3D objects are just more fun

I don't know about you, but every once in a while, I get tired of using cardboard discs for objects and want to spice up game play a bit. This is much easier than you think. There are some great ways to use 3D objects (as ordinaries) right in your local hobby store.

Check out my play case for Heroclix (click on pics for larger view). In the bins, you see a variety of items that we use for light or heavy objects. We can use them as standards, apply house rules to them, or create cool scenarios. I have tons of the cardboard pieces too, but I really enjoy the aspect of using the objects I've found.

So, where did I get some of these things? Hobby lobby and Michaels (stores) have very interesting toys called "tubes" or is it "toobs". Anyway, there's all sorts of items and animals in them. They're great for modding or as objects. Let's not forget the dollhouse items I've collected. Railroad miniatures are also great (thought more expensive) and some plastic model sets have interesting items.

Check out the items in this photo. The casket and tombstone are from "Halloween Town" miniatures. The gray concrete column is actually a dried up chunk of play-do I painted and sealed. The dino skull comes from a "toob". The trash can comes from a toy in one of those grocery story gumball machines (they were called Homies), and the tv set and toaster are from dollhouse miniatures. The tire? It's from some "fix your car" hotwheel set that's all gone now. See how many places there are to look? I do have the official heroclix items, but now I have lots of options.

As for scenarios, take a look at these miniature tools. Lay them out as weapons across the map and anyone who has one is plus one to damage and drops it when they get hit. Well, that's just one idea.

With action figures you can find miniature swords and machine guns. No matter what you find, a little imagination can go a long way. Even a marble could become a cool 3D object. Look around your house or local stores, what can you find?

500 points of shut down

Today I want to share with you a 500 point team that may just be too much cheese to even be fair. You can play it sort of like a tent pole team and just frustrated the beejeezus out of your opponent. Will you win? Maybe. It all depends on how you play it out. Do it right and you'll stop your opponent cold while you shoot him to pieces.

The players:

Maelstrom, Starboy, Harry Leland, Leech, Dirk Anger, and Cypher.

If not already obvious, the point of this team is to shut down your opponents movement ability, hinder power use, force them to deal with lesser figures in order to free up that movement and shoot the snot out of them while they try. As you will be able to see from the pictures, the right locations on the map will cut movement in half twice and then give it a -2 to boot. That's while shutting down three move and attack powers. It comes to exactly 500 points too.

Cypher is a great back up piece to this and should stay back so everyone gets as much use of a good team ability as possible. Just think if the opponent is using mystics... so are you. Also having Dirk shut down their team abilities so you are the only one using them is priceless. And so what if some of your own powers are shut down with Leech. He's temporary at best. Use him to force your opponents hand.

The only thing that can help your opponent against this team is range, and that can run out quickly. Check out the pictures.

In this first one you can see how I have Starboy carry Leech out and get him into hindering.(click on pics for larger view) I don't have any objects but you will want to position one so Dirk walks into stealth. You should keep Maelstrom so he's just out of range of Leech's ability but within the 8 spaces for his own. That way he can still incap at 10 spaces. But then, incap doesn't require a power action so go to town. Perplex and outwit can also still be used with Leech. The most important things shut down by Leech are Close and Ranged combat experts. He also stops regeneration, support, duo attack, and telekinesis. It's okay, you won't need them near as much as your opponent will. Leech dies first.

In the second pic you can see how figure start maneuvering to get that coverage of spaces for their abilities. On this map you might think of going through the back office but that would be a mistake. Since all the abilities work through walls, they'll just move in and lock you down. You might also think that Maelstrom doesn't deal enough damage to be the near tentpole of this group. But add perplex and all that incapacitate and you have 3 or 4 damage from at least two sources and the shutdown stops the rest. Even outwit won't help the opponent because you can't outwit traits.

That twin field of cross coverage is a great place to position Maelstrom, forcing attackers to deal with them or come between them to get the big guy.

