Dreadball at the Dundee Wargames Club 23-04-2015

Dreadball at the

 Dundee Wargames Club

 23-04-2015

This week saw three furious matches 

• The first game was a try out of a BETA team from the upcoming releases.
• Game 2 pitted the Veer-Myn versus  Z'zor 
• Game three as a fast paced high scoring grudge match.

Beta-Rules Test Tryout: 

As with most of our beta tryouts that we have done in the past, the base team to play against is the Trontek season one humans. The teams are both basic starter teams to keep the balance fair.

The Beta team that was chosen was the Kovoss Kryptics


Team Roster:

1x Guard with Threatening and a Strength upgrade

1x Guard with Alert and Gotcha!

2x Strikers with a Skill upgrade

2x Jacks with Stretch

1x card

1x coaching dice,

1x offensive coach 

 2mc left unspent

These are made up with proxies using MVP's that look like they would match the statistics. 

Up against the home team Kenzie's Encom Gridrunners 

The Kovoss Kryptics deployed two Jacks in front of the front strike hexes, to stop two pointers, and the Gotcha! guard in the centre of the rear strike zone, blocking the 4pt hex and able to move to face the other ones if someone came too close. The Threatening Guard, and two Strikers were deployed centrally, at least six hexes away from the enemy, ready to break forth into the opponent’s half come their turn.

The large Krytic guard takes down the opposing Striker.

A Kryptic Striker harasses the score zone

A Gridrunner Guard deals with the problem..with death

A Encom Gridrunner Jack tries his best to stop the rampaging Kryptic Guard

Rampage comtinues

Final Score 

                                   Encom Gridrunners 0-7 Kovoss Kryptics

                                                                Landslide

After Game review


 Kovoss Krypitcs Coach:

The coach came in very handy, letting my Threatening Guard smash multiple heads a turn (and smash heads he did with his two particular upgrades) or allowing one of the strikers to get the ball from an obscure location and back to the scoring zone. I felt like having a coach was a bit much, although I liked the flavour that he was the scientist responsible for the mutants.

The only set-back for the Mutants was the loss mid-game of one of the Strikers, but it wasn’t too keenly felt as I just started using the other identical one.  The team did feel a bit vulnerable as I hadn’t taken any defensive upgrades; I was especially concerned about my Guards being hit in the rear, as either being off the table for any amount of turns would have been a major spanner in the works.  In this game though, Trontek couldn’t create the leverage to remove them for even a turn (as I was hitting his Guards before they could hit me), but I would have been very worried against Teratons, Brokkrs, or Crystallans – the mutants would have been decimated.

Scoring-wise, my opponent was only able to make 1pt strikes, but was making them every turn.  I however was scoring regular 3-4 points combo-ing a striker with the Threatening Guard.  I won a landslide victory on turn 12, having missed a potentially game ending 4 point shot 2 turns prior with my 3+ Skill… It does happen. 

As it happened, I didn't use the Jacks at all, and had this been a league match, I would likely have boiled them down afterwards and picked up something more useful. Trontek’s first strike attempt was for 3pts, but it missed thanks to Gotcha and the Striker was promptly dealt with; no further attempts were made in the rear zone.

The game was never in doubt – the Mutants totally dominated, and they were not even the toughest list that can be built at present.  I felt like that I wasn’t paying a price for having the flexibility that I had in making the team.

Overall, the game felt like we were playing a virgin Trontek team against a veteran Trontek team, a team that had won all the right upgrades on their experience rolls. In fact, we estimated that the team value of the mutants if they were a Trontek team would be around 120, which is pretty unfair.

Gridrunners Coach:

My View pretty much Mirriors what has already been said. To play against the Kryptics I very much felt outmatched, it was like I was playing a mid-season league team, with many upgrades and abilities.It was tough I felt I was always on the backfoot.

As a starter team the Kovoss Kryptics seem very strong and open to abuse with too much flexibility.



You can find the beta rules HERE at Quirkworthy


Discussion on Kovoss Krypitcs

To make it more fair I would suggest increasing the basic cost of bodies for Strikers and Guards by 1 or 2 megacredits (MC).  I also feel that the cost of the upgrades needs to be looked at as there are some I would never buy and some I would buy everytime, unless they cost a bit more.

