Commons

001 Thor

Thor is not the best starting character a set has ever had, but he gains a lot of value as a common with his ability to Carry. The rest of his dial is pretty lackluster, with an 8 movement with Charge barely getting him into the fight, and only Toughness and Combat Reflexes to fall-back on. If he does get into adjacency, he’s using Quake to deal atleast 1 damage to everyone he hits. He has range, but they really don’t want you to make use of it by giving him 2 damage on every click except his first and last. He’s a one trick pony, and that trick really isn’t very interesting or useful. On-top of all that he has no Willpower, insuring he’s stuck pushing off of his Charge when he really needs it. He might be playable if you as a common taxi for Sif, but if you pull anyone else to carry her, you’ll be better off.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

002 Loki

Loki is one of those figures in sealed that requires you to pull more than one to be fully effective, but since it’s more likely that you won’t, I’m going to focus on it as a solo figure. Loki is a difficult to deal with tie-up figure that bulks up in the middle with a stop-click and some good powers paired with average values. Outwit on the stop-click makes him a great pull in sealed, and his top-dial 18 defense with Shape Change and Super Senses makes him hard to land a hit on, especially when your opponent knows it’s only making him stronger. In constructed, his God of Trickery power isn’t bad at all. Two decent tie-up figures for 10 points, on-top of an already solid attacker with a stop-click and the ability to potentially create more tie-up whenever they’re attacked, makes for a pretty sweet investment of 75 points. I definitely want a ton of Loki’s to confuse my opponents with.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

003 Hercules

Even though Super Strength doesn’t let him use objects with his Hypersonic Speed, it still lets him get one big hit off on a far-away opponent, hopefully knocking them into a wall. This Hercules has a lot more value than you would expect from a traditionally straightforward beater character. His once a game Hypersonic will let him get the first hit on any of your opponents important or squishy characters, and his ability to give an opponents big piece an action token each turn as a free action can make him a headache for any higher point character. His values and powers aren’t anything incredible, but they’re good enough for him to utilize his trait to its best. A fun, surprisingly great figure that will end up slowing down your best figures if you let him.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

004 Sif

Sif is a cheap Flurry and Blades/Claws/Fangs figure that needs some assistance getting into the fray, but can reliably deal with a lot of figures in this set. With Combat Reflexes and Toughness top-dial, she’s difficult to deal with up-close, and can put a lot of damage out through-out her dial. There’s a lot of value throughout her 45 point dial, with the only real negative coming from the lack of mobility inherent in a figure without move and attack. If you pull another figure that can carry, she’s going to be a fantastic threat in the front line, forcing your opponents to target her instead of whoever carried her up.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

005 Hulk

As a free bonus, the Hulk trait isn’t bad at all. It makes your opponents think twice before throwing away damage at Hulk, knowing that next turn he can utilize that damage as a boost to his values and throw himself right into their figures, but the fact that it lasts only a single turn can leave Hulk vulnerable after you do so. Regardless, Hulk’s got a long dial that follows the traditional style of bulking up at the end, while being generally mediocre at the beginning. The best plan with Hulk is to grab a Heavy Object and place him so that your opponent will be forced to deal with him, which in turn makes him a monster on your next turn. Leaving him out in the open might seem unwise, but his trait will increase his defense as he takes damage, making follow-up attacks more and more difficult to land, making Hulk impossible to deal with in a single turn. Late in his dial he gets an impressive Leap/Climb followed by Charge, which gives him a lot of mobility, even with his very short 5 movement. He can be a monster in sealed if you can force your opponent to deal with him by basing some of their support figures, giving him a couple turns of massive attacks, but if they leave him for last, he’s going to be a waste of 110 points. In sealed, play him if you feel good about overextending him, controlling your opponents figures with the threat of his Super Strength, and letting them hit him for his gain, because if not, you’re going to have a 110 point liability with a pretty weak top-dial.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

006 Captain America

It’s too bad the Captain America I.D Card isn’t modern anymore, because this guy is an absolute beast and you can bet I’ll be playing him in silver age games. Blades/Claws/Fangs, Charge and Flurry make Captain America a scary 55 point threat that can potentially deal with any figure your opponent has (with the right rolls of course). That being said, Captain America isn’t perfect. His value is all front-loaded, losing his best power combo after 2 damage, and with only Combat Reflexes keeping him safe, it’s not hard to do. Furthermore, he has a below average Charge range of 4, and no Willpower, almost necessitating a transporter to take him into the fray. The end of his dial gives him more protection from Asgardians, which is helpful in this set, and Willpower, so he can keep acting, as well as Sidestep and Close Combat Expert, which even in the new rules, is a great combination. He’s a glass cannon, but for 55 points his maximum potential is so high, that I think he’s almost a must play, if you have someone to carry him.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed 3/5 (4/5 silver age)

007 Spider-Man

Spider-Man is another Charge/Flurry figure with a 4 range Charge, except he costs 20 points more and has 1 less click of life. That being said, he does bring more to the table with Super Strength and Battle Fury on his Charge/Flurry clicks, Improved Movement: Ignores Characters and Super Senses against ranged attacks. He also has 3 clicks of Running Shot at the second half of his dial paired with Outwit, a staple in Sealed. I think Spider-Man’s biggest value is as a Sideline figure for a Hulk. Keep him on the sideline for moments that you really need Outwit, and pull him in when a ranged attacker is more useful than a Hulk. It’s not going to be often, but it’s always nice to have choices. He’s not an awful character to add to your force either, he’s just a little overpriced, and his Outwit comes after he’s taken damage, and with little protection.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

008 Warrior of Asgard

While I’m disappointed there isn’t a generic Thor from Secret Wars, I’m pretty pleased with the generics in this set. I always find that the best sets have the best generics, and with The Mighty Thor, it’s looking pretty good. Warrior of Asgard is one of the less interesting generics, but they are no slouch when they get into adjacency. With the right Asgardian support, they can be some frightening figures, and even without, there are worse ways to spend points in sealed. There little bundles of Blades/Claws/Fangs and if you’ve got some spare points and a spare taxi, don’t be afraid to through one on.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

009 Valkyrie

Valkyrie is another great generic, that pairs fantastically with Warrior of Asgard, being able to carry them up, and then benefiting from their eventual death as well. They make fantastic taxi’s, especially as a common figure, and really benefit from building around them, as the Warrior Soul bystanders are excellent. Don’t be afraid to keep Valkyrie around your figures, especially with her Support and Empower giving her a host of useful supporting powers. She’s definitely a great figure to play if you have an Asgardian theme team, otherwise she’s less useful, but offers some value as a taxi with Support and Empower. In constructed it will be fun to play multiples of these in order to generate multiple Warrior Soul bystanders from the death of a friendly Asgardian.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

010 Rock Troll

The generics just keep getting better! Rock Troll is an absolute beast for 25 points, even with his lack of powers throughout his dial. 18 Defense, 11 Attack and 3 Damage top-dial is all you need to see to play this, and with 5 clicks (that admittedly get worse as they go on) it’s going to be difficult dealing with him in a single attack. These Rock Troll’s are great value in sealed, and will be some of the best point fillers around.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

011 Stone Men of Saturn

These Stone Men aren’t a complete wash, but they definitely suffer in sealed, an environment where it’s difficult to get multiple copies of the same figure. At the 100 point starting line the Stone Men are immensely tanky figures that have 9 clicks of life, and at 20 points they’re weak 4 click figures that can Empower your close combat figures. In sealed, the 100 point option is the only way to go, but they just aren’t reliable. With move and attack on only the first two clicks of their dial, and no way to benefit from their trait, they get left behind easily. The only reason to play them is to stop your opponents from wiping out your team, as it’s going to be difficult to take down one of these that doesn’t want to be hit. Point denial isn’t the most fun strategy, but if you pull some high power figures to go along with him, it’s not the worst strategy either.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 2/5

