Blood Bowl Season 3: Orc Team Guide

Hello Sports Fans! The Goonhammer Blood Bowl Brain Trust is back with another team guide. This time, it’s the mean, green, machines themselves: Orcs!

Da Red Fangz. Credit: Dan Boyd

Before we get into it, I need to eat a little humble pie. If you saw the byline on this article, you may have noticed my name, and thought, “Wait just a second. Isn’t that the guy who said, and I quote, ‘I am skeptical that there are enough compensatory skill buffs in the game to make up for [the Season 3 roster changes]’ about this very team?” Well, dear Sports Fan, you are right! I did publish those very words on this very website, and no, they do not taste good. I promise to not learn anything from this and I will continue to spit nothing but the hottest takes imaginable.

Anyways, Orcs! They’re big, mean, strong, and are easily the bashiest team in the biz these days. In this article we’ll touch on what the players do, how to build a team, and some general tips when playing them. ‘Ere we go!

Why Play Orcs?

Simply put: Orcs are one of the best, if not the best, blocking teams in Blood Bowl. While they don’t start with as many skills as a Dwarf team, they more than make up for it with sheer strength. This team starts with 3 Mighty Blow players, and only one of them is a Big Guy. So if rolling block dice is what you love, no other team will reward you as much for doing so than Orcs.

Pros

“Orcs iz made fer bashin’!” With the aforementioned 3 Mighty Blow players on the roster, Orcs can put out a frightening number of quality blocks every turn. Nothing beats breaking armor after a Pow! Result on the block dice, and no other team can provide you with that thrill as much as an Orc team can.

“Iz dat all you got?” With widespread AV10+, Orcs are one of the toughest teams in the league, and it doesn’t matter which league. They love to wade into the scrum and let Nuffle sort ‘em out, so if you like a heaving mass of brutal bloodsport, then look no further!

“Give it to da little ‘un!” With the ability to take both Goblins and Trolls, Orcs don’t have to rely on knuckle dusters alone to win a game. A sneaky Throw Teammate touchdown is ever on the menu, though you might need a new goblin after each game!

Cons

Sorry, I couldn’t get any Orc quotes for this part, as the players refused to admit they have any drawbacks whatsoever.

Slow: Most of the Orc team comes equipped with MA5, meaning that just about every other team will outpace them. Orc players need to be judicious with positioning, because they lack the movement to quickly adapt.

Expensive Progression: The team really wants Elite skills when they level, and they’re going to cost you. Combine that with overall good armor means that you will rarely be forced to play without your optimal lineup, and that means plenty of Inducement cash for your opponent. Get used to seeing those Star Players, Orc coaches, but just not on your team!
One-Dimensional Playstyle: While Orcs do start with ball-handling skills, they don’t come with any ball-receiving skills, so most of your drives will look like this: thrower picks up ball, cage forms around him, grind down the middle of the field for a TD in the maximum amount of time. There is one team, Nurgle, against whom you’re going to have to start improvising, but otherwise the game plan is pretty much the same every game.

The Players

Orc Thrower and Blitzer. Credit: Dan Boyd

Before I dive into who the players are and what they do, let’s talk about Season 3 changes. This team saw a huge roster shakeup this season. Orcs lost 2 Blitzers and 2 Big ‘Uns, picked up a bunch of new skills on each, and had their Throwers hit the track and pick up a point of movement. What this means in the aggregate is that the roleplayers got a lot more dangerous, but the team is overall slower and less-skilled. They’re officially a Tier 2 team, but a lot of coaches and TOs have them in Tier 1. I’m not sure exactly where they belong, but I’m willing to say they’re on the cusp of Tier 1.

Each entry has a bolded portion at the top, and here’s how to decipher it:

1st part is the name of the player. Example: Orc Lineman. In brackets, the first value is price. Example: 50k = 50,000 gp.
Then, we have skill access with primary/secondary. Example: GS/AD means General and Strength skills for primary and Agility and Devious skills for secondary.
Skills are abbreviated: A = Agility, D = Devious, G = General, M = Mutation, P = Passing, S = Strength
Next is the number you can take on your team. Example: 0-16 means you can take between 0 and 16 of this type of player.
Finally, we have the faction and position of the player. Example: Orc linemen have the faction keyword Orc, and the position keyword Lineman.

