All the rules for MagnoBall are the same as for BattleBall unless otherwise noted. Note that some of the Optional Rules could be used for BattleBall as well. Please email me at phillipfallon@yahoo.com with any questions or comments.
MagnoBall is played in an arena similar to a BattleBall arena, except instead of end zones, there are Goalie Boxes and goals at each end. The game is played with a steel ball and the object is to score goals by shooting the ball into the opposing team's goal. The players have armor similar to BattleBall, but it has palmswitch-activated electromagnets built into the gauntlets so players can carry and shoot the ball. Even though the ball is fairly heavy, passing and scoring call more for finesse and speed than brute force.
One of the Running Backs becomes a Goalie. The other players have different names:
| BattleBall | MagnoBall |
|---|---|
| Running Back | Forward |
| Safety | Wingback |
| Linebacker | Halfback |
| Lineman | Fullback |
| Tackle | Mauler |
| Heavy Tackle | Heavy Mauler |
Die types do not change. The Goalie follows special rules:
The Goalie's armor is specially designed to aid in stopping the ball- it's heavy and tough, but restricts the Goalie's mobility.
When the players line up at the start of the game, for the next half, or for overtime play, it is for a Face-off. The ball is placed in the usual place. Each team will place both Forwards in the squares adjacent to the ball starting square on their side, behind the two lines marking the 50-yard line (there are 4 such squares). The other players line up as follows:
If either team is missing one or both Forwards, then another player type can be substituted, in descending dice order (you must use one or both Wingbacks if available, then Halfbacks, etc.). Each coach rolls the die type for each player facing off- the highest roll has possession of the ball. Ties are re-rolled. Play then proceeds as usual.
The end zone is considered to be the Goalie Box. No players except for the Goalie can enter the Goalie Box unless there is no player in the Goalie position (see below).
To score, the player with possession of the ball must move into one of the two center squares right next to the opposing team's end zone. The player attempting to score and the opposing team's Goalie each roll their die type. If the shooting player rolls higher, his team scores 1 point, and the game resets for a new half as usual with a Face-off. If the Goalie rolls higher, the shot attempt is blocked. The Goalie now has possession of the ball and can Pass it to any player on his team that he chooses.
In rare cases, it is possible that a team's Goalie is taken out. If this happens, any other player type can substitute for Goalie, except that they must roll one lower die type for any save attempts. The new player can move into the Goalie position immediately, or must move to the Goalie Box under their own power if the Coaches prefer.
If the Goalie Box is empty for some reason, then a player with possession of the ball can just walk into the Goalie Box and put the ball into the goal by hand, scoring automatically (no roll required).
Each goal is divided into three zones. The widest outer zone is worth 1 point, the middle (smaller) zone is worth 2 points, and the smallest center area is worth 3 points. Normal scoring attempts are considered to be worth 2 points. Players shooting the ball have 2 other options:
The Goalie's save attempt is not affected. Forwards cannot attempt a 1-point shot, and Maulers and Heavy Maulers cannot attempt a 3-point shot (unless the Lowering Die Type option is used).
A Ricochet Shot is where a player bounces the ball off the floor in the Goalie Box (the Goalie Box is a solid surface for this option). A Ricochet is an extremely difficult shot, but it is much harder for a Goalie to defend against if it is successful. To call a Ricochet, the shooting player first rolls his die type against a d12. If he rolls higher, the Ricochet was successful, and the shot attempt is rolled as usual except the Goalie has a -1 to his die type for the save attempt. If not, the shot fails and the Goalie automatically saves.
If the Goal Zones option is being used, the shooting player must state which part of the goal he is shooting at BEFORE he attempts the Ricochet roll, and the die type penalty for Acing the Hole (3-point shots) applies to BOTH the Ricochet attempt AND the shot attempt.
For each square away from the 2 center squares a player is, his die type is reduced by 1 when attempting to score. If his die type is reduced below d6 due to range (and any other adjustments), the attempt cannot be made. The Goalie's save attempt is not affected.
Since the ball is steel and magnetized to the possessor's gauntlet, then a successful tackler does not automatically get possession of the ball- a separate roll should be made. Each player rolls their die type; the lower die roll gets possession of the ball. An injured player has a +1 to the die type when making this roll; if he manages to keep possession of the ball, then the ball is given to the nearest team member on the field. If the player was seriously injured, then the player who won the tackle takes possession automatically. If both players are taken out of the game, then the ball is loose as usual.
