The Book of Animal Man

[Scapemage]

The Book of Animal Man​

C3G DC WAVE 24
THEY CAME FROM BEYOND!

Comic PDF

Mini PDF

The figure used for this unit is a Heroclix figure from the DC 75th Anniversary set.
Its model number and name are #036 / Animal Man.​

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Character Bio - Bernhard "Buddy" Baker is a former movie stuntman who juggles a family life with his life as a traditional superhero. Animal Man has the ability to mimic physical and mental traits of nearby animals in an instant allowing him to thwart villains with passion. His close bond with animals sometimes proves more useful than his powers in tricky situations. Animal Man has served on the Justice League of America and is an animal rights activist and environmentalist.
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-Rulings and Clarifications-

• N/A

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-Combinations and Synergies-

Incoming Synergy:

• As a Metahuman, Animal Man has these Metahuman Synergies.
• As an Champion, Animal Man has these Champion Synergies.
• As a figure with a special power benefitting from water tiles, Animal Man can benefit from water tiles being placed by one of these figures.

Outgoing Synergy:

• N/A

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-Immunities, Benefits, and Weaknesses-

Immunities:

• As a figure with the Flying special power, Animal Man cannot be affected by aspects of certain special powers. Special Powers that Interact Differently with Flying special power.
• As a figure with the Super Strength special power, Animal Man cannot be affected by aspects of certain special powers. Special Powers that Interact Differently with the Super Strength special power.

Benefits:

• As a figure with the Super Strength special power, Animal Man interacts differently with certain special powers. Special Powers that Interact Differently with the Super Strength special power.

Weaknesses:

• As a figure with the Flying special power, Animal Man interacts differently with certain special powers. Special Powers that Interact Differently with Flying.
• As a figure with a Special Attack, Animal Man can be affected by aspects of certain special power. Current Special Powers that Interact Differently with Special Attacks.

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-Strategy, Tactics and Tips-

• N/A

-Heroscapers Community Contributions-

• Initial playtest: Scapemage
• Second playtest: IamBatman
• Third playtest: Clembo2021
• Fourth Playtest: Zettian Juggernaut
• Art: Comic (1) (2) (3) (4)
• Art by Scapemage. Updated by tcglkn

Card Updates:
3 January 2021 - Kangaroo Bounce wording update
7 March 2021 - Class changed to Champion

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

NAME = ANIMAL MAN
SECRET IDENTITY = BUDDY BAKER

SPECIES = METAHUMAN
UNIQUENESS = UNIQUE HERO
CLASS = CHAMPION
PERSONALITY = PASSIONATE

SIZE/HEIGHT = MEDIUM 5

LIFE = 4

MOVE = 5
RANGE = 1
ATTACK = 4
DEFENSE = 4

POINTS = 170

PISTOL SHRIMP SHOT
Animal Man may add 4 to his Range number while on a water space and does not have to stop his movement when entering water spaces.

KANGAROO BOUNCE
Instead of his normal move, Animal Man may move up to 2 spaces with Kangaroo Bounce. When moving with Kangaroo Bounce, Animal Man has the Flying special power, but may not move up or down more than 16 levels in a single bounce, and will not take any leaving engagement attacks. After attacking, if Animal Man moved with Kangaroo Bounce this turn, he may use it one additional time.

VAMPIRE BAT BITE SPECIAL ATTACK
Range 1. Attack 1.
Figures without the Super Strength special power cannot roll defense dice against this special attack. If Animal Man inflicts a wound with this special attack, you may remove a Wound Marker from this card. Destructible objects are not affected by this special attack.

COCKROACH DURABILITY
Any time Animal Man would receive enough wounds to be destroyed by a normal attack, he instead receives one wound.

SUPER STRENGTH

FLYING

 

[quozl]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

I think the healing with Vampire Bat might be a bit much especially with Cockroach Durability. These powers look very fun though!

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

I think the healing with Vampire Bat might be a bit much especially with Cockroach Durability. These powers look very fun though!

