by ·2 Comments
The Sentinel of Liberty returns to HeroClix with his best sculpt ever!

All those who oppose this shield must yield.

Captain America
boot symbol
72 points
Team: Avengers
Keywords: Avengers, Martial Artist, SHIELD, Soldier
Range: 8 x 2
DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/
STRENGTHS: Aside from an excellent Running Shot speed, good damage and stellar 18 DV + Energy Shield/Deflection, Cap seems a bit of a disappointment until you note his special power “Deflection Trajectory.” Only walls and indoor blocking terrain block his line of fire. This means he can shoot:
  • past characters, friend or foe (take that, Sharpshooters)
  • around buildings
  • from the middle of a roof to the ground, or vice versa
  • at Stealthed characters
  • at characters using the Camouflage feat(!)
  • through Barrier(!!)
This one power makes Cap an indispensable piece.
Fortunately for foes, he can’t shoot when based (“nyah, nyah” taunt the Sharpshooters like Star-Lord and Arkham Asylum’s Hitman) and the power’s gone from mid-dial on, anyhow. That’s when he shifts to Willpower and Close Combat Expert, which is highly unfortunate for whomever based him. Great keywords and economical cost means he can show up on a lot of teams.
WEAKNESSES: Although hard to hit, he’s a very soft target with a pretty short dial and a very large bull’s eye on his head. He’s also a fair bit less effective on indoor maps.
CARDS TO CONSIDER: Because he’s able to fight from behind cover and characters alike, he’s a key candidate for CONTINGENCY PLAN. FORCE FIELD can lengthen his life ever so slightly. DAMAGE SHIELD also works his whole dial. THUNDERBOLTS, ALPHA FLIGHT and PYM PARTICLES  are made for Avengers.
IN SUM: “Deflection Trajectory” is one of those Special Powers that make one question the wisdom of their creation. It’s so broadly powerful that it threatens to make Cap one of those crutch pieces run by players who can’t quite master the normal rules and tactics of the game and thus turn to the same few game-bending figures, feats and battlefield conditions to shift the meta-game in their favor. That doesn’t change the fact that he’s a top piece of the year and will be a staple on top teams for some time.
And yet his isn’t the best SP of all time. #2 has that one…

by ·0 Comments
From the pages of Thunderbolts and Dark Avengers comes the #4 piece…
Venom
boot symbol
73 points
Team: none
Keywords: Celebrity, Thunderbolts
Range: 4 x 1
DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/
STRENGTHS: Not just his opening click, but his whole half-dial sports this killer power combo: Plasticity, Blades/Claws/Fangs, Super Senses and Shape Change. Added to his Leap/Climb trait and steady 9 AV, and you’ve got a piece that can get in the enemy’s face and keep them tied down there and avoid attacks while dealing its own.
The back half of the dial shifts to four more identical clicks: Flurry, Steal Energy, Combat Reflexes and Battle Fury. And with 10 AV, Venom has a fine chance of remaining on the field for some time.
WEAKNESSES: His initial base damage is a bit low at 2, but that’s more than mitigated by BCF. Battle Fury prevents him from being hauled off to the medic in a desperate situation. He’s quite expensive for his chief role as tie-up. His keywords are pretty thin, too.
CARDS TO CONSIDER: Venom is incredibly feat-friendly. Start with LUNGE to give him more flexibility in attacking swarms he’s tied up. Or consider POUNCE to give his initial tie-up move some bite (his 2nd click being identical to the first doesn’t hurt). Attack avoidance cards like CAMOUFLAGE vs. range or ENTANGLE vs. close attacks are tempting, but I wouldn’t go with both. TAKEDOWN is beyond awesome on him.
IN SUM: He’s the ultimate tie-up piece, bar none. Only the Clayfaces come close, and Venom’s amazing mobility leaves them in the dirt.
#3 is as good as Venom is bad…

by ·0 Comments
The shining king of Asgard is the first of the top five of 2009.

He'll CUTCHOO, man!!

