Casual Heroclix

In this edition of Casual Digest, we are going to look at a 500 point X-Men theme team from X-Men The Animated Series. This was my favorite animated series of the 90’s and maybe of all time. As soon as I start thinking about it, I hear that iconic theme song in my head. X-Men The Animated Series: The Dark Phoenix saga set gave us some great versions of the characters that should be a lot of fun to field. Lets look at the roster from the beginning of the series.

First up we have the team field leader, Cyclops. Cyke has a solid 70 point dial.

His Commanding Leader damage power is great providing Leadership as well a way to help get one of our X-men into battle. I think Wolverine or Rogue would benefit most as they will be our main close combat characters and could use the help closing the gap.

Just like in the show Jean and Scott benefit from being close to each other. Cyclops can modify one combat value +1 just from being adjacent to Jean Grey at the beginning of the turn. I love the versatility there allowing you to boost any stat you need.

Jean definitely plays a support role on the team. Not yet commanding the power of the Phoenix she will be in the background boosting Cyclops and lending Toughness to her teammates with her Force Field Protection power.We want to keep her on that top dial as long as possible because every member of the team besides Rogue benefits greatly from the toughness. Telekinesis will also be great help getting the team in position. Jean also benefits from a much needed stat boost from being adjacent to Cyclops.

As usual Wolverine wants to get in close pop the claws. Starting 12 attack will make sure he hits but he is dependent on blades for his damage so his output will vary. The reason I really like this figure is the trait. I love when they get stuff like this right. A very accurate power for the character. Wolverine can sniff out any opponents with his heightened senses and when they are within 3 squares of him they can’t use Stealth or Shape Change. The team does not have any Improved Targeting: Hindering or Battle Fury so this trait is going to be incredibly helpful.

Beast will also be playing a support role on the team with his special Perplex that will allow him to modify a value by +2 except damage if the character shares a keyword. Since this is an X-men team he will be able to do that to all of our other characters. Otherwise Hank isn’t going to be doing alot offensively but could potentially tie someone up with his 17 combat reflexes.

I chose the Storm from the XDPS Fast Forces over the main set because I think she brings more to the table offensively with Running Shot, Energy Explosion and a higher starting attack value as well as providing a second source of leadership. Also since the X-Men are thematically battling Sentinels the traits from the Fast Forces will come in very handy. Storm will grant all friendly characters with the X-men keyowrd the Mystics team ability when attacked by characters with the Giant or Colossal symbol. This will be a great help when any giant robots or monsters are beating down the door of the Xavier School.

Rogue will be up close and personal with the enemy punching them in the face with southern charm. She has the best reducers and highest printed damage on the team and once in combat traited Steal Energy should help her outlast the opposition.

I went with the Fast Forces version of Gambit. I feel this version is just supperior to the rare version from XDPS. This Gambit has Psychic Blast over energy explosion providing the team with some much needed penetrating damage and he can also support our range attackers with Enhancement. Top it off with the Hunted And On The Run trait providing Probability Control against Giants and Colossals and the Cajun is providing a lot of value.

I chose to go with Jubilee from the Fast Forces. This version has pulse wave and it can be very useful even with the low damage output. The Hunted And On The Run trait provides the team with Shape Change and in combination with the traits from Storm and Gambit the team should have great protection from Giant and Colossal figures.

Finally we come to Morph, who didn’t fair so well in the two part opening episode. Morph is a great tie up and disruption piece. Plasticity and his Let Me Borrow That Face trait which grants Shape Change and allows him to pick the new target if successful, possibly making the opponent attack their own characters is a great combination. It forces the enemy to either risk attacking or breakaway neither of which will easily be successful. Morph also provides another source of Perplex to the team and outwit on his back dial.

Just seeing all these characters together on the map is a nice dose of nostalgia for me and sure many other fans of the show. I think all these figures have good synergy and give plenty of options on the battlefield. I can’t wait to play them against a squad of Sentinels. Remember to have fun!

I started playing Heroclix way back in 2007 with the Legion of Superheroes starter and the Avengers set (I’m old). One of my favorite sets of all time from those early days was the Secret Invasion starter featuring the Fantastic Four and Dr. Doom. The Thing (aka Hot Dog Cart Thing ) was my favorite and was an amazing figure that was used in a World Championship win.
Fast Forward almost 12 years later and we get our second Fantastic Four starter set and our first versions of the family since the LE figures from Chaos War in 2012. Needless to say it’s been a long time. Wizkids dangled the set in front of me with an early release date, but unfortunately the F4 were no match for 2020 and the set was delayed until the end of May. I finally have them in hand so let’s take a look.

First up Mr. Fantastic FFCC001

Lets take a look at Reed’s trait:

I’M PRETTY GOOD AT MULTI-TASKING: Plasticity, Shape Change. When Mr. Fantastic uses Shape Change, after resolutions place that D6 with that result on this card, replacing any here. Giant Reach: X, where X is 2 or the value of that die on this card, whichever is greater.

