Alioth Decks to Try on Day 1 and Strategy Guide: Turn 6 Checkmate?

Alioth is the Series 5 card for the September 2023 Season Loki For All Time. It is a 6-Cost, 5-Power card that reads On Reveal: Destroy ALL enemy cards played here this turn. (including unrevealed cards) Today, we will take a deeper look at the new card and, of course, the best decks to try it out in.

Variants

Alioth

On Reveal: Remove the text from all unrevealed enemy cards here.

Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Alioth

Strengths and Weaknesses

Alioth‘s main strength is that as long as the five power will win you the lane it is played into, you will win that lane (exceptions like Doctor Doom and Vision aside). For this benefit, you spend six energy, and, unfortunately, that is a lot. In order to take advantage of the effect, you have to create a situation through the earlier turns where you have already won another lane.

Five power isn’t actually a lot for six energy. Cards like Professor X and Storm can help with early lockdowns so that Alioth can be the deciding factor in the second lane. Another solid option may be using Wave on Turn 5, which puts you in a winning situation to then play Alioth on Turn 6. So, while the card has obvious weaknesses, the strategies it fits could be raised a level by the card as it represents a checkmate situation when played correctly. One of the strategies that we need to take time to address is Galactus because it may not be as strong as it seems.

Variants

Galactus

On Reveal: If you’re winning this location and this is your only card here, destroy all other locations.

Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Galactus

When you play Galactus on Turn 5, especially now that you usually get priority from the play, Alioth will come through and guarantee the win. This will work often, and it is an obvious application, but, just like the Galactus decks of the past, you don’t lose to the follow up play, you lose to Galactus. Galactus resolving allows the next play, whatever it is, to happen, so you can counter the follow up play by countering the Galactus play. It is that simple. If you’re staying in to see if they have it or missing the fact that you’re behind on the Galactus turn, then addressing that will increase your Win Rate in these situations.

Alioth is going to tempt players to play Galactus, and the deck will likely improve it’s performance. But it could be argued that this is due to other factors. Some of these factors need entire articles that explain how staying in on Turn 6 after a Snap and not recognizing you’re about to be hit by Galactus is the real issue that impacts your experience. Galactus alone doesn’t need Alioth, but if we can make a version that has the ability to win a lane before Turn 6 regardless of Galactus then Alioth may actually improve the deck. This style of deck may also just be better off without Galactus, though.

The Galactus scenario is actually similar to the Professor X or Wave scenario. You have to ask yourself, could you win anyway? Is it Alioth that actually wins you the game? These are important questions in Marvel Snap because you only have 12 cards. If it will make you feel more comfortable with Galactus decks to play Alioth and know what is going to happen, that is a valid reason to like the card. Also, players make irrational choices often and stay in, and Alioth will punish these circumstances hard.

Variants

Sandman

On Reveal: Players can only play 1 card next turn.

Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Sandman

Variants

Wave

On Reveal: All cards cost a maximum of 4 until the end of next turn.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Wave

Wave and Sandman are two cards that limit the game to one card per turn. If you can do this with a big enough lead, Alioth will close the game and should, therefore, be respected. Wave decks have had a lot of success in recent months, and making changes to include Alioth in those decks might be the best strategy (mainly because these decks can have one to two options for Turn 6 and don’t need to rely on Alioth). Professor X, as mentioned at the start, is another way we can limit the game to one lane and use Alioth as a checkmate. The effect is strong and will catch a lot of people off guard, but we need to review cards to determine the actual value of them as well as their strength.

These same strategies could play another 5- or 6-drop that would be stronger in these scenarios anyway and give you more flexibility for different possibilities. For example, Gamora is a 5-Cost for 12 Power. If you are playing a deck that has locked down one lane and is even or slightly behind on another lane, this card could win the second lane in many circumstances (yes, not all circumstances) and is playable on Turn 5, which allows you to make a play on the other lanes. While Alioth provides a unique checkmate situation, there will be other options in many of the decks.

Variants

Arnim Zola

On Reveal: Destroy one of your other cards here to copy it at the other locations.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Arnim Zola

Variants

Odin

On Reveal: Activate the On Reveal abilities of your other cards here.

Collection Level 1-14

view card details Start a deck Decks with Odin

So, what are some of the all-in ways we could use Alioth? If we are able to play it on Turn 5, maybe we can reactivate the effect on Turn 6 with Odin or Arnim Zola. The Arnim Zola route seems worth exploring because we could combine this with cards like Galactus in a ramp deck to add flexibility. If we can hit the Arnim Zola, the other two lanes will both have the effect activate on Turn 6, which spreads the lockout across two lanes.

Variants

Armor

Ongoing: Cards here can’t be destroyed.

Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Armor

Variants

Cosmo

Ongoing: On Reveal abilities won’t happen here.

Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Cosmo

Now, to bring us all back down to earth, these two cards will beat Alioth every time. Consider how many decks we can adjust to ensure we play Armor and/or Cosmo, and we begin to see that the biggest weakness isn’t just the cost. It’s the fact that any strategy that relies on Alioth to be the clincher could come undone to two strong early-game cards.

This effect is easy to overhype, but when you consider how Marvel Snap is structured the actual impact Alioth has on your games could be small. This, combined with the high energy cost and clear counter cards that can be played throughout the game, may result in this card not meeting the expectations many have for it.

However, in reality, players stay in often, gambling on outcomes and making irrational choices. Alioth will punish these situations hard and provide a clear checkmate with decks that can get ahead and limit the final turns in some way. This might be enough.

The Verdict

Alioth will go into a subset of decks that win the game early and need a final check to ensure they stay on top of another lane. This is a strong effect, and it’s difficult to play around, so weaknesses are included with the low power attached to the card and the high energy investment. These factors lead to a card that will have an impact on how we play the game, but the actual impact the card itself has on the outcomes may be smaller than it appears when playing it.

How much players respect the Alioth effect will impact the ceiling drastically. It is just as likely to turn out that other cards could fill it’s role in many of the decks featured today. However, if it isn’t respected, then we will have a situation where we have a checkmate card that simply wins the game; the potential is high here.

Potential Score:

Variants

Loki

On Reveal: Transform your hand into cards from your opponent’s starting deck and give them -1 Cost.

Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Loki

Side Note: Loki will not appear in the below decks, but consider adding Loki to every one of the following decks as a way to have a clear back-up plan and potentially even swap for a cheaper Alioth!

Galactus

Goblins Eat Planets

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 8 months ago

5

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

1x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

4x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3.7

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.3

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Lets start with Galactus. Here, we use Alioth as our primary Turn 6 checkmate while focusing on junking a lane with Goblins. We also have Forge to buff Nimrod or Wolverine. There is no America Chavez here since we may want to make a Turn 6 play with Galactus, Destroyer, or Alioth if we can secure a lane with Goblins. This allows us to consider Alioth as more of a potential way to win the game alongside the Nimrod + Destroyer back-up plan.

DeathWave

Alioth Arrives!

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 8 months ago

1

6x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

3x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

2.8

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.9

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

If we consider the real strategy of the Galactus deck is to get ahead and have options to win, maybe we should consider if Alioth could bring back the “get ahead and Wave them” style of Destroy à la DeathWave. This deck includes some extra destroy targets so we can aim to have Death at two energy by Turn 5. Then, we play Wave and Death to cement our lead and Alioth comes in to seal the deal.

Thanos Control

Alioth Control

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 8 months ago

2

4x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

1x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

4x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

1x Recruit Season

4.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4.4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Thanos decks can find ways to win lanes and stay ahead before Turn 6 with multiple ramp cards and Lockdown strategies. This synergizes perfectly with Alioth, who then allows us to checkmate the second lane. When played correctly, this seems to be a strong home for the card (on paper). Lots will be happening, the opponent’s plays will be limited, and it may not always be expected that Alioth is going to come down. The key part, though, is that this deck is solid without Alioth, but it can use it as a guarantee in uncertain situations.

Wave Lockout

Wave Lockout

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 8 months ago

3

1x Collection Level 1-14

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

4x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3.1

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4.2

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

This style of deck may be the real home for Alioth. It uses the strong early-game cards to get ahead before playing Wave on Turn 5. Then, Alioth ensures a win in whatever lane is needed. Planning ahead should hopefully allow you to set up a situation where the lane that needs to be flipped can be secured by Alioth.

Sandman Ramp

Electro Ramp Galactus

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 8 months ago

2

1x Collection Level 1-14

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

4x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

4.5

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

This deck focuses on using Electro into Sandman on Turn 4. After that, just play big cards to win the lanes. The dream here is playing Alioth and then either reactivating it with Odin to lock the lane again or using Arnim Zola to send Alioth to the other lanes. The concern is, of course, ensuring you’re in a position to win from these plays. Devil Dinosaur and Black Panther act as your other targets since they can reach high enough totals on the non-Alioth lane, or be hit by Arnim Zola on Turn 6 to win.

Video

Closing Thoughts

Alioth is an interesting card. On the surface, it appears to be the final nail in the coffin for a lot of archetypes. But, upon further consideration, those strategies have probably already won by the time Alioth would come down. Yes, it can be used as extra insurance, but there are other cards that could be in Alioth‘s spot and perform a similar or more flexible role. Only time will tell if the Supreme Time Being will reign supreme.

Good Luck, Have Fun, and Stay Safe!