GITP Fantasy Blood Bowl Cup [Matches, Standings, and Schedule]

[Crow]

Sorry to say, but due to real life obligations, I will be unable to do a full breakdown of the upcoming games of the week for a few weeks.

I will make my weekly curse, though.

Crow's Pick: Cretaceous Crushers 1 - 2 Rampage! (Right!!!)

[desertwalker]

Yes, guaranteed win!

[Aedilred]

The Sabreur: Red Sabres Mid-Season report

After a disastrous start to the season which saw them fall to the rock bottom of the league, Blood Bowl laughing-stock the Red Sabres have finally started to find the end-zone and string some results together. We went behind the scenes for an exclusive interview with team owner, head coach, and part-time janitor at City Hall, Aedilred, about their season so far:

TS: Nice office.
A: Thanks. It used to be the broom cupboard but we had to rent out the original office space to cover our gambling debts. It's not just the office we had to cut costs on, either. The team weren't happy about losing the cheerleader, and I don't drink out of a decapitated Saurus skull for fun, you know. We had to auction off my “world's best plutocrat” mug to cover the bills. Turns out people will pay a fortune for a decorative mug, but Saurus bones are a dime a dozen for some reason right now.

TS: What do you think's gone wrong this season?
A: Oh, everything. It all started with that curse the league manager put on us in our opener. We took some casualties and then got rinsed by the Horde. We lost Jack early and couldn't replace him, and wasted our money on gambling trying to recover our losses. And for the first few games the team couldn't string a passage of play together without tripping over their own feet, which didn't help.

TS: “Jack” - I guess that's Jack N. Bauer, your team's original Thrower, who's now playing for the Horde?
A: Yeah, I don't want to talk about him. But we've got Fernand in, and he's done alright, he can handle himself a bit better, and the results have started to turn round.

TS: Yes, that's two weeks without loss now.
A: That's right. For a couple of weeks we were scrambling round, having to come at teams from behind and try to catch them with their trousers down. But now against sides with weaker blockers we're on more of an even footing and the boys can finally play proper Blood Bowl.

TS: Any players you want to mention particularly?
A: Well, our Blitzers have been great. They've been nailing players since day one and that's all that's kept us afloat really. It'd be nice if Ronald could do a bit more permanent damage at times, but really I'm just glad he's putting them off the pitch. And then there's Helmut, Zara and Zug, of course. I think they've made a real difference. It's always good for our boys to play alongside real pros and get some experience.

TS: That's great; it's been nice talking to you.
A: Sure, sure. Hey, you couldn't spot me ten thousand bucks, could you? I'll pay you back in a couple of weeks, no problem...

Overall grading:

Offence: 4/10. Things have finally picked up, but the Sabres have still only run in five touchdowns, which at this stage in the season is poor, giving an average of under one per game. They've also rushed fewer yards than almost any other team in the league.

Defence: 3/10. Although the team have stopped their losing streak for now, they're yet to keep a clean sheet. They can't afford to keep conceding careless touchdowns.

Casualties: 7/10. All things considered, given the team is one of the least muscular around, they've punched above their weight in the physical department.

Room for improvement: The team's running game is improving, but its passing game could be better given the skilled players the team can field. Against more powerful teams this could make the difference between victory and defeat and is a definite area for attention.

[Crow]

Aedilred was kind enough to put together a table for team totals. I've reposted it here, and also below the main standings and league leaders. Should be useful for those report cards!

Originally Posted by Aedilred

Since it's mid-season and people will (hopefully) be doing some reports, they might find this information interesting - it's the collated totals for every leader category arranged by team.

[houlio]

The Fancy Lads Mid-Season Action Report

So, the Lads had a fairly strong start, kicking off the ongoing curse of Crow's predictions (although mitigated by Rampage!, which is a continuing affront to both gods and men) by making life miserable for the Sabres. However, there was a dry-spell afterwards of continuing draws and even a defeat afterwards. Now though, revitalized by wins against the Da Gabooms and RAWR, the Lads are ready to make a much more sophisticated showing in the latter half of the season.

The Breakdown
Offense 3/10: This is definitely the Lads weakest area in the game. Even though the team is composed of the some of the roughest-and-toughest the league has to offer, they tend to be slow and clumsy when it comes to ball-handling it seems. Hopefully this will be mitigated as the players accrue more and more skills or stat-ups.

