Tired of the usual 300-point build total? Sick of powergamers bringing the same 15-20 super-efficient min/max pieces week after week? Need a reason to play some of those pieces crammed in the dark corners of your tackle boxes?

You’ve come to the right page.

Here, I share some fun scenarios that help keep my tournament scene fresh without changing the core game — beating the other team into KO KO KO — or being too complicated to play (like the Event Dials.)

Some scenarios are fine for that new guy who’s still learning the powers with the two dozen commons a vet gifted him last month. Others are only for expert players with deep collections. Each scenario is thus labeled

ROOKIE: Fine for brand new tournament players

EXPERIENCED: Requires a solid collection and grasp of the game (you’ve been playing and buying for most of a year)

VETERAN: You’ve been in the game for years and have a literal thousand figures at your disposal

They’ve been reorganized by level. Enjoy!

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ROOKIE SCENARIOS

Fine for brand new tournament players.

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ADULTS ONLY

No characters with the Kid or Teen keywords (or who could deserve them if WizKids still used those keywords). ROOKIE

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NO DOUBLE TEAM 

Best for games with an odd number of players. After damaging one player’s force, you can’t damage it again until you’ve attacked or damaged a different force. ROOKIE

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ASSAULT WAVES 

Build three different 200-point teams. Each team must have distinct figures — no repeats between teams!

Each round, play a different starting team (this choice will be made before the tournament starts). ROOKIE

OPTIONAL RULE: If, during the round, your team is KO’d, you can choose to place one of your other two teams in your starting area and continue the game until either time runs out or all characters have been KO’d. 

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LADIES NIGHT

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EXPERIENCED SCENARIOS

Requires a solid collection and grasp of the game (you’ve been playing and buying for most of a year)

PURE SILVER

Only non-Modern but Silver Age stuff can be used.  EXPERIENCED

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AHH!! INHUMANOIDS!

All characters must be aliens or extremely non-human in appearance. No robots or folks who can easily pass for human. EXPERIENCED

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BLEACHED-OUT DIAL

In this issue: One of these powers DIES!

At the beginning of each player’s turn, each player rolls a single die. Each number corresponds to HC colors as follows:
1st player
1=red
2=orange
3=yellow
4=light-green
5=green
6=light blue

2nd player
1=dark blue
2=purple
3=brown
4=black
5=grey
6=white
and all powers represented by that color can’t be used until the beginning of that player’s next turn. EXPERIENCED

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Villains only. Heroic keywords are ignored. EXPERIENCED

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CLIXBALL 

• One extra special object is the Ball, which has to be carried to the opponent’s starting area for a TD.
• Hits have a 50% chance of causing fumbles which can be scooped up by opposing figs, who have a 50% chance of grabbing the Ball. When determining whether a character fumbles or grabs the Ball, the active player calls out “even” or “odd” and rolls a d6 and causes the effect on successful roll.
• Characters with Super Strength only fumble the ball if hit with a doubles roll.
• When a TD is scored, return all pieces unhealed to starting areas and the other player gets the Ball. Victory is based on TDs first, then KO points to break ties.
• Only boot speed characters are allowed
• No Improved Movement (or powers/abilities that grant it)
• Characters can’t be placed by any effect
• Lines of fire can’t be drawn
• the Wasteland battlefield condition is in effect.
• Each team must have SIX characters peanut base or smaller. No horde tokens.

EXPERIENCED

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“EAT IT, GRANDPA!”

All characters must have the Kid or Teen keyword (or deserve them). No theme team bonuses. EXPERIENCED

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FAVORITES OF THE YEAR 

Each player brings their Top  5 or Top 10 favorite HeroClix released in the past year, depending on build total. 

EXPERIENCED

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FIGHTING WITH YOUR HANDS FULL

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WRONG. :(

RIGHT. :)

EXPERIENCED

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LITTLE BIG MEN

No characters less than 200 points or with a base that fills more than two squares. EXPERIENCED

“Like th’ MAIN MAN!”

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MINIONS ONLY 

Generics only. All figures must have Real Name of “Various” or “None” or “N/A” (or no real name listed at all in certain older sets) and must have a non-specific name (For example, “Romulan Commander” would be allowed but “Uni-Mind” would not). EXPERIENCED

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MINOR HEROES

No characters over 40 points or less than 14 points…including feats and resources! EXPERIENCED

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NO SKIN
Characters must be clothed head to toe, showing zero skin.EXPERIENCED

 

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SECOND AMENDMENT
All characters’ sculpts must have guns. EXPERIENCED

For the love of–! Not THOSE kind of guns!!!

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SHAOLIN SHADOWBOXING…

No ranged attacks allowed. Hypersonic Speed and Telekinesis can’t be used. Effects with a range (Outwit, PC, Perplex, etc) may only be performed on adjacent targets. EXPERIENCED

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…AND THE WUTANG SWORD STYLE!

