The Book of Chief Judge Cal

[Soundwarp SG-1]

The Book of Chief Judge Cal

C3G 2000AD WAVE 36
FOOL ME TWICE

Comic PDF

Mini PDF

Alternate even crazier Prime/Composite version:

Spoiler Alert!

Mini PDF

The figure used for this unit is a custom primarily made from a Heroclix figure from the Captain America and the Avengers set.
Its model number and name are #003, 020, 036 / Citizen V.

The figure used for this unit is a custom primarily made from a Heroclix figure from the Captain America and the Avengers Fast Forces set.
Its model number and name are #002 / Citizen V.​

_________________________________________________________________

Character Bio -

After usurping the position of Chief Judge, Cal eventually appointed his (totally ordinary and non-sapient) pet fish as his Deputy Chief Judge. That might have been the least crazy decision he made as Chief Judge.. so that should tell you all you need to know about him.
_________________________________________________________________

-Rulings and Clarifications-

• N/A

_________________________________________________________________

-Combinations and Synergies-

Incoming Synergy:

• As a Human, Cal has these Human Synergies.
• As a Dictator, Cal has these Dictator Synergies.
• As a mad lad, Cal has these Insane Synergies

Outgoing Synergy:

• Cal can turn Judges and Mercenaries into Enforcers, granting these Enforcer Synergies and allowing him to activate them with The Living Law.

Immunities, Benefits, and Weaknesses:

• N/A

_________________________________________________________________

-Strategy, Tactics and Tips-

• N/A

-Heroscapers Community Contributions-

• Initial playtest: Soundwarp
• Second Playtest: IAmBatman
• Third playtest: Cinderquail
• Art by Soundwarp SG-1
• Judge Cal created by John Wagner and Brian Bolland. Based on Caligula created by Germanicus and his second cousin Agrippina the Elder (which might explain somethings, don't sleep with your cousin kiddos!)

 

[Soundwarp SG-1]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

NAME = CHIEF JUDGE CAL
SECRET IDENTITY =
SPECIES = HUMAN
UNIQUENESS = UNIQUE HERO
CLASS = DICTATOR
PERSONALITY = INSANE

SIZE/HEIGHT = MEDIUM 5

LIFE = 4

MOVE = 5
RANGE = 5
ATTACK = 3
DEFENSE = 4

POINTS = 125

THE DAY THE LAW DIED!
All figures you control that have the class of Judge or Mercenary listed on their Army Cards have the class of Enforcer instead.

THE LIVING LAW
After revealing an Order Marker on this card, before taking a turn with Chief Judge Cal, you must roll the 20-sided die. If you roll:
• 1-10, you must choose 2 Enforcers you control to move 4 spaces each; and
• 11-20, you must choose 2 Enforcers you control and attack with each of those figures; and
• an odd number, you must remove 1 Wound Marker from this card and move 1 unrevealed Order Marker from Cal's card to any other figure's card you control; and
• an even number, you must choose a figure within 5 clear sight spaces of Cal to receive 1 wound and move 1 unrevealed Order Marker from any other card you control to Cal's card.

 

[Soundwarp SG-1]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Where once there was a fish, alas there is now naught but emptiness.

 

[tcglkn]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Looks pretty solid to me. The Fish is basically a DO that’ll just sit in the SZ the whole game.

 

[MrNobody]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Are we sure the Fish won’t be more viable with Joker or Deadpool or whatever?

 

[Soundwarp SG-1]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Are we sure the Fish won’t be more viable with Joker or Deadpool or whatever?

I don't think the reroll part is particularly concerning for anyone.

If we want the stat boost thing to only work if the OM is moved by a special power on his companion's card that's fine with me.

Or if we want to just limit him to Insane Dictators specifically, that's also fine with me.

 

[LordVenoc]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Are we sure the Fish won’t be more viable with Joker or Deadpool or whatever?

Imagine actually remembering to roll for that power on Deadpool.

Carnage I might be annoying getting two rolls for Symbiote sense. Jackal's resurrection cloning might be an eyebrow raiser, but otherwise its just some autowounders that we can sit and debate who might be a marginally better companion.

 

[Arch-vile]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Yeah, Fish is a solid boost to any Insane figure with a d20. Jackal, several Jokers, Poison Ivy I, and both Scarecrows get very nice use out of d20 rerolls, especially if it's cheap. You can work around the negative by using bonding or other OM flex.

Cal looks good. Nice to see Enforcers get some more synergy besides M. Bison.

 

[johnny139]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Yeah, I agree that the fish seems pretty wide in scope. I don't mind that, though; I'd rather keep it open and make the drawback a little more prominent than reign it in. Seems fun with Joker in particular with his Joker fish gimmick.

Only real question is what the healing/wounding represents in Living Law. Mechanically I think he's a lot of fun.

 

[Soundwarp SG-1]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Only real question is what the healing/wounding represents in Living Law. Mechanically I think he's a lot of fun.

The autowound bit is basically just he's a maniac that might randomly and surprisingly shoot you/ drop you in a giant pickling vat/some other craziness.

