Doubledrool plays for Chaos Renegades in PowTown18!

[Thespian]

Just finished playing in our latest tournament in Calgary, Alberta, Canada this past weekend. Powtown was attended by 34 eager coaches from across Western Canada this year, with the eventual champ stomping on us all with his 4 Gutter Runner, Skitter, and Hakphlem Scuttlespike build. I ended up placing 10th out of 34 with Chaos Renegades. Renegades might be a terrific team in league, but their lack of starting skills makes them a woefully poor choice in most tournaments. My goal going in was to finish 0.500 or above and I accomplished that with 3 wins, 2 draws, and a loss and I think that Withgrasp Doubledrool was a huge part of that success. Considering that he is such a new option for coaches, I thought I would write down my/his story here.

When I got word that the organizer was going to adopt any of the new hotness that debuted in the inaugural Spike Journal, I immediately mined it for possibilities. The build was 1.2 mil where your star could be your 11th man and there could be no skill stacking. I decided on Chaos Renegades, who got 170K in a skill package so that I could try out Withergrasp Doubledrool and the newest iteration of Lewdgrip Whiparm, now with dodge!

Sidegate Snarl, the build -
Troll with Block
Ogre with Block
Minotaur with Claw
2x Renegades with Guard
Renegade with Leader
Dark Elf Renegade with Dodge
Skaven Renegade
Orc Renegade
2RR
1FF
+Lewdgrip Whiparm
+Withergrasp Doubledrool

So, if you aren't familiar with Withergrasp, let me fill you in. He is, in my humble opinion, the best defensive star available. With tentacles, a tail, two heads, wrestle, and tackle, he can shut down most dodgy threats pretty effectively. Especially if they are only strength 2. You might think that tentacles on a ST3 piece is pretty useless, but I beg to differ. If you are trying to leave his square and have equal strength, there is a 10/36 chance of being successful. Combine that with the tackle/tail that they have to roll afterwards, and he was able to trip up quite a few opponents along the way. Best part though was that he had people worried more than any player on my team, and that made them play differently to accommodate. They would always be aware of where he was and where he could get to. I personally feel that if you opponent is worried about a piece and makes less optimal choices because if it, you likely have the advantage already without even rolling a die.

Game One - Wood Elves featuring Eldril Sidewinder. Lost 0-4. I would love to play this game over again. All that preamble about defensive play is a bit of drone on in light of the result. Let me say this. I was NOT prepared for Eldril's hypnotic gaze. The Wood Elves could have been much better contained if it were not for Withergrasp losing his threatening presence so often. He was a thorn in my side all game and my opponent rightfully targeted Doubledrool whenever he could.

Game Two - Goblins featuring Ripper and a Hail Mary Bombadier. Won 1-0. The threat of a bomber was real, especially for my cage-loving team. Eventually, my claw-wielding Minotaur evened the odds a bit and Withergrasp Doubledrool did his best to contain the shifty little gobos.

Game Three - Slann with no stars, but 4 blitzers. Tied 2-2. The leaping shenanigans came to a sudden and repeated stop due to my tentacles. I may have been close to 50% successful in this game and it kept me up for a lot of game. I scored to go up 2-1 in my turn 15, thinking I had the game. The Slann set up a sideline cage like only they can, and I lost the game because Lewdgrip stupidly through a last-minute block against an irrelevant catcher and pulled up a "both down" result. This left a blitzer unmarked and he freed up the ballcarrier that Withergrasp Doubledrool had pinned down which led to the tie. Sad.

Game Four - Khorne with Grashnak. Win 2-1. Frankly, I out-bashed the Korne team from start to finish with Grashnak throwing so many "both downs" that it made it impossible for my opponent to mount much of a defense. I think that, by the end, I had caused five casualties. Yeah, rough day for my buddy.

Game Five - Dark Elves with ELDRIL. Tied 2-2. This time, I focused on putting Eldril on his butt as often as I could with Withergrasp Doubledrool. Fouled him. Even still, he remained on the field and scored the tying touchdown by escaping Withergrasp Doubledrool's Tentacles, then dodging on a 4+ and a subsequent 3+ after catching a short pass. Makes me want to design and sell "Death to Eldril" T-shirts.

Game Six - Dark Elves, no stars. Won 1-0. I frustrated the Delfs with lots of bashy play and more sideline surfs than I can count. Withergrasp Doubledrool was instrumental in locking down his blodgy Witchelf duo and turning the ball over.

So, in the end, Withergrasp Doubledrool was my definite MVP this weekend. In fact, if it wasn't for Eldril, I might have finished much higher than I did. Does he make the Chaos team's more competitive? Absolutely. Expect to see him played WAY more often in tournaments, giving those teams that can take him a much better rate of representation. Having his tentacles, especially with Whiparm ALSO marking players, allows the Chaos cages that much more protection.

And if you find yourself in and around Calgary this time next year, Lair Ashmead (innerdemon on the boards here) runs an amazing event full of positivity and comradeship. Swag galore, amazing trophies, door prizes, and a Saturday night social to beat all.