It’s become a DragonCon tradition: Heroclixin’ Board Member Chadd Franklin comes down to Atlanta for a con and for big games with yours truly. And this year, we did it in grand fashion … sort of.
GAME 1: NIGHT OF THE SENTINELS
Thursday was the big kahuna, a titanic match between Chadd’s mutant heroes out to wreck my horde of every Sentinel I could possibly field in 2,500 points.
Bishop (X of Swords) 80
Exodus (House of X) 95
Apocalypse (X-Men Rise and Fall ) 125
Gorgon (X of Swords 022) 65
Kid Gladiator (X-Men Rise and Fall ) 75
Magik (X of Swords 023) 65
Marvel Girl (House of X 020) 80
Phoenix (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga) 350
Polaris (X-Men Rise and Fall 026) 50
Kitty Pryde (Empyre) 35
Rogue (X of Swords 037a) 60
Professor X, Dreamer (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga) 50
Scarlet Witch (Empyre) 50
Cable 75 + Futuristic Holograms 25 (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga)
X-23 (Fantastic Four) 50
Egg (House of X) 25
Hope Summers (X of Swords) 100
Cyclops (X-Men Rise and Fall) 45
Dazzler (Empyre) 35
Colossus (Empyre) 125
Iceman (House of X) 65
Elixir (House of X) 40
Forge (House of X Fast Forces) 75
Sage (House of X Fast Forces) 50
Dr. Moira MacTaggart (X-Men Rise and Fall ) 20
Deadpool (X-Men Rise and Fall 100) 60
Beast. (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga Fast Forces) 70
Gambit (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga Fast Forces) 70
Jubilee (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga Fast Forces) 50
Storm (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga Fast Forces) 70
Wolverine (X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga Fast Forces) 70
X-Men Blue ATA 4 points each
Monster Hunter feat on everyone legal 3 points each
This was an impressive 2,500-point force and one well suited against a colossal Sentinel force, something like what I fielded:
Alpha Class Sentinel @150
Bastion (XDPS g013) @100
Cerebra @150 + Brilliant Tactician 20
Cyclops Sentinel @150
Friend of Humanity @5
Karima + Robot Team Up card 75
Master Mold @200
Nimrod (047b) @125
Nimrod the Greater 25
Nimrod the Lesser 100
Omega 200
Omega Prime Sentinel 59 + Infiltrate 2
Omega Sentinel 50
Orchis Soldier 25
Phoenix Sentinel @75
Sentinel (Captain America) @200
LE Sentinel Captain 29
legacy Sentinel Mark II @100
legacy Sentinel Mark V @40
Sentinel Squad ONE 70
experienced Sentinel Trooper 25
Tri-Sentinel @30
He’d brought the Morlock Tunnels, a cramped indoor map that I’d had to diagram carefully to even be able to place my starting force.
Chadd’s plan was to Barrier up in between my waves of attacks. But it didn’t go that way because why would I march up to get shot like that? Sentinels are artificial intelligence … emphasis on INTELLIGENCE. And so that map hampered him more than it helped — especially when Tri-Sentinel blew up the walls
We played for some hours but had to call it far too early because Chadd had been up for nearly 20 straight hours and I had been awake for more than 16 myself.
We planned revisit this battle on Monday, when the con was basically over, ahead of our Tuesday morning checkout time.
RESULT: INCONCLUSIVE (but the momentum was mine)
——
GAME 2: X-MEN #1 (1991) COVER vs. ACOLYTES
Chadd built a 1000-point team based on the iconic cover:
So I opted to face him with Magneto and his Acolytes!
Magneto (XDPS G025) 300
Frenzy
Colossus (XDPS) + Inside Information
Amelia Voght
Scanner
Kleinstock Bros x 3
Random
legacy Fabian Cortez
We agreed to play on Genosha, the site of the battle. And we kinda played it twice because the first go-round we made some ridiculous misplays. I played the Acolytes about as poorly as one could — Magneto wasn’t even on his right starting click! — while Chadd realized too late he hadn’t packed the right Beast for the team.
