Dungeonbowl Patch

[UncleBob]

DUNGEONBOWL PATCH

Teams (IMPORTANT)
The team lists of the rulebook are used.
(Note: Balance. Seems fine. Only Khemri struggled. But If the Mummies lead a charge, or are lucky with the teleports, they seem fine)

Winning the match (IMPORTANT)
A Dungeonbowl match has the same time-setting as a normal Blood Bowl match, 16 turns per team. The match is not interrupted for a second half or when a Touchdown has been scored.
When a team has finished it’s eighth turn the players are magically refreshed and regain their team re-rolls (Halfling Chef works like usual).
When a Touchdown has been scored, the scoring team suffers a turnover and the ball appears on a randomly chosen teleporter pad and bounces one square.
Should the game be tied when the time has run out, the coaches can agree to play a sudden death overtime, during overtime neither team can use the dug-out teleport.
(Note: This solves the SPP problem (more TD, more time for CAS), but it also helps to change momentum of the match, which increases fun and puts an end to the overpowering leap players dashing madly for the win.)

Players (IMPORTANT)
No team can have more than 11 players inside the dungeon.
(Note: Journeymen.)

Dug-out and stunned (IMPORTANT)
Whenever a rule states that a player should be placed in the Reserves Box, the player is always placed in the K. O. Box instead (apothecary, pit traps, lost in space, regeneration, blood lust and so on).
(Note: Miss one turn effect. It helps bashy teams to beat the magical sponge. I really suggest to use pit traps which increase this effect.)

Pit traps and lost in space (IMPORTANT)
Players falling into a pit trap or getting lost in space are treated in every respect as being pushed off the field. (Note: Not as deadly/final as the old version. A dungeonbowl match should have the same injury rate as Blood Bowl matches.)

Teleport pads and the ball (IMPORTANT)
Whenever the ball bounces onto a teleporter pad, a pit trap or has been carried by a player who decided to jump in one of those two, the ball will appear on a randomly chosen teleporter pad and bounce one square. For this roll “lost in space” is ignored, so the ball always appears on the rolled teleporter pad, even if it’s the one it vanished in.
(Note: Chaos is the key. Dungeonbowl has the habit of turning into a sluggish corridor brawl. The ball suddenly appearing in a far away location helps to stretch out the game. I suggest to use the “ball bouncing off the wall” option to get more momentum changes.)

Change action (IMPORTANT)
Players can switch a move action into a blitz, foul, pass or hand-off action (if not already used that turn) after a teleport or after they opened a chest and found the ball.
(Note: Both chests and teleports are a surprise element that interrupts the players actions, which feels just wrong. At first I thought this would make teleports too powerful, but after sixty games I believe it makes them rather possible/useful. Marked teleporter pads are a nightmare for mummies and such.)

Jumping (scrambling) over things (IMPORTANT)
The sponsoring wizards equip the teams with a lot of magical stuff, and although most of it keeps exploding in your face, some are pretty helpful like the Magical Sponge, the Teleport Homing Device or the Jump Master Deluxe.
A player can move through squares occupied by pit traps, treasure chests, teleporter pads and prone/stunned players. But doing so, the player must make a jump roll. A jump works like a dodge (+1 for making a jump roll, -1 per enemy tackle zone on the square that the player is jumping to), but has two restrictions: a player can’t move (jump) through (over) more than two occupied squares with one jump (but he can jump more than once per move, in fact he has to, if he keeps scrambling over things) and a player can’t jump when he stands in an opponent tackle zone.
A failed jump over a treasure chest or a prone/stunned player is treated like a failed dodge. A player failing a jump over a pit trap or a teleporter pad, falls into it.
(Note: The old jump roll was a cheap dodge. Now it’s possible to climb over prone players (no prone Halflings defending the end-zone by being lunch-prone anymore) and to jump over pit traps with a fair chance. But if you have to dodge, you have to dodge.)

