001a Isiah Bradley

Isaiah is the first figure in the set and he’s an inherently playable figure too, putting him near the top of best 001 figures in recent years. Isaiah is a 5 click close combat figure with a mediocre Charge range that he makes up for with Defend on every single click of his dial with three of those clicks sharing a massive 18 defense. With Empower on his first three clicks as well, Isaiah is a great team player for close combat oriented teams, and when paired with a taxi he will easily make back his points. Now 5 clicks of life for 60 points might seem bad, but Isaiah has the Living Legend trait that allows him to ignore the first time he would be KO’d and heal up 1-3 clicks. This means that this 60 point figure actually has between 7 and 9 clicks of life with a pseudo stop-click. It just takes so much damage to get through this 60 point figure, and because of that, his lack of mobility isn’t a big deal.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

001b Josiah X

The common prime has a single trick up his sleeve, reducing penetrating damage for characters he shares a keyword with. This trick appears as a special power on the first two clicks of his six click dial. It’s a pretty good trick, but it’s probably not worth the Prime slot as of right now. If we get a lot more penetrating damage running around, remember this guy, but for now he’s not doing enough to justify being the prime on your team.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

002 Iron Man

The first of the Shifting Focus Iron Man figures is tanky and close combat oriented. With reducers on every single click of his 6 click dial, and good to average values, Iron Man is a solid inclusion on any team, especially one that needs more taxis. The best part of his dial is his last two clicks where he picks up Hypersonic Speed and Steal Energy, allowing him a lot of mobility and survivability. At 1/4 of you’re total points though, Iron Man isn’t making a huge impact on the map by himself. As a sideline figure for the other Shifting Focus Iron Man’s, he gives them the option of getting up close, but he doesn’t provide any meaningful powers for their variable weapons system trait, besides possibly Steal Energy. This guy is going to be the defensive switch-in when you need to clear, and not much else. In another set, he’d be a solid 3/5, as he does everything you need a close combat figure to do, and doesn’t do anything else, but this set is just full of strong figures, and because of that he suffers.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 2/5

003 Citizen V

Citizen V has a lot going on for the main close combat common of the set. His dial isn’t anything special beyond the two clicks of 18 Defense, but his traits make him a valuable asset. His first trait is a trait shared by the aged war heroes in this set, Living Legend. Living Legend allows Citizen V to come back to life once per game, and heal up to 3 clicks when he does. This gives Citizen V between 7 and 9 clicks of life as well as a stop-click making him one of the most sturdy commons in the set. His second trait gives him Sidestep and Toughness, further increasing his survivability and mobility and making him a pretty threatening close attacker with a 6 range swing, and who requires a ton of focused fire to bring down.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

004 S.H.I.E.L.D Agent

This Agent might be the best generic common that we’ve ever seen. For 15 points you’re getting two clicks of life, a variety of powers depending on which starting line you start them on including Incapacitate with 2 bolts, Ranged or Close Combat Expert or Energy Explosion. The agent also has traited Stealth, Improved Targeting: Hindering and Improved Movement: Hindering, making them strangely hard to deal with in constructed. Finally, they don’t have any movement powers BUT have a second trait that lets them copy a movement power from any adjacent SHIELD character (including other Agent’s who have already copied a power). With just a small amount of effort, this generic can be incredibly powerful with a wide array of movement powers (usually just Sidestep) and some useful offense. I’m almost always going to choose the Incapacitate starting line, but all of them have value. Even defensively, they’ve already got Stealth, but have a click of Super Senses as well! These things are pure value. These are going to be filler for Spy theme teams, especially when combined with another figure later in the set.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

005 S.H.I.E.L.D Officer

S.H.I.E.L.D Officer is a fairly boring addition to the sealed pool, giving you a very average dial that can follow your other S.H.I.E.L.D members around the board without having to waste actions on him. I really hate that he starts with Empower, as the S.H.I.E.L.D team ability boosts the range of adjacent characters making it a nonbo with Empower, but he does push to Enhancement, allowing him to boost the damage of a ranged attack by 2 in combination with his trait. Where the officer really comes into his own is when you utilize another S.H.I.E.L.D character moving to position him for an attack. It can catch some vulnerable units off guard, tie-up your opponents biggest figures, or get his support powers into position for a powerful attack. In constructed his trait will allow him to move across the entire field, and follow that up with a call-in. With Iceman, Phoenix and Magneto all under 30 points, S.H.I.E.L.D Officer can be a serious threat to your opponents colossal figures, even if these call-ins are unable to use their retaliation because the Officer was placed, a surprise Poison from Phoenix can catch a lot of vulnerable figures unaware, and potentially ruin a lot of game plans. Q Prime is a sitting duck if someone can get the Officer beside him to call in a Phoenix. All in all, I don’t think he’ll make a big impact on your sealed teams, but could be a big player in constructed.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

006 Sharon Carter

Sharon Carter is three clicks of good stuff for 35 points. Her first two clicks giver her a special Perplex that, when used on another S.H.I.E.L.D member, gives her target Outwit for the turn. Perplex and Outwit on one character, and one that’s only 35 points, is a steal for sealed, especially on a common figure, but it’ll force you to play atleast one other member of S.H.I.E.L.D to obtain. On-top of that, Sharon Carter has Leadership, and the Espionage trait, giving her more value. Her last click is Support paired with a 14 Defend, allowing her to heal on the roll of a 5! There’s just no weaknesses in this figure, a must play on S.H.I.E.L.D teams, and on any team with another S.H.I.E.L.D character in sealed.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/ 5

007 Nick Fury

It’s a shame Nick Fury is 75 points, because he’s not doing as much for those points as the other commons are. Nick Fury’s big boon is the three clicks of Outwit he has on his dial, especially when paired with the Espionage trait, allowing him to Outwit the Stealth on other characters with the trait. Nick Fury also has a stop-click with Mastermind, which can be incredibly annoying to deal with, especially if none of your characters have two targets or Energy Explosion. Nick Fury’s not a terrible attacker either, with Running Shot and an 11 attack top-dial, with three clicks of 18 defense for protection. Lastly, Nick Fury has traited Leadership that can generate the fantastic S.H.I.E.L.D Agents whenever he succeeds. Laying all of his abilities out like that makes me like him a whole lot more, but then I look at his 5 clicks of life for 75 points, with the majority of his value coming from Outwit, and I just can’t see him comparing favorably to the other amazing commons in this set. If the Espionage trait wasn’t on as many figures, this guy would be a lot harder to deal with than he actually is. All of that being said, Outwit through Stealth is a godsend in this set, and while Nick Fury might be the worst character with that combination, it still makes him too good to pass up.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

008 Maria Hill

Maria Hill is an interesting 45 points, who can make any single use of Mind Control really good, and does little to nothing else. Maria Hill has Mind Control for herself, but once per turn, when any friendly character uses Mind Control to target a character that wasn’t hurt that turn, you may choose that the target can’t be attacked, or make attacks until your next turn. It’s potentially useful if your opponent has a great tent-pole figure that you want to make attacks with without worrying about them attacking you back, but in general it’s never going to be worth the 45 point investment of Maria Hill. Besides that power, she’s got Leadership and Barrier or Perplex and Penetrating/Psychic Blast with a 9 attack. She’s just never doing enough on her own to be worth the investment, pass. In sealed she’s little more than filler for a S.H.I.E.L.D team, and atleast on that team she brings Leadership.

Sealed: 1/5

Constructed: 1/5

009 Peggy Carter

Before I delve into the qualities of Peggy Carter, I just want to say that it’s really nice to see reliable Outwit in the common slot. Peggy is a great addition to the set because she can Outwit, and she can do it through hindering, allowing her to antagonize the other figures in this set with the Espionage trait. Stealth is going to be a big deal and so having your own character with Espionage, or having a strong close combat presence are the only ways you’re going to succeed in sealed. Peggy is an interesting Outwitter as well with a movement power that stops line of fire form being drawn to her as long as no one is adjacent to her, and allows her to deal herself a damage to push her to an offensive click with Running Shot and Precision Strike while still holding on to Outwit. In constructed her movement power will allow her to position herself without much worry, and Outwit is always nice to have.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

010 Quake

I love this Quake, she’s going to see so much play on my side of the board. Quake’s big trick is her attack power that either lets her use Quake as if she occupied a square within her range (which is 5), or gives her Giant Reach equal to her click number. I’m almost never going to use the Giant Reach option because her ranged Quake, when combined with her Charge, gives her an 11 square swing. She does have the Espionage trait, but it’s quickly becoming clear that Stealth will not protect your in sealed in this set. Even so, Quake can blow people out of cover with her Quake, setting them up for her a big hit from another character.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

