Heroclixin' ...it's all about F.U.N.

[MOD 53]: THE THING (Fantastic Four 004)

Like other the set-title-character commons in 2020’s F4 set, he had a trait called “In The Beginning…” that indicated these were the FF at the start of their careers. And Ben Grimm’s soon-to-be iconic rocky epidermis hadn’t yet emerged:

It was more lumpy-looking. So decided to mod mine to match:

• Painted him in orange acrylic.
• then did it again
• and again and again, as thickly as possible.

The result was VERY pleasing! Original on the left, mod on the right:

It, too, got to the table in the mass Hulk vs. Thing matchup with Lenny.

NEXT MOD: Going native

 Legacy cards kinda fall into four overlapping categories:

Black Panther clix have generally been underwhelming in the game’s history, missing his:

• SMARTS: Outwit is his signature power, but he sometimes lacks it
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership is a must, but he often lacks it
• SPEED: Needs IM:Elevated and good values. Often missing at least one
• STEALTH: ‘Nuff said. He usually has it but it’s surprisingly absent from otherwise best dials
• STRENGTH: Can he hit for 3-6 clicks on top dial? Usually not
• SURVIVABILITY: Damage reducers and good values. The armor is too frequently the soft spot.

T’Challa is supposed to be exceptional, though, even when not the official Black Panther. So let us ponder the question … WHAT IF…?

… THERE WERE A DEFINITIVE PANTHER DIAL

 

Marvel Studios Disney Plus 013 T’Challa Star-Lord

• SMARTS: No Outwit. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: Plenty Leadership. A
• SPEED: Flight is the IM:Elevated he needs (though from rocket boots more than jungle agility). A
• STEALTH: Only on back end. B-
• STRENGTH: Running Shot Penetrating/Psychic Blast is good offense. A-
• SURVIVABILITY: No reducers at all is bad defense. D

THE KING’S VERDICT: So this is from the Disney Plus “What if T’Challa got kidnapped instead of Peter Quill” some such or other. It’s not a bad rendition of Panther not being Panther. But it’s not Panther.

———

Marvel Studios Disney Plus 025 T’Challa Star-Lord

• SMARTS: This is more like it … he has lots of Outwit. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership, but he can cheat a few keywords onto a Guardians theme team. D+
• SPEED: Flight. A
• STEALTH: None at all. F
• STRENGTH: Running Shot Pulse Wave used to be better in solo combat. Formerly A, now B-
• SURVIVABILITY: No reducers at all. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: Nah. While this one is arguably a better piece than the 013, it’s somehow a worse rendition of T’Challa as he should be.

Marvel Studios Disney Plus 025e T’Challa Star-Lord

• SMARTS: Outwit for just first click. A-
• SOVEREIGNTY: D+
• SPEED: Only a single click of Running Shot dings him a bit. A-
• STEALTH: F
• STRENGTH: Just the single click of Running Shot dings him a lot in this metric — subsequent clicks of Precision and RCE notwithstanding. C+
• SURVIVABILITY: And it’s because with no reducers, he could EASILY be 40 points erased at once. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: He’s priced right compared to his 100-point line, but still misses way off on the must-have qualities.

———

Marvel Studios Disney Plus 103a T’Challa Star-Lord

• SMARTS: Nothing here. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership, though. A-
• SPEED: No Flight or Improved Movement? Bleh. C-
• STEALTH: Nothing. F
• STRENGTH: Running Shot  to start with Ranged Combat Expert later. OKish. C-
• SURVIVABILITY: Zero armor. F

THE KING’S VERDICT: This is a training dial so it’s no wonder it’s not good.

