long enough to do this?
Well, having Andy Chambers as their head coach helped the Skaven a lot! But seriously, we’ve only really found that it is
the expensive finesse teams that can suffer badly from high casualty rates. I think that reducing the cost of some of the
players on these teams should quickly sort this out. Not only will it mean that the teams start with more players, but also
that any loses will be easier to replace. This combines nicely with the new injury table from the previous Compendium.
ALLIES AND STUFF
I’ve seen it would appear that it’s the new ally rules and the IGMEOY rule (gotta love that abbreviation!) that are causing
the most grief, at least to the BB list. Here at the Studio the biggest complaints I’ve had have been about the Really
Stupid skill rules. Especially the fact that those poor old Trolls only get to move at the end of the turn. I have to admit I
was rather pleased to hear people saying things like; ‘there’s hardly any point having a Troll on the team’, etc, But in the
end I relented and there is a slightly toned version of the Really Stupid skill below which we’ll be using from now on.
As for the IGMEOY rule, although it’s brutal, I have to say I like it just the way it is, and although it is causing some
frustration to the more murderous coaches that are around, I’m keeping it just the way it is in the Studio league, so there!
The use of allies is clearly a far more thorny problem, and although we’ve not had much trouble with them in the Studio
league, they obviously have potential for rather, erm, cheesy uses, as several of you have pointed out. I’ve therefore
come up with a couple of suggested changes, which I’d be interested to hear your comments on. Giving credit where it’s
due I should say that these have been heavily influenced by stuff sent to the list by James Jamieson and Chet Zeshonski,
both of whom have come up with some really sensible ideas, which I’ve cheerfully stolen for my own use!
REVISED ALLY RULES
1. Only Linemen, Big Guys and ‘secret weapon’ star players (see below) may be hired as allies.
2. Every Ally causes the loss of Fan Factor. There are two exceptions:
 Big Guys do NOT cause a loss in Fan Factor, because most fans love to see such players on the field.
 Chaos teams do not lose Fan Factor for allies.
1. You are not allowed to buy allies when you create a team. Every team must play at least one game with a starting
lineup in order to ‘prove’ themselves before they can purchase any allies for the team.
2. If you’re using the new ally rules then you can’t have Star Players, except for stars that use ‘secret weapons’ (i.e.
Fanatic, Bombardier, Chainsaw, Pogo Stick, Death-Roller, Assassin). Any secret weapon hired as an ally costs
FF and may result in the loss of rerolls as normal. No team may have more than one secret weapon.
3. Finally, please note that a D6 must be rolled for each and every ally in a team. You lose a reroll for each dice that
comes up with a ‘1’. If you don’t have enough rerolls to lose, then the opposing team gains rerolls instead. There
are no exceptions!
REVISED BONEHEAD AND REALLY STUPID RULE
These guys no longer have to move last. However, if they fail a Bonehead test or Stupidity roll, then it causes a turnover!
MANDATORY SKILLS
Finally, a rules clarification about the use of skills in general. You never have to use a skill just because the player’s got it.
However, unless a coach says otherwise it’s assumed a skill will be used and if you don’t want to use a skill you must say
so before rolling the dice for anything that the skill may effect. Hope that clears up any misunderstandings.
SECRET WEAPONS
Here’s something that was submitted by Tom Merrigan from Oz of ‘A Fistful of Gunfights’, Gang War 1 fame.
‘Hi there again Blood Bowl fans. What’s the one thing that was really lacking from the pitches last season? No not the
cheerleaders. Secret weapons! Well they’re back in abundance and almost anyone can use them. Now, although the
Blood Bowl rules ban the use of secret weapons, all kinds of weapons have been sued by Blood Bowl teams in the past
as they attempt to battle their way to a major tournament win. Dwarf and Goblin teams in particular, have a well-earned
reputation for using secret weapons and fiendish inventions to give their team the advantage. Nonetheless, the use of
secret weapons is simply not legal and referees have a nasty habit of sending off players who use them. However, more
often than not, referees turn a blind eye to the use of a secret weapon. After all, they are popular with the fans and more
than one referee has been torn limb from limb by angry supporters after banning the use of secret weapon. So what are
you waiting for? Rev up those chainsaws and start mauling.’
The rules that follow allow players from all the different races to purchase secret weapons. If you are using these rules
then you are not allowed to purchase any of the Star Players that have secret weapons. Players can take secret weapons
instead of gaining a skill or a stat increase, but only when:
 The coach rolls a double for their Star Player roll AND
 If the coach has enough money to pay for a secret weapon
(Goblin teams are so desperate that they can take a secret weapon if the coach doesn’t roll a double on the Star Player
roll.)
Each team can only ever have up to two players with secret weapons on the team at any one time (Goblins are extremely
dirty and desperate so they can have up to four players with secret weapons). If you ever have more than two players
with secret weapons then you will have to start sacking players until you only have two players with secret weapons on
your team roster.
Note: you can’t simply get rid of a player’s secret weapon. Once a player owns a secret weapon they become attached to
it and wouldn’t give it up for all the gold pieces in the Old World.
WHICH PLAYERS CAN USE SECRET WEAPONS
Only the real desperate and dirty would ever stoop so low as to use a secret weapon. To represent this, secret weapons
may only be purchased for specific types f players. The table summarizes which players from each race can use a secret
weapon.
SECRET WEAPONS TABLE
Weapon Cost Teams used by Penalty Roll
Chainsaw 60,000 Chaos, Chaos Dwarf, Dwarf, Goblin, Human, Norse, Orc, Undead 8+
Blunderbuss 30,000 Chaos Dwarf, Human 10+

Poison Dagger 10,000 Chaos, Dark Elf, Human, Lizardmen, Skaven 10+
Bombs:
Explosive 40,000 Chaos Dwarf, Dwarf, Goblin 8+
Stink 20,000 Goblin 10+
Pogo Stick 20,000 Goblin 10+
Ball and Chain 30,000 Goblin, Human, Norse 7+
Deathroller 180,000 Chaos, Chaos Dwarf, Dwarf, Goblin, Human, Norse, Skaven 7+
Spike Free! All except Big Guy Teams 10+
WHO CAN USE THEM?
Race Position
Chaos Warriors Chaos Warriors
Chaos Beastmen Gors
Chaos Dwarf Chaos Dwarf Blockers
Dark Elf Linemen
Dwarf Longbeards
Goblin Goblins
High Elf Linemen
Human Linemen
Lizardmen Skinks
Orc Linemen
Norse Linemen
Skaven Linemen
Undead Zombies
Wood Elf Linemen
NEW SECRET WEAPONS
Stink Bomb: The stink bomb is treated in the same way as a normal bomb with the following exception. Players in the
square where the stink bomb ends up, and all adjacent squares, fall over coughing and choking. Lie them face up on the
field but do not make an Armor roll for them. Players falling over in this way do not cause a turnover unless one of the
players was holding the ball, in which case they drop it.
Spike: Spikes are simple but effective weapons used by almost all races. The most common form of spike is a piece of
old metal that the player has found and sharpened. A player with a spike adds +1 to all the armor and injury rolls thy
make. Note, you do not add +1 to the roll when determining whether a player is Badly Hurt, Seriously Injured or Dead.
THINGS THAT GO BUMP…

