Fend on players with ST access - anybody tried it?

Smeborg · Post by **Smeborg** » Thu Sep 10, 2009 9:55 pm

I am considering Fend as a second skill on players with ST skill access, specifically:

- Nurgle Pestigors: Wrestle + Fend.

- Human Blitzers: Guard + Fend.

I am not overly keen on Stand Firm for AV8 players, as it invites a lot of punishment. Fend, on the other hand, increases the potential mobility of the player (whether as a blitzer or as a mobile guarder), and can even make your opponent think twice about blocking him.

I wonder if anyone has tried this route before?

stashman · Post by **stashman** » Thu Sep 10, 2009 11:06 pm

I love Fend, and have used it on orc blitzers just to avoid the dodge roll when I wan't to move my guarders around.

If you get Fend, Guard, Side Step on a player he will be worth his weight in gold

mattgslater · Post by **mattgslater** » Thu Sep 10, 2009 11:09 pm

I'm not sold on the Pestigor: I'd rather develop Block/Fend Rotters (I don't see value of Fend on a blitzer; I do see value of Stand Firm, as it keeps pressure consistent). I'm not afraid of putting an AV8 player up as a target so long as I don't have to do it for long.

I agree Fend can be better than Stand Firm under some circumstances. But frequently it leads to players getting shoved out of position: it's just that a "push" is a positive result most of the time, so Stand Firm is an easier gamble to engineer.

Now, if the guy gets doubles and takes Side Step, or if he has Sure Hands and is a dedicated retriever... that changes things.

Jural · Post by **Jural** » Thu Sep 10, 2009 11:09 pm

Online (sorry) I've been trying out fend on my dwarf positionals. Runners, blitzers, and slayers. Stand Firm on my blockers. It works pretty well, as I can reposition as need be, But overall, Stand Firm across the board may have been better, I feel I'm missing out on a few blocks a turn, even though the blocks I'm getting are all the strategic ones.

For Dark Elves (sorry, no STR access) I have found Fend on the linemen is great with guard and Side Step (a mixture of the three.) The opponent is really in a bind with how they attack your lineelves, and you are really free to reposition and choose your attack points.

Basically, it's awesome to avoid being marked, but on pieces which wouldn't always be marked anyway... I'm not sure. For example, it's a great way to waste Mighty Blow

mattgslater · Post by **mattgslater** » Thu Sep 10, 2009 11:13 pm

Had a Side Step/Grab Orc Blitzer once. He was annoying as heck, and would have got Fend if he'd played long enough. But again, it's Fend as a follow-up to Side Step, which is really where it belongs except on G-only players (in that case it's good as a #2 after Block).