Marvel Studios Disney Plus 103b T’Challa Star-Lord

• SMARTS: None. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: Not leading. F
• SPEED: No Improved Movement. C-
• STEALTH: Nope. F
• STRENGTH: Running Shot into Hypersonic Speed is a plus. His damage is light, which is a minus. C
• SURVIVABILITY: Nothing will save him if hit. D

THE KING’S VERDICT: It’s better than the “A” version yet somehow a bit worse. Back to REAL Black Panthers, I guess…

———

Avengers Forever 012 Black Panther

• SMARTS: No Outwit. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership to start. A
• SPEED: Mediocre Charge range with no IM:Elevated. C+
• STEALTH: He’s got it in his special speed power. B+
• STRENGTH: The SP also gives Flurry. Blades comes with normal Flurry later. A-
• SURVIVABILITY: No reducers. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: Not this Panther. Not at 75 points.

Avengers Forever 012V Black Panther

• SMARTS: See above. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: See above. A
• SPEED: Speed is even worse. C-
• STEALTH: See above. B
• STRENGTH: See above. A
• SURVIVABILITY: No reducers and WAY shorter life. D

THE KING’S VERDICT: 25-point Leadership is his best and really only good quality.

———

Avengers Forever 060 Ghost Panther

• SMARTS: Outwit on click 1? Check. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership? At all? Nope. F
• SPEED: IM:Elevated makes up for the 8 speed. A
• STEALTH: SP gives Stealth — well, as long as the SP lasts. A-
• STRENGTH: It also gives Hypersonic Speed, which is great with Blades, which he has all dial long in some form. Later, Close Combat Expert Shows up. A-
• SURVIVABILITY: Invulnerability leads off, and then Toughness — though he gets a big soft spot in the middle. A SP gives Steal Energy which could potentially stretch that dial. B+

THE KING’S VERDICT: This WarpWorld version of BP crossed with Ghost Rider is OK, but clearly fails a big metric there to be a full 125 points. But maybe at 75…?

Avengers Forever 060V Ghost Panther

• SMARTS: Lost the Outwit! NAWWW. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: And still no Leadership. F
• SPEED: Just Charge now, until the end of his dial. B-
• STEALTH: Also gone until his SP shows up end-dial. D+
• STRENGTH: Charge+Blades. He’ll really need his trait and CCE to boost his AV. B-
• SURVIVABILITY: Just Toughness now, with that same soft underbelly. C

THE KING’S VERDICT: Worse in every metric except cost.

———

Avengers Forever L024 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Starts with Perplex and can no longer simply push to Outwit. B-
• SOVEREIGNTY: Still no Leadership. And without wild card status now, even, to possibly be a boon to a team. F
• SPEED: His old dial full of Leap/Climb (which no longer gives auto-breakaway) is bolstered by a new trait poofing him into hindering 4 squares away. B
• STEALTH: Traited now; a great improvement. A
• STRENGTH: The continuing lack of actual moving attack makes it difficult to leverage his offense — which starts quite anemic at 2 damage. C
• SURVIVABILITY: Boosted by, first, his original Toughness and, second, by his new “Diplomatic Immunity” trait preventing enemy Outwit or range shots at him if he’s been attacked in a turn. And then there’s the new Spider-Man team ability. B+

THE KING’S VERDICT: The low damage more than anything nerfs his chance to be effective again. Mid all around for 60 points.

———

SIGH… another era of less than kingly Panthers. But a new era of card design beckons. Maybe a good BP would emerge…

Back to the ’80s and back to the Fantastic Four!

[MOD 52] The Thing (Deep Cuts 003)

Similarly, to a number of my other Deep Cuts purchases, I wanted to paint a costume for Ben Grimm we hadn’t gotten in clix yet.

His Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation outfit from the mid-1980s was my choice. Painted it like so:

But his feet looked … weird. Like he was wearing socks made of panty hose instead of boots. So at the advice and encouragement of Heroclixin’ board member emeritus Taylor, I got some Green Stuff epoxy and tried it for the first time.

Not bad.

All set for some clobberin’ time on a map! And I used him in this 2021 game.

NEXT WEEK: Another Thing coming

2020! It was the start of a whole new decade. 

———

Unlike the Golden Age, or years 2017-2018 or 2019, would it see Black Panther finally walk into having a piece with ALL his key attributes?

