Battle Report: the CW Flash cast VS the Inhumans

Build:

* 300 points

* My team: two STAR Labs Researchers, Vibe, and Barry Allen Flash from the gravity feed

* Opponent: Black Bolt, Gorgon, Magnus, and two Alpha Primitives

Map:

Keystone City map from THE FLASH OP kit

Report:

The Inhumans rolled for initiative and walked to half of the map's length. The STAR Labs Researchers granted Flash with Toughness and Precision Strike then Sidestepped to position. Vibe TKd Flash to the front, behind some cars, then Flash Hypersonic Speeded to hit Black Bolt, missing. Flash then rolled for Breakaway, got it, then ran back to safety.

The Inhumans just Perplexed each other then cleared. Vibe positioned himself closer to the fight to affect his opponents with the double power action token power. Flash and the researchers then just cleared themselves.

Gorgon then positioned himself overlooking Vibe to ready for his special Charge. Black Bolt retaliated against Flash, hitting. Magnus then released an Alpha Primitive, who then walked up to Vibe with his free move action and Charged, hitting Vibe and basing him.

One STAR Lab researcher Sidestepped to Flash and declared Defend, reducing Flash's Defense to 14, then rolled for Support. It hits and heals Flash of four clicks. The other researcher TKs Flash back to the fray, Flash then Hypersonic Speeds to Magnus, hitting him for two Damage. Flash rolls for Breakaway but fails. Flash then Outwits Bolt's Leadership, then Vibe clears.

Gorgon attacks Vibe, killing him. Maximus Outwits Flash's Outwit, then produces another Alpha Primitive.

Flash pushes to hit Black Bolt but fails. The two STAR Labs Reaserchers Sidestep to position. The Inhumans crowd on Flash and hit him, methodically Perplexing each other's Attacks and Damages. It kills him.

One STAR Labs Researcher Sidestepped and attacked one Alpha Primitive, missing. The other STAR Labs Researcher pushed herself and tried TKing a light object, but fails. Gorgon and the Alpha Primitive make mincemeat out of the two.

Winner:

The Inhumans won over my team. The STAR Labs Researchers have potential to be really good placement and support pieces with their Telekinesis and Support, arguably a bit better than Moira thanks to the TK. Vibe proves once again to be a potentially really good placement and support piece, able to handle himself at melee conditions. Sadly, the dice weren't too generous to me this game, and I consistently rolled really really low. The Barry Allen Flash needs replacing, I think. His 149 points for 2 Damage in the current setup of a lot of figs with damage reducers that reduce damage by 2 remains to be too high for too small returns. I'll probably do better with someone from the Crime Syndicate or WOL, real bruisers with more than 2 Davage, who have actual damage reducers and not just evasion. Still, a very good learning game.

Wishlist 2015: AGE OF ULTRON GravFeed #008 - Hulk

As spoiled here, and as someone already mentioned in the forums, AOU gravfeed Hulk just transformed from a want to a need.

If I get the guy, I'll probably run him in 300-point build games in his 200-point setting with Sloth for 297 points, so I can turn him into a Sure Sinner in the first turn. Scatter some objects and have Hulk Charging for 7 squares thanks to Sidestep, hitting figs for 6 to 7 Damage. He's Giant Size so he can ignore pretty much all map hindrances, hit figs two squares away, and he can Carry Sloth as he Charges.

Hulk can then put Sloth down and Sloth activates his proximity-based anti-free action trait and Earthbound/Neutralizer power, and thanks to the Sloth Sin, Hulk's Defense is always +1, and if you don't give Hulk any actions for the turn, he heals one click. That's really making it difficult to retaliate against the guy. That is, if the figs are still alive after the attack.

And Hulk's traited with Battle Fury, so he's inherently anti-Shape Change, can't be Incapped nor Mind Controlled. My goodness.

The only thing that I can think of right now that'd probably dent this monster truck is a relic-negating fig like TRINITY booster Firestorm with his dicerolling damage reducer/negater, Fast Forces Deathstorm with his relic-dropping trait, and maybe DC10 Catwoman. Smartly-run, they can very likely make life a bit more difficult for this Hulk-Sloth team, but they'll need to be very very smartly-run, very very lucky with the rolls.

Wishlist 2015: Some Random Stuff

And of course, the Kree Supreme Intelligence!

Battle Report in Brief: The CW Flash and Arrow Characters with theCosmic Treadmill VS the Wrecking Crew with Pandora's Box

This is going to be brief: it was a fun game that went on for two hours, but we both did a number of mistakes in our gameplay, so it's not worth recounting in detail.

