I need tips on Skaven play

[LoucMachine]

Hi !

Been playing skaven in the last few days and been doing fine with them I think. Only issue, I lost many players including my Ogre in the last matches and I dont have enough funds to replace my players.

So my questions : How do you keep your rats from dying ?
How do you deal with Chaos teams ? I try to stay out of tackle zones but they always seems to decimate my team every time anyways. I can win vs them but the casualties are too much :O

Thanks all !!

[Kayeka]

Originally posted by LoucMachine:

So my questions : How do you keep your rats from dying?

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Okay, seriously, though, Skaven are fragile and most of the team doesn't have the agility to stay away from hitty pieces. Particularly at first, it's going to be brutal, and you'll be relying on the cheapness of your players to be able to field a full team. Don't get attached, expect casualties every match.

Once you level up a bit, get some block/wrestle on your guys, maybe even some guard, and you'll be in business. Keep your Gutter Runners and Blitzers safe, as they are the only players your team actually needs. Linerats are fodder for the machine, and you shouldn't expect them to gain more than one skill before they need to be replaced.

As for Chaos, well, there's honestly not much that can be done in an eternal ladder league. Either just take the win and write off the losses as "That's Blood Bowl", or try and sign up for a league dealing in shorter seasons.

[hk_prometheus]

First off, Skaven is the worst team to play if you want to keep players alive. Don't cling to your pixels with this team because you will be heartbroken if you do.

Second, Skaven do very well against Chaos teams. You need to make good use of your Rat Ogre and you need him to be protected from enemy blitz or block, atleast until you can get a surf off.

Third, Chaos teams generally go for Claw which does them no good against most of your 7 AV players. Claw is only effective against 8 armor or higher, because it essentially turns them all into 7 AV pieces.

Fourth, Most Chaos teams do not have many tackle pieces or skilled pieces, which means your gutter runners should have an easy time scoring touchdowns or poking the ball away from them if you take strip ball/leap on one or more of your gutter runners.

Fifth, most Skaven are cheap, so keep plenty of reserves if you need to. Don't use apothacary on anything other than gutter runner and you will be ok.

[Kayeka]

Eh, I'd like to add that the Rat Ogre is a rather controversial pick for a team. While it does add some extra power, it doesn't really make the running game on which the Skaven heavily rely any better. At AV 8 it is also rather fragile for a Big Guy, and Wild Animal means it often isn't standing where you want him to be standing. Basically, it is a lot of TV spent on a piece that is very hit-or-miss.

[hk_prometheus]

Originally posted by Kayeka:

Eh, I'd like to add that the Rat Ogre is a rather controversial pick for a team. While it does add some extra power, it doesn't really make the running game on which the Skaven heavily rely any better. At AV 8 it is also rather fragile for a Big Guy, and Wild Animal means it often isn't standing where you want him to be standing. Basically, it is a lot of TV spent on a piece that is very hit-or-miss.

Rat Ogre is one of the better Big Men in the game. Especially if you get doubles and can get Claw on it. It has decent movement and with frenzy it can surf very well or clear space for the runners. New players just don't understand how to use the Rat Ogre very well, I see them lining him up on the LOS, which is not what he is designed to do.

I generally avoid taking the Big guy on most teams, but Skaven, Lizards, Undead are the exception to the rule here.

[Kayeka]

Well, I did say it was controversial, not outright wrong. I do think that blitzing using a piece with Loner, Wild Animal and no Block without doubles is pushing your luck a bit.

[LoucMachine]

hmm I see !

Btw my Rat Ogre died from a Zombie 2 Red dice, ro whitch ''both down'' was best case.. :/

Are there stats to strip the ball to a chaos team ? Gutter runners are nice but with their 2 str I feel they just cant do much. When they build a cage around the ball I feel stuck.

When I have the ball its very easy to score, but when I dont have it ... chaos are the cats and I am the mouse xD

[Kayeka]

Well, Chaos teams don't start out with Sure Hands, and have many sexy skills to choose from on level up, so even at red dice a gutter runner with Strip Ball has good odds at getting the ball loose if you're willing to burn a reroll on it. (Seriously, people often forget this, but blocking at red dice is not always a bad idea)

As for breaking a cage, well, with the serious STR advantage Chaos has on you (I see your Rat Ogre and raise you a Minotaur), you are probably going to have a tough time getting through. I recommend that you focus on slowing them down and making them fight for every inch.

You may have already read it, but here[bbtactics.com] is a nice guide on dealing with cages. I especially like the second page that details a good way of stopping a cage dead in its tracks. Once you're in a strong defensive position, you can chip away at the corners while the enemy desperately tries to break trough. It's a bit more complicated as Skaven, since you'll often be at a numerical disadvantage, but it's still some good knowledge.

[Snorri Nosebiter]

Originally posted by Transporter_011:

Rat Ogre is one of the better Big Men in the game. Especially if you get doubles and can get Claw on it.

If you get doubles, you should absolutely be taking Block first, not Claw. It will keep you alive longer and lead to more successful blocks.

The opportunity to make an unreliable player more reliable should not be passed up.

Also, Wild Animal is a much worse negatrait than the others.

[DarthPhysicist]

I have found they perform better without the Rogre, in my experience. Forget life and limb, hound the ball, and play to win. There are some very good playbooks online that are worth reading.

[LoucMachine]

Originally posted by darthphysicist:

I have found they perform better without the Rogre, in my experience. Forget life and limb, hound the ball, and play to win. There are some very good playbooks online that are worth reading.

Mind linking some that you recommend?

Thanks !

[LoucMachine]

Also, What would be your perfect team composition ?

[Dode]

Playbooks: http://www.plasmoids.dk/bbowl/LRB6Playbooks.htm

[WardenUSA]

I would also say that it's not worth having many of your rats stand up if they are just going to get knocked down again. it doesn't hurt them if they stay laying down =)

[rycrisp]

It does iffin wez stompz on dere ead's.......

( be careful if your already short on players the oppersition coach may feel it's "safe" to foul. I certainly wouldn't miss the opportunity to stomp a gutter or storm vermin and would seriously consider the linerats if I felt it would lead to more hits on your vital players)

[DarthPhysicist]

I like 3 RR, 4GR, 2SV and round out with linerats (no thrower). I think you can start with 12 players this way. I like to handle the ball with the GRs and forego the thrower.

As Dode pointed out, there is a plasmoids playbook that is pretty good.