Top Ten best Women of Heroclix

First, let me say this was no easy task. How I made these selections, was to take all the female characters and separate then into "point classes". Then I had to compare what all the figures offered for their perspective points. I also considered how long dials were, traits, some popularity via players, and their stats. Finally I also considered how many ways the character could be played, as in how many versions are out there. Some of this list is obvious, the rest will surprise you. In any case, while opinions vary, you're sure to enjoy playing these beauties:

10: ORACLE: From Legacy, this 27 point gal offers some serious strategic power. The drawback is that you have to play her card with her to get the most of it. That can make her a point sink and a half for most small teams. Still, the access to leadership, outwit or perplex along with altering combat values by +1 is nothing to sneeze at. Being golden age and a bit costly puts Oracle at number ten.

9: GHOST WIDOW: From City of Villains. For 54 points, this spider-lady has a lot to offer. She's basically a mystic with her team ability, she has phasing at 9 spaces, poison, support and an 18 defense. Her points give her perfect room for a feat card, Armor Piercing, to make her poison hit home. She may have a short dial, but if you don't take her down right away, you will get bit.

8: DOMINO: From Giant Sized Xmen for 69 points. Stealth, 8 range, high defense from range, and 3 damage with probability control are what she has to offer. Oh, but lets not forget her special power, Lucky Shot, that increases damage to a critical hit by 3 instead of 1! She's a great background piece that supports her team nicely. When not in hiding, she gets running shot and super senses. Nice arrangement of powers and the Xmen team ability lends it's own support.

7: SPIDER-GIRL: From Secret Invasion for 77 points, this lady is a warrior. Her special powers load her for bear with charge, running shot, and leap climb in a single power. Incap and force blast on another and super senses with combat reflexes together on defense. It would be better if she had super strength on open but she does gain it later along with exploit weakness. The Spider-man team ability helps her use any team ability on your force, making her very team flexible.

6: STORM: Giant Sized Xmen brought us the best Storm ever! For 86 points she has great range and damage that increases on an outdoor area of map. Just click through her dial for a great arrangement of powers to include telekinesis! Storm is epic and fits beautifully into any team arrangement.

5: BLACK ALICE: From DC75th for 94 points. Black Alice is truly dangerous. She has the probability control with 3 damage to start her off, like Domino. But she has a nasty special power. She can outwit any standard power and then use it for herself! Phasing gets her into position to do this really fast and her defense at range is 19! Add that to being a mystic and it hurts to hurt her! Black Alice is a thorny adversary and worthy of the mid spot on this list.

4: MOON DRAGON: From Hammer of Thor for 134 points. Mind control, 10 range, psychic blast and super senses, start out this cosmic lady of the Infinity Watch. If that's not enough for you, she changes mid dial into a giant dragon with powers to match. That includes running shot, 3 damage, and an 18 defense with toughness. She also has perplex and telekinesis along the way. Well stocked for her points, though an extra click of life or two would be nice. Still, that's a lot of power in just 8 clicks.

3: SUPERGIRL: For this, I chose the 178 point version from Crisis. You could just as easily play the 200 point version Legion of Superheroes and do just as much damage if not more. They both have hypersonic speed, super strength, and impervious with some shooting range for heat vision. And which is better, the Superman team ability or ability to copy it for just 22 points more? Mystic opponent? She'll smack them with a dumpster, take her click and probably knock out the mystic in the process. And she'll still be dangerous.

2: WONDER WOMAN: You can pretty much take your pick of all the current versions of Wonder Woman, they're all mean. Arkham Asylum gave us a Wonder Woman for 248 points with charge, super strength, a 12 attack, 5 damage, impervious and indomitable (built in willpower). The fact she can also incap two figures adjacent to each other is just cake. Of course, she would rather just crush them. Just about any Wonder Woman you can play today, can hold her own in point value on this list and win. Yes, range is her enemy, but at 10 opening movement with charge, it won't take her long to close the gap. Her 12 attack laughs at your 19 defense and her incap works at a range of 6. Heck, play the white lantern and don't worry about the range. Feel like being brutal today? Wonder Woman is the way to go.

1: PHOENIX: I'm not talking about a colossal, but you have to admit, she's the only woman with a colossal figure out there. Two of them actually. Giant Sized Xmen gives us a Phoenix for 297 points with a trait, hypersonic speed, 10 range, 3 targets, telekinesis, impervious, and 5 damage just to kick things off. Her trait will save her life once per game and her ability to heal when she uses support on someone else is just awesome. She can stand alone against 300 points and I've seen her do it. Down her dial she gains psychic blast while still at 4 damage and perplex. Not only that, but the Power Cosmic team ability gives her willpower and protects her from outwit. It's this combination and all the ways that Jean Grey can be played, along with being a Colossal in two forms, that make this the most powerful woman in heroclix. It's why she's HOT and NUMBER ONE.