• SMARTS:  Outwit is his signature power.
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership is a must.
• SPEED: Needs IM:Elevated and good values
• STEALTH: ‘Nuff said.
• STRENGTH: Can he hit for 3-6 clicks on top dial?
• SURVIVABILITY: Damage reducers and good values.

What would THE KING’S VERDICT be?

———

Captain America and the Avengers 037A Black Panther

• SMARTS: He doesn’t start with Outwit but gets it later. Opening SP makes him immune to enemy stat nerfs, Incap and the like. He sees through Stealth! B+
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership at start and at end. A-
• SPEED: Great Charge speed and IM:Elevated. A 
• STEALTH: Trait. A. 
• STRENGTH: Blades that penetrates on doubles (which is too unreliable) but lasts most of dial. AV is steady 11s to start. B+.
  
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor at all. C. 

THE KING’S VERDICT: He’s a Team Player TA fig but with his own Stealth, he doesn’t NEED it like earlier wild card BPs. If only he started with Outwit or had any reducers, he’d be a model Panther even at 85 points.

Captain America and the Avengers 37AE Black Panther

• SMARTS: Actually starts with Outwit unlike the full cost. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: But loses the Leadership until he’s nearly out of the game. B-
• SPEED: A. 
• STEALTH: A. 
• STRENGTH: Loses some AV. B 
• SURVIVABILITY: Only 4 clicks with no armor means a likely swift end. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: See above but minus three clicks of life.

———

Captain America and the Avengers 037B Azzuri

• SMARTS: He has none of the relevant powers. But it’s a different character so not a totally failing grade here. D
• SOVEREIGNTY: Not only has Leadership, but a trait boosting friendly Wakandan offense on his side of the map AND his SP removing tokens from those allies when he KOs targets. A
• SPEED: Decent Charge value with IM:Elevated. But only one click of it. B+
• STEALTH: Only shows at end dial. C-
• STRENGTH: Blades/Claws/Fangs to start, Close Combat Expert to end. A
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor at all, so he’ll need to hit with those late Steal Energy clicks to stay alive. C+

THE KING’S VERDICT: This is T’Challa’s grandpa. He definitely scales when built on a proper Wakanda force, but he’s not really a great use of the prime slot. And of course not a “prime” Panther.

———

Fantastic Four 013a Black Panther

• SMARTS: A full dial of Outwit! A+
• SOVEREIGNTY:  SP Leadership. A
• SPEED:  No IM:Elevated, and his trait requires him to stay in the shadows anyway. Leap/Climb comes later. B
• STEALTH:  It’s traited. A
• STRENGTH: His AV is fine, but 3 damage Precision Strike is too weak for a high grade here. B-
• SURVIVABILITY: He starts with high DV Reflexes, then gets Toughness. B-

THE KING’S VERDICT: This 60 points is so close to being a definitive BP with all the abilities — if a little weak at nearly all of them.

———

Fantastic Four 013b Black Leopard

• SMARTS: He thoroughly lacks Outwit, but has Perplex that scales to +2 if he’s faced with a higher stat value. And of course his stat-nerfing trait is peak. B+
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership in the first few clicks. And his trait helps a whole team a lot. A+
• SPEED: No Improved Movement at all that matters anymore. Charge is adequate, though, and his SP Perplex can potentially extend it a lot. B-
• STEALTH: Completely lacking. F
• STRENGTH: Charge BCF with a possible 12 AV against a max 17 DV for the defender? Yes please. A+
• SURVIVABILITY: No reducers, though his stat nerfing keeps most within 6 from one-shooting him. C

THE KING’S VERDICT: Though a distinctly meta version of BP, he’s far from definitive.

