Blood Bowl Season 3 - The Goonhammer Roundtable

It’s new edition pre-order day for Blood Bowl, and we’ve got the Goonhammer Blood Bowl boffins in to talk about what they’re expecting in season 3!

What’s one thing you're excited for in Season 3?

HardyRoach: Even if I don’t agree with most of the specific decisions that went into the team roster changes, I’m still extremely excited to get stuck into the game and see how those changed teams feel like to play, and to play against. Any major shift in meta is interesting. I’m also excited to potentially see more new teams that aren’t revamps of older teams! Obviously they’ve still got High Elves to revamp, but after that, what? Maybe they’ll do Slann, but I’m not holding my breath, so most likely it’ll be something brand new. Fun!

King_Ghidra: Probably the same for me. It might be like a car crash that you can’t look away from for some teams, but there are such a huge pile of changes, there’s going to be many months of experimentation and discovery ahead. Also I think a number of teams have had some flavour injected or re-injected into their rosters, that might not make them better, but does create a connection between their mechanics and the team’s theme and lore. That’s a good thing that I think will resonate with coaches.

Dan “dittka” Boyd: This big meta shake-up is going to be a lot of fun to navigate. With the exception of Amazons, all the teams at the top have seen some kind of change. I’m also really excited to get hobbying! I had already built a human team and I’ve decided to take a slight detour into OWA with them, and I’m looking forward to that project. I also have a partially painted Dark Elf team that I’m keen to finish, now, too. And finally, I’m excited for more people to be excited for Blood Bowl! I’m planning on running a small league early next year, and I’m 100% going to re-join my local league.

The Hexalotl Jaguars. Credit: Fowler

What’s one thing you’re NOT excited for?

HardyRoach: When a new edition of any established game rolls round there’s an early period of excitement, as people try out new things; but also frustration, as people struggle to engage with the ways that the game and the meta have shifted. I’m not terribly excited for the latter, it took ages for people to adapt to the 2020 changes.

As long as the core game is still fun and engaging I’m personally happy to make my peace with things I can’t change, and adapt. Some people opt for continuing to play but complaining a lot the whole time, and that’s fair enough, I suppose, but it gets tiresome.

Other than that, I’m not excited to see even more Prayers to Nuffle than I was seeing before!

King_Ghidra: Amazons.

Dan: Regarding Elven Union: to quote Vito Corleone, “Look how they massacred my boy.” My favorite and most-played team is, I fear, totally dead on arrival. I don’t see either mode of play being any kind of fun with them. To be candid, it took me a couple of days to dig deep and find enthusiasm for this edition and this writing project after reviewing the new roster. It was a heavy blow! Thankfully, there’s plenty of teams and projects that are going to be fun, but it was certainly a bitter pill to swallow. Maybe I’m wrong and they’ll be fine, but I doubt it. Pour one out for my Baja Blasters, Sports Fans. Maybe you’ll see them next edition.

HardyRoach: That somewhat brings up a thought I often have with Blood Bowl, which is that the cost/risk ratio of picking up a new team is so low that if a team sinks in the meta you can fairly easily pivot to a different, similar team if you want to stay competitive. It’s not like 40k where that process could cost you hundreds. Having said that, obviously it does sting if your favourite team gets some really silly changes that arbitrarily tank it (sorry Dittka).

Imperial Nobility vs Wood Elves, by King_Ghidra

What team are you trying first in league play? In a tournament?

HardyRoach: Old World Alliance or Imperial Nobility for league play - I think they’re strong teams now, with lots of potentially interesting builds and directions for advancement. For tourney play, maybe Dwarfs honestly. I’m rather eager to have a go at a Deathroller + Bribe 1150tv roster I worked out, see how far I can get with a ‘roller with Sneaky Git or somesuch.

I’m rather eager to try Chaos Chosen, either in league or tourney play, but I’m focusing on teams that I already have for the moment.

King_Ghidra: Tomb Kings look very cost effective now, and Brawler is a nice boost for tourney builds, so I’ll definitely be giving them a spin to see how they feel in competition.against some of the other top teams. Hit and Run Dark and Wood Elves will definitely be getting some reps too.

In League I’m definitely going to be trying one of the Brawlin’ Brutes teams at some point; Khorne seem well placed to take advantage of a number of the new rules.

Dan: For league? Orcs. I am extremely curious if the addition of Mighty Blow on Big ‘Uns and the new Brawlin’ Brutes rule will make up for them losing half of their positionals. For all the teams that lost positionals, Orcs have definitely made out the best, but we’ll see if it’s enough.

