Hear me out: Doctor Octopus

I don't see Otto Octavius much on the tables.  Not being a member of the Cabal or an Avenger meant he was frequently being left out as people built roster meant to quickly swing between Affiliations.  However, he might be just what you need.

Hear me out.

Otto stands out as being the first Size 2 model on a medium sized base.  This has a few advantages, as he can take cover from Cars, but can still take advantage of having a larger base to increase his maximum "footprint" (that is, the mount of space he takes up and therefore threatens on the board).  5 Stamina isn't terribly attractive, but his defense values are really interesting for a 3 Threat Character.  Plus, he gets 6 when wounded!  Energy being his relative weakness (and even then, 3 is kind of the baseline) is really solid!

He has Strike.  You know it, I know it.  4 dice on his Strike isn't the best, but Flurry of Arms does make it seem worth fishing for Wilds.  Range 3 on a basic Strike is again better than what the "default" Strike would be.

Arm Lasers (which is fun to shout defiantly) costs 3, but brings a nice 6 dice to the pool, is Energy typed, and removes LOS and Cover.  Coming in at Range 4, is can be seen as the opposite site of Iron Man's  Homing Rockets attack.  The critical difference, though, is Pierce.  A wild knocking out a valid defense just makes a good thing better (warning: Black Panther and wounded Captain America are effectively immune to this.)

To top it off, Scientific Hubris adds more power to the pot just by rolling a crit at *any time* he rolls dice.  Consider that.  Checking for Skrulls?  Power.  Dodging a car that Spider-brat tossed at you?  Power.  The difficulty in using this Superpower is simply remembering that it's a thing.  Fortunately, practice makes perfect.

Wall Crawler.  It's great.  Ok?  Ok.

Ock's Clutches.  Now here's a Superpower to get the motor running!  Letting Ock take a piece of terrain (size 2 or less, so mostly cars and dumpsters,) and hurl it isn't too shabby.  the Short throw is a bit limiting, considering the range on the rest of his attacks, but it's always nice to squeeze in an extra chance to knock a few Stamina off an opponent.

So, for 3 threat, we get a slightly disappointing default attack that has a random surprise, a really nice attack with a random surprise, some pocket change every time you roll punctuation, and the ability to hurl more than insults on occasion.  That's actually a pretty good deal.  He's not quite as aggressive as some, but he is aggressive enough, especially considering his enlarged footprint.

While he debuted in the Core Set, I think his home may be in Wakanda.  Many of his abilities want him to see specific sides of the dice, and the ol' Wakandan Shuffle could be just the thing he needs to start seeing fortune favor him.

Maybe he'll be so lucky as to win a better haircut.

Hear Me Out: Iron Man (Tony Stark)

So, Tony Stark is sadly up at the top of most players' lists when it comes to dropping Characters from their roster.  Tony shouldn't be so easily dismissed, though.

Hear me out.

At first, Tony suffers much like Crossbones did from Not Much Going On Syndrome (Please talk to your doctor about NMGOS.)  At least he has a Medium move, though.  Tony suffers from a lower dice pool than most attacks, though.  Let's review.

His basic attack, Repuslor Blast, is interesting because it's an Energy type, which doesn't happen often.  At just 4 dice, though, he's not likely mowing down Characters.  However, a Wild can give it a Short Push.  It's also at the far-flung Range 4, which will be a point I'll bring up later.

Homing Rockets costs 2 power, put pumps up the range and dice to 5, and removes Cover and needing LOS (so, no, Rocket doesn't get Cover.  "No" trumps "Yes.")  A wild also gives you the ability to hand out some bonus damage to your target's nearby pals, too!

Iron Man also did what the Black Order did before it was cool with Invincible Iron Man, allowing him to passively reduce damage, to a minimum of 1.

Flight is cool and good.  Let's move forward.