011 Industrial Spy

Remember when I said that Nick Fury’s best ability was to Outwit through Stealth? Well Industrial Spy does that for 30 points instead of 75. Of course, Industrial Spy doesn’t really do much else, so it’s not really a fair comparison, but a 30 point Outwit at common is fantastic. Industrial Spy has the Espionage trait, making it even worse in sealed than it already was (and this is the 11th figure in the set!!), and a special Outwit power that let’s him use the standard power he used his Outwit on, giving him some value as an attacker, limited by his 9 attack. Industrial Spy is especially good against figures with Perplex or Probability Control, because limiting your opponents options, while gaining your own is a huge potential swing. I think this guy is a lot more fun than he is good, but I’ll still play him, even if it’s just for that first click of Outwit.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

012 Nuke Clone

Holy crap, there’s figures in this set that don’t have the Espionage trait? Nuke Clone brings another shared trait to the table in Power Elite. The basis of Power Elite is that, for each uniquely named character with the trait, opposing character’s within that range have to take a double power action in order to do a power action. This is awesome, but its also simultaneously far better and far worse than you would expect. Power actions are the basis of the game of Heroclix, and you’re going to find yourself making a ton of them, because they allow you to do all the best things; whether it be move and attack, equipping items or using Ranged or Close Combat Expert. But, limiting someone to not using power actions does not neuter them completely. Without power actions, characters can still move or attack and activate free actions, still leaving your Power Elite figures to their mercy. This means that the Power Elite trait will work in one of two ways. Either you need as many figures with it on your team to affect your opponents figures without putting yours in danger, or you need it on one or two figures, and use them as tie-up to manipulate your enemies. If Nuke Clone is adjacent to your opponents Hypersonic Speed tent-pole and they really don’t want to waste an action getting rid of him, they’re going to have to take a double power action in order to actually get away from him. It’s a useful thing, but only if you really play around it.

With all of that being said, Nuke Clone is 20 points and has Running Shot with 10 attack, 3 damage and 6 range; He’s not bad at all. He does have a trait that deals himself (or another Nuke Clone) a damage at the end of each turn, and forces him to blow up for 1 penetrating damage to anyone within 3 of him when KO’d, but that could be a good thing. I don’t love Nuke Clone in this sealed format because of the enourmous amount of figures with Stealth, but who doesn’t love the thought of throwin him up at your opponents and forcing them to decide if killing him and taking 1 penetrating damage on all their figures is worthwhile.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 3/5

013 Happy Hogan

The first major taxi in this set focuses on carrying a particularly under-appreciated theme team, Avengers. Up until this point the Avengers have never had good taxi’s, especially not in the Black Panther and the Illuminati set. Joking aside, Happy Hogan is actually pretty great as a taxi, being able to carry 2 characters even if they have the Wing symbol for 20 points. He’s got the potential to punch if he needs to with Close Combat Expert, and if he pushes he gets Sidestep making him an even better taxi. His trait also removes tokens from Iron Man when an Iron Man carries Happy, but I don’t see that being useful very often. This guy might be the best taxi in the game now, he’s certainly the cheapest.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

014 Power Man

Power Man is another really great attempt at making a playable close combat figure. He’s got great values, good reducers and the Assembled Bolts and Masters trait, potentially allowing him to keep attacking without ever worrying about clearing. Power Man needs a taxi however, as he has no Willpower. The thing that pushes him above the rest is his trait that stops him from taking any more than 1 damage from the first attack that hits him each turn. If your opponent wants to focus down your 65 point figure with 2 clicks of Impervious, they’re wasting a lot of attacks while the rest of your tem moves up to kill them.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

015 Winter Soldier

It’s been a little while since we’ve gotten a bad Winter Soldier, even the Fast Forces one from this set is really, really good. This Winter Soldier doesn’t hit as hard as some, but is another great representation of the character. This is Winter Soldier as the leader of the Thunderbolts, and so he brings the Assembled Bolts and Masters trait to bear with his presence. In sealed it’s a nice thing to have as long as you can pull together a team that fits the requirements, as it gives him a 1/3 chance to either remove a token from himself, or give his target a token. Offensively Winter Soldier’s dial is a little weird, he has access to the Espionage trait making him potentially difficult to deal with, as well as top-dial Invulnerability, as to push him to click 2 or 3, where he gets access to his special defense power. Offensively he’s pretty threatening with Running Shot and Outwit top-dial and pushing to Close and Ranged Combat Expert on his second and third clicks. Winter Soldier isn’t all good news however; He lacks Willpower and has a puny 6 range, leaving him vulnerable to counter attacks from close attackers if played improperly. Winter Soldier might not be as great as Peggy Carter, but he’ll be a great addition to anyone looking to put together any kind of theme in sealed, as he has Spy, Soldier, Thunderbolts, S.H.I.E.L.D and Avengers keywords, insuring he’ll fit wherever you need him.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

016 Singularity

Singularity has the Power Cosmic team ability, and with all the Outwit in this set, that might be a great thing, sadly, Singularity doesn’t have a lot of other things going for her. For 100 points you’re getting 6 clicks of life, though only 2 of those clicks have a good defense power on them. Her top-dial has Probability Control and Penetrating/Psychic Blast with an 11 attack and 4 damage, but has Phasing/Teleport as a movement power. The middle of her dial has Running Shot/Pulse Wave, but relies on Shape Change to stay alive. Singularity has her place on a team, she can carry up a great attacker, and in doing so leaves herself in a great position to follow up with a powerful attack, but it’s really not too hard for a player to remove her in a single turn either. If you’re going to play her, utilize her Probability Control to the best of it’s ability before you get pushed to Running Shot and Pulse Wave to finish off your opponent.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

017 Sidewinder

It’s nice to see another member of the Serpent Society, even if a ton of them rotated out of modern a while ago. Sidewinder’s dial looks a little lackluster, but for 30 points he has Leadership, and a 5 movement pseudo Charge with Phasing/Teleport. It’s nice to have a free attack when you need it, but I don’t see him being a big player either way.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

Uncommons

018a Captain America

Cap isn’t exciting me as much as I thought he would. He’s 85 points, which isn’t a huge investment of points and brings with him some amazing stats, especially on his first click where he’s sporting a 12 attack and an 18 defense. Captain America also has the Living Legend trait expanding his 6 click dial into a monstrous 8-10 clicks with a stop-click. He’s got some great Improved Movement, the Assembled Avengers trait and a special Leadership power that protects friendly characters from stat modification when he rolls a 6 with it. Yet, even with all of this I can’t help but find him a little mediocre, even though his stats and powers tell me there’s something great here. Two clicks of Running Shot start off his dial, with Charge showing up later, but defensively he’s only got a single click of Impervious to rely on before going to a mix of Energy Shield/Deflection and Combat Reflexes. A 3 damage all the way down his dial with only Precision Strike and Close Combat Expert to help him push through leave him vulnerable to bulkier figures. In my mind this is a great example of a 3/5. He can do a lot of things, but I don’t think he does them as well as you would expect.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

18b The Captain

Captain America’s alter ego is more my speed for point costs. He’s got the exact same number of clicks as the A side, but for 40 less points. His dial has 11 attack on every click, and he’s got two clicks of the great combination of Support and Defend with a 15 defend insuring he’ll hit a majority of the time. He’s also got a trait giving him access to any Marvel team ability at the cost of his Soldier keyword, or protection from his combat values being modified, and his attacks being re-rolled. Be warned that choosing the protection insures he can’t be targeted by your own Perplex and Probability Control as well as your opponents, almost always making the free Team Ability the better choice. The best choices for team abilities are always going to be Avengers Initiative, Hydra, S.H.I.E.L.D or Skrulls. Decide if you need him to be a support piece with the Hydra or S.H.I.E.L.D abilities, or more of a secondary attacker with the other two. Even if the Skrull Shape Change roll only works 1/6th of the time, it’s going to happen more than you think when you have to deal upwards of 10 clicks of damage to him.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

19 Iron Man

The second part of the trio of Shifting Focus Iron Man is a ranged attacker with a very basic ranged dial. Two clicks of Running Shot, two clicks of Ranged Combat Expert and two clicks of Telekinesis round out this figure, leaving him very “Meh”. The best use for him is on the sideline, giving you easy access to Telekinesis when you’re running one of the other Iron Man figures, but you’re going to have to put in more effort than is really worth it to get the most out of this dial.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

