Chapter 8 Released

Chapter 8, Dark Rites, of Marvel: Avengers Alliance was released today (June 2, 2012).

More information to come later.

Modern Armor Thor

"Modern Armor Thor" is a line of uniforms that come in Blaster and Bruiser versions.  They cost 66 and 51 Command Points, respectively.

These uniforms retain the Asgardian passive ability, but have the new ability:

• Might of Mjolnir x2
• Increase damage and accuracy of the next Hammer Throw or Summon Thunder
• This effect can be applied up to 2 times

This ability is like the Might of Mjolnir granted by Thor's level 2 skill, Empowering Strike, but applies 2 stacks at once and is automatically given at the start of combat.

Scarlet Witch Released

Scarlet Witch was released on June 28, 2012.  She comes only as a Blaster in her "Classic" uniform, and costs 90 Command Points.

[Images in this article were taken with Agent at level 158, wearing a Generalist's Commander Trench filled with eight Chaotic Iso-8 Shards.]

Modern Armor Sif

"Modern Armor Sif" is a new line of uniforms.  There are Scrapper (42 Command Points) and Bruiser (42 CP) versions.

These uniforms, as well as "Classic Sif", have the passive ability "Asgardian".  This ability (which Thor also has) makes Sif immune to Burning, Chilled, Poison, and Radiation.

The new line of uniforms have the new ability:

• Tempered Steel (3 turns)
• Sif's attacks are guaranteed to be critical hits for the first three rounds

This new ability is like the Honed Edge ability granted by Sif's level 6 skill, Inspire Courage, except that it starts at the beginning of combat.

Iron Man Mark 5 Armor Upgraded

"Iron Man Mark 5 Armor" is a line of uniforms that has been available for a long time.  There are Tactician (60 Command Points) and Blaster (45 CP) versions.

These uniforms, as well as Iron Man's other uniforms, have the passive ability "Flying".  This ability makes Iron Man immune to most ground attacks.

More recently, a passive ability was added to Iron Man's Mark 5 Armor:

• Energized Shield (3 turns)
• Absorbs incoming damage
• Immune to Stun
• Restores Stamina every turn

Energized Shield is just like Iron Man's level 6 skill, Deflector Shield, except it restores Stamina every turn and is automatically activated at the start of combat.

This new ability strengthens Iron Man's defense considerably, and introduces new possible strategies for combat.

Iron Man Shoes

Quote:

J’field Yeo took this Nike Dunk High and turned it into something extraordinary with a new custom inspired by the popular Marvel Comics icon, Iron Man. The Dunk High features a custom painted upper in red and metallic gold with Iron Man’s helmet painted on the heel of the shoe. The ‘helmet’ also features functioning LED lights on the eyes as well as an LED arc reactor in on the tongue. To take it to extremes, J’field also created a custom “Stark Industries” brief case (as seen in the recent Iron Man 2 movie) with another LED operated arc reactor installed inside. To check out more of his brilliant work, hit up MTATW.

Follow link for more images:

Sneaker Files - Nike Dunk High Custom - Iron Man by J'Field Yeo

Creator of these shoes (Marvel Entertainment told them they are not allowed to sell these shoes or display images of them):

MTATW - More Than Art To Wear

Copyright Infringement

I've taken some old posts offline.  It may be temporary or it might not be.  [UPDATE, June 25, 2012:  I've put the posts back online.]

Initially, I played Marvel: Avengers Alliance a lot, but cooled off quickly due to the lack of new content and the simplicity of the game.  In that initial period, I also had many ideas for blog content, many of which haven't come to fruition.  I've lost interest in creating new, original work for this blog (as well as another blog) for a couple of reasons.  I can barely justify taking the time to make new, but bland, unoriginal posts.

I make virtually no money from the advertising on this blog, especially in light of the amount of work I've put in.  The most important reason for this is probably the incredibly low CTR (click-through rate) on ads among Facebook gamers.  It's nice, however, to see an increasing number of readers, likes, and page views.

Copying Is Not "Sharing"

What really annoys me, though, is copyright infringement.  Many people don't seem to understand what that means.  How would you like to spend many hours working on something--most of it original--only to see other people copy you?  Not only that, but it's the worst form of copying.  I don't just mean taking an idea and creating a similar piece of work.  Some people copy HTML code (not from this blog that I've noticed) and use it on their own websites, or take screenshots of original work and spread it around as if it were their own work.

Most people don't even bother to credit or link to what they are copying.  The ethical thing to do is to give an excerpt (not the whole work if it is long, with some exceptions), credit the source, and provide a link.  In some cases, it would also be proper to ask permission from the author first.

Intellectual property can be hard to understand.  It is an abstract, Western concept.  It is one of the pillars of modern Western society.  There are grey areas such as the notion of "fair use", such as when I use images from Avengers Alliance.

