BLOCKS
Instead of moving, a player may throw a block at an opposing player who is in an adjacent square. You may only make a block against a standing player – you may not block a player who has already been Knocked Down. A block is a very rough tackle, designed to really stop an opponent in his tracks! To see if a block works you will need to use a D6.
ASSISTING A BLOCK
After a block has been declared, the extra team players of the attacker and the defender give an ‘assist’. This allows two or more attackers to gang up on a single defender, or for one or more defenders to aid a companion against a block. Each of these extra players adds +1 to the Strength of the player that they are assisting. Assisting a block does not count as an Action, and a player can assist any number of blocks per turn. A player is allowed to make an assist even if he has moved or taken an Action.
The attacking coach must declare if any of his players will give an assist first, then the defending coach must add defensive assists with players from his team. In order to make an assist, the player:
- Must be adjacent to the enemy player involved in the block, and…
- Must not be in the tackle zone of any other player from the opposing team, and …
- Must be standing, and …
- Must have his tackle zones.
The result of the block only affects the two players directly involved. Any assisting players are not affected. Similarly, only the skills belonging to the two players directly involved in the block may be used on the result. Skills belonging to assisting players cannot be taken advantage of by either side.
STRENGTH
The number of dice that are rolled depends on the strengths of the two players involved. Obviously, if one player is stronger than the other they are more likely to knock down their opponent when they make a block. To represent this, the number of Block dice that are rolled varies depending on the relative strengths of the players. However, no matter how many dice are rolled, only one of them is ever used to decide the result of the block. The coach of the stronger player chooses which of the dice is used.
- If the players’ strengths are EQUAL, one dice is rolled.
- If one player is STRONGER, two dice are rolled and the stronger player may choose which one is used.
- If one player is MORE THAN TWICE AS STRONG, three dice are rolled and the stronger player may choose which is used.
Note that the coach of the player making the block always rolls the dice, but that the coach of the stronger player may choose which is used.
The Result
Roll the appropriate number of dice and look up the result on the table below. On the table, the player making the block is referred to as the attacker, while his target is the defender.
Table: Blocks
| D6 | Name of Effect | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Attacker Down | The attacking player is Knocked Down (see below). |
| 2 | Both Down | Both players are Knocked Down (see below), unless one or both of the players uses the Block skill. If one player uses the Block skill then they are not Knocked Down by this result, though their opponent will still go down. If both the players use the Block skill, then neither player is Knocked Down. |
| 3-4 | Pushed | The defending player is pushed back one square by the attacking player. The attacking player may follow-up the defender. |
| 5 | Defender Stum-bles | Unless the defender uses the Dodge skill, they are pushed back and then Knocked Down (see below). If they are using the Dodge skill then they are only pushed back. The attacking player may follow-up the defender. |
| 6 | Defender Down | The defending player is pushed back one square and then Knocked Down in the square they are moved to. The attacking player may follow-up the defender. |
- Push Backs: A player that is pushed back as a result of a block must be moved one square away from the player making the block, as shown in the diagrams. The coach of the player who made the block may decide which square the player is moved to. The player must be pushed back into an empty square if possible. A square containing only the ball is considered empty and a player pushed to it will cause the ball to bounce. If all such squares are occupied by other players, then the player is pushed into an occupied square, and the player that originally occupied the square is pushed back in turn. This secondary push back is treated exactly like a normal push back as if the second player had been blocked by the first (prone and stunned players may be pushed this way as well). The coach of the moving team decides all push back directions for secondary push backs unless the pushed player has a skill that overrides this. Players must be pushed off the pitch if there are no eligible empty squares on the pitch. A player pushed off the pitch, even if Knocked Down, is beaten up only by the crowd and receives one roll on the Injury Table (see below). The crowd does not have any injury modifying skills. Note that no Armor roll is made for a player that is pushed off the pitch, they are automatically injured. If a ‘Stunned’ result is rolled on the Injury table the player should be placed in the Reserves box of the Dugout, and must remain there until a touchdown is scored or the half ends. If the player who is holding the ball is pushed out of bounds, then he is beaten up by the fans, who are more than happy to throw the ball back into play! The throw-in is centered on the last square the player was in before he was pushed off the pitch.
- Knock Downs: A player that is Knocked Down should be placed on their side in the square, face up. The player may be injured. If the player who is Knocked Down comes from the moving team, then this caused a turnover and the moving team’s turn ends immediately!
- Follow Up Moves: A player who has made a block is allowed to make a special follow up move and occupy a square vacated by the player that they have pushed back. The player’s coach must decide whether to follow up before any other dice rolls are made. This move is free, and the player can ignore enemy tackle zones when he makes the move (i.e., he does not have to dodge to enter the square). Players that are blitzing are allowed to make follow up moves, and the move does not cost them any of their movement (as they paid a square in order to make the block, they have effectively already paid for the move).
