"Come out, come out, little knight, it's time you faced the dragon." Aerion, nicknamed "Brightflame," is the second son of King Maekar I. Brightflame was a skilled knight, but also capricious, cruel, and arrogant - he also thought he was a dragon in human form. After starting the beef that ended in the Trial of the Seven at the tourney at Ashford, which led to the death of Crown Prince Baelor, Brightflame was exiled to Essos, where he joined the Second Sons. He would eventually die ingesting wildfire, believing it would turn him into a dragon.
Back again for the fourth installment of this yearly tourney with an ever-growing list of special tourney Star Players. THIS YEAR WE WILL BE EXPANDING THIS TO A TWO-DAY, SIX GAME TOURNEY AND WILL BE A PREMIER GLAM EVENT IN 2027
Schedule
Saturday, July 10th
- 7:30 - 8:00 am Announcements/Check-in
- 8:00 - 10:15 am Round 1
- 10:45 - 1:00 pm Round 2
- 1:00 - 2:00 pm LUNCH
- 2:00 - 4:15 pm Round 3
- 4:45 - 7:00 pm Round 4
Sunday, July 11th
- 7:30 - 8:00 Announcements
- 8:00 - 10:15 am Round 5
- 10:45 - 1:00 pm Round 6
- 1:30 pm Awards Ceremony
Registration
Rosters Due in PDF format to seanmcowley@gmail.com no later than June 26, 2027. If you submit by that deadline, you may include a free cheerleader on your roster.
Tournament Rules
We will be using the following documents as the baseline Ruleset:
- Current "3rd Season" 2025 (Season 3) rules for Blood Bowl
- All Spike Magazines to and including the Brettonians and Tomb Kings
- The Current GW Official Errata & Designer's Commentary (Last released May 2026)
- The Slann roster approved by the NAF for tourneys for Third Season
- Updated Rules/Teams: Any new teams or roster changes by GW done before May 1, 2027 will automatically be included in these rules. The TO reserves the right to decide whether to include any new rosters or edits to current rosters published after that date, and to place teams into the existing tier structure accordingly.
Rules Clarifications
- Special play cards will not be allowed
- Illegal procedure will not be in use
- Please keep up with the pace of play. At the request of either coach, at any time in the game, a 4 minute timer may be used and implemented on the game.
- Normal resurrection rules are in effect - no SPP recorded, injuries do not carry over between games
- Tourney will use the normal weather and kickoff tables. Each table will roll their own weather.
- Only GW or NAF block dice will be allowed. You are required to use the D6 dice you will receive as part of your swag bag at registration. You may use prior year's D6 dice as well, which will be available for purchase on-scene while supplies last. You are required to share dice if your opponent requests.
Team Building Rules
- You will be given 1,100,000 GP to build your roster
- Wizards, journeymen, mercenaries, and special play cards are not allowed
- Blood Bowl Star Players may be purchased as normal, but you must have purchased 11 players before a star for your roster. Skill penalties will apply to taking stars or mega-stars as further discussed below.
- Second Sons Star Players may also be chosen, but you must have purchased 11 players before a star for your roster. Second Sons Star Players will not impose a skill penalty on your roster.
- You may have a maximum of two Star Players total on your roster (for many teams, only one Star Player), regardless of whether they are a regular Star Player or a Second Sons Star Player. Star Players which come as a pair (e.g., the Swift Twins) count as one Star Player for number of Star Player limitations, and will only count as one player for the skill penalty described below.
- Highlander Rule: If two opponents have purchased the same Star Player, they will not play for either team and they keep the money and skill points spent to purchase them. This rule will not apply to Second Sons Star Players.
- After you have purchased your team, you may buy skills for your players based on the following tier system (Note - these Tiers may differ from the FAQ and the BB Third Season book):
- Tier 1 teams - 6 Skill Points to spend. No secondary skills may be taken, and only one Star Player may be purchased. Amazon, Dark Elf, High Elf, Human, Imperial Nobility, Lizardmen, Necromantic Horror, Norse, Nurgle, Old World Alliance, Orc, Shambling Undead, Skaven, Underworld Denizens, Vampire, Wood Elf.
- Tier 2 teams - 8 skill points to spend. Only one secondary skill, and one Star Player may be purchased. Black Orc, Brettonian, Chaos Chosen, Chaos Dwarf, Chaos Renegade, Dwarf, Elven Union, Khorne, Snotling, Tomb King.
- Tier 3 teams - 10 skill points to spend. Only two secondary skills, and two Star Players may be purchased. Black Orc with no Black Orcs, Gnome, Goblin, Halfling, Lizardmen with no Saurus, Ogre, Underworld with no Skaven.
- Primary skills may be purchased for 1 skill point, and secondary skills for 2 skill points. No stat increases or random skills. Maximum of four added skills of a single type (e.g., four Guard), one added skill per player, no added skills on Stars allowed.
- Star Players - in addition to their hiring fee, a Star Player will cost you an extra 2 skill points as a signing bonus. This includes all GW Star Players, but not Second Sons Star Players.
