Marvel Snap Balance OTA Analysis and New Decks to Play – July 16, 2026

I love the changes to Mother Askani, Supergiant, Luke Cage and Spider-Man 2099. Indeed, even if most of these are considered nerfs, they make me curious and want to figure out how these cards will now fare in Marvel Snap.

On the other hand, Aunt May, Agent 13 and Lady Bullseye all gaining one power bores me to death, as nobody is playing those cards for their power in the first place. Sure, more power makes these cards more powerful and therefor more competitive and playable. However, if power could solve everything, why does every card card in Marvel Snap has an ability?

Yes, all of them. High Evolutionary turned the boring vanilla cards nobody used into an actual synergy.

Agent 13 becomes a [1/1], but the cards she creates gets a cost discount. Or the extra power is granted to the created card instead of Agent 13. Or Agent 13 gets +2 power, but only if we play the card she created, as if the back-up arrived.

Very few cards in Marvel Snap are good because of their raw power. The number in the top right corner can make a card unplayable if too low, but unless it is over the typical threshold, it won’t turn a weak ability into a strong card.

Take Triton for example. The card is getting two extra power in this balance updated. Yet, I still have Captain Carter or Maverick in mind if I think of how to buff my other cards even if these only have 2 power.

If Triton stayed a [3/4] but his ability became “On Reveal, Give the last character EACH player played on this area last turn +3 power”, I would have been curious. It could have created some interaction through positioning our cards. Instead, Second Dinner just gave more power to an ability nobody cares about, in hope the raw power of the card will push it over the edge of being playable.

OTAs are a fantastic concept, especially for a game with no competitive stakes. Second Dinner could shake the metagame every two weeks, or at least turn some boring cards into a couple days of curiosity. Yet, the most impacting, or interesting changes are always in the nerf section for some reason.

Marvel Snap July 16, 2026 OTA Card Balance Updates

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Nerfs

Now a [4/4]
Only the copy gets the -1 Cost and +2 Power buff.

The entire community said the change to a [4/3] did absolutely nothing to the card. This one should have a much bigger impact, as Mother Askani does not allow to duplicate a 4-cost we can play both copies of on turn six anymore.

I’m sure we’ll still find ways to use Mother Askani however, with the likes of Sasquatch for example.

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Now a [4/5]

Supergiant is big on priority, as it is an important part of making the disruptive cards typically flanking her as effective as possible. Then, while I’m not a fan of nerfing or buffing through 1 power changes, this one makes sense for Supergiant.

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Now a [2/2]
Only front-row cards can’t have their power reduced

Not protecting all our cards feels like a nerf, but a third in energy discount definitely is a buff.
Overall, because Luke Cage is a pretty niche card, typically used with Hazmat or Cerebro 2, I feel like the global change is more of a nerf than a buff.

However, the energy discount will be clutch when Luke Cage is used as a protective card in a metagame with a lot of power affliction. Then, being a 2-cost will make Luke Cage much easier to use in a variety of decks.

Buffs

Now a [4/5]
New Text : Moveable Once. When this moves to a location, afflict an enemy card there with -3 Power.

This is more of a change rather than a buff, especially 5-power is a very low starting point. Indeed, even after it moved once, Spider-Man 2099 still only represents a [4/8]. In comparison, Spider-Punk is a [3/7] on its own.

The card will need to be moved on top of its own ability to do so to be really good.

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Now a [2/4]

I don’t think this changes much. Aunt May is a great card when we can get the chain of buffs going, and mediocre when her ability isn’t a factor. Extra power is always a buff, but not necessarily an impactful one.

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Now a [1/3]

3-Power has become the norm for 1-cost cards in today’s Marvel Snap. Agent 13 probably still won’t see play due to decks being too small and the competition in decks looking to create cards being too fierce.

However, the now 1/3 should be a good card for recent players unable to rely on a large collection, for a much longer time.

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Now a [2/3]

Lady Bullseye is a [2/5] if you just play her without any unspent energy. From a power standpoint, this is a weird buff but Second Dinner is determined to push the power affliction synergy.

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Now a [3/6]

A few years ago, many 3-cost cards were buffed to 5-power, setting the new standard for that particular cost to keep up with the Nocturne or Copycat who released way too strong for their ability. However, Iron Patriot and more recently Askani'son put the spotlight on those with the most power across all 3-costs.

Debrii and Starbrand did particularly great due to their ability being quite simple to use rather than endure. However, Luna Snow also did incredibly well in that regard, serving as a fantastic bridge able to support these 2-cost cards while also synergizing with CosmicGhostRider, a fantastic 5-cost back then. Slowly, the new standard for 3-cost cards became 6. Lady Sif, Deathlock and Crystal already got that buff, now Triton joins them.

New Decks

That’s it for this OTA review. You can find everyone from the Marvel Snap Zone team in our community discord, alongside plenty of people to share your excitement about those changes.

Good Game Everyone!