Table of Contents
After Blob and Mockingbird took a hit in the previous OTA due to Arishem Loki‘s domination immediately after the 7-Cost card released, more cards are on the chopping block today.
Blob is losing power for a second time, and now he just looks like a 6-Cost that is able to reach the power of a Red Hulk but with more randomness. Joining him are Leech and Doctor Octopus, two disruptive cards who have proven extremely strong when played ahead of their natural Turn 5.
Last, the change to Loki will probably make the community go crazy, as the Trickster God has been a source of debate since its release. The community has always been divided on whether it should be nerfed or not. Arguably, Loki is the card undergoing the biggest change in this OTA, so it’s probably the one we’ll have to give the most time to gauge properly. However, we might still see Loki be a close friend with Arishem (if that deck survives this second wave of nerfs).
There are also three lighter changes to discuss, with White Widow‘s Widow's Kiss losing a power when the lane isn’t full as well as buffs to War Machine and Apocalypse.
We already know Apocalypse was a nice card with eight power, and this buff goes in the same direction as Moon Knight‘s change on Tuesday to help Discard Dracula return to being competitive.
The other two changes are kind of anecdotal in my book. White Widow will still entice the opponent to fill the lane you use it on, and the best part of the card (taking space away from them) is still relevant. As for War Machine, this is the kind of buff I like to call Hey, remember me? in the sense that I don’t think the card will be more impactful as a [4/7] compared to its current version. However, this buff reminds everyone that War Machine is a Marvel Snap card and entice some of us to give it another try.
With little to say about the buffs and nerfs all targeting at the same archetype, Second Dinner did not give us many new directions to explore what we should play. Still, considering Arishem Loki was keeping the entire meta hostage, this patch might actually enable a ton more cards than what is just shown in the picture above.
What should you play? Maybe everything!
Everything Arishem Loki Pushed Aside
A strong new archetype isn’t necessarily a bad thing; it gives the player base a new synergy to play with. However, when that deck is so good that it isn’t worth playing anything other than it or its counters, it becomes a but of a problem.
If this OTA limits Arishem Loki enough, there are plenty of decks that could potentially come back to the meta. Here are some of the decks that lost the most momentum since Arishem released:
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Although it was only a month ago, we had a pretty diverse meta with plenty of decks that were able to climb the ranks or do well in Conquest. These decks are still in the game, they just had little appeal in the Arishem meta.
In addition to these lists, I could also mention the archetypes that managed to do well during the Arishem meta, such as Good Cards, Silver Surfer, or an archetype that’s been gaining some momentum lately: Patriot.
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Junk is Coming Back
Among the archetypes that have shown the biggest struggle since Arishem released, Junk is easily on top of the list. It went from a Tier 1 deck that was fighting to be considered the best in the game to a struggling Tier 3, sometimes Tier 2 deck.
With this patch, Junk not only gets to see the meta hit the reset button, it also becomes the sole archetype interested in the new Doctor Octopus. Indeed, while this new iteration is weaker overall, a cheaper card that is able to help fill the opposing side of the board isn’t bad at all (for Junk specifically).
Obviously, if Doctor Octopus doesn’t get the job done in your opinion, feel free to throw Sentry back in the mix. Also, I decided to leave the Magik and Red Hulk duo out since a large part of leveraging the seventh turn was emptying your opponent’s hand, which you can’t do anymore.
Discard Dracula Wins Most Improved Deck of the Week
With Moon Knight‘s change on Tuesday and Apocalypse returning to a |6/8] today, the Discard synergy received a lot of help this week. The help was needed, as that archetype hasn’t been anywhere close to dominant since Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight released a few months ago. I imagine many Discard Enjoyers are eager to see if the archetype can return to be a competitive option in the near future.
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I don’t expect this deck to be a Tier 1 contender, but these changes should be enough to make Discard Dracula a viable archetype in this new meta.
Loki Ditches All His Friends
With the massive change to Loki, the card doesn’t have affinities with the likes of Agent Coulson anymore. Instead, Loki now looks like most of the other [3/5] cards with a strong ability attached that you can slam on Turn 3 and reap the rewards.
The Trickster God will need to find new allies in the future, although it should still be able to function with Arishem at least. Indeed, copying the opponent’s deck with a discount on Turn 2 is already good, and doing so with an extra energy to work with only leaves the luck of the draw as your opponent’s chance to win the game.
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Also, even though it wasn’t really able to compare to its counterpart, the Arishem High Evolutionary deck still exists, and it should be less impacted by the changes as well. This one could play even more into Loki‘s new ability as well since you will have more chances to have unspent energy when you draw copied cards one at a time from your replaced deck.
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Closing Words
This patch had a “reset button” feeling all over it. Arishem saw several allies hit with a nerf, and Loki got a rework that I’m sure many believe should have happened months ago. Arguably, the biggest question is whether we’ll still see Leech or Doctor Octopus around, or if these two nerfs were only to cover for Arishem‘s strengths.
I believe Doctor Octopus still has a home in Junk, and Leech could reconnect with Blink. That would be the perfect scenario, and it would show that Arishem was the problem and these two can still be part of the Marvel Snap landscape. Obviously, there is also the opposite scenario where Arishem and Loki are still troublemakers with a different list. This new Loki played on Turn 2 doesn’t sound like much of a nerf to me.
I want to trust the developers on this one and see the aftermath of this huge OTA before claiming they missed the mark. I’m also curious to know everyone’s opinion on the matter, so feel free to let me know in the comment section. You can also use the Marvel Snap Zone community Discord or my Twitter page to reach out!
Good Game Everyone.
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