I haven't had the opportunity to play this and see what the dice say yet, but I intend to! If you play it, post how it went!

Looking forward to Hulking out

In December we have a brand new set that will grace our fingers and maps. A set totally based on the Hulk. In seeing the teasers for it, I have to say it looks to be as awesome of a set as Superman (if not better).

It's going to be great to see Skarr team up with his dear ol Dad. The Leader says he has minions to bring to the party (and they look like they can do a good job of getting in the way).

The sculpts look awesome and there are several forms of Hulk to get your grubby fingers on.

From the news at HC Realms (yes, that's a link) I like the idea that we are getting a new chance at Red Hulk (I never got one) and a new Terrax the Tamer? Wow. I hope he's better than the last one. I liked the original running shot Terrax who terrorized the table for me many times. He was great with a couple con artists. I know that's old school, but it sure was fun. Baron Mordo is also on the poster art and I would like to see him with enough oompf to be a threat to Dr. Strange.

I want to remind people of another great place to see heroclix information and that's Heroclix World (another link). Be sure to stop in there and keep up with all the up to date coolness that is Heroclix.

Playing Black Adam

While I was excited to get a common Superman, I was more excited to get my hands on Black Adam. I've missed out on the last time he was made a single super rare. I have the duo with Shazam, but it's just not the same. So, without further ado, let me present to you, my take on playing the multi-level Black Adam from the Superman set.

As general advice, any major pointed piece shouldn't come to more than half your force. So my point scales are going to reflect that strategy for the most part. Of course, I'm also going by keywords.

The first and most obvious team up is Osiris and Isis. I'm not talking about the Brightest Day version for sake of points. Based on what point level you play Black Adam at (100/200/300) you play this team at 300/400/500. They are theme legal under Mystical at 300 points, but not after that. But who cares? Black Adam can handle his own. At 500 points, you can use the other two like you would a minion force. Let them get in the way of everyone going after Black Adam (because you know they will). And, in any force, don't be afraid to push BA while people gang up on him. I've found his lightning regeneration to be fairly lethal.

Goint mystical at 600 so you can use BA at 300? Add Black Alice to the team above. The total force is 589. Have fun.

Seldom was Black Adam a good guy. When he was, he teamed up in the Justice Society.

300 point team with BA at 100 points: Magog (85), Starman (99) for total points of 284. You can raise BA to 200 points for the next tier.

For a 600 raise BA to 300 and add the Atom (50) and Mr. Terrific (59) for a team build of 593. Not bad as teams go. Pretty much any team that can keep people from dog-piling BA is good. He'll make up for about anything the rest can't do.

Injustice Society:

Play at 300 and BA at 100 with Count Vertigo (74), Johnny Sorrow (55) and the Thinker (55) for total of 284 (yep again!). Same as above for moving up to the 400 level, just raise BA to 200.

For a 600 try BA at 300 with Count Vertigo (74), Per Degaton (90), Icicle (72) and Johnny Sorrow (55) for a team of 591.

Rulers are blasted expensive and your best bet is to aim for your best duo and add someone cheap to fill in if possible. 99 point Maxwell Lord is a good filler to stick with an evil theme. For these teams I suggest.

Playing Black Adam at 200 with Mongul for 376.
200 or 300 points to team up with Darkseid for a 467 or 567 point team.

Then there's the duo matches I suggest purely for kicks that I think would really annoy your opponent. Magneto is a ruler so he's good. Since you aren't going to get themed advantage anyway, try teaming him up with Maelstrom. Maelstrom's lockdown abilities and cosmic make him horrifying enough. I know, I've played him.

Sooner or later, they'll make an equivalent SHAZAM! Captain Marvel and you can finally play the whole SHAZAM family! I think that would be a radical team of teams!

Playing Superman!

Now that we have this awesome 300/150 point Superman to punish people with, let's look at great ways to play him.