By Gavin Thorpe
Originally published in White Dwarf #181 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2
The Undead are one of the most fearsome teams in Blood Bowl. Merciless and implacable,
they grind their foes to grave-dust. In this article, Gavin Thorpe – Head Coach of the
formidable Washington Deadskins, takes us through the ins and outs of their tactics.
DEAD GOOD
The Undead are one of the most rewarding teams to coach in Blood Bowl and I hope that the following hints and tips will
encourage you to try them out. They do require a good sense of tactics, but when used properly they can be almost
unstoppable, burying their opponents under the weight of their attack.
RAISING THEIR SPIRITS
Undead teams consist of a strange variety of players, ranging form the fairly dire but plentiful and cheap Zombies and
Skeletons, to the awesome Vampire Counts of Sylvania. To get the most from this wide range of players, remember the
saying "a place for everything, and everything in its place" and try to ensure that you use each player to do things they’re
good at. Forget passing the ball to a Mummy, for example, as they’ve only got an Agility of 1.
Zombies and Skeletons are the Linemen of the Undead Blood Bowl team. They should be used to get in the way of your
opponent, exert tackle zones and assist your blocks. Their low Movement means they can be out-flanked and outpaced
by almost every other team, but don’t worry about this – the following tactics assume that the other side will run circles
around these guys.
As mentioned above, Mummies have abysmal Agility, but they make up for this by being the strongest players you can
buy without purchasing a Star Player. Their Strength of 5 makes them a cornerstone of any offensive of defensive line,
where they can smash their way through the enemy and provide holes for your speedier players to exploit. With a
Movement of only three, Mummies find it hard to compensate if they are not set up carefully so you must be aware of this
when you begin each play. However, any opposing player who is clumsy or stupid enough to get in range can be quite
certain of getting a good whack round the head!
Ghouls and Wights are your equivalents of Catchers and Blitzers. Ghouls only have an Agility of 3, and don’t have the
Catch skill, but their Movement of 7 gives you the ability to respond quickly if something goes horribly wrong. Their
Strength of 3 is better than most other Catcher-types, making them useful for throwing blocks, at a pinch. Wights come
with the Block skill and a slightly higher Armor Value, allowing them to stay in the thick of the fighting and still emerge
reasonably intact.
DEATH WARMED UP
Vampires are great playmakers. In my opinion, their high Strength and Agility, plus the Block and Dodge skills, makes
them the most versatile Star Player you can get – for any team! Although when I started out with the Washington
Deadskins I didn’t have a Vampire, I soon found out that it was difficult to win without one. I lost five of my first seven
games simply because I didn’t have enough skilled players, but I learned! A Vampire Star Player gives a rookie Undead
team a sort of safety net which keeps you in the game while the rest of the other players get some skills.
With your Vampire in reserve, ready to save the day if things go wrong, try to score with your Wights and Ghouls (allowing
them to get the Star Player Points they need). Vampires have the Hypnotic Gaze skill, which means they are great for
turning small holes in your opponent’s defense into large gaps for you to exploit. They can even Hypnotize one player and
block another in the same turn, creating a hole wide enough to run your Ghouls or Wights through without having to
dodge.
Taking everything I’ve said into account, my preferred starting team would now be something like this:
1 Vampire Star Player 180,000
2 Mummies 200,000
2 Wights 180,000
2 Ghouls 140,000
3 Skeletons 90,000
3 Zombies 90,000
1 Reroll 70,000
5 Fan Factor 50,000
TOTAL 1,000,000
As the Undead have two types of player who only cost 30,000 each I’ve found that it’s quite easy to have two or even
three reserves in your starting team. This makes a battle of attrition a very favorable game plan for most Undead
coaches. If you are playing in a League, you can cut down on the Zombies in your starting line up as your Necromancer
will be able to use his Raise the Dead spell to turn the casualties you inflict on your opposition into more Zombie recruits
for your team!
STOPPING THE ROT
Undead are not one of the best defensive teams. Being dead, they are rather clumsy and to avoid serious problems you
must make sure that your team is set up correctly. If you fail to do this you will find that your team is too slow to respond
to your opponents underhand and sneaky plays.
Two classic defensive set ups are shown in the diagrams. Both are very similar, the main difference lies in the way the
players react to your opponent’s plays. Basically, you have a strong central block on the line of scrimmage with the
Mummies ready to pound anyone who comes within reach – remember that your opponent has to put someone on the
line of scrimmage. If you think that there’ll be a big ruck in the center than you can throw your Vampire’s weight in their
too, otherwise you might want to leave him free to plug any gaps. Behind this block are the faster Wights and Ghouls and
to either side are Skeletons and Zombies. The Skeletons are fielded nearer the flanks where their extra point of
Movement helps them to keep up with the Ghouls (sort of), and the Zombies are placed more centrally because their
armor will keep them going longer in a fight.
The first diagram shows the defense against hard-hitting teams like Dwarfs that prefer to run with the ball. This is just the
sort of game that the Undead are good at and you shouldn’t have too much trouble in the ensuing scrap.
GRAVE TROUBLE
You’ll probably have most problems facing fast, agile teams like High Elves. These teams can potentially run through and
around your defense and pass the ball over the heads of the Mummies and Vampire, dodging your most dangerous
player and leaving you with little to do but chase forlornly after them. To counter this you should try the set up shown in
the diagram over.
With this formation you are more adapted to deal with passing plays, which usually send players up the flanks. You do not
have to waste your valuable movement crossing form the center of the pitch to the sides. Instead your players can drop
back with the opposing Catchers, using their whole movement.
Vampires are so flexible they can be useful almost anywhere. Setting them up towards the middle of your line of
scrimmage brings their Strength of 5 into play, but if you set them up in a wide zone their Hypnotic Gaze allows you to
storm your opponent’s line. Either way, Vampires are your best all-round players and should cause your opponent some
nasty moments however you use them.
THE FUNERAL MARCH
The best Undead offensive play is straight run up the center. There are variations on this theme, which I will explain later
but the basic idea is very simple. Using your Mummies and Vampire you break a hole in the defensive line of the other
team. The ball can be carried through this gap by a Ghoul or Wight (preferably a Ghoul as their Dodge skill can get them
out of unforeseen scrapes). Before you do this you must set up a corridor so that the ball carrier is protected. Using your
other Ghouls and Wights you set up a short ‘safe zone’ three squares long. In your next turn you can run the ball carrier
into this area without unnecessary Dodges. From then on, your team steadily works its way up the field, hitting anybody
foolish enough to stand between the ball carrier and the end zone. After two or three turns of this slow advance your ball
carrier can sprint into the end zone. I call this player the Funeral March, as the two lines of players slowly make their way
towards the end zone.
Variations on this play can be introduced to keep your opponent from knowing exactly what you are trying to do. For
example, sending a ghoul down one flank may convince your opponent that you are going to pass the ball, making him
pull back from your line and making it easier to form the corridor. If you are using the Special Play cards form Death Zone,
you may be lucky and draw a Magic Item that will make a passing play possible. Even if you don’t, the Ghoul can still
either rerun to form another part of the corridor or wait for a hand off which will start him running for the end zone a turn
earlier than expected.
If you’ve plenty of time to score, or its the first half and you want to grind the other team down a bit, you can use your
Mummies as lead blockers, making sure the path is completely clear of opposing players. This does limit the whole team
to the Mummies’ movement of 3, which is why you shouldn’t attempt this play when you only have two turns left to score!
With a Vampire on your team you can try the odd passing play to keep the other coach on his toes. One of the best uses
of this tactic is a fake Funeral March play. After a turn of advancing up the field the ball carrier hands the ball off to the
Vampire, the Ghouls at the front of the procession make a break for it, and the pass is thrown over the heads of he
defenders. The beauty of this play is its flexibility. If the opportunity to use this play presents itself you can perform the
pass, if it doesn’t then you can simply forget about trying fancy maneuvers and carry on with the Funeral March.
SPECIAL PLAY CARDS

