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All three versions of Ares have Super Strength. All three can hold their object tokens, too.

The newest:

Wedge it like so. You'll have to bend the token a little bit to make it work.

 

Marvel’s Ares, from the AVENGERS set, also holds up:

A bit more tenuous...but he's got it.

 

And, of course, the original Legacy Unique:

I had to Photoshop again, 'cause I've never owned this piece. But it definitely works.

Sorry for the late, late update. I’d hoped to have a new battle report tomorrow, but will be too busy. Stay tuned, though, for March’s Top Ten list…though it too will be a bit late, coming in the first week of April.

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I pulled this 297-point one-woman army in a sealed tournament this weekend. So I just had to play her.

Phoenix (Giant-Size X-Men) 297

= 297 points. My strategy: to simply Hypersonic hit-and-run until nothing’s left. Simple but hard to do when the opponent has at least 3 actions to my 1.

FIRST ROUND I faced Jay’s Skullbuster, Domino, and Caliban on his choice of the Bridge map. This map’s elevated terrain on the ends is my potentially insurmountable advantage; Jay’s two Stealthy characters and just as many with penetrating damage powers are his.

TURNING POINTS

  • I miss my first four attempts to hit Skullbuster, whose Penetrating/Psychic Blast can ruin my day in a hurry. The last miss leaves me completely exposed.
  • Skullbuster doesn’t miss. Without the ability to run to safety and still fight, Phoenix is eventually completely overwhelmed, especially when Regeneration rolls completely fail.

0-1. My mistake was attempting to hit and run on my last miss against Skullbuster, knowing I couldn’t get to safety. I should have moved in for a close-range hit and then remained in base contact to prevent the easy Running Shot Psychic Blast, instead forcing the breakaway attempt.

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SECOND ROUND was against Sammy, a very young player running SR Archangel, Wolverine and Skullbuster on the Tank map. He’s not nearly as good a player yet, and despite an opening-attack critical miss on my part, I cruise to an easy wipeout. 1-1.

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FINAL ROUND was on the School Ruins — my choice — against Paul’s Emma Frost, Stryfe and Beast.

TURNING POINTS

  • I picked this map for thematic reasons and for the walls. But Paul had picked this map in both matches, and knew how to play it perfectly, stationing the Stealthy Stryfe in position to TK Emma from hiding in a corner to wherever she needed to be to best Psychic Blast Phoenix off her game.  Plus, there was absolutely no way I could get to either enemy without being open to a massive counterattack.
  • I set up too close and got hit first, negating my hit & run ability and getting attacked 3 times for every one time I could hit back.
  • And unfortunately, about 75% of my attacks weren’t hits. I did more damage to Beast with Poison and his own pushing than anything.
  • Though I managed to escape a couple of times with Regeneration rolls and her own self-reviving ability, a final terribly-timed critical miss stranded me in the middle of a HSS attack without damage reducers, enabling even the near-dead Emma to take Phoenix out. Unbelievable…and not comic-accurate at all.

Then again, as I quipped in my loss: "Phoenix always dies."

I think it’s a guarantee…tentpole forces lose if they miss more than three times before taking out any opponents. But there was nearly as much user error as poor dice rolling. My biggest mistake in this match was playing my opponent’s game instead of changing the game. I should have HSS-shot out the wall Emma was hiding behind…that would have left me with enough spare movement to get to a defensible position that would still grant attack opportunites.

This has me hot to try her out again, to redeem my losses! PHOENIX WILL RISE AGAIN!!!

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I continue my photographic journal of the Super-Strong characters that can hold their object tokens, this time with characters I (mostly) don’t own yet:

First, Ch’od, the most recently clix’d of the Starjammers:

He holds it easily in his massive reptilian arms.

Next is one of those D-list characters that pretty much only get made in HeroClix, Gatecrasher:

Stick the token between her head and her pet whose name I can't recall.

 

Armor, who’s almost undoubtedly going to be the cheap SR of GSX, has no problem pulling her weight:

Another one who not only holds it, but holds it COOL.

 

Colossus / Wolverine juggles a feral Canadian mutant and a Fantasti-Car at once:

It fits neatly between Wolvie's left claw and Colossus' head.

 

Finally…you know who the HECK this IS?!?
It’s the Juggernaut…um…you probably know the rest.

The space between his armpit and his dial fits an object token PERFECTLY.

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I build this blog on a Mac and Safari. I’m just now noticing that this:

…does NOT show up on Internet Explorer. Huh. Need to fix that next week!

Anyway, on to this special, brand-new-set-released edition of the usually-semiweekly Token Totin’ feature: a photojournal of how Super Strength characters can hold their object tokens.

Instead of spreading these out, I just decided to show all the candidates I pulled in the brick I bought.

First in line is Omega Prime Sentinel:

It's a little bit hard to see from this angle. But she holds it gingerly in her left armpit mostly from the front.

And this of course also works for her LE sculptmate, Karima.

Next is the whole-lot-uglier Mindless One:

It barely holds the token in a mirror image of OPS: right pit, from behind.

Then, Pretty Boy (who isn’t really one. Not really):

Even though his armpit's holding less of the token than the previous two figs do, the grip seems better somehow.

The next Super Strong fig would be Aaron Stack. But I could find no secure way for him to hold his object tokens at all. NEXTwave!!!

Caliban.

Many figures in this pose can hold tokens wedged in the stat slot and under the chin. He just does it less well than many.

Gideon (who doesn’t actually have Super Strength but can gain it via his Special Power):

Wedges securely under the ponytail!

Rogue:

Also uses the ponytail. Mine was painted to her shoulder, but it was easy --and non-damaging to separate them.