Think about this.  Why would anyone continue to do anything original without getting paid if others constantly profit from it without doing any work of their own?  Some people might still do it out of interest, passion, naivety, ignorance, or some selfish motive.  But most people would simply stop creating original work.

References

Wikipedia - Intellectual Property

Wikipedia - Copyright Infringement

Wikipedia - Digital Millennium Copyright Act

United States Copyright Office

Facebook - Copyright Policy

Facebook - About Copyrights

Facebook - Reporting Copyright Infringements

Facebook - online form for reporting infringement of copyright, trademarks, and other

Blogger - online form for reporting copyright infringement

Shadowcat Kitty Pryde Upgraded

"Shadowcat Kitty Pryde" is a line of uniforms that has been available for a long time.  There are Scrapper (45 Command Points) and Infiltrator (32 CP) versions.

These uniforms, as well as the "Classic X-Men Kitty Pryde" uniform, have the passive ability "Lockheed".  This ability gives a chance of a counter-attack by Kitty Pryde's dragon friend, Lockheed, each time an enemy attacks Kitty Pryde.

More recently, two new passive abilities were added to the Shadowcat uniforms:

• Strike From the Shadows (3 turns)
• Begins the fight Phased
• Counters all attacks for the first three rounds of combat
• Phased (3 turns)
• Automatically dodges all attacks
• Increased damage on next attack
• Removed after attacking

These new abilities strengthen Kitty Pryde considerably, and introduce new possible strategies for combat.

Black Panther Released

The newest Hero, Black Panther, was just released on June 7, 2012 at 1:00 PM PST.  Classic Black Panther is a Tactician that costs 90 Command Points to recruit.

[Images in this article were taken with Agent at level 150, wearing a Generalist's Commander Trench filled with eight Chaotic Iso-8 Shards.]

Recall that Black Panther was the Top New Hero Wanted.

Recruitment dialog:

"Wakanda has no need of S.H.I.E.L.D. but S.H.I.E.L.D. has need of Wakanda.  As long as our goals align, I will fight by your side."  

The Chase For Mockingbird Just Got Better

Probably in response to the many complaints about the difficulty of Special Operation 1, Playdom has made some changes.  The above image was sent by email to players of Marvel Avengers Alliance.  It reads:

The chase for Mockingbird just got better

Recent developments in S.H.I.E.L.D. technology have made Special Operations easier and more rewarding.

• Mission difficulty has been re-balanced
• Spec Ops reward weapons are now customized to your agent level
• The time limit has been extended one week
• Claim 50 Unstable ISO-8 reward to get back in the fight

Click the following link for the reward:

50 Unstable ISO-8

Chaotic Grenade

The Chaotic Grenade is a premium, limited edition item available from June 5-7, 2012.  It is a single-use item, not a weapon.

It is the blog author's opinion that limited edition, single-use items are not worth buying for Gold (unless one comes along that has major ramifications in the game, such as unlocking a mission).

The Gold price of this item may vary between players due to Playdom's variable pricing policy.

• PVP Bonus: +341 Atk, +341 Def
• Deals damage to a single target and causes Iso-8 Corruption 
• Corruption Blast (1 turn)
• Deals massive damage to a single target
• Iso-8 Corruption (3 turns)
• Taking damage every turn
• All stats reduced
• This effect can be applied up to 3 times

Modern Colossus Uniforms

The Modern Colossus uniforms were released on June 5, 2012.  There are two class versions: Scrapper and Bruiser.

The Scrapper version costs 42 Command Points, while the Bruiser version costs 32 Command Points.  The Scrapper version costs more because it allows Colossus to change from his original Bruiser class.

Unlike the Avengers uniforms, which were available for a limited time, the Modern Colossus uniforms are permanently available.

Steel Fortress

Both Modern Colossus uniforms come with the new passive ability, Steel Fortress.  This ability is just like Colossus' level 2 skill, Steel Curtain, except that it lasts 3 turns.  It is activated the first time an enemy tries to attack the Agent or a Hero.  It does not reset in the second or third rounds of combat.

Steel Fortress (3 turns)

• Protects allies from single-target attacks for the first three rounds of combat
• Takes reduced damage

Coulson's Revenge

Coulson's Revenge is a new premium, Limited Edition weapon available for 3 days only (May 31, 2012 - June 2, 2012).  Players have reported various Gold prices for it (including 48, 64, 112, and 128).

Along with the special weapons from Special Operation 1, Coulson's Revenge comes with the new "Customized" trait.  With this trait, a weapon's Power level is set by the Agent's level at the time it is acquired.