Playing the Phoenix!

No, I'm not talking about the 1000 point colossal. I'm talking about the 297 point white Phoenix from Giant Sized Xmen. How do you put such a force into a team? What level do you play at to be functional?

First off, in a 300 point team, Phoenix is a considerable one woman army. I know, I've played her that way. She worked so well, I didn't even have to use her trait. She has awesome stats and powers to go with her team ability. Hypersonic speed, telekinesis, impervious and a nice five damage to open up with. If you do play her in a 300, you really should use a 3 point Alias feat card, just to add insult to injury.

So, what I've done below, is to take Phoenix and go by the numbers and keyword. I also put in what figures I think would work best based on how many you put on your force. Clearly, the best keyword for her is Xmen and this is what I came up with.

400: (Very limited but playable)
-Best duo: Her and Storm (86) for 383. Yes, you could use Nightcrawler as easily as Storm anywhere I list here. While Nightcrawler is awesome and his trait makes him a great interference runner for Phoenix. He really does have a glass jaw and lack of damage dealing. Storm can hit way harder and from just as good a range. Besides, need to hit up close because of stealth? That's what the hypersonic speed is for.
-Best Trio: Give her Vet Jubilee and Lockheed for 395. The second best trio is with two Cuckoo sisters for 377.

500: (now it's getting hot)
-Best duo: It's always more risky to use less pieces in higher point formats, but fun at times. This only technically a duo team because the piece I'm suggesting is duo Colossus/Wolverine for a total of 487. Second best duo goes to Juggernaut for a total of 490.
-Best Trio: Give her Prof X and LE Psylocke from GSX for 489.
-Best Four: Give her Storm, Lockheed, and LE Psylocke for 499.
-Best Five: Give her Storm and two Cuckoo sisters for 493.
-Best Six: Give her four Cuckoo sisters and Lockheed for 504. Keep those sisters and Lockheed in the way to interfere with opponents while Phoenix picks them off from a distance.

600: (Something's burning- and now a duo is just too small)
-Best Trio: Prof. X with Gambit/Rogue duo piece for a cost of 592.
-Best Four: Prof. X, Storm and Nightcrawler equaling, 592 again. Thist team is pure wickedness by the way.
-Best Five: Storm, Nightcrawler, Vet Jubilee and LE Psylocke for 589.
-Best Six: Storm, Vet Jubilee, LE Psylocke, Lockheed and a Cuckoo Sister for 590.

700: (I hear sirens)
-Best Trio: Juggernaut and the Colossus Wolverine piece will join her for 680.
-Best Four: Prof X, Juggernaut, and Storm fill this one for 699. Juggs smashes through things just so Prof X can get his mind on someone! Sounds cute to me.
-Best Five: Prof. X, Nightcrawler, Cyclops and Storm help her at 702.
-Best Six: Prof. X, Nightcrawler, Storm, Vet Jubilee, and Lockheed for 690.
-MAGNIFICENT SEVEN!: Nightcrawler, Storm, Jubilee, Lockheed, LE Psylocke, and Warpath for a total of 706!

800: (setting the town on fire and now a trio is too small)
-Best Four: Juggernaut, Prof. X, and the Colossus/Wolverine duo piece. 803
-Best Five: Juggernaut, Prof. X, Cyclops, and Storm for 806.
-Best Six: Juggernaut, Prof. X, Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine (103) and Nightcrawler for 805.
-Best Seven: Juggernaut, Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine (103), Nightcrawler, LE Psylocke, and Jubilee.

900: (a raging inferno and now four is too small to fill out the points)
-Best Five: Colossus/Wolverine duo, Gambit/Rogue duo, Cyclops, and Prof. X making a team of 892.
-Best Six: Colossus/Wolverine duo, Cyclops, Prof. X, Archangel (not the LE) and Storm for 905.
-Best Seven: Cyclops, Prof. X, Archangel (not the LE), Storm, Wolverine (103), and Nightcrawler.

1000!! (we're all crispy critters now!)
-Best Five: Colossus/Wolverine duo, Gambit/Rogue duo, Juggernaut, and Prof. X at 975.
-Best Six: Colossus/Wolverine duo, Gambit/Rogue duo, Cyclops, Kitty Pryde, and Prof. X for 1003.
-Best Seven: Colossus/Wolverine duo, Cyclops, Kitty Pryde, Prof. X, Storm and Nightcrawler for 1003.
-Best Eight: Emma (GSX), Wolverine (103), Storm, Nightcrawler, Cyclops, Archangel (not LE), and Prof. X for 985.
-Best Nine: Emma (GSX), Wolverine (103), Storm, Nightcrawler, Cyclops, Prof. X, LE Psylocke, and Lockheed for 1002.

