Anything You Can Do, He... Might Do Better
Today's Avengers Heroclix sneak peek is Taskmaster. Presumably they wanted to get it out of the way before getting too close to the holiday weekend.
Eventually they'll get these into the Avengers gallery, but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for it. Last week's Black Panther still isn't in there. In the meantime let's jump right in. (As ever, click an image for a better view.)
Initial reactions are very mixed on this one. Paying 140 points for a grounded, single target figure with a 6 range makes him immediately a tough sell. He starts off competent and reasonably solid, with his special powers only kicking in once he's taken some damage.
By his third click he starts in with his Photographic Reflexes in his Attack Value slot. It essentially gives one the option of copying someone else's Attack or Defense Value if they're within 6 squares of him and he has a clear line of fire. This is fairly versatile, potentially activated as it is by any imminent attack, it remains to be seen if the inevitable FAQ will limit the number of times it can be used. The shot at him taking damage for using it is a nice touch, too, as he's supposed to physically be a normal, albeit highly toned and fit, human being, so copying the moves of someone with superhuman abilities. That it really just alters stats one relates to skill and reflexes (as opposed to Speed or Damage) is good, making his power easier to swallow.
At click #4, his Damage-related power kicks in, as he gets to choose between being an expert close combat fighter or marksman, allowing him to choose between Close Combat Expert and Ranged Combat Expert.
He's an interesting package, complete with a wildcard TA.
Definitely, whether or not one uses him will depend upon what the rest of the team is made up of... though having a special power that allows him to mimic stats from an opponent's team makes him a wild card of a different stripe for Heroclix games.
I don't have a strong reaction to him one way or another just yet. I admire Seth's creativity in approaching the interpretation, but I'm having a difficult time justifying all of his points. As with the Red Skull, having a single target, 6 range and a special power with a built-in possibility of dealing the character damage all gives me pause, especially at 140 points. I'll need to run the numbers on those Photographic Reflexes damage possibilities first, at least.
Here's the card, complete with one or two oddly chosen power names -- "Leap of the Iron Fist"? "Daredevil Attack"? -- and apparently a mistake as "Better You Than Me"/Mastermind has the Damage symbol next to it instead of the Defense one it should have.
Here's what Seth had to say about this creation, hopefully shedding more light on how Taskmaster works:
They may be giving up some options, but I can understand those who will prefer to stick with the old version plus a few Feat cards.
Today's Avengers Heroclix sneak peek is Taskmaster. Presumably they wanted to get it out of the way before getting too close to the holiday weekend.
Eventually they'll get these into the Avengers gallery, but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for it. Last week's Black Panther still isn't in there. In the meantime let's jump right in. (As ever, click an image for a better view.)
Initial reactions are very mixed on this one. Paying 140 points for a grounded, single target figure with a 6 range makes him immediately a tough sell. He starts off competent and reasonably solid, with his special powers only kicking in once he's taken some damage.By his third click he starts in with his Photographic Reflexes in his Attack Value slot. It essentially gives one the option of copying someone else's Attack or Defense Value if they're within 6 squares of him and he has a clear line of fire. This is fairly versatile, potentially activated as it is by any imminent attack, it remains to be seen if the inevitable FAQ will limit the number of times it can be used. The shot at him taking damage for using it is a nice touch, too, as he's supposed to physically be a normal, albeit highly toned and fit, human being, so copying the moves of someone with superhuman abilities. That it really just alters stats one relates to skill and reflexes (as opposed to Speed or Damage) is good, making his power easier to swallow.
At click #4, his Damage-related power kicks in, as he gets to choose between being an expert close combat fighter or marksman, allowing him to choose between Close Combat Expert and Ranged Combat Expert.
He's an interesting package, complete with a wildcard TA.
Definitely, whether or not one uses him will depend upon what the rest of the team is made up of... though having a special power that allows him to mimic stats from an opponent's team makes him a wild card of a different stripe for Heroclix games.