The "Avengers Assemble!" trait is synergistic with the same trait granted by Heroes' Avengers uniforms.  When two other Avengers are present in combat, "Collaborative Effort" is activated and raises the stats of the Agent and Heroes.

The high base damage along with the powerful "Ignore Defense" trait makes Coulson's Revenge a very powerful weapon.

The major drawbacks of Coulson's Revenge are the 3-round cool-down and high cost of purchase.

---

Weapon Traits

[Image taken with Agent at level 143 with Attack = 715 and Accuracy = 715.]

Power Level: determined by Agent's level at time weapon is acquired

Target: One Enemy

Damage: 1369-1643

Hit / Critical: 94% / 21%

Cooldown: 3 Rounds

Type: Fire Energy Ranged

PVP Bonus: +620 Atk / +310 Def

Customized

• Power is set by Agent level when acquired

Avengers Assemble!

• Grants Coordinated Attack to all allies
• Grants Cooperative Defense with one Avenger
• Grants Collaborative Effort with two Avengers

Ignore Defense

• Damage ignores enemy's Defense stat
• Attacks penetrate Shield statuses

Release Notes - May 31, 2012

Changes to Heroes

• Black Widow’s Revenge Tactics no longer provokes counter-attacks when it procs. This fixes problems with infinite loops between two Black Widows using Revenge Tactics.
• Human Torch’s Nova Blast damage has been increased
• Storm’s Blizzard damage has been increased
• Captain America’s Shield Guard ability restored to a 2-round cooldown
• Several minor balance tweaks to Mockingbird’s stats

Changes to Weapons

• New “Customized” weapons are available.
• Weapons marked as “Customized” set their Power Level based on the Agent’s current level at the time that the weapon is acquired. (Either through purchase or loot drop.)
• Target Pistol, The Toolbox, Taste of Thunder and Enchanted Crowbar are now considered “Customized” weapons.
• Energy weapons that do beam animations have had their animations improved.
• Attacks that ignore defense have had their damage reduced slightly.

Other Changes

• Various PvE enemy AI improvements and fixes

Unannounced Changes

• Sales of some Avenger uniforms have been extended for 3 (?) days.
• Heavy Ion Beam's damage nerfed.  Supposedly, this is a bug, but it's not encouraging that it comes to a former premium weapon on the same day a new premium weapon is released for sale.

Source: Playdom (except for unannounced changes)

Top 50 PVP Bonus Items

The P.E.W. "Anchor" is currently the item with the highest PVP bonus in Avengers Alliance.

There are currently a total of 605 items that give a PVP bonus.  Only the top 50 are listed in the table below.  Many of these are currently unavailable in the game through legal means.

Iso-8 Shards

This table is only for Shards, not Chips or Fragments.  The table also excludes the %-bonus Iso-8's that were available during the beta phase of the game and that are currently unavailable in the game through legal means.

The Refined Shards require Gold for purchase.  The regular Shards require Silver and SHIELD Points.

Score is a weighted total of the stats as follows:

Score = (Health + Stamina) / 5 + (Attack + Defense + Accuracy + Evasion)

RED	Health	Stam	Atk	Def	Acc	Eva	Score
Refined Violent			28		28		56
Strong			29				29
Precise					29		29
BLUE	Health	Stam	Atk	Def	Acc	Eva	Score
Refined Fortified	142	142					56.8
Healthy	145						29
Enduring		145					29
YELLOW	Health	Stam	Atk	Def	Acc	Eva	Score
Refined Guardian				28		28	56
Tough				29			29
Speedy						29	29
ORANGE	Health	Stam	Atk	Def	Acc	Eva	Score
Forceful			17	17	17		51
Expert			17	17		17	51
Mercurial			17		17	17	51
Adroit				17	17	17	51
Bulky			23	23			46
Dexterous					23	23	46
Proficient			23			23	46
Exact				23	23		46
GREEN	Health	Stam	Atk	Def	Acc	Eva	Score
Durable	87	87		17			51.8
Steadfast	87	87				17	51.8
Spry	87			17		17	51.4
Lasting		87		17		17	51.4
Sturdy	116			23			46.2
Deft	116					23	46.2
Resilient		116		23			46.2
Active		116				23	46.2
PURPLE	Health	Stam	Atk	Def	Acc	Eva	Score
Robust	87	87	17				51.8
Flourishing	87	87			17		51.8
Steady	87		17		17		51.4
Masterful		87	17		17		51.4
Powerful	116		23				46.2
Focused	116				23		46.2
Relentless		116	23				46.2
Careful		116			23		46.2
PRISMATIC	Health	Stam	Atk	Def	Acc	Eva	Score
Refined Chaotic	71	71	14	14	14	14	84.4
Chaotic	58	58	12	12	12	12	71.2
Refined Stalwart	106		21	21			63.2
Refined Athletic	106				21	21	63.2
Refined Patient	106			21	21		63.2
Refined Skillful	106		21			21	63.2
Refined Nimble		106			21	21	63.2
Refined Stoic		106		21	21		63.2
Refined Tireless		106	21			21	63.2
Refined Vigorous		106	21	21			63.2

Combat Scores

At the end of each combat, you are given a combat score for your performance.  There are numerous factors that determine the base score.  The base score is multiplied by two multipliers to determine the final combat score.

