Talk Fantasy Football

Hi all,

I've recently bought a vampire team. I've read the build (with only 2 vamps) posted in the LRB 5 starting section. (and I am testing it out on FUMBBL)

I'm still wondering if anyone has TRIED to play them in a league, using more than 2 vamps.

I'm aware that multiple vamps is il advised right now, but I'm wondering if the potential to maximise the S4 players, by using passive skills (guard, diving tackle) has ever been tested.

I'm less concerned about being competitive in the long term league, just hoping for fun.

Well, lets share our thoughts....

3 Vamps
8 Thralls
5 Rerolls
= a good starter roster

Having played against Vampire teams with only two Vamps on the pitch I know they can be quite easy to beat once those Vamps are neutralised.

Both the Vamps and Thralls need several skills each to be of real use, and it can be difficult to get when they are constantly loosing.

Hi, one of the things I pride myself on is being reasonably decent with vampires. I dont think they're nearly as easy as the top tier teams but I think they have an awful lot of potential and are hugely underestimated by most coaches.

I'll start by saying that personally I dont like starting a team with more than 2 vampires and never have more than 4 even in the most advanced team. If that means that this post isnt what you're looking for then stop reading now. I'll basicly explain why I dont take more than that.

Personally I think that you get the most from your vampires when they pick up block and dodge because they improve the offensive potential, make them very hard to knock down as well as saving a bundle of re-rolls. The difference between a blodge vampire and a rookie vampire is enormous. Partly for this reason I'm not a big fan of pro, it dosent really do much for me especially early on. Without pro I'm much more inclined to keep the number of vampires to manageable bloodlust levels. The same goes for all the passive skills, I only really want them after blodge which takes a while to get.

I like all the setups from zero to 2 vampires at the start.... I might consider stretching to 3 in LRB5 but I'd rather have 2 and another re-roll.

Due to the huge difference between skilled and unskilled vampires focus on scoring with the vampires. By all means score with thralls if thats the best way to score but unlike with alot of teams you actually want those vampire superstars to pick up alot of SPPs. I find skilling the vampires up is a bit easier with a maximum of 2 to focus on at a time. Your thralls will either skill up or die. Dont forsake them but they will naturally skill by themselves.... I dont know how but somehow they do it without any kind of special attention.

I know some people have had success by taking more vampires than I'd ever have, actually stretching to a full 6 in a developed team. I cant verify this but I'm fairly sure that they managed this by taking more pro, guard, and DT (I go for tackle as skill 3). I think they then used these vampires alot more conservatively than I could ever bring myself to use them. Try not to move them too often if you can help it, dont set some of them up on certain drives etc. I think that you still need to go for blodge first although I've heard pro can be useful as the first skill for vampires 3 and 4 for hypno gaze purposes.

If that made any sense then good luck and Yay! vampires

Depends how risky you want to play. I made a concept team with five Vampires and only two rerolls which would be great during the first drive and then slowly get worse as the small number of Thralls get devoured.

Would be amusing, though.

~Andromidius

If you are using the proposed LRB 6.0 rules ... I'd have no problems fielding 3 Vampire per a drive. I'd probably still start a team with only 2 so I could better skill up the Thralls (especially since with the LRB 6.0 rules they skill up better) and start with 5 re-rolls for the Vamp re-rolls.

Galak

GalakStarscraper wrote:If you are using the proposed LRB 6.0 rules ... I'd have no problems fielding 3 Vampire per a drive. I'd probably still start a team with only 2 so I could better skill up the Thralls (especially since with the LRB 6.0 rules they skill up better) and start with 5 re-rolls for the Vamp re-rolls.

Galak

Please bring back the kills with bloodlust before LRB6 is implemented. Its just not the same without the chance of killing a player, I've not told my TT league that the LRB6 proposals exist in case someone trys to take that thrill away from me

Starting my team with:
3 vamps 330
8 thralls 320
4 R/R 280
apoth 50
2F/F 20

mainly due to the fact Im using Anubis (impact) for the vamps and evil elves (shadow forge) for the Thralls, so want to get lots "different" posed models on the field.

