Dungeon Bowl: The Game of Subterranean Blood Bowl Mayhem
Dungeon Bowl: The Game of Subterranean Blood Bowl Mayhem Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Dungeon Bowl Tiles
Arguably, the most important thing for a game of Dungeon Bowl are the Dungeon tiles themselves. After all, you can't play Dungeon Bowl without a dungeon for the teams to run around in, get lost in, and fall into its cleverly-hidden traps!
There are a number of different Dungeon tiles, and on these pages we are going to show you which tile is which so that you know what rooms, corridors and other places you can use to create your dungeon.
End zones (x2, double-sided): Simply put, these tiles are where teams are trying to get the ball in order to score the game-winning touchdown.
Corridors: These long, thin tiles add to the claustrophobic nature of Dungeon Bowl, and make it difficult for players to get past the opposition. There is a total of four double-sided long corridors, two double-sided T-junction corridors, and two double-sided L-shaped corridors.
Square rooms: There are four square tiles that feature special rooms on them. Each tile is double-sided, giving eight unique square rooms. These are: the Armoury, the Sewer, the Kitchen, the Cursed Room, the Forgotten Jail, the Treasure Room, the Bone Pit, and the Flooded Room.
Large rooms: There are two large tiles that feature special rooms on them. Each tile is double-sided, giving four unique rectangular rooms. These are: the Chaotic Idol, the Fiery Chasm, the Dragon Youngling's Lair, and the Crypt.
Did you know? The protection spells placed upon the game balls to prevent them being teleported out of the dungeon only came into place after a game between the Blazing Axes and the Iron Hawks saw the ball bounce into a portal and seemingly teleport to elsewhere in the dungeon. It took the colleges nearly three days to realise that the ball was no longer in the dungeon, and had instead ended up in the college library. The Magisterium all knew of course, but they were having too much fun watching the teams beat each other up as they searched for it to mention anything!
Sport Paraphernalia
Dungeon Bowl teams rarely travel light. Be it the kit and armour of the players, the equipment and playbooks of the coaches, or the snacks and refreshments for players waiting to enter the dungeon, there is no end to the equipment teams have in their dugouts. On the tabletop, games of Dungeon Bowl require somewhat less in the way of equipment, but there are certain accessories that are vital to the game.
The football: see The Football, page 20 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Chests: Speaking of the ball, at the start of any game of Dungeon Bowl, the ball has been hidden in one of the chests around the dungeon. The others contain a rather explosive surprise for anyone who opens them! The full rules for chests can be found in Chests, below.
Portals: A series of magical portals are also placed throughout the dungeon. These are used for many things, from players trying to quickly manoeuvre through the dungeon, to coaches sending extra players in to aid the rest of their team-mates. The full rules for portals can be found in Portals, below.
Team re-roll marker: A coach is responsible for keeping track of how many team re-rolls they have and how many have been used. You may use either a single marker or several markers (one for each team re-roll) as you prefer.
Templates
Dungeon Bowl also makes use of three unique templates: the Random Direction template, the Ricochet template, and the range ruler. These are used as described below:
The Random Direction template: see The Random Direction Template, page 20 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Corner bounces: Should the ball hit the corner of the dungeon, the direction of the bounce is determined by placing the Random Direction template as shown in the diagram and rolling a D3.
The Ricochet template: If the ball ever hits the wall of the dungeon, it will bounce off it in a random direction. Position the Ricochet template as shown in the diagram, with the Blood Bowl logo over the square the ball would theoretically have been in if it hadn't hit a wall, and roll a D6 to determine the direction the ball travels. Bouncing off the wall is covered in greater detail under Rules and Regulations, below.
The range ruler: see The Range Ruler, page 21 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Dungeon Bowl Dice
See Blood Bowl Dice, page 21 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Rules and Regulations
Dungeon Bowl has long been a way for the Colleges of Magic to settle their squabbles about which lore of magic is the greatest, ever since the Magisterium (who are themselves big Blood Bowl fans!) suggested using the game to decide arguments. That way, the Wizards wouldn't resort to unleashing their magics upon the other colleges, causing mayhem for the poor civilians nearby!
This idea proved popular, though the Magisterium made a few not-so-subtle changes to how to play the game, resulting in the game of Dungeon Bowl that the colleges play today. Regardless, Dungeon Bowl has become an immensely popular game within the colleges of the Old World, and students from all manner of races have enrolled in their chosen college to study and, more importantly, play Dungeon Bowl. In fact, many Blood Bowl teams sign the stars of Dungeon Bowl colleges to their rosters as rookies; for some, this is their only path into the big leagues that is Blood Bowl!
This section covers in detail the rules and regulations of the game of Dungeon Bowl.
General principles: see General Principles, page 23 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Dice rolling: see Dice Rolling, page 24 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Re-rolls: see Re-Rolls, page 24 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Line of sight: To determine if one player can see another, we need to determine if it has Line of Sight. A player is said to have Line of Sight to another player if a straight line can be drawn from the centre of the square they are in, to the centre of the square that the other model is in - so long as the line does not cross any walls of the dungeon. A player can still see another player if this line touches, but does not cross, a wall.
Deviate, Scatter or Bounce
The footballs used in Dungeon Bowl are oddly shaped and often behave quite erratically, especially when they hit a flat surface. Throughout the rules, reference will be made to the ball "deviating", "scattering" or "bouncing", and it is worth establishing early on what is meant by each of these terms:
Deviate: see Deviate, page 25 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Scatter: see Scatter, page 25 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Bounce: see Bounce, page 25 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Bouncing off the wall: Sometimes the ball will hit the walls of the dungeon, causing it to veer off in a random direction. This could be due to the ball bouncing into the wall, a player fumbling the ball next to the wall, or various other reasons.
When the ball would hit the wall of the dungeon following a bounce, scatter or deviation, place the Ricochet template so that the Blood Bowl logo is theoretically where the ball would be if it hadn't hit the wall, and then roll a D6. The ball will be placed in the square corresponding to the roll, as determined by the Ricochet template.
If the ball would bounce into a corner, then it will bounce as shown in one of the diagrams, depending on which is most appropriate.
Sometimes players may try to use the walls to their advantage, throwing the ball in such a way as to bounce it off the side of the dungeon into a more advantageous position. This works slightly differently and is described fully under Throwing the Ball at the Wall, below.
Player status: see Player Status, page 26 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Prone and stunned players: see Prone And Stunned Players, page 27 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Player profile and characteristics tests: see Player Profile And Characteristics Tests, pages 28-29 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Drafting a Dungeon Bowl Team
See Drafting a Blood Bowl Team, pages 30-33 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Purchasing team re-rolls: see Purchasing Team Re-Rolls, page 34 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Other information: see Other Information, page 35 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Set-Up
Whilst Blood Bowl is played on the pitches of the Old World in front of roaring crowds of fans, the game of Dungeon Bowl is far different. Instead, the teams are teleported into the winding dungeon by the magic of the Magisterium, where they must navigate the various corridors and traps to find the football and score the game-winning touchdown.
There is no kick-off in a game of Dungeon Bowl (the ball would just hit the roof); instead the ball is hidden in one of the many chests placed around the dungeon, whilst the other chests contain magical booby traps placed by the Magisterium themselves.
Over the course of the game, coaches are permitted to send extra players from the dugout into the dungeon, utilising a series of magical portals put in place for players to navigate the dungeon - though there is no way of knowing which of the various portals a player will turn up in!