This final combat score is displayed as in the image above (105,000).  It also determines the combat grade ("Perfection" in the image).  The final combat score also enters into the total score accumulated for that mission when you exit (not abort) the mission after defeating the Boss.  The total mission score determines how many stars you have achieved for that mission.

Silver and Gold Rollback Exploit

For several hours during the morning (PDT) of May 16, 2012, some or all Avengers Alliance game servers were having technical problems.  There seemed to be database issues where some things in the game would be saved correctly but other things wouldn't.  The silver lining in this rollback issue was that it made possible exploits using Silver and Gold.

Special Operation 1 Released

Special Operation 1 was released today (May 15, 2012).  It's a limited-time Chapter that's available for only 28 days (until June 12, 2012).

You can access it by clicking on the special jet on the Helicarrier as shown in the image above, or by clicking on the Missions tab in the lower right corner of the game screen.

How To Cure Radiation Exposure

When you fight the boss battle in the premium mission in Chapter 7, the henchman X-Ray can give you a very nasty debuff called "Radiation Exposure".

This debuff can also be experienced when fighting in PVP.  You can get it when your opponent uses either the Cosmic Ray Bomb or the Heavy Ion Beam.  The Cosmic Ray Bomb is one of the possible items you can receive after defeating the boss in the premium mission in Chapter 7.  The Heavy Ion Beam was a 2-day Limited Edition premium item offered for sale in May 2012.




There are a couple of ways to temporarily cure Radiation: Panacea Injection and Preventative Medicine.  Norton Shield may also work, but that needs to be tested.

Heavy Ion Beam - Limited Edition

The Heavy Ion Beam is a Limited Edition weapon made available on May 4, 2012--the same day that most of the Avengers move-themed uniforms were released.  Unlike the new uniforms, this weapon is available for 2 days only.

This weapon deals moderate damage and causes Radiation Exposure, but only targets one enemy.  Nonetheless, it's a very nice weapon due to the Quick Action property and cool-down of only 1 round.

Radiation Exposure is a very nasty debuff that is difficult to cure.  Another weapon that has this debuff is the Cosmic Ray Bomb, one of the two rewards from the premium mission in Chapter 7.

The Heavy Ion Beam is similar to the S.A. Pincer in that both are ranged guns with the Quick Action property.  However, the Heavy Ion Beam deals more total damage, deals energy damage, hits 4 instead of 1 time, has a cool-down of 1 round instead of 2 rounds, and causes Radiation Exposure.

In the image, the cost of the Heavy Ion Beam is shown to be 12 Gold, which is a good deal.  Some players have reported that this weapon is being offered to them at higher costs such as 32 Gold or 64 Gold.

The screenshot was taken when my Agent was level 84.

New Avengers Movie Uniforms

In advance of the May 4 premiere of "Marvel's The Avengers," Marvel has launched a series of movie-themed costumes that will allow Avengers fans to play as their favorite movie character in the hit Facebook game "Marvel: Avengers Alliance."

These special edition costumes reflect the look and characteristics of their movie counterparts, and also trigger new "Avengers Assemble" team abilities.

The "Avengers Assemble" rewards any team with a movie-costume Avenger with the status "Coordinated Attack," which triggers a follow-up attack whenever your movie-costume Avenger attacks the enemy.  When players fight battles with a second movie-costume hero, the team is also awarded "Coordinated Defense" status, which triggers a counter-attack when movie-costume hero is attacked by an enemy.

The Black Widow and Hawkeye uniforms are live in the game now, while the additional movie-themed uniforms will debut in the coming days.

Costume Descriptions

• Captain America: His super-serum strength allows players to purchase and equip a new costume that sets him as a Bruiser or go with the classic and set him up as a Tactician.
• Thor: Bring down the lightning and set up Thor's movie persona as a Blaster, or stick with the Bruiser to deliver some massive hammer damage.
• Black Widow: Exploit vulnerable weaknesses by tapping into her inner-Tactician, or concentrate on speed as her original Infiltrator class.
• Hulk: Tap into Hulk's rage by setting him up as a Scrapper or stick to his incredible strength and equip the Bruiser version of his movie costume.
• Hawkeye: Set up the master marksman with an Infiltrator class or stick to his original Tactician roots.
• Iron Man: As a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, you'd expect Iron Man to make a great Tactician; players can also lean on the power of his Mark V armor and keep him as a Blaster.