Negative traits and Dug-out teleport (SKILL EXPLANATION)
Bone-head, Really Stupid, Wild Animal, Take Root and Blood Lust players start their move action in the reserve and must make their roll before the teleport. Really Stupid gets +2 when adequate team-mates share the reserve with it, Wild Animal can start with a blitz, Take Root players take root in the reserve, Blood Lust players must try to bite a Thrall at the end of their action or can bite a Thrall in the reserve (which wastes the teleport).

Throwing team mates (SKILL EXPLANATION)
Only quick passes are allowed.

Secret Weapons (SKILL EXPLANATION)
When any armour or injury roll caused by a player with Secret Weapon is a double, the player is sent off. Players with Secret Weapon who are leaving the dungeon for any reason are sent off. If the player had the ball it bounces once from the square where the player stood.

Hail Mary Pass (SKILL EXPLANATION)
Instead of any field the player can throw to any field he can draw a direct line to. (use the red line on the pass template to figure that out).

Ball & Chain (SKILL EXPLANATION)
When the move carries the player into the wall, ignore the move, but the point of MA is wasted. If the player moves into a treasure chest, he opens it, sort of.

Kick (SKILL EXPLANATION)
If a player with the skill Kick is set up in the end zone the team gets a bonus turn (like a Blitz!) after the Dungeon Bowl kick-off table is resolved, but they can’t use the dug-out teleport. If both teams set up players with Kick, both coaches roll a D3 and add the number of players with Kick in their end zone to the result. The winner gets the bonus turn.

Kick-off return (SKILL EXPLANATION)
One player in the reserve with the skill Kick-off Return is allowed to teleport into the dungeon and take an action after the kick-off table is resolved, but before a “bonus turn” takes place. If both coaches are entitled to sent in a player, roll a D6 to figure out who goes first.

Dungeon & Set-up (OPTION)
The Dungeon should have the size of a Blood Bowl pitch (15x36 squares, the BB pitch itself can be used as a frame).
For such a size use D6+2 small pit traps (1 square) and D3+1 large pit traps (4 squares).
It is optional but to recommend that: at least two corridors lead to each end zone and one teleport pad should be within six squares from each end zone.
Set up the dungeon, make a coin toss and the winner can pick an end zone or the first turn.

Pre-match (OPTION)
All rules before the match are used except weather.
Bloodweiser Babes change to: Each Bloodweiser Babe allows once per match to heal a knocked out player on a 2+. This does not affect the use of the magic sponge or the dug-out teleport. It is even possible to teleport the just healed player.
Wizards change to: A Wizard helps the team with a teleport homing device which allows a team to use it’s team-re-rolls to re-roll teleport rolls.

Dungeon Bowl kick-off table (OPTION)
Both coaches place their six starting players in their end-zone before rolling on the kick-off table. Every term “for this half” changes to “for this game”. You can roll a second time on this table after both coaches have finsihed their eight turn.
2: Get the ref: No change
3: Beast: The owner has sent a monster into the dungeon. Both coaches roll a D6 + FAME the coach who wins the roll (repeat if necessary) places a beast in the dungeon (see Beast). If you don’t want to use a beast this result is: Riot: No change.
4-6: Cheering Fans: No change.
7: Nothing happens. Odd…
8-10: Brilliant coaching: No change.
11: Throw a stone: No change.
12: Defect: Remove one teleporter pad, roll a D6 to determine which. Whenever a player should appear on this pad he is painfully sucked back into the dug-out. Treat this player as lost in space. In case the ball has to appear on the removed pad, roll again.

Treasure Chests and push backs (OPTION)
A player getting pushed into a treasure chest opens it. Solve the block first, including armour and injury roll and then handle the opening of the chest.
Treasure chests works like the spell fireball. (only 4+ but mighty blow)
Only the player opening the chest is automatically knocked over, everyone adjacent on a 4+. (if they keep opening the chests to kill your Skinks in the explosion).

