DR. Doom LE What an expensive piece!

[alvintanmd]

Hi,
Why is the Dr. Doom LE Level 3 so expensive? Is it because of playability? Thanks.

[Psylockeslover]

One word-desireability.

Everyone wants him. See Nightcrawler.

[the itsy bit]

he's Doom off course !!

what a silly question to ask.:p

Do you read comics ?
Dr.Doom is the greatest villain ever !

[SolSonic]

You name it - Perplex, Mastermind, Leadership, Outwit, Energy Explosion, Incapacitate, Toughness... this bot has got it!

Okay, only about one or two clicks each, but he's awesome!

[tyroc]

doom ability and he flies and until explosion comes out one of the few marvel perplexers.

[RavenProject]

Blowing my own horn... for playability, check out my review of LE Doctor Doom. (The links in my sig make it easy to find.)

As for his dollar cost... welcome to the point where the three aspects of "Collectible Miniatures Game" come together.

Since this is indeed a collectible set, you'll find a lot of people who want to complete their personal sets regardless of whether or not they'll play them. For example, why does Johnny Storm command $30+ on eBay even though most players consider him useless? Because he's rare, and the collectible side of the equation keeps prices high.

As miniatures, you'll have a lot of people hot to get certain figures because of a "cool factor." Nightcrawler, for example, owes a good chunk of his value to the simple fact that he's a very popular character crafted in a beautiful sculpt.

And as a game, of course, players will want pieces that are perceived as more playable than others. This is why, for example, a set of Firelords will sell for more than a set of Kangs, despite having equal rarity.

When two or more of those factors come together, things get ugly. Let's go back to Nightcrawler. He's a Unique, so he's fairly rare. He's a fantastic-looking figure. And he's potent on the playing field. Combine those factors, and you have a lot of people after him for different reasons. When that happens, it comes down to who wants him most, as long as they express that desire in cash. Supply and demand at its finest.

With Doctor Doom and the other CT LEs, there's a fourth factor in play: Duration. While unconfirmed, there's a popular belief that CT LEs will be phased out shortly after XPlosion is released. This means there's a very limited time to get a given figure, which corresponds to a higher rarity, and this pumps the price even higher.

So -- to bring it down to one sentence -- Doctor Doom is an expensive figure because potent playing piece with a cool figure which is rare and might be getting more rare.

However, take some solace in this: After playing Clix for a while, I've reached the opinion that the winner is not necessarily the guy who spends the most. The point system for Clix flattens out the curve by allowing less-expensive figures to be totally playable. For example, look at some of the figures considered staples of a tournament team. E Black Cat and E Wasp are Rarity 2, R Black Panther is R3, Medics top out at R3 and a number of R2s are useful as well. You can't field a team of just Uniques, LEs and R5s and expect to win, but the reverse is true as well: you can play a competitive team even if you don't have the most expensive Uniques and LEs.

If you're trying to be a competitive player without spending a ton, then you can safely avoid the expensive LEs and focus on your playing ability. Besides, you'll be far more satisfied when you win that Doctor Doom in a tourney where you played a bunch of inexpensive figures. ;)

-J

[shin-goji]

Originally posted by RavenProject
Blowing my own horn...

DUDE! Kids are reading this!!!