skills

Always Hungry
The player is always ravenously hungry – and what's more they'll eat absolutely anything! Should the player ever use the Throw Team-Mate skill, roll a D6 after he has finished moving, but before he throws his team-mate. On a 2+ continue with the throw. On a roll of 1 he attempts to eat the unfortunate team-mate! Roll the D6 again, a second 1 means that he successfully scoffs the team-mate down, which kills the team-mate without opportunity for recovery (Apothecaries, Regeneration or anything else cannot be used). If the team-mate had the ball it will scatter once from the team-mate's square. If the second roll is 2-6 the team-mate squirms free and the Pass Action is automatically treated as a fumbled pass. Fumble the player with the Right Stuff skill as normal.
Animosity
A player with this skill does not like players from his team that are a different race than he is and will often refuse to play with them despite the coach's orders. If this player at the end of his Hand-off or Pass Action attempts to hand-off or pass the ball to a team-mate that is not the same race as the Animosity player, roll a D6. On a 2+, the pass/hand-off is carried out as normal. On a 1, the player refuses to try to give the ball to any team-mate except one of his own race. The coach may choose to change the target of the pass/hand-off to another team-mate of the same race as the Animosity player, however no more movement is allowed for the Animosity player, so the current Action may be lost for the turn.
Ball and Chain
Players armed with a Ball and Chain can only take Move Actions. To move or Go For It, place the throw-in template over the player facing up or down the pitch or towards either sideline. Then roll a D6 and move the player one square in the indicated direction; no Dodge roll is required if you leave a tackle zone. If this movement takes the player off the pitch, they are beaten up by the crowd in the same manner as a player who has been pushed off the pitch. Repeat this process for each and every square of normal movement the player has. You may then GFI using the same process if you wish. If during his Move Action he would move into an occupied square then the player will throw a block following normal blocking rules against whoever is in that square, friend or foe (and it even ignores Foul Appearance!) . Prone or Stunned players in an occupied square are pushed back and an Armour roll is made to see if they are injured, instead of the block being thrown at them. The player must follow up if they push back another player, and will then carry on with their move as described above. If the player is ever Knocked Down or Placed Prone roll immediately for injury (no Armour roll is required). Stunned results for any Injury rolls for the Ball and Chain player are always treated as KO'd. A Ball and Chain player may use the Grab skill (as if a Block Action was being used) with his blocks (if he has learned it!). A Ball and Chain player may never use the Diving Tackle, Frenzy, Kick-Off Return, Leap, Pass Block or Shadowing skills.
Blood Lust
Vampires must occasionally feed on the blood of the living. Immediately after declaring an Action with a Vampire, roll a d6: On a 2+ the Vampire can carry out the Action as normal. On a 1, however, the Vampire must feed on a Thrall team-mate or a spectator. The Vampire may continue with his declared Action or if he had declared a Block Action , he may take a Move Action instead. Either way, at the end of the declared Action, but before actually passing, handing off, or scoring, the vampire must feed. If he is standing adjacent to one or more Thrall team- mates (standing, prone or stunned), then choose one to bite and make an Injury roll on the Thrall treating any casualty roll as Badly Hurt. The injury will not cause a turnover unless the Thrall was holding the ball. Once the Vampire has bitten a Thrall he may complete his Action. Failure to bite a Thrall is a turnover and requires you to feed on a spectator – move the Vampire to the reserves box if he was still on the pitch. If he was holding the ball, it bounces from the square he occupied when he was removed and he will not score a touchdown if he was in the opposing end zone.