012 Hatut Zeraze

For 50 points, Hatut Zeraze are some pretty dangerous generics. Starting with Sidestep, Stealth and Ranged Combat Expert on his top click, leading to a possible 4 damage or 12 attack, to the Running Shot with 10 attack and 3 damage on his last two clicks, they’re dangerous all throughout, especially when you’re going to be forced to get close to them due to Stealth and their special defense power that gives them Impervious against ranged attacks. They also have an interesting Improved Movement that lets them move down from elevated terrain, something that I personally haven’t seen before. For a common, these pack a serious punch, are cheap enough to easily include on your team, and are an incredible pain to deal with from range. These are the flies in sealed that you don’t expect much of, and before you know it they’ve torn your team apart. Excellent attackers for the unlucky who pull some bad rares.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

013a The Leader

Here’s your common Outwitter that you’ll need to play if you pull him. His special Outwit allows you to use Outwit a second time if you Outwit the defense power on a higher point character, which is easy to do when The Leader is only 60 points. With the new Mastermind rules, the Leader really wants to get to his last click, where he can Mastermind any attacks to a bulkier figure while really making use of his special Outwit. Honestly a must-play figure in sealed.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

013b Red Leader

When I first saw this Prime I was confused. Yeah, Outwit and Perplex are powerful, especially in sealed, but is the +2/-2 from using Perplex as a power action really worth a prime slot? The answer is an emphatic yes! Because Red Leader doesn’t specify that he can use it as a power action Instead of using it as a free action he can use it both ways, possibly boosting up a single value by +3 INCLUDING DAMAGE. Yes, for 50 points, you can increase the damage value on any of your characters by +3 for a turn. If that’s not worth a Prime Slot, I don’t know what is. Absolutely broken in sealed where suddenly any character on your team will be a monster. Luckily he won’t be able to be played on Jakeem teams.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

014 King Cobra

If you have a swarm of characters and are looking for an extra action, King Cobra is not the worst figure to play to get it. His Phasing/Teleport and Plasticity make him a decent tie-up figure and his values are high enough to be worth playing. He’s not incredible in any means, but as a common option for tie-up or for getting more actions, he does okay. In constructed, he’ll fit your Serpent Society theme teams, which still have some value due to the likes of Anaconda and Cottonmouth.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

015 Thena

The Eternals are all great in sealed, and Thena is absolutely no exception. She is the power common in this set, a figure that can stand up to the likes of the stronger Rares and Super-Rares, but usually with some downside. Thena’s downside is that she only has Running Shot on click 1 of her dial and Charge on click 3. Besides that she isn’t moving and attacking, but that’s okay! She has a lot of other stuff going for her, and as a common, if she was any better, the entire sealed format would revolve around her like it did with the common Cable in Deadpool and the X-Force. Her double Perplex that she gets if she gives up Power Cosmic is excellent, especially if you know that your opponent doesn’t have Outwit on their force, and her 7 Range makes her a threat even without Running Shot. Her late dial special attack power is just Incapacitate after dealing her printed damage, which is never bad, and she has Toughness and Regeneration at the end like the rest of the Eternals to keep her alive. Without the Perplex trait, she would be a strong primary attacker, but with it, she’s a monster with a potential 15 square swing on her top dial. In constructed she’s probably a little more expensive then she really needs to be, but she’s a solid primary attacker for anyone who hasn’t gotten a lot of powerful figures in their collection.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

016 Piledriver

By giving the entire Wrecking Crew a trait that gives them protection from Range, Wizkids has solved the biggest issue that the Wrecking Crew and all other close combat figures have had since the beginning of this game. Piledriver isn’t a complicated figure, you just need to get him into a Debris marker, and wait for someone to try to approach him. If they’re in range to attack him, they’re also in range to get smashed by him. His knockback trait will scare even close combat figures, and the re-positioning after the knockback lets him get closer to your opponents squishy figures, or lets Piledriver return to his hiding space to try his attack again. 4 Damage top-dial makes him a threat for any figure willing to get close to him. His lack of Willpower is a drag, but it’s made up for with the Masters of Evil team ability. As long as he’s attacking, he’s a threat to your opponents back-line.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

Uncommons

017 Thor

This Jane Foster Thor doesn’t quite live up to the Nick Fury SR, but she’s really good for her points. She has great values on most of her clix and a excellent 7 range with move and attack through-out her dial (though it is Charge so…). Each click offers some great value, and on-top of it all, she gets Force Blast and her trait lets her make another attack after she hits with the first once. Overall an excellent middle ground character that offers just enough value to make her point value seem too low. The only thing keeping her from being a must play is a lack of Willpower.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

018 Thor

Wait….didn’t I? What’s happening here? I know it’s a Thor set but this is a little unnecessary. Joking aside, Eric Masterson isn’t too bad for 75 points. He’s very much a cheaper version of the Jane Foster Thor, but brings a couple different elements to a similar combination of Range and Close in one interesting dial. Top-dial he’s able to reduce his damage to completely neuter an opposing figure for a turn. End dial he gets the ever useful Outwit, making him a great figure for sealed. He has a semi-control power top-dial and a great support power in the bottom half making him a well-rounded figure with a lot of potential. With some Perplex, he can reliably deal damage as well as use his power to stop a character from doing anything.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

019 Iron Man

I don’t like this Iron Man. His ranged powers come halfway through his dial, and leaves him immobile, with a 9 attack. At the same time, for 50 points it seems like a pretty impressive dial with a lot of useful powers strewn through-out giving him a ton of utility as a close and ranged attacker. It just sucks that the Charge/Blades part comes before his range-centric powers. He’s got a lot of variety but almost no reliability, making him a fine fit if you need a secondary attacker. He doesn’t really have a role in constructed games, especially when his defensive power gets a boost against Asgardian characters.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

020 Hulk

Hulk is a classic “stronger as you take damage” design, with the added kick of the shared Powered By Rage trait. The boost in power she gets when she takes damage is pretty intense, but it also only lasts until the end of your turn, making it nearly impossible to deal with her in a single turn, as her defense increases for every click she loses. Furthermore, the next turn, as long as you’re not stuck with two action tokens, or…not adjacent to an opponent. Yeah, with only two clicks of Charge down his dial, she isn’t going to be able to utilize those rage tokens as well as she could have. That first half of her dial is filled with potential damage, but it just requires so much work for it to be useful. You need someone with Telekinesis to throw her up after she’s been beaten up, or hopefully, she lands on Charge and can bring the pain. She’s going to have to tie-up your opponents best figure or require a boatload of support to get going.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

021 Red Hulk

Look at all the previous Hulk’s, and that will give you an idea of what I think of Red Hulk. Red Hulk is also more expensive, has Leadership and a Poison trait that gains range based on how many times he’s been attacked this game. These tokens also keep him alive at the end of his dial, where he picks up Impervious and Outwit. The end of his dial is a huge bomb that can crush through your opponents line, but the middle of his dial tells a different story. With these Hulk figures, you’re going to expect them to take some damage and then retaliate the turn after. This is going to be impossible when he’s being pushed onto Leap/Climb, unless he’s adjacent to an opponent. Furthermore, these clicks are his most powerful, kind of limiting their effectiveness in anything but the most specific scenarios. I think Red Hulk is just too expensive, especially when a lot of that cost comes from his Poison trait, which can help deal with more inexpensive figures, but won’t be as effective as the price indicates.You’re getting too little for such a big investment, and when his best clicks come at the price of vulnerability, he becomes more of a liability than a boon to your force.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

022 Jane Foster

Jane Foster might replace Night Nurse as the best supporter in the game, her only possible competition being Dr. Frankenstein and he only works with Monsters. Jane’s Defend insures you need to roll 6 or 7 to heal, and she can do it if her target is adjacent to an opponent. She also doesn’t need to worry about pushing, or characters shooting at her. Her trait keeps her safe from characters 75 points or more from targeting her from range, and if need be, and she somehow fails to keep her friend alive, she can get her revenge by turning into the Jane Foster Thor, on one of her many clicks, and honestly, it doesn’t matter what you roll, you’re either giving her some decent dial length, or you’re giving her Pulse Wave. Either way you win. She’s a must play in sealed, especially if you pull her alter ego, but even if you don’t shes a character that blocks line of sight, and easily keeps your team alive.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