What's worth mentioning, though, is that the Pandora's Box is a pretty good support resource to round up figs that lack some certain powers and abilities to make them more viable for strategic things, all the while remaining reasonable and not abusive. The Sins themselves grant Sinners mainly placement bonuses - Combat Reflexes or Energy Shield/Deflection rounded off with Sidestep, with some Plasticity - while the dial granting only one other bonus power or ability - Probability Control, Phasing/Teleport, Running Shot. A good majority of the game is played with only two or three bonuses per fig - Sidestep, CR or ESD, then whatever power is activated in the dial - with no plusses on the combat ability values, up until you reach the end dial, something you'll only achieve if you fulfill certain conditions. I really really really like this resource. It appeals to how I play the game.

The Cosmic Treadmill, too, is a pretty good strategic addition. With its special Leadership power (all friendlies in the map clear one action token) and extra Probability Control, it's kinda like having an extra ATA for your whole team, and used well (and correctly) will give the player placement and attack advantage (but not to the point of unfairness). The main trick is to use it after you've given everyone their actions. If used well, you wouldn't have to push your figs at any turn, and you'll arguably have the option to do one or two extra actions every turn. Worth remembering is that the Cosmic Treadmill is not a resource nor a relic, but a 3D object, which means you can have this while having a Pandora's Box or a Sloth relic. This also means that even your opponent can use the Treadmill for its game advantages.

The MVP from my team was Firestorm, with his damage reducer trait (you ignore all damages from figs tapping a resource or relic when you roll 4-6, and only take one penetrating damage when you roll 1-3) more or less making him a pretty good sponge. If he has extra Damage powers like Combat Reflexes or Shape Change or Super Senses, he's going to be annoying quite a number of players. I think we'll be seeing him being used in some melee capacity in tourneys, likely with a power battery (maybe Star Sapphires' battery for the Shape Change, or the Red one with Decoy for the Giant Reach and Poison and Shape Change?). Tie-up potential for resource-and relic-heavy fights.

The second MVP was Vibe, with TK and traited Quake, a very good scrapper and melee support piece for his point value. I feel like we'll be seeing more of this guy in tourneys (maybe with Hammers or the Green Power Battery). Just imagine two of these guys with Willpower with a 100-point fig, like, say DEADPOOL booster Typhoid Mary, doing placement shenanigans by yoyo-ing Typhoid Mary with Telekinesis - one Vibe catapults Mary, Mary does her Charge-BCF combo, then the other Vibe pulls Mary back in - quite annoying!

A pretty decent team, but they need something to round them off, especially against a force with a complement of a resource. Ultimately, I lost to the Wrecking Crew, but it wasn't easy!

Battle Report: Mysticals and Inmate with Pandora's Box VS Luthor, Bizarro, and Telekinetic Bruce Wayne with Phoenix Force

Build:

* 500 points

* My force: Mazahs!, Abra Kadabra, Tim Hunter, Detective Chimp, and Blackgate Inmate with Pandora's Box and three Sins

* Opponent: Lex Luthor, Bizarro, and Telekinetic Bruce Wayne with Phoenix Force

Map:

Black Mercy map from WOL

Report:

I rolled for initiative and assigned Sloth to Mazahs!. I moved Inmate forward to begin interference, then moved Abra Kadabra for support. Mazahs! Sidestepped to begin placement. Bruce Wayne then TKd Bizarro in place then Bizarro flew to the forefront of my half of the map. Luthor then flew and Carried Wayne to the bushes for placement and possible TK support.

Mazash! Sidestepped twice thanks to Sloth and Inmate then approached Bizarro for Pulse Wave. The Pulse Wave hit Bizarro in full force for five damage, also Outwitting all of his powers except for Charge. I then assigned Wrath to Abra Kadabra, then used his power to whittle down Tim Hunter for one click. Detective Chimp moved to the bushes.

Bizarro then Charged Mazahs! with a heavy object, but he misses. Luthor sneaked to the back then Pulse Waved Mazahs! for five damage, critically injuring him. Wayne moves out of the bushes to provide support.

Abra Kadabra deals one more damage to Tim Hunter. Detective Chimp pushes himself as he moves around the bushes. Mazahs! clears. Luthor, Bizarro and Wayne clear.

Mazahs! attacks Bizarro, killing him. Abra Kadabra pushes Tim Hunter one more time, activating his magus setting. Tim moves into the bushes to provide Mazahs! some support. The Inmate moves into the bushes. Abra Kadabra and Detective Chimp clear. Luthor Pulse Waves Mazahs! full force, killing him. Wayne then TKs Luthor close to Tim.

