Well 2 shields means "worth the points" so I don't think it's off. I pulled kinda bad today and ended up playing *two* of the common Ivy (and won) so it's not like I think she's bad. Just that she doesn't stand out at that point value.

If I pull Batman Beyond and perplex (if? ) I'm planning on 1-shotting opposing Catwomen straight away. I actually love her dial, switching sides is pretty great for her. But just like the cartoon, you're a fool if you trust her

She seems to get a lot of love, and I probably underrated her. But that switching sides thing, while fun, seems like a liability.

You're really undervaluing ranged attackers and the PD TA. Sure, there's a lot of Stealth in the set, but your opponent is still limited by the terrain and there's no guarantee that they'll get map choi...

...What's that?

There's multiple low-rarity figures in the set with free-action Smoke Cloud?

Carry on.

I couldn't bring myself to play her. Too many other figures do as much or more without the possibility of becoming a figure I have to fight myself.

I'd consider putting that Robin up to three shields. The Sidestep does a lot to make sure you're getting to line up that Perplex where you want it most. For only 35 points, he's definitely worth throwing on your team and you'll almost certainly be able to afford him.

Played pre-release today and was absolutely WRECKED by Batman Beyond. That guy is nuts. Our judge compared him to the DXF Cable - just an awesome common figure.

My two MVPs were the common Harley Quinn (push her like crazy, but she stayed alive in each game) and the prime Clayface - his shape change avoided several attacks and he was worth his points each game.

Catwoman is really scary to me.

IF they concentrate on her and KO her,
then it is THEIR 340 POINTS against your 260 points .

That sounds bad to me.
It doesn't matter if you might get her back later.
(the odds of that are not good)
If your 260 points is trying to concentrate on getting that 40 point figure back, the rest of his 300 points is wrecking house on your 260.
(with Catwoman either actively helping that 300 -
making it 340 -
or that Catwoman kinda lurking in his back lines
and using her Perplex to help out his 300)

.


She's dangerous.
And so hot that you'll probably be burnt.

That's a very succinct way of getting to what I was trying to say. They suddenly have more figures and an extra perplex that you have to deal with.

Some of the reasons why I think the Rating System should be out of 5 Stars, and not 4.
Why limit yourself when rating the figures?
Use more levels of ranking. Not less.

There is a difference between Joker and Batman Beyond.
Joker is a 4.
But Batman Beyond is the best of the best. A 5.

Leslie Tompkins would be a 3.
She's awesome at what she does. And only costs 15 points.
She usually wouldn't be on the frontlines.
She would be back a bit, and ready to do her job when needed.
If they are over-extending themselves to get that 15 points, you can take advantage of that.

And then Dee Dee would be a 1, and not a Zero.
A Zero Rating should only be given to Figs that can't be used in your chosen 300 point format.
ie. A Fig that is over 300 points would be given a Zero.

Clayface seems to be missing his Keywords.

Thanks for the great primer, plenty of food for thought here.

In my 5 Star rating system, Robin gets 3 Stars
and this would be an average rating for an average Fig.



Great job Ignatz Mouse.
Thanks for the article.

Clayface has no keywords.

And I like having the option of a zero for a figure that I consider really, really not worth it. A solitary Dee Dee is a zero to me.

Common Joker is absolutely a must play unless it would break theme, and even then I would heavily consider him. Batman Beyond is the clear power common, though he is not unbeatable. The 50 point Batman seemed really solid on paper(Not replacing any Batman in constructed for me, but in sealed is amazing value), but he seemed to whiff every attack when I used him. But that's on the dice.

Part 2 is up: http://www.hcrealms.com/forum/showthread.php?t=598391

Why not 10 then? If more is always better?

Well, because more ISN'T always better.

A 5 star rating system might be important if these reviews were intended for Constructed play, but in Sealed you're really just trying to bunch characters quickly. We're choosing a team from 10 figures- the precision of the ratings doesn't matter that much.

"Batman Beyond should be a 5; he's better than the other 4s." But if you're looking at your boosters and you've got multiple 4s, you're doing fine anyway. You don't need those 4s ranked for you. Do we even WANT a Primer that builds teams for you? That tells everyone precisely what order they should be adding figures to their team? Besides, everything needs to be considered in relation to the rest of your options. It's hard to imagine a situation where you shouldn't include Beyond, but it could happen.

4 ratings is an elegant method of ranking for the writers. It creates relative consistency, and prevents freeze-up deliberations over unimportant distinctions (2 or 3? 3 or 4? Wait, I gave that last guy a 2, but they're slightly better than this one- should they be a 3 instead?)

1 is for figures to avoid if you have other options. 2 is for add-ins when you've got your core team established. 3 is for good, solid inclusions that shape your strategy. And 4 is for the figures that define your team- and will carry you through three rounds for a real shot at a tournament win. What sort of team building consideration would you add in the midst of that? Or would you simply add one to the upper end to, what, glorify one figure?

It's not needed.

Zeroes are so seldom given out, they're fun. They represent less a strategic failure and more an outright hate from the writer. I delight in the one 0 I let myself hand out in a review.

There certainly is a temptation to make half-shield distinctions. But then again, how valuable a figure is depends a lot on what else is in the booster with it. So those broad bands are all you really need.

And yes, I enjoyed giving Dee Dee a 0 rating.

I also think I'm a slightly harder grader than previous reviewers (not by plan, just how I think of things). So a lot of 2-shield ratings for figures which are fine but not outstanding. I'm halfway through the set and I have given out only 2 4-shield ratings.