[EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the fourth in a quick series of local game announcements for SouthEast Michigan Clix’ers before we go back to our regular programming!! We’re running a Scenario called Heroclix: The Gathering, obviously inspired by the eternally popular CCG Magic: The Gathering. Each month is based–very loosely–off of an existing Magic expansion. We then weave everything together with an ever-evolving narrative that changes based on the results of our local tournaments. Think of this as a “What If” Magic: The Gathering story told through Heroclix! Read about the Month One posting here, the Month Two scenario here, and the Month Three game here!]

Welcome to Month Four of Heroclix: The Gathering!! Before we get into what’s happening this Month, let’s review everything that has happened in our story so far…

HEROCLIX: THE GATHERING: MONTH THREE: TIME SPIRAL!!

The Guildpact has been shattered. Ravnica has been torn apart from the inside by the machinations of its Guild Paruns (notably Szadek of House Dimir) and their ever escalating intrigues. But the shattering of the Guildpact also attracted the attention of the predatory plane of New Phyrexia, who opened portals to Ravnica in pursuit of conquest and resources. 

As the Phyrexian legions pour in, Compleation seemed inevitable for the Ravnicans until Momir Vig, Simic Guildmaster, unveiled his secret weapon:  Experiment Kraj, a gigantic, mutated Ooze. 

Kraj rolled through the City, absorbing Ravnican and Phyrexian alike, until the initial Phyrexian invaders were forced to retreat. Reasoning that a Second Wave of Phyrexian invaders was all but assured to wipe them out, the surviving Paruns of Ravnica regrouped in the vast smoldering ruin of the Azorius Senate, where they came up with the dangerous idea of summoning a powerful temporal storm called a Time Spiral to spirit Ravnican warriors of both the past and the future into their present timeline to help their cause…

 

 

 

 

Their gambit worked. The Phyrexians have been defeated by the heroes of Ravnica’s past and future, and Szadek slew their champion, Glissa the Traitor. The demon Rakdos used an ancient spell to seal off the Phyrexian portals, and the threat of Compleation is now over. 

HEROCLIX: THE GATHERING: MONTH FOUR: RISE OF THE ELDRAZI!!

Except… actions have consequences, and the sundering of the Guildpact combined with the ripping of time itself have now brought the Ravnican plane to the attention of the Old Gods known now as the Eldrazi, once thought to be locked away in the prison plane of Zendikar. 

But the Eldrazi are native to the Blind Eternities, the space between planes, and what was once their prison is now more of a fortress, a stronghold from whence they will pour forth and reclaim their position at the top of the planar hierarchy.

Many hoped that the triumph of Ravnica over the Phyrexians would usher in a new era of fairness and justice for all. But soon, there will be no “fair.” There will be no “just.” There will only be the will of the Eldrazi.

And they are rising…

 

Well then!! Hello fellow Clixers, and welcome to the fourth and FINAL Month of Heroclix: The Gathering, exclusiviely at Comics & More in Madison Heights, MI!!

Month One ended with Roberto Ty piloting a House Dimir team to victory (with noted Spy Nick Fury standing in for Szadek!), which is why House Dimir came out on tops in our Month One recap story.

However, in Month Two, Matthew Wenderski used a Simic Combine squad to triumph over all comers, resulting in Momir Vig saving the day in that chapter.

Matt won again in Month Three, but now everyone will face the doom of the Eldrazi in Month Four as we play out the final battle for Ravnica!

But before we get to this Month’s Build, let’s have a look at the Scoreboard!

