The Most-Wanted Ghosts of Clix-Mas Future Return!! (Or,What We Want to See in 2017!!) (Or Or, We Call an Audible on the Seventh Night of Clix-Mas!!)(Whew!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Once again (and this time, with feeling!), we are shamelessly unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 5! If you missed The First Night of Clix-Mas, you can read what it’s all about right here! Night 2 was the nascent edition of a new holiday scenario we’ve been cooking up and can be found… here-ish! Night 3 took a brief look back at Horrorclix. Night 4 was the debut of a new feature called “Overlooked” which examined some pieces from World’s Finest that don’t see quite as much play as they seemingly should… . And Night 5 was Part 1 of a brief 3-part series that examines how Heroclix would look if there were a Core Set released every year or two… And Night 6 saw HypeFox Theory-craft his own Marvel Heroclix Core Set!]

peyton-manning

That sound you here is Ninwashui yelling ‘Omaha!!’

Okay, here’s the deal!

Some nights, when it’s the middle of the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas and you’re blogging by the seat of your pants and you’ve probably had juuuust a bit too much caffeine, you just have to call an audible.

Tonight is one of those nights!

So, this is the Seventh Night of Clix-Mas 2016, which means we have six Clix-Mas blogs in the books, which also means we have six to go (Yikes!) to make our goal of 12 blog entries in 12 days during what is generally the busiest, most stressful time of the year.

In otherwords, we’ve reached the halfway point. Which also ALSO means we’ve started to get some feedback. In this case, that feedback comes from none other than the co-author of this very blog, Mr. Ninwashui himself!

He read yesterday’s article on Theory Crafting a Marvel Core Set and, well, he had some thoughts!

The long and short of the conversation that followed resulted in one main revision to our plans: he is going to write the DC Core Set Theory Crafting article (also known as “Everything Old Is New Again Part 3!!”)!!

Which is great and all, but that also means we’re gonna have to call an audible for today’s column. So don’t worry–you’ll still get Part 3 this Clix-Mas (probably around Night 10 or Night 11, methinks).

So instead, we’re going to revisit one of last year’s most popular Clix-Mas entries: The Most-Wanted Ghosts of Clix-Mas Future!

Christmas Future

No, sorry, you’re definitely getting an MCU Capwolf movie, but don’t worry, the Russo Brothers figure it out. I know. I couldn’t believe it either. I mean, they even make Doctor FREAKING Druid work. And he was played by Miley Cyrus.

If you’ve forgotten how this gimmick works, I’m basically going to go month-by-month for the first six months of 2017 and discuss the sets we know we’re getting and what I hope we get from them!

Let’s get started!

FEBRUARY 2017: 

deadpool-and-x-force

DEADPOOL & X-FORCE:

Or is it X-Force and Deadpool? Unclear at the moment. But we do know this is our next set!

–I would love to see Word Bubbles return. Alas, I think we would have already heard about these if they were appearing in this set, as last time around (Deadpool in 2014) their existence was part of the marketing.

–I didn’t love the Cable we got in AVX or Deadpool (although the New Mutants Monthly LE kit Cable from last year was great on his own and bonkers-good on the Team Base!), so I wouldn’t mind seeing a new version or two in this set as he’s always been one of my favorite Marvel characters.

–The Ultra-Chase rarity returns?! Well then. Not sure who this could be, but if they hadn’t already given us Thorpool in the Deadpool set, that probably would have been my bet. We’ll see.

–Actually, if the Ultra-Chase turns out to be Squirrel Girl (who we know is in the set in one form or another), I’d actually be cool with that.

Deadpool & X-Force releases (for now) sometime in mid-to-late February.

 

MARCH 2017: 

return-of-the-shredder

SHREDDER’S RETURN: 

–Honestly, there’s not a ton more I need from TMNT right now, unless they’re going to dig into the live action movies, which I’m pretty sure are not included in the license.

–This is going to be a very dial-dependent set for me; meaning, the more good figures I see Previewed, the more likely I’ll be to buy more of the set. Otherwise, this is probably the least interesting of the three Turtle Sets they’ve released/announced so far.

 

JUNE 2017: 

jane-foster-what-if

I’ll be honest–I think we know at this point what would happen if Jane Foster had found the Hammer of Thor…

MARVEL HEROCLIX 15TH ANNIVERSARY: WHAT IF?

–Ooooooo, am I excited for this one!

–The thing about a set where literally any figure could fit is that literally any figure could show up in this set. I can’t wait, but I have no idea what’s coming with this one.

–I know a lot of folks want more Exiles; I’d be fine with that, but I really want random characters from random What If? one-shot stories. Pieces like Iron Doom from Invincible Iron Man come to mind. That guy was awesome!

 

JULY 2017: 

elseworlds-multiversity

DC HEROCLIX 15TH ANNIVERSARY: ELSEWORLDS

–Even though this is the same concept as Marvel’s What If, I feel like we’ve seen a lot more of DC’s Elseworlds already. Kingdom Come? We just got a bunch of them (although I’d never object to more). Red Son? Ditto.

–If, however, this set ends up chock full of Multiversity pieces (Captain Carrot PLEASE!!), I will be a happy camper! I even want members of the Gentry. I’d love them as Colossals, but I understand that if I get any at all, they’ll probably just be normal bases, which is okay.

–2017 is going to be an interesting year in Clix

Alright! That’s all for today. We’ve still got a lot in the hopper, such as Ninwashui’s DC Core Set AND his Joker’s Wild Top Ten, both coming before the end of Clix-Mas 2016!!

So get ready, buckle up, and strap in!! And don’t forget to come find us right here in this space in the next 24 hours for more Clix-Mas 2015 goodness!

