General Dungeonbowl tactics

So having not played Dungeonbowl in a very long time I thought it might be useful to start a thread covering the basics. This is mostly theorybowl from me so would be good to get some input from those who have played the game in recent years.

Let’s assume you have a team with 2 blockers, 2 blitzers, 1 thrower, 2 catchers and 5 linemen. Very much a hybrid team in the style of normal BB humans. I’m sure some teams will go catcher heavy and others blocker heavy.

Which 6 players would you start with in the dungeon?

What role would you give to each player?

Do you go all out to find the ball as quickly as possible or let the other team take the risk of getting blown up and then steal it?

1 strategy I could see would be to start with the quick players and linemen with the aim of finding the ball asap. The catchers would go for the chests closest to your endzone whilst the linemen would either jump in the teleports to try and get the further chests or pair up with the catchers.
If you find the ball early then either you make a run for the opposing endzone or secure it whilst waiting for the heavy hitters to teleport in and grind your way to victory. The danger is that slow blocker types may end up teleporting away from the action or be isolated and ganged up on.
I could see this working for teams that have access to plenty of high MA and AG players.

Another way of playing would be to start with your nastiest players. Some camp out in your endzone (blockers and big guys would be ideal) whilst the rest either hunt down opposing players or stand guard over key areas such as bottlenecks or chests to limit the other team;s options.
Then when your other players start showing up you send them off to locate the ball. With their higher speed and agility they can hopefully avoid the other team should they teleport near them. Then you can either hunt down the opposing ball carrier if they have got it already or start opening the chests you already secured with expendable players.
The danger with this is that you risk running out of time to score the winning TD.

A couple of key strategies come to mind. I will give them names to help identify them if these archetypes continue.

The blockade
The basic premise is if you are slower than your opponent and they can walk in with ease (especially if you have slow players) you need to hold your defence. Simple solution is to hang back and fill the entrances to your endzone with players. Take care to note teleporters might be in use in the first turn so try to make sure it's not going to lead to any quick access on the first or second turn.

Teleported support will arrive all over the place and this is an advantage in that you can scout around with these extras. Covering the teleporters themselves with tackle-zones of the teleported is quite a good idea if you really going for a bunker. Teleported support features the strongest players that can individually hold the teleporter by stepping out and blocking anything that appears. Simply wait and hold out for the advanced to bring you the ball and then start your attack.


Speed freaks
The basic idea is using your fast players you scout the dungeon and retrieve the ball before the majority of the opponent has focused on fighting over the ball. The unknown location plays into your hands initially as this forces your opponent to defend a potentially massive area of squares. At all costs catchers and speedy players need to get the ball within the first few turns.

Teleporters potentially give routes over two turns to find the ball and teleport close to the endzone to score. For this reason it can be worth getting a receiver adjacent to your opponents endzone via the teleporter. Smart positioning leaves the receiver at short range throwing distance from the teleporter they arrived by.

Scouting ahead and setting up a receiver can both require the teleporters and might need multiple attempts to get where you wanted. This is very dangerous but can be considered a quick way to win that results in taking very few hits. Losing a player in the warp is often a better choice than 20 turns of fighting with catchers.

Skirmishing your players can increase their survivability as potentially a catcher can bait and outmanoeuvre a blocker in a one-on-one situation. Wall scatters can be considered helpful in the thinking that the quick player can afford to change the direction of play from the obvious closest route with a crazy ball scatter via the wall. 'Grounding' the ball can be effective to keeping momentum with the faster team.


Horde attack
From what I remember using your entire team to advance in one formation was never a bad idea. Weight of numbers can help to destroy your opponent and any stragglers you might find. Avoiding the teleporters is wise if you have a good idea where you want your team to meet and potentially lock your opponents advance. Frenzy and mighty blow are certainly crude tools but can help destroy your opponent especially if they are losing themselves in the warp trying to escape you and flank your forces.

Pit traps are your friend and offer extra zones in which your opponent will need to avoid. Tackle-zones, walls and pit traps all start to leave very little space to avoid the horde and killing is a key strategy in this game. After many hours of play the desire to get your last 2 players to freedom is diminished and facing the horde strategy can result in games being conceded and won on time rather than anything to do with the ball!

Fouling feels risky for the rewards in the modern BB game but I expect annihilation strategies will foul whenever the numbers add up. Typically if the Horde can whittle the opponent and outnumber them by a half then fouling and pit traps can quickly turn a stalemate into a win for a horde.


Combination
Considering the luck of the teleporter can swing games to quick victory, or lead to complete team destruction, it might be wise to mix some of the above thoughts. I remember often a team forming a blockade may change and push forward. Equally a fast team hell bent on a three turn win needs to get back to their end-zone and hold. You could consider the combination of the above is a direct correlation to how the luck/dice is effecting the game.


Teleporters are often refereed to in my thoughts above and this version of BB has a lot more luck and random craziness rather than tactics deciding our games. Fun is even more paramount in Dungeon Bowl compared to almost any game I can think of. Enjoy it.

Mixed race rosters give the best of both worlds.

Most teams should consist of catchers, blockers, blitzers and big guys. With so many varied players I would expect not to see any linemen and therefore a common build to most teams regardless of actual choice of college. Some skills have great use in the dungeon but typically throwing the ball is far more uncommon than in BB.

Was it not possible to use the ball as a weapon by throwing it in your oppponent's face?
IIRC that was why DB balls were spiked.

only played 3 games, but so far i leave 2 players or 1 Bg on the end zone and the others seek the ball, but the blockade was usefull for me.

Was it not possible to use the ball as a weapon by throwing it in your oppponent's face?
IIRC that was why DB balls were spiked.

That rings a very loud bell from what I remember back then, though I don't think I saw it in the Jervis rules. Might have been in the rulebook when the original DB was released.

Hats off to GW for creating a DB off-spring and working out how to use all the Wahammer cardboard floorplans that had been stock-piling in warehouses lol

Couldn;t you also bounce balls off walls?, it's mentioned in the game manual I think...and I'm sure it was in the orignal TT book?....correct me if Im wrong lol

Couldn;t you also bounce balls off walls?, it's mentioned in the game manual I think...and I'm sure it was in the orignal TT book?....correct me if Im wrong lol

Ya, the ball would then scatter along the walls.

And what about kicking the ball into someone's face?
That was the only reason I gave a player the kicking skill.

In the original TT rules, you could use the ball as a weapon... but it was a weak weapon - not worth to lose the ball.

In the original TT rules, you could use the ball as a weapon... but it was a weak weapon - not worth to lose the ball.

Your missing the point...I have the ball...and now it's in your face

In the original TT rules, you could use the ball as a weapon... but it was a weak weapon - not worth to lose the ball.

Your missing the point...I have the ball...and now it's in your face

i miss that rule and back in the day i once killed a ogre (or mino cant remember but was a big guy) using an elf with this tactic