NAF Champs '22 Tournament Report

NAF Champs Ref's - Strike a pose!

After a good night's sleep in the De'Vere Orchard Hotel and being fully rested (after an evening of 'Sevens') and having consumed a hearty buffet breakfast...

Halflings call this "1st breakfast"

...there was only one thing left to do... and that was get ready for 2 days of socialising, agonising over failed plays, cursing dice, listening to everyone's tournament highs & lows and generally enjoy the hubbub of a major Blood Bowl tournament.

The last time we were all gathered here was in 2019, and frankly it was good to be back. There were many familiar faces around, many of which had been at the UKTC, but it was still good to catch up.

Something told me I was in the right place...

Everyone had had a chance to get more used to the 'new' rules, and figure out the better team builds. But the most significant changes to the event this year were the table sizes - they were less deep, meaning that we weren't all breaking our backs to lean across them. However, for many, that came with a compromise - the pitch size...

It fitted perfectly on the table, and was cloth (as opposed to a 'card' GW pitch or Neoprene like many 3rd party pitches). The pitch did in my view had it's advantages... it was more difficult to catch the edge of the board and knock stuff over, or get shaken by over-enthusiastic dice cup slappers. The numbers and words faced inwards (perfect for end to end play), and the pitch was updated for 2020 rules. The only (and most significant for some) disadvantage was that the pitch squares were smaller, making life more difficult for those with teams on 32mm bases, or with bulky Big Guys. However, on a totally selfish note, I was fine. My 'Iron Golem' Dwarf miniatures were 28mm, metal, and pretty compact compared to the expansive 2020 GW Dwarf team for example.

Website

We did have a snazzy website - http://nafchampionship.co.uk - to check round draws, report match results on and check current standings. I thought this was excellent. Clearly easier than filling in scraps of paper and watching the referees frantically enter them into the system!

Vendors/Sponsors

There were all sorts of distractions for coaches around the room. There were various vendors and tournament sponsors, including Black Orc Down (see trophy photo below), SJEMiniatures, Squad Chaos and Tritex Games.

Along with the referees prowling around the room there was also some live streaming...

Mike Davies & crew are on air!

...and a Painting competition 

...full of wonderfully painted miniatures, judged by a panel of experts (well, they have more of an idea of what they are doing than most people!). I did take some photo's but it was quite busy and unfortunately the photos didn't do the miniatures justice... but you get the idea. I'm sure someone will post a link to a site in the Comments below with better photos for those interested! I don't have any of the artists names I'm afraid... Again, post to lay claim to these beauties in the comments if you can please. Sorry if I missed anyone out!

Capes!

After each round, the person leading the most casualties or touch downs etc etc would get a cape to wear with pride...

More capes than a Marvel film!

There were also people in various guises across both days with someone appearing as an Orc (looked more like the winter king from Game of Thrones to me!) and the guys from Fling Nation promoting their tournament in September in Derby, UK.

Fling Nation complete with Chef Hat! :)

Anyway, you get the idea! There was a lot going on aside from the dice wrangling on the pitch. Everything was well organised, with some great choices by the DJ for the end-of-round-is-imminent countdown music. I'm sure there were a few in-jokes going on too! There was a sandwich bag for lunch and a bar for those in needing to take solace in alcohol! There was also a NAF registration desk for any one needing to become a member and an Apothecary station where superglue was provided for broken miniatures!! It also helped that the weather was great, so we got to sit outside in the sunshine on plentiful picnic tables.

Yes, that's me without the facemask!

Right... down to the Blood Bowl...

I had opted for my standard NAF Championship team - Dwarves (I can hear the groans already!), however, I seemingly went for a different build to many who took Dwarves... I didn't go for the DeathRoller with Sneaky Git! I just couldn't invest that sort of cash into something that I just know would be sent off (knowing my dice) despite any bribes I might have. Instead I took a shed-load of Guard and a Sneaky Git linedwarf, and 3x rerolls. Was that a wise idea? Let's find out...

Day One - Round One vs gr4n0t4's Dark Elves

Ouch. Dark Elves. Meeting Elves is not usually favourable for Dwarves.

Ricardo - Such a genuinely friendly gent!

I won the fans roll, lost the kick off, but Ricardo opted for me to receive... and then promptly kicked the ball deep into my half! I already knew that this was not going to go well! 

Ouch - a deep kick vs Elves!

