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Formerly called “Wednesday Battle Reports,” the name change represents a shift in how I do these. They just take way too long to read and write. So instead of a play-by-play description of the games, I’m going to follow this basic format:

  • The inspiration of the team
  • The actual build
  • My basic strategy
  • And, per round:
  1. Highlights
  2. Turning Point(s)
  3. MVPs

Hopefully, I can handle this format a bit more easily and you’ll find it smoother reading. Let me know what you think?

_______________________________________
Superfriends

This cartoon, in retrospect, was terribly lame. Heck, Aquaman, now my favorite hero, is still fighting the bad rep he gained from this show nearly FORTY YEARS LATER.
But because he’s my favorite character, when a venue held a scenario requiring that all characters had to appear in an animated series, the original Superfriends line-up was the first to come to mind:

Come on, I don’t care how lame you thought Aquaman was, that sound effect for his power rocked.

Anyway, here’s the team (in order of appearance in the clip):

Man of Steel (Collateral Damage) 200 + Alias 3
Wonder Woman (DC 75th Anniversary) 127
Batman & Robin 138 + Lunge 5
Aquaman (DC 75th Anniversary) + Contingency Plan 12
Marvin & Wendy 9
+ Opened Hydrant
+ Eleha’al Vine
+ Generator
= 600 points.

Far from being just mere flavor for the team, the pog Marvin & Wendy were a crucial blocker thanks to two characters with 18 Defend. Their Energy Shield/Deflection then gave them a staggering 20-21 DV at range, protecting my very soft-shelled fighters until they could get into the fight.

First Round I faced young Zach’s Teen Titans: Bart Allen (DC 75th Anniversary), Superboy (DC 75th Anniversary), Donna Troy (DC 75th Anniversary), Beast Boy (DC 75th Anniversary), Robin (Arkham Asylum) and Red Arrow.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Nearly lost the game when I shot Robin instead of punching him with Man of Steel because A) I easily could’ve punched for a one-hit-KO and run back to where I was and B) I should’ve moved him further back so Superboy couldn’t Charge him for 6 clicks, neutering him quite handily.
  • I rolled pretty poorly, and Donna Troy’s PC made it worse. The first 40 minutes of the game I barely hit anything. Fortunately, Wonder Woman’s 18 Defend (and my opponent’s insistence on battling Man of Steel instead of her) kept Man of Steel alive long enough to for my rolls to turn just enough for a comeback.

TURNING POINTS

Hitting Superboy — at LAST! — for enough damage to send him running to Bart Allen for Titans TA healing. That freed Wonder Woman to Charge Donna Troy out of the game. Superboy came back to fight Man of Steel, but that only allowed me to double-team him into KO to seal the win.

MVP

  • Wonder Woman. 18 Defend. Also, her Lasso SP got the penetrating damage on Donna Troy right when I finally needed it.
  • Opened Hydrant. Though I never got to use Aquaman’s “Rise From the Deep” SP with the Hydrant’s water zone (got blasted off those clicks by Starfire), the water kept Red Arrow from making a last-second Running Shot to threaten Man of Steel.

Second Round: Bill ran Doomsday (DC 75th Anniversary), LOSH Cosmic Boy, Phantom Girl, V Batman (Legacy), Mr. Mind and Jason Blood.

HIGHLIGHT

I won map roll and got the BPRD water map. From then on, I proceeded to roll at least one less than what I needed to land any given hit.

TURNING POINT

  • After a failed Hypersonic Speed run, I again failed to move Man of Steel far enough away. Doomsday, having been flown by Cosmic Boy, got a line of fire on Man of Steel to counter my HSS, then tied him down with Phantom Girl — who destroyed both the Generator I was holding and the Vine next to me for good measure.
  • I thought my 200-point character was safe from Doomsday, since Cosmic Boy had no line of fire to TK the monster. I was unaware that Doomsday was feated with Lunge, giving him a free shot after that TK which I would have certainly thwarted by blocking Cos’s line of fire.
  • In the end, I’d lost my whole team, only KOing Batman.

MVP

No one. Wonder Woman missed Jason Blood’s 16 DV with her 11 AV. That’s how bad it was. Not even Contingency Plan helped.
Third Round: James had Batman (Arkham Asylum chase #99), SR Batman(DC 75th Anniversary), Darkseid (Crisis), Ultron (Hammer of Thor) + Nova Blast.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • I made sure that Nova Blast would NOT occur, pushing to Outwit Ultron with Batman & Robin, then beating him with Aquaman’s RFTD. The evil robot never recovered.
  • Also one-shot Watchtower Batman with Man of Steel (having learned from the first round not to waste the chance) and ran him and Marvin & Wendy (who’d survived Bats’ Flurry thanks to Man of Steel’s Defend) to the far end of the map.

TURNING POINT

Darkseid phased in, then pushed to hit Man of Steel hard. To save Supes from a relatively easy KO, I used Aquaman to water-warp and smash blocking terrain to open Batman & Robin’s line of fire to Outwit Darkseid’s Impervious. Marvin & Wendy Flurried Darkseid for 1 (knocking him off Impervious), then Wonder Woman Charged to knock him onto his 16 DV click. That left Darkseid easy pickings for a KO, and my opponent thoroughly conceded at this point.

MVP

Everyone. Seriously, like a good comic book (or Superfriends episode), EVERYBODY got their moments.

FINAL RECORD: 2-1. A very fun team that’s surprisingly effective.

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MY "kooky quartet" of Avengers.

Captain America (Hammer of Thor) 72
SR Hawkeye (Avengers) 56
SR Wasp (Avengers) 37
SR Scarlet Witch (Avengers) 35
+ Eleha’al Vine 0
+ Kinetic Accelerator 0
+ Dynamostat 0
=200 points.

FIRST MATCH: Charlie answered the question: “Who Watches the Watchmen?” by running Rorschach, Nite Owl, and the 83-point Comedian. I got to pick the Monument map, which is very good for Cap. Despite getting the first shots off, I made a crucial error by choosing to attack The Comedian with Scarlet Witch instead of running her away. The misogynist took her right out before taking down Hawkeye and Wasp. Cap was too much for Nite Owl to pin down, though, and he finished the rest of Charlie’s team. 1-0.

SECOND MATCH: Jessica attempted to blind me with Scientists Dr. Octopus (Secret Invasion), Beast (Mutations & Monsters) and Goliath (Secret Invasion). She’s a solid player but still a fairly recent one; she’d never seen Captain America in action before. Once Doc Ock was knocked off his Outwit, I had an easy time of it, losing only Hawkeye for the win. 2-0.

FINAL MATCH: Vic played an unofficial Black Lantern Corps theme of Nekron and Black Hand (Justice League). Vic decided to tie up only Cap instead of my whole team with Nekron, enabling Scarlet Witch to easily spirit Cap away. Clutch breakaway rolls in subsequent rounds also helped seal a victory as I whittled away at the dark villain.

UNDEFEATED! At 200 points, this Avengers team is very solid for a number of reasons. A) The Avengers team ability gives them an unparalleled action and positioning advantage, especially because B) two of them are dedicated taxis. C) Cap’s power enables the team to maintain great offensive pressure even when Hawkeye is hampered. But that doesn’t mean Hawkeye is useless, as D) he represents a 2nd source of 3 damage to deal with Invulnerability/Impervious. E) Wasp makes a good tie-up piece, too, and F) Cap’s Leadership allows that 3rd attack to really maintain the offensive or land a KO blow.

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Last Friday, I introduced this column and my Heroclixin’ philosophy: teams should be F.U.N.

  • Friendly: Not designed to crush all comers;
  • Utilitarian/Useful: Not about to GET crushed without a fight;
  • Neat-o: Has an interesting or amusing trait.

With a 200-point game coming soon, I’m thinking of running this:

The Atom & Hawkman 120
Hawkgirl (Brightest Day) 71
Red Lantern 5
Kinetic Accelerator 0
=196 points. The 0 range keeps things friendly, but Hawkgirl is a frightfully useful piece, especially with those two Special Objects to boost her damage and speed, respectively. It’s neat that this is an almost perfectly comic accurate team. Not only did Atom and Hawkman share a title once, but I can’t imagine that the trio never shared an adventure.