The Special Play cards in Death Zone add an entirely new element to the game, and if used properly can stop or score a
touchdown when all else has failed. The most useful cards for Undead are those that involve moving about, such as the
Sewer Map and the Magic Items Speed of Light, Rakarth’s Bounding Leap, Time Warp, The Secret Way and Magic Pills.
If you can get your hands on one of these cards you can spring an unexpected trick on your opponent. Imagine his
surprise to find that one of your Ghouls or Wights can move an extra four squares this turn! Imagine his complete
confusion when an extra Mummy turns up right next to his ball carrier!
The other cards have no more specific uses with an Undead team than they do with any other race, but here are a few
pointers on some of the more profitable uses.
Knutt’s Spell of Awesome Strength is a great card for Ghouls, allowing them to add the roll of a D6 to their already
average strength of 3. Combined with their speed and Dodge skills they can make excellent pocket-breaking runs or
Touchdown blitzes with this card.
Scutt’s Deluge of Despair halves the Movement of the other team, bringing them down to your own sluggish pace. Its
especially demoralizing for your opponent if you play it when he thinks he’s broken though your line, your end zone is in
sight and he ahs that "nothing can stop me now" feeling.
Magic Arm of Jark Longarm allows you to automatically complete a pass successfully. Since the low Agility of an Undead
team makes passing plays unlikely, the use of this card can throw your opponent’s defense completely off balance,
especially if used in conjunction with a card that allows you to move a player further down the field to receive the pass. If
you get this card, you can often tempt the other side into a large brawl in the center, setting them up for the sudden pass
over their heads.
Magic Helmet permanently increases one of your players Armor Value by 9one and is best used on Ghouls, whose Armor
Value of 7 means they can spend quite a bit of time staring at the pitch. Alternatively, you can give the Magic Helmet to a
Wight, giving them enough protection to participate in a full-scale ruck with the opposition and you don’t have to worry too
much about the Wight being too badly hurt. Combined with the Regenerate skill, a Magic Helmet can make players
almost impossible to injure…
THE LONG HAUL
Undead teams are definitely at their best in a League. Their ability to Regenerate allows them to continue to pick up Star
Player points long after mortal players would have retired. Having said this, you can have all the time in the world, but you
can’t rely on Most Valuable Player awards only, you have to score Touchdowns and inflict casualties if you are going to
get anywhere in this game.
The following are my suggestions on what types of skills are best to acquire for different players. Of course, Strength
increases are welcome on any player, but be a bit wry about increasing the Movement of Zombies and Skeletons, as this
seems to me to be throwing away a good opportunity to get Block, Tackle or a more useful skill. Of course you will only
have the choice if you roll a double, but it’s always worth bearing in mind.
A Mummy with a Movement of 4, on the other hand, can be a horrible surprise for your opponent, as this allows them to
make a Blitz action on the same turn they stand up (their usual movement of 3 is taken up by the process of standing up).
In fact, the mere though of a Mummy with a high Movement is enough to give some Head Coaches nightmares.
MUMMIES
The majority of Star Player Points for a Mummy will come from casualties; so hit the opposition whenever you can. The
most essential skill to get for a Mummy is Block and when they have this skill the Mummy is almost without equal on the
front line, with the exception of a few very expensive Star Players. Tackle is also very useful for making sure the
opposition goes down when you hit them, and at the same time the Tackle skill stops fast teams like Wood Elves slipping
past these lumbering players.
If you are fortunate enough to roll a double, then I would recommend the Jump Up skill, as there is no sight more
horrifying for your opponent than to see a Strength 5 player leap nimbly to his feet and be allowed to block the guy who
just downed him!
GHOULS
Ghouls benefit greatly from skills such as Catch, while Sure Hands and Sure Feet increase their ability as ball carriers. To
make full use of skills like Leap (which require and Agility roll) a roll of eleven and a bonus Agility point is preferable. Block
is a handy skill too, allowing the Ghoul to ignore certain Block dice results when the other team inevitably gets close
enough to land a few blows. Pass Block is another annoying skill for your opponent, which can be used very effectively
not only to intercept a pass, but also to move your Ghoul nearer the ball and the opposing end zone. One Ghoul can be
given Dirty Player and be turned into a kind of hit man. He can then use his speed to run in and make sure you remove
downed players for as long as possible.
WIGHTS
Wights with skills can be divided into two categories: those who are great at blocking, and those who are great at Blitzing.
Blocking Wights out to get Mighty Blow, Tackle, Dauntless and Strip Ball, while Blitzing Wights will find Shadowing,
Frenzy, Strip Ball and Tackle more useful. Depending on your choices, your Wights will then start gaining more Star
Player Points from Touchdowns or casualties, so capitalize on this during the game.
THEM DRY BONES
Finally, you have the cheapest of all your players – Skeletons and Zombies. These players should be given the usual
Lineman-type skills, such as Tackle, Block and Dauntless. If you can get one or two players with the Guard skill by rolling
doubles, you can keep them next to your Mummies and make them even more potent Blockers. For a bit of surprise value
and variety, why not try a Zombie or Skeleton with Kick, as these players can be set up off the line of scrimmage without
damaging your game plan.
LAST RITES
Well there you have it – the distilled wisdom of an old Necromancer. Everything I know about leading an Undead team to
the top of the League. At least, everything I’m going to tell you – I still need some secrets, you never know when out
teams might meet…
***Did you know…
Blood Bowl pitches often take several years to build, as there are dozens of rules for each one to comply to. One of the
most recent of these states that pitches must not be built over old graveyards, battlefields or tombs. This was introduced
to avoid a repetition of the infamous game between the Athelorn Avengers and the Erengrad Undertakers, which ground
to a halt after thousands of the Undertakers’ fans rose from their graves in the end zone and invaded the pitch!
***Did you know…
The Deadbeats were the first major league team to lose a thousand games in a row. This all-Zombie team was so
hilariously bad that it attracted a huge following that would travel miles to watch their favorite team fall apart – literally! The
Head Coach and Necromancer Galbash the Black said that their game would improve as soon as he’d worked out how to
get the Raise the Dead spell to last a whole match…
SNOTLING TEAMS
By Joel Hainstock
Originally published in Citadel Journal #26 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2

