The Hefty is an interesting piece. At first glance, he’s not great, with AV8+, S2 and even lacks Right Stuff, making him a slow, weak piece compared to most others in the game. However, they remain this coach’s favourite new addition to the team, mostly because their official mini rocks but also because they’re actually a support piece for a team that never used to have it.

AV8+ isn’t great, but it’s a huge jump in durability from a pure maths perspective (58.3% to 41.7% chance of breaking the armour), which for a team that tends to fall over faster than a football player (that’s soccer for your ‘Mericans!) being tapped on the arm, is pretty good. Fend is also an interesting skill, as Halflings really don’t like being hit, especially by tackle players. 3+ with Dodge has a good chance of succeeding, but for a team that’s very high risk being able to run away without needing to roll a dice is a welcome change indeed. You also now have a half-decent selection for your third player to sit on the LoS next to the trees (unless you have Deeproot of course, which you always should!), giving you those much needed Three Die Blocks on offence and a sturdier-ish piece on defence.

In terms of the Halfling Hefty Player Build, you’re really looking to use them in that supporting role, not dissimilar to traditional linemen really, mostly assisting the Trees, making blocks where they can and even forming the rear part of a cage. Unfortunately, they’re going to be quite hard to get SPP on outside of the odd Casualty or MVP and seeing as you can’t throw them they’re not going to be scoring any time soon. Still, even with their base skills, they’re good at what they do, for a Halfling anyway and that’s pretty good for a team that doesn’t want to have a large TV. At 50k they’re expensive for a halfling, but the increased durability and being easier to reposition after a block makes them for a fine choice.

So, let’s see what you might want to do with them!

Randomised Skills:

If they had General Primaries, then I’d be tempted, but like the Catcher, they need to pick their skills as opposed to getting randoms. Random Secondaries might be a thing but seeing as how 12 SPP is going to be hard to reach for a player who is often STARVED for experience points, but with Halflings needing to stay cheap it’s often worth keeping them at their base level until a few lucky Casualties or MVPs go their way.

A Halfling….Lineman?!  (Support) | Halfling Hefty Player Build

Primaries: Side Step/Leader
Secondaries: Block/Guard
Characteristics: ST/AG/MV

Yes, you read the title right!

The Hefty is the closest thing to a traditional “Lineman” as you’ll ever get. AV8+ is still woeful but much better than the paper thing 7+ the rest of the team has to deal with. Fend as standard is nice, but really you’ll be looking for Block and Leader as your first skills.

Halflings have very few ways to get Block and a regular Hopeful with it is an expensive piece for a team that wants lots of inducements, plus it’s very hard to get, plus they’re very likely to die as soon as they do. The Hefty however is a great piece to have it on, as Blodge/Fend means he’s going to be hard to pin down and thus able to still provide support and tackle zones. That’s what these guys are, support pieces, something this team never really had before. They’re best used next to Trees to give assists for Three Die Blocks and actually have a decent chance of staying up and on the pitch compared to a Hopeful. Side Step is great as it allows them to continue to be a nuisance and continue to support the trees. They also make for a very good (comparatively for Hallfings) corner of a cage alongside the two Trees while you slowly position yourself for that prime Throw Team mate.

Leader is a good shout as well, as the Chef can sometimes whiff so having an extra RR available is always useful and probably the Hefties only real use of their Passing access. With their, um…. sort of increased durability, you’ll likely be able to use it at least once per game.

If you’re feeling really cheeky, saving up for Guard (after Block!) is worthwhile too, as it means they can provide assist support to bogged down treemen in order to help get them their Three Die Blocks. Obviously getting to ST3 would be great as well but is a BIG SPP investment for this player.

These guys, however, are going to struggle to get SPP, so I’d be tempted to prioritise Side Step, unless they happen to get an MVP at 4 or 5 SPP to bring them within reach of 12, then grab Block immediately.

All Hail Mary | Halfling Hefty Player Build

Primaries: Hail Mary Pass/Leader
Secondaries: Sure Hands
Characteristics: AG

Only coaches from the very first League will get the title…

Anyway yes, Hail Mary Pass.

Halflings are not a passing team in the traditional sense. No Pass, AG3+, MV5 and Stunty make for a very poor set of skills when it comes to the more elegant aspect of Blood Bowl, even when compared to teams that are middling at it. What they are good at, however, is throwing stuff right down the pitch without a care in the world, something that HMP can let you do WITH THE BALL!!!

Halflings struggle on defence, a lot (and offence too…) and even if they do manage to get the ball free, you’ll often find your Treemen are still hovering around the LoS and a ST2, AG3+ piece isn’t going to be holding onto the ball for very long.

So what do you do?

Well, you can’t really cage up, by this point you’ve probably lost a few ‘Lings so the enemy team is going to be swarming in at any moment. You can’t pass it down the field, you probably won’t have a receiver, you suck and passing and your MV5 isn’t exactly going to get the ball to a safe spot out of reach.

So, you use HMP to YEEET the ball as far away as you can, forcing your opponent to start all over again, giving you some breathing space for your Trees to do some damage or for your Hopefuls (preferably with Dirty Player) to stick the boot into some downed players. If you’re lucky, you can even throw a Halfling in the next turn to go for a very cheeky Touchdown.

*Chefs Kiss!* PERFECTION!

Sure Hands & Leader will help make this somewhat reliable, just in case you were wondering.

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If you couldn’t tell, I love the Hefty and makes for a fun supporting player this team can utilise. For the most part, I’d probably build them both into the Support role. BlodgeStep is a pain even on an S2 piece and it means your Trees are going to be well supported when needed. It’s nice to have hard to shift body in the way as well, giving you time to set up TTMs or frustrated your opponent’s gameplan.

That’s it for the Halfling Hefty Player Build, Head over to our Hopeful, Catcher & Treeman Builds!