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Week six is done. Almost through. This time I’ll review these by team.

These barely got a workout in a shortened game:

Batman (DC 10th Anniversary 001) has Leap/Climb and Outwit and 12 AV and is only 63 points. He was about to wreck it. But time was up.

On the other hand, Batman (Streets of Gotham 032) got one-shot in round two. Such a great sculpt but possibly the worst Batman dial ever.

The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh (Batman 103) had only begun to fight. He has so many powers — Prob, Perplex, Super Strength, Toughness, anti-Super Senses/Mastermind/Shape Change — that it was hard to get a handle on how to use him. I’ll save him for my next big Batman team.

Captain America (DC 10th Anniversary 001) also was only getting started, missing his attempted KO of Dracula. I didn’t build a great force to use Leadership on.

Wonder Man (Chaos War 210) missed his attack and got absolutely pounded. Was just lucky that my opponent ran out of actions to finish him off — and that the game ended after round 3.

——-
This force of Monsters had me playing “Thriller”…
——-

Fimbul the Hunter (Hobbit 005) was the MVP of his Monster squad. (Landing 3 straight Super Senses rolls will do that.) A good leading attacker to soften up for others or to finish off weakened foes. Solid piece, though niche enough that I might not consider using later.

Grinnah the Goblin (Hobbit 008) is fearsome with his free-attack-on-his mark SP. Another piece that’s niche; needs a taxi or TK for best effect.

Being able to shamble from square to square helps Living Mummy (Amazing Spider-Man 011) ONCE he gets to Charge range. He can shift to a better point to use his Probability or Mind Control, perhaps.

Lurtz (Lord of the Rings 010), probably the longest-unplayed figure in my box, finally got his workout. Not bad, but certainly only reserved for Orc teams.

I kept forgetting Vampire (Amazing Spider-Man 012)’s speed gets a boost when the scent of blood is in the air. Might’ve gotten me better use from him as a taxi. Hilariously comic accurate moment: he crit-missed on a push to KO Dracula. WHO’S the king of vampires, here?

——-
Played an all-Dwarf team. It came up short.
——-
Dori The Dwarf (Hobbit 015) only got KO’d thanks to how long it takes dwarves to get in the action. I also forgot to keep him with his brothers Nori The Dwarf (Hobbit 025) and Ori The Dwarf (Hobbit 016) to possibly get his Duo Attack SP to work (though, again, I never got the chance anyway). Similarly, Nori couldn’t use his special Prob due to lines of fire being cut off. And Ori was so stuck in hindering that he could barely Perplex his bros, much less get off meaningful shots. I’ll try this trio again someday, but much more purposefully. Ori in particular is vital for the Dwarves for his top-dial Perplex.

Oin The Dwarf (Hobbit 013) had the same problem all dwarves do: Low Charge speed. I absolutely needed the Kinetic Accelerator I played in order to do ANYTHING with these guys, and it doesn’t help when that opening Charge misses. Oin’s a solid dwarf, but he may not be the first I consider on any force with Thorin (as there are two others that do the Charge thing when he’s around but with better AV).

Balin The Dwarf (Hobbit 026) is worth pushing with his excellent 11 AV (with Thorin) and CCE. He’s also some 20 points cheaper than the similarly SP’d 77-point Gloin.

Kili The Dwarf (Hobbit 011) was the indispensable shooter. Can’t imagine leaving him off a Thorin-led team, what with his late-dial SP boosting the king’s DV. And when foes feel Kili’s 4 damage from range, they WILL try to hit him onto his late dial…

Fili The Dwarf (Hobbit 009), once he was pushed, brought some much-needed Perplex to the dwarven swarm. Between that and his Defend, he helped make the team surprisingly competent despite its shortcomings.

(There I go with the short jokes again…)

_________
On Friday, part two. Signed, The Breakfast Club.

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Here’s what else I played past weekend and what my impressions were:

Both versions of Black Glove Demon (Streets of Gotham) were little more than easy points in their game. I think one needs to run at least three of them to really make them work.

