Hello all,

I'll be competing in my first reverse dial scenario (start on the last click, taking damage brings you closer to the first click) next week and I've been doing some thinking. I've judged a couple of these tournaments before and, as a result, I've had the opportunity to think about the nature of scenario from a completely theoretical point of view. In this theory, I've broken down candidates into 3 different categories:

1) Strong end dial (i.e. U Thor, R/E Wonderman, etc) - these characters tend to have a nice boost in (some of) their stats at the end of the dial; great for a nasty surprise in a normal game and even better for dealing some early hurt in reverse dial scenarios... and often their first (last) couple clicks in reverse dial situation is nothing to sneeze at, either

2) Mid-dial spike (i.e. any Hulk you can shake a stick at) - these characters work more or less in reverse the same way they do normally: take some damage, get better, hurt the opponent with your better stats before they can knock you off of them. However, I see two real problems with this type of a dial; first, you've got some down time until you get to the good stuff (just like in a normal tournament) and, second, since most of your opponents will get better in this scenario as you damage them, it will become even easier for them to knock this type of character off of their good middle clicks.

3) Steady dials (i.e. War Machine, Executioner, etc) - these characters are probably not at their best on their last click... but they aren't too far off, either. As they take damage, their decent stats and powers get even better.

Now that I've presented my three main groups (obviously, there is a fourth group: standard, front-loaded dials with no real end dial to speak of... I am leaving them out of this discussion), and a very bried description of what I consider their pros (and maybe some of their cons), I am asking you, the HCRealms patron, which of the three groups you've had the most success with in reverse dial tournaments. Please feel free to share dials, strategies, and tips with myself and your fellow 'realmsers. Maybe you've even got another "group" of characters I haven't considered.

Oh, and just so you all know, I have already designed my team. I may use some of the posts here to tweak it a little, but the core is set in stone. I am not using this thread for team building so much as just to see what you all think of my theory and what has worked for you.

Thanks for your time!

I won one of these tournies with an Ares one time, but I think that was before the last set or two were out, so there may be better options out there now.

Yeah, I can see Ares being pretty effective. Nice mobility with the Running Shot; decent AV; damage isn't anything special, but it's backed up by Outwit; DV is a little low, but he's got Toughness to soak up some early hits... and, of course, the Mystics TA.

I guess I'd almost make another category for characters like Ares: their dials do fall off pretty regularly, but their numbers were so high to begin with that doesn't much matter. Plus, they have powers up the ying-yang. Other character's like this could be KC Superman, Gathnet, etc. Only real draw back to these guys would be their high cost (just like in a regular tournament).

Yeah, that could definitely be it's own category. The nice thing about Ares too is that even after he beats on people, getting them closer to the top of their dials, they pretty much don't want to attack him to actually do some real damage to him, because of the TA.
It's nice making it to the first click on the dial, but if it's also your last click, then you're SOL when dealing with him.

I like them. One trick is to not push unless you have a great reason.

One of the best Reverses, in my opinion, is JSA Captain Marvel. The mid-dial Outwit is brutal and when you knock him off it he gets HSS. Few figures can handle that when he gets there.

Another great choice is CM Captain Marvel for the same reason except you get a 10 range instead.

Another great figure is U Batgirl. Starting Outwit really bogs down the low end stats and when they get hit to something good you can take it away. You can do a lot more with 2 damage when you can get through Toughness or INV.

You also want good TA's. Batman Enemy, JSA, Hydra - etc are all great TA's at boosting attack / defensive values as needed.

Reverse-dial games are ALL about being aggressive.

How does Regen, Support, and Steal Energy work? In reverse or not at all?

I wouldn't think Ares would be that great. Early on, he's got great stats but he's always making his enemies better, whether he is attacking or being attacked.

He's just so expensive I gotta wonder who (if anyone) is going to take the pressue off of him. There are a lot of end-dial Pulse-Wave and Incappers - not to mention Outwit and perplex. His defense is really low for 7 clicks of life. I could easily see him getting set up for a 3-5 damage attack when his defense is a hittable 17 or less.

I guess it would depend on the build total. I think, though, Ganthet is a vastly superior choice in this set-up.

What about the Man of Steel? Starting out with a 19 defend is pretty nasty. Would that fall under strong end dial, or would the fairly steady nature of his dial land him in that group?

Try Orion.

Any Pulse Wave character with a 3-4 damage on its last click (Black Bolt, Human Torch, etc.) R Radioactive Man and R Wonder Man are two favorites of mine (who also happen to be Masters of Evil).

Is the Sentinel allowed? He's a god in these games. With an AV never below an eight and a DV no lower than 15, he's already a step above most. A player could just capture thier way to an easy victory.

Never thought about the Sentinel.

My preference is to take characters with usable end dials, but if they get hit I know the situation will get a lot worse for my opponent.

V Legacy Batman w/Protected
U Blackbolt
E Hawkeye (Ultimates---RS w/ Ultimates TA and two targets...after he's sit he becomes an RCE blaster till finished)
E Fire

MoS Supes maybe a very serious threat in these games.

Don't overlook the value of excellent pogs, especially if you play some with MoS Supes. Eddie Fryers, Lockheed, Oberon, MoS Supes and two other cheap taxis could be a problem.

Ultimate Thor is just a beast in this type of event. Also, anybody who has TK on his/her last click(does anybody?) is great.

Drake Burroughs!!