Orc Lineman [50k, GS/AD, 0-16, Orc, Lineman]: The mainstay of your team, the Orc linemen is quietly one of the best players in Blood Bowl. They’re both cheap and tough (AV10+), which is rarer than a bearded elf. Combine that with excellent skill availability and AG3+, and you’ve got quite the player. Their only drawback is their pokey MA5. One thing to remember: at 50k, Orc linemen make great foulers when valuable players are down on the pitch.

Goblin Lineman [40k, AD/GPS, 0-4, Goblin, Lineman]: While definitely not a team mainstay, Goblins can be an important roleplayer on an Orc team. With Stunty and Dodge, they can make critical scoring runs late in a drive if the defense is well set-up. Ending a drive with a cheeky hand-off to a Goblin who’s only a dodge or two away from the end zone is a well-established strategy. Also, Goblins have the Right Stuff to be thrown by a Troll, allowing your team to attempt a 1-turn TD as long as the goblin’s still on the pitch. Finally, Goblins are cheap, reasonably fast, and have access to Devious skills, making them perfect for fouling. Just about every Orc team wants at least one Goblin.

Orc Thrower [75k, GP/ADS, 0-2, Orc, Thrower]: Now with MA6! Orc throwers are critical for handling the ball, and now that there are 2 fewer blitzers on every Orc team, they’re perfect for back-up tacklers. You’re going to want 2 on your roster to take advantage of their speed and utility.

Orc Blitzer [85k, GS/AD, 0-2, Orc, Blitzer]: The Blitzer combines an excellent statline with surprising mobility, now that they come with Break Tackle. Blitzers are absolutely integral to any Orc team, and taking 2 of them is pretty much mandatory.

Big Un Blocker [95k, GS/AD, 0-2, Orc, Blocker]: Last season these guys had no skills and were notorious for never levelling up, but now, they’re an absolute force of nature! Most importantly, each Big Un starts with Mighty Blow. That and ST4 make them a removal machine. Then we’ve got a new skill in Taunt, which forces the opponent to follow up with Blocks against them if you so choose. Having agency over your opponent’s decisions is always a good thing. Then, let’s throw in a little Thick Skull to keep them out of the KO box. Finally, we’ll tone them down with the new nega-train Unsteady, meaning that they can’t Secure the Ball. But that’s whatever, these big lads want to fight! Big Uns are stars right out of the box, and you’re gonna want 2.

Troll [115k, S/AGP, 0-1, Troll, Big Guy]: Big, stupid, strong, and always hungry. Now that the Orc roster has been trimmed of its various extra positionals, you’re going to see a lot more rostered Trolls in Season 3. Trolls are unreliable, but they serve two important purposes. First, they are ST5 and have Mighty Blow, allowing them to swing for that all-important removal. Second, they have Throw Team-mate meaning that they can shoot for the (admittedly low-percentage) 1-turn TD. The TTM 1-turn TD is always a dagger when it pops off on T8 or T16, and most Orc players will not want to miss out. These 2 points more than make up for their inherent unreliability, I think. So yeah, roster a Troll! Just don’t blitz with them!

Last thing to mention: Orcs were given the Team Captain rule in what I can only assume is a “sorry about your painted Orc team” move from GW. Team Captain gives one player on your team Pro and gives your rerolls a 6+ save while your captain is on the pitch. At team creation you’ll have to decide who is going to be your captain, but the obvious picks are one of your Blitzers or one of your Big Uns. You can’t really go wrong with either one, but I like it most on the Big Uns as they don’t come with Block and will be rolling more block dice through the course of the game.