023 Eric Masterson

Eric Masterson is some decent 15 point support for a ranged attacker, if you have the actions to use him. He is 15 point Perplex, but at the cost of an action token, something a lot of teams can’t really afford to lose for a single bump in stats. His Enhancement further helps him be of use, and like Jane Foster, pulling him alongside his version of Thor increases his value. Being able to replace him whenever he would be killed can give you the potential for leaving out a 75 point Thor after a wimpy strike from your opponent. The die roll you have to increase the damage by makes the chance of Eric surviving the transition to Thor very unlikely, and also allows your opponent to score an extra 60 points, making this more of a liability if your opponent hits Eric for any real damage unless you have the Chase. He’s clearly not as good as Jane, but in sealed, you’re going to need all the support you can get.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

024 Warrior Soul

Apart from being a stand in for the bystanders generated by 3 or 4 different figures in this set, Warrior Soul stands as a pretty decent bystander with the ability to use Phasing/Teleport to get up close to his target, before threatening them with his Blades/Claws/Fangs. The Charge/Exploit/Steal Energy on his end dial gives him a little sustainability, but overall, these aren’t doing a lot. For 25 points though, you can do a lot worse. They can make decent tie-up pieces, and can threaten to deal enough damage to make any of the characters in this set worried. They’re far from a must play but might be the best way to spend 25 points in this set.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

025 Valkyrie

Like Warrior Soul, Valkyrie is a great low cost figure that’s values and powers are on the level of a 45-50 point figure. With Blades/Claws/Fangs up top and Sidestep with 3 damage at the end, she’s pretty reliably hitting through reducers. In sealed she’s once again, a great way to spend some extra points you have lying around, and with her trait, might be the only reason to play Lorelei. A free move and attack with 11 attack and 3 damage, followed up by a Charge/Blades is a solid way to start a turn. Her value increases tremendously if you pull some Mind Control with her. In constructed her value is certainly lessened, except for one specific interaction. Moon Dragon can share her defense value to Valkyrie, getting boosted attack and damage from her arrogant tokens, and then target Valkyrie with her Mind Control, giving Moon Dragon a safe way of farming her tokens. Great with or without Mind Control, but in constructed, won’t be too valuable without some Mind Control shenanigans.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

026 Ulik

Ulik has a pretty decent dial length for 100 points, but as he takes damage his stats fall so quickly that he’s almost useless as an attacker. Luckily, if you have Rock Troll within 8 squares of him, he gets their attack and damage +1 throughout his entire dial. That means, as long as you keep that Troll healthy and within 8 squares, Ulik has 7 clicks of 11 attack and 4 damage. Which is absolutely excellent, especially with his high defense value and decent defense powers. Ulik is almost worthless without another Troll, but with one he is a fantastic aggressive figure with a pretty clear Achilles heel. Don’t even concider him for sealed if you don’t have a Rock Troll to play him with, and even then, only if you have enough support to keep that Rock Troll healthy.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

027 Korg

Korg kind of sucks. With 5 clicks of life, no Willpower, and no move and attack outside of Sidestep, he’s going to require someone else to place him to do anything. He’s definitely hard to take down, since he reduces penetrating damage and starts with Invulnerable, but with any amount of focused fire (or a single Outwit) he’s going to fall before he gets a chance to punch someone. Pushing him just makes him more and more vulnerable, and even with his Regeneration, he’s just doesn’t have the survivability to be a good close combat figure, and doesn’t have the effectiveness when he does get close to be worth the risk of getting him there. He’s a lose, lose figure, and even with his synergy with Hulk, there’s very little reason to even consider playing him.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

028 White Wolf

As the non-generic version of a generic, you would expect him to be better than the generic right? Well too bad, because he most definitely isn’t. White Wolf is 20 points more than Hatut Zeraze, and loses those clicks of Ranged Combat Expert in favour of Blades/Claws/Fangs, Combat Reflexes and a Leadership power that can take tokens off of Hatut Zeraze. The chance of you pulling White Wolf and more than one Hatut Zeraze and not a single other thing worth playing is almost impossible. White Wolf does have the same Impervious at range, Toughness up close power that the Hatut Zeraze have, but he has it as a trait, keeping him protected from range at every point in his dial, but it’s just not enough. He’s going to want to get up close to use his Blades/Claws/Fangs, and with only Sidestep to do so, he’s not doing it quickly. There’s a lot of great close combat figures in this set, and White Wolf doesn’t rise above any of them, and can’t really hold his own against them. In constructed he’ll fit onto a Wakanda theme team with a few Hatut Zeraze, and get his defense boosted by Wakabi, giving him a little more viability.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 2/5

029a Executioner

Executioner is a lot more expensive than Korg, and doesn’t have the same protection, but with better values, a longer dial and the ability to start the game with Bloodaxe equipped. With Battle Fury, Exploit Weakness and Steal Energy all throughout his dial, he’s a real threat. The thing I absolutely love about him is his Masters of Evil team ability, which is already rarely combined with Willpower, and on-top of that, having Steal Energy lets Executioner potentially never stop taking actions. It’s a pretty scary dial for a close combat figure, and if Executioner does come with Bloodaxe, he’s an excellent play in sealed, and his axe will probably see some play in constructed.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

029b Skurge

Damn I love the flavour on this figure. Whenever you feel like it, he can pop down in a space to become an unstoppable turret that takes 1 damage from attacks, and modifies his defense by +2. Of course, he hates Pulse Wave like everyone else, but he just doesn’t really stop without it. Good luck trying to push through 7 clicks of life, while he has someone heal him up. His dial is pretty bare, but Ranged and Close Combat Expert boost his values to acceptable levels. The real trick with him comes with deciding to leave the Last Laugh marker. He can always return, but I’m willing to bet your opponent won’t expect him to Sidestep out and blast one of their figures that’s just a little out of range. Skurge is a one man army that is almost impossible to deal with outside of Pulse Wave. He’s also weak to Hypersonic characters that can zip in and smack him, and retreat out of his range. This isn’t as big a deal though, cause they will still need to hit him at the very least 7 times.With any amount of support he’s never going to die. Of course, your opponent can also just stay out of his 7 range, and force the game out. Luckily, in constructed there’s a few ways to avoid that. The first being the Supreme Intelligence. Force your opponent to come to you by constantly turning the dial while you wait for them to get into Skurge’s range. If you can get your opponent to come to you, Skurge is invaluable, and for the most part, indestructible, and best of all a very good use of a prime slot.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 4/5

030 Lorelei

45 point Perplex is definitely pushing it, especially when Lorelei doesn’t really do anything else. Seriously, Mind Control, but only as a close action? Why would that be worth 45 points. If anyone is getting close to Lorelei she’s probably dead, and she’s lost the only useful power she has, Perplex. 45 points is still worth it if your primary attacker needs a boost to their attack, but you’re really going to have to weigh your options when 45 points can get you some serious offensive output in this set. With Valkyrie, you’re paying 80 points for an alright combination that allows Valkyrie to attack twice in a turn. It’s definitely not bad, but it’s a little overpriced, making Lorelei more of a point sink than she already was.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

031 Hogun

Hogun is a must play on teams with a lot of Asgardians, or a team with even one other great Asgardian. Hogun is great at either point value, as the only important thing on his dial is his special Charge that allows every adjacent Asgardian to use charge as FREE if he hits with his. This makes the common Sif and Captain America amazing. Free Charge/Flurry/Blades, followed up with a costed Flurry/Blades is a great way to end any character in this set. Hogun does need some build around, as without Asgardians he’s underwhelming, but with him granting Charge and lowering attack values with his Knobbed Mace weapon, he’s one of the best secondary attackers in this set.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

032 Bulldozer

Bulldozer is almost identical to Piledriver, except he breaks away automatically instead of making Knockback. His charge also lasts down his dial, and most importantly he can break through walls. He’s not a bad use of 75 points, especially if you need to make Debris markers, but he just doesn’t have the impact of Piledriver. Play him if you need a bigger attacker, and if you need to make Debris markers for another member of the Wrecking Crew.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

