So while I was stuck home during lockdown, I came up with the bright idea to entertain myself with huge solo battles of my Favorites of the Decade, double elimination bracket style.

It was fun. So here’s a version where I pit my favorites of 2020 against those of 2021, which also got little live play due to the ongoing pandemic.

vs.

20 from 2020:

• Absorbing Man (Captain America and the Avengers 073) 100 points
• The Atom (Justice League Unlimited 059a) 40 points
• Black Cat (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 005) 40 points
• Black Widow (Black Widow Movie 100) 75 points
• Bombshell (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 009) 40 points
• Bombshell (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 025) 60 points
• Human Torch (Fantastic Four 038) 40 points
• Ironheart (Captain America and the Avengers 056) 85 points
• Jolt (Captain America and the Avengers 031a) 25 points
• Micron (Justice League Unlimited 059b) 50 points
• Quake (Captain America and the Avengers 010) 65 points
• Red Guardian (Black Widow Movie 016) 75 points
• Reed Richards, Fixer Of Universes (Fantastic Four 056) 60 points
• Spider-Hamurai (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 066) 60 points
• Spider-Man (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 054) 60 points
• Spot (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 042) 50 points
• Sue Storm (Fantastic Four 062) 100 points
• Superman (Justice League Unlimited 105) 125 points
• Ultron (Avengers Vs. Masters of Evil Battlegrounds 110b) 100 points
• Vixen (Justice League Unlimited 015) 75 points
• (Sideline: FCBD Black Widow, Peter Parker)

= 1325 points

VS 2021’s:

• Captain Britain (House of X 053) 80 points
• The Commissioner (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 067) 50 points
• Dr. Poison (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 045) 40 points
• Harley Quinn (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 024) 50 points
• Lex Luthor (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 056) 50 points
• Loki (Empyre 026) 60 points
• Maggott (House of X 051) 40 points
• Master Mold (WizKids MP20-001) 375 points
• Monica Rambeau (Empyre 041) 150 points
• Multiple Man (X-Men Rise & Fall 007) 40 points x 3
  Multiple Man (X-Men Rise & Fall 007) 10 points
• Onome (Empyre 015) 40 points
• Rikki Barnes (Empyre 072) 75 points
• Sentinel (X-Men Rise & Fall 008) 25 points x 3
• T’Chaka II (Empyre 047b) 45 points
• Teen Lantern (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 035) 75 points
• (Sideline: Sentinel)

=1335 points. I messed up on the build, thinking 1335 was the goal to make the teams even. But I PROMISE that’s not an advantage to the 2021 team.

2020 went first, picking the Injustice Gang Hideout to gain some cover against the scary colossal.

Had a grand time, playing all these favorites. Nearly every one had its moment. A few disappointed me. And, of course, because it’s me, there were misplays — which keeps things interesting when running a solo game like this.
BY PIECE (alphabetically):
Absorbing Man (Captain America and the Avengers 073) 100 points

He’s underperformed in every game I’ve used him, and this was no exception. But at least he survived to the late game thanks to Stealth and Regens and Steal Energy Flurries instead of going down in a single turn like usual.

———

The Atom (Justice League Unlimited 059a) 40 points

A mistake with him probably cost his team the win. I aggressively went after Master Mold, “carrying” the tiny guy where he could Outwit the colossal robot.

I forgot Atom’s Perplex.

Most of the next few attacks on MM ALL missed by just 1. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

———

Black Cat (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 005) 40 points

I gave her the Avengers keyword, which got the number on the team to the minimum 3 required to make Quake’s “Avengers, Assembled” trait work. She otherwise did a lot of Underworld taxi work for fellow Rulers early on and scored a key KO of a German Soldier to keep her team in the game much later.

———

Black Widow (Black Widow Movie 100) 75 points

Her Hypersonic bike attacks got the Master Mold off his first click, and in the late game, she cut him off from Mastermind fodder in a sacrifice play to assist his ultimate KO. She also had a second life in the late going when FCBD Widow replaced her.