Upcoming Games: Red Vs. Green!! (Or, the Ninth Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Once again, we are shamelessly unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 9! If you missed The First Night of Clix-mas, you can catch up right here! Night 2 is here. Night 3 is here, you can find the 4th Night of Clix-Mas by clicking here, and Night 5 went down right here! Night 6 is now up, and can be found here. Night 7 showed up right about… here, while Night 8 came stumbling through the door over here.]

Can't tell if cosplay or real footage...

Can’t tell if cosplay or real footage…

Another quick local game announcement for SE Michigan Clix’ers…

At 6:15pm on Wednesday, December 30th at Comics & More in Madison Heights, we’ll be playing: Red Vs. Green!

This is a holiday-themed, 400-Point Golden Age game with an entry fee of $5.00.

We will be playing for figures from the “Suicide Squad” monthly LE kit: Deadshot (new sculpt), Amanda Waller (new dial) and Captain Boomerang (new dial), with the winner getting their choice of any of those pieces!! However…

IMPORTANT PRIZE NOTE: IF WE GET THE WIZKIDS ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN HOLIDAY KIT IN TIME, WE WILL AWARD PRIZES FROM THAT INSTEAD!! 

The Stipulations: Each entrant will construct two teams: one team shall be comprised of figures whose primary sculpt color is Red; the other team shall be comprised of figures whose primary sculpt color is Green.

Once everyone is paired each round, players will roll for Map Choice as per usual. The winner of the Map Roll shall choose which colored team he or she wishes to play; their opponent must play a team of the opposite color.

Resources, Relics, Bystander Tokens, Constructs and ID Cards are not allowed as part of your Force Build. If a character BRINGS a Relic or Bystander Token with them into play at the start of the game, however, that IS allowed (Emerald Empress and Rick Jones come to mind as examples, although Rick Jones’s sculpt would disqualify him).

In the same vein, Entity Possession is NOT allowed UNLESS the possessing figure started the game on the map (for example, if you paid 185 Points to add Butcher to your Red Team Build, if he’s KO’d, you may then have him Possess another friendly character as per normal; you may NOT field his 25-Point dial).

Colossals and Vehicles are allowed, provided that they are primarily red or green.

 

Spidey Human Torch Christmas

A Quick Note About the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas (2015):

"HypeFox and Ninwashui... YOU HAVE FAILED THIS BLOG!"

HypeFox and Ninwashui… YOU HAVE FAILED THIS BLOG!

Well, tonight is Christmas, and, as I’m sure you’ve probably noticed, we’re only on Night 9! Yup. We fell three entries short of our 12-entry goal this. Looking back on things, it’s crazy that we actually accomplished our goal last year–the first year we tried to publish 12 articles in 12 days. This year was a big year personally for both Ninwashui and myself, and we just weren’t quite able to reach the finish line.

Nevertheless, even though we didn’t finish in time this year, that doesn’t mean we won’t finish! You will get your remaining 3 Clix-Mas articles before the clock strikes 2016, so keep checking back with the main page for more new content!

I truly hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season, and we look forward to bringing you more Clix content in the year ahead. Thanks to all of you, we’ve experienced quite a bit of growth this year (more on that on Night 12), and we really appreciate all the great feedback!

Until Then, Stay Safe, and Watch Where You Draw Your Lines of Fire!!

Who Watches the Watchlist: Part Deux!! (Or, The Eighth Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Once again, we are shamelessly unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 6! If you missed The First Night of Clix-mas, you can catch up right here! Night 2 is here. Night 3 is here, you can find the 4th Night of Clix-Mas by clicking here, and Night 5 went down right here! Night 6 is now up, and can be found here. Night 7 showed up right about… here.]

Hot Shots Part Deux

Hello again!

Two nights ago, we reviewed the Watchlist changes from the beginning of the year. Now we’re gonna take a look at the most recent Watchlist from July 27th of this year. Did these changes make the game better? Or did they go too far in some cases? Let’s take a look!

2015 Q2 WATCHLIST:

AKA “The Felix Faust” Watchlist! Who, it so happens, is our first corrected piece to review! Let’s take a look:

Felix Faust

  • Felix Faust: There were two main changes wrought by Faust’s World Championship dominance. First, all of Faust’s nastiest d20 abilities now have a maximum effectiveness range of 7 squares. What’s that, you say? 7 squares is still pretty damn good? Well, normally I’d agree, but considering that before the Watchlist these shutdown abilities had an effective range of THE ENTIRE MAP, so I supposed I’d have to say that this was a step in the right direction. Pieces that are meant to shutdown the opponent’s pieces are always going to be hard to balance. In this case Faust was just ungodly for his measly 70 Point asking price. The second change that came in the wake of Faust running roughshod over THE WORLD is that d20 rolls can no longer be rerolled. Yup. Rerolling d20’s was a thing in the summer of 2015, since it enabled you to lock your opponent down completely. No more! Verdict: Having played against Mr. Faust since these changes came down, I can say that they probably didn’t do enough. He’s still able to dominate a game if his controller has ANY kind of dice luck!

Doc Strange

  • Doctor Strange: No changes to the good Doctor, which isn’t that surprising given that Doctor Strange here costs about 80 more points. Verdict: This was the right call. Why Faust was so much cheaper is beyond just about everyone.

Avengers Age of Ultron Scarlet Witch

  • Scarlet Witch: This one’s a little harder to discuss, since her problematic ability is written like a phone book. For the record, this is how her power now reads: HEX MAGIC: Once per turn, after an attack roll has been determined, Scarlet Witch may give the attacker up to 3 Hex Magic tokens if the attacker is within range. A character may not be given Hex Magic tokens if they would have more than 3 Hex Magic tokens on their card. For each token she gives the attacker, reduce the attack total by 1. Opposing characters may be given a free action to remove a Hex Magic token and modify any friendly character’s attack value by +1 this turn. Basically, they added the “A character may not be given Hex Magic Tokens if they would have more than 3 Hex Magic tokens on their card” bit. Verdict: Her ability was worded veeerry loosely originally, so I’m not surprised it got changed. Pretty moderate change, too. And definitely necessary.

