Yesterday evening I opened the batting on my 2019 Blood Bowl campaign. The Lambs to the Slaughter are a Chaos team, consisting of a squad of seven Beastmen, four Chaos Warriors, and a Minotaur.
In their opening match of the season, the team faced Bugman's Boys. This was their first conference match as well. The squad was very much untried and had not played before, and the dwarves of Bugman's Boys certainly looked intimidating.
On the upside, the weather was fine, but on the downside, the pitch had been modified with a couple of trap doors, which was less than conducive to feelings of security as the team went into its pre-game huddle.
The dwarves won the toss, and expertly fielded the opening kick, forming what is popularly known as a 'cage' - a formation which sees the ball carrier screened by various tough blockers and troll slayers, marching down the field and smashing through anything that gets in its way.
The Lambs had to somehow break the cage - that was the challenge before them, and while, with the aid of Minotaur Big Jim, they succeeded in doing so, as the cage broke up, the dwarf with the ball scampered unhindered into the Chaos end zone for their first score.
It had been a tough scuffle for the Lambs, with no star players to speak of at this stage. The Chaos Warriors proved their worth, being heavily armoured but slow. There was only four of them, however, and most of the dwarves were similarly heavily armoured. Things were not helped when Horns Hermann broke his jaw and will be out for the next match.
With only a few minutes left in the first half, the Lambs were unable to make it to the opposition end zone, and the half ended 1-0.
Into the second half then, and the Lambs received the ball from the Boys. This time the Chaos team tried to play a slightly more open game, with Big Jim causing havoc in the middle, and seemingly drawing in many of the dwarves, who got excited with a bit of gratuitous violence, especially the troll slayers.
While this was going on, the Beastmen tried to set up a long passing game, with a throw to one of the unmarked Beastmen. Sadly the pass was not completed, but it did move the ball up the field and forced the dwarves to retreat to corral it.
There was a brief moment of Lambs optimism as Big Jim staggered clear of the ruck and actually almost picked up the ball, but then the Boys recovered it and began their inexorable march back down the pitch.
Again the infamous cage formed, but this time the Lambs were fewer in number, so it would be doubly difficult to stop the dwarven drive before the final whistle. This Lambs managed to do, with Big Jim thundering up behind the dwarves and breaking up their little cage from the rear, sending the ball flying (see above). The Lambs did their best to recover the pigskin, and even committed the only foul of the game (from Rudiger the Cruel), but alas to no avail, and the dwarves scored their second try just before the final whistle.
The Lambs lost another Beastman (#5 Gunther Goatfeet) who came off with a gouged eye, so it looks as if there will be a need to hire a journeyman Beastman for the next match of the season.
Larry the Ram was credited with a completed pass for the Lambs, while Rudiger the Cruel, a Chaos Warrior, picked up five star player points.
Here are the current standings in the Albion Conference at the time of writing (North American format - W/L/D) - bear in mind some inter-conference games are also being played:
In their opening match of the season, the team faced Bugman's Boys. This was their first conference match as well. The squad was very much untried and had not played before, and the dwarves of Bugman's Boys certainly looked intimidating.
 |
| Somewhere in there is a dwarf with the ball... |
On the upside, the weather was fine, but on the downside, the pitch had been modified with a couple of trap doors, which was less than conducive to feelings of security as the team went into its pre-game huddle.
The dwarves won the toss, and expertly fielded the opening kick, forming what is popularly known as a 'cage' - a formation which sees the ball carrier screened by various tough blockers and troll slayers, marching down the field and smashing through anything that gets in its way.
The Lambs had to somehow break the cage - that was the challenge before them, and while, with the aid of Minotaur Big Jim, they succeeded in doing so, as the cage broke up, the dwarf with the ball scampered unhindered into the Chaos end zone for their first score.
It had been a tough scuffle for the Lambs, with no star players to speak of at this stage. The Chaos Warriors proved their worth, being heavily armoured but slow. There was only four of them, however, and most of the dwarves were similarly heavily armoured. Things were not helped when Horns Hermann broke his jaw and will be out for the next match.
 |
| Larry the Ram sets up for a pass, Rudiger the Cruel is blocking. |
With only a few minutes left in the first half, the Lambs were unable to make it to the opposition end zone, and the half ended 1-0.
Into the second half then, and the Lambs received the ball from the Boys. This time the Chaos team tried to play a slightly more open game, with Big Jim causing havoc in the middle, and seemingly drawing in many of the dwarves, who got excited with a bit of gratuitous violence, especially the troll slayers.
While this was going on, the Beastmen tried to set up a long passing game, with a throw to one of the unmarked Beastmen. Sadly the pass was not completed, but it did move the ball up the field and forced the dwarves to retreat to corral it.
There was a brief moment of Lambs optimism as Big Jim staggered clear of the ruck and actually almost picked up the ball, but then the Boys recovered it and began their inexorable march back down the pitch.
 |
| The ball gets knocked loose late in the second half... |
Again the infamous cage formed, but this time the Lambs were fewer in number, so it would be doubly difficult to stop the dwarven drive before the final whistle. This Lambs managed to do, with Big Jim thundering up behind the dwarves and breaking up their little cage from the rear, sending the ball flying (see above). The Lambs did their best to recover the pigskin, and even committed the only foul of the game (from Rudiger the Cruel), but alas to no avail, and the dwarves scored their second try just before the final whistle.
The Lambs lost another Beastman (#5 Gunther Goatfeet) who came off with a gouged eye, so it looks as if there will be a need to hire a journeyman Beastman for the next match of the season.
Larry the Ram was credited with a completed pass for the Lambs, while Rudiger the Cruel, a Chaos Warrior, picked up five star player points.
Here are the current standings in the Albion Conference at the time of writing (North American format - W/L/D) - bear in mind some inter-conference games are also being played:
- Bugman's Boys (Dwarves) 4-0
- Nippon Steelers (Elves) 1-0
- Squig Sin City Bengals (Goblins) 0-0-2 (two matches drawn so far)
- Citizen Change (Chaos) 0-0-2 (as Goblins above)
- Violent Pre-Skeletons (Necromantic) 0-1-1
- Lambs to Slaughter (Chaos) 0-1-0
- Arboriophyles (Elves) 0-0-0
I expect great things of the Lambs!
ReplyDelete