Marvel Crisis Protocol Adepticon 2026 Predictions

Adepticon is nearly upon us. In addition to being one of the biggest and best miniature gaming conventions, it's a particularly exciting time for Marvel Crisis Protocol players because of the Roadmap presentation. This showcase, which can be attended in person at Adepticon or streamed on the Profession Casual Network's Twitch channel, previews a selection of what's in the works for MCP.

Usually, this presentation operates on a conveyor belt-style system. We'll likely see full rules reveals for models we previously saw sculpts of, painted sculpts for renders, and new reveals via renders of releases further out. Given the timing, new Crisis reveals, and even character updates aren't out of the question.

However, which potential inclusions are most exciting is going to vary from person to person. Here's what some of Goonhammer's MCP team is most looking forward to.

Alfred_Pharius

Based on previous years, we can make a few assumptions about what we will see.

Missions

AMG has already said that the next set of missions will have a Sentinel focus. We've already seen two of these: ‘Jailbreak Leads to Mass Mutant Escape’ and ‘Lockdown! Security Systems Stymie Breakout.”

The Jailbreak mission showcases the new ‘Source Extract’ mechanic, where objective tokens are flipped and return to their point of origin each round. It's safe to assume that some, or maybe all, of the other new missions will have the same. The latest version of the rules also has directional secures showing Zones of Influence. It will be interesting to see how many of the new Secures utilise this. Hopefully not too many, as I don't want to have to replace all my tokens!

Characters

There are a few characters they have showcased the models of but we haven't seen the rules for yet. As a Sentinel lover, I'm looking forward to seeing what these robot reinforcements will bring to the table. The Nimrod model they've shown looks amazing, and I hope his rules make him appropriately powerful so I have a reason to put him on the table.

Outside of the robots, I'm also keen to see what Red Hulk can do. We already have several Hulk variants in the game, and it'll be interesting to see how they differentiate this red one. They also mentioned online that he has a mustache option, which is definitely how I'll build mine!

Updates

There are a few characters who you could argue overperform at the table and who we might see adjustments for. Shang-Chi would be my number one contender for adjustments. He is a jack of all trades that can do a little bit of everything, so you find him in a lot of competitive lists.

My hope is that this balance pass we finally see a nerf to Baron Zemo. He is one of few characters from the very first core set that has remained untouched, and his reroll aura stacking with Namor's version has helped keep him at the top of the meta after all these years.

In the last balance update, we saw some rogue health increases for several shield characters, which has put a few of them above the curve. It's safe to say we might get more of the same for other characters.

Other Games

We've seen very little from the newly announced Marvel Alliances game. I'm hoping we get a better look at the rules set and more hints at what to expect.

Brushwizard

Oh man, another Adepticon means another Road Map event! I'm hyped to sit in that room and bask in the announcements. But what could they be? Probably not Fantastic Four and Doom, but we can hope, I suppose.

On the mutants' side of things, since Multiple Man and Havok were announced last year, maybe we'll get more X-Factor team members? I've been rooting for Polaris and Strong Guy for a while now. We already have Quicksilver in the game, too, so that would fill out a few slots in the team. I'm also still hoping we see some 90s X-Force characters. I'd love to see a Nova-style Cannonball, Boom-boom, and Shatterstar in the game. Maybe this is our year!

I've recently been reading Warlock and the Infinity Watch lately, and the cosmic side of things. So I'd like to see if they can get Pip the Troll, plus beefy and dumb Drax the Destroyer, into the mix. I'm still holding out hope for the Silver Surfer, too. AMG has been leaning into oddball characters, too, so maybe Impossible Man has a future in MCP? Wouldn't that be interesting?

I'm excited to see more about Alliances. I'll definitely be asking more about that, since I have a few friends who are sort of interested in MCP but don't want to make the leap into wargaming. I wonder if they'll share more information about the Sentinels pack and which 4 X-Men are included. I would love to see a new Cyclops sculpt in it. I'm sure Wolverine will be the 2nd character. But it's so hard to pick 4 X-Men to feature in it.

Either way, I am very excited to get there and see what’s been cooking since Ministrav!