Will I actually use it? Dunno. I passed it up for the Dark Avengers duo I ran a couple of weeks ago, and I have a great Avengers build I’ll probably highlight next week.

Happy clixing this weekend!

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Truth be told, I almost skipped this week. I played zero games last weekend, which is unusual for me. But I had this one in the vault (played back last spring or sometime) and decided to stick to my schedule.

I love playing Atlas even though they’re tough to win with.

Venus
HoT Jimmy Woo
Gorilla-Man
Namora
M-11
AV Thug
AV Thug
AV Thug
AV Thug  
=395 points.

FIRST match was against Lenny and his sharp cheddar cheese team of SI Dr. Strange, OOTS Batman, Gamora, and HoT Captain America on my choice of the Armor Wars Lab map. Ugh! Two pieces with nearly unlimited Line of Fire powers and two ultra-effective cheap fighters — all with an effective 18 or better defense!

This was a real chessmatch at first. Lenny quietly bided his time while I largely refused to attack. If I dared attempt a Charge with Namora, no matter how I positioned her she’d be counterattacked by all four of Lenny’s fighters (thanks to Cap and the Doc’s unique line of fire abilities) and have nearly zero chance to survive. So I made him burn actions with convenient Thugs as targets so I could make a safer approach by tying up Cap and bringing Venus in close to multi-Incap targets (careful to block Batman’s line of fire). Eventually KO’d Cap but lost Gorilla Man and 3 Thugs for the loss. 0-1 (which felt like a win against all that cheese, though).

SECOND was a match against Lenny’s teenage friend Tony: Odin, HoT Spider-Man and Asgardian Warrior. His inexperience won this for me — he refused to push Odin most rounds despite the character’s ability to do so without cost via the Power Cosmic team ability. That allowed my sorely wounded Namora and Venus to escape while Thug after Thug tied up Odin long enough to preserve my 96-28 victory. 1-1.

FINALLY I went vs. Conrad: HoT Cap, Kurse, M+M Wolverine and Spider-Thor, once more on the Armor Wars map. The teenager remains a somewhat reckless player, but this time his tactics were pretty solid as he smashed my cover behind walls, my Accelerator, and constantly stole my reusable Generator to use against me.

Fortunately, Namora was able to land her initial attack, getting Wolverine out for an insurmountable lead. Venus was also invaluable against the Impervious Kurse, Incapacitating him over and over. Lost G-Man and all Thugs but wiped all but Cap for the win.

FINAL: 2-1. This was the first time I’ve really gotten Venus into the thick of things, and she worked out all right with her Incap-everybody SP. I wasn’t afraid sometimes to not use her Mastermind to gain her Perplex. Similarly, as Thugs dwindled and my need for extra actions waned, I opted to push Woo to his Perplex clicks as well, usually using his SHIELD TA to do it.

Namora continued to disappoint. If she misses that initial Charge, she’s kinda done. But when she works, she works oh so well, as in the last match. Gorilla-Man was close to being MVP with his KO of Batman and taking tons of damage for Venus and tying up foes and landing a crit hit on Odin and whatnot.

But the element most key were the Thugs. These pogs, representing the faceless minions of Atlas, served many roles such as blocking LOF, tying up, MM fodder and even the occasional attack. This Modern Age team doesn’t work half as well without them.

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The last time I ran this comic-accurate team of the underage progeny of supervillain parents, I found them to be weak yet better than expected, sporting a lot of surprising tricks and mobility but lacking in offensive ability.
Now, with Web of Spider-Man, original members Chase Stein, Gertrude Yorkes & Old Lace, Karolina Dean, Molly Hayes and Nico Minoru have a new friend in Victor Mancha, another teen “born” to a supervillain.
Victor Mancha 96
Nico Minoru 84
Karolina Dean 55
Gertrude Yorkes & Old Lace 54
Chase Stein 45
Molly Hayes 43
= 377 points. Enough room for feats or the Runaways ATA (at 3 points per Runaway keyword).
__________
TOURNEY ONE: All characters must have the Kid of Teen keyword. No feats or BFCs.
Basically, this was identical to my “EAT IT, GRANDPA” scenario in the newest section of the site. Perfect time for this build:
Victor Mancha 96
Nico Minoru 84
Karolina Dean 55
Gertrude Yorkes & Old Lace 54
Chase Stein 45
Molly Hayes 43
+ Runaways ATA 18
+ Yellow Lantern 5
= 400 points. With Molly safeguarding the AV-boosting Lantern, Victor would get better odds at landing hits and thus giving the rest of the team a resultant bump to their follow-up attacks. Here’s how it actually went:
FIRST, against Paul’s Kara Zor-El, Dream Girl, Shrinking Violet, X-23 (Web of Spider-Man), Wolfsbane (Web of Spider-Man) and Dawnstar, I landed the first hit against Dawny with a one-two shot on the wall she hid behind (thanks, Karolina-backed-by-Nico’s-Staff-of-One’d-Enhancement-followed-by-Victor). Kara was the next to fall victim to Victor’s shots.
Things got dicey, then. Nico got KO’d in short order by Shrinking Violet and Wolfsbane despite a surprise use of Poison against both. Vic stayed tied up for a long time, leaving the still-Invulnerable Kara, well…invulnerable to most everyone else. And Molly ended on the short end of the claws of X-23. Fortunately, I finally took down Kara, Wolfsbane and Vi in the end to make up for the losses of Nico and Molly.
SECOND and final round, I faced Conrad’s Nico, Firestorm (Justice League), Wiccan, Spider-Girl, Robin (“Emo” Crisis vet) and Vet Spider-Man (Ultimates).
The kid still plays recklessly even after a couple of years. (His math wasn’t so good this time, either.) He jumped Robin to a rooftop to counter Karolina’s Energy Shield/Deflection without making sure he’d stay Stealthed. The landed hit wasn’t worth it when Vic knocked Robin off the roof for 5 total damage. From there I used my superior rules knowledge to thoroughly pounce on every mistake he made.
Conrad actually got a little rules-lawyery when I forgot to declare Chase Stein’s Close Combat Expert. But hey, he’s keeping me honest, and if it helps him play better, I’m for it.
End result: I KO’d all but Firestorm and lost only Karolina and Gert & Old Lace. As winner, I got  LE Daken.
__________
TOURNEY 2: 400 points, Modern Age.
I used the same team in this casual home game.
FIRST ROUND I faced Andy, using Iron Man/War Machine, Peter Parker, Ben Reilly and a Nurse on my chosen Prison map.
Key moments:
  • As I hunkered down in a hallway, Andy made a crucial misstep in using his Kinetic Accelerator. He got a high enough roll to make a Running Shot attack on my Victor Mancha, but none of us saw it until well after his move action was made. (And, in any case, he should’ve declared the Running Shot power action from the start anyway, according to the rules of this special object — which he’s only started using because I use it all. The. TIME 😉 )
  • Vic’s counterattack on the big duo was a critical miss. Two moves later, I realized I could have used the first of my three themed-team Probability Controls to reroll the attack. Ugh.
  • But that was a blessing in disguise as it left Chase free to run the team away from IM/WM without pushing.
  • Between IM/WM’s frequent misses and Psychic Blasts/Outwits from Vic and Nico, the Runaways, er…ran away with a surprise victory, KOing the 300-point duo and Ben Reilly/Scarlet Spider while losing only Molly and Gert & Old Lace.
THEN I faced the host Thomas and his Cosmic Spider-Man, Batgirl (Arkham Asylum) and Checkmate Knight (white) on my choice of the Arena map.
Unable to target any of the opposing figures (due to their Batman Ally-granted Stealth) and with Cosmic Spidey able to, via his HSS and his never-blocked Line of Fire trait, attack my pieces at will, I spent much of the game cowering my team in one of the corners. Though I eventually got the  Checkmate Knight, my whole team was slowly wiped out in the least fun game I’ve ever played against a non-colossal character.
(Digressional rant: Cosmic Spider-Man is a point-and-click character…as in, “point it at your opponent’s characters and click their dials.” It takes no actual strategy to play him effectively. Heaven forbid you actually do use strategy when playing him, like Thomas did in this team build and game. Extreme HSS, 10 range, Power Cosmic, perma-Line of Fire AND a wild card? Really? In good conscience, I can never give fellowship to a player who uses him unless they’re using him against a powerful colossal figure.
Digression over. Back to Runaways.)