Rares

033 Throg

Throg is a fairly potent 45 point Perplexer that can double up on Animals and Pet Avengers (including himself). With Frogjolnir, he’s getting +1 attack and +3 defense from range, making him basically untouchable from range, and fairly strong, as long as there’s water and unfortunately, in the two sealed maps in this set there isn’t any water, leaving him high and dry. Thankfully, he’s still worth playing, as you’re getting a Tiny figure that can be carried around and Perplex, as well as having a below average offense to pick off cheaper characters. Throg isn’t changing any teams, but he’s useful, especially in sealed. If it’s a choice between Throg and Lorelei, you’re almost always going with Throg. Now, in constructed, Throg is one of the best support figures for a Animal team. The Animal keyword has been particularly strong recently with the huge amount of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles that are playable, and now that they have access to a strong Perplex user that brings with him one excellent weapon, they’re looking better and better.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

034 Iron Rocket Man

5 clicks of life for 75 points is a lot to spend, but in the sealed format, you’re always looking for Probability Control, especially in this set, where there’s hardly any to find. In a lot of other sets, Rocket would be a sitting duck, but in a set with a heavy focus on close attackers, he’s an excellent ranged attacker that can snipe off characters hiding in the back row, and manipulate the movement of Close attackers to stop them from reaching him. His power to control the first square a character moves into might seem like a small effect, but in use it’s absolutely fantastic. Whether you stop a Sidestep from going anywhere, or forcing a character to move into Hindering and stop, or even simply lower the movement of a Charge by 2, Rocket’s power can be incredibly devastating, and is almost always useful. Laugh as your opponents succeed in their breakaway only to be forced to move adjacent to a different character. In constructed the power loses some of its shine, as it doesn’t really help with Hypersonic Speed, and Rocket himself is a little overpriced for what he brings. 5 clicks of life just isn’t enough when he has Energy Shield/Deflection top dial.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

035 Thorbuster

Like Iron Rocket Man, Thorbuster would be a decent offensive figure in most sets. It wouldn’t rock the boat, but it would fill in a much needed spot on your team, but in Thor, it’s ranged potential makes it a killer figure to pull in sealed. It’s attack power insures that it can strike through any reducer that exists in the set, and its high defense paired with Impervious makes it hard to hit too. His first trait heals him when he takes damage from almost any figure in the entire set, and his second reduces the damage characters can do to him if someone happens to pull an Empower or Enhancement figure. Both are very useful in sealed, and Thorbuster himself is a direct counter to the average figure in this set. Pulling him is an excellent step up for your team. In constructed he’s a little bit of a liability. His traits are less likely to trigger, and he’s too expensive to run solely for his first two clicks. He’s not a bomb, he’s just not as useful as he once was, but he will definitely see play in ROC age events as a call-in for the Iron Man ID card.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

036 Captain Marvel

Oof, not a great showing for Carol Danvers in this set. It’s nice that we’ve gotten her mohawk outfit, but damn Wizkids, could it not have been put on a better dial? Captain Marvel is a dud in constructed, with far better options for call ins, and far better versions of her to play. In sealed though, her Hypersonic and Super Strength give her a huge advantage on the ice map, where Knockback is doubled. With that change, she can zip around the map laying down big hits on your opponents squishy figures and send them flying into a wall 6 squares away. Without Willpower she’s going to need to push, but she’s pushing right onto Running Shot and Pulse Wave, which is definitely not bad. She’s pretty squishy, and is way overpriced, but she has everything else she needs to be a great sealed figure.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

037 Ms. Marvel

Ms. Marvel looks expensive for either of her dials, but getting them both for 90 points is excellent, especially when it’s combined with free healing. Her red clicks are a more offensive, giving her Giant Reach: 2 and Charge, followed by Sidestep and Close Combat Expert. Her other dial is more support oriented with both Outwit and Perplex, and it makes her Tiny. With traited Shape Change throughout her dial, Ms. Marvel is hard to deal with and can offer a lot of useful powers, whether she acts as a middling attacker, or as a fantastic support figure, she will almost always be giving you something worthwhile. In sealed she’s a must play, with both Outwit and Perplex and the ability to be carried by anyone.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

038 Balder

Balder is a pretty exiting close combat figure with a whole host of powers, including a fantastic Blades from his special weapon that will always do atleast 3 damage on a majority of his clicks. Baldur’s biggest downside is his lack of Willpower, but his trio of damage powers (Leadership, Empower, and Shape Change, but only when adjacent to an Asgardian) give him a lot of value as a support figure for your other close attackers, and you probably have your fair share of those in this set. His Charge on his top-dial gives way to Flurry, with a low 9 attack, but Flurry/Blades has never been a bad combination. Finally, on his last clicks he becomes a ranged attacker with high attack value and Penetrating/Psychic Blast and Pulse Wave, giving him some surprising versatility. Baldur does a lot of work in this set where he can reliably threaten any figure, give some great support to your other close attackers, and finishes anyone off with a powerful Pulse Wave after he’s been hit. He’s a great sealed figure, and an okay constructed figure, where his damage power has a little more use, but his points keep him from being considered too heavily. Luckily, he comes with Frey, one of the better Blades/Claws/Fangs weapons in this set, and a must have for characters with Flurry.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

039 Troll

Finally! The Thunderbolts are complete! I’ve been waiting for Troll for such a long time, and luckily she definitely doesn’t disappoint. Her special Charge lets her move through almost anything when she’s making her Charge and her values and powers don’t leave much to be desired for a 60 point close attacker. On-top of all that, she can give a friendly character Improved Targeting: Hindering each turn, letting them strike at your opponents hiding in Stealth, something that’s going to be a bigger deal now that Improved Targeting isn’t being given out as much. Troll suffers a bit in sealed, as her biggest boon, handing out Improved Targeting, isn’t nearly as useful in a set with very little Stealth, and she doesn’t compare well to the many other great close combat figures in the set. She’s not a useless pull, but she’s a little out of her league. Thankfully, she’s great in constructed where she can allow others to shoot through Stealth and her close combat threat can be fully realized.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

040 Pluto

Pluto is made to rule sealed. With 2 stop clicks with Impervious and Regeneration, Pluto is nearly impossible to remove in sealed, regardless of which starting line you put him on. Pluto also has very little in terms of mobility, making it hard for him to capitalize on his useful powers and high values, but he’s bringing the battle to him with his Mystics team ability and his bystander generation. Make sure all the figures on your force are over 50 to capitalize on his trait, and just sit him where he can take potshots, and utilize his support powers, and wait for his opponents to come to him. He’s very much the reverse of everything in the meta, which focuses on faster figures getting into the battle quickly, but forcing an opponent to take 3 shots at a figure to deal with them is never a bad thing, especially when each of those shots is dealing them Penetrating damage. In constructed, Pluto has to watch out for the Elseworlds Chase Green Arrow who can hit through both his stop clicks, but otherwise he’s still a very difficult figure to kill. In sealed, depending on what else you pulled, I’d play him at 200, and in constructed, 125.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

041 Destroyer

Destroyer is a cool looking figure, that’s just a little too expensive to be great. For 175 points, Destroyer has a long dial with tons of reducers, but it’s too little too late when you’re working with a giant with limited mobility, no way to get around Outwit, and a healing power that requires you to damage your other friendly Asgardians. His Charge doesn’t pair well with Penetrating/Psychic Blast, and even with Sidestep, he just doesn’t have the mobility to benefit from his range and ranged powers. In the end, the lack of mobility, paired with his weakness to Outwit and high point cost means that Destroyer is a sitting duck for powerful ranged attackers. In sealed, Destroyer’s survivability insures he’s not terrible, but he’s still going to suffer from the same things that make him bad in constructed.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