020 Citizen V

Zemo isn’t at his best as Citizen V with an average 5 clicks of life for 50 points on a pretty vulnerable close combat dial. Citizen V is a straight-forward Charge/Blades figure with the potential for a much bigger damage output due to his special power that lets him choose between two dice for his Blades roll, as well as providing him Precision Strike to insure he’s hitting for something. He’s also got a very nice 11 attack to pair with his powers. Defensively he’s a dead-end relying only on Combat Reflexes, and without Willpower to boot, making a taxi a necessary part of playing him. The one saving grace with him not being Indomitable is that his second click has an 18 defense, making him virtually impossible to hit up close without Outwit, and potentially saving him. His last two clicks switch up the formula giving him Willpwoer and Outwit with Flurry and Blades. If I ever have a Citizen V on one of those clicks, he’s solely going to be used as an Outwit. Without any great mobility, and a lack of Willpower upfront, Citizen V is a little bit of a lackluster close attacker. Yes he can potentially push out damage, and yes he can possibly end up on a click with Outwit, but there’s also a good chance he’ll be knocked right past those clicks. Now, you might be wondering why I haven’t brought up the Assembled Bolts and Masters trait as a way to deal with his lack of Willpower. In sealed, there’s a 50/50 chance you’ll have enough figures that fit the trait for it to trigger, and in constructed it will only help him when he’s already up close, limiting the amount it will keep him from pushing.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 2/5

021 Roz Solomon

Wizkids didn’t pull any punches when making Roz, she’s just so good for such a little investment. Roz is 65 points for 5 clicks of pure aggression, with 3 clicks of Running Shot, two clicks of Penetrating/Psychic Blast and Outwit and the Espionage trait giving her Stealth. If that wasn’t good enough she has two final tricks, one is a movement power that lets her CARRY AN OPPOSING CHARACTER, and the other is a trait that stops her targets from modifying their defense values positively when she shoots at them. The trait is fantastic and will definitely come up multiple times in a game, but her special movement power is something else. Her last two clicks let her grab anyone who has come up on her (and she does have Stealth so that’s not going to be uncommon) and run them up to 5 squares away. I love this power, and I love Roz Solomon, she is going to be a major player in sealed and constructed for me.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

022 Dario Agger

Before you ask, No, 50 points is not too much to spend on Outwit and Probability Control. Dario Agger is a must play figure with access to Outwit, Probability Control AND Telekinesis, before adding in his ability to cancel team abilities of enemies within 5 of him. Defensively he’s relying on Stealth (a big vulnerability in this set) and Mastermind to stay alive, and to top it off, he’s got the Mystics team ability to make sure anyone taking out your support figure isn’t coming away unscathed. For 25 points more, if you’ve also pulled a Minotaur, you can add him to your sideline to pull into battle after Dario gets killed, and if you do so, Dario also gains access to Shape Change for the game. I don’t think it’s quite worth the 75 point investment, because most of the time I’d much rather play both of them on a team, but if you end up with a points shortage, you could spend it on worse things.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

023 Nuke

Nuke’s dial isn’t worth 85 points, and it’s not even close. It’s hard for me to look at Nuke and Captain America and see how they’re worth the same amount of points, yet, I think that I’m more likely to play Nuke over Captain America in my games of sealed, let’s take a look. Nuke is less offensively effective, less defensive and he has 4 clicks of Battle Fury, ruining his 6 range. What Nuke does bring to the battle is the ability to modify his, or an adjacent characters attack and damage values by +1 at the cost of dealing them 1 damage at the end of your turn. This is secretly incredibly powerful, especially on Nuke’s last four clicks where he gets Charge/Flurry. There’s a lot of figures in this set that are dying for a boost to their attack and damage and who don’t care about taking an unavoidable damage a couple times during the game. Nuke is basically a very aggressive, very costly double Perplex that can and will win games when paired with the right figures. Nuke isn’t a figure you want to play on every team, but if you’re lacking support powers, and have some long dialed figures, Nuke is the figure you want to grab and add to your team.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

024 Doctor Faustus

Faustus is a pretty standard Mind Control figure with two targets, Precision Strike and a Mind Control power that deals damage to any character who KO’s another figure while controlled. He’s a perfectly fine secondary attacker with an added bonus of having two clicks of Perplex that he can push to, and two clicks of Outwit at the end of his dial. He’s a good Mind Control figure that can ping enemies with Precison Strike and brings his own worthwhile support powers with him, while also providing the Hydra team ability to your other ranged attackers. He’s going to suffer from all the Stealth in the set, but he’s pretty solid for his points.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

025 Spymaster

During my SHIELD Agent review I hinted about a figure that will change the Spy keyword forever, and here he is. For 65 points Spymaster makes the Spy keyword a named theme team, as well as modifying all his friendly spies defenses by +1 if they’re in hindering (and they’re always going to be in hindering) Spymaster’s values are great with an 11 attack and 18 defense top-dial, and he’s got 6 clicks of life as well as decent defense powers all the way down. At the end of his dial he gets a special attack power that lets him pick any attack power to use, and, of course, he’s got the Espionage trait, which is rapidly becoming less and less useful as more of the set gets it, at least for sealed. This guy will definitely see play on Spy theme teams as this set is just chock full of spies, hopefully we get enough to make a competitive team, but if not Spymaster will still be a great addition to any collection, especially if you enjoy spies.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

026 Aleksander Lukin

Aleksander Lukin is a great figure to play if you’ve got a Red Skull in one of your boosters, and has value even when you don’t. Lukin has the Underworld team ability to be a slight taxi for your Hydra and Power Elite theme teams (if you somehow get one), but really comes into his own with Perplex and Outwit down his dial with traited Leadership. He’s not the best option for support powers, but with high attack values and the Power Elite trait, there’s definitely value to be gained by playing him on your team.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

027 Minotaur

This Minotaur (the one that Dario Agger turns into) is such a strong figure in sealed, that I can’t see myself ever passing him up. First up, Minotaur gets the choice between the Mystics team ability or Probability Control for the entire game, and while the Mystics team ability might seem really valuable on a tanky figure like this, never deprive yourself of an extra re-roll. Minotaur gives you the option of a 125 point starting line with 7 clicks of reducers and a huge dial of high values and decent close combat powers, or a 50 point 4 click figure with a click of Impervious starting off, and still great values for a 50 point figure. On either starting line Minotaur get’s a full movement Charge that forces him to move in a direct path, but lets him blow through Blocking and Hindering terrain and improve his attack value for every 2 squares moved. Minotaur is a perfect figure to pull because it gives you some insurance if you pull bad in the rare slot of your boosters. If need be he can be a mean 125 point close combat figure that gives you a re-roll, or he can be a 50 point support figure with Probability Control that can hit way harder than lots of figures in this set.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 3/5

028 Trickshot

Trickshot is a pretty straight-forward ranged attacker with a huge range and attack value that’s going to have a very hard time in sealed with all the Stealth in the common and uncommon slot, but when he gets a chance to make an attack he’s almost always going to hit. If this was all that Trickshot had, he would be a stupendous 50 point figure that wouldn’t have a huge impact on the game, but luckily Trickshot has a little more text on his card. Trickshot’s special damage ability allows him to, once per turn, try to roll a higher attack total than an opponent who hits a friendly character within 4 squares with a ranged attack, and if he does, the attack misses. This gives Trickshot a potential re-roll against any ranged attack against him, or he can pass this off to another friendly character, and he’s got a 12 attack top-dial making it really easy for him to out-roll opponents, especially in sealed. The only thing to be careful about is that, he can’t use it if the friendly character being attacked is in Stealth, as he needs to draw a line of fire to them in order to use his power. This figure is going to be a thorn in the side of everyone for the next two years. He won’t be everywhere, but whenever he shows up, get ready to miss a lot of ranged attacks.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

029 Zeke Stane

In any other set Zeke Stane’s dial would be worthy of a rare slot, and would perform like a super-rare. He’s got a long dial with a ton of move and attack and two clicks of Running Shot+Penetrating/Psychic Blast up front. He’s got a bunch of special powers, including a movement power that let’s him make free ranged attacks when he has 2 action tokens (though he lacks Willpower), a defense power that gives him Willpower, Energy Shield and Toughness, and a damage power that let’s him take tokens off himself on a roll of a 5-6, as well as giving him Perplex. If you can get Zeke to click 4, you get access to all three on the same click making him a massive pain to deal with, and giving him easy access to a ranged Flurry. Of course, this would be a lot better if almost half the commons didn’t have Stealth. Zeke isn’t a home-run in this sealed environment, but he brings a lot of power to your team, and is a great primary attacker.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

030 Wasp

Wasp is one of the best attackers with the Espionage trait because she’s not relying on the Stealth from Espionage to be her only form of protection. Wasp either comes in at 40 for 3 clicks or 75 for 5, and there’s really no bad choice here. Either way Wasp starts with Sidestep and Penetrating/Psychic Blast with 5 range, and Super Senses for protection. If anyone can see through her Stealth they’re looking at hitting a 19 from range with her Tiny Size, and that’s only if they can actually see her. Enemies within 5 spaces of her can’t use Improved Targeting, completely shutting down a huge amount of the commons and uncommons in the set, letting her be a huge annoyance, and end games when your opponents can’t see your friendly figures, while they’re getting blasted from a distance by your team. Her last two clicks bring Perplex and Running Shot+Incapacitate giving her some versatility. She’s just so solid for her points, and can really destroy unprepared teams.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

