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!

By the numbers: Fantastic Four

With lack of a local venue right now, I find myself getting a something of a "heroclix fix" by team building. Yes, I get my little figures out and waste time just seeing what kind of teams I could put together. Admit it, the rest of you hardcore players do it too.

In the Captain America set, we had two new forms of FF characters in Invisible Woman and the Human Torch. Invisible woman got some new keywords allowing her to hang with the Avengers and celebrity teams. That's all well and good, but you'll note they cost a bit more than the ones from the starter set of years ago.

You might think; "Well, so much for playing the four in a 400 format", but don't be so sure. If there's anything the FF has to offer now, it's options. More characters now have the keyword and the ATA (while it costs now) also works by keyword instead of team ability. Yes, options are awesome, allow me to demonstrate.

First let's quote the ATA (alternate team ability): FANTASTIC FORCE: Characters using this team ability may replace their defense value with the unmodified defense value of an adjacent friendly character with this team ability. The requirement to use this is 5 points per character and the Fantastic Four KEYWORD. So the team ability does not have to be printed on the dial of all your force. Very handy with the new options.

ATA CLASSIC: First of all, if you are going to use the ATA in your team, you need a good defense to use it with. That means reaching back into the Fantastic Forces set and grabbing the limited edition Sue Storm; defense of 19. So what if everyone needs to be in base contact? It works. Sue is 49 points. Add Mr Fantastic (100), new Human Torch (120), Thing (100) and pay the 20 points for the ATA and reach 389 points. Give Sue the feat card, Protected for the remaining 11 and voila! 400 points! Legally themed.

But what else can we do?

STORM FOUR: This uses a bit of variation to get either a 400 or 500 point team. If you want to use the new Black Panther with his trait and extras, it will be a 500. So, Storm (86), Black Panther (128), Thing (100), Human Torch (120) to make a 434 point team. You may as well use the higher point Torch, because the 100 point will still take you over 400. Black Panther is the key since his 92 point version will make a team of 398. You could use the 20 point difference in Torches for feats or the ATA if you like. For the 434, you may as well use the ATA for 20 and feats; Unstoppable on Thing (5), In contact with Oracle for 40 points (covering whole team at 10 points each), and add one more thing: The Gem of Cytorrak for 5 to make a team of 504. Theme legal too.

Why use Cytorrak? Because it's 5 points that can make a character a monster. It's just cool. It gives one character super strength, charge, +1 to damage, and toughness. All for a chancy die roll and five lousy points. I like it so I list the heck out of it. It's also all I have, so if there's another object you like, hey, use it!

FEM STYLE: Ah the chic team! Who doesn't like that? Well, now FF offers a decent version of a very playable chic team. Yes, I'm leaving the K off chic on purpose. So, play Storm (86), Exp She Hulk (127), Crystal (62), Invisible Woman (110) for 385. Fill the 15 point gap with Unstoppable on She Hulk, 2 Alias feat cards, and the Gem again for 401. It's still theme legal and Crystal could make very nice use of the Gem and an Alias. Think about it.

ATA FEM STYLE: Same as above but using Sue Storm instead of Invis listed above (49) and adding She Thing (50). Pay 25 points for the ATA and have it at 399. Obviously none of the feats or the gem are invovled, but you would be legal with the gem at 403.

AMPED UP: Combining new and old with Mr. Fantastic and Thing for their 100 point versions and the new Invisible Woman (110) and Human Torch (120) for 430 (so a 500 pt match). This holds room for cards! Brilliant Tactition at 20 points allows Mr. F. to do his +2 perplex on his whole team at once! Unstoppable on the Thing so he ignores hindering for movement. Give Mr. Fantastic Takedown (6) to put tokens on attackers AND Dissent (18) to let him outwit team abilities. That's a nice package with the Gem again (ha ha) for 484!

VARIANT FF: For an all alternative team try, Storm (86), Black Panther (128), Experienced She Hulk (127), Bombastic Bag Man (for laughs at 90- or go with 85 pt Luke Cage), and Crystal (62) for 493 points. Yep, I'm going to add the Gem again, just to make you crazy for 498.

Finally, my personal favorite, not theme legal at all:

SUBSTITUTE FF: This is based on the old story where Hulk, Wolverine, Spiderman, and Ghost Rider became the FF. Hulk is a funny one for this, but I enjoy the idea anyway. Hey, it's my own version. Wolverine from Web of Spiderman (105), Spider-man from the same set (78), Veteran Ghostrider from Fantastic Forces (102), and finally Green Scar Hulk (230) for 515 points. Give them all Oracle for 40 and the gem for 560. If you really want to get silly, add some cheap Skrulls for minion-cannonfodder.

I'm not going to list it here, but you can also form a nice 1000 point FF team now. Try it!