Friday AI is the last thing to mention.  A cost of three power adds 2 extra dice to his next attack this turn.  This is inline with what we saw in Crossbones, where Superpowers have a pattern of "Add X dice to an attack for X+1 power."

However, Crossbones and Iron Man couldn't be more different.

A key point to remember in this game is damage isn't everything.  Scoring the Crisis Cards is what wins games, not knocking Characters out (although, it *can* be a strategy.)  Tony is great at taking position at some objective that isn't getting a lot of attention, and still be relevant firing shots from far away.  He's not the heaviest hitter around, but he is someone who can babysit an objective for VP, while still providing a threat.

Lastly, He really does shine as an Avenger.  Paying one less for Friday AI is a great bonus.  Playing in Wakanda is also a smart play, as the rerolls they provide (what I like to call "The Wakandan Shuffle,") help those Wilds show up more often, or even generate a few more key hits.

Hopefully that gives you a few things to consider when you're building your rosters, and maybe Tony can see more time on your tables.

Just keep him away from the booze.

Hear Me Out: Crossbones (Brock Rumlow)

Crossbones is a Character I see frequently knocked out of players' rosters when they start to expand past the Core Set.

Hear me out, though.

At a glance, I understand why he doesn't thrill people.  A short movement, subpar defense (except on Physical, which is on par with Thor!), slightly above average Stamina, and at 3 Threat, he's not overly costly, nor is he in the bargain bin.  It's understandable why, when players get their first few packs, they look at him as expendable.  However, there are some great reasons to keep him around!

First, don't let that movement skill fool you.  Yes, he's slower than most characters his size, but Aggressive means that your opponent's will need to think twice about hitting him, as it's a free move for him.  This is compounded when you look at Characters like Black Panther, can push people after every attack, and that their extra effect is rendered moot by your extra move.

Inured to Pain is also a great Superpower.  Unlike Invincible Iron Man or Glaive of Immortality, I2P can actually knock 1 damage down to nothing!  This is a great deal, and makes his slightly above average Stamina stretch even further.

Combine the two above, and you can almost always ignore half of the effects of Shuri, who is someone frequently making people's rosters today.  Her push is negated by Aggressive, and if you are OK with her push, you can negate her damage.

So, yeah his Physical defense is great, but his Energy and Mystic isn't.  Sure, but most attacks in the game are physical, and a superior Physical defense also helps him make dodge rolls easier.  Mystical attacks are also still kind of a rarity in the game so far, so while energy defense is a weak point, good deployment and smart plays can minimize that flaw.

We haven't even discussed his attacks, or even Haymaker!

Strike is what most have: a simple attack that lets you gain power for the damage you deal.  5 dice is, again, pretty average, but we have two more factors that should come into play.

Overpower is another 5 dice physical attack, but the two energy it costs gains you a small teleport AND a throw on a Wild.  Consider that the throw is done before damage is dealt, but the teleport is after, so even if your opponent is ignoring Crossbones, Overpower let him potentially throw another Size 2 model Short, and THEN teleport within range 1 of where they end up!  All of this adds up to Crossbones getting into places his statline doesn't imply.  You could quite easily surprise unwary opponents who think Crossbones isn't really all that mobile.

Then, Haymaker.  How does Crossbones go up against the might of Thor or really bring the hurt to someone like Captain Marvel?  Haymaker.  At a costly 4 power, he gains 3 dice on the next attack he makes.  While expensive, it means Crossbones can really dish out some pain!

Finally, it should be noted that he is a member of Cabal, and that extra power for damaging opponents helps him fuel I2P, or save up for a Haymaker.

Hopefully this gives you some pause when it comes time to choose your roster, and poor Brock won't lay on a shelf or in your case forever.

Hear Me Out: Spider-Man (Peter Parker)

So, it seems that many express confusion as to why Spider-Man is Threat 4.

Hear me out.