031a Jolt

I love Jolt, she’s a 25 point figure with Precision Strike and Flurry that gets an additional Sidestep every single time she uses Sidestep and rolls a 4-6. Potentially she could move across the entire map in a single turn, but of course that’s not going to happen. Your opponents need to be worried about Jolt when she’s 4-6 squares away, because when she gets close she can give tokens if she’s on a Thunderbolts team, and making herself a 19 defense. Jolt is simple, straight-forward and potentially really dangerous. Get her in to combat, and don’t be afraid to push her to make a dent in your opponents.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

#31b Jolt

Jolt is a devestating 60 points that needs a little bit of set-up to be as strong as possible. Jolt has a version of the Speed Force trait, but her pay-offs for collecting tokens are incredible. First she gets Willpower, insuring she doesn’t need to push to collect other tokens, then she gets Energy Explosion as FREE, and finally, after 4 hits, all her damage becomes penetrating, including the Energy Explosion. With a good movement value and a fine range, she’ll be able to get where she needs to make attacks, and be able to get back to safety. She’s not a particularly defensive figure, but with huge mobility, free attacks and the potential for incredible penetrating damage, you’d be crazy not to play her if you pull her. She is a new fantastic option for Thunderbolts teams, and will make a big dent in your opponents when she’s on one. In constructed I don’t think she’ll make a big splash, as she needs too much set-up time to be really, really dangerous. After 4-6 turns of successful attacks your opponents should be almost dead, or have dealt with her already.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

032 Pepper Potts

Pepper’s got 4 clicks with Perplex and Outwit making her a straight upgrade from Aleksander Lukin in sealed. She’s got a trait that helps Iron Man re-roll attacks, but It still doesn’t make Iron Man good enough to be a must-play. Pepper is solely a Perplex with a strangely long dial for a great point cost. Play her.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

033 Victor Mancha

Bringing back the Runaway trait right after the Runaways rotated out of Modern seems a little strange, but Victor is a great figure, so I don’t mind too much. Victor has traited Stealth, but he can’t see through Stealth, but can act as a taxi, and gets Sidestep when he’s within 4 of an opposing character. Offensively he’s got Running Shot and Penetrating/Psychic Blast, and Enhancement for your friends. He also gives all your friendly characters Mastermind to put damage onto him. His values fall fast as he takes damage, but once you decide what you need him for, he’ll be a fantastic addition with a myriad of uses.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

034 Skein

Skein has two valuable assets, a triple target Incapacitate that ignores Super Senses and Shape Change and two clicks of a special damage power that gives adjacent characters Shape Change. If you want these things on your team, Skein is the person to see, and if you don’t she really doesn’t do much else. I will end up playing Skein a couple times in sealed, and I’m sure the shared Shape Change will be a boon, but I don’t think it’s enough to make me really appreciate her dial. That being said, I would advise picking up a Skein for constructed. Shape Change is a weird power that has rapidly become more and more important, and a character that just gives it away on a potentially powerful theme team (Thunderbolts) might just be good enough to see some play.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 3/5

Rares

035 Iron Man

The last of the Shifting Focus Iron Man figures hammers these characters into the “Meh” category. None of the options are particularly interesting, and none of them are great. This Iron Man is pretty good in sealed with Outwit top-dial and some Invincible to keep him alive, but the powers he grants to the other shifting focus figures? Poison, Incapacitate and Precision Strike? None of these are what you really want. This is just an all around disappointing figure, and a waste of three slots in this otherwise amazing set. This Iron Man does have a massive 9 range, so, while he might never be the best option for a team, he’s hardly ever going to be the worst option either.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

036 Citizen V

The third and final Citizen V might actually be my least favourite. This Citizen is another 5 click dial, but this time for 60 points, putting her as the most expensive of the three. She doesn’t waste those points however, bringing traited Leadership and Leap/Climb as well as a special movement power giving her the combination of Sidestep and Charge, as well as the ability to take a token off of any friendly character adjacent to the target when she hits, allowing her to take tokens off herself multiple times in a turn with her movement power and her Assembled Bolts and Masters trait. Defensively she’s rocking an 18 top-dial with Combat Reflexes and Shape Change, and only loses that Shape Change in order to pick up Perplex or Outwit later in her dial. Citizen V might not be the most exciting to open in sealed, but she can perform really well against teams relying on Stealth by using her Leap/Climb to get up close, before destroying them with Blades/Claws/Fangs.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

037a Black Panther

Black Panther is another character with the Espionage trait, but he comes with a special distinguishing factor, a special damage power that gives him Leadership and protects him from Outwit, Incapacitate and having his values negatively modified. His Stealth becomes a much better deal when no one can get rid of it, and when he’s relying on an 18 defense with Super Senses to protect him. Now at 85 points, Super Senses might not be the most reliable defensive power, but Black Panther has Improved Movement: Elevated to assist in getting away from ranged attackers if need be. Offensively, Black Panther isn’t quite as sharp. He has two clicks of Charge down his seven click dial and paired with that is a special Blades/Claws/Fangs that deals penetrating damage when you roll doubles. It’s just not a reliable power, and a little lackluster for a close combat figure of his point cost. If you aren’t lacking for a primary attacker, Black Panther at 50 is a great figure for Outwitting Stealth on your opponents. He’s still got that awesome 18 defense, but only 4 clicks of life. I’d almost always rather play him at this point level, especially if I didn’t pull any common with Outwit, but he does get a lot of offensive value for the 35 points. The 50 point dial’s Outwit and Improved Targeting are really what make this piece worth running, and if you need that on your team, you’re going to be happy with him.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

037b Azzuri

Azzuri is a 50-55 point close combat figure for 40 points, so you’re getting good value for him even if his trait and special power do nothing for you. His trait boosts Wakandan’s attack and damage if they’re targeting someone closer to your starting area than theirs. This probably won’t happen often enough to matter, but I guess it’s a nice potential boost to Azzuri. His special damage power is much better bringing Leadership and Exploit Weakness to his dial, and removes tokens when he KO’s a character that meets his trait’s requirements. This is just a really undercosted dial that will do some great work for you, and there’s nothing else really here. Even in constructed I don’t see myself ever playing Azzuri over the Prime Black Panther, leaving him as a niche close combat figure desperate for a home. Even in sealed his just a really great close combat figure for a low point cost. He’s not doing anything to make him a must-play figure. I can’t fault his dial, but there’s better things in this set to play.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 1/5

038 Steve Rogers

The next member of the Living Legend crew is a cheap-ish supporting figure with little offensive prowess, but access to Leadership, Outwit, Perplex and the S.H.I.E.L.D team ability. With 7-9 clicks of life and a stop-click, Steve is harder to put down than a lot of the other support figures in this set around the same point cost as him, but none of this is what makes him really shine. His third trait allows him to make any character of 50 points of less either a member of the Avengers or a member of S.H.I.E.L.D helping you to craft a strong theme team. In constructed this is going to make huge impacts as offensive figures like Vulture and Starfire are allowed to join Avengers theme teams. Steve performs diligently in sealed, but make sure you get one for constructed where he truly belongs.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 5/5

039 Captain America

While at first I thought it was a little cheap they were reusing the sculpts from the Nick Fury and the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D set, the fact that we’re getting SR quality sculpts in the rare slot makes me feel a lot better about it. Sam Cap is very similar to the uncommon Captain America with a focus on range for the first half of his dial, followed up with a lot of close combat. Like the uncommon Sam has the Living Legend trait, giving him a lot of survivability, which is further focused on with his defense power. For a majority of his dial Sam has Super Senses, Toughness and gets a bonus +2 defense on turns that he moved. This gives Sam a 19 defense on 4 out of 6 of his clicks, and can make him horribly hard to deal with, atleast, if your opponent doesn’t have Outwit. His biggest flaw is that he suffers against opposing characters with Stealth for half of his dial, but atleast being a taxi can help him get past that. He’s an average ranged attacker that can make your enemies life hell if they don’t have the right powers to get past his 19 defense.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

040 Thor

Jane Foster Thor is a really cool ranged attacker with some high values and an even higher point cost. She comes in at 100 for 6 clicks of life, and that’s a big ask in my opinion. She might have a great range and Running Shot, but in this sealed climate that’s just not enough. Luckily she brings a great trait that lets her deal penetrating damage and knock back a character she has hit this turn, and with Energy Explosion she can potentially get around Stealth by hitting a character adjacent to the one hiding in hindering. There’s no finesse to this figure at all, but she can make some pretty big plays if she can find targets to hit. I think 100 points is expensive for this figure, but she’s a decent choice for a primary attacker.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

