Self Inflicted versus Manner Pylon.
Pre-Game: Manner Pylon has a gutter runner and thrower both miss next game'd, resulting in 230k in inducements. They remove a reroll from Self Inflicted and drug up 3 of their rats, resulting in a AG5 GR. Manner Pylon loses the coinflip. Self Inflicted chooses to kick.
Self Inflicted lines up in it's standard defensive formation, Manner Pylon elects to use a wall of players and the drugged up AG5 GR stays back to catch.
MP1: The AG5 GR scoops up the ball, and passes it forward to another waiting GR. The LoS thralls get pushed around and one is knocked unconscious. The GR with the ball runs through the hole opened up, and a second one comes along to keep him company.
SI1: The vampires crowdsurf a Blitzer, no injury. They then send several players back to pressure the two deep GRs to prevent stalling.
MP2: The GR runs in to score, taking a 1-0 lead.
The KO'd thrall awakes for the kickoff. MP sets up in three lines, slightly set back from one another. SI stacks a bunch of players on one side of the pitch, and leaves an AG5 vampire and an escorting thrall back. The kickoff results in a weather change to Sweltering Heat -- rather amusing, given the game is played on the blindingly white snowy pitch.
SI2: The AG5 vampire fails blood lust, rerolls, goes to pick up the ball and fumbles it, mid-field, away from the wall of vampires on the other side of the pitch.
MP3: The Skaven push away a thrall left to cover the weak side of the pitch, and bring three players to the ball, before a gutter runner rolls double 1's on a dodge.
SI3: The knocked down thrall is brought up to help the AG5 vampire blitz->crowdsurf a gutter runner. His assistant is brought over to put another TZ on the ball. A second vampire runs towards the end zone with a lunch thrall to help. Another vampire gets hungry and KO's a thrall.
MP4: The thrall that assisted with the GR crowdsurf the turn before is himself crowdsurfed. Two more players join the party next to the ball before a loner linerat skulls a one die block on the LoS.
SI4: A loose vampire runs over to hypno-stare a GR near the ball, freeing up space for the AG5 vampire's helper thrall to blitz away a stormvermin. This allows the AG5 vampire to scoop up the ball and pass it to the vampire who moved down-range earlier. He moves towards the endzone while his food thrall stays back to cover nearby skaven.
MP5: A double skull on the first block ends the turn almost immediately.
SI5: A few players are pushed around, and one vampire kills a linerat. The only non-food related casualty of the game.
MP6: A double skull-pow on the first block ends the turn immediately.
SI6: Additional stalling, mostly. A few pushes on blocks.
MP7: One thrall goes down before MP rolls a skull on a one die block.
SI7: SI runs it in, hoping to get two chances at a KO recovery. One thrall is KO, compared to no Skaven players. The game is tied at 1-1.
The two teams line up in their standard offensive/defensive formations. The thrall wakes up, and unsurprisingly no players are effected by the heat in the winter wonderland. A riot breaks out on the kickoff, moving the play counter back one, crucially giving MP two turns to score instead of just one.
MP7b: The rear GR grabs the ball, brings it forward and passes to a forward GR. A hole is opened up in the Vampire line and the ballcarrier dashes through. Several rats spill through the hole, but they lag somewhat behind the swift gutter runner - MP has no rerolls to risk go for its to keep everyone together.
SI7b: A thrall moves to assist a vampire in getting a 3-die block on the ball carrier. A reroll is used, but it's not enough to get around Blodge with no wrestle or tackle. Several more players form two lines on either side of the ball carrier, covering him in numerous tacklezones.
MP8: A thrall is pushed away from a second gutter runner just outside the cage around the ball carrier, who deftly passes the ball away to him and safety. He then scampers into the end zone. 2-1 Manner Pylon.
Four players (1 vamp, 3 thralls) from SI and two players (SV, GR) from MP all collapse under the sweltering heat. Nobody thinks to provide them with any of the plentiful snow to help them cool off! With no chance at a one-turn touchdown, SI lines up a 5 SPP vampire and some friends, to get him a completion and his first skill post-game.
SI8: A touchback gives the 5/6 SPP vampire the ball. He fails bloodlust and badly hurts a thrall, before passing the ball and getting his completion before halftime.
One vampire and two thralls fail the sweltering heat roll. The skaven have caught on to the fact that snow is cold, and roll in it ensuring they're all ready for the second half! Their ten players line up 3 on the LOS, and the remaining 7 in a loose wall just behind. The vampires line up with the AG5 vampire back with his lunch, and the other 6 off to one side. A riot moves the game forward, and a touchback negates the pickup roll.
