Join Creative Director Dallas Kemp as he delves into the Apocalypse Terrain with some hobby tips and tricks!

Apocalypse is upon us! With the new terrain coming for Apocalypse I wanted to get a quick and easy version of the terrain painted up to use on the tabletop using easy techniques and quick steps to maximize my time painting.

I assembled the terrain sets and primed them black as normal, but I did leave off the sarcophagus, the arches, and the eye to allow me to reach all the elements on the Rejuvenation Chamber set. Additionally, I made sure the mutant subjects were left out of the clear parts of the experiment chambers to allow painting of all the parts there as well.

To start the painting process, I airbrushed Monument Burnt Orange and Golden Brown in a 50/50 mix over all the areas I wanted to be stone.

This gives me a nice base coat to work from to create a warm stone color on the structures that will contrast nicely with the black areas I plan to utilize later.

Next step was to give all the stonework a drybrush of Monument Dark Warm Flesh. This will pop the edges of all the rock details and give some much-needed definition to the stones.

I used light circular motion to achieve a softer transition in my drybrush and avoid brush strokes.

I then used Purple and Magenta washes to create some depth and visual interest across the stones. I made sure that the wash lay in each crevasse but also had some thin areas on the flat surfaces to indicate variations in the lighting on the stone. After this step, reapply a light drybrush of the Dark Warm Flesh to emphasize the highlights.

Now for the areas I want to be black. In contrast to the steels, creams, and blues Aaron Lovejoy employed on the studio version, I wanted a simple onyx feel to my set. I laid a foundation layer of Monument Coal Black down on all the elements I wanted black followed by a light drybrush of Dark Warm Grey.

Finalize the black areas with a drybrush of Neutral Grey followed by a light edge drybrush of White Blue. The White Blue final touches should be minimal and just clip the edges of the details to give definition to each element.

For my final touches, the part that brings it all together, I glazed some Magenta into the vents and other areas of interest on the different terrain pieces. This just adds a bit of glow and sets the scene a bit better. I glued all the parts back together and cleaned up any mistakes I made.

I used a glaze of Transparent Yellow followed by Transparent Red on the flames for a quick but effective flame effect.

The mutant subjects were painted, then the insides of the clear tubes were glazed with a variety of colors to give a sense of malicious intent to the parts. Then all were glued together and final touches applied to the parts.

And that was the basics of getting the Apocalypse terrain painted in just a few hours. Hopefully that will help you get your Apocalyptic terrain set up in no time for an Apocalyptic good game of MCP!

Thanks for joining us on today’s deep dive into Apocalypse Terrain. Be sure to check back later for additional features of terrain and to see how your favorite characters transition to the tabletop in Marvel: Crisis Protocol.

Until next time, Atomic Mass Games, signing off!

Before he was known far and wide as the Super Hero Wolverine, he was the specimen known as Weapon X in the Weapon X Program. Aimed at creating super soldiers, the scientists first worked at making a team of highly effective soldiers with no other loyalties using a combination of mind control and implanted memories. When that proved successful, they took Logan and fused his skeleton with unbreakable adamantium in a process designed to make him an even more effective living weapon. With his healing and unbreakable skeleton, they envisioned a programmable killing machine able to complete any high-risk operation. What they didn’t envision was losing control of him in the process and creating a savage, enraged warrior that didn’t remember anything that might temper his anger. Weapon X broke out, allowing him to live life as a free man and eventually find his way to Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.

Wolverine, Weapon X focuses on doing what he’s best at, which isn’t very nice! Berserker Rage grants an extra die when attacking a target for a second time, and pierce gives him the chance to do more damage than a strength 5 attack would suggest. When he has 4 Power he can unleash his Uncontrollable Weapon attack, rolling 7 dice but also potentially dealing damage to all other characters within range 2 AND potentially making a second free Uncontrollable Weapon attack on the same target. Thankfully for his teammates, you can use Charge to reposition first to hopefully avoid damaging too many friendly characters.