Playing the 300 point level is pretty obvious for high point games. To fit better in standard 300 and 400 point games, you're better off with the 150 point version.

In looking at keywords, I found that playing Kryptonian is expensive on points. You can play a classic duo for 250 with 150 pt Supes plus 100 pt Supergirl. You can make this duo work at 400 even by using Supes at 300 and Supergirl at 100. Kind of lopsided on that last idea though.

400 pt Kryptonian Trio: Superman (150), Supergirl (100) and a Kryptonian soldier to make a total of 387.

500 pt Kyrptonians: Superman (150), Supergirl (100), Earth One Supes (chase), and Eradicator for 492.

Here's a idea I call "Faces of Superman": Superman (150), Earth One, and Project Superman for 397.

Metropolis is much easier to work with:

300 pt "Men of Steel" is a duo with Superman (150) and Steel for a total of 280.

400 pt "Love Story: is a duo with Superman (300) and Lois Lane for 389. Hey, he needs to be full power to protect his lady right?

Metropolis has quite a few small point pieces you can fill in with for other teams, but I'm working mainly with the direct set and staying with Hero vs Villain. Both of these duos for Metropolis can carry their own. But how about this:

500 pt "Super Ladies' Man": Superman (150), Supergirl (100), Lois Lane, Lucy Lane (75) and a Kryptonian Infiltrator for a total of 492.

Now we can mix sets and that's where playing Superman can get deadly.

400 pt "Reporting LIVE!" uses Reporter keyword and give you Superman (150), Lois Lane, Black Spidey from Web of Spiderman, and Johnny Quick for 384 points. Yes, I know this doesn't make "theme legal" because it's not six figures with the reporter keyword. Well, check out the team possibilities for yourself. This becomes one more example of why the new ruling doesn't work.

Now for the best of the best. A Facebook friend showed me this idea and I love it. It's definitely cheese. There are quite a few ways to pull this off, but what you need at the midst of it is Superman and Professor X. Make sure the Prof. has a coupld of Researchers with him to boost his damage and get in the way of attacks (that make it that far!). Yep, it's the Scientist keyword and since the new Superman has it, flaunt it! Here's my 500 point version of this masterpiece:

Superman (150), Prof. X, 2 Researchers, Mr. Fantastic, and the Black suit Spiderman from Web. It's six pieces and theme legal at 498. I plan to play it soon!

Here's to hoping you're enjoying your Superman! Keep clicking!

How to fix the new oreo dials

Beginning with then new Superman Heroclix set, we see a new style of dial to turn at games. It's called the oreo dial and for good reason. To turn it, you hold it like an Oreo cookie and twist as if you were about to pull apart and enjoy some chocolatey goodness.

With the old dials, sticking could be fixed in a few ways. The easiest was to bend up part of an upper dial, or you could take the dial apart and check for extra bits of plastic to trim. Well, the new dial brings a whole new method to fixing if your dial sticks. I had to do some experimentation to learn how it worked. Now that I have, I'm passing the new knowledge on to you!

So your new dial is stuck. Here is what you need: A medium flat-head screwdriver, a pair of toe or finger nail clippers (with the front bowing outward, not the classic horse-shoe shape) and your stuck figure.

The first thing you have to do is separate the top and bottom of the dial. Look at the side of the dial. You will note gaps in the seam where your screwdriver may fit. Be sure not to use a screwdriver too large, nor too small. You may have to use some trial and error. Also, as a safety note, be careful that you don't stab yourself in the hand while attempting this. Work slowly and carefully.

Insert the flat end of the screwdriver into one of the slots around the edge and carefully pry to separate. You may have to do this in more than one spot and more than once while being careful of the plastic. See the photo for where NOT to pry. If you pry near the numbers opening of the dial, the plastic will easily break. If you pry near where the team abilities are printed, the plastic will more easily bend.