Snotlings are the smallest of the green-skinned races. They are not very intelligent and behave very much like extremely
enthusiastic and uncontrollable puppies. They can fetch and carry for other Goblin or Orc races, and do other rather
limited tasks, but they are little use for any real work.
Snotlings live around Orcs and Goblins, infesting their caves and huts, scavenging amongst their rubbish piles, and
stealing anything they can get their hands on. Their larger relatives regard Snotlings with a certain amount of affection
and treat them as wayward and rather mischievous pets. Sometimes an Orc or Goblin will capture a few Snotlings and
train them to perform entertaining tricks, or to perform simple tasks.
It was a Night Goblin Shaman, Nabling Wartnose, who first decided to set up a Snotling Blood Bowl team, the Snotshire
Dribblers, and he was so successful that his players sometimes even survived a match! Wartnose led his Snotlings to the
dizzy heights of the first ever Blood Bowl open competition before tragically dying of a mushroom overdose just before the
Dribbler’s first match, against the Redmeadow Rangers. Without Wartnose’s inspirational – some say manic – guidance
the Dribbler’s were so badly mauled that the two Snotling players who survived the first half were killed when several
hundred Dribbler’s fans invaded the pitch in disgust. Since then, the only Snotling teams that have lasted more than one
match are those who’s Head Coach has the sense to invest heavily in Troll Blockers.
SNOTLING TEAMS
Having undeniably the worst players in the game is a problem no Snotling Coach has yet overcome, although the
availability of Trolls almost compensates for the team’s total lack of ability.
SNOTLING TEAMS
SKILL
QTY TITLE COST MA ST AG AV SKILLS CATEGORY
0-30 Snotling 20,000 5 1 3 5 Dodge, Midget, Right Stuff, Sidestep Agility
Big Guy, Regenerate, Mighty Blow, Really Stupid,

