First Some Thoughts

This set continues the same low point trend started in Uncanny X-Men, and for the most part that works out pretty well. There’s a lot of interesting figures at low points that really feel like the character they’re attempting to represent, BUT there’s an equal number of figures that are playable in-spite of being terrible representations of the character (all of the JSA figures).

In terms of sub-themes, this set is a little bit too full as well. For a Suicide Squad sub-theme there’s really not that many Suicide Squad members, and if you wanted to build the version of the team from the movie, that’s not possible as Killer Croc doesn’t have the keyword. On-top of that, most of the Suicide Squad fall into the rare slots, making it a potentially frustrating team to collect.

The last thing I want to mention about this set is the strange lack of power in the rare slot. In almost every other set, if you got a rare figure it did something better than a common or uncommon figure, but this set is going against that trend and making a lot of the rare characters strangely under-powered. I feel like Wizkids is attempting to find a balance between simple figures in the common and uncommon slots and complicated figures in the super-rare slots, which ends up with an incredibly disappointing rare slot that is neither complicated enough to be interesting, or simple enough to be effective. The worst offender has to be Killer Moth, but I’ll be getting to him soon enough.

In terms of playing this set, there’s a few things of note.

Reflexes/Deflection- Almost half the set has either Energy/Shield or Combat Reflexes at some point on their dial, making sealed in this set often revolve around controlling how you engage your opponent, or your 10 attacks are never going to hit their 19/20 defense. This goes hand in hand with

Outsiders– This is the first big group of Outsiders in a while, and because of that, your Combat Reflexes/Energy Shield/Close Combat Expert/Ranged Combat Expert aren’t as reliable as usual. Think about taking down any figure with Outsiders quickly if your running a lot of Energy Shield or Reflexes, or you’re figures are going to be left unprotected.

Stealth– As with all Batman sets, there’s quite a bit of Stealth, but in this set, Stealth is stronger than ever with only 5 characters able to see through it, and only one of those figures has Improved Targeting: Ignores Hindering, and he’s a Prime. Stealth and Combat Reflexes is almost overpowered in this set, so look at really strong close combat figures to get through those high defenses.

Leadership- When point values are this low, there’s a good chance you’re going to want as much Leadership as you can get your hands on even if you aren’t using it to take tokens off of characters. Figures like Commissioner Gordon and Amanda Waller will help, even if their other traits and powers don’t lend themselves to your team.

On to the Commons!

001 The Joker

The first of many Jokers in the set isn’t awful! For 45 points you’re getting a character with Sidestep and penetrating Poison and not really anything else. Defensively his values are average to low, and he’s only got Mastermind to protect him, which is only useful if you’re planning on playing Thugs or Joker’s Thug along side to transfer damage. He’s real value is tying up other figures and slowing tearing away at them while they can only harmlessly strike the useless thugs beside him. It’s not a top-tier strategy, but it’s something that can certainly work.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

002 Harley Quinn

Harley Quinn follows in a long line of 25 point Perplex users like Jimmy Olson. Mary Jane and Irma, and sadly, she really doesn’t bring much to the table over any of them. Her Stealth and Combat Reflexes makes her tricky to take down, but unless you’re using her for her keywords, Irma will always be a better option for a cheap Perplexer. That being said, in sealed and constructed Perplex is always helpful, so she’s in no way bad.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed:3/5

003a Joker Thug

Joker Thug’s entire purpose in life is to take hits for Joker. If you pull a Joker he’s going to really make his points worth while, and if you don’t he’s a dud sitting in your booster. The big thing going for Joker Thug is his trait which is a reversed, re-worded Mastermind allowing Joker to avoid taking damage without actually “avoiding” it and therefore making the power immune to Precision Strike. Furthermore, if Joker is single-target Pulse Waved, Joker’s Thug should be able to be the target of it because the Pulse Wave doesn’t reach him, and therefore doesn’t ignore his trait.

Sealed: 2/5- 4/5 with a Joker.