I don't have a strong reaction to him one way or another just yet. I admire Seth's creativity in approaching the interpretation, but I'm having a difficult time justifying all of his points. As with the Red Skull, having a single target, 6 range and a special power with a built-in possibility of dealing the character damage all gives me pause, especially at 140 points. I'll need to run the numbers on those Photographic Reflexes damage possibilities first, at least.
Here's the card, complete with one or two oddly chosen power names -- "Leap of the Iron Fist"? "Daredevil Attack"? -- and apparently a mistake as "Better You Than Me"/Mastermind has the Damage symbol next to it instead of the Defense one it should have.
Here's what Seth had to say about this creation, hopefully shedding more light on how Taskmaster works:
If he isn't as good as you, he will be in a minute. He's the Taskmaster, and he's this week's Avengers preview. A villain for hire with the ability to duplicate any physical motion he's seen, after watching video of many heroes in the Marvel universe, the Taskmaster has built a huge repertoire of moves, added to with his first-hand experience fighting them in person.Just to offer a comparison at a glance, and to help understand why some fans might have been less than thrilled with the interpretation offered, here's the dial for the 75 pt. Xplosion vet alongside the new 140 pt Unique:
Taskmaster's Minions of Doom team ability makes him a wild card able to fit alongside whichever team buys his services, as well as appropriately giving him the ability to use the team abilities of many other characters on the battlefield. Despite the brash colors of his costume, he typically enters battle from the shadows, and his dial allows him to do so with an opening slot of Stealth.
Long training even without his superhuman abilities gives Taskmaster higher than average combat values on his opening slot, which also has the first of the abilities he brings out of his toybox: moves QUICK AS THE SPIDER (Super Senses) taken from watching Spider-Man in battle will combine with Stealth to help Taskmaster get into position, and his combat values may help him make a first strike.
On his second slot Taskmaster reveals the second of his copied abilities: DAREDEVIL ATTACK (Flurry) as he attacks with the Devil's own speed and the mundane copies he carries of equipment carried by superhumans. Deeper in his dial, he turns his agility to the LEAP OF THE IRON FIST (Leap/Climb) that will give him additional maneuverability late in the battle.
Taskmaster is always most dangerous once he's hand a chance to observe his foe's movements and adapt, and this version of Taskmaster is no different. On his third slot and for the remainder of his dial, Taskmaster has the special power that makes him Unique: Photographic Reflexes.
Photographic Reflexes Before any attack roll, Taskmaster can replace his attack value or defense value with the unmodified value of the same type from any target character within 6 squares to which he has a clear line of fire. After the resolution of an action in which Taskmaster uses this power, roll one d6; if the result is less than or equal to the difference between Taskmaster's printed combat value and the replaced value, Taskmaster is dealt 1 unavoidable damage for each 100 points (or fraction thereof) of the target's point value.
Taskmaster can attack or defend himself just as well as any of his friends or foes, but his all-too-human body can't always keep up with the demands of the superhuman moves put upon it! For a single attack Taskmaster can even have the 16 attack or 21 defense of the Mighty Galactus, but the effort is almost certain to knock him out.
Of course, Taskmaster's abilities also help him keep his damage value up, thanks to his second special power:
Punch Like Cap, Shoot Like Hawkeye Taskmaster can use Close Combat Expert and Ranged Combat Expert.
Combined, Taskmaster's special powers keep him a threat as long as he remains on the battlefield. Accustomed to being surrounded by minions from the crime colleges he runs or at the very least innocent bystanders he doesn't care about late in his dial Taskmaster's attitude is BETTER YOU THAN ME (Mastermind) as he tries to shrug off as much damage as he can (though not damage from his Photographic Reflexes!)
That's it for this week's Avengers previews, but be sure to come back next week. Who will the preview be? Place your bets now, but I wouldn't put too much on Howard the Duck or Rocket Raccoon. See you then!
They may be giving up some options, but I can understand those who will prefer to stick with the old version plus a few Feat cards.
