Now that WizKids has released its errata list for Notorious (more on that later), it’s time for our regular review of the set’s legacy cards: a F.U.N. way to bring some old fan-favorites back into Modern/Silver play and rework some old figs that never really worked right before (or don’t anymore due to rule changes).
By set number:
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L020a CALENDAR MAN
(Streets of Gotham, 2013)
THEN: He was a bizarre piece with different SPs based on the actual days of the week. For example, if played Monday through Thursday, he got mega-Outwit that took the chosen power away from the whole enemy team. But on the weekends — y’know, when most clix games are held — he was stuck with just giving +1 AV to adjacent allies. On even-numbered days, he could halve an enemy’s speed as POWER, but on odd ones he could only give three adjacent pals Phasing. And a third SP was POWER: roll d6 and give a foe holding/next to an object an action token or 1 penetrating damage depending on if it was winter and spring or summer and fall, respectively.
The upside is that all three SPs respectively offered standard powers of Stealth, Energy Explosion and Probability Control all year long. Paired with Mastermind, he could maybe do something consistent despite his 4 range being very poor at the time.
NOW: His old 52-point cost cut down to 40, he gains “The Yearly Cycle,” a trait granting Probability Control and Regeneration. His old speed SP still offers Stealth, but now even-numbered days give him Improved Movement:Characters while odd-number dates give a FREE that nerfs a target enemy’s defense and d6 rolls -1 for a round. His attack SP drops Energy Explosion for Precision Strike — sort of. Because now, Sunday-Wednesday, he still gets EE — penetrating! The rest of the week, his attack and damage both shoot up +2. Finally, his damage SP triggers off even- or odd-numbered months instead, with the former giving a FREE to shut off a standard power for all foes within range (no LOF needed), while in January, March, May, July, September and November he sports double Prob Control regardless of range (but needing LOF). Oh, and he adds a ton of new keywords: Gothem City to his original Arkham Asylum
F.U.N.? As before, CM here is a bizarre piece. And IMO, his power is way out of scale with the character’s classic abilities. But after one of the more recent DCU reboots, he seems to have gained weird superpowers to be reborn each year? So this clix might be more in line with the current villain than I thought.
But is it meta, though? The date-reliant flavor probably makes it too random. Not having EE on the weekends is a blow to his effectiveness, for example. And in a multi-day event like Worlds Singles, he’d completely change his powers — and performance. So more F.U.N. than fearsome, I think.
AM I GETTING THIS? I have long liked this figure. Glad to see it get another season.
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L020b DEATHSTROKE
(Justice League New 52, 2012)
THEN: He was all about his “Precisely Timed Strike” SP which, along with Blades/Claws/Fangs, dealt free d6 damage to any foe who moved adjacent to him at all. Too bad even the lightest damage through Toughness killed both his Stealth and SP, leaving him with Running Shot and Penetrating/Psychic Blast. That’s not too terribly bad, especially with his 7 range. But his relative lack of mobility and hefty 120 point cost, which was very easy to collect once he fell off that Stealth, made him a little unwieldy. Keywords: Injustice League, Martial Artist, Society and Soldier.
NOW: This time he comes with two point costs: 100 and 40 (click 5). Along with added keywords Arkham Asylum, Assassin, Gotham City Underworld and Suicide Squad (but no more Society), both lines have the trait “I Killed The Teen Titans” — Charge, Sidestep and a FREE choice of Energy Shield/Deflection + Ranged Combat Expert or Combat Reflexes + Close Combat Expert. He also gets “The Target” trait that other Assassin keyword figs in Notorious have, to gain 25 extra points if any of them KO a designated enemy. His SP, renamed “Timed Strikes,” is functionally exactly the same except for adding Precision Strike to the mix. Improved Movement:Elevated is a big boost, as is Targeted:Hindering and Team Player TA.
F.U.N.? It’s upgraded in every way from the original. But it’s still not quite competitive. Strong, though, and definitely F.U.N.
AM I GETTING THIS? I collect Deathstrokes and, before seeing the new card text, had never been happier to own two copies of this piece so I could play both the original and the new on a Golden Age all-Slade Wilson force someday. But as noted above, there’s absolutely no reason to ever again play the original.