Because of the magnets in the armor gauntlets, a Fumble will no longer occur on a tied Tackle roll; the two players roll for Stealing the Ball as above. Heavy Maulers will no longer fumble the ball when rolling the same numbers for movement. Fumbles occur during hand-offs as usual, and are resolved in the same way as in BattleBall.
Tackling is the same as in BattleBall, except there are three states a player can be in due to a tackle- Stunned, Hurt, and Incapacitated:
The tackling procedure is the same, except that if the tackler rolls lower than the player being tackled, he is only Stunned, unless the player being tackled rolls a 1, in which case the tackler is Hurt.
A player can choose to Assault another player instead of tackling him. This is basically attacking another player with intent to tear his head off. An Assault works just like a normal tackle, except the assaulting player rolls one die type less. An Assaulting player is considered to be Stunned even if the Assault is successful. Maulers and Heavy Maulers cannot Assault (unless the Lowering Die Type option is used).
A player with possession of the ball can choose to hit another player with it. This works just like an Assault, except the player is not considered Stunned (unless the target rolls a 1, as usual).
These options only work for season or tournament play.
When a player is Incapacitated (taken out of the game due to serious injury), the Coach rolls the player's die type (d6 for Goalies) and divides by 2, rounding down. That's the number of games the player is out due to his injuries. If the roll is a 1, the player is back in time for the next game.
When an Incapacitated result comes up on a tackle, the Coach rolls the die type for the player who got the result. If another 1 comes up, the Incapacitated player's injuries are so severe that his career is over.
To get Incapacitated players back in time for the next game, and to offset the severity of a Permanent Injury, use the Force-Healing rule. Force-healing is the use of artificial replacement parts, stimulants and healing drugs, and other techniques to get a seriously injured player ready to play. To do this, the Coach rolls the Incapacitated player's die type against a d10. If the player die comes up higher, the player is healed up and ready for the next game (smaller bodies are more easily injured, but the bones and organs are easier to replace and they respond to treatment better). If the d10 roll is higher, the player is out the original number of games indicated, or the injuries really are permanent. Ties should be re-rolled.
Evading is when a player is covering less ground when moving, but he is dodging and weaving to make himself harder to hit. An Evading player rolls one die type less when rolling for movement, but is at a -1 die type when tackled. There is no effect on tackling, and a player is no longer considered to be Evading if he tackles another player or takes any other action. Maulers and Heavy Maulers cannot Evade (unless the Lowering Die Type option is used).
Rushing is the opposite of Evading. A Rushing player is running full-out to cover more ground, but is not watching out for other players. A Rushing player rolls one die type higher for movement, but is at a +1 die type when tackling or being tackled. A player is no longer considered to be Rushing after he tackles another player or takes any other action. Forwards cannot Rush. Heavy Maulers roll d8 when Rushing.
Rushing and Evading players should be indicated with some sort of marker.
If a player is within two squares of either a passing player or the receiver (he must be in a row of squares in front of the row that player is in), he can attempt to block a pass. To do this, roll the blocker's die type- if it is lower than the pass roll, the pass is blocked. Place the ball as usual for failed passes, except use the square the blocker is in. If the blocker rolls a 1, he has intercepted the pass and has possession of the ball.
Some of the optional rules call for a player's die type to be lowered by one. This causes a predicament for Maulers and Heavy Maulers, who are already at the lowest die type. There are a few options for this:
Teams are created with more than 11 players. Each team will have 11 first-string players of the normal types and 7 second-string players, one of each of the normal types, for 18 players total. Thus, the team lineup would look like this:
First String- 2 Forwards, 2 Wingbacks, 2 Halfbacks, 2 Fullbacks, 2 Maulers, 1 Heavy Mauler, 1 Goalie
Second String- 1 Forward, 1 Wingback, 1 Halfback, 1 Fullback, 1 Mauler, 1 Heavy Mauler, 1 Goalie
With this setup, injured players are substituted by their second-string counterparts as needed. When the second-string position is gone, the team must play short-handed as usual.
Coaches are encouraged to name their players to give the team personality. This will also help with some of the player options below.