Captain America, Thor, and Hulk are three of the most powerful Heroes in the game currently.  Save your Command Points to purchase the new Avengers movie-themed uniforms for these three Heroes.  They're only available for a limited time!

UPDATE:  The new uniforms came out on May 4, 2012.  You have 24 days (until May 28) to get the ones for Captain America and Hulk; and 17 days (until May 21) to get the ones for Iron Man and Thor. The ones for Black Widow and Hawkeye came out earlier and you have 10 days left (until May 14) to get those.


Excerpted from: New Avengers Costumes; reformatted with emphasis and notes added

Chapter 7 Premium Rewards

After defeating the boss of the last mission of Chapter 7, two of the possible rewards are the Cosmic Ray Bomb and the Handheld Holraum.  They both deal a lot of damage to all enemies.  The Handheld Hohlraum deals much more direct damage and "Exploits Burning".

The Cosmic Ray Bomb doesn't deal as much damage, but it's special property, "Radiation Exposure", is awesome.  It:

• Deals an increasing amount of damage each turn
• Is difficult to cure
• Note that Asgardians such as Thor and Sif are immune to Radiation (as well as Chilled, Burning, and Poison).
• Increases damage taken from energy attacks.

These properties make the Cosmic Ray Bomb very useful for PVP.

As a side note, both weapons also grant very high PVP bonuses, but you may not want to use them for that purpose unless you have extra.

These screenshots were taken when my Agent was level 77.

Cosmic Ray Bomb

Handheld Holraum

Major Changes: Release Notes, April 27, 2012

Chapter 7 Released

• Access to Chapter 7 has been unlocked, granting access to 6 new missions.
• Complete full mastery to gain access to the powerful Golden T.Q. 5000.

Avengers Movie Costumes

• To celebrate the release of the Avengers movie worldwide, we are releasing costumes based on the characters’ appearances in the movie.
• Both Hawkeye and Black Widow have new costumes.
• Hawkeye’s new costume comes in Infiltrator and Tactician varieties.
• Black Widow’s new costume also comes in Infiltrator and Tactician varieties.
• These costumes come with the unique Avengers Assemble passive ability.
• Having one Avenger on the team grants Coordinated Attacks.
• Teammates have a chance in joining in on single-target attacks.
• Having two Avengers on the team grants Cooperative Defense as well.
• Teammates have a chance of countering when a teammate is hit by a single-target attack.
• Expect the rest of the Avengers to assemble soon!
• These costumes are only available for a limited time!

Combat Engine Improvements

These changes resolve the following PVP issues:

• Quantum Jumper
• Quick Action weapons
• “Looping” techniques

Action Cooldowns

• Cooldowns on all actions (from agent gear or heroes’ abilities) now decrement each round instead of each turn
• A round is a collection of each character getting a turn
• Extra turns happen within the same round
• This prevents characters with many extra turns getting their moves off of cooldown faster, which over-values items that produce extra turns

Extra Turns

• Extra turns granted from items and agent gear now give the character Exhaustion, preventing that character from gaining additional extra turns in a round
• This prevents “stacking” extra turns in a single round or infinitely “looping” extra turns
• This does not affect extra turns from Quick Action abilities or Tactician bonus turns

Ignore Defense

• Attacks that ignore defense (such as the Blaster class bonus) now properly deal increased damage against all targets, regardless of their level
• The tooltip has been clarified to indicate that attacks that ignore defense also ignore shield-like statuses (such as Invisible Woman’s Force Field)

Many Bosses and Mini-bosses are now immune to Stun

• This should make certain boss fights more challenging
• This fixes several issues with Stun interfering with boss mechanics

Other

• Various graphical improvements and bug fixes
• The PVP bonus granted by the Chrono Boost was accidentally reduced. This will be fixed in an upcoming patch.

Source: Playdom

Items Nerfed

Along with Chapter 7 being unlocked, it looks like some other changes were made.  Some of the Heroes and items were tweaked.

As you can see from the image above, the Quantum Jumper has been nerfed with this additional property: "Only one extra turn may be taken each round".  The cooldown has also been increased to 4 rounds.  After taking the first extra turn in a round, "Exhaustion" is bestowed on a character:

The Gamma Booster has been nerfed with the additional property: "This effect stacks up to 3 times".

The S.A. "Pincer" has been nerfed by increasing its cooldown from 1 to 2 rounds.  The "Quick Action" text in the display was removed as in the image below, but the Pincer actually still retains this property.    Many other items had this same bug due to the major release today, but the bug was fixed on the same day.