Balder
boot symbol
130 points
Team: none
Keywords: Asgardian, Deity, Warrior
Range: 0 x 1
DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/
STRENGTHS: Impervious for his first FOUR CLICKS? That hasn’t happened since Cosmic Justice, and Balder’s the cheapest costing piece with this combo by far. Charge, Close Combat Expert and a high AV round out his opening strengths, making him highly pushable. Mid-dial he shifts to Blades/Claws/Fangs (with a click of overlap with Exploit Weakness!) and Invulnerability before weakening to Toughness but gaining an AV spike. There’s also a Special Power granting Pulse Wave for a possible surprise range strike.
WEAKNESSES: Um…his speed might be a little low. Otherwise, I got nothin’.
CARDS TO CONSIDER: LUNGE gives his initial Charge that extra bit of range on his first two clicks (or to enable him to change targets if based). He’s cheap enough that he doesn’t need FORTITUDE just to protect your investment yet adding it won’t break you.
IN SUM: A fantastic piece that can either serve as a cheap tentpole or a secondary fighter in a larger game.
#4 is as dark as Balder is light…

by ·0 Comments
He’s called the Human Robot, but there are no fleshy bits in the #6 HeroClix figure of 2009.

Talk•to•the•hand•fleshy•ones

M-11
boot symbol
59 points
Team: none
Keywords: Agents of Atlas, Robot
Range: 6 x 1
DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/
STRENGTHS: Unrelenting 3 damage for his WHOLE DIAL. 10 AV for his first SEVEN CLICKS. 18 DV and Super Strength for three clicks. Willpower for FIVE. And Regeneration the rest to potentially heal back up to his 2nd click. Psychic Blast through his mid-dial makes him deadly at range. For less than 60 points, he’s an awesome package.
WEAKNESSES: With zero damage reduction and no movement powers, M-11 is a soft, slow target.
CARDS TO CONSIDER: With so much Willpower, either OPPORTUNIST or PROTECTED are excellent fits. NANOARMOR helps mitigate big hits with enemy Super Strength. AUTOMATIC REGENERATION is choice in case he actually takes a hit.
IN SUM: Though he has his soft points, they’re easily worked around. M-11 is as good a mid-point fighter as you can ask for in HeroClix.
Next week, it’s on to the top five! This weekend, though, enjoy something from my “regular programming”… 🙂

by ·0 Comments

Also representing the Guardians of the Galaxy along with the #10 Star-Lord is #7…

 

Still angry about his Clix version's gun being too small.

 

Rocket Raccoon
boot symbol
65 points
Team: Defenders
Keywords: Animal, Guardians of the Galaxy, Soldier
Range: 8 x 1

DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/

STRENGTHS: Top-click Leap/Climb, Probablity Control and Super Senses (the last, for his entire dial) are a great combo that hasn’t been seen since E Elongated Man way back in Collateral Damage. For only a few points more, Rocket adds effective 8 range and a shift to Outwit and Running Shot to maintain the support/offense balance. Energy Explosion and Defenders TA are a bit of icing on his cake. He’s going to be very useful on Soldier teams.

WEAKNESSES: His AV and especially DV really sag in the late dial and he’s short-lived for his cost.

CARDS TO CONSIDER: Doesn’t need any, though the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY ATA  could be useful against enemy Outwit, especially if there are no other Defenders for him to pair up with.

IN SUM: Rocket Raccoon wins games. Period.

Next on the list: something else inhuman.

by ·0 Comments
#10: Star-Lord
Alongside the Asgardian Warrior is his female counterpart, the generic Valkyrie.

Too bad the HC figure doesn't have THIS figure.

Valkyrie
boot symbol
38 points
Team: none
Keywords: Asgardian, Warrior
Range: 4 x 1
DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/
STRENGTHS: Excellent AV all down the dial. The potential (through her “Today Is Not That Day” special power)  to be a taxi for other Asgardians and a superb medic for anyone. Toughness to make her diffcult to one-hit KO and her late dial Running Shot turns her into a legitimate ranged threat despite her low 4 range.
WEAKNESSES: Very short dial for the cost. She’s a bit less useful if not played with a character activating her minion-type SP.
CARDS TO CONSIDER: If she’s a minion, INVIGORATE can be very effective on her.
IN SUM: So many strengths in an under-40-point package make Valkyrie the #8 piece of the set. (It feels like I wrote most of this already.) Range gets her a spot higher than the similar Asgardian Warrior.
#7 gets us out of generic-Norse-land and back in the main dimension (if not on Earth).

by ·2 Comments
#10: Star-Lord
From the heavenly realm of Asgard comes the generic Asgardian Warrior!