Again, to review, each competitor scored Tournament Points as follows:

Showing Up: 1 Tournament Point

Match Loss or Tie: 1 Tournament Point

Match Win: 2 Tournament Points

Event Win: 3 Tournament Points

And now, without further ado…

The 2017 Comics & More Heroclix: The Gathering Scoreboard (after 3 Months):

1. Matt Wenderski: 24 Tournament Points [2540 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 4 TP’s; Month Two: 10 TP’s; Month Three: 10 TP’s)

 

2. Tyler Pienta: 17 Tournament Points [1533 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 5 TP’s; Month Two: 6 TP’s; Month Three: 6 TP’s)

3. Cam: 15 Tournament Points [1513 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 5 TP’s; Month Two: 5 TP’s; Month Three: 5 TP’s)

4. Andrew Boger: 15 Tournament Points [1328 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 6 TP’s; Month Two: 6 TP’s; Month Three: 3 TP’s)

5. Roberto Ty: 15 Tournament Points [1065 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 10 TP’s; Month Two: 5 TP’s; Month Three: 0 TP’s)

6. Real Tim (Kropf): 11 Tournament Points [1140 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 5 TP’s; Month Two: 6 TP’s; Month Three: 0 TP’s)

7. Tim O.: 10 Tournament Points [1135 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 6 TP’s; Month Two: 4 TP’s; Month Three: 0 TP’s)

8. Ben (Jammin’): 9 Tournament Points [815 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 6 TP’s; Month Two: 5 TP’s; Month Three: 0 TP’s)

9. (Baron) Carl (Mordo): 6 Tournament Points [663 Tournament Points]

(Month One: 0 TP’s; Month Two: 6 TP’s; Month Three: 0 TP’s)

10. Darren Chin: 5 Tournament Points [83 Tiebreaker Points]

(Month One: 0 TP’s; Month Two: 5 TP’s; Month Three: 0 TP’s)

 

 

 

 

 

And now, for this week’s Build!!

The Game: Heroclix: The Gathering: Month 4: Rise of the Eldrazi!

Entry Fee: $5

Prizes: It’s Month Four, so there will be a bunch of prizes of all sorts!! Some will be hella sweet, some will be really stupid, but we are going to have us some fun!!

The Build: 600 Points (an even bigger conflict means even bigger armies!!), GOLDEN AGE, No Tactics (No Resources, ATA’s or Relics.)

No figure larger than a peanut base (UNLESS YOU ARE PLAYING ELDRAZI!! See the Eldrazi entry for more details).

No Call-Ins.

Possession pieces are okay to play. (Basically the Heroclix version of an Aura Enchantment, right?)

You must choose a Guild or other faction from the chart below. Once you’ve chosen, your army must be built around the generic keyword pairings associated with that Guild or faction. This means that everyone on your force must have at least ONE of the two generic keywords listed.

All characters friendly to your force can use the associated Guild Team Ability (GTA) or Faction Team Ability (FTA).

NOTE: After the sundering of the Guildpact at the end of Month One, the Guild Team Abilities are all your figures have to fall back on. This means that ANY OTHER TEAM ABILITY POSSESSED BY YOUR PIECES CANNOT BE USED. Note that characters still POSSESS whatever Team Abilities are printed on their base and card; they just cannot USE them.

List of Ravnica Guilds (Guild descriptions provided by MTGSalvation.com):

AZORIUS SENATE

The Azorius Senate functions as the government of Ravnica and creates Ravnican laws.

Keywords:  Politician, Ruler

Azorius Senate Team Ability: At the beginning of the game, place an Immunity token on the character card of one character with the highest point value of those using this team ability. When a character with an Immunity token is within 8 squares of an opposing character’s starting area and is dealt damage, it may be given an action token to remove the Immunity token from its card and ignore the damage dealt. When a character with the Immunity token on its card is KO’d, you may place the Immunity token on the card of the remaining character on your force that is the highest point character that can use the team ability.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The Azorius Senate was all but destroyed following the events of Month One. Their leader, Augustin IV was murdered and their guild hall was decimated. They are still rebuilding. Therefore, the Azorius Senate MAY NOT BE CHOSEN for Month Four builds.

BOROS LEGION

Ravnica’s security force, the Boros Legion is both Ravnica’s constabulary and standing army. The Boros suffered a terrible blow when their Parun, Razia, was killed in battle, but another angel, Feather, has rallied the Legion back into battle readiness. The Eldrazi are coming, and its all hands on deck.