Chrono Boost now only gives PVP bonuses of +70 Attack and +70 Defense, instead of the prior +299/+299.  This is on top of the recent price increase from 1 to 2 Gold.  On the same day as this change, Playdom stated that "the PVP bonus granted by the Chrono Boost was accidentally reduced. This will be fixed in an upcoming patch."  It was indeed fixed within a few days.

Chapter 7 Unlocked

Chapter 7 has been unlocked today, April 27, 2012. You may need to refresh the game to see this.

Mission 1: Anticipation
Recommended Level: 49

Agent Uniforms

The Agent's stats depend on his level and the uniform he wears.  They do not depend on what uniforms he was wearing when he gained prior levels.  Uniforms bought with Gold generally give better stats than similar uniforms bought with Silver and SHIELD Points.

Cyclops

Tactician - Gains a bonus turn after attacking Blasters.

Cost: 15 CP (before any discounts)

Teams:  Mutant, X-Lovers (w/ Phoenix)

Top New Heroes Wanted

There is an ongoing poll on the new heroes that players want in Marvel Avengers Alliance.  This poll does not include villains, except for those that that used to be villains but have been heroes a majority of the time.

Golden Weapons

These Golden or "Excelsior Weapons" are Chapter Mastery Rewards.  To get one, you must earn 5-star mastery on all missions (including the premium mission) of the corresponding chapter.  The damage of these weapons scale according to the Agent's level.

The images for chapters 1-10 were screenshots taken when the Agent was level 50 with no Iso-8 bonus to Attack.  The images for chapters 11-12 were screenshots taken when the Agent was level 139 with total Attack stat 695.

Hawkeye

Tactician - Gains a bonus turn after attacking Blasters.

Master Marksman - This character's attacks almost never miss. [All his attacks have a 100% hit rate before buffs and debuffs.]

Cost: 1 CP (free via story-line)

Teams:  Avengers, Frenemies (w/ Black Widow), S.H.I.E.L.D. (w/ Black Widow)

Hero Ratings

[Black Panther is not included, but will be the future.]

The statistics of the Agent and the Heroes are rated by the game on a scale of 1-5 with 1 being the worst and 5 being the best.  These ratings, along with the Agent's level, affect how much of each statistic a Hero has.  The Hero's level does not factor into this.

In the table, the heroes are arranged in order of increasing cost within each class.  See "Agent Uniforms" for the Agent's stat multipliers in alternate uniforms.  Stat ratings of Heroes in alternate suits are the same.

Generalist	Health	Stamina	Attack	Defense	Accuracy	Evasion	Average
Agent*	3	3	3	3	3	3	3.00
Infiltrator	Health	Stamina	Attack	Defense	Accuracy	Evasion	Average
Black Widow	2	4	2	2	4	5	3.17
Invisible Woman	2	3	3	2	4	4	3.00
Black Cat	1	5	1	3	5	5	3.33
Kitty Pryde	2	5	1	3	4	5	3.33
Nightcrawler	2	5	1	2	5	5	3.33
Spider-Man	2	4	2	3	3	5	3.17
Tactician	Health	Stamina	Attack	Defense	Accuracy	Evasion	Average
Hawkeye	2	4	2	2	5	4	3.17
Cyclops	3	3	3	3	4	2	3.00
Mr. Fantastic	1	5	1	5	5	3	3.33
War Machine	3	1	5	3	2	2	2.67
Captain America	3	3	3	3	3	3	3.00
Blaster	Health	Stamina	Attack	Defense	Accuracy	Evasion	Average
Iron Man	2	2	4	4	3	2	2.83
Ms. Marvel	3	1	5	4	2	1	2.67
Dr. Strange	2	1	5	1	5	2	2.67
Human Torch	3	3	3	2	4	3	3.00
Storm	1	1	5	2	3	4	2.67
Phoenix	1	1	5	1	4	4	2.67
Bruiser	Health	Stamina	Attack	Defense	Accuracy	Evasion	Average
She-Hulk	4	2	4	3	2	2	2.83
Colossus	5	3	3	5	1	1	3.00
Thing	4	3	3	5	1	2	3.00
Hulk	5	2	4	4	1	1	2.83
Thor	5	2	4	3	2	1	2.83
Scrapper	Health	Stamina	Attack	Defense	Accuracy	Evasion	Average
Iron Fist	3	3	3	2	3	4	3.00
Luke Cage	4	3	3	4	3	1	3.00
Sif	4	3	3	4	3	1	3.00
Spider-Woman	3	2	4	2	3	3	2.83
Daredevil	3	4	2	3	3	4	3.17
Wolverine	3	2	4	3	3	2	2.83
Class	Health	Stamina	Attack	Defense	Accuracy	Evasion	Average
Infiltrator	1.83	4.33	1.67	2.50	4.17	4.83	3.22
Tactician	2.40	3.20	2.80	3.20	3.80	2.80	3.03
Blaster	2.00	1.50	4.50	2.33	3.50	2.67	2.75
Bruiser	4.60	2.40	3.60	4.00	1.40	1.40	2.90
Scrapper	3.33	2.83	3.17	3.00	3.00	2.50	2.97
All Heroes	2.79	2.86	3.14	2.96	3.21	2.89	2.98

*The Agent wearing the starter Generalist's Kevlar Jumpsuit effectively has ratings of 2 instead of 3.

