Kent Team Championship 2025 & Nurgle - top 10 for me!
It's March, and it must mean it was time to return to the Spitfire cricket ground, home to Kent County Cricket Club and the Cowdrey* Centre. (*Anyone who knows anything about cricket will know Colin Cowdrey as a former England Cricket Captain and Legend!).
Last year I took Khorne to what was a one-day tournament. We finished 3rd overall out of 30 teams, but my own results were pretty poor in comparison as Mr_Frodo and Howlinggriffon finished 6th and 7th respectively.
This year was a two-day team tournament instead, and I decided to take Nurgle, which was a bit of a risk given that it was a 3rd tier team. However, they are a lot more manageable than the total carnage/chaos that is Khorne! For a start, none of that Frenzy nonsense to contend with!!
Prizes & Trophies
Black Orc Down provided the wooden dice trophies, and another sponsor, Austromancy Crafting Co provided the skull candles.
I also understand that the KTC'25 was the first UK tournament to hand out the new NAF Team Trophy to the winning team. That gets my vote - I like that!
Sponsors
Charlie Victor - Great to have sponsor stands that you could browse & buy, along with Hearth Forge Games. Both provided prizes and goody bag items.
Nurgle Roster
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| A winning roster? |
I opted for the above skills, choosing to have a Guard Rotspawn, which I think was the right choice given the races I ended up facing (read on! - no spoilers!). As I took a tier 3 team I got to take the extra skill point for a skill. This helped!
It must be something about Nurgle, as I turned up with the remnants of a chest infection. Fortunately I felt well enough to play.
My team mates had chosen Vampires (Sam), Elves (Darren) and Chaos Chosen (Andrew).
And we're off...
Stewart got us underway with some clarification of rules etc... and then the draw was revealed on bbtmp.app ... little did Stewart know what was in store for him...
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| Hear ye!, Hear ye! - Stewart A - TO |
Day One - Round One vs Thulean's Necromantic
Round One saw us drawn against Team England and eventual tournament winners "Whatever I'm Easy".
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| Little did we know we were playing the eventual winners! |
I was up against Liam aka Thulean and his Necromantic team.
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| Thulean |
I had more fans in Perfect Weather and won the kick off roll-off and opted to receive. After setting up, the kick off result was Changing Weather... and it changed to Sweltering Heat!
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| Nurgle vs Necromantic |
Turn 1/0 saw me have to use a reroll on a double skull on only the 2nd block of the game. Not a great start! This misfortune was evened out when Liam's first Blitz of the game resulted in Foul Appearance kicking in for his Werewolf... the first of many actually! Yes, we're that ugly!!
Turn 2/1 saw the Nurgle inflict first-blood, although the Wraith regenerated. We quickly followed up by Knocking Out a Zombie. The only blot on an otherwise good turn was the Rotspawn rolling Really Stupid, standing around with useless Guard and Tentacles. This led to the Necromantic easily clearing the way to sack the Pestigor ball-carrier. We tried to get the ball back and engineered a blitz, but rolled another set of double skulls - and rerolled into a bump of both-down.
By turn 4/4 the ball-carrying Ghoul did everything right except fail a Rush/GFI so we managed to recover the ball. However, it was deep in our half by then and it was a long way back up the pitch. Turn 7/6 saw all our rerolls spent after a failed Pestigor rush. We then suffered our first casualty as the unskilled Pestigor left the pitch permanently after a failed reroll. The half finished 0-0 (1-1), with the Necromantic team being pleased with their defence.
The second half got underway with both sides losing 1x player from Sweltering Heat. We gained a RR through Brilliant Coaching. It was 8 vs 10, but turn 1/1 saw the Rotspawn KO a Zombie (8 vs 9). For the second time in the match the werewolf found his Bloater target too disgusting to blitz, which was a bonus. Turn 3/3 saw the Rotspawn go Really Stupid again and a re-rolled blitz on the blodging Ghoul ball carrier was unsuccessful. The Nurgle team were especially smelly in the sweltering conditions as more Foul Appearances were rolled, burning up Necromantic rerolls.