Yellow Power Battery

  • Yellow Power Battery: No change. Verdict: Nor should there have been. This Battery works just fine.
  • Orange Power Battery: Ditto. Verdict: Ditto.

And there ya go! This Watchlist wasn’t as packed as the last one. Does that mean WizKids has learned their lessons and taken the appropriate measures to make sure we’ll never have to deal with another Watchlist ever again?

Uhh… no. But that’s okay. At least WizKids is quicker to own up to a huge failure now and do whatever it takes to fix it. It seems like they’re making a concerted effort to achieve a modicum of transparency.

Having said all that, I’ll see ya tomorrow night for the 9th Night of Clix-Mas!!

Merry Christmas… Eve!! (Or, The Seventh Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Once again, we are shamelessly unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 6! If you missed The First Night of Clix-mas, you can catch up right here! Night 2 is here. Night 3 is here, you can find the 4th Night of Clix-Mas by clicking here, and Night 5 went down right here! Night 6 is now up, and can be found here.]

SH S2

And now for something completely different!!

While we still have a bunch of Heroclix content in the pipeline, tonight we’re actually taking a night off from Clix content to bring you one of my pet projects. It’s a series of comedy shorts on the web called Suburban Heroes.

The Premise: In a world where superheroes exist, two slackers decide to form a superhero team to get their hands on grant money from the government so they don’t have to get real jobs. But in order to qualify for the funding, they must have a team member with a real power, so they decide to recruit one in the most natural way they know: while  filming the whole thing as a reality TV show.

The Trailer: Can be found right here.

The Pilot: Check it out right here!

And we’ll see you later for more Clix-Mas 2015!!

 

 

Who Watches the Watchlist? (Or, The 6th Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Once again, we are shamelessly unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 6! If you missed The First Night of Clix-mas, you can catch up right here! Night 2 is here. Night 3 is here, you can find the 4th Night of Clix-Mas by clicking here, and Night 5 went down right here!]

Watchmen by monkeybiziu.

Uh… the Watcher? Banner art by monkeybiziu.

Welcome back to the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas!!

Tonight, we’re gonna go back and look at the first Watchlist that dropped this year and the changes that it brought with it. Did those changes make the game better? Did they course correct too far in some cases? Let’s take a look!

(And yes, we’ll take a brief look at the most recent Watchlist from this year very soon in one of the coming 12 Nights of Clix-Mas articles!)

2014 Q4 WATCHLIST:

Ah, come back with me now, back to last January. It was a time when men were men, and Entities still transferred all of their keywords to the piece they were possessing! Yup! That was the main reason for the Q4 Watchlist: the Entity issue! Let’s go point by point and see what worked, and what didn’t!

Ion War of Light Butcher Entity

  • Entities: The main change here was that Entities would no longer transfer all of their keywords–particularly the “Entity” keyword. All they would transfer from here on out was their Lantern Corps keyword. Verdict: This was actually a very successful change that brought a bunch of balance to the game. The Entities were already powerful enough; by allowing them to transfer the “Entity” keyword to the piece they were Possessing, it allowed power players to make really overpowered Themed Teams out of characters who should never grant Theme when paired together. Entities were still played heavily after this change, but the playing field was leveled just a bit, which is exactly what a Watchlist fix should do. Selfishly, I wish that they’d still let them transfer their “Cosmic” keyword as well (all but Black Hand have it, I believe), as that would have kept a few more interesting Build options available, but that’s a small complaint when so much good was accomplished here.

bill-agent-of-aim

  • Bill, Agent of A.I.M.: The reason most people played him was his Special Attack Power (MY HIGH-ENERGY FINDER THING:Give Bill, Agent of A.I.M. a power action and choose the highest-point opposing character. Until your next turn, that character can be targeted with a ranged combat attack by one friendly character without line of fire to that opposing character.) that shows up on Click 2. This power was changed so that the character getting the benefit of Bill’s technology has to be adjacent to Bill. Verdict: This was a pretty reasonable change, and while it did make Bill slightly less useful, his power was still good enough to keep Bill in the Meta rotation.

Iron Pharaoh cover

  • Iron Pharaoh: This one really hit me hard. His special Trait (GOLDEN FALCON, SOARING: When Iron Pharaoh is first placed on the map, place a Falcon special terrain marker in an adjacent square. Give Iron Pharaoh a free action to move this marker up to 3 squares. Iron Pharaoh can draw lines of fire and count range (up to 3 squares) from the Falcon marker using Improved Targeting: Ignores Hindering Terrain, Ignores Elevated Terrain, Ignores Outdoor Blocking Terrain, Ignores Characters.) was just absolutely gutted. After the Watchlist, the Pharaoh had to choose to either move OR attack, something the figure was never really designed to do. Verdict: While Iron Pharaoh was certainly a powerful force in the Meta, an occasional ROC win doth not a broken piece make. But even if you accept that Iron Pharaoh was a problem piece (and ignore the fact that within a year, WizKids would have published several silver bullet pieces for the Pharaoh, like Jack Hawksmoor), the official change really destroyed this piece, to the point that he was almost unplayable afterwards. This particular change was probably WizKids’s biggest overreach since they’d been publishing a Watchlist.
This is how Iron Pharaoh owners felt after the Watchlist dropped.

This is how Iron Pharaoh owners felt after the Watchlist dropped.

Bizarro

  • Bizarro: This was another pretty simple pair of fixes. WizKids decided that he could only be played in 25 Point increments up to 150 Points (as opposed to playing him all the way up to 300). Also, it was decreed that Bizarro could ONLY be healed through the use of Support. Verdict: This was another winner. It’s hard to describe how dominant Bizarro was in the Meta back in 2014 if you’re a newer player, but he was everywhere. He still turns up on certain Meta teams to this day, so he’s still a quality piece, but at least he’s fair now.