Constructed: 2/5

003b Anarky

Anarky could potentially be really interesting in the competitive scene. With the ability to control huge amounts of space on the map, and only for 75 points, Anarky could potentially change the way parts of the game are played. His bombs, since they’re placed at the beginning of the game, disrupt the placement of KC figures, as long as the KC player goes first, potentially removing them from the game before they’re able to contribute at all. The bombs also offer some unprecedented control as they allow you to decide when they go off. This means that, when an opponent tries to set them off with a tent-pole that will take at most 1 damage from a bomb, you can delay the blast until a more fitting target arrives.

Anarky otherwise is a pretty uninteresting figure. Probability Control is always useful to have, but his low 2 damage isn’t going to be doing much for you. The last trick Anarky has is the ability to place more bombs in adjacent spaces. This can be fatal for Anarky as he doesn’t have a ton of reducers and has no way to escape the bomb’s radius, but it’s also a way for you to create a deterrent in trouble places on the map, especially in turtling teams. Either way, this is a really well designed

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 4/5

004 Kobra Fanatic

For 20 points, Kobra Fanatic is surprisingly aggressive with Charge and Blades/Claws/Fangs. These powers combined allow Kobra Fanatic to threaten most figures up close. Of course, he is 20 points, so you’re also dealing with 3 clicks of life, a 16 defense with no power, and a low 9 attack. As part of a swarm strategy, Kobra Fanatic has a chance, especially with the fantastic Soldier keyword. The last part of his repertoire is the Underworld team ability. This is rare, but it basically allows for two Kobra Fanatic’s to be carried by a higher point character, eliminating any trouble involving mobility. Overall these are just really solid generics, and will be useful in constructed and sealed.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

005 Court of Owls Initiate

This is purely Mastermind fodder, and if you’re interested in running them, you’re going to have to decide to run this over a Thug. There are really only 2 benefits to running Court of Owls Initiate, the first being the Underworld team ability, allowing it to be carried by other Underworld characters, and the second is it’s ability to reduce damage by 1 when it’s transferred to them. Yeah, they do get Exploit Weakness on their last click, but that will almost never come into play, and so isn’t important in the concideration. Thug, on the other hand, has 2 more clicks of life, and can be run on any named theme team, making them better 90% of the time, as they maintain your theme team. There might be some tech here with Red Son Wonder Woman, potentially reducing damage to 0 or 1 to when transferring, but it’s probably not worth wasting thought on.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

006 Thanagarian

Thanagarian’s are 30 points figures with a single purpose. To carry other figures up, and then give them a pseudo charge when they’re within 4 spaces of an opponent. This guy will be a godsend in sealed to give move and attack to characters that desperately need it, and potentially have value in constructed, if someone smarter than me finds a combo for them, just don’t expect any of these generics to deal damage, as all their values are low.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed:2/5

007 Commissioner Gordon

Commissioner Gordon is a pretty big support figure for 30 points, but surprisingly doesn’t play nice with other Police figures. Regardless, he’s offering some unparalleled value for that 30 points, with a Police Team Ability that modifies by -2 instead of -1, making attack rolls trivial, and Leadership and Enhancement. Even with the Leadership not being useful for taking tokens off, the Enhancement combos well with the Police team ability making him the best guy to have by your ranged attackers side. Looking at how his powers are worded, it looks like he can use Leadership and Enhancement, you’ll just need to roll Leadership with him before anyone else, and make the attack with the character adjacent to him instead of another Enhancement. I think he’ll find a place in competitive play as his power as a ranged supporter is almost unparalleled.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 4/5

008 Green Arrow

Need a partner for Commissioner Gordon? Look no further than this Green Arrow. With a low 40 point cost, Green Arrow is your budget ranged attacker with Sidestep and Ranged Combat Expert and… that’s it. But, with a 10 attack, you’re free to use that Ranged Combat Expert to boost your damage to 4, making him a surprisingly strong ranged threat for all your opponents. Going back to Gordon for a second, with Gordon beside him, Green Arrow basically has a 12 attack, 3 damage before using his Ranged Combat Expert, making him an enormous ranged attacker. Back to Green Arrow, the best thing about him is just how push-able he is. Don’t worry about pushing because you’re keeping that 10 attack basically down your dial.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