Bombardier
A coach may choose to have a Bombardier who is not Prone or Stunned throw a bomb instead of taking any other Action with the player. This does not use the team's Pass Action for the turn. The bomb is thrown using the rules for throwing the ball (including weather effects and use of Hail Mary Pass ), except that the player may not move or stand up before throwing it (he needs time to light the fuse!). Intercepted bomb passes are not turnovers. Fumbles or any bomb explosions that lead to a player on the active team being knocked over are turnovers. All skills that may be used when a ball is thrown may be used when a bomb is thrown also. A bomb may be intercepted or caught using the same rules for catching the ball, in which case the player catching it must throw it again immediately. This is a special bonus Action that takes place out of the normal sequence of play. A player holding the ball can catch or intercept and throw a bomb. The bomb explodes when it lands in an empty square or an opportunity to catch the bomb fails or is declined (i.e., bombs don't 'bounce'). If the bomb is fumbled it explodes in the bomb thrower's square. If a bomb lands in the crowd, it explodes with no effect. When the bomb finally does explode any player in the same square is Knocked Down, and players in adjacent squares are Knocked Down on a roll of 4+. Players can be hit by a bomb and treated as Knocked Down even if they are already Prone or Stunned. Make Armour and Injury rolls for any players Knocked Down by the bomb. Casualties caused by a bomb do not count for Star Player points.
Bone-head
The player is not noted for his intelligence. Because of this you must roll a D6 immediately after declaring an Action for the player, but before taking the Action. On a roll of 1 they stand around trying to remember what it is they're meant to be doing. The player can't do anything for the turn, and the player's team loses the declared Action for the turn. (So if a Bone-head player declares a Blitz Action and rolls a 1, then the team cannot declare another Blitz Action that turn.) The player loses his tackle zones and may not catch, intercept or pass, assist another player on a block or foul, or voluntarily move until he manages to roll a 2 or better at the start of a future Action or the drive ends.
Chainsaw
A player armed with a chainsaw must attack with it instead of making a block as part of a Block or Blitz Action. When the chainsaw is used to make an attack, roll a D6 instead of the Block dice. On a roll of 2 or more the chainsaw hits the opposing player, but on a roll of 1 it 'kicks back' and hits the wielder instead! Make an Armour roll for the player hit by the chainsaw, adding 3 to the score. If the roll beats the victim's Armour value then the victim is Knocked Down and injured – roll on the Injury table. If the roll fails to beat the victim's Armour value then the attack has no effect. A player armed with a chainsaw may take a Foul Action, and adds 3 to the Armour roll, but must roll for kick back as described above. A running chainsaw is a dangerous thing to carry around, and so if a player holding a chainsaw is Knocked Down for any reason, the opposing coach is allowed to add 3 to his Armour roll to see if the player was injured. However blocking a player with a chainsaw is equally dangerous, if an opponent knocks himself over when blocking the chainsaw player then add 3 to his Armour roll. This skill may only be used once per turn (i.e. cannot be used with Frenzy or Multiple Block) and if used as part of a Blitz Action, the player cannot continue moving after using it. Casualties caused by a chainsaw player do not count for Star Player points.
Decay
Staying on the pitch is difficult when your rotting body is barely held together. When this player suffers a Casualty result on the Injury table, roll twice on the Casualty table and apply both results. The player will only ever miss one future match as a result of his injuries, even if he suffers two results with this effect. A successful Regeneration roll will heal both results.
Fan Favourite
The fans love seeing this player on the pitch so much that even the opposing fans cheer for your team. For each player with Fan Favourite on the pitch your team receives an additional +1 FAME modifier for any Kick-Off table results, but not for the Winnings roll.
Filthy Rich
This player has access to more money than you'd care to think about, and they've got no qualms with using it to their advantage. If a player with this skill is sent off by the referee (for fouling or anything else), roll a D6. On a result of 2 or more, they are not sent off. If a rule is in effect which prevents Bribes from being used, this rule has no effect.
Hypnotic Gaze
The player has a powerful telepathic ability that he can use to stun an opponent into immobility. The player may use hypnotic gaze at the end of his Move Action on one opposing player who is in an adjacent square. Make an Agility roll for the player with hypnotic gaze, with a -1 modifier for each opposing tackle zone on the player with hypnotic gaze other than the victim's. If the Agility roll is successful, then the opposing player loses his tackle zones and may not catch, intercept or pass the ball, assist another player on a block or foul, or move voluntarily until the start of his next action or the drive ends. If the roll fails, then the hypnotic gaze has no effect.
