HeroClix

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HeroClix is a strategy game with collectible miniatures that is produced by WizKids and published in German-speaking countries by Pegasus Spiele .

The game figures can be bought as a starter (contains everything you need to start playing) and as a booster (contains four randomly assembled figures that were not known at the time of purchase). Most of the characters are only available in boosters .

history

Drawing of a HeroClix figure (US patent)

In 2001, WizKids launched the first game of its kind, Mage Knight . The principle of a strategy game, in which the characters could be collected, met with great approval and was a complete success.

For this reason, the following year the company developed HeroClix, an analog game with the difference that the characters used were not fantasy characters, but well-known comic characters from the Marvel universe. The target audience was thus expanded to include comic fans, which contributed to the great success that HeroClix experienced there. In 2002 and 2003 it received several major American game awards.

After the success of the first edition, several extensions were released. While initially only Marvel characters were used, superheroes and villains from DC Comics and various smaller publishers such as Top Cow Productions , CrossGen and Dark Horse Comics were added.

Over time, various additions and innovations were added to the game. For example, tournaments organized by game stores are supported with special characters (so-called limited editions), the expansions are now more theme-based, features and battlefield cards have been included in the game concept, and the new Buy it by the Brick program is a novel sales concept. Real game retailers are preferred to Internet retailers, as only the former are allowed to sell the bricks (pack of twelve boosters). By purchasing a brick, the customer has the opportunity to purchase various special figures that are otherwise not available.

In addition, four Collector's Sets were brought onto the market, small editions of five to seven figures that are to be given priority to brick buyers. The idea has been abandoned and in the future Action Packs will be released instead , which are equally available to everyone. In addition to some figures, an Action Pack sometimes also contains a game plan or other extras that were not included in Collector's Sets.

Several people have been responsible for game development so far:

  • Jeff Quick - 2002
  • Mike Mulvihill - 2002
  • Jon Leitheusser - 2002-2003
  • Jeff Grubb - 2003
  • Jon Leitheusser - 2003-2005
  • Seth Johnson - 2005-2008
  • Kelly Bonilla - 2008

On November 10, 2008, Topps announced the closure of WizKids and the end of all product lines. A fan movement that promoted the continuation of the game at the internet address www.saveheroclix.com led to success: the rights were to be acquired by Pinata Games. The purchase failed, however, and so the licenses including the company name Wizkids were only bought in October 2009 by the US company National Entertainment Collectibles Association Inc. (NECA). The first expansion from NECA / Wizkids came onto the market on November 18, 2009, almost exactly one year after the supposed end of Heroclix under the name Hammer Of Thor .

The game

The game is usually played in pairs, but three or four players can also play. A pre-produced card or a self-drawn card is used as the playing field, over which a grid with small squares the size of a figure has been placed. The playing field can contain open, watery (e.g. pool), obstacle-rich (e.g. tree) and completely blocking (e.g. wall) terrain, both inside (e.g. in the house) and outside. In addition, there is also elevated terrain (house roofs, etc.).

The different types of terrain influence the movement and combat behavior of the game characters.

Each player puts together a team of heroes and villains beforehand. Each figure has seven properties:

  • Speed: how many spaces can a figure move?
  • Attack value
  • Defense value
  • Worth damaging
  • Range and number of targets in ranged combat
  • Team membership
  • Score: summarizes the strength of a character in a number

The first four values ​​are printed on the Combat Dial , a rotating disc attached to the base of the figure, and are changed by turning (or clicking) during the game. In addition to these values, which are represented by numbers, the figures can also have various additional powers (currently 48 in number); Superman, for example, has super strength. There are also figures that fly and those that can swim.

Before the game, the players agree on how many points their figures may have added together (a multiple of one hundred, e.g. 300 points) and accordingly put together a team that may not exceed this maximum number of points.

Now it is up to the players to attack the opponent's team with their own characters using close or long-range combat. The attack proceeds as follows: The attacking player rolls two six-eyed dice . The result is added to the attack value. If this value is at least the defense value of the attacked figure, it receives as much damage as the attacker's damage value.

The damage can now be increased or decreased by various of the additional powers mentioned. When the final value is determined, the attacked figure's Combat Dial is rotated by as many clicks as the damage is. The newly displayed, normally weaker values ​​now apply to the figure. If a figure has been inflicted enough damage, the Combat Dial shows the value KO and the figure must be removed from the game. The game continues until all of a player's pieces are knocked out.

Due to the different types of terrain, additional forces, the team membership and the feature and battlefield cards, highly complex game situations can arise that, in addition to a good strategy, also require a bit of luck with the dice in order to emerge victorious.