Ten of the best heroclix traits ever

When they started adding "traits" to heroclix game pieces, they changed the face of the game forever. I think it's the most innovative change they made since Hammer of Thor. Better even than "white" powers.

A trait is a special ability signified with a star emblem on the card and dial. A trait is always in effect or available for use (unless stated otherwise on the card). Traits are the most powerful effect you can find on a dial because (as of yet) very little can cancel them.

Team abilities can be cancelled and virtually any power can be outwitted. Even feat cards can be stopped if the pre-requisite is messed with. I have gone through my entire collection and selected my own choices for the top ten best of traits ever. I had some pre-requisites about my choices.

1: 150 points or less: This is in order to fit in those 300 point teams. Awesome for low points, is hard to argue against right?

2: Benefit to team: Just being able to use a power is hardly the coolest you can do and this list should prove that. I do choose a couple of self serving traits, but mostly I wanted to select those that affect more than one figure.

So, lets' check out the list!

10: HARRY LELAND: Mass Increase: "Opposing characters within 4 squares of Harry Leland can't be given actions to use Charge, Running Shot, or Hypersonic Speed and halve their speed values when given a move action."

Harry is quite possibly the best tie up piece ever. He may not hit hard, but that really isn't his job. He slows people down so his buddies can hit them. For all he lacks in numeric stats he does have a nice 18 defense. Not bad for some fat dude that just stands there, eh? His 53 point cost is worth the effect, even if you lose him, he does his job to set up your opponents. Just have a heavy watching over and waiting to step in. And before you say his range for the power stinks, put him on the map and count spaces. Four in each direction means nine in a row. Finally, note that it says NOTHING about line of sight. To me, that means "works through walls".

9: LEECH: Power Negation: "Other characters within 6 squares can't be given power actions."

You know where Leech needs to be? Right next to Harry, that's where. Leech may affect your team too, but he doesn't cancel traits. Also, he doesn't cancel all powers, just "power actions". Not all powers require them. For that matter, what this trait stops is; charge, mind control, force blast, hypersonic speed, running shot, smoke cloud, telekinesis, barrier, regeneration, ranged combat expert, support, close combat expert and of course, any power that specifies it is a power action. The right characters can protect Leech just fine, such as a flurry/blades type. He doesn't last long or at all if hit, but he has stealth and can hide behind some characters. His power also says nothing about line of sight.

8: GREEN LANTERN (75th- Alan Scott): Light the Danger: "Green Lantern ignores stealth. When a character takes damage from his attack, that character can't use Stealth this turn."

Shut off someone's stealth with a damage dealing shot? Sweet! This is someone who could carry around Leech for kicks and giggles. He has willpower and impervious. Leech has no effect on those or the psychic blast. I know there are plenty of "ignore stealth" types out there. The point here is that he turns off stealth for the benefit of the rest of his team. So now, all your shooters can aim at the stealth guy. GL is a great ranged adversary and that indomitable (willpower) just makes him that much nastier.

7: CYPHER: Crack Enemy Communications: "At the beginning of the game, choose a team ability that an opposing character can use that isn't a Wild Card team ability OR a team ability that a Wild Card can't use. Friendly characters can use that team ability this game in addition to their other team abilities as long as Cypher is on the map."

I don't know if many noticed this, but most traits of this kind require a shared keyword. This one doesn't! So you don't have to have a themed team to abuse the heck out of this trait. Are your opponents Ultimates? So are you! Are they Mystics? So are you! Keep Cypher out of the action and let your heavies abuse and use your opponents team abilities, for just 38 points!

6: ROCKET RACER: Ain't nothing goin to stop me: "Rocket Racer ignores all terrain for movement purposes except indoor walls and indoor blocking terrain."

Yes, this is self serving, but it's a very good self serving trait. Yes, he's short lived and 60 points, but he can be a major thorn in someone's side and the Spiderman team ability doesn't hurt either. Heck, use him with Cypher! I realize this has happened before, but only as a special power. As a trait it's much more lethal. Even without his hypersonic, he can go about where ever he wants. That's awesome positioning power.

5: ROJHAZ: Living in harmony with nature: "Rojhaz can use Stealth, ignores other character's Stealth, and ignores hindering terrain for movement purposes."

Not only is this a great self serving trait, but it's great for three reasons. Count them above, he gets a three way whammy in ability. Since he starts with running shot on top of this and an "okay" 5 range, this comes in handy. I do note they missed putting the star on his dial, but it shows on his card. Oops. At 70 points, this makes Rojhaz a nice ranged support or even close combat attack piece.

4: MENTALLO (Marvel): Mental Radar Sense: "Mentallo ignores other character's Stealth."

So why is this so awesome in this case? Mind control and psychic blast, that's why. It may be a self serving trait, but he can mind control someone right out of Stealth and into the open. Having the Hydra team ability doesn't hurt either.