For Asgaaaaaaaarrrd!!

Asgardian Warrior
boot symbol
37 points
Team: none
Keywords: Asgardian, Warrior
Range: 0 x 1
DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/
STRENGTHS:
3+ damage potential all down the dial. Excellent AV all down the dial. The potential (through his “For Asgard” special power)  for Charge and an attack boost…again, all down the dial. And Toughness to make him exceedingly diffcult to one-hit KO.
WEAKNESSES:
His very short dial for the cost. His utility wanes in the absence of characters that activate his Minion-type SP.
CARDS TO CONSIDER:
None. His low cost is his best asset.
IN SUM:
So many strengths in an under-40-point package make Asgardian Warrior the #9 piece of the set.
Next on the list is the first female on the list. Be here tomorrow to see who she is!

by ·4 Comments
For the past couple of years, I’ve done Top Ten lists of HeroClix on Pojo.com (in addition to semi-regular reviews, which I once planned to archive here. That’s probably not happening). In honor of the return of the game, I’m back with a Top Ten HeroClix of 2009 list.
…
…wwwhich pretty much means a Top Ten Hammer of Thor HeroClix list. 😀
But actually, HoT was absolutely packed with excellent pieces, so selecting these top 10 was every bit as difficult as in previous years with 3-4 times the sets.
So, without further delay, here’s #10!
==================================

...but he's Number ONE with the BULLETS.

Star-Lord
boot symbol
90 points
Team: Defenders
Keywords: Guardians of the Galaxy, Soldier
Range: 8 x 2
DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/
STRENGTHS: “Galactic Marksman” is a fantastic Special Power. It gives him the choice to boost his AV +2 against a single target or his damage +2 against two. Coupled with his Running Shot and Sharpshooter ability, he can truly lay down some hurt at range or up close. Defenders TA shores up his Combat Reflexes-enhanced DV (assuming you run some higher DV’d teammates with him). His AV rises, making him fairly pushable. He’s also got Leadership to aid the team (and possibly himself).
His late dial gains Stealth and Ranged Combat Expert to remain a threat.
WEAKNESSES: His 16 DV is pretty mediocre, and it only gets worse on his back half. If he can’t find two targets, his damage is too low on his early dial. His dial is short for his point cost.
CARDS TO CONSIDER: CONTINGENCY PLAN can offset the AV penalty on his double-target option of Galactic Marksman. The KINETIC ACCELERATOR is good to boost his Running Shot range. And if you’re not running him with any other Defenders, go ahead and put the powers-protecting GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY ATA on him.
IN SUM: A figure riddled with weaknesses nevertheless got a lot of support from readers to make the top 10 list because of its incredible versatility. Star-Lord is much better in practice than he looks on paper.
#9 is hardly a lord, taking us out of the stars but not out of the heavens…!

by ·0 Comments

Read the introduction to the series here.

E004 52

Based on DC's year-long weekly series (thus the moniker "52"). I wasn't a fan.

