Game: Marvel Heroes

Thread: Re: Going out of print/unsupported?

drstrnge — 2008-05-11T03:13:19+00:00

Francesco;
Thanks for the post and congratulations. My Daughter, who is 10 enjoys the game very much and wants to play the Avengers next time rather than her favorite (the FF) after seeing the new Iron Man movie.

As someone who worked in the field (many years ago) I can sympathize with your feelings about the game possibly going out of print. Just thought you should know that whatever its perceived shortcomings, we have completely enjoyed playing it in our gaming circle. It capture the subject matter wonderfully. And I still manage to lose when I play the FF for some reason:soblue:

We are all looking forward to AoC and deluxe WotR (another favorite) I was one of the playtesters on SPIs version years ago and this one is so much better.
Best of Luck;
Ted Woods

Thread: Re: Doom vs. The Richards - Math

kronmc — 2008-05-11T12:06:25+00:00

I think I'm going to try to sell this creative interpretation to my wife:

The Richards require Villain to discard dice. Villain does so; the dice are taken off the table, so to speak. Villain now has not rolled the villain's alloted dice. Villain rolls dice equal to the number discarded. Villain boosts/counts hits as appropriate.

No, I don't think this is really how the cards are supposed to work; there are "Reroll" powers in the game. But it's close enough that cards don't need to be rewritten.

Besides, the FAQ's invention of a mid-roll point for Sue to use her power suggests that this isn't totally crazy; a roll can apparently be broken into pieces. In fact, under this "interpretation" it almost makes sense to let Sue play before boosting; in effect, discarded dice don't exist to boost.

And besides, the cards don't say "treat all dice showing [boost icon] [two hits] as showing no hits," which would be similar to what the Innocent Bystanders ability says; they say to discard the dice.

If I can convince her to try it out for a few games, I'll give a report on the results.

Thread: Re: (Minimal) Acts of Vengeance

drb1004 — 2008-05-09T07:35:30+00:00

Thanks for the link to my report - I'll take this as an homage rather than a rip-off! ;)

Thread: Re: (Minimal) Acts of Vengeance

Dam the Man — 2008-05-09T06:40:35+00:00

Thanks!

I've always liked this 2-part session report a lot:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/153593
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/153828

Perhaps mine was an homage, perhaps a rip-off :) .

Thread: Re: (Minimal) Acts of Vengeance

maka — 2008-05-08T11:26:29+00:00

Nice read, now if someone would actually draw a comic of it :D

-Jorge

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

rayito2702 — 2008-05-08T09:30:22+00:00

loudonhead wrote:
Though I don't know if I'd follow you to say that MH isn't, therefore, "truly thematic."
I worded it poorly, but my point was that MH is "truly thematic". It just needed the extra meaning provided by the flavor text to tie the mechanisms with the theme. If the flavor text was the only way the theme is communicated, then I would consider the theme rather shallow.

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

loudonhead — 2008-05-08T07:41:37+00:00

rayito2702 wrote:
I would suggest that the flavor text on the cards finally enabled your mind to connect the mechanisms with the theme.

I'd agree with that completely. Though I don't know if I'd follow you to say that MH isn't, therefore, "truly thematic." Even though it took reading the cards to bump my experience of this game up into the thematic realm, I'd say that Ken B's example above can't happen in a game that's not "truly thematic."

Cracking up with your friends over a bit of story that you all just witnessed and took part in--e.g. "The Finding and Dispatching of Curt Connors"--is almost on a RPG level of theme-playing. And I think MH deserves some props for delivering that in the context of an adult strategy board game.

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

franklincobb — 2008-05-08T06:55:54+00:00

Heh...it just reminds me of one game we had where the headline was about Doctor Curt Connors going missing. The attempt to solve that headline was unsuccessful due to bad guy chicanery/battle.

The very next turn, a headline came up and Thor went to troubleshoot it. The villain played? The Lizard. Thor rolled MONSTROUSLY and just pasted The Lizard without blinking an eye.

We were laughing so hard because we imagined Thor returning to Avengers HQ with gooey green bits of Lizard on his hammer, going..."Verily, I...uh...found Doctor Connors."

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

rayito2702 — 2008-05-08T06:38:38+00:00

loudonhead wrote:
I don't know if this has been thoroughly covered before, but since its a lesson that I learned myself, I don't mind repeating it here: When we played in 2006, we were in the habit of playing games like Caylus, Samurai, and other Euros, and therefore conditioned to pretty much ignore the theme and devote all our attention to the mechanics and the strategies which they allowed.
I think the difference between you and me is the way we play Euros. I've always played games for the theme whether it was Robo Rally, El Grande, StarCraft or Caylus.

Perhaps this is why I don't really see much of a difference between Euro and Ameritrash.

In my opinion if a game depends on flavor text to convey theme, then it's not thematic. Flavor text is just that, flavor. It's not the meat of the game. It's like a movie that depends on gee-whizz special effects to impress audiences without providing story, characterization, etc.

Truly thematic games convey their theme from the mechanisms on up. I would suggest that the flavor text on the cards finally enabled your mind to connect the mechanisms with the theme.

Thread: (Minimal) Acts of Vengeance

Dam the Man — 2008-05-08T05:30:25+00:00

(Behind the scenes two shadowy figures are holding a clandestine meeting.

Male Voice: So Doom, are we in agreement?

(long pause)

Victor Von Doom: Very well Skull, you deal with the Fantastic Four and I will take care of the pesky Avengers.)

Pre-game notes:

- Acts of Vengeance scenario

- instead of randomly drawing Nemesis, just switched Doom & Skull

- our regular houserule of "once per combat sequence"

- pre-FAQ Invisible Woman

- underlining marks all items that have a game effect (combat power, story card, ally, headline, etc.)

Day 1

Scene fades in, showing Johnny Storm aka Human Torch and Reed Richards aka Mr. Fantastic arriving in front of a Jewelry Store on the Upper West Side. Peeking in, they see the sales staff, but they have been turned into stone! Realizing quick action is needed to save the people, Mr. Fantastic begins to work on reversing the stoning. Suddenly the wall in the back of the store is gone, revealing Doctor Octopus, supported by Avalanche and Sabertooth. Their Surprise Attack forces the heroes on the defensive with Torch putting some distance between himself and the Villains through the use of Flight. The Doctor meanwhile uses his Superb Strategist skills to seize on their initiative. Johnny fires a small burst of flame at the Doc, causing some burning, but not enough to make the Villain retreat. Instead, staying indoors, threatening the stone people, Octopus forces Johnny to fight him in the confined space of the store. Still hoping to outmaveuver his opponent, Torch keeps himself in Flight, but it proves to avail, as Doc Ock unleashes his Psionic-guided Tentacles at Johnny, in fact bringing him down with Multiple Attacks. Reed is forced to retreat, taking Johnny back to the Baxter Building.

