Editor: Kristian Radford. Sunday 3rd October 2004.
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Editor: Kristian Radford. Sunday 3rd October 2004.
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DC Series - Part 5: Arkham Inmates The penultimate article for this series takes a look at the evil half of the DC starter. This is a definitive collection of essential info about the looniest characters in the Vs. universe, (insert trumpet fanfare here) the Arkham Inmates. The article also features an interview with Mr. Arkham himself, Kieren "Honest" Otton. So sit back and relax and let the Joker tickle your gaming funny bone. Arkham Inmates - Card Review Key Cards
These cards are integral to any Arkham deck, be it limited or constructed. They're game winning and crucial to hold down the fort in the late game. The pride of the Asylum, 7 drop Joker gets a free stun by discarding an Arkham Inmate of equal recruit cost from your hand. The game text is offset by some terrible numbers for a 7 drop (13/13) and neither flight nor range. The ability may also be why Arkham currently don't have a character tutor or 8 drop. This guy is simply devastating on your initiative, as by this time you'll have a variety of drops in hand, stun their biggest character and run over the top of what's left on the table. Again loyalty for a 7 drop shouldn't be a problem with a well designed limited or constructed deck. If the joker is the cream of the Arkham crop then Mr. Freeze is the, uh...BOMB! No way around it people, this card is insane. Don't listen to the pros that pass this card around the draft table. In draft if there are no bombs in the pack then you take him and if you play Arkham in constructed play four of him. It doesn't make sense how big his impact is on the game, initiative or not Mr. Freeze on the table is great for you. Oh yeah, before I forget, no loyalty on a ranged 11/13 not too shabby for a 6 drop DC character. In the great tradition of great Arkham common characters comes Killer Croc, a 5 drop 7/10 with the power to take down 6 drops when attacking. The 10 DEF means that your opponent's non-Killer Croc 5 drop will need an ATK bonus to take him down. However, his 7 ATK isn't so hot on defense and makes him an Overload magnet in constructed. His importance is doubled when you consider the caliber (or lack thereof) of Arkham 5 drops. I would aggressively mulligan for him when playing constructed knowing I have no other 5 drops in the deck and no way to fetch him. No Man's Land is another candidate for best location in the game. Don't want a character you can't deal with swinging back at you during your initiative? For the cost one Arkham character from hand you can flip No Man's Land and exhaust it. It's best used to exhaust the biggest character on the table and let Croc, Freeze and/or Bane swing down to inflict maximum damage, and it's also good for clearing your opponent's early game with Charaxes. In limited this could leave them loyalty screwed. In constructed No Man's Land in conjunction with Puppet Master is a great foundation for a control deck but watch out for Mr. Freeze. Fear and Confusion is in this list because of the power it grants Arkham characters. The plus one ATK to attackers means that it can help you out of a fix especially with team attacks. This also makes it a desirable card for all players in a draft. The second ability is team stamped and very effective in constructed. At its worst it makes risky attacks viable because if it fails your opponent can't hit you back. At its best Fear and Confusion upgrades the text on Charaxes and Mr. Freeze.
A 14/14 boosted character on 7th turn or a 6 drop 12/12 with built in removal, Bane is great on both initiatives because the card below him on the curve is Killer Croc and the card above is 7 drop Joker. Both cards have the power to stun something so Bane can punch them straight into the KO pile when he attacks. I think he's very versatile and worth going Arkham for in limited. Poison Ivy is another Arkham staple and the best 4 drop character in the team because of her ability to put someone to sleep for a turn. Best served with a Nasty Surprise on defense, her presence can make any opponent think twice about an attack. If she stuns someone and that character is chosen to be recovered, that character remains face down on the table and not KO'd. It's delay, annoying and all part of what Inmates do, i.e. get on your opponent's nerves. Charaxes is another great common drop for the Inmates. He's capable of getting a player's loyalty screwed single handedly in limited and best used with No Man's Land, Fear and Confusion and Puppet Master in constructed. Charaxes can lock your opponent down, providing you hit your curve. 5/3 with flight is balanced by his inability to hit the opponent directly. Saying that, the best way to deal with the lock is to keep characters in hand that would otherwise be KO'd until you can play one that can survive. It's a way out, but I didn't say it was going to be a good one. Kidnapping is another high caliber plot twist for Arkham. This is what Ratcatcher was ignored for the better part of 20 DC drafts before Paul got his hands on him. I liken Ratcatcher to Disciple of the Vault because of his complete disregard for your opponent's life total. A first turn Ratcatcher will usually net (pardon the pun) about 10-15 endurance from your opponent, quite the contribution from a little 1 for 1/1. After Ratcatcher Paul went on to try and break Two-Face and then Penguin. Needless to say he gave up on Arkham after that which is a shame because he was up to the good stuff. The last card is from a long list of solid uncommon DC locations. Arkham Asylum is too good with too many cards to leave out of the review. The first ability is useful to keep your hand nice and healthy. It's best used to bounce Harley back to hand so you can use her as a power up for an attack or Bane so he can keep coming back as a 14/14. The second ability complement cards like Fear and Confusion and No Man's Land. ATK bonuses on a stick = never bad. Honorable Mentions
Cracking the Vault
Firefly, Garfield Lynns
The Joker, Laughing Lunatic
Rigged Elections (RE) Draft Strategy Having the most sought after commons in the set makes Arkham very difficult to draft. It usually comes down to cracking the main cards for it i.e. Mr. Freeze, 7 drop Joker etc. That said, Arkham is probably the easiest to draft as a mono-team. Besides Freeze, Croc and Fear and Confusion, you'll find that most things will be handed to you. The only loyalty to worry about is late game, so feel free to fill out plot twist/location slots, especially with No Man's Land and offense cards. Take Crocs and Freezes early Ôcause they rarely get passed, that should be enough to take care of any loyalty problems. You'll also find that Bane and Charaxes are quite common in packs and passed regularly.