The healing is mostly just keeping the mirroring theme, but the idea is just like sometimes he has a crazed surge of resolve because nobody came to his birthday or whatnot. Also sorta a vague reference to IDW Cal, who had a bit more of a bio tech thing going on but that I can't imagine ever getting his own design (since the IDW stuff never really went anywhere).

 

[Soundwarp SG-1]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Alrighty, I did some research on re-rolling and it seems that a re-roll is (very roughly) equivalent to like a +4 on a D-20 roll. Which Destiny can almost give to your whole team (of Mutant Outcasts) for 55 points while also having stats (she's basically immortal compared to Fish with that 6 life).

So like it's nice, but not anything game breaking IMO. Especially since unlike an actual plus 4 it can never actually guarantee a power's success.

Personally I think Cal having a baked in way to use Fish's other power puts him decently on the 'optimal' side of pairings.

I'm going to go a ahead and call a vote for initial testing

I'm going to run separate initials for both of them and then I figure we can figure out public testing from there.

COMPETITIVE REVIEW BOARD CHECKLIST

Spoiler Alert!

Efficiency- Check to see if your design is providing armies with turns/moves/etc. to a degree that would make it difficult or impossible for an opponent to keep up with your output.

1. Does your design allow itself or figures to move/attack/take a turn/etc. instead of/in addition to your normal turn for revealing an Order Marker? Is it granting these benefits to too broad a range of units? Does it combine with other powers to create overly long or powerful chains of actions?
Cal can bond with a fairly meaty range of dudes but you don't have a lot of control over what they'll be doing.

2. Does your design allow you to take actions during an opponent's turn? Can it combine with other powers to create tediously long reactions to enemy actions or a restrictive environment?
Not really

3. Does your design allow you to rearrange your Order Markers or otherwise bypass the costs of Order Marker requirements on the special powers of other figures?
Yes, but not in a particularly strong way

4. Is your design doing anything outside of a player's turn, at the start or end of the round? Is the effect too powerful by itself or when combined with other powers?
Not really

5. Does your design have any powers that trigger anytime it moves as opposed to only when it moves normally on its turn? Will it be too efficient when combined with figures that grant extra moves to figures?
No

6. Is your design adding or subtracting from initiative rolls? Will it pair too easily with other figures that alter initiative or have powers triggering on the results of initiative rolls?
No

Potency- Check to see if your design is wounding/removing/etc. enemy figures, increasing the chances of other figures in your army doing so, or otherwise directly effecting the number of figures available to players to a degree that would make it difficult or impossible for an opponent to recover from.

1. Does your design have a chance to inflict wounds or destroy figures? Is it getting these chances too frequently or having to high a chance of success? Is the power balanced against expensive targets that can cause a massive swing in the game when destroyed?
Cal has an auto-wound option, but it's unreliable and might hit your own dude on occasion. And it's only one wound per turn at the best of times anyway

2. Is your design adding to the stats or 20-sided die rolls of other figures in your army? Is it a boosting a broad enough range of units effectively enough to become a 'mandatory' draft or inhibit future design space? Can it be combined with other boosts too easily?
Fish can, but only for one person in a convoluted way

3. Will your design benefit from stat boosts or other enhancement to an overpowering degree? Will it restrict future growth within its faction or point cost by limiting available boosts to others?
No, feel free to bump Fish up to that super impressive 1 attack that he can't use

4. Does your design take control of enemy figures permanently or temporarily? Is it too difficult to for your opponent to regain control of their figure or recover from the losing the figure? Does the method of taking control expose the enemy figure to the powers of other figures in your army that can easily destroy it?
No

5. Can your design heal itself or others or revive itself or others? Is it doing so in a way that an opponent cannot hope to overcome in certain scenarios?
Cal can unreliably heal a bit

6. Does your design place enemy figures on its card or otherwise have an unconventional method of temporarily removing enemy figures from play? Will it guarantee your victory against a single remaining enemy figure?
No

Chicanery- Check to see if your design is preventing your opponent from taking actions with too much ease or is otherwise causing negative play experience through tactics that make your opponent feel you're 'not playing fair'

1. Does your design restrict the movement of enemy figures, or allow you to move enemy figures? Can it do so in a way that results in an unwinnable scenario for your opponent if they are down to one figure, posses only figures with a range of 1, etc.? Can your design easily combine with other figures to greatly impede enemy figures or otherwise gain an excessive advantage?
No

2. Does your design effect/change the placement of an enemy's Order Markers, or remove their Order Markers entirely? Can it force Order Markers to go onto cards that have no figures on the battlefield? Can your design easily combine with other figures to completely dictate the placement of an enemy's Order Markers or remove all of their Order Markers?
Technically I guess Fish can remove OMs from his Companion after they've been mind controlled or something but like... good luck making that relevant

3. Does your design inhibit your opponent from attacking your figures or make attacking a losing proposition? Are there scenarios or combinations that make your opponent totally unable to harm your figures through attacking?
Nope

4. Does your design directly negate the powers of enemy figures or otherwise ignore them in a way that can completely disrupt the opponent's strategy or leave them feeling like they are stuck playing figures without special powers?
No

5. Does your design become overly powerful in a podded group of figures, or provide significant benefit to your army without leaving your Start Zone?
They can both hang in your start zone and do stuff, but that's thematic and I wouldn't call it overpowered.

