Listen up, kiddies! Today I’m not talking about a chase or super rare that tickles my fancy. Nope, today is all about my favorite bosom buddies and bestest friends Cable & Deadpool. It’s high time these two got their own team build. Cover Art by my buddy Marc Vuletich!

A lot of team builds here on Clix Fix center on either a really good piece, awesome effect, or power coupling. Everyone once in a while, I’ll do something a little fun to kind of take a break from all that nonsense. Today is one of those days. As you all know, Deadpool is my favorite character, so there’s going to be plenty more builds with him in the weeks to come (seriously, this set gave me so much gas to work with… phrasing!). However, I’m also a big fan of Cable, but not like most others. I always thought Cable was kind of neat, but once I read Cable & Deadpool, I really came to enjoy Nate. It wasn’t because he was powerful or his stoic demeanor; no, it was how he balanced Deadpool so incredibly well.

Anyone who has read a Deadpool comic knows that he tends to run his mouth a lot, and based on who is writing him at the time, this can be a good thing (Joe Kelly, Gerry Dugan, etc.) or a bad thing (Sorry, but Daniel Way really mucked Wade up). Cable brought a wonderful balance to Wade in that he directed him and helped push him into a better state of mind. He helped Wade deal with his problems and the two of them were just incredibly fun to read together. Although Cable didn’t choose to be partnered with Wade (that happened due to an unfortunate simultaneous teleporting accident), they ended up becoming best buds, and this build article is dedicated to them.

I’m going to try my best to make the build(s) fun and powerful at the same time. I want these guys to thrive and be an actual force to be reckoned with, so there’s no point in half-assing this. This won’t be focused on winning WKO’s or ROC’s, but I will try and make these teams as strong as possible with certain personal criteria. Let’s take a look at what I think the builds 100% require.

Cable – Although I had high hopes for Cable in this set and we did get two dynamite versions, I thought we might get something higher than a common in rarity. Still, I cannot complain about that common. I’ll most likely be using him in the build(s).

Deadpool – Boy howdy do I have a lot to choose from thanks to this set! Cable has a high point cost of 120 points, so I need to keep Wade lower in volume if I want to have any kind of support or tertiary attackers.

Domino – If you read Cable & Deadpool, you’ll know that Domino was a big part of the book from about 1/3 of the way in. Also, Domino has since been the main contact for Wade in the X-Men world, and she’s currently working with him in the Mercs for Money. She can be dropped if absolutely necessary (I find something more worthwhile).

No Resources – There aren’t any modern resources that match the spirit of Cable & Deadpool. You could make a case for a power battery being a stand in for Cable building things with TK, but those aren’t modern.

That list isn’t very long, and that’s okay with me. I don’t want to set forth a bunch of rules for me to adhere by as I really want to play these guys heavily at my LGS and at home with my friends.

I’m okay with aspects like Possession and special objects if they help make the team better, but with two mandatory characters and a third ‘should be here’ member, points will be tight. Lastly, remember that because the units section is not updated yet on the Realms, I can’t link figures from the Deadpool & X-Force set (sans like 10). Sorry. Let’s get into it.

300 Points Modern Cable & Deadpool Team – No Resources

DXF 014 Cable | 120 Points

DXF 037a Deadpool | 75 Points

DXF 057 Cannonball | 75 Points

DXF FF 006r Domino | 25 Points

AVAS S100 Pym Particles | 2 Points

Sideline: DXF 001a Deadpool, DXF 017 Deadpool, DXF 033 Deadpool, DXF 034b Deadpool (X-Force Version), DXF 037b Deadpool

X-Force Theme +4

Build Total: 297 Points

This first team build goes full-on X-Force for a nice theme team bonus and 3 uses of theme team prob since we’re playing 300 points.

Up first, we’ve got my Cable of choice. There’s just no denying how strong this version of Nate is, and although I do like the Fast Forces version with special Leadership/Outwit, TK, Running Shot, and 20 less points, this version of Cable is just the best you can get in my honest opinion. Unparalleled movement, free attacks, great values, impossible to lock down, Prob, and end-dial Regen (with Prob again) make him the complete package. Indom is icing on the cake, and traited Stealth makes him oh-so-hard to deal with. Winning map roll should be fairly easy, and something with lots of hindering is going to be your best friend.