Play continues until one team finds the football in one of the chests, and manages to score a touchdown to end the game. This does mean that there is no set time limit for a game of Dungeon Bowl; in fact, some games have been known to last mere minutes, whilst others have gone on for multiple days!
As the game is only played to a single touchdown, there is never any chance of a draw - a college will either score the winning touchdown, or will suffer defeat!
Setting Up the Game
The first thing that you need to do in order to play a game of Dungeon Bowl is to set up the dungeon - a rather important feature of the game!
Setting up the dungeon is easy, and should be a collaboration between both players. The aim of this should be to create an interesting, diverse dungeon that both players will enjoy playing across. Remember, at this stage of the game, it is not yet a competition!
Whilst players are free to make the dungeon look however they wish, and we encourage them to work together to make a balanced playing area that doesn't inherently give one player an advantage, there are a few rules that govern how the dungeon should be laid out.
When creating the dungeon, it should contain at least four corridor pieces, at least three small rooms, at least one large room and, of course, the two End Zones - although these are not placed until the very end of creating the dungeon (more on that later).
Whenever two Dungeon tiles are placed adjacent to each other, there should always be at least two squares connecting them. No Dungeon tiles should ever be connected by a single square - this simply wouldn't give enough room for the players to move through! Additionally, wherever two Dungeon tiles join together, place a Door token between them to show the doorway that connects the two tiles. These are always two squares wide, and should be placed as centrally as possible. It should also be noted that the doorways are always assumed to have the doors removed, and so are simply openings - the Magisterium thought traversing the dungeon would be difficult enough without having to constantly open and close doors!
When both players are happy with how the dungeon is laid out, the two End Zones should be placed. These should be placed as far away from each other as possible within the dungeon.
After the dungeon has been laid out, the Chests and Portals need to be deployed.
The Chests are always deployed first. Both coaches roll a single D6, re-rolling any ties, with the coach who rolls highest deploying the first Chest and alternating from there. Make sure players don't look inside the Chests, that way it is entirely unknown which Chest contains the ball. Chests may be deployed in any square, with the following exceptions:
- Chests may not be deployed in either End Zone, or in a dungeon tile connected to an End Zone.
- Only a single Chest may be deployed in each Dungeon tile.
After the Chests have been deployed, the Portals need to be placed within the dungeon. Each Portal is numbered differently, between 1 and 6, and should be deployed in order. Starting with the coach who rolled lowest in the previous roll-off, players alternate deploying the Portals following the same restrictions as the Chests. Additionally, Portals may not be deployed within 2 squares of a Chest.
After the dungeon has been laid out, coaches toss a coin. The winner chooses which of the two End Zones is theirs. With the dungeon deployed between them, coaches place their dugout beside their End Zone.
Both coaches then place their teams in the dungeon and their re-roll markers onto their dugout before quickly explaining the details of their team for their opponent's benefit.
You can choose to use one of a number of example dungeon layouts, or create your own using the rules above.
Pre-Game Sequence
Once the game is set up, the pre-game sequence begins and both coaches run through the following sequence of steps:
- Coin toss: The coaches toss a coin, with the winner getting the first turn.
- Take on Journeymen: If a team cannot field 11 players for a league game, the team temporarily takes on a number of Journeyman players.
- Inducements: Both coaches decide if they will purchase any Inducements for the game ahead, paid for from a team's Treasury, from "Petty Cash", or both.
- Deploy players: Starting with the coach who has the first turn, coaches deploy six players from their roster within their End Zone.
Take on Journeymen: see Take On Journeymen, page 38 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Inducements: see Inducements, page 38 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Petty Cash: see Petty Cash, page 38 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Treasury: see Treasury, page 38 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Common Inducements: see Common Inducements, page 38 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Dungeon Tile Special Rules
From pitfalls and chasms to ancient crypts, and even the chance of some wandering creatures, the dungeons that the Wizards of the Old World maintain are filled with all kinds of perils and dangers. Quite why they keep such - shall we say - interesting dungeons has never really been ascertained. What is certain is that it certainly spices up the games played within them!
Some of the Dungeon tiles, specifically the small rooms and the large rooms, have special rules associated with them, adding to the unpredictability that Dungeon Bowl is known for.
Here we present the rules for each of the unique rooms in Dungeon Bowl.
The Armoury: Whenever an Armour roll is made for a player within the Armoury, an additional +1 modifier is added to the roll.
The Bone Pit: Players that attempt to Throw, Catch or Hand-off the ball within the Bone Pit suffer a -1 modifier to the dice roll.
The Cursed Room: Whilst a player is within the Cursed Room they may not use team re-rolls or a Skill or Trait that allows them to re-roll any number of dice.
The Flooded Room: Whilst within the Flooded Room, players that attempt to Rush will Fall Over on the roll of a 1 or a 2 rather than just a 1.
The Forgotten Jail: Any player that begins their turn within the Forgotten Jail must roll a D6. On a 1 or 2, the player reduces their MA by 2 until the end of their activation.
The Kitchen: Any player that begins their activation within the Kitchen may perform the Throw Food special action instead of doing anything else for that turn:
- Throw Food: Select an opposition player within 4 squares of this player, who can be seen by this player, and roll a D6. On 5+ the opposition player is immediately Knocked Down.
The Sewer: Players that enter the Sewer gain the Disturbing Presence trait until the start of their next activation.
The Treasure Room: A player that begins their activation within the Treasure Room may perform the Gather Funds special action instead of doing anything else for that turn:
- Gather Funds: This player's activation ends immediately; make a note each time this action is used. At the end of the game, if one or more players performed this action, your team gains an additional 10,000 gold pieces. If three or more players performed this action, your team instead gains an additional 20,000 gold pieces. If five or more players performed this action, your team instead gains an additional 30,000 gold pieces.
The Chaotic Idol: The Chaotic Idol is a 2 square by 2 square impassable feature in this room that is treated as a wall. Additionally, if a player begins their activation within this room, roll a D6. On the roll of a 6, the player increases their ST by 1 for the duration of their activation.
The Crypt: The Crypt has two 1 square by 2 square impassable features that are treated as a wall, though they do not block Line of Sight. Additionally, if a player would be pushed into the Crypt then they are Knocked Down and any Armour roll made against them will have a +1 modifier.
The Dragon Youngling's Lair: The Dragon Youngling is a 2 square by 2 square impassable feature in this room that is treated as a wall, though it does not block Line of Sight. Additionally, any player that begins their activation within the Dragon Youngling's Lair must roll a D6. On a 5+ that player is immediately Knocked Down. This will only cause a Turnover if the player was holding the ball.
The Fiery Chasm: The Fiery Chasm is a 1 square by 4 square impassable feature in this room, though it does not block Line of Sight. It also has a rope bridge across it that takes up a single square; this can be crossed as normal. Any player that is pushed into the Fiery Chasm automatically suffers a Casualty result; roll on the Casualty table for them. Additionally, should the ball land in one of the squares of the Fiery Chasm, scatter it another square so that it is no longer in the Fiery Chasm.
Chests
Back when the game of Dungeon Bowl was first invented, the Magisterium realised that they would need to tweak some of the more traditional rules of Blood Bowl to suit the more unique setting of the dungeon and to add that extra bit of excitement to the game. One of these changes was to remove the usual kick-off; it wouldn't really work with the low ceilings in many rooms of the dungeon.
Instead, a number of identical chests are placed around the dungeon that the players will need to locate. One of these chests will include the all-important football; however, the others are fitted with a spectacular, though (usually) non-lethal, magical spell that will explode in the face of whoever should open it!