 Blob is Super Strong.

Wedges securely from behind between his head and fists!

And, finally, The Captain (HIS NAME IS THE CAPTAIN!!!) holds his pretty awesomely:

The jagged edge of the giant finger works great as token holder.

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That’s it for now; I didn’t pull Ch’od, Gatecrasher, Juggernaut or other Super Strength characters. But expect that I’ll get pix of them, hook or crook! And have a great time this weekend!

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Sorry for no Custom Mod yesterday, but my attention has been wrapped up in the new Heroclix set due out this week: GIANT-SIZE X-MEN.

Every full set, I build a pocket checklist. But this go-’round, information has been slower in coming.

Since I know some out there are attending midnight releases, I am in turn releasing a not-quite-complete beta of the Giant-Size X-Men (GSX or GX) pocket checklist. Known issues include:

  • Mystique’s actual point cost unconfirmed
  • Blob’s rarity is questionable. He’s marked as an Uncommon, but this could be an error
  • Cyclops / Jean Grey duo name and cost unknown
  • Second Special Object name and cost unknown
  • Possible chase figures unrevealed

On that last point: GSX was announced as a 67-figure set, but we’ve only seen 65 to date. There could very well be two more ultra-rare pieces.

Anyway, here’s the 95% complete checklist.

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Latest object-holding figure:

Donna Troy can do it in Anniversary, wedged between her pit and stat slot.

Or she can do it as Wonder Girl in Crisis, held by her Rookie’s ponytail…

…or by the Vet’s fat yarn lasso. :)

And even though I don’t have her anymore, a little Photoshop shows how even the Cosmic Justice Troia/Donna Troy can get into the token action:

 

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A buddy of mine and I periodically have what we call “grudge matches.” These are pre-determined battles (usually high-point) between one of his favorite theme-y builds and one of mine.

For example, the first one we tried was this: Asgard vs. Asgard’s Enemies. This time, it was Hulk vs. Iron Man!

This is how these matches usually end in the comics.

His team:

Green Scar 230 + Fortitude 25 + Contingency Plan 12 + Unstoppable 5
Red She-Hulk 139
Rampaging Hulk 128 + Fortitude 25
Hulk (2099) 123
Jennifer Walters, Esq. 107
+ Kinetic Accelerator
+ Meteorite

= 794 points.

My team:


Iron Man (Web of Spider-Man) 202
Iron Man (Secret Invasion) 188
Hulkbuster 165 + Unstoppable 5
Iron Man (Mutations and Monsters) 100
War Machine (Hammer of Thor) 137 + Not So Special 3
+ Eleha’al Vine
+ Dynamostat
+ Kinetic Accelerator
= 800 points. My strategy ?  To leverage my massive range advantage to soften the Hulks up before they ever get to me.

My plan was immediately frustrated by losing the map roll. He picked the Prison. I was ready for this.

Lenny set up slowly and carefully, using Ramp.Hulk as his lead man hidden safely behind a wall. But he failed to see my secret weapon in Hulkbuster equipped with Unstoppable, leading to the first of many…

TURNING POINTS

  • The feat allowed Hulkbuster to destroy the wall, pick up the Dynamostat I’d used to lull Lenny into a false sense of security, and then light into Ramp.Hulk with multiple Running Shots.
  • Frustrated by my inability to miss those opening attacks, Lenny moved a bit too recklessly his next turn. I couldn’t believe he forgot to hide the giant 2099 Hulk behind one of the remaining walls, at least. I got at least two too many shots at the big guy.
  • In an effort to take out WS Iron Man, Lenny’d plugged up the narrow corridor and prevented Green Scar from getting to him with the deadly Meteorite. That gave me an opportunity to shoot Scar off his Super Strength and Leadership with SI Iron Man, making it even more unlikely for Lenny to hit me with his poor die rolls. It cost me those 188 points, though, as he was KO’d in short order.
  • No matter. Once free of Jennifer, Hulkbuster Charged in, picked up Lenny’s lost Meteorite, and destroyed Scar with it, along with Lenny’s hopes for a comeback.

In the end, I took out the whole team, losing only SI Tony.

MVPs

  • Hulkbuster, definitely. Not only did he land the deciding blow, but his use of Unstoppable to break walls for free instantly negated the terrain advantage against my range-conscious team.
  • But some praise must be given to WS Iron Man, too. Being Indomitable helped him to keep the offensive pressure on, giving the Hulks no chance to avoid fire.
  • Finally, it’s got to be said: in all but one of the eight or so of these matches Lenny and I have played, his die rolls have gone ice cold while mine ranged from average to, in this case, blazing like repulsor rays.

So far, Lenny has gotten 2nd place in all our non-tournament Heroclix duels. I don’t know how much more of this he can take.

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Continuing the series that SHOWS how Super Strength figs hold object tokens on the sculpt:

He actually doesn’t hold it as neatly as he appears to. The token’s just leaning on the flight stand and between the (spread apart) legs. Still…he holds it, barely.

Note: Amazo from Cosmic Justice holds his the same way, only even less effectively.

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Veteran ATOM (Origin)

Nice to finally get an Atom figure, as opposed to the “puck” version from Cosmic Justice. But it’s of the wrong guy!

This is Ryan Choi, the All-New Atom, represented by the Rookie version.

Ryan was a graduate student under Professor Ray Palmer, the REAL Atom:

Note the simpler uniform and belt.

I wanted a classic Atom. So here’s what I did:

  • Filed down details, especially on his back.
  • Repainted with acrylics.

Completed mid-2010.

NEXT WEEK: The worst figure in Hammer of Thor gets a comic-accurate makeover.