For tournaments? Chaos Chosen first, as I think there is a LOT under the hood there. We haven’t seen the new Star Player rules at time of writing, so we’ll see what that brings us, but I have a sneaking suspicion that Chosen teams are going to start clawing (hehehe) their way up the leaderboard. Also, again, Orcs! I think there is a possible 5 Mighty Blow plus 1 Dirty Player build out there that might be able to bash and foul their way into the winner’s circle.

Lizardmen Bloodbowl team. Credit - Soggy

How’s the meta going to shake up?

HardyRoach: I think Agility teams are going to be eating pretty well, all in all (except Elven Union, sorry again Dittka). Casualty tables are less savage on them, and a lot of the teams that were tough counters to Agi teams have had their capabilities nerfed to varying extents. In league play I can also see the Brawlin’ Brute teams getting quite a boost, they might be able to keep up better in terms of skill progression to the higher scoring teams.

Also, some of the new Devious skills are quite good indeed, so I’m curious to see if fouling becomes more prominent (though I wouldn’t call this a prediction).

King_Ghidra: I very much agree with Roach, though Amazons will be on top of everything in tourney play. In League they could well be checked by the ease of developing Mighty Blow/Tackle stacks on various teams. I think the meta is going to be quite complex for a long time with so many teams feeling their way into new builds. We saw after BB20 that there were some surprising names high in the win rates as coaches and tournament organisers fought their way towards consensus opinions on what was too strong or needed help.

Dan: I am excited to see Old World Alliance rocket up the leaderboard. While I don’t rate them in my top 3, they’re going to be very good. A true hybrid team with excellent bashing and just a dash of dashing. I’m also very curious to see where Imperial Nobility end up. They’ve improved quite a bit, and I think their roster has the juice for what will be a very good team.

And while they might live in the bottom of the pile as far as tournaments go, I think Ogres are going to be quite a good and fun team to play in league! Getting the Brawlin’ Brutes special rule means that Ogres will actually start levelling now and could be come a force on the pitch.

Blood Bowl Vampires by King_Ghidra

Who are your top 3 performers in tournament play?

HardyRoach: Number 1: Amazons. They’re basically the same roster as they were before (i.e. a very good roster), but with the added benefit of having a very hard counter effectively removed as a threat (Dwarfs).

Number 2: Wood Elves. Some really nasty potential skill combos for them, and despite losing two catchers they’ve come out of the one-box shuffle very well indeed, and are going to be able to stay on the pitch better thanks to the casualty changes.

Number 3: My heart wants to say Old World Alliance, because the roster looks sweet, but honestly the safer bet is Vampires. They got a minor contextual nerf (that’s a buff in some other contexts), but they’re still extremely well-suited to tournament play.

King_Ghidra:

Amazons - Tournament organisers are going to need to look at an Amazon tier for tourneys, because with Vamps and Union getting knocked down nothing else looks close.
Necro - Thanks to costing changes, a 12-thing Necro roster with 3rr’s and all the positionals is now 1150 on the nose. Necro have traditionally needed some help through skills or cash to build well, but the cash side is no longer an issue. Any tourney pack that gives them enough skills will see Necro in a very strong position.
Dark Elves/Wood Elves - I’m still slightly hesitant on Dark Elves, as I’m not totally convinced their resilience is going to be as good as it was. But Hit and Run stabbing is going to be highly effective against many teams (including ‘zons). Wood Elves’ price changes make their builds much more flexible, and their one-turning got a big boost thanks to the return of Sprint on Catchers. One of these two is going to be top 3.

Dan:

Surprising no one, Amazons take my top spot. Looks like the Goonhammer crew has reached a consensus!
Vampires take the #2 spot for me as they have the highest skill ceiling of any team in Blood Bowl, and the truly good vamp coaches are going to continue to mess people up with them. Hypnotic Gaze taking a hit does hurt them a little, but it also allows for what would have been riskier hypno gazes in the previous edition to be successful on a 3+. Is it a nerf? Probably, but not as much as people think.
Necromantic Horror take my #3 spot because they just got flat upgrades across the board! Did they need them? I’d say no, but here we are.

Who are your bottom 3?

HardyRoach: Number 3: Nurgle. I don’t know if they’ll be literally bottom of the table or not, but they were already in the bottom 6 over the last few years of competitive play, and they’re generally worse off now.

Number 2: Black Orcs. A tried and true bad team, been in the bottom three since they arrived, and I don’t think that’s going to change.

