What I want to do is break down the dice we've seen and figure out what, exactly, the stats are on as many dice as we're able to. This isn't necessarily useful yet, but it can start to pull together a shape of what might come in the future, how expensive these dice are to field, the sorts of stats they will have, and so forth.
Evan has talked to us about fielding costs before, and the price of dice in general, so even though we don't know what purchase costs are going to look like, we can get an idea of what these might have as a fielding costs, whether we're looking at a cheap set or not, and so forth.
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Been There Done That
Hopefully there will be some affiliation changes to go with these guys, as I think that's the area where we need to shake it up. Obviously Magneto is a villain, but getting the opportunity to put him on an X-Men team would be great, and would take advantage of some of the new cards coming out, like Teamwork. An Avengers Spider-Man or a villain Red Hulk could also be a breath of fresh air.
Affiliation really hasn't come into its own in the first expansion, so hopefully Uncanny X-Men is where it will start to really make sense to pull together characters from similar affiliations.
After I'd finished up the meat of this article, I got confirmation that we're going to be seeing the return of Mystique. Previously, she'd been seen as a 'mystery' die, that MisterJaPa correctly identified as Mystique in another news post. Photographic proof now posted just below!
After I'd finished up the meat of this article, I got confirmation that we're going to be seeing the return of Mystique. Previously, she'd been seen as a 'mystery' die, that MisterJaPa correctly identified as Mystique in another news post. Photographic proof now posted just below!
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| Mystery Die | New Die | Old Mystique Stat Line |
All New X-Men
But, let's be honest, what people are probably most interested in is the new dice, I know I'm eagerly awaiting every scrap of news about them. I've obsessively looked at every picture that has come out to find pictures and artfully crop them so we can all know exactly what these dice are going to look like. On the whole, I'm seeing a lot smaller fielding costs, and that makes me very happy. Smaller fielding costs means smaller purchase costs, and that means we might have caught up a bit on the price and speed curves that have made play faster and have made the really beefy guys difficult to acquire. Still, it's not all roses, and there are definitely some themes repeating themselves from the Avengers vs. X-Men set.
Ant-Man
(Fist Energy)
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Apocalypse
(Bolt Energy)
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Survival of the fittest made manifest, Apocalypse's goals and aims have always been about making sure the strong survive and the weak parish, so it's only fitting that he's a monster of a die. Sadly he seems to be about average-ish at best. He's got that burst; that might make things interesting, but as far as stats he's not anything special. My guess is we'll find his third face has 3 cost, which would make him on the low end for stats of someone with a TFC of 6.
Bishop
(Shield Energy)
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Anti-Hero, Villain, Time Traveler; this guy has hit more than a few of the various X-Men tropes when it comes to his time in the Marvel sandbox. His stats are looking fairly interesting; he's mostly defensive, it seems, but he's definitely got some offensive potential at higher levels.
Black Panther
(Fist Energy)
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King of Wakanda, occasional Avenger, occasional X-Men in-law; that's definitely his first level face (based on its placement next to the 1 fist energy face), so it will be interesting to see how his stats progress at higher levels given how beefy he is at that 0 field cost.
Cable
(Bolt Energy)
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Emma Frost
(Shield Energy)
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The White Queen has also spent a good deal of time fluctuating between good and evil, but she always looks good doing it. That's definitely her level 2 face there, so we're probably looking at an even more tanky level 3. As befits her status as a living diamond, her stats are very defensive, and her offensive stats are hardly puny. I like this die; it looks very balanced to me, and the coloration is really cool too.
Falcon
(Fist Energy)
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Iceman
(Bolt Energy)
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My favorite original X-Man, if only for his adorable attitude and overall willingness to troll Captain America. Wonderfully flat fielding costs make him a sure thing if you get him into your bag - he will always cost one. This definitely shows us that the TFC 3 area is where things actually fluctuate, but we still haven't seen much variety anywhere but the TFC 3 arena.
Juggernaut
(Shield Energy)
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Head-smashing, all-around jerk, you can't stop the Juggernaut and he's got the stats to prove it. His line is fairly similar to most TFC6 hard hitters, although his level 3 stats are slightly lower than you might hope. He's fairly offensive at his earlier levels, but seems to even out a lot more at that higher level.
It's hard to tell where this stat line is going, but this is a really nice defense for a cost of 0; sadly almost no offense. I love Magik, and I do think there's a possibility we're going to be getting a Phoenix Five affiliated version of her for the next round of Organized Play. She's definitely one to watch, but I must admit that highly defensive mask characters are sort of a dime a dozen right now.
Sinister looks to have the makings of a mid-range offensive stat line: he's got a very aggressive first face, a slight improvement at the level 2, and then it looks like his level 3 fields for 2; I can't quite make out the attack, but I think it might be 6. It's hard to tell at this angle, but he seems to be a fairly consistent die. Still, Sinister is a big time villain and I expect him to have some interesting abilities on top of good middle of the road stats.