Dwalin the Dwarf (The Hobbit 006) got overwhelmed in his game, cursed by dice rolls. Still, the dwarf put up a decent fight otherwise. He’ll be about the first dwarf I’ll consider for non-Tolkien teams (after Gimli).

I’m realizing now that I forgot Gloin the Dwarf (The Hobbit 019) gets an AV boost in addition to Charge when Thorin’s around. That’s what I get for trying to play a game while on a long-distance call with my brother. I’ll NEVER play him without Thorin.

Manphibian (Amazing Spider-Man 025) was fine even though he couldn’t use his water-boosted HSS early on due to an enemy Thor, Frog of Thunder equipped with Armor Piercing. For 60 points, the scaly alien is solid.

Martian Manhunter (DC  10th Anniversary 019) worked well…with a loaded Utility Belt. Though in actuality, I didn’t do much pushing until the game was well in hand. All that penetrating damage looks great, but I don’t know how well that 16 DV can hold up for his 100-point cost. Will have to try him out on a “My Favorite Martian” theme.

Skrull Commando (Avengers Movie 008), both versions, was basically relegated to tie-up, and not very effective tie-up at that. At least he’s cheap. But unless it’s a Modern Age game, this guy’s NOT taking the place of the old Supernova generics for a Skrull team.

On the other hand, the Skrull General (Avengers Movie 032) brings a lot to the HeroClix table: Leadership and super-taxi to start, giving way to some PB and Outwit later. A must for Skrull swarms.

Skrull Infiltrator (Avengers Movie 207) is similarly indispensable, especially the Smoke Clouding, Barrier-building, Stealthy Close Combat Expert. Only the Barrier came into play, though. Looking forward to running a pair in a future Skrull team.

Thorin Oakenshield (The Hobbit 004) is absolutely needed to get his pokey dwarf company mobile. Thorin also was decent in the end of the fight, coming very close to snatching an unlikely victory. I’ll have to consider him for future Ruler  or Warrior teams for his double-Carry trait.

Worldbreaker (Marvel 10th Anniversary 013) absolutely cleaned house at his 150 level. Want to run him at full strength!

____

OK. Just one or two more weeks to go, and I’ll have run almost every unplayed piece and can go back to playing stuff I just wanna play all the time, like that Mysterio team from the last Battle Report. :)

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The report of Figure Flush week four continues.

In alphabetical order again:
Alfred Pennyworth (Batman 031) was a boon to the Batman Fam team he backed. Not enough to actually WIN, but he’s OK. I’ll probably look to the 25-point Unique version instead, though, in the future.

Azrael (Batman 104) just comes off as weak, weak, weak. Weak AV. Weak damage. WeakSAUCE. I can’t definitively say I’ll NEVER play him again — “never” is a mighty long time and his being a black character puts him in my permanent collection — but MAY never play him again.

I thought Beast (Fast Forces 003) would simply be a pale shadow of the excellent GSX Common, but he worked better than expected. I may consider this piece if points are a problem.

Cloak (Amazing Spider-Man 022) is going for two things: Carry and Willpower. At 55 points, he’s a bit too pricey for JUST those things, though, and he’s got to take damage to get to his more useful Poison and Perplex clicks.

Dagger (Amazing Spider-Man 003) spent the game too tied up to use her range powers or heal. Will have to be careful of that, going forward. She’s the key to successful Split/Merge tricks with the C&D duo from Secret Invasion.

Daimon Hellstrom (Amazing Spider-Man 009r), played at the rookie level, is an OK 2nd stringer. Armored Mystics is never bad. Neither is Psychic Blast. He’ll see play on my Angry Mob team, for sure.

Unlike most of the figures in this Flush series, Dracula (Amazing Spider-Man 016) got the full workout in a three-round tournament. Fantastic monster who nevertheless won’t see much future play since I’m not a fan of the character and he won’t fit many of my goofball themes.

