Marvel Snap Balance Patch Update Analysis and Decks to Play: Is It Enough for a Meta Shakeup?

Every four weeks, Marvel Snap undergoes a major patch. Unlike the OTA Balance Updates, the abilities of cards are able to be reworked with these patches, as well as their stats (Power and Energy). This article is our in-depth analysis of the changes, how they might impact the current meta, and some potential decks you can play from the get go!

Patch Balance Update Overview

There has been a lot of complaints about the Marvel Snap meta over the last few months, that the same cards always ended on top, and the balance changes, or new additions, didn’t do enough to solve the situation and change the metagame.

Loki in particular, which is the only untouched card from the September Season as Ravonna Renslayer was buffed and Alioth, Mobius M. Mobius, nerfed, is a routine topic for a card many in the community would like to see changed. Ms. Marvel joined that conversation fairly quickly after her release, but not as the soul of a specific archetype, rather, the card is criticized for being in almost every deck in the game. Completing this trio of strong, metagame defining cards is Annihilus, which created a deadly trio of cards with The Hood and Sentry, and similarly to Ms. Marvel, started to appear in various archetypes.

These three cards are still very popular early in 2024, but ironically, none of those are part of the current best deck, which probably is Thanos Lockjaw, pushed by Blob, the big addition from the Hellfire Gala Season. It doesn’t mean the cards about to be nerfed cards are bad or unpopular now. Loki is still easily a top ten, maybe five, deck in the game, and regarded with even more potential at the very top ranks, even with Mobius M. Mobius a popular card to annoy it.

Ms. Marvel still appears in every deck with Zabu, and remains a core piece of the Lockdown strategy, which survived the Professor X nerf largely thanks to Ms. Marvel being so good. As for Annihilus, it probably lost the most momentum of the three going into the new year, although it remains a foundational card for Junk, alongside being included in Bounce, or slotted in some decks around the Good Cards shell.

Then, when analyzing this patch, I couldn’t stop but wondering if this was going to solve the community’s feeling of a stale metagame. If you think about it, none of these cards are the top contenders any more, rather glorified underdogs against the new king : Thanos. So the aftermath of this patch could be even more of Thanos if players have to find a new comfort deck which isn’t playing Loki or Annihilus.

Yes, I’m not including Ms. Marvel in that last sentence, because I don’t think her nerf will be as impactful compared to the other two, but it actually might be a good thing. Indeed, the Good Cards shell is the one pushing the most decks to be relevant in Marvel Snap. Black Knight, Darkhawk, Lockdown… There are many archetypes in need of Zabu, Ms. Marvel and a few other 4-cost cards to compete, so Ms. Marvel not disappearing is probably good for the diversity in the game. The new condition will probably hurt the Ongoing Tribunal deck, or such strategies which were not built to play on multiple lanes. The more balanced ones, however, have little to fear in my opinion, apart from being more careful where to place their cards.

Then, the metagame shift many seem to demand probably happened already at the start of the Planet Hulk season, when Thanos took over, and Ms. Marvel or Annihilus represented ways to fight it on points, or try to disrupt its strategy. Second Dinner might be about to nerf 2023 more than 2024, only reducing the amount of playable decks, rather than opening space for new ones.

As such, if you opened this article to know what should you play when the patch goes live, then the answer is simple: Thanos Lockjaw or a counter to it, if you have one. However, if you clicked for some intense deckbuilding reflection, trying to figure out how to build around Ms. Marvel with her new condition, or how to use Loki without The Collector. Then, you’re in the right place. Also, we have to talk about Quake and Kingpin, because these two look hot right now!

Ms. Marvel just needs Doctor Doom

Variants

Ms. Marvel

Ongoing: Your adjacent locations with 2+ cards and no repeated Costs have +5 Power.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Ms. Marvel

Variants

Doctor Doom

On Reveal: Add a 5-Power DoomBot to each other location.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Doctor Doom

Variants

Iron Lad

On Reveal: Copy the text of your deck’s top card.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Iron Lad

Variants

Zabu

On Reveal: Until the end of next turn, your 4-Cost cards cost 1 less.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Zabu

The main reason I’m not so concerned about Ms. Marvel‘s change is Doctor Doom being a fantastic card to include in your deck thanks to Iron Lad being a routine inclusion in the Good Cards package. Sure, the card isn’t so popular currently, mainly due to the fact the metagame is more about developing big cards rather than spreading your power around.

