TOURNAMENT RULES
The Big V 2025 will use the rules as outlined in Blood Bowl Second Season Edition - The Official Rules.
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BAYSIDE WEATHER TABLE​
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There's little doubt the weather "can" be lovely in Melbourne in November but as we all know, this is the city of "four seasons in one day", so the weather can change in the blink of an eye! Furthermore, playing on a beach next to the sea (albeit the bay side) has its own challenges.
Consequently, both coaches will roll a D6 (and add the results together) as part of Step 2 The Weather of the Pre-Game Sequence as normal, but will refer to the following Bayside Weather Table instead:
2 - SWELTERING HEAT: Some players faint in the unbearable heat! D3 randomly selected players from each team that are on the pitch when a drive ends are placed in the Reserves box. They must miss the next drive.
3 - BLINDING RAYS: No cloud cover in the clear, blue skies and the relentless glare of the sun leaves the players squinting and shading their eyes. Apply a -1 modifier every time a player tests against their Passing Ability. Additionally, only Quick and Short pass actions can be performed.
4-10 - PERFECT CONDITIONS (well, almost): Neither too cold nor too hot. A warm, dry and slightly overcast day provides perfect conditions for Blood Bowl.
11 - COASTAL WINDS: If it wasn't for the winds, it would be a lovely day. Catching the ball is harder than normal. Apply a -1 modifier every time a player makes an Agility test to catch or to attempt to interfere with a pass. Additionally, when the ball scatters, it moves from the square in which it was placed four times before landing, rather than the usual three.
12 - HIGH TIDE: Running in water up to the players' knees is always a risk, plus the ball tends to bobble on the tide! Apply a -1 modifier every time a player attempts to Rush an extra square. Additionally, apply a -1 modifier every time a player makes an Agility test to pick up the ball.
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BAY 13 & FERAL FANS
Unfortunately NEITHER the Bay 13 or Feral Fans special rules will be returning in 2025. Once the Blood Bowl circus reached the beach, the feral fans became more interested in imbibing copious amounts of Bloodweiser and forgot there was actually a game on!​​
BLOOD BOWL ERRATA & DESIGNER'S COMMENTARY
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The Big V 2025 will use the most up-to-date rules as contained within the FAQ and Errata document: DESIGNER’S COMMENTARY MAY 2024.
This can be downloaded from the Warhammer Community website at https://www.warhammer-community.com/faqs/#blood-bowl
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RESURRECTION
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This will be a resurrection tournament. After each round, teams will reset to their original roster. No injuries will carry over, and no additional SPP’s will be recorded.
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Any new zombies or rotters added during a game will be removed from the roster at the end of the game, and won’t carry over to the next match.
SWISS MATCHUP
The tournament will use the Swiss method to pair up coaches.
Round 1 will be randomised, but from round 2 onwards, coaches will be matched up against other coaches with a similar record. So 1st place will play 2nd place, 3rd place will play 4th place, and so on. This ensures that all coaches get to play against coaches who are performing similarly on the day.
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THE GAMES
1: All matches will last no longer than 2hrs and 20mins.
2: Matches are expected to have entered the second half with one hour remaining.
3: All matches will finish at the allocated time, and this will be rigidly enforced. Coaches will not be permitted to finish their turn and there will be no provision to ensure coaches finish on the same amount of turns.
4: Specific turn times will not be enforced, but coaches should aim for no more than 4 minutes per turn. It is the responsibility of both coaches to ensure their match is running to time. If you think your opponent is playing slow then you should ask for a chess clock for the remainder of the match.
SCORING
WIN: 5pts
DRAW: 2pts
LOSS: 0pts
Ensure you record all casualties for and against, and all touchdowns scored for and against. Casualties include those caused by fouls and the crowd, but NOT self-inflicted casualties, such as Animal Savagery, Always Hungry, failed dodges, failed landings and failed rushes. A casualty that has been overturned by an Apothecary or Regeneration still counts as a Casualty for scoring purposes.
TIE-BREAKERS
At the end of the tournament, the following tie-breakers will be used in the event of a points tie:
1: Strength of Schedule
2: Touchdown difference (TD For minus TD Against)
3: Casualties difference (CAS For minus CAS Against)
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PRAYERS TO NUFFLE TABLE
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A result of Cheering Fans on the Kick-Off Event Table will use the amended Prayers to Nuffle Table as per page 103 of The Official Rules.
DEDICATED FANS
As per page 101 of The Official Rules, all teams at The Big V Bay 13 will start with a Dedicate Fans characteristic of 0. A coach can improve this up to a maximum of 6 at a cost of 10,000 gp per improvement
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PAINTED TEAMS
All teams MUST be painted to a minimum of three colours. Any team that doesn’t meet this standard will gift their opponents a roll on the Prayers to Nuffle table before every round. If you’re not sure if your team satisfies this criterion, please contact the TO in advance of submitting your roster.
POSITIONALS, STARS AND ADDITIONAL SKILLS
Coaches must make every effort to ensure their models are presentative of the positions or Star Players that they represent. Positionals should be clearly defined, as should additional skills.
All players should be numbered. However, numbers alone should not be used to identify positions or additional skills. Please be sensible, and respectful of your opponent. If your star blitzer has four additional skills, you need to ensure he is clearly identified as different to the other three blitzers in your team who may not have any additional skills.
Loom bands are a popular choice for identifying additional skills. Some of the more common additional skills that coaches like to be identified as standard are Block (Blue), Guard (Green), Dodge (Yellow) and Tackle (varies). Coaches often also identify Mighty Blow, Frenzy (both red) and Diving Tackle.
Note, whilst not mandatory any coach can ask their opponent to clearly identify certain positionals, stars or additional skills by using loom bands. Any coach that refuses to do so will gift their opponent a roll on the Prayers to Nuffle table.