Proxima Midnight

  • Proxima Midnight: Proxima was reviewed, but it was decided that she was working as intended. Verdict: Sanity prevails. There’s nothing wrong with being a good piece–it’s when a piece becomes gamebreaking that a designer really needs to get involved. If only they’d been as levelheaded about Iron Pharaoh…

Well, that’s all for tonight! And yes, we’re running a few days behind if we’re gonna get everything out by Christmas. Just stay tuned, though, and we should have articles coming fast and furious in the next two days!

Heat Check: Caller ID!! (Or, The Top Three ID Card Call-Ins at Every Point Level Right Now!!) (Or Or, The 5th Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Once again, we are shamelessly unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 5! If you missed The First Night of Clix-Mas, you can catch up right here! Night 2 is here. Night 3 is here, and you can find the 4th Night of Clix-Mas by clicking here.]

Spidey ID

So in my Mirror Master Team Build article, I lamented the fact that nowhere online does there exist a list showing  all 329 possible character Call-Ins available in Modern Age play from the 56 currently available ID cards (we’ll cross the Justice League ID Card bridge when we come to it).

What? How did I know that there are 329 possible Call-Ins? Because I just finished building that list!

So before I get to actually publishing said list, as a special 12 Nights of Clix-Mas treat, I’d like share with you now the Top 3 Call-Ins in Modern Age at each 50 point interval (from 50 to 300)!

The Top 3 Call-Ins in the 1 to 50 Point Range:

Looks like something else just called-in Jemma...

Looks like something else just called-in Jemma…

  1. FFNFAOS005 Simmons 50 PointsCalled-In via NFAOSNFID-007 S.H.I.E.L.D. Level 7: If you call Jemma in with her ID card, she has Outwit and can give the person who called her in another yet another use of Outwit. She also has the S.H.I.E.L.D. Team Ability and the FIELD TEAM BACKUP ability if you are using her with other Field Team members. Since she is called in via the Level 7 card, she also gives anyone next to her the S.H.I.E.L.D. TA and modifies their Attack Value by +1 when making a ranged combat attack.

  2. NFAOS014B Hydra Agent H 30 Points — Called-In via NFAOSNFID-008 S.H.I.E.L.D. Level 1: She has 7 Range, 10 Attack and Ranged Combat Expert. She has both the Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. TA’s and the combination of the ID card and her Trait means that she shares those two TA’s with whomever is next to her. Plus, at 30 points, she can be called in by almost anyone (including WOL099 Despotellis).

  3. AOU204E Yellowjacket — 50 Points — Called-In via FFOAAUID-100 Hank Pym: Yellowjacket is capable of dealing Penetrating Damage in both close and ranged combat situations with automatic Knockback from Force Blast. In addition, when he comes into play you get a free AOUB001 Ant Swarm Bystander Token that stays in play even after Yellowjacket is removed from the game. The Hank Pym ID Card also gives the following Inspiration: “Modify range value by +3 when using Outwit or Perplex. Modify defense value by +3 when attacked by an opposing character with the Robot keyword.” The Robot clause is obviously situational, but the stipulation-less Range boost to Outwit and Perplex can really catch your opponent by surprise.

The Top 3 Call-Ins in the 51 to 100 Point Range:

3D Man AVAS

  1. AVAS013B 3-D Man — 90 Points — Called-In via AVASAVID-015 Triathlon I could continue to beat this drum and describe to you again why this is possibly the best ID Card character out there, but I already did that once in my Avengers Assemble top 10 article.

  2.  GOTG031 Nova — 60 Points — Called-In via AVASAVID-007 Nova: His dial is 60 points so you will likely have 2 or 3 characters on a 300 point team that can call him in. And when they do, you’ll have one of the best Pulse Wave pieces in the game. He’s only got a 10 attack, but unlike everyone else in the game when he uses Pulse Wave he does 2 damage (not just 1) to everyone he hits when he targets more than one character. We all know Pulse Wave is the game’s strongest basic power, so access to an improved version of it at a crucial point in the game for just 5 points seems like a great deal to me.

  3. AOU020 Captain America — 65 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-103 Captain America: He’s a great character to play as well as Call-In. His Special Mmovement Power states, “CAP’S MOTORCYCLE: Captain America can use Defend and has “transporter boot speed symbol”. He doesn’t modify his attack value by -2 from the Move and Attack ability.” On the defensive side, his Trait says “TAKE COVER!: Adjacent friendly characters modify their defense values by +1 against ranged combat attacks, if not already modified by this effect.” Just to review, he has 17 Defense with Defend, his ID card grants ESD to all adjacent figures, and his trait grants +1 versus ranged attacks. Taken together that means that any character standing next to him that turn will have a minimum 20 Defense against ranged attacks.

The Top 3 Call-Ins in the 101 to 150 Point Range:

Nick Fury Original Sin

  1. NFAOS056 Nick Fury — 120 Points — Called-In via NFAOSNFID-007 S.H.I.E.L.D. Level 7: As recent ROC results are starting to show, NFAOS056 Nick Fury is the probably the most powerful figure in the game right now (just like I predicted he would be in my Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Top Ten article). Calling him in as a 5 point ID character practically guarantees that he will put a 4-damage-sized hole into your opponent’s most costly figure, and he can do that while shooting through Elevated Terrain, Hindering Terrain and/or characters from 9 spaces away. If you aren’t playing Nick Fury on your team, then there is almost no excuse to not run him as an ID character.

  2. AOU047E Quasar — 125 Points — Called-In via NFAOSNFID-004 Quasar: If an opposing figure is closing in then you can use Quasar’s Pulse Wave, but the real selling point with him is when you target a single opponent. Assuming you hit, you can completely block off your opponent with “CONTAIN STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE: When Quasar targets and damages a single opposing character, after action resolve, he can use Barrier as a free action, but may only place blocking terrain markers adjacent to the hit character.” As an added bonus Quasar’s inspiration also gives adjacent characters telekinesis.