Around this time, Tony Stark, Entrepreneur is signing checks to pay for some property damage from a previous Avengers venture.

Shifting back to the Baxter Building, we find Mr. Fantastic utilizing his Hyper-Intelligence to boost the effectiveness of the F4's healing machines, hoping to bring Johnny back to his feet sooner.

Meanwhile, in a seedy part of the East Side, Captain America and Hulk arrive to assist the local police in an investigation into A Network of Gambling Dens. Telling Hulk that this might call for a slightly more subtle touch, Cap questions Mr. Santellio, who, being awed at the presence of a true hero and no doubt worrying over Hulk's massive form just outside the door, spills the beans about the operation, telling that a something new is going on among the criminal elements fo the city.

Radio is reporting that Johnny Storm has made a full recovery from the injuries he suffered earlier in the day, but it's gets cut off as news breaks that the Hulk has gone on a Rampage in the city. Newspapers drop the stories about Daredevil and Matt Murdock off the front page, instead focusing on listing the damage caused by Hulk's tour of mayhem.

Late in the evening, Reed Richards places call to Correspondent Jessica Jones, warning people that Dr. Octopus is still at large somewhere in the city. Given his earlier use of pertifying agents, utmost caution should be taken if coming across the Doctor. It is even later when Captain America finally returns to the Avengers Mansion, having been forced to deal with the authorities regarding Hulk's rampage.

Day 2

It's still early in the day, but Reed Richards is called on to respond to an alert relating to a Building Disintegrating Overnight over on the East Side. With his wife, Sue Richards aka Invisible Woman tagging along, the duo make their way to the site. There, Reed is forced to take Heroic Action as he comes face to face with Dr. Octopus, this time supported by Toad and Omega Red. Octopus decides to use his Tentacles, which defeated Johnny the previous day to take care of Mr. Fantastic. Having seen how the Doctor beat Johnny, Reed forms his body into a Bouncing Ball. By using his elastic body to pound the Villain, then Containing the counter-attack and finally bouncing again to leave Octopus unconscious and ready for capture! Toad and Omega Red are also taken into custody.

In Midtown Iron Man brings along Captain America as he goes to investigate rumors of Vampires in New York. While sounding laughable, Midtown hosts a number of important landmarks, so it will do the Avengers no harm publicly. At least it should get people off the subject of Hulk's rampage. With their public headquarters also located in the area, it isn't hard for the heroes to call in a S.H.I.E.L.D. Intervention as they investigate the situation. It turns out in fact NOT to be the work of vampires, but instead, the trouble has been caused by the Mad Thinker, hypnotizing people with his Hypno-lens. Expecting assistance from their an ally of theirs, the duo of Iron Man and Cap are informed that Namor has been delayed because of some A.I.M. Operatives. Perhaps because they were damaged by Iron Man's diving punch, or maybe his armor is too well protected against such attacks, but trying to use his Hypno-lens proves uneffective in stopping Flight. Summoning an Awesome Android to his aid, Thinker hopes to defeat our heroes, but this time Iron Man unleashes the power of his Repulsor Blast, defeating the Android and Thinker soundly.

Having overcome a trio of Villains, Reed Richards finds his mind overflowing with ideas. Putting some of his Fantastic Energies to use, he again pushes his Hyper-Intelligence to its limits, trying for new breakthroughs.

Making the news again is the Hulk, who has gone on another Rampage. This time, planned front-cover stories about Daily Bugle Publishing a New Spider-Man Book and some details on the Terrorist Attack on Senator being Thwarted are pushed off in favor of the details about today's rampage. Sue Richards sees some of the tv footage of events during her shopping spree in both East Village and on the Upper West Side.

From Midtown, Iron Man heads back to the Avengers Mansion, while Captain America details the defeat of the Mad Thinker, additionally speaking about Edwin Jarvis: A True Avenger.

Day 3

Mr. & Mrs. Fantastic decide to go for a morning stroll in sunny Central Park. The couple passes a news vendor, and see on the front page not only an article discussing the Hulk, but also that Tony Stark is the New Secretary of Defense. "Tony can handle that" Reed comments to his wife. Upon reaching the Metropolitan Museum of Art they come across some frantic employees, who report the disappearance of guard Tommy Webster. Some are claiming it is a Curse of the Mayans, but after a short inquiry, it is discovered that the guard in question had a late night and has been at home sleeping it off.

Captain America takes Iron Man along with him to Hell's Kitchen, following some rumours of a New Mutant Virus. Arriving on site, Cap immediately ask the Iron Man to signal for more people. Shortly afterwards, Heroes Assemble! as mighty Thor answers the call! Just as the trio heads to investigate, reports are starting to circulate of a Scientific Breakthrough for Mr. Fantastic. Unaware that they are being observed, our heroes scour Hell's Kitchen, in hopes of finding something to confirm the rumours of a virus. Watching them is Victor Von Doom, who decides to not to reveal himself yet, preferring to merely Scheme in the background. Finally, the trio meets resistance, in the form of Mystique, who is being supported by Kraven. Thor steps forth, launching Mystical Blasts at the Villains, but through both Shapechange and Impersonation, Mystique is able to avoid being damaged. Kraven then lands a Heavy Blow on Thor. Well, heavy for a normal mortal, but it's not even enough to make the Asgardian blink! Vily Mystique is still causing problems, but suddenly another of ally of theirs, the Blackbolt arrives to aid our valiant trio and with his assistance, Mystique and her plans for the mutant virus are vanquished.

Having made a remarkable scientific breakthrough, Mr. Fantastic isn't ready to relax. Instead, in show of Amazing Energy, he once again heads into the lab, putting his Hyper-Intelligence to work. Focused as he is on his experiments, he doesn't see mighty Thor flying across the sky towards the Avengers Mansion.

