Best Havok Decks to Try on Day 1 and Strategy Guide: Who Needs Energy Anyway?

Havok is the only Series 4 card for the December 2023 Season Hellfire Gala. It is a 2-Cost, 0-Power card that reads: After each turn, you lose 1 Max Energy and this gains +4 Power. Today, we will take a deeper look at the new card and, of course, the best decks to try it out in.

Variants

Havok

After each turn, you lose 1 Max Energy and this gains +4 Power.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Havok

Strengths and Weaknesses

Havok is the Series 4 card this month, and it is honestly really intriguing. The effect is something unique that further demonstrates how Marvel Snap pushes the limits of what is possible with the game structure. For the cost of one energy per turn, Havok gains +4 power. The catch? It happens every turn. Is this too big of a limitation to make Havok worthwhile, or will Havok support new ways to build decks for it’s unique effect?

First, we can assess when and where you should use the card. Havok will effectively lock you at the same energy as the turn you play the card because, at the end of each turn, you lose one energy and gain one on the following turn. So, if you play Havok on Turn 2, you will have two energy on Turn 3 and so on.

Variants

Shadow King

On Reveal: Set all cards here to their base Power.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Shadow King

Variants

Viper

On Reveal: One of your other cards here switches sides.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Viper

This has lead many to consider the possibility of trying the card with Viper to lock your opponent’s energy – something totally new in the game. While this does seem interesting, the combination requires Viper to be available to you immediately alongside Havok, and you may need a way to include Shadow King or Shang-Chi to flip the lane later. You would need this combination down very early on, and these sorts of combinations going off can be rare. You don’t need to build the entire deck to do this, though, and you might be able to slot this into some other decks as a potential line.

Variants

Mister Negative

On Reveal: Swap the Power and Cost of all cards in your deck.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Mister Negative

Variants

Ravonna Renslayer

Ongoing: Your cards with 1 or less Power cost 1 less. (minimum 1)

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Ravonna Renslayer

Mister Negative is another deck that may find Havok useful. As a 0-Cost card (post Mister Negative), it can represent a lot of power. Played on Turn 5, for example, Havok would gain +8 power before the end of the game and end at 10 power. Additionally, the card has an extra advantage: it dodges Shang-Chi since the power goes to the card at the end of the turn. Also, if you do draw Havok in your opening hand, you can play it out on Turn 4 after an early Mister Negative. With the flipped cards, the lack of energy will hurt you less, and Havok can become a lane-winning threat. It is hard to imagine how Havok will not be a positive in the Negative deck.

Variants

Beast

On Reveal: Return your other cards here to your hand. They cost 1 less next turn.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Beast

Variants

Bast

On Reveal: Set the Power of all cards in your hand to 3.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Bast

Which brings forward one of the more interesting directions for Havok – what if we just play Havok out? What would the deck need to look like to make this work? Some cards support this plan well and may lead to something new. Bast, for example, can make a handful of cheaper cards more valuable to play out onto the board. You just need to consider what the best turn to play Havok may be in this style of deck. If you play Havok on Turn 4 or Turn 5 with other cards that support the style of play, you will still have four or five energy on the final turn. Plus, the ability will activate twice, which makes Havok a 10+ power card. Cards like Beast and Werewolf By Night can be great here as well because you can replay your cards with reduced costs.

Variants

Goose

Ongoing: Nobody can play cards that cost 4, 5, or 6 here.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Goose

Variants

Luke Cage

Ongoing: Your cards can’t have their Power reduced.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Luke Cage

Havok‘s biggest weakness is Shadow King. The energy investment for Havok is not two, it is much higher, and it comes with a deck building cost that is also very high. Losing all that investment to a Shadow King could ensure that Havok is not successful in the current meta. This could mean that if you want to go all in on the effect then you need to play cards like Goose or Luke Cage to defend it. As you become reliant on more cards to protect Havok, the card’s effectiveness suffers because it becomes a bigger liability.

The Verdict

Havok is one of the most interesting cards in sometime, but the success of the card may depend on how well the shells built around limiting energy can be. Viper is an interesting idea, but relying on this in the long term seems quite ambitious.

However, the stats that come out from this card (if left uncontested) are very high, and if the right builds can come together we may be looking at the resurgence of a lot of cards that have been left to the wayside. The question Havok asks for deck building could potentially lead to new archetypes or, at the very least, very unique takes on older builds.