Once you have the dial separated, set down the printed dial section, you won't need it. Look under the top portion of the dial that holds the figure sculpt. You should see three squared horse shoe shapes around the edge. These are the points of the plastic that hold the dial in it's groove. If they are too thick in the slightest, they will stop the dial from turning. This is something very hard to control through manufacturing by the way.

Now, it's important that you only use this step on ONE of the horse shoes. What you have to do, is take the nail clippers or something you can shave a little plastic with (if you have cool modding tools) and remove just a little bit of the plastic from the ends of one of the horse shoes. When I say, "just a little", I mean barely a sliver.

Finally, snap the pieces back together and test out the fixed dial. It should turn much easier now. Remember to only do this with ONE of the horse shoes, or it will work a little too well and you'll have a very loose dial.

I have used this method on several pieces through two cases so far and it has worked every single time. Remember to be careful, don't get in a hurry. You'll find your new oreo dial working like a charm.

Superman: Case Review!

Finally, finally, finally, I got my two cases of Superman Heroclix in yesterday. It was so good to finally crack into some boosters and see what awesomeness lie in store for us. I have to say I am quite satisfied with my pulls and you can feast your eyes on the photos.

It's really my own fault my stuff came so late. I probably should have contacted the company on the website and asked them if they could make sure my shipment arrived by release day, or at least the day after. Lesson learned!

So, what you are seeing is the result of opening two cases. I'm not just collecting for me after all, but my son and two other players (I give them extras and it means having more players in this area too). But even just for my son and myself, we have a lot to collect.

DISTRIBUTION: In one case I have to say I probably had all the commons and all the uncommons. I was pretty close to all the rares too. Not bad for one case. Two cases and I had a lot to spread around to all four people involved. Even the fourth person has just about all the commons, several uncommons and a few rares. For super-rares, I got the one I coveted most of all, Black Adam! As for the rest, I got the same people in each case (Flash, Aquaman, Queen of Fables, Darkseid, Imperiex, and Swamp Thing). My chases were Hoodie Superman and Apokalips Superman. Except for all the duplicate luck (that I really don't mind), distribution was awesome.

MANUFACTURING: The big drawback to these two cases (moreso than I've noticed ever before) was the odor. New plastic can carry an odor with it that comes from being made with petroleum. This odor does wear off, but it made us a little head achey while we opened packs. After sitting in open air it's dissipated. Sculpts look good while faces are hit and miss. No brittle sculpts or missing arms in two whole cases. Sculpts are pretty solid, even Livewire who stands on the dreaded "both legs together" skinny piece of plastic stance. Oh, but what's the big debut for this set? That's right, the new oreo dials!

These dials have a lot going for them. Once you get used to how you have to grab them, you can make them work well for you. You don't have to depend on grabbing a fragile looking sculpt to turn the dial. I still had to fix a few dials, and that involved learning how they work. It's not the same as fixing the other dials, but have no fear; this is a two-blog day. In my next article I will tell you all about how to fix sticking in the new dials! Over all, not bad, Wizkids and NECA, not bad.

GAME MECHANICS: Keywords, I just can't leave them alone. Good things for this set on keywords though. Kryptonians, Metropolis, Flashpoint, Phantom Zone, and Reign of the Supermen all get kudos for having enough people to build teams with. Downers aren't worth much mention in keywords for this set, but I will say that Superman Robot should have Kryptonian and Lobo should have Warrior. On a further plus with keywords, I haven't found one that doesn't have any! YEAH! I may just not have the pieces that are missing keywords, ha ha. Still, I've said it before, all figures should have keywords. It's a mechanic that is now embedded in how people play. Point values are really decent. Consider how you can play Non and Ursa for 300 points flat. Realizing Kryptonians just aren't cheap makes sense here and you have a playable Phantom Zone. The generic Kryptonians are still slightly short dialed, but they make up for it in ability. There are some definite improvements with this set!