Prince of Atlantis and all around snob when it comes to filthy air breathers, though he doesn't exactly have the stats to back up that feeling of superiority. It doesn't take much brain power to guess that his level 2 is probably going to have a 1/4/4 stat line, but I could be surprised. It looks like, as far as stats, he's Human Torch's slightly beefier brother, but he could have a really neat power. Look for him to maybe have a Phoenix Five alt costume in the second round of Organized Play, just my speculation.
Speedster, Brother of Scarlet Witch, occasionally evil, occasionally good, often making time with Inhumans. Fairly common cheap stat progression, again more offensive than we're used to seeing, and surprisingly defensive on his third level. I also have to say that I like this die far more than I thought I would at first glance, very crisp.
Brother of Wolverine, all around growly dude, almost certainly a villain. His stats are alright, but very balanced between the three faces, which is something to occasionally write home about. He could be cheaper, but he's got a lot of potential. These characters who grow only a little between faces are pretty cool when it comes to making sure the overall die is still powerful and isn't too vulnerable to being spun down.
She's a Mutant, an Avenger, occasionally crazy when it serves the needs of a writer, and most famous for proclamations that begin 'no more...'; love this stat line, love the consistent defense and the change from a light defensive character to a far more beefy offensive character. I would think she'll be someone to have some spin or reroll powers owing to her abilities as a probability manipulator; if any character was designed to be rendered as a die, it's Wanda.
We're very familiar with TFC 6 stat lines that look like this, and with what we've seen so far this may very well be the beefiest character in the set; this die will be expensive, though, I guarantee it. Villain almost certainly, and he may have some interesting anti-X-Men powers.
The Jen, strong woman, lawyer, fantastic. She seems to be on course for a stat line just a touch below Sentinel, and has a lot of brawn to bring to the brawl. It looks like she's going to have a fielding cost of 3 with 7 offense on her level 3 side. Mostly she looks like an only slightly downgraded version of the Hulk. She might be aligned with the Fantastic Four, but I'm really not sure at this point, given everyone else we've seen.
Another Brother of Evil Mutants guy, with a very slim set of stats; 2/3/2 is probably some of the worst stats I've seen for the fielding cost compared to stats, and it's got me wondering if his 3rd level face is going to cost 2 or 3 to field. Of major note is the burst symbols on the first and second face; we know this makes for great Tsarina bait if he has a power that activates on blocking. Cross your fingers for a good, cheap villain.
Kitty Pryde
(Mask Energy)
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Not 100% sure these are faces one and two, but regardless Kitty looks like she's going to be a fairly cheap offensive character. Her stat line is very similar to Falcon and Angel, so hopefully her level 3 will change it up a bit. I'd be really surprised if she doesn't end up with unblockable or assassination features, given her power-set in comics.
Magik
(Mask Energy)
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It's hard to tell where this stat line is going, but this is a really nice defense for a cost of 0; sadly almost no offense. I love Magik, and I do think there's a possibility we're going to be getting a Phoenix Five affiliated version of her for the next round of Organized Play. She's definitely one to watch, but I must admit that highly defensive mask characters are sort of a dime a dozen right now.
Marvel Girl
(Bolt Energy)
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After waffling back and forth for a while, these are definitely the level 1 and 2 faces. She's a little pricey for this stat line; if you compare these stats to Spider-Man, for example, he fields a 3/3 at 0 cost and a 5/5 at 1 cost, so she'd better make up for it with some interesting abilities.
Mr. Sinister
(Bolt Energy)
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Sinister looks to have the makings of a mid-range offensive stat line: he's got a very aggressive first face, a slight improvement at the level 2, and then it looks like his level 3 fields for 2; I can't quite make out the attack, but I think it might be 6. It's hard to tell at this angle, but he seems to be a fairly consistent die. Still, Sinister is a big time villain and I expect him to have some interesting abilities on top of good middle of the road stats.
Namor
(Shield Energy)
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Prince of Atlantis and all around snob when it comes to filthy air breathers, though he doesn't exactly have the stats to back up that feeling of superiority. It doesn't take much brain power to guess that his level 2 is probably going to have a 1/4/4 stat line, but I could be surprised. It looks like, as far as stats, he's Human Torch's slightly beefier brother, but he could have a really neat power. Look for him to maybe have a Phoenix Five alt costume in the second round of Organized Play, just my speculation.
Psylocke
(Mask Energy)
(Mask Energy)
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Betsy Braddock, telepathic katana wielding badass who know's what's what, sadly her stats are pretty not good. I know that first face is hard to read, but I've got confirmation from the guy who took the photo that that face is 0/1/2. Look to her to have an interesting ability, I think, because otherwise I can't imagine wanting to use her for much of anything. Her stat line is very similar to Black Widow, so maybe this will be an early 2 cost card with an interesting ability.
Pyro
(Bolt Energy)
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Supervillain, occasionally super hot; looks like he's looking for a fairly flat fielding cost, and he might even be cheap enough to get us a 'cheap villain' the likes of which we have very few of. He seems to be fairly offensive, as well, which is nice, because the first expansion favored defense quite heavily.
Quicksilver
(Bolt Energy)
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Speedster, Brother of Scarlet Witch, occasionally evil, occasionally good, often making time with Inhumans. Fairly common cheap stat progression, again more offensive than we're used to seeing, and surprisingly defensive on his third level. I also have to say that I like this die far more than I thought I would at first glance, very crisp.