Perhaps instead of the uber-customisation of present, which seems a bit excessive, perhaps a basic stat line for a fixed cost, and a list of advantages and their linked disadvantage; if you take Gotcha!, it comes with a speed of 5+ due to the stickiness of the tentacles.  In league play, instead of rolling on the upgrade tables, you could pick a new mutation, and receive its upside and down. 

Mutant Jacks also seem to lack a reason for being; their upgrades at present just make them better generic jacks, but I would rather take a Striker or Guard, or at least a Jack that will support those roles.

  Pest Control

Gorgonzolas Versus Prf Pyms Ant-agonists

Veer-myn Versus Z'zor

The Gorganzolas

Gorganzola Guard

A Veer-Myn guard demolishes the wall of Z'zor jacks to open a path for a potential 4 point strike.

Having had enough of his striker's feeble attempts to pick up the ball, the Z'zor coach sends a more reliable Jack...

A Veer-Myn striker finds himself in a sticky situation, but manages to evade out and grab the ball!

                                                          Final Score
                                      Gorgonzolas 3-0 Prof Pyms Ant-agonists

The Grudgematch

Encom Gridrunners Versus Barr's Girder Grinders

Both teams are season one humans.These are two teams that have been knocking lumps and smashing hexes for a long time, Both coaches have played in many a league. In this game we both used starter teams.


The Gridrunners secured the Home side and set up first.   

A Grinder Striker dodges the Gridrunner Guards slam 

A first turn attempt on a three point shot. 

Success for the Gridrunners

The Arena

A Fumble!!! Ending the Girder Grinders turn

Another three points for the Gridrunners

After the end of rush Three the score was 6-0 to the Encom Gridrunners.

Revenge on the Striker

Starting to even the score,

Striker down

Score! Three points to the Girder Grinders

Face off!

More Successful strikes for the Grinders

Another strike, This now brings the Barr's Girder Grinders into the lead.

Wow! What a game, the score was going both ways. It looked to be a surefire win for the Gridrunners. The Girder Grinders had to work hard to claw the win away from the home side. At the end of the day the Visitors won.

Final Score 

                                   Encom Gridrunners 0-1 Barr's Girder Grinders

For more action with the Ant-agonists and the Encom Gridrunners checkout the  Arcanacup Major league III Ultimate final.

Team Talk- Trontek

Team Talk- TRONTEK 29ERS

Season One Humans

Introduction

Literally the poster-boys of the Dreadball universe, the Trontek 29ers are one of the most popular teams in the fiction and on the tabletop.  This popularity is down to three factors.  Firstly, they come in the core box set, so lots of players are going to own them.  Secondly, most players of Dreadball are humans in real life, and therefore find the Trontek 29ers to be relatable ‘good guys’.  Lastly, they are a well-balanced and flexible team, easy to learn and still competitive many seasons from their release.

The TRONTEK 29ERS

Player Breakdown

A basic team consists of 8 players; 2 Guards, 3 Jacks, and 3 Strikers.  As in most fantasy/sci-fi universes, humans are Mr Joe Average, the benchmark of normality against which weird aliens and unfamiliar robots are measured; this is of course reflected in their stats. 

They have a healthy, but not too vigorous movement of 5, letting them sprint up to 10 hexes, and can reliably get an extra hex or two at a push from their Speed of 4+.  Their Skill of 4+ is pleasantly dependable when rolling more than one dice for shooting or picking up the ball, and their Strength of 4+ is enough to press with.  Their stat line is completed by their armour save of 4+ for the Jacks and Guards, and (the only stat that is not 4+) 5+ on the Strikers

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Team Assets

The Trontek 29ers begin with 2 cards, and 1 Coaching Dice; the highest value assets of any starting team.  The Dreadball cards, and the ability to buy 2 new ones a turn, offer the 29ers greater flexibility of actions and a significant grip on the game ‘event’, which should never be unfavourable.  The lone coaching dice might pale in comparison to the 3 that the Void Sirens, season 2’s human team, but can be used to good effect in ensuring that a strike is made, hopefully earning another back in the process.

