Ahhh, theme teams. I love the idea of keyword groupings, but I have some misconceptions that I'd like to have cleared up. (Sorry if this is a repeat, but I tried a search also...)

First Question:

Do ALL members of a theme team need to share a keyword or not?

I'll quote our holy rulebook (FF rulebook, page 20)

"Themed teams are forces of heroclix characters in which all characters (excluding bystander tokens) share at least one common keyword among the keywords listed on their character cards."

So far so good, right? But then it throws me a curve...

"When the keyword is a generic keyword (as listed in the sidebar), your force must have at least one character (excluding bystander tokens) for each 100 points (or fraction thereof) of the game's build total to be a themed team."

One character per 100 points? Fraction thereof? Wha?

So not every character needs a keyword then? Only FOUR characters in a 400 point team need the same keyword and still qualify? Or am I wrong?

Example team:
(Bear in mind, I am a noob and don't have a massive collection yet)

JLA Green Arrow 70p (Martial Arts)
SI Iron Fist 70p (Martial Arts)
JLA Bronze Tiger 60p (Martial Arts)
JLA Black Canary 50p (Martial Arts)
JLA Dr. Alchemy 62p
M&M Marvel Girl 40p
JLA Vigilante 45p

Total: 397pts

Four figs have the Martial Arts keyword, the others do not. Is this a defined theme team? The other three are added for TK and Carry abilities.

Also, I have no other Martial Arts tagged clix (well, I do have Tarantula...)

Question two:

Does a Team Ability count toward a theme team?

Sometimes the TA is re-listed as a keyword, other times it isn't. Would a team of all the same TA count as a theme team anyway?

Example:
FF keyword. Can I mix in some Power Pack brats with the Easter bunny (Thing, my favorite quote from Secret Wars...), and LE Sue Richards?

They have the FF TA, but not the keyword.

I would also love to see an official theme bonus based on a "match a comic". I know some venues do this, but an official rule would be great. I'd assume you would need to display the comic to get the bonus though.

Thanks for taking time to help out yet another Heroclix noob.

Nope, TAs do not count. It has to be keywords. Everyone has to have the same keyword.

As for the 100/150 points per...it means:

BUILD POINTS/NON-GENERIC # OF PCs/GENERIC # OF PCs

100/1/0
150/1/1
200/2/1
250/2/1
300/3/2

GENERIC and NON-GENERIC refers to the sort of theme keyword. Star City, X-Men, Starjammers and so on are NON-GENERIC. Martial Artist, Celebrity, Reporter, and so on are GENERIC.

And so on, get me?

Hope that helps!

I'm fine with the TA one, but lost on the keywords per points one.

I know the difference between the keywords, but I still don't understand how my team doesn't fulfill "one keyword per 100 points of the game's build total"

I have four characters on a 400 point team all with the same keyword. Basic math would dictate 4/400 (keywords per total), and rule fulfilled.

Yes?

Yes but only if you have everyone sharing the same keyword. And a non-generic team will net you 4 PCs. A generic team would only net you 3 PCs.

Yes, every figure on your force needs to have the same keyword.
"Themed teams are forces of HeroClix characters in which all characters (excluding bystander tokens) share at least one common keyword among the keywords listed on their character cards."

"(or fraction thereof)" means that if you divide the build total by 100 or 150 and get a remainder, you round up. For example, you want to build a Defenders team in a 400-point game. 400 divided by 150 is 2 2/3. So you'd need three figures to run a Defenders keyword team.

Team symbols do not factor into theme teams. For example, Toro has the Defenders team ability, but he does not have the Defenders keyword so he could not be part of a Defenders theme team. Goliath, on the other hand, has no team ability but he does have the Defenders keyword, allowing him to become part of a Defenders team.

-J

So wait...

Even if i made it into a 400 points all MA team. I could ONLY have four clix?

That seems lame and wrong. Why bother having any generic keyword clix listed under 100 points then?

Methinks I'll try the official rule forum. The way you state it seems to break the entire concept of theme teams (IMHO).

Actually, the number of PC rolls is based on the number of figures on your force.

"For each two characters (excluding bystander tokens) on a themed
team, a character on the themed team (including bystander tokens)
can use Probability Control once during the game..."

So if he were running an Atlantis teams in a 300 point match with Namor and five Atlantean Soldiers, he would get three shots at PC. If he ran a whole squad of Atlantean Soldiers, those ten figures would net five PC rolls... and probably need them.

-J

No, they have to have at *least* four figures.

A theme team can have as many figures as you can fit, so long as all of them share the common keyword.

Let's go back to the Atlantis example I mentioned. In a 300 point game, you would need two figures to get the theme bonus. But you can run Namor and five Atlantean Soldiers for a total of six figures, and you still get the bonus.

-J

Ok, that is a little better. I'm still going to check though. It seems to kill flexibility and fun by limiting the keywords in such a manner. Even if I am wrong, I'd rather raise the issue than give up so easily.

You're quite new here and already...

Trust me, it's not that inflexible and there are tons of fun to be had w/ KW teams.

lol.

Just trying to shake up the established norms. I just don't have a massive amount of good matching keyword figs. My most numerous keyword in my collection is "scientist". I have a "pure" (legal) team based around that keyword. I was only hoping that my other "dream teams" were legal as well. May be a pipe dream, but I don't see why it shouldn't work the ways I asked. An all JLA TA team should qualify IMHO. A 300 pt team with three keywords should qualify (even if other figs don't have em). Sure, an all matching keyword team would still qualify (and should be rewarded with a larger bonus), but I don't see why its necessary.

Having more freedom for imaginative teams and still giving out some sort of bonus can only lead to more good. Restriction is the enemy of imaginative design.

and imaginative design gets bent into CHEESE!

Ok then. I'll drop the dream. Thanks anyway. I suppose I just need to spend more money.

Yay, another game where those willing to pay more are given greater advantages of those that don't.

Heroclix = the ultimate game of life.

Or can make the best out of what you've got. Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to make a competitive team that doesn't rely on the fad-of-the-day. It's definitely harder than using the fad-of-the-day. It requires more thought and imagination. I've come to the table with a motley crew of neglected clix many times and come out ahead.

True restriction is only put in place by the limits of your own imagination. Someone with a great imagination can do great things with minimal resources. MacGyver may have been laughable, but the guy had imagination. He could do crazy things with twist ties and tweezers.

It doesn't take much imagination to do what you want when you've got everything in the world at your disposal. Superman can do anything he wants as long as he's powered by a yellow sun. Take that away and I'd be surprised if he could feed himself.

Whether a person has a lot of money or not, I suggest spending more time and effort on exploring the possibilities rather than going after the new hotness. You'll be surprised what crazy shenanigans you can come up with.

Yeah, I should retract that prior comment.

Dreams shattered, I lashed out a bit.

I've been getting very crummy pulls from every SI booster thus far. JLA has been great to me though. Although most of those figs seem unsuitable for low point games.

I was pushing to get free PC. I was wrong. I apologize.