F.U.N. Focus: Atlantis Attacks 2021 (Part 2 of 2: SILVER AGE)

In addition to new rules, there’s a new format. So here’s an assessment of Atlantis figs that we covered in earlier F.U.N. Focuses (in 2019twice!) that will be legal in Silver Age:

 

^^^^^ Below 50 points: shrimps and chum ^^^^^

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Giganto & Namor [Avengers Infinity G017] 15 points: Only for Retaliation, though they might have some small use as a low Speed taxi thanks to Great Size Willpower.

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King Aquaman [Elseworlds 045] 20 points: Water generation is more vital than ever and he’s very cheap.

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Atlantean Warrior [Avengers Defenders War 016] 25 points: Dial-long CCE and No More Pushing makes this generic even better than before.

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Dolphin [DC Rebirth 036] 30 points: Her Incap loses a step but NMP more than balances that out.

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Aquaman [Batman The Animated Series 065] 30 points: His Mind Control has 6 range, but his water generation is still just 4 range so he will likely not be able to land that attack. Also note that smaller characters can’t knock back bigger ones, so don’t trust his Average Fish to Force Blast very often.

 

^^^^^^ 50-75 points: barracudas ^^^^^^

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Aqualad [DC Rebirth 012] 50 points: One of his old strengths was pushing to his better-in-close second click after a Charge. Now he shifts to a TK focus until he’s hit. A bit of a wash.

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Aquaman [DC Rebirth Fast Forces 001] 50 points: His FREE attack combos with BCF and he’s not wasting Perplex on damage anymore. Field with a taxi to take advantage of that ability.

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Giganto & Namor [Avengers Infinity G017] 50 points: A better taxi than before and his post-move hindering terrain generation no longer bothers the rest of the team.

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Aquaman [Batman The Animated Series 065] 50 points: No More Pushing™ makes him a better fighter but otherwise no different.

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Namor [X-Men Regenesis 010] 70 points: A Swim character who’s also a flyer, he’s a rare taxi. New Carry rules means he can full-Speed Charge with a passenger.

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Namor [Avengers Black Panther Illuminati 044] 75 points: Already very expensive for four clicks, he’s now worse because he lacks the Swim keyphrase, so he’s easily shot. Also needs the Power Gem at an additional 5 points to be worth any of his points. BUT … with that gem, he now sports a staggering 13 AV for 5 damage — 6 when either holding an object or attacking a foe with 5+ range and penetrating in that latter case. So he STILL might be worth ALL his points in that case.

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Tempest [DC Rebirth 028] 75 points: The best non-chase water generator in Silver Age now for Atlantis. Just plan on using him.

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The Drowned [DC Rebirth 064] 75 points: Her Stealth in water can make her a shield for others even when the enemy draws close.

 

^^^^^^ 76-100 points: sharks ^^^^^^

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Aquaman [DC Rebirth 045] 80 points: He’s still only OK even though his FREE 4-move in water maybe works a bit better now. His Super Strength is worse, though, and Indom is no longer an asset.

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Namor [Earth X 033] 80 points: Lacks Swim so he doesn’t get the range immunity and his Poison doesn’t work in water. But he’s a taxi so that can work for you.

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Namor [X-Men Regenesis 010] 100 points: A Swim character who’s also a flyer, he’s a rare taxi. New Carry rules means he can full-Speed Charge with a passenger. Late Close Combat Expert keeps him in the fight.

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Aquaman [DC Rebirth Fast Forces 001] 100 points: Opening CCE gives him a hard strike in melee. With a taxi, he can get a 12 AV 4 damage attack for FREE thanks to his trait. A little pricey but possibly worth building around.

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Giganto [Avengers Infinity G007] 100 points: If you can get enough water for him, the new Swim ability can keep him from being long-range-shot to death. But eventually he’s gotta close in and I don’t know if he’s quite enough. Bonus: Mid-dial he can combo his no-cost Quake with Exploit Weakness.

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Namor [Secret Wars: Battleworld 062] 100 points: With no more Carry penalty, his mega taxi and heal skills make this chase one to look at.

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Mera [Harley Quinn and the Gotham Girls 035] 100 points: The end of pushing means she is stuck on her opening TK and may not ever see her Quake clicks — not that they’re great with only 9 AV. On the upside, without pushing she has more attack opportunities to get Bombshells to boost her armor.