0-4 Troll 90,000 4 5 1 9 Always Hungry Strength
ALLIES
Snotling teams may hire allied players from Goblin or Minotaur teams.
STAR PLAYERS
Snotling teams can have Snotling and Troll Star Players for the cost listed on their card. Alternatively the team can hire
Orc or Goblin Star Players for twice the cost listed on their card. Note: Snotling teams can only hire Orc or Goblin Star
Players, not any player who will play for an Orc or Goblin team. So, no Morg N’ Thorg. (A selection of additional Star
Players, which Snotling teams can hire for the cost listed, is detailed at the end.)
MINOTAUR PLAYERS
Snotling teams may also hire Minotaur players, but a Head Coach has an almost impossible task in trying to control the
beast’s blood-greedy nature. Snotling teams may hire Minotaur star players or allied ‘rookie’ Minotaurs for the standard
cost as normal, but after every match – before you work out the post-match sequence – you must feed each Minotaur left
alive within your ranks with a Snotling. This can be any Snotling left alive after the game, even one who has been badly
hurt or seriously injured, and note that you must still feed a Minotaur if he has himself been injured.
SPECIAL RULES
The Snotling team is a totally unique one, and it is a brave, or somewhat stupid Coach who would choose to lead one out
onto the Blood Bowl pitch. That said a Snotling team does have some advantages, however insignificant they may be.
Due to their small size, and the fact league officials cannot tell one Snotling from the next, there is a huge limit to the size
of a Snotling team. You can only have up to 4 rookie Trolls. Note you may still only have up to 4 Star Players in your team
at any one time.
The small stature of a Snotling means that once a match is underway, it is very hard for a Referee to keep tabs on just
how many Snotlings are on the pitch at any one time. To represent this, at the start of every new drive the Snotling Coach
may bring an extra D6-1 Snotlings onto the pitch in addition to substituting for injured players, assuming he has enough
players left alive! If this takes the number of Snotlings on the pitch over 11, roll a D6. On a roll of 1 the referee has noticed
the infringement and sends off D3 randomly determined Snotlings for the rest of the match. If there are still more than 11
players on the pitch you may continue with the extra players.
Snotlings suffer the same penalties as Goblins, in that they must increase the range by one category when thy make a
pass and opposing Coaches may add +1 to the dice roll whenever he makes an injury roll for a Snotling or Snotling Star
Player, in addition to any other modifiers that might apply. In addition, Snotlings may never gain Strength skills, even if
they roll a double on the Star Player table.
New Skill: Midget (Physical Ability) (Note: this skill is known as Titchy in 4th Edition - Tim)
The player is incredibly tiny, even smaller than a Halfling or Goblin, and is almost impossible to tackle as he runs between
players’ legs and generally acts annoyingly. To represent this the player makes all Dodge rolls with a +2 modifier (instead
of the normal +1) and may ignore any enemy Tackle Zones on the square he is moving to when he makes the roll. This
means that Snotlings will usually Dodge on an unmodified 2+, unless they suffer an AG decrease or a nearby opposition
player has Prehensile Tail or a similar skill.
STARTING A SNOTLING TEAM
When starting a Snotling team the temptation is to buy as many Star Players as possible to make up for the weakness of
your main players – ignore it. If you have a team like this your opponent will simply spend the first half removing the few
Snotlings you have on your roster, leaving you with four Trolls lumbering about on the line of scrimmage while he wins 4-
0. A good starting team needs lots and lots of Snotlings and at least two players with the Throw Teammate skill. Below I
have listed a basic starting team, which will serve you quite well:
13 Snotlings 260K
"Ripper" Bolgrot 150K
"Basher" Fishgut 170K
Bogi Dungbreath 60K
1 Rookie Troll 90K
1 Apothecary 50K
3 Rerolls 180K
4 Fan Factor 40K
Total: 1000K
This may seem obvious, but you should save the Apothecary in case the Trolls fail their Regenerate roll – don’t even use
it on Bogi as he is cheap enough to replace.
PLAYING A SNOTLING TEAM
Using a Snotling team requires a lot of patience, and after your first few games, you may feel like you are fighting a lost
cause, but like all teams, with the right tactics a Snotling team can win a game, honestly! Snotling players only have two
real strengths; their dodging abilities and their numbers and you must exploit these to the full. If on the defensive, make
sure your opponent’s ball carrier always has at least three Snotlings next to him at the end of all of your turns. Remember
Snotlings have Sidestep so if your opponent fails to knock one over you can keep the pressure on. Bogi Dungbreath is an
absolute must when attacking your opponents’ pockets, use normal Snotlings to cancel out any Assists and watch Bogi
go! His Dauntless skill almost never fails against Strength 3 players, who are most likely to be holding the ball. Your
opponent will try and beat you into a pulp, so just dodge all your Snotlings away only leaving any Trolls you may have to
soak up the punishment. Your opponent should usually only be able to block one Snotling a turn, unless you have some
players near his ball carrier.
On the offense there are a few ways you can go, although probably the safest and most useful is using ‘Ripper’ or
‘Basher’ to throw a Snotling down the field to score. A more risky option is to run 3 or 4 Snotlings into your opponent’s half
as receivers. If your opponent bites and brings players back to mark these Snotlings, use your Trolls to pummel the rest
of his team a bit, then throw a Snotling to score. While you are doing this, your receivers should be dodging away from
their markers so your opponent has to declare a blitz. Alternatively, if your opponent ignores your receivers, simply run
the Snotling with the ball through his lines, handoff and score! The dangerous part of these last tow tactics is leaving the
ball with a Strength 1 player for at least one turn. Ro prevent your ball carrier being mashed, set up a large pocket around
your ball carrier with some of your other Snotlings. They maybe Strength 1, but their tackle zones are just as good as an
Ogre’s! Eventually your opponent will surround the pocket – just dodge the Snotlings away and reform the pocket
somewhere else.
Finally, never use your Snotlings to block without a lot of assists, and if you get a players over, make it count and foul!
ADVANCING A SNOTLING TEAM
Once you have got some money in your coffers it’s time to spend! Your first purchases should be to replace any Snotlings
killed in the previous game, and them to buy some more. The amount of Snotlings I like in my team may seem slightly
excessive, but remember you can have up to 16 players on the pitch at any time due to the special rules, and that
Snotlings really do get pounded so you’ll need lots of replacements. If a Snotling player gets a characteristic decrease
due to a serious injury, retire him; Snotlings are so cheap it just doesn’t mater. If you get enough money saved up, extra
Rookie Trolls would always be a welcome addition.
Some of your players may advance fairly quickly, but you should never rely on them being around, as Snotlings are just a
bit too fragile for comfort. This said if you get any really good players you could always protect them with a personal
apothecary for only 20K (see the Citadel Journal #18 for details). Snotling players should be given skills like Sure Feet
and Sprint to compensate for their low movement, and Catch is very useful to make those handoffs safer. If you’re lucky
enough to roll a double, skills like Sure Hands, Dirty Player and Dauntless are worth their weight in gold pieces. When
your Rookie Trolls eventually gain enough SPPs for their first skill, Block is possibly the best option, although a Troll with
Break Tackle, or another player with Throw Teammate could be worthwhile considering.
MINIATURES
I think this should be fairly obvious, but I will briefly mention the models available to represent Snotling players. There are
two main ranges to choose from, either Snotlings from the Warhammer range or from the old Blood Bowl range, which
should be mounted on normal 25mm round bases in either case. It may be a good idea to get some pre-filled slottabases
to save time and effort on milliputting.
Just to help Joel out, here are the codes for your Blood Bowl Snotling figures: 1.75 GBP each
073387/28 & 073387/26 & 073387/23 Linemen
073387/29 Bogi Dungbreath (Star Player)
073387/22 Snoti Snotson (Star Player)
073387/27 Grit Smelly (Star Player)
029900602/ & 605 Basher (Troll Star Player) 9.00 GBP
SNOTLING STAR PLAYERS
NAME POSITION COST MA ST AG AV SKILLS
Bogi Dungbreath Snotling 60,000 5 2 3 6 Dodge, Midget, Frenzy, Dauntless
Snoti Snotson Snotling 50,000 6 1 3 5 Dodge, Midget, Sure Feet, Sprint, Right Stuff
Grit Smelly Snotling 50,000 5 1 3 6 Dodge, Midget, Block, Pro, Leader
"Basher" Fishgut River Troll 170,000 4 6 2 9 Regenerate, Mighty Blow, Throw Teammate, Foul Appearance
(Note: the standard Snotling player, listed in the team roster above, comes with Right Stuff and Sidestep. These Star
Players do not have these skills listed. I believe that they should. – Tim)
‘ERE WE GO, ‘ERE WE GO, ‘ERE WE GO!

By Carl Brown
Originally published in White Dwarf 175 & 220 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2
Orcs are one of the most powerful Blood Bowl teams. Their combination of brutal strength
and solid armor makes them almost unstoppable. In this article, Carl Brown – coach of the
famous Deff Skwadd – discusses some of the finer tactical aspects of playing Blood Bowl
with a team of greenskins.

