Annnnndddd, we’re back!! Hello again, gentle readers! Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there! My gift to you? A Weekly Roundup that’s only ONE day late, instead of the normal two…

Things are going pretty good. My Tigers have opened up a wide lead in the American League Central Division, you can go outside with only one jacket on now and, more importantly–at least as far as this column is concerned–we’re inching very close to the release of TWO major new sets that will keep us busy into August (Deadpool and War of the Light, of course.)! And that’s not even counting X-Men: Days of Future Past, which should come right on the heals of Deadpool (as an AvX Avengers player, it didn’t bother me, but man, how much would it stink to be playing X-Men and know that there were hordes of new X-Men-keyworded figs just on the horizon that would be released just in time to not be useful AT ALL in AvX? I mean, Banshee from the Deadpool set alone could have changed X-Men builds–depending on your venue’s rules–DRASTICALLY).

But enough reminiscing–it’s time for…

THE WEEKLY ROUNDUP!!

PODCASTS:

–Dial H for Heroclix has released Episode 44! This week Hunter flies solo before welcoming in a special guest to talk about a couple of previews, and then Hunter and his guest start dissecting the just-released Deadpool Gravity Feed (or CTD, if you prefer).

–Push to Regen is still brewing Episode 2.3. Until then, you can check their Podbean for updates and the first two episodes of Season 2!

–The Quarry’s latest episode is … still Episode 17! Roundtable discussion with Patrick Yapjoco on the Hanford SQ and the Iowa SQ. Having had the chance to listen to most of it now, I can say that there’s some great insight provided by Patrick, this week’s special guest–he’s won several ROC’s himself. The main conclusion Edward, Hunter and Patrick hammer home is to know your format. In the Meta, that usually means 300 points, but things can vary wildly after that–are resources allowed? How about relics? Feats? In tourneys where resources AREN’T allowed, different pieces are going to rise. Map choice is also VITALLY IMPORTANT. Patrick guided a Iron Pharaoh team to victory at a recent ROC because he had a great understanding of the types of teams he’d see in the environment he was playing in and was able to choose a map when he won map roll that virtually guaranteed him victory (in his case, it was the recent Apokolips map from the SLoSH OP kit–the elevated terrain changes make it virtually impossible for even the most aggressive team to get the Alpha strike on the Pharaoh–more often than not, the Golden Falcon will have several opportunities to shart on opposing figures before they’re in range of the Pharaoh).

Welcome… to the ROC!

ROC:

–Up to date upcoming tourney listings, which you can find right HERE!

–Recent tourney results indicate that Tellus has infiltrated the Meta in a major way (pretty much as expected). However, with most people using Astral Dr. Stranges to ensure dynamic firing positioning, these teams are going to be in trouble very soon when Galactic Guardians rotates out of Modern. Will folks find another piece that moves as efficiently? We shall see…

Previews:

–New War of the Light dials seem to go up every day–Newsarama is a good place to look, but eventually all that info filters down to HCRealms, so you can always check their Units page. Indigo-1 and her Tribe of ring-wielders are the latest to get spoiled.

—Franklin Richards and Rachel Summers are the last figs from X-Men: Days of Future Past to be spoiled. I like Franklin a little better, since I think he’s better in his role (support piece) than Rachel Summers is in hers (secondary attacker), but both get much better when you play them together (which I don’t like, as it kind of means your paying a tax to play them–especially Rachel. She really needs Franklin to make her viable, in my opinion, as just the mere presence of him pumps up her Attack, Defense AND Damage). Still, there not terrible for 140 points.

Btw, pretty much the entire X-Men: DoFP set is now available for perusal on HCRealms now.

–We’re only one day away from the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. finale, and over the weekend ABC announced that they are renewing the show! In addition, they are turning the “Agent Carter” one-shot short film from the Iron Man 3 Blu-Ray into an ongoing series starring Haley Atwell! As I really liked Peggy Carter in Cap 1 & 2, this is welcome news indeed…

Army of the Week:

Okay! Another quick new segment for the Weekly Roundup! Basically, I’ll use this space to talk about winning ROC armies, something I saw at my local venue or even just a force that’s been bubbling on the back burner of my brain.

This week we’re going to spotlight Patrick Yapjoco’s build that won him the Hanford Super Qualifier in April (and you can hear a lot more about it in Episode 17 of The Quarry).

Here it is:

Iron Pharaoh 110
Scarlet Witch FF x2 100
Brother Voodoo 79 w/
(Heroes for Hire ATA)

=297 (Theme: Mystical)

As we previously discussed, Patrick used his +4 Theme Bonus to Map roll to take every game he played into the furnaces of Apokolips, which put his opponents at a HUGE disadvantage, especially with the double barrier provided by his Scarlet Witch double tap. I’ve written previously about Iron Pharaoh teams wherein I used Shaman and the Wundagore Mountain map to earn victories; that Apokolips map that just came out in the SL0SH OP kit is probably even better for Iron Pharaoh strategies. Props to Patrick for designing and playing such an awesome team. The fact that this won is really cool; the fact that a major build component of this army was actually the MAP is even cooler. Depending on your venue, Map Choice may or may not be integral to what you’re trying to do with your army, but it’s definitely something to consider.

Critical Missives:

–Just one new article last week, which was Ninwashui’s Local Tournament Report from AvX Month Three. Some nice analysis by Ninwa in there. Check it out if you’re looking for more AvX strategy and tips.

Back later this week with a Build column featuring AvX Month 4 and a blow-by-blow of how that finished at our local venue. And then, hopefully–in the next few weeks–that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Episode Guide!

Until then, Stay Safe, and Watch Your Lines of Fire!