Precarious Situation (OPTION)
Rolls for precarious situations must only be made when a player blocks or is blocked.

Balls bouncing off the wall (OPTION)
If the ball bounces into the wall, place it on the “wall square” by using the squares as orientation. Then place the throw-in-template over the ball and roll a D6 for direction. The ball rests the moment it lands in an unoccupied square. (if you have difficulties placing the template take a look at the guidelines below, or use common sense, as this rule only attempts to copy reality).
Scattering balls stop their scattering the moment it carries them into the wall, place the ball on the wall and make a bounce.
Bouncing off the wall passes use the throw in template to determine in which direction the ball bounces off to when missed. Place the template as if the ball bounced into the “wall square” behind the one aimed at. Then proceed as in the rules.
Guidelines for using the template
- The picture of the ball on the template is placed over the “wall square” the ball bounced to.
- If the ball bounced straight into the wall, the red arrow on the template pointing to the “side-line” must point in the direction the ball had bounced to.
- If the ball bounced diagonal into the wall, the template must be placed in a way that the ball might bounce back to where it came from. (if the template is placed in a way that the ball can bounce only to the square it came from, your probabyl being silly and deserve to be slapped).
- If the ball would bounce into the wall again, put it there and make another bounce.
- If the ball bounced into an edge, only those squares adjacent to that edge are eligible. In this case the template can’t be used and you have to distribute the six numbers, in groups of twos, yourself.
- If the ball bounced into a corner I suggest to treat it like an edge, which means with three eligible squares, including the wall squares. If this second bounce carries the ball into a wall square, proceed and make a third bounce. The simplest way to treat this third bounce is as if the second didn’t happen.

Beast (OPTION)
A beast can be placed on any unoccupied square but at least eight fields away from each end zone.
A beast has a reaction range that covers all squares the beast can reach with its MA. Every time when a player takes an action and is at any time inside the beast’s reaction range, the coach of the player has to make a reaction test after the action of the player is done (this is cancelled when the player has scored a touchdown). The reaction test is solved with a D6 and the beast reacts on a 4+.
If the beast reacts it takes a blitz action against (and only against) the player who caused the reaction. If it can’t reach the player, it will try to get as close to the player as possible or to the place where he last stood if removed. If the player has been knocked down during his action the beast replaces its blitz action with a foul action, but can’t be sent off. During its move the beast never has to dodge and will never use go for it or move onto teleporter pads. But the beast can use the skill jump as normal, with the only exception that all jump rolls succeed automatically and are not prevented by standing in a tackle zone.
The move is always carried out by the coach who caused the reaction and the block or foul by the opponent coach. In the meaning of assists or SPP the beast is always considered as a player from the opposite team.
A beast recovers from stunned at the begin of the next turn and from prone the first time it reacts, even if it has just been knocked down. A removed beast will not return for the rest of the match.

Beast 6/6/3/9 Block, Claw, Dirty Player, Prehensile Tail, No Hands, Thick Skull

Diagonal moves (FAQ)
Everything can always move diagonal, even scratching along an edge or squeezing through the little space between a player and an edge. Also a pass can scratch along an edge as long as the red line on the pass template doesn’t move through the wall (the red line of the pass template can always be used to determine if a move only scratches or is going through the wall).

Push backs (FAQ)
Walls, pit traps and treasure chests are occupied squares, teleport pads are not.
Treasure chests are treated as players in the meaning of push backs.
A player can only be pushed into a pit trap if all other options are occupied squares.

Teleporting (FAQ)
It is possible that a player (or chest) stays on a teleport pad, but it’s impossible that anything moves or is pushed onto a teleporter pad without getting teleported.
Armour and injury rolls, if any, are carried out after the teleport and only if the player is still inside the dungeon.
A player standing on a teleport pad can start a teleport. Moving onto the pad is not necessary.
Players who are taking an action and have no MA left for the teleport must use go for it (if they can). If they fail the roll they are knocked down on the target teleporter pad.
A teleport pad is never part of an end-zone. To score a touchdown a player must step off the pad and into the end-zone.
Teleport rolls can’t be re-rolled, except with a Wizard.

