S-Tier Iceman?!

So... I was struggling with Iceman.

At first, I definitely wasn't piloting him well, but after a while I got the hang of him and tried different decks until I built a S.H.I.E.L.D. deck that could keep the villain under control while building up resource generators and key cards.

That S.H.I.E.L.D. deck was pretty good... I even defeated Venom Goblin on Expert with it!

I felt very proud, but then I faced Expert Ronan and Expert Nebula. They both humbled me. Deeply.

That's when I had an idea: what if I abused Iceman's powerful defensive abilities to build something completely different from his usual kit and resource generators?

The key cards in this deck are Strength in Diversity, Strength In Numbers, and a solid selection of allies with different traits.

Before diving into the deck, I just want to say: I've crushed (on Expert) both Ronan and Nebula (and even Red Skull with altered modular sets, for good measure), and it feels like I broke the game.

This is so powerful that I'm starting to think I must be misunderstanding a rule somewhere. I can't believe how insane the power level of this hero is... especially since, for about 30 games, he felt so underwhelming to me (though not having Utopia didn't help... but that's another topic).

I'm serious: what rule could I be getting wrong? Because if I'm playing this correctly, this deck is 100% S-Tier.

MULLIGAN

Cryokinetic Perception is awesome, I know, but in this deck you want ALLIES ASAP. Get one out as soon as you can. You want at least 2 allies on the board so that Strength In Numbers will help you cycle through your deck. (Never chump block!). Once you have 5–6 different traits, Strength in Diversity starts to feel great. And it won't take long to hit 9 or even 11 traits.

THE TRAITS:

• Iceman has 2: Ice and X-MAN
• Children of the Atom instantly gives you 2 more: X-FORCE and X-FACTOR (why are people not using this for Strength in Diversity decks?! If you're not an X-MEN hero, you just need Fantomex for example)
• Hugin & Munin have 3: Bird, Aerial, and Asgard
• Mockingbird, who helps you gain tempo, has 2: SHIELD and SPY

That's a very common setup and already brings you to 9 traits. That means that with 3 effective resources you can play Strength in Diversity and remove a ton of threat or spread damage (or both).

Also, note that Strength in Diversity is NOT an attack, so you can use it even if stunned, ignore minions with Guard, avoid retaliate damage, and even ping Tough status off enemies... it's just insanely good! (AGAIN: am I getting something wrong?! This is omega-level stuff!)

You can stack even more traits thanks to Atlas Bear (another card I don't see in Strength in Diversity decks, despite giving you 2 precious extra unique traits: Wakanda and Posse) and The Triskelion, which lets you have up to 4 allies in play.

EARLY GAME: While you’re finding your allies, use Iceman to DEFEND. His "Freeze!" skill is an Interrupt, so you'll mitigate at least 3 damage (assuming you haven't used Chill Out!, a basic attack, or something else the previous turn). If you have Cryokinetic Perception in play, you'll also draw a card. It’s a hero response tied to the _"Freeze!"_ability, so it works on the villain turn even when you just defend. If that card is an ICE card, you'll ready Iceman, but everybody knows that.

MID GAME: Keep allies on the board, use Strength In Numbers to draw 2–3 cards and spend them to build your board or answer urgent problems.

Just to make the deck even more OP, I added Make the Call and the option to summon Nick Fury, Professor X, Mockingbird, and so on.

Resource generators: The X-Jet, Team-Building Exercise, Avengers Mansion.

Maria Hill and Beak could be swapped for better allies if you prefer, but they do their job well. I won’t cut Kaluu because he has 2 more unique traits (Mystic and Avenger) and can help you find Strength in Diversity or Strength In Numbers, which in turn (you guessed it) helps you find Strength in Diversity.

LATE GAME: You obliterate the villain.

So, verdict time: am I breaking a rule or is this truly S-Tier?

(P.S. Iceman isn’t the only hero who can abuse this combo...)