The Batman is the superhero protector of Gotham City, a tortured, brooding vigilante dressed as a bat who fights against evil and strikes fear into the hearts of criminals everywhere. Although he has no superhuman abilities, he is one of the world's smartest men and greatest fighters. His physical prowess, technical ingenuity, and tactical thinking about him make him an incredibly dangerous opponent.
The Batman Crew is the one that contains the majority of Gotham's vigilantes, and law enforcement that fight to maintain order in the streets of the city.
The deck
To represent this, the Objectives deck is based on the placement of the characters, and the Suspects, on the board, as well as certain specific actions of the most recurrent models of the crew, such as the Arrest which is available in the Gotham Cops. Therefore, the use of the Inspire rule that the Boss of the crew has, will be crucial to be able to place those Suspects and take advantage of both the Objectives and the Resources.
“It’s not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me.” Batman
Batman's crew and its Objective deck are ready to take on any opponent. In addition, it can be adapted to different game styles, this being its greatest advantage.
By having this skill to adapt, the Batman's crew does not have any additional rules that apply to how the deck works. This makes it a perfect crew for new players just getting into the game.
Its main objective cards are the Snitch, knowing when to place it and where, will give you guaranteed points, and the card Comb Through Everything, for which you will need to interact with the rival, Revealing their Suspects.
This card's resource will add 1 additional Defense die to you for a critical combat in which you need that extra defensive skill, though note that you'll have to remove a nearby Suspect as additional payment.
“This city just showed you that it’s full of people ready to believe in good.” Batman
The placement of Suspects during the game will be very important to score at the end of each round the Secure the Perimeter card, which will ask you to eliminate 2 Suspects near the edges of the Gaming Area (this is not an action, it is automatic).
Try to place Suspects on different edges to make it difficult for the opponent to eliminate your Suspects before reaching the Recount phase.
Unlike the previous card, the resource of this card is focused on dealing damage, and helping you deal with threats in order to remove the Suspects from which a ranged attack will be made, which, although it seems not very powerful, in certain situations can be key to dealing the last few points of damage to remove an enemy model.
“I wear a mask. And that mask, it's not to hide who I am, but to create what I am." Batman
In case of objectives like Get Them Off The Streets you'll need to make sure you get cops, as they're usually the only ones in the crew that will get the Arrest trait.
A good tactic to try to score this card is to get some strong character that can KO the rivals, and then, with a well-placed policeman, arrest them.
Using this resource well will tip games in your favor, canceling a rival resource is always a great move, since there are many crews that, in order to make certain combinations and score their cards, will depend on their resources.
Unveiling the Truth is the opposite of the previous card, since the characters indicated to score it are usually the vigilantes. These are much more resistant and will be able to Reveal Suspects between rounds without being removed from the game.
Its Resource will allow, when you remove one of your previously placed Suspects, to place or reveal Suspects in places where you need them with characters such as a vigilante, whom you will normally need to use their combat skills, without dispensing with them.
The Models
To score a deck like this, you'll need to choose, from the vast collection of characters available to the crew, a Leader who can help in the placement of Suspect, such as the incredible Batman (Year One).
This Batman will delegate the tasks of Inspiring the rest of the crew to another model of your choice (this is perfect for choosing a character like Gordon, who will also give other bonuses to the rest of the crew). He has enough Combat skill to deal with most henchmen, and non-combat-focused characters in the game (don't try to confront him directly, with a character like Deathstroke). The best thing about this kind of Batman is that he allows you to do those little skirmishes, and he faces the rival henchmen. Also, at the cost of 1 Effort, you will be able to Manipulate, which, coupled with his Detective trait is a perfect combo to score cards like Unveiling the Truth.
No — Gotham doesn't die — not on MY watch! Jim Gordon
As we have mentioned before, a character like Gordon (in this case Commissioner Gordon) would be perfect to have him as a companion, because, in addition to being, in this case, the perfect character to be the Boss of the crew, since he resists long enough so your boss won't be removed too soon, and can also benefit from allied characters with the Bodyguard trait.
Gordon is a character that allows you to support Batman, being able to move him once per game to his position. He will also help you not to waste any shots by activating his Air Support, as well as boosting the defense of your henchmen with Cover!
In terms of how it helps score Objectives, in addition to his large base that will extend the range of his Inspire, his Commissioner trait allows you to use the Arrest trait as a free action as long as you're close to him, so scoring Get Them Off The Streets becomes a much easier action.
Now, thinking of the best henchman to accompany them is very simple, because there is an incredible variety to choose from.
To take advantage of Gordon's shooting aids, we can include Lerida for example, a henchman with a great skill to take down rivals from a safe distance, or you can use him to score the Non-Lethal Ammo card.
“When crooks become more popular than cops, that’s anarchy” Harvey Bullock
For placing and revealing Suspects, Sgt. Harvey Bullock and the GCPD Detective, for example, will always be a good choice. With their early deployment, they will be able to get close to the opponent to interact with their Suspects as soon as possible.
It will be possible to create the crew with a tough Bodyguard to protect your Boss, such as Officer Merkel, who is quite useful with shots and with ranged weapons.
As a last option, the GCPD Cop 2 is a good multipurpose henchman, since she adds a good close combat weapon, and she has a movement value above the average of the henchmen so you can take her where you need it.
As a crew like the one I've exemplified, you'll have a very attractive thematically crew and, besides, you'll also be ready to score any of the cards in the Batman Objectives deck.
As a crew like the one I've exemplified, you'll have a very attractive thematically crew and, besides, you'll also be ready to score any of the cards in the Batman Objectives deck.
In the next articles we will teach other different styles of crews and how to play them. Stay tuned for new posts to learn about all the perks you can get from your favorite crews.