EXPANDING BODY: When Balloon Lizard is targeted by an attack, place a Balloon token on this card. When Balloon Lizard is KO'd deal damage to each adjacent character equal to the number of Balloon tokens on this card.

shape change

When this character is chosen as the target of an attack, you may roll a d6. On a result of 5 or 6, the attacker can’t target this character with an attack this turn and the attacker may choose another target character instead. The attacker then makes the attack unless there are no targets, in which case the action resolves without an attack.

Now WK is saying is Balloon Lizard successfully rolls shape change he doesn't get a token which makes no sense.

Both abilities require that character to be the target of an attack, so how does a shape change activate w/o that character being targeted?

I highlighted the subtle difference, if he successfully makes a shape change roll he is never targeted. Yes he is chosen as the potential target but is never actually targeted.

Shape Change says when this character is chosen as the target of an attack, you then roll a D6 you cant target the character. The Balloon Lizad says when targeted with an attack put put a token on the card. Since if they roll shapechange, you cant ever actual target, I dont see an issue with this one.

on a side note...i believe you can target balloon lizard with support and give him a token for each time you target him with support.

Support is not an attack and thus wouldn't trigger

EXPANDING BODY: When Balloon Lizard is targeted by an attack, place a Balloon token on this card. When Balloon Lizard is KO'd deal damage to each adjacent character equal to the number of Balloon tokens on this card.

Support isn't an attack sorry =s

Just MC him with Black Talon. That's an attack.

As pointed out, with SC, he's never targeted, so there's no token.

No shenanigans going on, and it is consistent with tons of previous rulings.

Yep, I agree, the ruling makes sense.

There are plenty of cases in HeroClix where something is 'about to happen' and you have to check to see if it can happen. Only if that check allows it to happen does it actually happen.

And there are very few ways to target a friendly character with an attack. (Special) Mind Control and Pulse Wave are the only two I can think of.

Pulse Wave being all the more hilarious because it clicks Balloon Lizard one closer to popping each time.

And just to remind people, you can Mind Control a friendly only if you have a special version of MC that specifically allows it.

Also, the Balloon Lizard won't get any tokens when Pulse Waved as PW will ignore the power.

Oops, both of these statements are correct.

When he first came out, one of the players was thinking about running him with several Black Talons to get a bunch of tokens on him right away, then send the Balloon Lizard out like a ticking time-bomb to tie up your opponent and make them KO themselves or keep pushing to try to breakaway (extra nasty if you put the Orange Ring on him).

Spy Master, I see the differences, but my thinking is this: Say your a sniper and you have you target in your sights, but a truck drives past and the target is lost. The truck would represent shape change, and yes the target is gone, but you had a target lined up for the attack. They should change the wording to "attacked" instead of "targeted", less confusion.

Now why isn't support considered an attack? You still have to roll to see if you hit to be able to heal them?

STOP.
Do not try to think of the game in terms of how it would work in the "real world." Only look at how it works in terms of game language. you'll have better understanding and be happier.Because it isn't an attack. it would have to say that you make an attack for it to be considered an attack, and it doesn't say that.

Quoted for truth. I wrote my signature a long time ago to point out just how silly some of the "real world" examples get to be when you really try to translate them. There is an aspect of "game logic" that has to be used (how an attack is vastly different from an action, for example).

And the fact that Support is specifically called out (in the PAC, I believe) that it's not an attack.