From Panel to Play: Sabretooth

CP40Sabretooth

In our latest installment of From Panel to Play, we’re taking a look at how Sabretooth leaped (pounce? Does he pounce?) to the tabletop in Marvel: Crisis Protocol.

Victor Creed is a dangerous and bestial mutant blessed with an enhanced healing factor, knife-like talons, elongated fangs, and the senses of a predatory beast. A natural killer, over his long career Creed has been an assassin, a paid mercenary, and a member of the secret Weapon X super soldier program. His memories of these times are patchy and unreliable, due to mental conditioning and memory wipes he endured while part of the Weapon X program.

Creed goes by the name Sabretooth, his codename from his time as a soldier. His violent nature has brought him into conflict with many others, most notably the X-Man Wolverine. He considers Logan a personal rival due to their intertwined and complicated past, which leads to frequent battles between the former comrades-in-arms.

Sabretooth’s miniature captures him the moment before he delivers a deadly strike with his talons. As Sabretooth leaps down at his target, his claws are splayed wide and ready to rake across the face of his target. Sabretooth is wearing his classic duds, with a high fur collar fitted bodysuit. His face is sculpted with an angry snarl, framed by the sweetest set of muttonchops to appear in Crisis Protocol so far.

Sabretooth is a fearsome character, violent, and terrifying in close combat. We made sure his rules on the tabletop depicted the fast and savage fighting style of the mutant killer.

Sabretooth’s rules are, in a word, aggressive—so much that he has a superpower named Aggressive, but we’ll talk about that later. First, he’s a pretty beefy character with decent Stamina and Defenses, as well as the ability to move Long distances. His basic Claw Slash attack hits as a Strength 5 Physical attack, with the added benefit of both the Bleed and Pierce special rules. Victor Creed’s razor claws slice through his target’s defenses and leaves them with grievous wounds that continue to cause damage after the fact. His Savage Predator attack is even fiercer, hitting at higher Strength and letting him follow up with a Claw Slash.

Sabretooth’s superpowers only enhance his hard-hitting style. No Mercy is one of the more iconic abilities on his card, a reflection of Victor Creed’s ruthless and bloodthirsty nature. This active superpower costs 3 Power and lets Sabretooth add dice to attack rolls made against damaged characters. When he smells blood, Sabretooth lashes out with greater violence, increasing his Claw Slash by up to 3 dice – to a Strength 8 attack—or worse, if you consider his ability to modify the defender’s roll from the Pierce special rule.

Aggressive (I told you we’d get here) makes attacking Sabretooth a no-win scenario. Already able to move Long range on his actions, this innate power lets him move a further Short range toward any attacker that causes him damage. There are no limitations on this, either, so multiple attacks just pull him closer and closer. The Canadian killer stalks forward, doubtless eager to lay his claws and teeth into anyone cocky enough to try to take him down, which he just might do.

With all the attacks that are sure to come his way, Sabretooth will see a lot of use from his other innate power, Healing Factor. His ability to withstand deadly injuries and rapidly heal injuries is one of the most terrifying things about Sabretooth. At the end of each activation, he removes 1 damage, so chipping away at him with light attacks will do little good.

That’s all we have time for today. Be sure to visit again soon as Atomic Mass Transmissions brings you more From Panel to Play and other news and information about Marvel: Crisis Protocol.

Catch you next time!