Sculpts must have swords. EXPERIENCED

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SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION

No Kevin Bacon necessary.

Start with a keyword. Pick a character with a keyword. The next character on your team must share that keyword. Then pick a different keyword on the second character and match it with a third. Keep going — never repeating a keyword — until you’ve got six characters. 600 points. EXPERIENCED

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TAX BRACKETS 

Pick 4 characters — no more, no less — within these point spreads:
A) 200-299 points
B) 125-199 points
C) 75-124 points
D) 50-74 points
No more than one Feat allowed per character. EXPERIENCED

 

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VETERAN SCENARIOS

You’ve been in the game for years and have a literal thousand figures at your disposal

 

PURE GOLD

No Modern or Silver Age stuff can be used. No dials on cards!

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RINGS OF POWERS

Only non-carded figures allowed — any set earlier than 2007’s Avengers and Legion of Super-Heroes Starter set. Also known as REV or “Stone Age.”

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BEACHWEAR

Characters must show more skin than clothing.VETERAN

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BRAND NAMES ONLY

No characters with generic keywords allowed. No themed team bonuses.VETERAN

 

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BREAKFAST CLUB

No characters can share keywords. VETERAN

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CLONES 

Every character must have at least one other version of itself on the team (without being the same figure. Exception: generics and those designed to work in multiples). VETERAN

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DATE NIGHT 

Each character must be romantically involved with one other character on your force. VETERAN

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MINOR HEROES

No characters over 40 points or less than 14 points…including feats and resources! VETERAN

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FAMILY AFFAIR

Each character must be related by blood, marriage or adoption to at least one other character on your force. VETERAN

 

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MULTIVERSE 

Pick a DC -or- Marvel character, then a character from the one you didn’t choose before, then a character from neither of those universes. Repeat in whatever order you started in until you’ve reached your build total. VETERAN

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PASS THE TRASH

Build a team for your opponent to play.  VETERAN

…OR PLAY IT

Build a team for your opponent to play. But after the map’s been selected, the second player rolls a d6. On 5-6, he plays his own team, leaving you stuck with the one you brought! VETERAN

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PICK A COLOR FROM THE PAC

Pick a color representing a standard Heroclix power. On their first click, each character must have a power represented by that color, and each of that color’s powers must be represented by at least one character on your force. For example, if you picked Black, then you’d need one character each with Stealth, Steal Energy, Regeneration or Outwit on their starting click. VETERAN

 

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POWER DAMPENING

At the beginning of each player’s turn, roll a die:
1 = all powers can’t be used that turn.
2 = Speed powers and abilities (Flight, Carry, Move-And-Attack, Swim) can’t be used that turn.
3 = Attack powers and abilities (Duo, Merge, Sharpshooter, Split) can’t be used that turn.
4 = Defense powers and abilities (Indomitable) becomes the standard defense symbol that turn.
5 = Damage powers and abilities (Colossal Size, Giant Size, Giant Stride, MultiAttack, Tiny Size and Capture). Giant/Colossal/Tiny symbols become the starburst symbol that turn.
6 = Team abilities, traits and feats can’t be used that turn.

Additionally, roll 1d6 before any ranged attack. On 4-6, that character has 0 range until the end of the turn. VETERAN

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PRIME TIME TITLE FIGHT 

Build more than one prime character on your team. Build more than one title character on your team. VETERAN

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RAINBOW COALITION

Each character must have a different skin color. So if you’re playing Rampaging Hulk, you’ve got to leave the also-green (though different-shaded) Gamora off the team. VETERAN

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THE U.N.

Each character must have a different team ability & symbol. Only one wildcard allowed per team. Only one non-affiliated character per team. VETERAN

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WHITE BELT CLASS 

No character may have an Attack Value greater than 9 on its starting click; attack values higher than 9 become 10 instead. No character’s Defense Value can be higher than 17; defenses higher than 17 become 17 instead. No damage reducer greater than Toughness can be used. The Power Dampening Field battlefield condition is considered in force. VETERAN

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MULTIPLAYER SCENARIOS

And then there are times when you have an odd number of players in a round robin or battle royale format that almost inevitably results in a player getting double-teamed. Here are some methods to mitigate that un-fun factor:

THREE PEOPLE: One player (ideally the most skilled one) plays a force build equal to both the other players’, which combine to take down the third. One of the small teams goes first, then the large team, then the other small team. Large team always gets map choice.

or

Each player must target, attack or base more than one opponent’s force each turn if it is possible to do so.

or

Each player can damage another force only once per turn.

FIVE PEOPLE ON ONE MAP: The fifth player sets up in the middle of the map but enjoys immunity from attacks until he either targets another force or the beginning of turn 4, whichever comes first.

or

All players start in the center of the map with first round immunity regardless of moves or actions, to get situated. Then the action starts with Round 2.