041b Odin the Destroyer

Damn there’s a lot going on with this figure, and for the most part, it’s all fantastic. With a long dial, great powers, excellent values and Power Cosmic, Odin the Destroyer isn’t easily removed from the board. Of course, to get that sweet collection you’re paying a lot. 230 and 175 are both point values that are way out of the traditional competitive constructed landscape, but in sealed, it’s not too bad. Odin’s traits make up for the steep cost of admission with the ability to reroll attacks made against figures that are higher points than the character attacking them (that’s going to be nearly everyone when we’re talking about Odin) and to do a pseudo multi-attack whenever he has an action token. With Pulse Wave, that’s going to get him get 10 spaces forward before blasting down your opponents for 5 damage top-dial. His range definitely leaves something to be desired with a measly 4. His attack is also surprisingly low on his second starting point. Odin the Destroyer is an interesting figure, mostly due to his ability to take two actions in one turn. With the right support (low point Leadership) he might be able to use this multiple times in a row, making him a real threat. Without building around him, his constructed dreams aren’t too bright, as he’s too expensive to make a real splash. In sealed however, it’s going to be nearly impossible to crack his 19 defense top-dial, and his ability to take two actions will make him an insanely mobile threat.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

042 Tyrannus

Tyrannus makes some absolutely terrible bystanders that can’t really do anything…except…they do have Plasticity, and that counts for a lot. These Tyrannoids are basically moving walls that are much easier to kill, and in sealed they don’t have a lot of value outside of tie-up. For 65 points, endless tie-up is good enough in sealed, and bringing along two of them for free isn’t too bad either. He’s not a flashy rare to pull, but he will make his points back easily, especially when you’re working with 7 clicks of life with 3 clicks of Outwit. In constructed, Tyrannus doesn’t have much purpose unless you’re building a team around his bystanders. With the Justice League Teleporter, you can force opponents to deal with your Plasticity while turning the dial for each of the little guys they murder. Insure you’re cranking out a Tyrannoid each turn, and you can swamp up the entire map, keeping your opponent locked down. I think he has a lot more value than people are going to give him credit for, especially when his bystanders are easily removed via Pulse Wave or Energy Explosion. As long as you can benefit from their demise, or use them to slow down your opponent, Tyrannus has done his job well.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

043 Zarrko, The Tommorow Man

Zarrko is a godsend in this sealed where Probability Control is at a minimum. Having a figure that can Prob from across the map, or move out to Prob and then teleport back to his starting point next is absolutely incredible. As it stands, atleast someone on your force and your opponents will have the Asgardian keyword, insuring that Zaarko will never have a chance at being worthless. Even as an offensive piece, he’s not terrible. 4 range limits his effectiveness, but 10 attack, 3 damage with Penetrating/Psychic Blast is never bad.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

044 Ajak

Ajak is the first bummer of the Eternals. His Probability Control special power only benefits on the off chance you pull another Eternal (most likely Thena) and beyond being a decent attacker, his only role is that of a Probability Control user who can move into position easily. 110 points is a steep price for that, and nothing else. His values are very average, and even with his double Perplex, he just doesn’t have the powers necessary to benefit from the boost. That being said, he’s still pretty decent in sealed, with the potential for high defenses and Probability Control to bring the game into a back and forth roll fest as no-one can hit each other. His second trait could have an effect if someone pulls a character with a weapon and chooses only to use the weapon, but if you’re looking for an effect like that outside of sealed, Mr. Nobody is far better. Otherwise, Ajak is a definite pass for me. If he didn’t have Probability Control, he’s be a 2/5 in sealed, but alas, Prob is undeniably important.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 1/5

045 Ikaris

150 points is a lot to spend on a Charging close attacker, but Ikaris has one huge trick up his sleeve to make him seem almost reasonably priced. By forgoing his Power Cosmic, he can use Perplex to modify any of his values by +2, giving him potentially 13 attack, 6 damage, 7 range Charge, 20 Defense, or 8 range to shoot with. Even though he’s sightly limited by the powers he has, his values are immense. Looking into the powers, he doesn’t get anything too exciting. Some Charge and Sidestep paired with Super Strength and Telekinesis, gives him some support options, but at 150 points he’s not going to be your first choice for support. His Leadership takes tokens off of other Eternals, and his last two clicks have the useful combination of Regeneration and Toughness giving him a chance to get back towards his top click. He’s an insanely good workhorse in sealed, where he can fit any role you need of him, whether that be as a ranged attacker, a close attacker, or as a 20 defense pole that opponents constantly swing at. In constructed his value is still there, but he falls into the Charge tent-pole category. Charge just leaves him vulnerable to ranged attackers, and his 20 defense isn’t nearly as untouchable as it is in sealed. He’s still excellent, but with a bigger pool of figures to pull from, he’s much easier to deal with.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

046 Makkari

140 points might seem like a lot to spend on a Hypersonic figure with no reducers, but, 14 movement 11 attack, 5 damage Hypersonic with Probability Control is so unbelievable in practice that if Makkari had reducers, he would be absolutely broken. In sealed he runs the game unless you’re playing against someone with Plasticity, which, with the new rules, doesn’t stop him from making an attack, and then attempting to finish moving, even after you stop adjacent to an opponent. If Makkari is hit, then yes, he gets worse and worse, eventually losing Hypersonic all together, but with a huge movement, flight and the potential for 20 defense, Makkari is going to be nearly impossible to deal with. In constructed, I think Makkari has a lot of potential. With the right equipment (Brainiac or Eclipso for reducers or Mjolnir for extra range), Makkari can fly across the battlefield and reliably hit anything, and on-top of that choose to have protection Outwit, or to modify a value by +2. He’s not as point and click as KC Flash was, but he’s also cheaper, and can put out a lot more damage. Makkari could be a real threat, especially if he gets some range from Mjolnir. 17 range swings are no joke.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

047 Volstaag

Volstaag is very similar to Hogun, except he doesn’t charge as far, has Plasticity, and is far more defensively minded, with a 19 defense with Impervious. His special Charge power also doesn’t grant Charge, but instead helps protect the allies adjacent to him at the start of his Charge. Honestly, it’s not nearly as useful as Hogun’s, as it’ll just draw attention to Volstaag, and a single Outwit can remove the protection. Volstaag has more than his fair share of protection, but he’s not likely to hit with a 10 attack and a 4 movement Charge. He’s stuck in the middle as a hard to kill, but not particularly effective close combat figure. If you do pull him, hope you pull Hogun too, as the free Charge granted to Volstaag from Hogun can be used to get in position to activate his own Charge ability.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

048 Wrecker

Wrecker is a great close attacker with one of the best weapons in the set, the enchanted crowbar. Not only does it give him Exploit Weakness, but it removes opposing characters Impervious and Invincible, even if the holder was shooting at them, strange, but effective. Wrecker benefits from the same trait the other Wrecking Crew have, and like Bulldozer, has Improved Movement: Ignores Blocking Terrain, allowing him easy access to Debris markers. He shines on the Jotunheim map, where the large amount of blocking gives him significant cover, and doesn’t restrict his Charge range, and where his Super Strength’s knockback is doubled. He’s better on his top dial, where everything but his defense value is superb, and where he has more clicks to push through with Masters of Evil. Wrecker is a serious threat on any of his clicks, but more than anything, he’s just difficult to get to with the right positioning. He can sit inside blocking terrain just waiting for someone to come near, and when they do, they’re looking at 4 penetrating damage or 6 damage with a heavy object, a bunch of knock-back and the removal of their good reducers. He’s not bad even in constructed, and he still comes with that excellent Crowbar.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

Super Rare

049 Thor Odinson

Thor Odinson is one of two Title Characters in this set, and while he is expensive at 175 points, his Title Character Abilities are the best of any of the Title Characters. His first lets him make a free attack after he hits with a first attack, and with the removal of the Damage Depletion Modifier, that’s a pretty reliable 4 damage twice. With Hypersonic Speed, Thor can fly out, target someone within half his range, and then make another attack at his full range. His second ability pulls any Asgardian on the map adjacent to him, and then heals Thor and the pulled character. There’s a lot of great Asgardian characters in this set, and being able to teleport them from anywhere can lead to some broken situations. His final ability, which costs a tremendous 8 points to use, forces all opposing characters to take two action tokens instead of one whenever they would get a token. This basically stops your opponent from doing anything every second turn. It’s absolutely crazy, and if you can pull it off reliably, you can easily win any match-up. Thor is a solid attacker throughout his dial, with an amazing set of Title Character Abilities, making him unstoppable in sealed, and a powerful figure in constructed.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