Deployment: The six Chests are deployed around the dungeon as described above. One of these will contain the football, whilst the other five will contain an explosive magical spell.
Opening Chests: Players may not move over a Chest; it is essentially an impassable feature that does not block Line of Sight. A player that finishes a Move action (but not as part of a Blitz action) in a square adjacent to a Chest, and who is not Marked when they finish their Move action, may choose to open the Chest. When a player opens a Chest, remove the lid of the model to see what is inside.
If the Chest contains the football, then the player immediately gains Possession of the ball and their activation ends immediately. The Chest is removed from play and the square it was in becomes a normal square.
If the Chest is empty, the player has set off one of the magical booby traps put in place by the Magisterium prior to the game. The player who opened the Chest, and all players adjacent to the Chest, are immediately Knocked Down and an Armour roll is made for each of them. After the Armour roll has been made for each player, the Chest is then removed from play and the square it was in becomes a normal square.
Note that players may still continue to open Chests even after the ball has been found. In fact, this is a good way to cause extra damage to the opposition, and perhaps even knock over key players such as Big Guys or the ball carrier!
Portals
The dungeons of the various colleges can be large and winding constructions, often making them hard for players to navigate quickly. In the early days, there were numerous accounts of games taking many hours, or even days, as the teams ran around the dungeon in circles trying to find one of the end zones. This prompted the Magisterium to come up with a solution to help make the games go that little bit quicker, and add an extra bit of uncertainty into the mix for everyone's amusement!
What they came up with was the use of magical teleport portals. In every game of Dungeon Bowl, there are six of these mystical spells placed around the dungeon, allowing players to teleport in-between them at speed. However, once a player enters one of these portals they have no control of which of the others they will come out of! This has resulted in a much more dynamic and exciting game, though on occasion it has led to some remarkable magical mishaps...
Teleporting: Each of the Portals is numbered between 1 and 6. When a player steps on, or is pushed into, a Portal, roll a D6; the player is immediately teleported to the Portal with the corresponding number.
If this player is teleported as the result of a Move action then it will cost them a square of their Movement Allowance to gather their wits and carry on with their activation (if they have any left, of course). Should a player use a Portal more than once during a team turn, the magical powers will cause a huge strain upon their body which could result in massive internal injuries. Any player that is teleported more than once during any team turn will immediately suffer an Injury roll.
If a player is pushed into a Portal, they will be teleported as normal. If the player was Knocked Down as they were pushed, make the Armour roll (and Injury roll if needed) before teleporting them across the dungeon.
If a loose ball lands on a Portal it will be scattered in the same way, though it will never cause a Chain Reaction or a Magical Mishap. If the ball teleports onto a square containing a standing player, they must try to catch it as normal. Otherwise simply scatter the ball one square from the Portal it is teleported to.
Chain Reactions: If a player is teleported into the same square as another player, it will result in a Chain Reaction. The player that was originally occupying the Portal will be teleported themselves to another Portal - which may result in another Chain Reaction. Remember that if a player is teleported more than once in an activation, they will suffer an Injury roll.
Magical Mishap: Teleportation spells are not perfect, and can be temperamental at best. There is always a chance that a player simply doesn't materialise after being teleported. To represent this, if a player that is being teleported rolls the same number as the Portal they are being teleported from, they will suffer a Magical Mishap. For example, if a player on Portal number 3 rolled a 3 on the D6.
When this happens, the player is removed from the dungeon and will take no further part in the game. They have been teleported to elsewhere in the college but remain unharmed, and will be located by their college's Wizards once the game is completed. A Magical Mishap does not cause a Turnover.
Should a player with the ball suffer a Magical Mishap, the ball will not also disappear - being far more important than the players, the ball has been enchanted to protect it from such instances! Instead, the ball will simply scatter one square from the Portal.
Dugout Portals: Each college's dugout contains its own one-way Portal to allow more players to enter the dungeon. Once per turn a coach may teleport a single player from their dugout into the dungeon, in the same manner as if they had entered a Portal, with the exception that they may not move further that turn. The team that has the first turn cannot teleport a player in on their first team turn. As the player cannot roll the same number as they started on (as dugout Portals aren't numbered), players being teleported into the dungeon cannot suffer a Magical Mishap - though they can cause a Chain Reaction. Players can never be teleported back into a dugout.
Unlike in a standard game of Blood Bowl, a Dungeon Bowl team can have as many players in the dungeon as they can teleport in. However, in practice, it is unlikely a team will be able to get all 16 into play before a touchdown is scored.
The Rules of Dungeon Bowl
The Team Turn
Simply put, a game of Dungeon Bowl is a chaotic and thrilling affair, filled with all kinds of madness that has become synonymous with the game over the years. To make sense of all of the action, the game on the tabletop is broken down into a series of team turns, during which each coach will activate their players one at a time. In this way, the drama of the game is recreated in a manageable and controlled way.
Team turns: Once the teams have been set up and the coin toss has determined which team has the first turn, the game continues in a simple sequence of turns in which teams will alternate taking turns, beginning with the team that gained the first turn, and continuing until the winning touchdown is scored.
Active and inactive team: see Active And Inactive Team, page 42 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Player activations: see Player Activations, pages 42-43 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Movement: see Movement, pages 44-45 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Blitz actions: see Blitz Actions, page 46 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Picking up the ball: see Picking Up The Ball, page 46 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Passing the Ball
Often in a game of Dungeon Bowl, players will throw the ball to each other in order to move it quickly around the labyrinth of corridors and rooms - after all, the ball travels faster when thrown than by a player running with it! Throwers endeavour to pass the ball safely to a team-mate, avoiding the walls and low ceilings of the dungeon, who is in a better position to run with the ball into the opposition end zone room, or at least try to find it!
Pass actions: see Pass Actions, pages 48-50 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Measuring range: Range is measured by placing the circle at the end of the range ruler over the centre of the square occupied by the player performing the action. The other end of the range ruler is positioned so that the ruler covers the target square, with the line along the centre of the range ruler passing through the centre of the target square. The target square will fall into one of the four bands marked on the range ruler:
- I: Quick pass.
- II: Short pass.
- III & IV: This is too far for a pass in the depths of the dungeon; the low ceilings won't allow the ball to gain enough height to be passed this far.
Any squares that are in ranges III, IV, beyond the reach of the range ruler, or that are intersected by the end of the range ruler, are out of range and cannot be the target square.
Catching the ball: see Catching The Ball, page 51 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Hand-off: see Hand-Off, page 51 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Throwing the ball at the wall: Sometimes a player will purposefully throw the ball at a wall in order to try to have it ricochet off into a far more advantageous position.
A player that declares a Pass action may also declare that they will bounce the ball off the wall instead of passing normally. Declare which wall square the ball is being thrown at, and test for accuracy as normal. This Pass may be interfered with as normal.
If the test for accuracy is successful, the ball will ricochet from the target square. If the test is failed, roll a D6. On a 1-3 it hits the wall square to the right of the target square; on a 4+ it hits the wall square to the left of the target square.
The ball will then ricochet as shown in the diagrams. It will then travel D6 squares in the direction indicated, and if not caught it will scatter once from the square where it ends up. If the ball hits another wall then it will ricochet off it. Any and all players that the ball passes over may attempt to catch the ball, in the order that the ball passes over them, counting as an inaccurate pass. Unless the ball is caught by a player on the active team, there will be a Turnover.
