Avengers League Playoffs: Will.S v. Grazzt

[Jessica Drew]

Welcome to the first playoff match of the Avengers League! If you haven't been following the league, it is a large scale series of battles where posters draft teams and pit their teams against that of other posters, and you vote to decide who wins. When voting, please consider the strategies the players have written, rather than just the team's roster.

Each match is taking place on an empty battlefield, 100 yards away, and each character (with few exceptions) depicted is in his/her most frequent incarnation (therefore, no Iron Spidey or Extremis Iron Man), and the characters have to act in character (meaning that the heroes cannot kill if they aren't normally wont to do so).

If you have any questions about the strategies, please feel free to post these questions here, and the players will answer. The match will last twenty-four hours. After that time period, the player with the largest number of votes wins.

!!! - For your vote to count, you must have a post count of no lower than fifty.

Will.S's team: Quicksilver, Vision, Justice, Hawkeye, Wonder Man, Black Knight (Whitman), Yellowjacket, She-Hulk

Grazzt's team: Ultron, Agatha Harkness, Dr. Spectrum, Whirlwind, Speed Demon, Gamora, Mr. Fantastic, Stan Lee

[Jessica Drew]

Will.S's strategy:

Simultaneous actions

Phase 1:

Hawkeye and She-Hulk start the assault. She Hulk bounces off towards Agatha Harkness, before she starts an incantation Hawkeye hits her with a tear gas arrow. In her moment of weakness and confusion Hawkeye follows up with a net arrow which captures her. She-Hulk arrives and swings Agatha (still in the net) at Gamora effectively knocking out Agatha.

Vision turns super densem Hank Pym grows 30 feet and faces off with Ultron to keep him busy.

Quicksilver engages Speed Demon. Seeing as how Quicksilver is many times faster than Speed Demon, he gets outblitzed by a flurry of punches and kicks.

Wonder Man flies towards Dr. Spectrum who puts up his shields around himself. Wonder Man laughs at this shield and flies upward getting ready to divebomb alongside his class 95 strength. He breaks through the barrier and begins to wail on Dr. Spectrum who constructs armor around himself. Wonder Man rips them right out and slams him into ground, picks him up in a daze and hits a homerun way out into the other side of the field.

Black Knight engages Mr. Fantastic. Reed tries to envelop Black Knight with his stretchy body but BK unleashes a blast of energy that stuns Richards. BK sees that he has no choice, he has to use the ebony sword against him. Dane incapacitates Reed by lunging the sword into his hands and legs, thus letting the curse run it's course and turning Dane much more unstable.

Justice and Whirlwind have something of a history together as hero and villain so Whirlwind should be no problem for a telekinetic. As Whirlwind speeds towards Justice, he captures him in a TK hold and slams him into the ground multiple times into unconsciousness.

Phase 2:

She-Hulk is still in fisticuffs with Gamora, Hawkeye butts in and launches a sonic arrow at Gamora deafening her for a few seconds, She-Hulk takes the opportunity to knock her out. Justice, Wonder Man, Quicksilver and Hawkeye are back from their battles along with Dane Whitman who's trying to hold the darkness in. Vision not being able to keep up with Ultron's durability turns intangible and continues an air assault distraction using his solar beams. While they do nothing to Ultron's shell, they are merely used as a distraction. Hank Pym sees that most of the team is back and douses Ultron in Pym particles and makes Ultron bigger and takes in Justice, Black Knight. Justice erects TK shields on everyone from protection of the energy emissions inside Ultron. Hank's plan is to enter, and either pick apart his vulnerable endoskeleton or destroy the molecular re-arranger. Since the skeleton way would take up too much time, the plan is for the re-arranger.

Phase 3: They split up into teams, Black Knight Justice and Yellowjacket head for the molecular re-arranger and Wonder Man, Hawkeye, She-Hulk and Quicksilver run interference. On the insides they spotted the molecular re-arranger and Hank Pym points Black Knight (on his steed and protected by TK shields) to it. Dane careens down the re-arranger as he cuts right through it using the ebony sword, effectively freezing Ultron dead in his tracks.

Ultron's humongous husk falls down and the team from the inside come out of Ultron's adamantium shell victorious.

[Jessica Drew]

Grazzt's strategy:

All actions simultaneous

Whirlwind will start the match standing in front of my team, with Ultron right in front of him. Whirlwind will start off by propelling Ultron into the opposing team (Ultron will fly himself as well, but the large amounts of wind will increase his speed. His cybernetic brain should keep him from allowing himself to be blown too far). Ultron's opening volley will be to hypnotise Justice, followed by ordering Justice to protect him from all attackers, and when Justice is safe to attack Hawkeye and Black Knight with his telekinesis. Ultron himself will lay into Wonder Man.