Defense 9/10: What the Lads lose on Offense is heavily mitigated by their stellar defense. Even in their only loss so far this season against Rampage!, the opposing team only managed to bring in a single point. In fact, the Lads arguably have the best defense the League has to offer. Despite this, the Lads defense still isn't enough to make up for their offensive shortcomings.

Casualties 8/10: The Lads have had a good run so far this season in knocking around other teams, holding second in the League for kills, tied for third on Casualties, and tied for second on KOs. Additionally, now that the Lads are beginning to gain steam from SPPs, I expect that this trend will continue to increase.

Room for Improvement: The Fancy Lads definitely are one of the stronger teams in the League right now. However, they have had a run against a lot of the poorer performing teams so far, so their success in the second half of the season is largely up in the air. Hopefully, getting skills and level ups on many of the players will begin to help the team catch, especially since the SPPs are pretty well distributed throughout the team.

All in all, I would say the Fancy Lads are ready to continue marching through the remainder of the season like the steel wall they are.

[Crow]

Still too busy for a complete breakdown, again, but here is the weekly curse:

Crow's Pick: Cretaceous Crushers 1 - 1 KKkk-sss RAWR (RIGHT!)

[Leriel]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooo


Break the curse! Break the curse! Break the curse!!!!!!!

We can do it! GO GUTTER RUNNERS! GO!

[Leriel]

REALLY PROUD OF MY TEAM.

We broke the curse

Going to update the rooster.

[Crow]

Accidentally editted away my last pick when I was snagging the text for this week's pick. Scroll up for the pick.

[Crow]

If the Season Ended Today

With only 3 games left to go, it's time to start thinking about the post season. With that in mind, let's take a look at what the playoff matchups would be if the season ended today:

Match 1

KKkk-sss RAWR vs. Styx Rivermen

We'll actually be getting to see this match next week! In their previous match against a lizardman team, the Rivermen were beaten soundly, though they did inflict some good casualties. However this isn't the same Rivermen as we saw in week 1. This one goes to the Rivermen.

Match 2

The Trees vs. Rampage!

We just got to see this one, and as much as I hate to count out Rampage, I don't see them being rescued by late game heroics in a second one. Especially since post-season games go into extra-time sudden death. In that situation, it's the Trees all the way. I'm giving it to them.

Match 3

Cretaceous Crushers vs. Stinky Feets

This match pits a high-powered skaven offense against a physically stronger lizardman team. The Feets crushed the last lizardman team they faced, but the Crushers are better. Still, I can't see ReAngelo overcoming everything the Feets have and getting the Crushers a win here. Feets take it.

Match 4

Red Sabres vs. The Fancy Lads

This would be a poetic rematch indeed. Since their first meeting in week 1, both teams have improved, but I think the Lads are even better than that. Once again, the Lads would take this one, and put the Sabres' cinderella run to an end.

But it isn't over yet!

With 3 games left, there is still plenty of movement in the standings that can happen. So far, only 5 teams have clinched playoff spots, meaning 3 spots are up for grabs. Look out Sabres, RAWR, and Trees! Other teams have their eyes on those spots!

[Crow]

Some of you may be asking yourselves,

''I wonder who will win this week's game of the week between Da Gabooms, and The Trees?''

Well I am here to tell you, The Trees are going to obliterate Da Gabooms. Da Gabooms are not going to be able to keep possession against the elf Wardancers, and the elven throwing game is way more than Da Gabooms will be able to stop.

However, Da Gabooms will have a marked advantage on the line of scrimmage with their two trolls, and the ol´ball and chain. If they can get lucky and take The Trees treeman out, things can get ugly for the elves fast. Da Gabooms' best shot is to work the middle of the field, under the troll umbrella, and keep possession of the ball away from the pass game of the elves. If the elves get first possession, and quick score can set up a slow drive to close the half with a touchdown, leaving them with the ball for hopefully the entire 2nd half. Of course scoring at the last second for the win.

The Trees need to score, and score quickly, which they will do. Defense is where they will seal this game. If they can stick to the swarming defense they have been playing recently, they can overwhelm the trolls with waves of elf meat, halting the goblin progress, and hopefully getting enough daisy-eaters in to take a shot at the ball carrier.

The Trees' gameplan will be much easier to pull off, and I'm saying they will.

Crow's Pick: Da Gabooms 0 - 3 The Trees (RIGHT!)