  3. NFAOS051 Steve Rogers — 150 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-103 Captain America: He’s not the most damaging attacker with only three base Damage and double target Energy Explosion, but what he is good for is all of the support he can give to other ranged attackers around him. If he hits with his attack (he has a 12 Attack Value), then all other friendly attackers can use Probability Control on their own rolls. He also has Enhancement and the S.H.I.E.L.D. TA. Best of all, on defense he gives everyone Energy Shield/Deflection.

The Top 3 Call Ins in the 151 to 200 Point Range:

War Machine

  1. AOU26 War Machine200 Points — Called-In via NFAOSNFID-010 War Machine: War Machine’s major weakness when played in an army is his lack of Willpower. Thankfully that’s not a problem with ID Card characters. His VARIABLE THREAT RESPONSE power allows you to choose Psychic Blast, Pulse Wave, Precision Strike, or Triple target Energy Explosion! In addition,he ignores Hindering Terrain and if he is attacking more than one character at range, he can use Probability Control.

  2. AOU018 Thor  — 200 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-104 Thor: Thor has double ranged targets and the following power: “GOD OF THUNDER: Thor can use Energy Explosion, when he does, damage dealt is penetrating damage.” He also ignores Hindering Terrain for targeting. But, the real reason to use him is “FOR MY HEART BELONGS TO THEE: Once per game, give Thor a free action and place a Jane Foster bystander token as described on this card into an adjacent square.

  3. AVX104 Phoenixbuster Iron Man –175 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-101 Iron Man: This guy has a great power, “HERE GOES NUTHIN’: Phoenixbuster Iron Man’s attacks deal penetrating damage if the target character is assigned a relic or a resource or possesses any of the following: “Giant damage symbol”, “Colossal damage symbol”, the Power Cosmic team ability, the Cosmic or Phoenix Force keyword, or the word Phoenix in its name as a separate word.” As a backup plan he has Running Shot and Pulse Wave, which, historically speaking, is a damn good backup plan.

The Top 3 Call-Ins in the 201 to 250 Point Range:

Hercules

  1. AOU033 Hercules — 220 Points — Called-In via AVASAVID-004 Hercules: There are two great reasons to choose Hercules. The first is his offense, “IF IT IS BATTLE YOU CRAVE, HERCULES SHALL OBLIGE!: Hercules can use Charge, Flurry, and Improved Movement: Ignores Hindering Terrain, Ignores blocking terrain and destroys blocking terrain as the character moves through it.” “Oh, you thought you were safe from my team because you were hiding behind two-square-thick Blocking Terrain? I think not, scoundrel!” The second is his ability to tie up and weaken the opposing team with “GRAPPLING THE LERNAEAN HYDRA: Hercules can use Plasticity. Each opposing character adjacent to Hercules modifies its attack and damage values by -1 if it has any action tokens.” If you put Hercules next to the opposing army, they will likely just have to pass that next turn. And dead turns for your opponent = victory for you.
  2.  AVAS053A Thor — 228 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-104 Thor: I picked this character in this point range because of his great ability to deal damage with Pulse Wave. In addition, he also has some great support with Enhancement and the ability to grant adjacent Avengers Energy Explosion.
  3. AAOU001 Iron Man — 250 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-101 Iron Man: Iron Man has Avengers Initiative TA, Outwit, 12 Attack and Precision Strike. If you end up hitting an opposing figure, you also get to use his Trait: “AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!: When Iron Man hits one or more characters with an attack and actions resolve, the opposing player chooses: You place a friendly AAOU #002 Iron Legion from outside the game into your starting area or, modify the defense value of your friendly characters by +1 until your next turn.

The Top 3 Call-Ins in the 251 to 300 Point Range:

MCU Hulk

  1. AAOU008 Hulk — 300 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-102 Hulk: With 6 Damage, 13 Attack, Charge and Super Strength, Hulk can deal up to 9 damage in a single hit! With raw stats like that he doesn’t need any other reasons to be on this list. Sadly you won’t be able to call him in during a 300 point game.

  2. WXM058 Namor — 295 Points — Called-In via WKMVID-006 Namor: Namor is the highest point level character possible to call in for a 300 point game. He has 12 Attack, 5 Damage, and a Trait “PHOENIX FIVE: Opposing characters targeted by friendly characters with the Phoenix Force keyword subtract 1 from their d6 roll when using Impervious, Shape Change, or Super Senses.

  3. IIM043 Iron Man and War Machine — 265 Points — Called-In via AOUAUID-101 Iron Man: This figure has 11 Attack, 4 Damage, triple target Energy Explosion, and–most importantly–Duo Attack!

That’s it for this article. I am going to see about getting my ID Card Call-In list published online and I’ll let everyone know about THAT… a little later.

 

 

The Ghosts of Clix-Mas Future Part 2: Electric Bugaloo!! (Or, The 4th Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: We are unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 4! If you missed The First Night of Clix-mas, you can catch up right here! Night 2 is here. And last night’s article (Night 3) is here.]

Clixmas future masthead 2

Welcome to the 4th Night of Clix-Mas! Last night we took a look at the Clix we know we’re getting in the first six months of 2016. Tonight, we’re gonna put our thinking caps on and speculate at what we MIGHT be getting in the second half of the year.

JULY 2016:

'Murica!! F-yeah!!

‘Murica!! F-yeah!!

Outside of a Monthly OP kit (The Defenders, with a new Moon Knight sculpt plus another Shang-Chi dial and Shroud dial. Moon Knight hasn’t been seen since ASM, so he’s pretty sorely needed, but the Shang-Chi and Shroud we got in Deadpool were both good, and there’s a chance they’ll still be Modern legal when this kit comes out.) and the third month of Civil War, I think July will be pretty dry for Clix releases. Which I’m fine with, given the crush of Spring product we just talked about last night.

