HeroClix by Wizkids Games

Greetings HeroClix fans!

In an effort to bring you the best coverage we can for the DC HeroClix Justice League: Trinity War set, we’ve endeavored to bring you some team-building articles focused on themes from the set. Today’s piece will bring you a 300-, 400-, and 500-point team featuring one of our favorite keywords, the Justice League Dark!

One of the things you’ll notice right off the bat with the Justice League Dark is that many of the characters featuring that keyword have great synchronicity from their traits or special powers, typically keying off of the caveat of “When adjacent to a friendly character with the Justice League Dark keyword.” While the positioning can be challenging, the Dark league can be incredibly effective when used well.

For our 300-point team, we chose to combine solid range with strong powers, close combat, and major-league versatility and support. First on the team is the previously seen Blue Devil at 135 points. His dial and abilities speak for themselves, and his trait – Demon Hunter – allows for friendly adjacent, or friendly characters with the Justice League Dark keyword to ignore the Mystics team ability. Next on the team is Zatanna, who offers a bevy of powers like Outwit, Pulse Wave, and Support. Her trait, Ananym, grants versatility to the team by allowing Zatanna to begin on either click 1 or click 6, with her dial either proceeding normally down the dial, or moving in reverse toward the front.

Also on this team, and coming in at a slight 44 points, is Black Orchid. Possessing a very straightforward dial for close combat, Black Orchid brings some tie-up and punch to an otherwise all-range squad. Don’t forget her opening two clicks with Charge and Super Strength which, when paired with her Shape Change power, will mean that even at only 44 points Black Orchid will be a major tie up piece that will hopefully allow for you to position Blue Devil and Zatanna to blast your opponent with ranged attacks or, in a pinch, use Zatanna’s Telekinesis to get Black Orchid out of danger.

Our next team comes in at 392 points, and features Black Orchid returning to fill a secondary tie-up role. Joining her as the primary close combat fighter is Frankenstein, whose indomitable undead body will allow for the monster to push in consecutive turns. He also has a special power in the middle of his dial called Necronauts, which states that when Frankenstein or a friendly character KO an opposing character of over 50 points, all friendly characters with the Justice League Dark keyword can be given a move action as a free action this turn.

Also on the team as a bothersome floater who fills many roles, Deadman brings some fun design to the equation with two sets of countdown clicks, making him incredibly difficult to permanently eliminate. His trait, Whose Body Am I In? grants Deadman both Phasing/Teleport and Shape Change, but also makes it that when an adjacent friendly character with the Justice League Dark keyword makes an attack, opposing characters can’t use Shape Change. Joining them on the team are Tim Hunter, whose trait prevents opposing characters from using Probability Control against adjacent friendly characters with the Justice League Dark keyword, and John Constantine, whose trait We Operate From The Shadows, Alright? grants him and adjacent friendly characters with the Justice League Dark keyword the ability to use Stealth.

Finally, we have a 489-point team which returns both John Constantine and Tim Hunter to the front lines in the war on evil. Joining them is Madame Xanadu, the definition of a support piece. Her standard powers of Telekinesis, Probability Control, Outwit, and Stealth make her an ideal back-line player, but don’t be shy about using Penetrating/Psychic Blast if the opposition gets in too close. She also has the trait It’s In the Cards, which states that when an opposing character targets either Madame Xanadu or a friendly adjacent character with the Justice League Dark keyword with an attack, you’ll be able to choose a number between 1 and 6. After the actions resolve, you’ll be able to heal one damage to that character for each die in the final attack roll showing the chosen number.

Also along on the 500-point level squad is the powerhouse I, Vampire, played at his 170-point starting line. A brutal mixture of power, destruction, and support in areas, I, Vampire is likely to be the focus of your opponents’ aggression. Which is precisely where Black Orchid comes into play, this time represented in her dial from the DC HeroClix Justice League: Trinity War gravity feed primer! This version of the character comes in at 90 points, and features a lot of the same abilities as her main set version (albeit on a longer dial), with one notable exception: her trait, Shape Shifters & Con Artists. This trait states that when she’s part of a Justice League Dark themed team, the first time each game a friendly character not named Black Orchid would be dealt damage by an attack, you may instead choose to deal that damage to Black Orchid. If you choose to do this, you would then place Black Orchid and the friendly character in each other’s squares.

So, there you have it – our picks for Justice League Dark theme teams at 300-, 400-, and 500-point levels. The 400- and 500-point teams allow for you to play around with Relics and lower-cost Resources to help fine tune your teams to your play style. Be sure to mix and match teams until you find something that works for you, and make sure you’re looking towards a team that plays naturally and can support itself strongly in most situations!