Piece-by-piece:
Chase doesn’t have the sexy AV or DV, but he’s such a key to this team it’s not even funny. His ability to carry the team in and out of trouble was invaluable in the first games (even if I didn’t use it so well a couple of times). It’s telling that he was the first target of the CSM team.
Gertrude Yorkes & Old Lace were useless except for taking theme PCs and occasionally forcing drive-by damage with their AV SP; in both tourneys they were KO’d in a single round of attacks. I need to either use them to plug up Hypersonic Speedster lanes on indoor maps or hurl them at foes to using Nico’s occasional TK after Vic’s softened a target up for the Runaways ATA.
Karolina was little else but an attack magnet and damage sponge. But that’s OK now that she’s not the only shooter or natural 10 AV on the team.
Molly was hobbled by her Super Strength forcing me to choose between her doing extra damage with an object or being taxied. More often she served as the best tie-up piece on the team.
As Nico lives or dies, so too does the team. That’s how it used to be, anyway, before Victor Mancha, a true attacker for the team who combines elements the others only provided piecemeal before: double-digit AV and Running Shot for a ranged threat (Dean), good damage (Molly) and a way to deal with Invulnerability-plus (both Molly and Nico, sometimes), strong defenses (Molly), taxi skills (Chase, Dean), and via his Indomitabilty, extra actions (Nico). His being able to press the attack or hasten the retreat makes the rest of the team better as well.
I want to play a Golden Age version of the team with Feats and Battlefield Conditions. Contingency Plan is a given on Nico to boost stats as needed. Armor Piercing, while good with Gert & Old Lace’s auto-damage “Arsenic” SP, might be too many points to put on this inefficient duo. Instead, Gert’s BF Chase can get excellent use from Lunge to give him move+attack ability in addition to taxiing pals. The 5-point Yellow Lantern is probably still the best use of the remaining 6 points to help Vic land his all-important Running Shots. With no team abilities, both the Alpha Strike and Disbanded BFCs work well on this build.

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Y’all know I love me some Guardians of the Galaxy. Great title that I apparently learned about almost too late (it’s now “on hiatus”— read as: “soft-cancelled” — as of May  2010’s issue #25) that I got interested in because they’d been made into HeroClix. But until Web of Spider-Man, the tallest member of the team had been missing:

He is Groot.

I haven’t actually quite acquired the big guy, but a pair of friends generously loaned him to me for a game, knowing I liked the character. So I tossed aside the all-Web of Spider-Man team I was considering and instead ran this:

Groot 152
Phyla-Vell 138 + Protected 8
Star-Lord 90 + Contingency Plan 12
Rocket Raccoon 65
Rookie Aleta 51
Bug 44
+ Guardians of the Galaxy alternate team ability 30
= 590 points. This was a last-minute team build, so I didn’t have any clear idea of what the last 10 points ought to have been used for. I faced my friend (who loaned the Groot) using this team: Deadpool (Web of Spider-Man), Bullseye (Web of Spider-Man), Nightcrawler (Web of Spider-Man), Scarlet Spider (Web of Spider-Man), Peter Parker (Web of Spider-Man) and Solo on the new Bridge map in the set.

Key factors/moments of the game:

  • His team had a pair of 12 AV ranged shooters, each of whom could use Running Shot for good damage. So after landing a very solid first hit on Scarlet Spider, I retreated most of the team to avoid retaliation.
  • Unfortunately, I made a bit of a repeat of a FAIL moment (see my FAIL series from a while back) involving Bug and Phyla-Vell that again cost the heavy-hitting cosmic girl her life in this fight. Using Aleta’s TK, I pulled Bug back out of range (rather than push him to retreat) while leaving the pushed Phyla a few squares out, just in range of Nightcrawler.
  • Nightcrawler, in particular, has been the focus of much nerd rage due the figure’s unique ability to snatch enemy figures into the range of his teammates, and that’s exactly what happened here: Phyla was grabbed and then attacked until defeated by the end of the round despite having the Protected feat to absorb one of the blows. Lesson Learned (again): Don’t be so concerned about protecting Bug from attacks, especially at the expense of much, much costlier and important figures.
  • However, Nightcrawler is not without his own glass jaw. Despite his multiple layers of attack evasion (Stealth, Shape Change, high DV and Super Senses), he was the victim of a one-hit KO by Groot.

    "I AM GROOT!!!"

  • Sadly, my attack rolls with Star-Lord — normally my MVP — were all ice-cold and he simply couldn’t survive another turn himself. Lesson (re-)learned: Make sure Star-Lord stands in, directly in front of, or behind hindering terrain when he makes a move that will expose him to counterattack…that way I can use Stealth (if he’s hit hard enough) to be shielded from most followup shots (using Combat Reflexes to take knockback into the hindering if necessary).
  • Similarly, I mis-moved Groot somewhat, not immediately taking advantage of his Special Power allowing him to heal for free when occupying hindering or water terrain. And at the end of the game, he probably took a KO shot he shouldn’t have, since we all forgot that Earthbound/Neutralized giants lose giant status.
  • I didn’t mind so much, since he’d landed a near-KO punch on Bullseye a turn or two earlier. :)

    “GROOT!!!”

In the end, Aleta was my last piece standing and, after she finished off Bullseye, my game was done. As evidenced by the Lessons Learned above, I could have played the team better, but it was going to be an uphill fight in any circumstance. More to the point of the article: does Groot enhance the Guardians of the Galaxy? What does he need from them?

  1. He’s got great defense. Now that the GotG ATA doesn’t wipe out their natural Defenders TA, he can chain his 18 DV with weaker members.
  2. He’s another taxi. Being a giant affords that. But…
  3. He’s terribly slow. Without Aleta’s TK or the speed boost of the Kinetic Accelerator special object, it takes him a looooong time to get in the fight. This game wouldn’t have gone half as well without either of them.

So it’s a bit tough to use him. He’s priced as a tentpole but is frankly better used as a backfield diversion for ranged shooters or a shield for lesser pals to hide behind. But if he gets stuck on his immovable clicks while too far away to attack, it could be disastrous. One must really carefully gauge the tempo of the fight when running Groot.

But then, isn’t that just good gameplay?

P.S.: one more rule of using this character: [Non-optional] At least once per game, you must shout, in your best Cookie Monster voice, “I AM GROOT!” when giving or resolving an action involving this character.

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They’re looking down on me in contemptuous disappointment. (Except Venus. She’s laughing at me.)

Last time I wrote about this themed team, I fretted about feats. But in the new Modern Age format, feats (and battlefield conditions) are disallowed. Fortunately, the team still works fine — in theory — with just a few bystanders and Special Objects.

Jimmy Woo 46
M-11 59
Gorilla-Man 61
Namora 76
Marvel Boy (Hammer of Thor) 102
Venus 125
Thug (Avengers) 7
Thug (Avengers) 7
Thug (Avengers) 7
Thug (Avengers) 7
+ Yellow Lantern object 5
+ Indigo Lantern object 5
+ Tombstone 0

= 500 points. (Or so I thought.)

FIRST ROUND: As the odd player out, I took a bye round, facing the judge Thomas’s League of Assassins: Ra’s Al Ghul, Talia Al Ghul (both from The Brave and the Bold), Merlyn, a Man-Bat Assassin and two each of League Assassin and League Elite. My first mistake was not caring which end of the Stealth-friendly Dawn of Time map I picked. Bad decision against a dangerous sniper like Merlyn. I crept behind blocking terrain to go after safer game until Thomas came after me.

Marvel Boy had to break away for his life while only a clutch Regen roll saved M-11 from the junkheap. Gorilla-Man went down swinging, and Namora finally got untied to deliver a key blow to KO Ra’s al Ghul.

I lost Gorilla-Man and a pair of Thugs but KOed Ra’s, an Elite and the Man-Bat Assassin for the win. 1-0.

