ADVANCE LOOK: WizKids Marvel HeroClix Mighty Thor Booster Brick, Avengers Prime Starter, & Dice & Token Pack

–Review and photos by Scott Rubin

The celebration of the 15^th anniversary of HeroClix isn’t over, and we’re already back with a look at a new brick unboxing!  In the last couple months we’ve checked out the Marvel What If? and DC Elseworlds expansions, and now the pendulum swings back to the former with the new Marvel HeroClix The Mighty Thor set!

Hitting store shelves near you at the end of this month (August 30^th), this expansion brings you lots of different versions of the god of thunder himself plus Asgardians, traditional Thor enemies, Avengers, Eternals, Serpent Society, the Masters of Evil, and more.  In addition, the Mighty Thor is a super booster set meaning each brick will contain 8 regular boosters (5 figures in each) and one super booster with a colossal figure!  Keep reading for an in-depth look into one such brick of the Mighty Thor along with the Avengers Prime Starter Set and The Mighty Thor Dice & Token Pack.

First off, let’s take a gander at the boosters themselves.  The standard sized booster has a great piece of comic book art on the front panel featuring Thor (Jane Foster) and Odinson as they currently appear, the former wielding Earth-616 Mjolnir and the latter reaching for the recently discovered Ultimate Universe Mjolnir.  Side panels offer glimpses of figures in the set with 3D renders of Avengers (Thor, Hulk, Iron Man, Captain Marvel), Legendary Wielders with Weapon Objects (Hogun, Executioner, Enchantress, Thunderball), Mighty Asgardians (Hela, Loki, Thor, Odin in Destroyer Armor), and Eternals (Makkari, Ikaris, Uni-Mind, Sersi).  Finally the back panel of the booster shows off some of the colossal figures you can find in the super boosters.  Speaking of, the super booster itself has even more awesome artwork this time with a two panel wraparound featuring tons of Asgardians, Loki, Sif, the Warriors Three, Surtur, and more.  Meanwhile the other panels repeat the content seen on the regular boosters.

Okay, on to what you came here to see.  Here’s the video of my unboxing, 8 boosters and the super booster.  Make sure to come back and keep scrolling down for a full breakdown of the figures pulled, photography, and lots more information.

Here’s the breakdown of the figures in this brick (your results will vary of course):

COMMONS (including duplicates)

• 001 Thor
• 002 Loki
• 003 Hercules
• 004 Sif
• 005 Hulk
• 006 Captain America
• 007 Spider-Man
• 008 Warrior of Asgard
• 009 Valkyrie
• 010 Rock Troll
• 011 Stone Men of Saturn
• 012 Hatut Zeraze
• 013a The Leader
• 014 King Cobra
• 016 Piledriver

UNCOMMONS

• 018 Thor
• 020 Hulk
• 021 Red Hulk
• 022 Jane Foster
• 023 Eric Masterson
• 025 Valkyrie
• 027 Korg
• 029a Executioner + s001 Bloodaxe
• 028 White Wolf
• 031 Hogun + s002 Knobbed Mace
• 032 Bulldozer

RARES

• 036 Captain Marvel
• 039 Troll
• 042 Tyrannus
• 045 Ikaris
• 046 Makkari
• 048 Wrecker + s005 Enchanted Crowbar

SUPER RARES

• 050 Loki, Agent of Asgard
• 059 Fandral + s007 Dueling Sword

CHASE

• 068 Valkyrie + s016 Dragonfang

COLOSSAL

• G001 Surtur + s017 Hammer

Let me get this out of way first: I pulled a chase!  Deep within this brick was Valkyrie of the Defenders, and she came toting her signature Dragonfang sword.  Alright, that excitement aside let’s check out the whole list.  From the commons we got at least one of all sixteen figures (not including the Prime); among them we found the headliner Thor and some of friends (Hulk, Captain America, Sif, Hercules), cool generics (Warrior of Asgard, Valkyrie, Rock Troll, Stone Men of Saturn, Hatut Zeraze), and some villains including our first Wrecking Crew member (Piledriver, King Cobra, the Leader, Loki).