Throwing Other Players
One tactic that has been used with moderate success is one that seems to have been first employed in aggression, rather than as a cunning way to score. In the early days of Blood Bowl, it was not uncommon for Big Guy players to simply launch their smaller team-mates at troublesome opponents. Naturally, this transitioned quite well into Dungeon Bowl and, these days, it is a common tactic to see a Big Guy pitching a puny pal at an opposition player that is proving to be a particularly prickly thorn in their side, or even towards the opposition end zone on occasion. This isn't without risk, though; there have been instances where a Big Guy has forgotten what's going on and eaten their ally!
Throw Team-mate actions: see Throw Team-mate Actions, pages 53-54 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Landing: see Landing, page 54 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Landing in an occupied square: see Landing in an Occupied Square, page 54 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Crash landing: see Crash Landing, page 54 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Hitting the wall: Should the thrown player scatter into one of the dungeon walls, they risk a serious injury. The player will suffer a Crash Landing as described above. Additionally, when making the Armour roll for a player that has hit the wall, apply an additional +1 modifier to the roll.
Blocking
At its most basic, a block is a very rough tackle. The rules of Dungeon Bowl allow players to do almost anything to bring down an opponent, and provided weapons aren't used, the officials rarely make any distinction between a skilled tackle and a frenzied rain of pummelling blows that leave a player unconscious. This is part of the game's charm. After all, who wouldn't want to watch a violent, full contact blood sport that happens to include some ball related drama!
Block actions: see Block Actions, page 56 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Strength: see Strength, page 56 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Assisting a block: see Assisting A Block, page 57 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Block dice: see Block Dice, page 57 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Pushed players: see Pushed Players, page 54 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Chain-pushes: see Chain Pushes, page 54 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Pushed into a wall: If a player occupies a square adjacent to a wall when they would be pushed back, and there are no squares they can be pushed into, the player will be "pushed into the wall."
If a player is pushed into the wall, the active coach must roll a D6 for the pushed player. On a 1-3 the player remains where they are; they simply bounce off the wall. On a 4+ the player will Fall Over in the square they are in; make an Armour roll as normal.
Note that if a player is pushed into the wall as the result of a POW!, do not roll a D6 to see if they Fall Over - they automatically Fall Over in the square they are in.
Knocked down: see Knocked Down, page 59 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Placed prone: see Placed Prone, page 59 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Follow-up: see Follow-Up, page 59 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Blitz actions: see Blitz Actions, page 59 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Armour and Injuries
There are many ways in which a Dungeon Bowl player can get injured. From being brutalised by an opposition player who is hell-bent on getting the ball, to tripping over one of the many hazards scattered around the dungeon, Dungeon Bowl is a game that provides almost limitless opportunity to get seriously hurt! Even death is an ever-present threat! Most Dungeon Bowl players proudly sport impressive scars, or teeth marks from whatever lurks within the depths of the dungeon...
Risking injury: see Risking Injury, page 60 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Armour rolls: see Armour Rolls, page 60 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Injury rolls: see Injury Rolls, page 60 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Stunty players: see Stunty Players, page 60 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Casualty rolls: see Casualty Rolls, page 61 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Magic Sponge: If a player has been KO'd and placed in the Knocked-out box, it may seem that there is no way for them to re-enter the game. In fact, in the early days of Dungeon Bowl this was the case, though it led to various complaints and criticisms from the Magisterium that the stars of their teams wouldn't get to shine in the game.
In response to this, the Colleges of Magic pooled their resources in order to develop the Magic Sponge - an all-purpose magical item designed to revive those players that may have been left seeing stars (or small birds) flying around their head!
All Dungeon Bowl teams are issued with a Magic Sponge at the start of a game. Once per team turn, a coach may use the Magic Sponge to treat a KO'd player in their Knocked-out box instead of teleporting a player into the dungeon. A player treated with the Magic Sponge is immediately moved from the Knocked-out box and into the Reserves box. The Magic Sponge cannot be used on players that are removed as a Casualty.
Kicking Them While They're Down
Fouling is strictly against the rules of Dungeon Bowl, and any player tempted to stick the boot in risks the wrath of the referees. Not that this stops anyone of course! Many teams are renowned for being dirty and devious, and more than a few players have become renowned in the art of the foul. Of course, the referees aren't actually inside the dungeon (they don't have a death wish!); instead, they utilise a series of crystals placed throughout the dungeon, allowing them to see the action from every angle, and teleport those caught fouling out of the dungeon.
Foul actions: see Foul Actions, page 63 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Fouling: see Fouling, page 63 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Being sent-off: see Being Sent Off, page 63 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Arguing the call: see Arguing The Call, page 63 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Touchdown!
The game of Dungeon Bowl is won by scoring that all-important touchdown. The first team to retrieve the ball and score with it will win. True, there are many, many teams that consider scoring the touchdown secondary to committing acts of violence, but even the most bloodthirsty of teams will turn their attention to the ball once the opposition has been satisfactorily dealt with. Proof indeed that the basic premise of the game is so simple that even an Orc can understand it!
Scoring a touchdown: see Scoring a Touchdown, page 64 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Scoring during your opponent's turn: see Scoring During Your Opponents Turn, page 64 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Time limits and winning the game: Sometimes you may wish to impose a time limit on your game. Perhaps you are playing in a tournament, during your lunch break, or want to squeeze a game in before you sit down for dinner.
When playing a game that has a time limit, if neither side has scored when the time limit is reached, make sure both coaches have had an equal number of turns. Then the team that has got the ball closer to their opposition's End Zone, regardless of which player is holding the ball (if any), is the winner. What this means is that players should count up the number of squares between the square the ball is in and their opponent's End Zone by the shortest route possible. The player that has the lowest number of squares between the ball and the opposition team's End Zone is the winner. In the rare case that this is also the same, then the game is a draw - the teams were simply too well-matched to separate!
For Organised Play games, we would recommend a time limit of between one and a half hours and two hours.
Example: Jay and Rob have been playing a game of Dungeon Bowl with a 2 hour time limit. At the end of the 2 hour time limit, neither player has managed to score that all-important touchdown. After counting the number of squares between the ball, which is in the hands of Rob's Gnoblar Lineman, and each player's End Zone, it is determined that the ball is 23 squares away from Jay's End Zone and only 14 squares away from Rob's End Zone. This means that Jay is the winner as the ball is closer to Rob's End Zone - even though Rob is in possession of the ball.
Skills and Traits
The following section features the complete list of new Skills and Traits introduced for Dungeon Bowl. Be they Skills a player starts with, or Skills gained during the course of a league, all players will have a degree of access to General, Agility, Strength and Passing skills, and many will have access to Mutations. Traits are more unique, the result of a player's nature rather than something they can learn. The general rules for how Skills and Traits work, and the full list of standard Blood Bowl Skills and Traits, are covered in the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Skill use: Players that are Standing and have not lost their Tackle Zone can use their Skills or Traits at any time, not just during their own activation. Players that are Prone or Stunned, or that have lost their Tackle Zone for any reason, cannot use any Skills or Traits unless otherwise stated in the Skill or Trait description:
- You can choose to use a Skill or Trait that modifies a dice roll after the dice roll has been made.
- All bonuses and/or modifiers from Skills or Traits can be combined.
- Unless the description states otherwise, a Skill or Trait can be used by more than one player per team turn.
- Unless the description states otherwise, a Skill or Trait can be used multiple times during each team turn.
- Unless a Skill or Trait is marked with an asterisk (), its use is not compulsory (i.e., you do not have to use that Skill or Trait if you do not wish to). However, the use of a Skill or Trait marked with an asterisk () is compulsory.