050 Loki, Agent of Asgard

Loki is a figure full of value, but has some difficulty actually utilizing that value. For 60 points you’re getting an enormous 7 clicks of life with decent values and power through-out, the low range and lack of move and attack abilities forces him to rely on his Stealth to position himself. Normally this wouldn’t be a huge deal, but when he’s using his Title Character Abilities and isn’t making attacks, he’s also damaging himself each turn. Luckily, Loki’s second half of his dial is pretty decent, with Perplex and Blades/Claws/Fangs giving him some more offensiveness. This also pairs well with his -0 ability, which heals him if he hasn’t been hit. If Loki is staying in the back and avoiding attacks while boosting his Plot Points, then his -0, while slowing down his increase, helps keep him alive. Finally his last ability cuts through the defense powers of all adjacent opponents, potentially allowing for some major attacks from your team allowing them to cut through even stop-clicks. This comes at the price of the penalty when he dies, that stops your team from using defense powers for the rest of the turn. It’s not the end of the world, as they still need to spend atleast one action actually dealing with Loki leaving less to abuse the penalty with, but it’s probably the worst of all the Title Character penalties that we’ve seen. That being said, Loki’s ability to disrupt Probability Control and Perplex against friendly characters, and he’s absolutely insane level of power for the cost means that he will most likely see play, he just requires a lot more precision than other title characters.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

051 Groot Thor

Groot Thor is a monster in sealed where he can basically stop any Charge figure from moving at all. His 3 Range Plasticity insures no one can move adjacent to him, or any characters adjacent to him, and honestly that’s all you need to play him. With a huge focus on close attackers in this set, he gains a lot of value, because he absolutely shuts down Charge. Defensively, he has two stop-clicks as well as some decent reducers and Shape Change keeping anyone from getting him down without a serious investment of damage. He’s going to be hard to remove when, 1. Close attackers can’t approach him and 2. His dial is incredibly difficult to get through for ranged attackers. Making Groot Thor 175 points that your opponents probably won’t be receiving. In constructed, Groot is just a little too expensive at 175 to compare to the offensive behemoths. His only real saving grace is the new Dr. Frankenstein, who can heal him for free every turn, and Perplex up him up.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

052 Hulk

Hulk with Mjolnir is the logical next step for the style of Hulk’s in this set. He has a long dial with tons of reducers and close combat potential, as well as the Hulk trait, which benefits from his long dial. His special Charge lets him move through Blocking, as well as letting him deal some extra damage to giants and colossals he’s moved through. This won’t matter much in sealed, and will really only matter in constructed when he’s been hit by a colossal retaliation. Hulks biggest flaw is his last three clicks where he gains Earthbound/Neutralized, and becomes some dead weight. He’s an interesting Hulk, but he’s hardly the best Hulk ever created. In a drawn out fight, he can deal some massive damage, but his last few clicks leave him stranded, without a way to capitalize on his trait.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

053a Hela

For the most part, Hela is a super-rare version of Pluto. She might not have the stop-clicks, but she has a long dial with Mystics, and the ability to create Warrior Soul bystanders. Her generation is the best in the set, with no requirements for point value, as well as bonus free healing for her. Hela’s dial is split into three parts, the first being a ranged attacker that requires some positioning with Phasing/Teleport. Next she gets Mind Control and Outwit, and finally she picks up Regeneration and an interesting close combat power that lets her instantly KO any character she hits with a Critical Hit. It’s not reliable at all, but it’s certainly a fun ability. Hela’s value will almost always be directly tied to the amount of bystanders she generates. If you can pick off a few of your opponents cheaper figures and overwhelm them with Warrior Soul’s she can quickly turn a game. If not, she’s not a particularly effective combat piece at any point in her dial, and won’t have as much effect on the game as a 150 point figure should have.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

053b Angela

Angela is a pretty fun close combat figure, but she’s probably the least Prime worthy Prime of the set. Her trait is what makes her a Prime, but it doesn’t give her a huge benefit in most games. It requires her to kill your opponents highest point character, and after that, she gains the Mystics team ability and Exploit Weakness. My issue with this is that, once you’ve killed the best your opponent has, Angela doesn’t really need the boost. It’s a snowballing effect, that lets you win harder once you’re already winning, but doesn’t do much for Angela in actually dealing with that first character. It’s the same with her damage power, letting her make a free range or close action after killing a character only matters if she can actually kill a character first. If Angela is looking to activate her damage power, she’s going to go after smaller characters in order to more easily kill them, which is the opposite of what she needs to activate her trait. I just don’t see Angela being a particularly effective figure in constructed, where it will be difficult for her to deal with the highest point character, and therefore leaving her trait unused.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

054 Zeus

Here’s a hugely powerful ranged attacker that completely destroys grouped up teams. With a 14 range swing at 250 and a 10 range swing at 150, Zeus can reliably out-range a large portion of figures, and with an impressive Energy Explosion power that can deal 4 damage to all hit characters, he is the best user of Energy Explosion with the new rules. On his lower point starting line, he loses out on a lot of his defensive prowess, but benefits from his traited Shape Change. His second trait might be the more interesting of the two, allowing him to strip adjacent characters of their Willpower, and cripple them if they have Power Cosmic or the Deity keyword. He might not be much of a close attacker, but that’s a pretty great benefit for being adjacent. Zeus keeps up for the rest of his dial with Running Shot/Pulse Wave and a special damage power that lets him throw an opposing character into whatever starting area is further from the battle, removing their threat for a turn or two. Zeus is definitely a little too expensive to be really reliable in a constructed game, but he does bring a lot of unique abilities, and a fairly long dial, even at his low points. At 250, he’s just too expensive, but at 150, he can reliably disrupt grouped up foes, remove Willpower and send an opposing hero back to a starting line.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

055 Enchantress

The Mirror of Mysolljh that comes with Enchantress is probably better than she is herself. Giving any character Shape Change on a 3-6 is incredible, even if the Mirror breaks on a 1. Enchantress is just too expensive for what she provides at 80 points. In sealed, Enchantress is almost impossible to deal with, with Combat Reflexes, Stealth and Shape Change from the Mirror. She can sit in Stealth and Perplex up your team for days, while Mind Controlling any opponent that gets too close. On-top of that, her Special Movement power lets her reposition opposing characters, which is especially helpful when a figure without move and attack moves adjacent to her to attempt to attack her next turn. In constructed, it’s much easier to get through her Stealth and Shape Change, and without that protection she doesn’t have much to do to make up her 80 points. She’s far from useless, but 80 points is just too much to spend for some slight repositioning and Mind Control.