At the uncommon level we find another Thor (this one the Eric Masterson version), several Hulks and Hulk-related figures (Jennifer Walters Hulk, Red Hulk, Korg), two of Thor’s alter egos in civilian versions (Jane Foster, Eric Masterson), the first of the Warriors Three (Hogun), more Asgardians (Valkyrie, Executioner), and another Wrecking Crew villain (Bulldozer).  Rares seem to be the sweet spot in this brick for Eternals (Ikaris and Makkari) while also including the awesome new Captain Marvel with mohawk, supervillain Tyrannus, Troll of the Thunderbolts, and Wrecker of the Wrecking Crew.  In the super rares we got Fandral of the Warriors Three (interesting since in the past it’s been Volstagg who’s the rarest) and a very interesting figure with a lot of abilities in Loki, Agent of Asgard!  Lastly, our super booster contained that most central of Asgardian foes, the mighty Surtur.  That colossal demon came with the generic Hammer object; in addition Executioner has Bloodaxe, Hogun the Knobbed Mace, Wrecker his Enchanted Crowbar, Fandral a Dueling Sword, and chase Valkyrie the aforementioned Dragonfang.

Maybe it’s a reaction to the last couple sets having a significant amount of sculpt reuse (totally warranted and effective), but I’m really pleased with how the figures look in The Mighty Thor.  I’m loving the sculpts and the range of figures from civilians to epic heroes and monsters battling in classic poses.  Speaking of, check out examples like common Thor confidently holding up Mjolnir and Loki defiantly shaking his fist, Hercules ready to mix it up, Sif leading the charge with her sword, Bulldozer’s unique battlefield dance, and Troll unleashing her fury.  As always WizKids is doing some great work with textures on these miniature figures, and you can see that on things like Loki and Captain America’s scaled armor, the furs and hair draping the Rock Troll, the stony skin of the Stone Men of Saturn/Korg, and Tyrannus’ fancy duds.

My favorite sculpts out of this brick include the new crouching pose of Hulk/Red Hulk, Spider-Man with his intricate armored costume, the armored Warrior of Asgard, uncommon Thor stalking his enemies with a billowing cape, a unique “hulked out” and angry Jennifer Walters Hulk as we rarely see her, Jane Foster working to save lives, both Hogun and Fandral in their respective fighting poses, and chase Valkyrie screaming a battle cry as she swings her sword (and ponytails).  Quite possibly the best of the sculpts here are Captain Marvel in her super dynamic flying/blasting pose and Loki, Agent of Asgard with his textured clothing, devious facial expression, magical effects, and more.  Oh, and we can’t forget Surtur who looks fantastic (as he marches on Asgard) complete with bulging veins, clawed feet, “fire shorts,” a great flaming head with snarling expression, and of course the gigantic Sword of Doom Twilight.

You’ll also see from my photos that there’s so much color in this set thanks to flashy Asgardians, classic dastardly villains, weird aliens, and everything in between.  Right off the bat the set gets me with the retro common Thor in black and blue with bright yellow, silver, and red with those iconic discs on his chest.  There are brightly colored folk like Loki and of course the Wakandan Hatut Zeraze and White Wolf contrasting with darker-dressed warriors like Hogun and chase Valkyrie.  Some of the paint jobs that stuck out as particularly cool or well done to me in this brick included the aforementioned common god of thunder as well as the uncommon Thor (both really embody that classic style and it wouldn’t work without the bold colors), uncommon Valkyrie with her silver and blue on black stylish outfit, the outlandish but oddly satisfying color choices of Executioner and the way his blue and brown armor work with the pink chest logo, the eye-stabbingly bright yellow and silver Bulldozer, and Loki, Agent of Asgard is divine with lots of different colors and shades plus a nice facial expression.  From this brick there isn’t a ton of translucent parts use, but we do see it on things like Captain Marvel and Ikaris’ energy blasts and flight effects.  Meanwhile, with a bunch of Asgardian warriors this expansion is full of metallic paints on axes, swords, armor and more, notably cool on Captain America’s blue scale shirt, Spider-Man’s silver and black costume, the Rock Troll’s gear, and the golden Dragonfang wielded by chase Valkyrie.