AUGUST 2016:

I have no idea who took this photo, but it's awesome. I found it here.

I have no idea who took this photo, but it’s awesome. I found it here.

Here’s where things get interesting. There’s been an August Clix set release for the past two years, and each one has been Marvel. Now, we’d be coming off of the Civil War Movie Set, Uncanny X-Men AND the Civil War SLOP set by the time August rolls around, so WizKids might want to change it up a bit and go DC, right?

Not so Fast

Looking back, there were even MORE Marvel sets before August last year (or at least it sure seems like there were), and August brought us Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and some brand new Vehicle rules. So this really could go either way.

Here’s how I would handicap it:

If it’s Marvel, this has to be a Spidey set, right? The two things we haven’t seen in awhile from Marvel Clix are a ton of Spideys and monsters, both generic and otherwise. Both were prominent in the recently rotated Amazing Spider-Man, and monsters aren’t going to sell a set on their own.

If it’s a DC set, then this could really be anything, then, but let’s narrow it down based on what we know. We know WizKids likes making money (this may shock you, but most businesses work like this); we know that WizKids likes to headline sets with major characters in the set name and/or on the box, even if they barely show up in the set itself (coughSLoSHcough), because it tends to boost sales.

(At the risk of starting a Marvel/DC flame war, you could argue that WizKids has been a little more adventurous with their Marvel license having based sets around Deadpool, GotG and Nick Fury in the last two years alone. Hmmm…)

We also know that DC has pretty much thumped the Trinity drum to death the last year and a half with sets based on, well, the Trinity (Trinity War), Superman (Superman/Wonder Woman and the upcoming World’s Finest), Wonder Woman (see previous examples) and Batman (again, see previous examples).

While it’s still possible we’ll see an all Batman set, it’s almost as likely that we’ll see something Green Lantern related, especially if War of Light rotates out of Modern (which would be aggressive on WizKids’s part, but not inconceivable, given how much trouble the Entities caused). With sub-themes that could fit in the Lantern framework, this would be a decent way to go.

But.

If WizKids was ever going to base a set on a non-Trinity, non-Justice League IP, this would be the perfect time to unleash a Suicide Squad set. While that would have been unthinkable even three years ago, we got Guardians of the Galaxy in August of 2014 because of the movie that was being released at the same time; well, Suicide Squad is in theaters starting in early August of 2016.

The final prediction and handicap:

Suicide Squad

A DC Suicide Squad set: (I’ll give it as high as 3-1 odds)

Runner-Up: A Marvel Spider-Verse set (which I’d put at about 5-1 odds)

SEPTEMBER 2016:

Again, just a Monthly OP kit. Which could really be anything.

OCTOBER 2016:

Of course we’ll get another Monthly OP kit, but I could also see WizKids sneaking in a second Turtles Gravity Feed here if the first one sells as much as it seems like it will. Yu-Gi-Oh! is always a possibility, too.

NOVEMBER 2016:

Another Monthly, but the main draw here will be the last set of 2016. And based on everything we just discussed (remember, I predicted Suicide Squad for August), I’m going to say that in November, Marvel takes a chance on another character not named Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk or Spidey:

Doctor-Strange-1

Doctor Strange!

Yes, this could still be a Spider-Verse set, but there is going to be a ton of marketing dollars thrown around for this movie, so if WizKids wanted to switch things up, this would be the time to do it, since those marketing dollars will mitigate a lot of risk!

Plus, we could see a Secret Wars Chase sub-Theme (with Strange as the leader of the Black Priests, Ultimate Reed as the Maker and maybe, just maybe we’d even get a Rabum Alal Doom!) or even a monsters-as-Howling Commandos sub-theme (which would open the door for a lot of monster Clix updates!).

(5-1 Odds)

DECEMBER 2016: 

The Monthly OP kit will feature another Holiday-themed figure. Gonna guess it’ll be either ol’ Saint Nick himself, one of his reindeer or a Snowman.

Well, there you have it. Tons of needless speculation about what may or may not come in time for Christmas 2016!

And for more crazy Heroclix discussion, check this space tomorrow!!

 

The Most-Wanted Ghosts of Clix-Mas Future!! (Or,What We Want to See in 2016!!) (Or Or, The 3rd Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: We are unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 3! If you missed The First Night of Clix-mas, you can catch up right here! Night 2 is here.]

Christmas Future

No, look even farther into your own timeline. Farther still. There? Do you see it? That speck floating on the horizon of a distant future? Yup! That’s the next time they’ll update the Heroclix PAC and rulebook!

Welcome to Night 3 of the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas!!

Tonight I’m gonna take a look at which sets we know are coming in the first half of 2016 and what I hope we’ll get when they arrive!

FEBRUARY 2016:

Worlds Finest

World’s Finest:

–We already know we’re getting in the Lex Luthor/Joker Duo Figure a cooler piece than anything I could have suggested. Having said that, I have to say I’m not overly excited for the known Sub-Themes: Metal Men, Doom Patrol and, uh, magical characters.

I know there are a few Metal Men fans out there, but those characters don’t really move the needle much for me. If we’re getting New 52 Doom Patrol (which we almost have to assume we are, right?), those will be more figs I don’t have to collect. And we pretty much got every DC magic-user I’d ever want in Trinity War. Zatanna and John Constantine are great characters, but I doubt WizKids will think they’re popular enough to warrant inclusion here so soon after their last appearances. That usually only happens for the main Justice League characters (really just the Trinity) and, like, Lex Luthor.

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Tell that to Bizarro and Felix Faust, who seem to be showing up in every DC set lately… ]

–I would have also wanted another Resource at some point in the upcoming year, and now we know we’ll be getting the Justice League Teleporter as a case incentive (not unlike the 2 Resources that debuted with Trinity War earlier this year) AND that it will utilize all the Justice League ID Cards that will come in this set.