The big kudo? Main characters as COMMONS! Superman, Lex, Supergirl, Superwoman, all commons and worth playing. Even if this Superman is based on All Star (see the movie if you haven't already), he's the best Superman statwise since Icons. And let's not forget the whole split dial thing. Having the multi starting areas on these dials is a real innovation. You can drop the detachable objects for all I care, but don't drop this. Wizkids, you are on to something here!

So, my opinion is, if you haven't got any of this set, you are missing out.

Superman: Then and now

I still have to applaud the fact that the new All Star Superman will be a common in the upcoming Superman set of Heroclix. Everyone who collects or plays should get their hands on a Superman. The fact that he has this two levels of play ability is even more awesome. I hope they continue to use this new mechanic, I love it. I think it will add to strategic game play on many levels.

If we look back, we can see how Superman has come with us on our Heroclix journey. If you look at the opening pic you may see a familiar Superman or two. Yes, the one in back to the middle left is the LE "Our worlds at war" Superman. The sculpt is the Superman from Hypertime, the first one they did. There are others too, and I don't have the black suit, Kingdom Come, or robot Supermen. I'm lucky to have the veteran Icon Superman on the far left.

The other two in back are the LE Clark Kent and I have a couple of the Supermen in storage that he's based on. LE Superman on the far right is a favorite of mine with the Batman Team ability.

Then, in the middle is the brick figure World's Finest that definitely isn't worth 500 points.

Some Supermen have been decent and other just pitiable. Still, I don't think Wizkids has ever skipped on giving us a Superman. Now we will have a set boasting Supes in more forms than we can build a force out of (actually, yea we can). We only have about seven days now before Superman hits the shelves and our hot little hands.

What's really funny for me in all of this is that I'm not as much of a DC fan as a Marvel fan, but I will get some Superman and I will do a review too. I thought a trip down the Superman memory lane was just fitting so close to release day.

Happy upcoming release day and keep on clicking!

Heroclix tips for beginners

In this little article I am going to share some general tips in learning to play Heroclix for the beginner. Maybe you've been a collector and feel the need to finally play or maybe you just got your first starter? Either way, these are the things you should start with to get you into the game.

1: Learn what the numbers mean on the dial and how they work. This is a technique used at the conventions to demonstrate Heroclix. You ignore all the powers and just use the numbers and dice. Get a couple of figures on the map and roll dice for combat against each other until one of the figures is KO'd. Mess around with this until you feel comfortable with how the numbers work. Don't forget range and the number of targets you can have in this. It's useful to practice with. This gets you hands on practice and will be the kindling to start your blazing Heroclix skills.

2: Read the PAC and keep it near at all games. If you don't have a Powers and Abilities Card, find a way to get one. Be sure you've read it over before trying to mess with any powers. The best way to learn how powers work, of course, is just to dive in and play. However, in my experience, you pick it up faster if you've read the card. Don't forget team abilities either.

3: The next thing to learn past the dial is the map. You should learn what all the terrain features mean so you don't find yourself lost on the maps your opponent will choose.

4: Start with small point games. Build small teams and base them on the powers you want to practice. Remember good teams will have several powers working in tangent. Just think about your favorite comic book teams and what each member brings. Some great teams available out there are the Secret Warriors (Captain America) and the Warriors Three (Hammer of Thor). If you don't have those, it's okay, there are plenty of combinations that you can use.

5: Don't worry about keywords until you've played a few games. You can pick up on themes later. It's all up to your comfort zone on what you've learned though.

So, what should you put in a team that gives you a chance on the map? Well, here's what each team should have for good chances in play.

Move and attack: Figures that can move and attack in one action. These are thanks to the powers of Charge, Running shot, and Hypersonic Speed. Since Hypersonic is usually expensive (unless you play Rocket Racer from Web of Spiderman) you should get a charger or runner. Running shot is one of my personal favorites but a flyer with charge is also quite useful. More often than not, you can fit two moving attackers into a team. It's a good idea. The fall back is to use telekinesis.

