Marvel Champions: Phoenix

One of the five original X-Men and a powerful psychic, Jean Grey was chosen as host for the cosmic Phoenix Force. As Phoenix, she uses her telepathy and telekinesis to protect mutants and humans alike, but she must always take care to not let the power of the Phoenix Force overcome her.

Fantasy Flight Games is thrilled to announce the Phoenix Hero Pack for Marvel Champions: The Card Game!

This powerful hero joins the battle with this expansion pack, which introduces Phoenix as a new playable hero along with her sixteen signature cards. With a pre-built Justice deck ready to play from the get-go, you’ll be able to shut down the villains’ schemes from the moment you open the box. With her formidable psychic powers and the incredible might of the Phoenix Force at her disposal, Phoenix is a phenomenal addition to any team.

Psionic Bond

As a powerful psychic bonded with a dangerous cosmic entity, Phoenix’s playstyle is all about control.

 

When you start the game as Jean Grey (Phoenix, 1A), you’ll also begin with the Phoenix Force (Phoenix, 2A) in play in its Restrained form and with 4 power counters placed on it. As the hero Phoenix (Phoenix, 1B), you can tap into the power of the Phoenix Force to generate resources for your cards. So long as you keep at least one power counter on it, the Phoenix Force will remain restrained; however, as soon as the last power counter is removed, it flips to its Unleashed (Phoenix, 2B) side, which swaps your THW and ATK stats. This can be a significant boon when it happens at the right time, but it also comes with some risk, which we’ll go over in a bit. You won’t be able to flip the Phoenix Force back to its Restrained side until you get at least 4 power counters back on it, so take care not to remove too many counters if you aren’t ready to unleash it just yet!

Fittingly, much of Phoenix’s kit involves the Phoenix Force in some way. The White Hot Room (Phoenix, 4) paired with Jean Grey’s innate ability can help you maintain a steady supply of power counters, while cards like Phoenix Suit (Phoenix, 5), Psychic Blast (Phoenix, 11), and Telepathic Trickery (Phoenix, 12) have different or additional effects depending on whether or not the Phoenix Force is Unleashed. When the situation gets dicey, use Phoenix Firebird (Phoenix¸ 13) to either ready yourself or stock up on power counters; take command of a minion with Mind Control (Phoenix, 9); or protect a friend (or yourself) with a Telekinetic Shield (Phoenix, 7). If you would be defeated, simply Rise from the Ashes (Phoenix, 6) and unleash the full might of your power against the villain!

 

In addition to her own powerful cards, Phoenix comes with a pre-built Justice deck that builds off her theme of control. Use Banshee (Phoenix, 14) to keep minions from scheming and Marvel Girl (Phoenix, 15) to force a minion into helping you thwart, then give the two of them Mission Training (Phoenix, 16) to boost them up and keep them around longer. Entice the villain into scheming with Swift Retribution (Phoenix, 19), then trick them into removing threat rather than placing it with Psychic Manipulation (Phoenix, 17). All the while, work together with your X-Men allies to be Mutant Peacekeepers (Phoenix, 18) and ensure that the threat stays low. If you’re low on allies, then utilize Cerebro (Phoenix, 22) to call on one and add it to your hand.

All-Consuming Power

We mentioned earlier that unleashing the Phoenix Force comes with some risk. This is because her obligation, Burning Hunger (Phoenix, 28), will summon her nemesis into play if Phoenix Force is Unleashed. And since Phoenix is a powerful hero, she has an equally powerful nemesis.

The terrifying Dark Phoenix (Phoenix, 29) is a force to be reckoned with. With a whopping 12 hit points, steady, toughness, and villainous, Dark Phoenix is practically a second villain on the table, but what really makes her scary is her side scheme: Consume the World (Phoenix, 30). This side scheme is permanent once it enters play, which means you’ll be battling the darker side of the Phoenix Force for the rest of the scenario. If you let too much threat accumulate on Consume the World, it’s game over. It’s a battle for survival, and one you can’t afford to lose!

Maintaining Control

With her potent psychic powers and access to the Phoenix Force, there is no denying that Phoenix is a strong hero and a fantastic addition to any team. Look forward to taking on Magneto and the Brotherhood of Mutants when the Phoenix Hero Pack releases alongside Mutant Genesis this fall!

*This is an expansion set and requires the Marvel Champions core set to play.