Kick Team-Mate
When a player with this skill makes a Blitz Action, they can kick an adjacent team-mate (who must have the Right Stuff skill) instead of throwing a block. No Block roll is made; instead, the target player is kicked as though they were a ball! The coach declares whether they will roll a D6 for a short kick or 2D6 for a riskier long kick. If they rolled 2D6 and scored a double, the kicker has been a little too enthusiastic; make an Injury roll for the target player, treating Stunned results as KO'd (if they were carrying the ball, it bounces from the square they were in). Otherwise, the kicked player is moved (in a straight line) directly away from the kicking player's square a number of squares equal to the total that was rolled on the dice. Then they scatter three times. The kicked player does not count as entering any square they move through except the one they end up in after scattering. If the kicked player moves off the pitch, they land among the crowd (never a pleasant fate!) and are sent to the KO'd box of the team's Dugout. If they were carrying the ball it will be thrown back on as normal, starting from the last square the player moved through before leaving play. If the final square they scatter into is occupied by another player, treat the player landed on as Knocked Down and roll for Armour (even if already Prone or Stunned), and then the player being kicked will scatter one more square. If this moves them onto another player, continue to scatter them until they end up in an empty square or off the pitch. Note that only the first player they land on is Knocked Down. Then see the Right Stuff entry to determine how gracefully the player lands – where that skill refers to thrown players, it should be read as also referring to kicked players. If the player moved 6, 7 or 8 squares (before scattering), the Landing roll has a -1 modifier; if they moved 9 or more (before scattering), the Landing roll has a -2 modifier.
Loner
Loners, through inexperience, arrogance, animal ferocity or just plain stupidity, do not work well with the rest of the team. As a result, a Loner may use team re-rolls but has to roll a D6 first. On a roll of 4+, he may use the team re- roll as normal. On a roll of 1-3 the original result stands without being re-rolled but the team re-roll is lost (i.e. used).
Monstrous Mouth
A player with Monstrous Mouth is allowed to re-roll the D6 if they fail a Catch roll. It also allows the player to re-roll the D6 if they drop a hand-off or fail to make an interception. In addition, the Strip Ball skill will not work against a player with Monstrous Mouth.
No Hands
The player is unable to pick up, intercept or carry the ball and will fail any catch roll automatically, either because he literally has no hands or because his hands are full. If he attempts to pick up the ball then it will bounce, and will cause a turnover if it is his team's turn.
Nurgle's Rot
This player has a horrible infectious disease which spreads when he kills an opponent during a Block, Blitz or Foul Action. Instead of truly dying, the infected opponent becomes a new rookie Rotter. To do so, the opponent must have been removed from the roster during step 2.1 of the Post- game sequence, his Strength cannot exceed 4, and he cannot have the Decay, Regeneration or Stunty skills. The new Rotter can be added to the Nurgle team for free during step 5 of Updating Your Team Roster if the team has an open Roster slot. This new Rotter still counts at full value towards the total value of the Nurgle team.
Really Stupid
This player is without doubt one of the dimmest creatures to ever take to a Blood Bowl pitch (which considering the IQ of most other players, is really saying something!) . Because of this you must roll a D6 immediately after declaring an Action for the player, but before taking the Action. If there are one or more players from the same team standing adjacent to the Really Stupid player's square, and who aren't Really Stupid, then add 2 to the D6 roll. On a result of 1-3 they stand around trying to remember what it is they're meant to be doing. The player can't do anything for the turn, and the player's team loses the declared Action for that turn (for example if a Really Stupid player declares a Blitz Action and fails the Really Stupid roll, then the team cannot declare another Blitz Action that turn). The player loses his tackle zones and may not catch, intercept or pass the ball, assist an-other player on a block or foul, or voluntarily move until he manages to roll a successful result for a Really Stupid roll at the start of a future Action or the drive ends.
