Friday, January 29, 2010

Clomp! League : Season Three, Day One

After what seemed an overly long hiatus (to bloodthirsty orcs anyway), Season Three of the Clomp! Cup was organized and ready to rumble. The Greenskins of Azh's Bashas gnashed their teeth in anticipation of the first day's match against the opposing Orc team, the Zerkr'z.

A bit worried about facing off against the veteran Bashas team, the Zerkr'z opted to hire a Star Player by the name of Varag Goul-Chewer for this match. His presence would be notable in the game, but perhaps not as expected.

First Half:

The Bashas receive the opening kickoff deep in their own half of the field. Gugfak, Thrower for the Bashas team, rolls to the right with excellent protection. The two front lines of the Greenskin teams collide. Goul-Chewer grabs hold of Galnak on the Bashas team, but the wily Black Orc is no rookie, and with a decisive move, hurls Varag to the ground. With Goul-Chewer down, and another Zerkr'z Black Orc KOed, Gugfak has plenty of room to step forward and deliver a short pass to Badhag, who streaks down the field, scoring the opening touchdown of the game!

On the ensuing kickoff, Earguff KOs another Zerkr'z Black Orc, opening the way for Badhag, with the assistance of the little Goblin Itsham, to fly into the backfield, delivering a punishing blow to the Zerkr'z Thrower that removes him from the game. With the ball on the ground and the Zerkr'z players out of position, it's an easy scoop and score for Marfak, another Bashas Blitzer.

As the ball again sails through the air on a kickoff, one enraged Zerkr'z fan hurls a large, pointy rock at Varag Goul-Chewer, catching the mercenary in the side of the head. Stunned, Varag falls to the ground, his noggin colliding with the turf in unison with the squigskin. Bereft of their only Thrower, The Zerkr'z try to draft their Blizter Galth into action as a passer. But his skills in that area prove to be inept, and the pass flies errant, landing amidst the Bashas team, lacking only the pretty bow that would clearly mark it as a gift! Gugfak grabs the ball, and in a play reminiscent of the first score of the game, makes a short pass to Badhag who rumbles down the right sideline unopposed. Finally recovering from his head injury, Varag Goul-Chewer hops up from the ground and makes a desperate dash across the field. But Badhag nimbly dodges, keeping his feet inbounds along the edge of the field as he dashes into the endzone for his second score of the game, taking the Basahs into halftime with a 3-0 lead!


Second Half:

The Zerkr'z receive the ball to start the second half. Varag, embarrassed by his performance in the first half, takes his anger out on Itsham, stunning the gobo with a heavy blow. Galth, still trying to fill in as the Zerkr'z Thrower, muffs the pickup, allowing the Bashas to break the lines before the play had even really begun. But the Zerkr'z recover quickly, and in a surprise trick play, Galth sprints past the ball, leaving it on the turf for Lineman Moklor to pick up who then makes a toss to Galth who had continued running upfield. Galth handoffs to Marfak (on the Zerkr'z team. Greenskins aren't known for being especially original with names), who sprints for the endzone. But Itsham latches on to one leg, slowing the ball-carrier down just enough for Gorfang to move up and lay the Zerkr'z Blitzer out. The Goblin grabs the ball, carrying it in the other direction with several teammates providing a defensive screen. Gugfak retreats from the line of scrimmage and takes the ball from the Itsham before running to the far side of the field and scanning downfield for a potential receiver. Meanwhile, far away from the rest of the action, Varag Goug'Liver, a Black Orc on the Bashas team known for being especially vicious, delivers a bone-crunching elbow to the face of Moklor, sending the Zerkr'z Lineman to the locker room with a broken jaw. Gugfak continues moving, crossing midfield before Galth (on the Bashas team) breaks free from the pack. Another quick, accurate pass lands in the receiver's hands, and Galth sprints down the field, angling away from both teams and trotting into the endzone as the playclock expires.

Final Score: Azh's Bashas 4, Zerkr'z 0

Clomp! League: Season Three, Intro

And Season Three of the Clomp! Cup is off and running! After the trouble encountered last season where a number of teams went MIA, it was decided that Season Three would be limited to veteran coaches who had already proven their reliability. This season will also be the first to use the newly implemented playoff feature for multiplayer tournaments.

Many teams from Season Two returned for another shot at the title, but there are also several new contestants, including the first Dark Elf team to accept the challenge of competing in the Clomp! Cup. Total number of teams competing: 14.

