Rating the Hulks
A rating of all 14 Hulk figures from
Infinity Challenge to Mutant Mayhem
by Godwin
14. Rookie Hulk (Infinity Challenge / Universe) – 103
points
Rookie Hulk from Infinity Challenge is the first ever Hulk
Heroclix figure I got. I have to be honest and say he is
also one of the most disappointing figures in the Heroclix
game. If I had a list of the 25 worst figures in my
collection he would be on it. I have probably used him about
5 or 6 times in a game stubbornly trying to get him to be
effective and almost half the time he dies without ever
landing a hit. The problem with Rookie Hulk is that for 103
points you expect him to be able to go toe to toe with most
of the 100-point brawlers in the game and he just can’t. His
dial takes to long to develop and his major weakness is his
Damage. He doesn’t even get a Damage of 3 until his 6th
click so without an object he can’t touch a figure with
Impervious or Invulnerability. By the time he can start
laying the smack down on a figure he only has a few clicks
left and another blow by your opponent and he is KO’d. If
you miss an attack on his best clicks its over. Overall this
is not a version of Hulk that inspires fear in your opponent
and its best to leave him in the unused figure bin.
13. Experienced Hulk (Infinity Challenge / Universe) –
117 points
Even though the Experienced version comes in only one spot
ahead of the Rookie I think he is a much improved figure.
The extra points allow for his dial to be fleshed out a bit
more. His Attack value and Damage value increase quicker and
so he has more clicks were he can effectively fight back. He
still suffers from the same setup in that when he gets on
his best clicks it only takes one hit to KO him completely
and you have no way to try to heal him or pull him back. The
Experienced version also gets the Defender ability and it
works nicely with Hulk. Early on have Hulk use the Defense
of another team member for protection and then when Hulk’s
Defense goes to 17 use that to protect his other teammates.
This figure is not bad and I’ve had some success with him,
but as we will find out there are better Hulks to be found.
12. Mail Away Hulk (Infinity Challenge) – 96 points
At the time this was the cheapest Hulk in the game. He had a
different sculpt then any you could get in a booster and it
showed him raising his fist like King Kong on top of the
Empire State Building. The thing about this Hulk is there
wasn’t anything super exciting about him, although he had a
good consistent dial for his point cost. His Attack slowly
rises to a 12 on his second to last click. His Damage goes
to 4 for a couple of clicks. His Defense rises to 17 with a
couple of clicks of Invulnerability. He has a consistent
dial of Leap/Climb, Super Strength, Toughness, and Battle
Fury. Overall he was a good toned down Hulk for less than
100 points, but nothing really more then that. I’m not
really sure what else to say. He is not great, and not bad
at the same time.
11. Mail Away Gamma Radiation Hulk (Mutant Mayhem) – 82
points
I just received my main away Gamma Radiated Hulk in the
mail, but I have not had a chance to use him in a game yet.
I held off writing this list because I wanted to make sure
his stats were similar to what Wizkids showed on their
website before I lay my judgment on this figure. First off I
have to say that for those who haven’t seen him yet his
sculpt alone is worth getting him for. They use the clear
green plastic, which makes him look really cool. As for
playability though I am hesitant about this Hulk. The Mutant
Mayhem set produced the first Hulks with Charge as so many
have begged for, but with this Hulk he doesn’t get Charge
until his 4th click. By this time he will most likely be
deep into trouble and in base contact with an opponent.
Charge at this point is actually a hindrance as the other
Hulks could simply break away free by using Leap/Climb. The
other major problem is his Attack and Damage don’t synch up.
Hi s Attack goes up and then back down while the Damage
steadily rises to his last click. So when his Attack is at
its highest value of 10 his Damage is only 3. When he can
really lay the smackdown with a 5 Damage his Attack is a
lowly 7 giving him only about a 50% chance of hitting
anything. Also his Damage steadily declines so when he gets
Invulnerability and Impervious he is easier to hit. The Mail
Away Magneto as Zorn had a similar dial on the website, but
they changed it on the actual figure and it made for a much
more playable character. Perhaps after I use him a couple of
times I will find him quite useful, but for right now he
will have to stay towards the bottom of my Hulk list.