SECOND ROUND: Young Brandon was my opponent. I picked the BPRD water map against his Lex Luthor and Brainiac, Kryptonite Man, BN Atom and Goodness & Mercy. I lost Marvel Boy but somehow got a win anyway by KOing Goodness & Mercy. And it was a win I didn’t deserve, because although the boy has picked up the game very quickly, he was still green enough to thoroughly forget to use the Superman Enemy team ability, which could have wreaked utter and absolute havoc on my team. 2-0.

CHAMP ROUND: It was the League of Assassins again, this time vs. Andy. He ran Bronze Tiger, The Sensei, BB Talia al Ghul, BB Ra’s al Ghul, Merlyn, a Man-Bat, and finally some Assassins and Elites. He picked the Graveyard and arranged his team in a solid defensive formation.

This game was fraught with FAILs.

  • Namora never made an attack due to my inability to get within Charge range of possible targets and my unwillingness to push her…positioning FAIL.
  • I completely forgot about Gorilla-Man in a late-game tag-team round that absolutely cost Namora her life…actions FAIL.
  • I wasted round after round Incapping an Elite with Venus instead of, say, Mind Controlling the guy (or picking a different target to do her bidding)…supreme power-use FAIL.

So while I KOed Ra’s and Merlyn, the loss of my pogs, Marvel Boy, M-11 and Namora were way too much to handle.

FINAL: 2-1. Despite the technically winning record, this wasn’t a good outing for this team at ALL. In addition to the FAIL-infested final round and the preying on Brandon’s inexperience/TA FAIL, I was hobbled by my chosen Special Objects. The Yellow Lantern, while great for M-11 when he took a hit and Marvel Boy’s late-dial, kept the robot from making some needed close attacks early on. The Indigo simply sat uselessly in a corner somewhere. Worst of all, the Tombstone deprived Namora of her much-needed heavy object boost, as she inevitably was the first targeted. She really needed the Kinetic Accelerator to be able to get into the fight earlier.

But, as I insinuated earlier in the team build, I inadvertently overbuilt by a 7-point pog. It didn’t end up making a difference, but I say it’s appropriate that I didn’t win the tourney. I’d be having to return a prize.

I’m determined to run Atlas again in Modern Age. Next time, I’ll use only the Yellow Lantern (it’s still quite useful; if M-11 gets hit off Super Strength and onto Psychic Blast, he actually gets an AV boost), the Accelerator and a normal heavy object to give Namora a real shot in the fight. And I’ll remember that Venus has Mind Control, and use the power, darnit.

In the meantime, I ran half the squad in a rare 200-point tourney:

Wouldja believe this is pretty much the only image of these three together alone?

Namora 76 + Warbound 5
M-11 59 + Warbound 5
Jimmy Woo 46 + Warbound 5 + Book of Destiny 4
+ Kinetic Accelerator, Eleha’al Vine and Generator.

= 200 points. I’d never used Book of Destiny before, and I never will again, because of the first round: my pal Lenny with a typically min/maxxed team of Captain America (Hammer of Thor)+ Contingency Plan, Iron Fist (Secret Invasion)+ Lunge, and R Mantis. He picked the Graveyard map and set up most of his team behind the wall. Namora failed her Accelerated Charge on Fist and she fell to his and Mantis’ combined assault when the following M-11 was forced to drop Lenny’s Shield Disruptor nearby after Cap knocked him off Super Strength.

  • In retrospect, I completely should have left the Disruptor where it was. Namora was well out of its range and it affected neither M-11 nor Woo. FAIL.
  • It was also foolhardy to make the Charge without enough Acceleration speed to take M-11 along and ensure the Warbound effect could continue unabated. Warbound FAIL.
  • Finally, I neglected to put Namora in adjacent water terrain during the Charge, where she may have had a chance to heal via her SP. Positioning FAIL.
  • Oh, and Book of Destiny, which I thought would negate Iron Fist’s Super Senses? Well, it does nothing of the sort, so I cursed myself for not putting Inside Information on Woo like I started to, which would have been incredibly useful against this enemy team of Martial Artists. Bonus Feat FAIL!
  • Bad as those gaffes were, though, the biggest FAIL here was my actually forgetting to use Woo’s Leadership, robbing him of an absolutely critical shot attempt on a weakened Iron Fist that may have saved Namora. (Seriously, I’m the type who rolls for Leadership when it’ll have no effect at all, just so I won’t forget it when it matters. And here, I forgot it when it mattered. The hell?!?) EPIC FREAKING FAIL.

It came down to Woo against a battered Mantis and full-health Cap; the latter just stood by nursing Contingency tokens while Mantis healed on the Vine from all the damage Woo dealt her (enough to KO her at least twice if not for that dang special object). Woo won the battle but Cap won the war. 0-1.

SECOND round was against young teenager Conrad, who, despite playing steadily, is still a bit reckless and careless. He ran a one-woman team of LE Nova (Critical Mass) who, despite her Power Cosmic team ability allowing her not to be completely outactioned or Outwitted, simply could not stand against the effectiveness of my Warbound combo. Nova dealt damage to Woo but was a relatively quick KO. 1-1.

THIRD, I faced veteran Paul’s bug team: Wasp (Infinity Challenge)+ Contingency Plan, Yellowjacket (Secret Invasion human) and LE Ant-Man. I won the roll and picked the water map. Scored a first strike on YJ, and though he was able to retaliate and take down Namora, M-11 caught up to finish the job. Then it was a matter of rolling high enough to get Ant-Man or Wasp (with their DVs of 20 and 19, respectively), who had to come to me to stand a chance of winning. Both fell.

FINAL: 2-1. I actually ended up winning the tournament, so it wasn’t completely full of FAIL. Still, the sheer number and severity of mental pratfalls in that first round leaves me unsatisfied. Atlas will rise again!

