Dungeonbowl 2019

It was time for Germanys largest tournament and I was excited as I wasn't able to make it last year. I didn't consider my team for very long as I wanted to increase my NAF-Ranking with wood elves to maybe secure a spot in Team Sweden 2020 and as it's a major, there's double points to be had (and lost).

Medals on display

Roster

I went for wood elves and almost used the same roster as last time.

I switch a re-roll for an apo and took tackle on a wardancer instead of a guard tree. So my roster looked like this.

Roster

Game 1 vs Nurgle

FAME -2
Nice weather

I kicked and put my opponent under pressure directly after a deep kick and a perfect defense. Sadly, my opponent managed to pow and stunn (KO, but apo) my strip ball wardancer and I couldn't really keep the pressure up.

Stunned strip ball wardancer

The nurgle team moved down the pitch and scored in turn 8. I had two CAS and four KOs at the end of the drive. Three KOs came back and we set up for the one turned. Perfect defense again and my chances of a one turner were very low. Still tried, but the dice didn't play along.

I received the ball for the second half and my opponent failed a GFI on a blitz and left one side open. I moved through and kept stalling until turn 14. I thought I'd give it a go and scoring in three turns isn't that easy for nurgle.

Shallow kick

A good kick (for me) that landed just on the LOS. I managed to leap and blitz with my strip ball dancer, but after some scatters, it landed in the hands of a nurgle warrior. The strip ball dancer was then stunned and I couldn't get the ball from the warrior. The game ended in a draw.

End 1-1 (1--2)

Game 2 vs Dark elves

FAME -1
Nice weather

I was forced to receive the ball and mange to stall until turn 8 and my opponent didn't manage to equalise in turn 8.

Set up for the first kick off

My opponent went backwards with his runner and I went on an all out attack (should have kept more players back). My opponent went forward with his runner and passed and then handed off the ball, to move it deep in to my half. I back paddled and forced him to score.

This left me with six turns to win the game. However, I moved forward too soon and had to leap out with the ball carrier. 2 re-roll 1. The dark elves then picked the ball up and scored. I doubled skulled the first block for the one turner and that was it.

I lost this game when I moved the ball carrier forward too early. I should have kept my cool and just stalled it out and scored late in the half.

End 1-2 (1-1).

Game 3 vs Dark elves

FAME -2
Nice weather

I kicked as I wanted to see where this game was going to go. What kind of pressure would I be under to score early in the second half?

I played quite well in the first half, but even though I got the ball on the ground, it bounced badly for me the first time and the second time it landed next to my treeman, but my opponent managed to pick the ball up anyway and eventually scored in turn 8.

Kick off!

When then set up for a one turn attempt and I was feeling quite good about my chances considering his set up, but a perfect defense was rolled for the kick off event. I figured that my chances were next to none after that, but my opponent made a mistake in his set up and it wasn't over just yet. I actually managed the one turn touchdown, ending the first half on a 1-1 draw.

This meant that I wasn't under any pressure to score early and I tried to stall it out as long as I could. I was forced to score in turn 15 and was quite confident that I would at least manage a draw, especially since my opponent didn't have any re-rolls left. Still, two turns with dark elves is far from impossible.

Fortunate for me, another perfect defense was rolled on the kick off table and I managed to force my opponent to have to roll more dice than he probably would have liked. The kick also landed just behind the LOS. After a failed dodge, he had just one player in scoring range and the ball was on the ground, unguarded. I picked it up and formed a cage around the ball carrier. This meant that I managed to win my first game in the tournament!

End 2-1 (1-1)

Game 4 vs Dwarves

FAME +1
Nice weather

I kicked as I usually like to do, but it's especially good against dwarves since it might be the only time I can set up a full team and if the dwarves can't score it should at least end in a draw.

The kick was deep and I could apply pressure early, dividing the dwarf team in two.

A deep kick and early pressure

The dwarves managed to push through (partly due to a snake eyes on a dodge), but I managed to stop the from reaching the endzone and the half ended in a 0-0 tie.

I received the kick and planned on scoring as late as possible. My opponent left a flank quite open and after two lucky stunns, I went for an early push down one side.