Dungeon Bowl introduces four new Skills, described below. They are found among the standard General and Passing skill lists when rolling for a player's random skill access.
General Skills
Portal Navigator: When this player teleports using a Portal, they may re-roll the D6 to determine which Portal they teleport to.
Passing Skills
Give and Go: If this player performs a Hand-off action, their activation does not have to end once the Hand-off is resolved. If you wish, and if this player has not used their full Movement Allowance, they may continue to move after resolving the Hand-off.
Portal Passer: During its activation, when this player teleports using a Portal, it may declare a Pass action after determining which Portal it is teleporting to. This Skill may be used even if the player did not declare a Pass action at the beginning of their activation.
Wall Thrower: When this player throws the ball at the wall, they may apply an additional +1 modifier when testing for the accuracy of the pass.
Inducements
Not all Dungeon Bowl teams are equal, as much as the teams in question may wish to believe they are! Simply put, some teams are just better than others when you compare the quality of their players; though this doesn't always ensure victory. Often, the Magisterium of the colleges that are fielding the weaker team will donate some extra gold to their disadvantaged team in order to give them a helping hand. After all, paying a small sum before the game is better than losing a bet with the Magisterium of the opposing college.
Inducements in Detail
Dungeon Bowl teams are always looking for an advantage, be it fair or otherwise, and coaches will pay all manner of shady characters to assist their team. During the pre-game sequence of a league fixture, coaches may purchase Inducements for the game ahead by spending gold awarded as Petty Cash, taken from their Treasury, or both. When creating a team for exhibition play, a coach may purchase Inducements from their Team Draft Budget.
Inducements in league play: see Inducements In League Play, page 89 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Inducements in exhibition play: see Inducements In Exhibition Play, page 89 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
List of Inducements
Here are the Inducements that can be purchased by a Dungeon Bowl team:
0-8 Extra Team Training (100,000 gold pieces each, available to any team): see Extra Team Training, page 91 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
0-3 Bribes (100,000 gold pieces each, available to any team): see Bribes, page 91 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
0-1 College Wizard (100,000 gold pieces, available to various teams): The Magisterium of the Colleges of Magic have much invested in the games, and it is not uncommon for them to take a slightly more hands-on approach to push their team towards victory. Of course, the Magisterium charge a fee for their help - nothing comes for free in Dungeon Bowl!
When a Dungeon Bowl team hires a College Wizard, they will hire the Wizard of the same type as their college team - a College of Fire team will always hire a Bright Wizard, for example. Each college's Wizard performs slightly differently, as you would expect, as they all deal in different types of magic. The rules for each of the different types of Wizard are given below. A College Wizard may only use their spell once per game.
No team may purchase more than one College Wizard Inducement per game.
Bright Wizard (College of Fire) - Fireball: You may cast this spell either at the start of any of the opposition's team turns, before any player is activated, or immediately after any of the opposition's team turns has ended. Choose a target square anywhere in the dungeon and roll a D6 for each Standing player (from either team) that occupies either the target square or a square adjacent to it:
- On a roll of 4+, the player has been hit by the Fireball.
- On a roll of 1-3, the player manages to avoid the Fireball.
Any Standing players hit by the Fireball are Knocked Down. When a player is Knocked Down by a Fireball, you may apply a +1 modifier to either the Armour roll or Injury roll. This modifier may be applied after the roll has been made.
Grey Wizard (College of Shadows) - Shadowed Step: You may cast this spell at the start of any of your team turns, before any player is activated. Choose a player on your team that does not have the ball. Remove the chosen player from the dungeon and place them anywhere in the dungeon within five (5) squares of where they were.
The other six College Wizards - Amber (College of Beasts), Amethyst (College of Death), Celestial (College of Heavens), Gold (College of Metal), Jade (College of Life), and Light (College of Light) - belong to colleges outside the base game and are detailed in Dungeon Bowl expansion supplements.
The Teams
College of Fire
| Qty | Type | Position | Cost | MA | ST | AG | PA | AV | Skills & Traits | Primary | Secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-16 | Linemen | Dwarf Blocker Lineman | 70,000 | 4 | 3 | 4+ | 5+ | 10+ | Block, Tackle, Thick Skull | Gs | A |
| Gnoblar Lineman | 15,000 | 5 | 1 | 3+ | 5+ | 6+ | Dodge, Right Stuff, Sidestep, Stunty, Titchy | A | G | ||
| Bloodborn Marauder Lineman | 50,000 | 6 | 3 | 3+ | 4+ | 8+ | Frenzy | Gm | As | ||
| 0-2 | Runners | Dwarf Runner | 85,000 | 6 | 3 | 3+ | 4+ | 9+ | Sure Hands, Thick Skull | GP | As |
| 0-2 | Blitzers | Dwarf Blitzer | 80,000 | 5 | 3 | 3+ | 4+ | 10+ | Block, Thick Skull | Gs | Ap |
| 0-4 | Blockers | Chaos Dwarf Blocker | 70,000 | 4 | 3 | 4+ | 6+ | 10+ | Block, Iron Hard Skin, Thick Skull | Gs | Am |
| 0-2 | Special | Troll Slayer | 95,000 | 5 | 3 | 4+ | - | 9+ | Block, Dauntless, Frenzy, Thick Skull | Gs | Ap |
| Chaos Dwarf Flamesmith | 80,000 | 5 | 3 | 4+ | 6+ | 10+ | Brawler, Breathe Fire, Disturbing Presence, Thick Skull | Gs | Am | ||
| 0-3 | Big Guys | Ogre Blocker | 140,000 | 5 | 5 | 4+ | 5+ | 10+ | Bone Head, Mighty Blow (+1), Thick Skull, Throw Team-mate |
- 0-8 team re-rolls, 50,000 gold pieces each.
- Bright Wizard, 100,000 gold pieces.
College of Shadows
| Qty | Type | Position | Cost | MA | ST | AG | PA | AV | Skills & Traits | Primary | Secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-16 | Linemen | Dark Elf Lineman | 70,000 | 6 | 3 | 2+ | 4+ | 9+ | - | AG | S |
| Skaven Clanrat Lineman | 50,000 | 7 | 3 | 3+ | 4+ | 8+ | - | G | Ams | ||
| Goblin Lineman | 40,000 | 6 | 2 | 3+ | 4+ | 8+ | Dodge, Right Stuff, Stunty | A | Gs | ||
| Gnome Lineman | 40,000 | 5 | 2 | 3+ | 4+ | 7+ | Jump Up, Right Stuff, Stunty, Wrestle | A | Gs | ||
| Hobgoblin Lineman | 40,000 | 6 | 3 | 3+ | 4+ | 8+ | - | G | As | ||
| 0-4 | Runners | Dark Elf Runner | 80,000 | 7 | 3 | 2+ | 3+ | 8+ | Dump-off | Agp | S |
| Gutter Runner | 85,000 | 9 | 2 | 2+ | 4+ | 8+ | Dodge | AG | Mps | ||
| Woodland Fox | 50,000 | 7 | 2 | 2+ | - | 6+ | Dodge, My Ball, Sidestep, Stunty | - | A | ||
| 0-2 | Blitzers | Dark Elf Blitzer | 100,000 | 7 | 3 | 2+ | 4+ | 9+ | Block | AG | Ps |
| Skaven Blitzer | 90,000 | 7 | 3 | 3+ | 5+ | 9+ | Block |
- 0-8 team re-rolls, 50,000 gold pieces each.
- Grey Wizard, 100,000 gold pieces.
