We do love a new team when it comes to Blood Bowl, especially when they’re donning fancy hats and feathers! I’m a big fan of the Imperial Nobility team, particularly in terms of their aesthetic and their absolutely stunning models. But what about the Imperial Nobility starting rosters? Well if you look closely you can see some very striking similarities to Blood Bowl 2’s Brettonnia team, particularly when one looks at the Linemen (Peasants), Blitzers (Knights) and Bodyguards (Yeoman/Blockers). However, they’ve been altered slightly to differentiate themselves from their now extinct brethren (who are now spooky bois!), particularly with an addition of a dedicated Thrower and their own big guy in the form of an Ogre!

The theme is already strong enough for me to want to field them in the new Edition… and give GW more of my money (seriously… I already bought 40k’s Indomitus box….I just can’t stop!). So let’s have a look at some Imperial Nobility starting rosters, shall we?

Ogre-riffic, All Positionals, 2 ReRolls TV1000 Roster:

Much like the Human Teams I’d be tempted to start with an Ogre. For a big guy, they’re fairly reliable and provide a nice anchor for the team to work around and give you a nice Guard platform when he gets some SPP in the bag. Unlike the revised Human team he has no halflings to throw, but the rest of your players are all ST3 so having that extra strength is worthwhile.

I’ve also gone for an Imperial Thrower here as well, mostly for PA3+ which puts them at the same roll as the old AG3, which is fine considering they start with Pass. What’s interesting for me, however, is the inclusion of Running Pass, a new skill that lets you move AFTER throwing. The whole team has fairly average movement, so this skill now lets you shift the ball to a Blitzer (catching on a 3+ with a reroll, not bad!) and then you can move the thrower into a marking position to help stop any incoming blitzes on your new ball carrier. For me, this could be big, before Throwers often ended up in no-mans-land after passing the ball, often just taking them out of the game completely for a turn or two. These guys, however, from the off can contribute to tackle-zones far better than they would have done before, and I like that a lot! They’re 5k less their Human counterpart and are 3+ instead of 2+, but I think Running Pass gives them some cool utility for this team.

1 Blitzer and 3 Bodyguards will give you plenty of hitting ability as well at the beginning. Your Blitzer, with MV7 is going to do exactly what it says on his feather-covered tin, move about and Blitz things! The Bodyguards, on the other hand, are going to provide some nice assist pieces and with MV6 they won’t make bad sackers either. They’re going to help deal with incoming Block Blitzers from your opponent, so again, they’re actually very good doing what they’re called. Wrestle’s not quite as good early on I think as Block, but I still think it’s a great skill to have and dragging down players for your Blitzer to Jump over will be fun!

Retainer linemen have also been improved, with MV6 instead of 5. With 6 in this build you get 12 players, so feel free to foul away with these guys. Fend is great on them as well and paired with their improved MV6 they can reposition very nicely!

2 Rerolls I think is ok with all that Block/Wrestle/Pass/Catch, but I’d definitely be looking for a 3rd sooner rather than later. Followed by the Apo and then your 2nd Blitzer for some more block.

We Will Not be Moved! 3 ReRolls TV1000 Roster:

Fancy creating an immovable wall of golden feathered goodness? Look no further!

This for me is a slightly more ‘reliable’ build as we’ve dropped the Ogre for another reroll and the 4th Bodyguard. This gives you Stand Firm/Wrestle Coverage across basically the whole board. With MV6 as well they don’t make bad cage either, where they’re either going to drag down cage hitters with them or just stay where they are, making it harder to get to your ball carrier. Plus with the new Jump ability, you can just Wrestle down the Line of Scrimmage and push the rest of your team through.

Again you’ve only got 1 Blizter, but I think he’ll be fine on his own with so many Bodyguards to keep the other team busy. We’ve also got just the 1 Thrower, which I think is all you need on this team. 12 players again thanks to cheap linemen, so you’ll likely have a player advantage at the beginning, which helps your average (or below average in the case of the Retainers) AV rating.

Going forward, you’ll want the Apo to save your more expensive Blizter and Bodyguards, then look to get the 2nd Blizter I think before committing to saving for the Ogre.

Nobles & Retinue, 2 ReRolls TV1000 Roster:

This build gets you maximum Blitzers & Bodyguards, for a total of 6 “block” style players. This one might be good if you’re up against Norse/Amazons (if they arrive in the new addition) and plays very similarly to the old Bretonnians. No thrower so no passing here, but your Blitzers should be able to pick up and hand off if you need the move the ball around quickly.

This one is  a bit of an alternative to the one above. I personally prefer to have the Thrower for some cool Running Pass plays, but if you feel ok with just having a Blizter hold onto it then this one might be better suited for you. The lack of 3rd ReRoll is slightly offset with so much Block/Wrestle but I’d look to get your 3rd after the Apothecary, followed by your choice of saving for the Ogre or getting the Thower.

Both Blizters, 3 ReRolls TV1000 Roster:

A slight alternative to our first roster, this one sacrifices 2 bodyguards for another Blitzer and another ReRoll, but keeps the Ogre. I think you’ll have quite as much pitch presence with this one, but you’ll be able to cover a bit more ground with 2 x MV7. Your single Bodyguard is going to have a bit of a job on his hands by his lonesome, so fewer opportunities to get a nice cage going although the Retainers won’t make an awful replacement.

The biggest benefit over the other Imperial Nobility starting rosters is the 3rd ReRoll, whilst also having the Ogre. Getting the remaining Bodyguards might be a bit of a challenge as it’s another 270k you need to save up, but it’s doable and you have the 12th player as a buffer for any deaths or serious injuries.

Imperial Nobility Starting Rosters, Conclusion:

It was quite a challenge to make these, this team has some interesting pricing options and expensive rerolls so putting together an 11 player team seems unlikely, but 12 gives you a nice number to work with and a slight advantage for KO’s and Casualties going into the beginning of the season.

I absolutely love the theme of these guys, as well as the models, so these might be my new go-to for Blood Bowl. In terms of the Imperial Nobility starting Rosters, I think I’ll try starting with either the Max Bodyguard Build or the Nobles & Retinue build then save up for the Ogre later.

Let us know what you think, or if you have another build you’d like to suggest. We’re open to community suggested lists and if we like yours, you might just see it on the website (you’ll be credited of course!)

In the meantime check out our other BB2020 lists!