Orcs have been playing Blood Bowl since the game was invented, and teams such as the Gouged Eye and Orcland
Raiders are amongst the most successful in the league. Orcs play a tough and hard-hitting game based around pounding
their opponents into the turf before they stomp downfield to score. Orcs don’t tend to throw the ball much which is a good
thing really as they are not very adept at catching it. It’s now that they can’t catch, it’s just the when the ball is in the air
they tend to forget about it and get stuck into fighting with the nearest opponent instead!
Before we look in detail at creating a winning Orc Blood Bowl team, let’s take a minute to consider their strengths and
weaknesses. In Blood Bowl, as in war, you should understand your friends and respect your foes – the better you know
your team, the more chance you’ve got of using it to the vest of its ability. Orc teams have two main attributes: toughness
and strength. Orcs have the highest armor values in the game, equal to Chaos or Dwarfs, so they are very difficult to hurt.
In common with Chaos teams, Orcs are also able to start a season with Strength 4 players, which make them very, very
mean.
On the downside, Orcs also have two major disadvantages compared to other teams. First of all, their low Movement
Allowance means that they can be easily outrun or outmaneuvered by other races. Secondly, Orc teams don’t have any
Catchers, which makes the throwing game particularly risky.
So, what does this tell us? Well, with high armor values you can expect Orcs to stand up to a lot of punishment during a
game. Black Orcs (with their Strength of 4) are ate an immediate advantage when they make Blocks, as the majority of
their opponents will require an assist to be on even terms. The lack of Catchers in the team means that the throwing
game should be used as a last resort, and because Orcs don’t move very fast they can’t be expected to outpace anyone
in a flat out sprint for the end zone.
You’ve probably guessed that this all points to a team built for sustained, stomping, running plays. Which is exactly what
Orcs are good at.
CREATING YOUR TEAM
With all these big and aggressive creatures at your disposal, it’s relatively easy to create a league team capable of
beating the living daylights out of almost anyone they meet. However, although four Black Orcs, four Blitzers, two
Throwers, one Lineman, two rerolls and a Fan Factor of 5, might sound like the perfect lineup for a one-off game, for a
league it’s a bit of a risky option. When playing in a league your team carries on for game after game and any injuries or
deaths carry over to the next match. This mans that if you start the season with only eleven players, when the casualties
start rolling in you’ll find yourself starting games with less than a full team. This will make it even harder to win your next
game, and more likely that you’ll sustain further injuries. Once you reach this state it is very difficult to pull your team back
up to scratch.
A far better and safer idea is to start off with a team designed to compensate for these early losses.
I’ve played in Blood Bowl leagues for quite a long time now and I’ve fallen for starting with a super-strong eleven Orc
killing machine on a couple of occasions. Needless to say they didn’t stay super-strong for long!
For a longer-term squad, designed to stand good in a fight but also able to cope with the odd casualty in the initial stages
of the season, I recommend the following line-up. The Deff Skwadd started out with two Black Orcs, two throwers, one
Blitzer, seven Linemen, one Goblin, three rerolls and a Fan Factor of 5. This forms a good foundation on which to build a
successful team. My first purchase after a few games would be an Apothecary, and after this you can concentrate on
strengthening the front-line with more Blitzers and Black Orcs.
Your plans should then involve adding extra bits and pieces like Goblin Secret Weapons, Cheerleaders and Assistant
Coaches as well as saving up for a Star Player such as Varag Ghoulchewer or an Ogre or Troll.
TACTICS AND GENERAL GAME PLAN
Once you’ve picked your team its time to start thinking about how you’re going to use it – Da Plan! Deciding on an overall
strategy or game plan is a vital part of becoming a successful Blood Bowl coach. In your first few games its good enough
to just go out, cause mayhem, and try and score as many times as possible. However, you’ll soon learn that there are
points in each game where you have a definite advantage and times when your opponent can dictate the flow of play.
If you are up against a fast, lightly armored team such as the Skaven or Elves the game plan is simple. You should try to
rip as many of them apart as possible in the early stages of the game so that they can’t put up much of a fight later on! If
you win the toss, opt to receive the ball and try not to score until the 7th or 8th down. By then, a fair proportion of the
opposing team should be in the KO’d or Dead & Injured box and your team will outnumber them for the whole of the
second half.
If you lose the toss and your opponent decides to receive, you have two choices. The first is to try and soak up your
opponent’s attack and capture the ball off him. Once you have the ball, stomp your way down to the end zone and score.
The risk with this tactic is that you may succeed in holding up your opponent’s attack for the best part of the half, only to
see him slip through and score on down 7 or 8. If this happens you haven’t really got much chance of equalizing before
half time.
The second option can be even more of a gamble. This time, you deliberately don’t put up too much of a fight in order to
prevent your opponent from scoring (You do however take every opportunity to beat into pulp any of his players not
directly involved in the play!). As you aren’t offering any real resistance, your opponent should score by turn two or three
and this will leave you with the remainder of the first half in which to equalize. At the start of the second half it will be your
turn to receive, so you should be perfectly set-up to grind your way down the field for a 2-1 victory at full-time.
The big danger with this plan comes if anything should go wrong while you’re trying to equalize – such as fumbling the
ball or your opponent rolling a Blitz result on the kick off table. Your opponent may seize the chance to score a second
touchdown and leave you trailing 2-0 at half time.
Against slower, tougher teams such as Dwarfs or Chaos your tactics are similar up to a point. If you win the toss – get
them before they get you! Have a good old-fashioned brawl in the first half and try to score on the 8th down. In the second
half, try to weather the storm as your opponent rips into you and while this is going on try to work someone behind his line
to sack the ball carrier (Orc Blitzers are good at this!). If you lose the toss and your opponent receives, try to minimize
your casualties by backing off so that the only Block he can make is with his Blitz action. If you do this properly, and are
reasonably lucky, you should end the first half at 0-0 and with most of your team intact. In the second half, you get to
receive the ball and can batter your way down the pitch once again.
It must be said that games against these kinds of teams can be very bloody. In one memorable match against Andy
Chambers’ Chaos Doomlords, Andy killed two of my players, crippled one of my Linemen and left my only Thrower with
an Agility of 2! Needless to say, I also lost the game.
TACTICS ON DEFENSE
When you come to set up your defense, the main thing to be aware of is that your opponent is going to have the first
down and thus hit you before you can hit him (unless you’re lucky enough to roll a Blitz result on the kick off table!).
You must therefore set up your team in order to minimize the initial damage. There are two ways of doing this. The first is
to set up five Orcs on the line of scrimmage, two Orcs on each wide zone and two Orcs a bit behind the front line (see
Diagram 1).
Putting so many players on the front line creates a large number of tackle zones, which prevent your opponent from using
assists. This makes your line much harder to break open. The only way your opponent can get assists is by launching his
attack against one of your wide zones and then continuing down the line (see Diagram 2).
The way to minimize this danger is to put a Black Orc on each wide zone. As most teams’ players have Strengths of 3,
they only get to roll one Block Dice even when thy get an assist from a teammate.
This means the Black Orc has a reasonable chance of standing his ground. The danger with this defense is that if just
one of your players goes down, it creates a hole through which your opponent can sprint.
The second defense (see Diagram 3) follows a different approach entirely. In this case, the line of scrimmage has the
minimum of three players and the rest of the team stand two squares back.
The reason for standing so far away is to stop your opponent from being able to block lots of your players on his first
move. Why not stand only one square back? Well if you are unlucky enough to roll a Quick Snap on the kickoff table your
opponent can move each of his players one square in any direction and into contact with your men before he starts to
make his play! By standing two squares back you can stop this from happening.
If your opponent should break through down one of the wide zones, you’ll have trouble getting players back to cover the
attack, because the only players within reach are positioned in the center. However, by putting the Black Orcs on the wide
