CP71 Honey Badger

If the Internet has taught us anything, honey badgers are not to be trifled with. Known in certain circles as “The World’s Most Fearless Creature,” these predators make an appropriate alias for the pugnacious subject of today’s From Panel to Play. We’re talking about Gabrielle Kinney, a.k.a. Honey Badger!

Alchemax Genetics created Gabrielle Kinney from the building blocks of X-23’s genetic makeup. Alchemax trained her to serve as a bodyguard and elite fighter who possessed the same regenerative ability and retractable bone claws as Laura Kinney and Wolverine. Her creators further enhanced her to be impervious to pain through an Alchemax nanite therapy, a painful process that shortened the lifespan of its subjects. She ultimately broke free from her cruel makers in Alchemax with the aid of her rebellious sisters and assumed the identity of Honey Badger as a member of the X-Men.

Like the last piece in a Matryoshka doll of cloning projects and weaponized mutation, Honey Badger has a nifty set of powers and abilities, now available in a convenient travel size! Don’t let her relatively modest Threat Value of 2 fool you: she has plenty of attacks and powers to perforate the plans of an opposing team.

Like the others in her genetic lineage, Honey Badger has a solid basic attack, hitting at Strength 5 with the possibility of inflicting Bleed on her target. Her single adamantium claw lacks the Pierce special rule that the larger claws of Wolverine and X-23 have, but she can still cause some respectable damage nonetheless. Plus, she’s lower to the ground and has a better chance of hitting some painful targets. Her Hamstring attack represents this sort of strike, letting her slash with a debilitating cut that inflicts the Slow and Bleed conditions on her prey.

Adding insult to injury, after she slashes the tendons of her mark, she has the chance to dodge away from her slowed quarry thanks to the Elusive special rule.

Having a pint-sized, blade-wielding foe is the stuff that nightmares are made of. And just in case someone forgets that, Honey Badger’s reactive superpower can help to refresh their memory. Too Dangerous to Ignore allows her to spend power when an enemy character targets someone else within Range 2 of her, making her the target of the attack instead. If her big sister X-23 is on the field, hitting Honey Badger becomes an even worse idea, thanks to X-23’s reactive superpower.

Gabrielle has a handful of innate superpowers, making her even more challenging to deal with in combat. Her Healing Factor allows her to gradually regenerate from any injuries an opponent can land on her. Ankle Biter represents her smaller size and the way she can slip into combat to harry a target. This power prevents her from interacting with objectives during a crisis. Still, if she’s within close range of an opponent who is targeted by an allied attack, she can distract the target and cause it to roll 1 fewer defense die.

Like her big sister, Honey Badger doesn’t have many people in the world who she can call family, and if anyone tries to hurt X-23 she responds with the ferocity of her namesake. Lil’ Sis mirrors X-23’s Big Sis power and lets Honey Badger make a Medium advance towards an opponent who damages Laura Kinney with an attack.

That’s it for our look at this pint-sized pit fighter!

Be sure to check back 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. Pre-order your own copy of the X-23 & Honey Badger Character Pack at your local game store or through our webstore here.

Until then, Atomic Mass Transmissions, signing off!

CP71 From Panel to Play: X-23

She slices, she dices, she makes julienned guys. This time on From Panel to Play, we’re taking a look at the girl who proves the adamantium-coated apple doesn’t fall far from the angry Canadian tree; it’s X-23!

Laura Kinney, or X-23, is the 23rd attempt by the Facility, an offshoot of the Weapons Plus Program, to create a genetic copy of the mutant Wolverine. She was born to be a living weapon and had minimal human contact to enhance her savage and killer instincts.  X-23 is a peerless fighter and assassin with all the mutant abilities of Wolverine, including a superhuman ability to heal from any injury, lightning-fast reflexes, and retractable adamantium-coated claws in her hands and feet.

As you might expect from someone made with the genetic code of Logan, X-23 is a melee machine with some razor-sharp attacks to poke a hole in an opponent’s battle plan. She’s a highly mobile storm of claw slashes thanks to her combination of attacks and powers.

Her Adamantium Slash attack represents the quick strikes she makes with her hands and feet. The indestructible adamantium coating her claws helps her pierce through enemy defenses and can leave her target with some nasty bleeding injuries. Players familiar with Wolverine’s attacks know how effective this basic attack can be.

But when she’s riled up and has the power to spend, X-23 can lay into an enemy force with a flurry of claws, slashing through a line of her opponents. Claw Rush has a slightly higher range and Strength than her basic attack, but after she cuts through one opponent, she can make a Medium move. If she starts an activation with a target in range and has the Power to spare, Claw Rush can carry her just as far as a double movement, with the bonus of slicing up some poor saps along the way!

Adding to this kinetic play style is her only reactive power, Frenzy. If she dazes or KOs a target during her activation, she can pay the Power to move a short distance and make a free Adamantium Slash attack.

With the potential to move and attack 3 times in a turn, X-23 will be a headache for your opponent to pin down. That’s even truer once you look at the other innate powers she has under her belt. Her Adamantium Skeleton makes her heavier than she looks, so opponents who think they might pick up and toss the little scrapper are in for a surprise! Her constant training as a living weapon by the Weapon Plus Program has also attuned her martial skills to top form, represented by the Assassin Training superpower that lets her reroll 1 die in her attack and defense rolls. Due to her genetic makeup, she also has a Healing Factor to rival her “dad,” which offsets her average Stamina.

Last but certainly not least, Laura Kinney is protective of the last person she can call family: the younger clone created from her genetic makeup, Gabrielle Kinney. X-23 keeps an eye on her little “sister,” and anyone who tries to land a hit on Gabrielle learns how seriously Laura takes that responsibility. If an attack damages Gabrielle while within Range 3 of X-23, Laura can immediately make a Medium advance toward the unlucky jerk who did it.

That’s it for our look at this clawed hellion!

Be sure to join us for our next From Panel to Play featuring Honey Badger herself! Pre-order your own copy of the X-23 & Honey Badger Character Pack for Marvel: Crisis Protocol at your local game store or through our webstore here.

Until then, Atomic Mass Transmissions, signing off!