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As with most changes to the game, the new Alternate Team Abilities mechanic produces some win/lose situations in HeroClix.
ALPHA FLIGHT
Keyword(s): Alpha Flight
Cost: 4
Once during each game, choose any team ability or opposing character. Each friendly character using this team ability modifies its attack value by +1 when attacking the chosen character or a character possessing the chosen team ability.
WHAT’S CHANGED: It’s gone from an alt. Avengers TA to an Alpha Flight-specific one. Its cost is also dramatically higher. Finally, since all current Alpha Flighters have the Avengers symbol, they don’t have to give up the free move TA.
WHO WINS? Wildcards can copy it, so adding a random Alpha Flight member may be useful for the whole team. Box is usable in Modern Age games (over 300 points, IMO…he’s too much of your team otherwise — though I think he might work in 200). 129 points for a decent brick and an AV boost for the team? Could work.
WHO LOSES? Avengers, obviously, who are now stuck with their own TA (horrors). Pure Alpha Flight teams are also wounded due to the cost increase killing feat optimization for a team that needs ’em.
BOTTOM LINE: For a mechanic shifting to thematic use, it’s not friendly to the theme. (Yet. Maybe the ubër-Wolverine we’re hoping the Web of Spider-Man versions to be will have an Alpha Flight keyword and change everything. But I’m not holding my breath. Wolvie’s never been a member of Alpha Flight.)
++++++++++++++++++++++++
AMAZON
Keyword(s): Amazon
Cost: 4
Whenever a character using this team ability takes 2 or more damage from an opponent’s attack, put a Sisterhood token on this card. Before being given a non-free action, a friendly character using this team ability may remove any number of Sisterhood tokens from this card. Modify that character’s speed, attack, or range value by +1 for each token removed until that action is resolved.
WHAT’S CHANGED: It no longer overwrites existing TAs. Characters no longer have to possess the TA to benefit or contribute.
WHO WINS? Wildcards, again, thanks to it not being a feat and changes to the wording. Similarly, Amazons can get a boost thusly as part of a Warrior theme. Every Wonder Woman and most Wonder Girls with a natural TA also gets to keep hers now.
WHO LOSES? Nobody? Seriously, I don’t see a downside to this ATA shift at all.
BOTTOM LINE: Good for themers and powergamers alike. Rejoice for the Sisterhood!
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CHECKMATE
Keyword(s): Checkmate
Cost: 6
Minion: Kings and Queens and Bishops. When another friendly character using this team ability and with a point value greater than 50 is within 8 squares, this character can be given a power action to use Perplex if it can’t already use Perplex.
WHAT’S CHANGED: It no longer is only equip-able on the Checkmate 50-points-or-less set and no longer is only usable by same. It also spares existing TAs.
WHO WINS? Wildcards, again, so long as the 50+ Checkmate “king/queen” is near enough to activate it. Definitely one for the cheaper WCs, though, or those with Willpower. Similarly, now the Kings and Queens can use the Perplex ability. The Willpower-using and generally-only-supporting-anyway Amanda Waller gets a big boost from this tweaked ATA. So, too, do the OMACs  and V Mr. Terrific in Golden Age versions of the team.
WHO LOSES? Pure Checkmate teams with a lot of generic fodder may find themselves entirely too weighted down by the cost of the ATA to field enough fighters. Many of the King/Queen pieces end up paying for a TA they’re not realistically going to use much, if at all.
BOTTOM LINE: This one can be useful for theme players, but it’ll take a powergamer’s savvy to properly leverage it. Meanwhile, it’s too unwieldy for most min/max players. Checkmate’s kind of a wash.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
FANTASTIC FORCE
Keyword(s):Fantastic Four
Cost: 5
Characters using this team ability may replace their defense value with the unmodified defense value of an adjacent friendly character using this team ability.
WHAT’S CHANGED: It used to not require adjacency or the FF keyword (just the symbol) or add a cost (other than wiping out the real FF TA).
WHO WINS? Wildcards, who’d been banned from using the FF ATA feat version for the past couple of starter sets. The Fantastic Four keyword also benefits by getting to share DV AND get the healing effect if things go way south — or, more proactively, if players push members of Power Pack (or the Alicia Masters pog, in Golden Age) to get back some clicks lost to light damage or pushing.
WHO LOSES? Power Pack, big time. Lacking the keyword means their sad DV values get no boost anymore. LE Sue Storm is no longer the team-making cornerstone (literally. Her role was to hide in the corner and keep the DV up) she was.
BOTTOM LINE: Ultimately a needed change to a nearly broken ATA.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
GREEN LANTERN HONOR GUARD
Keyword(s): Green Lantern Corps
Cost: 5
Whenever a character using this team ability attacks, modify their attack value by +1 for each other friendly character that attacked the same target this turn while using this team ability.
WHAT’S CHANGED: No longer requiring the GLC symbol or overwriting the TA granted by same, it also doesn’t require ownership of the new TA to gain the AV boost or ownership of the GLC symbol to activate said bonus. All this comes at a cost, though.
WHO WINS? Wildcards, hugely. A GL tank of SI Spider-Men could be an absolute deathmobile.
WHO LOSES? Ironically, the Green Lantern Corps itself. They still can’t use their natural TA, being all flyers (so far), so they are paying extra for an TA that, due to the high cost of the average GLC keyworded character (only 3 of a total 36 pieces cost less than 70 points — and well over half are 100 points and up) they just won’t get enough attacks to really benefit them.
BOTTOM LINE: Better for powergamers than for themers.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
Keyword(s): Guardians of the Galaxy
Cost: 5
Powers possessed by characters using this team ability can’t be countered. This team ability can’t be used by wild cards.
WHAT’S CHANGED: It got a 1-point price bump in return for not overwriting Phyla-Vell’s characters’ existing TAs. It can be countered now, though.
WHO WINS? Phyla-Vell and the whole Guardians of the Galaxy keyword. They get to keep their natural Defenders TA, which is very good for Star-Lord, a lynchpin of the team with the weakest DV. And now Phyla-Vell no longer has to give up half her natural TA’s ability. Rita DeMara is also a potential winner, especially if she’s the only GotG on her force. Finally, Skrull Yellowjacket has a new target for his TA-busting SP.
WHO LOSES? Wildcards, for once. But not badly, since they get to use the Defenders TA now.
BOTTOM LINE: Totally theme-friendly and not bad for powergamers including a qualifying character on their cheeseball teams.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL
Keyword(s): Justice League Antarctica, Justice League Europe, or Justice League International
Cost: 3
Whenever a character using this team ability would be dealt damage, you can choose to reduce damage dealt by 1 if you deal 1 unavoidable damage to a friendly character using this team ability that is adjacent to this character.
WHAT’S CHANGED: Super Buddies are no longer among the keyword prereqs. Possession of this TA is no longer needed for its effects. It no longer overwrites the JLA TA. :)
WHO WINS? Wildcards need only be next to a JLI member to use the ATA.
WHO LOSES? Super Buddies who aren’t also JLI. Poor V Elongated Man, V CD Mary Marvel and V HT Blue Beetle.
BOTTOM LINE: I guess they won’t be handing out the Super Buddies keyword anymore. The TA still isn’t super-great.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
LEAGUE OF ASSASSINS
Keyword(s): League of Assassins
Cost: 7
Lines of fire to a character using this team ability are blocked if this character is adjacent to a wall or blocking terrain.
WHAT’S CHANGED: They get to keep existing TAs.
WHO WINS? Wildcards can copy this, making it very useful for certain Martial Artist builds. LoA members with other TAs really benefit as well.
WHO LOSES? Pure LoA forces will sacrifice a lot of extra characters and feat room due to the extreme expense of this ATA. That 7 per character adds up quick with as many super-cheap characters this keyword can pack on!
BOTTOM LINE: Better for wildcard abuse than for theme players.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
LEGIONNAIRES
Keyword(s): Legion of Super Heroes
Cost: 2
Whenever the friendly character with the highest point value that’s using this team ability is KO’d, remove one action token from each other friendly character using this team ability.
WHAT’S CHANGED: It has a cost now in return for not wiping out their wildcard ability, and no longer requires the Legion symbol to use the ATA.
WHO WINS? An optimized Legion of Super-Heroes team under the Teen or Future theme with TAs to WC (provided you don’t field a Legionnaire significantly higher than the rest. Smart players may isolate and nerf that piece to concentrate on weaker ones that won’t trigger the mass token clear). Cheap LSH members rounding out a team (say, as tie-up and secondary fighters) can also gain a bit of extra usefulness in even while copying other TAs. And oh yeah, other wildcards can use this, too.
WHO LOSES? A pure LSH team, like the GLC, doesn’t gain anything from the change. Actually, they gain even less, since it only kicks in when you’re losing. But at least the cost is modest.
BOTTOM LINE: Probably best for teams where the Legionnaires are the wildcards abusing other TAs, assuming there’s no better ATA to have on the force.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
MONSTER SOCIETY OF EVIL
Keyword(s): Injustice Society or Monster Society of Evil
Cost: 5
At the end of your turn, you may roll a d6 for each friendly character using this team ability. On a result of 5 or 6, deal 1 damage to each opposing character adjacent to that character that hasn’t already been dealt damage by this team ability this turn.
WHAT’S CHANGED: The Superman Enemy symbol isn’t the prereq anymore. It also doesn’t work at beginning of turn anymore. It doesn’t wipe out existing TAs anymore. And possession of the TA isn’t needed anymore. All this for a not-so-modest 5 points per piece instead of 0!
WHO WINS? Injustice League keyword and the very few actual Monster Society of Evil pieces…if they have a powerset that lends them to basing or being based. Wildcards also get a boost.
WHO LOSES? It’s sad that solo Superman Enemies who lack the keywords needed for this ATA are saddled with a most expensive and utterly useless TA. There are also quite a few Calculators who won’t be able to copy this TA due to owning it outright…but is this really a loss?
BOTTOM LINE: Hurts a TA that needed the help, and only modestly improves its new targets. Not a fan.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
MORLOCKS
Keyword(s): Gene Nation or Morlocks
Cost: 2* (0 if the character possesses the Morlocks team symbol)
Whenever a character using this team ability makes a close combat attack, modify its attack value by +1 for each other character using this team ability adjacent to both this character and the target.
WHAT’S CHANGED: Nothing, except an additional cost for the oodles and oodles of un-symbolized Morlocks made since Ultimates.
WHO WINS? Wildcards playing alongside V Marrow or Dark Beast. And yeah, I guess those two as well.
WHO LOSES? Characters who should have the TA (E XP Storm, maybe).
BOTTOM LINE: I suppose it’s enough to just have these morts back in the game!
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RUNAWAYS
Keyword(s): Runaways
Cost: 3
Whenever a character using this team ability attacks, modify their attack value by +1 for each other friendly character that dealt damage to an opposing character this turn while using this team ability.
WHAT’S CHANGED: Possession of the TA is no longer needed to activate or use the AV bonus, and it no longer wipes out existing TAs.
WHO WINS? You guessed it: Wildcards! But the Runaways also get a boost because many WCs have a better chance of landing damage on a foe than these kids do.
WHO LOSES? Pure Runaways teams. But whaddaya expect from a team whose battle cry is “Try not to die”? And they really only stay on the old status quo, so this really isn’t a loss.
BOTTOM LINE: It’s better for themers and powergamers.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
SERPENT SOCIETY
Keyword(s): Serpent Society or Serpent Squad
Cost: 6* (0 if the character possesses the Serpent Society team symbol)
Characters using this team ability can use Phasing/Teleport.
WHAT’S CHANGED: Nothing, other than a not-so-modest cost for any potential Modern Age Serpent people we may see.
WHO WINS? Serpent Society is back, baby!
WHO LOSES? No one, because any new Serpent Society folk, if they don’t get this TA as a trait, Watchmen-set-style, will be costed for the addition of this ATA.
BOTTOM LINE: Serpent Society is back, baby!
++++++++++++++++++++++++
THE SOCIETY
Keyword(s): Secret Society of Super Villains or The Society
Cost: 3
Whenever a character using this team ability is targeted by Outwit, you roll a d6. On a result of 4-6, the opposing character that targeted your character cannot use Outwit to target that character this turn. This team ability cannot be used by wild cards.
WHAT’S CHANGED: The IL symbol is no longer the prereq, and unlike most of these post-feat ATAs, it’s not wildcardable. It also won’t override existing TAs and now adds a modest cost.
WHO WINS? The keyword prereqs, many of whom couldn’t use the former version of this ATA. Unfortunately, both were pretty sparingly given. Other DC villain themes loaded with wildcards only might finally have a piece or two that has some sort of TA (thinking of you, Rogues)!
WHO LOSES? Wildcards lacking the keyword, which includes a lot of Calculators. The IL symbol, too, is stuck with a natural TA that isn’t very good.
BOTTOM LINE: Another old ATA nerfed by the new era through no fault of its own.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
SQUADRON SUPREME
Keyword(s): Squadron Sinister or Squadron Supreme
Cost: 5
While at least two friendly characters using this team ability are adjacent, one of them of your choice can use Mind Control. This team ability cannot be used by wild cards.
WHAT’S CHANGED: This ATA is purely for its namesake keywords now, not for all Defenders. It also doesn’t wipe out the Defenders TA if they’ve got it, and it allows them to swap who’s got Mind Control at the moment.
WHO WINS? The Squadrons alike, esp. the Sinister, who couldn’t use it before. This TA could work well combined with their natural Sinister Syndicate TA.
WHO LOSES? The rest of the Defenders, who probably weren’t using this ATA anyway.
BOTTOM LINE: A wash, but a good one, I think.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
THUNDERBOLTS
Keyword(s): Thunderbolts
Cost:8
Once at the beginning of the game, choose any one Marvel team ability other than an alternate team ability, a wild card team ability, or a team ability that can’t be used by wild cards. Characters using this team ability can use the chosen team ability if they can’t already.
WHAT’S CHANGED: No more DC abilities available. No Avengers symbol prereq — it’s actual keyworded Thunderbolts ONLY. No loss of natural TAs. And a significant price hike.
WHO WINS? Thunderbolts lacking the Avengers TA get quite the boost, especially the cheap ones who can act as a TA source for Wildcards, who also get their groove back re: T-Bolts. (R FF Songbird springs to mind.) V Bullseye just got way more awesome than LE Lester.
WHO LOSES? Pure Thunderbolts teams may find the cost of the TA too great. And, of course, Avengers are the huge losers.
BOTTOM LINE: This old ATA, more than any other factor, is what’s ushered in this whole change. I, for one, wished WizKids had let the old ATAs remain as feats (with immunity to the 10% cap) with all their TA-overwriting clauses intact, to give players a wider range of choice and to not render the B&B ATAs instantly obselete.
But something had to be done about Thunderbolts. It couldn’t remain as was and maintain real game balance. (Alt. FF, too, but it was only a hill compared to the mountain of TBolts.)
So I don’t blame WK for making a clean break the way they have, and hope this analysis (which took way longer than I anticipated) has helped put things into new perspective.