Yet, if we managed to find a way to limit Blob, then Doctor Doom immediately returns to being a really strong 6-cost. I could also mention the cheap move cards, such as Jeff the Baby Land Shark or Nightcrawler also representing decent support, but Kingpin might finally have something to say about those.

Also, I already mentioned in the intro, most archetypes using the Good Cards shell should be able to fulfil the new condition fairly well. Some might struggle more, such as Black Knight, as it isn’t trying to play that many cards during the course of a match. Still, want to know the two best performing decks with Ms. Marvel included currently?

Good Cards Darkhawk

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

0

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

3x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3.4

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Lockdown

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

1

3x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

2x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

6x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3.2

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

The card is going to be fine, even if it might take a big to get accustomed to a [4/4] Ms. Marvel and work around her new condition. Still, I’m convinced the card would have seen plenty of playing time if it released this way back in November. Unfortunately, some archetypes might not be if they have to exist without Ms. Marvel helping them spread points across the field. Yet, let’s not forget about one important aspect of Marvel Snap: Surprising your opponent.

Sera Miracle

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

0

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

3x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.9

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

With decks like this one, able to cheat enough energy to play several cards on the last turn of play, we might be able to leverage Ms. Marvel as a surprise burst of points, and benefit from an opponent who stopped considering the card after the nerf.

Are Quake and Kingpin just good cards now?

Variants

Quake

On Reveal: Swap the positions of the other two locations.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Quake

Variants

Kingpin

When an enemy card moves here, afflict it with -2 Power.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Kingpin

A [2/3] card in Marvel Snap are usually either unused, as the ability isn’t worth much currently (Elsa Bloodstone, Mantis, Baron Mordo, Colossus…) or a fantastic one, thanks to a great ability (Jeff, Ravonna Renslayer, Armor…). It is quite rare to have an in-between at that combination of cost and power – you either belong to a deck, or you won’t see much, if any, play.

Quake and Kingpin clearly were in the second category, although Kingpin was a 3-cost up until this point, but their fortune might have changed. Indeed, both cards have gained an important trait of most good 2-cost cards: Predictability and Control.

When a card depends on its ability to be played, we not only need the ability to be appealing, we also want it to be usable in most matches. Then, if the ability doesn’t have many use cases (Kingpin until now), or is too random (Quake until now), we will end up replacing it with something we can get value from more often. In this patch, both cards have gained exactly that, as we now can build our deck knowing precisely how to leverage Quake or Kingpin.

Variants

Polaris

On Reveal: Move an enemy 1 or 2-Cost card to this location.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Polaris

Variants

Aero

On Reveal: Move the last enemy card played anywhere to this location.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Aero

Variants

Magneto

On Reveal: Move all enemy 3 and 4-Cost cards to this location.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Magneto

For Kingpin, the direction is pretty clear: Move opposing cards, or counter the move synergy if it ever becomes prevalent. Immediately, this pushes cards like Polaris, Aero or Magneto in our mind as obvious allies for the new 2-cost. Fortunately, all three of these cards are solid, and we can fit this new package in a multitude of decks.

Kingpin Lockdown

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

0

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

3.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4.8

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Kingpin Move

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

1

1x Collection Level 1-14

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

6x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

3x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

5

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Good Cards Move Away

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

1

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

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

3.6

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4.7

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

You probably also noticed Nebula was part of all these decks, which isn’t solely because it is a great 1-cost card. The main reason is that it entices the opponent to play in a certain location. Then, we can play Kingpin in another lane, and the opponent will have to choose either to play on Nebula to stop it from growing, which give us the opportunity to move their cards to Kingpin. Or play on Kingpin to prevents us from moving and afflicting their cards, but then Nebula gains power.

I’m curious whether this new Kingpin could push Luke Cage to see a little more play in the future. I doubt this interaction would appear early after the patch, but it could lead to an interesting interaction down the line if Kingpin happens to be popular enough.

Moving on to Quake, which honestly impresses me the more I think about it. Consider how important priority is in Marvel Snap, Quake‘s new ability seems to fit perfectly in a lot of decks able to take the lead, and looking for some cheap disruptive tools. Plus, with Zabu still a great foundation to build upon, we could imagine many fifth turns with a 4-cost paired with Quake. Then, although there are various synergies based around disrupting the opponent, I can’t dismiss Quake might have become just a good Marvel Snap card with this change, leading to various decks we could test the deck in.