041 Red Skull

This guy is just a mess of stuff for 75 points, but I’m not actually sure if he does much. For those 75 points he’s got six clicks of life half of it focusing on him as a background semi-support role with the Hydra team ability, Outwit and Leadership, while the middle three clicks focus on him tying up your enemies with Plasticity while using Poison to eat away at them. That half of his dial works well with his Power Elite trait, but it doesn’t provide him much of a way to protect himself. The supporting part of his dial gives him Stealth and Shape Change as well as Mastermind on his top-click making him pretty well defended, but besides Outwit he’s not doing much for that 75 point cost. I don’t really like this dial, but with these jack of all trades style dials, they can always out-perform expectations because they aren’t bad at anything. I’m not going to be happy if I have to play Red Skull, but he doesn’t really have a bad click, just a lot of mediocre ones. If you do pull Aleksander Lukin, you might as well add Red Skull to the sideline to get a long dial, and the choice of some decent standard powers.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 1/5

042 Minotaur

Minotaur can blow up walls and run through hindering, and when he does he has a pretty bad dial to hit people with. Even if you line up a perfect Charge and boost his attack and damage to 13 and 6 respectively, he’s not going to be able to do that again. In constructed he can shut down Location Bonuses, but then you’re stuck with a 50 point dead weight holding your team back. Minotaur just kind of stinks.

Sealed: 1/5

Constructed: 1/5

043 Hawkeye

This is a mean ranged dial, with the potential for a 14 range swing with three target Precision Strike and/or Incapacitate. Hawkeye can copy team abilities, hide in Stealth and has Leadership to boost up your Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D and Thunderbolts teams. Later in his dial he gets Ranged Combat Expert that he can use with his three bolts to insure he’s hitting multiple characters with his Precision Strike. He also doesn’t see through Stealth, or have any reliable defense on his first two clicks besides Stealth. This is not the set for Hawkeye. Going up against other rares and super-rares, Hawkeye can cause a lot of mayhem and damage, but the way it stands, he’s going to struggle against commons and uncommons which puts you in a bad position in sealed.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 2/5

044 Ghost

I’m so happy they’ve made a new Ghost for me to use on my Thunderbolts teams, and frankly, I think he’s designed perfectly. This Ghost also NEEDS to be on a Thunderbolts team to get the most out of him. Like everyone in this set he’s got the Espionage trait, but he also has Outwit, making him one of the best characters to have it. Ghost’s trick is to Phasing/Teleport through your opponents units, and then use Incapacitate to attack everyone he Phased through to give out tokens. The possibility of giving all of your opponent’s figures an action token every turn is fantastic, especially when paired with the Assembled Bolts and Masters trait that can let him give out an extra token to a character, or remove a token from himself to continue his spree. The biggest issue with Ghost is his lack of Willpower and average attack stat, because if he isn’t hitting those Incapacitate’s, he really isn’t doing much. That being said, because the Incapacitate happens after the movement resolves, he can move back into the range of a friendly Probability Control user to get the best chance at making those attacks. Outwit through Stealth is enough to make him playable, and being able to safely token up an opposing character who’s sitting 5 squares away makes him great.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

045 Baron Zemo

The old Baron Zemo is a ranged attacker who relies on Combat Reflexes for safety, giving him a weird collection of powers that want him to stay away from being based, but not caring tremendously if he is. Zemo has three traits, the first is the expected Assembled Bolts and Masters, the second is one of the first Mortal Foe traits, a trait that lowers the attack value of a character with specific powers (in this case Leadership and Combat Reflexes) and a final trait that lowers opposing characters speed and breakaway rolls by 1. A single square less might not seem luck much, until you try to Charge a character five squares away, and realize you can’t make it. It’s probably not going to impact many games, and Baron Zemo doesn’t have a lot going for him outside of that. Don’t go out of your way to play him.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 2/5

046 Black Knight

Running Shot/Pulse Wave on a 65 point character. Yup, Black Knight is a must-play. Beyond all of that good stuff, Black Knight is a flier and can carry other characters, can choose powers to lower the attack values of opposing characters with those powers, and has two clicks of Outwit! This guy is just such a great rare that I can’t ever see myself passing him up. His biggest weakness is his low defense values, with a 17 Toughness down the entire dial. It doesn’t matter though, Black Knight can be used as taxi, a Telekinesis user, an Outwitter or as a fantastic attacker that can get through all the pesky Stealth in this set without issue. Just so you know, your opponents will get a -1 attack if they have any power that Black Knight has picked the entire game, not just the one he is currently using, making it hard to not have a -1 attack when you’re within 6 of him. Great figure.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 2/5

047 Melter

Okay, remember Victor Mancha? Melter is basically him. The big differences between the two are that Melter doesn’t take a dive towards the end of his dial, but he also doesn’t fly or give other characters Mastermind. His version of Penetrating/Psychic Blast lowers the ranged damage characters hit with it deal for the rest of the game, and he lowers the attack values of characters with Impervious or Invulnerability that attack him. Melter is kind of meh. He does enough for his points, but nothing to make himself a stand-out.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

048 Radioactive Man

Radioactive Man is a tanky figure that wants to get up-close and personal to your opponents, and for 85 points he does a pretty decent job of doing that. He’s got four clicks straight of 18 defense with a good reducer, and a trait that lowers the attack value of characters with Energy Explosion or Quake by -2 when they’re attacking him. What really makes Radioactive Man shine is his other trait that lowers the damage values of close attacks by -1 if the character making them is within three squares of him. With his big reducers this can completely stall out characters stuck in adjacency with him. The only thing you need to make Radioactive Man shine is a taxi to get him into battle, as he lacks Willpower, and has an average to low movement value.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

049 Taskmaster

It was only two sets ago we got a fantastic Taskmaster, and already we’re getting another great addition to my Taskmaster collection. This Taskmaster is cheap at 60 points, and has a trait that lets him choose any Speed or Defense power on his dial to use at any time. With all the best movement powers, and both Combat Reflexes and Energy Shield/Deflection to choose from, Taskmaster can either have a 10 square swing or have a 19 defense at any point in his dial. He’s also the best character with the Power Elite trait, as he can tie-up your opponents close attackers with his Combat Reflexes and really force them to consider their usage of Power Actions. With a 12 attack and a Perplex top-dial, Taskmaster will be a hyper-efficient use of 60 points, and is one of the best sealed pulls in the rare slot.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 4/5

050 Fixer

Fixer is a taxi with Telekinesis and a Perplex that let’s him modify any value but damage on every friendly character within 4 squares and line of fire of him. Can you really ask for more in sealed? Pushing all of your units defenses or attacks up by 1 is more than worth the 50 points, and when he can do that, and then throw one of them into the battle? I’m going to be more than happy. Finally we get a new Fixer, and one that doesn’t disappoint in the slightest.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 4/5

051 Moonstone

Look, I love the Thunderbolts, and I feel spoiled that every single Thunderbolts dial in this set is just incredible. Moonstone doesn’t stop that trend with a 5 click dial for 45 points that has a pseudo-Sidestep that lets her step through walls, and a great set of offensive powers. If you happen to end up on a theme team as well, then for 5 points you can give her the option of friendly Mind Control on other Thunderbolts. I’m not going to pass up my best attackers moving half their movement and then attacking without costing them an action, but if I don’t have other Thunderbolts, Moonstone still shines as a secondary attacker that can’t be tied-up.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 5/5

Super-rares

052 Spider-Man

It’s awesome to see the Spider-Man from Insomniac’s game appear in Heroclix, and he really doesn’t disappoint either. For 85 points you get 5 clicks of life which may not seem like a lot, and two different dials full of useful powers to bring to bear on your opponents. To add to his survivability, Spider-Man heals a click whenever he chooses to switch between his two dials, and he has traited, unoutwitable Super-Senses that succeed on a 4-6, making it really hard to deal him damage. On his Stealth side, Spider-Man has Stealth (big surprise) as well as Shape Change, free Incapacitate and a free movement into any square of hindering terrain within 4 and line of fire. This is a more defensive dial, and rewards Spider-Man for being on it when he’s got two action tokens. His fight dial is full of Charge and Combat Reflexes with a bonus damage power that gives him a choice between Perplex, Outwit, Close Combat Expert and Exploit Weakness, making him a varied attacker. With 18 defense top-dial on this side, he’ still not going to be easy to hit. The biggest issue with Spider-Man is that, no matter how strong his defenses, 5 clicks is still not hard to get through with an attack or two, so Spider-Man relies on his teammates to draw some fire, and keep him safe. I think this figure is a slam dunk, but it’s by no means an instant win, and with poor placement, you can easily lose Spider-Man in a single turn. Spider-Man definitely has some potential in constructed games where he can be built around more freely. The biggest problem with Spider-Man is that he doesn’t have a huge swing and he doesn’t deal a ton of damage when he gets in, and against Pulse Wave he doesn’t have any protection. What makes Spider-Man great is the potential free movement of up to 6 spaces on the Stealth Mode part of his dial letting him position himself for powerful call-ins, as well as Incapacitating unsuspecting enemies. With the right builds he’s going to be hard to take down, and be a constant thorn in the side of your opponents, and honestly, that’s the best representation of Spider-Man I’ve seen in this game