Notes

• Heroes with lowest average stats: War Machine, Ms. Marvel, Dr. Strange, Storm, and Phoenix.
• Heroes with highest average stats: Black Cat, Kitty Pryde, Nightcrawler, and Mr. Fantastic.

Infiltrators

• Highest average stats, but each Hero has highly varying stats.
• High Stamina, Accuracy, and Evasion
• Low Health and Attack.
• Black Cat has the most extreme stats, and Invisible Woman has the most balanced stats.

Tacticians

• Average on most stats, with Health being a bit lower and Accuracy being a bit higher than average.
• Captain America is the most well-rounded Hero out of any class (all stat ratings are 3).  Cyclops is the second (tied with Iron Fist and Human Torch).
• Mr. Fantastic has very poor Health and Attack (ratings 1), but great Stamina, Defense, and Accuracy (ratings 5).
• War Machine has very poor Stamina (rating 1), but great Attack (rating 5).

Blasters

• Lowest average stats.  They have high Attack and above-average Accuracy.  Their Attack rating is the highest of all the classes, but their Stamina rating is the lowest of all the classes.  In a stats sense, they are the offensive damage dealers of MAA.
• Human Torch is the second most well-rounded Hero out of any class (tied with Cyclops and Iron Fist).
• Phoenix is the most extreme of the Blasters, followed by Storm.

Bruisers

• Highest average Health and Defense, but by far the lowest average Accuracy and Evasion.  In a stats sense, they are the tanks of MAA.
• She-Hulk is the most well-rounded Bruiser.

Scrappers

• Average on all stats, with Health being their best stat and Evasion being their worst stat.
• Iron Fist is the second most well-rounded Hero out of any class (tied with Cyclops and Human Torch).
• Iron Fist and Daredevil have good Evasion (rating 4), while Luke Cage and Sif have very poor Evasion (rating 1).
• Luke Cage and Sif have exactly the same stats.

Epic Bosses

To reveal the Epic Boss, all map events (battles and deploys) must be completed.  Only the special, not regular, deploys are listed below.

Ch-Miss.	Epic Boss	Heroes	Epic Drops
2-3	Electra	D: Black Cat T: Daredevil	Grecian Sai
3-5	Dr. Doom	D: Spider-Man T: Hawkeye	The Doombringer
4-4	Magneto	D: Storm T: Invisible Woman	Magnetic Field Generator
5-3	Loki	D: Wolverine T: Thing	Norn Stone
6-3	Doctor Octopus	D: Luke Cage* T: Spider-Woman	Electrostatic Arm
7-3	Green Goblin	D: Spider-Man T: Black Cat	Goblin Glider
S1-1	Hammerhead	D: Black Widow, Spider-Woman T: Black Widow	The Toolbox

Key

• Heroes
• D = Heroes required for special deploys
• T = Heroes required for Team-Ups
• S1-1 = Special Operation 1, Mission 1

Team-Ups

• If you have not recruited the Hero required for a Team-Up, you do not need to worry about having that Hero to initiate the battle.
• If you have recruited the Hero required for a Team-Up, then that Hero needs to be available to initiate the battle.  However, once the battle is initiated, that Hero can be switched out for another Hero.

*The required Hero Deploy for Chapter 6, Mission 3 used to be Black Widow, but it was changed to Luke Cage during the major game update of May 3, 2012.

More information to be included later.

Free X-ploiter

Click this official Facebook link for a Free X-ploiter.

This was a cross-promotion advertised on G4TV.

Benefits of PVP

If you win a PVP battle, you earn 50 Silver (there’s no notification of this) and each surviving hero gains 5 XP.  Each hero that dies gets 1 XP, whether your team wins or loses.  You can also get random item drops, which you can save for later use or sell for Silver.  Depending on whether you win or lose and how you rank versus your opponent, you move up or down the PVP ladder accordingly.

The small rewards of PVP can be combined with short-term remote missions for efficient farming when you’re low on Energy.  If you're low on Silver, you can sell the items you collect.  If you've run out of energy but just need a bit more XP to level up, PVP can get you over that hump.

On a different note, many players find PVP fun for different reasons.  The battles are not live or controlled by other human players, but the teams you are pitted against were trained, equipped, and selected by other players.  It can be interesting trying to find an optimal combination of heroes and equipment to form a team.