Until next time, keep rolling sixes and shape change for the win!

Greeting HeroClix Fans!

The DC HeroClix: Justice League Trinity War previews continue with two denizens of the supernatural corner of the New 52 universe. First up is the sometimes leader of all vampires, Andrew Bennett, occasionally known as I, Vampire.

I, Vampire can be added to your force at either 75 or 170 points but both values cause Andrew to start at click one. His trait Rise of the Vampires and Beyond states that if you’ve fielded I, Vampire at 75 points he is KO’ed when he crosses the red KO line after his sixth click, otherwise he has access to all 9 clicks of his dial. He possesses the Justice League Dark and Monster keywords allowing him to side with some of the more powerful mystical heroes in the DC universe or with creatures a bit more in line with his darker side.

His dial starts off with a very deadly combo of close combat powers. Two clicks of Charge combine perfectly with the potentially devastating Blades/Claws/Fangs and Exploit Weakness on his attack and damage tracks. This will allow you to risk Bennett’s printed two damage for the chance of eliminating or, at the very least, crippling nearly any opponent.

And while I, Vampire has no range, his Flight combat ability will allow him to utilize the Hypersonic Speed he gains on his next two clicks well in an attempt to use the Steal Energy that he has for the rest of his dial save one very important click. But if you can use that signature power of vampires effectively, healing back up to his second click (and the penetrating damage it offers) is quite possible and perhaps even likely since the Indomitable symbol on the dial will allow for frequent feedings.

Clicks five and six, the last two you’ll get for 75 points, give way to a bit of a less aggressive version of I, Vampire. Phasing/Teleport provides even more reliable movement while Outwit gives the vampire the means to disrupt your opponent’s plans.

Now I, Vampire isn’t all offense as his early dial brings Toughness representing the resilience of the undead, which gives way to Combat Reflexes and Super Senses making those hits miss just a little bit more easily. And now that we have seen what 75 points will bring to your force, the next three clicks are what happens when Andrew is allowed to absorb the power of Cain, the first vampire!

Perhaps most importantly is the special power that replaces Steal Energy on I, Vampire‘s attack track for one click only called Empowered By Cain’s Demise that will ensure that you get to experience the true power of a vampire unleashed. This special power stops the dial from being turned any further when the power is revealed.

A pair of special powers gives I, Vampire‘s final three clicks some bite (we couldn’t help it). The first, appearing on the movement track, is Ultimate Vampire which grants I, Vampire Hypersonic Speed, the Mystics team ability, and prevents his powers from being countered. And on his damage track, Resurrection Energies grants Probability Control and a lets you give Bennett a power action to heal each adjacent friendly character of one damage.

Impervious and the return of Steal Energy conspire to keep I, Vampire on that deadly 7th click where his very high combat values will cause problems galore for your opponent.

And now that we’ve looked at an ageless demon, let’s turn to one of the younger members of the mystical community, Tim Hunter!

As a young man fated to wield great magical power but still not yet trained in the mystic arts, Tim Hunter is a 58 point addition to your force that benefits greatly from team synergy with both his Justice League Dark and Mystical keyworded allies. For example, the Expelled Unnatural Magic trait, which protects Tim himself and adjacent allies with the Justice League Dark keyword from being targeted by your opponent’s use of Probability Control.

Tim Hunter‘s first three of his four clicks are not terribly impressive stats wise but, some very versatile special powers along with the presence of Phasing/Teleport can make him a valued addition to your force. The first special power, Mentored by the Trenchcoat Brigade, allows you to give Tim a free action and copy all of the powers of an adjacent Mystical ally until the beginning of your next turn. And in keeping with the adjacency theme, the Everyone’s Annoyingly Concerned For My Welfare defensive special ability allows Tim Hunter to replace his defense value with the unmodified value of those same Mystical friends.

But if Tim’s mentors and protectors can manage to get him to his fourth click, his training pays off and his combat values skyrocket. Along with impressive brute force, Tim Hunter gains Running Shot, Impervious, and Perplex along with a special power called Destined to be the World’s Greatest Magician. This all inclusive power gives Tim Energy Shield/Deflection, Probability Control, Pulse Wave, Super Senses, and Willpower which is a lot more power than you typically see on a 58 point figure.

The key with both Tim Hunter and I, Vampire will be utilizing their early strengths appropriately and then getting them to their powerful end dials and keeping them around long enough to get your points worth.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this sneak-peek at the upcoming DC HeroClix: Justice League – Trinity War set. Stay tuned as we share more exciting characters in the days and weeks to come!