Hulk (Galactic Guardians 102) took too long to get into the fray and was quickly dispatched when he did. I played his Banner pog-self all wrong, too. This Hulk just doesn’t have the juice to hack it. Doubtful he’ll make any teams in my hands.

Iceman (Fast Forces 006) is, at last, a solid version of the character for a price that doesn’t seem like totally wasting points. Being able to “freeze” move-and-attack powers is key to using him well.

Magneto (Marvel 10th Anniversary 015) plays like what he is: a stripped-down House of M Magneto. Too point-and-click for me, and that costume was always ridiculous.

Man-Thing (Amazing Spider-Man 033r) is very glass-jawed at the 100-point level. If I ever run him again, it’ll be with the Thunderbolts ATA to help his defense somehow.

Morbius (Amazing Spider-Man 028) would’ve been fine if not for one of those absolute game-killing user errors I seem prone to making. See, he’s got this ability to double-Outwit a non-defense power that I forgot to use EVEN THOUGH I MOVED HIM THERE FOR THAT EXPRESS PURPOSE. So instead of neutering two dangerous enemies, he got KO’d in no time.

Sigh.

I’m not much for the character, so I don’t know when I’ll run Morbius again. But I want to use him correctly, at least.

 Nightwing and Batgirl (Batman 100) led a Batman Family team. Though this duo is highly dangerous with Duo Attack, getting that ability countered made the couple fail to win. I’m not enough of a fan of either to plan any more teams around this 176-point figure, though it’s nice to have.

Orc Swordsman (Hobbit 003b) has Perplex, which the Dracula-led Monster team he was on needed. A pity his damage is so low that he can’t contribute much else. Still, he’ll be on ANY orc team I play, and most Monster squads.

Rogue (Fast Forces 005) was the one who held off that Nightwing/Batgirl duo with her adjacency-based Outwit. I like her; she’s much more economical than the 128-point GSX Rogue. She’ll see the field again sometime.

Spider-Man (Galactic Guardians 104), like his fellow “Newer FF” teammate Hulk, doesn’t hack it in today’s game only a year since his introduction. There are so many better Spideys to pick from. This one’s inability to even so much as Leap/Climb into position to do his Outwitting was his problem in this game.

Werewolf By Night (Amazing Spider-Man 015) wastes his first two clicks in every game he’s in, which I hate about him because he’s prone to getting one-shot (and did). On the other hand, those “Full Moon” clicks are amazing, and even the Shape Change kept him in games longer than he should’ve. Fun piece.

Zuvembie (Amazing Spider-Man 006) wants braaaaains.

_____

Monday, Card Art returns after a brief hiatus, and maybe some more Token Totin’ on Tuesday or Thursday. Mid-week and Friday, look for Figure Flush week five.

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No characters could share keywords for this tournament.

Animal Man (DC 75th Anniversary W-5)
Bilbo Baggins (Hobbit 001)
Cloak (Amazing Spider-Man 202)
Emma Frost (Marvel 10th Anniversary 014)
False Facer (Streets of Gotham 007a)
Gardener (Infinity Gauntlet 004)
Hannibal King (Amazing Spider-Man 013b)
Howard Stark (Avengers Movie 021)
Knuckles (Infinity Challenge)
Wonder Woman (Streets of Gotham 034)

This 800-point team wasn’t exactly optimized, being thrown together solely from the Figure Flush roster of never-played pieces. It wilted like tissue paper in a fireplace under its first opposition: Darkseid, Big Figure, Saint Walker, a stack of Orc pogs and Nightcrawler with a Utility Belt. I’m not certain I’ve ever boned myself worse in a HeroClix match by giving up map choice…and then picking the absolute wrong starting area because I was worried about the wrong character. These are the kinds of games I hate: when I can only levy one or two attacks per turn while my opponent can answer with four or more.

It’s the price of trying to have F.U.N., I guess.

The 2nd round was so full of misses on both players’ part that I had to play sad violin music just about every roll.

Literally. I have a twelve-and-a-half minute-long track on my iPod — “String Quartet – Twilight of Heroes” from the Giant Robo anime — that’s just about the saddest violin music you ever heard during three of its four parts. It was hilarious.

