First skills

The first advancement is the one that shapes a player for the rest of their career. A handful of skills come up again and again, and the choice between them depends on what the player is for.

The usual suspects

Block is the default first skill for almost any player who blocks or gets blocked, which is most of them. It removes the result that knocks down both players, so the player stays upright through a bad roll, and it works on defence as well as on your own turn. A player without Block is one bad dice away from a turnover every time they hit someone.

Dodge is the first skill for players who move through traffic: catchers, runners, anyone with AG 2+ or 3+ whose job is to be somewhere else next turn. It also makes the player harder to knock over when blocked. Elves, Skaven runners and Stunty players usually start with it, which is why their first pick is often something else.

Guard is the first skill for the players who stand next to the fight rather than in it: linemen on a bash team, blockers, any Strength-access player. It lets the player assist a block even while an opponent is marking them, and a line of Guard players is what lets a slow team win the scrum in the middle of the pitch.

Mighty Blow turns a player who already knocks people down into one who hurts them. It is the usual first pick for a Big Guy that lacks it and for blitzers on a team that wins by thinning the opposition.

Tackle exists because of Dodge. A team with no Tackle cannot stop an elf catcher leaving a tackle zone, so most bash teams give it to one blitzer early, specifically to hunt the ball carrier.

Sure Hands goes on the one player who will pick up the ball every drive. A team that fumbles the pick-up has handed the opponent a turn for free; on a team with few re-rolls it is worth the skill slot.

A way to choose

Ask what the player does when the dice go wrong. If they fall over when blocking, Block. If they get caught in a tackle zone, Dodge. If they stand next to the fight and never roll the dice themselves, Guard. If the answer is "they drop the ball", Sure Hands. The skill that fixes the player's most common failure is nearly always the right first one; the skill that makes them better at what already works can wait for the second advancement.

Primary or Secondary

A chosen Primary skill costs fewer SPP than a Secondary one, and a random Primary skill fewer still. Each position's Primary categories are on its team page, and the advancement table has the costs. The strong first picks above are General skills for most positions, which is to say Primary for most of them; Guard and Mighty Blow are Strength skills and cost more on a player without Strength access, which is why linemen on agile teams rarely take them.