The elves move down one side

My opponent scrambled back to get in front of me and put me under pressure (I had by this point suffered some KOs). In hindsight, the break away was too early and the pressure forced me to score in turn 13.

This left the dwarves four turns to score back, which isn't that unlikely. It was made even more likely when only one of my four KOs came back. A deep kick gave me hope, but a thrown rock made things even harder. One runner picked up the ball in their endzone and handed off to the other runner, which meant that the dwarves were almost at the LOS with three turns remaining. I the suffered two turn overs to snakes and couldn't get in front of the dwarves. They could easily score in turn 16.

End 1-1 (1-2)

Game 5 vs Necromantic

FAME -1
Nice weather

My opponent elected to receive and I was happy with that, as I would have chosen to kick anyway. The game started with a thrown rock (KOed wight) and a deep kick.

I was a bit surprised by some of the choice my opponent made. He blitzed with his mighty blow wolf, which isn't wrong, but it was a one dice and would have been another one dice for the second block. He had to use the re-roll on the first dice, but knocked my wrestle lineman down. The ghoul then failed the pick up to end the turn.

I moved up some players (catcher and the strip ball wardancer)to be able to reach the ball if the pick up failed again or to blitz the ball carrier.

It was yet again a failed pick up and the ball landed in the endzone.
My catcher then GFIed twice to pick up the ball in a tacklezone in turn 2.

The next kick off was a blitz and the ball landed on one of the flesh golems in the wide zone.
I managed to get the ball, but a double skull stopped me from scoring a second touchdown in the first half. I was still happy with being 1-0 up.

I scored a second touchdown in turn 12 and was by this time running out of elves. I had suffered six casualties (apo was used on one) and I could line up five elves and a tree for the next kick off.

Five elves and a tree

It started to rain during the ensuing kick off and the ball landed on the sideline. My opponent had to pick up the ball this time, which he did, but I could put him under pressure with my wardancer and a catcher. This resulted in some dodges and a pass to a werewolf a couple of turns later, but the werewolf failed the last GFI for the equalizer. My opponent was very unlucky in this game and the double skulls in turn 15 and 16 kind of summed up the game.

End 2-0 (2-6)

Game 6 vs Necromantic

FAME 0
Nice weather

I kicked yet again and my opponents turn wasn't too destructive. The ball was picked up and caged.

Kick off!

I later in the half managed to stop the cage. My opponent left a chain push option which enabled me to push my strip ball wardancer in to the cage. A two dice block against later and the ball was on the ground. A catcher picked it up and passed to the other wardancer.

Moving down the field

I ran the ball carrier down one wide zone (in scoring range) and put a catcher in scoring range. I then moved my thrower within distance of the ball, if the wardancer was knocked down. The wardancer was blitzed and as I anticipated it, knocked down.

In my last tuen of the half, I dodged the catcher in scoring range out and blitzed a zombie off the ball. The thrower then ran in, picked up the ball (in one tacklezone) and managed the long bomb (with the pass re-roll) and the elves were up by one at half time.

As two zombies had been sent of during the half (very unlucky and there was nothing but stunns to show for it), I was now outnumbering my opponent in the second half (10 vs 9).

I proceeded to score in turn 10, hoping to score some more touchdowns.

My opponent then answered by scoring a touchdown of his own after dodging through my defense, but I answered with a touchdown of my own. It was now 3-1 and we sent up for (probably) the last drive of the game.

I had an opertunity to score again, but I couldn't and neither could my opponent.

End 3-1 (1-2)

Conclusion

I ended with a 3-2-1 record, which I was quite happy with. I was hoping for four wins, but sometimes it's just not possible. I ended in place 23 out of a 100 coaches.

When contemplating my roster prior to the tournament, I was considering frenzy for the second wardancer (instead of tackle) and I kind of wish I had gone down that route. It depends on what you face and I'm sure that tackle would have been great against some opponents, but I had little use for it (only against the ghouls in game 5 and 6). I think I'll give frenzy a go next time I take the wood elves (which might be a while).

The apo instead of a re-roll is also something I wish I had changed. The apo didn't do much during the tournament and I believe that a re-roll would have been better, but again, it depends on the opponents. Neither option is wrong though.

Thank you for reading.