The Opposition reviewed - Batman & Robin

I thought it was about time I had a look at my opposition this coming Sunday.

I will be welcoming a 200 rep, two man Batman Crew to the Fun Park: -

Batman (Arkham City) - 130 rep
Robin (Tim Drake) - 68 rep

So lets have a look at what they bring to the table. For a start they are both decent characters and have  good basic statistics so it will take a concerted effort to cause any damage, or at least enough damage to take them from the game.

Batman

Weaponry
Batman is armed with a Batarang. It has a Range of 40cm and does 2 Stun damage, (no Blood, this means I can attempt to recover some damage at the end of the turn). It has a Rate of Fire of 2 and comes with 3 ammo.

This means that it can be used 3 times during the game unless Batman can pick up more Ammo from an Objective.

Each time the weapon is fired it can do up to 4 Stun because of the ROF of 2. Also the trait Throwing is applied so the ROF is never reduced by moving. This encourages Batman to move around and he becomes hard to pin down.

The weapon is Remote Control so there is no need for Line of Sight. Batman also comes with Total Vision so does not have the standard Range reduced to 30cm due to Darkness.

Batman can also perform a Sneak Attack that can't be Blocked. This is allowed if the target could not see Batman when activated.

This is a nice steady amount of ranged firepower and could be very effective against my low Endurance Henchmen. - Ouch!

Agility
Batman can put 3 dice into Movement. He can exchange his basic Movement to use the Batclaw which allows movement of 30cm but must also have a height element to the move. Dice can still be used to extend movement both before and after the Batclaw move. This is a really cool piece of movement and far better than any of the Joker crew.

The Batman's Batcape also means that he will take no damage from Falling or Jumping. So he is happy to be in the high places that the Batclaw allows him easy access to.

Defence
Batman has a high Endurance of 8. It is going to take a lot to put him down. Bat Armour and Counter Attack are Batman's two defence options. The Armour gives a 5+ save and Counter Attack allows Batman to strike back at the opponent if he is forced to Block during his turn.

Robin

Weaponry
There is no ranged abilities to consider although Robin does have the use of 2 Short Range (up to 20cm's) grenades that can Blind opponents for a turn and do 1 Stun damage. Mechanical also means that it damages on a 3+ (I think). They have a template effect so will be good against groups. These could be nasty but he will have to be close to use them.

His other weapon is a Bo(a staff) that does 1 Stun damage. It has Reach (3cm's) and is Handy (reroll failed to Hit). Robin can put 3 dice in Attack.

Agility
Robin can put 2 die in Movement and like Batman Robin has the Batclaw but none of the other benefits so if falls or is Pushed off a building he will be in trouble.

Summary
So should I be worried? Well the game should be a challenge as both sides are adopting a very different approach. My Joker Crew have the numbers but are slower and many come with low endurance so are vulnerable to sustained damage dealing. Batman's high level ranged attacks could be hard to handle.

Batman looks like he will also be a hard nut to crack but if I can get him on the ground and out numbered the task may become more manageable.

Robin is impacted by Darkness and will have to get close to do damage. His Endurance of 6 is not a mountain to climb but I will have to be careful not to present a nice target for those Grenades.

Laughing all the way to your grave

Well I couldn't resist them. They are so shiny and nice and well .... joker'ish. I have ordered the Gas Canisters.

My understanding is that they do not cost any Rep or $'s. They can be taken as one of the Joker Crew Objective choices and, like Riddles, you can take 2 for a single choice. I'm sure we can fit it into the story line - the Joker planning to gas the city and these are the canisters that are being taken to the balloon - or something along those lines.

They give 1VP each to the player that controls them and will also increase the number of counters in play. (which is good for me)

But being Joker Crew they have a wicked side, in that all characters with 5cm take 1 Blood Damage unless they pass a Willpower test when the Canister is activated. The actual wording will be important to understand if there is choice when it comes to activating the canister but I believe all will be revealed when the blister pack arrives.

I am imagining a fleeing Clown being chased down by some of Batmans henchmen. When he gets the chance he activates the canister causing damage to everyone close by. Clearly in the upcoming game I am only facing Batman & Robin - no henchmen - but imagination is a great and powerful thing.

Anyway they will look cool on the board and add to the general atmosphere - provided they arrive on time ;-). I foresee mad painting late into Saturday night to get them ready.

Night time board & Urban Furniture Q&A

I have finally managed to get some paint on the board and it makes it 'pop' a bit. Definitely gives it that feeling of darkness. I used a couple of different colour sprays. Black as the undercoat, then some shadow grey, in streaks, followed by more black to take the edge off.

