017 Scarlet Spider

Ben Reilly is taking a page from Spider-Girl, starting off as a ranged attacker before getting in close to end the fight. The first thing to notice about him is the huge amount of Improved Movement he’s packing. He has all the usual stuff, but also can ignore Outdoor Blocking Terrain, which is really useful. The only thing better would be the Wing Symbol. Scarlet Spider gives you one reason to play him, and it’s his attack power. Being able to give out action tokens in a set where 3 characters are Indominable is almost always useful, and being able to stop a character in its tracks is at least situationally useful, especially when you’re up against a Morlun. Sadly, his values aren’t great, and after he loses his attack power and is forced into close combat, his 2 damage just won’t cut it. He’s going to have some use for his first three clicks, but after that he’s a waste of 80 points.

Constructed- 1/5

Sealed- 2/5

018 Toxin

Toxin is a strange figure with a combination of great values and less than fantastic powers. With no move and attack, Toxin is going to need some help getting up close, thankfully he’s got enough keeping him alive to be able to rest for a turn before getting aggressive. The shared Alien Symbiote trait is very useful with Toxin, giving him the benefit of Shape Change to keep him alive and Plasticity to keep your opponents figures close to him. I just wish Toxin’s click were switched around, giving him his Super Strength at the beginning of his dial instead of in the second half, keeping his damage very high. Overall he’s a pretty decent bruiser with really solid values and less fantastic powers. He also is sporting the Police Team ability to give boosts to ranged attackers nearby, but as a close combat figure, it probably won’t come into play too often.

Constructed- 2/5- His values are solid, but as a close attacker with no mobility he just can’t compete.

Sealed- 3/5- His values are high enough in sealed to keep him alive long enough for him to have a solid effect on the game. He’s going to be your plan b attacker if you don’t manage to pull anyone better.

019 Mary Jane

Mary Jane has one purpose and it’s to use Perplex. She can give a boost to Spider-Man, and it’s not unlikely for you to pull him and her together, but it’s just not enough of a boost to build around. If you pull her, use her, as she’s going to be a key support figure on whatever team you choose to play. She’s a little outclassed in constructed, as Jimmy Olson is just flat out better with the The World Needs to Know power.

Constructed: 2/5

Sealed: 5/5

020 Silk

Silk is kind of a let down. Her powers are good, but her 2 damage makes her output less enticing. The special attack power is also less than fantastic. 3 bolt Incapacitate is amazing, but only being able to do it when all targets have no action tokens on them makes it Defensively she’s still not great, with Super-Senses down her dial followed by Regeneration. Even with the ability to re-roll her Super-Senses there’s just too much Outwit and Precision Strike for it to matter. When a figure can’t defend themselves sufficently, and don’t have much of an offensive portfolio, they just aren’t bringing enough to the table to be considered. When you’re comparing her to the 014 Spider-Man from Civil War, who also has 3 target Incapacitate, the only thing going for her is her Probability Control. Maybe her Regeneration paired with wildcarding the Mystics team ability would give her some potential, but it’s a hard sell. In sealed she’s one of the 3 characters that provide Probability Control on their top click, making it a very easy decision to play her.

Constructed: 2/5

Sealed: 4/5

021 Nightwatch

I love characters that provide interesting utility during every turn of the game, and while Nightwatch’s values are a little lacking, he does provide enough utility to be considered. The trait is what’s going to keep Nightwatch going, blocking lines of fire is going to stop Pulse Wave, and characters like Nick Fury can’t get rid of it because it’s not a power. His top dial leaves a little bit to be desired, as he doesn’t have any mobility, but Stealth and his improved movement will help him get into place to attack. Using Perplex to target himself will give him a 4 damage top dial or an 18 defense, keeping him within the range of values you want for an 85 points character. He’s honestly just a good secondary attacker with enough reducers and a complicated defensive trait to make it hard to hit him. Putting a sin relic on him and giving him Combat Reflexes is going to make him very difficult to take down. In sealed he’s going to be tough with his extensive reducers, something that’s hard to find in this set, and he’s not going to be too afraid of being shot at as he advances due to his trait.

Constructed: 3/5

Sealed: 4/5

022 Death Adder

No mobility without his trait, and very little protection without water or hindering, a recipe for disaster. Yet I think Death Adder has enough offensive potential to make up for that. Getting him up close is easy with traited Phasing/Teleport, and Giant Reach 2 and Flurry/Blades with the bonus of not being able to be reduced below 1 against characters 100 or less, is going to hurt if you pull it off. The best thing about him is that his Poison even gets the boost of not being able to be reduced, making him a threat to every character he’s close to. Yeah, his values are less than ideal, but with enough ways to find protection, he’s going to be a dangerous character to throw into the middle of things, and force your opponent to respond to while the rest of your team moves into position.