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 4/5

053 War Machine

War Machine is a monster in sealed where he can make two attacks in a single turn against a single enemy, and he can do it through Stealth, easily killing a large majority of the commons that run rampant over the other tent-poles in this set. War Machine’s opening clicks consist of Running Shot, Penetrating/Psychic Blast, Invincible and a self-targeting Perplex, boosting his values to above average. Those first clicks really make him a monster, especially when he can target two characters, hit both, and deal most of the damage to one, before following up with his Mini-Gun trait on the other. The problem with War Machine is that, after those first two clicks, it’s a little bit down hill. On clicks 3-6, War Machine’s mobility is limited to two clicks of Sidestep that turns into Earthbound/Neutralized. His offensive values go up as he takes damage, but losing Willpower on his last two clicks while still only having 6 clicks of life is not a combination you want. War Machine is a fine 100 point figure in constructed, but the ranged Flurry doesn’t make up for the short dial, and lack of options after the first two clicks. If you can get a good hit off on War Machine he transforms from a serious mobile threat to a sitting duck pretty quickly, removing most of his usefulness.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 2/5

053b Punisher War Machine

Unlike War Machine, Punisher wants to be pushed as much as possible. With a trait that grants him both Colossal Stamina and the ability to make free attacks when he has tokens, there’s little chance I won’t be pushing him to keep those two tokens on him while attacking as much as possible. 90 points here gets you 6 clicks of life with lots of reducers, which isn’t really where you normally want to be, but in sealed the combination of Improved Targeting: Hindering and Energy Explosion with Knockback are way too good to pass up. In constructed, maybe the 95 point version that replaces itslef with a different Punisher when he dies might be okay, but there really aren’t any great Punisher’s and this Prime is best at killing Colossals, something we’re not quite lacking at the moment. There’s not really a niche for him, but he’s also just not making much of an impact for his point cost.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 2/5

054 Captain Marvel

Free damage returns with this excellent Captain Marvel that comes in at either 150 or 75 points. Honestly, this dial has everything you need in a tentpole figure for sealed. Lot’s of reducers, useful damage powers and three separate stop-clicks make her a force to be reckoned with, and that’s before we even get to her special powers. First up, she’s got Hypersonic Speed that deals 1 penetrating damage after resolutions to a character she moved through, forgoing a roll to deal damage, which is a scary proposition for anyone facing against one of these. She’s got her stop-click that comes with Invincible and gives her whole dial protection from Outwit, and finally she has a trait that let’s her spawn her pet cat/flerkin Chewie to tear apart her opponents. Spawning Chewie is a free action, so Captain Marvel can Hypersonic through a character, then attack a character for 4 and then spawn Chewie all in the same turn, and Chewie is no slouch. Flurry, Plasticity, Giant Reach; 2, Blades, Super Senses and Perplex round out all of Chewie’s powers, and even though he doesn’t have Willpower, his Perplex makes him valuable on turns he can’t take an action. With the movement power and Chewie, it’s not hard to see how Captain Marvel can kill almost any figure in a single turn. In sealed i’m always playing her at 150, but in constructed the 95 point dial seems pretty impressive. Free penetrating damage to anyone within 10 spaces is nothing to scoff at, and especially with all of the figures running around with Shape Change and Super Senses, it’s not hard to see how Captain Marvel could make a dent in constructed. Playing two of them even seems like a decent option as two damage can really ruin a lot of the played figures right now (Vulture especially) and with two Chewies, you’re putting out a lot of damage.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

055 Arno Stark

Arno has had the disservice of getting an errata before he ever had a chance to shine, and now he’s not as impressive as he could have been. Basically Arno is a slow ranged attack with a long range, good values and Outwit to insure he’s dealing his full 4 damage when he needs to. He has a great defense power that functions like a combination of Invincible and Impervious, and solid defense values to keep him safe. What pushed him over the top was a choice to, at the beginning of your turn, turn him into a sort of “turret” where he becomes Immobile, get’s 12 range and a ton of Improved Targeting (but not Outdoor blocking anymore) and a RANGED action that let him target every opposing character within range with a 1 penetrating damage attack. He’s designed really well, but especially after the errata where he lost Improved Targeting: Outdoor Blocking he’s lost a lot of his quality. It’s not hard to hide from him in outdoor or indoor maps, and he’s not mobile enough to really fight that. 12 range Outwit with a 4 damage is always going to be nice, and the option of dealing a ton of bystander pogs 1 penetrating damage will always be a great option to have, but Arno is just a little lacking for his 90 points. In sealed, he’s a 12 range attacker with Outwit through Hindering, so he’ll do just fine.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

056 Ironheart

Ironheart is one of my favorite casual tent-poles, and can do so much for an 85 point investment that she’ll be an easy include whenever you want to run a team with her keywords. For 85 points she has 6 clicks of life, with Running Shot/Penetrating Psychic Blast for three clicks, and Force Blast and Incapacitate for the remainder. For damage powers she has an even split between Probability Control, Outwit and Perplex, all of which are great, but she also has a trait that lets her use them twice per turn.

Her dial itself is totally vanilla, with no special powers, but every click can do something useful, and she’s pretty aggressive on her first three clicks. The biggest let-down with Ironheart is her lack of Willpower. Without it, she’s limited in the use of her aggressive power set. Finally, Ironheart has a second powerful trait that lets her use Barrier as free whenever she hits with an attack, but forces her to place atleast one square of blocking adjacent to the hit character. This is just gravy on an already great dial. There’s almost nothing to complain about with Ironheart, and I think this is a figure people are going to be quick to reach for in casual games, because she just adds so much to any team. Sadly, she doesn’t do enough in more competitive constructed environments to be considered competitive. In sealed having two Probability Controls on a single character is more than enough to see play. She’s not going to be the most effective against Stealth, but she does enough.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

057 Black Widow

Hmm…is this really a Super-rare? 65 points for 6 clicks without Willpower and relying entirely on Stealth and Combat Reflexes for defense is asking to die in this set. In constructed she could be a fun close combat figure with the potential to stay alive for a while, but there are better close attackers for lower points. The biggest boon in her favor is the Espionage trait that can keep her alive as she closes the distance, but without Willpower she can’t move that far on her own. Her other trait heals her up to 6 clicks whenever she KO’s a unit, but she’s also not great at actually killing units, leaving her as a mediocre close attacker with Stealth. I really dislike her, possibly unfairly, because of how much she suffers in sealed. She’s so easily threatened by half of the common figures that I just don’t see her doing much of anything.

Sealed: 2/5

Constructed: 3/5

058 Immortal Hulk

Immortal Hulk is certainly an interesting figure, and definitely one you’re going to have to watch out for in sealed and constructed. Basically with Immortal Hulk you’re paying 100 points for 15 clicks of life with five stop-clicks (three printed stop-clicks and 2 pseudo stop-clicks when he dies the first and second times), but with the downside that, whenever they hit two of those stop-clicks your opponents will score points. Unlike other “don’t die” figures, Hulk will give up points as they take damage, but to make up for that shortcoming, Hulk also can deal huge amounts of damage, especially for a figure that’s so hard to kill. With all of that being said, I actually think Immortal Hulk is incredibly well balanced for what he is. Hulk’s dial is 5 clicks long, with the first click being a weak “Banner” click with only Outwit, and no offensive potential. The remainder of his dial is full of high attack and damage, as well as Charge, Flurry and Outwit rounding out his offensive potential. Hulk top’s all of that off with a trait that let’s him Charge for free after two friendly characters within line of fire (including himself) take damage from an attack. This trait is especially good on clicks 4 and 5, where he can use Flurry to make up to 4 attacks a turn. Now, it might seem like my statement that Hulk is balanced is crazy, but there’s one thing that keep Hulk from being as upsetting as it seems, and it’s that first click. Your opponents are forced to push Hulk off of that first click of Outwit, or they’ve just sunk 100 points into an 8 attack with 1 damage. Yes, when they push him, he’ll become a monster, but if you can punch through his Invincible with two attacks, they’re right back to where they started, with a useless Banner. Force your opponents to waste their actions pushing him, and plan your attacks for the two turns you’ll have when they do. If you play it right, Hulk isn’t as big a threat as he seems, but if you let your opponent, they’ll tear you apart with an unstoppable figure.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