Keywords:  Police, Soldier

Boros Legion Team Ability: Adjacent friendly characters modify their range values by +1. When a character using this Team Ability is adjacent to a friendly character making a ranged combat attack, modify the target’s defense value by -1 if the target is within line of fire of this character.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: Feather hasn’t just revived the Boros Legion, she’s slightly upgraded their capabilities. Note that adjacent friendly characters now modify their range values by +1 in addition to the previous effects of the Boros Legion Team Ability.

 

HOUSE DIMIR

In practice, little information on the Dimir is known. It is, however, known that the Dimir are involved in assassinations, criminal activity, and espionage on a contractual basis.

Szadek has led his House to victory, but the celebration is short lived. Even if he can muster enough strength to repel the invaders, the other guilds may use this new conflict as an opportunity to take back what was taken from them. 

While subtlety will always be the primary tactic of House Dimir, the time has come to step out from the shadows and remind everyone why they should be afraid of what stirs in the night…

Keywords:  Spy, Assassin

House Dimir Team Ability: A character using this team ability can’t have their defense power countered if they occupy the lowest elevation of terrain.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The House Dimir Team Ability has not changed since its revision in Month Two. While their presence in the shadows of Ravnica is now common knowledge, they are still very hard to deal with if encountered on their home turf–Ravnica’s sewers and Underbelly…

GOLGARI SWARM

Denizens of Ravnica’s agricultural and waste management sectors. Run by Gorgon sisters. And creepy fungal sewer monsters.

Keywords: Monster, Assassin

Golgari Swarm Team Ability: Characters using this team ability can use Stealth on their starting click. If that character can already use Stealth on their starting click, lines of fire may not be drawn to that character by opposing characters while on that click.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Golgari Swarm.

GRUUL CLANS

Ravnica’s foresters, gamekeepers, park rangers, wildlife officers, and wildskeepers. But with the wilds declining, the role of the Clans has also diminished, and many Gruul Clans members have adopted an anarcho-primitivist ideology and become Ravnica’s defenders of nature, intent on destroying civilization.

Keywords: Animal, Brute

Gruul Clans Team Ability: All successful attacks made by a character using this Team Ability generate knock back. Knock back generated by a character using this Team Ability cannot be ignored.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Gruul Clans.

IZZET LEAGUE

Ravnica’s formative and physical scientists and engineers. The Izzet League are known to perform magical experiments, ever with reckless abandon and sometimes with spectacular but severe results.

Keywords: Scientist, Mystical 

Izzet League Team Ability: When a character using the Izzet League Team Ability takes damage from an attack, roll a d6 that can’t be rerolled and consult the chart below for the resulting effect.

1: This character takes 1 additional unavoidable damage and gets an action token after actions resolve.

2: This character takes 1 additional unavoidable damage.

3-4: The attacker is dealt 1 unavoidable damage.

5: The attacker is dealt 1 unavoidable damage and gets an additional action token after actions resolve (if able).

6: The attacker is dealt 2 unavoidable damage.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Izzet League. Once normal Mystics was turned off, this GTA worked extremely well (instead of being EXTREMELY overpowered).

ORZHOV SYNDICATE

Nearly every business in Ravnica ties back to the Orzhov in some devious way or another. Whilst they bear the facade of a religious group and may well have been a true faith at the signing of the Guildpact, they now worship only profit and power.

Keywords: Mystical, Politician

Orzhov Syndicate Team Ability: Characters using this Team Ability can’t be the target of an opponent’s Outwit or Perplex unless they’ve been targeted with an attack previously in the same turn.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Orzhov.

CULT OF RAKDOS

Founded by Parun Rakdos, an ancient demon, the Cult of Rakdos attend to menial labor and the services industry, which includes some less-than-savory offerings, such as assassination, as well as more agreeable ones, such as the catering (i.e., food service) and entertainment industries.

Using the strife of the end of the Guildpact as a distraction, acolytes of Rakdos have finally managed to raise their Parun from the depths of darkness and despair. But will Rakdos choose to fight the invaders or decide to use this opportunity to thwart Szadek and seize Ravnica for his own?