Constructed: 4/5- I think after the more powerful figures phase out of modern, Death Adder will become a serious threat.

Sealed: 4/5

023 Venom

Venom is Toxin with Charge. He shares the same great trait, insuring he can tie up whoever he wants, but also avoid being tied up himself. With Charge, Indomitable and Exploit Weakness, Venom is a lot more offensive than Toxic, but he does have a few oddities that make his 25 extra points a little questionable. His Charge only lasts for his first two clicks, but luckily he has traited Steal Energy, which will help him stay top dial, and, after losing Charge, he’s getting 18 Defend, Stealth and the ability to deal adjacent characters damage to heal him. His values aren’t as solid down the dial, but with a steady 10 attack and 3 damage he’s going to be very reliable.

Constructed: 3/5

Sealed: 4/5

023b Anti-Venom

Anti-Venom isn’t a really spectacular prime, but being able to Outwit every character within 2 spaces isn’t too bad at all. If his Charge lasted for more than 2 clicks, he would have been more offensively viable. Support pops up on his middle clicks, which leads him to a more supporting role, and his last two are solely responsible for keeping him alive with Regeneration. Somehow he just doesn’t seem reliable enough in any role to be played. If you have a use for his traited “Outwit”, which actually gets around Mary Marvel’s and Ares’s trait, he might be worthwhile.

Constructed: 2/5

Sealed: 4/5- Having a massive multi-Outwit will win you games.

024 Cottonmouth

Cottonmouth will be the line to compare all other 100 and less attacks to. For 100 points, Cottonmouth can charge 5 spaces and deal 7 Penetrating damage with an ultra heavy. His attack is a low 10, but has the potential to increase it when targeting characters with tokens. Cottonmouth has Indomitable, a rare thing in this set and in the Serpent Society, and at the end of his admittedly short dial, he has Blades/Claws/Fangs, Super Strength and a psuedo Precision Strike, keeping him pretty dangerous. Of course he has his traited 3 range Phasing/Teleport move and attack, for when he loses Charge, giving him more extensive mobility, but honestly, none of that matters, all that matters is that sweet 7 penetrating damage.

Constructed: 4/5

Sealed: 5/5- Cottonmouth can one shot every character in this set except for Nightwatch, Mephisto, Devil Dinosaur and Ares

025 Hobgoblin

I’m a big fan of Hobgoblin, but he’s really best for sealed. Hobgoblin’s super Shape Change means that every time he avoids a single attack, he’s automatically going to avoid the next attack as well, while at the same time dealing damage to whatever opposing character you want. His powers are also pretty decent, as he’s one of the few characters with Precision Strike, and has a long (for this set) 6 range. The second half of his dial is just as good with Running Shot, Penetrating/Psychic Blast and Perplex Hobgoblin just has a great dial all the way down. He of course also has the Sinister Syndicate team ability, making him one of the best figures to activate the Superior Foes trait, and insuring he can keep your attack up if you pull other Sinister Syndicate members.

Constructed: 3/5

Sealed: 5/5

026 Jackal

Jackal brings important support powers to your team, and on-top of that can be impossible to kill. He’s also one of few characters in the game who has Mind Control and 0 range, forcing him to rely on the minimum 4 range for Mind Control if he wants to make any attacks. Jackal is going to be annoying as hell, especially if you roll a 5 or 6 for his clone roll. With traited Shape Change on top of all that, Jackal can be thrown into the fray to keep people locked down, but simultaniously, he’s a supporting character with Outwit and Perplex. There’s really no reason not to play him in sealed. In constructed, he doesn’t really have enough usefulness for his point cost. He’s hard to take down, but he’s not going to contribute much. He might be able to work on a team that focuses on never dying, but otherwise he’s just going to be a point sink.

Constructed: 2/5

Sealed: 5/5

027 Anaconda

In a set full of close attackers, Anaconda provides an antidote. With a 2 range Plasticity, characters can’t even charge in to get close to her, yet, something about her still doesn’t sit right with me. Her values are decent, but her powers are slightly lacking. Her special attack power isn’t useful a majority of the time since it’s limited to only walls, and not blocking terrain, and her only other attack power is Poison, something you most likely won’t want to use, as you’ll want to be capturing characters and holding them at 2 range. The biggest issue with holding characters at 2 range is that they’re still not considered adjacent to her, and therefore can activate ranged attacks, but for a cheap 60 points, Anaconda brings more than enough utility, especially with a long dial, solid values, and the ability to completely shut down Hypersonic attackers.