10. Rookie Hulk (Mutant Mayhem) – 76 points
The Hulk set from Mutant Mayhem gave us a much cheaper Hulk
with playability at even 300-point games, without
sacrificing the “essense” of what a Hulk figure should be.
At 76 points the Mutant Mayhem Rookie Hulk is the cheapest
Hulk in Heroclix. Though this means he is the easiest figure
to fit on a 300-point team the low point cost leaves some
weaknesses in his dial. First off the good news is that
after he pushes past his “Bruce Banner” click he immediately
gets Charge. Many of players have complained (I not being
one of them) that Hulk will never be a good figure to play
until he gets Charge to start with. The only problem is a
Charge with a Speed of 8 only gives you 4 squares to cover
and still attack. That leaves him vulnerable for too long
with a weak Defense against ranged combat figures. His low
point value also means that his Attack never gets above 10
and he only has one click with a Damage of 4. Plus his
Defense is mundane with only 2 clicks of Invulnerability.
Overall he is not a bad figure, but to me Hulk shouldn’t be
a figure that you make to fit onto any size team. He is a
big ugly monster that doesn’t play well with others and
should be a big hog and take up a lot of points and scare
the bejeezes out of your opponent. I consider the Rookie
Mutant Mayhem Hulk to be the Scrappy Doo of the Heroclix
world and will never compare to the Scooby Hulks of the
game.
9. Experienced Hulk (Mutant Mayhem) – 91 points
If Hulks ranked 11 – 14 were the sub par Hulks, and Hulk
number 10 was the average Hulk, then at number 9 I feel we
begin to get into the Hulks that can be considered above
average even if they are not necessarily tournament worthy.
The Experienced Hulk from Mutant Mayhem follows the same
dial as the Rookie but fleshes it out better. The Charge is
still limited with a Speed of 8, but his Attack now reaches
11 and he has 2 clicks with a Damage of 4 instead of 1. His
Defense is the same, but he gains an extra click of
Invulnerability and another click of health. The major
improvement of the Mutant Mayhem REV versus the Infinity
Challenge REV is that their dial reaches its potential much
quicker and then drops off on the last few clicks. So he can
deal damage quicker and if he gets knocked past his best
clicks he can still break away with Leap/Climb and try to
get healed. Overall the Experienced is a good solid figure
less than 100 points and you should feel free to use him in
300 and 400-point games.
8. Unique Mr. Fixit (Clobberin Time) – 104 points
Our first Unique on the list comes form the second Marvel
expansion set, Clobberin Time. This Hulk represents the
Grey, smart yet evil, Hulk who happens to don a suit and be
a ganster in Vegas. Still his dial is set up like a
traditional Hulk with some twists. First he is one of only 2
Hulk figures to have Leadership. Secondly he has a couple of
clicks of Perplex in the middle of his dial to help boost
his Attack or Damage or a friendly figure’s stats. The other
thing to notice is he is the first Hulk not to require an
activation click so he starts his dial as Hulk and not Bruce
Banner. The other nice ability is that he has 2 clicks of
Regeneration at the end of his dial to help boost him up to
his best clicks. The down side to Mr. Fixit though is most
of his stats are mediocre with an Attack only up to 10,
Damage only up to 3, and Defense only up to 16. Plus his
Speed never gets above 8 so he is not a very speedy Hulk.
Still he has the quintessential Hulk powers of Super
Strength, Leap/Climb, Invulnerability, Toughness, but lacks
Battle Fury, which isn’t always a bad thing.