A class war ensues when Inmate moves out of the bushes and bases Wayne to negate his TK capabilities. Abra Kadabra moves into place to provide Tim with Probability Control. Detective Chimp moves to the middle, is then whittled down by Abra Kadabra one life, pushing Chimp to his special Perplex. Chimp then Perplexes Tim's Attack by +2 for 14 Attack, then Tim Perplexes his Damage +1 for 5. Tim then Pulse Waves Luthor full blast, critically injuring him. Tim then dies a martyr's death thanks to Luthor's Mystic damage from the Magik shard.

Luthor attacks Abra Kadabra but misses, while Wayne tries in vain to injure the Inmate. Detective Chimp then Perplexes Abra Kadabra's Attack +2 then Kadabra shoots Luthor, killing him. Detective Chimp and the Inmate both clear.

Wayne clears. The Inmate tries to hit Wayne but he misses. Abra Kadabra moves in place to target Wayne. Detective Chimp Perplexes Kadabra's Defense +2.

Wayne tries to hit the Inmate, misses. Detective Chimp Perplexes Kadabra's Attack +2, then Kadabra shoots Wayne. It kills him.

Winner:

My team of Mystics with an Inmate and Pandora's Box! Mazahs! proved to be a very effective sponge while Kadabra powered Tim up. Detective Chimp's special Perplex also proved to be a boon. Full force Pulse Waves also allowed circumventing the Phoenix Force Defense power granted to Luthor and Bizarro. Pretty good team with placement- and timing-minded gameplay.

Battle Report: Rogues with Deathstorm VS SHIELD

Build:

* 300 points

* My team: ROGUES Fast Forces Pied Piper and Mirror Master sharing the SUICIDE SQUAD TA, with CRIME SYNDICATE Fast Forces Deathstorm, and about a dozen rats

* Opponent: WINTER SOLDIER gravfeed Captain America and Falcon and DEADPOOL booster GW Bridge

Map:

Keystone City map from FLASH OP kit

Report:

SHIELD rolled for initiative and moved about eight squares from their starting area, adjacent a building and behind some cars. Pied Piper rolled out four rats and Mirror Master transported PP and two rats adjacent another building almost opposite SHIELD. Deathstorm flew to the top of a building overlooking the middle of the map and Perplexed PP's defense +2, which PP also Perplexed +1, raising it to 20.

GW Bridge moved to the top of a car for placement then Outwitted one of PP's rats. Cap and Falcon cleared. Possessing Willpower, PP spawned two more rats. Deathstorm then Perplexed Bridge's defense down to 14 then two rats Charged Bridge for one damage each, both hitting. Mirror Master and Deathstorm both cleared.

Falcon rolled for breakaway then Sidestepped while Carrying Bridge from the rats. Cap Sidestepped then threw his shield at the two rats, killing both instantly.

Mirror Master then transported PP and two rats to the car opposite Cap. Deathstorm then ran and shot Cap for four damage, hitting. PP then cleared.

Falcon Sidestepped to place himself between Bridge and Cap to grant Enhancement. GW tried shooting the rats but Mirror Master Probbed the effort.

PP then spawned two more rats. Deathstorm Perplexed down GW's Defense once again then PP sicced two rats at him, killing him. Cap then threw his shield at Deathstorm, hitting him for one damage. Falcon then cleared.

MM then transported PP to a vantage point overlooking Cap. Deathstorm gambled and shot Cap for three damage. Falcon Sidestepped to prep to shoot PP and his rats with Energy Explosion. Cap attempted to throw his shield at Deathstorm, but he missed.

PP spawned two more rats, then MM and Deathstorm simply cleared. Falcon shoots one rat with Energy Explosion, succeeding, hitting one more rat, PP, and MM. As the two rats die, the SUICIDE SQUAD TA activates, then PP rolled for four clicks of life, then MM rolled for two clicks of life. Cap clears.

PP then spawns two more rats and attacks Cap with one of them, finally killing Cap. Falcon then moves into position along PP's flank to hit him with Energy Explosion, but then realised its futility thanks to the SUICIDE SQUAD TA, so he surrenders.

Winner:

Pied Piper, Mirror Master, Deathstorm, and the dozen or so rats that killed both GW Bridge and Captain America. With these two and the X-Men Blue Team teambase, the rats are proving themselves to be quite the MVPs!