TURN THE DIAL: At the end of each turn, roll 2d6; turn the dial if the result is 9-12, and at the end of each round.
WHAT IT MEANS: Unlike the series that inspired it, this dial can move pretty fast, so don’t get too used to any one condition.
—
A YEAR WITHOUT… (blue, slots A-D): At the beginning of each round, each player can choose a team ability. All chosen abilities are ignored until the end of the round.
WHAT IT MEANS: Avoid a team ability that is key to your strategy. Your opponents get to turn it off for the first few rounds of the match.
—
ON THE TRAIL (Brown, slots B-F): Once during your turn for the duration of an action, one of your characters can ignore the effects of hindering terrain on movement, combat, powers and feats.
WHAT IT MEANS: Avoid Stealth. ON THE TRAIL allows an enemy to ignore hindering terrain’s effects not just on himself, but period. In conjunction with the next condition, cheap tie-up could really benefit from this to get next to enemy pieces.
—
THE EVERYMAN PROJECT (orange, slots C-E): A character that has a point value of 100 or less that is using no other powers can use one of the following powers for the duration of an action: Blades/Claws/Fangs, Charge, Energy Explosion, Mind Control, Phasing/Teleport, Psychic Blast, Quake, Running Shot, Steal Energy, Telekinesis, or Willpower.
WHAT IT MEANS: Field cheap tie-up pieces. This effect will turn these stallers into dangerous attackers.
—
RAIN OF THE SUPERMEN (black, slots F): All powers are countered.
WHAT IT MEANS: When damage reducers suddenly vanish, shots will be taken. Try to field high defense numbers over the powers in preparation for this.
—
NEW QUESTIONS AND DEALS WITH THE DEVIL (gray, slots G-K): When a character is knocked out but before it is removed from the game, remove an action token from all friendly characters 3 or fewer squares from the characters that have one action token.
WHAT IT MEANS: Clustering your team a bit might be worth it to gain this slight second wind.
—
WORLD WAR III (red, slots I-J): When making an attack roll, roll 3d6 and choose two of them to be the result of the roll. Damage dealt by critical hits is penetrating damage.
WHAT IT MEANS: Three dice increases the chance of hits. This is also the dial-ending effect.
—
SUMMING IT UP: This dial can mess you up at first if you like team abilities too much, but overall it’s not too hairy.
Next go-round we’ll ring up some more fun with the Dial “H” For Hero dial!

