ADVANCE REVIEW: WizKids DC HeroClix "No Man’s Land" Month 2 Prize Kit

[JeffSaylor]

Batgirl, Batarangs, and Wayne Manor in January...

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This year saw the conclusion of WizKids’ most intense HeroClix tournament series ever, the Infinity Gauntlet. Now the pendulum has swung to the DC Universe and players are eagerly digging into the new series that just began last month: Batman’s No Man’s Land! The series celebrates the classic 1999 storyline in which Gotham City is excised from the country after a devastating earthquake, forcing its inhabitants to fend for themselves while various gangs carve the city into their territories. During the first month participating players received the Utility Belt resource dial, and each month’s new tournament will be equipping them with additional items that they can attach to it. Of course there are also exclusive prize figures each month, featuring new versions of iconic Batman allies and villains. January will bring players Month 2 of No Man’s Land, and today we’re excited to reveal Batgirl and the Batarangs!

Several women have worn the mantle of Batgirl including Barbara Gordon, Stephanie Brown, and more. During the year of No Man’s Land Helena Bertinelli, usually known as the Huntress, found herself in Gotham City attempting to restore order and peace. Seeking to inspire the citizenry as well as strike fear in the hearts of criminals she hung up her purple-hued persona and adopted that of Batgirl. With her new identity she created a new, darker Batgirl costume. Striking from the rooftops and starting the Bat “tag,” Helena paved the way for Bruce Wayne’s return to Gotham. The situation would be short lived, though, as this Batgirl refused to follow Batman’s orders and soon returned to her more independent Huntress identity. This would lead directly to the creation of the next Batgirl, Cassandra Cain.

The Helena Bertinelli Batgirl figure captures the heroine in an iconic pose, crouched atop a Gotham City rooftop as she scans her territory for trouble. Kneeling down, she balances on her right fist while holding out her left arm to sweep back her cape. Batgirl wears the new, nearly all black costume from No Man’s Land, its darkness broken up only by the gold utility belt and bat symbol on the chest. The costume’s cowl leaves the lower part of Helena’s face uncovered, and reveals her eyes. Batgirl’s sculpt is very good, from her crouched pose to the utility belt pouches and the flowing lines of her cape. Her rooftop base also looks very good, with multiple textures including brick on the outside edges and broken rubble behind her.

A capable fighter, Batgirl brings a lot to the table for only 67 points. Like most members of the “Batman Family” she has the Batman Ally Team Ability so make use of hindering terrain to keep her in Stealth. Batgirl should be able to get where she needs to be pretty easily with her Improved Movement “Nimble” (misprinted on her card as a movement SP) that lets her ignore elevated and hindering terrain when she moves. Without Batman, No Man’s Land finds Helena as “Gotham City’s Protector,” and the Special Power by that name on her first three clicks gives her Charge, Flurry, and Plasticity. After three clicks of “Protector” she becomes even more mobile with Leap/Climb. Batgirl’s first click sets the stage for strong numbers throughout the dial, only dipping in damage off the top click’s base 3 when she picks up Close Combat Expert and then end dial Exploit Weakness.

In the Attack slot Helena sports the Special Power “The Bat is a Symbol” on clicks 2, 3, 5, and 6 which lets her use Force Blast or Incapacitate once per turn as a free action that does no damage; it’s perfect to tie up foes or push back melee threats while she remains in Stealth. Defensively Batgirl starts out with Combat Reflexes giving her a whopping 19 in close combat, and after two clicks she switches to a run of Willpower before picking up Toughness on her last click. For ranged attacks, Batgirl can throw a single batarang at a time at a target up to 4 squares away. And befitting this appearance when she was mostly a loner, Batgirl has only three very appropriate keywords: Batman Family, Gotham City, and Martial Artist.

In the No Man’s Land tournament series, each month’s participation prize features an item you can attach to the Utility Belt resource dial. Month 2 brings the iconic thrown weapon used by Batman and his allies, the Batarangs! Represented physically by a small Utility Belt pouch brimming with the unique projectiles, the Batarangs item can be used by itself as a Relic or attached to the belt. On its own the Relic can be picked up on a roll of 4-6 and grants a character the use of Incapacitate, the Sharpshooter ability, and one additional target!

Mounted on the Utility Belt as a Resource it grants the wearer a special power; give the character a ranged combat action to use Incapacitate that targets EVERY opposing character within 6 squares and line of fire, AND Improved Targeting ignoring characters for that attack so you can target and hit even more enemies. And if that wasn’t cool enough, you can give the Batarang thrower a second token to apply two tokens to all hit characters as well. Now that’s an incapacitating attack!

Along with the Batarangs (participation prizes) and Batgirl figures (for 1st place, 2nd place, fellowship winner, and the judge), the No Man’s Land Month 2 kit includes a new map to be used this month: Wayne Manor Grounds! The standard version of the map depicts the courtyard of the mansion, complete with driveway, central fountain, and indoor patio areas with multiple entrances. The mostly open outdoor area features foliage and cars for hindering terrain, statues for blocking, and the fountain for water. Starting areas are on the short edges of the map, overlapping both the grounded outdoor area and the indoor patios. As an added bonus, look closely to see elevation-changing squares at the map edge in the patios; these match up with the second floor balconies on the Wayne Manor map!

But beware; this is No Man’s Land, and at the end of each player’s turn on the Manor Grounds there is a chance of earthquake! On a 2d6 roll of 3 or less, the map is flipped to reveal the post-quake destruction of Wayne Manor Grounds: Post-Cataclysm. On this version a giant fissure has opened up across the map, swallowing up various terrain features and revealing some wreckage of the subterranean Batcave! Especially when flipping back and forth between the versions, the destruction depicted here is quite striking and the art looks great. The hole is Level 1, and the grounds have become elevated at Level 2. Inside, smashed Batmobiles and the giant coin provide hindering terrain, while most of what remains on the surface matches the flip side of the map. However, the destruction of the mansion means that the patio areas are now outdoors.

January’s No Man’s Land Month 2 event has a WizKids-suggested format of a 300 point Sealed tournament in which each player gets six single figure boosters from the upcoming Batman: Streets of Gotham expansion set (due out December 19th). Check with your local venue to find out when it’s holding the tournament, or check out the “Find a Store” feature on HeroClix.com to locate a game near you. Keep in mind that you need to participate in a few No Man’s Land events to be eligible to compete in the Month 6 finale. Finally, in each tournament you pick a gang affiliation for even more glory and special prizes. Good luck in Month 2!

Come back to Figures.com all week as we take a look at more upcoming HeroClix from Batman: Streets of Gotham!

Review and Photos by Scott Rubin

Review Sample Courtesy of WizKids Games

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