For Deadpool, I opted for Shifting Focus. I finally got a chance to play the full line-up the other night and man are they freakin’ strong. With the non-prime rare starting out, you get another piece with insane mobility. Why do you need a taxi or TK when your guys can just ‘port all over the map and get crap done on their own? What I love about the rare version of this Deadpool is that you can free action teleport and then swap to a different version of Deadpool, making him a lot easier to engage with than Superman and Batman. Deadpool has a really good survival option as well with the rare prime that instant heals after attacks, so both your primary attackers are going to be difficult to kill if they aren’t one-shotted. If you need support, shift over to that bathrobe and lounge around, Perplexing your stuff and picking up another use of Prob.

I started out not really liking Cannonball, but he serves a bunch of purpose on this team. Flight gives us a taxi if we really do need it, and Cannonball has the option to just break through walls, opening shots and providing more terrain for Cable to hide in. The big reason Cannonball made the team was because of how tanky he actually is. If he moves 4 or more squares with his special defense, he picks up Invulnerability meaning he can tank a surprising amount, AND he has a STOP click with Regen. With Prob all over the place, there’s a good chance that Cannonball will stick around for a lot longer than 75 points should.

Domino ended up making the team, and I opted for the incredibly strong 25 point version from the Fast Forces. Seriously, if you haven’t picked up this version of Neena yet, do it. For such a low value, we get Stealth, ignores hindering for movement, Sidestep, Precision Strike, Super Senses, and Prob. That brings us up to half of our team having Prob outright to start, and a possible third with Deadpool shifting to support (heck, even FOUR if Cannonball wants to be our dedicated Theme Team Prob!). She’s a heck of a piece for such a low point cost, and I foresee myself playing her quite a lot.

Once again, I opted for the Pym Particles; there’s just not really a better option when you’re looking at 5 open points. I didn’t want to use an ID card because they don’t feel right with this team build, and the PP are very good for only 2 points. Make Cable a giant so he can see over everything while still hiding in hindering or make Domino tiny so that Cable can carry her around all he wants. Heck, you could make Deadpool tiny so that Cable & Deadpool literally never go anywhere alone. If you really want to, make Cannonball giant so that he has Giant Reach: 2 and make him that much easier to hit people with. I’ll bet this miscount and don’t take those particles into account when they’re positioning.

This team is really quite versatile and surprisingly hard to deal with. It’s got three members that can heal back up quite easily and tons of dice rerolling. My only complaint is the lack of Outwit, but it is themed, so that’s fine. Let’s take a look at another variation that isn’t themed and drops Domino for more options.

300 Points Modern Cable & Deadpool Team – No Resources, Less Restrictions

DXF 014 Cable | 120 Points

DXF 037a Deadpool | 75 Points

WKDP16-003 Ace, the Bathound | 50 Points

JW 063 Bizarro Joker | 45 Points

WKMP17-007 Pym Pocket Tank | 8 Points

AVAS S100 Pym Particles | 2 Points

Sideline: DXF 001a Deadpool, DXF 017 Deadpool, DXF 033 Deadpool, DXF 034a or b Deadpool (X-Men or X-Force Version), DXF 037b Deadpool, Pym Particle Tank

Build Total: 300 Points

This build is quite different from the one above, using two DC characters over Marvel. Cable and Deadpool didn’t change, so there’s no point going over them again, so I’m skipping straight to the new stuff. I thought about what the two buds really needed to be successful, and I came up with damage absorber/tie-up piece and Outwit/healer.

Ace is absolutely the best option for the Outwit/healer role. Not only does do both of those options and does them well, he can pick other powers that help the team out. If you’re going full range with Cable and Deadpool, pick up Enhancement and get that sweet +1 to damage on both attacks. Same goes for Empower if you feel like going melee (remember, Cable can make a close or range attack from his power, so bruising is okay). There’s so much utility in Ace that he’s hard to pass up for only 50 points. His 4 clicks is scary, but it’s worth it. Besides, who says Deadpool wouldn’t dress up a dog in a Batman costume? That’s totally a Deadpool thing to do.

For absorber/tie-up, I went with the best version here as well in Bizarro Joker. This guy is borderline impossible to kill and will be a complete nuisance to melee-specific teams as he drains their attack values and keeps them in place while your attackers pick them off. No need for Ace to heal him when he’s already going to heal back up quite easily. 45 points is a damn bargain for this piece.