Turn 4/4 saw the Nurgle inflict 2x KOs in as many blocks, leading it to be 8 vs 7! But one of the werewolves finally got their claws working and KO'd a Bloater, but the Necro's pushed their blocking luck too far and rolled a double skull leaving the ball carrier especially vulnerable on the left wing. Turn 6/6 saw us blitz the ball carrier, grab the ball... and soon after, run up field to score, ultimately winning the match 1-0 (1-1). The match was all about fine margins and the slightest misfortune for either team making the difference. A good game played in good spirits. I left very rusty, not having played Table Top since December 2024, so it was nice to get lucky with a first win and shake off a few cob webs.
Unfortunately the rest of Team Redshirts each lost to their respective opponents. So a team loss.
Day One - Round Two vs Sjapie's Gnomes
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| Sjapie |
Next up was against the Filthy Fowlers (all the way from Belgium). I was up against Sjapie (pronounced Sharpy - AKA Christof). This was the first time I had faced Gnomes (or even seen play!), so it was a quick learning experience. We started the game in a Blizzard with equal fans and us losing the kick off and having to kick.
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| Nurgle vs Gnomes |
Clearly some weather mages at work somewhere, going from Sweltering Heat in the last match to a Blizzard!
Turn 0/1 not only saw a Treeman Take Root! but also KO my Rotspawn... turned out he stayed out for the game! Those Tentacles could have been soooo useful vs dodgy Gnomes! Oh well.
However, after Sjapie had told me with pride that his team had inflicted 6x injuries in his first match, the Nurgle started to inflict their own, starting with a Beastmaster (1-0). Soon after a Gnome fell over in a dodge and hurt himself. Misfortune carried on as I rolled snake-eyes on a GFI for a blitz on the ball carrier - yes, it was a Blizzard, but it had to be done! This unfortunately left the way clear for the sneaky Gnomes to score 0-1 (1-0) in turn 3/4. We had a lot of work to do to dig our way out of this one!
Turn 4/4 began by stunning one Treeman and proning the other one. We secured the ball and pushed for an equaliser, leaving the trees behind. Turn 7/7 saw a Fox hurt (2-0) and then just before we equalised, another Gnome was hurt, finishing the half 1-1 (3-0).
As mentioned previously, the Rotspawn stayed KO'd. Changing Weather on kick off led to Perfect Weather, and we began the turn by hurting another Gnome (4-0). Turn 1/1 for the Gnomes saw a Treeman rolling 1 on the Foul Appearance test on a Bloater, so he rerolled, only to roll 1 again! By this stage it was 10 vs 8. By turn 3/2 we hurt another Gnome (5-0) and then a Fox in turn 4/3 (6-0). To put all threats off the pitch we fouled another Gnome and injured him (no SPP cas though) and delayed for a 2-1 (6-0) win, and no successful TTM in the last turn to thwart us either.
Both Sam and Howlinggriffon won their matches with Mr_Frodo drawing his, so a team win!
Day One - Round Three vs Starferret's Vampires
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| Starferret |
I was up against Starferret (aka David) who eventually finished 2nd individually overall. We were facing the DADS team who finished 6th overall. We started the game for Perfect Weather for once, but I had less fans and lost the kick off result again - and was chosen to kick. This would be the first of three Vampire teams I would face in the weekend.
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| Nurgle vs Vampires #1 |
However, the weather jinx kicked in again, and Changing Weather led to Sweltering Heat! Good grief!!
The first turn saw the ball land towards the right wing midway in the Vampire half. It was the Vampires that rolled the first double skulls of the match, using up a RR. Turn 2/3 saw a Bloodlust result in a KO'd Thrall. But it was heavy going for several tight turns.