A little more play testing has revealed that it is very easy to 'forget' about the effect of the Lampposts. This was really beginning to bug me. There was a suggestion earlier on in the blog that some disks could be used to denote the light. I have given that a try and it definitely makes a difference.

Urban Furniture Q&A

I have been looking online and seen a number of games recorded on Utube. These have proved very interesting to observe. A couple of things came to mind: -

1. Lampposts & Serwer placement - in the games that I have seen people seem happy to place them anywhere, including up on buildings. I have checked the rules and p80 & 81 say they can be placed 'anywhere in the playing area' within set limits that are defined.

I would welcome thoughts on this - but it does seem odd to have Lampposts and Sewers up high on buildings?

2. Objectives placement - again I have seen them placed anywhere which seems reasonable but I have noticed a line on page 81 in bold - A player cannot deploy objective markers on scenography element. What does this mean? It is followed on page 82 with a picture of a Riddle Objective up high on a piece of scenery.

Unlike the Lampposts and Sewers it does seem reasonable, to me, to have Objectives in / on buildings and at various heights.

Again I would welcome any thoughts?

Another small point concerning Ammo Crates & Titan Containers - victory points are awarded 'to its owner when they control it' Does this mean that you only get VP's for your own Objectives and not those owned by the opposition?

The wording also talks about the act of 'activating' so that the Objective can only be 'manipulated' once the Objective is 'activated'. Does this mean that only the owner can 'activate' the Objective?

Such are the questions of one who is yet to play - but better ask them now and have the answers for Sunday.

Joker Crew, 200 rep

Well we are in the final week of build up. The big game is on Sunday and so I figured that I should make some decisions and then apply some more detail, paint wise, to the chosen crew.

I have been attempting to max out on both the 200 rep and the $1000 dollars. As I began to pull the various rules together and compared this to their weaponry, proposed role for each character and overall Willpower, I had a rethink.

I am beginning to think that this game is going to be about controlling space or at the very least applying threat to space. Sure it will be important to have bodies on the ground but they will be 'easy meat' unless they can be supported, preferably from distance.

The Joker and Sniggering will be excellent at applying this threat. Mr J has Total Vision allowing him  to effectively ignore the dark and even see around corners. This compliments his Explosive Teeth as they are Remote Controlled. Once an opposing model is within 20cm - the One Shot Gun becomes a potential killer. Sniggering offers similar threat in that he has full range over the entire board. His devastating 3-9 Blood damage can also be an outright killer. This will allow him to support other models from distance provided there is light and Line of Sight. The preference will be for him to get a good vantage point and stand still, maybe even sitting on an objective.

The Clowns (tube & knife) are still worthwhile and will be able work with Mr J and / or fan out up the board. If they stay with Mr J they will benefit from Inspire and they have Demential Laughter to Distract. This is a nice combination. There is also the potential opportunity to Outnumber. Lets face it they are cheap and are present in the Crew to provide numbers.

August is also a strong choice. His 2 Blood damage from the Axe is strong. And his Run ability saves a Movement Counter so that it can be for Movement purposes. He is good value for his cost of 25 rep and can operate with a clear purpose in the game.

I have reviewed Contra-August and I have figured that his Obsessive trait could be a big problem. Basically once he gets into hand to hand combat he has to stay with his target. I could want him to be doing something else - like holding an Objective. This is a big potential downside. Also his Baseball Bat is only a 1 Stun weapon. In play testing he has not done much in a fight.

So I have thought it through and I think that Triston will be a better choice. His weapon is ranged and does 2 Blood. He can move and fire so is agile. He can offer real support / threat and can move around to take Objectives if needed. He costs $300 so I will lose the Drugs and Clown Paint that I had been planning on. I will also have to drop the Prisoner Tube who was costing 10 rep.

I am not spending every single rep point or even every single dollar but I think that the result is more stable and predictable.

The final list therefore is as follows: -

90 Joker
26 Triston ($300)
25 August
25 Sniggering ($600)
15 Clown (knife)
14 Clown (tube)

Total 195 rep, $900

Excitement levels increasing be the day - bring on that 'Batman'!

Joker Crew - 200 Rep & $1,000

Well the first game is only a week away. In the week I discovered that a 200 rep game has $1,000 of spend associated with it. This changes the possibilities for inclusion in the crew. I have been doing a tad more research and putting combinations together. The result is that I really am liking Sniggering.