———

Fantastic Four Fast Forces 005 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Several clicks of Outwit. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: Two clicks of Leadership. More than adequate. A
• SPEED: 8 speed Charge is underwhelming without IM:Elevated. C
• STEALTH: Traited. A
• STRENGTH: As usual, his range is not really great but at least he has it. Charge Blades on both ends. A
• SURVIVABILITY: Starts with Toughness. Also gets Shape Change in hindering. B

THE KING’S VERDICT: Once again, this is close to being good. But the movement lacks. And at 75 points, he needs to be the whole package.

Fantastic Four Fast Forces 005E Black Panther

• SMARTS: Still has a pair of clicks of Outwit. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: But he loses the Leadership. F
• SPEED: And lacks the Charge (at first), bearing Sidestep instead. C-
• STEALTH: A
• STRENGTH: With the Sidestep, his range is actually a bit more useful. But this still drops to a grade of B-
• SURVIVABILITY: A sole click of Toughness, with aforementioned Shape Change. B-

THE KING’S VERDICT: Nope.

———

The pandemic was making the world sick, but I was sick of these disappointing Panthers.

2021-22

———

Avengers Fantastic Four Empyre 047a Black Panther

• SMARTS: No Outwit. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership early on (and super late on) plus the Recruiter trait to call in reinforcements from the KO area. A
• SPEED: Good Charge value with IM:Elevated. It’s what a Panther deserves. A-
• STEALTH: Somehow he has none. F
• STRENGTH: Charge then Flurry with Blades all through. A
• SURVIVABILITY: But no armor. Only Super Senses (that deals damage on misses) to save him. C

THE KING’S VERDICT: T’Challa and Shuri’s father, T’Chaka, is finally seen in clix. But he lacks a lot.

———

Avengers Fantastic Four Empyre 047a T’Chaka II

• SMARTS: No Outwit. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: But a full dial of Leadership. He can also bail a friend out of getting hit with his “Distracting Banter” trait. A
• SPEED: No IM:Elevated. B-
• STEALTH: Has it for most of his short dial. A
• STRENGTH: Charge+Flurry+Blades is pretty good. A
• SURVIVABILITY: Zero damage reducers means he might need the Banter for himself to live. C

THE KING’S VERDICT: Though he was a Heroclixin’ favorite of the year 2021, this alternate-future son of T’Challa fails as a possible successor.

———

War of the Realms Fast Forces 003 Black Panther

• SMARTS: He has Outwit top dial and end. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership. F
• SPEED: No Improved Movement or even moving attack. F
• STEALTH: Top dial, end dial. A-
• STRENGTH: Has high AV but low damage potential on top while his AV drops on his Blades clicks 2-3 (which he’ll almost never see).D
• SURVIVABILITY: …because he’s bare defensively on top and end, with just Senses in the middle. D

THE KING’S VERDICT: This is a 25-point starter-style version to learn the rudiments of the game, sure, but bleh

War of the Realms Fast Forces 003v Black Panther

• SMARTS: Outwit for clicks 1, 2 and 5. A
  SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership. F
  SPEED: Charge on the Outwit clicks is good. No Improved Movement is not. C+
  STEALTH: On the Outwit clicks. (Sensing a theme?) A
  STRENGTH: Blades throughout. A
  SURVIVABILITY: Only a bit of Super Senses in the middle again. D

THE KING’S VERDICT: Also unworthy of the “best Panther” mantle. Hell, it’s not even good.

———

War of the Realms 006 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Only has Outwit at the end. Bleh. C-
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership trait. Rally effect nerfs enemy Leadership. A
• SPEED: No movement at all. F
• STEALTH: Starts with plenty. B
• STRENGTH: Starts with Blades early on, but he loses it when Flurry appears — and his damage drops. B-
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor; Reflexes and Senses have to hold. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: Even worse than the Fast Forces ones. Maybe an alternate universe T’Challa is needed…

———

Next: AN ALTERNATE UNIVERSE

The original field leader of the X-Men was the subject of last Monday. Here’s his successor:

[MOD 51] Storm (Deep Cuts 003)

I never cared for this costume, seen during the Utopia era of the late 2000s. But I didn’t hate this variant of it:

I DID get a little lazy and rushed to finish because I had other paints and mods I was more interested in.