Did you think I’d leave you hanging without any dial reveals?  Of course not!  I’ll hit a few thus far unseen favorites from what we pulled, starting with the common 004 Sif!  A favorite character of mine from the comics with some epic storylines, this Asgardian warrior never backs down from a fight and has saved Thor, the Warriors Three, and Beta Ray Bill on more than one occasion.  Sif has appeared in HeroClix a few times before with both comic book and movie versions, and this one is a nice lean attacker at 45 points.

She’s a melee machine with starting Flurry, Blades/Claws/Fangs (with a 2 printed damage keeping down her price tag), and a special power protecting her with both Combat Reflexes and Toughness.  Later in the dial she gets some Sidestep and regular Toughness, and there’s a perfect Asgardian power boost on her last click as she fights even harder with the end looming near.  The dial is capped off with a great classic comic book Sif complete with sword and winged headdress, and she has the Asgardian, Deity, and Warrior keywords.

Next up is a favorite character returning with a “new” name, Jennifer Walters as 020 Hulk!  Bursting out of the recent Hulk series this version of the character we usually know as She-Hulk is a green-skinned bruiser ripping out of her white shirt and blue pants with her exaggerated musculature.  Hulk lurches forward with fists at the ready, her pale green skin broken up by darker hued patches.  Jennifer is a team-friendly 110 points with Indomitable and the “Powered by Rage” trait that’s shared with some other Hulks in the set.  It gives her Rage tokens when she’s damaged by an attack that she can convert into boosts to her combat values (except range) on the subsequent turn.

Her dial has a classic Hulk format that rises in power as she takes damage, so don’t be afraid to get her into the fight.  She starts with Sidestep, Quake, Toughness, and Perplex for two clicks before switching to Leap/Climb, Invulnerability, and Battle Fury.  Late-dial Hulk really gets crazy with skyrocketing combat values plus Charge, Impervious, and a special power that combines Super Strength and Force Blast with an added benefit that deals both figures penetrating damage when a knocked back opponent hits another enemy!  Hulk plays best with figures who share her Avengers, Brute, or Monster keywords.

Among the rares in The Mighty Thor is an interesting character choice that took many by surprise but who is a perfect fit in this set, 039 Troll.  Half-Asgardian and half-Magzi troll, “Troll” is the nickname of Gunna Sijurvald.  A victim of fate, Gunna was imprisoned with her father’s people in Asgard during the Siege; she escaped with the others but was subsequently captured and sent to the Raft.  There she met and impressed the Thunderbolts who added her to their roster.  Troll has a very unique appearance that’s captured perfectly in HeroClix form: a girl wearing troll skin hide (including a headpiece with its mouth around her face) and wielding a mighty axe!

Gunna is 60 points with standard combat symbols and a trait that lets her give an adjacent ally Improved Targeting ignoring Hindering Terrain for a free action.  She’s a straight up killer with lots of ways to deal damage, starting with Blades/Claws/Fangs and Exploit Weakness, protection via Toughness, and a special power giving her Leap/Climb and Charge that ignores just about everything for movement.  Moving down the dial Troll switches to regular Charge and Combat Reflexes, with her end-dial featuring Leap/Climb to get away, and Steal Energy (“Cannibal”) and Regeneration to get back in the fight!  As you’d expect Gunna has the keywords Asgardian, Thunderbolts, Brute, and Monster.

I can’t pull a chase and not share what it can do, right?  068 Valkyrie is the modern incarnation of Brunnhilde who’s been running with Thor and the Defenders (in one version or another) since 1970.  While the classic Samantha Parrington Valkyrie is uncommon 026 in this set sharing a sculpt with the common generic version, the chase has a unique sculpt representing the character as she appeared more recently around the Fearless Defenders run.  Valkyrie has one of the most aggressive poses I’ve seen in a while, putting all of her energy into a mighty sword swing while giving a mighty battle cry.  She wears a streamlined armored outfit with leather straps and metal plates in key locations, and her ponytails whip around her.  At more than double the cost of any other Valkyrie in this brick, this Brunnhilde is 95 points with the Mystics team ability and a trait letting her start the game with the Dragonfang item equipped (see below).

