The Eternal X-Men

The Eternal X-Men

Note that this deck was created and playtested in order to compare two Iceman Protection builds. Note that this is Deck 1 of the two decks described below. The comparison will be done via video as noted.

Build Restriction(s) for both decks: X-Men allies only; no offensive "readying" events (for example, What Doesn't Kill Me, Repurpose.

Deck 1: The key, strong allies survive "eternally" because of Protective Training and Energy Shield. The numerous allies, Utopia, and Cryokinetic Perception allow Iceman to attack at least twice per turn, while those allies thwart and add to the attack, while also providing defensive cover (though they are also meant to contribute considerable damage).

Vs.

Deck 2: An Indomitable build that triggers Cryokinetic Perception mostly from defending, but attacks frequently as well due to a combination of Indomitable and Cryokinetic Perception.

If you'd like to see a video discussion of this deck, check the following video: Coming soon ...

• "Demo" video(s) that shows off some turns with the deck: Releasing on Wednesday, December 24, 2025 Iceman Protection Vs. Expert Captain America | The Eternal X-Men

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VILLAINS TESTED AGAINST to refine the deck and/or game play strategies (in both standard and expert): Klaw (with an expert house rule(1)); Magneto; and Captain America

Notable Results:

• Moved to the end of this description for those who wish to read it.

Deck Refinements:

Removal(s):

• Danger Room: I had this in the deck most of the games, but I only used it once because I was generally disincentivized to use it. Possibly more than any other X-Men hero, Iceman wants to ready to use his hero ability (Freeze), and Danger Room is an alter-ego response, so it doesn't affect Iceman. This also allowed me to have one fewer Support to set up and one fewer card in the deck, which Iceman generally prefers.

Addition(s): N/A

NOTABLE ELEMENTS:

Target Allies for Protective Training: Note that each situation below can be extended further with Energy Shield also attached to the ally.

• Rogue: Her ability allows her to attack for 4 or 5 damage each turn and thwart for 3 or 4, and Protective Training gives her five total opportunities to do so.
• Rockslide: With his 6 HP, he can attack for 3 damage up to 5 times with Protective Training attached.
• Gambit: Another excellent target if he has at least 2 attack and 2 thwart
• White Queen and Legion

Events:

• N/A

Player Side Scheme:

• Superpower Training: The primary target is Cryokinetic Perception. Back up targets include Power Belt and Frozen Solid

Supports:

• Cerebro: Cerebro finds an ally the vast majority of the time, and, when we have Legion or White Queen in play, it's guaranteed to hit since they are Psionic characters. The added benefit of Cerebro is that it thins the deck of non-Iceman cards, thereby increasing the chances he'll draw an Ice card with Cryokinetic Perception and ready.

Upgrades:

• Ready for a Fight: To allow Iceman to go to alter-ego readily to trigger his Cool Off ability. Professor X helps with this as well.
• Protective Training (as mentioned previously in the ally section)
• Energy Shield: To offer extra opportinuities for ally immortality.

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Conclusion:

Due to the numerous allies, Iceman's focus on the attack means that he deals regular damage to the villain, which in turn attaches a Frostbite to them and allows Iceman to take less damage and the allies to be utilized fully, especially the key allies who often deal tons of damage throughout the game. In one game, Rogue alone thwarted for 12 and dealt 22 points of damage, and the ally contributions were typically quite substantial in most every game -- an enjoyable deck for those looking to try a Protection Voltron build.

(1) Note on expert house rule for Klaw: This modification assures that expert Klaw makes for a consistently challenging villain during playtesting. After discarding cards at the beginning of the game and putting into play the first minion that is discarded from the encounter deck, if that minion is NOT a Masters of Evil minion, I search the encounter deck for a Masters of Evil minion and replace the original discarded minion with it. I then shuffle that original minion back into the deck.

Notable Gameplay Results:

• Versus Standard Klaw: Maintained complete control of the board with the deck working just as designed. Cerebro grabbed several allies, and Utopia regularly readied Iceman. Cryokinetic Perception drew a card every round and often readied Iceman, while Protective Training allowed Gambit to stay in play for 6 attacks/thwarts of 3 each.
• Versus Expert Klaw: Maintained control mostly from the hero side, only flipping to alter-ego once. Frozen Solid and Ice Wall kept Iceman regularly protected, and a copy of Ready for a Fight did the same for the main scheme. Allies and Cryokinetic Perception readied Iceman repeatedly, and it was easy to play two cards a turn with The X-Jet, Team-Building Exercise, and Power Belt in play much of the game. Rockslide contributed 9 damage.
• Versus Standard Magneto: Final turn of 20 points of damage. Throughout the game, Rogue thwarted for 12 and dealt 22 points of damage.
  • Versus Expert Magneto: Lost the 1st game from threat. This was just one of those games that Magneto was going to scheme no matter what you did and scheme hard. The 2nd game went much better, though Magneto delayed Iceman for quite a while. In the last 3 turns, though, the deck dealt 22, 21, and 17 points of damage respectively, though 8 of that was absorbed by Magneto's Magnetic Bubble, and some of it by a minion with Guard.
• Versus Standard Captain America: Very nice control most of the game, dealing 23 points of damage to the Captain America on the final turn. Allies are a big help in preventing Captain America from getting his shield back when they defend, but the Frostbites help with that as well when Iceman is defending.
• Versus Expert Captain America: In game 1, Iceman lost on the villain's first turn. Captain American attacked and then his minion Namor attacked, bringing Iceman down to 3 health, then Shadow of the Past was drawn, and Iceman's nemesis minion, Pyro, did 3 points of indirect damage, which we couldn't defend against. In the second game, Iceman maintained the upper hand most of the game, eventually finishing off Captian America with 21 points of damage in the final round.