League and Exhibition Play
Playing a Dungeon Bowl league is great fun. Teams grow and develop, and rookie players begin to catch the eyes of the scouts of Blood Bowl teams. Coaches are able to build upon their college's background and rivalries with others, all the while hoping to cement their College of Magic as the dominant college within the Old World.
In truth, although we call them leagues, what our teams are most likely doing is participating in the type of tournaments that happen between the Colleges of Magic. The Magisterium are constantly making bets with the other colleges as to which of the eight lores of magic is superior; and each year the colleges will compete in various games, leagues and tournaments to secure glory for the college - and for their Magisterium to win a fat chunk of gold!
The development seen is a team improving through the course of such a competition and becoming a more skilled and complete unit. Over several such league seasons a college team will have played in several different competitions in very different locations, gained new players, lost old favourites, and changed and evolved over time.
Running a League
In order to set up a league, the first thing needed is a league commissioner. The league commissioner is the member of any group of regularly meeting coaches who takes up the responsibility for making sure that a league runs smoothly. Some league commissioners like to keep a central database of teams to keep track of how well everyone is doing, and some even write regular newsletters featuring game reports, league tables and anything else they can think of! Most league commissioners will take part in the league with a team of their own.
Getting started: To run a league, you will need at least four teams. At the start of the league, each participating coach needs to draft a team as described under Drafting a Dungeon Bowl Team, above, and submit a copy of their Team Draft list to the league commissioner.
Seasons: A Dungeon Bowl league plays out over a number of "seasons", each split into the "regular season" and the "play-off season". At the end of each play-off season comes the "off-season break", a rest from the action before the next season begins. After the off-season break, returning and new coaches alike can draft a new team for the season ahead. Should the league commissioner wish, returning coaches can re-draft an existing team as described under Re-Drafting, below.
Divisions: If the league contains enough teams, the league commissioner may wish to divide them into two, three or four divisions. Each division should contain as equal a number of teams as possible, but a division should have no fewer than four teams. The larger the divisions are, the longer a season will last. The teams can be split however the league commissioner decides, but drawing team names out of an upturned Dungeon Bowl helmet (or similar receptacle) is most traditional. Once the divisions have been split, the season can begin!
The Regular Season
See The Regular Season, page 97 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
League fixtures: see League Fixtures, page 97 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Cross division friendlies: see Cross Division Friendlies, page 97 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
League scoring: Teams earn League points as follows:
- Win: 3 League points.
- Draw: 1 League point.
- Loss: 0 League points.
Additionally, league commissioners may wish to award bonus League points for the following:
- Cause 3 or more Casualties (counting only those that generate SPP, as described in Step 3 of the post-game sequence): +1 League point.
Each coach should record their League points on their Game Record sheet during Step 1 of the post-game sequence, before reporting both the outcome of the game and the league points scored to the league commissioner.
The Play-Off Season
See The Play-Off Season, page 98 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Glittering Prizes: Prizes are awarded to the teams who finish in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, in addition to any winnings generated during the post-game sequence:
- The team in 3rd place receives 30,000 gold pieces.
- The team in 2nd place receives 60,000 gold pieces.
- The team who finished in 1st place, the season's champion, is awarded 100,000 gold pieces and the Dungeon Bowl Trophy.
The Dungeon Bowl Trophy is held by the winners until the end of the next season, when it will be awarded to the new champions. For as long as a team holds the Dungeon Bowl Trophy, it adds an additional team re-roll to its Team Draft list, increasing its Team Value accordingly but without having to spend any gold pieces from its Treasury.
The Off-Season Break and Re-Drafting Teams
See The Off-Season Break And Re-Drafting Teams, page 99 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Re-drafting: Between seasons, there is a period of downtime called the "off-season break". Coaches and their players rest and recuperate, spend their hard-earned gold, or go on elaborate tours to promote the latest edition of their increasingly unbelievable autobiographies.
After the finals have been played, any coaches who wish to re-draft their team for the next season should get together with the league commissioner and run through the following steps:
- Scouting: Players may be scouted by Blood Bowl teams, and leave the college for greener pastures - at least in theory...
- R&R: Players that would miss the team's next game recover.
- Raise Funds: Coaches calculate the funds available to them to re-draft their team.
- Re-Draft: Coaches complete their new Team Draft list for the season ahead.
1. Scouting: During the off-season break, players that performed well across the season may be scouted by major Blood Bowl teams, sign a lucrative contract, and leave their college to seek their fortune in the big leagues. During this step, roll a D6 for any players on your roster that have received any MVP awards. On the roll of a 6, that player has been scouted and joins a Blood Bowl team. As compensation, your Dungeon Bowl team gains an additional 20,000 gold pieces when they Raise Funds.
2. R&R: see R&R, page 99 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
3. Raise Funds: When re-drafting, each team gets a Re-Draft Budget of 1,000,000 gold pieces. This represents money doled out by the league, the team's sponsors, fan clubs and generous patrons. A team that is re-drafting then adds to this anything they have left in their Treasury from the previous season, after which their Treasury is emptied (presumably having been used to cover the cost of the many "unexpected" expenses that arise during the off-season break!). Finally, a team that is re-drafting adds the bonuses listed below:
- 20,000 gold pieces for each game the team played last season (both friendlies and league fixtures).
- An additional 20,000 gold pieces for each league fixture the team won last season.
League commissioners may, at their own discretion, place a cap of 1,300,000 gold pieces on the Re-Draft Budget available to teams so that no team starts the season with too obvious an advantage.
4. Re-Draft: Once the Re-Draft Budget available has been worked out, the team can be re-drafted. A few key players will be able to return to the dungeon for the new season, whilst others will find themselves unceremoniously dropped and replaced with eager rookies to keep costs down. Those players that are dropped usually have the good grace to disappear quietly, either graduating, joining another team for their college, or realising that their dreams of glory simply won't happen, before joining a Blood Bowl team as sideline staff.
To re-draft your team, use a new Team Draft list and create a brand new version of your team using the Re-Draft Budget available. The following rules apply:
- Team re-rolls may be carried over from your previous Team Draft list at the cost shown on your team roster, or they may be let go.
- As well as hiring new players from your team roster, you can re-hire players from last season's Team Draft list. Players can be re-hired by paying their Current Value as shown on last season's Team Draft list, plus an administrative fee of 20,000 gold pieces for each previous season the player has taken part in.
Simply copy the player's entire profile across from your old Team Draft list, including any Niggling Injuries, any characteristic reductions and any unspent Star Player points:
- If the player has any Niggling Injuries, roll a D6 for each:
- On a roll of 4+, some rest and relaxation has worked wonders. The Niggling Injury you are rolling for is removed.
- On a roll of 1-3, the player's injury has not yet fully healed. The Niggling Injury being rolled for remains.
Re-drafting temporarily retired players: see Re-Drafting Temporarily Retired Players, page 100 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Starting a New Season
See Starting A New Season, page 100 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Exhibition Play
Unfortunately, not everyone is able to commit the time required to take part in a league. Coaches may not live close to their gaming friends, and work and family commitments might contrive to keep us away from our hobby, meaning that often we are only able to enjoy the occasional stand-alone game when time permits. Such stand-alone games are referred to as "exhibition games". What's more, there is no reason to miss out on the fun of many aspects of the game that appear to be designed for league play; it is possible to create teams for exhibition games complete with extra Skills, characteristic improvements and access to weird and wonderful Inducements, including Star Players. There is a lot of fun to be had in creating a team for an exhibition game, deciding what will be included and what will be left out, choosing Skills, creating names and backstories for the players, and so on.
