The Sentinel of Liberty returns to HeroClix with his best sculpt ever!

boot symbol

72 points

Team: Avengers

Keywords: Avengers, Martial Artist, SHIELD, Soldier

Range: 8 x 2

DIAL: http://wizkidsgames.com/heroclix/gallery/

STRENGTHS: Aside from an excellent Running Shot speed, good damage and stellar 18 DV + Energy Shield/Deflection, Cap seems a bit of a disappointment until you note his special power “Deflection Trajectory.” Only walls and indoor blocking terrain block his line of fire. This means he can shoot:

• past characters, friend or foe (take that, Sharpshooters)
• around buildings
• from the middle of a roof to the ground, or vice versa
• at Stealthed characters
• at characters using the Camouflage feat(!)
• through Barrier(!!)

This one power makes Cap an indispensable piece.

Fortunately for foes, he can’t shoot when based (“nyah, nyah” taunt the Sharpshooters like Star-Lord and Arkham Asylum’s Hitman) and the power’s gone from mid-dial on, anyhow. That’s when he shifts to Willpower and Close Combat Expert, which is highly unfortunate for whomever based him. Great keywords and economical cost means he can show up on a lot of teams.

WEAKNESSES: Although hard to hit, he’s a very soft target with a pretty short dial and a very large bull’s eye on his head. He’s also a fair bit less effective on indoor maps.

CARDS TO CONSIDER: Because he’s able to fight from behind cover and characters alike, he’s a key candidate for CONTINGENCY PLAN. FORCE FIELD can lengthen his life ever so slightly. DAMAGE SHIELD also works his whole dial. THUNDERBOLTS, ALPHA FLIGHT and PYM PARTICLES  are made for Avengers.

IN SUM: “Deflection Trajectory” is one of those Special Powers that make one question the wisdom of their creation. It’s so broadly powerful that it threatens to make Cap one of those crutch pieces run by players who can’t quite master the normal rules and tactics of the game and thus turn to the same few game-bending figures, feats and battlefield conditions to shift the meta-game in their favor. That doesn’t change the fact that he’s a top piece of the year and will be a staple on top teams for some time.

And yet his isn’t the best SP of all time. #2 has that one…