———

Bombshell (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 009) 40 points
Bombshell (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 025) 60 points

This duo did things. First: Got an opportune Pulse Wave to deny Lex Luthor his Bizarro pog. Later, though both sorely hurt, they Sidestepped their way to eventually taking down Master Mold. And they were the last starting force pieces of their team to drop.

THIS IS WHY THEY HERE

———

Captain Britain (House of X 053) 80 points

I’m realizing I misplayed her, so maybe she shouldn’t have gotten one of those easy hits. But despite taking some big harm, she lasted well into the late game, scoring Reed Richards and keeping the pressure on the 2020 remnants.

———

The Commissioner (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 067) 50 points

He didn’t get going until the late game, but oh brother did he make it impossible for the 2020 team down the stretch. I forgot his Outwit half the time because I didn’t need it. Enhancement and Mastermind works great with Sentinels (replacing his lost Rookie pog). And him sharing a keyword with Monica Rambeau paid dividends, either in Leadership moments or his “Do Or Die” ability to give her an extra attack.

———

Dr. Poison (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 045) 40 points

I only got Leadership ONCE ALL GAME with her. But it was enough: That German Soldier she generated dealt SO MUCH Poison damage. I called her sneaky good before and she sure is.

———

Harley Quinn (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 024) 50 points

She only got one good use of her Prob Control early in the going, but she survived into the endgame, where, on her last click, she scored a big KO of Sue Storm to nix any chance of a 2020 team comeback.

———

Human Torch (Fantastic Four 038) 40 points

After early taxi duty, this random piece did a couple of Pulse Waves with a TK+Barrier assist from Sue. The first was successful, the second wildly not.

———

Ironheart (Captain America and the Avengers 056) 85 points

She was one of those who missed vs. Master Mold in that disastrous round in the first act. Never landing an attack all game (and so not getting to Barrier up a target), she acquitted herself later with a double-Perplex to help take down Master Mold.

———

Jolt (Captain America and the Avengers 031a) 25 points

I wasn’t actually not sure her potentially endless Sidesteps still work, but I played as though they do. (UPDATE: They do.) Somehow the littlest member of the 2020 faves lasted into the endgame, where she scored and assisted in some KOs to give her fellows hope for an upset.

———

Lex Luthor (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 056) 50 points

As mentioned above, he got Pulse Wave’d around his first pog (his STOP powers function through PW — his others don’t) but he got the literal Green Light to get into the fight later. Only a terrible crit miss by that pog cost Luthor a chance of survival.

———

Loki (Empyre 026) 60 points

I got too bold with him in the very early stages, before a 2 ever got rolled to build up Rally dice, trusting his Stealth and Mystics to deter attacks.

Superman, who was Hypersonic and Invincible, was not deterred.

Loki was gone in a turn. (I’d have been more upset if not for a recent similar-sized game were he must’ve spawned 7 total.)

———

Maggott (House of X 051) 40 points

Mobile Poison with Meany got a lot of cheap damage on soft targets like Atom and Spider-Man. When the 2021 team was getting heavily outactioned, Maggott here kinda restored order. And once I got some Empower to work with, he and his pogs were wrecking.

———

Master Mold (WizKids MP20-001) 375 points

I usually dislike this sort of mega-tentpole, but it was the only way for the smaller 2021 team to match the 2020 version’s build total.

Because the theme was “Favorites of 2021,” I played it with ONLY the 2021 Sentinels and its own bystander versions to generate. I only rolled successful Leadership ONCE the whole game. But that one generated was enough to take down Spider-Hamurai, who was seriously threatening Master Mold at the time, via MM’s retaliation — which was also instrumental in deploying the other Sentinels as needed.

Master Mold himself of course was dealing plenty of damage when he could get lines of fire.

Never did bring in Sentinels via the Factory Dial. But the Empower it gave them really enabled Maggott and his worm to deliver some mega KO blows that turned the tide for good.

———

Micron (Justice League Unlimited 059b) 50 points

He was one of the first to hit Master Mold. Unfortunately, that aggression got him targeted and taken down.

———

Monica Rambeau (Empyre 041) 150 points

She was pretty unstoppable, able to essentially attack at will — and sometimes not at will, via fellow Police keyword teammate The Commissioner.