PVP can be a good place to battle for fun when you’ve run out of energy.  It can be used as a practice arena to try out new heroes or equipment, different combinations of heroes, or new strategies and tactics.

Then, of course, there are the bragging rights.

Teams

You earn 50 points per team used in battles before exiting a mission.  This bonus comes before multipliers.  Using teams can be useful for gaining Chapter Mastery and ranking higher in Leaderboards.


Teams

Ambulance Chasers

• She-Hulk
• Daredevil

Arachnophobia

• Spider-Man
• Spider-Woman
• Black Widow

Asgard

• Thor
• Sif

Avengers

• Black Widow
• Captain America
• Hawkeye
• Iron Man
• Hulk
• Thor

Aviary

• Iron Man
• Ms. Marvel
• Human Torch
• Phoenix
• Spider-Woman
• War Machine

Bloodlust

• Black Cat
• Sif
• Wolverine

Cat Fight

• Black Cat
• Kitty Pryde

Cosplayers

• Black Cat
• Spider-Man

Defenders

• Dr. Strange
• Hulk

Eggheads

• Hulk
• Iron Man
• Mr. Fantastic
• Spider-Man

Fantastic Four

• Human Torch
• Invisible Woman
• Mr. Fantastic
• Thing

Frenemies

• Black Widow
• Hawkeye

Hard & Soft

• Colossus
• Kitty Pryde

Heros for Hire

• Iron Fist
• Luke Cage

Hot Stuff

• Human Torch
• Phoenix

Hulk Family

• Hulk
• She-Hulk

Illuminati

• Dr. Strange
• Iron Man
• Mr. Fantastic

Marvelous

• Ms. Marvel
• Phoenix

Mutant

• Colossus
• Cyclops
• Kitty Pryde
• Nightcrawler
• Phoenix
• Storm
• Wolverine

S.H.I.E.L.D.

• Black Widow
• Hawkeye

Sibling Rivalry

• Human Torch
• Invisible Woman

Tin Men

• Iron Man
• War Machine

Tossers

• Hulk
• Phoenix
• She-Hulk

X-Lovers

• Phoenix, Cyclops

Heroes Together in 2 Teams (100 points total)

Colossus, Kitty Pryde - Mutant, Hard & Soft

Hulk, She-Hulk - Hulk Family, Tossers

Iron Man, Mr. Fantastic - Eggheads, Illuminati

Iron Man, War Machine - Aviary, Tin Men

Invisible Woman, Human Torch - Fantastic Four, Sibling Rivalry

Phoenix, Human Torch - Aviary, Hot Stuff

Phoenix, Ms. Marvel - Aviary, Marvelous

Phoenix, Storm - Aviary, Mutant

Phoenix, Cyclops - Mutant, X-Lovers

Heroes Together in 3 Teams (150 points total)


Hawkeye, Black Widow - Avengers, Frenemies, S.H.I.E.L.D.

Teams by Hero

Blaster	Teams
Iron Man	Avengers, Aviary, Eggheads, Illuminati, Tin Men
Ms. Marvel	Aviary, Marvelous
Dr. Strange	Defenders, Illuminati
Human Torch	Aviary, Fantastic Four, Hot Stuff, Sibling Rivalry
Storm	Aviary, Mutant
Phoenix	Aviary, Hot Stuff, Marvelous, Mutant, Tossers, X-Lovers
Bruiser	Teams
She-Hulk	Ambulance Chasers, Hulk Family, Tossers
Colossus	Mutant, Hard & Soft
Thing	Fantastic Four, Tossers
Hulk	Avengers, Defenders, Eggheads, Hulk Family, Tossers
Thor	Asgard, Avengers
Scrapper	Teams
Iron Fist	Heroes For Hire
Spider-woman	Arachnophobia, Aviary
Luke Cage	Heroes for Hire
Sif	Asgard, Bloodlust
Daredevil	Ambulance Chasers
Wolverine	Bloodlust, Mutant
Infiltrator	Teams
Black Widow	Arachnophobia, Avengers, Frenemies, S.H.I.E.L.D.
Invisible Woman	Fantastic Four, Sibling Rivalry
Black Cat	Bloodlust, Cat Fight, Cosplayers
Kitty Pryde	Cat Fight, Hard & Soft, Mutant
Nightcrawler	Mutant
Spiderman	Arachnophobia, Cosplayers, Eggheads
Tactician	Teams
Hawkeye	Avengers, Frenemies, S.H.I.E.L.D.
Cyclops	Mutant, X-Lovers
Mr. Fantastic	Eggheads, Fantastic Four, Illuminati
War Machine	Aviary, Tin Men
Captain America	Avengers