Turn 5/5 saw us hurt a Thrall ourselves (1-0) and we manage to sack the ball-carrying Vampire Runner and KO them. However, it wasn't enough as the vampires easily recovered with hypno-gazes kicking in and the other Vampires recovering the ball and scoring in turn 5/6 - 0-1 (1-0).
Sweltering Heat saw one of my Block Bloaters kept out of the drive, whilst the Vampires just lost a Thrall. However, the KO rolls meant a Vampire Runner and another Thrall stay KO'd for the drive.
Prayers to Nuffle after Cherring Fans meant a 5+ for Argue the Call... but that didn't come up.
We managed to press the Vampires and equalise in the few remaining turns as the Vampire defence collapsed, but no further injuries were made. 1-1 (1-0).
The second half began with Solid Defence after Sweltering Heat accounted for 1x player each again - a Vampire Thrower and a Block/Sure Hands Pestigor! Ouch!!
Again, it was another tense and close half. The only highlight was inflicting a second casualty in turn 5/4 (2-0)... but the Vampire defence held strong and despite pushing hard the game finished 1-1 (2-0).
The team result was a draw with a 1/2/1 result for the teams, with Sam winning, Mr_Frodo and I drawing and Howlinggriffon losing.
And off for the evening!
Unfortunately the Best Western hotel phoned us in the middle of round 2 to tell us their boiler was broken, so no hot water or heating. The boys decided to nip home instead and I found alternative last minute accommodation around the corner. A quiet night in was welcomed, and a much needed early night for physical and mental recovery!
Day Two - Round Four vs Euhan's Vampires
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| Euhan |
Having had practise against Vampires last round, it was with trepidation that I faced up to Euhan's vampires, as part of ECBBL Wanderers team.
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| Nurgle vs Vampires #2 |
The game began in Perfect Weather (and stayed that way!), with the Nurgle having fewer fans show up. They did however get to chose to receive the ball.
Solid Defence was rolled making things more tricky, particularly as the Vampires kicked deep with the ball finishing next to my end zone. However, we managed to not only prone the very dangerous Vargheist with a block in turn 1/0 but also felt a gang-foul was worth the risk... and indeed it was as he left the field of play! We then secured the ball... risky, but worth it!
I had to cage my ball carrier in the centre of the pitch as the vampires swept around the flanks and attempted to cut me off from the LoS. It almost worked too as we rolled a double skull trying to blitz our way to safety. Fortunately the reroll was more successful. Turn 3/2 saw us stun a vampire runner, but in turn 4/3 a risky both down choice saw my Rotter hurt (0-1).
Turn 5/5 saw a Bloodlusting Vampire Runner BH a Thrall. Despite sacking my ball carrier in turn 6/6 and a Thrall catching the bouncing ball, we recovered it and got a score in to make it 1-0 (0-1). Turn 8/8 saw my Block Bloater get KO'd, but quickly recovered for the 2nd half!
The second half began with a Solid Defence for 5x players. Turn 0/1 started with the newly recovered Vargheist bloodlusting a Thrall, KOing him. Importantly, turn 1/1 also saw me hurt a Vampire Runner (1-1). Turn 2/3 saw another blooodlust KO a Thrall (10 vs 8 by this point!). We then hurt another Thrall (2-1) but a blitz on the vampire ball carrier resulted in pushes despite using a reroll. We couldn't do any more to prevent a Vampire equaliser 1-1 (2-1).
The next drive started with a Quick Snap and we caught the ball and then hurt another Thrall (3-1). Turn 6/7 saw a Vampire crowd push attempt result in double skulls, and we hurt another Thrall in retaliation (4-1), but the game petered out to finish 1-1 (4-1). Another tight but good game.
Unfortunately it was another team loss for us as we finished the round with 0/2/2 with both Howlinggriffon and Sam losing.
Day Two - Round Five vs MCB_TurnOgre's Old World Alliance
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| MCB_TurnOgre |
The penultimate game of the weekend saw me up against MCB_TurnOgre (who finished 18th / 114) on the Your Mum team.
