That being said I wanted to talk briefly about their awesome decision to make a 290 point Thunderbolts update. Included in the lineup are Moonstone, Venom, Songbird and Penance. I really wish we could have had a Green Goblin/Norman Osborn or Bullseye instead of Songbird here, but we will work with what they gave us.
An article about this team has already been written on HCRealms by CheeseWiz you can read here. Cheese is fairly spot on with his assessments, but I thought I might share my opinions of these pieces anyway.Songbird
The main problem with Songbird is that her abilities never really come together in most situations. I suppose there is a few situations where someone will be able to find good use for here special, but the odds seem slim-ber. On top of that her trait makes me feel conflicted. Great Running Shot + mediocre Force Blast; why didn't they make this a special where she can make a ranged Force Blast??? With no close combat defense it makes sense to give here a chance to get away, but more often than not you will find yourself babying this dead weight.
Unfortunately, for 83 points you could do much better. At least you can probably still make a team using the Celebrity keyword.
Penance
Penance has undoubtedly the coolest sculpt of the Thunderbolts from this set. His abilities and stats are decent enough to make him playable, but he is still a beast of burden (Not unlike the Speedball piece from Secret Invasion). I love his Pain is My Power special ability, but why doesn't it start on the third click? It seems like that is when stats take a dip and would be a logical choice, but i guess you can't complain for 58 points. I only wish that knock-back damage was penetrating, then the 612 Souls would become a highlight special among pieces from this set (with the ranged Force Blast that Songbird should have).
Penance comes in third on this list (1st in your hearts), but I would recommend giving him a shot. Maybe you will have better luck than I did.
Venom
I am willing to bet that Venom is the most popular character on this list. It is probably splash popularity from the Eddie Brock version that is popular because... well I guess because he wears black. This piece is pretty awesome. He is the ultimate tie-up piece with a permanent Leap/Climb plus standard Shape Change and Plasticity. Throw in the Steal Energy with decent stats throughout the dial and you have a fantastic piece you can use to park a ranged opponent while you fire away with the rest of your team.
In my experience, Shape Change and Super Senses, when combined can frustrate and demoralize your opponent. If you are lucky you may even get to see Venom take damage and then return back to these powers thanks to his Steal Energy. Venom = Success.
Moonstone
This is easily the best piece on the Thunderbolts. True, she may have a glass jaw, but her run and gun nature will ensure damage to her enemies. It seems odd that she is the only piece on the team that has no trait or special power. Maybe a combo Running Shot and Psychic Blast is too much to ask. I think this figure is a great value and don't have much to complain about. When used with Venom you will find that anyone that doesn't have a Hypersonic or Marksman piece will quickly break under the onslaught of awesome.
I recommend playing this piece and Venom together. The pair are great as part of the Thunderbolts or even on non-theme teams.
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