Mr. Fantastic starts off with Quake at 100 points and paired with his trait he can have a huge area of effect for the attack. He also starts his 100 point dial with special damage power:

YOU’LL FIND MR. FANTASTIC MORE THAN A MATCH FOR YOU, EVERY TIME: Leadership, Outwit. FREE: Choose an opposing character of higher points within 4 squares and line of fire and a power (standard or special) they can use. The chosen character can’t use that power until your next turn.

Being able to choose a power an opposing character can’t use is a powerful effect that can bypass outwit protection and team abilities like Power Cosmic or Quintessence. Mr. Fantastic’s power is somewhat limited by being forced to choose a character of higher points and having that character within four range. He makes an excellent tie up piece with Super Senses, Shape Change, and Plasticity and I would play him on a Fantastic Four theme with no issues but I’m probably not reaching for him in a competitive game.

Next up we have the Invisible Woman.

Sue has some interesting powers at her disposal. First her trait:

HIDE AND SEEK: FREE: Choose one: Until your next turn, opposing characters can’t target Invisible Woman unless they began their turn within 3 squares of her -or- Terrain markers are considered clear for line of fire this turn, if Invisible Women is within 4 squares of them.

Both of these effects are great and being able to activate them by a FREE makes them even better. Requiring her enemies to begin their turn within three squares to be able to target her offers a great amount of protection not only from ranged attacks but also from powers such as outwit or perplex. If your not worried about being targeted and your opponents are hiding behind barrier Sue can clear the way for your team to attack them just by moving within 4 squares

YOU’D BE SURPRISED WHAT LENGTHS I CAN GO WHEN PUSHED: Barrier, Toughness, Willpower. When Invisible Woman uses Barrier, after resolutions you may knock back 2 squares any number of opposing characters adjacent to these markers.

I love this power! Using Barrier to surround a soft target and then basically pinballing them around inside of it to do damage just makes me smile. There are lots of potential uses for this and the Toughness and Willpower are just icing on the cake. Invisible Woman is a great piece and I would consider her for a competitive Scientist build at 75 points.

Next up is my favorite member of the F4, The Thing!

Lets look at Ben’s trait:

IT’S CLOBBERIN’ TIME: POWER: If no other friendly character has been placed this turn, choose an opposing character that’s within 4 squares of a friendly character with the Fantastic Four keyword that was attacked since your last turn. Place The Thing such that he can make a close attack targeting the chosen character, then do so. If he hits and his attack roll is 10+, after resolutions remove an action token from him.

This continues the trend of WK putting Colossal Retaliation type powers on standard characters. I wish it wasn’t limited to placing him within four squares of a character with the Fantastic Four keyword but I appreciate them trying different things.

Thing starts off with a special movement power that allows him move through and destroy blocking.

SOMETIMES YOU GOTTA BREAK STUFF: Charge, Improved Movement: This character can move through Blocking terrain. Immediately after movement resolves, destroy all Blocking terrain moved through.

That’s great but it always aggravates me that characters like him can run through walls but don’t get IM Hindering. I mean he can break a brick wall but a bush trips him up?!? Otherwise The Thing is your standard brick character with Super Strength, good reducers and solid stat numbers. He definitely fill his roll on the team.

Finally we come to the Human Torch.

Lets look at Johnny’s Trait:

FLAME TRAIL: Once per turn for all characters with this trait, when Human Torch moves, after resolutions choose a character he moved through or adjacent to and deal it 1 penetrating damage.

Absolutely fantastic ability. Free penetrating damage that you don’t have to roll for is top notch. He also sports good attack values and move and attack powers his whole dial but I think his best clix are hard to use.

FLAME ON: Poison, but may use it even if moved or placed this turn.

Flame On is an excellent power and Human Torch gets this power paired with Hypersonic Speed, but it’s on click two of both his 100 and 75 point dials. Sure you can push to it, but he would have been so much better if he started with this combo. Still he offers the team a strong range option.

Each member also has a stop click if another friendly character with the Fantastic Four keyword is on the map and they each get a different defensive power along with it. Reed gets Super Senses, Sue gets Shape Change, Ben gets Invulnerability and Johnny gets the worse one with Energy Shield Deflection. I wish the stop clicks didn’t have the keyword requirement so they could function on any team and would have made these characters more playable overall.

We get four solid, but not spectacular versions of the Fantastic Four in this set and I think they will be a lot of fun to play as a team and in the scenarios included in the starter which we will look at another time. I’m glad to see them back in Heroclix and can’t wait for the full set to release. See you next time and remember to have fun!

Welcome to Casual Digest. It is 4th of July so it’s time to break out the Red, White and Blue on the table top (or Roll20 these days) and take a look at one of my favorite heroes, Captain America!

I’m just drawn to the character Steve Rogers. I think it’s just that unwavering goodness and sense of right he has that makes me want to follow him to Hell and back, so who better than Captain America to build around for this holiday. I have a 300 point Soldier theme to take a look at and think it will be really fun play.

First up ABPI Captain America 043

and we will be adding the +5 points for his additional trait Bearer of the Time Gem.

This figure to me is pretty much the perfect Cap so lets take a look at him. His trait grants him either Close Combat Reflexes or Energy Shield Deflection.

