Let’s start with the obvious stuff, flight and range. The Human Torch is the first character in our preview articles to have both the flight and range icons. Here’s a quick recap of how range works. Characters are brought into play into either the front row or the support row. Normally, characters can only attack from the front row, but characters with range can attack from the support row.

You’re probably wondering what other benefits characters get from being in the support row. One of the biggest is the potential to be “protected.” A support row character is protected if there is a character immediately above it in the front row.

It doesn’t matter if the front row character is ready or exhausted, or even on the same team as the character it’s protecting. Any warm body can serve as a speed bump. Normally, the only way an opponent can attack a protected support row character is to first stun the front row character protecting it. Once the front row character is stunned, the support row character behind it becomes unprotected

So, after three introductory paragraphs, we’ve come to how flight works. This is a much simpler read in the rulebook, trust me, but they wanted these articles to be more than 700 words long, and they wanted a new one every day for March. Slave drivers . . . After all, some of us are busy working on the Spidey expansion. Anyway, a character in the front row with flight can fly over an opposing front row character and directly attack a protected support row character. 

OK, I’ll finish up this lesson on flight and range by mentioning that the two abilities are synergistic, meaning a character with both flight and range can attack from either the front or support row and can attack any opposing character. So it’s good to have flight and range. Thanks for taking the time to learn about flight and range. Tune in tomorrow when we look at . . . Wait, the Human Torch also has a busted power they’ll want me to talk about . . . razzem frazzem . . .

Before we get into his Super Nova power, it’s worth mentioning that this version of Johnny (there are three in Origins—this one is the biggest) is a powerhouse even without the death blossom ability. (Last Starfighter reference, anyone?) His flight and range let him attack any opposing character, and he can even have the Thing protecting him while he does it.

Johnny’s Super Nova power has three direct applications. The first is to simply cram as much breakthrough into an attack as possible. Like I mentioned above, he can attack anyone, so it’s easy for him to burn up your opponent’s endurance. This alone was powerful enough that we had to stamp him with a Fantastic Four play requirement.

(We’ll explain why certain characters get “team stamped” in later articles.) 

The second application is for Torch to take out characters more powerful than he is. When he goes ‘Nova, HT even has the potential to drop someone like—oops, better not say. It’s still a secret.

Lastly, the best way to use his ability is to outright win the game by comboing it with the card . . . Wait, that’s almost 700 words. Right, then, I need a strong finisher. Uh, the Human Torch is really really, really good. The end.

Tomorrow – A new breed of man emerges . . .