I went with the Pym Particles again, but this time because it actually makes a ton of sense. Since Ace is already tiny, you can get Joker onto the particles and shrink him down, meaning Cable and Deadpool can phase around the map, carrying the rest of the team. No need for a super taxi like Overdrive or Vanisher; these guys do it for you AND get to attack afterwards. Best of both worlds.

Finally, you’ll notice I included the Pym Pocket tank. This thing has made quite the commotion as of late and it’s easy to see why. For 8 points, you get so much extra damage, displace the enemy team, and have the possibility of a tank hitting enemies for 4 damage. It’s also got Enhancement, so it can buff damage even further. Also, there’s some neat tech with the tank for this team. Cable and Deadpool can each only carry one smaller character, but the tank has a sweet trait that bypasses this:

Just A Keyring…: Pym Pocket Tank must begin the game placed adjacent to a friendly character. When an adjacent friendly character moves and actions resolve, you may place the Pym Pocket Tank adjacent to that character.

This means that while you’re setting up and getting Bizarro Joker into position, you can STILL take the Tank with you, regardless of carrying other figures because you aren’t carrying it, it’s being placed. The only time you need to carry it is when you’re planning on using it in an attack, which mind you can be range or close. This thing ups our damage level by an insane amount.

Okay, for the last build, I want to go a little bonkers and change things up. Time for some crazy play!

300 Points Modern Cable & Deadpool Team – No Resources, Let’s Go Crazy!

DXF 014 Cable | 120 Points

DXF 060 Deadpool Possessed by Eclipso | 70 Points + 25 Points = 95 Points

UXM FF 002 Jean Grey | 50 Points

DXF 059b Wiz Kid | 25 Points

WKMP17-007 Pym Pocket Tank | 8 Points

AVAS S100 Pym Particles | 2 Points

Sideline: Pym Particle Tank

Build Total: 300 Points

You’re probably noticing a trend here; Pym Particles and the Pocket Tank. Maximum Effort requires maximum shenanigans, and these two special objects are just so good and efficient for only 10 points of your build. If you really want to change things up, you can swap out the Pocket Tank for the Symbiote for Cable.

This time, I swapped Deadpool out for the Super Rare title character. If you read my article last week, I talked about how good this Deadpool is and how possession is almost a must-have on him, and instead of just running the same Deadpool, I figured he would be a great change. How is this guy 5 points cheaper than the shifting focus Deadpool? I’ll never know. Anyway, with this Deadpool partied up with Cable, you get to take down number buffing making it easier to hit for both of them, and eventually destroying everyone in a 13 square box. If you’re going to drop the shifting focus Deadpool’s, this is the best stop in my opinion.

Jean Grey is going to help get everyone into position as now we do need a little help in the mobility department since we bailed on the free teleport from the rare Deadpool. Not only will she help us get to where we need to be, she’ll also help TK the Pym Particles to whomever needs them (coming up in the next paragraph), and can pull Cable out of danger so that he can pot-shot and return to cover. TK also helps get Deadpool into position for maximum damage from Bullet Time. I’d like a taxi for her as that really makes her shine, and you could accomplish this by making someone a giant, but I think the particles are best served otherwise.

I used the last piece, Wiz Kid, in the Deadpool title build last week as well, and mentioned that for only 2 more points, the particles seem destined for him as it allows anyone to carry him around and get that sweet bonus. I mentioned how he buffs Deadpool’s already killer stats, but he does work for Cable as well. With a natural 11 attack, 4 damage, and 7 range, Wiz Kid is going to make Cable a tank killer that’s almost guaranteed to hit (especially with Prob). While it’s true that he’s only benefiting two people and swapping out Jean for a tertiary attacker might help his long game, it’s not something we should really worry about for 25 freakin’ points.

This build throws everything it can at Cable & Deadpool and sets them up for the most success possible. I’m sure there are other pieces that could work well with them, but at 215 points, that doesn’t leave too many options.

That wraps up my ode to Cable & Deadpool in modern. I’m looking forward to trying out these builds and seeing how strong they are and can’t wait to field these best buds. What pieces do you think would work well with Cable & Deadpool? Should I have used the Fast Forces Cable with the Title Deadpool to save points and get TK that way? I’m curious what your thoughts are!

See you guys next week! Hopefully two things happen: The units section is updated and the Mercs For Money Fast Forces is spoiled so I can do a review!