Day 4

"The Avengers Are the Defenders of the Country" reads the headline on the front page of the major papers. Trouble caused by the Hulk has been forgotten, at least of the moment, as the team enjoys their popularity and new privileges. Also on the front page, though in smaller font, is a headline discussing the F4: Super Heroes Have Super-Hearts.

It's still early in the day, but the news is reporting that Hulk has gone on another Rampage. Suddenly details of a New HQ for the Fantastic Four and also about the Avengers: 2 for 1 are getting dropped in favor of details about this latest rampage.

Feeling back to his full health, Human Torch heads off to look into a theft of a Precious Native American Artifact on the Upper East Side. He takes along Mr. Fantastic, duo flying over the Latverian Embassy. "What do you think Doom is up to?" wonders Johnny. In the end, it turns out to be a false alert, the artifact being accidentally mislabeled and thus having been shipped to a different location than the rest of the exhibit. But reporters are very interested in rumours of A New Love Story For Johnny Storm, and Torch decides to set the record straight regarding his new fiancee.

In Morningside Heights two mighty heroes arrive to investigate Mysterious Energy Column Towers Over the City. In favor of public safety, Iron Man and Thor call in another S.H.I.E.L.D. Intervension. Which proves to be perhaps premature as a thorough search and continuous scanning of the area reveals nothing out of the ordinary.

Some time later, Iron Man and Human Torch cross paths in the sky, each heading to base as another night engulfs New York.

Day 5

Papers are reporting major advances for both the Fantastic Four and the Avengers. Thanks to his super-human efforts, Mr. Fantastic is proud to announce his endeavours have been successful, as he now possesses a Superior Laboratory. News broadcasts meanwhile are showing images of Iron Man in Improved Armor, speculating that perhaps some confrontation is immenent. Later in the day, a magazine featuring an interview with Sue Richards, in which she finally talks about their Super-Baby is going hit the stands.

Avengers are alerted to Chelsea, where an Escape From the Vault has caused widespread panic. Arriving on scence in full force, with Hulk and Iron Man ready to do battle, Captain America and Thor providing support and having their allies Blackbolt, Namor and Shadowcat on site, our Heroes meet a truly powerful adversary, Ultron! Unbeknownst to our heroes, it is in fact due to Doom Scheming and having provided support for A.I.M. Operatives that has allowed Ultron to break out. Having their allies on hand to deal with A.I.M Operatives, Avengers clash with Ultron. In typical Hulk fashion, he leads with his "Hulk Smash!" tactic. Pitted against the Superhuman Intelligence of Ultron however, it proves uneffective. But where his fist caused no damage, a surprising Jump by Hulk causes Ultron some discomfort. Trusting his Adamantium Shell to deal with any Hulk attack, Ultron is knocked back by another Smash. Finally a third Smash cracks open Ultron's Adamantium Shell.

In Midtown, Ben Grimm aka Thing and Human Torch arrive at the United Nations, where a discussion of the Scientist Warning of Possible Tidal Wave is taking place. Bringing along with them reassurances that Reed Richards is on top of things, the meeting remains peaceful. However, Mr. Richards is unable to appear in person as he has been called to Morningside Heights to investigate reports of a Giant Monster Attack From Beneath the City.

As usual, reports have overstated the situation, but Mr & Mrs. Fantastic do find a culprit for the trouble in the area. It seems Titania has been working with Hand Ninja below the city towards an unknown end. Unfortunately for Titania, her Impervious Body proves ineffective against the Grappling powers of Mr. Richards. Subduing the Villain proves a quick task for the couple.

Leaving his teammates to sort out Ultron's remains, Iron Man heads off to look into some Mysterious Signals From Outer Space that have been reported in the Financial District. This time the situation is dire indeed, as the Absorbing Man along with Pyro are responsible for the panic. Trusting his Absorb Durability to protect him from the Iron Man, Mr. Creel commences the battle. Looking for an edge, Iron Man engages his power of Flight. Calling on both his allies Namor, Blackbolt and Shadowcat as well as his Powered Armor, he is able to bring down the Villain.

But only then does the true Mastermind reveal himself. Victor Von Doom attacks the battleweary Iron Man. Still having his allies around helps, as the Iron Man again utilises Flight while Doom turns on his Force Field. Namor throws a punch at Doom, but it proves ineffective, just as Doom's attack is negated by Powered Armor. But having to deal with multiple enemies, Doom is unable to gain the upper hand, instead getting caught by the Iron Man superior mobility. Doom continues to relie on his Force Field while Iron Man remains airborne through Flight. Again, his Powered Armor protects Mr. Stark from damage, but so does Doom's Force Field. This time however, Doom is able to anticipate Iron Man's movements and catches him offguard. In the end, despite having Allies, Iron Man is unable to defeat Doom, as the Mastermind again anticipates his Flight, while remaining protected by his Battle Suit and Force Field. Doom departs with his Mystical Armor, leaving Shadowcat and Namor to aid the unconscious Avenger.

Post-game notes:

- Avengers win 25 - 23

- weird resource card draws, F4 in fact drew 4 Energies Cards, while AVs got 2 Interventions.

- Red Skull is a bad-ass even in a normal game, but in Acts of Vengeance, he's sick, wicked and nasty:

sick: discard 1 Villain card to add 2-3 Dice to Trouble roll
wicked: draw 4-5 Villain cards
nasty: give dice boosting

- F4 really didn't want to see the above happening and avoided ALL Mastermind Headlines.

- against his regular Foes, Doom would've lost the last Outwit, Iron Man rolled 3 hits, Doom rolled 3 double hits.

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

turtleback — 2008-05-08T06:08:43+00:00

The thing I see about the headline cards story is that it doesn't necessarily match up with what is happening on the board. The headline card may say "vampires in New York" and you end up with the Hulk fighting Sandman. Now I'm sure a creative mind could come up with a story that links the headline with the fact that the Hulk and the Sandman are fighting, but I think it might be a stretch. I think the fact that that they are fighting maybe in Hell's Kitchen in The Village is enough story and theme to keep me happy. On top of that if the Hulk wins he would then have to take on Red Skull and that starts to become some story line. So making the headline card or the story track card tie into what is happening on the board sometimes can be quite a stretch. Although, sometimes it makes perfect sense. All in all I am more inclined to build my narrative from what is happening in the city not what the "paper" has to say. Sometimes you just have to read between the lines.