Battle Report: Superman and Ultraman VS the Inhumans

Build:

* 300 points

* My team: Superman Common for 150 points and Ultraman TRINITY Fast Firces for 150 points

* Opponent: GOTG booster Black Bolt, Medusa, and Crystal

* One heavy object and two light objects

Map:

Keystone City map from FLASH OP kit

Report:

I rolled for initiative and flew both Superman and Ultraman to the tops of buildings two spaces from the lip to avoid line of fire. The Inhumans carried each other and placed themselves behind a barricade of objects.

Superman flew to pick up the wrecking ball and struck Black Bolt with it for seven damage, instantly killing him. I then move Superman to the opposite building. Ultraman then flew to shoot Medusa for four damage, but missed. Ultraman then landed on the opposite building.

The Inhumans move back to their starting area. Both forces clear. Superman then moved and picked up a light object and hit Medusa for six damage, instantly killing her. Superman then Outwits Crystal's ESD then Ultraman swoops to the ground to hit Crystal for four damage.

Crystal then gambles to attack Ultraman, but then rolls a critical miss.

The shock instantly kills her.

Winner:

Selfless Act met Hate Crime in a killbox with the Inhumans right square in the middle.

Battle Report: Justice League Dark VS Birds of Prey

photo by Koko C

Build:

* 400 points

photo by Koko C

* My force: TRINITY WAR Deadman, I, Vampire and John Constantine with Pandora's Box with five Sins / Justice League Dark themed team

photo by Koko C

* Opponent: STREETS OF GOTHAM Lady Blackhawk, Black Canary, Lady Shiva, Huntress, and Oracle with Mandarin Rings and Battery / Birds of Prey themed team

Map:

House of Mystery from the TRINITY WAR OP kit

Report:

BoP got initiative roll and crossed nearly twenty squares of the map with four figs thanks to Oracle granting free move action to Lady Blackhawk who carried everyone twice in one turn (one free, one not). Placed near the doorway, blocking my potential path for placement. Rings were assigned for bonuses and such.

I assigned Sloth to Deadman and moved I, Vampire to a corner close to the doorway to avoid a direct line of fire, carrying Constantine. Huntress then rushed with an attack against Deadman, followed by a free Mind Control which hit. Deadman was then moved to a corner of the map to avoid usefulness. Lady Shiva and Black Canary then based I, Vampire and Constantine via Lady Blackhawk's Carry.

photo by me

I took a gamble and assigned Wrath to I, Vampire, losing two potential attack moves for two turns, then Perplex-Outwitted Lady Shiva's BCF both reducing her Attack value and deactivating her Attack power. I cleared Deadman then healed him one click thanks to Sloth's non-action incentive.

Which proved to be useless because Huntress proceeded to run and shoot Deadman in the corner, killing him but then activating his resurrection countdown timer. Lady Shiva and Black Canary took chances at hitting I, Vampire but the Combat Reflexes, Constantine's two Probs, and one team Prob proved useful.

We both then cleared for one turn each. Deadman's countdown timer counted down to one.

Constantine then Perplex-Outwitted Lady Shiva's Super Senses then I, Vampire BCFd Lady Shiva for six hits, killing her instantly. Deadman, newly resurrected, moved to the crowd to position for a potential Charge (Deadman oscillates between long ranged and close combat everytime he resurrects) and to sponge attacks.

Black Canary gambled for a shot against Constantine but failed. Huntress shot Deadman succesfully. Constantine then Outwit-Perplexed Black Canary's Combat Reflexes then I, Vampire BCFd Black Canary for four hits. Deadman was pushed to Charge Lady Blackhawk succesfully, but killing himself in the process, activating his resurrection timer again.

Huntress then shot I, Vampire for a successful hit, then Mind Controlled him to move almost ten squares away. Constantine and I, Vampire were both pushed to clear. Deadman's timer counted down to one.

With Constantine open, Huntress successfully ran and shot for three damage but not without sacrificing Lady Blackhawk for a team Prob, pushing her to death. Oracle was then moved closer to the fight.

photo by me

I then moved I, Vampire to Charge Oracle, working through her Shape Change thanks to the Wrath relic, then BCFd for four damage. Deadman then came back in play and shot Oracle out of her wheelchair, killing her. Constantine Phasing/Teleported to inside the house to form a killbox for Huntress. I rolled for Pandora's Box and got Prob, granting my team four normal Probs and one team Prob for the foreseeable future of the game.

Even though she was in full click, Huntress waved the white flag.

photo by me

Winner:

Justice League Dark, thanks largely to Constantine's two Probs and Perplex-Outwit power that can't be countered. Also thanks to I, Vampire's 6-4-4 BCF rolls. A pretty good combo of a sniper, a brawler, and a supporter.

photo by me