SENTINEL OF LIBERTY: FREE: Choose Combat Reflexes -or- Energy Shield/Deflection. Captain America can use the chosen power until your next turn.

Coupled with his starting 18 defense and Invulnerablity it makes him very tough to hit and I really enjoy the flexibility it gives you while surveying the battlefield. Captain America is also very mobile with his starting speed special power.

FIRST THROUGH THE DOOR…LAST TO LEAVE: Charge, Running Shot, Sidestep.

Again, Captain America is very flexible depending what your fighting. Cap is a great fighter either close up or at range so this power suits the character quite well. Add Sidestep to that for extra positioning and that starting 12 attack value and you have quite a formidable attacker. Finally, lets look at his damage special power.

THE IDEAL THAT INSPIRES THROUGHOUT TIME: Leadership. When Captain America uses it with the ABPI Time Gem equipped and succeeds, after resolutions he may remove an action token from a friendly character.

Sporting Leadership as he should, Captain America also gets a bonus when he makes a successful Leadership roll from the Time Gem he’s carrying around. It allows him to remove a second action token from a friendly character anywhere on the map, even himself. The Time Gem will also grant him Probability Control his whole dial which will be needed since we are running a generic theme team. It also grants him plus one range and if his attack roll is 10 or higher your opponent can’t reroll your attacks that turn.

Next up we have SWB Captain America 033

The rare Cap starts us out with Leadership and a potential stat boost :

TRIANGLE SHIELD: Leadership. When Captain America uses it, you may give him an action token. If you do, increase the result +2.

A SYMBOL OF LIBERTY AND FREEDOM FOR 75 YEARS: When Captain America uses Leadership and succeeds, choose a combat value except damage. Friendly characters within 5 squares that share a keyword with Captain America or any [SW: B] Captain America on your sideline modify that combat value +1 until your next turn.

I started with the rare because it was the only one with the soldier keyword. On the sideline we will have :

Again it is about flexibility that comes with Shifting Focus Cap. I really enjoy this set of figures. I like the uncommon on the approach due to the 9 movement with Sidestep , Energy Shield Deflection and Shape Change he has top dial. He also can grant your team plus one defense with :

EXPANDABLE HARD LIGHT SHIELD: Energy Shield/Deflection. FREE: Choose one to last until your next turn: Adjacent friendly characters modify defense +1 when targeted by a range attack -or- Choose a side of the square Captain America occupies. As long as Captain America occupies that square, opposing lines of fire drawn through that side of the square are blocked.

Common Cap comes in to bring the pain. He starts with a 12 attack value and Charge or he can pick Running Shot with his trait:

VIBRANIUM SHIELD: FREE: Choose one: Running Shot or Close Combat Expert. Captain America can use the chosen power until your next turn.

Also if you were able to sidestep adjacent to the enemy with the Uncommon or Rare you can shift to the Common and pick that Close Combat Expert for a 5 damage uppercut to the face!

Next we have WI Captain America 036

Cap with the power of Mjolnir! If you didn’t scream with delight when Cap picked up Mjolnir in Avengers: Endgame your probably more mature than me. Anyway, Thor’s mighty hammer and Cap’s shield are represented here by:

HAMMER AND SHIELD: Captain America can use Energy Shield/Deflection and Ranged Combat Expert.

Captain America can use the extra ranged protection granted by this trait due to his starting 17 defense. He doesn’t have the longest range at 5 but the Ranged Combat Expert can definitely help you lay the smack down on any annoying purple guys you might be facing. Cap starts with 4 base damage so he can really make a big dent in our foes using this trait and if they are anything like Ant-Man they will notice Cap’s:

INTIMIDATING PRESENCE: Captain America can use Leadership. If he does and succeeds while adjacent to one or more opposing character of 150 points or less, give those characters an action token.

This will let us token up the opposition while simultaneously clearing tokens from our own team and can really shift the tempo of the game.

Rounding out the team we have another Super Solider from WWII, Father of Josiah X and Grandfather of Patriot from Young Avengers:

FFCAAV 001 Isaiah Bradley

Isaiah Bradley comes in at only 25 points but can cause plenty of trouble for the opposing team. He’s only four clicks deep but his trait says he’s a

LIVING LEGEND: The first time each game Isaiah Bradley would be KO’d, instead turn him to his last non-KO click, then roll a d6 and heal him equal to half the result. Protected: Pulse Wave.

So even when he would be KO-ed he has the potential to heal to his top click again. He can also keep coming at you every turn due to his second trait:

EXPERIMENTAL AMERICAN SUPER SOLDIER: Colossal Stamina.

Your opponent can’t afford to ignore him because he can come at you every round with Colossal Stamina and even if they waste attacks killing him he can come back and do it all over again. The team has plenty of leadership to keep tokens off him and could potentially give him a stat boost to help his attack from Rare Shifting Focus Cap.

While lacking some support powers the team makes up for it with good stats, lots of Willpower and flexible powers that can be adapted to the situation. I think you will have great time playing them and putting boots to your opponents back sides. Enjoy the holiday and remember have fun!