And in the end, I don’t hate it.

NEXT TIME: Ain’t nothing like the real Thing

In his better showings, Black Panther takes on any challenge solo. That’s why, nearly 10 years ago, I complained that one of my favorite Marvel heroes, Black Panther, had never gotten a complete dial.

All this time later, I still find myself complaining about Black Panther figs lacking at least one of the following must-haves:

• SMARTS:  Outwit is his signature power.
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership is a must.
• SPEED: Needs IM:Elevated and good values
• STEALTH: ‘Nuff said.
• STRENGTH: Can he hit for 3-6 clicks after/through reducers on top dial without Outwitting first?
• SURVIVABILITY: Damage reducers and good values.

In Part 2, I reviewed the first couple years of Silver Age BPs, to mostly disappointment. But maybe 2019 would change things

———

Earth X 014 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Outwit then Perplex later. A. 
• SOVEREIGNTY: SP Leadership that’s juiced on 6 roll. A
• SPEED: Good Charge with IM:Elevated. A
• STEALTH: A.
• STRENGTH: Traited Blades! Only the lack of range is kinda missing. But that’s more a perk than a necessity for BP. This is an almost perfect Panther. A
  
• SURVIVABILITY: Whoops. though he has SP Combat Reflexes+Super Senses+Willpower, there’s that total lack of armor. C

THE KING’S VERDICT: Alternate future (Earth X) T’Challa is so close to a practically perfect Panther but for that last detail. Not for 90 points.

———

Earth X 061 Venom Black Panther

• SMARTS: Outwit to start first half of dial. A 
• SOVEREIGNTY: His Leadership comes late, so B- 
• SPEED: Good Charge with IM:Elevated. A
• STEALTH: A
• STRENGTH: Starts with BCF, then SP Quake+BCF+Poison+Steal Energy. A
• SURVIVABILITY: No reducers, though Shape Change helps. C 

THE KING’S VERDICT: Symbiote-fused BP here is another one that comes kinda close but chokes.

———

Earth X Fast Forces 102 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Outwit then Perplex then Probability Control. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: Constant Leadership and he spawns bystanders to use it on. A
• SPEED: No moving attack at all. Only late Leap/Climb keeps this from a fail. D+
• STEALTH: A
• STRENGTH: Starting with Flurry is OK, even though he has no movement. Later BCF. B
• SURVIVABILITY: Early Toughness means he might land on those BCF clicks. C+

THE KING’S VERDICT: He’s really mid for 75 points.

Earth X Fast Forces 102E Black Panther

• SMARTS: Loses Outwit from above. B+
• SOVEREIGNTY: A
• SPEED: Leap/Climb is available immediately this time. C- 
• STEALTH: A
• STRENGTH: Starting with BCF is better, but AV is suspect. B 
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor, swift KO if Senses fail. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: 25 points cheaper, just as middling.

———

Avengers Black Panther Illuminati Fast Forces 005 Black Panther

• SMARTS: No Outwit, but he offers a conditional +1 AV for Wakanda on his side of the map. D
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership, plus that Wakanda thing. A
• SPEED: He has the needed IM:Elevated, but speed value’s low. B
• STEALTH: End of dial only, when it’s mostly too late to use. D
• STRENGTH: Charge BCF to start and finish is better than OK. Losing it in the middle, even with Exploit Weakness, is somewhat less than. B
• SURVIVABILITY: Not only a lack of armor, but range-only Super Senses. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: 75 points. Not exceptional. And of course nowhere near definitive.

Avengers Black Panther Illuminati Fast Forces 005E Black Panther

• SMARTS: See above. D
• SOVEREIGNTY: See above but no Leadership. D 
• SPEED: See above. B
• STEALTH: End of dial only, when it’s mostly too late to use. D
• STRENGTH: Exploit Weakness, then adds BCF later. B 
• SURVIVABILITY: See above. C

THE KING’S VERDICT: Nope, not even for just 50.