The final round was more just a chance for the losing players to play a game to last man standing. It was characterized by both of us missing that one staggering blow that would irrevocably swing the game in his direction OVER and OVER.

Piece-by-piece:

I wrote this about Animal Man (DC 75th Anniversary W-5) for Pojo.com a couple of years ago:

His opening click is sad, offensively. He can’t copy Special Powers or the standard powers they grant access to. His DV is mediocre and, all too often, soft. “White Senses” could heal him out of his best clicks. And how good CAN the powers of character 82 points and less BE, really, without the stats to back them up?

Unfortunately, my every fear of those weaknesses were borne out (except the healing part, which he was never able to do). Thanks to my #1 favorite figure from 2012, I decided to get this White Lantern for Animal teams, but I’m having some buyer’s remorse. I’ll play him with Vixen and/or Alyosha Kraven or not at all…

Bilbo Baggins (Hobbit 001) was kinda the UNlucky piece, as it seemed that he was never in place to use his “The Lucky Number” SP Probability Control or nearly every reroll he allowed was a miss. The little hobbit will still have a spot on some future team, though…probably my Wee People theme of small-sculpt figures.

Cloak (Amazing Spider-Man 202) was surprisingly good despite not being the greatest threat on the board. All that Improved Movement makes his early Charge+Exploit combo really solid. This wildcard fig will see a lot of play from me.

Emma Frost (Marvel 10th Anniversary 014) was great. I opted to switch her to diamond form when she was hit hard. I’d like to try her again without shifting sometime.

False Facer (Streets of Gotham 007a), despite being mostly filler — I should have made sure to pair him with Cloak to get more attacks from him. But he still overachieved, landed both early and KO shots on the Collector.

Gardener (Infinity Gauntlet 004) was a glorified TK piece in most of the games. Not being able to fly and being a doublebase piece hurts his ability to use Stealth. I also completely forgot to use the attached Time Gem’s Super Senses. But the upside? Growing perma-hindering terrain for Stealthy folks isn’t shabby. Of all the Elders of the Universe, he’s the only one I might keep around.

Hannibal King (Amazing Spider-Man 013b) was a feast-or-famine piece. Either he gets one-shot by Darkseid or he tears enemy teams to shreds.

Howard Stark (Avengers Movie 021) was, frankly, the MVP of the team with his Outwit and Enhancement. If he weren’t limited to just two keywords, and actually had the SHIELD TA as well as the keyword, I might play him more often.

Knuckles (Infinity Challenge) was just temporary tie-up. It’s all he’ll EVER be!! And people wonder why he turns to crime.

Wonder Woman (Streets of Gotham 034) underperformed, getting killed in a single turn in the first two matches and the only character to die in all three. But that’s because her damage potential is so high and her stats/powers “hulk up” a little. So I’ll definitely run her on my next “Diana’s Wardrobe” team if the points work out.

___

Much more Figure Flush on Friday.

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It’s Valentine’s Day, that Hallmark holiday on which we express our love to significant others.

I do this blog, so it’s obvious that I DON’T HAVE a significant other. But at least I’ve got HeroClix, right?

Yeah. Play the sad violin music for me.

(OK, done now.)

Here’s my favorite piece of 2012.

___

Number 1
Vixen

Vixen (Streets of Gotham 028)

WHY I WANT TO PLAY HER EVERY WEEK

It’s all about two words: “Tantu Totem,” her trait allowing her to use a standard power from fellow Animals, similar to Animal Man, my 2010 #8 fave.

Only I read it wrong. It says she can use ANY standard power possessed by a fellow Animal on the field, not just ONE. That means, if she’s teamed up with, say, Armadillo, Animal Man and Cosmo, she could Charge in using Animal Man’s BCF, then share Animal Man’s Combat Reflexes AND Cosmo’s Super Senses AND Armadillo’s Impervious on top of her inborn Energy Shield/Deflection to weather the counterattacks next turn.