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Giganto & Namor [Avengers Infinity G017] 100 points: Twice the life for twice the points as the 50 pointer. Otherwise no more special than before.

 

^^^^^ 101-125 points: maneaters ^^^^^

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King Aquaman [Elseworlds 045] 110 points: Unchanged except for the “loss” of Indomitable.

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Namor [Avengers Black Panther Illuminati 044] 110 points: The Power Gem is better than ever for just 5 points more, granting him a blanket +2 to AV and damage. Empower is newly important as well.

 

^^^^ Above 125 points: apex predators ^^^^

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Namor [Earth X 033] 130 points: Not a swimmer, so he’s not improved at all.

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The Drowned [DC Rebirth 064] 150 points: As a Dark Knight, Bryce Wayne here gains a lot of DV bonuses even outside water, but beware: Her Stealth-in-water is newly vulnerable to Outwit and other LOF-based powers from adjacent foes. Not that they’re going to be anxious to base her Poisonous, penetrating-damage-dealing bod.

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Giganto [Avengers Infinity G007] 200 points: At full cost, he just doubles his life. You almost WANT him to get hit before he starts Quake/Exploit attacks. Thanks to Great Size Willpower, he might get more opportunities to do just that.

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Giganto & Namor [Avengers Infinity G017] 200 points: Double life but not really double value.

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^^^^^MAPS FOR ATLANTIS^^^^^

The best maps for the theme are all Golden Age: ATLANTIS from Trinity War, PACIFIC OCEAN from Fear Itself and ARUNA TEMPLE from Hellboy And the BPRD.

But this is Silver Age — only from Superior Foes of Spider-Man and forward. So consider:

WEIRDWORLD (Secret Wars: Battleworld): A good 30 percent of the map is water, and with a lot of blocking terrain to grant extra cover from landlocked shooters who have to get close. Beware snipers on elevated terrain who stay far away from the water, forcing you to come to them.

NY HARBOR (Earth X): Like Weirdworld, there’s a lot of water here (even more) and strategically placed blocking terrain. This is also a map with a Location bonus that spawns extra objects, good for a Super Strength-laden keyword like Atlantis. Caution: Also like Weirdworld, there’s elevated terrain easy for snipers to shoot from and hard for swimmers to reach — but in turn, the snipers won’t be able to attack the swimmers in the water.

MUIR ISLAND (X-Men: Xavier’s School): Water on three sides of the map plus a lot of walls and blocking make this an OK field for Atlantis. The downside is that much of the fighting will likely be on dry land no matter what, so the sea is only really good for early defensive positioning.

RUNAWAYS BASE (What If): A long strip of water on one side of the map can keep Atlantis good and safe, forcing foes completely out into the open to engage. The downside is that the enemy can hunker down on elevated terrain to do the same.

WAKANDA X (Earth X): With bits of water and blocking all around,  swimmers might be able to advance semi-safely.

JEAN GREY SCHOOL FOR HIGHER LEARNING GROUNDS (X-Men Regenesis): Decent-sized bodies of water are positioned well away from the elevated portions giving Atlantis both a staging area and retreat zone — though none of it is great for the swimmers.

UTOPIA (X-Men Regenesis): Actually, scratch that map above. Use this one. It has the same problems but there’s just so much more water and blocking that it’s just better for a swim team.

Avoid these seemingly watery maps:

GJALLERBRU (The Mighty Thor): All the water is on Level 1 and there are few stairs to get to Level 2, making the water more like a shooting barrel except for fliers.

GOTHAM CITY WATERFRONT (Batman The Animated Series): Has all the drawbacks of NY Harbor and Weirdworld with much, much less of the blocking terrain to keep from being shot and a lot more land. Pass.

ARTHUR’S CASTLE -or- OTHERWORLD (What If/House of X): Though there’s a fair amount of water, ALL of it is next to elevated terrain, giving zero protection from shooters. Do NOT.

ICEBERG LOUNGE (Batman The Animated Series): There’s the moat of water in the central part of the map, but the blocking on top of the iceberg means there’s virtually no advantage to said moat. Pass.

WAKAKNDA (Avengers Defenders War): Not only is it misspelled, but the special hindering terrain could prove a nightmare for Atlantis’ few shooters. But at least the thick brush will no longer trip up most of its swimmers from reaching foes deep in the brush, and the main water zone is not as easily shootable as before.

 

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