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DC Dice Masters: Green Arrow and The Flash Review: The Atom, Static, Wonder Girl

Posted on September 2, 2016 by Brett Leave a comment

In September, the latest DC Dice Masters set, DC Dice Masters: Green Arrow and The Flash will be released. Wizkids hooked us up with ten booster packs and after an unboxing video, I’m now going over groupings of the cards to discuss their playability and how they stack up to previous versions of the characters.

Up next, the common The Atom, Static, and Wonder Girl!

The Atom: Matter Compression (uncommon)

Team: Titans

Purchase: 4 FIST

Die – Fist / Fist & Fist / Fist & Fist

Level: 0 1 1 / 1 4 4 / 1 5 5

Character Previous Set: War of Light and Justice League

While The Atom is active, whenever you could use a Global Ability you may spin down one of your The Atom dice to level 1 to draw 2 dice, put one into your Used Pile and the other into your Prep Area.

Thoughts: I love this card and die. It uses a mechanic we’ve seen in previous version of the character, spinning the die down. It’s relatively cheap to purchase and cheap to field. The ability to spin it down and draw dice? Hells yes. This game is about getting dice and anything to help with that helps. Find ways to spin the die up during turns and you’ve got a cool way to move through your bag.

Static: Taser Punch (rare)

Team: Titans

Purchase: 4 BOLT

Die – Bolt / Bolt and Bolt / Bolt and Bolt

Level: 0 2 1 / 0 3 2 / 1 4 3

Character Previous Set: None

While Static is active, whenever your opponent rolls 2 or more dice at once, KO target Sidekick unless your opponent takes 1 damage.

Thoughts: It’s Static’s debut in Dice Masters! The card’s ability is an interesting one. It can help clear out Sidekicks which may be helpful, but since it’s a KO, you’re giving them a die to use the next turn. For me, the fielding is the best part of the card, a 0 cost 3A/2D is a solid cheap character in the field.

Wonder Girl: Are’s Champion (uncommon)

Team: Titans

Purchase: 3 FIST

Die – Fist / Fist and Fist / Fist and Fist

Level: 0 2 2 / 1 3 2 / 1 3 3

Character Previous Set: War of Light

If you have an active Titan character, Wonder Girl costs 1 to purchase. You may only purchase 1 Wonder Girl die this way each turn.

Thoughts: Cheap to purchase, cheap to field? This card is a solid one for Titan teams allowing you to get her out quickly and get a die out to absorb some damage or do an attack. I’m digging the card and if you use this version or a previous set version will be determined by the rest of your team.

Final thoughts: Three solid additions to Titan teams. These three are so interesting, I really want to see what their other versions are like. Each is useful in their own way and each adds to the Titans which need to be expanded as a team option.

DC Dice Masters: Green Arrow and The Flash Review: Barry Allen, Firestorm, and Superman

Posted on August 30, 2016 by Brett Leave a comment

Up next, the common Barry Allen, Firestorm, and Superman!

Barry Allen: Super-Sonic Punch (common)

Team: Justice League

Purchase: 5 BOLT FIST

Die – Generic / Bolt & Fist / Bolt & Fist

Level: 1 3 3 / 1 4 4 / 2 7 4

Character Previous Set: None (though The Flash has appeared in both DC Dice Masters: Justice League and DC Dice Masters War of Light)

Synergy -While Barry Allen is active, you may pay BOLT FIST to give Barry Allen character die +2A and +4D (until end of turn). (Synergy abilities can be used while the character is active, any time you could use a Global Ability).

Thoughts: Wow is The Flash expensive in sets. The character at a cost of 5 where you must use a BOLT and FIST to purchase make this not the easiest card to purchase. What I do like about the card is that it really reflects the speed of the character with his ability to act quickly and up his attack and defense. Compared to other Flash dice, the cost is similar and potentially getting a 9A/8D character is solid. Still, when it comes to speedsters, I’d rather get the Justice League versions that can be unblockable and are 1 less to purchase. Still, since this is named The Flash, use both!

Firestorm: Host of the Matrix (common)

Team: Justice League

Purchase: 4 BOLT

Die – Bolt / Bolt and Bolt / Bolt and Bolt

Level: 1 3 5 / 1 4 6 / 2 5 6

Character Previous Set: DC Dice Masters: Justice League, DC Dice Masters: Justice League OP

When Firestorm attacks, deal 1 damage to target character die for each character die in your Field Zone.