———

Avengers Black Panther Illuminati Fast Forces 009 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Early clicks of Perplex. B-. 
• SOVEREIGNTY: Not a king. Which is accurate. It’s complicated. F
• SPEED: Gets Leap/Climb eventually. D+. 
• STEALTH: A lone opening click. B+
• STRENGTH: Was better when Perplex worked on damage. Ranged Combat Expert on his back half is OK. C+
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor is NOT IT. C- 

THE KING’S VERDICT: This BP is actually Kasper Cole, an American NYC cop who found a damaged uniform the king had to abandon during an ambush. So this actually shouldn’t be a definitive Panther. And isn’t.

———

Avengers Black Panther Illuminati 029A Black Panther

• SMARTS: Starting Perplex is not as good as starting Outwit for a proper BP dial, but we’ll take it (esp. since Perplex was better at the time when damage could be Perplexed up.) B+
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership is a miss. F 
• SPEED: Started with Charge + IM:Elevated. A-
• STEALTH: He needs his wildcard status to maybe get it. D-
• STRENGTH: Perplexed damage made him OK here, as did his optional trait to start equipped with Gems (like the ABPI Power Gem for a possible +3 to damage). But was neither quite him nor quite good enough for the cost. Late Flurry BCF was undermined by anemic 9 AV. B. 
• SURVIVABILITY: Invincible is a first! Then he has Toughness. A-

THE KING’S VERDICT: He also packed FREE Quake when he got hit. In a lot of ways, this was a great Panther. But in a lot of ways, it also wasn’t.

———

Avengers Black Panther Illuminati 029B Black Panther

• SMARTS: Starts with traited Probability Control, and early Perplex. Late Outwit makes it in. B. 
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership. But him getting to generate pogs nudges this score a tad. D. 
• SPEED: No Improved Movement. C
• STEALTH: No Stealth. F 
• STRENGTH: Charge BCF with Prob is strong. A SP with Mind Control gives Improved Targeting:Hindering+Blocking. B
  
• SURVIVABILITY: 18 DV Toughness. B-

THE KING’S VERDICT: This is loud “Happy-Pants” Panther as seen in the 1970s Jack Kirby run and, later, in Christopher Priest’s early 2000s take. (It’s complicated.) Neither an excellent Panther nor a great prime.

———

Avengers Black Panther Illuminati 072 Black Panther

• SMARTS: No Outwit or Perplex or ANYTHING. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership. F
• SPEED: Hypersonic Speed with IM:Elevated. A
• STEALTH: It even works vs. Pulse Wave if he’s in printed hindering! A 
• STRENGTH: HyperSpeed with Battle Fury and traited Blades to start — later with Exploit Weakness and finally, Flurry. B+
• SURVIVABILITY: Zero armor, again (which is actually comic accurate). C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: Part of the 1 Million B.C. Avengers, he’s a bit awkward. He requires being played with another BP to truly be 100%, and for 85 fragile points, that’s not good enough.

———

Despite his headlining a whole set, Black Panther did not have a single definitive version. It would be the turn of the decade to maybe give him his due.

NEXT: 2020

Last time, we saw the junior member of the original Fantastic Four in his 1970s-1980s incarnation. Now I took a similar tack with:

[MOD 50] Cyclops (Deep Cuts 002)

I got this piece because I collect Cykes. but I couldn’t figure at first what I wanted.

Strangely, we’ve almost never gotten him in his classic “graduation” costume that went unchanged from the ’70s to the mid-’80s. So I went for this simple look.

Yawn. But whaddaya want, it’s Cyclops. He’s a fave of mine but not exciting.

NEXT MONDAY: Another mutant leader

Nearly 10 years ago, I complained that one of my favorite Marvel heroes, Black Panther, had never gotten a complete dial that could do anything like this:

All this time later, I still find myself complaining about Black Panther figs lacking at least one of the following must-haves:

• SMARTS:  Outwit is his signature power.
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership is a must.
• SPEED: Needs IM:Elevated and good values
• STEALTH: ‘Nuff said.
• STRENGTH: Can he hit for 3-6 clicks after/through reducers on top dial without Outwitting first?
• SURVIVABILITY: Damage reducers and good values.