EDIT: Or, at least, that’s how it WAS. Finally, more than six months after her release, her trait was clarified/got errata to read that she can use ONE power from ONE character.

Sure, there’s a 1-in-6 chance she might take a click for all this power. But late-dial Regen softens that potential blow. She’s a piece that literally can have a completely different dial every time you play. Her steady but mediocre stats keep her from being a mean piece.

One of the drawbacks of Animal Man in my 2010 list was that I wasn’t a big enough fan of the Animal keyword to play him and it often. But Vixen singlehandedly makes me want to play both him and other Animals all the more.

WHY I DON’T

Honestly, I don’t want to wear her out. She’s also a bit limited in keywords and I haven’t come up with other cute or goofy themes to run her in — the one I have just doesn’t work:

FOXEY LADIES

  • Vixen (Streets of Gotham 028) 74
  • Ghost Fox Killer 68
  • Crimson Fox 44
  • Vet Vixen (Collateral Damage) 44
  • Exp Vixen  (Collateral Damage) 38
  • Rookie Vixen  (Collateral Damage) 33

= 301 points! DAMMIT!!!!

EDIT: And, of course, her trait wasn’t intended to be as awesome as it looked. 

I’M PLAYING HER NEXT

Trying hard to build a black Animal team, but that’s gonna stick me with just her, Falcon (sans a Captain America to boost him) and maybe Killer Croc to work with in Modern Age. That’s not a great team.

But, as I alluded above, the real challenge is NOT running her every week with at least one other Animal-keyworded figure to leech powers from. Truly my favorite HeroClix figure of 2012.

___
That does it for the annual look back! Very glad to wrap it up by Valentine’s Day this year instead of April. Looking forward to getting back to the old routine next week:

MONDAYS: Card Arts
TUESDAYS: Token Totin’
WEDNESDAYS: Battle reports
THURSDAYS: Token Totin’
FRIDAYS: Extra features

Thanks for reading!

 

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Number 4
Aquaman52

Aquaman (New 52 Justice League 005)
WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK
Aquaman is my favorite superhero.

Well, there are other reasons, too.

Atlantis is one of my favorite themes to play. Also, this Aquaman is the first version that’s a straight-up effective bruiser. Others are either better held in reserve as secondary fighters due to their gimmicks (Brightest Day), are too dependent on water (DC75th, Justice League ’07) or are too expensive (Flashpoint). But New 52 Aquaman can lead the charge without breaking the bank even on a bone-dry map — especially if Mera’s around to take a fall to boost all his stats.

WHY I DON’T
Mera taking a fall is offensive to me. But it’s such a boon to Aquaman that I must consider the tactic. Either way, I can’t play Atlantis all the time.

I’M PLAYING HIM NEXT
On a Valentine’s Day team with Mera this weekend! Also on every Atlantis team, for sure. I also won’t play the Justice League without considering Aquaman. Finally, he’ll be a fixture on any Angry Mob* team I ever play.

* Angry Mob: a team consisting fully of sculpts toting pitchforks (or tridents) and torches.

 ____

Number 3
Ant-Man+Wasp
Ant-Man and Wasp (Chaos War 053)
WHY I WANT TO PLAY THEM EVERY WEEK
When the existence of Chaos War’s chase pieces were first revealed with this fig’s preview, I knew it was the one I wanted. It’s near the top of my favorite pieces of the year for being the ultimate finesse piece: though very soft, this duo has great damage potential with careful tactics and positioning. Pretty pushable, too.

WHY I DON’T
One hundred sixty-eight points is a lot to pay for a piece as fragile as this. They also can’t Split into the best versions of themselves. Most of all, the points just never seem to work for the Pym-centric themes I want to run.

I’M PLAYING THEM NEXT
On one of those Pym themes, by hook or crook. I’ve also wanted to try a Small theme composed of hobbits, dwarves, Tiny Size figs and Cosmo. And one day I’ll do a rerun of a “Bug Avengers” team guest-starring Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Wasp and others.