3: DIRK ANGER: Insane Leadership: "Dirk Anger can use Leadership. Other characters can't use leadership. Opposing characters within 4 squares of Dirk Anger can't use team abilities."

I'm liking the amount of shut down in this list. Wipe out all other leadership use on the map and team abilities within 4? Note this also does not state "line of fire". Knocking out the power Cosmic and Mystics is super. Play him with Cypher and you can use them, but they can't? Awesome! Dirk's perplex and his own stealth are nice too, but his trait is a great game controller.

2: DOCTOR STRANGE: Eye of Agamatto: "Dr. Strange ignores the effects of characters and hindering terrain (including team abilities that give hindering terrain bonuses) when determining line of fire."

Shoot through anyone to target anyone, how awesome is that? He can perplex or psychic blast anyone he feels like within his range on the right maps. His 18 defense with the power to share (Defend) makes him a super all purpose tool. He could even hang out with Leech and still use most of his powers. He's the highest point cost on this list at 149 and worth it all.

1: NIGHTCRAWLER: Extra-dimensional Teleportation: "Nightcrawler ignores the effects of terrain and characters on movement."

It's only fitting that the winner of the 2011 World Championship (also played by several others at the same event) makes number one on my list of pieces with the best traits ever. Just having him with perplexers is insane, never mind the Gem of Cytorrak. His movement is long enough to get him past Harry and Leech. Worried about damage if he's not in a theme? Nanobots will take care of that. Put him with Dr. Strange for a chance at that double perplex and watch your opponent swoon.

I really think many of these figures could work in a team together, but any way you put them, they have the most awesome traits out there.

Honorable mention goes to Prof. X. The only reason he didn't make the list is because of the keyword limitation. Still, using his powers through any Xman on the map (so long as the Prof stays in his starting zone) is hard to ignore.

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.

A League of Shields: Captain America

My son was listening in on a heroclix conversation the other day. We were talking about characters who shared the same basic name and that we thought would work well in a team.

Yesterday, my son came to me with six Captain America figures. He did very well for being 9 years old. All of them were different people (see backs of cards) and they fit well for a four hundred point team.

Double space Captain America from the new set
Captain America (who was actually Bucky/Winter Soldier) from the new set
US Agent from Avengers
Patriot from Avengers
Red Guardian from the new set (Captain America)
Black Captain America from Secret Invasion

Yes, they are a ground force and maps can determine their win or lose. However, they are surprisingly versatile. You have six figures on a 400 point team which works for themes. I know, I know, Patriot doesn't share a keyword, so it would have to be accepted for custom by the judge. But just look at them, it works! By the way, they all have something to do with super soldiers, even Patriot thanks to a blood transfusion. So tell me why they can't be a theme team?

Anyway, you have four chargers with decent movement and attack. You have two running shots, two rolls for leadership, one perplexer, two Defender's team ability and two Avengers team ability. Even without leadership, you can move your whole team into position on your first turn because of Avengers team ability. You only have one with willpower, but smart use of him can make or break the game. Push when there's an advantage. You use double space Cap's running shot to a point where he can charge on the next turn and pick up his shield on the way. Swarm a target with charging Captains and start scoring knock outs. Wolverine and Cyclops went down really fast thanks to that.

I played Wolverine, Cyclops, Nightcrawler and Archangel and I had some bad die rolls. Still, once the gap was closed on an indoor map, it was practically over. My son learned to concentrate attacks on a single figure and scored knock outs quickly. Yeah I had to help him a little because he's still learning. Regardless, this League of Shields turned out to be a very good team. Long range and open maps are their enemy, but they have a good defense mode to carry through that.

Try it and let me know how it works for you!

High time for a new cosmic set.

Not long after I posted my view on Gatecrasher's Technet, I got the news that there is a new space faring Marvel set coming. Now, Hulk is slated for December and that's nice, but I'm far more excited about a new Galactic Guardians set. I'm a big fan of the cosmic forces and they really need the overhaul given to other pieces repeatedly so far. Hulk already has new pieces since the restart of Heroclix. Thanks to those we have Green Scar, Hulk as a horseman of Apocalypse, Golden age hulk, Red Hulk, Rampaging Hulk; and don't get me wrong, I'm happy to have a new set for Hulk. I'll take it. But the overhaul for our space age friends is far more overdue. Not only could we use more of the Technet to fill out a pesky keyword issue, but check out the following:

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY: Specifically the original team. Starhawk could really use and upgrade as could Vance Astro or Aleta. We've also never had Capt. Charlie-27 or Martinex. There are some great character possibilities here and I would love to see them done.

JACK OF HEARTS: Here's a cosmic hero in dire need of a redo. Not that his original piece isn't good, but with all the new mechanics of the game, he could be awesome.