Stark Industries 26ERS

Team Tactics

The Trontek 29ers are an incredibly flexible team, jacks of all trades but masters of none.  In game, the Trontek coach must identify where the opposing team is lacking, and press the advantage.  For example, against a strikey team such as the Asterians or Judwan, Trontek must play as a fighting team.  Make use of your two Guards to take out your opponents players, block up your rear strike hex with Jacks to limit the scoring potential of your foe, and use the strikers to keep the game going.  Ultimately, you should be able to move ahead with points as the opposing players cease to be available.  Against bashy teams like Teratons or Orx, Trontek needs to play the striking game, using the guards to free up the rear hexes of the enemy and relentlessly score 3 and 4 pointers, before too many players are incapacitated.

The Barr's Girder Grinders

League Play

Although two Trontek teams might start the same, you can be absolutely sure that by the end they’ll be worlds apart.

In leagues, players earn experience based on the success of their actions in game.  If you find that your first few games that you are pushing hard to score big with your strikers, these models will rank up and become more valuable players based on their abilities.  Alternately, if you find yourself putting more focus on your guards, these will level up faster; Trontek jacks are rarely the ones to gain the experience, except by being declared ‘Man of the Match’.  Where this early experience falls will likely determine the focus of your team moving forward, as your strategy forms around the newfound ability of your players.  If your Guard gains Keeper, he’ll fall into a more defensive role, if he gains a Strength increase he’ll be used more aggressively, and when you have gained multiple, similar upgrades across the team, a clear focus and strategy will emerge that differentiates your team from other Trontek coaches.

Upgrades to be aiming for are Strength on your Guards and Skill on your Strikers.  Other favourites of mine are 360 Degree Vision, which makes Strikers very adept at catching the ball, letting them camp in the 3/4 point zone, and gives Guards the great defense of a literal all-round offense, and defensive traits like Grizzled and Duck & Weave to push the odds of survival further in you favour. For Strikers the Backflip skill is also a very useful still as it allows players to get back on their feet and counts as a double result, so offers a free action. As long as you don't have the ball you can keep dashing until you fall over without worrying about losing an action to stand up when you do.

Another advantage that Trontek has in a league is the relatively cheap cost of new players; at 8mc for a Jack or 10mc for a Guard or Striker, filling up your roster with subs or specialists with a bit of XP is easy! 

Don’t forget to spend some cash on some extra team assets too; a coach goes a long way, and extra coaching dice are useful when levelling up, as well as in game.

The Encom Gridrunners

Tournament Play

The Trontek 29ers are a great team to take to a tournament; they are flexible, forgiving, and a competitive choice. 

Most Dreadball tournaments provide a coach with 20mc in order to buy upgrades and assets for the team, so how should this be spent? 
Personally, I would never be without a coach, usually an offensive one, but many people choose defensive. Getting off an offensive play in the right turn can be the difference between victory and your opponent getting another chance to foil your plans; three actions on one player allows you to pick up the ball, position yourself correctly for the strike (which can be quite far away if you doubled the pick-up), and make your strike attempt on the most dice possible, maximising your chance of success.  This can be done with a defensive coach, but I prefer the reliability of rolling four dice. The coach costs 8mc.

This leaves 12mc, which can be spent quite neatly on two additional coaching dice at 6mc each.This gives Trontek three coaching dice in total; I tend to spend these on must succeed, unopposed actions, such as striking and picking up the ball. Having three gives you plenty to use without having to earn any more, although it is likely that you will with all the big point strikes you will be making!

Alternately, skills for your various players can be bought.  These cost 5mc each, and if you can land a Striker with a skill improvement you are in for big fun (and big hospital bills when your opponent throws everything at him).  However, I am averse to buying skills as they must be rerolled every tournament game, and thus can be unreliable.

Teo-Te-Wakan Temple Guard

Conclusion

The Trontek 29ers are a great team to introduce you to the game of Dreadball due to their simple, easy to remember rules, and ability to succeed in all situations.  Not only that but they remain a competitive choice as you develop your skills as a coach, providing various directions in which to develop. 
All in all, I would recommend them to any new player as their first team, and injected with your own team theme and personality, I believe the Trontek 29ers are a team that veteran players will keep coming back to.