Number 1: Probably just Ogres again. They’re going to perform better in league play thanks to Brawlin’ Brutes, but they weren’t suited to tourney play before and nothing in their roster has otherwise changed.

King_Ghidra: Goblins, Ogres, Black Orcs. I don’t see anything to change the bottom-dwellers much.

Dan: The usual suspects are all going to stay where they are at the bottom, but I think Humans and Elven Union are going to free-fall through the leaderboard here and end up with dismal winrates.

The Grimcinnati Benghouls. Credit: Fowler

Let’s talk new and updated skills! What something that coaches need to know?

King_Ghidra: Break Tackle got a major boost for strong guys, so get ready to have those big bodies flying through your lines and into your cages. Hit and Run is an amazing skill that is going to find a new home on lots of the game’s best players. Between those two, mobility on the field is going to be at an all time high.

HardyRoach: The new cadre of Devious skills are going to make quite a difference to how people develop players, especially Stunty players. Anyone with rostered secret weapons or damaging actions is going to get a lot of mileage out of things like Violent Innovator in league play (you get SPP for Special Action casualties) and Lone Fouler (re-roll for unassisted fouls). Also, with random skills getting more viable and Brawlin’ Brutes making SPP gain better for a fair few bashy teams, expect more and better skills in early league games.

Agreed completely with Ghidra that Hit & Run is going to be seen a lot on Blitzer-type players. I think we’ll also see a fair amount of the revamped Monstrous Mouth on Mutation access teams (which currently includes, uh, Imperial Nobles, Humans, and Old World Alliance, thanks to a possible copy-paste error on the Ogres).

Otherwise not too much has changed. There’s a fair few small skill tweaks but the vast majority of skills are as you remember them, the main change is which players can take what skills. A good time to consider new optimal builds for your favourite positionals!

Dan: The devious skill tree is extremely strong. So much so that a player like a goblin Loony has something like 5 or 6 great skills to choose from at their first skill-up. It’ll be fun to navigate that during league play. Other than that, I think you’re gonna see a lot of Hit & Run Wardancers out there, Sports Fans! It’ll be great for the Wood Elf sickos, but for the rest of us? Oof.

Grak & Crumbleberry, Blood Bowl Star Players by Crab-stuffed Mushrooms

What’s your overall enthusiasm like for Season 3?

HardyRoach: Very high! I’m eager to dive back into the game in earnest, as I’ve been on a slower roll with it over the last year or so. In particular, it’s been a while since I’ve done a tourney and I’m quite keen to get one booked in for early 2026 if I can. I have my issues with the new edition, but the core rules are great, so the main thing to adapt to is a shifting of the meta that’s driven by rather inconsistent and bizarre roster changes. That’s fine though, I’ve got enough teams on hand to continue playing good and bad teams, depending on my mood for that event/league.

King_Ghidra: Very excited for what will be a huge shake-up of the game. I’m a bit dubious about what was done to some of the rosters (and why), but the core rules are in really good shape and there are so many changes that will be interesting to see in practice. There are a bunch of skills that are very hard to evaluate in abstract, and I have no doubt that there are going to be new builds and combos that turn out to be real meta forces. League in particular I think is going to feel very different with so many changes that impact team development, such as Brawlin’ Brutes, Hatred, and Violent Innovator; and with the softening of the Casualty table.

Dan: I’m not gonna lie, I was initially pretty down on this edition when I saw the changes to my beautiful Baja Blasters, but I’ve perked back up quite a bit after reading the core rules, seeing the team changes and even getting my first Season 3 game in (more on that in a moment!). I’m very excited to finish my Dark Elves and get to work on OWA. I think it’s gonna be good! I imagine people will have just as much fun as they did in Season 2. Hopefully I can get away for a day here and there to get to some tournaments sometime soon.

The Blitzburgh Death-Dealers. Credit: Dan Boyd

Dan Played a Game of Season 3 the Other Night!

Dan: I did! My buddy Danny came over and we were able to play the new edition a little early. We decided on playing as if it was the 1st game of a league, so 1,000,000 gp for team creation and no added skills. I went with Orcs, as I’m curious to see how the changes have shaken out, and here’s the Roster:

1 Thrower
2 Blitzers
2 Big ‘Uns
5 Linemen
1 Troll
3 Rerolls

Total: 980

Danny brought over his Humans, as he, too, wanted to see what the new roster did, so here’s his roster:

1 Thrower
2 Blitzers
2 Catchers
5 Linemen
1 Ogre
4 Rerolls

Total: 985

We also each drafted 3 Dedicated Fans apiece, and while I could have induced 1 Temp Agency Cheerleader, I forgot. It’s also important to remember that each of these teams has the Team Captain rule, so we had to select our captains at roster creation. I went with one of my Big ‘Uns. He gets Pro and when he’s on the field, my rerolls regenerate when I use them on a 6+. Danny picked one of his Blitzers. Danny won the toss, I kicked to him, and the game was on!