Thread: Re: Going out of print/unsupported?

kronmc — 2008-05-08T04:29:59+00:00

As one who has perhaps debated the game with passion -- and favors significant changes to F4 -- I feel like I should say:

I really enjoy this game.

Partly because my wife really enjoys it as well, but mostly because the theme and the mechanics are just so fun.

edited to un-buzzkill the thread?

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

Burnham — 2008-05-08T12:30:52+00:00

First off, I'd like to apologize for coming off a little bit umm, "brash" shall we say?

those two games seem to have their rules and theme either better integrated than Marvel Heroes... or perhaps it's that the rules for Marvel Heroes are so unique in their complications that it's harder get the theme.

War of the Ring, though complex, has enough similarities to a game like Risk to get the "Big War" theme across. Arkham Horror is similar enough to previous games like Dungeon. But Marvel Heroes, at first play, doesn't really seem like anything else, except maybe a complicated spreadsheet.
Normally with most ameritrash games, the theme/story and mechanics tie-in logically, but you do have a point that Marvel Heroes is so unique in its mechanics that perhaps the storyline/plot may actually get in the way of the gameplay, rather than go hand-in-hand with it. So with that in mind, I suppose I could understand why you treated the game like you did.

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

turtleback — 2008-05-07T11:35:50+00:00

maka wrote:
Hmm... I don't pay much attention to flavor text in Marvel Heroes (I'm not a big fan of flavor text in AT games). Still I really like how the theme is integrated with the actions and mechanics of the game and when I play Marvel Heroes the feeling of immersion is high...

Me too. I don't read the story while playing Marvel Heroes, but I feel it. I do on occasion like to shout "Hulk Smash" though

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

maka — 2008-05-07T11:28:41+00:00

Hmm... I don't pay much attention to flavor text in Marvel Heroes (I'm not a big fan of flavor text in AT games). Still I really like how the theme is integrated with the actions and mechanics of the game and when I play Marvel Heroes the feeling of immersion is high...

I think, just as in games like Magic Realm (with no flavor text at all), the sense of story to me, comes from the actual actions and consequences within the game...

-Jorge

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

loudonhead — 2008-05-07T11:18:19+00:00

I'm glad I've inspired a Geeklist. I've been thinking more about my comments here, and yes Arkham Horror and War of the Ring both popped to mind as possible counters to my argument.

However: My own experience has been that, with Arkham Horror and WOTR, ignoring some of the flavor text has not necessarily lessened the "joy in the theme" aspect of the games. Somehow, those two games seem to have their rules and theme either better integrated than Marvel Heroes... or perhaps it's that the rules for Marvel Heroes are so unique in their complications that it's harder get the theme.

War of the Ring, though complex, has enough similarities to a game like Risk to get the "Big War" theme across. Arkham Horror is similar enough to previous games like Dungeon. But Marvel Heroes, at first play, doesn't really seem like anything else, except maybe a complicated spreadsheet.

However, I'd argue that if you spend enough time with that spreadsheet, and devote yourself to imagining what it promises, you can eventually find that there is a Marvel comic book playing itself out in the game.

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

bill_andel — 2008-05-07T10:12:39+00:00

loudonhead wrote:
For me, it wasn't a conscious choice to play it like a Euro. If I had to name a culprit for leading us down that path, it would probably be the unusual and complicated rules.
Ameritrash with unusual, complicated rules? Imagine that! Makes me think of [GAMEID=9609], [GAMEID=15987] and [GAMEID=22] right off the bat, all games with very complex rules that would definitely be considered theme-laden Ameritrash. These are games I simply cannot get enough of. So what shall we call these? "Heavy Ameritrash"?

"Heavy Ameritrash - long may it wave!"
:D

EDIT: you've inspired me to create [url=http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/31332]this geeklist[/url].

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

heinrichsteven — 2008-05-07T08:06:14+00:00

Mathew, you poor naive soul...

Did you learn nothing from he who art named Sir Stifler and his arch-nemesis, the legend himself, Lord Finch?

We need to work on your conversion to the church of MILF :laugh::laugh::laugh:

You must now watch American Pie one thru three in order for penance!

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

loudonhead — 2008-05-07T07:25:02+00:00

For me, it wasn't a conscious choice to play it like a Euro. If I had to name a culprit for leading us down that path, it would probably be the unusual and complicated rules. Keeping all of its unintuitive aspects straight didn't seem to leave much "room in the head" for then reading all of the flavor text, etc. We wanted the Wham-Bang-Boom of a comic book adventure, and got rules that made our heads hurt before we even started.

So... since it just seemed like more text... we skipped some of that stuff in hopes of "getting into the action".

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

Burnham — 2008-05-07T06:45:27+00:00

I don't know if this has been thoroughly covered before, but since its a lesson that I learned myself, I don't mind repeating it here: When we played in 2006, we were in the habit of playing games like Caylus, Samurai, and other Euros, and therefore conditioned to pretty much ignore the theme and devote all our attention to the mechanics and the strategies which they allowed. Playing Marvel Heroes with that mindset is, I think, certain to provide a boring and confusing experience.
Why in God's name would you treat this like a Euro? That's like trying to find a deep spiritual truth by watching the movie "American Pie"!
Now I'm firmly in the camp that believes ameritrash has both excellent theme AND gameplay (and Marvel Heroes is no exception), but honestly, I play Marvel Heroes cuz I want to whoop some some ass with Iron Man and Captain America, or the FF or whoever I'm in the mood to kick some ass with.

Thread: Re: How to play Marvel Heroes

Dam the Man — 2008-05-07T06:30:34+00:00

loudonhead wrote:
But playing with the idea that you are there to Create a Story through Gaming (while still attempting to competitively achieve a goal), can change it into a lot of fun. The same thing happens with the game Funny Friends: The Table Talk Is Everything.

I hope that includes trash talking :D ! Too bad I couldn't record the trash talking that went of during and after Omega Red defeated Hulk (poor Dr. Banner, rolling 0 hits on 5 Dice :devil: ). Of course, after the Cap had a decent chance to defeat a Brood-infected Juggernaut :surprise: (Cap needed 2 Hits on his 3-die Defense roll, after Juggs rolled 1 hit on 6 Dice, then it would've been 3-die vs 1-dice on Outwit with Cap having scored a KO with Shield Toss) but blew it, it wouldn't have been record-worthy :D . Or the combined moaning as Iron Man got beaten by Electro in the same game, causing a loss to all!