059 Thor

I have two varied opinions about this Thor. First, without looking at her rarity, his values and powers for his point cost are great. She’s mostly running with 11 attack, 18 defense and 4 damage for six clicks of life. Every click has mobility, a useful attack power, a good reducer and either Enhancement, Empower or a special damage power that grants Shape Change and the ability to pick two powers when the Shape Change Succeeds. All of this for 85 points is great, but the other half of my brain looks at this, sees it’s a Super-Rare and just doesn’t want it. It’s good value for it’s points, but it doesn’t do anything interesting either. Her trait increases her attack for each value on the target that’s higher than her own, but with pretty steadily high values, that’s not going to happen much. In sealed Thor will be good at getting up and close and knocking people out of Stealth, but Thor’s also pretty worried about Outwit which can leave her very vulnerable. There’s no way of looking at this dial and it’s cost and saying it’s bad, the worst I can say is that it’s unexciting, and that I personally wouldn’t be excited to pull this as my super-rare.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 2/5

060 Blade

It’s nice to see a new Blade, and it’s even better to see such a good representation of the vampire hunter. 8 clicks of life for 75 points is a good starting point, and with traited Steal Energy that let’s him heal past his starting point if you play him at 50 points gives him a lot of survivability. Blade also benefits from the Espionage trait (this time called Vampire Hunter) but unlike Black Widow backs up that Stealth with 18 defense and Toughness. Blade’s final trick is a damage power that protects him from the Mystics team ability and removes the defense powers on Mystical and Monster figures he attacks. It’s not a great power for sealed where only a few figures fit those criteria, but it”ll be great when it does trigger. Blade is a really great front-line attacker who can keep putting up a fight as he takes and deals damage, and due to his long dial, isn’t particularly scared of the Outwit that can see through his Stealth. In constructed he’s a silver bullet against Monster and Mystical figures, but his strong dial keeps him useful even if there’s no monsters for him to fight.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

061 Mandarin

Mandarin is a very different figure in sealed and constructed. In sealed he’s a 70 point ranged attacker without Willpower. To make up for this he has access to Outwit, Perplex and Probability Control, well, more accurately he has access to one of those at a time, unless he decides to take a damage at the end of your turn, because then he has access to all three. This power covers half his dial making him a fantastic support figure that can really change a turn in your favor. His final trait gives him traited Toughness and removes the defense powers of characters with the Armor keyword when he attacks them. All of this adds up to a nicely costed 70 point figure with one weakness in his lack of Willpower. In constructed, Mandarin gets access to all of the Mandarin Rings objects that you want to add to him, and he can use two of them per turn. That means Mandarin can have a combination of Shape Change, Poison, Stealth, Smoke Cloud, Force Blast, Telekinesis, Energy Explosion and more, giving him a jack-of-all-trades feeling, if you have the rings you need. I find it a little annoying that they’ve made a figure in a standard set that needs con exclusive equipment to function, but it doesn’t take away from what a good figure Mandarin is.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 5/5

062 Baron Zemo

Now we get to my favourite part of the super-rares, The Thunderbolts. Zemo is a centralizing force for Thunderbolt and Masters of Evil teams who combines the two keywords into one. Furthermore, Zemo has an excellent Leadership power that grants characters on those teams any Marvel team ability that he wants. This is the best selling point of the figure, because of the variety of great team abilities the Marvel universe has. If you need to bust some Stealth, grant everyone the Avengers Initiative team ability, if you’re worried about a bunch of attacks, utilize the Defenders or the Skrull team abilities to protect your team. There’s a lot of incremental value that your team can acquire from this Leadership ability. This is all without looking at his amazing dial. 65 points for 6 clicks with great values, and a solid mix of close and ranged combat, make Zemo a great secondary attacker on a budget. I love this Zemo even more than the one from the Spider-man set, making him a centerpiece in my collection. In sealed, if you pull a theme team and roll well, Zemo will have no trouble busting the Stealthy figures in this set, and if you don’t he’ll be a fine second string attacker with Outwit.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 4/5

063 Atlas

Another great Thunderbolt? This set really wants my money. Atlas is the newest colossal retaliator, but he’s built in such a way that you won’t feel nearly as bad using him. Unlike other retaliators, Atlas needs to be within 6 of the target to retaliate, limiting the distance he can cross with his retaliation. However, since Atlas doesn’t have colossal indifference, when he retaliates he can freely attack afterwards, giving himself a sort of Flurry. Atlas’s values might not look so great at his 25 point starting line with a 9 attack and 3 damage, but he makes up for it with a trait that let’s him become colossal and modifies his attack and damage by +1 when he does. That gives Atlas a 10 attack for 4 damage with his retaliation. When Atlas isn’t retaliating, he’s carrying, Quaking and Empowering his friends, and generally making your opponents have a really bad time. This is all well and good, but Atlas can also be played at 50 points, giving him an extra 4 clicks. At 50 points, Atlas might not have retaliation on his starting click, but instead he has a 5 movement Charge with a 3 Giant Reach swing and a 12 attack with 5 damage. If that’s not worth 50 points, then what is.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 4/5

064 Mach X

Mach X might be the weakest of the Super-rare Thunderbolts, bringing a dial of average values to bear on your opponents. He’s either 75 points for 6 clicks, or 50 for 4, leaving him in “Meh” territory. He’s a standard Running Shot ranged attacker with Perplex to boost his values, or Ranged Combat Expert and Sidestep to get off some powerful attacks at the end of his dial. His special trait let’s him choose any attack power on his card to use, but he’s missing the obvious Pulse Wave he needs to be great. It’s great to have options, but none of his options are that exciting, especially now that Penetrating/Psychic Blast doesn’t work with Energy Explosion. It hurts me to say bad things about Abner, but his dial just really doesn’t hold a candle to the other Thunderbolts. In sealed he’s a pretty good option for a primary attacker as he sees through hindering and can easily hit through reducers.

Sealed: 3/5

Constructed: 1/5

065 Songbird

Songbird is my favourite Marvel character, and luckily this is a great representation of her, and a fantastic figure. Songbird comes in at either 60 points or 30 points, and starts with Pulse Wave on either line. At 60 points, you’re getting Running Shot and Probability Control with an 11 attack and 18 defense, where at 30 you’re limited to Sidestep; Either way Songbird is cheap access to Pulse Wave. I’m almost always playing her at 60 to get access to Probability Control and Running Shot, but Songbird’s last ability makes her worth playing at either point value. Songbird can make a single Barrier marker as FREE and when she does, she removes all blocking markers adjacent to the one she placed, allowing her to blow through your opponents Barriers. One marker isn’t as great as two, but any free markers are better than none, and with the bonus of blowing up barriers, makes Songbird a must play.

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

066 Blackheath

Blackheath has a lot of weird abilities that make him way better than he looks at first glance. First things first, Blackheath is a weird close attacker that relies on huge amounts of hindering terrain to punch up to 9 squares away, because he gets Giant Reach equal to the amount of hindering terrain adjacent to him, and that he occupies. On-top of that, his special power gives him Quake, allowing him to hit everyone he can draw line of fire to within 9 squares with his Quake (once again in the prime scenario). It’s a really fun power, and in the right maps it can make him an absolute monster, but assume that in most maps you’re getting a Giant Reach of 3-4. His dial isn’t anything to write home about beyond his special power he’s got good to average values, little to no mobility and enough defense to survive a few hits. Luckily, Blackheath has one last thing going for him, the ability to generate bystanders. At the beginning of the game you make two of his Simuloids, and then you make another one whenever he, or one of his bystanders KO’s an opposing character. The Simuloids are great bystanders with Plasticity, Poison and Shape Change making them a huge annoyance for your opponents, and if Blackheath would ever be KO’d you can save him by sacrificing one of his Simuloids in his place. If you’re smart with your placement, Blackheath can be almost impossible to kill, especially since when he saves himself, he ends up on a click with Regneration, and because of his Masters of Evil team ability, he’s able to use it even if he has two action tokens. Blackheath isn’t winning any awards for overpowered super-rares, but I think his surprising durability and his potentially huge reach can make him a decent threat, especially if he can make a few more simuloids.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

067 Machinesmith

Machinesmith is my favourite dial in the set. Basically, he’s a pretty weak secondary attacker/support figure with great defensive capabilities. His dial always gives him one of either Perplex, Outwit or Probability Control, and that’s all you need for sealed. Thankfully that’s not the end of Machinesmith’s arsenal. For the small cost of a power action, Machinesmith can generate a Robot Dupe bystander, and when he would die, he can sacrifice the Robot Dupe in his place, stealing a page from Blackheath’s book. What pushes all of this over the edge is the Robot Dupe itself. When a Robot Dupe is generated, it becomes a copy of any opposing character of 100 points or less (minus any traits or special powers). The dupe also picks up Toughness and Shape Change. If the character you’re copying suddenly takes damage and ends up on a bad click, feel free to push your dupe to death and copy the next best character your opponent has. Even if you’re just copying a figure with Perplex or Probability Control, getting that for free whenever you want is worth it. Machinesmith will definitely see play on the sideline for Jason Wyngarde in constructed, but I think he’s good enough to see play elsewhere. The robot keyword is getting stronger and stronger, and Machinesmith can basically bring two characters to the battlefield for 90 points. It’s just good value!