Starting League Rosters

Goblin Lineman and Troll. Credit: Dan Boyd

If you’re going to take a troll and a goblin, and I would, I have two rosters for you. Here’s the first one:

Troll
2 Throwers
2 Blitzers
2 Big Uns (1 is Team Captain)
1 Goblin
3 Linemen
3 Rerolls
+1 Dedicated Fans
Total: 1000k

This roster gives you the whole package. 2 Throwers allow you to cover the whole field when receiving the kickoff. You’ve maxed out your Blitzers and Big Uns, and the Troll and Goblin combo allows you to sneakily tie it up or go ahead in 1-turn situations. Or the goblin can be thrown into a cage! It’s all on the table. I also like having 2 Throwers here as they’re going to be important secondary blitzers and need to start gaining SPP ASAP to fill that role.

Next, you can forego a second thrower to have a little more flexibility with your gold:

Troll
1 Thrower
2 Blitzers
2 Big Uns (1 is Team Captain)
1 Goblin
4 Linemen
3 Rerolls
+2 Dedicated Fans
Total: 980k

I dunno, maybe you don’t have that 2nd thrower painted. It’s cool. This list gives you a ton of flexibility with your gold, as you’ll probably make 40k-60k your first game (assuming you don’t stall) on top of the 15k you have in the bank. Which would allow you to get your 2nd Thrower or an Apothecary or whatever. I like the first roster more, but this is definitely an option.

But let’s say you only have the base Orc team box and want to get them out on the pitch. Not a problem! You’ll end up taking everything and having a ton of cash left over for sideline staff. Check it out:

2 Throwers
2 Blitzers
2 Big Uns (1 is Team Captain)
6 Linemen
3 Rerolls
+2 Dedicated Fans
Total: 1000k

It’s a lot of linemen, but Orc linemen are great! This “vanilla” roster will still be extremely strong, and could be perfect for a new Blood Bowl player.

League Progression

Varag Ghoulchewer. Credit: Dan Boyd

First thing to note: Orcs are a Brawlin’ Brutes team, so they’re getting 3 SPPs for each casualty, and only 2 for TDs. Any progression decisions have to be made with that in mind. Also, as you’ll see, I’m going to be suggesting you take A LOT of elite skills. This team is going to get surprisingly expensive, surprisingly quick. With that in mind, regardless of your starting roster, you probably want to stop recruiting players at 12, or 13 if you have a goblin. Trust me on this, as otherwise you’ll be handing opponents a bevy of inducements that they’ll use to ruin your day.

Orc Lineman: With Brawlin’ Brutes, every lineman who lucks into a casualty will earn the chance at a random primary skill. This is really good! Both Primary options, General and Strength have a lot of great choices. You may want to hold off, though, and wait for that sweet 6 SPP so you can choose Guard. Otherwise, prioritizing Tackle, Wrestle, Strip Ball, or Brawler will give you a useful player who doesn’t break the bank.

Goblin Lineman: Dirty Player is going to be your #1, here. Ideally, your gobbo is fouling every turn, unless he’s being thrown down the field, so augmenting that is key. After that I think it’s even between Sneaky Git and Quick Foul, and I lean towards Quick Foul. If you’re concerned about the variance in the TTM 1-turn TD, then Catch is a good one to help the poor sap get the ball before take-off.

Orc Thrower: With their heightened speed, the Thrower needs to take on a dual roll. They’ve got to be both ball carriers and blitzers, so Block should be a priority, here. Conversely, choosing Wrestle instead could be a good choice, but I hate having Wrestle on someone who has to carry the ball for more than 1 or 2 turns. After that, any of the utility ballhawk skills like Strip Ball or Tackle are great. Also, if you want to save money and TV on rerolls, Leader is a good option after Block to up that reroll count for a discount.

Orc Blitzer: What do you give a Brawlin’ Brute who already has Block? Easy: Mighty Blow. Not only will Mighty Blow help your team in the attrition metagame, but it will ensure that the Blitzer has continual access to SPPs throughout your league. After Mighty Blow, you’re going to want to add ballhawk skills like Tackle and Strip Ball to up their impact. Also, the Orc Blitzer mainstay of Frenzy is always a good choice.

