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I have a TV 167 Dwarf team. Lots of Guard (3) and MB (5). (Also 1 Fend and 1 DT - see other thread!) My next two league games are against Orc teams, one with 225 (!) or so, the other around 180.
I would have thought that in a bash on bash fight Dwarves would have the edge with their Thick Skull, generally higher AV and better starting skills, but in my last 2 games vs. Orcs I've got my a** kicked. The Orcs get ahead in CAS, and then I am taken apart player by player. Last game (an exhibtion game with 1000k Dwarf and Orc teams) I had 6 players to his 11 by the end of the first half!
Am I just having some bad dice rolls, or do Orcs with their 4 ST4 Black Orcs (with Block) 4 fast Blitzers and faster and more agile Lineman have an advantage over Dwarves?
Initially, because of better starting skills and high toughness, dwarves are generally better than Orcs in the bash game. However BOBs raw power means that once skilled up Dwarves have a hard time breaking them down.
So after about TV150 I think Orcs were often more balanced.
However bash on bash, getting a couple of players ahead is normally decisive, so getting lucky in the first couple of turns at opponent removal makes the biggest difference.
Orcs have the advantage of having the option of switching to a running game if they can't dictate terms in a bashing game. Dwarves have no such option and have to go all out to remove players early in order to press any advantage.
Reason:''
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Marcus wrote:Orcs have the advantage of having the option of switching to a running game if they can't dictate terms in a bashing game. Dwarves have no such option and have to go all out to remove players early in order to press any advantage.
I often find the better AG & MA on Orcs give another option if the bash isn't going your way.
I think you'll be able to hire a Mercenary Deathroller against the 225 team (though I'm not completely sure, still a bit hazy after waking up). Slam that on the scrimline during your offensive and just start mowing down those Black Orcs before they ruin the game for you.
Other then that all you can is cage up and get bashing down the field. And then hope by the time the turn ends your opponant has so new players left that he's unable to stop your Blitzers and Runners from grabbing the ball back off him and scoring again.
Orcs can throw. And they have ST4. Universal Block is nice, and starting with Tackle is situationally really cool, but Thick Skull is really quite nearly valueless.
Reason:''
What is Nuffle's view? Through a window, two-by-three. He peers through snake eyes.
What is Nuffle's lawn? Inches, squares, and tackle zones: Reddened blades of grass.
What is Nuffle's tree? Risk its trunk, space the branches. Touchdowns are its fruit.
Guardwar. Orcs v Dwarfs is often a bit of trench warfare. Lots of guard makes your line very difficult for any team to deal with, unless they can match you. Your problem may be that in addition to ST4 the orcs are more developed so may match you in the number of guard players. Get a deathroller and bribe if you can. And target a few players (ideally his best bashers or scorers) who will make a big difference if eliminated. As mentioned above early casualties can give a big advantage so aim for this. Try keeping some of the play around the sidelines as slayers sending orcs to the crowd can whittle down opposition numbers quite nicesly.
Dwarfs really need lots of Guard to go after Orcs. The reverse isn't really true: Orcs don't start with as much Block, but they do have a lot of ST. Dwarf coaches need to be savvy to win position-battles against Orc coaches, as the two teams attempt the same general game through different specific means, so you have to make sure you're playing your game vis a vis asssists and timing, and not his game. Dwarfs also have more need for TRRs vs. Orcs than they do vs. most teams, as they'll be forced to make a fair number of 1d and even occasionally 1/2d blocks.
Dwarfs, I'd say, are best against Orcs because they throw Orcs off their game. You must have either been outcoached or gotten unlucky to get creamed twice like that: Dwarfs are one of the few teams that can hang with Orcs in cage warfare.
Reason:''
What is Nuffle's view? Through a window, two-by-three. He peers through snake eyes.
What is Nuffle's lawn? Inches, squares, and tackle zones: Reddened blades of grass.
What is Nuffle's tree? Risk its trunk, space the branches. Touchdowns are its fruit.
Most of the time I find that the coach who starts to break his oppoents'players armour, wins.
Of course there are a lot of BB-matches who go that way (espescially playing either orks or dwarves), but in a match-up between these 2 teams it's even more so. So it's either luck (when rolling) and/or tactics (position your players).
I played my first of two Dwarf vs. Orc battles last night. My opponent had a TV of 232(!) to my 172, which gave me 60 points of inducements. I took Zara (27), Grim(22) and some minor inducements. I won 1-0, although I had two solid chances to score at the each of each half.
It was a "GuardWar" - he had 5 or 6, I had 3. To speed things up we took to marking all the players with Guard. I was able to crowd surf two blitzers early on (although just to the Reserve box), and was able to put pressure on the ball carrier - flanks left open, etc. That forced him to make a desperation run with the ball, where Zara was able jump up (what a great skill!), 2 dice blitz him, pick up the ball, and take it back somewhere safe.
The key was that I got the upper hand in the bashing. I got 3 CAS, 3 or 4 KOs and 2 crowd surfs to Reserve, whereas he had nil CAS and 1 KO (thanks to Thick Skull). Many of his turns he would start with 4 or 5 players down, and all he could do was stand them in front of my players who would then knock them down again.
Also, having the 2 star players (Zara and Grim) with ST4 nicely offset the 4 ST4 Black Orcs. I have used Zara to very great effect in several games, and I heartily recommend her to any Dwarf coach.
Next Orc team has a much lower TV, so no Zara or Grim. Stay tuned.
Zara is a great star, it is the one model I would still like to get. Glad you did well I was expecting the Orc's to squish you after the earlier comments.
Reason:''
Ne cede melia, Marlow.
Trophies: MBBL Dungeon Bowl Season Nine; Boudica Bowl IV Stunty Cup
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