120k Euc Bowl - What Roster To Take?

[ClayInfinity]

Am attending Eucalyptus Bowl in Australia in July all the way from Dubai and I am keen to use a team that I have never used in a NAF Tournament before.

Am keen to be competitive but I dont think I would win but after playing Underworld there last year, I want to be able to mix it up.

The Tourney Rules are: 1,200,000 Teams, Can purchase any Normal Skill within that 1.2M, one skill per player.

My team options (based on my painted teams that I have not used under NAF) are as follows:

1. Pro Elves - Played them in a league extensively about 6yrs ago and play them in fumbbl, I am a capable Pro Elf player and enjoy them over all of the other Elves (sadist?) and I have this unwavering belief that AV7 is not as bad as people think... again, call me nuts.

2. Chaos Pact - Team is actually only half painted and would need me to get the brushes moving, but the tourney is in July so I have time. I love the Pact roster for what it is and I would only consider Pact with all 3 Big Guys and Renegades. Unfortunately I think the roster needs a little more cash to be effective, but what is truly effective for Chaos Pact?

3. Dark Elves - Painted them up and they have sat on my shelf unplayed. I have never played DE's in a League and have only a few 'meh' experiences with them on fumbbl. They would perhaps give me the best roster at 1.2M but I am most inexperienced with them. I play elves to score fast and with a passing game but I know DE's are more of a run and gun / screen team and that is my weakest play style.

So, would be interested to hear peoples views and possible roster options.

Thanks,
Clay

[spubbbba]

Well with Dark elves you could get 4 blitzers, 2 witch, 1 runner, 4 linos and 2 rerolls for 1090. That allows 5 skills, so leader on the runner, block/wrestle on the witches and 2 skills to give to the blitzers, possibly dodge. But if you struggle with the team then it will be difficult, can you get some practice games in on tabletop, cyanide or Fumbbl?

You could make a good team of elfs and scoring with them is easy. But you’d need to have a way of stopping the other team scoring or stealing the ball from them. You could make sure to start with subs and/or an apoth, or blodge them up but neither method is guaranteed.

I’d say Pact would be a struggle since they don’t do that well with only individual skills. You can get a full team at least which is always fun.

[Hitonagashi]

Don't think Pact would be too bad.

A standard 1M roster is 3 big guys, all marauders, 2 RRs, 11 players.

Add a) A reserve so you don't have to field the goblin, and you are at 1050. That gives you 150k to play with:

Block on Mino + Ogre = 60k
Tentacles on Troll = 30k
Leader on lino = 20k
Dodge on Elf = 20k
Wrestle on Skaven = 20k.

I took something very similar to a recent tournament, and I enjoyed it. Alternately, go with an apo instead of the lino...I had a lino + apo (1100 TV), and I ended up using the apo in a worthwhile way (BG/DE/Skaven) every game.

It also depends on what you face. There's some horrific min-max that can go on with 1200 rosters - e.g.
CD - 6 CD/5 hobs, 3x CD with claw/mb/po, one claw/mb/po/frenzy.
Pact - 10 Marauders/1 elf - 1 marauder with claw/mb/po/block/tackle/frenzy, one with claw/mb/po/block, elf with +st block/dodge/sure hands, marauder with leader, 5 marauders with Guard.

If you run the risk of facing one of those, 'fun' rosters get very un-fun very quickly, as you'll be de-pitched in a few turns. Silly ruleset to allow you open skill choices.

[DixonCider]

Pact. Take the big guys and go for CAS

[Smeborg]

120 is a slightly problematic TV, and does not suit all teams. Of the 3 teams you propose, I suspect Pact will do best, as they are relatively cheap, and could put out (say) a team with 13 players, 2 RR + Leader, and 6 other skills at this level. Even that is a bit short on skills. Bear in mind that at last year's EucBowl (TV115), the cheap teams (e.g. Orcs, Dwarfs), had 8 or more skills. So you will see teams at TV120 with 10 or more skills. I feel that expensive teams with few skills will not cut the mustard in this environment.

All the best.

[ceetee]

Well with Dark elves you could get 4 blitzers, 2 witch, 1 runner, 4 linos and 2 rerolls for 1090

I think that's 1080, so six skills available - 4 blodge blitzers and wrestle/block witches would be a competent roster.

[gumbi]

Take the pact mate - so long as you are happy with not winnng it... I think as always the bash teams will be stronger as the ability to skill up a blocker piece is much easier in the tournament than in a league.

Elves are tough as you really want > 1 skill on your star players.