Chain reaction (FAQ)
Whenever a ball, player or treasure chest is teleported to an occupied teleport pad the chain reaction takes place.
A player getting teleported in his own turn due to a chain-teleport can carry out his action as normal but is considered as being teleported for this turn.

Dug-out teleport and magical sponge (FAQ)
During his turn a coach can teleport a player at any time into the dungeon when there are ten or less of his players inside the dungeon or use the magical sponge, but not after a turnover.
The player enters the dungeon with a move action.

Precarious Situation (FAQ)
Rolls for precarious situations can’t be re-rolled.
When a player fails the roll for a precarious situation during a block, the block is carried out as if the result “skull or pow” has been rolled.

[alternat]

it will
there will be a huge multiplayer dungeonbowl for the inauguration of our new clubhouse, and these come handy.

[UncleBob]

The patch is considered for two players only, so you might need to double some numbers, depending on how many players you have.

I really suggest to replace the jump rule as it was THE flaw in dungeonbowl. It allowed trolls to dodge on a 2+ when adjacent to a five inch crack. Another problem was prone players refusing to get up and blocking corridors, leaving the opposition only fouls to get past them. And last but not least with only one TD necessary to win the game, Leap was extremely powerful. I tried to solve all three problems with one rule, the bad side was that leaping over traps became more risky and AG 5 players where still awesome. But the rule proposal should solve that.

Anyway, use what you like and tell me how it went.

[alternat]

I'm planning to have a set of chests with a ball every two players and likely 12, 16 or 20 teleport pads (to have a die to teleport with).
furthermore, every dugout will have a number and in the chests may be found numbered tokens: a team may only score in a dugout numbered as a token he possess, and everytime a player goes down the opponent team may steal a token. In the end, a team may not score until they eliminate from the dungeon a certain number of opponent players.

[UncleBob]

Sounds like a battle.

Although if eliminating includes KOs then mind the magical sponge.
In my experience casulties don't come as often in Dungeonbowl as in Blood Bowl. Teams scatter up, tight corridors preventing teams from ganging up, and no line of scrimmage.

To help it you could use a fair amount of pit traps, and use the rule that every stunned is treated as a K.O. In some games I've played the players really pilled up in the K.O. Box with this rule.

[mattski]

Homegrown rules to deal with prone players in the way:

A player can throw a block against a prone player in front of him. Throw block die equal to ST-1 of the blocking player and if ANY of them are a push then the prone player is shoved out of the way. No other die roll has any effect (so you can’t fall over trying to shove them out of the way). Each block attempt costs one point of movement.

1 push result needed if player weaker or equal than you
2 push results needed if player stronger than you

If there is another player(s) behind the one that you wish to push you need +1 push result

They worked for me quite well.

[UncleBob]

I thought about something similar, but then I decided to go with leap, as it seemed the most simple way to solve all three problems: jumping (AG based), leap (negative modifications) and prone players.

[Glamdryn]

Anyone have the dungeonbowl ruleset? Ive been wanting to start this up as a friend has a full hirst tile set all done up nicely.

Rockin!

[Nictuku]

Does anyone know where I can find the original rulebook for Dungeonbowl? For some reason I failed to put it in the otherwise so handy box when I stashed it in the attic many moons ago.

[UncleBob]

A search should do it.
Otherwise I'm pretty sure that the german mail order store of GW offers the rules as a free download (in german AND english).


NOTE: I've edited the patch.
First because I tinkered with it during the past months again, and second, I changed the whole thing from a patch to a list of suggestions. So that everyone who feels inclined can use it as an inspiration to write their own patch. The most important bits are marked and explained.