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With the Snap Pack system, we are getting a few new Series 4 cards at the start of every season. For the June 2025 season, Masters of the Arcane, those will be Nicholas Scratch, a 1-cost, 2-power card that reads After you play a skill, +1 Power, and Jennifer Kale, a 2-cost, 3-power card that reads Activate: Next turn, you get +1 Energy.
Series 4 cards can be purchased for 3,000 Collector’s Tokens from the Token Shop as part of the card rotation. They will be also be included in the Seasonal Series 4 Snap Pack for 2,500 Collector’s Tokens during their season and the following two.
Nicholas Scratch
The new 1-Cost perfectly fits the theme of the Masters of the Arcane season, and it might represent the next high power 1-Cost after Batroc the Leaper in Move. Granted, playing a Skill isn’t as simple as moving a card. Those require energy, specific setups, and often have to be created with another card first. But with Merlin as the Season Pass card, I feel like a Turn 1 Nicholas Scratch should grow to a [1/5] with little outside help.
Other than Merlin, Agamotto is already available, plus Clea, The Ancient One, and Dormammu are releasing later this month. Considering Agamotto dilutes your deck and you probably want to play Nicholas Scratch on Turn 1 and Merlin on Turn 2, it might be safer to consider this card will gain new allies as the season progresses.
Jennifer Kale
Jennifer Kale is basically an Activate Psylocke. It might look better since you can pick when you get that bonus energy, but it also means you cannot get it on Turn 3 to play a 4-Cost, or synergize with the On Reveal mechanic to get more (meaning no combos with Wong, Misery, or Firehair).
I feel like Jennifer Kale is more niche than Psylocke and probably suited for a Ramp deck that is looking to play two 5- or 6-Cost cards in a row.
While it sounds limited, Jennifer Kale also lets you invest energy early to reap the rewards later. Psylocke might have more synergies to leverage, but she also requires you to spend two energy on the turn right before you want to gain energy. That might not sound so bad, but Marvel Snap is filled with great 3- and 4-Cost cards, so skipping Turn 2 is often the best deal to get that extra energy.
For a deck with no strong 2-Costs, certain play patterns are definitely worth running Jennifer Kale.
Decks with Doctor Doom
Decks with Odin
Classic combo here in the On Reveal synergy.
Decks with Magneto
Decks with Alioth
Play Magneto on Turn 5 to clog an opposing lane and seize priority, then use Alioth to secure another lane.
Decks with The Infinaut
Activate Jennifer Kale on Turn 4 to get six energy on Turn 5. Skip that turn and play She-Hulk plus The Infinaut on Turn 6.
Decks with Galactus
Decks with Infinity Ultron
Decks with Professor X
Certain cards simply get stronger when you get to play them ahead of their natural curve.
The Verdict: Should You Buy Nicholas Scratch or Jennifer Kale?
Overall, neither of the new Series 4 cards looks particularly appealing. Jennifer Kale opens some interesting patterns, but the card should fall short as soon as you compare it to other cards that allow you to gain energy like Surge and Esme Cuckoo.
If she was a card you could get from an event, I would have probably tested her in some energy demanding decks, or maybe in Arishem to smooth the curve when needed. However, spending 2,500 Collector’s Tokens for Jennifer Kale feels like a steep price.
As for Nicholas Scratch, the reality is that the card is probably unplayable early in the season. Hydra Bob likely beats it most of the time and also removes the timing required to play the card. Towards the end of the month, if you found no good 1-Costs for your Skill-based deck, Nicholas Scratch could be worth the tokens to check if the card can fill that role.
Pre-Release Score:
Nicholas Scratch Decks
I’m afraid Nicholas Scratch will mostly be Merlin‘s or Clea‘s +1 at best. Indeed, there aren’t many skills in the game to buff Nicholas Scratch, and those two can generate multiple of them.
Unfortunately, I expect Merlin and Clea will be quite good, but Nicholas Scratch is likely to be cut until more skills are introduced to the game. Even then, the fact that you have to play Nicholas Scratch early for it to matter limits it greatly.
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Jennifer Kale Decks
To be fair, I’d rather have Psylocke for free or Surge for 5,000 Tokens than Jennifer Kale for 2,500. But, if I was to get it, I’d look for decks aimed at very specific patterns with high cost cards. In those, using your Turn 2 as a future investment makes sense.
Among those decks, Galactus and ramp strategies feel like logical landing spots. Otherwise, Arishem could always use extra energy to help with maximizing the later turns.
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Conclusion
In my opinion, neither Jennifer Kale nor Nicholas Scratch are worth their price. The 1-Cost is themed with this season, but it really only makes sense during the final week once Clea releases. Even then, I expect Nicholas Scratch to benefit from Merlin and Clea and not bring much else to the table in most games.
Jennifer Kale is more versatile, and actually a fine card to certain strategies. Still, this looks like a Series 3 or an event card, not a Series 4.
I hope this review of the new card was helpful. You can find everyone on the Marvel Snap Zone team in our community discord to have a chat or ask any questions.
Good Game Everyone!
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