Looking at his stats, it’s debatable.  5  Stamina and Long movement are nice, but not enough to warrant Threat 4.  3 attacks is a nice variety, even if only one is energy based, and you have to pay for that one.  The attacks range from 4-6 dice, which again isn’t outside the realm of average.  He has a nice defensive power in Spider-Sense, can throw Size 2 objects, and that’s typically where the conversation stops.

Peter is so much more than the sum of his parts, though.

Much like Peter’s character, Spider-Man is not a beater or some brute, he uses clever thinking and subtle tools to assist in victory.

Let’s start with his attacks.  Strike is a general affair, gaining energy equal to damage dealt.  This is something nearly every character has, and is not likely worth discussing further.

Impact Webbing, on the other hand, bears investigation.  While his weakest attack at 4 dice, Range 4 is a very healthy range, and it’s 0 cost makes it an interesting alternative.  That’s not what makes it truly noteworthy, though.  Gaining 1 power, successful or not, is a great incentive to use this power.  The true potential, though, lies in the Wild result.  This allows you to push a Size 2 or less away short.  In a game that is almost always half control/contest a point, being able to push someone out of that area is massive, especially if they have already activated.  It’s also useful for more aggressive models like Venom and Hulk, where that short move can either require a Move action to just maintain ground, or (given the large Range 4,) keep some characters out of the fight for this round.

Let’s move on to Taser Webs, the only attack that is an Energy type for Peter, and the only one that requires Power to fire (even then it’s only 2.)  This attack does need to be successful to trigger its special ability, but it applies what is among the most powerful conditions in the game: Stun.

Stun is an amazing condition, preventing you from gaining more than 1 power per source that would grant it.  Powerful hits now carry little consolation for the defendr, as they’ll just generate a single point of Power for them, and this can even clamp down on superpowers that attempt to give you more than the 1 Power each character gains in the Power Phase, such as Hulk’s Inner Rage.  This condition isn’t universally powerful (like our mighty queen, Stagger,) but this is killer against characters that love using Power, like Red Skull, and Captain Marvel.

Now, we’ll move on the superpowers.  Web Line works much like a Wild result on Impact Webbing, except it moves them towards Spider-Man.  This has the same use, just in a more specific direction.  This can cause some fun geometric possibilities, with Peter Impact Webbing someone away, Moving Long, and then pulling the same character closer to him, result in an even more discombobulated position that they started in.  It’s a shame you can’t yank allies up the field in this way, but you can snag someones and drag them closer to someone slower (say, Crossbones,) so they can get their licks in easier.

Web-A-Pult allows you to chuck a Size 2 piece of terrain OR an enemy character (within Range 3) short.  Throws are uncommon in MCP (but not rare,) and again, moving characters involuntarily can be massively impactful.

Spider-Sense is a great way to encourage more reliable results in Peter’s defense dice, and what’s truly remarkable is that it can be uses on dodge rolls, too!

Wall Crawler is present, and is a nice mobility superpower to ensure nothing but the biggest buildings will get in Spider-Man’s way.

So, now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s discuss how this all culminates and justifies 4 threat.  3 threat characters are typically a little one-dimensional, or are just “baseline” in terms of power and impact on the field.  Baron Zemo is a fair-ish comparison here.  While Peter doesn’t feel as aggressive as Zemo, given Charge and Counter Strike, Peter isn’t just a weaker, more heroic version of Zemo.  Where Zemo makes and impact by dealing damage and allowing some rerolls to teammates nearby, Peter impacts the board in a more creative manner.  By moving enemy pieces on the board, and on occasion removing terrain or applying one of the best conditions in the game, Peter’s influence is more subtle and more creative than just laying out enemies.  Peter is a piece that believes the best offense isn’t removing threats, but rather removing their relevancy.  This is why I think Peter justifies his extra point in threat.  To value him only by his martial prowess is to underestimate him.  He can deal out some decent damage if he has to, but by far he is better suited to zip about, and re-order the board in a manner more fitting for his allies.

This is only an opinion, but hopefully you have some thoughts to argue Peter's threat cost differently.