I found this guy online and I thought he was impressive

(If anyone fancies a look at the rest of the beautifully painted crew then go for it)

He comes with a dollar cost of $600 so he wasn't available when I thought I could only spend $500. What an asset he is! His weapon has a Rate of Fire of 3, so that is 3 amounts of damage each turn. Each shot does 3 Blood of damage, that is potentially 9 in total. This is simply unbelievable and is far more than anyone else. He is a massive threat and I just have to include him.

The play testing is also teaching me that Objectives are probably the best way to accumulate Victory Points. There will be 6 - 8 Objectives as a base line, maybe more in certain Scenarios. To hold an Objective a character must be in base contact with it. So I will need lots of bodies in the crew who can fan out and hold the Objectives. 6-7 bodies would be great so that I can keep some of them together. Safety in numbers and all that good stuff.

With this in mind I have come up with the following 7 man, 200 rep, Joker Crew.

Leader
90 - Joker - you gotta love the One Shot Gun and Explosive Teeth.

Henchmen
25 - August - who can run and has a Handy, Heavy, 2 Blood Axe (add $150 for Clown paint to give him Distract)
25 - Sniggering - ($600) - with his awesome gun
21 - Contra-Auguste - who has a Handy, Heavy 1 Stun Baseball Bat
15 - Clown (knife) - who comes with Clown Paint (add $250 for Neurotoxic Drugs giving him Fast & Dodge)
14 - Clown (tube) - who comes with Clown Paint
10 - Prisioner (tube)

If I can pick up some Titan Dose during the progress of the game so much the better.

I reckon this Crew is both Hostile & Agile. Hostile because it has plenty of ranged firepower and also some good weaponry when up close and personal. Added Strength when combined with Clown Paint to Distract and also Outnumber the opponent. All great options and the benefits stack. Agile because there are characters that can Run and also the Neurotoxic Drugs give Fast. There is also the potential to use the Sewers to get around the board.

Yes - I think this has some nice flexibility. I will need to get the Prisoner model though.

Funfair progress - first paint

I have had a real good go at trying to get some paint on things. I am conscious of time and I want to make sure that there will be some funfair themed atmosphere and lets face it, that needs some bright colour.

I have made the Hot Air Balloon the centre piece and gone for the image of the Mr J's head. Well it stands out at least ;-) Other than that I have thrown on the colour and even cut out some paper advertising posters and stuck them on to large open areas using PVA.

It really is coming along.

I need more urban furniture to scatter on the ground and maybe a ticket kiosk or fast food outlet or a few seats to support the boxes and containers that I have coming.

The carousel remains unfinished. I have yet to find the right size horses for it. Maybe this weekend I will have success.

The board will also need some paint to reflect the night-time conditions. I have run out of spray so again another shopping trip required.

All in all I am happy with progress. It won't be long now until it is used in anger. Bring on the Batman! Mr J is ready and waiting.

Balloon Assembly

Well the big moment has arrived and it is time to pop the balloon and see if the paper mache structure has survived and hardened properly overnight. I left it in front of the fire so that it maxed out on heat. I didn't go for the Linseed option because I wasn't sure how the paint might interact so .... without further a do ..... I give you -

The Balloon Port will sit between the Funhouse and the Ferris Wheel with each providing access. There is a platform from the Fun House roof and we will have a special rule for the Ferris Wheel, maybe expending 1 MA and 1 SA to interact with the Ferris Wheel (or something like that). It is also less than 30cm high for Batclaw access.

I needed a basket for the balloon and this was assembled using foam board, cocktail stick dowels, PVA and 4 BBQ skewers. I added a layer sellotape later to give strength.

Then I needed something to link the balloon to the basket.

The loading would be vertical and downwards through the wooden skewers. I cut out a larger piece of foam board and took a nick out of each corner. These would house the top end of the skewers which would also be pushed outwards into a small curve which should look good. I then glued four squares over the top of these holes. I tried adding tape but without great success.

Now I needed to connect the ballon. It also had to be removable for easy storage later. I went with the idea of an upturned Coke plastic bottle which has a curved bottom and would sit well inside the top of the balloon. I cut off the mouth piece and then cut out two large vertical slots in the shape of the foam board top platform.

This worked a treat and the Coke bottle sat on top of the foam board in a stable way.

I was delighted. All that needed to happen now was to add the balloon itself.

And there we have it - one balloon. It dominates the playing table and I am thinking of painting it up like a Joker's head.

Then it will be ready for the Joker to invade Arkham, dropping poison gas or whatever his wicked plan might be. Can Batman & Robin stop him, that is the question?

Thanks for all the ideas guys.