The second game, I had full command of my team, such that Chadd folded.
RESULT: MAGNETO WAS RIGHT
——
GAME 3: EXILES V. EXILES
Chadd built a team of Exiles: Blink, Juggernaut, Proteus, Dazzler, Longshot and Sage.
So I wanted to play my OWN EXILES: T’Chaka II, Magik, Valkyrie, Tessa, Nocturne and Spider-Man 2099
But … this game was almost a bust because, again, Chadd had brought the wrong piece — this time a Juggernaut.
But … we found a way to rebuild our teams to have a match anyway.
But … it ended in a draw. And we didn’t even do a roll-off because WHY? It was a draw.
RESULT: A DRAW
——
GAME 4: THE NAME GAME
This is a F.U.N. scenario that Chadd came up with for Dragon Con years past where you build a force based on your government name.
C: Cyclops (Regenesis) @120
H: Honey Badger @80
A: Apocalypse (XMRF) 125
D: Dark Phoenix (M10th Anniversary) @100
D: Deadpool (X of Swords) 40
vs.
K: King Shark (Harley Quinn and the Gotham Girls) @90 + Submerged 5 because he’s a shark
H: Harley Quinn (WW80) @50 + Alias 3 because she’s literally wearing someone else’s clothes
A: Ant-Man & Wasp (Chaos War) 168 + And Stay Down! 5 because they are a one-two punch duo
R: Rikki Barnes (Empyre) 75 + Loner 5 because she’s literally the last survivor of her world
I: Ironheart (Captain America and the Avengers) 85 + Shellhead 10 because she’s armored and has the old defense symbol to gain the +2
I LOVE how the feats are thematic for each of them.
We left the hotel room for this one, playing in the Heroclix gaming area at DragonCon. The map was the David Leverette/Howard Brock-provided Barnstable Wedding map.
I wound up winning, but the biggest moment was when Jonathan, Honey Badger’s pal wolverine, one-shot King Shark. Ohhhhh I was as salty as the water King Shark likes to swim in.
RESULT: KHARI’S VICTORY BUT CHADD HAD BEST SCENE
——
GAMES 5-6: THE CHARLIE
Another Dragon Con classic, we saved this for nearly last — because we had multiple teams to run.
The Charlie (named for Charlie “Rockman” Cates, an old school Heroclix judge and former player) works like this: Seven figs, all in differing point brackets, sit on the sideline. The cheapest fig starts first. When it heals or takes damage, immediately roll d6 and replace it with the corresponding fig on the sideline.
First game, Chadd had as many Phoenixes as he could muster: from Dark Phoenix down to Jean Grey and an X-Trainee filling in the very cheapest slot.
I ran a bunch of legacy card figs: Leech, Havok, Deadpool, Warlock, She-Hulk, Namor and Thor & Loki.
RESULT: SHINY LEGACIES SHINE
Some hours later, we found a quiet table in the gaming hall and did the other team. I forget what Chadd packed but I used my All Black Everything squad: 25-point WOTR Black Panther, Isca The Unbeaten prime, SR Uhura, 022 Power Girl @115, Empyre Monica Rambeau @150 and 250-point chase Black Panther.
RESULT: ALWAYS BET ON BLACK
——
GAME 7: NIGHT OF THE SENTINELS PART II
Now it was time to do our real match, being relatively rested this time and having several hours to do it justice.
Well, that didn’t quite happen either, as Chadd for some reason needed nearly an ENTIRE HOUR just to set up his team. Then he never quite played his force’s best pieces, essentially letting me take the offensive at will.
He’d built an impressive team. But the whole thing was just a little too overwhelming for him.
RESULT: SOME MUTANTS ELIMINATED, SOME SENTINELS WRECKED … but not nearly enough of either!
———
Chadd is skipping DragonCon next year, but coming to MomoCon in the spring. We’ll be holding the points down to a cap of 1000 this time. And we’ll have more F.U.N. Heroclixin’.