Whirlwind's opening gust will also serve to slow down Quicksilver and deflect any of Hawkeye's projectiles. Once Ultron has been moved into the enemy ranks, Whirlwind will direct his attentions to Quicksilver, with the assistance of Speed Demon.

Dr. Spectrum will focus on his own defence and on taking down Yellowjacket and She Hulk. Yellowjacket gets placed in a force bubble before he gets a chance to grow, then crushed. She Hulk will get grabbed by the hair by a giant hand that spins her around several times before tossing her in the air.

Agatha Harkness will use her magic powers to blow Vision's circuitry, recorporating him first if necessary. Will S.'s team lacks magic users, so she's pretty free to act here. If she manages to take him down quickly enough, she'll support the Whirlwind/Speed Demon vs. Quicksilver fight by creating large numbers of illusionary copies of my speedsters.

Gamora and Mr. Fantastic will keep Shulkie busy until Doc Spectrum is ready to give her the boot. They don't need to actually injure her, just keep her from doing any damage through infuriating attacks (although if Gamora gets a chance to drop her, she'll take it). After that they'll attack Hawkeye and Black Knight, assuming Justice hasn't already taken care of them.

[venuscameback]

This one's pretty straight-forward to me, despite a few problems with characterisation (She-Hulk swinging Agatha about in a net? (I forgive that because She-Hulk can find plenty other ways to quickly finish the job while agatha recovers from the nerve gas) BK so quick to invoke the blood curse? can Vision fire solar blasts whilst intangible?) Will S's strategy is sound and creative.

Neat to see the team get inside Ultron and defeat him from the inside, but how exactly do they get inside? That's my one sticking point, I'm not sure how they get inside in the first place. If they can do that then I think this match is done and dusted

[Sean Whitmore]

I didn't even know this was up! :eek:

Looks to me like Will takes this one with the more comprehensive strategy. I liked Agatha being taken down, and that you used Hawk and Shulkie to beat Gamora. Growing Ultron was cool too, though it's weird to think he doesn't have any internal defenses.

But Will, JD said that Black Knight doesn't have the blood curse. You didn't let it hinder you too much, but why bring it up at all?


SEAN

[Will.S]

This one's pretty straight-forward to me, despite a few problems with characterisation (She-Hulk swinging Agatha about in a net? (I forgive that because She-Hulk can find plenty other ways to quickly finish the job while agatha recovers from the nerve gas) I just thought it would be funny yet extreme way to deal with Agatha by swinging around a bag of bones. Otherwise I would have had Shulkie kick her in the groin thinking that Agatha was a drag queen

;)

can Vision fire solar blasts whilst intangible? Yep, he's done it many a time.

http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/7505/vizintan7ni.th.jpg (http://img165.imageshack.us/my.php?image=vizintan7ni.jpg)

Neat to see the team get inside Ultron and defeat him from the inside, but how exactly do they get inside? That's my one sticking point, I'm not sure how they get inside in the first place. If they can do that then I think this match is done and dusted I was doing some research on Ultron and there's a passageway in the neck area that goes down to his innards. The energy he emits from the mouth/eyes comes from the energy exhaust that's coming from all the stuff going on inside of his body.

http://img507.imageshack.us/img507/3114/ultroninsides8fr.th.jpg (http://img507.imageshack.us/my.php?image=ultroninsides8fr.jpg)

But Will, JD said that Black Knight doesn't have the blood curse. You didn't let it hinder you too much, but why bring it up at all? I forgot that the blood curse wasn't in effect and took it into account just in case.

[Grazzt]

In my defense:

1. Whirlwind's opening whirlwind should block the arrows from Hawkeye. And by the time Whirlwind lets the wind die down, Hawkeye'll be dealing with Justice. That means Agatha is very much in play until Shulkie can close, which she'll have trouble doing thanks to interference from Gamora.

2. Yellowjacket won't be able to do anything to distract Ultron: he's put into a bubble early on in the match. Even if Wonder Man manages to burst through Spectrum's shields (or carry Spectrum away without bursting the shield), its still too late to stop Ultron from converting Justice to my team, which is a giant loss for Will.

3. Black Knight probably won't face off against Mr. Fantastic: he's going to get TK slammed by Justice.

4. Speed Demon is likely to do little against Quicksilver. Speed Demon+Whirlwind stand a good chance of beating him. Speed Demon+Whirlwind+Harkness is a curbstomp of epic proportions.

5. I don't think Vision has any defense whatsoever against a mystical whammy. Since I've already demonstrated that Hawkeye isn't going to get a chance to arrow her, Agatha should take him down hard.

[Will.S]

In my defense:

1. Whirlwind's opening whirlwind should block the arrows from Hawkeye. And by the time Whirlwind lets the wind die down, Hawkeye'll be dealing with Justice. That means Agatha is very much in play until Shulkie can close, which she'll have trouble doing thanks to interference from Gamora. Hmm, but isn't your Whirlwind propelling Ultron towards my team? That still leaves Agatha open for She-Hulk and Hawkeye to maneuver into position to double team her and his gusts are generally very focused unless he creates a cyclone which would affect the members of your team.

