2nd skill on a CD with guard: stand firm or mighty blow?

[JJB]

One of my chaos dwarf blockers with guard has just got his second normal skill. Roster via the link below:
http://ecbbl.doubleskulls.net/team_viewer.php?id=611

I understand that the common practice is to give mighty blow at that stage, but not only is he further ahead than all other CD's on his development, my team is also facing several orcs as part of a short term league (7 games left).

So I need something that will benefit my team as whole right now rather than something aiming at long-term development potential.

Mighty blow works if you're lucky, stand firm works all the time and will help maintain my line.

Thoughts?
Thanks.

[voyagers_uk]

it has to be Shadowing or Break tackle...


no actually I am joking. Stand Firm for this fella.

[JJB]

That was quick!

[solarflare]

+1 for Stand Firm...

[Ullis]

What's wrong with MB? It's an important skill for the CD blockers and you don't have any so far. You do have quite a bit of Guard already but not a single MB.

[mattgslater]

Exactamundo, man. If you're not going to load up on MB, the next best plan is to ignore it entirely or just take one. Stand Firm!

I have two development plans for Chaos Dwarfs, depending on the balance of the league. At 31 SPP, all of them except the safety build into Guard/SF/MB, barring doubles.

Vs. Bashy:
3x Line: Guard, Stand Firm (ignore doubles until 31 SPP [Foul Appearance or Claw], ignore 10/11)
2x Midfield: Stand Firm, Mighty Blow (Claw or ignore doubles, ignore 10/11 until 31 SPP)
1x Safety: Mighty Blow, Piling On (Claw on doubles, ignore 11, ignore 10 until 31 SPP)
If a Dwarf gets doubles on his first roll, he becomes the safety!

Vs. Squishy:
2x Ends: Guard, Stand Firm (Side Step or Dodge on doubles, ignore 10/11)
1x Nose: Guard, Mighty Blow (Side Step on doubles, ignore 10/11)
2x Midfield: Mighty Blow, Stand Firm (Side Step or Diving Tackle on doubles, ignore 10/11 until 31 SPP)
1x Safety: Mighty Blow, Piling On (Diving Tackle or Claw on doubles, ignore 10/11 until 31 SPP)
If a dwarf gets doubles on the first roll, he becomes a midfielder!

Note that the first three Dwarfs get Guard. Say whatever you want about the relative merits of Block and +1 ST, it is a simple fact of life that a Dwarf is not a BOB, and one buddy with Guard will intimidate few. Against any ST3 team with just one Guard, it takes all three Guard players to man the line. Against bash, they'll still get knocked down, which is why Stand Firm comes before Mighty Blow: there's just no way to make this team tough enough to survive a good partitioning from Orcs at low-mid development (that is, until your killer safety kicks into gear with Claw/MB/PO).

Until you get three Dwarfs with Guard, make a point of working hard to improve Dwarfs! It's not at all easy, but if you're judicious with your re-rolls, exercise sound blocking, and take a few risks to get the SPP in the right places, you can get all three in three or four games. Then you can relax and develop your BCs and Hobs. I like to have four Guards, including one Hobgoblin. Fewer, and the bash teams eat your lunch. But if you need more Guard than that, maybe you should go back to positioning school.