Support powers: A cheap healer to run back to is very useful but you should also make sure you have something of these three; Outwit, Perplex, and Probability Control. You may have a hard time fitting all three on a team, but you should at least have one. Remember that they are there and use them. Forgetting to outwit someones Blades/Claws/Fangs or to perplex damage or defense can cost the game quickly.

Damage dealers: These can often be found with your moving attackers. Psychic Blast and Exploit Weakness are the best, but Pulse Wave is nice too. If you can't deal damage, you won't win, ever. The fastest way around pesky defense powers are these. Super senses can still be a pain but then you need to use it too.

Defense: 17+ are good on defense but make sure you pick powers that either reduce damage or make it harder to hit you. Super senses is a great power because it gives you a saving chance. Same for shape change. Those can save you from any damage or attack (almost).

A couple more pointers for the beginner:

1: A one man army can and will get mobbed. Don't do this until you've played quite a few games.

2: Don't rush into the face of danger. The first person to get close is usually the first person hit (except for those move and attack powers). The flip side to this is called Turtling. Turtling is when a person deliberately takes as long as humanly possible to move up or just spends the whole game running away. Players HATE that.

3: Never put someone in harms way alone unless you intend to use them as bait. Even then, make sure one of your other pieces can try to back them up.

So, there you have it, tips in a nutshell. Above all, no matter what you do, enjoy yourself and have fun. Heroclix is an awesome game with a great following. Keep clicking!

Review on Doomsday: What are they doing?

I have to say that making a Doomsday that can't make an even threat with a same set Superman, seems to be a trend.

Back in DC75th they made a very powerful 259 point Doomsday with a severely underpowered Superman in the same set. This figure had two main failings. First, his movement for someone who can leap like the Hulk (high enough to attack airplanes and far enough to go from county to county) his opening movement was pitiful as a 6. Anyone who can jump that far should have an opener of at least an 8. I could understand a max of 10 and going down from there for game balance too. Thanks to that sad movement Doomsday was and is a sitting duck for ranged psychic blast attacks. His trait was cool, but honestly a bit too much. You pick someone on your opponents team and Doomsday does penetrating damage to that person for the whole game (if he can catch them). It became kind of redundant on half his dial thanks to having exploit weakness. Everything else pretty much rocked on him.

Now, in the upcoming Superman set, we have a new Doomsday. The sculpt shows him with one arm tied behind his back as if he just got out of his buried prison. When posted on Facebook, the responses were very mixed. It was a love/hate combination and I could see why. Check out this pic:

So, first of all there's his trait. He uses battle fury (so he can't be carried) and can't be placed by telekinesis. I really wouldn't care about that if it weren't for the rest of his power issues. Like his movement that gives him charge. So long as he's using charge he can ignore hindering terrain and other characters for the move. You know what he doesn't get? That's right, leap/climb. They try to make up for this with his damage power, but it's only any good at the last three clicks of his dial where his defense is crud. Let's not forget that power is only any good if there's only one figure left on your opponents team.

Let's take a look at his opening damage, shall we? It's a 2. Huh? A casual swat from this monster only does a two? You have to wait and use close combat expert to get his real damage. I'm sorry, but yuck! Quake is okay, with the angle they are using (him having an arm tied up and all) but that didn't reduce his damage dealing by that much. Check this out:

Note what Guy looks like and how he says he didn't even have time to fight back. That's how it was for pretty much the whole JLA except Maxima. Even she took a pounding. That brings us to his opening attack value. It's a pitiful 9. For plenty of lesser figures out there a 9 is fine. But this brute stomped a whole team of supers in less than five minutes. It's listed in the book as "moments" or "seconds" and he only has an attack opener of 9? Never mind the fact he did all that with one hand tied behind his back.