I had set up fairly deep myself to try and counter any such issues, but would it be enough? Well, Nuffle wasn't done yet, as I rolled double skulls with Troll Slayer's second block! Fortunately, being the very start of the game, I had rerolls to hand, and this promptly turned the skulls into a KO'd line-elf! Despite moving my guys into a deep covering position, my Sure Hands Runner wasn't so sure-handed and failed to pick up the ball! Oh great!!

Dan handing out free gifts! Give us a smile!

And then Dan Atherton turns up, box in hand to hand out a free gift - a commemorative Blood Bowl token in a plush gift box... not sure I can use it for anything in particular other than a nice keep-sake!
If anyone has any suggestions (other than to use as a throwing star!) let me know in the comments below! Well, that took the edge off the rather calamitous first turn!

By turn 3/2, despite pressure from the Dark Elves sweeping around my defences, I managed to get the ball back up into the middle of the pitch... and we slowly tried to make our way up the field without leaving a hole in our defences and exposing the ball carrier. This, however, didn't go so well. Despite getting further up the field, the guerrilla warfare-style elven defence delayed us, and we simply could not break that Dark Elf armour. By turn 7/6 we were getting desperate - after the ball carrier got himself sacked we needed some luck... all was not lost as a line-dwarf plucked the bouncing ball out of the air on a 6! And then, for the first time using 2020 rules, I completed a jump (stepping over a prone player) with a line-dwarf!! He then promptly hand off to a Blitzer. We had a chance as we were in range next turn... but the Dark Elves had other ideas, and sacked the Blitzer and almost scored in their last turn needing a 6 to pass... but 1'd the catch with no rerolls left. Phew!!

The Dark Elves had effectively done their job and denied me a TD, so the 2nd half, with only 10 elves available, they just had to dance around the dwarves, score, and win the game. We put up a decent defence and I think would have held them off, but for a set of quad-skulls in turn 4/4 that let them through and free to score in turn 6/7... 0-1 (0-0).

Just to add insult... the Dark Elves added an injury and saw out the game 0-1 (0-1). 

And the ultimate dream of winning the tournament was gone! 😋 Well, who knows, I could 'submarine' my way through the rest of the tournament... it just depended who I was drawn against for Round Two!

Round Two vs Glowworm's Goblins

Well... I checked out the Round 2 draw... and I wasn't listed! 😱 What was going on? I made my way up to the referee's desk and enquired. Apparently, some people had already walked out and gone home. Someone must have had a very bad first game! Even so, I do see that as a little inconsiderate of other coaches and perhaps a little selfish... but I suppose with an emphasis on mental well being etc, if you are being that strongly affected by a dice game should you really be playing it in the first place??

Anyway, this meant (after 15 minutes of waiting around) that I would be playing one of the Referee's... and it was Glowworm! Obviously you can imagine his face when he realised it was Dwarves! And frankly I was a little concerned as he had 160+ games with them and a couple of Stunty Cups under his belt.

A happy Glowworm in the face of Dwarves!

I won the kick off and decided to receive in perfect blood bowl weather. This time we secured the ball in turn 1 and by turn 2 had KO'd one Goblin and injured another.

The Dwarves receive and start making their way through the Goblin defences...

However, the Goblins had other ideas as the Trolls managed to knock over a Guard line-dwarf in turn 2/2 and then fouled him to death. It was slow going and Nuffle's favour swung back and forth, and Glowworm had a chance following some chain pushing which left the ball carrier exposed to a potential hit, but a key 1 on Really Stupid denied him. The Dwarves eventually scored in turn 8/7. By this point, Goblin numbers were thinning with 2x goblins & 1x Chainsaw injured, with another Goblin fouled off the pitch. 1-0.

Glowworm was not beaten yet and a series of good dice allowed him to successfully throw a team mate (a TTM!) and score in turn 0/1 of the second half. 1-1. Turn 1/1 we received and picked up the ball and went again, but Glart got his claws out and killed the Troll Slayer. This was getting a bit too close now! However a Quad Skulls by the Ball & Chain Goblin  saw him KO'd and we made good use of the luck and scored in turn 4/4. 2-1. We had to really push now, and Glowworm could see it only going one way but I was rightly fearful of another TTM, and the pressure gave us the ball and we managed to go 3-1 up in turn 7/7 and we finished the game 3-1 (4-2).

