[Team Blog] Orc Bran Muffins

[Tergara]

So, this is my little followup for the orc team I just started up. This is my first real team against other players online. I just took one of the public leagues and started going there for matchmaking. I'm hoping to get into an actual cup now that I've played a little with this team because they seem to be solid and fun.

The team itself:
4 Blitzers
2 Black Orcs
1 Thrower
4 Line Orcs
4 Rerolls
10k banked

Looking over the start, I could have gotten another thrower, or changed the thrower to another black orc and just used the rerolls to pick up the ball.

Setup Complete, I started playing.

First Match vs Humans 1-0 TD
This match started out with the humans getting to recieve. They set up fully in a wall on LOS on one side, but left just enough room for a blitzer to go through and thus the ball was popped loose starting a scrum in the middle that was only ended when an orc blitzer ended up with the ball and stiff armed his way into the endzone. The half nearly over the orcs kicked off and the humans started off running the ball up the field again, but turned over. The orcs started to try and get another TD before half and managed to take out the humans ogre, making the battle for LOS a much easier one. The second half was much the same as the first with the ball being bounced around between both sides before ending up in the hands of an orc blitzer. Marked by a player for some reason the coach had him throw a block (I forgot which orc had the ball, lol), ending the game 1-0.

Second Match vs Orcs 2-0 TD 1-0 Death Count
This orc team had a very different build. They had at least 3 black orcs, possibly 4 as well as blitzers, thrower and some goblins, but only 1 reroll. This lack of reroll would end up costing them, as several times the two dice blocks they through came up in both knocked down. The most infamous of these was when the Line Orc Chocolate Muffin and one of the opponents black orcs went down with the Black Orc dying In the end, rerolls and the running game won another one.

After Match 2 lvl ups Line Orc-Skill-Kick Black Orc-Skill-Guard (although I could have had a +Ag)

Third Match vs Ogres 3-0 TD

This match was actually one I was very worried about. The ogres had 6 ogres and 5 snotlings, but the strength of the ogres was worrisome. As well, with their toughness it was hard to try and stun them. So I relied on the tried and true tactic of killing as many snotlings as possible. This worked fairly well with only 2 left at the point the opponent d/c'd to avoid what would have been the 4th touchdown.

2 more lvl ups Line Orc-+Ag and Blitzer-Tackle

I now have 180k in winnings after I purchased an apothecary. So I'm deciding where to go. I could pick up 2 more black orcs or a troll to fill out my line. I could go for more line orcs to give me a bench or 1 black orc and 2 line orcs. Either way, I'm pretty comitted to get myself some more orcs, just don't know where would be the best. I'm leaning towards 2 black orcs as those would give me a 4 man line that could stand up against most other lines at least reasonably well.

[Nikolai II]

I doubt you need more linemen. You could pick up the black orcs, and start using linemen for fouling with. (Black orcs are more reliable than trolls)

[Tergara]

Hmm, thats a good point. I'd still have a deep team and can afford one or two to go off. With apoth, I probably won't lose anyone important, hopefully praise Nuffle. Then I can start the climb to add cheer and ass coaches. I'll hopefully have a chance tonight to add some flavor to the first post with actual stats and such.

[Nikolai II]

You are unlikely to need coaches / cheers, but if you get any you should stop at one or two. More than that is probably team value bloat whether you play in matchmaking or league.
(Halflings could get four or five of each, but that's an absolute maximum when playing against humans. When playing the AI I used to get ten of each to give the AI more inducements, but that's another thing entirely )

[Tergara]

Thats really good to know! Since I've spent so much time against the AI, I haven't gone entirely to the strats I need against humans. The reroll heavy advice I got though has paid dividends in every game. My games I first did against AI was only 2 rerolls at max.

[Nikolai II]

Yea, humans will actively try abuse every time you get a turnover at a bad moment, meaning it is quite important to try to avoid those moments, which RR help you do.

Meanwhile the Coach/Cheer roll is 1d3, so getting +2 to that is enough for most occurences. (If you won FAME you get +3 and always win, if your opponent won FAME you are still at +1 against them which means you'll probably win anyway )

[Tergara]

The Story of the Orc Bran Muffins and How They Came to Be from team promotional material sold for the low cost of 60 gold at all home and away games.

Items in italics are from the notorious sportswriter Jaason Fetlock

Millard Wafflewiffle is a true genius of a coach. The only halfling ever to coach a professional orc bloodbowl team that hasn't been eaten or killed in practice. His unique strategies and motivation techniques have been copied by numerous coaches across the league. Nuffle spills his blessings dramatically over the plucky halfling and his team of orc devotees.

Okaaay....I'm going to have to shred this apart and tell it like it is. This halfling is one of the worst coaches ever. Its true other coaches have copied his techniques as what NOT to do in situations. His 'devotees' are more like hostages and Nuffle has nothing to do with any wins they get.

Millard started his journey during a chef's competition involving other halflings. His genius went unnoticed and so he decided to travel. His travels and travails could fill a whole book, but in the end he ended up in orc lands. There he found that his genius as cook was recognized. In fact his genius was so recognized that he was given a gift of his own choosing, coach of a blood bowl team!

So many inaccuracies, so little time to correct. It wasn't that his genius wasn't recognized, it was that his 'genius' was better described as ineptness. His food was so bad that the halflings actually banished him because the smell of his food put halfings off their appetites! His trials and travails were more from trying to pass himself off as a master chef and getting nearly killed in the process. The orc tribe actually was sacking a small village where he was baking muffins and thought, when they captured him, that he had developed some new weapon. They let him cook for the whole band and it was soon discovered that only the 'ardest of orcs could stomach the food. The boss, who couldn't stand the stuff, decided that sending off a small group of orcs along with the halfling to play bloodbowl was better then trying to fight off a mob of angry boyz who were hopped up on muffins. So the team made WiffleWaffle the coach and named them after the 'ardest things they could find, his bran muffins. The names listed for the players came from the fact WiffleWaffle can't pronounce orc names well, so he named them after various muffin and pie types. In the end, I hope this disgrace of a team is eaten very quickly.

[Tergara]

Ok sports fans, it seems that perhaps coach WiffleWaffle took Nuffle's name in vain. The Orc Bran Muffins were soundly beaten by a team of Nurgle devotees 2-0 and lost the star black orc Raspberry for the next game. The Nurgle team field Grashnark Blackhoof to even the odds and he crushed the orcs for their impudence and never allowed the orcs to get a cage up, or to break the field up with a throw. Instead the orcs weren't even allowed to get the ball past the half marker.

[Nikolai II]

Nice fluff though

[Tergara]

Heh, it was a rough game. I'm hoping, hoping to not play another bashing team. After playing as chaos I've gotten spoiled by st4 blockers and its really changing my play. Plus it was my first 2min turn game and I had at least 3 turnovers there that really hurt, but so did he.