To those who still cling to the hope that this game is balanced I submit to you exhibit A - penetrating damage without an attack roll.

He is really good. But he is not "Exhibit A".

At least he has to take an action to use it. Ghost Rider gives his diceless penny damage for free! But no, seriously, for as many figures that can ignore stealth or TK objects at him or pulse wave him anyways or figures that can charge or hypersonic up and paste him in one shot his damage dealing Force Blast isn't so bad and actually helps keep those other figures in balance a little bit.

Does the penetrating damage only apply if he uses the power action for force blast or can it work when he causes knockback from an attack too?

The bit where he gets to take an action token instead of a Juggernaut - does that mean Juggernaut can get two actions per turn? I'm sure the wording is clear in the player's manual, but I'd rather not go diving if someone knows offhand...

No, he would not. It does not matter if he gets the token or not, characters get 1 non-free action per turn.

Thanks! I figured, but my brain was rusty and unreliable. And always on the prowl for Juggernaut buffs! :D

SHILLELAGH HEAT: Blast Black Tom Cassidy can use Force Blast. When he does, he deals half the result of the d6 roll as penetrating damage after actions resolve.

Question - can he use this special power to target GIANT SIZE characters? I mean - i know he can't knock them back, but will he deal damage to them? Seems kinda stupid, but legit, since damage comes from d6 roll value, not knock back distance...

I can see no reason why you can't use Force Blast against them (and thus this power). It would just be pointless in normal circumstances.

Played this guy today. Wow! 5 stars if he's on a team with Jugs. That trait along with that special Force Blast are insanely good for the points.

The new bulldozer construct allows him to target up to four squares away for an "energy explosion" forceblast.... dear god that would be fun(ny)

can u use the impact ring with his "sheleligh heat" abilty to double the distance rolled to possibly do 6 penetrating damage?plus can it combine with the plus one penetrating knockback damage?

It doesn't work this way. He already can use force blast, so he won't gain this again from bulldozer. And only using it from bulldozer gives this EE effect. Not sure about gaing extra effect from Impact Beam since it has different wording than Bulldozer. But even if, it would not increase DMG up to 6 - DMG is based on d6 roll, not knock back distance. It would be only increased by 1 from Impact Beam

I have to say though with him this is a mean mechanic all you need is 2 TKers,and an entity to give him a defense power. Really him, black hand possession, star labs technician and blue lantern recruit that's only 155 points u still have room for some serious dmg. With that u to could t/k him on ANY figure no matter what defense, use force blast for one action for potential 3 penetrating???and you can prob it's roll?, afterwards you could tk him 8 sqaures back into safety. No attack rolls made what so ever, guaranteed to take what ever tent pole u have and knock it Down a peg. Mind you this is all an example it could be much worse as there are cheaper characters to do what I just said.

The prospect of guaranteed penetrating damage makes it impossible to consider him as any less than an excellent piece. On a map with ample hindering, it's really hard to dislodge him... he hides in Stealth with an 18 defense, and Force Blasts away anybody who gets adjacent. If they ignore him, he starts taking shots with an 11 attack. It's worth noting, however, that he relies on the Force Blast to really matter against guys with reducers. However, he can happily use FB against guys who ignore knockback (Charge, Multi-base pieces, etc.) and still enjoy the 1-3 pen damage without a roll. It's worth pushing for too, since you will get at least 1 damage in. Click 4 is a beast since he can maneuver with Sidestep before delivering an FB, or try to claw back energy.