The problem is that the answers may just be stronger than answering the questions required for Havok. At least for now.

Potential Score:

Mister Negative

Cosmic Negativity

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

4

7x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

3x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

1x Recruit Season

1x Starter Card

3.1

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

1.4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

The contender for best revived archetype from Havok is clearly Mister Negative, and the first direction worth considering is Silver Surfer. Here we get to try fitting in Adam Warlock and play Havok out post Negative. This allows you to draw cards that are all playable after the flip, and if you miss on the Mister Negative then you can play Bast and aim to get Havok down later with cards like Brood on Turn 5.

Flip or Bust

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

2

6x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

1x Recruit Season

1x Starter Card

3.9

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

1.7

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

The second direction leans heavily into the Wong + Black Panther combo as a back-up plan. This one is geared towards playing for the flip with Mister Negative since it plays lots of 0-Cost cards for Jane Foster Mighty Thor to draw. Then you can overwhelm all the lanes with ease.

Dead Bird

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

2

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

1x Recruit Season

1x Starter Card

3.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.2

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Darkhawk may be able to form the basis of an entire back-up plan now. With Ravonna Renslayer and Zabu synergizing with key cards in this deck, you can get the cost of cards down to levels where you can play both Iron Man and Darkhawk on Turn 6 without Mister Negative. The goal here is to use Havok late if you miss on Mister Negative, and you can use Iron Man to support the lane and later copy the ability with Mystique. Jane Foster Mighty Thor remains because the high roll will still do a lot across all the lanes, it’s just a little more limited than the all-in approach above.

Ravonna Renslayer

Ravonna -3

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

2

1x Collection Level 1-14

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

1x Recruit Season

1x Starter Card

2.8

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

1.3

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

This build focuses on Ravonna Renslayer by including lots of cards that get their cost’s reduced, and the main plan is to flood the board. The deck is designed to be able to play Turns 5 and 6 with four energy so you can play Havok early. However, you can also get a lot of value from a Turn 6 Havok here alongside the reduced cost 3-drop cards.

Havok Slayer

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

2

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

6x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

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

1x Starter Card

3.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

1.6

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Ravonna Renslayer is the archetype that may be able to slot the card into some existing strategies the easiest. This list looks to abuse the Havok + Viper combination, and it supplements this with the Goblins. The goal is to play Ravonna on Turn 2 and Viper + Havok on Turn 3. The follow up to this is playing the Goblins out as ways to contest the other lanes. I included Shadow King so you can flip back the Havok lane as well.

Bird Slayer

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

1

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

3x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

1x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

1x Starter Card

3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.2

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

We can always use the same combination with Darkhawk as the alternate line. Thanks to PulseGlazer for the Leech suggestion as a way to protect the Darkhawk from it’s new nemesis Blob. This way, you get to use the Darkhawk package instead of the Goblins package, which may lead to more consistency.

Bast

Bast Bounce

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

2

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

3x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

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

2

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

1.3

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

As a starting point, I put together this Bounce shell that uses Havok in an honest way. Luke Cage is the notable exception; I prefer Goose as a way to pseudo protect the lane and defend against some of the big cards like Blob and Alioth. The goal here is to play Havok, preferably on Turn 4, alongside some other plays. Then play Beast on Turn 5 and use the reduced cards to contest another lane on Turn 6. Havok will end on 12 power and will not be able to be hit by Shang-Chi. As long as you set up another anchor, you should be able to strongly contest at least two lanes with this plan. You are missing any counter play with this baseline plan, though.

Bast Party Time

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 4 months ago

1

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

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

2.2

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.1

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

This deck tries to ensure you have a hand full of cheap cards at the end of the game to pair with Werewolf By Night, and Havok is ideally played around Turn 4 again. This allows you to keep bouncing around and locking lanes without Goose. Adam Warlock is here to go for the aggressive draw to ensure that you always have cards to play out at the end of the game.

Variants

Closing Thoughts

Havok poses some interesting questions in deck building that may lead to some new and interesting builds. The card can reach really high power levels, and, if protected well, it could represent a lane winner on it’s own.

Good Luck, Have Fun, and Stay Safe!