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| Nurgle vs OWA |
It was Perfect Weather with equal fans. I lost the kick off roll and was chosen to kick. Changing Weather on kick off led to Pouring Rain (is that the complete set for the weekend?).
Turn 0/1 saw an OWA blitz by a Human MB/Guard blitzer roll a double skull, but rerolled into splats which resulted in a KO'd Nurgle player. We only managed to stun a Troll Slayer in response, but successive 1's saw both an Ogre bonehead and a Rotspawn go really stupid. We did manage to crowd-surf a Guard dwarf lineman. However, by turn 6/7 the Nurgle team had been inflicted with 4x KOs, so it was 7 players vs 10! Not good! Unsurpringly the OWA score in turn 6/7 - 0-1 (0-0). With nothing much more happening, the second half began with Cheering Fans, and a Prayers to Nuffle roll ended with a Rotter getting Stiletto.
Turn 1/0 saw us hurt a Human Catcher (1-0), but the Stiletto Rotter was hurt by a one dice Human Thrower block (1-1). Turn 2/2 saw a failed dodge for a human lineman end in a visit to the injury box. There were some more casualties (2-2) but the game uneventfully ended 1-1 (2-2).
We ended with a team draw, with Howlinggriffon getting a win and Mr_Frodo losing, finishing the round with 1/2/1.
Day Two - Round Six vs DougalMcTavish's Vampires
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| DougalMcTavish |
Forgive me - but yes, I did sigh when the final round was posted... Vampires again... and this time, a coach on 5/0/0. However, I at least was developing some anti-vampire tactics by this point. Dan was part of Bromley Bee Team.
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| Nurgle vs Vampires #3 |
It was Perfect Weather, with the Vampires having more fans and me winning the kick off and receiving.
The game began with Cheering Fans and my Tackle Pestigor got Stab. We then set about not just KOing a Thrall, but also engineering a KO of the Vargheist. I do like it when those leave the pitch!
The game was then pretty much a "one-fest" by the Vampires as they failed Blood Lusts and Foul Appearance rolls with surprising regularity, burning 4 x rerolls per half very quickly indeed. With failed Bloodlusts, the Thralls quickly left the pitch. We piled on the pressure by KOing his only Runner. With all the players leaving the pitch, we only managed to inflict our first SPP casualty in turn 6/5 on a Blodge Vampire Thrower, but he did Regenerate! The half ended 1-0 (1-0) with the Vargheist staying Knocked Out - the Runner did come back though, along with 2x Thralls.
Turn 0/1 started with me getting a Blitz! and we KO'd a Thrower Vamp. The other Vamp Thrower then failed to pick up deep in his half. Significantly, it then evolved in to a situation where Disturbing Presence came into play for the first time in the weekend, where the Vamp Thrower finally picked up the ball (RR used) and tried a throw. With -2 on the catch the Runner failed on a 3 and the ball scattered. We managed to blitz the Runner to prone and got the ball, but later a Vampire Blitzer sacked the Pestigor ball carrier, but it scattered into the hands of another Pestigor.
We then slowly made our way up the field and ran in for a 2nd TD but not before hurting a second Thrall, and the match finished 2-0 (2-0) and left the vampires cursing their dice. However, the match was played in a very good spirit, particularly as Dan was on for an individual tournament win (finishing 3rd after this result!).
We got a team win with both Sam and Howlinggriffon also winning. We finished the tournament as a team on 2/2/2.
Winners
My ranking for Nurgle also climbed to a heady +190 ranking too.
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| Nosebleed territory for the Nurgle |
Team Redshirts finished 13 out of 28, in mid-table.
It should be noted that Sam finished 3rd highest TD scorer, and Howlinggriffon 10th highest TD scorer. As a team we also finished 3rd for TDs and 5th overall for casualties! Not too bad.
As found here, along with photos of the winners:
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