Returning Teams:
The Dance of Death (Chaos) (Champions of Season Two)
Blood Fang Boyz (Orc) (Champions of Season One)
Azh's Bashas (Orc)
The Altdorf Avengers (Human)
Bufo Draconis (Lizardmen)
Tree Rats (Wood Elf)
Zerkr'z (Orc)
Nurgle's Pathogens (Chaos)

New Teams:
Khornate Kilers (Chaos)
East Eden Sins (Lizardmen)
Ithrond Ironstars (Dark Elf)
Odin's Hammer (Dwarf)
Plaguerunnaz (Skaven)
Chaos 101 (Chaos)

Read the full post to see links to the individual match summaries for Azh's Bashas.

Full details about this season (so far) can be found on the Shadowclan wiki.

Links to recaps of completed matches for Azh's Bashas will be added here as they occur.

Day One - Zerkr'z

Friday, January 08, 2010

Clomp! League : Season Two, Day Nine

The Day 8 match against the Dwarven team, Ground Round, was resolved 1-0 in favor of Azh's Bashas due to a no-show by the Dwarves.


On the final day of the second season of he Clomp! Cup Tournament, Azh's Bashas, in the running for one of the top two spots in the division, square off against the equally tough Altdorf Avengers and one of the most violent players in the league, Borgrut Lucky.


First Half:

The Avengers receive a short kick that drops just over the midfield line on the left side of offense. Dunkel Huppert, lone man in the backfield, easily trots over and picks it up, making a short forward shuffle pass to receiver Arne Filibert who cuts back across the field and streaks up the right sideline. But Marfak, one of the Bashas Blizters, is in the area and knocks the ball loose. A series of blocks from his teammates sends most of the nearby Avengers to the ground, but Marfak fails to pickup the ball, watching in shoot out of bounds where the fans throw it back to the middle of the field near the Bashas goal. Both teams break from the scrum on the sidelines to form a new one around the ball. Riknast takes the ball, but Filibert and Dieter Geet, the two muscle-bound Catchers for the Avengers, slip their blocks and harass the Blitzer, tripping him up as he tries to push past and move downfield. A timely strike by Borgrut, the Avengers star Ogre, sends one of the Black Orcs out of the game with a broken jaw, clearing room in the middle of the field for extra support to stream in. Marfak briefly emerges from the melee, squigskin in hand, But Borgrut meets him head on, sending both the Blitzer and the ball to the turf. Earguff delivers a retaliatory blow to the Ogre, but despite the ferocity of the attack, the beast's Thick Skull turns what would have been a damaging attack into nothing more than a bad headache for the brute. Bloodlust gets the better of both teams, and half ends with several more brutal knockdowns and a 0-0 tie score.


Second Half:

The opening of the second half sees the first appearance in the game of Gugfak, Bashas Thrower, and Itsham the Goblin. Dodging a heavy blitz from the Avengers, Gugfak tosses the ball to Galth near the midfield line. Marfak, running interference along the same sideline, smashes the collarbone of the lone defender, clearing a wide open path for Galth who rumbles into the endzone for the first score of the game!

Dunkel Hupert receives the kickoff, moving up in the pocket behind his line while the two star Catchers streak downfield. The Bashas converge on both knocking Dieter Geet to the ground. But Arne Filibert slips away from a tackler and catches a perfectly thrown strike in the endzone to tie up the game.

On the ensuing possession change, Gugfak, again avoiding an Avenger blitz, makes a short pass to Itsham at midfield. Itsham slips to the right side, moving up between two orcs for protection. But along the way, he lashes out with a quick boot to the head of a prone Arne Filibert, giving the receiver a concussion and sending him off the field. But the Avengers are not caught as out of position as before. Borgrut KOs Gramnast Jr, making room for another Avenger to pound the little Goblin into the ground. Both teams struggle for possession of the ball, but amidst the flailing limbs and spiked armor, controlling the squigskin proves to be a difficult task, and neither side comes close to scoring again as time winds down, ending the game in a tie, with one score apiece!

Final Score: Azh's Bashas 1, The Altdorf Avengers 1


Final Results: Azh's Bashas finished 3rd in their division, and did not earn a berth in the Divisional Championship game. Season Two of the Clomp! Cup was won by a Chaos team from Division One, The Dance of Death.