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L021 LYSSA DRAK
(War of Light, 2014)
THEN: She was a Probability Control piece (anywhere on map if a friendly with her Sinestro Corps, Monster or Black Lantern Corps keyword was attacked) who started also with enemy-only Perplex (that gave pals Precision against the target) before switching late dial to Steal Energy and Exploit, with Barrier and Sidestep interspersed throughout. Useful but kinda overcosted at her original 91 points.
NOW: She’s only 45 points, less than half, so that means she lost something: her Prob Control. Instead, she generates Grave markers like other BL Corps members in the set — in her case, wherever an enemy anywhere Outwits, Steals Energy or Regens. Enemies in Graves then lose -1 stats when in combat with BL Corps. She keeps her enemy-only Perplex, which now prevents the target from healing, too, when she uses it. She gains the Herald keyword this time.
F.U.N.? Priced like the supporting piece she always was, yet somehow not quite as good as before IMO, she’ll find her way onto some teams.
AM I GETTING THIS? I somehow do not have any copies of her anymore. I don’t regret it, really, as I am not much of a Lantern Corps fan. More for y’all!
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L025 ULTRAMAN
(Trinity War, 2015)
THEN: For 225 points, he was a pretty standard Hypersonic brick. The only things really special about him were A) his SAFEGUARD: Outwit when in hindering terrain and B) his Crime Syndicate team ability, giving him Prob Control as long as he could give himself or an ally an extra action token. His lower price at 125 started with Charge+Super Strength and RCE, which paired very well with anti-Stealth 8 range. He had Brute, Crime Syndicate and Ruler keywords.
NOW: He slims down A LOT to just 110 and 75 points. His losses? The Outwit protection, which trades down to Stealth and Willpower that both only works in hindering. He gains IM:Destroy Blocking and, IF there’s more tokens on his team than theirs, FREE Regen. With the CSA TA, those extra tokens could be easy to rack up. (He also appeared to have lost his Flight ability, but that’s an error WizKids has fixed by errata.)
F.U.N.? CSA is wildcard-friendly now instead of being uncopyable, which COULD be a competitive edge. But I feel like this piece is just OK and not meta. F.U.N.
AM I GETTING THIS? I love the Crime Syndicate, so yeah.
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L026 OWLMAN
(Trinity War, 2015)
THEN: At his full 116 points, Oilman was chiefly a Stealthy Outwit piece who’s SP version of the power kept enemy Outwitters from countering higher-cost characters. With Combat Reflexes, Toughness and Willpower bundled in a defense SP, he was decently protected. But 4 range didn’t allow for much offense on his part. Fortunately, he had a cheaper 50-point line that also had both SPs. Unfortunately, it lacked the Stealth and was thus much easier to KO. Still, as one of the least expensive figs with the CSA TA, he was worth fielding for keyword themes Crime Syndicate, Detective and Scientist.
NOW: He’s 70 and 25 points now. A new trait gives twice-a-turn (IF his team has more tokens than the enemy) Sidestep for the mobility he really needs now that his defense SP lost its old Toughness. His damage SP now allows him to Outwit up to three powers if he’s full of tokens.
F.U.N.? He still has the old weaknesses, so he might not be as scary as he looks. But that 25-point line, starting with Flurry and him having possible double Sidestep, has some potential. F.U.N. times being bad!
AM I GETTING THIS? I love the Crime Syndicate and owl-themed characters, so heck yeah.
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L027 SUPERWOMAN
(Trinity War, 2015)
THEN: Though not as beefy as Ultraman, Earth-3 Lois Lane here actually hit a lot harder thanks to the Charge+Super Strength+Exploit Weakness combo. She also had a trait that nerfed enemy defenses if they were adjacent to each other and shared keywords. Not much else interesting about her for 142 points. She had a 100-point line that started with Empower instead of Exploit. CSA TA rounded out her offerings. Keywords: Crime Syndicate, Amazon.
NOW: She adds one trait giving FREE Mind Control of a hit character and a second granting +2AV if her squad has more action tokens. Cost basically halved to 75 and 50. (There’s also a couple of discrepancies in powers and values between her original correct dial and the erroneous card. Officially the dial is right.)
F.U.N.? The new CSA TA could help ensure these token bonuses, especially now that it’s wildcard-friendly.