DC75th had his reactive adaptation power on board. In this new one they try to use that in form of his stats getting nastier as he goes, except his defense. But if you look at how his power worked, you would see the dial misses the mark. If anything, his defense should go UP as his resistance gets stronger. In all the stories, when he's hurt by something, next time he's practically immune to it. So he should have started with invulnerable and moved up to impervious. If you're going to use combat reflexes, make the opening damage a 3 and have it move up.

As for a trait that would be more useful, try this: All characters must roll breakaway from Doomsday regardless of traits, team abilities, or powers. Anyone with the Superman Team ability, name of Superman, or the Kryptonian keyword is -1 to break away roll.

That makes his slow movement more acceptable. After all, he wants to kill Kryptonians and especially Superman, remember?

Sorry guys, while most of the Superman set looks exciting, this Doomsday is dismal. It's not even Doomsday, it's Mediocre Threat Day at best.

Ideas for a new Indy heroclix

I would really love to see them take a new stab at Indy heroclix and I even have some suggestions on where to start. I suggest going old school with some old heroes who pioneered the comic books back in Gold Key and the days of Radio. Some are still around today in books, video games and even movies. I don't think it would be too far off to get a set going. It may not even be hard to get the licensing arranged. Heck, even if they do it by gravity feed with just these people, I would be "game".

My suggestions, just to get started:

GREEN HORNET AND KATO: This would be a cool tactics team. Kato has all the martial arts abilities with things like close combat expert and combat reflexes. Green Hornet gets an ability for the knock out gas, outwit and perplex. Make sure he has a range of about 6. Kato could even leap climb or charge. They could even be a decent duo piece.

LONE RANGER AND TONTO: While we're on duos, why not consider this old school favorite? Heck, we have the Two-gun Kid and even Jonah Hex. The Lone Ranger was first, folks. LR would make a decent ranged fighter or marksman while Tonto could have stealth and exploit weakness.

THE SHADOW: The Shadow knows! Stealth, mind control, outwit, and super senses could round this guy out with a few extras. Made right, the Shadow could be a real threat. Give him stealth that no one can see through because he clouds the minds of others.

THE PHANTOM: Another awesome brawler with a few powers of his own. He was called "the ghost who walks" and "the man who cannot die". Regeneration fits this one nicely as well as outwit and probably some running shot for his pistols.

MAGNUS, ROBOT FIGHTER: Come on, the guy beats the snot out of robots with his bare hands! Impervious, exploit weakness, maybe even super strength and charge? Give him some benefits for when ever he fights anyone with the robot keyword.

TARZAN: The ape man himself! Charge and leap climb (or just have him ignore hindering for movement), blades/claws/fangs, and exploit or close combat expert. He can throw his knife a few spaces too. Also, give him a benefit involving the animal keyword, like being able to use mind control on any figure with the animal keyword (without backlash). Hey, this is Tarzan LORD OF THE JUNGLE we're talking about!

DOC SAVAGE: The man of bronze was every bit as strong as Superman in his day and just as impervious. Give him a starting of at least 4 damage and some powers that fit a tough guy like ol Doc.

ZORRO: Leap climb and blades will make Zorro a decent fighter, but he was smart too. Outwit and maybe a special power for his whip like a range of 2 or 3. He also deserves combat reflexes and super senses.

SINBAD: While we're in old legends, you can't leave out Sinbad. Adventurer and monster killer. He gets something for the monster keyword like Elsa Bloodstone, but he gets the aquatic movement ability. Blades is also obvious for Sinbad along with some perplex.

TUROK: Yes, the dinosaur hunter. A marksman and ranged combat expert with blades/claws/fangs. Let him claim his mark and gain +2 to attack that mark for the rest of the game. That person also can't use stealth against Turok.

DOCTOR SOLAR: The man of the atom would have some serious powers. Running shot, psychic blast, impervious or energy shield deflection, heck what couldn't this guy do?

Well, I've shown a lot of tactical power in this and not a lot of bruisers, but hey, that made the old day comics what they were. These guys were the "batmans" of their day and I think they could make some awesome clix!

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.