Dungeon Bowl exhibition play rules: see Blood Bowl Exhibition Play Rules, page 101 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Drafting an exhibition team: see Drafting An Exhibition Team, page 101 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Team Draft Budget: see Team Draft Budget, page 101 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Hiring players: see Hiring Players, page 101 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Any team drafted for exhibition play can purchase team re-rolls, just like a team drafted for league play. Every team may buy 0-8 team re-rolls when it is drafted, for the cost of 50,000 gold pieces per re-roll, paid for from the Team Draft Budget.
Inducements in exhibition play: see Inducements In Exhibition Play, page 102 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Player advancement in exhibition play: see Player Advancement In Exhibition Play, page 102 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Free SPP: see Free SPP, page 102 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Spending SPP: see Spending SPP, page 102 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Value increase: see Value Increase, page 102 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Casualty rolls: In league play, as well as earning SPP and gaining advancements, players can pick up lasting injuries from the Casualty table that will dog their careers. In exhibition play this does not happen. Every time a team drafted for exhibition play takes to the pitch, it does so with a full complement of healthy, uninjured players. Any Casualty rolls made against a player in one game are forgotten about should the same team be used again later. This is of particular importance for Dungeon Bowl tournaments, where coaches will use the same team in several games over one or more days.
This, of course, is not to say that Casualty rolls do not matter in exhibition play. Casualty rolls should be made as normal. This is because some teams may have the chance to gain an extra Lineman for the remainder of the game.
Post-Game Sequence
Over the course of a college league, Dungeon Bowl teams will grow and evolve with every game played; some rookie players will learn new skills and develop as players, others will suffer injuries that may threaten their career, and some will even perish! Whilst fatalities are not unexpected in a violent bloodsport, they can be a trifle annoying for any coach, particularly if the deceased player was beginning to show promise to help settle the disputes between Wizards in favour of their college. Fortunately, the sorrow of loss can be eased by counting the winnings, allowing new players to be recruited, providing fresh blood for an under-strength team, and existing players can be trained and developed into the stars of the future!
The Aftermath
Once the game-winning touchdown has been scored to end the game during a league, both coaches will run their teams through the post-game sequence. This is when winnings are counted and spent on new players and Sideline Staff, when casualties are assessed and either treated or dismissed, and when players and their various skills are evaluated and, invariably, team tactics are reviewed.
League and exhibition play: After a league fixture, both coaches should run through the full post-game sequence step by step. In exhibition play, the post-game sequence need not be completed.
- Record Outcome and Winnings: The details of the game, its outcome and each team's winnings are recorded on the Game Record sheet.
- Player Advancement: Any players that have earned enough SPP may spend them on advancements.
- Hiring, Firing and Temporarily Retiring: New players and staff are recruited, injured players may be dismissed, and some players may be scouted to the big leagues of Blood Bowl.
- Prepare for Next Fixture: Team Value and Current Team Value are both updated ready for the next league fixture.
1. Record Outcome and Winnings: At the end of each and every league fixture, both coaches are responsible for correctly recording on their Game Record sheet the details of how their team performed and the outcome of the match. Each coach should record the following information in the appropriate sections of their Game Record sheet so that it can be passed on to the league commissioner:
- The result of the game (win, lose or draw).
- How many Casualties were caused (counting only those that generate SPP, as described in Step 2).
- How many League points were earned.
- Finally, any players that suffered a Dead result on the Casualty table during this game are deleted from your Team Draft list.
Winnings: At the end of every game, each team receives a fee for playing, usually paid by the Magisterium of the losing college. To work out how much each team wins, the winning coach rolls 2D6; the highest score is for the winning team, and the lowest is for the losing team. Multiply each D6 by 10,000 to work out the amount of gold pieces each team receives.
2. Player Advancement: see Player Advancement, pages 70-72 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
3. Hiring, Firing and Temporarily Retiring: Players are prone to injury, and even the biggest superstars can find themselves looking for work elsewhere if their injuries outweigh their abilities. After all, there are always fresh-faced rookies looking to make a name for themselves for a fraction of the cost! Similarly, coaches will often hire and fire Sideline Staff on a regular basis to manage their overheads. During this step of the post-game sequence a team may:
- Spend any amount of gold from the Treasury to buy new players from your team roster and/or Sideline Staff and increase Team Value accordingly.
- Fire any players and/or Sideline Staff who are no longer required, deleting them from the Team Draft list and reducing Team Value accordingly.
- Purchase additional team re-rolls, but must pay double to do so.
- Permanently hire any Journeymen that played for the team during this game:
- A team must have fewer than 16 players on its Team Draft list to permanently hire Journeymen.
- If not permanently hired, Journeymen will leave and not return. Any SPP earned or advancements gained are lost.
Temporarily retiring: see Temporarily Retiring, page 72 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
4. Prepare for Next Fixture: see Prepare For Next Fixture, page 73 of the Blood Bowl Rulebook.
Quick Reference
Pre-Game Sequence
The pre-game sequence consists of the following sequence of steps:
- Coin Toss
- Take on Journeymen
- Inducements
- Deploy Players
Post-Game Sequence
After a league fixture, both coaches should run through the full post-game sequence step by step. In exhibition play, the post-game sequence need not be completed.
- Record Outcome and Winnings
- Player Advancement
- Hiring, Firing and Temporarily Retiring
- Prepare for Next Fixture
The Turnover
A Turnover is caused:
- If a player on the active team Falls Over during their own activation.
- If a player on the active team is Knocked Down during their team turn.
- If a player on the active team that is in possession of the ball is Placed Prone during their team turn.
- If a player on the active team attempts to pick up the ball from the ground and fails, even if the bouncing ball is then caught by a player from the active team.
- If a player on the active team fumbles a Pass action, even if the bouncing ball is then caught by a player from the active team.
- If no player on the active team catches the ball after a Pass action or a Hand-off action and the ball comes to rest on the ground or in the possession of a player from the opposition team.
- If a Pass action is Deflected or Intercepted and the ball comes to rest either on the ground or in the possession of a player from the opposition team.
- If a player on the active team that is in possession of the ball is thrown by a team-mate and either fails to land safely, or is eaten, even if the bouncing ball is then caught by a player from the active team.
- If a player on the active team is Sent-off by the referee for committing a Foul.
Teleporting
A player that steps on, or is pushed into, a Portal rolls a D6; the player is teleported to the Portal with the corresponding number.
A player teleported as the result of a Move action must spend a square of Movement to carry on with their activation. A player teleported more than once during any team turn will immediately suffer an Injury roll.
Chain Reactions: If a player is teleported into the same square as another player, it will result in a Chain Reaction. The player that was originally occupying the Portal will be teleported to another Portal - which may result in another Chain Reaction.
Magical Mishap: A player that rolls the same number as the Portal they are being teleported from is removed from the dungeon and will take no further part in the game.
Dugout Portals: Once per turn, a coach may teleport a single player from their dugout into the dungeon, in the same manner as if they had entered a Portal, with the exception that they may not move further that turn. The team that has the first turn cannot teleport a player in on their first team turn.
Opening Chests
A player that finishes a Move action (but not as part of a Blitz action) in a square adjacent to a Chest, and is not Marked, may open the Chest.
If the Chest contains the ball, the player immediately gains possession and their activation ends immediately.
If the Chest is empty, all players adjacent to the Chest are immediately Knocked Down and an Armour roll is made for each of them.