Thoughts: We’ve seen Firestorm before and compared to it, this is one of the better versions of the card. The die characteristics are exactly the same, so all that differs is its ability.The ability to deal a high amount of damage in an attack will make this a key character to potentially wipe out tough characters. I myself tend to play a style with a lot of characters attacking, so this will be one I’ll be looking at when putting together a team, especially a Justice League one.

The chance to deal a high amount of damage in an attack will make this a key character to potentially wipe out tough characters and is one way to handle that potential issue. While on its own it’s ok, I can see it being a nice back up character used in certain situations. I myself tend to play a style with a lot of characters attacking, so this will be one I’ll be looking at when putting together a team, especially a Justice League one.

Superman: Man of Tomorrow (common)

Team: Justice League

Purchase: 6 SHIELD

Die – Shield / Shield and Shield / Shield and Shield

Level: 1 4 6 / 2 6 7 / 2 7 8

Character Previous Set: DC Dice Masters: Justice League, DC Dice Masters: Justice League OP, and DC Dice Masters World’s Finest

Superman gets +1A and +1D for each of your active Justice League characters.

Thoughts: This character die is similar cost to previous versions and the stats are the same as the World’s Finest version. The ability is really interesting, first because I think it’d give itself +1A and +1D, so it’d start off stronger than the WF version and slightly better than the JL version. Running just a Justice League team, I can see Superman becoming a beast to deal with easily getting in the double digests for attack and defense. Throw in Overcrush and you can easily see where this one’s going.

Final thoughts: Three interesting possible additions to Justice League teams (and teams in general). All three could be fun playing in casual and I can see some teams being put together for competitive, though the high initial purchase costs will get people to hold off of that. Still, if this set shakes up the meta like I think it will, expect to see all three of these cards of the table. Now, I’m off to go make a Justice League team.

DC Dice Masters: Green Arrow and The Flash Review: Cosmic Treadmill and S.T.A.R. Labs

Posted on August 29, 2016 by Brett Leave a comment

Up next, the common Cosmic Treadmill and rare S.T.A.R. Labs

Cosmic Treadmill: Antique Shop Discovery (common)

Team: None

Purchase: 4 FIST MASK

Die – Generic / Fist & Mask / Fist & Mask

Level: Treadmill/Treadmill*/Treadmill**

Character Previous Set: None

Reroll up to 2 target dice in your Reserve Pool. For each FIST or MASK rolled, deal 1 damage to target opponent.

Thoughts: On its own, this is an interesting card that I’m still going back and forth about. Doing damage is a good thing, but you’re also rerolling dice, so who knows how well it’d do. Where I can see this being a key is on teams focused on just FIST and MASK energy.

This one really is up in the air as to its usefulness until we see what the rest of the set is like, especially dual energy cards.

S.T.A.R. Labs: Science and Technology (rare)

Team: None

Purchase: 2 BOLT SHIELD

Die – Generic / Bolt and Shield / Bolt and Shield

Level: Test Tube/Test Tube*/Test Tube**

Character Previous Set: None

All your BOLT character dice gain Fast. All your SHIELD character dice get +2D (until end of turn)

*/** Instead, all your BOLT and SHIELD character dice get +2D and gain Fast (until end of turn). (Character dice with Fast deal combat damage before non-Fast characters.)

Global: Pay BOLT SHIELD. Move a Sidekick die from your Used Pile to your Prep Area and field another Sidekick die from your Used Pile.

Thoughts: The ability for the card is good for those using BOLT SHIELD teams and may be a must. What’s interesting to me isn’t the die itself, but the Global which is similar to Prof X in Marvel Dice Masters: Uncanny X-Men. That Global is pay a MASK and move 2 Sidekick dice to the prep area from the Used Pile.

This moves one from the Used Pile to Prep and the other is fielded from Used. While it’s a bit more costly, it also may limit its use by your opponents. Pay a bit more, get a similar ability that works well for BOLT SHIELD teams.

Expect to see some builds featuring this instead of Prof X.

Final thoughts: These are two interesting cards that I can see both getting play. How much will largely hinge on what’s in the rest of the set due to their each focusing on just two energy types. We’ll have to come back for a second look once the full set is out.