THE INHUMANS: I would really like to see a better Black Bolt and replacements for Medusa and Crystal. Upgrading Lockjaw wouldn't hurt either since we have the "pet Avengers" keyword floating around. Give Lockjaw the transporter ability without the pesky -2 to movement. After all, he could transport his whole team across the stars!

The NOVAs: There are two of them. One is the female, Frankie Raye:

And the other is,

Let's see them both.

STARJAMMERS: What space faring set would be complete without a relaunch of the Starjammers? Corsair, Hepzibah and Raja are all great choices. I would also like to see them actually worth playing. Sorry, but the last time we saw Hepzibah, she wasn't.

DRAX THE DESTROYER: I don't care which version we see, but make him. Please give him the keywords for Guardians and Infinity Watch. He should fit in both or it's just not right.

SHIAR IMPERIAL GUARD: Since the Annhilators keyword is getting introduced, follow through and remake Gladiator. You may as well give the keyword to a replacement of Silver Surfer as well. Too bad they'll likely never count as a theme team under the new rules. Points are probably going to be way too high. I still want the characters though. Isn't that funny?

SKYMAX and SUPERSKRULL: While we are looking at heroes, like Skymax, let's be sure to give the bad guys some room too.

Super Skrull is a great start. Want to know another awesome idea? Besides Thanos, try this guy:

That's right, Tyrant. Consider yourselves challenged Wizkids!

Gatecrasher's Technet

Back in Giant sized X-men, we saw a new keyword come into play, the Technet. Gatecrasher's Technet is a band of otherworldly mercenaries. They claim to take any job if the pay is right. Right now, all we have in heroclix to show for the Technet is Gatecrasher herself (with Yap on her shoulder). So what about the rest of the team?

Sadly, this team is very high on the incapacitate range regardless of which of their weird powers you put into play. That doesn't mean they couldn't be tweaked here and there for interesting effect, but in what ways?

I don't think we'll see a full roster for the Technet any time soon, but three or four more would be cool. I know exactly which ones I would like to see. I'll start with those five members.

1: Ferro: Ferro is a four armed master swordsman. I'm a blades/claws fan and he could do this with charge and flurry. He isn't suited for a really long dial (he has a tendency to die after his warranty expires) but he would be tactically useful.

2: Thug: He's a squat little alien with combat ability and super strength. He could have charge and close combat expert too. He can also take a hit so give him invulnerability.

3: Ringtoss: If there's one big weakness in the Technet's roster, it's ranged combat. Ringtoss can be seen in the above picture making a decidedly ranged attack. She also tosses energy rings around people to incapacitate them. Make her victims roll break away to get loose and you have a nicely tweaked incap character.

4: Scatterbrain: Also known as Fascination( above with Ringtoss in the pic). She has the ability to scramble peoples thoughts processes with a touch. Again, weak in the ranged department, but I could see here with a power that affects everyone in base contact with her. Since sh can also fly, she has great ability to move around.

5: Bodybag: This big reptile captures people and holds them in one of three sacks built into its back. Give him the ability to capture. Make the effect remove a captured figure from the table, but if Bodybag gets hit, he dumps them in base contact with a token on them.

As for the rest of the team? Well, they would take some serious thought. Most of the team is designed to capture.

Joyboy: Looks like a deformed giant floating baby. He can sense an opponents greatest desire and make it reality to distract or incapacitate. Maybe mind control in a way? Past that, just incap is all I see for the floating thing that gets it's but kicked in every book.

Chinadoll: This serpent woman can shrink her targets by touching them. Have her place a special marker on a character. Until Chinadoll is KO'd, that character's stats are all -1. That includes range. Or minus 2, or have it last until your next turn, whatever.

Waxworks: The pink alien with the tentacles. He can make peoples bodies turn all rubbery with a touch (still no good at range!). Give him a special power to screw up movement. Maybe he can cut in half for a turn or something. Past that, more incap!

Numbers: He's strong and can fight, but doesn't like to. He's the team's accountant. I don't want to see him as a click, thanks.

Paradok: A teleporter. Give him the transporter ability and let him carry people without penalty. Transporter's should have no penalty in the first place, but that logic will apparently never get through. So do it for this guy if he's made, but I doubt we'll see him.

Hawd Boiled Henwy: This is a yellow bird character who looks like Tweety on steroids with a ticking clock in his forehead. I could see an amusing factor in him. At the beginning of your turn, deal one unavoidable damage to Henwy. When Henwy is KO'd for any reason, deal 2 damage to all figures within two spaces of Henwy. You see, he's a self destructing time bomb type. Weird and silly, and gives points to your opponent, but who knows who he'll take with him.

Pandora: Little more than a biological weapon that incaps everything in sight. I don't see much use of her. She could do mass effect, but would be a one use and one trick deal.

So, there you have it, the Technet in all it's incapacitating glory. I think it's buildable as a team with the five I mentioned, but what kind of set would we see them in? I'll tell you about that next time!