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Left to right: Ant-Man, Valkyrie, Moon Knight, Beast, Nova, Steve Rogers, Black Widow. (Not pictured: Sharon Carter (

I love the Secret Avengers lineup and comic. It’s the best of Marvel’s Heroic Age Avengers launches. But I thus far cannot truly make the team work in HeroClix.
Part of the problem is that they’re not all made, yet. Ant-Man Eric O’Grady is a different guy from the five versions of Dr. Hank Pym as Ant-Man in the game. He’s decidedly not smart enough to rate even the Supernova Rookie’s single click of Outwit or the Experienced’s and Vet’s multiple Perplex clicks. (Maybe one. But not multiple clicks of it.) The old Stealth-heavy LE, on the other hand, could work as O’Grady, who’s a bit of a coward and would hide out until the battle’s done. But the points don’t quite work out. Consequently, I tried crossing universes to sub in The All-New Atom. The movement’s a little low, but he works for the character, right down to the surprising close combat ability.
(gallery or-figure-046)
(hoping the official heroclix.com script works here. If not, you know where to go to see the official dial.)
The other character who’s not quite right in his existing clix forms is Nova Prime. Whether of his Vet  Nova version or the LE Super-Nova, they simply don’t represent the character’s power level well at all.

This guy...

…does not equal…

...THIS guy. At ALL.