Wake Drannor

Image Credit: Troy Alanis

I echo Brushwizard: I’d really like to see Silver Surfer. He feels like a character that is missing from the pantheon of models in MCP - a big name that has yet to appear. However, he’s closely tied to the Fantastic Four, so until we see them, I’m not sure we’ll see him.

I’ve had many of my wishes satisfied by AMG with Crisis Protocol over the last year plus in terms of releases - for Guardians, Nova and Yondu, followed by the new box (and in particular Moondragon and Phyla Vell; Adam Warlock is kind of a “whatever” for me narratively), plus Sunspot and Warlock for my beloved New Mutants. I’d like to see a few more Guardians in the pipeline - I mentioned the Surfer already (who’s as much a Guardian as Ronan is, certainly), but I’d also like to see Mantis and my personal deep-cut favorite, Bug. We know Moonstar is coming, and I’m really hoping she’s a leader for New Mutants (as she was in the comics). Going forward, I’d like to see Cannonball, Wolfsbane, Karma, Magma, and Cypher added to round out the classic lineup, so here’s hoping for a few of those.

I don’t love the current state of the meta - I think aggression is way too strong, and I say that as a Guardians player - so I’d love to see that reined in. I believe that Servants of the Apocalypse’s design is really interesting but too strong relative to the rest of the game, and would like to either see them dialed down a touch or everybody else nudged to compensate. Likewise, Dormammu- I think he’s been overshot and is now too good and too easily splashable into too many rosters, not unlike Thanos of old. In general, I feel like the “haves” and “have nots” in MCP are not as close as they should be, and I’m hoping some combination of adjustments and the new crisis pack will help level that out. I’m also crossing my fingers for updates to a few of the classic Guardians to go along with the just-announced starter box this summer.

In general, I think the game is weirdly really good at the highly competitive level and at the extremely casual level but suffers a fair bit in the middle- there are too many things in the game right now that I’d describe as “mid-table slayers” that create an oppressive environment for players who aren’t prepared or affiliations who lack the tools to handle them. I’m hoping that some of those things get adjusted; I would much prefer a game that is balanced for the middle of the skill set and encourages people to grow in strategic play rather than something that’s going to just try to stat-check you off the board.

Overall, I’m looking forward to the panel and can’t wait to see what’s coming next.

Safest Prediction: More mutants for X-Men, X-Factor, or New Mutants. Wildest Prediction: Bug, Jack Flag, or Major Victory for Guardians of the Galaxy.

Quinn

Man, my fellow writers have done a really good job touching on the big stuff. I’ll start by saying I agree with a lot of it; however, to avoid repetition, I’ll focus on some other things here.

I’m a competitively-minded MCP player, but I’ll be darned if I’m not super excited for the more casual-leaning (according to the vibes of the announcement) MCP Alliances cooperative board game. From a business perspective, this product makes so much sense. Introducing a new product that complements another game rather than competing with it creates wonderful synergy to pull people into the MCP ecosystem.

Beyond that, I just love the theme they chose for the first box and the mechanics (what little we know). As someone with an extremely limited in-person local gaming community, the fact that Alliances officially supports single-player (and will presumably be good for one person playing multiple characters) makes this a great addition to my solo board game collection. Add on that it tackles my favorite corner of the Marvel Universe (even though I can’t play as my beloved Green Goblin), and I’m all in. If the gameplay is even halfway decent, this will be a day-one purchase for me, so I’m excited to learn more and hopefully get a demo in.

MCP-wise, I have my wishlist of new announcements like everyone else. Mutants and Young Avengers don’t do much for me, which make up a big chunk of the previews from Ministervaganza, but I’m hoping to see more about the hopefully-foes-affiliated Jack-o-Lantern and maybe even get a tease for some more symbiotes. Eddy Brock’s Venom is too iconic to only have one model!

Whatever does or doesn’t get announced, these roadmaps are exciting times to be an MCP player, and I look forward to the new wild west of a new meta, new listbuilding questions, and new conversations to have with my fellow players.

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Tags: Adepticon | Marvel Crisis Protocol | MCP