AM I GETTING THIS? I love the Crime Syndicate and Amazons are a B-tier theme I collect. So yes.
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L035 KILLER MOTH
(Joker’s Wild, 2016)
THEN: He was one of Heroclixin’s worst of the year because he was 65 points for Running Shot, 9 AV single target Incap … and almost ANYTHING was a better use of 65 points, even for his sole keyword of Gotham City Underworld.
NOW: For a deep discount to just 35 points, he loses his flight ability but gains a few tricks from a brand-new trait that A) gives him two bolts, then B) +2 AV and, probably best, C) he forces his targets to break away to move, whether he hit or not. He also gains the Gotham City keyword
F.U.N.? Some believe the original was a troll piece, a cruel joke to make the character at last but also make him as terrible as possible. This remake actually redeems him a lot.
AM I GETTING THIS? I am, eventually.
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L037a HUSH
(Batman, 2012)
THEN: For 107 points, he was little but a Stealth 5-range Sharpshooter (which, back then, gave the equivalent of Improved Targeting: Opposing Characters and IT: Adjacent but ONLY Adjacent). Well, OK, he could shoot Batman Ally enemies despite their Stealth and he had a Support + Exploit Weakness SP and he got a +1 AV boost when using the Batman Enemy TA. But again, that poor 5 range and lack of Running Shot meant that despite his really cool sculpt and Mastermind+Shape Change SP defense, he just wasn’t very playable, not even for his Celebrity or Gotham City Underworld keywords.
NOW: He is a LOT cheaper: 60 points, losing all his Improved Targeting and anti-Stealth skills. But his all-new trait gives him Precision, Support and Regen — and he gets to move up to the d6 roll when he uses either of the latter. His defense SP keeps Mastermind but loses the Shape Change while gaining FREE placement of same-keyworded allies in his range and LOF next to him. That’s like no-cost TK but better.
His Shape Change moves to his damage SP, which loses the old Exploit Weakness and gains SAFEGUARD: Outwit for all his keyword buddies in range.
F.U.N.? This is a piece designed to play on theme above all else, which we at Heroclixin’ find very F.U.N.
AM I GETTING THIS? I regret unloading this sculpt due to the unwieldy original dial. But I found it again at a premium, so I’m scoring this card.
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L043 JOHNNY QUICK
(Trinity War, 2015)
THEN: The Crime Syndicate version of The Flash looked similar to the heroic speedster: He had the Speed token trait (gain one when if you hit while moving) to modify his speed value, and ignored characters and hindering for movement — the last being a big deal back in 2015. But his real use was for his SP to juice up his stats +1 or +2 for a turn at the cost of clicks of life. A suddenly 14 HSS, 12 AV, 5 damage assassin could easily get to a backline character you THOUGHT was well protected — then use his enemies-only trait Perplex (if he had a Speed token to spend) to also sever that foe’s speed powers. Along with CSA TA, for 82 points, that wasn’t bad. Only keywords were Speedster and Crime Syndicate
NOW: No new keywords. Slashed to 45 points, he loses his juicing abilities, gaining IM:Elevated and a rewritten first trait: +2 undodgable attack against enemy Speedster keyword or figs with Hypersonic Speed. His SP allows him to steal and equip enemy equipment if his team has more tokens.
F.U.N.? Not as good as the last iteration, but CSA looks like a lot of F.U.N.
AM I GETTING THIS? For sure.
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L044 DARKSEID
(SLOSH, 2014)
THEN: Weighing in a hefty 350 points, this rare started with SP Running Shot only when he was token-free. That sounds bad until you see that the same SP granted him Phasing/Teleport with a free attack if he had one token already. Pretty good with his 12 AV and 5 damage. He reduced penetrating damage, had SAFEGUARD: Outwit (conditional on him not using his own Outwit) and gave +1AV and damage to other Apokolips figs with one action token (back then, getting a second token caused self-damage). But probably the most fearsome thing about him was his 10 range IT:Everything except elevated and outdoor blocking terrain — deadly with his opening Outwit.
But better was his 300-point level with all that plus his damage SP that brought the Outwit PLUS Leadership that could remove 2 tokens by dealing damage to the subordinate. These powers also showed up on his low dial of 200 — which actually allowed room for other allies to use all his powers and abilities in a standard game. But he was a little short-dialed with only 6 clicks.