7. Veteran Hulk (Mutant Mayhem) – 110 points
The Veteran Hulk from Mutant Mayhem rounds out the powers
and stats of the Rookie and Experienced version and makes
for a very tough figure at just over 100 points. After the
activation click he still has a Charge with Speed of 8, but
he now has 3 clicks with Charge and the last one has a Speed
of 10. So if he finds himself free on this click it gives
him flexibility to run right back into the action. His stats
are not drastically different then the Experienced, but he
has an extra click of health and gains a click of Impervious
sandwiched between 2 clicks of Invulnerability. Another
useful power that all of these version of Hulk have is a
couple of clicks of Quake at the end of their dial. This is
useful if your opponent is trying to swarm your Hulk and
overwhelm him. Use Quake to knock them back a few squares
and force them to move up into combat again, wasting a turn.
Overall this Hulk is very playable in my opinion, but the
one question I have is if he gets enough for the extra 19
points he cost over his Experienced. The stats are almost
identical with a few changes in his power. Still a Hulk with
Impervious just feels right.
6. Savage Hulk (Xplosion) – 201 points
The Unique Hulk from Xplosion gives us the most expensive
Hulk yet in the Heroclix game. Clocking in at 201 points
this Hulk is a behemoth and is just nasty from the get go.
He is one of only three Hulks not to require an activation
or as I call it a “Bruce Banner” click. With a starting
Attack of 9 and Damage of 3 Savage Hulk can start wounding
figures with Impervious and Invulnerability right away. His
stats only get better as well. His Attack goes up to 12,
Defense up to 17, and Damage up to a whopping 5 on 2 clicks.
He has 7 clicks, count them, 7 clicks of Invulnerability.
Good god! That must be the most for any Heroclix figure. He
also peaks at his 6th and 7th click so can still take a
beating and not get KO’d immediately like the Rookie and
Experienced Infinity Challenge Hulks. He also has the Hulk
must have powers of Leap/Climb, and Super Strength for his
entire dial and Toughness on all his non-Invulnerability
clicks. He doesn’t have Battle Fury, which seems odd for a
Hulk called Savage Hulk, but a lot of players won’t gripe
about that. So why isn’t this guy higher then #6? Mainly
because he is 201 points and is more expensive then figures
such as Veteran Thor, Veteran Dr. Doom, and Unique Thanos.
The other thing to note is that his Attack of 12 is not any
higher then other Hulks, his Damage of 5 is not any higher
then some other Hulks, his Defense of 17 is quite common
among other Hulks, and his powers are common throughout
almost all the Hulks. Plus with the plethora of Outwitters
in the game it only takes one to Outwit Invulnerability and
then any figure that can land a hit could seriously cripple
the Savage Hulk. Since he won’t fit in games under
400-points your opponent will be sure to target him with
everything they have. Don’t get me wrong, this Hulk is pure
destruction waiting to happen and I would love to play him,
but there are better Hulks out there for the price you pay
for them.
5. Limited Edition Dr. Bruce Banner (Mutant Mayhem) – 92
points
The LE version of the Mutant Mayhem Hulk is only 1 more
point then the Experienced Hulk. So why is it 4 spots higher
on the list? The only real difference is that on his 2nd,
3rd, and 4th click his Defense is 15, 16, and 17 instead of
14, 15, and 16. This may seem like a small difference, but
it really rounds out the figure. For 92 points I honestly
believe that in a 300-point tournament this version of Hulk
is the most playable. He is still 18 points cheaper then the
Veteran and that could mean another solid support piece on
your team. For being the most tourney worthy version of Hulk
he comes in at number 5.
4. Smart Hulk (Critical Mass) – 149 points
This Hulk was hard for me to rank because he has such a
different style of play then all the others. Originally I
had him higher, then lower and finally settled at the 4th
spot. The main thing that makes this Hulk different is he
has a ranged attack. Yes that giant tank turret gun he is
carrying is not just for show. It gives him a Range of 8 and
opens him up to a whole new world of destruction. Since this
is supposed to represent a Hulk that has both his brawn and
his brains he does not have an activation, “Bruce Banner”
click. The other difference is his dial doesn’t go up and
then back down. Instead it yo-yos back and forth a little.
