Dwarfs seem to be ideal Blood Bowl players, being compact, tough, well-armoured and having a stubborn knack of refusing to die! Most successful Dwarf teams work to the principle that if they can take out all the other team’s potential scorers, and wear down the rest, then there won’t be anybody left to stop them scoring the winning touchdowns!
| QTY | Position | Cost | MA | ST | AG | PA | AV | Skills & Traits | Pri | Sec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-12 | Linemen | 70k | 4 | 3 | 4+ | 5+ | 10+ | Block, Tackle, Thick Skull | GS | A |
| 0-2 | Runner | 85k | 6 | 3 | 3+ | 4+ | 9+ | Sure Hands, Thick Skull | GP | AS |
| 0-2 | Blitzer | 80k | 5 | 3 | 3+ | 4+ | 10+ | Block, Thick Skull | GS | AP |
| 0-2 | Troll Slayer | 95k | 5 | 3 | 4+ | – | 9+ | Block, Dauntless, Frenzy, Thick Skull | GS | A |
| 0-1 | Deathroller | 170k | 4 | 7 | 5+ | – | 11+ | Break Tackle, Dirty Player (+2), Juggernaut, Loner (5+), Mighty Blow (+1), No Hands, Secret Weapon, Stand Firm | S | AG |
| 0-8 | ReRolls | 50k | Apothecary: Yes | |||||||
| Special Rules | Old World Classic, Worlds Edge Superleague |
Dwarf Team Overview:
Dwarf teams are probably the most resiliant team in the game. Most of their team has very high armour and they have thick skulls which makes them harder to get off the pitch even if you do manage to break their armour. They also start with some good skills, most the team has block, they have a lot of tackle and the runners are good at picking up the ball. Dwarf teams also have the option of a deathroller which is the strongest peice in the game, though it tends to get sent off by the referree quite a lot!
It isn’t all good for dwarfs though, due to their diminutive stature, dwarf teams are very slow. They are also rather average in the strength department compared to other of the traditional bashing teams. To combat these weakenesses it is important to position your players well or you can quickly find yourself out of position and stranded in the wrong part of the pitch as faster teams run off. Dwarfs also benefit from sticking together to assist each other, also if you are close by to each other should the ball come loose, you should have a lot of players nearby to try and recover it.
For a beginner their slow movement and lack of ball handling skills may be tricky to deal with. The fact that they are hard to get off the pitch though should provide you with a full team most of the time. There are certainly easier options to start out with.
Dwarf Team Strengths:
- High armour
- Thick skull
- Start with lots of block and tackle
- Cheap rerolls
Dwarf Team Weaknesses:
- Very slow
- Lack good ball handlers
I’ve been playing a lot of Dwarf lately for Crunch Cup purposes, I’d add that Dwarves are rightly feared by any team relying on dodge to stay alive as half the team are likely to start with tackle and block so Stunties and Amazons can expect to be eating a lot more astro-granite then they are built for. As such most dodge heavy teams fear Dwarves above all other teams especially at lower TV when many other teams have no tackle at all
Successful play of Dwarf teams seems to revolve around gaining local strength advantage around a focal point, whether this is gained by sacrificial marking on strong targets away from the action, the high priority Guard development, a numerical advantage, block advantage, careful assist positioning or picking on weaker players, once dominance is achieved it can be applied causing further injury, pushing the ball forward or breaking through to the carrier.
I think the key to success with Dwarves is marking as much of the opposing team as possible. Dwarves are hard to keep down, and tackle makes them hard to dodge away from (getting lots of guard helps keep them up). Mobility is your biggest weakness, so make it your opponent’s too.
True. But then how do you score, with your players scattered all over the pitch and no ability to throw the ball?
I find them extremely difficult to use for this reason. I suppose maybe the best bet (at least against weak/dodge/agile teams, ie. goblins, elves, skaven, and amazon) is to mark the enemy, have plenty of deep lines of defense (ie “safeties”) just in case, and then play the waiting game while you patiently down their players and hope for some KOs or injuries, then you can start to do your plodding cage move down the field in the 2nd half.
Still, seems very difficult to manouver. And then, if the opponent DOES drop the ball, you’re scattered all over, looking at 4+ turns to move down the pitch, AND face unhappy times trying to pick up the ball with 2 agility.
Yuck.
I bet they can be awesome when played strategically, but I don’t think I will ever have the plan-ahead patience it requires, and I haven’t played yet against anyone who pulls it off correctly.
You can’t play a dwarf team as a two way team. Either focus on defense through marking players, or focus on offense through caging. They can’t do both at once, they don’t have enough movement. But that said, they can do either defense or offense very well. My tactics with them are to stop a score when my foe has the ball and then when the ball is kicked to me(in the second half if its my choice) use the cage to go down the field and score in turn 7 or 8. The other thing you can do is keep your runners out of the tangle and clear so when the ball does come lose they can grab and you can cage around them. Dwarf tactics are much more simple then people think. Smash everything, shadow and smash fast players on the other team and work your way slowly down the field. It takes a bit of practice but its all about using skills and numbers correctly.
runners get access to the passing skill for a very good reason. hail mary, thats how they pass. thats what hail mary is for… the slow moving teams
To manage ball handling u can use the 2 runners (MA 6 – AG 3). Using hand offs and short passes and protecting them with Blitzer and Trolls Slayers u can score more than u imagine
I don’t think I ever won a game with more than 2 TD.
Still… I clearly remember having killed the ALL opponent’s team in 5 turns.
Yes, halfling and treeman, so what?
If you’re in Belgium, please check:
http://forum.bloodbowl-game.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=3253
I’ve racked up 3-0 scores before, but the AI is a VERY poor loser and crashes if I gain an early lead. It’s actually crashed so hard it turned off my Xbox One. Never, ever crashes when I’m losing.
But to keep it on topic, I’ve gone up against Dwarves a lot, especially as Chaos and Orc teams, and they are built for taking punishment. I can beat them, but battles of attrition are all but guaranteed. It’s brutal, but it’s fun to fight them.
How do you see using the death roller? Is it worth it? Do top teams use em?
It is for sure a fun piece on the field, but does it hurt the success rate?
I see the Deathroller as very much a fun player and it’s probably not an optimal tactical choice to have on your roster. They can get marked out of the game by an opposing Lineman. They are likely to get sent off after one drive and increase your team value. A Dwarf Lineman and extra skills of the same total value are going to be more useful the majority of the time.
Thanks! Appreciate your comment.