Quake Lockdown

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

0

3x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

2x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

6x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4.2

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Quak3

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

1

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

6x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

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

2x Starter Card

3.2

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.2

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Junk

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

0

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

8x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

2.6

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.9

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Good Cards Location

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

1

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

3x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

3x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.8

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Based on everything I have said in the introduction, I don’t expect to see many, if any, new decks emerge following this patch, rather just some strong contenders lose popularity in favour of other strong decks. However, I think both Kingpin and Quake have potential to help some deck feel a little better, or gain a spot in established archetypes, and maybe bring a few packs alongside them, which already would give a different feeling to those archetypes.

What is next for Loki and Annihilus?

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

Variants

Annihilus

On Reveal: Your cards with Power below 0 switch sides. Destroy those that can’t.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Annihilus

When the notes were leaked, I have seen several players say that Loki wasn’t nerfed hard enough, and would still be able to copy the opponent’s deck to play it with the energy discount. Unfortunately, the feeling around Annihilus was much different, most opinions I saw believing the card wouldn’t survive such a big change.

I would tend to agree with the sentiment around Annihilus, as losing both power and the ability to send 0 power card feels like a massive nerf. The card has already started to lose some popularity in the new season, even if Junk is a nice synergy against Thanos decks, which tend to quickly fill their side with Infinity Stones. I have said so in the introduction already, but this should only strengthen Thanos‘ position in the metagame. Indeed, with Thanos‘ current power level, seeing one of the few decks doing well against it lose its most important card can only be good news for the Mad Titan.

Variants

The Hood

On Reveal: Add a Demon to your hand.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with The Hood

Variants

Sentry

You can’t play this at the right location. On Reveal: Add a -10 Power Void to the right location.

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Sentry

Sure, The Hood and Sentry still function with Annihilus, and that trio might have warranted a power nerf to Annihilus. I would have believed that in December, not now. Right now, if The Hood and Sentry are the only threats to the opponent, most people will know how to react : Play where The Hood is or on the right most location when in doubt. In the end, even if Sentry is a 10 power card, the opponent still has to pay 11 energy to summon 22 power, assuming we also play The Demon in that equation. This only represents a deal of two power for one energy, a fairly bad one in today’s Marvel Snap.

With this change, Annihilus is now forced to find both The Hood and Sentry in order to be a real threat, and force the opponent into considering it. Plus, most of Annihilus strength came from that trio, which was most of the time used in Good Cards shell as Sentry is a 4-cost. If we factor in the fact those decks also have to deal with Ms. Marvel losing a power and being more difficult to trigger, I doubt both nerfed synergies will still coexist. The good cards shell will likely have to pick which of Ms. Marvel or Annihilus to keep in the deck, and I’m pretty sure which card is going to stay when looking at both nerfs, and the possibilities we have to adapt to each.

Then, I’m not particularly worried about the decks using Annihilus, Sentry and The Hood currently. It is likely Darkhawk will just come in and fill in those available slots if needed, preserving the 4-cost theme around Zabu, while providing the deck with another 1-cost to play early. Once again, this is why I’m worried this patch won’t push more diversity, instead just limiting the pool of synergies available for someone trying to compete.

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

Werewolf By Night

After you play a card, move there to gain +2 Power if it has an On Reveal.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Werewolf By Night

As for the Trickster God, even if Loki could still be considered in a Bounce like deck, and maybe The Collector could even still exist in that deck, as Falcon or Beast could be enough to make it a [2/5] or so card. Something like this, with Werewolf By Night representing the major chunk of points, while Loki would help as a back up plan alongside the disruptive cards:

Loki Bounce

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

0

2x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

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

3x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

2.4

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.6

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Unfortunately, I can’t really picture that deck do better than the same build with the Darkhawk package, which probably would be more reliable and disruptive:

Darkhawk Bounce

Created by den

, updated 4 months ago

0

3x 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)