____

Number 2

Giant-man
Giant-Man (Chaos War 200)
WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK
Well, for one thing, I spent all that money on the guy. It’s the most I’ve ever spent on a single HC figure.

But seriously, I like Henry Pym as a character, going so far as to purchase the Essential Ant-Man collection. In fact, Vet Yellowjacket was my first pull from a bought HeroClix booster back in the Fantastic Forces days. So it was time that a true colossal-sized version of Giant-Man was made. It didn’t disappoint, dial-wise, either. The Building Shove SP is great fun (for him) without being totally abusive. And then there’s the Morph trait to switch from identity to identity in mid-game. SO cool.

WHY I DON’T
Unfortunately, that 75-point dial isn’t so hot, and it is difficult to sink the 300 points into a character that’s not as strong as Sentroid or Thanos. So colossal Pym usually stays on the shelf at home.

I’M PLAYING HIM NEXT
On my “Big Pympin'” team of Giant-Men and Yellowjackets. Complete with Jay-Z theme music.

____

Tomorrow, I give a Valentine to my favorite HeroClix piece of 2012.  

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Number 7
Crystal

Crystal (Chaos War 044)
WHY I WANT TO PLAY HER EVERY WEEK
I wrote about Crystal last summer in my “Ginger Avengers” feature. It’s all still true; she’s a heck of a first-strike piece on top with a great deal of finesse in her super-fun “Tornado” trait and later-dial related SPs. Her modest combat values keep her from being broken.

WHY I DON’T
She’s a lock on Inhumans teams, but I don’t play that keyword very often. I also quickly get tired of Avengers. I haven’t figured out many other cute themes to work her onto.

I’M PLAYING HER NEXT
On an Inhumans team, of course, though who knows when THAT’ll be. And she’ll always be a Ginger Avenger.

_____

Number 6
cyborg

Cyborg (New 52 Justice League 006)
WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK
I’m a completist where black characters are concerned, so I was glad to see Victor Stone well-represented in his third HeroClix iteration. I also like what’s been done with him in the New 52 JLA, making him a founding member for a needed extra dose of diversity in that team.

He’s also very playable, what with his anti-Stealth trait and Running Shot + Pulse Wave combo (which is very effective with his 6 range; it’s easy to get single-target blasts off). Following with Poison, Exploit Weakness and strong combat values, and it’s not hard to see why I think he’d have made my Top 10 list in a less torrid year.

WHY I DON’T
I’m trying to play all my figures at least once, and that hasn’t left much opportunity to run Vic more often with the sheer rate that WizKids is pumping out new figures and sets. Especially since I haven’t come up with any cute themes to run him in. The “Big 7” JLA is also a bit too points-heavy to run much.

I’M PLAYING HIM NEXT
I have no idea. I just know I will, probably when I’ve whittled down my multiple cases of unplayed figs.

______

Number 5
NovaPrimeIAmAnAvenger

Nova Prime (Galactic Guardians 001)
WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK
After I became a fan of the Guardians of the Galaxy (because of HeroClix, incidentally), I grew to become a fan of Nova as well, enjoying his rise in status from a mere ex-New Warrior into a heavy hitter of cosmic Marvel.

HeroClix didn’t really give him his due in its first take on him in Supernova. I mean, the Vet was fine for Rich as just a regular Nova Corps Centurion. But it wasn’t him as Nova Prime at all.

Even this figure isn’t really Rider with the full Worldmind and Nova Force in him. But then, he’s totally designed as the leader of fellow Novas, and no longer carrying the full load anymore. And this Nova Prime is still an excellent piece.

WHY I DON’T
He’s best played as part of a full corps of, well, Nova Corps pieces with the “Share Through the Worldmind” traits. But the points almost never seem to work right, due to my insistence on running multiples of all the Nova Corps generics, the Super-Nova marquee and the older REV pieces.

I’M PLAYING HIM NEXT
On a Secret Avengers team soon, now that that team’s original lineup is basically complete (only missing an Avengers-keyworded Valkyrie). And one day I’ll get that full-force Nova Corps team together.