———

Multiple Man (X-Men Rise & Fall 007) 40 points x 3
Multiple Man (X-Men Rise & Fall 007) 10 points

These guys gave my team a surprising amount of healing via X-Men TA, keeping themselves healthy as tie-up and taxi (via Underworld TA) pieces and reviving Captain Britain again and again. And of course they spawned copies like mad when hit.

———

Onome (Empyre 015) 40 points

That double Outwit was really clutch in the midgame, just denying the 2020 squad so many powers it needed. She’s amazing.

———

Quake (Captain America and the Avengers 010) 65 points

She was a victim of bad dice throughout the game, despite scoring a couple needed hits to give 2020 some momentum. The whole point of Black Cat picking Avengers keyword was so Quake could use the Avengers, Assembled trait, but she almost never hit and the one time she did, the d6 failed. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

———

Red Guardian (Black Widow Movie 016) 75 points

Unfortunately, he never got his Leadership roll at the opportune time to get the best stats. But he put in work “Fighting An Entire Squad.”

———

Reed Richards, Fixer Of Universes (Fantastic Four 056) 60 points

He got to the enemy start zone and that Molecule Man pog was the last piece standing on the 2020 team. It kept the older pieces in the game down the stretch, big time.

———

Rikki Barnes (Empyre 072) 75 points

In the early phase of the battle, when most of her 2021 cohorts couldn’t really get going, she was doing the work of 4 figs. Much later, she loomed as a threat because she could heal to her top click — and did. Fantastic fig that required a LOT of focused fire to take on.

———

Sentinel (X-Men Rise & Fall 008) 25 points x 3

Despite anemic 2 damage, these Invulnerable metal monsters were the thumb on the scale for the 2021 force. Whether carrying smaller folks or pinging soft targets or tying up attackers, they just kept coming — via their SIDELINE ACTIVE trait (or from the Factory Dial, in theory)

———

Spider-Hamurai (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 066) 60 points

I picked X-Men as his “Crow-nin Hunting Season” target but it maybe should’ve been Master Mold. Took a little too long to get him in the fight proper (though he could and did use Underworld TA to haul around Spider-Man and Vixen).

———

Spider-Man (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 054) 60 points

He didn’t do much, getting removed from the game pretty early and not scoring any hits. But his switch to Peter Parker absolutely gave new life to the 2020 team, with him ironically copying Sinister Syndicate to give Mom Bombshell his 11AV for those big late-game KOs.

———

Spot (Spider-Man and Venom: Absolute Carnage 042) 50 points

During the first few turns, his ability to Flurry poor Teen Lantern where she thought she was safe was pretty clutch.

———

Sue Storm (Fantastic Four 062) 100 points

Although her Barrier skills were key throughout the game, maybe my biggest misplay was not getting her into the fight MUCH sooner. The 2020 team was down to its last 400 or so points before I made an offensive move with her and threatened to pull off one hell of an upset.

———

Superman (Justice League Unlimited 105) 125 points

After scoring the game’s first KO, Supes got hit and stuck. But he soaked up a lot of a attacks.

———

T’Chaka II (Empyre 047b) 45 points

This map and game was very good for his Distracting Banter trait, which ruined more than one key roll for the older team. Solid melee fighter, too, though it was unfortunate that he HAD to be one at that state of the game, forcing him to go into harm’s way and get taken out.

———

Teen Lantern (Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary 035) 75 points / 30 points

She was very good in her role as team mega-taxi. She’d have been even better had I not mistakenly played her at her weaker 30-point line.

I’m so USED to playing her at that line. Didn’t even think to check until Turn 9 or something, when she’d been long KO’d.

———

Ultron (Avengers Vs. Masters of Evil Battlegrounds 110b) 100 points

Another who missed that key round of attacks on Master Mold. He got counter-hit — off his Prob, most notably — and never quite recovered.

———

Vixen (Justice League Unlimited 015) 75 points

Being carried to the fight by Spider-Ham, she scored some key blows to give her team an opportunity even after she was gone. I love her so much.