by While the publisher Steamforged Games had asked everyone in 2020 to hang up their daggers and cleats, the hardcore fans weren’t having it: “Guild Ball! Guild Ball!” the crowd chanted. Although some thought it was dead and buried, the medieval football miniature game has been slowly (but surely) rising from the ashes since 2024, thanks to the combined efforts of GBCP and its publisher. A well-deserved moment for a game that its earliest fans still consider the best sports miniatures game of all time!
Why Guild Ball ?
One day, as I was driving back from a Star Wars: Legion tournament, I agreed to give Enguerrand a lift home.
Enguerrand is a player I met in the Belgian Legion community, and he’s pretty much single-handedly keeping that game alive in the country. The drive was long enough for us to remake the world (of miniature games), so we took the opportunity to talk about all sorts of topics.
— “It’s a bit like Guild Ball, you know? An excellent game that deserves to be better known,” he told me.
— “Guild Ball? Never heard of it,” I replied. He spent the rest of the drive explaining how the game worked. When we pulled up in front of his house, he wrapped up the conversation with:
— “Come by someday, I’ll give you a demo.” The game had caught my curiosity, but I never managed to take him up on his invitation — I was about to become a father for the first time, and time was scarce. Still, the name Guild Ball had comfortably settled into my memory for years to come.
About a year ago, Enguerrand got back in touch with me, saying:
— “Still interested in Guild Ball? Check out this online store — they’re clearing out their Guild Ball stock and have great discounts!” I took the opportunity to grab the starter set for barely thirty euros. I promised myself I’d write about it on Critical Hit. But, caught up in my role as a dad of two now, the starter went straight to the top shelf in the living room, barely unboxed.
Seasons passed, and from the top of the cabinet, the game watched my son’s first words, then his first steps. Meanwhile, my Guild Ball box gathered dust, waiting for better days…
A fall evening in 2025, as I was slumped in my living room chair, my eyes landed on the top of the shelf. I suddenly sat up straight: I had completely forgotten I owned the Guild Ball: Kick Off! box ! I dove into the rulebook and started a few solo games to get a feel for the mechanics. A few online searches later, I discovered that Guild Ball had been brought back to life. 2025 had even been a prolific year for the community: team rebalancing, a brand-new Game Plan Deck, and even a new guild — the Lumberjacks! That was all I needed to lace up my boots and blow the whistle for the kickoff on Critical Hit.
Find Guild Ball players
Join your country’s Guild Ball Discord community and meet players near you.
Join France 