In Part 1, I reviewed the Golden Age BPs. Did the advent of SILVER AGE give us a Black Panther that delivered on all these metrics?

———

 

2017

Avengers Defenders War 007 Black Panther

• SMARTS: He’s all about Outwit. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership, though. F
• SPEED: Or Improved Movement. D
• STEALTH: All dial long. A
• STRENGTH: No offensive ability. D+
• SURVIVABILITY: No defensive ability. D+

THE KING’S VERDICT: He was a Shifting Focus piece, though, so he had the option to fill the above gaps in his ability. So let’s look at his alter ego…

———

Avengers Defenders War 018 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Lacks the Outwit power. But because he can shift to 007, he doesn’t totally fail here. C-
• SOVEREIGNTY: F
• SPEED: No Improved Movement but he has the Charge at least. B-
• STEALTH: Gotta shift to it. D+
• STRENGTH: Blades is good. But why do they hate giving him 10 AV on top and love giving 11 AV on click 2? B-
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor or rollouts. D 

THE KING’S VERDICT: Of course the Shifting Focus is nice, but it leaves gaps: He can start a turn stealthy, but is a sitting duck after swapping to this fighting form— which cannot take advantage of his doppelgängers Outwit. At least he was only 30 points.

———

Avengers Defenders War 029 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Outwit leads off. But he only has the single click of it. A-
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership. F
• SPEED: Traited Leap/Climb gives the Improved Movement he deserves, but a complete lack of Charge is a problem. C.
• STEALTH: It shows on the first half of his dial where it’s useful. B-
• STRENGTH: Close Combat Expert is a first. But he had to sacrifice Outwit to get it. At least he has the option for a steady 10AV.  C 
• SURVIVABILITY: Is the the first printed 18 we’ve EVER seen on BP to this point? (checks dials) …Yup. With Toughness. B

THE KING’S VERDICT: Even the option to make him a wild card doesn’t make up for the shortcomings.

———

Avengers Defenders War 058 Black Panther

• SMARTS: He gets Outwit, but it’s deep in his dial. C-
• SOVEREIGNTY: Not only Leadership, but 4-6, spawns minions AND +1 AV to Wakanda.A+
• SPEED: Plasticity but nothing else. C-. 
• STEALTH: None. F.
• STRENGTH: There hadn’t been a BP this offensively weak since the game’s Year 1. D
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor, only Mastermind. D 

THE KING’S VERDICT: This was one of my least favorite Panthers ever.

———

Avengers Defenders War 074 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Not only is there Outwit but it also grants a DV nerf. And Prob later in the dial. A+
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership, but that DV nerf aids a team behind her. D+
• SPEED: Sidestep plus Charge and IM:Elevated. A 
• STEALTH: Traited. A
• STRENGTH: Precision Strike with just 3 damage is not good enough at her price. B-
• SURVIVABILITY: No reducers on a 6-click dial over 100 points. C. 

THE KING’S VERDICT: It’s Shuri as Black Panther, and almost one of the better ones. But still not right.

———

Avengers Defenders War 101 The Man Without Fear

• SMARTS: No Outwit or anything like a smart power. D. 
• SOVEREIGNTY: In self-exile. F. 
• SPEED: Would be an “A+” grade if not for the self-damage if he doesn’t end Hypersonic Speed (another first for BP) in Stealth and his not being able to HyperSpeed at all if not in Stealth. But Sidestep can mitigate this weakness. And IM:Elevated is of course key. A-.
  
• STEALTH: A
• STRENGTH: 3 damage is a bit soft. B-
• SURVIVABILITY: Invulnerability is a first, plus the self-heal in Stealth at end of turn. A. 