Player Activations
During your team turn, you may activate each Standing and/or Prone player to perform one action available to them, but you are not obliged to activate every player. Players that begin their team turn Stunned cannot be activated.
Move: The most basic action. Any player on the active team that is not Stunned can perform a simple Move action.
Pass: Once per team turn, a player on the active team may attempt to pass the ball to another square.
Hand-off: Once per team turn, a player on the active team may attempt to hand the ball off to another Standing player from their team that is in an adjacent square.
Throw Team-mate: Once per team turn, instead of performing an ordinary Pass action, a player on the active team with the Throw Team-mate trait may attempt to throw a player from their team that has the Right Stuff trait. A team may not perform both a Pass action and a Throw Team-mate action during the same team turn.
Block: A Standing player on the active team can target a Standing opposition player that is within their Tackle Zone with a Block action (or a Special action granted by a Skill or Trait that can be performed instead of a Block action), but cannot move before or after performing the action.
Blitz: Once per team turn, a player on the active team may perform a Blitz action, an action that combines together both a Move action and a Block action (or a Special action granted by a Skill or Trait that can be performed instead of a Block action) - the target of which must be nominated when the player is activated, before they have moved. When a player performs a Blitz action, they may move as normal. However, performing the Block action costs a Blitzing player one square of their Movement Allowance. The player may move both before and after performing the Block action if they wish, and may follow-up if the target of the Block action is pushed back.
Foul: Once per team turn, a player on the active team may commit a Foul action.
Special actions: In addition to these seven main actions, there are numerous Skills and Traits a player may possess that allow them to perform another, unique action. One example is Hypnotic Gaze, which allows a player to transfix an opponent, causing them to temporarily lose their Tackle Zone so that they cannot Mark other players. Such actions are called "Special actions" and are detailed in the appropriate Skill or Trait description.
Pass Actions
Once per team turn, a player on the active team may perform a Pass action in order to pass the ball to another square:
- Measure Range and Declare Target Square: The range ruler is used to measure the range to any possible target squares, before the target square is chosen and declared.
- Test for Accuracy: The coach of the player performing the action rolls a D6 to determine the accuracy of the pass.
- Passing Interference: Unless the pass was fumbled, one opposition player may be able to attempt to interfere with the pass, hoping to "Deflect" or "Intercept" it.
- Resolve Pass Action: If the pass was neither fumbled nor interfered with, the pass itself is resolved!
Throwing the ball at the wall: A player that declares a Pass action may also declare that they will bounce the ball off the wall instead of passing normally.
Throw Team-mate Actions
Once per team turn, instead of performing a Pass action, a player on the active team with the Throw Team-mate trait can attempt to throw a team-mate with the Right Stuff trait as if they were a ball:
- Measure Range and Declare Target Square: The range ruler may be used to determine the range between the throwing player and any possible target squares, before the target square is chosen and declared.
- Test for Quality: The coach of the player performing the action rolls a D6 to determine the quality of the throw.
- Resolve Throw: Where the thrown player lands, and how easily, depends upon the quality of the throw. If the throw is fumbled, the thrown player is dropped and will bounce.
Block Actions
When a Standing player is activated, they can immediately nominate a single Standing opposition player that they are currently Marking and declare that they will target them with a Block action. Unlike other actions, there is no limit to how many players may perform a Block action each team turn.
Strength: When an active player performs a Block action, the first thing to do is to compare the Strength characteristic of both players, including any modifiers.
- If both players have the same Strength characteristic, after modification, one block dice is rolled.
- If one player has a higher Strength characteristic, after modification, a pool of two block dice is rolled and the coach of the stronger player selects which result to apply.
- If one player has a Strength characteristic that is more than double that of their opponent, after modification, a pool of three block dice is rolled and the coach of the stronger player selects which result to apply.
Assisting a block: There are two types of assist that can be counted: "offensive" and "defensive".
- Each offensive assist counted modifies the Strength characteristic of the player performing the Block action by +1.
- Each defensive assist counted modifies the Strength characteristic of the player that is the target of the Block action by +1.
Block dice: Block dice feature five icons, each representing an outcome. Some of these outcomes can be modified by Skills or Traits possessed by one or both players:
- Player Down!: The active player is immediately Knocked Down by the player they were attempting to block!
- Both Down: Both the active player and the target of the Block action are Knocked Down by one another. If one of the players has the Block skill, they may choose to ignore this result and not be Knocked Down.
- Push Back: The target of the Block action is pushed back one square by the active player. The active player may follow-up into the square vacated.
- Stumble: If the target of the Block action has the Dodge skill, this result becomes a Push Back. Otherwise, this result becomes a POW!, as described below.
- POW!: The target of the Block action is pushed back by the active player and is then Knocked Down in the square they have been moved into. The active player may follow up into the square vacated.
Risking Injury
Whenever one player is Knocked Down by another, they become Prone and risk injury. When a player is Knocked Down or Falls Over, the coach of the opposition team will make an Armour roll against that player.
Note that when a player is Placed Prone, perhaps having wrestled an opponent to the ground, there is no risk of injury and no Armour roll is made against them.
Armour rolls: If the player's armour is "broken", an Injury roll is made. If their armour is not broken, it protects them from harm.
Injury rolls: Whenever a player's armour is broken, an Injury roll is made against them. The coach of the opposing team rolls 2D6 and consults the table below:
Injury Table
| 2D6 | Result |
|---|---|
| 2-7 | Stunned: The player immediately becomes Stunned, and is laid face-down in the dungeon. |
| 8-9 | KO'd: The player is immediately removed from play and placed in the Knocked-out box of their team dugout. |
| 10+ | Casualty! The player becomes a casualty and is immediately removed from play and placed in the Casualty box of their team dugout. The coach of the opposition team immediately makes a Casualty roll against the player. |
Stunty Injury Table
| 2D6 | Result |
|---|---|
| 2-6 | Stunned: The player immediately becomes Stunned, and is laid face-down in the dungeon. |
| 7-8 | KO'd: The player is immediately removed from play and placed in the Knocked-out box of their team dugout. |
| 9 | Badly Hurt: Instead, a Badly Hurt result is automatically applied against them. |
| 10+ | Casualty: The player becomes a casualty and is immediately removed from play and placed in the Casualty box of their team dugout. The coach of the opposing team immediately makes a Casualty roll against the player. |
Casualty Table
| D16 | Result | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1-6 | Badly Hurt | The player misses the rest of this game, but suffers no long term effect. |
| 7-9 | Seriously Hurt | MNG. |
| 10-12 | Serious Injury | NI and MNG. |
| 13-14 | Lasting Injury | Characteristic Reduction and MNG. |
| 15-16 | Dead | This player is far too dead to play Dungeon Bowl! |
MNG (Miss Next Game): The player misses the rest of this game, but will need more time to recuperate. In league play, the player is not available to play in the team's next game.
NI (Niggling Injury): Make a note on the Team Draft list that this player has picked up a Niggling Injury. There is a +1 modifier applied to all future rolls made against this player on the Casualty table per Niggling Injury they have.
Characteristic Reduction: The player has one of their characteristics reduced by 1. To determine which, roll a D6 on the table below. No characteristic can ever be reduced below its minimum value.
Lasting Injury Table
| D6 | Lasting Injury | Reduction |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Head Injury | -1 AV |
| 3 | Smashed Knee | -1 MA |
| 4 | Broken Arm | -1 PA |
| 5 | Neck Injury | -1 AG |
| 6 | Dislocated Shoulder | -1 ST |
Dead: This player is dead! Dead players are dismissed from the team during Step 1 of the post-game sequence.