SI10: The wrong vampire is given the ball by mistake, necessitating a handoff to the blodge vampire. A cage is formed while the AG5 vampire & food catches up to the play. A single linerat is stunned.
MP10: The stunned linerat hampers Manner Pylon's ability to block in the ball carrier, but they manage to get some tacklezones on him after knocking down a thrall.
SI11: The blodge ball carrier vampire blitzes through the gutter runners in his way. Some players attempt to filter through the narrow hole on the side of the pitch, but the carrier is left somewhat vulnerable. The AG5 vampire KO's his food behind the play, after failing blood lust.
MP11: The skaven push a few thralls around to free up some players, allowing a two die block on the ball carrier. Despite the use of a reroll, it is insufficient to defeat the blodge vampire. They manage to place four players in and around him, however. Behind the play, another thrall is KO'd.
SI12: The two vampires without the ball run around to use hypnotic gazes on some skavens. Crucially one fails a needed go-for-it, consuming the turn's reroll. Thus when the ball carrier fails blood lust, he cannot blitz through the Skaven line and score. Before making it to a nearby thrall, he fails a dodge and heads off into the crowd to chomp on a nearby fan. He takes the ball with him. The fans throw it back into play somewhat behind the crowd of players near the endzone.
MP12: A gutter runner scoops up the ball, and throws it to a waiting linerat at midfield. Unfortunately the linerat fails the catch.
SI13: A thrall blitzes the linerat onto the ball, shoving it away from some tacklezones. The AG5 vampire then runs in, scoops up the ball and throws it to the other vampire now near the end zone after moving to help out with a hypnotic gaze. He then runs it in to score, tying the game 2-2.
One thrall wakes up, the other one stays unconscious. The vampire who just scored the touchdown decides to not participate in the next drive, as does another thrall. The Skaven team remains lively after enjoying some ice cream and a snowball fight. MP has 10 players, SI 8. The skaven form up their typical line with a GR back, and the vampires adopt a very loose defensive wall.
MP13: The skaven rush forward, marking up the vampires and pushing around the thralls on the LOS. Unfortunately, the back GR fumbles his pass to move the ball up, leaving it close to the LOS on one side.
SI14: A vampire hypno's a linerat off the blodge vampire, and a thrall stuns the GR who just whiffed his pass. The blodge vampire runs forward and picks up the ball. Another thrall moves in to cover the ballcarrier.
MP14: The rats KO a LOS thrall who dared stand back up, and begin to surround the ball carrier and his two escorts. A GR then runs in to blitz the ballcarrier, but he trips up dodging around one of the thralls in the way. Still, 7 players (some stunned) from both teams surround the ball carrier.
SI15: A thrall shoves a GR away from the ball carrier, freeing up a second thrall to leave the pile of players. The ball carrier then dodges himself out of the mess and towards the endzone.
MP15: The gutter runners give chase to the fleeing vampire, attempting to surround him and stop him from dodging to the endzone. Some thralls are pushed around behind the play.
SI16: The ball carrier blitzes a marking gutter runner, then follows up and dodges away from him, and runs into the end zone. 3-2 Manner Pylon.
With no options for a one-turn touchdown, three skaven players decide to leave early and get out of the snow and sweltering heat. Two thralls also elect to not show up. The vampires leave 3 thralls on the LOS and everyone else stands back where it's safe. MP leaves a GR back to scoop up a completion SPP, and the rest to beat up on the thralls on the LOS.
MP16: A thrall is knocked over, and a GR whiffs his pass, ending the game.
Final Score: Self Inflicted 3 - 2 Manner Pylon
Thoughts: It was an interesting and very close game. Both teams got quite lucky, and quite unlucky at different moments in the game. I don't think I failed a single hypnotic gaze, now that I think about it, but I did fail some key blood lusts. Jartol was pretty unfortunate with a lot of his passes, which really hurt his chances. The Skaven offense was predictably efficient, but I again ended up lucky enough to scrape through and win.
What a silly, silly season I had...
Still, I've grown quite endeared to my group of slightly retarded vampires and their two-legged lunches, and the players are developing some character. My 5 AG vampire in particular has gotten into the habit of failing blood lust then rolling a 1 on some roll immediately afterwards, especially when the ball is nearby.