Getting another Round Table-style Resource so soon after getting, y’know, the Round Table, is kind of odd; at the same time, you knew this was coming at some point, and I’ve actually found the ID Cards to be kind of fun.

–I really enjoyed the Super Rare Kingdom Come Flash update from Flash last year, and I’d love more updated Kingdom Come figures here. While we don’t know what the six Chases will be, I’d be surprised if they did a full KC Chase run.

Still, I’ve heard rumors of a possible Bat Sentry update, which would be welcome news. Perhaps WizKids could even give us just one KC piece a set, in the way that they’ve been trickling out Squadron Supreme Primes in every Marvel set for the last three years.

batman-v-superman-dawn-of-justice

Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice (Movie Tie-In Set):

–So we’re finally getting a DC Movie set with actual Chases and Target Exclusives and the whole nine yards? This actually has me pretty geeked!

–We actually know a good deal already about who will be in this set based upon what we know from the movie news that’s already leaked AND the roster list for the Starter Set! That roster includes:

Batman (sure). Superman (obviously). Wonder Woman (well, she was all over the trailer, so that’s to be expected). Lex Luthor (ditto). Mercy Graves (?! We knew she’d be in the movie, but we weren’t even sure if they’d be doing a version of her with powers.) Annnnd… Aquaman? Apparently Jason Momoa is in more of this movie than we thought.

–Bats, Supes and Wonder Woman should all have Common versions in the main set. Lex and Mercy could be Commons or Rares. I’m guessing Aquaman will be a Rare. Doomsday’s been spoiled now, so he could be a Rare or a Chase. I wouldn’t be surprised if we got a Bats/Supes Duo as a Chase as well. We shall see in… good Lord, in like two months, right? Man this is coming up quick!

MARCH 2016:

Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Set 1): 

–I’ve already gotten my big want for this set: that it would be Modern Age legal! Beyond that, I was always more a fan of the cartoons growing up, so as long as we get the Turtles, April, Shredder, Bebop and Rocksteady, I’ll be a pretty happy camper.

APRIL 2016: 

Civil War

Captain America: Civil War Movie Set: 

–My biggest want from this set would be a MCU Black Panther piece (I love the character, so I’m excited for his MCU debut), and since we know he’s in the Starter, we know he’ll also be in the set!

–Even more so than Dawn of Justice, this set has no shortage of figure possibilities. We know Cap, Iron Man, Black Panther, Black Widow, Hawkeye, War Machine, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier will all show up, and all (except maybe Vision?) are pretty safe bets to get at least one figure in the 18-figure main set. So if everyone we just mentioned gets a slot, that’s ten figures right there. We also know Ant-Man and Spider-Man will both show up, and General Thunderbolt Ross is back for the first time since The Incredible Hulk (and may or may not turn into Red Hulk–my money’s on “not,” but whatever).  Brock Rumlow is also back, this time as the villainous Crossbones, so he’s a good be to be Clix’d again, too.

–Having said all that, I think a MCU-debuting Spidey would make for an awesome Chase; I just don’t think we’ll get it. May not even get a Spidey at all (although I’d be pretty bummed if we didn’t get a Scott Lang Ant-Man as well, since Wizkids sat that movie out). I’m betting the Chases will be (yet another) Iron Man/War Machine and Captain America and the Winter Soldier Duo figs. Which I’d be fine with, but would seem like a lost opportunity to blow our minds with Spidey or Ant-Man.

MAY 2016:

Civil War comics

Civil War SLOP:

–Introducing Battle Royals into a SLOP event could either be really fun (if implemented correctly) or really muddled (if implemented incorrectly). The sculpts we’ve seen so far look cool, and I’m interested to see exactly how the Bounty Card system will work. Doesn’t seem like there will be any Chases, which I find a bit disappointing but I know others would prefer, and the set overall seems a bit small, so I’m very interested to see the roster for this release. And the Grand Prize, which still isn’t clear.

"Finally... the X-Men have come BACK... to HeeerrroooClix!"

Finally… the X-Men have come BACK… to HeeerrroooClix!

Uncanny X-Men:

–Wolverine and the X-Men and Deadpool were both so good, I don’t know what I want from this set!

–It would be great to get some of the classic characters in their iconic 80’s uniforms again, and Chases based on a classic event like “Fatal Attractions” would be great. But I think what EVERYONE seems to be asking for, and what WizKids seemed poise to deliver before the unofficial shutdown on the X-Men license, is an…

Stop teasing us, WizKids...

Stop teasing us, WizKids…

–Age of Apocalypse sub-theme! It’s one of the greatest Marvel storylines that has never been fully exploited in a Clix release.

MISC.:

–And of course we also know we’re getting more cool monthly prize kits featuring:

The Sinister Six; White Lanterns; Gamma Smash! (Red Hulk, She-Hulk & A-Bomb); The Brave & The Bold; Guardians of the Galaxy (Sweet!); and the Injustice League.

What will the last six months of 2016 look like? Well, that will require a lot more speculation… and another Night of Clix-Mas!

See ya tomorrow!

 

Upcoming Games: Clix TV!! (Or, The 2nd Night of Clix-Mas!!)

[EDITOR’S NOTE: We are unleashing the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas! Tonight is Night 2! If you missed The First Night of Clix-mas, you can catch up right here!]

Clix TV

Welcome to Night 2 of the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas!

Another quick local game announcement for SE Michigan Clix’ers…

On Wednesday, December 16th, at Comics & More in Madison Heights, we’ll be playing: Clix TV!

In honor of all the great comics-based TV, we will play a 300 Point, Golden Age game with a $5 Entry Fee.

Prizes will come from the “Arrowette” Monthly OP Kit, although…

IMPORTANT PRIZE NOTE: IF WE GET THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN KIT WIZKIDS HOLIDAY KIT IN TIME, WE WILL AWARD PRIZES FROM THAT INSTEAD!!