Comments
For 65 additional points, what does Seth provide? Well, he's thoughtful enough to get rid of all that irritating B/C/F, Incapacitate, and Energy Explosion, which any idiot could tell you is nothing but a useless waste of points and pigment. He dumps the extra range target, which any fool would agree is just pointless baggage. He gives the Perplex and the Outwit the old heave-ho, and thank God for it; those have to be two of the most worthless powers in the game. Whew! The man is brilliant, I tells you, brilliant.
But that's not all, neither. Not the half of it. Previous Taskmaster is good with his weapons, so naturally, he starts out with Attack Values of 12 and 11. But that's SOOOOOO HeroClix 1.0. Seth brings Taskie into the HeroClix Modern Age with a solidly respectable 10 AV, augmented by a power that will allow him to pump his attack back up again if there's someone better on the board within 6 of him (finding someone with a higher AV than 10 in the clix Modern Age may well be a quest worthy of its own trilogy, but set that aside for the mo'), and hey! the only price you pay is complicated math and the opportunity to KO your own high cost playing piece. Thank you, Jebus! This is the Taskmaster the world awaited.
I personally am already melting all my Classic Taskmasters down in the microwave to make room for the NEW Taskmaster. I eagerly anticipate the opportunity to pay 65 extra points for a figure that has two fewer powers on its dial, one less range target, comparative attack stats that make me want to puke in my battle helmet, and a 'special power' that allows me the priceless ability to KO my own figure before anyone else can do it.
I cheerfully admit, the Super Senses help TM's Defense while making absolutely no sense at all (I'm still not buying the 'Super Senses are actually just another chance for someone to avoid getting hit rather than being actually, you know, SUPER SENSES', and my House Rules say I don't have to, so nyaaahhhh), and the Mastermind is perfectly reasonable, and he does get one more slot of life to his dial. But it's not enough, no sir, not nearly enough.
Now, if he had a special power that lets him make a ranged attack and a close combat attack in the same turn, that would have been worth the extra points. As it is, though, once again, Seth has screwed the pooch (and the market) badly and is clearly relying on retirement rules to ensure the playability of his piece. I yearn for the day when that crutch is removed from WK's designers once and for all.
Seth's having to fly by the seat of his pants in estimating the point cost of these special abilities since they can't honestly be accounted for by the dial-generating spreadsheet in place. I'm wondering how much his mood and perspective of the moment plays into what we're seeing in the end. Some days he looks at how they're not eligible as a basis for Feats, and doesn't worry much. Other days he worries too much that the new options are over-powering and either boosts the points or takes something else away to compensate -- perhaps some of both.
Granted, I'll have to see how this one plays - in the right environment (mix of both his own team and that of the opposition) but with that possible damage element in place one almost has to work a Probability Controller into the team to help keep him from hurting himself (same with Red Skull), which can be seen as yet another bump in cost to field them. I fully expect to read tales of him being someone's MVP, but then again there are people who regularly make a game of lining things up so that a given pog has an impressive list of kills.
That the old version loaded up with Swingline, Force Field, Brilliant Tactician, Armor Piercing and Nanobots (some less than thematic, but nonetheless technically applicable Feats) would still be 5 points less than the new version's 140 points... doesn't speak terribly well of the new version.
I've never been too closely bound by "Super Senses", much as I accepted from early on that Energy Shield/Deflection is often used to modify the defense of someone who's a nimble moving target. Certainly, though, I agree that if taken literally (as is the case with your house rules) it makes no sense for TM to have super senses.
Losing one of the two targets is a terrible mistake, especially without boosting the range. Had it been cut to one target but he'd been given a more Hawkeye-ish 10 range it would have been far more acceptable.
One criticism that was made in a couple spots is that the Punch Like Cap/Shoot Like Hawkeye power is unnecessary, and should have simply been four clicks of 3 Damage. If he attacks in close combat it'll be 3, if he fires at a target it'll be 3, and at least then he wouldn't be open to being Outwitted.
At the moment the only thing that most players appear to agree on is that they like the new sculpt better. Some may be seeking it out in order to pop it off the base and replace the one on the Xplosion/Universe version.