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

2.6

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.5

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

A great player will likely tell you Loki wasn’t nerfed hard enough, and the ability, combined with Quinjet still working as a second discount, is enough for Loki to remain a force. It might be true, if you are able to navigate the copied cards perfectly, and have the expertise to win from behind, as you don’t have The Collector to anchor your points total anymore. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a top tier qualiber player tweet about Loki still feeling really strong, or someone losing to their own deck as they couldn’t build a big enough lead early on, and the nerf wasn’t hard enough. However, I believe this won’t be true if we look at the bigger picture, the one where Loki already isn’t a top tier deck due to its complexity to pilot compared to other synergies. There, Loki already feels like a good, but not stellar deck ever since Werewolf by Night was nerfed, and decks based around Blob, Hela or High Evolutionary emerged, as copying their cards isn’t that good. In that context, I highly doubt Loki will survive this change, at least when it comes to being regarded as an easy win for the Infinity Gauntlet, or a surefire way to climb the ladder.

Then, even if I am not dismissing the possibility of Loki remaing a part of the current metagame, and might be included in some combo decks with Moon Girl and Quinjet for example. The loss of The Collector still hurts the deck quite a lot when it comes to its ability to develop points, and after losing Werewolf by Night already in the last balance update, appears significantly weaker than other foundations, such as Darkhawk, Thanos, Lockdown… It might be time to consider the Trickster God the same as we look at Destroy for example: a solid synergy, but in need of a favourable environment to perform at its best.

Where does the meta go from here?

Variants

Darkhawk

Ongoing: +2 Power for each card in your opponent’s deck.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Darkhawk

Variants

Ronan the Accuser

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

Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

view card details Start a deck Decks with Ronan the Accuser

Variants

Black Knight

After you discard a card, add the Ebony Blade to your hand with that card’s Power. (once per game)

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Black Knight

You probably noticed I used Darkhawk a lot as an easy replacement for Loki or Annihilus in several decks they were used previously. I could have used Ronan the Accuser as well, or even Black Knight, as all of those work in a similar fashion alongside Zabu and the Good Cards shell.

Variants

Blob

On Reveal: Merge cards from your deck into this until it gains 15 or more Power. Ongoing: Can’t be moved.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Blob

Yet, and this is where my biggest concern about this patch lies: None of this answers Blob, the current meta king. Even worse, the reason why Darkhawk started to lose popularity, and isn’t as popular as it used to be is precisely Blob. Yet, we also know that Ronan the Accuser isn’t strong enough to beat Thanos, as many have been trying but Ongoing counter cards are just too good if you can’t hold your most important card in hand until the last turn of play. Unfortunately, Ronan being a 5-cost, this is much more difficult to do than with a 4-cost and Zabu in play.

So the possibilities are Black Knight, which needs to deal with Ms. Marvel being nerfed, Hela, which could be considered a mix of Black Knight and Thanos Lockjaw if you think about it, except it is less reliable than Good Cards Black Knight, and easier to stop than Thanos Lockjaw. Past these two, the next best decks are High Evolutionary archetypes, which have been adapted against super quickly with Mobius M. Mobius earlier in the season. Or combo oriented archetype, such as Destroy, Silver Surfer, Sera Miracle, decks with potential but unable to break through as they lose to some specific cards, or often don’t put up enough points to compete. Also, turn six based decks might have another problem: Thanos plays Leech.

Variants

Thanos

Starts in your opening hand and shuffles the six Infinity Stones into your deck.

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

view card details Start a deck Decks with Thanos

I hate to be guy with the pessimistic opinion, but Thanos‘ biggest strengths is flexibility, making it a deck easily able to adapt to its environment, as long as it knows what it will be go up against. A week into the new season, we already have seen Killmonger, Mobius M. Mobius, Caiera, Shang-Chi or Enchantress work in that deck, with Leech being considered a staple already. Then, unless we can find a way to beat it head on, through sheer potential, which has been almost impossible to do so far, the solution appeared to be having enough different decks that Thanos couldn’t adapt to all of them, limiting its potential as a result. If we reduce the playing field, it just makes it easier for the deck to find its perfect list, and dominate Marvel Snap as a result.

I know I left Angel and Dracula out of the discussion today, but I believe both changes will be largely inconsequential. Angel shouldn’t magically be good enough to see play with only 12 slots available in a deck, while Dracula won’t disappear from its signature deck either.

I’m really curious to know everyone’s opinion regarding this update. Feel free to leave a comment or find me on the Marvel Snap Zone community Discord, you can also follow my Twitter page where I share decks and biased opinions about the game.

Good Game Everyone.