Weapon X’s new Adamantium Skeleton causes him to count as a size 3 for effects that want to Throw or Push him, and Healing Factor [3] is going to further make him difficult to injure if your opponent doesn’t fully hurt him. Unfortunately, Savagery Protocols stops him from having any effect on Extract tokens, but his dogged instincts are sharpened around Secure Tokens. While within range 1, Weapon X will gain 2 attack dice but remove 1 defense die as he focuses on the only thing he cares about in the moment: the removal of his enemies, or those he views as such!

As Weapon X becomes injured, he becomes even more of a threat to his opponents and liability to his allies. The first change being Berserker Rage becoming A2. With Charge, this becomes an incentive for your opponents to spread out or enjoy the attention of an angry Weapon X.

When injured, he loses Savagery Protocols for the simpler Berserker Wrath, keeping the inability to control Extract tokens while losing the ability around Secure objective tokens. He also gains Aimless Aggression, a unique ability that potentially allows him to damage all characters within range 2 when he is KO’d. Pushing Weapon X forward to engage multiple enemies makes the opponent think twice before attacking him or risk the aggression of a brutal counterattack.

Christoph Nord, or Maverick, is a member of the Weapon X program and a skilled mercenary. As such, he has access to weapons and experiences that make him a dangerous opponent to anyone looking to stop his objectives. His Plasma Blasters and Adamantium Knife give him strong choices for energy and physical attacking, his Agent Zero Attack allows him to roll 7 dice and Throw an enemy character of size 3 or less.

His Anti-Healing Factor Corrosive is a nasty surprise he took from the Weapon X Program, and in Marvel: Crisis Protocol it allows him to stop a nearby character from removing any damage from themselves! Additionally, he has the power of Kinetic Energy Absorption, giving him 1 Power and a short advance in any direction after he’s been damaged by a physical attack.

Representing their time in the Weapon X Program, Weapon X and Maverick come with 2 dynamic options for your Weapon X squads. Implanted Memories allows an allied Weapon X character to damage someone after an enemy effect damages them. Nicely, this doesn’t have to be an attack, so they can go after Magneto after one of his many throws!

Alongside it, Maverick’s Weapons Stash shows how this mercenary is always prepared for whatever job he takes. Maverick may spend 3 Power and place a Stash to allow allied characters to gain cover or remove the token from the board and gain 2 additional dice on their next attack. Whatever illicit guns he has in that crate are more than enough to even the playing field!

When you’re ready to level up your army of fighters with these two mercenaries, be sure to pre-order Weapon X & Maverick at your friendly local game store or through the webstore. Check back later for yet another installment of From Panel to Play, the series where we give you your first look at how your favorite characters transition to the tabletop in Marvel: Crisis Protocol.

Until next time, Atomic Mass Transmissions, signing off!

Beware! Apocalypse awakens!

Armed with technology that allows him to regenerate between ages and fueled by his belief that only the strong survive, Apocalypse awakens from his rejuvenation chamber between ages to search the world for more power. During one awakening, he found it in the form of a Celestial ship. He used that technology to augment his innate mutant power of manipulating his body at an atomic level. He uses this Celestial technology to transform mutants from the ages he awakens into his loyal lieutenants, the Horsemen of Apocalypse. Apocalypse and his horsemen aim to cull the weak of the world, brutally imposing their philosophy of survival.

Apocalypse forms weapons out of his body to exploit the weaknesses of his enemies with his Biomorphic Arsenal attack, and the Cower Before Me trigger plays into Apocalypse’s special condition-focused gameplan. You Will be Remade Through Me gives him a unique way to take advantage of conditions his squad puts out by replacing duplicates with other conditions. En Sabah Nur’s Judgment adding 2 dice for each special condition is a powerful finisher for any enemy character with multiple conditions.

What doesn’t kill Apocalypse makes him stronger. Only the Strong Remain allows Apocalypse to heal back from weak attempts to harm him, and an attack that only deals 1 damage to him leaves him better off than if that attack had not been made, especially if that attack would cause him to gain a condition he’s immune to. His resilience becomes extreme on his injured side, where he becomes immune to all special conditions.