by ·1 Comment
All right, so the initial run of the Agents of Atlas went…not so well at all, actually. Definitely had some changes to make for a real tournament.
Jimmy Woo 46 + Contingency Plan 12
M-11 59
Gorilla-Man 61
Namora 76
Marvel Boy (Hammer of Thor) 102
Venus 125 + Nanobots 10 + Camouflage 8
= 499 points. BFCs were: Bright Lights, Mistrust and something that got killed anyway.
++++++++++++++++++++++
FIRST up was the previous two weeks’ champ, Solomon:
Wonder Woman (Arkham Asylum) 248 + Fortitude 25 + Protected 8
Robin (Crisis) 79
Iron Fist (Secret Invasion) 70
Mister Mind 68
= 498 points. On the BPRD map, I used Bright Lights to rob the Bat Ally and friends of cover to hide in. Setting up Namora on the Kinetic Accelerator, I waited for Wonder Woman to close in. Solomon wouldn’t do it, instead Mind Controlling M-11 to attack Gorilla Man with a heavy object for swift early damage. G-Man pushed and retreated to my Eleha’al Vine to heal.
Marvel Boy, with a SHIELD boost to range and Contingency boost to AV, managed to roll high enough to hit Mister Mind and then Robin off Outwit, and later to hit Iron Fist. That was enough for M-11 to knock Mind and Fist out for good. With Robin taking more fire, Solomon was forced to bring Wonder Woman from hovering just out of range and into the fight — and into Namora’s swing zone!
She took the bait and hit WW for 6…which was Protected away. 🙁 But that left WW tied up and unable to stop the free folks from taking Robin in the final seconds for the win. KO’d Iron Fist and Mister Mind as well, losing none. 1-0.
++++++++++++++++++++++
NEXT, I faced Paul’s Spy team:
Ms. Marvel-b (Secret Invasion) 168 + Armor Piercing 10 + Fortitude 25
Warskrull 110
Winter Soldier 70
Ghost Widow 54
Agent Brand 44 + Contingency Plan 12
Alfred (Hypertime) 6
= 493 points. I picked the BPRD map. We both theme-cancelled each other’s cards.
He got an early OHKO of Woo but that left the offender, Ms. Skrullvel, open to Namora’s successfully crippling Meteorite strike. Gorilla-Man and Marvel Boy teamed up to finish her. Venus, though camped next to blocking terrain for the Camouflage, got her Shape Change countered by Warskrull and had to Mastermind a shot from Winter Soldier to Marvel Boy for big damage.
Marvel Boy ran to the Vine, but Ghost Widow was right there to Poison him. Giving him up pretty much for lost (especially when he failed to break away), I concentrated on fighting Winter Soldier. Venus Incapped him for a push.
Winter Soldier got closer and got a shot on Gorilla-Man. Caught between the sniper and the Warskrull, the ape went down. But Namora and M-11, boosted by the Accelerator, got to Winter Solder for a KO. They were coming for Ghost Widow when time ran out. 2-0.
++++++++++++++++++++++
FINALLY, it was the championship match against Vic’s Skrull team:
Ms. Marvel-b (Secret Invasion) 168
Skrull Emperor 140 + Protected 8
Super Skrull: Avengers 126
Skrull Warrior (Supernova) 30
Skrull Infiltrator (Supernova) 25
= 497 points. He theme-cancelled my Mistrust BFC and put us on the Prison map.
Vic made four Hypersonic Speed-y attack rolls on Namora (thanks to a pair of theme PCs) and failed them all. That left Ms. Skrullvel in range of an easy strike with Namora’s Meteorite Charge.
Which was nullified by a successful Skrull roll. DAMN!!!!!!!
Although Namora was able to KO a neighboring Warrior instead, that single rolled 6 did more to kill my chances of a win than anything else. Vic was able to Hypersonic Speed attack to and from hindering terrain at will for 4+ damage thanks to Skrull Emperor’s Perplex, KOing Namora in the very next turn.
Once Gorilla-Man went down in a single turn as well, I decided I wasn’t going to allow that tactic any longer and ran down the long hall near my starting area. It didn’t work, though, costing Jimmy Woo his life and garnering me just 25 more points as I’d KO’d the Infiltrator before fleeing.
WIN-LOSS: 2-1. OK, so it appears that Agents of Atlas utterly  crumbles against double Hypersonic Speed 4+ damage teams.
But really. Who doesn’t?
Final thoughts.
Jimmy Woo
Contingency Plan was key, mainly to make Namora’s initial attack stick. Better yet was his SHIELD TA, which made Marvel Boy a far more dangerous shooter. A great team player, making the whole squad work better together.
Hmm. Kinda like the leader he’s supposed to be, isn’t it?
M-11
Most of the time simply in Namora’s tow, he was valuable for taking theme PC tokens as well as dishing some damage of his own. In builds with more feat room I might give him Nanoarmor at a minimum, or Opportunist or Automatic Regeneration.
Gorilla-Man
His chief role was as Mastermind fodder for Venus (and his Leap/Climb was indispensable for that), but he dealt some key blows as well. Wish I could’ve added Lunge or Armor Piercing or Automatic Regeneration to him.
Namora
Didn’t disappoint as my big gun (aside from the Protected- and Skrulls-forced whiffs). The Kinetic Accelerator absolutely does wonders for her, enabling her to usually carry M-11 to help finish off whoever she Charges.
Marvel Boy
Otherwise acting as Venus’s taxi and occasional Mastermind sponge, he was the surprise of this team, backed as he was by Woo’s SHIELD TA. Suddenly able to shoot for 4 damage, he becomes a game-changer. Had he been able to even target someone in the last game, who knows how it might’ve gone?
Venus
Lacking in damage and mobility skills, Venus’s use in these games as anything but a decoy was a bit suspect. Never used the Nanobots combo I’d intended, as the objects disappeared all too quickly. Outsmart may have been a better choice. Camouflage was worth it, though. In bigger builds, she’ll have Mental Shields to be a more active battler. Or Knockdown, for the same reason.

Here’s my ideal keyword-friendly 600-point version:

Jimmy Woo 46 + Contingency Plan 12
M-11 59 + Nanoarmor 6
Gorilla-Man 61 + Automatic Regeneration 12
Namora 76 + Submerged 5
Marvel Boy (Hammer of Thor) 102
Venus 125 + Outsmart 10 + Camouflage 8 + Knockdown 5
Jimmy Woo 46 (stand-in for ex-SHIELD agent Derek Khanata)
Thug  (Avengers) 7 (old-school Atlas members)
Thug  (Avengers) 7
Thug  (Avengers) 7
= 594 points. Opting to stay as highlander-friendly as possible while keeping the keyword…that’s why I wouldn’t just run another M-11. He’s one-of-a-kind. 🙂