Constructed: 4/5- After some of the most dangerous figures rotate out, and the meta starts focusing on lower point figures, Anaconda will be a fantastic choice for controlling the board.

Sealed: 4/5

028 Norman Osborn

Norman Osborn’s value is directly related to if you pull Green Goblin. If you don’t, he’s useful for the fact he has Outwit, and not much more. If you do, for 50 points you’re getting Outwit, Perplex and Empower, which is fantastic value for sealed. In constructed, Norman isn’t bad, and there’s definitely something interesting about being able to choose a different power depending on what your opponent brings to the table. It’s too bad that’s the only character he’s able to grab powers from is the only ok Green Goblin from this set. If there’s ever another Green Goblin, especially from an awesome OP Kit, Norman Osborn might be even better.

Constructed: 2/5

Sealed: 3/5-5/5

029 Overdrive

Overdrive is good in a set with tons of people who can carry, in a set with basically no characters who can carry, he’s outstanding. For 35 points he can carry 4 characters, that’s outstanding. He’s absolutely under costed and might even be better than Vanisher from Uncanny X-Men. He also has Empower, boosting the damage of all the close combat figures. There’s absolutely nothing but perfection in this character. On top of all of that, his Superior Foes trait is giving other Superior Syndicate characters Sidestep further increasing their mobility after making an attack. Even with his low value, you have the option to give your character an action to use Sidestep if you need it.

Constructed: 5/5

Sealed: 5/5

030 Scorpion

Scorpion is a pretty unexciting figure, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have his uses. He’s a cheap 50 points, and he’s not a terrible secondary attacker for that many points. His values are pretty decent, especially when paired with Close Combat Expert. This only lasts his first three clicks, and only two of those benefit from Sidestep, the rest of which he loses all those benefits, but does gain Perplex. Overall he’s just a little lacking compared to some of the figures from Uncanny X-Men, and especially compared to the fantastic Streaky. It’s not that Scorpion doesn’t have uses, he just doesn’t benefit your team for including him.

Constructed: 1/5

Sealed: 2/5

031 Spider-Man

I have so many problems with this figure, including the dial and the sculpt. Why is Miles as big as Peter? There’s no reason for him to be a reused sculpt. Even then, if he was a better dial I could overlook it. Sadly he’s just not good enough to be memorable. His only move and attack is Sidestep, paired with a lackluster attack power that only activates on close attacks. The best way to get him there is with another Spider-verse figure using their trait, but you’re spending 70 points on a figure that almost requires one of those figures to be useful. Defensively he’s a little better with an 18 defense Combat Reflexes and Shape Change, followed up by a whole dial of Super-Senses. With lackluster damage values, and no mobility, Miles Morales is stuck with an incredibly disappointing representation.

Constructed: 1/5

Sealed: 1/5

032 Mr. Hyde

Mr. Hyde is a pretty straightforward brawler, and with his fairly long dial and a lot of reducers, he’s not going to have much trouble getting into the thick of things. On-top of that, his trait allows him to benefit from being hit with attacks, increasing his attack and damage values to incredibly heights, and giving him Sidestep to mobalize him. You might worry that you’re eventually going to have to pass with Mr. Hyde, losing your anger tokens, but with the Masters of Evil team ability, he’s going to be able to keep pushing, never worrying about clearing, keeping him incredibly aggressive, while slowly whittling away his own life. The potential for a 15 attack, 7 damage Flurry is impressive, but the chance that you’re actually going to be getting that far is unlikely. The best part of Mr. Hyde is that his trait doesn’t just trigger on being damaged, but just from being attacked, allowing you to boost his defense to keep attacks from hitting him, while still benefiting from it. He’s still a close attacker stuck with medicore mobility, and will suffer from anyone who deals Penetrating damage, or who can Outwit him. If he was 75 points, Mr. Hyde would be hard to pass up, but with a higher cost, you’re putting a lot of your team on his back, and I don’t think he can handle it.

Constructed: 3/5- I think he can be incredibly effective, but he needs some support that’s just not there right now to do so. Keep him in mind when future sets drop.

Sealed: 4/5- I’ve had a lot of success with him as a powerful attacker that the enemy team can’t ignore without putting themselves in a lot of danger.