But looking over other figures with the Nova Corps keyword, I find that Air-Walker from Hammer of Thor is absolutely a match for the current character. He’ll work for builds of 800 or higher.
(gallery th-figure-044)
(In fact, I was inspired to make a Nova Prime mod to go on this dial. You’ll see it eventually in My Custom Mods feature, updated every Monday!)
Steve “Ex-Captain America” Rogers isn’t in the game, so one must substitute an existing Cap. The Hammer of Thor version is as good as any.
Here’s the base 800-point team I played, then:
Air-Walker 201 (as Nova Prime)
Valkyrie 145
HoT War Machine 137
M+M Beast 73
HoT Captain America 72
CL Black Widow 59
Sharon Carter 50
AV Moon Knight 38
R The All-New Atom 24 (as Ant-Man Eric O’Grady)
= 799 points. It went an anemic 1-2, due to multiple mental FAILures.
FIRST game, I picked the Space Map but faced a team of Kingdom Come Flash, Superman & Flash, and The Flashes that was able to first-strike me from clear across the board anyway. It cost me Valkyrie and Black Widow for a loss that even taking out SuperFlash couldn’t prevent. My main FAIL, besides giving up the alpha strike, was running Atom-as-Ant-Man well away from everything to tie-up The Flashes. Um, WHY? They’re Hypersonic. It worked a little bit, as he drew some attention and survived thanks to a Super Senses roll. But still…bad move, when he could have blocked some line of fire to bigger targets.
SECOND game was on the Junkyard against my bud Lenny. His team of Green Scar, OOTS Batman, BB Wizard Shazam, M+M Marvel Girl, Gamora and someone else I can’t recall was formiable but beatable. But I made two terrible FAILs that cost me everything:
  • Did not cover Air-Walker-as-Nova, giving OOTS Bats a free shot that killed his move+attack powers and blunted the cosmic hero’s effectiveness for the rest of the game.
  • Forgot that Green Scar had the Unstoppable feat and so did not use the 24-point Atom-as-Ant-Man to tie up the monster. Cost me Air-Walker and the game.
  • On top of that, every potential KO hit was Probability Controlled into a miss by The Wizard Shazam via his no-line-of-fire-needed Special Power.
THIRD was on the Graveyard against The Wizard Shazam AGAIN, SR Loki, and some other characters I can’t remember that gave my range-heavy team fits. My FAILs?
  • Moving Atom-Ant-Man first, leaving Valkyrie with no cover when I moved her last. The enemy Wiz got an improbable hit on her to immediately send her running for the Vine. Atom-Ant at least eventually tied up Loki to keep him out of the fight, but I truly lacked much opportunity to lay fire on the one guy I could safely attack.
  • Again getting Nova-Walker pasted early and often through careless positioning. A must-hit RCE shot (instead of a more conservative HSS run)negated by WizShazam left him open to multiple counterblasts taking him out in short order.
Other general FAILure:
  • Moon Knight was useless in these battles, as I thoroughly FAILed to use him as the Stealth wall or tie-up piece he is.
  • Really needed Outwit a time or two. FAILed to realize Beast has it on his 2nd click.
Disappointed by this outing of my newest favorite team. But I recently got a chance to make amends with a feated-up 900-point version!
Air-Walker 201 (as Nova Prime) + Elite Sniper 20
Valkyrie 145 + C.Plan 12 + Inside Info 4
HoT War Machine 137 + Warbound 5 (Soldier)
M+M Beast 73 + Lunge 5
HoT Captain America 72 + C.Plan 12 + Warbound 5 (Soldier)
CL Black Widow 59 + Opportunist 10
Sharon Carter 50
AV Moon Knight 38 + Warbound 5 (Soldier)
LE Yellowjacket 41 (as Ant-Man Eric O’Grady) + Takedown 6
= 900 points (82 in feats).
FIRST game I beat the Asgardian team of Thor & Loki, the Warriors Three, and 2 each of Asgardian Warriors and HoT Valkyries I’d brought as a backup team(which the young host of the shebang played against me in this bye round). I picked the Prison map which helped me against the big duo’s range even though it hampered my Cap. Once Thor & Loki overextended, I was able to Charge with Valkyrie for big damage (using the Com Dish) and others got him to his final click. A final click Moon Knight pushed to use his self-damaging SP to KO the duo first for the margin of victory.
2nd match was on the Junkyard (my pick) against HoT Ronan the Accuser, Immortus, BN Wonder Woman, 2 Jason Bloods, Clark Kent and someone else I can’t recall. I dealt plenty of damage but no KO blows due up to 4 PC rolls per attack. We had a draw and I won the roll-off. My FAIL in this game was not pushing Beast to Outwit sooner to make sure more of my damage stuck (as Immortus did a lot of Masterminding to Ronan and/or PC’d my rolls) or attacking softer targets for easier points.
3rd and champ match was against veteran Paul’s Skrull team of Ms. Skrullvel, two Warskrulls, Capt. Skrull-Vell, Skrullojacket, and a passle of Skrull generics on his choice of the Lab map. My FAIL? “Nova” critmissing the game’s first attack, stranding him in full view of the enemy team and forcing me to drop his passenger Moon Knight in front as a sacrifice. It was only dumb luck that Nova didn’t take any damage after Moon Knight was gone. My next FAIL was jumbo-sized Valkyrie blocking what little line of fire I had after fairly clobbering Ms. Skrullvel with a key Charge, preventing my team from ganging up on her and enabling the impostor to break away and run just as the time ran out.
We played on, though, giving me still more opportunities to FAIL:
  • After successfully using Yellowjacket to tie up and block enemy Outwit, I got extra careless and gave a Warskrull a narrow view to counter Valkyrie’s defenses, enabling enemies to easily gang up on her and take her down. Ant-Man FAIL…AGAIN.
  • Earlier Outwit FAIL with Beast also contributed to that tragedy.
  • Feat FAIL. Because this tournament was at a slumber party full of mostly kids, I didn’t use the superior Trick Shot feat over the slightly less-useful Elite Sniper. But really, feat use is optional. I didn’t have to use it against the kids, and I needed it against Paul thanks to the Valkyrie-in-the-way FAIL.
  • More feat FAIL. I forgot to use Inside Information. It would have helped against the Warskrulls.
  • And MORE feat FAIL: Warbound kept Cap from taking more shots. Maybe if Moon Knight had been around to take a token for Cap…but no. FAILed to make that happen, even before the unfortunate loss of Moon Knight.
  • One more bit of feat FAIL: Similarly, building up Opportunist tokens kept Widow from making more of an impact. This team can’t afford the lost actions, it turns out.
In the end, I still won, getting Paul’s whole force. But all that FAILure troubles me.
SECRET AVENGERS sum-up of FAILure.

Ouch!

“Ant-Man”
Played by two stand-ins — The All-New Atom and LE Yellowjacket — he did fine as a tie-up piece and cheap blocker. When I actually used him as such. These games probably go a lot better if I were consistent in this tactic.
Beast
I used him as what he is — the team’s ONLY source of Perplex and Outwit. Trouble is, he really ought to offer more for his points while the cheapies  should fill his role. But they don’t. So inthe backfield he must remain.

"I'm not a cowardly lion...why must you treat me as one?"

Black Widow
She ought to be great. She really should. Anti-Stealth, Willpower, 3 damage and Incap…but she really only took damage early and often. Only the Opportunist feat, which held her back at first, made her worthy after taking the damage (since she retains the prerequisites most of her dial). I guess that’s something, but…

Oh, for--! Stop being so dramatic and GET UP!!!

Captain America
He invariably never seemed to get into the game until far too late. Was I being too conservative with him? But then, I’m forgetting that in at least half these games he was hampered by walls.
Moon Knight
He’s pretty much just a meat shield or diversion. He’s either a total non-factor or he’s 38 points given up.

This is what happens when you try to sneak up on armed criminals at night wearing all WHITE, boys and girls.

That’s what I want to say, anyhow. But he did land the KO blow on a piece 9.5 times his cost and saved Nova “Air-Walker” Prime from near-certain death in that last game. So he’s won a permanent spot on this team in my book.
“Nova”
Air-Walker was a huge bust. Best used for that opening HSS but unable to take so much as a critical miss or Mystics feedback, he’s way too fragile at over 200 points with 17 DV and Super Senses. On the other hand, he’s the 1st strike piece this range-heavy team kinda needs when faced with constricting maps and Stealth.

Hypersonic FACEPLANT.

Sharon Carter
Another cheap Stealth shield I could never quite leverage for anything ELSE. But that’s mainly due to Wizard Shazam (or just plain poor rolls) causing her SHIELD beneficiaries to miss whenever she made her damage-enhancing action. I wonder if I should push her more freely to get to her diet Perplex SP.
Valkyrie
Ah, Brunnhilde. So versatile with both Charge and hit&run skills. So mighty. So fragile. The team fairly rises and falls with her. If she does fall, or can’t hit, they’re done. If she can land at least that one titanic hit while on her topdial, they’ll win.

Alas. It's all too often this.

War Machine
His reliance on range is a problem. He’s only been KOed in one game so far, but he hasn’t laid down the KOs he really ought to be, either.

I don't think I'm using him right.

Actually, that’s not it. It’s that these Secret Avengers lack a dedicated brick or two. (Compare to this Heroic Age team.) They need someone who can Charge a big ol’ rock into someone’s face and stay there to deliver continued beatdowns despite retaliation. War Machine could be that guy, if he weren’t such a Running Shooter. Valkyrie could do it, if only she weren’t stuck with Super Senses. Ditto for Air “Nova Prime” Walker.
The team is also short on support powers. (Again, compare to the Heroic Age Poster team). No PC. No starting Outwit…and to get it, you give up the only real Perplex. No Support. No TK. Val’s mid-dial Enhancement you hope you never see. And Sharon’s SHIELD ability is only good for range, which is not the S.Avengers’ weak point.
(Maybe I really should relent and use the Rookie Ant-Man anyway. Eric O’Grady’s not that stupid.)
Ah well. I love the comic so far, and I think the team still has what it takes to be competitive. Just need to watch out for those FAIL moments. Speaking of which…my next article looks to be about the Agents of Atlas. And yes…it’s also kinda full of FAIL. Keep an eye out.

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I cropped out Drs. Light and Fate because they were not worthy of my team (translation: I ran outta room for her and didn't have him at all).

Nostalgically beloved, sometimes maligned, the humor-focused era of the Justice League was a daring experiment in mainstream comics. For the first time, one of the Big Two’s marquee team books focused more on the relationships of the characters than on the villain(s) of the month. It proved surprisingly popular (for a while, anyhow), spawning a spin-off or two before it collapsed under its own ridiculous weight. Perhaps if writers Giffen and DeMatteis had dialed back the humor and played it a little bit straighter, the novelty wouldn’t have worn off in only 5 years. After, Brian Michael Bendis has essentially done the same thing with his team books for the past 6 years, with no sign of real fatigue in sales.

