Character Review: Psylocke

Betsy Braddock, one of the two more iconic iterations of Psylocke, is a psychic assassin, a classic and beloved member of X-Men. Let's see what she brings to the Uncanny X-Men in Crisis Protocol.

With 6 health (5 on the injured side), a medium move on a 35mm base with 3 physical, 3 energy and 4 mystic defense, she is about as average as it goes for a 4 threat model.

Telekinetic Kanata serves as Psylocke's builder. With 5 dice at R2, either energy or mystic and wild triggers that take away power before damage is dealt is a solid attack, that can deny some forms of damage reductions by taking power away before damage happens. Being able to choose between energy and mystic also means Psylocke can usually hit a model where they're weak, either denying defensive techs like Martial Artist and Spider-Sense or just hitting the weakest defense. 

Psi-Bow provides Psylocke with a ranged attack option that gains power and can let her advance short if she rolls a hit. Having a ranged attack with additional movement tied to it can help her close the gap and set her up for a second attack afterward.

Psionic Assault is Psylocke's Spender. At 3 power, R3 with 7 dice, it's fairly average, but stunning before damage makes it super solid since the opposing model would only gain 1 power from the damage on the attack.

Telekinetic Combat Enhancement is Psylocke's first superpower. For 2 power, she gains a short move and gains +2 dice on her next builder this turn. This gives her a pretty inexpensive option to get some form of movement and helps her build power subsequently. Combined with Psi-Bow, it makes Psylocke a relatively mobile model.

Telepathic Precognition is Psylocke's second superpower. She can spend any amount of power to reroll any number of dice on both attacks and defense rolls, once per turn. This helps her have more consistent attacks and helps her average defensive stat line.

Last but not least, Martial Artist and Stealth give Psylocke some additional defensive tools. While Stealth helps her not get hit by ranged attacks, she is still somewhat vulnerable when attacked between R2 and R3.

Overall, Psylocke is a pretty mobile assassin who has the capacity to hit fairly hard thanks to her attack suite and rerolls. She shares a similar role to some of the other 4 threats in affiliation but her attack suite gives her some advantages over her friends.

Thanks for taking the time to read this piece and as always, don't forget to have fun!