For Spike! 2009, I coached an Undead team called Doom Doom Doom!  Here's the lineup, and I've included the advances I took:

1. Implode, Mummy - Multiblock
2. Explode, Mummy - Piling On
3. Boom, Wight - Guard
4. Bang, Wight - Guard
5. Dash, Ghoul - Sure Hands
6. Flash, Ghoul
7. Gnash, Ghoul
8. <unfilled>
9. Black Hole, Skeleton
10. Super Nova, Skeleton
11. Earth Quake, Zombie
12. Tsunami, Zombie
13. Hurricane, Zombie

2 Re-rolls, 4 Fan Factor, 2 AC, 1 Cheer leader

Record was 3-3-0 and I scored about 10 casualties.  Of the casualties I suffered, 3 were ghouls and there were 6 others of which 4 regenerated, worked out pretty darned good :D

All the games were pretty close and excellent matches.  I wish I had written down stuff, because I've totally forgotten most of the salient details... A few beers will do that to you.  But here's what I remember.

Game 1 was with Ryan S and his Humans.  What a great match!  Hard fought, tight score, but he cheated like a dirty son-of-a-gun and won by a TD.

Game 2 was Mike M and his Chaos...  A rock 'em sock 'em match and I came out just ahead of him in a real nail-biter.  When that last phase was played, but we both were just glued to the board as the diced bounced around deciding our fate!  Very intense and a great match!

Now I get a bit hazy as to who I played when, but I think I played Damien's Dwarves in game 3.  Those effing Dwarves!   I forgot about their Troll Slayers, specifically Frenzy, so I started a Ghoul too close to the side-line and he got frenzied off the pitch right off the bat ... Boy, I didn't make that mistake twice!  ... Well, at least not intentionally.  The Dwarves fought hard and I think he beat me 3-1 in that match.

Day 2 started out againts Neil's Ogres (maybe) and what a grind-fest that was!  Holy smokes!  Rocking bopping smashing crashing!  The first half was the Ogres drive and they spent all 8 phases grinding up the field for a TD.  The second half we rallied but there was much rocking and socking in the course of doing so.  In the end, the casualties were brutal.  He injured a skeleton (regenerated) and I injured a Snotling ... Apothecaried.  The rest were KOs, but very brutal KOs.

Game 5 would be ... More Dwarves!  This time I was ready for them Troll Slayers... But Cale didn't have any.  That lucky son-of-a-gun managed to score twice with Blockers.  The first time, my Ghoul had just blitzed his ball-carrier and gotten the ball right on my line, so natually, he blitzed that Ghoul with a Blocker and lo and behold!  The ball bounced onto the Blocker, he rolls a six, and then does a go-for-it to get into the end zone!  I mean, what the hell?  So then natually, in the second half, through similar circumstances, a lucky bounce, etc, he runs in the tie-breaking TD with a Blocker.  What the heck?  Did this guy just drive from Alberta, and go straight to the Commissioner's house with a pot of gold?

So finally, game 6 was ... More Dwarves!  There outta be a rule somewheres saying "Fuck Dwarves!  Fuck them in their stupid asses!"  This time it was Chris S.'s Chaos Dwarves.  I was only able to win through cunning strategy.   I stragecially rolled great, or at least not too bad, and cunningly had Chris roll lots of 1s and Skulls.    My cunning strategy worked and we shut-out the Chaos Dwarves.  Hoorah!

Ah, the Undead, so much fun!

Congrats to the various trophy winners and the Spike! 2009 Grand Champion Johnny Mac!  Thanks to all the organizers and the league commissioners a thank you all the great coaches who showed up.  Everyone was a good coach and a great sport!

- Arch

Well, Subhedgehog laid down the gauntlet a while ago, but better late than never, eh?

My Spike 2009 Lineup

180kgp - 2 x Storm Vermin

320kgp - 4 x Gutter Runner

250kgp - 5 x Linerat

70kgp - 1 x Thrower

180kgp - 3 x Rerolls

I really considered dropping down to 11 players (converting the thrower to a linerat) and taking the fourth reroll... but ultimately I need to be able to field a team in the second half so I'll have to make do with 3 potential mulligans instead.

Oh well, it just means that I start routinely turning over on the first action on Turn 4 instead of Turn 5.

The plan?

Score early, score often and die trying.

If I can't get the "most TDs" award, I think I'm probably a shoe-in for "most casualties received" if that halfling kid doesn't show up this year ;)

My ideal matchup is probably against Lord Chaos. I'd like to score every two turns and he'd be happy to "rack 'em up" for another shot at killing my line of scrimmage.

Science gone wrong!

This just in!  The performance art show-piece "Science Gone Wrong" is attending a public event and will be available for autographs!  All the members of your favourite stunted, four-foot tall, pot-bellied, beer swigging ballet troupe will be on hand.  Get your picture taken with team captain, Dolly the Sheep and be amazed as she seems six years older than her birth certificate would normally indicate.  Weep at the flaming ball of burning wreckage that is Hindenburg.  You can get into a shouting match over nothing at all with the most vocal troupe member, The Internet.  Be amazed at the penmanship of Thalidomide as he signs your Science Gone Wrong memorabilia.  Bring your cash and your willingness to be amazed!

But seriously folks.  I am wondering what people are bringing to the Spike! in a couple of weeks.  I knew I couldn't really just straight up ask others what they're doing without providing some info myself.  I'm dusting off my old dwarves (and even slapping some paint on my death roller) for the event.  Without further ado, here is my list.  If you feel like you want to respond, post up a blog entry of your own and toss "Spike!" in the tags.

160k - Deathroller - Thalidomide

90k - Troll Slayer - Dr. Jekyll

160k - 2 x Blitzers - Dr. Frankenstein and Dr. Strangelove (A)

160k - 2 x Runners - Eugenics and Rhinovirus

350k - 5 x Longbeards (aka Blockers) - Dolly the Sheep (C), The Internet(A), Large Hadron Collider (Strangelet maker to his friends), Hindenburg and Chernobyl

80k - 2 x rerolls (as of yet un-named).

=====

1000k

Short on rerolls.  Short a troll slayer.  Hell, just short in general!  I give you Science Gone Wrong!

I am bringing the 5 mummy team back for one more Spike. Why? Cause it's the last Spike that I will be able to use them at. And this time I am planning on taking home the casualty gold.