zones you'll make it much harder for your opponent to break through here and he’ll probably go for a softer spot. If,
because you only have three on the Line of Scrimmage, your opponent breaks through there, it’s not such a problem as
you can get players in his way from both wide zones. By keeping a Blitzer or two in the middle of the field you’ll have a
fast reserve and someone who can hunt down the opposing ball carrier.
TACTICS OF OFFENSE
When you’re on the offense with Orcs you might think that putting everyone on the front line where they can stick the boot
in straight away would be the best policy. On some occasions this can work, especially when you have a lot of Black Orcs
and Blitzers.
However, as Orcs have a low agility, it’s also important to set up your team in a way that enables you to maneuver your
players into a protective pocket (or Da Cage as Orcs call it) around the ball carrier with as little dice rolling as possible.
Obviously you’re going to need a player who can pick up the ball in the first place so you’ll need at least one Thrower with
his very useful Sure Hands skill. One of the worst things that can happen to an Orc team is a deep kick into their end
zone. Because they are not very fast, a turn spent running back down the field to retrieve the ball cuts down the time they
have to move it up field. With this in mind, your Throwers should be set up so that they can reach the corners of your own
end zone. It’s best to place your toughest players on the Line of Scrimmage with the job of clearing a path for the rest of
the team to follow down. These players will probably be Black Orcs and Blitzers and a Troll or Ogre, if you have one.
The example play ‘Da Stomp’ shows the first down and general movement of an Orc drive. If the ball lands close to the
halfway line, gather it up with a Thrower or Lineman and get it to the center of the field behind your Black Orcs. Then form
a protective cage around the ball carrier with your remaining players. If the ball lands deep in your own half create the
cage first then gather the ball and hide it inside. The reason for creating the cage first is that these moves require no dice
rolling and can’t go wrong. Why not create the cage first if it lands close to the halfway line? Because as the ball is close
to the opposing players, if you fumble it when trying to pick it up, and all of your men are standing 2 or 3 squares away,
there is nothing to stop your opponent from running forward and grabbing it. If the ball is deep in your backfield your
opponent can’t reach it so if you do fail to pick it up it’s not such a problem.
Once the ball is secure in the pocket, Block with your Black Orcs and Blitzers but don’t follow up. If all has gone to plan,
on your opponent’s down he will be face with a menacing wall of Orcs that he is unable to block except with his lone Blitz
action. This means that on your second down, your formation should still be pretty solid and ready to roll (still keeping a
cage around the ball) maiming and killing all the way downfield to score.
My second sample play is ‘Da Foola’. As its name suggests, the aim is to fool the opposition into defending against one
attack, while actually pushing towards a different play.
In this case you are initially making your play look like ‘Da Stomp’. On the first down you form your players into a cage
around the ball and block with your front line. On the next and subsequent downs you swing the pocket around to the left
or right and make a concentrated push down that flank. Simultaneously, you run a couple of players down the opposite
side in order to threaten a pass action and spread your opponent’s defense. Because o9rcs are not renowned for their
throwing game, your opponent won’t believe you’ll attempt the throw and the players will be only lightly marked. If your
running play grinds to a halt, it should be easy to get one of these two into the end zone and throw the ball foe a surprise
touchdown. Goblins are particularly useful in this role as their "Stunty" and "Dodge" skills enable them to slip through
opposing lines and get into position for the catch.
WEAPONS AND MONSTERS
One of the best things about an Orc team is the sheer choice of Star Players. Some of the most dangerous and useful are
the Goblins with secret weapons and large monsters such as Trolls and Ogres. Although your opponent can roll after
every touchdown to see if any players using weapons are sent off, don’t worry about this. The fear they cause far
outweighs this risk and at one point in the studio league I had one each o f the four weapons available!
Nobbla Blackwart is a must for every Orc and Goblin coach and should be purchased as early as possible in the team’s
development. When he attacks with his chainsaw he gets a massive +3 on the armor toll so he almost always causes an
injury. This makes him excellent at taking out your opponent’s top Star Players. If he only stuns them its good enough
because while the player is down you can gather a few boyz around and kick hem to death with a foul action!
Fungus the Loon is good for the sheer terror he puts into your opponent. He might not exert a tackle zone but you can
guarantee your opponent will keep his best players well away from him. This makes him very useful for opening gaps in
lines of defense through which you can send your Blitzers. There is a danger that the fanatic could end up splatting one of
your own players but that’s the kind of risk you have to take!
Scrappa Sorehead is good when you need a fast touchdown. He normally moves six spaces but can go for three extra
squares making a total of nine. Add to this his Leap and Dodge and your have the fastest and most agile player an Orc
and Goblin team will ever get.
Bommer Dribblesnot is most useful against a team that plays the running game such as Orcs, Chaos or Dwarfs. When
you need to break into the pack surrounding the ball you can lob a bomb. Don’t throw the bomb into the middle of the
group, as it might be caught and thrown back! Aim just for the edge of the pack and if you’re lucky it will scatter adjacent
to a couple of players and knock them down. This will then open the ball carrier up to be blitzed.
Trolls and Ogres open up a whole new element to your game. Aside from being immensely strong, they can also throw
Goblins. If you use them on the front line you can be sure that they’ll knock down any player foolish enough to get in their
way and they are in turn very hard to take down. Should you have a goblin in your team as well as a monster or two then
you have in you hands the capability to score in one down. When you are on offense set up your Goblin and monster next
to each other just behind the Line of Scrimmage. When the ball is kicked, retrieve it and hand it off to the Goblin. You then
declare a pass action with the monster and aim the Goblin as close to the end zone as possible. If you are lucky (you’ll
probably need a 6 to be accurate), the Goblin will land safely and then simply run into the end zone to score. It’s a risky
play, but in a tight spot, close to full time, it can win games.
SPECIAL PLAY CARDS
I’ll just say a quick word about the special play cards in Death Zone and using them in a game. Don’t forget you’ve got
them, and don’t be afraid to use them! In all the time I’ve played with the Death Zone rules, the single most frustrating
experience I’ve had is when I’ve seen a chance to use a card but didn’t do so, just in case a more appropriate situation
came up later. Inevitable, the opportunity I was looking for didn’t arise and I ended up using the card on something trivial.
After this had happened to me more times than I care to recall, I’ve came to believe that its better to use a card as soon
as you think it’s the right moment rather than wait for an opportunity that never comes.
SUMMING UP
No matter how much plotting and planning you do there is one thing that cannot be prepared for, and that is luck. Even
with the most foolproof plan and best team in the world, if the dice aren’t rolling your way there is nothing you can do
about it. (Except maybe curse, and mutter "We wuz robbed" – a common enough practice among Blood Bowl coaches
who are having a bad day.)
There are, however, small things you can do to increase your chances. When you want a job done, make sure the right
player is doing it. It’s no good expecting a Black Orc to pick up the ball in an enemy tackle zone, dodge out and then
throw a perfect long bomb to your receiver in the end zone; thy just don’t do that sort of thing. A Thrower on the other
hand would have a fighting chance. In the same way, don’t expect your Thrower to flatten the opposing team’s Star
Player. The right man in the right place is the mark of a good coach.
The sequence of moves and dice rolls is also important. Try to make any dice rolls for which you have a skill reroll first
and then proceed to ones that are covered by a tem reroll working from the easiest up. Sometimes this isn’t always
possible and you have a very difficult toll to make before anything else in the play can happen. On these occasions make
sure you prepare for the worst by moving free players into positions from where they can defend should something go
horribly wrong when you make your play.
Well that’s about it for now… I can’t guarantee you’ll win all your matches, but these suggestions should go some way to
helping you to Bloc, Foul and smash your way to the top of the league. Even if you don’t win every game, make sure you
duff-up you opponents and you’ll have almost as much fun. Right now, me ladz need their pre-match team-talk, so happy
hunting and in the words of Varag: "Stomp ‘Em!"
HOT FROM THE FORGES