Keywords: Monster, Mystical

Cult of Rakdos Team Ability: Whenever a character using this team ability is KO’d, you may roll a d6 and subtract 2 (minimum 1). Deal that much damage, divided as you choose, among any number of opposing characters adjacent to the square the KO’d character occupied.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to the Team Ability, but please note that the return of the demon Rakdos has slightly altered the Cult of Rakdos keywords. Now a character must have either the Monster or Mystical keyword to be eligible for the Cult of Rakdos (I mean, they just awakened their demon overlord, so, yeah… )

SELESNYA CONCLAVE

Despite their superficial appearance of being a “good” and “peace-loving”, in truth the guild is just as hypocritical and as sinister, if not more so, as other Ravnican guilds. The Selesnya Conclave often employs its quietmen and other members to silence the civilians of Ravnica from up close and wreak havoc.

Keywords: Brute, Spy

Selesnya Conclave Team Ability: When characters using this Team Ability roll doubles on a successful close attack roll, that attack generates no knock back; instead, that attack cannot be evaded, damage dealt can’t be reduced below 1 and any hit characters get an action token.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change from Month 2.

SIMIC COMBINE

The original purpose of the Simic Combine was to preserve the health of all Ravnican life-forms. They were devoted to the study of life, medicines, and biomancy. But just as life can adapt, so did the Combine. Momir Vig, the Simic guildmaster, was dissatisfied with this original purpose and formed a new purpose: to improve upon life-forms of Ravnica.

Keywords: Animal, Scientist

Simic Combine Team Ability: At the beginning of your turn, choose one option to last until the end of your turn for all friendly characters using this Team Ability. All friendly characters using this Team Ability ignore Shape Change; or all friendly characters using this Team Ability ignore Stealth this turn.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The Month 2 change helped this Guild quite a bit (indeed, both players in the Championship game were playing Simic), so it will stay as is for now.

NEW PHYREXIA

It came not in the form of a noble struggle, a fair contest of warriors clashing will against will, but as a wave of unstoppable slaughter. Mirran partisans resisted bravely, using their wits and magic to fend off the onslaught that originated from inside their own world. But their efforts were for naught. Phyrexia is victorious. Mirrodin now goes by a different name: New Phyrexia.

And New Phyrexia hungers…

Keywords: Robot, Armor

New Phyrexia Team Ability: Characters using this team ability can use Perplex, but only to target a character with the Armor or Robot keyword. This use of Perplex may not modify damage values, and no character may be targeted by this ability more than twice per turn. This use is in addition to any other uses of Perplex.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The Phyrexians have finally been defeated! Thus, they can no longer be chosen.

TIME SPIRAL

From Ravnica’s forged Past to its many posssible Futures come the warriors caught in the Time Spiral. But even if they are able to turn the tide of the war with New Phyrexia, what will become of them once the invasion is over? And if the sundering of the Guildpact awakened the interest of New Phyrexia, whose attention might the spiraling of time itself attract?

Now, that question has been answered. The Eldrazi are rising…

Keywords: Past, Future

Time Spiral Team Ability: Characters using this Team Ability may use
Probability Control. When a roll is ignored because of this
team ability an action token must be placed on a friendly
character on the battlefield or the roll is not ignored.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The time-displaced warriors of Ravnica come packed with the ability to manipulate time itself. No change for Month Four.

 

The Eldrazi are gargantuan monstrosities who have transcended the colors of mana as we know them. Native to the Blind Eternities, they are huge and immensely powerful. Confronting them is like confronting the multiverse itself.

Keywords: Deity, Cosmic, Monster

Additional Requirements: Characters who cost less than 100 Points may not be chosen for this faction. 

Rise of the Eldrazi Team Ability:  Characters using the Rise of Eldrazi Team Ability can use Willpower and their powers cannot be countered. When you build your force, you may include characters with any size base as long as they still meet the Rise of Eldrazi Keyword Requirements.

 

Alright! There is your Month Four Scenario! Hope to see everyone at the game! And thanks to everyone who has attended these events (and also to all of you who have left comments about this! If you’ve run this scenario at your local venue, let us know how it went!). It’s been a blast to see such positive responses from you folks!