Apocalypse augments the power of his squad with technology. Celestial Technology is a long range place for his allies that can completely change the shape of a game. His leadership, Apocalypse’s Horsemen, is the most powerful representation of his ability to augment the power of his team, though.

Apocalypse has a whole new level of power when he uses his leadership to gain Master of the Horsemen. He gains access to a toolbox of active superpowers from the Horsemen cards assigned to that game. He and his Horsemen also gain access to rerolls and extra power to use those superpowers by spending Evolution tokens from the Master of the Horsemen card. His Horsemen are also greatly empowered by his leadership.

Each character in Servants of the Apocalypse is eligible to be assigned 1 of 2 different Horsemen Cards when the leadership is chosen. For example, Wolverine can be assigned the Death or War Horsemen Cards. If Wolverine is given War, he gains the Fury and Horseman of War superpowers. Apocalypse, as Master of the Horsemen, then also gains the ability to use the Fury superpower once per turn. War is built to brawl and generates Evolution tokens from both dealing and suffering damage. Famine, meanwhile, doesn’t want any part of the brawl War wants to cause. They are given a superpower to deny a fight to the enemy, and they generate Evolution tokens by doing just that.

Pestilence’s Consuming Blight is great in a brawl, but the special conditions they put out are also effective at controlling enemies without fighting them. Either way, Pestilence generates Evolution tokens by spreading conditions to as many characters as possible. While War is built to start fights, Death is built to end them. Even the most powerful Horseman of Death benefits from waiting for the moment when they are strongest and their enemy is weakest before striking.
Each of the Horsemen benefitting from different, and sometimes conflicting, situations means a Servants of the Apocalypse player has to try to create situations where each Horseman they take can thrive.

Building a Servants of the Apocalypse–focused roster and making squads with it has an additional level of complexity that rewards deep familiarity with the affiliation. In addition to considering everything else that goes into squad building, an Apocalypse player needs to consider which Horsemen Cards they want for that game and which characters should be assigned those cards. Getting the most out of Servants of the Apocalypse will take some practice and thought.

In addition to the gameplay, Servants of the Apocalypse is a great hobby opportunity. Horsemen are augmented versions of the characters in the affiliation. The change shown between Angel and Archangel shows just how drastic these augmentations can be, and the metal wings of Archangel are great inspiration to make similar changes to other characters. Similarly, the depictions of Wolverine and Gambit on the Death Horsemen card show some other visions for what Horsemen transformations could look like. A Servants of the Apocalypse roster can also stand out with a unique paint scheme inspired by the transformations of Apocalypse’s Horsemen.

In addition to everything Apocalypse offers the standard game mode, an Ultimate Encounter for Apocalypse can be found in Rejuvenation Chamber. In that Ultimate Encounter, the crisis teams try to sabotage Apocalypse’s Rejuvenation Chamber before he can awaken to his full power. Apocalypse’s Horsemen, meanwhile, try to defend the Celestial technology and force Apocalypse’s evolution to progress faster. When Apocalypse awakens, he uses 1 or 4 different cards based on how strong he was allowed to become. Unlike the standard game, the affiliation restriction is removed from who can be Horsemen in the encounter, giving more freedom to create the Horsemen a player imagines. That encounter can optionally use the terrain found in CP185, Dark Future Terrain Pack, and the treasure chests in CP110, Shrine to En Sabah Nur, in place of the tokens found in CP194, Rejuvenation Chamber to immerse themselves in a setting inspired by Apocalypse.

In addition to their uses in the CP194 Ultimate Encounter, the terrain in CP185 and CP110 comes with One-Shot cards that can be used to enhance standard games of Marvel: Crisis Protocol.

Prepare for the arrival of Apocalypse and pre-order these new packs, that will shake the world of Marvel: Crisis Protocol. Check back later for another From Panel to Play, the series where we give you your first look at how your favorite characters transition to the tabletop in Marvel: Crisis Protocol. Pre-order these characters and more at your local game store or through the webstore today.

Until next time, Atomic Mass Games, signing off!