Regeneration
If the player suffers a Casualty result on the Injury table, then roll a D6 for Regeneration after the roll on the Casualty table and after any Apothecary roll if allowed. On a result of 1- 3, the player suffers the result of this injury. On a 4-6, the player will heal the injury after a short period of time to 're-organise' himself, and is placed in the Reserves box instead. Regeneration rolls may not be re-rolled. Note that opposing players still earn Star Player points as normal for inflicting a Casualty result on a player with this skill, even if the result doesn't affect the player in the normal way.
Right Stuff
A player with the Right Stuff skill can be thrown by another player from his team who has the Throw Team-Mate skill. See the Throw Team-Mate skill entry below for details of how the player is thrown. When a player with this skill is thrown or fumbled and ends up in an unoccupied square, he must make a landing roll unless he landed on another player during the throw. A landing roll is an Agility roll with a -1 modifier for each opposing player's tackle zone on the square he lands in. If he passes the roll he lands on his feet. If the landing roll is failed or he landed on another player during the throw he is Placed Prone and must pass an Armour roll to avoid injury. If the player is not injured during his landing he may take an Action later this turn if he has not already done so. A failed landing roll or landing in the crowd does not cause a turnover, unless he was holding the ball.
Secret Weapon
Some players are armed with special pieces of equipment that are called 'secret weapons'. Although the Blood Bowl rules specifically ban the use of any weapons, the game has a long history of teams trying to get weapons of some sort onto the pitch. Nonetheless, the use of secret weapons is simply not legal, and referees have a nasty habit of sending off players that use them. Once a drive ends that this player has played in at any point, the referee orders the player to be sent off to the dungeon to join players that have been caught committing fouls during the match regardless of whether the player is still on the pitch or not.
Stab
A player with this skill is armed with something very good at stabbing, slashing or hacking up an opponent, like sharp fangs or a trusty dagger. This player may attack an opponent with their stabbing attack instead of throwing a block at them. Make an unmodified Armour roll (except for Stakes) for the victim. If the score is less than or equal to the victim's Armour value then the attack has no effect. If the score beats the victim's Armour value then they have been wounded and an Injury roll must be made. This Injury roll should ignore all modifiers from any source - including Niggling injuries. If Stab is used as part of a Blitz Action, the player cannot continue moving after using it. Casualties caused by a stabbing attack do not count for Star Player points.
Stakes
This player is armed with special stakes that are blessed to cause extra damage to the Undead and those that work with them. This player may add 1 to the Armour roll when they make a Stab attack against any player playing for a Khemri, Necromantic, Undead or Vampire team.
Stunty
The player is so small that they are very difficult to tackle because they can duck underneath opposing players' outstretched arms and run between their legs. On the other hand, Stunty players are just a bit too small to throw the ball very well, and are easily injured. To represent these things a player with the Stunty skill may ignore any enemy tackle zones on the square he is moving to when he makes a Dodge roll (i.e., they always end up with a +1 Dodge roll modifier), but must subtract 1 from the roll when they pass. In addition, this player treats a roll of 7 and 9 on the Injury table after any modifiers have been applied as a KO'd and Badly Hurt result respectively rather than the normal results. Stunties that are armed with a Secret Weapon are not allowed to ignore enemy tackle zones, but still suffer the other penalties.
Swoop
The player is equipped with a rudimentary set of wings, either natural or engineered, allowing them to glide through the air (rather than plummeting gracelessly) if they are thrown by a team-mate. If a player with Swoop is thrown by a player with the Throw Team-mate skill, the Throw-in template is used instead of the Scatter template to see where they land. Each time the player scatters, their coach places the Throw-in template over the player facing up or down the pitch or towards either sideline. Then they roll a D6 and move the player one square in the indicated direction. In addition, when rolling to see whether the player lands on their feet (as per the Right Stuff skill), add 1 to the result. When a player with both the Swoop and Stunty skills dodges, they do not ignore any modifiers for enemy tackle zones on the square they are moving to - the presence of a large pair of wings negates any benefit they would gain from being small and slippery.
