HeroClix Fans!
Meet the 2015 HeroClix Team World Champions: Fail Boat! See what they had to say about the event, their experience and the HeroClix community here. Do you have what it takes to take them on next year at the 2016 World Championships?
Name: Tim Bold
WES ID: TheEvilCapitalist
Location: Chagrin Falls, Ohio
Favorite Local Venues: Empire Game Center, Diversions
Name: Nick Peterson
WES ID: NOPeterson
Location: Akron, Ohio
Favorite Local Venues: JC Comics and Cards, Empire Game Center
Name: Derek Thompson
WES ID: JDThompson
Location: Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
Favorite Local Venues: Empire Game Center
Q: How does it feel to be named 2015 Team World Champion in HeroClix?
Each of us has been playing for a long time and we have all come close to winning a World Championship, so it was great to finally win one. It’s exciting to have won and a little surreal that we get to design a figure that others will actually get to play.
Q: How did you all meet and come up with your team name?
We have a large group of very good players in Northeast Ohio, but we prefer to fly under the radar so we don’t have an official team name. Instead, we come up with ridiculous team names that make fun of our friends in good humor. We have a friend that we frequently say is “captain of the fail boat”, so the name Fail Boat just stuck around.
Q: How did you guys work out your winning build and what was your main strategy going in as a team?
As a team, we play well together since we all have different play and team building styles. Tim prefers to play a balanced team, while Nick plays very aggressively and Derek tends to play teams more defensively. When you are pulling 6 boosters worth of figures, there are enough figures to go around to fit each of these strategies, so we just let each of us gravitate towards the figures that best fit our play styles.
Q: What were your fellow competitors like?
One of the biggest and best surprises to new players is how great the environment and community are, even in a World Championship setting. You are playing for a big prize yet everyone is relaxed and having a great time. We have been playing for a long time and have met a ton of great people that we look forward to seeing and playing each and every year. Despite the horror stories, the “uber-competitive” guy that ruins the environment is very, very hard to find in HeroClix, even in the competitive scene.
Q: What first brought you to HeroClix and how long have you each been playing it?
Tim has been playing the longest as he started back in Clobberin Time. Derek started back in the Sinister days and Nick has been playing since Avengers.
Q: Do you play together often? If so, where do you all meet to play?
We get together to play very frequently, at least twice a month. When we get together and play, we very rarely play the meta, we generally play fun, thematic teams. There are a ton of venues in Northeast Ohio and a lot of times we will meet up at someone’s house after a tournament to play a few fun games. We alternate where we play, but generally end up at Tim’s “ginger mansion”.
Q: What strategy or aspect of your game play as a team do you believe lead to your victory over the other teams?
Since we spend a lot of time playing fun, thematic teams, we tend to know a lot of different pieces really, really well, not just the ones in the meta. We know most of the dials from these sets which helps when team building. We know which figures are worth fielding from playing them. And, it helps when you play against a piece you have seen many times before since you know what powers it gets and how many clicks their dials have.
Q: Do you plan on fighting for your title and perhaps returning next year?
We are fortunate enough to only be a short 2 hour drive from Columbus, so we will absolutely plan on being at Origins to try and defend our title!
Q: What advice would you give others trying to achieve the Team World Champions title?
We strongly encourage everyone who is even remotely considering trying to play in World’s to give the team championship a try. Everyone is on the same play field since it is a sealed event and you get to play with some of your closest friends. In the end, you will find that the Heroclix community is a truly great group of players and even if you don’t win, you will have a lot of fun.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to add?
Thanks to everyone in Northeast Ohio that has supported us through the years, we are very proud to bring home a World Championship.