Looking to complete my final 2011-related countdown before April: my FAVORITE pieces of the year. Last time I promised #3 would be HARD, and it don’t come much harder than unbreakable skin!

#3

Luke Cage (Captain America 014)

WHY I WANT TO PLAY HIM EVERY WEEK:

One of my “goals” in my Heroclixin’ is to collect all the Black or African-descended characters in the game. Of course Luke Cage is one of the premier examples of such, and this piece is the most playable  version yet made.

Earlier Cage/Power Man figures usually either started OK but swiftly dropped in effectiveness or were mediocre on every click. Not this one. Not only is he good on the top-dial, but down the stretch he retains both fighting prowess and survivability. The fact that he qualifies for the powerful Thunderbolts ATA just puts him over the threshold.

WHY I DON’T:

In this range-focused game, a boot speed brick like him still isn’t optimal for his 100-or-so-point cost. And for all his advantages over all the previous versions, he’s got the shortest dial at 7 clicks.
I’M PLAYING HIM NEXT:

On a Heroes for Hire team or a Marvel Knights team. Or, if I get the urge to run Thunderbolts, he’s a lock for that theme. And, of course, if I ever run a “Bad Mutha” team of Black characters, he’s on it or I’m not running the team. That simple.

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