Take Root
Immediately after declaring an Action with this player, roll a D6. On a 2 or more, the player may take his Action as normal. On a 1, the player “takes root”, and his MA is considered 0 until a drive ends, or he is Knocked Down or Placed Prone (and no, players from his own team may not try and block him in order to try to knock him down!) . A player that has taken root may not Go For It, be pushed back for any reason, or use any skill that would allow him to move out of his current square or be Placed Prone. The player may block adjacent players without following-up as part of a Block Action however if a player fails his Take Root roll as part of a Blitz Action he may not block that turn (he can still roll to stand up if he is Prone).
Throw Team-Mate
A player with this skill has the ability to throw a player from the same team instead of the ball! (This includes the ball if the player thrown already has it!) The player throwing must end the movement of his Pass Action standing next to the intended team-mate to be thrown, who must have the Right Stuff skill and be standing. The pass is worked out exactly the same as the player with Throw Team-Mate passing a ball, except the player must subtract 1 from the D6 roll when he passes the player, fumbles are not automatically turnovers, and Long Pass or Long Bomb range passes are not possible. In addition, accurate passes are treated instead as inaccurate passes thus scattering the player three times as players are heavier and harder to pass than a ball. The thrown player cannot be intercepted. A fumbled team-mate will land in the square he originally occupied. If the thrown player scatters off the pitch, he is beaten up by the crowd in the same manner as a player who has been pushed off the pitch. If the final square he scatters into is occupied by another player, treat the player landed on as Knocked Down and roll for Armour (even if already Prone or Stunned), and then the player being thrown will scatter one more square. If the thrown player would land on another player, continue to scatter the thrown player until he ends up in an empty square or off the pitch (i.e. he cannot land on more than one player). See the Right Stuff entry to see if the player lands on his feet or head-down in a crumpled heap!
Timmm-ber!
This player spends so much time on the floor that their team-mates have developed a knack for helping them up. If a player with this skill attempts to stand up after being knocked over, other players from their team can assist if they are adjacent, standing and not in any enemy tackle zones. Each player that assists in this way adds 1 to the result of the dice roll to see whether the player stands up, but remember that a 1 is always a failure, no matter how many players are helping! Assisting a player to stand up does not count as an Action, and a player can assist regardless of whether they have taken an Action.
Titchy
Titchy players tend to be even smaller and more nimble than other Stunty players. To represent this, the player may add 1 to any Dodge roll he attempts. On the other hand, while opponents do have to dodge to leave any of a Titchy player's tackle zones, Titchy players are so small that they do not exert a -1 modifier when opponents dodge into any of their tackle zones.
Weeping Dagger
This player keeps a warpstone-tainted dagger hidden in their kit, and is an expert at keeping it out of the referee's sight! If this player inflicts a casualty during a block, and the result of the Casualty roll is 11-38 (Badly Hurt) after any re-rolls, roll a D6. On a result of 4 or more, the opposing player must miss their next game. If you are not playing a league, a Weeping Dagger has no effect on the game.
Wild Animal
Wild Animals are uncontrollable creatures that rarely do exactly what a coach wants of them. In fact, just about all you can really rely on them to do is lash out at opposing players that move too close to them! To represent this, immediately after declaring an Action with a Wild Animal, roll a D6, adding 2 to the roll if taking a Block or Blitz Action. On a roll of 1-3, the Wild Animal does not move and roars in rage instead, and the Action is wasted.
Disposable
Some teams field players of great skill and ability. Other teams, however, do not. Whilst most teams will hire capable players and pay them a fair wage, some teams will happily take on the most useless of players to fill out their ranks. Readily available, easily replaceable and usually willing to work for a pittance, such player fill gaps in the rosters, but rarely do much more! When calculating Team Value, the amount of gold pieces spent to purchase a player with this skills is not included in the total.
Swarming
At the start of each drive, after setting up but before the kick-off, you may choose to remove an extra D3 players with the Swarming skill from the Reserves box and set them up on the pitch, even if this takes the number of the players on the pitch above 11. These players may not be placed on the line of scrimmage or in a wide zone.