OK, it's GAME TIME! This post will probably be wordier than most as I will try to also explain mechanics of the game as we go along.
We are playing against Bugman's Best - group of beer-swilling dwarves who are as tough as nails. Little stunty nails.
We actually win the coin toss and choose to receive the ball.
The dorf kick off...
Is absolutely PERFECT, landing the ball snug against our own touch down line. Thankfully we had a quick snap event and we are allowed to move all our players one square, regardless of tackle zones.
Note: almost every kick off is immediately followed by an EVENT. These events can range in scale from minor to deadly.
Note: Players are surrounded by a Tackle Zone. Imagine a keypad where 5 is the actual player and all the other numbers are grid squares where the player can potentially block another player. Having allied players in your tackle zone can add support for tackles, depending on the individual skills of all players in the tackle zone in question. Seem complicated? It is, but you get used to it fast.
you can see the turn counter in the upper right hand corner (1/16).
Note: Your turns ends (called a Turnover) EVERY time a player you are controlling either drops or fumbles the ball, or is knocked down while while performing a block, or when there are no remaining moves for the player to take. You can also end your turn at any point by just hitting end turn.
The game progresses in this fashion until you hit turn 8 (halftime) or turn 16 (end of match).
Note: during a turn, a player can only attempt ONE action, either a MOVE or a BLOCK. Moving out of an opposing player's tackle zone can trigger a block, so you need to be careful with that. To block, you need to have an opposing player in your tackle zone at the beginning of the turn. The only exception to the one action rule is a BLITZING player, which can perform BOTH a move and an attack in a single turn. You can only blitz with one player per turn however, and in this turn here you see a dwarven player blitzing into Hummelgumpf causing a BLOCK.
Note: a word on Blocks and Block Rolls.
When two players connect in a block, a certain number of 'BLOCK' dice are rolled. 1 to 3 depending on strength and allies in the tackle zone. Results of the die can be things like:
Defender Down
Attacker Down
Both Down
Defender Pushed
Defender Stumbled
So if I am the attacker and have have MORE than one die rolls either from STRENGTH, ALLIES, or other factors, I get to choose which one to use after the roll. So if I rolled ATTACKER DOWN and DEFENDER DOWN, I would want to choose DEFENDER DOWN since choosing ATTACKER DOWN down MY player and then cause a turnover. If I had only one die roll, I must take whatever the result is.
In this case, the AI picked BOTH DOWN. Hummelgumpf has the BLOCK skill, as does the attacking dorf, which allows the player to ignore the BOTH DOWN effect on the block dice, effectively negating the block for both of us. However if Hummelgumpf did NOT have Block skill, he would have gone down and the dwarf would have remained standing since he DID have the Block skill. Understand? It seems confusing at first, but knowing WHICH die roll to pick based on the player involved is key to winning the game.
Back to the game!
A-Train, a thrower attempts to pick up the ball...and rolls a ONE. Like DnD, a roll of ONE is always failure. Luckily A-Train has sure hands skill which gives him a free re-roll when picking up the ball once per turn. He rolls again and succeeds, running the ball up towards his line where he can be defended.
Ending my turn, the dorfs make haste...well as much as they can, towards A-Train, kocking down Fat Dragon in the way. Fat Dragon is only slightly stunned and will be able to get up next turn.
Here you can see an example of a BLOCK roll. This result is two ATTACKER DOWN rolls, clearly a bad result and I will choose re-roll....geting TWO BOTH DOWN results...Luckily Hummelgumpf has block, as does the dorf, so no one goes down. Unfortunately this means that A-Train will have to attempt a DODGE to get out of the dorf's TZ and move the ball...
SUCCESS! A-Train moves the ball up and is getting into position for the other defenders to form a protective cage around him, protecting him as they move the ball up the field...in theory. The reality is that dwarves are little meat grinders and this will be a tough fight to the line.
The cage is formed...a little tighter than I would have liked, but I had no choice. The dorfs are quick to try and break it. At one point they strip the ball from A-Train, but luckily one of my Black Orcs recover it (with a 2 agility, amazing!) and then, miracle on miracle, hand it back to A-Train.
The dorf turn sees my cage pulled apart and a defender knocked down. See that shirt less dorf with the red hair? That's a troll slayer - one tough little stunty. he has several skills which make him really tough in blocks. I manage to pull the cage back together, but make no forward progress with the ball.
The dorfs immediately start pulling the cage apart again. This will get very bad here soon - injuries are inevitable with the kind of blocks being thrown around here by both teams.
And here it is...one of the dwarven players goes down with a KO!
Another dorf goes down! Badly injured, but with no long term effects. Injured or KO players can return at certain points in the game if their injury is not too severe.
With this opening, we got a chance to move the ball now, but first time for some 'safe' moves first. See all those plus ones? Those are assists in the tackle I am about to make.
Unfortunately we only get a DEFENDER STUMBLE, but it gets him out of the A-Train's zone.
A timely push against the troll slayer to get him out of A-Train's zone and...
We are off! Darth Roxor also get a BOTH DOWN block, which he is protected from, but his target is not - sending him to the pitch.
TOUCHDOWN!
Our cheerleaders go wild! Ew.
The dorfs now have THREE(!) injured players.
KICK OFF TIME! We are kicking off to the dorfs and... uh oh...this is bad news. One of the worst major events you can get. This is why fan support and cheerleaders are sooo important.
In the upper left hand corner we can see the target of the rock, BROKEN RIBS! OUCH! Safe to say he is out of the game. It could have been worse, you can be KILLED by the thrown rock event. (My screen grab skill is low, so i didn't react fast enough to get the impact)
Despite being down 4 players, the dorfs open their turn like gangbusters and completely decimate my line. Thankfully we are saved by HALF-TIME!
A new kick off to the dorfs, and we fare MUCH better, stomping their line and getting the ball FAR back into the dorf's own territory.
The Green Wall assembles.
The dorfen runner scrambles back to the middle of the field, but the orks smell blood and apply the pressure.
Here you can see Fat Dragon setting up for the blitz...I move players next to the ball carrier (the dorf with the gold beam) and set up for the blitz. You can also see down at the bottom where Jim Cajones laid out a dorf.
Fat Dragon blitzes...succeeding in only pushing the dorf back, no tackle or ball strip. Still the pressure is on.
Next run we have him surrounded and it is just a matter of time before that stunty coughs up the ball!
COUGH!
I send Jim Cajones goes after the ball early in the turn, he's a blitzer with 3 agility, which gives a fairly good chance at it... DAMNIT! Turnover. That's right, failing to pick up the ball can end your turn, which makes it crucial to plan your moves carefully.
Turn 14 and the dorfs have had enough of A-Train's leadership skills. A well placed dorfen fist rings his bell and sends him to the sidelines. However, this doesn't stop the Orks from FINALLY getting their meaty hands on the ball.
Darth Roxor takes off and Touchdown!!!!
After the kick off to the Dorfs, Jaesade gets tired of the dorf lineman making fun of him and sends him to the sideline with a broken jaw and 3 less teeth than he started the game with. Play of the game!
The dorfs try to get around the Green Wall.
A quick blitz and ball grab end that scoring drive before it even began!
Unfortunately, the clock runs down and that is the match!
Thanks to Jaesades well timeed fist, he gets enough SPP's (think XP) to gain a level. We chose the GUARD skill for him, if he lives to level 3 we will probably pick MIGHTY BLOW!
Whew, ok, that's our first game all wrapped up!