I don't see a problem with it, as it won't happen an awful lot. He only reduces damage if he receives enough wounds to be destroyed, so if he's at full health and receives 3 wounds, he doesn't prevent any of that damage. Plus, Vampire Bat only works on figures without Super Strength and he has to roll a skull.

 

[IAmBatman]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Yeah, I'm not too worried about it unless playtesting shows it's a problem. He's also only got 4 life, 4 defense. I honestly think his points will go down before up.

The only thing I really see needing wording help is the Kangaroo power:

BOUNCING KANGAROO
Instead of moving normally or after attacking with Animal Man's normal attack, you may move him up to 2 spaces that are up to 8 levels up or down each. When moving with Bouncing Kangaroo, Animal Man will not take any leaving engagement attacks.

 

[johnny139]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Is "Adventurer" the best class for him?

Otherwise this design was hammered out a while ago, so... we're probably good.

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Yeah, a ton of discussion was already put in here, no power changes are needed.

You're right Bats, Kangaroo Boxing needs some wording work, but your version doesn't allow him to move before and after attacking. Maybe...

KANGAROO BOXING
Instead of moving normally, you may move Animal Man up to 2 spaces up to 8 levels up or down. After attacking, if Animal Man moved with Kangaroo Boxing, he may immediately move up to 2 spaces up to 8 levels up or down. When Animal Man moves with Kangaroo Boxing, he never takes leaving engagement attacks.

Adventurer really fits the character in my mind. What else did you have in mind Johnny?

 

[johnny139]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

"Naturalist" or "Environmentalist" or something along those lines. I'm not really sure of the character, though.

 

[IAmBatman]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

"that are up to 8 levels up or down each" is a stronger phrase here, IMO.

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

"Naturalist" or "Environmentalist" or something along those lines. I'm not really sure of the character, though.

He's not all over plants and stuff like somebody like Floronic Man. Naturalist and Environmentalist don't work. Adventurer is the most logical choice, he's always running around on various adventurers and his "base" is his house. He juggles a family life.

"that are up to 8 levels up or down each" is a stronger phrase here, IMO.

Good call.

KANGAROO BOXING
Instead of moving normally, you may move Animal Man up to 2 spaces that are up to 8 levels up or down each. After attacking, if Animal Man moved with Kangaroo Boxing, he may immediately move up to 2 spaces that are up to 8 levels up or down each. When Animal Man moves with Kangaroo Boxing, he never takes leaving engagement attacks.

 

[Hahma]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Wow, 4 powers not including SS and Flying!

I don't know anything about this guy, but wanted to post so it will come up on my User CP. I don't have too much time now, but will check in later.

 

[IAmBatman]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Yeah, he's pretty similar to Vixen, so hopefully the four powers are warranted here.

 

[Spidey'tilIDie]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Is the power Bouncing Kangaroo or Kangaroo Boxing?
I'm confused by his having Flying and the Kangaroo power. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Kangaroo allows him to a) move one less space over all, b) restricts his levels up and down to 8, while c) allowing him to move before and after attacking. Is that right?

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Is the power Bouncing Kangaroo or Kangaroo Boxing?
I'm confused by his having Flying and the Kangaroo power. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Kangaroo allows him to a) move one less space over all, b) restricts his levels up and down to 8, while c) allowing him to move before and after attacking. Is that right?

Yes. The difference is that he gets to move both before and after attacking, which can be useful in a multitude of ways. He can move, smack a common unit, then bounce over and engage a big baddie or sniper to protect a weaker unit in your army, among plenty of other things. We talked about if this power was needed and came to the conclusion that it indeed has uses.

And it's Bouncing Kangaroo (Kangaroo Boxing was an earlier name for the power).

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

SP updated with Bouncing Kangaroo wording fix. ERB sent, I'll get started on the initial tonight (working on J. Jonah Jameson at the moment).

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

A couple of ERBs:

Animal Man

Hey, Buddy Baker used to drive in NASCAR! Vrrrrrooooooommmm!!! I don't know if he was an animal. Maybe he was a pig at the all-you-can eat buffet.