6. You can attack your own figures in Heroscape, does your design have any powers that will trigger off of doing so or otherwise wounding/destroying your own figures? Is this intentional on your part? Will the design be too efficient or potent when doing so?
Nothing to gain here unless you want to lose your own OMs for some reason, but Cal does make you likely to have to attack your own figures sometimes

CONSISTENCY CHECKLIST (SHORT FORM)

Spoiler Alert!

Consistency Concerns
Name and Identity
Verify character is named in a way that is clear, accurate and feels consistent with the way other characters are named.
Verified

Uniqueness and Type
Verify that the power text reflects the listed uniqueness and type, that the uniqueness fits the character, and that squad size is listed for squads.
Verified

Left Box
If the character's species, class or personality is reused, verify that the character feels thematically consistent with other figures that have that species, class or personality. If they are not reused, verify that there is no pre-existing species, class or personality that would make more sense.
Verified

Size and Height
Verify that the listed size and height are accurate. Standing the mini up next to a stack of tiles, and a few other minis of various sizes, is encouraged.
Verified

Super Strength and Flying
Verify that these special powers are present if they make sense, and not if they don't.
Verified

New Powers - Names
Verify that any new powers are not using power names identical to, or very similar to, pre-existing powers. Verify that any new powers are actually new and not old powers with new names.
Verified

New Powers - Effects
Verify that the effect and timing of all new powers is clear. Verify that any logical immunities, benefits, or weaknesses (whether those be necessary for thematic or mechanical reasons) are implemented: consider whether defensive powers that work against normal attacks should also work against special attacks, whether or not a power has an elemental component that some figures should resist, and whether or not unliving figures (such as Undead and Androids) should be affected.
Verified

Reused Powers
Verify that the design is reusing powers in place of creating new ones, where reused powers could implement the same theme and mechanics with no differences or only trivial differences. Verify that any reused powers have the correct text.
Verified

Power Level
Verify that the character's movement, attack, range, and defense (in conjunction with any special powers that enhance those stats) feel consistent with the capabilities of characters with analogous powers and abilities. Verify that the character falls into a similar point range to characters with comparative powers and abilities.
Verified

 

[tcglkn]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Yea, sounds like you have a plan figured out here

 

[Tornado]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Yea

 

[IAmBatman]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

yea

 

[MrNobody]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Yea

 

[LordVenoc]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Yea

 

[Lazy Orang]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

I'm honestly sorry to see the Prime/Composite thing dropped - I thought it was weird, fun, funny, and educational all in one go. So that's a shame. Still love Not-Caligula, though.

 

[Soundwarp SG-1]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

I'm honestly sorry to see the Prime/Composite thing dropped - I thought it was weird, fun, funny, and educational all in one go. So that's a shame. Still love Not-Caligula, though.

I’m planning on having the Prime/Composite version as an alt card.

—

Oh something I wanted to ask. Do we have a hard cap on Fish’s price here?

Like if he ends up at 20 points instead of 10 or something is that a deal breaker for people?

 

[MrNobody]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

I definitely think he should just be costed whatever he's worth. Wouldn't be surprised to see him drift up to 20-30.

 

[tcglkn]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

No real preference there. Seems he’s good with other insane figures which is fun.

Having both him and Cal end in 5 points would be a nice way to incentivize playing them together.

 

[Lord Pyre]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

This guy is quite strange. The theme feels fairly non-existent on Cal, but it's super great on Fish, so I can let it slide. I think he'll be too swingy to be competitive, but looks fun.

A fun note, figures like Martian Manhunter can force Fish to move on his own, somehow.

 

[Tornado]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Could probably add no movement into Bystander.

 

[Lord Pyre]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Could probably add no movement into Bystander.

You COULD, but it's not broken by any means and kind of funny.

 

[Tornado]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

Cool.

 

[Soundwarp SG-1]

Re: The Book of Chief Judge Cal (Opening Insanity)

This guy is quite strange. The theme feels fairly non-existent on Cal

So the thematic break down is:

The Day the Law Died- he becomes Chief Justice after having the previous Chief Justice assassinated, then he uses subliminal messaging in the daily crime reports to turn all the Street Judges into his goon squad. Later he recruits a bunch of alien mercs to strengthen his hold (since at this point he’s openly announced he wants everyone in the city to be killed in alphabetical order and stuff like that), the mercs are completely integrated into his regime and he even makes their leader Deputy Chief Judge after Fish is assassinated.

The Living Law- he orders people around and he is absolutely bat-crap insane. There’s no real meaningful connection between the numbers and the results, but that’s basically the point, he’s a nut and there’s no rhyme or reason to anything he’s doing.