Heroic Quest #2

Scenario: Loki
Difficulty: Heroic 1
Total Attempts: 17
Heroes Used: Ironheart (7), Iron Man (5), Doctor Strange (3), Venom (2)
Number of Rounds in Winning Game: 20
Modular Sets: recommended/default ones
Win Date: 26 May 2023

The Scenario

I knew right away that Loki was going to be tough, because in heroic we've got four versions of him to slog through... that's 80 HP! Average total villain HP in an expert scenario is 38. To last that long, we need a hero that can build to a board state that can endure and match and hopefully outpace the villain. On top of that, Loki is another scenario that makes you really focus on it all, especially with the Infinity Gauntlet modular set. You've got to be able to thwart the high thwart side schemes, take out minions, deal with statuses, deal with different versions of Loki that bring different keywords like stalwart and piercing.

The Hero(es)

Naturally, my gut reaction goes to Doctor Strange, especially with how he handled Thanos. I was getting close, but surprisingly I wasn't quite getting there. I'm sure I could have after trying a bunch more times, but I also wanted a fresh start. I know that Iron Man can build to a crazy board state. I tried a handful of games with him and couldn't get past the first 3-4 turns. I lost on the first turn for a couple of the games. But the important thing about testing with Iron Man is that it reminded me of Ironheart!

And she delivered! The game I won felt "relatively" controlled up through the end.

Strategy

• Always get rid of Frozen. Ironheart's thwart is too high to be ignored for even a single turn. It also shuts off her ability to take advantage of her version upgrading perks.
• Don't try to get rid of Seduced. The one time I did (removed both in a single turn), I was still stunned from Power Stone or encounter cards and I always seemed to need to thwart. I couldn't capitalize on being free from Seduced until I got another one... I was getting by just fine with Ironheart's v3 Maximum Efficiency progress tokens and allies. I would have removed my attack events since I never played them.
• I was able to leave all of Loki’s attachments on him the whole time: Loki's Staff (+1 ATK), Loki's Crown (+1 THW), and Loki's Cape (gives him tough when switching). His cape is pretty trivial with the damage output. Even Master of Illusions wasn’t too bad since I’d put all of my damage into him with the progress counters and Photon Blasters mainly. I just saved my allies for thwarting or attacking minions if it was out.
• Always leave 1 progress counter for her obligation unless you know it’s already in the discard pile

Card Hot Takes

• I played Target Acquired just to protect my upgrades from the Reality Stone or Caught Off Guard. There are some nasty boost effects. But in the end, I never used it for them.
• One Way or Another was clutch! I was nervous to include it, because the side schemes have such high starting values in this scenario. I didn’t use them until v3 and I had Propulsion Jets out so I could remove 6 threat no problem, which handles all but one of the side schemes.
• Propulsion Jets and Photon Blasters were crucial. Particularly Photon Blasters because I was stunned all the time, and 3 non-attack damage is a lot (once in v3).
• The van was a must as well.
• Fly Over was a must play every time I drew it since it was one of the few ways to generate progress counters (i.e., damage).

Past Heroic Quests

• Doctor Strange vs. Thanos