Spiffying Up the Blog, Part 4

And now, probably the most time-consuming of the "spiffy-ups". Since many of us in the league are artists in some respect, and because there is a very strong need to identify our home made sports heroes as more than just numbers in an Excel document, we've been putting together sports cards for the teams in the league. This took quite some time to get going, and in all honesty it would be much quicker to take photos of the miniatures and import them, but it's nice to put one's own personal touch on a character. Here, then, is a sample of the 07-08 MMBBL card set, featuring none other than the most lovable ogre in...whatever the heck we're going to call the world we play in.

A few notes: If a player increases a stat or loses a point in a stat, the number will appear in green or red respectively. In those odd cases where a player had lost a stat point and subsequently regained it through leveling up, the number will appear in orange (and yes, we already have one of those in the new season). Also, as you can see, Barglesnart is listed as a "Throttler" instead of simply "Ogre". This is because categorizing a player as simply a member of a particular race strikes me as a bit weak. Players develop as they get better, and their position on the team should reflect that, in my opinion.

I was considering posting the entire Knights roster in cards here, but it would be quite a long post. We'll see what the other coaches think. Hopefully we'll have more art/pictures ready in short order, so that game MVPs can be actually shown instead of merely talked about.

Spiffying Up the Blog, Part 3

Welcome to the Neighbourhood.

In the interest of fleshing out our Blood Bowl world, I built a map a little while ago with a nifty little program called Fractal Mapper. The result is what you see above, with the addition of team and stadium markings. You may notice some teams on the map which have never been seen before - they're a combination of new teams who haven't gotten their shot yet, and old squads players brought in from previous leagues but haven't used yet. For now this is all for show, but in the future, who knows? Ther may be a need for specific divisions may arise if we keep expanding.

Spiffying Up the Blog, Part 2

For the second stage of the spiffy-up, we figured it was time we had some visual cues to know our teams by. With most of us being artistically inclined, it was easy enough to get creative juices flowing and before we knew it, we had a heap of very strong, unique, and above all, convincing logos on our hands. So, for your viewing as well as reading pleasure, we present the twelve teams taking part in the MMBBL's 2008 Autumn season.

ASGARD RAIDERS

The Raiders are the second Norse team to enter the league, and are one of the two teams coached by the reigning champion, Curtis Hunt. The squad has two logos: the one on the left is their main brand; the second, a longship topped with a bold "A", will appear on their helmets.







BLACKWATER BILGERUNNERS
The Bilgerunners, the MMBBL's lone Skaven team, had an incredible breakout season this past Summer with rookie coach Jonathan Roth at the helm. We can't wait to see what kind of high-flying antics the Rat Rush will bring this Fall.








BLOODDRUNK BERSERKERS
The Berserkers are the second team fielded by coaching phenom Curtis Hunt. In addition to his coaching and illustrating skills, Curt actually built his team's chaos warriors and minotaur with his own modeling material and unique flair for the pointy and killy.








BLUERIVER WARDOVES
The Wardoves had a strong season under the watchful eyes of coach Chris Mudd, who is also distinguished as the league's Coach Wrangler and one of the reasons we're as successful as we are today. The Wardoves' third season promises to be full of incredible displays of skill and speed, as well as tasteful but exciting photo opportunities.






DARKMIRE CARNOSAURS
J Gagnon had a strong second season with his Brutakai Ragefangs this past Summer, and the success he found has spurred him on to new challenges. Shelving the orcs in favour of a Lizardman team, J brings the Darkmire Carnosaurs into contention. In the tradition he began with the Ragefangs, we can't wait to see the memorable characters the Carnosaurs roster will put on display.






FLY-BY KNIGHTS
Given the opportunity to toot my own horn, I'll do my best not to embellish the accomplishments of Matt Stroud's Fly-by Knights. Until now, they'd only been played every other season, with more experimental squads showing up in the Winter and Summer seasons. Coming into the Autumn season, the Knights are the highest-rated squad, and the oldest team in current contention.






MUENSTER VALLEY STINKERS
As one of the four coaches fielding two teams this season, the Commissioner, Matt Stroud, retains much of his flair for the experimental. Given how many times we've seen a troll casually try to devour a goblin teammate, it's perhaps a surprise to see a team enter the league based almost entirely around that strategy. If nothing else, the Stinkers should provide a healthy dose of questionable moral fiber.





PANCAKE VALLEY SHORTSTACKS
In a similar case of experimental curiosity meeting morbid fascination, coach Sandy Miller, known up to now for his widely popular Meathooks squad, will be fielding a halfling roster as one of his two teams this Fall. Keep those Tree Men standing, Sandy old boy, and don't get discouraged if you lose a dozen or so of your plucky halfling projectiles.






RAZOR HILL SPINEBREAKERS
Inspired perhaps by the wanton carnage caused by other orc teams, comeback-of-the-year coach Ryan Keizer is bringing a greenskin squad of his own to the league. Without question, the Spinebreakers are a team built to crush the opposition. If they can score some points along the way - hey, bonus!







SMASH AND GO'NADS
The Smash and Go'nads were last season's cinderella story, making a headlong rush into the Blood Bowl and coming oh-so-close to victory. Back with a wealth of experience and a sickening number of guard assists, the Go'nads remain the powerhouse team in coach Ryan Keizer's stable.







SUN TEMPLE CHUPACABRAS
Sandy Miller brings another Lizardman team into the mix, Leading his luchador lizards out of the jungle and, hopefully, into the winner's circle. Probably a more reliable bet that a halfling team, look for the Chupacabras to play with pride and power.








TRAUMATIC TAKEDOWN
Keith Dury's chaos dwarves hit some rough patches throughout last season, and some bad luck kept him from accumulating a truly powerful presence on the pitch. Returning this Autumn and not discouraged in the slightest, the Takedown find themselves in the upper middle of the pack as more new teams join the league. As with most second-year teams, look for improvement by leaps and bounds from the Traumatic Takedown.

Owners, officials, coaches and fans, I present to you, the Autumn 2008 MMBBL!

Spiffying Up the Blog, Part 1

As part of the celebrations surrounding Blood Bowl Day, and our ongoing effort to make this league as cool as possible, We're stepping up the graphics here on the MMBBL Blog. Part one of this initiative is a more intense way to display the games that are played each season, specifically a more dynamic header for each post.


There's going to be one of these babies up for every game post - regular season, challenge, and playoffs - from now on. The two teams, the arena, and attendance. Not too much else to say about it except a big thanks to coach Ryan Keizer for the idea!