So what is Valkyrie doing on your team for nearly a third of your points?  She’s a dedicated secondary attacker who can get your other figures into position via her starting special power “Rider of the Heavens” that gives her Flight and Sidestep with the limitation that she can only carry figures who share a keyword with her (Asgardian, Defenders, Deity, Warrior).  Valkyrie also starts with a couple clicks of Impervious as well as Exploit Weakness before switching mid-dial to Flurry, Toughness, and Empower, and finally end-dial Charge, Combat Reflexes, and the return of Exploit Weakness.  She can also be played at only 30 points for those last two clicks of melee potential.

s016 Dragonfang, a sword carved from a dragon’s tooth by legend, is one of the new equippable objects in The Mighty Thor that feature the new rules for such things.  This particular one is a 10 point indestructible light object that anyone can equip, and when unequipped it drops in the figure’s square.  When wielded Dragonfang imparts the power Blades/Claws/Fangs upon its user, AND once per turn you can reroll the result!  That’s a huge boon for any medium or low-damage melee fighter, and a welcome source of extra damage for chase Valkyrie who can equipped it for free.

Along with the Mighty Thor booster set are a couple more related products coming to your local store.  Most notably for a lot of players is the Avengers Prime Starter Set.  Packed with six figures and an equippable object, this Starter literally has everything you need to play HeroClix with dice, objects and tokens, a double-sided map, and the BRAND NEW versions of the Rulebook and Powers and Abilities Card!  The Mighty Thor ushers HeroClix into a whole new era with these rules updates, and this is the first place players can get them in physical form (you can also download them for free on HeroClix.com).

The Starter features Thor, Loki, Hercules, Captain America, Iron Man, and Hulk, each with a sculpt shared from the main set (Iron Man as yet unconfirmed) and a new dial.  They’re all perfectly costed for easy team building at 50, 100, or both options.  Even better, the sculpts represent classic Thor, Loki, and Hercules, and Captain America and Iron Man with Asgardian equipment!

Also in the Starter is the Asgardian Shield equippable light object granting its wielder Energy Shield/Deflection.  The two-sided map features the battlegrounds of the bridge Gjallerbru to Hel where Skurge “stood alone” (an indoor bridge cutting through a central lower elevation water terrain section and connecting two open areas with some blocking and hindering terrain respectively) and a new Grand Arena (a central fighting pit with blocking terrain columns surrounded on three sides by an elevated viewing platform with hindering terrain seating)!If you’re a hardcore fan of the god of thunder then you’ll also need to get your hands on the Mighty Thor Dice & Token Pack.  This slim set has six blue and red poker chip-style action tokens featuring iconic comic book artwork of characters from the booster set: classic Thor, Eric Masterson Thor, Beta Ray Bill, Thor (Jane Foster), Groot with Mjolnir, and Odinson.  Also included are two dice in the same blue and red color scheme with a super cool Mjolnir symbol on the six side.

That should give you a pretty good idea of what you might find in a brick of Marvel HeroClix The Mighty Thor, though as we’ve seen in previews and figures revealed at recent conventions there are lots more cool characters in the set.  The expansion, including epic colossal figures like Surtur, will be on sale in stores near you next week on August 30^th, and as always check with your local venue to make sure they’ll be participating with the set’s related Organized Play kit.  That’s also when you can pick up the Avengers Prime Starter set with the new rules and the Dice & Token pack.  Don’t know where to get (or play) HeroClix near you?  Then go to HeroClix.com and use the info network to find out!  As always, have fun with all of these new figures and good luck with your pulls!

Scroll below to check out a photo gallery of all the figures from this brick.

Visit the brand new and improved HeroClix.com for even more info as well as downloads of rules and maps, and stay tuned to Figures.com as we continue our reviews of new HeroClix!

Review and photos by Scott Rubin

Review samples courtesy of WizKids Games

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