2. Yellowjacket won't be able to do anything to distract Ultron: he's put into a bubble early on in the match. Even if Wonder Man manages to burst through his shields, its still too late to stop Ultron from converting Justice to my team, which is a giant loss for Will.Vision is also combating Ultron. Agatha by this point is taken out of the game if not by Hawkeye's arrows then by She-Hulk arrival as she can't really take on two oppenents at once unless she's given sufficient time for her spells.

[Grazzt]

Hmm, but isn't your Whirlwind propelling Ultron towards my team? That still leaves Agatha open for She-Hulk and Hawkeye to maneuver into position to double team her and his gusts are generally very focused unless he creates a cyclone which would affect the members of your team.

I would think that a whirlwind that propels Ultron towards your team would also be wide enough to prevent projectiles from coming my way. And once thw whirlwind stops, Ultron and Justice are causing havok in your back lines. And while he's capable of focussed ones (hard enough to smash concrete) I'm pretty sure he's capable of wider ones too.

Vision is also combating Ultron. Agatha by this point is taken out of the game if not by Hawkeye's arrows then by She-Hulk arrival as she can't really take on two oppenents at once unless she's given sufficient time for her spells.

I can delay She-Hulk with Gamorra long enough for Agatha to at least take out Vision, if not longer. Remember, Gamora is not only crazy skilled, but she has the strength and agility to keep her in play, even against the Savage and Sensational She-Hulk. And Hawkeye won't be able to help her with a hypnotised telekinetic attacking him. (Note to self: when fighting a telekinetic, don't arm myself with large collections of pointy objects, such as arrows. They will be used against me.)

[Will.S]

I would think that a whirlwind that propels Ultron towards your team would also be wide enough to prevent projectiles from coming my way. And once thw whirlwind stops, Ultron and Justice are causing havok in your back lines. And while he's capable of focussed ones (hard enough to smash concrete) I'm pretty sure he's capable of wider ones too.If Whirlwind's initial main focus is to propel Ultron towards Justice, I don't really see his gusts expanding more than it needs to. Also Speed Demon would fall prey to Quicksilver pretty easily so I don't see him double teaming with Whirlwind.

I can delay She-Hulk with Gamorra long enough for Agatha to at least take out Vision, if not longer. Remember, Gamora is not only crazy skilled, but she has the strength and agility to keep her in play, even against the Savage and Sensational She-Hulk. And Hawkeye won't be able to help her with a hypnotised telekinetic attacking him. (Note to self: when fighting a telekinetic, don't arm myself with large collections of pointy objects, such as arrows. They will be used against me.)Your Ultron is using Justice to keep him protected (which seems a bit redundant) and is waiting until he's safe, it gives Hawkeye and She-Hulk enough time to deal with Gamora before he puts his attention back to them. Plus Wonder Man isn't taken out of the game yet and Yellowjacket either.

[Grazzt]

Your Ultron is using Justice to keep him protected (which seems a bit redundant)

Then it won't take him very long, and he can turn his attention to Hawkeye and Black Knight. :p That was just a protection in case you had come up with something really clever to take Ultron out really quickly.

Plus Wonder Man isn't taken out of the game yet and Yellowjacket either.

Yeah, but they're taken care of anyways. Ultron goes after Wonder Man, and Yellowjacket gets TK-slammed by Justice when he tries to take out Ultron. And since Yellowjacket is in large form, its likely that getting TK slammed in that manner will also take out at least one of Hawkeye and Black Knight, and possibly both.

Also Speed Demon would fall prey to Quicksilver pretty easily so I don't see him double teaming with Whirlwind.

While I agree that Speed Demon couldn't match Pietro, he probably won't have to for too long before Whirlwind, and then later Agatha, get in to help him. Personally, I think he can last just long enough to be of some use to Whirlwind later on in the fight.

If Whirlwind's initial main focus is to propel Ultron towards Justice, I don't really see his gusts expanding more than it needs to.

The gust is also supposed to protect the party from arrow attacks and hopefully slow Quicksilver down a little. That's mentioned in the second paragraph. The gust only gives a bit of extra speed to Ultron, so he can get in range for a hypnotising attack on Justice that much quicker.

Editted to add: Happy Independence Day to the Americans in the audience! I wish I had Jubilee on my team to provide fireworks. ;)

[Jessica Drew]

Come on, voters: post your thoughts!

[Grazzt]

Come on, voters: post your thoughts!

I'd like to add: come on non-voters, vote! That seems far more important to me, for some reason.

[Grazzt]

Well, congratulations are in order, Will S. I just hope your next match gets more commentary.

[Will.S]

LOL, indeed.

And thanks for the great fight Grazzt, I honestly thought you were going to beat me out there.