If anyone is interested I'll post some pictures...Dont know what to call the team yet, suggestions welcome..

SillySod wrote:

GalakStarscraper wrote:If you are using the proposed LRB 6.0 rules ... I'd have no problems fielding 3 Vampire per a drive. I'd probably still start a team with only 2 so I could better skill up the Thralls (especially since with the LRB 6.0 rules they skill up better) and start with 5 re-rolls for the Vamp re-rolls.

Galak

Please bring back the kills with bloodlust before LRB6 is implemented. Its just not the same without the chance of killing a player, I've not told my TT league that the LRB6 proposals exist in case someone trys to take that thrill away from me

I can pretty much guarantee that this change is going to go into LRB 6.0 ... sorry mate if you don't like it. I'm sure your opponents will be more than happy to allow you to ignore the rule for your team when you play them in league play.

Galak

SillySod wrote:Please bring back the kills with bloodlust before LRB6 is implemented. Its just not the same without the chance of killing a player, I've not told my TT league that the LRB6 proposals exist in case someone trys to take that thrill away from me

Please no. I've only been asking for this for 3 years or so.

Vampires were more than playable before, I always especially liked that extra thrill especially in vampire derbys. Couldnt some sort of bonus for inflicting a bloodlust RIP be added? It sounds silly but granting +St or +M for the rest of the game to a vampire which RIPs a thrall via bloodlust could be a fun alternative. I guess its clumsy ruleswise but I doubt it'd be hugely unbalancing and I bet it'd have an appeal to more than just me

/me clings to my javaBB client where vampires are likely to keep killing things for a good while yet.

Thanks sillysod..that was exactly what I was looking for.

Now, thoughts on Blodge vs, pro? I think I know what you're thinking sillysod...
anyone else have experience either way?

I don't bother with Dodge or Pro on Vampires. I don't need Pro when I play with them (never have, never will) and I don't like having Dodge on a only few guys because it's so easily neutralised by one or two opposing Tackle players it might as well not be there. But I do play in a very Tackle heavy enviroment here.

I play an exceedingly aggressive ground war with my vampire team. So I prioritise skills like Block, MB, Guard, Tackle, PO and a couple of Dirty Players (though that skill is marginal now). Anything to reduce the opposing teams numbers faster than my own.

Personally I don't like the idea of passive Vampires, Vampires are at their best being active and supporting the Thralls. Hypnotic Gaze is a skill that promotes and requires active movement and if you're not using it you're really wasting the potential of the team.

Block, Guard, Side Step is as close to a passive Vampire as I get and even then he still be takes Move Actions so he could Hypno Gaze.

last thursday I met a coach with a vampire team. Now he has not been that succesfull overall in the league, but his play seriously made me reconsider my negative tance on vampires. in fact, I am tempted to try them out myself. You will need a whole different approach to your teamtactics. e.g. move a free thrall to where you want to go with your vampire is a good idea, not only as a way to form a box, but more so to make sure the vampire gets there.
Ofcourse there are simple tactics to counter vampires, but most coaches (like me) never encountered good vampire coaches before and you will be able to give quite a scare if you are able to bring out the best.
After all vampires are the best players in the league, statwise that is.
ST4 AG4 regeneration and able to buy an Apo, its unbeatable.
The eating of players is only a temporary problem (till lbr6) besides, loner lineman will do as food.

really, vampires have potential, provided you do not suffer from too much elfish Disease (1)

sirsebstar wrote:The eating of players is only a temporary problem (till lbr6) besides, loner lineman will do as food.

Sorry, buy LRB6 won't affect the on pitch ability of the team only the long term development. Capping the Bloodlust at a BH still means each thrall has a 15/36 chance of leaving the pitch each drive (one of the reasons Thick Skull on a thrall is so good is it drops that to a 10/36 chance).

As such there is no change between LRB5 and 6 in a drive; but there will be a gradual change over time, because the Thralls will be able to develop en masse, instead of developing just 3-4 Thralls and leaving the rest to get bitten.

Of course, Thralls remain AV7 so they're going to be shuffling off the pitch in other ways. Which is of course why you should never neglect improving your thralls in the search for +AV or Thick Skull.