Thread: How to play Marvel Heroes

loudonhead — 2008-05-07T05:31:39+00:00

My group played this game a couple of times when it first came out, and then put it back on the shelf where it remained untouched for about a year and a half, having been judged confusing, long, boring and confusing.

But, inspired by Iron Man trailers, I pulled it down off the shelf and decided to give it another try. My roommate, who was one of the initial dissenters, agreed that the occasion of the Iron Man movie called for a re-examination of Marvel Heroes.

Now we're really enjoying the game, and want to play a quick 2-player game (about an hour) nearly every night.

The difference: We're reading all of the cards, naming all of the powers, and remembering that this is NOT a Euro. This is Ameritrash... and must be played like Ameritrash!

I don't know if this has been thoroughly covered before, but since its a lesson that I learned myself, I don't mind repeating it here: When we played in 2006, we were in the habit of playing games like Caylus, Samurai, and other Euros, and therefore conditioned to pretty much ignore the theme and devote all our attention to the mechanics and the strategies which they allowed. Playing Marvel Heroes with that mindset is, I think, certain to provide a boring and confusing experience.

But playing with the idea that you are there to Create a Story through Gaming (while still attempting to competitively achieve a goal), can change it into a lot of fun. The same thing happens with the game Funny Friends: The Table Talk Is Everything.

Read the headlines so everyone knows what crimes are being committed, and in which areas. (Regardless of the points to be earned, Iron Man may need to take special attention of that robbery at Stark Industries!) In combat, tell everyone the name of the power you're using (not just "red", "orange", or "yellow")... so that we know that Spidey is slinging a web and Kingpin is dodging it because he is Surprisingly Fast!

Playing the game this way has changed it immensely for me, and makes me feel like I've reclaimed a bit of my child-like imagination. I still love Euros, and will play them when I want a "Game Experience." But when I want a "Fantasy Experience"... Marvel Heroes works nicely, but only if you allow it to.

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

loudonhead — 2008-05-07T05:16:14+00:00

Thanks for all the responses. I'm inclined towards a house rule that says you can move a supporting hero to recovery, even without a supporting ability which states that you can. So I think that's what I'll go with until I hear something more official.

Also, I'd like to say that I agree the game can go amazingly quickly, once you've got the hang of it. It took several games for us to get the hang of it... but we're playing 2-player games in about an hour now.

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

Dam the Man — 2008-05-07T02:19:24+00:00

tombstone007 wrote:

The problem is for the amount of time required to play, even with 2 players, my group would rather play something else.

As in too long? A 2-player game around here rarely takes even 1.5h, usually clocking in at around 1h. Compared to (though not truely fair as it was our first run) War of the Ring last weekend, which came in at slightly over 3 hours. I'm anticipating WotR's game time to drop to around 2-2.5h soon.

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

tombstone007 — 2008-05-07T02:13:38+00:00

maka wrote:
Don't be so hard on the game. This rule is not such a big deal. Probably they just wanted to limit the usage of the Private Lives card...

It really is a great game with the right people. I'm not sure why your group doesn't like it, but until you're really familiar with how the game works, it can be long, especially with 4 players. Better to play it with just 2 at first...

-Jorge

Don't get me wrong, I love this game. I own it and would love to play more often. The problem is for the amount of time required to play, even with 2 players, my group would rather play something else. (Right now Rails of Europe is that game)

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

maka — 2008-05-07T01:27:02+00:00

Don't be so hard on the game. This rule is not such a big deal. Probably they just wanted to limit the usage of the Private Lives card...

It really is a great game with the right people. I'm not sure why your group doesn't like it, but until you're really familiar with how the game works, it can be long, especially with 4 players. Better to play it with just 2 at first...

-Jorge

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

tombstone007 — 2008-05-07T01:15:05+00:00

maka wrote:
tombstone007 wrote:
It makes Supporting Heroes way too powerful. Take Mr. Fantastic as an example: Supporting Ability - Take 3 Resource Cards when he is moved to Recovery. This power is bad enough as is. Now you want to allow him to help a Ready Hero boost in a fight and then move to Recovery on your last turn and take 3 cards. Sorry too powerful for me.

But a supporting hero doesn't have to be in its supporting space in order to be able to use his support power. The situation you stated above is perfectly ok by the rules...

-Jorge

Like I mentioned it's been awhile since I played. Now I know why my group doesn't play this anymore.

I take back everything I said and the designers messed this up pretty bad. Still, in response to the OP's question, the only time you can move a Supporting Hero from the board into Recovery is if they have a Supporting Ability that allows it (just like Mr. Fantastic). Some characters can make the move others can't. I guess we just accept it because that's the way it was written. :)

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

maka — 2008-05-07T12:46:03+00:00

tombstone007 wrote:
It makes Supporting Heroes way too powerful. Take Mr. Fantastic as an example: Supporting Ability - Take 3 Resource Cards when he is moved to Recovery. This power is bad enough as is. Now you want to allow him to help a Ready Hero boost in a fight and then move to Recovery on your last turn and take 3 cards. Sorry too powerful for me.

But a supporting hero doesn't have to be in its supporting space in order to be able to use his support power. The situation you stated above is perfectly ok by the rules...

-Jorge

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

tombstone007 — 2008-05-07T12:28:13+00:00

The Schaef wrote:
tombstone007 wrote:
You can't move a supporting hero back to recovery because supporting heroes are never injured during combat. Recovery is for injured active heroes only. Supporting heroes never engage in battle directly they are really on the sidelines assisting in combat.

Um... no. Ready Heroes move to the Recovery space as a normal movement, without having to take damage. Supporting Heroes who have action powers move to Recovery to use that power, and they are not taking damage.

And you would have to add another house rule in order to send your supporting hero to recovery - supporting heroes can take hits in combat and then go to recovery. That just changes too much for me.

...wwwwwwhy would you need to make that rule?

I haven't played in some time(none of my gaming group wants to play this anymore) so can you please show me where in the rules it states that a supporting hero can be moved to recovery from the board? I'm pretty sure it's not there. I provided my rationale above. I know that Ready Heroes move to Recovery as a normal movement. I was just providing my thought process as to why a supporting hero could not.