Feast your eyes on the ravening collections of Blood Bowl miniatures and conversions suitable for
you to field your new Chaos teams. Crush your opponent’s team with your Snotling Pump Wagon
and see if you can impale Griff Oberwald on the helmet spike of your Doom Diver…
New Chaos Team Players
Marauders 1.75 GBP each (5.00 GBP for three)
Ungor Runners 1.25 GBP each (5.00 GBP for four)
Bestigor Blitzers 2.00 GBP each
021400704 Marauder (Bearman 4)
020105303 Bestigor Blitzer
0201105508 Ungor Runner
Norse Team
Boxed Set 17.00 GBP

Individual players 1.75 GBP each (5.00 BGP for three)
099903601 Norse Thrower
099903602 Norse Lineman 1 (both fists raised)
099903603 Norse Lineman 2 (Chains on hand)
099903604 Norse Lineman 3 (No helmet)
099903605 Norse Catcher 1 (Winged Helmet)
099903606 Norse Catcher 2 (No Helmet)
099903607 Norse Blitzer 1 (Horn on helmet)
099903608 Norse Blitzer 2 (Winged Helmet)
A complete Snotling Pump Wagon consists of:
1xRoof
1xRight Side
1xLeft Side
1xPump Handle
1xPump Base
2xDrive Belts
1xChassis
1xSpiky Roller
2xWheel 1
2xWheel 2
12xSnotling Crew
Snotling Pump Wagon - 12.00 GBP

complete
020902301 Left Side (1.50)

020902302 Right Side (1.50)
020902303 Roof (2.00)
020902304 Wheel 1 (75p)
020902305 Spiky Roller (1.50)
020902306 Pump Base (1.00)
020902307 Drive Belt (50p)
020902308 Pump Handle (50p)
020902309 Chassis (2.00)
020902310 Wheel 2 (75p)
Snotling Pump Wagon Crew (35p each)
020902327 Snotling 1
020902316 Snotling 10
020902325 Snotling Pump Handle Crew
Goblin Doom Diver - 12.00 GBP complete
020910901 Ramp (1.25)

020910902 Ramp Support (2.00)
020910903 Ramp Base (1.25)
020910904 Catapult (1.25)
020910905 Snotling Pullers (1.5)
020910906 Flying Doom Diver (2.00)
020910907 Snotling with Mallet (50p)
020910908 Doom Diver Torso (1.20)
020910909 Hook (25p)
020910910 Doom Diver Legs (50p)

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BLOOD BOWL COMPENDIUM # 2

WELCOME TO THE SECOND BLOOD BOWL COMPENDIUM

Originally published in Blood Bowl Compendium #2

Copyright Games Workshop Ltd. 1999

MAKING GREEN MEAN

By Guy Simpson (Gsimpson2@aol.com)

Originally published in Blood Bowl Compendium #2

Copyright Games Workshop LTD 1999

SNOTLING PUMP WAGON

BAT-WINGED LOONEY (GOBLIN DOOM DIVER)

DOOM DIVER CATAPULT SUMMARY

Cost: 60,000 gold pieces

Cost MA ST AG AV Skills Special

50,000 gp 6 2 3 7 Dodge, Right Stuff, Stunty Flyer Chaos

Doom Diver Catapult

Cost MA ST AG AV Skills Special

50,000 gp - 4 - 9 None None Chaos

Snotling Pump Wagon

Cost MA ST AG AV Skills Special

BEER AIN'T EVERYTHING,

Copyright Games Workshop LTD 1999

Hall Of Fame: Gregor Lukash, Magnus 'Axeface' Manglesson, Stefan Spearstaff

Qty Title Cost MA ST AG AV Skills

0-12 Norse Lineman 50,000 6 3 3 7 Block

0-2 Norse Catcher 70,000 6 3 3 7 Block, Catch

0-2 Norse Thrower 70,000 6 3 3 7 Block, Pass

0-4 Norse Blitzer 90,000 6 3 3 7 Block, Frenzy, Leap Up

Re-roll counter: 60,000 gold pieces each

NORSE DRINKING SONG

Drinking 'til I'm drunk.

Standing up, falling down,

Punching someone's lights out,

falling on the floor,

Waking up next morning,

Then getting drunk some more!

(Repeat ad infinitum until someone asks you to stop,

duff them over, then start again!)

* * * Did you know..

BRINGING LIZARDMAN TEAMS UP TO DATE

Originally published in Blood Bowl Compendium #2

Copyright Games Workshop LTD 1999

Team May Ally With

WIZARDS AND WEAPONS

WELCOME TO THE CHEAP SEATS

Is there anything novel about Lizardman stadiums?

New Star Players

Originally published in Citadel Journal #9 and Blood Bowl Compendium #2

Copyright Games Workshop LTD 1999

Zorn ‘Sabre Tooth’ Ukzrag

Special rules: Kantona Kick (Penalty Roll +9)

NAME POSITION COST MV ST AG AV SKILLS SPECIAL TE

OUT ON THE TOWN

Originally published in Blood Bowl Compendium #2

Copyright Games Workshop Ltd. 1999

THE COLLEGES OF MAGIC

THE BLOODWEISER CORPORATION

ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTING CONJURERS

THE BLOOD BOWL BALL COMPANY

6-15 Marauder 60,000 6 3 3 8 Special Gen

Marauder Special Skill