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DrDiscoStu
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2016-11-06 04:54:25
7 votes, rating 4.3
The Pact Minotaur
The Pact Minotaur (TPM) has been on my mind lately. I really can't see the optimal way to skill the fella. The two paths I think you would take is to either turn it into a blitzer or a blocker/road block. But it seems that both of them don't have a huge amount of S skills that are useful.

TPM as a Blitzer
Horns, Frenzy, MB already! Awesome!

Of course there is some huge drawbacks for TPM as a blitzer. Mostly it is going to be Wild Animal. Who wants to see their precious blitz action dissapear? Not to mention that your linemen are nearly going to be as good as TPM, except they don't suffer from the negatrait. Which leads me to

Strength Skills
Two of them immediately jump out which is Stand Firm and Juggernaut. Along with horns and frenzy and a reasonable movement of 5, you are free to roam the pitch and try to surf or at least get some 3D blocks going.

What else? Guard is helpful though is not optimal. Piling On isn't great with Wild Animal. Break Tackle allows him to crash packs but do you really want to be doing this with loner? Grab and multiple block are useless, he already has thick skull. Overall it is slim pickings, I would fire at either the second or third skill if there is no double.

Doubles
So many here that are good. And with Juggernaut, I am actually thinking you do not take block. Instead I would take Pro, Tackle, Claw as the most obvious ones. Claw is for the damage, Tackle is underrated if he is your blitzer. Pro is actually my pick... controversial I know, but your blitz action is so important.

But overall I look at it and think he needs 2-3 doubles to be worthwhile

TPM as a Blocker/Road Block
ST5, he can stand and biff things! Plus and 1's and you haven't wasted your Blitz.

You're not using Horns though, and he is av8.

Strength Skill
Stand Firm is once again the best, and Guard is also going to be useful given how blocking usually works. But from there? Juggernaut is only for blitzes, not terrible but not that useful. Break Tackle seems odd, if someone is there just hit them. There are really only two that fit well.

Doubles
Block is the obvious one here, but I also think that Tentacles is amazing, possibly the best. It is too easy for them to move away, and force you to 4+ your Wild Animal, or risk wasting that blitz. Dodge is great too, really helps for that annoying av8. Claw and Tackle are always appreciated, so I would probably say the order is: Block, Tentacles, Dodge. If you really get a 4th, let me know :)

This just seems to be the overall weakness. You just need too many doubles for them to really be worthwhile. I know a lot of sides don't even take a TPM due to the difficulty it presents.

I would definitely like to have a Pact side soon, right now I am just kicking ideas around about how they would work.
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Comments
Posted by BillBrasky on 2016-11-06 06:33:40
Sadly, I find the Pact Minotard as the dullest knife in the drawer.

I would advise against hiring one.

They fail when you need them most.

They are expensive, and Wild Animal is a terrible negatrait.

AV 8 Big Guy is bad. Wasting Blitzes, and unable to move without blitzing is horrendous. As fun as they could be, I suggest not buying one.
Posted by fidius on 2016-11-06 06:58:27
If you're not blitzing with your Minotaur, you're wasting him. 1/6 chance of wasting your blitz is a pretty hefty fee. But hey, he's the most awesome fig in the box and needs to be played!
Posted by DrDiscoStu on 2016-11-06 08:52:29
I mean if you are going full-optimisation the odds are you aren't playing pact. If you are, I think TPM is a lot of fun.

Yes it does look like a bit of a waste to not blitz with him, but it isn't hard to get a mb/block/claw/piling on/horns/tackle marauder either.
Posted by mike467 on 2016-11-06 12:42:28
For me if you aren't blitzing he will quickly be left out of position blocked to floor and gang fouled or at very least miles away from the action. With that you lose a lot of tv from the game. They are fun and should be used but once a team developed starting a new mono seems like a price to high to pay in league. In Ranked take it and have fun!
Posted by Apojar on 2016-11-06 15:42:30
Playing Chaos Pact in one of the more popular leagues on the site, I like your lead-in analysis of the position. I don't feel, however, that there is one clear-cut answer to the scenario that can hold up across the board. Each Coach registering a Pact team should ask themselves how they view this particular position, as it relates to their plan going forward.

Am I looking to build a team that can hit like mad, and win by removal?
- if the answer is "yes", TPM is probably not for you.

The position is VERY expensive to purchase. If you're wanting to remove, the chances would dictate that you're trying to develop a CPOMB (or two) Marauder. THOSE are the guys you want Blitzing; not really the other two Bigs. It would seem that if you're looking to Blitz with Marauders, you've already wasted Horns on the Minotaur. That leaves Frenzy and MB as his desirables, but look at it as a cost analysis: I'm paying 150,000 gold for a player that I'm only utilizing 120,000 gold of his price (Frenzy would be a double). Doesn't seem like an effective spending of resources.

OR

Am I looking to build a Pact team with good balance? I.E. - Guards/Tacklers/MB'ers as good support?

- if the answer is "yes", the Minotaur here is for you.

His first skill (depending upon how much you find you're Blitzing with him) could be Jugg, but undoubtedly, he'd be a great Guard for the rest of the team. Put him next to a dude. Even if he WA's, he's still offering support to your squad. That makes his cost more effective toward your bottom line. You have him as support, and can really hit with just about anybody on the team, since it's rather balanced.

Look, I play Pact, but I'm by no means a "good" Pact coach. I play the [url=https://fumbbl.com/p/team?team_id=791335]Jacksonville Pactuars[/url] in the [url=https://fumbbl.com/p/group&group=6524&op=view]NBFL[/url]. [url=https://fumbbl.com/p/player?player_id=10428268]Ziggy Hood[/url] is my Minotaur. He's mainly used as a support player, as he's not developed anything out of the ordinary. He does inflate my TV, but his SF/Guard sure increases his value to my team. The way I've utilitzed him has been in a way where I don't really NEED him to score a double, as he's been support, as well as taking up space/hits that are meant for other players.
Posted by Uedder on 2016-11-06 16:57:08
I use him as a mix of the two. My pact xfl finalist mino has block guard stand firm and break tackle. Get him in contact using the first blitz (or on the los blocks) and use him as a roadblock until he's needed to do something. That's when i blitz with him.

Anyway you forgot the best role for him tho: roar in the middle of the pitch to scare off the opposition!
Posted by Antithesisoftime on 2016-11-06 18:23:23
Playing against Apojar twice each season, I can verify that his pact mino is useful, but bloaty.

Having played a developed pact team deep into a major, I can reliably say that without +ST and 2 more doubles, he's still more bloat than value
Posted by DrDiscoStu on 2016-11-06 23:16:27
Cheers for the comments. Yes Apojar I see what you mean, mind you when I talk about the Blocker/Road Block, if it turned out that he was without an opponent, I would likely blitz with him and try to have him with two people next to him for the next turn. So I am not precluding him from blitzing totally, I just wouldn't build him that way.

I just can't see the point of taking Break Tackle, it's too risky. But cheers for the thoughts.

And yes, I would definitely develop a varied side. I think there would be a fair bit of Foul Appearance as I love the skill.
Posted by licker on 2016-11-08 06:25:21
All minotaurs are trash.

It is known.