Booster pack editions

Marvel DC Indy Publishing year developer
Infinity Challenge  * May 2002 Jeff Quick
Hypertime  * September 2002 Jeff Quick, Mike Mulvihill, Jon Leitheusser
Clobberin 'Time  * November 2002 Jon Leitheusser
Xplosion  * March 2003 Jon Leitheusser
Cosmic Justice  * June 2003 Jon Leitheusser
Indy HeroClix  * October 2003 Jon Leitheusser
Critical Mass  * December 2003 Jon Leitheusser
Unleashed  * March 2004 Jeff Grubb & Jon Leitheusser
Universe  * May 2004 Jon Leitheusser
Ultimates  * June 2004 Jon Leitheusser
Mutant Mayhem  * November 2004 Jon Leitheusser
Legacy  * March 2005 Jon Leitheusser
Fantastic Forces  * July 2005 Jon Leitheusser
Icons  * September 2005 Jon Leitheusser (Feats and Battlefield Conditions: Seth Johnson)
Armor Wars * November 2005 Seth Johnson
Collateral Damage * February 2006 Seth Johnson
Sinister * June 2006 Seth Johnson
Supernova * November 2006 Seth Johnson
Orgin * March 2007 Seth Johnson
Avengers * July 2007 Seth Johnson
Justice League * August 2007 Seth Johnson
Mutations and Monsters November 2007 Seth Johnson
Crisis February 2008 Seth Johnson
Secret invasion July 2008 Seth Johnson
Arkham Asylum October 2008 Seth Johnson
Hammer of Thor November 2009 N / A
Brave and the Bold April 2010 N / A
Web of Spider-Man September 2010 N / A
DC 75th Anniversary December 2010 N / A
Giant-Size X-Men March 2011 N / A
Captain America July 2011 N / A
Superman September 2011 N / A
HALO Heroclix September 2011 N / A

The editions marked with * may no longer be used in official tournaments.

Exclusive characters

Since 2004, an exclusive, oversized special figure, a so-called Convention Exclusive, has been brought out for each of the major North American game and comic exchanges (Convention Season). These figures are extremely strong, but also have very high scores and can therefore only be used very rarely in the game. They are therefore primarily of interest to collectors.

So far, the following exclusive figures have been released:

  • Galactus (Marvel) with the maximum score 1800 (2004)
  • Dark Phoenix (Marvel) with a maximum score of 1000 (2005)
  • Specter (DC) with the maximum number of points 1800 (2006)
  • Fin Fang Foom (Marvel) with the maximum score 1200 (2007)
  • Starro (DC) with the maximum number of points 1000 (2007) as a prize in a worldwide tournament / event
  • Thor's Mighty Chariot (Marvel) with a score of 500 (2009)
  • Dr. Manhattan (DC) with a maximum of 1800 points (2010) (and a remake version called Jon Osterman: Dr. Manhattan with a maximum of 1200 points)

Collector sets

  • DC HeroClix: Giants with Alloy, Atom Smasher, Chemo, Colossal Boy, Giganta, Rita Farr and Validus (April 2006)
  • Image HeroClix: Invincible with Invincible, Atom Eve, Robot, Allen the Alien, Omni-Man, Titan and Angstrom Levy (August 2006)
  • DC HeroClix: Alien Green Lantern Corps with G'nort, Ch'p, Abin Sur, Arisia, Katma Tui, Ganthet and Tomar Re (September 2006)
  • Marvel HeroClix: Marvel 2099 with Hulk, Ravage, Punisher, Ghost Rider, Meanstreak, Junkpile and Doom (December 2006)

Action packs

  • Marvel HeroClix: X-Men Danger Room Starter (July 2006)
  • Marvel HeroClix: Days of Future Past (November 2006)
  • Darkhorse HeroClix: Hellboy and the BPRD also playable with HorrorClix (April 2007)
  • DC HeroClix: Legion of Superheroes Starter (June 2007)
  • Marvel Heroclix: Fantastic Four Starter (July 2008)
  • DC Heroclix: The Blackest Night Starter (June 2010)
  • DC Heroclix: Jonah Hex Battle Pack (July 2010)
  • DC Heroclix: The Watchmen Collector's Set (August 2010)
  • DC Heroclix: The Brightest Day Action Pack (October 2010)

Gravity Feeds and Fast Forces

  • DC HeroClix: Green Lantern (Movie) Fast Forces Starter (June 2011)
  • DC HeroClix: Green Lantern (Movie) Gravity Feed (1-figure booster) (June 2011)
  • Marvel HeroClix: Captain America Gravity Feed (1-Figure Booster) (July 2011)
  • Marvel HeroClix: Hammer of Thor "Warriors of Asgard" Fast Forces Starter (July 2011)
  • Street Fighter Heroclix: Street Fighter Fast Forces Starter (August 2011)
  • Street Fighter Heroclix: Street Fighter Gravity Feed (1-figure booster) (August 2011)
  • Iron Maiden Heroclix: Gravity Feed (1-figure booster) (planned 2011)
  • Gears of War Heroclix: Gravity Feed (1-figure booster) (planned 2011)

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