NOW: He adds Cosmic, Deity, New Gods, and Secret Society of Super-Villains to his original Apokolips, Ruler and Warrior keywords while dropping a full 100 points to 250. His chief losses: Improved Targeting is now only IT:Characters,Adjacent; his conditional Running Shot/Phasing+attack is gone; and now his penetrating damage protection is conditional on his non-use of Outwit. But he gains traited no-frills Leadership and Mastermind; his speed SP is Mind Control (FREE if the target has Anti-Life) and Phasing 3 squares FREE (or full speed normally). His damage SP is now just Outwit with extra effects if the targets have Anti-Life (either 2 powers nixed or the target takes damage if they miss their attack next turn).
Oh, you wanna know about Anti-Life? When Darkseid or allies hit, targets get an Anti-Life token that nerfs AV and damage -1 and are only removed via healing or by Darkseid himself.
His lower lines are 175 and 125 now, and he’s got the Cosmic Energy TA.
F.U.N.? The old one was one of the best Darkseids ever, but this one is a solid improvement. More F.U.N. than meta IMO but I also think competitive things could be done with him.
AM I GETTING THIS? I collect Darkseid, so yeah.
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L049 QUEEN OF FABLES
(Superman, 2011)
THEN: For 164 points, she was an oddball giant with 7-range Mind Control and an attack SP giving her Perplex and Prob Control, though with natural 11 AV and 4 damage, she usually wouldn’t waste the action on MC. Dial-long 9 clicks of Shape Change helped protect her from object attacks, to which she had a traited vulnerability. Mystics TA served as a further deterrent. Mid-dial she became a Psychic Blaster, but it’s her last three clicks that bear her best SP: Willpower and able to best her target’s AV and damage despite her flagging values at that point. Only keywords were Mystical and Ruler.
NOW: She’s a completely different kind of piece. First, her price plummets to 100 points with a second line of 60 (click 5). Next, her trait now gives Perplex along with a game-start choice of either Prob or Outwit — or both if you weren’t Player 1. This frees up her attack SP to actually be an attack SP: EE, Penetrating/Psychic Blast plus KNOCKBACK. Her dial-ending speed SP, instead of giving her a second wind, instead literally shrinks her to tiny size, bars her from shooting and grants allies Support to heal only her.
F.U.N.? This redo is based on the wacky Harley Quinn animated show version, which gains her the Gotham City Underworld keyword. That’s a F.U.N. aspect — and maybe one that makes her more playable.
AM I GETTING THIS? Even if the TV show version wasn’t a Black version of the character, I’d want to score this card for the F.U.N. of it.
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L051 THE PHANTASM
(BTAS, 2018)
THEN: The Phantasm made Heroclixin’s Top F.U.N. figs list back in 2018. What seemed like disadvantages — 10 AV, 75 point cost — were actually strengths because that AV became 12 vs. cheaper foes — with Blades. There was also a SP-Perplex against foes on clicks 2, 3, 4 and 6. And FREE move every turn with a FREE Smoke Cloud trait:
YOUR ANGEL OF DEATH AWAITS: Smoke Cloud as FREE // FREE: Move but only through squares with her smoke cloud markers. After resolutions, remove each of these markers she moved through.
NOW: Her cost drops to 50. Her attack SP loses the AV bonus but she can make free attacks in hindering terrain — a perfect combo with her new, less clunky trait of Sidestep and FREE Smoke Cloud. Her damage SP becomes Shape Change with a bonus if the attacker’s in hindering or is her Target — because she has that shared trait as well to get bonus points for KOing a mark. Add Project Cadmus and Future to her keywords.
F.U.N.? This version seems easier to use. Getting to make a FREE attack every turn possible could be really good. Definitely F.U.N.
AM I GETTING THIS? I loved the movie this was based on. So yeah.
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L055 MAN-BAT
(Joker’s Wild, 2016)
THEN: It was the most beautiful sculpt in the game. But the dial, though. Charge was paired with just 1 damage all dial so the Blades/Claws/Fangs (standard and SP version that added Steal Energy) was vital for his offense — and one Outwit made him lose it. He also had zero defense powers and his DV topped out at just 17. Like many others in the Joker’s Wild, he had a trait with which he could grant other Bat Enemies a power when copying his AV — in his case, Steal Energy and 10 or lower, respectively — but it wasn’t nearly enough to make him more than minimally playable for 55 points. Animal, Gotham City and Scientist were his keywords.
