Loki Decks to Try on Day 1 and Strategy Guide: The Trickster God Arrives!

Loki is the Season Pass card for the September 2023 season Loki for All Time. It is a 3-Cost, 5-Power card that reads On Reveal: Replace your hand with cards from your opponent’s starting deck. Give them -1 cost. Today, we will take a deeper look at the new Season Pass card and, of course, the best decks to try it out in.

Variants

Loki

On Reveal: Replace your hand with cards from your opponent’s starting deck. Give them -1 cost.

Season Pass

view card details Start a deck Decks with Loki

Strengths and Weaknesses

Loki has a rather linear effect in reality, but it could have more uses than what appears on the surface. However, when we break down the synergies with this effect, we can find ways to use the card. First, lets address the ‘scouting’ this card seems to provide.

Scouting should not be valued highly here. Why? Well, it won’t matter what your opponent has because you don’t have your cards anymore. I think that we often over-value scouting often in Marvel Snap anyway, but in this case you’re given information that you may have been able to deduce, and then you no longer have the tools you had in your hand.

So, we have to consider what the value of the scouting is for how you play your future turns. If the scouting doesn’t significantly improve your future turns, then its value isn’t high. You’re actually throwing away your hand with this effect. The real value has to be in the cost reduction and in the cards added to your hand.

Variants

The Collector

When a card enters your hand from anywhere (except your deck), +1 Power.

Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

view card details Start a deck Decks with The Collector

Variants

Agent Coulson

On Reveal: Add a random 4-Cost and 5-Cost card to your hand.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Agent Coulson

The Collector is potentially the biggest beneficiary of Loki. If the card works as it reads, any card replaced from the effect should buff The Collector. This could be worth up to seven power on top of replacing your cards with cheaper ones. On curve, it might be more likely to provide a power buff of around four to The Collector, but that still makes Loki worth nine power on top of the reduced cards.

Then their are the Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. cards. These cards will maintain your hand size and provide targets for the effect while allowing you to have an early game. Quinjet then reduces the cost of the Loki cards by an additional point, as well as the cards generated by the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Any cards that replace cards in your hand could support the effect from Loki while allowing you to create game plans from what is generated.

Variants

Devil Dinosaur

Ongoing: +2 Power for each card in your hand.

Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Devil Dinosaur

Next, we have Moon Girl. She may allow you to duplicate all the reduced cards you replaced your hand, and she could also allow you to copy The Collector and fill your hand for some potential craziness in the late game. Devil Dinosaur also benefits, not because it directly synergizes but because Loki‘s effect is best with decks that can fill their hand. Loki could potentially be the back up plan for (or a way to switch off) the Devil Dinosaur plan in some games.

Kitty Pryde and Angela are two cards that contribute to the final synergy of this card, which may be vital to a successful Loki deck: strong early-game cards. They allow you to set a foundation that supports the random cards you get later on, and they are played before Turn 3, meaning before you play Loki. Early-game cards that synergize with lots of decks will be strong go-to cards for Loki decks looking to switch on Turn 3 or Turn 4 and then use what they find to win.

Another key strength is the ability can reduce cards to 0. This means any 1 cost cards you get from your opponents deck cost 0. This could be excellent with an early game of cards which scale like Angela and Bishop.

One important point to call out, High Evolutionary and Thanos do not impact the pool of cards Loki can draw from. The effect considers the deck prior to these effects triggering. This could be both positive and negative depending on the situation. Against Thanos the Stones are not the best hits for Loki but would also cost 0. Against High Evolutionary you will get the Base Cards but these will all cost 1 less which may be enough.

Variants

Angela

After you play a card here, +2 Power.

Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Angela

Variants

Kitty Pryde

When this returns to your hand, +1 Power. Returns at the start of each turn.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Kitty Pryde

Another way this card might shine is in Conquest. Something that may not be apparent at first is using Loki to replace your hand in bad match ups. Playing Loki on Turn 3 when you know you’re facing your counter could make enter you into a pseudo mirror match with cheaper cards. This may end up being useful as a strange surprise card, especially when you’re stuck in match ups for prolonged periods of time.

So, what are the downsides? Well, Loki gives you cards from the opponent’s starting deck, which means you could swap your cards with random cards that don’t work or don’t synergize. Since they’re not from your deck, they may not do enough in the later turns to win you the game – even if they cost less.