Sabertooth
(Fist Energy)
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Brother of Wolverine, all around growly dude, almost certainly a villain. His stats are alright, but very balanced between the three faces, which is something to occasionally write home about. He could be cheaper, but he's got a lot of potential. These characters who grow only a little between faces are pretty cool when it comes to making sure the overall die is still powerful and isn't too vulnerable to being spun down.
Scarlet Witch
(Bolt Energy)
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She's a Mutant, an Avenger, occasionally crazy when it serves the needs of a writer, and most famous for proclamations that begin 'no more...'; love this stat line, love the consistent defense and the change from a light defensive character to a far more beefy offensive character. I would think she'll be someone to have some spin or reroll powers owing to her abilities as a probability manipulator; if any character was designed to be rendered as a die, it's Wanda.
Sentinel
(Shield Energy)
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We're very familiar with TFC 6 stat lines that look like this, and with what we've seen so far this may very well be the beefiest character in the set; this die will be expensive, though, I guarantee it. Villain almost certainly, and he may have some interesting anti-X-Men powers.
She-Hulk
(Fist Energy)
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The Jen, strong woman, lawyer, fantastic. She seems to be on course for a stat line just a touch below Sentinel, and has a lot of brawn to bring to the brawl. It looks like she's going to have a fielding cost of 3 with 7 offense on her level 3 side. Mostly she looks like an only slightly downgraded version of the Hulk. She might be aligned with the Fantastic Four, but I'm really not sure at this point, given everyone else we've seen.
Toad
(Fist Energy)
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Another Brother of Evil Mutants guy, with a very slim set of stats; 2/3/2 is probably some of the worst stats I've seen for the fielding cost compared to stats, and it's got me wondering if his 3rd level face is going to cost 2 or 3 to field. Of major note is the burst symbols on the first and second face; we know this makes for great Tsarina bait if he has a power that activates on blocking. Cross your fingers for a good, cheap villain.
Vision
(Mask Energy)
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Vision's got it going on on the defensive front, certainly, with a level 1 stat that looks exactly like Magik. We got a peek at his level 2 face, which seems to have a 1 fielding cost, and maybe a 6 defense, but I wouldn't swear to it. His level 3 really tops it off some some serious defense, and some very affordable overall fielding cost.
X-23
(Fist Energy)
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Offensive in the extreme, and perhaps a touch pricey, X-23 is a powerhouse, and I hope she's got some trample as part of her abilities. Based on the fact she has a card subtitled 'Assassin', we're likely to see her fulfill that niche as well on at least one card.
Putting it all together
I expect Evan will be very eager to work on a true statistical analysis when he sees more dice, but what I can see right from the start is that this set has a lot more cheap characters. Wanda, Psylocke, and Ant-Man are all probably 1 TFC, with Black Panther and Magik both having the potential to join them there. Additionally we're seeing a lot of characters who look like they are only going to have a TFC of 2: Vision, Kitty, Falcon, Quicksilver, and Pyro (along with the return of Storm, Angel, and Spider-Man)
This doesn't necessarily put it far and away ahead of the last set, but this just puts on an air of a slightly cheaper purchase experience. I don't mind it; if we get a few more 2 and 3 cost cards to make a varied early-game experience in a way that's missing from the current set.
My 'Dice to Watch' are definitely: Scarlet Witch, Toad, Psylocke, and Iceman. They just seem to be a little out of the ordinary on the cost/fielding cost/stats, and that's exciting. Toad is also the only new character we've seen with a level 1 burst.
We'll keep you informed as more dice faces get revealed, but for right now, things are looking interesting!
Excellent write up! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteOne comment, I wonder if Black Panther will be like Ghost Rider, in a way. No ability but good stats kind of thing.
Thanks, Smat!
DeleteAnd I do wonder, although Magik has a similar start (Vision did too, before we got peeks of his 2-3 face). I'm going to upload a few slightly crisper images later today, but a few of them are still in limbo when it comes to what their full stats are.
Please pretend I said something way more intelligent above, as I totally wrote that last comment just after waking up! I'd love Panther as a cheap, offensive die, he deserves to have an awesome stat line.
DeleteYay, I was right about Mystique. =)
ReplyDeleteNice article, I really like these tidbits of information about upcoming products. You did a great job here.
Thanks! I was happy to have you proven right! I sort of wish it was a new character, but there are worse fates. Really glad that my obsessive slaving over dice pictures actually has found an audience. I couldn't ask for more.
DeleteNice write-up. Enjoyed the analysis on the dice. The one I'm most looking forward to is Psylocke and Ice-Man.
ReplyDeletePsylocke's ability to labotomize people should allow her an ability to maybe prevent someone from attacking. I could see something like: "Characters that block Psylocke are unable to attack on their next turn."
Ice-Man should have a 'freeze' ability so maybe: "When fielded target opposing character cannot block this turn."
Those would be really fun abilities to incorporate and work within their power-set.
Absolutely agree. I'm working on a write up right now for the new Psylocke card that was revealed at SDCC (and the other cards, too, of course!)
Delete