As for team ups Arkham isn't too picky. They seem to go well with any team (besides Fearsome Five). I've personally done well combining them with, surprise, surprise, Teen Titans or Gotham Knights (grab those Charaxes + No Man's Land/Fear and Confusion
Mr. Freeze + Fear and Confusion
Joker, The Clown Prince of Crime + Bane, The Man Who Broke the Bat
Arkham Asylum + Bane, The Man Who Broke the Bat
Arkham Asylum + Harley Quinn Arkham Inmates in Constructed (An interview with an Inmate) Let me be the first to admit that I'm not the foremost Arkham constructed guru in Sydney (thank god). So I decided to talk Arkham constructed with the man who is. It's none other than Kieren Otton (honest in the forums): one of the proprietors of SGC, outstanding citizen and bane of Foggo's existence (on the Heroclix board that is). I sat down with him one barmy Saturday afternoon at Burwood and asked him some medium to hard hitting questions about Arkham. Me: You've played Batman's enemies for as long as I can remember. Any special reasons why? Honest: They're just the coolest guys. I've been a fan since the 60's Batman series when they were called super villains. By the way Adam West is the one and only Batman. Initially I played Brotherhood because it was my job to learn the game so I could teach it to kids. When DC came out, people bagged Arkham, so I took it to heart and made it a personal mission to prove those people wrong. Me: Do you think you see things in the Inmates that we mere mortals don't? Honest: Only because people easily dismiss the cards and end up glossing over them. I've actually sat down, read the cards and thought about it. Me: OK, if you had to win a game what would be the hand and what would the turns for you be like? Honest: With the resource drops, it would go something like this.
Any Plot Twist, Ratcatcher I tried an all DC build but I had to accept that without some help from Marvel cards Arkham was ordinary, especially in the late game. Me: Having one good 5 recruit cost character, do you mulligan if it isn't in your hand? Honest: No actually I don't, I'm actually happier to keep an opening hand of plot twists. I'm not too concerned with characters. I believe in the deck and leave the draw in the lap of the gods. I originally had too many 4 drops so I cut a couple and played Clayface! Me: In the beginning you made the deck and only included characters that fought Adam West in the 60's TV series, even playing Penguin is completely unplayable but it doesn't matter how bad Penguin is, it will still beat whatever Chris (SGC's co-owner) comes up with. Kieren's changes to the deck:
Me: How do you think you'd go in a pure DC field? Honest: In a pure DC field I may still struggle against TT but if Arkham wins it'll be because of Airborne Assaults, Kidnappings and Arkham Asylum. No Man's Land will also have to go back in because there's no Freeze. He just changes the game, sometimes not enough. Team attacking him sucks and 13 DEF with range is good. Me: Worst card? Honest: Hugo Strange but I wouldn't be surprised if Foggo (Chris' nickname) sees something in him. Me: Finally, if you're stuck on a deserted island with the Arkham Inmates, how do you prevent yourself from being the first one to go? If not you who would it be? Honest: First, I'd suck up and brown nose to the king, Joker, then tell Freeze that Hatter called him a clown. I'd find a hill somewhere and enjoy the internal war from afar. I guess the moral of the story is, don't listen to what other people say. If your mum says you're cool then you are...Wait, that's not it. If you believe something can be good and you work at, eventually it will be. Till then, good gaming. Ray Isais
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![Ratcatcher, Otis Flannegan](http://www.vsuniverse.com/db/cards/924.jpg"){kind=link}
. The League team up works as long as you play mainly league and splash Arkham, just cause LoA loves the loyalty.</P>
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Combos with Arkham Inmates in Limited:</B></P>
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