[EDITOR’S NOTE: Welcome back to the 12 Nights of Clix-Mas 2020! For Night One’s announcement trailer, click here. We built an Excalibur Themed Team with some new pieces on Night 2; Ninwashui finally released his SVC Top Ten on Night 3; he came back to talk Watchlist results on Night 4; and he came back once more to build an Apocalypse Prime army on Night 5!]
Y’know, back in the day (circa like 2012-2014-ish), some of my favorite figures to collect and play were Duo pieces that represented a sort-of team-up between two characters within one dial. My all-time favorites were probably Sentry and Void (which, actually, wasn’t TECHNICALLY a Duo fig, but whatever) from Chaos War and Captain America and Black Widow from the epic Captain America and the Winter Soldier Movie Set.
But a few years ago, Wizkids phased out the DUO symbol; no more Duos for us, it seemed…
[And no, I’m not talking about dial flipper pairs like Power Man & Iron Fist or Hawkman & Hawkgirl.]
And yet…
Over the last two years, a new sort of Duo figure paradigm has emerged. Instead of two heroes (Iron Man and War Machine) or two villains (Lex Luthor and Joker) or some mix thereof (Professor X and Magneto) plastered onto one dial, Wizkids has started taking prominent characters from the comics and given them one of their supporting (sidekick; pet; kid; sibling; love interest; TMZ; you get the idea…) characters as a Bystander Token!
And now, these pieces have started to take over even the Meta!
So let’s count down the 10 best pieces in Modern that generate Bystander Tokens!
10. EAX056 Iron Man (w/ Iron Avengers):
Okay, we’re starting with a bit of a cheat here, since Iron Man actually comes packing an entire Bystander Avengers, but this is one of the best Bystander generators they’ve ever made, helped in particular by a Map which was specifically made for him!
9. ABPI 041a Falcon (w/ Redwing):
Redwing brings Hypersonic Speed, Precision Strike, Super Senses, a Resurrection Trait (VAMPIRIC BIRD: Once per game, when Redwing would be KO’d, instead it isn’t. Protected: Pulse Wave.).
But to make this list, there needs to be some synergy between the Clix itself and the Pog it generates; well, Redwing’s second Trait (ALWAYS BY OUR SIDE: At the beginning of your turn, roll a d6. [4-6]: Remove an action token from a friendly adjacent character named Falcon or Captain America.) ensures a 50% chance to bring just that!
8. F4037 Dr. Fantastic (w/ Franklin Galactus):
Franklin Galactus is one of the most powerful tokens Wizkids has ever published; 10 Range, 12 Attack with Pulse Wave and a native 5 Damage.
The only reason this doesn’t end up higher is because Dr. Fantastic can’t generate him until the end of his dial.
7. HX055 Kate Pryde (w/ Lockheed):
Another Lockheed!! This version brings Energy Explosion and Perplex!! Perfectly complements Kate’s Probability Control and Precision Strike!
6. F4049 The Thing (w/ Chuck and Buzz):
What a design! This version of The Thing is actually a 4-click supporting character! And both of his sons are efficient close attackers; each of them are capable of serious damage when Thing uses his Empower with them!
5. F4047A Silver Surfer (w/ Dawn Greenwood):
Okay, first of all, this Surfer is practically Meta-Worthy. Next, Dawn Greenwood has the potential to completely enhance him. She can pull him to her from across the Map; she has both Enhancement and Perplex, although the latter only works on Surfer; and if your opponent bothers to KO her, all of Surfer’s stats get +1 for the rest of the game!
4. HX003 Bishop (w/ Shard):
Bishop on his own is good. But he also generates his sister Shard, who gives all friendly characters a “Behind the Scenes” type of Trait where they can’t be targeted unless their opponent is within 4 squares!
3. SVC014 Mary Jane Watson (w/ Paparazzi):
Mary Jane has turned up on so many WINNING teams of late you’d think she was the main attraction of SVC.
She can use her star power to generate up to three Paparazzi tokens who are all Autonomous and all have the power to Incapacitate your opponent’s best figures.
2. CAAV054 Captain Marvel (w/ Chewie):
Chewie is a Bystander Token that Carol generates for free whenever she wants. Chewie has Flurry, Plasticity, B/C/F AND Perplex. You literally cannot get more than that on a free Bystander Token. If your rolls are lucky enough, your 0 point Bystander here can deal up to 12 damage a turn!!
- ABPI074 Thanos (w/ Skreet):
Thanos is an awesome Meta-worthy piece. Skreet, his Bystander Token, has the best Perplex in the game. Plus she can deal Penetrating Damage on her own too.
Sometimes, it’s not that complicated…
What are your favorite Bystander Tokens? Sound off in the Comments below!
Thanks for stopping by!
Night 7 drops tomorrow!
Critical Missives 