Right off the bat, Danny’s Ogre caused a Casualty to my Troll, but the Troll regenerated! Whew! Danny’s team was able to score in 4 turns on his first drive, and a couple of things became apparent: Break Tackle is an extremely good skill to have for free on Orc Blitzers. It allowed them elf-like mobility and they were functionally never pinned down. Having 3 Mighty Blow players on the field in league game 1 is also going to be a pretty big deal, especially with Brawlin’ Brutes. Also, the Team Captain rule for rerolls kicked in a surprising amount. In the first half, Danny saved 3 of his rerolls, giving him access to them for the entire half. After the Humans scored, the kick-off event was a Time Out, and seeing as how it was only the Orcs turn 5, we lost a turn. So my 4 turns to score quickly became 3 turns. Not great! Danny was able to adequately corral my pokey orcs and the half ended at 1-0, Humans. At this point, Danny only had a couple of players in the KO box, but, don’t worry, that was quickly about to change.

2nd Half starts, I get the ball (after a Charge! Result on the kickoff table, of course), and suddenly, it’s clobberin’ time! I put all 3 Mighty Blow guys on the line, and they start doing what they do best. My Blitzer gets a bead on the non-Captain Human Blitzer, knocks him down, and sends him straight to the Casualty box with a Serious Injury, meaning he would have to miss the next game! My plan was to score quickly while doing maximum damage and then steal the ball and score again before the game was over. Unfortunately, the kickoff scattered directly to one of my linemen. And due to the fact that there is no longer a -1 on the catch roll to catch a kickoff, the lineman adroitly caught it. He eventually coughed it up, but in the moment, it was not ideal! I set up my cage and got rumbling. In the course of my scoring drive, I was able to reduce his team to 5 players, but his Pro Blitzer was extremely annoying and managed to sneak in to knock the ball out, making me waste a turn picking it up. I end up scoring on my turn 5.

I kick off, and the kick is deep, 1 square away from the end zone. Not great! Danny corrals it, and starts moving it forward. He’s down 4 or 5 players at this point, and counting, so I’m able to get it away from him with 2 turns to score. However, only having 2 Blitzers makes it pretty easy to game plan against a “quick” orc scoring drive, and I’m unable to get the ball in for the go-ahead score. The game ends at 1-1, even though the Human bench looks like a field hospital!

Orc takeaways: Going down 2 blitzers makes the team a whole lot slower, and orcs were already slow! Break Tackle is nice, but not having more than 2 movement 6 threats can and will hurt in the late game. The Big’Un changes, I think, do indeed make up for losing 2 of them. These are some hosses. Big boys with bad attitudes! However, the team changes basically necessitate a Troll at roster creation, and Trolls are notoriously unreliable, especially on an Orc team where you can’t always dodge goblins around to help out with the Really Stupid rolls. Overall, I think the team is better at doing damage, but slower and more easily-countered. To me, that’s enough to call it a down-grade. But I want to stress that I don’t think the team is bad, and I’m still excited to get on them on the pitch in both modes of play.

Human takeaways: Strength 3 catchers didn’t really come in to play at all this game. They never had the ball or were on the bench, nursing a concussion. The Human Blittzer getting Tackle also didn’t come into play because I had no players with Dodge. In the 2nd half, I was able to get a casualty on his non-captain Blitzer, and that really hurt the Humans’ chances in winning the game. Losing out on 2 of those rather excellent positionals sets this team back a significant amount. I’d hate to have to go into league game 2 with only 1 Human Blitzer on my team. I know GW wanted to make all the teams 1-box compatible, but this team is going to suffer because of it. I’m hoping the Human coaches out there are resilient and lucky, because this edition is not going to be kind to you.

All in all it was a fun game with a good friend, and a tie in Blood Bowl is never a bad time. I’m looking forward to getting many more games in over the coming months as we all feel our way around this edition.

Thanks for reading, everyone! Reach out with any questions! Happy blocking!

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Tags: Blood Bowl | blood bowl season 3