Sherman Davies' Marvel customs - Starshine

[fomox]

Originally Posted by Matt Helm

Really good job working the mechanics on this card. Too bad it would cost $18 just to get the minimum needed to get to his attacking potential.

AND WORTH EVERY PENNY!!!!

(I'm not defensive about it at all...)

But I tell you, seeing 8 of these guys lined up in the start zone is just a thing of beauty.

--

After I get some more playtesting in, I'll report back on how it seems with only 3, etc. Stupid work keeps getting in the way, but I should have some free time in a few days.

[Sherman Davies]

Revised my old Iron Man custom this week, running him in a couple of quick playtest games, first against Jotun (225 points) and then against an army of 4th Mass x 2 and Sgt. Drake (250 points). Iron Man won against Jotun with 1 wound left on his card. Ditto against the 4th Mass/Drake army on the first game, but he lost the rematch when an initiative switch let Drake get first strike on him.

I've also changed the background image to one I prefer and named his special attack Uni-Beam as per an old suggestion from GreyOwl. I've added the Extremis to his name in case I ever design other Iron Man cards to represent his other armors.

[Matt Helm]

Ha, as you said, it's Iron Man Day. Extremis is of course top quality Shermanation. Uni-Beam is definitely a nice way of giving him that elusive Special Attack while still keeping him simple/elegant.

Love your playtest info as it really reinforces the quality of the cards.

[Hahma]

Originally Posted by Matt Helm

Ha, as you said, it's Iron Man Day. Extremis is of course top quality Shermanation. Uni-Beam is definitely a nice way of giving him that elusive Special Attack while still keeping him simple/elegant.

Love your playtest info as it really reinforces the quality of the cards.

Yeah, good stuff there SD. As always, you know I appreciate a bit of playtest battle reports.

I agree with MH that the subtle change to the original was nice and clean. And as MH says, it gives him a nice Special Attack that some of us have been clamoring for. I'm wondering though if it might give him a 10 point boost, as not only does it have some pretty good potential total skull possibilities, but for my money, the key is that he can be more effective in melee combat with the likes of Cap and many others with Counter Strike and other special defense. He can bypass many special defenses and do so with some effectiveness with just rolling 2 of 3 dice for skulls. Though I guess your testing showed him to be good at 250 and that might be spot on considering he'd rather attack with his double attack and range if possible and the Unibeam might be for more specific needs and not require too much of a price bump.

Anyway, great job and keep up the awesomeness. I wish I had more time to hang around, but aside from C3G, real life has gotten pretty busy, and even more hectic as today we brought home 2 puppies for the kids. Wow, talk about having to keep on your toes.

[Sherman Davies]

No worries Hahma, I appreciate the efforts you (and everyone else) make to leave feedback. Puppies, huh? You must be some kinda masochist. What, kids weren't enough work for you?

Anyway, regarding bumping Iron Man up only 10 points for his special attack, part of my reasoning was because I agree with his Power Ranking assessment - the original Iron Man tended to underperform in my games. (I was actually tempted to just add the special attack and keep his cost 240, but I think that might've caused an uproar.) I also think 250 points is about the most anyone would want to pay for a figure as relatively fragile as this version of Iron Man.

[Hahma]

Originally Posted by Sherman Davies

No worries Hahma, I appreciate the efforts you (and everyone else) make to leave feedback. Puppies, huh? You must be some kinda masochist. What, kids weren't enough work for you?

Anyway, regarding bumping Iron Man up only 10 points for his special attack, part of my reasoning was because I agree with his Power Ranking assessment - the original Iron Man tended to underperform in my games. (I was actually tempted to just add the special attack and keep his cost 240, but I think that might've caused an uproar.) I also think 250 points is about the most anyone would want to pay for a figure as relatively fragile as this version of Iron Man.

True, I'm a masochist.

And you what, I forgot how often the official Iron Man underperformed, so just going up to 250 for him makes perfect sense because he really wasn't worth 240 most of the time previously. So if he were really worth 220-230, you gave him a 20-30 point bump.

[IAmBatman]

Official Iron Man has always been worth his salt for me at 240. I think double attack is really one of the most valuable powers in the game (as is flying, for that matter).
So I find the official card extremely effective. Just not that interesting.

[Sherman Davies]

Oh, I've never had a problem with him offensively, it's just that he lacks staying power. (That's what she said.)

Since I didn't boost his durability any, I didn't want to make him an even more costly glass cannon.

[IAmBatman]

Yeah, without any defensive powers, 4 lives does get tough to keep around after a certain point level. He's one of those guys who benefits highly from a meat screen, like Q9 or C3G Magneto.

[Monk]

Hey Sherman, you know I've always liked your customs..
When you said the trouble with iron Man is he lacks staying power you
hit the nail on the head.
I think the best way to change this is..........The comics have him with
an energy shield.....Make Defense 5 and add an Energy Shield Special that
says always add + 1 shield when Iron man is attacked....
He gains about 25% more survivability...( try it with the squad battle)

[Balantai]

I really like Uni-Beam, Sherm. This version seems much more fun to play than the official one.

[Sherman Davies]

Originally Posted by Monk

When you said the trouble with iron Man is he lacks staying power you hit the nail on the head. I think the best way to change this is..........The comics have him with an energy shield.....Make Defense 5 and add an Energy Shield Special that says always add + 1 shield when Iron man is attacked.... He gains about 25% more survivability...( try it with the squad battle)

One of the cool things about Iron Man is he has so many different armors that ideas like this can be easily implemented by simply making another custom. I'll play my Extremis card at the current 6 defense and 4 life because that's what the official designers set him as, but if I ever make a custom for a more advanced suit I'll probably toughen it up a bit.

Originally Posted by Balantai

I really like Uni-Beam, Sherm. This version seems much more fun to play than the official one.

Thanks, Balantai. I'm not sure I made the card more fun, but it is more flexible and feels (to me) like it better represents the diverse arsenal built into the armor.