Moving to Blood Bowl Second Season

This guide is for coaches moving from the Blood Bowl 2016 rules to the Blood Bowl Second Season rules. These will be referenced as BB2016 and BB2020 respectively. If you’ve just picked up Blood Bowl for the first time, this article may be interesting as a historical document. If you’re moving from BB2016, then it should allow you to adapt to the ruleset more smoothly. I’ll try and draw attention to the significant changes, but will often say “Check the rules” if the change is huge.

This article is both for tournaments and leagues as it focuses on “in-game” events. Team development and inducements in league play has changed significantly enough that everyone should pretend they’re starting from scratch. Check the rules.

For the full rules you will need the BB Rulebook plus the GW Errata. There are still some ambiguities that TOs and League Commissioners will have to make rulings on, and these are mine for the SAWBBL league.

Building a Team

• Player costs have changed, and come in multiples of 5k instead of 10k
• Fan Factor has become Dedicated Fans, and the effect has changed. Check the rules

Start of Game

• You now roll for Fan Factor instead of Fame. Check the rules (p.37)

Weather

• Sweltering Heat affects a random number of players, applied to each side, rather than rolling for each player.

Characteristics

• Players now have a Passing characteristic, separate from Agility. Check the rules
• Agility, Passing and Armour are expressed as 3+ instead of Ag 3, and modifiers are applied to the dice roll. The old Agility stat has been a straight move to Agility except for the Nurgle Lineman, who have gone from Ag3 to 4+
• Movement is capped at 9 (as is Strength, but this is less important)

Team Re-rolls

• You may now use as many re-rolls per turn as you like
• You still cannot re-roll a single die more than once
• The Pro and Brawler skills allow re-rolling one die from a “dice pool”, e.g. a 2 dice block, so if you use one of these you may not then use a Team Re-roll

Passing and Throw Team-Mate

Passing the ball has changed significantly. Check the rules.

• A bad pass can now be Wildly Inaccurate, which will cause it to deviate D6 in a D8 direction from the thrower
• Passes can be Deflected as well as Intercepted
• Passing uses the Passing characteristic, not the Agility

Blitzing

You declare the target of a blitz when you declare the Blitz action. This has various knock-on effects with Dump-Off and Foul Appearance, and also how the action is used (i.e. you can’t change target half way through).

Kick-Off Table

There’s a new Kick-Off Table with some new Events. Some of the previous Events have been changed. Check the rules.

• Riot has become Time Out, and the wording has changed
• Perfect Defence has become Solid Defence, and the effect has changed
• Cheering Fans now references Prayers to Nuffle, which is a completely new rule
• Brilliant Coaching and Weather have switched places
• If Nice Weather is the result of a Weather roll, then the ball scatters instead of just moving a square in a D8 direction
• Quick Snap now activates a random number of players
• Blitz is no longer an “extra turn” as such, but a random number of players can activate. Team Re-rolls may not be used, or the Dodge skill for dodging, and possibly other knock-on effects
• Throw a Rock has become Officious Ref, and the effect changes
• Pitch Invasion works differently

Illegal Procedure

It’s gone. Let us not speak of it again.

Terminology

Go For It has become Rush.

Jumping

Any player can now jump over a prone/stunned player, but not an empty square or a standing player. Leap and Pogo Stick build on this to make more effective jumpers. Check the rules (p.45).

Casualty Table

The Casualty Table now uses a D16. In tournament play, the Apothecary will be effective on a roll of 1-6 on a D16.

Fouling

• The Guard skill now allows assists on Fouls
• A successful Argue the Call causes a Turnover but the player stays on the pitch and does not go to reserves
• You may not use multiple Bribes on the same sending off
• If you roll a 1 on Argue the Call you may not then use a Bribe on the same incident

Stalling

Stalling is now defined; check the rules (p.64). It only comes into play in conjunction with Prayers to Nuffle or cards, so it’s a minor game mechanic.

Stars

• There are many fewer stars – only those with existing miniatures, or those coming soon
• Stars all have their own unique Special Skill
• Stars can generally play for more teams. Each race has a Special Rule on the roster, some of which define which stars can play for them
• Stars have become cheaper, so expect to see more of them!

Skills

This section will describe where a skill has changed, been removed, or been introduced. If it’s on a team roster and isn’t mentioned then its use has stayed the same. There’s a new line on p.74 of the rulebook that says that if a player has lost their Tackle Zone they may not use skills unless otherwise noted. This will mean that Block, Dodge, etc cannot be used.

Rosters

There have been tweaks to most rosters, so check your race’s roster carefully and the race you’re playing against. I won’t list cost changes, as these are across the board, nor will I list the new passing characteristic, as that’s completely new. Check the rules.

Each roster has a special skill, some of which just define which stars they can use, but others confer special rules (e.g. cheaper bribes). Check the rules (p.106).

Rosters with existing teams are listed in the Second Season Box, other races are listed in Teams of Legend and in the NAF’s Rules for Tournaments.