The Stipulations: Each character on your team must have appeared on a Network, Cable or Streaming LIVE ACTION Television show. Animated appearances don’t count, but the show does not have to currently be on.

As long as piece shares a real name OR a character name (ie, Clark Kent or Superman) with a character from a TV show, that piece is eligible.

Now, if you don’t watch a lot of TV but want some examples, you can build your team from Clix’d characters who have appeared on such shows as:

(DC)

Supergirl (2015: Notable characters include Supergirl, Jimmy Olsen, Hank Henshaw, Lucy Lane, General Lane, Red Tornado, etc.)

Flash (2014-Current: Flash, Firestorm, Jay Garrick, Vibe, Killer Frost, Zoom, Reverse Flash, Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Vandal Savage, Heat Wave, Captain Cold, Golden Glider, Girder, Jesse Quick, Captain Boomerang, Rainbow Raider, Gorilla Grodd, Weather Wizard, Dr. Light, etc.)

Arrow (2012-Current: Green Lantern, Black Canary, Arsenal, Mister Terrific, The Atom, John Constantine, Amanda Waller, Deadshot, Deathstroke, Merlyn, Huntress, Brother Blood, etc.)

Smallville (2001-2011: Clark Kent, Bizarro, Lex Luthor, General Zod, The Martian Manhunter, etc.)

And so on…

(Marvel)

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013-Present: Phil Coulson, Melinda May, Agent Ward, Nick Fury, Lady Sif, Agent Fitz, Agent Simmons, Absorbing Man, Skye/Quake, John Garrett, Mockingbird, Deathlok, Victoria Hand, Major Glenn Talbot, Eric Koenig, Mister Hyde, Graviton, Blackout, Blizzard, etc.)

Marvel’s Agent Carter (2014-Present: Peggy Carter, Dum-Dum Dugan, Jarvis, etc.)

Daredevil (2015-Present: Daredevil, Kingpin, etc.)

Jessica Jones (2015-Present: Jessica Jones/Jewel, Luke Cage, The Purple Man, Hellcat, etc.)

You get the idea.

Clarifications:

Ninwashui and some others have brought up certain pieces to inquire whether they’re eligible.

To wit:

Zoom (Black Lantern): Eligible. Remember, the parenthetical information doesn’t actually count when determining whether certain game effects work or don’t work.

Batmobile: Eligible. Vehicles are still characters, so yes, the ol’ Adam West show qualifies the Batmobile.

Thor (any version): Eligible. A live action Thor appeared in The Incredible Hulk Returns, which, while technically a TV Movie, still premiered on network television and was, in fact, a continuation of the Incredible Hulk TV series starring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno.

 

Okay! Hope to see you down at Comics & More for some good ol’ fashioned boob-tube mayhem!

And don’t forget to come back tomorrow night for another Night of Clix-Mas! We’ll be taking a closer look at what sets, intellectual properties and characters YOU want in the upcoming year!

(Actually, it’ll mostly be what I want in the upcoming year, seeing as I’m writing the article!)

Thoroughly Modern (Age) Millie! (Or, The First Night of Clix-Mas 2015!!)

I think this actually happened...

I think this actually happened…

Welcome to the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas, 2015!! We had so much fun with this gimmick last year [EDITOR’S NOTE: I said it was “insane and fun,” not “insanely fun.” There’s a difference!] that we’re going to try it again this year!

For those who missed last year’s festivities, every night for the next 12 nights, we’re gonna post some sort of Heroclix-related content. Might be as little as a couple of funny pictures, or as much as a 4000-word essay on the state of the Meta. Each night will bring something new!

Tonight we’re gonna briefly discuss the recent revelation that the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set will be Modern Age legal and what this might mean for “OtherClix” sets going forward!

Wizkids Prexy Justin Ziran recently granted the Comic Shenanigans podcast a three part print interview. Part One was released here; Part Two can be found here; as of this writing, we’re still waiting for the publishing of Part Three.

But there was plenty of great stuff to talk about stemming from just the first two parts of the interview. In a follow-up forum on HCRealms.com, Justin Ziran responded to a poster by straight-up declaring TMNT WILL be considered Modern Age, thus immediately making that set relevant to just about everyone who plays Clix.

This is now tournament legal. Art by Mike DeCarlo.

This is now tournament legal. Prolly not gonna get theThemed bonus, though.
Art by Mike DeCarlo.

I for one have been waiting for WizKids to do this for quite some time. There’s no doubt that my excitement for certain side sets (read: LotR) dissipated almost immediately when I found out that none of the pieces were Modern Legal. It’s the main reason I didn’t buy a ton of Pacific Rim, even though I loved most of those pieces.

Assuming TMNT hits, hopefully we can expect this sort of treatment on most if not all “OtherClix” sets going forward. I’ve loved that the Movie Sets (Avenges: Age of Ultron, Guardians of the Galaxy, Man of Steel, etc.) are Modern Age tourney legal, since it gives folks many more options to explore when creating a team. Well, this is taking that concept to the Nth Degree, and I personally believe it will only help the game grow.

What good is it trying to draw in more players with a Movie Tie-In set if once they get hooked on the game THEY CAN’T USE ANY OF THE PIECES THEY JUST GOT?!?!

I hope WizKids won’t be shy now about acquiring some great one-off licenses to augment the main Marvel and DC game. Star Wars? World of Warcraft? Starcraft?  Hell, if Halo-Clix had been Modern Age when they came out, I would have bought a metric poop-ton.

Do you think making all “Otherclix” sets Modern Age in the future is a good idea that will lead to Build versatility in the Meta? Or will it just make things more confusing? Sound off in the Comment Section below!

 

And come right back here tomorrow for Night 2! We’ll be taking a closer look at what sets, intellectual properties and characters YOU want in the upcoming year!

Until Then, Stay Safe, and Watch Where You Draw Your Lines of Fire!