Round 3 vs Montagne's Chaos Dwarves

We've had Elves and Stunties... but now it's a Dwarf off!

I won the kick off in perfect weather and decided to receive, which is always good vs a bash team... get them before they get you!

The Chaos Dwarves try a right-side shuffle on the line

There was a lot of Block on the CD team, with both Bull Centaurs and the Minotaur looking to be more reliable hitters... but I was hoping the Guard on my side would help... especially if I could properly utilise my Sneaky Git! The half started with a High Kick which a Runner managed to catch, but my first block was worrying as I rolled a double skulls! We did recover though, and slowly pushed up the field. 

By turn 4/3 we managed to prone the Minotaur and knock him out with a well placed boot. It was a stodgy affair, but we did manage to run over the line for a TD in turn 8/7, but not before a Chaos Dwarf single POW'd and hurt a Guard line-dwarf. Ouch! The half ended, but not before Cheering Fans put Pro on my Troll Slayer for the game.

The second half resumed again with a High Kick which a Hobgoblin caught (good catching skills on display for both teams!), but it was a deeper kick. Mike and his Chaos Dwarves tried to make their way down the pitch but we put up a stubborn defence and despite trading a casualty each, the game finished 1-0 (1-2).

Well, Day One I was on 2/0/1 and wasn't too upset at that really. But I had learnt a lot about how to approach Day Two. Some things to chew on. It really depended on the type of race I would come up against next.

In the meantime, it was back to the hotel to get freshened up and go out for a nice meal with friends!

Day Two - Round Four vs Paul's Lizardmen

I believe there were quite a few Lizardmen teams about and I finally met one. It was going to happen. Paul [*ED - Need to update coachname!] probably thought the same about Dwarves! Again, importantly, we won the kick off in Perfect Weather against a Lizardman team with 6x Block Saurus's and a Block Skink. 

As you can see from the above, we set up to knock over lizards, and we duly did. The boys then crowded around the Krox with Guard... and the Sneaky Git line-Dwarf ran up on him with his freshly sharpened studs and fouled him... a 10!!... injury... boom!... into the injury box... but a double on injury!! So I decided to have it out with the ref and stated clearly that the Dwarf clearly stumbled onto him accidentally. For some reason (nothing at all to do with the Troll Slayer looking on menacingly) the referee decided to agree and he stayed on the field!

However, despite going a man (or Lizard!) down so early, the Lizards but up quite a defence, and in turn 4/4 my Runner was sacked as a result of a neat bit of chain pushing, where a skink got a one dice block on him... and Pow! and then went on to pick up the spilt ball on a 5. In turn 5/4 we injured a Skink but Snake-Eye'd a rush (GFI) Blitz on the ball-carrying Skink. This gave the Lizards a good window to escape.... but in turn 6/5 a Runner dodged away (3+) and landed a 2x dice blitz on the ball carrier... Push/Skull... rerolled... Push/Skull.... gah!!! The half ended with me 0-1 down (2-0 cas).

The Dwarves managed to apply pressure in the second half but the Block Skink had picked up the ball carefully and they were looking to play "keep ball". We managed to KO a Skink or two and eventually managed to sack the ball carrier and score, with the game ending 1-1 (2-0). It was a very tight game, but despite the first turn drama, we simply couldn't make enough dice count on Lizard numbers to get a clear advantage. We wished each other well and looked ahead to round 5...

Round 5 vs CharlieBanks's Imperial Nobility

I gathered from the lady-coach sat next to me that Steve (aka CharlieBanks) had the accolade of nicest bloke in Blood Bowl. And he had good reason to smile. Imperial Nobility are the Kryptonite to the Dwarven Superman... Fend and Wrestle are very useful for keeping Dwarves at arm's length and stopping their strength in team work... especially when they had as much Guard as me!

You may recognise the team from one of the Painting Competition photos earlier. They did look good up close! I ended up receiving in good weather (I think Steve opted to kick)... But there was a Pitch Invasion and 3 of my Dwarves ended up face down! This wasn't a good start! However, a touch back allowed me to secure the ball without worrying too much.

My notes get a bit sketchy after this. I know that despite the Imperial team sacking my ball carrier (I'm looking back at these reports... I need to cage better!) Steve got more and more frustrated as the half went on and was quickly turning into the most despairing coach in Blood Bowl. This is because we managed to regroup and score at the end of the half, but importantly had failed to hurt anyone. 1-0 (0-0). By turn 8/8, 3 of the 4 Imperial Nobility Knock Outs recovered in time for the second half.