But I digress. This is supposed to be about HeroClix.

Now, with the release of several new pieces in The Brave And The Bold set, one can play a solid Justice League International themed team. Here’s mine, from a recent tournament:

JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL
Martian Manhunter (Brave and the Bold) 202 + Camouflage 8
JL Green Lantern (Justice League) 133
Fire & Ice 131
Mr. Miracle & Oberon 115
Blue Beetle & Booster Gold 82
Batman (Justice League #001) 75 + Inside Information 4
Black Canary (Justice League) 50
= 800 points.

Each round I picked the JSA Museum map from the DC Origin set. Using Mister Miracle and Oberon’s (MMO) Perplex, I boosted Blue Beetle and Booster Gold (B+G) to Charge a hole in the wall so Green Lantern could ferry Canary and Bats to hindering and himself to my Kinetic Accelerator. Then I moved the rest of the team to various set up points.
In Round One, that nearly went terribly south for me against my opponent Wil’s team of Green Arrow and Red Arrow (both from Crisis and both equipped with the Stealth-busting feat Trick Shot), The Wizard Shazam (The Brave and the Bold), Hitman, Songbird (Hammer of Thor), Dr. Strange (Secret Invasion) and Max Mercury with Armor Piercing and Swingline.

Ugh — three shooters who see through hindering terrain and characters and one who sees anything for Probability Control purposes. I didn’t help myself with my colossal mental fail of the evening; not using MMO’s Indomitable ability to freely push to safety and not be wide open to the Arrows’ line of fire. MMO immediately took big damage and had to flee to the nearby Eleha’al Vine for eventual healing.
To stop the twin Trick Shots, I used Green Lantern to taxi both A) Black Canary in base with both of them and B) Batman nearby to make a follow-up attack next round. The first tactic was thwarted when Canary was KO’d the very next turn and the second, when Songbird built a Barrier to stop Batman.
I thought I was thoroughly hosed at this point; the Barrier would fall and the free Trick Shot pieces would murder Batman with impunity. But I saw an escape route. Batman shadow-warped to an adjoining room to shoot out a wall and counter Songbird’s Barrier, giving Blue Beetle & Booster Gold a chance to take Canary’s place as the tie-up. That was all the stall time I needed to get Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern and Bats into the fight for real so they could clobber Green Arrow for the win before I could lose any more characters. 1-0.
—————-
ROUND TWO was vs. Zach, Wil’s son, running Iron Man (Secret Invasion) + Elite Sniper, Zauriel, Yellowjacket (Secret Invasion #006b), Talia (The Brave and The Bold), Punisher (Secret Invasion), Batman  (The Brave and The Bold), Venom (Hammer of Thor) and Pawn 502. I stuck with the Museum.
I was more careful of my placement this time. Zach wasn’t, putting Zauriel and Iron Man in a spot where my Batman could harass them immediately with “Out of the Shadows.” I decided to swarm Iron Man, taking care to avoid Talia clear on the other side of the map. Pounding and pounding Stark until he was down, I then followed suit upon Punisher and Yellowjacket  (although his high % of Skrull rolls made that take a lot longer than it should’ve). I again lost Canary but she did her job of drawing fire and taking theme PC tokens. 2-0.
—————-
FINAL ROUND was vs. Bradley’s not-quite-themed team of Spectre (Crisis), Wizard Shazam (The Brave and The Bold), Phantom Stranger, Deadman, Jason Blood and Scarlet Witch (Avengers SR).

After surviving Spectre’s first strike on MMO by burning all three of my theme PC rolls, I shot back with Fire & Ice for a successful RCE hit of my own. I again used GL to carry Batman in closer, pushing Fire & Ice to compound the damage to Spectre.
From this point, with Spectre neatly tied down by GL, I began to advance my force in earnest to rid myself of Phantom Stranger, whose 18 Defend was making further hits on Spectre unlikely — especially with 1-3 enemy Probability Controllers to get through. But despite a crit miss or two, I got the Stranger off Defend, took down Spectre and eventually added Phantom Stranger and Scarlet Witch for a commanding win, losing only Green Lantern when my young opponent used Deadman to Possess Fire & Ice into blasting the stuffing out of GL.
Final: 3-0. The prize, appropriately enough, was the Justice League International alternate team ability. :)
Much like the characters in the comics, this is a more effective team than it looks on the surface!

Yes. The cookie throne sculpt IS comic-accurate.

Martian Manhunter (The Brave and the Bold)
After some 5+ versions in HeroClix, they’ve finally gotten J’onn J’onnz exactly right (in spite of the humorously thematic nature of his cookie-mad dial). Hypersonic Speed is a power he’s always needed in ‘clix but never gotten until now because his more iconic Phasing ability has always taken up the slot. Now that and Shape Change are tucked away in a Trait, freeing up his Speed slot for HSS and Mind Control. That trait makes him perfect for the Camouflage feat, which makes him utterly invulnerable to ranged attack (when he’s next to a wall or blocking terrain) since his Shape Change can’t be countered by enemy Outwit. If he gets hit, “Telepathic Invisibility” offers a hefty defense boost. He can sport as high as a 20 DV!
Both appropriate and effective, “Cookie Martian” is thoroughly essential for JLI teams 400 points or higher.
JLI Rating: Bwah-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!

Words of unintentional hilarity and uncomfortable truth.

Green Lantern (Justice League SR)
The sole representation of bad-boy Green Lantern Guy Gardner in HeroClix is mediocre. He starts with Charge but his damage is low, his Enhancement shows at the worst spots, and his Flurry SP arrives when his defenses are soft.
But for this team, the Green Lantern Corps TA was invaluable for carrying Black Canary and Batman, and he was able to draw a lot of fire thanks to his starting Invulnerability. I’m not overstating matters to say that at least one game would’ve been lost without him.
(Great. Now he’ll get the swelled head.)
JLI Rating: Bwah-HA-HA!

So HAWT!!!!! And so coooooool.

Fire & Ice
Can you say “damage cannon?” ‘Cause that’s what these babes are, able to hit for 5 via Ranged Combat Expert or 3 and 2 with the Duo Attack. Even better, they can push off it to gain their Barrier+Poison combo SP, making them super versatile. They’re also JLI fixtures, theme-wise. Fit ’em in if you can!
JLI Rating: Bwah-HA-HA-HA-HA!
Don't worry, Scott Free. You and Oberon totally belong.
Mr. Miracle & Oberon
Lots of Perplex really helps the team’s stats. 18 DV + Combat Reflexes also helps the team by tying up someone and being nigh-unhittable. But it’s the combo of Duo Attack and Indomitable that makes MMO a fixture on any team, and with Perplex that means he can deal 10 clicks in two turns. He certainly dealt a lot of clicks in this tourney. (Lunge is a super feat for him, but I didn’t have room for it this time around.)
JLI Rating: Bwah-HA-HA-HA-HA!!

These truly Super Buddies are way better than the slackers they appear to be.

Blue Beetle & Booster Gold
Their damage is low and their starting AV is just an OK 9. But the good news is that they push well to 10 AV and Outwit to help that damage stick. They also sport Perplex on other clicks.
But the reason they, perhaps more than any other member of this team, should be the first to add to your force is “Super Buddies Forever,” which gives adjacent keyword sharers +1 AV. Their double base offers a lot of said adjacency, and it frees up Perplex for damage. YAY!!! And, of course, there’s no piece more worthy for this themed team than the Blue & Gold.
JLI Rating: Bwah-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!

Not really happy to be here. But then, when IS Batman happy?

Batman (Justice League #001)
He’s a key piece of course, delivering plenty of clutch moves and yet he’s not the biggest threat. He’s also not as iconic for the team as some of the others.
JLI Rating: Bwah-HA-HA-HA!!
Black Canary (Justice League)
She was only filler. But she was Stealth-shielding, theme-PC-taking, shooter-locking-down filler well worth her points.
JLI Rating: Bwah-HA-HA!!
Hope your own JLI games have Bwah-ha-happy endings!