____

Nearing the top with numbers 4, 3 and 2, which range from the tall to the small; from the depths to the heights.

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Number 10
Miranda_Tate-1
Miranda Tate (Dark Knight Rises 012)

WHY I WANT TO PLAY HER EVERY WEEK

I don’t, actually.

Let me explain. As I was thinking on this list, I found myself having trouble with the #10 piece. There were so many candidates: Black Lightning, John Blake, Taskmaster, Agent Coulson, Thing, Cosmo.

But aside from the first, none of those leap to mind to play, ever, unless a specific keyword of theme calls for them. And even if I spot them in the tackle box while pawing for another figure, none make me stop and consider it the way Ms. Tate does.

I like Miranda Tate because, like the character, the piece is all finesse and positioning. The ability to wildcard adjacent enemy TAs (via her “A Secret Agenda” trait) is novel but requires careful play. Fortunately, she’s got solid combat values plus Perplex to help. She’s not a point-and-click figure but can have an outsize effect on a game.

And hey…Marion Cotillard.

WHY I DON’T
Her keywords are limited to Martial Artist and Spy — neither are favorites. Her 70 points are also a bit hefty for her fragile dial. It’s also tough to come up with cute F.U.N. themes to include her on. (Business Suits, maybe?)

I’M PLAYING HER NEXT
My venue’s having a “Breakfast Club” scenario where no one can share keywords. She’s on the team…with her secret agenda.

_____

Number 9
Stranger
Stranger (Galactic Guardians 043)

WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK
When the Infinity Gauntlet finals came around, I used him. With only average combat values ill-fitting his high price, one may wonder why I tried him against the likes of Sentroid and Chanos.

The fact that I came close to maybe beating both is testament to the unique strengths of The Stranger.

  • See, I picked him against Chanos because even though the mad Titan’s starting-area killbox WOULD get first shot on Stranger, it couldn’t possibly KO him. Instead, Stranger would almost surely land on his Attack SP, allowing him to pick any PAC power for the turn, such as Hypersonic Speed to hit the key foe and run out of the killbox.

    And if not for the critical miss I rolled in the process, I might’ve had a decent shot at beating that team, what with Stranger’s ability to heal up by picking Regen or ensure the best defenses for the situation.

  • Stranger also has a great trait allowing him to become either giant or colossal-sized at the beginning of turn. The former ability, one of my favorites anyway, gives him extra LOF when needed and the latter permits him to act via the Colossal Stamina ability while double-tokened to press the attack.

    And if I’d remembered to pick the Colossal symbol when I had Sentroid on his LAST TWO CLICKS, I might’ve easily taken him down for the win instead of getting wiped out the next three turns.

Though these losses to two of the most ultra-meta teams of late summer/early fall by mischance and user error were unfortunate, they underscore why Stranger is a favorite:

  1. He’s not a point-and-click-your-opponent’s-dial by any means. Makes him Friendly for a 200+ point Power Cosmic tentpole.
  2. But he’s super Useful with that Special Power.
  3. And he fits my Nifty “This Team Is Strange” theme. (The rest of the above IG team: Both GG Dr. Stranges and a trio of Astral Stranges.)

WHY I DON’T
I typically only bring out the Stranger for big-point, higher stakes games that usual. He’s about as close as I ever get to powergaming.

I’M PLAYING HIM NEXT
On the next high-point Strange and Stranger team, this time adding Hugo Strange, Adam Strange and the new ASM Dr. Strange. Should be……………………………………strange.

____

Number 8
AVMHulk
Hulk (Avengers Movie 202)

WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK
After a decade of Hulk figures that mostly disappointed (being zero-range figs in a game weighted in favor of shooters), this movie-inspired one finally got the jade giant right. Fantastically powered AND balanced, Hulk is character-accurate fun without being broken.