009 Robin

I absolutely love this Robin. For 45 points, he’s going to be one of the most annoying tie-up characters with a move and attack ability, Empower to support friendly characters, and Combat Reflexes and Stealth to keep him out of harms way. After he loses those powers, he’s getting Ranged Combat Expert, Willpower and Flurry, making him even more dangerous, especially when paired with that trait that lets him jump 5 spaces for free when he has a token on him. This is the best 45 points you can spend when you’re looking for a secondary attacker/tie-up figure/support. The 4 clicks of life is a little troubling, but if you can get him in Stealth or up close, he’s going to take a lot of focus to get rid of.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed:4/5

010 Wildcat

Compared to that perfect Robin, this Wildcat is a little disappointing. He’s your everyday close combat figure, with an impressive amount of 11 attacks down his dial. He’s just not going to live up to much when the majority of his damage is down his dial and he doesn’t have enough defense to get him up close. If you’re playing a JSA team his defense sharing power is better than the rest. Indominable keeps him threatening, and is a rarity in this set, but by himself, he’s not particularly effective.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

011 Court of Owls Assassin

In sealed, Court of Owls Assassin offers a lot of potential damage, especially in this set with a lack of reducers. Traited Stealth and Blades/Claws/Fangs keeps him dangerous and hidden for the entirety of his dial. Honestly, it’s the Sidestep that really matters. In this set, chances are you’re going to be running more than 3 characters, and so all characters that can move for free become increasingly useful. At the same time, with no other way to get adjacent to an opposing character, Assassin isn’t very threatening. He’s a mixed bag, but the top-dial Poison and mid-dial Flurry give him some surprises for when your opponents get close.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

012 Amanda Waller

I like all the printed Amanda Waller’s but this one takes the cake by far. For 25 points all of the Suicide Squad heals whenever any figure on your side dies. That’s all you need to know. If you’re looking to break this, run Turtle and Pied Piper, who can summon rats for free, these rats then move farther than Turtle allows them, instantly killing them and healing every Suicide Squad member for atleast 1 click of life. In sealed she’s ok due to her stealth, 5 range and 2 damage top dial, keeping her threatening against most other figures in the set.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 4/5

013 Colonel Rick Flag, Jr.

Very long name for a boring dial. With no defensive powers outside of Willpower you have to keep characters adjacent to him to keep him alive. Offensively he’s pretty strong, especially on his top-dial, but manages to stay fairly strong throughout. He’s like Wildcat, he just doesn’t bring enough to the table to relegate the 60 points for him outside of sealed. In sealed, his potential 19 defense can be almost impossible to hit, making him much more useful.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

014 Black Lightning

Black Lightning is like Rick Flagg in that he has no defensive powers top dial, but he makes up for it with an astounding 8 range and the Outsiders team ability. He also brings a triple target Incapacitate with an added 1 penetrating damage. His last click also brings a 4 damage Running Shot and Penetrating/Psychic Blast to the table. If you pull him you should definitely play him, he just brings too much to ignore, and has some insane range to keep him safe. If he does get hit, he’s going down, as his values just don’t keep him safe and he has a very short dial for 75 points.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

015 Harvey Bullock

Harvey Bullock might be decent in sealed if you pull enough Police figures, otherwise he’s a weaker Gordon with a more offensive first click. Police team ability will always be useful in sealed, and another attacker will never hurt. In constructed he’s going to be a much more interesting character. If more Police figures come down the pipe, Harvey Bullock is going to start looking a lot better, potentially forcing your opponent to let you choose map or instead give your entire team incredible mobility. The potential in this figure is very high, it just depends if Wizkids gives us any great Police figures.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 2/5 (potential 4/5)

016 Batman

Damn, I can’t believe this isn’t an uncommon or a rare. This Batman is astoundingly strong with two team abilities, traited Outwit, a pick-a-power, and even more importantly, the ability to ignore elevated and hindering terrain for movement. This Batman cannot be stopped, and can ping away at your opponents with little threat of retaliation. If you pull him play him, there’s no question about it. In constructed he’s going to be a threatening Outsiders figure, but as the Trinity War Batman is still modern, this one won’t get the light of day.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5