Dark Elves are your strongest choice, they arent that bad to play as I have transitioned to them from pro elves in slobb. They are amazingly resilient with AV8 and all that blodge. I wouldnt take two witches as I think they are a bit expensive for the value they bring - but you can test that theory out. One with wrestle is a pretty good backfield safety.

[Hitonagashi]

Flip side, Dark Elves have quite a powerful roster:
4 Blitzers, 1 Runner, 6 Linemen.
2x Dodge Blitzers
1x Leader Lineman
2x +ST dodge Blitzers.

That would be quite a hard team to play against, with two ST 4 Blodge players to pivot around and blitz with.

[Darkson]

How are you getting ST4 Dodge Blitzers?

The Tourney Rules are: 1,200,000 Teams, Can purchase any Normal Skill within that 1.2M, one skill per player.

[Hitonagashi]

How are you getting ST4 Dodge Blitzers?

The Tourney Rules are: 1,200,000 Teams, Can purchase any Normal Skill within that 1.2M, one skill per player.

Via my amazing inability to read . The 1 skill per player pretty much wipes out most of the min-max builds too!

Dark Elves are very strong there then.

4x Blodge Blitzers
1x Wrestle Witch
1x Block Witch
5x rookie Linos.

Maybe swop a witch for a leader runner + kick lino, but 1 normal per player kinda screams for the mass blodging immortal darkies build.

[ClayInfinity]

How are you getting ST4 Dodge Blitzers?

The Tourney Rules are: 1,200,000 Teams, Can purchase any Normal Skill within that 1.2M, one skill per player.

Via my amazing inability to read . The 1 skill per player pretty much wipes out most of the min-max builds too!

Dark Elves are very strong there then.

4x Blodge Blitzers
1x Wrestle Witch
1x Block Witch
5x rookie Linos.

Maybe swop a witch for a leader runner + kick lino, but 1 normal per player kinda screams for the mass blodging immortal darkies build.

Thanks all for the advice... the build discussions seem to centre on the Darkies whilst the vote is with Pact...

I think at this stage, I will rule the Pro Elves out...

DE's / Pact? Tough choice...

The DE roster above (I prefer the Runner with leader instead of the block Witch) is a nice roster...

What of the Pact? What build options are out there?

[Hitonagashi]

Can I just give a pointer to my web app for this: http://www.calculateyour.tv/teams/chaos_pact

I made it just for situations like this . It doesn't handle skill packs as well, but if you want to experiment with builds, it's quite nice.

Try:

1 mino - Rookie
1 Ogre - Guard
1 Troll - Guard
1 DE - Dodge
1 Rat - Wrestle
1 Gobbo - Rookie
1 Marauder - Leader
5 Marauder - Rookie
2 RR's (and ofc Leader), 1 Apo.
1200 TV

You've got 12 men (well, 11.5, due to one being a goblin), and an apo. This makes you fairly damage resistant. The guard big guys will act as rocks in the center (you really don't want to be blocking with them), and also give your mino more 3db's to help counter Frenzy.

I like Dodge on the elf, though I admit, in the last tournament, I don't think I ended up using it at all. Wrestle on the rat was golden, for a fast moving sweeper. You could maybe swop Dodge on the elf for Juggernaut on the mino?

[mattgslater]

I wouldn't automatically rule out the Pro Elves.

Res tourney, right?

8x Lineman, 1x Catcher, 2x Blitzer = 800k, leaves you 400k. Everybody gets Dodge, and you still have more than enough for 3 RRs. AG4 Amazons!

Not sure that's what I'd actually do. I'd probably do something more like this, with DE.
5x Lino, 4x Blitzer, 1x Witch, 1x Runner, 2x TRR = 1040k
Leader Runner
4x Dodge Blitzer
Wrestle Witch
2x skilled lino

Could see dropping the silly Leader-caddy for an Assistant Coach or (in res format) Fan Factor* and a third skilled lino. That would leave you with 4 Blodgers, a Wrodge/Frenzy/JumpUp, 3 more Wrestlers, rookies for line duty only, and 10x AV8, or only 2 Wrestlers, only 9x AV8 (and a "rookie" Leader in the backfield), but 3x TRR and a little more speed.

* When FF = 0, FF = good investment. It's a bad buy for almost any progression format, but if all you get is what you paid for, a few points make a big swing, because FAME 2 vs FF0 is not that hard to get with just a little push, but FAME 2 vs FF 1-2 is much harder (in context).

[sumbloke]

@Hitonagashi: Your page is 50k out for CP - the bits you include by default add up to 950k but it states the TV as 1000k