Which race do you use for your first team on Fumbbl?

You probably want your first team to have a decent chance of winning matches, surviving and developing in its first few games so you feel you're getting somewhere with the site.

Here's some advice on which teams will help you achieve that. Any team works at TR100, but some have more difficulty winning matches or just plain surviving. It's no fun starting your second match with a team that's understrength from injuries... and your third...

I've found the general level of play on Fumbbl is quite high; some teams have powerful strategies against them, and your opponents will probably know them. Other races are poor for your development as a coach.

Obviously, this is a subjective guide, and people have different opinions. To see a wider range of those opinions, have a look at this thread in the forum.

Orcs are often the best team for a new player. They have a good mixture of player types which have different strengths but work flexibly together. Also, they have good armour and are fairly cheap, so running out of players is unlikely to be a problem. OrcStrategy

Humans are the best of the faster teams to start with. Humans are less stompy than most in LRB4, but they can use a bashing style of play when appropriate. They are also capable of fast running and passing games. Compared to other fast teams, Humans are tougher and reasonably priced which means that it's easy to keep a team going. HumanStrategy

Chaos Dwarves are another flexible stomping team. Bull Centaurs, Chaos Dwarves and Hobgoblins all have fairly clear roles. ChaosDwarfStrategy

Undead are very focused on bashing their opponents but have a good set of players who can pick up the ball and score as well. Regeneration, and the ability to raise the dead, means they don't suffer too much from injuries. UndeadStrategy

Skaven are a lightning-fast team and on the whole you will want to avoid blocking. Their players are very vulnerable but when one dies, a replacement Linerat is quite affordable. SkavenStrategy

Amazons or Norse are similar to Humans but with extra skills. Dodge in the case of Amazons, Block in the case of Norse. These powerful skills mean these races are forgiving to play and suffer few turnovers. However, they are almost too easy: if you learn to play with every player having Block or Dodge you will find life more difficult with your next team where the players aren't so skilled. AmazonStrategy NorseStrategy

Chaos Starting rosters for Chaos aren't very strong. Generally you will find yourself either lacking Chaos Warriors or lacking the rerolls you need to handle the ball reliably.

Dwarves Low speed and agility, balanced by only moderate strength. Dwarves are reasonably good at blocking but really nothing else.

High Elves or Dark Elves You will only ever be able to afford 11 players on a starting Elf team and replacements are very expensive. While they can pull off some amazing plays, many starting Elf teams are retired after a match or two thanks to casualties. If you want to play Elves think seriously about Amazons or Skaven instead, at least for the first team. However, if you absolutely must play Elves, pick High or Dark Elves because they have a relatively forgiving AV8 and not Wood Elves or Elves.

Necromantic Similar to Undead but with more expensive, more specialised players.

Lizardmen rely on very careful positioning of the Skinks and the Sauruses. This is tough to get right, and many Lizard teams suffer very high Skink casualties.

Wood Elves or (Pro) Elves are immensely difficult to start out. AV7 and expensive players means you need to keep every player safe from harm - and even then you will probably start many games understrength.

Goblins and Halflings need a lot of flair to play well, and their players die at a very high rate.

Ogres and Vampires rely on Big Guys with vexing negatraits.

Nurgle's Rotters Like Chaos, but with more complicated skills, and no chance to buy an apothecary.

Khemri have atrocious agility and need to be played carefully for that reason.