With the Spider-Man Vs. Doc Ock two-player Starter Set due out any day now, it’s time for another preview. The Daily Bugle is one of two Spider-Friends locations featured in the set. Let’s take a quick look at the flavor of the card before going over some of the tricks, traps, and otherwise cool things you can do with it.

Everyone knows that J. Jonah Jameson hates Spider-Man. But did you know that he also hates pretty much all costumed vigilantes as well as their villainous counterparts? In fact, he hates them so much that apparently the Daily Bugle has put out a bounty for the capture of (insert character name here). When you flip the Bugle face up, you get to choose which character JJJ is mad at. Then, when one of your Spider-Friends stuns the named character, his reward is letting you reuse one of your plot twists.

One card from the Marvel Origins set, Destiny, comes to mind when thinking about the Daily Bugle. She has a similar targeting/reward component. However, there are four important differences between her and the Bugle (aside from the basic stuff, like she’s a lady, and it’s a building).

One, with Destiny, you have to make your prediction during the build phase—you know, in advance. But JJJ likes to hedge his bets. You can flip the Bugle during an attack and choose the character that’s just about to get stunned. Talk about instant gratification. It’s especially fun to use a combat trick during the attack and then immediately reset it as a result of the attack. Not only have you increased the quality of your board position, you’ve also probably made your opponent weep, at least on the inside. (Wow, I’m starting to sound like Matt Hyra . . .)

Two, fate is far more fickle than the front page. While Destiny can predict a different character’s demise each turn, the Bugle locks in its “menace.” This means you have to be careful to optimize its use. If you flip it too early or choose a potentially expendable opposing character, your opponent might let that character get KO’d during recovery, and you’ll be denied any future bounties.

Three, the 4 endurance loss Destiny slaps your opponent with is, while very nice, all you get for your trouble. Don’t get me wrong, 4 endurance is nothing to sniff at, especially in the right deck, but getting a second (or third . . .) use out of a plot twist can have a much greater impact on the game. Imagine reusing a Savage Beatdown, Burn Rubber, or Overload. And wait till you see some of the new plot twists from the Spidey set . . .

Four, apparently JJJ hates robots. While Destiny targets a specific character, the Bugle just has you “choose a character named [ ].” This means that if you choose the name of a character when there is more than one of that character in play (usually an army character, or perhaps you’re playing three-way and both of your opponents have the same character), the Bugle will trigger each time one of your Spider-Friends takes down one of those characters. So if the Sentinels start taking over the metagame, make sure you pack your Daily Bugles.

Here are a few more things to consider. You have to stun one of the chosen characters specifically with a Spider-Friends character. Unlike one of Destiny’s predicted victims who could be Overloaded or Flame Trapped or Robot Destroyered or Blastaared or Annihilused or Onslaughted or (you get the idea), your Spider-Friends have to get their hands dirty.

Also, you can turn any face-up resource you control face down, not just plot twists. There aren’t a whole lot of locations you’d want to do this with in the Origins set, but I have a feeling there might be some in the future. Speaking of which, keep in mind you can turn the Daily Bugle itself face down if you want, and then later flip it again to reset the chosen character. This is particularly useful if you think your opponent’s about to let the character the Bugle’s currently set on get KO’d.

The Spider-Friends are a new edition to the Vs. System. They’re a brand new team with their own tricks and treats, and they’re coming soon to a game store near you.

Send questions or comments to dmandel@metagame.com.