KNOCK DOWNS AND INJURIES
Players that are Knocked Down or Placed Prone for any reason should be placed face up on the pitch in the square they were in when they fell over. While Prone, the player loses his tackle zones and may do nothing before standing up at a cost of three squares of his movement when he next takes an Action. Players may stand up in an opposing player’s tackle zone without having to make a Dodge roll (they will have to dodge if they subsequently leave). Note that a player who stands up may not take a Block Action, because you may not move when you take a Block Action. The player may take any Action other than a Block Action.
INJURIES
Unless the rules state otherwise, any player that is Knocked Down may be injured. The opposing coach rolls two D6 and adds their scores together in an attempt to try to beat the Knocked Down player’s Armor value. If the roll succeeds, then the opposing coach is allowed to roll on the Injury table in the next column to see what injury the player has suffered.
Blitz Bowl is a rough and dangerous sport, and players are often injured or killed while playing the game. Many Blitz Bowl players sport scars from old injuries, while some have lost eyes, ears, noses and even whole limbs! Although most injuries can be recovered from given a bit of time, some are so serious that they can permanently affect a player. In one-off games this is not important – all you need to know is that the player is off the pitch for the rest of the game! – but in a league it is vital to know exactly what type of injury a player has suffered. This is where the Casualty table comes in.
If a player suffers a Casualty because a 10 or more is rolled on the Injury table, then the opposing coach rolls on the Casualty table. The dice scores on the Casualty table run from 1 through to 100. You need to roll percentile dice (1d100).
Having made the dice roll, look up the result on the Casualty table. The table lists exactly what has happened to the player, and describes any special effects the injury may have. The majority of the results simply because the player to miss the next match, though some have more long-lasting effects. The coach of the player that suffered the injury should make a note of the effect of the serious injury on his team roster.
SUBSTITUTES
You may not substitute fit players for injured players or players that have been sent off while a drive is in progress. The only time that you may add reserves is when you are setting up after a touchdown has been scored, or when setting up after half time or for overtime.
Table: Injuries
| 2D6 | Effect |
|---|---|
| 2-7 Stunned | Leave the player on the pitch, but turn them face-down. All face-down players are turned face up at the end of their team's next turn, even if a turnover takes place. Note that a player may not turn face up on the turn they are Stunned. Once face-up they may stand up on any subsequent turn using the normal rules. |
| 8-9 KO’d | Take the player off the pitch and place them in the Dugout in the KO’d Players box. At the next kick-off, before you set up any players, roll for each of your players that have been KO’d. On a roll of 1-3, they must remain in the KO’d box and may not be used, although you may roll again for them at the next kick-off. On a roll of 4-6, you must return the player to the Reserves box and can use them as normal from now on. |
| 10-12 Casualty | Take the player off the pitch and place them in the Dugout in the Dead & Injured Players box. The player must miss the rest of the match. In league play, roll on the Casualty table to see exactly what has happened to the player. |
Table: Casualties
| 1D100 | Result | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1-58 | Badly Hurt | No long term effect. |
| 59-60 | Broken Ribs | Miss next game. |
| 61-62 | Groin Strain | Miss next game. |
| 63-64 | Gouged Eye | Miss next game. |
| 65-66 | Broken Jaw | Miss next game. |
| 67-68 | Fractured Arm | Miss next game. |
| 69-70 | Fractured Leg | Miss next game. |
| 71-72 | Smashed Hand | Miss next game. |
| 73-74 | Pinched Nerve | Miss next game. |
| 75-76 | Damaged Back | Niggling Injury. |
| 77-78 | Smashed Knee | Niggling Injury. |
| 79-80 | Smashed Hip | -1 MA |
| 81-82 | Smashed Ankle | -1 MA |
| 83-84 | Serious Concussion | -1 AV |
| 85-86 | Fractured Skull | -1 AV |
| 87-88 | Torned Ligament | -1 AG |
| 89-90 | Smashed Collar Bone | -1 ST |
| 91-100 | DEAD | Dead! |
- Miss Next Game: Write an ‘M’ in the injuries box on the team roster, and rub it out at the end of the next match.
- Niggling Injury: Miss next game as above. In addition, write an ‘N’ in the Injuries box on the team roster. Each Niggling Injury adds 1 to any subsequent Injury roll made against this player.
- -1 MA, ST, AG, and AV: Miss next game as above. In addition, record the characteristic change on the team roster. However, no characteristic may be reduced by more than 2 points or below a value of 1. Any injuries that could reduce it further are ignored.
- Dead! – Take the player off the pitch and place them in the Dugout in the Dead & Injured Players box. The player won’t be playing Blitz Bowl any more unless he is raised to join another team!