NOW: He’s trimmed to 45 points. A new trait, “Scent of Blood,” gives +1 damage dealt to a foe he’s bitten. “Swooping Dive,” his second trait, gives Super Senses and +2AV for moving and attacking (whether via Charge or Sidestep or even an allies’ Telekinesis). Finally, his attack SP’s Steal Energy gets boosted to heal equal to the victim’s taken damage instead of 1. No new keywords.
But … this winged wonder of a character now has BOOT SPEED? that seems like a classic case of WizKids quabity … quabity assuance.
F.U.N.? And it got errata, so this is a dial worthy of the sculpt at last. Plenty of F.U.N.
AM I GETTING THIS? Because I missed out on getting the figure, which was sought out for its sheer beauty even before legacy status, I will probably skip it.
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L056 MAZAHS!
(Trinity War, 2015)
THEN: 210 points got you a Hypersonic brick who had to KO an enemy to be anything special: This alternate-universe Lex Luthor’s trait allowed him to take one of the victim’s powers. He also had Prob Control and a special Pulse Wave that forced hit targets to choose just ONE power they had; the rest got countered for a turn. But neither of those useful skills were top-dial and it wasn’t terribly hard to deal with his decidedly average stats. Only the one Mystical keyword.
NOW: He still has the Mystics TA and adds Metropolis and Crime Syndicate keywords (even though he’s technically their enemy). He also still has to KO to activate his trait, but he has the option to boost one of his stats +1 for the rest of the game instead of picking the one of the victim’s powers — though he can choose both if the victim was more than his 150 points. His SP PW is now FREE if he moved this turn.
F.U.N.? This fig is pure F.U.N. with probably zero meta potential. Not having Outwit protection or Willpower is rough at his cost.
AM I GETTING THIS? I collect Lex Luthors so this was a lock to acquire even if it were bad.
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L070 CHESHIRE
(Teen Titans, 2013)
THEN: With pretty average stats for 97 points, her claim to playability was Poison that also nerfed defense -1 to its victims. She also had a SP to POWER action deal no-roll-needed 1 penetrating damage to an adjacent foe. Hopefully her Stealth, Reflexes and wild card ability would be enough to save her long enough to get either off — IF she could get in close in the first place. Keywords: Martial Artist, Titans, Villains For Hire.
NOW: Still a wildcard, the now-50-point Assassin, League of Assassins, Martial Artist, Secret Six, and Secret Society of Super-Villains keyword villainess has The Target trait, a new trait granting Sidestep and 2-damage Poison, and her SP for Precision and nixes damage reduction entirely for a round when she damages an opponent.
F.U.N.? She’s a 100% meta-level piece.
AM I GETTING THIS? I had no real affinity for the character to track this piece down when it was new. So probably no.
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LG003 BRIMSTONE
(Superman Wonder Woman, 2015)
THEN: This colossal guy was most feared for his penetrating Poison. (Well, also for his Colossal Retaliation that could deal d6 damage to a bunch of characters.) At top dial (400 points) he started with a SP Pulse Wave that could blast around corners and away from friendlies. He also had Charge+Exploit-focused 275- and 150-point lines along with a rather weak 100-pointer. But the main event was usually the retal line at 20. Only keywords were Apokolips and Robot.
NOW: He’s playable at 290, 175, 90, 50 and 15 points. Cosmic Energy nixes his old Outwit vulnerability. His old PW SP is gone, rewritten so he just ignores Super Senses or enemy combat buffs. His old Poison SP is also gone; he just deals penetrating damage in general now, and at end of turn he burns every enemy within his printed damage value for 1 damage. His retal SP is virtually the same as before. UNLIKE before, he can normal-attack smaller characters at will.
F.U.N.? This is not a F.U.N. figure. This could be a meta figure, thanks to the myriad of playable start lines.
AM I GETTING THIS? I own the fig, so absolutely add the card to my collection if I buy the Poison Ivy home kit.