- Mega-stars (Bomber Dribblesnot, Griff Oberwald, Grak & Crumbleberry, Jordell Freshbreeze, Jeremiah Kool, Skorg Snowpelt, Hackflem Skuttlespike, Morg 'n' Thorg, Cindy Piewhistle, Dribl & Drull, Skitter Stab-Stab, H'thark the Unstoppable) cost 4 skill points to purchase, and cannot be taken by Tier 1 or Tier 2 teams. The TO reserves the right to decide whether to include additional Star Players released before May 1, 2027 by GW as mega-stars. Any stars released after that date will not be allowed.
- Second Sons Star Players - Each year a new optional Star Player from Second Sons lore will be added to the list of available players below:
- 2027: Brightflame - MV 6, ST 3, AG 5+, PA 6+, AV 10+, Juggernaut, Unsteady, Wrestle, Taunt, Eye Gouge, Loner 4+. Cost: 120k. Special Ability: "Awake the Dragon." Once per game, Brightflame can use the Breathe Fire trait. Afterwards, for the rest of the game, Brightflame has AV 8+.
- 2026: The Imp - MV 5, ST 2, AG 3+, PA 4+, AV 7+. Cost: 80k. Dodge, Right Stuff, Stunty, Trickster, Sneaky Git, Drunkard, Loner 4+. Special Ability: "I drink and I know things." Once per game, The Imp sobers up for a turn and may swap Drunkard for the Sure Feet skill for that turn.
- 2025: The Red Viper - MV 6, ST 3, AG 2+, PA 4+, AV 8+. Cost: 140k. Dodge, Sidestep, Shadowing, Loner 4+. Special Ability: "You Killed Her Children!" Once per game, the Red Viper may reroll any single die, either rolled individually or as part of a dice pool on one of his actions. Afterwards, for the rest of the game, the Red Viper has AV 6+.
- 2024: The Titan's Bastard - MV 4, ST 4, AG 4+, PA 6+, AV 10+. Cost: 150k. Block, Stand Firm, Thick Skull, Unsteady, Loner 4+. Special Ability: "Kill That One First" Once per game, the Titan's Bastard may add +1 to an armor roll against an opponent, and may be used after seeing the die roll.
Other Inducements
You may buy certain inducements with the cash you get to create your team. The only inducements that will be allowed are as follows:
- Star Players, including Second Sons Star Players
- 0-1 Halfling Master Chef (300k, 100k for Halfling teams only, not 100k for Gnomes)
- 0-2 Bloodweiser Kegs (50k)
- 0-3 Bribes (100k, Bribery & Corruption Teams, 50k)
- 0-1 Apothecary (50k)
- 0-1 Riotous Rookies (150k, Ogre & Snotling Teams only)
Scoring
During each round, you will fill out a score sheet to track your progress. At the end of the match, you will add up the scoring as follows:
- A WIN is 60 points
- A DRAW is 30 points
- A LOSS is 10 points
- If you lose by 1 TD, you earn +2 bonus points
- If you cause 1 more CAS that would generate SPP than your opponent, you earn +2 bonus points
- If you caused 2 or more CAS that would generate SPP than your opponent, you earn +5 bonus points (does not stack with the +2)
- If you win by 2 Touchdowns you earn +2 bonus points
- If you win by 3 Touchdowns or more you earn +5 bonus points (does not stack with the +2)
- There is no championship game, the standings will solely be determined by total points. In the case of a tie, head to head results will be taken into account, including bonus points against that opponent, followed by strength of schedule (total points earned by all opponents), followed by a coin flip.
Painting & Sportsmanship
- All teams are expected to meet minimum painted guidelines, they must have 3 colors on them and have some attempt at making them appear finished. If you need to borrow a team to complete this requirement, please reach out to the TO.
- We are all here to enjoy the game of Blood Bowl. We expect good sportsmanship. Please note that fouling 16 turns in a row and running up the score is not poor sportsmanship. Gloating and ridiculing your opponent while doing so is.
Awards
In order to qualify for an award, you must compete all three rounds of play. Coaches will only be eligible for one award, and the TO will trickle-down an award to the next eligible player, with the exception of the best painted award.
- Champion - most tourney points. Winner will receive an engraved wooden rudius sword
- Runner-Up - second most tourney points
- Best Offense - most TDs scored
- Best Defense - fewest TDs scored against you
- Most Brutal - most casualties that would generate SPP
- Stunty Cup - most tourney points by the following teams: Gnome, Goblin, Halfling, Ogre, Snotling, Lizardmen with no Saurus, Black Orcs with no Black Orcs, Underworld with no Skaven.
- Best Painted - as decided by the participants of the event. The TO will break ties. To be eligible, you must have painted the team yourself.
Other Considerations
- We will host a charity auction, to benefit the Ike and Ella Fund, who provide financial support to assist parents who have experienced the loss of a child. Their website is below. www.ikeandellafund.org.
- Tourney fee can be paid by paypal to the TO at the same email address above, seanmcowley@gmail.com. When you pay, please do so as friends & family, and please include a message with your full name, naf name, and naf number included as well as a notation that it's for the Second Sons tourney.
- As part of their swag bag for entering the tourney, each participant will receive a model of Brightflame. Prior tourney stars are available from the TO for an additional $5 each. If you would like any models ahead of time to paint them alongside your team, contact the TO and we will arrange mailing for the cost of postage or handoff at an earlier tourney perhaps.
Discord
Link to the Discord Page: https://discordapp.com/channels/1043139630733738027/1239560392221528116