Replacements usually do not come in until the next Face-off. With this option, the Coach can bring a replacement into the game by placing the player on either square next to the 20-yard line on the team's sideline in place of a move.
Players are considered to be one of three statuses: Rookie, Pro, and Veteran.
Rookie players are farm-team replacements called up from the minors to replace injured team members. A Rookie subtracts or adds 1 to all game actions (whichever makes the roll worse). If a modified die shows less than a 1, treat the result as a 1.
Pros are players with some experience in the pros. Pros roll the die as normal.
Veterans are players that have years of experience in the game. A Pro can modify the die roll for any two actions the Coach chooses from the list below, with the exceptions for player types listed:
| Action and Modifier to Roll | Player Types |
|---|---|
| +1 to Scoring | All but Fullbacks, Maulers, Heavy Maulers, and Goalies |
| +1 to Face-offs | Forwards only |
| +1 to Passing | All but Heavy Maulers and Goalies |
| -1 to Blocking Passes | All but Forwards and Goalies |
| -1 to Tackles, Assaults, and Striking with the Ball | All but Forwards and Heavy Maulers (Forwards can choose a -1 with Striking with the Ball) |
| -1 to Stealing the Ball | All but Forwards and Goalies |
| +1 to Saves | Goalies only |
The actions cannot be changed once chosen. As for Rookies, if a modified die shows less than a 1, treat the result as a 1. Heavy Maulers can't take a -1 to Tackling because they can already roll 2 dice and take the better one (they're dangerous enough).
Rookies will become Pro after a certain number of games (it depends on the length of the tournament/season). Pros ascend to Veteran status only after a LOT of games. An option is to roll a d12 when creating a team to determine a player's status:
| Roll | Status |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | Rookie |
| 3-11 | Pro |
| 12 | Veteran |
Replacements called up to fill in for injured players are always considered to be Rookies at the start.
An alternate method to tracking the number of games played to determine player status is to keep track of player statistics. Keep track of each player's stats in the actions listed above that were successful. A player is treated as a Veteran for an action when he gets a certain number in that action (up to the Coaches; it really depends on the length of the season/tournament). A player gets credit for 1 successful tackle whether he was tackling or being tackled. A player can become a Veteran in ANY action this way, no matter what position he plays.
Using this, players can get higher bonuses for each level they attain in an action (say +1 to Scoring with 10 successful scoring attempts, +2 with 20, and so on). +2 / -2 should be the upper limit.
When creating the team, the Coach should roll 1d12 for each player. If a 12 comes up, then the player is a Superstar. Superstar players can choose any two of the following actions listed below:
A Superstar gets to roll his die type twice and take the better result for the actions chosen. The choice of actions is not limited to player type, but the actions cannot be changed once chosen. A Superstar Heavy Mauler only re-rolls one of his die. The second die roll does not cause a Fumble or a Heavy Mauler malfunction.
No team can have more than 3 Superstar players in any case.
A Coach can choose to give a player certain enhancements to improve their performance during the game with the possible risk of being caught. The following enhancements are available:
| Enhancement | Effect | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Pulse Magnet | +1 to Scoring attempts | A Capacitor that creates a powerful surge in the gauntlet electromagnets to accelerate the ball |
| Myomer Actuators | +1 to Movement rolls | Muscle-like fibers embedded in the legs of the armor that increase running speed |
| EM Coil | +1 to Face-offs; -1 to resist Stealing the Ball | A switch-activated circuit in the electromagnets that increases its field strength |
| Loaded Gauntlets | -1 to Tackles and other Offensive Actions | The armor gauntlets are reinforced with a titanium alloy to increase damage |
| Laser Targeting | +1 to Passes; -1 to Blocking Passes | A targeting reticle built into the helmet to make catching and blocking passes more accurate |
| Deflector Field | +1 to Saves | A grid woven into a Goalie's armor that creates a magnetic field to repulse the ball and help deflect it from the goal |
Before the game starts, the Coach must roll a d10 for each player equipped with such an enhancement. The Coach of the opposing team also rolls a d10. If the opposing Coach rolls higher, he has detected the enhancement (through inspection, much like a pre-fight 'weigh-in' for boxing) and can choose whether or not to let the player use it in the game; if not, the player must drop the enhancement.
As usual, treat any roll less than 1 as a 1.