In your earlier post you stated "I can't imagine they would allow this for a Ready Hero but not a Supporting Hero." So my point was to illustrate what may have been in the designers' minds when the rule was written.

Here is another reason for believing the rule was written intentionally this way to prevent Supporting Heroes from moving from support spaces on the board to Recovery.

It makes Supporting Heroes way too powerful. Take Mr. Fantastic as an example: Supporting Ability - Take 3 Resource Cards when he is moved to Recovery. This power is bad enough as is. Now you want to allow him to help a Ready Hero boost in a fight and then move to Recovery on your last turn and take 3 cards. Sorry too powerful for me.

I like the fact that if you put any hero on the supporting spot on the card, you need to choose to move them to recovery and use their Support Ability or to put them in combat support and not both. I think this was the intent of the designers - having players make the hard choices.

Thread: Re: Any Way To Avoid This?

maka — 2008-05-07T09:31:32+00:00

I don't know... I like the fact that as a nemesis you've got to really think about when to attack and when not to... Also, the game is more about the heroes, so I think it's appropriate to measure their level of success first. But as you said, as ties don't happen often it doesn't look like it would change the game much.

-Jorge

Thread: Re: Doom vs. The Richards - Math

maka — 2008-05-07T09:28:55+00:00

kronmc wrote:
But it's not what's important to make sure that every player at the table gets full enjoyment out of the game. Being a mastermind is FUN, except if you are playing Doom. That is the problem, and the developers, rather than the players, are the ones who should fix it.

You may be right about that, but I find myself having more fun with the heroes than the villains, and having just played a game against the F4, I didn't find the fun level decreased, but it may just be me...

-Jorge

Thread: Re: X-Men vs. F4

maka — 2008-05-07T09:23:11+00:00

The Schaef wrote:
It's not necessarily about Torch (though you should support whenever possible, obviously). The point was, the villains did not and could not have boosting.

I see, for some reason I was thinking about him, not the villains. The thing about the game is that no matter the odds, nothing is sure, and the player that best adapts to the unexpected usually will come out on top...

metalface13 wrote:
Maybe you should play as the F4 more often if you want to see if they're unbalanced. Give your wife a break. :)

But then, I'll win all the time because they're so powerful, and she may get tired of it and stop wanting to play the game! :D

Dam the Man wrote:

Don't let her read this thread though. I mean you (maka) called her your gf and metalface "promoted" her to wife, she'll get ideas :p .

We've been together for so long now that in a way it's like we're married (we even have 2 kids) :) so that's not that bad... Maybe I should use a more appropriate word than "girlfriend", maybe "SO" but it sounds strange, I don't know...

As for the game report, Johnny going solo (no support hero) is a way to dig a whole for yourself. 4 dice to 4 hits (for Nova Blast) isn't by no means undoable solo, but if you roll even 1 hit/boost, you're not getting the most out of it. Especially, since barring a good Ally card, you can (usually) afford to put Sue (or Thing...) to support.

As I said, I don't remember whether he was actually going solo, I don't think so. Usually when I play the F4 (it has been a while), before taking out Reed as active hero, I like to use Thing, with either Sue or Torch in support (if Torch support power will come handy).

On a side note, anybody else find it odd that Magneto's Combat Power is meant to skip the Outwit, which in both Orange and Yellow is his best rating? Are you meant to try to defeat the X-men going Red, discarding to skip OW (and if you have done your 1st Masterplan, keep Init)? That 2 Defense just look BAD. Ok, versus Jean + Cyke, you might want to do it, but even then, Jean has other options that are better then what Mags brings to the table.

I think Magneto's power is great when you can steal the initiative at the beginning of combat. This way you get to keep it for at least a while. In our case it did make this combat longer, although in the end she didn't use it and I won with the last Outwit roll.

-Jorge

Thread: Re: X-Men vs. F4

Dam the Man — 2008-05-07T08:39:02+00:00

metalface13 wrote:
Maybe you should play as the F4 more often if you want to see if they're unbalanced. Give your wife a break. :)

Don't let her read this thread though. I mean you (maka) called her your gf and metalface "promoted" her to wife, she'll get ideas :p .

As for the game report, Johnny going solo (no support hero) is a way to dig a whole for yourself. 4 dice to 4 hits (for Nova Blast) isn't by no means undoable solo, but if you roll even 1 hit/boost, you're not getting the most out of it. Especially, since barring a good Ally card, you can (usually) afford to put Sue (or Thing...) to support.

On a side note, anybody else find it odd that Magneto's Combat Power is meant to skip the Outwit, which in both Orange and Yellow is his best rating? Are you meant to try to defeat the X-men going Red, discarding to skip OW (and if you have done your 1st Masterplan, keep Init)? That 2 Defense just look BAD. Ok, versus Jean + Cyke, you might want to do it, but even then, Jean has other options that are better then what Mags brings to the table.

Thread: Re: Any Way To Avoid This?

Dam the Man — 2008-05-07T08:12:58+00:00

What if the Win order was the following:

#1 VPs (can't change that :D )
#2 Team which solved Special Headline
#3 Nemesis with proceeded his Masterplan furthest
#4 Team Power-ups

Haven't tried that or anything, but on the surface would seem to give more benefit to aggressive Nemesis than the standard win order which only penalizes for being too aggressive.

Of course, game still has to end in tie, for the above to have an effect so don't know if it would come into play THAT often. Oh well.

Thread: Re: Doom vs. The Richards - Math

kronmc — 2008-05-07T06:59:08+00:00

maka wrote:

But I'm still not convince this edge the F4 have translates to more VPs at the end of the game... And that's what is important to win the game...

But it's not what's important to make sure that every player at the table gets full enjoyment out of the game. Being a mastermind is FUN, except if you are playing Doom. That is the problem, and the developers, rather than the players, are the ones who should fix it.

Thread: Re: X-Men vs. F4

metalface13 — 2008-05-07T05:08:07+00:00

Maybe you should play as the F4 more often if you want to see if they're unbalanced. Give your wife a break. :)

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

The Schaef — 2008-05-07T04:21:13+00:00

tombstone007 wrote:
You can't move a supporting hero back to recovery because supporting heroes are never injured during combat. Recovery is for injured active heroes only. Supporting heroes never engage in battle directly they are really on the sidelines assisting in combat.