Big Un Blocker: It’s Block. It was always gonna be Block. They’ve already got Mighty Blow, and with Block they’re a real menace. After that, Break Tackle is nice for maneuverability, Grab is nice for positioning, and Frenzy is nice because more dice = more better. If you’re a sicko you could shoot for Fend to have total control of what happens to the opponent’s player if they ever end up blocking that Big Un. It’s silly, but who knows? It might be great!
Troll: Two ways to go here: blocking support or throw teammate support. If you want help on the line, Guard is going to be your best friend. If you want to huck gobbos around, then Bullseye or Strong Arm is what you’re looking for. For me, I’d probably start with Guard and then move to the TTM support skills. The old saying is “In Guard we trust” for a reason.

Tournament Rosters

Tournaments, as we’ve covered before, often have variable roster-building rules. So, I’m going to be general in my advice here, and then I’ll provide an example roster to help get you started.

For roster construction, regardless of how much gp you have access to, you’re going to want to stick to the same blueprint: 2 Throwers, 2 Blitzers, and 2 Big Uns. Those are the absolute necessities. I’d add a Troll and a Goblin for the 1-turn TD threat, but not everyone has those, and a “no-big–or-little-guys” Orc team will still do fine. You’re going to want 3 rerolls, as most of your rolls will be 3+’s, and then you fill the rest with Linemen. Easy peasy!

Orcs are going to be either Tier 1 or Tier 2, depending on the tournament, so they’re not going to get an overabundance of skill points to spend. You’re going to have to be judicious in your choices, and Star Players are probably out-of-reach. The most important thing is getting your Big Uns Block. After that, I’d prioritize adding Block to your Throwers., as they’re your secondary Blitzers. Then, you can add some utility skills to your Blitzers. I like giving one Tackle or Strip Ball and giving the other on Mighty Blow. If you’ve got a shot at a low-AV Dodger or at the ball, the first Blitzer gets the Blitz, and if not, then it’s time to Blitz away with the Mighty Blow guy to keep that attrition train a-rollin’. Finally, if you have any skill points left over, give the Goblin Dirty Player and/or the Troll Guard. Let’s see an example:

At the Welsh National Championship in January of next year we would have 1150k gp to spend on a team and 7 skill points to distribute. So let’s see what we can do!

Troll
Goblin w/ Dirty Player
2 Orc Throwers w/ Block
Orc Blitzer w/ Mighty Blow
Orc Blitzer w/ Tackle
2 Big Un Blockers w/ Block
4 Or Linemen
3 Rerolls
1 Bribe
Total: 1145

So this roster is definitely aimed for causing as much damage as possible, maybe even trying for most casualties! But my positionals are also solid enough that if I were a good enough player (if only…) I could compete for the championship. It’s got everything you need, and would probably be a blast to pilot.

General Tactics

Orc Lineman and Big Un Blocker. Credit: Dan Boyd

The first thing to consider with Orcs is that you want to get the most Blocks possible every turn. This means aggressive positioning, blocking diagonally first when you have an assist, and trying to turn the game into a punch-up. With the preponderance of Mighty Blow, the Orc team is poised to win that type of game.

Second, Orcs are slow. On defence, you’ve got to shade towards the middle of the field against faster teams, and resist the urge to over-commit to one side of the field. Otherwise, your opponent will cut back towards the middle and you’ll be out of position. On offence, you want to spend as much time as possible pummeling the opposing team on your drive before scoring at the last permissible moment.

Finally, there’s one skill that can really slow down an Orc team’s roll, and that’s Stand Firm. However, there’s a pretty simple answer to this problem: mark the Stand Firm player with a Lineman or Troll, and then ignore them. Stand Firm players generally have bad AG, and your Linemen can take a beating, so don’t sweat it.

Final Thoughts

Orcs are one of the most violent, exciting, and rewarding teams to play in Blood Bowl and have all the tools to dominate the pitch in every match. As one of the original factions to take part in Nuffle’s Amorical Football, Orcs have perfected the game of hitting hard and hitting fast. In Season 3, they’ve become the premier violence team, and will generally have 4+ Mighty Blow players every outing. We’d love to hear about your orcish escapades out there, so find us on discord or in the email if you want to share pics, game results, ask questions, or whatever. Thanks for reading, Sports Fans! ERE WE GO! ERE WE GO! ERE WE GO!

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