THE KING’S VERDICT: T’Challa takes on the role of formerly filled by Daredevil in Hell’s Kitchen. This is a nice dial but not at all definitive.

Which was a theme for 2017 — a lot of Panthers; not one even close to definitive. Maybe the next year would get us closer.

———

2018

———
Avengers Infinity 002 Black Panther

• SMARTS: No Outwit. F
• SOVEREIGNTY: No Leadership. F
• SPEED: Sidestep and IM:Elevated is … semi-adequate. B-
• STEALTH: Traited. A
• STRENGTH: He needs his Flurry+Blades and Exploit Weakness to be on the same clicks to be good, instead of alternating. Or actual Charge to use either. B-
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor at all. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: He’s got a neat ability to get FREE Charge if he KOs first. But getting that KO is a bit tough at times. Not great at 60 points.

———

Avengers Infinity 013 Black Panther 2099

• SMARTS: No Outwit or anything. F 
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership for a couple of clicks. B+
• SPEED: Has Leap/Climb, Sidestep via SP. But it doesn’t last. B- 
• STEALTH: Two clicks is not really enough. B-
• STRENGTH: Damage is too light on top, and there’s unreliable AV later. C 
• SURVIVABILITY: 18 DV Toughness and traited Shape Change isn’t too bad. B-

THE KING’S VERDICT: This future version of BP is no heir to the throne, just mediocre.

———

Avengers Infinity Fast Forces 002 Black Panther

• SMARTS: Dial opens, closes with Outwit. A
• SOVEREIGNTY: “Keep It Moving Avengers” isn’t really Leadership. D
• SPEED: Sidestep starts but his Charge is buried and he lacks IM:Elevated. C-  
• STEALTH: Starts and ends with it, but he’s too visible in the middle. B+ 
• STRENGTH: Sidestep means he can maybe get a Blades attack in. Late Exploit Weakness is too weak. 2 damage too low for range shots. B-
• SURVIVABILITY: No armor. C-

THE KING’S VERDICT: He’s not it.

———

Secret Wars Battleworld 061 Black Panther

• SMARTS: He can switch to Outwit on defense, Prob on offense, Perplex on option. A+
• SOVEREIGNTY: Leadership shows when it’s kinda too late to matter. BUT it’s more important on those late clicks because he spawns bystanders. B-
  
• SPEED: He’s Hypersonic Speeding most of the time, but has options to use Running Shot+Pulse Wave or Charge. Later, he’s got Charge+Flurry. Flies. A+
• STEALTH: “No time for subtlety,” his card reads, so no. F
• STRENGTH: Absolutely a beast, never dealing less than 4 (unless Quaking/Incapping for some reason). His 8 range DOUBLES the next best Panther in history. A+
• SURVIVABILITY: Not only Impervious/Invincible at will, but there’s traited Super Senses, SAFEGUARD:Outwit/Pulse Wave, with THREE STOP clicks. A+

THE KING’S VERDICT: Simply the best HeroClix dial on a Panther to that date, and at 250 points, he ought to be. But the lack of Stealth — and of course, the fact that it is representative of a single point in time — means it’s nowhere near definitive.

Meanwhile, he had a 150-point level:

Secret Wars Battleworld 061R Black Panther

• SMARTS: See above. A+
• SOVEREIGNTY: Loses the clicks with Leadership and pog spawn. F 
• SPEED: See above. A+
• STEALTH: See above. F
• STRENGTH: See above. A+
• SURVIVABILITY: Loses the STOP clicks. A- 

THE KING’S VERDICT: Still a top-flight dial, but still not truly the Panther.

———

NEXT: 2019

My Custom Mods series revival continues.

Last time, I showed off my Susan “Hot Mama” Richards 1990s costume repaint. Now let’s tackle her brother, Johnny Storm:

[MOD 49] Human Torch (Deep Cuts 004)

I wanted an old-school look:

But that’s a very hard look to capture on a 3D sculpt.

I’m not displeased but it’s far from my favorite.

NEXT MONDAY: X-MEN