Sealed: 5/5

Constructed: 5/5

067 M.O.D.O.K

Modok is a giant flyer with 7 clicks of life for 90 points. His dial is full of reducers, he has traited Energy Shield/Deflection and he can give that up to protect himself from a ranged attack once per game. Modok is really, really hard to kill unless you get up close. Offensively he’s no slouch either starting with Running Shot+Penetrating/Psychic Blast and Outwit, followed up by a special power that let’s him deal penetrating damage to all the characters he hits with his 7 range, 3 target Mind Control. Modok’s also got Outwit, Perplex and Probability Control all over his dial! It’s all very good value, and in this set he might suffer significantly due to his lack of Willpower and his lack of Improved Targeting. That being said, he’s just got such a great dial for the points, that I cannot see him being a go to figure for casual constructed games.

Sealed: 4/5

Constructed: 3/5

Chases

The chases will be ranked from best (1/6) to worst (6/6) because they’re all strong. I actually really love the design for these chases. They’re all powerful and undercosted, but none of them do anything so incredible that they’re going to completely warp the competitive scene around them.

069 Namor

Namor is the new lynch pin to water based teams. He can freely move a single square of water terrain underneath him whenever he wants, boosting his defense, and activating some of his other traits. He’s also able to generate 6 squares of water every turn with a wet form of Smoke Cloud. To synergize with the water terrain, Namor brings another trait to the table that boosts the attack of any friendy character with the Swimming movement symbol or that shares a keyword with Namor if they occupy water terrain. It also gives Namor the Swimming symbol, boosting his defense from range when he’s in water (which is always) and boosts his own attack, as he is a character friendly to himself. Finally Namor has 4 clicks of a special defense power that grants Toughness and Regeneration, but only while he’s in water (which once again, he ALWAYS is) giving him a lot of healing potential on the lower part of his dial, and what a dial it is. Namor has 7 clicks of life for 75 points, with high values, 4 clicks of Regeneration and the ability to strengthen your whole team and generate water terrain for anyone who wants it. When you’re looking for a team that relies on water, look no further than Namor to be the center of that team.

Rating: (3/6)

070 Thor

Thor is a powerhouse for a low price. 125 points bring 9 clicks of pure power to bear on your opponents. Thor also has two optional starting lines with 6 clicks of life for 75 points or 4 clicks for 50. Every starting line has Probability Control, and some form of move and attack. Thor’s big trick involves his Lightning Clix FX, which gives him Energy Shield/Deflection, Poison and Mystics for close attacks when it’s attached to him, and he may remove it when he hits with an attack, allowing him to use Energy Explosion right after making the attack. It’s great to be able to make two attacks per turn, but 90% of the time for me, I’m leaving that Lightning marker attached to force opponents to roll against a 20 from range, or be forced to take damage for attacking him up close. All of this being said, Thor isn’t perfect. Taking one damage on his 125 or 75 point puts him on a click with Sidestep and Energy Explosion, limiting his effect on the game. It’s a perfect way to balance this powerful, underpriced figure. You’ve got to look for their little weaknesses and exploit them, and suddenly these super powerful chase figures will fall to your less rare figures.

Rating: (2/6)

071 Ghost Rider

Here’s another really under-costed figure for the points, but maybe not as much as the previous contenders. Ghost Rider’s big trick is his Flame Marker which he applies to a character when he hits them. When a character has it and hits with an attack, they take 1 penetrating damage, and if they miss with the attack the marker is removed, making it a win-win for you. What really makes Ghost Rider special is his other trait that gives him Passenger: 3, lets him carry fliers, and gives him the ability to use Ram, and modifies his speed by +3 when he does. With Ram, Ghost Rider can move up to 13 squares in a straight line, and make an attack against every character he passed through, normally taking unavoidable damage for doing so, but alas, this isn’t the case for Ghost Rider. When he’s not Ramming, you can find him using Charge and Exploit Weakness, or Running Shot with his 3 range, or finally, using Steal Energy to heal 1 for every enemy he hits with his ram. He’s a great taxi for S.H.I.E.L.D and Mystical teams and has Mystics to fend off attackers. Overall he’s a solid piece, but he doesn’t quite do enough to compare to the other chases.

Rating: (5/6)

072 Dr. Strange

This Dr. Strange looks so fantastic, and he’s so much fun to play. Basically, Dr. Strange is a weird support/secondary attacker with Mystics and the Power Cosmic Team Abilities. On his first click he’s Stealthy, and has Telekinesis to get your friends into position around him where he grants them a 19 defense Defend. When he decides to push, he picks up Running Shot with some incredible values, making him a huge threat. Finally at the end of his dial he has Support, but with his Defend he can insure he only needs to roll a 6 to heal. This all good stuff, and it makes for a great Dr. Strange, but of course, like all the other chases, he has a clix FX too. His FX trait let”s him use Phasing/Teleport and when he does he generates a portal marker in either the square he began or ended the movement in, which gives anyone adjacent to it Phasing/Teleport and modifies their speed by +2. That means anyone adjacent to it using a Running Shot or Charge just increased the distance they’re moving by 2, which can make a massive difference in reach. He’s another really solid figure, and in terms of strength I think he’s just slightly better than Ghost Rider. They’re both pretty equal, but boosting everyone’s speed is really strong.

Rating: (4/6)

073 Absorbing Man

Absorbing Man is clearly the weakest of the six chases, but don’t count him out based on that, he’s still a ton of fun to play and can really pack a punch with his trait. Absorbing Man can “absorb” a terrain type of an adjacent square, and when he does so he gets a huge boost in powers and values, the content of which depend on the type of terrain absorbed. Obscuring gives him a boost to speed, and lets him walk through walls, Hindering gives him Stealth, Regeneration and Attack to keep him alive over his 10 clicks of life. Blocking lets him run through walls and increases his defense and water makes him hit harder and keeps him alive with Shape Change. He’s just a fun figure to play and with a lot of finesse can be really hard to put down. Trying to find a map that offers him all of those options is hard, but always try to get Hindering, Blocking and Water when you can. His biggest issue is that he’s nothing more than a long-dialed close attacker, he’s tremendously fun to play, but he doesn’t rise above his place.

Rating: (6/6)

074 Ultron

Yes Ultron has a 14 attack, yes Ultron has three stop-clicks, yes he can Mind Control at no cost against characters he’s hit with attacks, it doesn’t make Ultron the most powerful piece ever made. Ultron is strong, there’s no doubt about that, but what’s refreshing is that he’s also pretty straight-forward. He’s vulnerable to Outwit, has only a single click of Running Shot and isn’t impossible to take out using a casual team. Ultron is the chase with the most potential in competitive constructed formats, but he’s not really doing anything special beyond having a long dial and big numbers. He’s not going to be a unstoppable menace in anything but the most casual tables. All that being said, Ultron is Awesome. He’s got a massive 8 range with three bolts to insure he can pass off his Enchephalo- Ray token to your opponents best figure, and then next turn he can use that token to completely shut down that characters mobility, or attempt a Mind Control against them with his 14 attack. He’s going to be hard to take down in the time allotted in constructed events too, with three separate stop-clicks all of which have Regeneration and Impervious. On-top of that, his defense power is never worse than Impervious making it very hard to hurt him as characters take damage. Like Immortal Hulk, Ultron is stoppable, but it takes a lot of focused fire. He’s not breaking the game anytime soon, but he’s certainly pushed.

Rating: (1/6)

075 Peggy Carter

The ultra chase Peggy Carter is good because she costs absolutely nothing to field aside from having a character called Captain America or Steve Rogers. Her dial is nothing outstanding, but it’s great for its points and she’s got the Living Legend trait making her dial even longer. She generates a nice bystander who can use Close Combat Expert to hit for up to 4 damage, and that’s about it. She comes in with some extra damage when a Cap dies, and she herself becomes hard to hit, puts out a bunch of damage, and you hope to god that they don’t score your Ultra Chase as well as your Captain America. It’s a fantastic option to have, and since the only cost is a spot on your sideline. Why wouldn’t you play her?

Rating: Ultra Chase