Um... no. Ready Heroes move to the Recovery space as a normal movement, without having to take damage. Supporting Heroes who have action powers move to Recovery to use that power, and they are not taking damage.

And you would have to add another house rule in order to send your supporting hero to recovery - supporting heroes can take hits in combat and then go to recovery. That just changes too much for me.

...wwwwwwhy would you need to make that rule?

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

soosy — 2008-05-07T04:03:14+00:00

Well I've only played 3 games but here are my 2 cents...

The Schaef wrote:
Yes. To the best of my knowledge, movement of any Hero from any one spot to any other spot can constitute a movement, and therefore an Action Round. I can't imagine they would allow this for a Ready Hero but not a Supporting Hero.

Upon a quick examination of the rulebook, I see what you mean: for Ready Heroes it says you can move them from the board to Recovery, but for Supporting Heroes it says you can move them from the board to the Supporting spot. I can only imagine this is an oversight, there's no logical reason to differentiate these two. Even if I'm completely wrong as to the designers' intent, I would say go ahead and house-rule it to move to Recovery.

I agree this must be an oversight. I think they mention moving Support Heroes from the board to the Supporting spot just as a contrast to Ready heroes which are "used up" and must return to Recovery. I mean, is there any reason you would ever want to waste an action moving a Supporting Hero back to the card? (The only reason I can possibly think is if you know your opponent has the Sentinels... but then why did you move that Support Hero out to fight in the first place if you knew you were just going to move it back?)

Another ability relates in an interesting way–the Mary Jane Watson power up for MK. It says you should place Spidey on the power-up card instead of Recovery. I wondered why they didn't just say put Spidey into Recovery without a wound as that would be more clear as to the card's effect. Perhaps placing Spidey on the card is just for thematic reasons... or perhaps they were actually thinking of the Private Lives card and didn't want Spidey available for a plot point. (Although that seems like a pretty strange way of balancing.)

I don't really think Recovery is only for injured heroes. On pg. 6 it says heroes "are said to be in Recovery whether they are wounded or not." So I don't see moving to Recovery as requiring that the Hero was injured.

Personally, I would agree with a house-rule that says you can move a Support Hero back to Recovery. Either way, as long as you play consistently, I don't see it making a huge difference. :)

Thread: Re: X-Men vs. F4

The Schaef — 2008-05-07T03:51:16+00:00

maka wrote:
And I'm not sure what you mean about the last two, I don't remember it well, but I think Torch had support, but I'm not sure, maybe not.

It's not necessarily about Torch (though you should support whenever possible, obviously). The point was, the villains did not and could not have boosting.

About the last headline, it has happened more than once that someone reaches the necessary number of VPs in one of the last two actions of a turn and it's not possible to attempt it, which is a pity, but it's hard to calculate for that ahead.

I know it happens. The point was that all of these things happened together in the same game.

Thread: Re: X-Men vs. F4

maka — 2008-05-07T12:57:38+00:00

The Schaef wrote:
two X-Men story cards right away (you played this correctly this time, right?)

BTW, it's funny you ask this because each time I use her power now, it irks me I have to play it differently than what is actually written in the card and I'm tempted to say "what the hell" and play like I used to. But then the X-Men would be too powerful (although maybe then they'll be balanced against the F4 :p )

-Jorge

Thread: Re: Going out of print/unsupported?

Krieghund — 2008-05-07T12:55:17+00:00

Congratulations and good luck, Francesco!

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

Krieghund — 2008-05-07T12:52:03+00:00

I agree with Vinny. There is no mention of using a Movement action to put supporting heroes in Recovery in the rules. However, moving a supporting hero to Recovery in order to use a Special Ability is covered in the rules.

Thread: Re: X-Men vs. F4

maka — 2008-05-07T12:47:02+00:00

Well, the way Spanish translators usually work, I can't make any assumptions :D This time they seemed to respect the original name... BTW, I usually know the English names for heroes/villains because I've got some Marvel comics in English, but as most are from when I was a kid, most still are in Spanish...

About the other stuff, some yes, some no... The headlines were lower than usual the first turn, then it was the usual mix. Same for Danger headlines. In fact I'd say overall, there were more Mystery headlines than others, but not by much...

This time we played Jean's support power right :D and yes, there were two X-Men story cards on the first turn, although I had to spend to actions to get them both.

Energies cards are few, so this is to be expected...

And I'm not sure what you mean about the last two, I don't remember it well, but I think Torch had support, but I'm not sure, maybe not.

About the last headline, it has happened more than once that someone reaches the necessary number of VPs in one of the last two actions of a turn and it's not possible to attempt it, which is a pity, but it's hard to calculate for that ahead... Of course, I could have not attempted the last headline I did, so that I could do the special one next turn, but what's the point if it was easier to win this way?

Maybe this scenario should only be winnable if Galactus is defeated...

-Jorge

Thread: Re: X-Men vs. F4

The Schaef — 2008-05-07T12:32:30+00:00

Rojo = red, so this is a fairly simple translation. His English name is Omega Red. :)

Anyway, you seem to have hit the perfect storm of playing vs the F4:
- low-level headlines
- lots of Danger ratings
- two X-Men story cards right away (you played this correctly this time, right?)
- no Energies cards
- defeating Torch with no boosting
- blocked out the last headline

That's a lot to go your way all in one game.

Thread: X-Men vs. F4

maka — 2008-05-06T11:40:53+00:00

So tonight we had time to play and chose Marvel Heroes, but I managed to convince my girlfriend to play the F4 (She always plays with MK). I really want to play against them a few times to see if they're really as powerful as it is said..

We played the Galactus scenario but instead of 15vps, we played up to 20vps for a longer game.

TURN 1: The distribution of headlines was a bit strange with only one 5vp and the rest lower. Also, they were either Danger or Mystery, so I had to get Cyclops out as active hero (for the first time in months). Storm went as support.

The F4 put Reed in support to farm some cards, and went for one of the easier headlines. I went for a 3vp headline. At the end of this turn, I was ahead 5 to 3 vps and thanks to Jean's and Wolverine's support powers and a history action, got 1 extra plot point for later plus 3 cards and 2 history cards for 1 power up.