I played a battle with Vixen this past Saturday, so I'm primed for this design. Let's see what you've got!

Pistol Shrimp Shot
Try saying that three times quickly. I have a Joker figure where he's holding two fishes, so this design confirms that seafood can be pretty deadly.

This is a great ability, because figures designed to be in water spaces need a way to make them effective while in the water.

Bouncing Kangaroo
You have Kangaroo Boxing in the ability, and the title is Bouncing Kangaroo. I suspect the ability name changed during the design.

I'm wondering if the wording works. I've consulted Grapple abilities, Leap abilities, and Hawkeye's Grapple Arrow to see if there is anything that would help. The biggest problem is that you don't really want to pile additional text on a design that already has 4 abilities.

Since you're using move instead of place, would you have to specify that he ignores his height when making the move?

I understand the intent of the ability, though. I'll defer to the wording experts.

Vampire Bat Bite Special Attack
I assume this could be combo-ed with Bouncing Kangaroo.

I love the theme of this, especially the way SS figures can roll defense but figures without can't.

Cockroach Durability
We've seen this type of ability with figures such as Molly Hayes, and it's a good defense ability. I especially love the way it works when really heavy hitters perform a massive amount of wounds, and their attack is nerfed to 1 wound.

Would it be thematic to also apply this to special attacks?

Final Thoughts
This is a really fun design. Hopefully the language in Bouncing Kangaroo will be ok or at least have an acceptably brief way of phrasing it, because I really like it. It also works well with the other abilities -- you place him in water to give him range, Bounce to give a Vampire Bat Bite, then dive back into the drink to get your range back.

4 powers?!?

Need to check Kangaroo power, it's a bit messed up.

Cost looks too high.

Hmm, could be interesting in a Fantastic Four team.

I've fixed the name difference in Bouncing Kangaroo. The wording is a little choppy, I'm just not sure exactly how to fix it. Maybe SirG can help? I don't really think Cockroach Durability needs to apply to special attacks though. I'll start playtesting at 240, I'm sure the cost will fluctuate as I go along.

 

[IAmBatman]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Good stuff. I agree on all of your answers, including that I'm hoping SirG will look at the wording on Bouncing Kangaroo!

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

C3G INITIAL PLAYTEST FEEDBACK FORM

NAME OF THE TEST UNIT Animal Man.

- THEME TEST/ Check to see if there are any powers or stats on the test unit card that does not accurately reflect the theme or likeness of what the character would and could do. Also consider destructible objects, and whether or not this characters powers should affect them.
Pass.

- MIRROR TEST/ Check to see if the unit were played against itself, if there would be any loops that would upset the balance of the Game.
Pass.

- BONDING TEST/ Compare the unit card with all possible currently existing Bonding abilities to make sure there are no continual Bonding possibilities that do not stop appropriately or do not stop at all. This is to prevent loops in Bonding.
Pass.

- SYNERGIES TEST/ Compare the unit card with all possible currently existing synergies to make sure there are no factors that could break the game by making any unit too powerful or too weak.
Pass.

- POWER CHECK/ Consider the test unit and all existing units and all glyphs to compare to and check for any powers that could be over amplified and break the game. Each power must define when it takes place, who or what it affects, and What are the stipulations on the power if there are any.
Pass.

- FUN TEST/ Consider whether or not the design was fun to play.
Pass.

- FUN COMPETITIVE TEST/ Consider whether or not the design was fun to play against.
Pass.

- DRAFTING TEST/ Consider whether or not this design is worth drafting.
Pass.

- USAGE TEST/ Consider whether or not all of the powers on this card were used or at least usable.
Pass.

- STRATEGY TEST/ Consider whether or not the design offers any real strategy or interesting tactics to the overall game.
Pass.

Heavy Hitter or Mid-Level Hero Test
- Does it pass, Yes or No? YES.
- What should be the unit's point value? 180.
- Give a brief overview. All of Animal Man's powers were used quite often, and each one does something different. He ran into a string of bad rolls at one point, but 180 seems to be where he fits in.