WHY I DON’T
Unfortunately, he’s so strong enough that he’s not enough F.U.N. to break out on a regular basis — don’t want to be That Guy. He’s also so many points that he eats up the points room for his non-Avengers keywords (Brute and Monster), and I’m not that big a fan of the Avengers keyword. In a bit of a blow to his ability to run with fellow Monsters, his Battle Fury keeps him from working with Mole Man’s special Mind Control. Finally, he’s been a bit overshadowed by the Worldbreaker version of Hulk released last fall.

I’M PLAYING HIM NEXT
On an Avengers Movie team. Would also like to run an all-Hulk squad sometime, if I can ever get the points to work out.

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Tomorrow, numbers 7, 6 and 5 of Heroclixin’s favorites.

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Finally, it’s time for my favorite Top Ten list of these annual new year retrospectives: My Top Ten Faves of the past year! As in previous installments I’ll hit the following talking points:

  1. Why I like this figure and would like to play it every weekend
  2. Why I don’t actually play this figure every weekend
  3. When and how I’m planning to play this figure, possibly this weekend

And also as before, I open this feature with a figure released in the prior year that came out too late to make the list it might’ve belonged to:

Lex Luthor

LEX LUTHOR (Superman Fast Forces 004)

The greatest criminal scientist of the DC Universe and sworn enemy of Superman!

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WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK:

I love that Lex as jailbird was finally represented in HeroClix in the full Superman set. But like his archfoe, Lex was based on his All-Star Superman version and thus saddled with a Superman-level powered “stop” click to represent his electric-chair-activated super serum in that storyline.

But that’s not the mainstream Universe Lex. He’d NEVER let himself actually lose a death penalty trial. :)

Anyway, I was even gladder to see a more normal, less apocalyptic Lex in this 50-point model. He’s a better fit for teams and plays much like this ultimate schemer ought to:

  • Allying with others  (using his Calculator wild card status)  whom he might use to defeat Superman by using Enhancement to help them shoot, or Perplexing other stats as needed);
  • Staying in the shadows (via Stealth);
  • and, best of all, using Mastermind to turn on his temporary allies to save himself in classic Lex fashion, regardless of their  cost if they don’t have more than 100 points on him.

I like this sort of finesse piece.

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WHY I DON’T:

His super-Mastermind requires him to be using the same TA. That rules out a lot of characters, and he’s only as good as his team. He’s also been a bit overshadowed by Lex Luthor (10th Anniversary 020), an even better representation of the character at his at-large strongest.

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I’M NEXT PLAYING HIM ON:

Either a Legion of Doom team  or a team of all Lex Luthors:

Justice League Lex 161
Orange Lantern Lex 160
Alex Luthor 113
Force Field Lex 160
All-Star Lex 107
and this Lex to make a 751-point team to fill out with ATAs, feats and/or Resources.

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Join Heroclixin’ in Valentine’s week for more figures I loved in 2012.

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“Let me explain … no, it’s too much. Let me sum up.”
— Inigo Montoya, The Princess Bride

It’s a new year, when I usually rank the top ten most playable HeroClix of the past year.

But 2012 was a strange year for the game. With more pieces released than ever before, not only are there just TOO MANY to properly review, but the term “playable” has become something of a gross understatement.

Longtime readers may recall a little article I did back in Feb. 2012: the top game-changers of 2012, looking at a bunch of lower-profile pieces that wouldn’t be game-winners the way the Top Ten proper were, but still bent or broke the normal rules of the game.

Well, 2012 was littered with even worse rule-breakers. And this lot actually threatened to take a lot of the F.U.N. out of HeroClix.

So this year’s Top Ten is going to look at

  • how those pieces break the game a bit
  • how the designers should’ve reined them in, in Heroclixin’s opinion
  • how to deal with them if you see them on the other end of the table, and
  • how to have some F.U.N. with them anyway.

After this series, we’ll look at the 10 Worst of the year, then Heroclixin’s 10 favorites of the year. Hopefully, we’ll be done in time for a normal Top Ten list based around a power, ability, theme or team.

In the meantime, Happy New Year!