A Lot of Bull

My last 2 completed commissions were both Chaos Dwarf Blood Bowl teams, and with my own Narnia Pact team, that means this month has been full of Bull (budump-bump).

So before showing the two teams I want to just focus on the Minotaurs.

The Minotaur is one of the oldest monsters from western civilization.
And one I've always thought was pretty cool.

There have been lots of interpretations of Minotaurs since the Greek legend, some of my favorites:

Harryhausen:

Gilliam:

A classic monster and a lot of fun.

In Blood Bowl, they're usually viewed as a mixed blessing big guy: luck swings wildly with this guy.

On the one hand, Minotaurs are the strongest big guys other than Treemen (without the serious limits that treemen have: rooting & sub-minimal movement).  They're just strength 5 like all the other big guys, but with horns, they're strength 6 on the blitz -now, even when starting in the tackle zone of the target of the blitz- and they tend to be the guy you want to blitz with, so on offense they're almost always strength 6.  They have frenzy, which (at blitzing strength 6) is a real powerhouse.  

But on the other hand, wild animal is a bigger problem than the common 'Bone Head' since if you're only moving with him you have a 50% chance to not activate... so again: don't just move: Blitz!  They also have pretty soft armor for a big guy: armor 8. While thick skull does help some- keeping him on the pitch stunned on an 8 or less instead of 7, most people would agree it's better to not have the armor broken in the first place. So again the conclusion is: hit first!  The Minotaur really is a fun player if used aggressively. 

So here are the Minotaurs I've finished recently: (Click pictures to see them larger)

This is my favorite 'true minotaur' miniature.  It is 'Cretus' from Reaper.  The weapons have been removed since Blood Bowl refs frown on giant axes on the pitch.  I suggested a Black & Ivory uniform for the team, going for simplicity and to aim for the feel of ancient Greek shields & pottery:

The next is not a Minotaur per se, but a 'counts-as' Minotaur.  Don't argue with him, it would make him angry... you wouldn't like him when he's angry.

This minotaur I've dubbed the 'Minophant': a Bronzeback Titan from Privateer Press.  He's got a perfect blood bowl pose: I can just image him swinging those tusks, sending the opposing players flying across the field, as he drives a path clear for a grinning hobgoblin ball carrier. 

And lastly the Minotaur I made for my Narnia Pact team, the Elk

Lots of ways to interpret any monster, so let your imagination run wild.