The second half saw a complete switch around in dice results... and the Nobility side score in turn 3/4 1-1 (0-2)... and in turn 4/4 we Double One'd the pick up after a deep kick and in an effort to get as quickly back up the pitch as possible to try and get a winner we Snake Eye'd a rush (GFI). Now it was my turn to get frustrated! The match finished 1-1 (0-2).

Round 6 vs Knowmad's Dark Elves

I had been chatting to Nick during the interval and when the draw was released he breathed a sigh of resignation... However, having lost to Dark Elves in round 1 I was less convinced than he was that I would do well!

I ended up winning the kick off and decided to receive. I think Nick said he would have kicked to me anyway, so we both got what we wanted! However, he wasn't thinking that for long as I injured a line-elf in turn 1/0 and KO'd another. I had a feeling Nick that this was an all too familiar feeling for Nick when he declared "here we go again!"...

We plodded up the field as best we could, and in turn 4/3 injured another line-elf, and eased in to the end zone in turn 8 to go 1-0 (2-0), but the Dark Elves in the KO box both came back. The second half began with the Dark Elves catching a high kick, but we simply got in as many blocks and fouls as we could and despite not hurting any more elves, we did see a good number off to the KO box and managed to get the ball, and score late for a win. 2-0 (2-0).

Thoughts on skills, races & strategy

The Guard/Sneaky Git combination was pretty good. Although, weirdly, from memory, it felt like when I broke armour I tended to roll pretty high and didn't really need the Guard assists... but I think it was the security of knowing I was likely to get through any armour value that was reassuring. What I knew though was that I would miss out on bonus points for casualties and I perhaps need to think about Bonus Points more at these things.

I know Dwarves lack the speed for breaking down the line, so I was prepared for that, but my style of playing a loose cage seemed to come undone too many times. I need to keep the ball carrier back two squares from the front line and be more aware of chain pushes. I also missed the armour breaking Mighty Blow power. We just couldn't get opposition players off the board for long enough to make numbers count.

It was clear that the more successful Dwarf teams were using the Deathroller, but like I said, that just felt wrong, and actually with my fouling dice it wouldn't have made any difference... so it's clear I can still improve my Dwarf game but a large factor!

I would be interested to see the winners and losers in races for the tournament. There were 2x Orc, 2x Lizardman and 2x Dark Elves in the top 10... but they are damned good coaches who would still do well playing any race. If the rules stayed the same for next year I'm not sure what race I would be tempted by. If I took Dwarves again I think I would replace a couple of Guards with Mighty Blow. 

There weren't too many new rules that I had issue with. I still see the Passing Rule/Interference/Interception rules as far too complicated. I used the jump over rule which was useful, and would be far more powerful for agile teams. The consecutive rerolls usage does allow agile teams far more insurance of success than they had previously to dodge through a long run and score.

Results

It had been a long weekend but I managed to finish on a 'Dusty Bin' - 3/2/1. I finished 61st out of 270 coaches which is the upper 25%... again, I'm happy with that! At time of writing the results have not been uploaded to the NAF website but I'm sure it will happen soon.

I took some photos of the trophy collectors... but I'll have to edit to include coach names later...

The Final - before any dice were rolled!

Stunty Cup Winner - halfabrain

Rising Star - Thomas W - A good day for Team W

? - NippyLongskar

Most Touchdowns - Loki

Most Casualties - macc

2nd Place - PeteW

? - el_spoonio

NAF Championship 2022 Winner! - sporran

And a final note on the Tournament... 

Congratulations to all the winners... but the overall winner was definitely Blood Bowl. Well done to the NAF and the organisers and referees. Thanks also to all my opponents for the most part smiling in the face of a Dwarf/Guard line up. It was also nice to see so many familiar faces and have a few chats here and there too. And I didn't catch Covid, which is always good! 😏

Warhammer World

I had decided to stay over on Sunday night (played a game of Sevens - Undead vs Dwarves against Mr_Frodo) so I could roll back home following a tour at Warhammer World. The tour was well worth it if you get a chance!... Grabbed a few photos of some fantastic dioramas:

The Emperor vs Horus

Crimson Fists last stand

an EPIC diorama - Ultramarines (and some Grey Knights) vs Chaos

The other side of that tower... 

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Until next time! Stay safe everyone.