Sealed: 4/5it

Constructed: 3/5

056 Maestro

There seems to be a lot of big Hulks in the SR slot of a Thor set, but Maestro definitely deserves his slot. With 3 starting lines, a trait that lets you bring in specific objects to deal with your opponents and a massive dial with not a single bad click, Maestro is a monster of a figure, that never has to stop acting. His best starting line is his 175 point one, that starts with his special Leadership that allows him to remove tokens from himself and his movement power that gives him Charge, Flurry and Force Blast, and deals extra knock-back damage when knocking characters into blocking terrain. He also ignores both Hindering and Blocking for Movement making him nearly unstoppable. He’s great in sealed, especially if you pull an Executioner with a Blood Axe for Maestro to bring in with him. He’s pretty expensive for a constructed tank, and doesn’t quite compare to the Chase Hulk from Avengers Defenders War who’s only 25 points more, but he does bring in items, making him more valuable than he initially appears. He won’t see a lot of play, but at 175 or 100 he can both be a reliable attacker and a mulit-faceted support figure that can bring whatever item you feel is more necessary into the battle.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

057 Sersi

Sersi is a 150 point Mind Controller with Telekinesis. Like Ikaris before her, she has the Channel Cosmic Energy trait giving her a +2 to a value, but still leaving her lacking for such a hefty investment. The best thing she has going for her is free action Barrier to place two separate squares of blocking terrain, but with no mobility, and below average values for 150 points, you’re going to struggle, especially with the new changes to Mind Control. In sealed Sersi will be good, solely because of the difficulty opponents will have with actually hitting her, but a single hit will be the end for her. She’s lacking throughout her short 6 click dial, and like Geoforce before her, free action Barrier just isn’t valuable if you have to pay over 100 points for it.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

058 Uni-Mind

There’s been a lot of talk about Uni-Mind lately, and a lot of disagreement about his effect on the meta. There’s no point in talking about him in sealed because he’s almost unstoppable at either of his playable point values, especially if you pull a few Eternals. In constructed, it’s a little different. At his higher point value he runs the risk of being out actioned by your opponent, and even though he’s absolutely devastating and difficult to take down by himself, and is bolstered by the fact that your opponents won’t be able to score his full points unless they take down the Eternals that spawn from his corpse, It’s going to be too easy for a Green Arrow ID Card to put an end to his life. At his 150 point value, Uni-Mind has enough room for support and still an absolutely stunning amount of strength from his multiple +2 Perplex’s, as well as the power he gets from the other Eternals. I still don’t think he can quite match up to the other tent-pole figures in the game, but the fact that the powers he picks have Protected: Pulse Wave, can make him really hard to deal with.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

059 Fandral

Fandral isn’t a really exciting super-rare and falls into the category of “good for his points”, especially when, with the right positioning, he can Charge and Flurry with 13 attack. His Warriors Three power is really nothing more than a Leadership that activates after he Charges. I wish he had Blades on his first two clicks, but for 60 points, he’s a solid close attacker that fits well with the other Warriors Three. That being said, he’s still not really special enough to distinguish himself among the other close combat figures in this set. He’s more reliable down his dial than Captain America, but I’m not sure I’d rather pull him over the common. He’s just doesn’t make the impact you expect a Super-Rare to make, and I just can’t get behind a figure that really won’t do much more for you than a common from the same set.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

060 Thunderball

I love this dial, it has so many interesting effects strewn throughout it, and combined with the Enchanted Ball and Chain, Thunderball is a serious contender for the best disruptor in heroclix. With a 10 attack, 3 damage, 3 range Quake that lowers all hit characters values by 1 until your next turn can lead to a pretty unbelievable turn, and he can continuously do it with the Masters of Evil team ability. His 10 attack isn’t ideal, but if you can pull a Perplex to go with him, that’s easily fixed. The cherry on-top of this great close combat figure is the ranged defense boost he gets from the Wrecking Crew shared trait. Even though a lot of figures will be able to get within 4 spaces to shoot him, being able to Charge at a wall, blow it up, and gain protection from ranged makes him a much more viable close attacker. Finally, he has Outwit, a much needed power in sealed, finishing off this great figure. He has all the right tools to be an excellent close attacker, and has some really great effects to disrupt your opponents game-plan if he pulls off a big Quake. Worst case scenario, pulling him gets you that incredible weapon to equip to a Hulk, or Superman.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

Chases

For the Chases, I’m going to grade them, and their incredible weapons as well. All the chases are excellent in sealed and constructed. Instead of 1/5-5/5 I’ll rank them from best (1/8) to worst (8/8).

061 Thor

Thor is an absolute beast, even though he may not look it at first, Mjolnir makes his Charge into Running Shot, and his Mighty Son of Asgard trait lets him smack characters with two objects, increasing his damage to a mighty 7. He’s a monster in sealed, but in constructed, he’s a little out of sorts. 160 points for a figure that can easily be dealt with after a single Outwit. He can put out a lot of damage, but it’s not enough to make up for his minimal range and short dial length. If you’re going to play him, you’re probably going to want Foggie Nelson to keep him protected from Outwit, and to insure his powerful defense power doesn’t go to waste.

Ranking: 2/8

S009 Mjolnir

Mjolnir is absolutely one of, if not the best, equipment/relic ever released for the game. Forever the worst part of close attackers has been their need to be adjacent to deal damage. What if, for 10 points, suddenly that wasn’t true? It would be absolutely broken. Mistress Death’s Touch of Death power needs her to make a close attack? Well now she can do that at 10 range. Even if your character doesn’t rely on the range it grants them, in adjacency, it boosts their attack and damage by 1. On the right character, that’s more than worth the 10 points. Absolutely amazing.

Rating: 1/8

062 Thunderstrike

Thunderstrike doesn’t have a really exciting dial, but he’s got impressive values, and exactly the powers you would expect a Thunderstrike to have. His damage power is useful, and allows Thunderstrike to buff his allies before following up with a guaranteed strike for damage. When Thunderstrike dies, he can remove a powerful object from your opponent (maybe something like Mjolnir), giving him some value at every point. His hammer gives him some sustain, healing him whenever he knocks someone back. I don’t have much to say about Thunderstrike, he’s kind of…boring. He has an effective dial, but he falls into all the same traps that all other close combat figures do.

Ranking: 5/8

s010 Thunderstrike

Thunderstrike is actually better off with almost any character other than Thunderstrike himself. Granting Force Blast to a figure like Goblin King or Jakeem Thunder makes their Pulse Wave’s even more dangerous, while simultaneously healing the attacker for 1 per character. It has other uses, but mixing Pulse Wave’s ignoring with Force Blast’s knock-back can annihilate a ill-prepared team. It’s a niche weapon, but it definitely has some value on almost anyone you put it on.

Ranking: 4/8

063 Beta Ray Bill

Beta Ray Bill has two starting lines, one at 225 with Running Shot and one at 125 with Charge. The real value at his top level is epitomized by his damage power, which prevents any character that began their turn more than 4 squares away from targeting him or adjacent characters with anything but a close attack. That, mixed with Bill’s trait that reduces penetrating damage make him very difficult to remove, and with Stormbreaker boosting Bill’s range to 6, he can safely more than 4 spaces from your opponent, and shoot at them without worry. I usually tend to stray away from high point characters, or atleast the higher point starting lines, but with Bill here I might actually suggest using the 225. With very little way to hurt him without just Hypersonic Speeding at his face, Bill is a really difficult figure to deal with, and he can be a big threat himself. Even the bane of most tentpole figures, the Level 7 ID and the Green Arrow ID, are greatly reduced in power, as the call in figures have to be called in within 4 squares of Bill. Bill also has a great stop-click at the end of his dial that lets him reposition, and then heal for free. Bill is going to be a really threatening character, especially in the current range heavy meta. At either point value he’s great, but the range focus of his 225 starting line makes his damage power incredible, and makes him a fantastic ID card caller. At 125 he’s going to be an excellent taxi for anyone who wants to be shielded by his power.

Rating: 1/8

s011 Stormbreaker

Stormbreaker doesn’t have the utility of the other hammers so far. Granting Quake, Energy Explosion and +2 range would have been a lot better before the rules change than now. +2 range is the best element of the equipment and it’s just not good enough to spend 10 points on.

Rating: 6/8

064 Malekith

Malekith is a figure that you’re either going to love or hate, and I absolutely love him. He’s a figure that’s just begging to be built around at either point value. At 175, he’s a pog generator that can generate pogs with his own Incapacitate, or just by seeing a friendly character give out tokens (I’m looking at you Mxyzptlk). Then, hes giving all your characters, and the pogs you’ve generated Shape Change on a 6. If you’re opponents planning on dealing with Malekith first, they’re going to have to go through the horde he’s created infront of him, as he can shoot through characters, and if they’re planning on shooting him, due to his trait, he’s taking 1 damage. With a Shape Change on a 4-6 and a trait that reduces all range damage to 1, Malekith isn’t easy to deal with outside of getting up close to him. Finally, Malekith comes with the polarizing Casket of Ancient Winters, which he can use two turns in a row to give tokens to characters without the Asgardian, Cosmic or Diety keywords for 3 turns in a row, if he doesn’t have Leadership. If he does, it can truly be an eternal winter when your opponents entire force gets a token at the end of their turn, and because the token is given to them on their turn they don’t get to clear it if they didn’t take an action that turn. Malekith will be overlooked, but I definitely see him being a contender in competitive events, more than likely on his lower point value, but still a big threat if built properly.

