by Dustin Seeders
Last weekend my FLGS, Sci-Fi Factory in Lake Worth, Texas hosted its first major ROC event. I was very excited about the 400 ROC Age Limited format because of the variety of teams and strategies I expcted to see. I was not disappointed! 31 players participated in the main event and brought the most interesting collection of teams I have seen at a competitive event. We played 5 rounds of swiss followed by a Top 8 cut. With a little luck, facing Doc Ocks, Shredders and Uni-Cat twice I managed to go 5-0 throughout the qualifying rounds. Now let’s dig into the team.
The Team
TMT 058 Uni-Mind 150
TMT 058t Forged in Blue Flame x2 10
TMT 063 Beta Ray Bill w/ Stormbreaker 125
HQ 056 Lashina 75
SFOSM 029 Overdrive 35
AVAS S100 Pym Particles 2
SOG S101 Bat Signal 2
Total: 299
Sideline: TMT 046 Makkari 140, GOTG 060 Thane 115
I decided to go with the Beta Ray Bill/Lashina combo because defensively, I felt it could hold up to whatever crazy combos I would run into in this format. Bill’s damage power protects my force from range attacks, Outwit and pretty much any shenanigans that involve an opponent targeting my characters.
WEATHER MANIPULATION: Probability Control. Opposing characters can’t target Beta Ray Bill or friendly characters adjacent to him unless they began their turn within 4 squares of their target or are making a close attack. However, this only works if I can keep my opponents at least four squares away.
That brings me to Lashina and her trait:
WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU’RE GOING?: Plasticity, Giant Reach: 3. Opposing characters within 3 squares and line of fire treat Lashina as adjacent when moving.
With careful placement, Lashina keeps most characters in the game at bay. This combined with Bill’s damage power is very frustrating for opponents to deal with. It becomes even more frustrating when Overdrive’s mobility becomes a factor. Sidestep and 11 speed with Charged Up means I can almost always keep my entire team at least 4 squares from any opposing character. All I needed was offense and there were none better in my price range than Uni-Mind. With the protection and mobility the rest of the team provides, Uni could focus on picking offensive powers and using his Perplex to inflict as much damage as possible. With my remaining points I used the Bat Signal to give Uni even bigger reach using hypersonic speed since I could always safely call him back with Lashina or Bill. Pym Particles were added to help against melee swarm teams such as Shredders, Doc Ocs, etc. Giving Lashina giant size helped her see over characters and terrain while using her trait and to sit in the safety of open air squares with Uni and Beta if I won map roll. I won’t go into all 8 matches, but I will go over how each of my top 8 games played out.
Top 8 Vs. Dakkota Foster
ST 050 Lt. Sulu 50
SMWW 060 Mr. Mxyzptlk 70
JW 052 Green Lantern 35
SMWW 028 General Lane 40
EW 034 Green Oracle 50
TMT 013b Red Leader 50
ST 044 Trelane 50
WF 006 Mr. Nobody 55
First round I played against one of my teammates who also happened to be playing my favorite build of the day. I won map roll and decided to put us on the Manhattan Bridge map. This map allowed me to use elevated terrain in starting area to force Lt. Sulu to attack who I wanted. Dakkota scores first, Perplexing up Trelane’s Damage and destroying my Bat Signal that he was able to place using Mr. Nobody. I advance, getting Uni into range to make an attack, and was able to get a hit on Trelane and General Lane with Uni. Green Lantern carries in Mr. Nobody and throws a free light wall marker between Uni and Bill. Green Oracle Phases in carrying Sulu, Trelane and General Lane. Sulu then Outwits Uni’s invincible and hits for 6 using his free blades, straight to stop click. Uni uses hypersonic/steal energy and knocks out General Lane then retreats to elevated terrain in starting area. Bill retreats as well carrying Lashina. From that point the elevated terrain, Energy explosion from Stormbreaker and Uni Outwitting Barrier kept his team from being able to do much and chewed through them in a few more turns.
W 400-5
Top 4 Vs. Zach Coffee
NFAOS 047 Dr. Demonicus 80
AOU 003 Ant-Man 50
M16-001 Doctor Octopus 80
WF 059 Lex Luthor & Joker 75
TMT 013b Red Leader 50
ADW 071 Iron Heart 25
ROC Isaac Pog 30
TMT S005 Enchanted Crowbar 10
Sideline: Shifting Ant-Men
Another round another teammate, this time Zach and his Scientist themed team. He wins map roll and puts us on Ace Street which has elevated terrain everywhere making it tough for Uni-Mind to get off long range shots. We both spent our first few turns positioning. This gave me time to have Lashina equip Pym Particles and gain Giant Size so that I could stop his colossal monsters from getting too close to my team. Zach left Red Leader exposed so I Perplexed up Range to 13 with Uni and took the only shot I had, he rolled a 6 on Super senses and evaded. This unfortunately left my team somewhat exposed and Zach took advantage. In came Starchild carrying Doc Ock who had a 12-Attack thanks to Red Leader, 4 attacks later Uni is sitting on STOP click. I choose Prob with Uni, Perplexed his own Attack and Damage and used Hypersonic/Steal Energy hitting Doc Ock to last click, then Lashina finishes him off. I miss a kill shot on Lex Joker Duo while they are trying to get close enough to hit me and time runs out.
W 80-0
Top 8 Vs. Brandon Shasteen
WXM 042 Fantomex 142
XXS 060 Venus Dee Milo 85
ADW 051 Dr. Strange, Earth’s Guardian 80
TMT 039 Troll 60
DXF 059b Wiz Kid 25
TMT S006 Mirror of Mysolijh 7
Brandon wins map and puts us on Final Battle New York. This map has sections of elevated terrain in the corners providing cover from long range attacks. We both spend our first turns positioning and equipping objects, Fantomex equips Mirror and Lashina grabs Pym Particles. Fantomex generates an EVA and sends it at me. Second turn my team is on top of Bat Signal so Uni chooses Hypersonic and takes a shot targeting Dr. Strange and Venus which misses. Bill brings Uni back with Signal and Lashina equips Pym Particles. Brandon retreats to elevated terrain so that Uni can’t reach with Hypersonic. Uni chooses Running Shot and Perplexes range up to 13 so he can reach Strange and Venus, I roll the 9 I needed and hit Venus for 4. I advance my team closer to his perch. Lashina walks, taking pushing damage and Charged Up carries Bill and Uni hoping to lure his team from safety. Brandon takes the bait and surrounds my team with Fantomex, Troll and Strange getting his Eva into position to Outwit Bill’s damage power, while leaving his Venus and Wiz Kid in a corner. I sacrifice Lashina, leaving her behind to deal with Brandon’s main force and push overdrive to carry Bill and Uni into the far corner next to Wiz Kid and Venus. I Perplex down Venus’s Attack with Uni. Brandon knocks out Lashina and misses a shot on Charged Up with Venus. My next turn, Bill Knocks out Wiz Kid and Uni finishes Venus. He chases me around for the rest of the match while Uni takes shots on Troll and Fantomex, but he can’t ever quite catch the car.
W 110-82
I ended up going 8-0 during this event and had a ton of fun. The ROC Age format provides endless possibilities. The judges, led by the legendary Bill Rock, did a great job handling all the scenarios that pop up when you combine old figures and new rulings. The Venue was amazing as usual, tons of side events with prizing supplied the store. Hopefully, this is just the first of many more ROC events to come.