Xmen certainly has the most options for playing Phoenix, but here is how her other two keywords stacked up in comparison.

DEITY:
-Best 400 is with Storm for 383.
-Best 500 is with Valkyrie and Phobos for 501.
-Best 600 is with Storm, Sif, Brunnhilde, and Phobos for 604.
-Best 700 is with Storm, Sif, Brunnhilde and Valkyrie for 690.
-Best 800 is with Thor (HoT), Valkyrie, and Balder for 798.
-Best 900 is with Thor (HoT), Valkyrie, Balder and Storm for 884.
-Best 1000 is with Thor (HoT), Valkyrie, Balder, Storm and Sif for 977.

COSMIC:
-Best 500 is with Beta Ray Bill (whose initials mean Be Right Back) for 456.
-Best 600 is with Phyla-Vell and Moondragon for 569.
-Best 700 is with Quasar and Moondragon for 694.
-Best 800 is with Noh-Varr, BRB, and Adam Warlock for 757.
-Best 900 is with Noh-Varr, BRB, Adam Warlock and Phyla-Vell for 895.
-Best 1000 is with Quasar, BRB, Noh-Varr, and Phyla-Vell for 998.

Yes, I pretty much stuck with marvel on all those, but you can see how hard it is to make a theme team out of the generic keywords (that SHOULDN'T be generic because of their insane costs and rarity). It's really best to use the Xmen. She just fits better with them. Hope you enjoyed these teams and be sure to mention how you play your Phoenix!

What are point costs for really?

In a recent debate on Wizkids, Facebook page, I came to a revelation. All points are not created equal.

The general complaint is that 140 point Chun Li is not worth that many points. The feeling is that other figures of 140 points would stomp her flat. Some also feel that she should have more than one space on the dial of 3 damage. It's also suggested that most of her cost comes from her team ability. But how accurate are those statements?
They really aren't in the big picture.

In all the comparisons, I came to learn something. Just because a figure is 150 points, doesn't mean it's comparable to all 150 point pieces. Why? Because they don't all do the same thing. Different pieces have different purposes and combinations of abilities.

Consider this: Chun Li for 140 pts and the new upcoming Superman at 150 points. Now, because their points are similar does that mean that Chun Li should throw down like Superman? Of course not. Chun Li isn't halfway close to Superman's league. Should she constantly do 3 damage or have more than one space of 3 damage on her dial? Maybe, but what kind of damage is she doing? She's not a White Lantern, or guy in an enhancement suit. She doesn't have super strength. What kind of damage is that? Despite her longer dial (for martial artists) it's pretty basic damage. Seriously, how often could Chun Li hurt Superman just by kicking him? In the books, wouldn't happen. Superman would just stand there while Chun Li kicked him a dozen times or so. He would wait for her to get done with her hissy fit and that would be that.

Still, she's 140 points and not all for the team ability either. You get a lot of options for those points to include hypersonic speed, leapclimb mixed with the carry ability, indomitable (built in willpower), consistant stats across the dial, and her team ability. If anything takes her points over the top, it's her special power, hypersonic, and the indomitable.

Points don't make pieces equal or have anything to do with how hard they should be able to brawl it out. It's for what they do at a strategic and power level. How many powers they have, how long their dials are, what they numeric stats are, what their range is, how many targets they cans shoot at range, if they can fly or swim, if they have a trait, etc... all go into what a piece's points will be.

Chun Li is a powerhouse among the martial artists and with a supportive team, she can be lethal. Here's a thought, pay five points and give her the Gem of Cytorrak. Is that evil enough for you? She costs for what she does. If you can meet the challenge of how to use her, you can be a force to be reckoned with. But maybe she's not your style.

So remember, not all pieces are created equal. They may not all have great or what we see as fair points, but there is something of a pattern after all.

Better with friends

I've been musing on the colossal figures we have from GSX and I've come to this conclusion: they work best in a force.

These are not the colossal figures of old that have the multi-attack ability and can stand on their own like Dark Phoenix, Anti-Monitor, Galactus and others. Results of playing these characters alone against an equal point force are typically disastrous for the colossal. I draw that conclusion from several games and not just my own.

Strategically, multiple figures will outmaneuver and take down a single figure. The ability to keep on attacking while taking a click of damage to pay for it becomes a very risky issue. Onslaught has had better luck out of all the new colossals and the sentinels fare the worst.

But, playing them in a force makes a huge strategic difference. While Apocalypse is always a clear target, having his horsemen getting in the way can mess that up. Now, not only can Apocalypse be a real threat, he can afford to rest up and clear those tokens while his underlings work some interference. A troop of sentinels or Onslaught with underlings work about the same.

So play a higher point game and enjoy the true power of the colossal!