For instance his Attack starts at a very nice 11 and then
goes down to a 10 and works up to a 12 and then down to a 9.
Still a starting Attack of 11 gives him an excellent chance
to land attacks from the start. To keep Smart Hulk from
being an all exclusive ranged combat leviathan his best
clicks have Battle Fury so he is forced to swing the gun
like a baseball bat instead of firing it. He has the typical
Leap/Climb, Super Strength combo and has 5 clicks of
Invulnerability. He also starts with Leadership and for an
added touch has the Spider-Man team ability to allow for
flexibility in how you play him. Overall the Smart Hulk is a
very interesting figure that gives you some versatility in a
Hulk figure, which is rare. Still at 149 points he is not as
big of a brawler as some other equally expensive Hulks, and
he only has 2 clicks where he can use a Ranged attack with a
Damage of 3. All the others have a Damage of 2, so if you
play this Hulk use some Perplexers. But one of the coolest
things about this Hulk that makes him worth having is his
figure sculpt. He is just massive and him carrying that gun
turret is just way cool. Its worth having him for that
sculpt alone.
3. Veteran Hulk (Infinity Challenge / Universe) – 147
points
Ok so the Veteran Hulk from Infinity Challenge made it much
higher up on the list then his predecessor Rookie and
Experienced. So what makes him so different? The fact of the
matter is starting on his 3rd click he is dangerous and by
his 5th he is deadly. For 5 straight clicks his Attack is
either and 11 or 12, his Damage is a 3, 4, or even 5 and his
Defense is identical on each click with a 17 and
Invulnerability. This means he can take a couple of clicks
of damage and not wither under the beating. If you can get
the edge over an opponent it will be harder and harder for
him to hit that 17 Defense. The added bonus he gets is a
single click of Regeneration. Its not always easy to land
him on that single click, but if he does a roll of anything
other then a 1 or 2 puts him right on one of his most
powerful clicks. With Probability Control you should have no
problem pushing him back up to being deadly. The one thing I
don’t like about this Hulk is that he doesn’t have Super
Strength on his second click. So he has to wait until his
third click before he can pick up an item and this tends to
cause Hulk to walk past some useful lamp posts and trash
bins that he can use to smash over his opponents head.
2. Limited Edition Bruce Banner (Infinity Challenge) –
151 points
His stats are almost identical to the Veteran Infinity
Challenge Hulk except his last click of Defense is a 16
instead of 15. The other difference you get for 4 points is
he gets his powers of Leap/Climb and Super Strength on his
second click. This means he can pick up an item after
pushing off his “Bruce Banner” click and can start dealing
some solid damage early. Also the Leap/Climb allows him to
ignore terrain and attack even soaring figures. All in all
this added ability for 4 points is worth it and puts him
just ahead of his Veteran counterpart.
1. Unique Ultimate Hulk (Ultimates) – 182 points
In my opinion the quintessential Hulk figure should be over
150 points, have Leap/Climb, Super Strength, Battle Fury,
and a mix of Invulnerability and Impervious along with a
good Defense and Attack and a hellacious Damage. Well
without question I believe that the Unique Ultimate Hulk
meets all of these requirements. For 182 points this monster
has an Attack that gets up to 13 and a Defense that gets up
to 17. He has all the powers necessary for a Hulk and the 3
clicks of Impervious sandwiched between 4 clicks of
Invulnerability help lessen the blow from Outwitters. Also
this is the only Hulk to have only one KO click. The Savage
Hulk doesn’t even have as deep of a dial. The most amazing
thing about this Hulk is that he can start doing 4 damage by
his 2nd click and gets up to a whopping Damage of 6 on his
6th click. If he has a Heavy Object in his hand that is 8
clicks of damage, which is simply awe inspiring! Some will
complain that this Hulk doesn’t have Charge, or is too
expensive for 300-point teams, but if you want a figure that
best represents what we have come to love and hate about
Hulk in the comics then this figure is it.