Rating: 3/8

s012 Casket of Ancient Winters

Wizkids made an object that, with the right set-up, could endlessly token your opponents figures as long as they were within 7 squares of the user. To balance this, they did a number of things. First they made it an awkward 12 points, which might as well be 15 or 20 with the round number point values of the newer sets. Second, they made it not only hit your own figures, but with a single power action, hit your own figures twice, and hit your opponents figures once. Finally, because of that, they’ve basically forced you to spend two turns putting Fimbulwinter tokens onto the Casket, which, on the turn that you’re forced to clear, will destroy itself, giving your opponents 12 points. That’s a heck of a lot of downsides for this object that most of the time you won’t want to play, because your figures will be getting tokens as well. Now, if you want to build around this object, you can create an absolutely monstrous lockdown effect on a large portion of the board, that stops your opponents figures in their tracks. First, you’re going to need to build your team around one of the keywords that is protected from the lockdown power. Second, you’re going to want to find a way to take tokens off of the carrier of the Casket, so that it can pump out tokens for the rest of the game, this can be through Leadership or Colossal Stamina. Finally, you’re going to want to find a way of getting them into position, whether that be a taxi, (Not Overdrive, as the casket will explode his vehicle), or Telekinesis. I think the best choices for this are either, the 200 point chase Hulk who has both the Cosmic keyword and Colossal Stamina or Hydroman, who can act even with two tokens, and can heal himself. Either way, the Casket of Ancient Winters can do some real damage, and be supremely irritating if used correctly.

Rating: 3/8

065 Unworthy Thor

Unworthy Thor’s a pretty standard primary attacker with some range potential and mobility on his top-dial, with a lackluster second half of his dial..Traited Invulnerability makes his dial more protected, but now that Outwit can remove traited powers, this Thor doesn’t really have the necessary protection to keep him viable. The best thing I can say about Unworthy Thor is that, with his object, he can pretty reliably deal more damage than you would expect, and hit through Super Senses if he does crit. With little mobility, average defense powers and some really lackluster attack and defense values at the end of his dial, Unworthy Thor doesn’t really feel like a Chase.

Rating: 8/8

s013 Jarnbjorn

Jarnbjorn gives any character around a 33% chance to critical hit, which is excellent for any character in the game. There’s not much more to say about Jarnbjorn, it’s a really good item with a simple effect and it makes everyone who holds it better.

Rating: 2/8

066 Loki

Loki is the definition of a finesse figure. She doesn’t have a ton of capability on her top-dial, relying heavily on the Mind Control from her staff. She’s difficult to hit with the quadruple protection of Stealth, Shape Change, Combat Reflexes and Toughness, not to mention the Mystics. The real strategy of Loki is knowing when to turn her to click 9 and gain access to Perplex and Probability Control, as well as protection from being K.O’d, forcing your opponents to decide whether or not it’s worth wasting an attack, and the damage from Mystics, just to put Loki on her dangerous last click. For 80 points, if you’re clever, you can reliably force your opponents to take upwards of 3 damage from Mystics before Loki is defeated. Loki is a decent support figure that’s very hard to deal with, and can provide some effectiveness at every part of their dial. If they had something making them slightly better on their first two clicks, they would be a must own, as it is, it’s too easy to ignore them and deal with their teammates, or force them to switch to their vulnerable clicks in order to have a bigger effect on the game.

Rating: 4/8

s014 Loki’s Staff

Mind Control and Shape Change aren’t the most desired powers of all time, but on the right figure they can definitely be a worthwhile investment. If you don’t have any interesting in the Mind Control, you’re better off with the Symbiote which is cheaper and gives Plasticity and the ability to automatically break away, and the chance to modify all your values by +1. It’s kind of crazy that Loki’s Staff actually costs as much as it does. Now, there are characters that can benefit from it, namely those with Running Shot and more than one target, someone like The Ray. With Loki’s Staff The Ray gets 4 target Mind Control, Shape Change, Energy Shield and KC ability *Super Senses*, which is not bad at all. Even the KC Superman on his lower point level can use this to become an even better tower click. There’s definitely a use for Loki’s Staff, but for the most part, Symbiote ate its lunch before it was even released.

Rating: 7/8

067 Odin

If you were looking for an Asgardian version of the Civil War Namor, Odin is here to answer your prayers. Just like Namor, Odin can put out a lot of bystanders who, strangely, have identical values to Namor’s. Unlike Namor, Odin has two different starting lines, and a heck of a lot of better powers, with Running Shot, and Pulse Wave, as well as an amazing Stop-Click that can potentially let him heal back up to his top-click, as it doesn’t depend on Regeneration, and has an immense amount of protection on it with 19 Defense, Super Senses and Impervious, which can’t be ignored or Pulse Waved due to the Stop-click. I think his 150 point line is unquestionably better, with less of a focus on generating bystanders, and higher mobility. The +1 attack for all Asgardians isn’t too bad either. Spend the first part of the game pumping out tokens, and follow it up with some dangerous attacks with them and the other Asgardians on your force. His stop-click is the only thing that makes him really dangerous, and it’s what gives him the potentially to see some serious play. Not bad at all for the allfather himself.

Rating: 5/8

s015 Gungir

Gungir’s main value is stopping opponents from rerolling your attacks, but it comes at the price of not being able to re-roll your own attacks, which is not great. Furthermore, it can use Gungnir as as object in an object attack, but you only get the bonus for it if you’ve equipped it, making it very slow to actually use as an object, not to mention that it costs you 10 points. If you want to spend 10 points on a penetrating attack that gets +3 attack and +1 damage, go for it, but just know that if you roll low, there’s no way you can re-roll it. Do you want to spend an extra turn and ten points to use an item as an object? Because I really don’t.

Rating: 8/8

068 Valkyrie

I love the chases in this set, but boy, there’s a lot of them that aren’t particularly exciting at first glance. Valkyrie is another efficent use of points, with the Mystics team ability, great values and a weird lack of mobility. Sidestep top-dial, even with the ability to carry is a little lackluster. Luckily, if you’re feeling up to it you can play her at 35 points for a two-click Charge, Blades/Claws/Fangs, Exploit Weakness combo that can annihilate anyone she gets close to. It’s also the cheapest access to the Mystics team ability, (tied with Dormammu), but since it can’t be copied anymore, that’s not too important. The 35 point dial also has the nice effect of bringing in her weapon, Dragonfang onto the battlefield, which costs 10 points to bring in by itself. I like both point values, but her 35 seems to bring a lot of value as a squishy but effective close attacker who can reliable deal 4 penetrating damage when she attacks, and, if need be, you can drop her sword to give to another attacker with no worry of it being stolen by Mr. Nobody.

Rating: 6/8

s016 Dragonfang

Dragonfang is one of the only effects in the game that lets you reroll Blades/Claws/Fangs, unfortunately, even with the boost to Blades/Claws/Fangs, it’s still not a great effect for characters with high printed damage, and there are 2 other objects that give Blades in this set, and both are cheaper. That being said, Dragonfang’s power can be really great on a figure with high survivability, but low damage output, someone like Hahaha Joker or Bizarro Joker. If these fantastic tie-up pieces can reliably hit for 4 damage each turn, they become more than annoying tie-up, and can reliable remove threats that they tie-up. Give Dragonfang to characters that have no way of outputting damage, but also characters that won’t easily be removed from the board letting Dragonfang be touched by the evil hands of your opponents forces. It’s a niche item, especially when Sword is 6 points less, but the re-roll can make the right character absolutely deadly.

Rating: 5/8