TURN 2: This turn was a bit of a disaster for the F4, as the Human Torch was defeated (can't remember by whom right now). This meant that the difference in vps became quite big, as the X-Men were succesful in doing a larger headline. I had kept Cyclops active because a new headline happened to land on his spot, and between him and Storm (as active hero eleswhere) the X-Men got a few more vps. Also, Magneto advanced his master plan, as Cyclops, alone with only 1 KO was no match for him (I didn't even try because I wanted him as support next turn).

TURN 3: This was the last turn of the game. Both teams managed to score 2 headlines, and Doom at last had a chance to try his master plan only to fail after my girlfriend managed to roll 8 dice and get a trouble rating of 3 (wow!!). I of course was unable to damage Reed before the combat against Doom, and Doom was defeated thanks to the deadly couple (Reed and Sue).

So I was a bit frustrated because I was unable to use this chance to its fullest, but well, some other time...

During this turn, Mangeto made his appearance twice. The first one after Rojo Omega (don't know his name in English) managed to hurt Jean once, thus I decided not to fight Magneto that time. The second time, she managed to defeat her villain without damage, and then fought Magneto putting both her attack power and cyclops support power to good use, and defeating him in the second Outwit roll.

As Galactus' headline came into play that last turn, no one was able to attempt it...

The result was 25 to 17 (more or less) for the X-Men, so even if Magneto had defeated Jean the second time, I would have won.

CONCLUSION: All right. This doesn't mean the F4 are balanced, I know :) But overall it was a very tense game, action packed and fun. I never felt I was sure going to lose, and I'm 100% sure that to say the F4 have to be left out of the game is an exaggeration (btw, we used Sue's power as per the FAQ rule).

There was (unfortunately) just one fight with Reed+Sue vs. Doom, that could have gone differently if the 8 trouble dice would have resulted in a big trouble rating, but we'll never know now...

The X-Men are still my favorite team, and MK are still her favorite team. She likes the style of play with them better (not as powerful in combat but with excellent troubleshooting skills). So, I'm not sure how many more times will she agree to play the F4...

Still, I think that the F4's super combo of Reed+Sue doesn't necessarily translate to an advantage getting VPs. The fact that Doom didn't win his fight against them didn't give them the win, and they lost because while Reed was farming cards, Human Torch was unable to complete a headline. This risk will always be present, and is what makes the farming strategy not so good in my view...

On an unrelated note, I've noticed that we're tending more and more to skip useless fights when it's clear there's almost no chance to win. For example, if the trouble rating is 1-2, usually we'd rather keep the villain card for later (to be used to fuel a special power) than waste it in a useless fight that the hero will win without a scratch. Also, the other way around is sometimes true, when it's better to let the nemesis advance his plan and be sure to be able to use the hero next turn without having to waste an action to heal him... It's all about optimization, and also makes the playing time shorter (this game lasted between 1-1,5h)

-Jorge

Thread: Re: Going out of print/unsupported?

ruvion — 2008-05-06T08:37:41+00:00

The Iron Man movie has got me itching to play this game as well...Thank you for the look see! I thought this baby dropped off the radar a long time ago. :D

Will look forward to any official sanctions in the future.

P.S. Congrats on your masterpiece...err baby!

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

tombstone007 — 2008-05-06T08:03:56+00:00

Here's my take on the matter for what it's worth.

You can't move a supporting hero back to recovery because supporting heroes are never injured during combat.

Recovery is for injured active heroes only. Supporting heroes never engage in battle directly they are really on the sidelines assisting in combat.

My guess is that's why there is a difference with the wording in the rules. Houseruling this differently really changes things in my opinion. And you would have to add another house rule in order to send your supporting hero to recovery - supporting heroes can take hits in combat and then go to recovery. That just changes too much for me.

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

maka — 2008-05-06T07:35:04+00:00

Heh, you're right, the rules don't give the option to move a supporting hero to Recovery, only to their support space... This may have been thought as an advantage over the active heroes, as they can only move back to Recovery, and so once out, can't go back to the board again... A support hero can go back to their card and then back to the board, although I'm not sure if that would actually be of any use... Still, maybe they did it on purpose so you can't use the Private lives cards unless the hero has a support power that moves them to recovery...

I can't remember ever having been in your situation before, but if you hadn't asked, I would have moved the supporting hero to Recovery without a second thought :D now I get to correct the mistake before it happened!

-Jorge

Thread: Re: Going out of print/unsupported?

Francesco Nepitello — 2008-05-06T07:31:40+00:00

The Schaef wrote:
Francesco,
Thanks for your response! I even tipped GG (which I NEVER do) to encourage you to come back and check up on us once or twice a month. :D

Thank you, Stephen. I was motivated to come back here and get in touch again by seeing how many users were discussing and debating the game with a passion (be it positive or negative). AND, the last straw was pulled by me seeing the Iron Man movie! :)

The Schaef wrote:
As such, I think that the game can live on for quite a while without necessarily having to expand it officially. I think if you guys just stepped in here for a bit, helped us hammer out perceived issues with the Fantastic 4, maybe spice up the story track a bit, sanction some more "official" scenarios, you could probably just issue one more FAQ to wrap up official support of the game, and we could get a lot of mileage out of the game.

I cannot promise nothing, as my next few months are going to be quite busy: I designed my masterpiece - my daughter Anita, in collaboration with my wife ;) and there is still AoC, War of the Ring deluxe, Micro Mutants 2nd box, and a thing that I cannot talk about yet, to be revealed probably in August, something completely different for us... But on the good side, me and Marco Maggi are opening a studio, to get involved in games almost full time, in the next couple of months. So, I foresee a busy end of year and 2009, a hectic schedule to escape from from time to time, maybe with a game of Marvel Heroes or two, to get the ball rolling again and maybe squeeze out a couple of good ideas to fix it. So, don't give up hope yet!

Francesco

Thread: Re: Supporting Heroes Movement

The Schaef — 2008-05-06T07:31:26+00:00

Yes. To the best of my knowledge, movement of any Hero from any one spot to any other spot can constitute a movement, and therefore an Action Round. I can't imagine they would allow this for a Ready Hero but not a Supporting Hero.

Upon a quick examination of the rulebook, I see what you mean: for Ready Heroes it says you can move them from the board to Recovery, but for Supporting Heroes it says you can move them from the board to the Supporting spot. I can only imagine this is an oversight, there's no logical reason to differentiate these two. Even if I'm completely wrong as to the designers' intent, I would say go ahead and house-rule it to move to Recovery.