The Verdict

Loki seems interesting on paper. We might be looking at a card that changes how we play an archetype (that hasn’t quite made it to the top tier yet) based around adding cards to your hand. Using Loki may enable versions of the deck that are lower to the ground and focus on stealing cards for value rather than just adding them to your hand to buff your Devil Dinosaur. While it’s not necessarily a ‘new’ archetype, it could be the closest we have been for some time to a new card bringing new decks with it (which we will discuss below).

Still, the strength of this is kind of up in the air. Marvel Snap decks have traditionally been heavily focused on synergy, and Loki is almost the anti-hero of this direction. You’re effectively throwing your cards away for the reduced cost of your opponent’s cards. Is that good enough to make a real deck? Unfortunately, that is a solid maybe. But reducing the cost of cards is strong and it isn’t ‘random’; you get cards your opponent choose to put in their deck. This card could be about to trick us all.

Potential Score:

Loki Collects

Loki Collects

1

4x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

2x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

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

1x Season Pass

1x Starter Card

2.4

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.9

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

This deck aims to take advantage of The Collector‘s synergy with the card to steal the opponent’s deck in the mid game and play multiple cards later. We do this by having a strong early game pre-Loki to avoid losing important cards. We can then play Agent Coulson and Nick Fury to find the tools for the late game or to fill our hand to be replaced with Loki‘s effect. If we get Quinjet down as well, these cards will all be reduced by two. One line that may be underrated is doing all the early game and then playing Loki on Turn 5 to replace your hand with reduced cost cards for a random Turn 6.

The potential flexibility Loki provides is highlighted. If you can play two of The Collector and/or Mirage on Turn 5, you could then play… Wait for it… Agent Coulson and Loki on Turn 6! It seems like a long shot, but if you do the math this has massive potential. It could add up to nine power over two bodies, plus the four power from Agent Coulson and the five power from Loki. This high roll combines with good value, and reduced cost card lines from the rest of the deck may be the way to go. Nick Fury is one card that may also work, but I couldn’t see a way to include him in the final version of the deck.

I Think I’ll Take It

I Think I’ll Take It

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 28 days ago

3

7x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

2x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

1x Season Pass

1x Starter Card

2.8

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.8

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Initially inspired by RegisKillbin, this deck is all in on using your opponent’s deck. The goal is to keep stealing cards from the opponent and then use them to beat your opponent by spending less than they do. Loki synergizes perfectly with this plan, replacing your hand at any time with cheaper cards that are further reduced by Quinjet.

If we don’t hit the Loki line, we have the Devil Dinosaur into Mystique plan as a back up.

All-In Gamble

All-In Gamble

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 28 days ago

4

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

3x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

3x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

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

1x Season Pass

2.8

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.1

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

This deck looks to rely heavily on tech cards. We have Invisible Woman to potentially pre-play Killmonger before Loki, but the real goal is playing Loki on Turn 3 with Quinjet on the board.

We have tech cards for every situation if we miss on Loki, and his effect works by pulling from their starting deck. This makes Spider-Ham extra annoying because you can Pig one of your opponent’s cards and then take it for yourself – at up to -3 cost.

Nerfed Illucia

Nerfed Illucia

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 28 days ago

2

4x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

1x Season Pass

2.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Here we want to play Bounce, and the back up plan / switch is Loki. We play Bounce as normal until Turn 5, and then play what you can and Loki the rest away. This refills your hand with cheap cards to play on Turn 6 which will continue to buff Bishop and Angela.

Due to this, I made the choice to drop Hit Monkey in this version in favor of the big buff for The Collector from Loki and the random end games it could land on.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Agents Of SHIELD

Created by SafetyBlade

, updated 28 days ago

3

3x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

1x Season Pass

3.2

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.8

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

This deck lets you fulfill your S.H.I.E.L.D. lore fantasies, and it is also accessible (and may actually be good)! The plan is to get Quinjet and Zabu down early. On Turn 4, you play Moon Girl to fill your hand before choosing one of two plays: Devil Dinosaur is

Plan A and the obvious play, but there’s also the high roll play with The Collector from the first deck hidden here. This time, though, it has Zabu to support the line and make it even more likely.

Video

Closing Thoughts

It may not appear like much more than a meme card on the surface that only has the potential to annoy and frustrate opponents, but I hope the decks presented here have demonstrated the ceiling for this card. It forces us to re-imagine decks that add cards to our hand in significantly different and unique ways.

The potential for Loki is as the final piece in a Thief / Generation deck in Marvel Snap that actually aims to play the cards, not just fill space for Devil Dinosaur. This is one of the more exciting Season Pass cards in a long time, and it will be interesting to see the impact the puny god has on the metagame.

Good Luck, Have Fun, and Stay Safe!