Spoiler Alert!

TEST 1
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Tiger Shark (240).
Animal Man got slaughtered, Tiger Shark was just too beefy.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Tiger Shark unharmed.

TEST 2
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units:Vs. Zatanna (240).
Animal Man got negated and simply couldn't defend himself.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Zatanna w/ 1 wound.

TEST 3
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Parasite (240).
Bouncing Kangaroo really helped Animal Man keep his distance from Parasite.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Animal Man w/ 1 wound.

TEST 4
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Rhino (220).
Bouncing Kangaroo helped Animal Man get height, good positioning, and avoid lava damage, however Rhino got the better of the rolls.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Rhino w/ 3 wounds.

TEST 5
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Saturn Girl (220).
Animal Man couldn't roll any skulls for Vampire Bat Bite, and Mental Walls is deadly in 1 on 1.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Saturn Girl w/ 1 wound.

TEST 6
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Iron Man Mk III (220).
A good even fight, Cockroach Durability saves Animal Man's butt a few times.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Iron Man w/ 3 wounds.

TEST 7
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units:Vs. Black Panther (200).
Vampire Bat Bite combined with Cockroach Durability was key here. Bouncing Kangaroo also gave him positioning.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Animal Man w/ 2 wounds.

TEST 8
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Batman I (200).
A really close game. Batman got really lucky and hit 2 Evasive Strike rolls against Animal Man's 4-skull attacks.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Batman w/ 3 wounds.

TEST 9
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Black Canary (190).
Vampire Bat helped, but Animal Man took 3 wounds in one turn off a lucky roll.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Black Canary w/ 2 wounds.

TEST 10
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Jean Grey (180).
A really close match. Jean Grey kept rolling 4 or 5 shields on Animals Man's bigger attacks, but Pistol Shrimp Shot was a huge help here, especially when Psionic Grip kept Animal Man from moving.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Jean Grey w/ 2 wounds.

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Squad Test
- Does it pass, Yes or No? YES.
- What should be the unit's point value? 180.
- Give a brief overview. Another really close game. Vampire Bat Bite helped quite a bit, and Bouncing Kangaroo gave him maneuverability.
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. Arkham Inmates x3 (180).

Spoiler Alert!

Animal Man was in a pinch at first, but got out of it and began moving back and picking off Inmates with Bouncing Kangaroo. The last few Inmates caught him though, and he died against an Inmate hoisted on height and lava.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? 2/9 Arkham Inmates.

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Squad Test
- Does it pass, Yes or No? YES.
- What should be the unit's point value? 170.
- Give a brief overview. Although Animal Man lost terribly, he did exactly what he should have, he was just on the bad side of die rolls.
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Vs. HYDRA Agents x2 1/4 (180).

Spoiler Alert!

Animal Man most initiative in both rounds and had a tough time taking out a ranged squad without enough range of his own and only 1 attack per turn.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? 8/9 HYDRA Agents.

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Army Test
- Does it pass, Yes or No? YES.
- What should be the unit's point value? 180-190.
- Give a brief overview. Even though Mister Fantastic died early, the rest of the crew handled the Mutants well. All of Animal Man's powers were used, and he dealt a good deal of damage to Archangel and Dazzler.
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Animal Man (170), Silver Surfer (C3G), Invisible Woman, and Mister Fantastic (1020) vs. Professor X, Archangel, Omega Red, Dazzler, and Siryn (1020).

Spoiler Alert!

Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman move first. Archangel and Omega Red move, and Animal Man moves before Fantastic Stretch Walks. Siryn and Dazzler move, and Mister Fantastic rolls his third 4 in a row for Fantastic Leader. Silver Surfer and Fantastic move, and Siryn and Archangel engage. Siryn entrances Fantastic and walks him into lava, whilst Surfer is wounded by Archangel. Surfer one-hit KOs Siryn into oblivion, freeing up a few turns, then progresses to wound Archangel. Animal Man uses Bouncing Kangaroo to gain height on Archangel, hits him for 3 wounds, then bounces off of the lava. Archangel is out of the Professor's range, so Dazzler and Omega Red move. Omega Red takes a hit, and the Adventurers win initiative. Surfer kills Archangel, and Animal Man flies into some water. His Pistol Shrimp Shot wounds Dazzler twice, and Dazzler moves to height. She misses and Dazzles Animal Man, and Omega Red engages. He deals Animal Man 3 wounds, but luckily Animal Man is prepared. He bounces up to Dazzler, wounds her and heals with Vampire Bat Bite, then bounces across the stream. Dazzler jumps to height and wounds Animal Man, and Omega Red engages. Animal Man blocks his attacks, and Animal Man gets initiative. He bounces to Dazzler again, attacks with Vampire Bat Bite, kills her and heals, then bounces back into engagement with Omega Red for lack of a better position. He still has height advantage however, but Omega Red kills him off of two strong attacks. Surfer engages and wounds Omega twice, and Omega fight back by dealing a wound. Surfer luckily catches Omega on a whiff however, and kills him. Professor X takes up some height before Order Markers are reset. Surfer gets to go and engages, but the X Order Marker protects the Professor. The Professor misses, Surfer wounds him twice, and the Professor then hits Surfer for two wounds! Surfer kills him however, and the game ends.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Team 1: Silver Surfer w/ 4 wounds and Invisible Woman unharmed.

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Army Test
- Does it pass, Yes or No? YES.
- What should be the unit's point value? 100.
- Give a brief overview. This game was simply bad for the waterlogged team. The Gorillas engaged a lot quicker than expensive, locking down everyone so that they couldn't get to water. Animal Man had a well-placed Pistol Shrimp Shot in the first round, and Cockroach Durability saved him at one point. Bouncing Kangaroo is used a lot to gain height and get better positioning. Animal Man just didn't perform well without the Vampire Bat Bite option however.
Map: Canyon Flares.
Units: Animal Man (170), Aquaman, and Killer Croc (600) vs. Gorilla Grodd and Gorilla City Warriors x3 (600).

Spoiler Alert!

Some Gorilla City Warriors and Gorilla Grodd move to begin the game. Aquaman moves, then the Gorillas advance again. Killer Croc moves, and Grodd engages. Grodd wounds Croc and Animal Man jumps into the water and shoots Grodd. He misses, and the round ends. Some Gorillas engage Croc, dealing him 3 wounds, and Death Roll results in two wounds on Grodd. A 6-skull attack kills Croc, and 3 wounds are dealt to Aquaman. The Gorillas slaughter Aquaman, and quickly move to wound Animal Man. Animal Man uses Bouncing Kangaroo to escape Grodd and kill a Gorilla, but the Gorillas attack. Cockroach Durability saves him temporarily, but Animal Man dies to the next attack.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Team 2: Gorilla Gross w/ 2 wounds and 8/9 Gorilla City Warriors.

 

[IAmBatman]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

I could see 170-180 still. Good start.

 

[Scapemage]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Initial completed. The first army test was very strong. The Adventurers did excellent without Mister Fantastic. The second army test was almost a blowout, but Animal Man still used all of his powers except Vampire Bat Bite. The usefulness of Bouncing Kangaroo was questioned a couple of times, but these tests show that it is used an awful lot more than I had expected. Animal Man used it to bounce onto height, attack, then bounce off of lava, lead his opponents to him get a good position, jump into water, leave an engagement, and various other things.

Looking at everything overall, I'm going to propose we move to playtesting at 170 points. For now though, 24 hours are on the clock.

 

[IAmBatman]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Nice work, Scapey. Pre-yea for playtesting at 170.

 

[Hahma]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Pre-yea for 170. Great work Scapey

 

[johnny139]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Pre-Yea as well.

 

[A3n]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Yea

 

[Hahma]

Re: The Book of Animal Man - Design Phase

Pre-Yea

Fixed