Marvel Snap is an online card game that has been on our radar for a long time. We have played Hearthstone and Legends of Runeterra for a while now, and to be honest, Marvel Snap looked like a micro-transaction card game for kiddos. Boy, how wrong were we – Marvel Snap is one of the best card games out there, by many criteria. The basic mechanics are easy enough to grasp fast but the layers that the game has are what makes it a real challenge – and something that you might not see on the first look.
In this Marvel Snap Beginner decks guide, we will give you some basic tips on how to play Marvel Snap. We will analyze the types of decks that you can make as a beginner and present the current meta decks that you can go for with the limited amount of cards that you have. Note that you can also check our tier list of best Marvel Snap decks to see what high-end gameplay looks like. Without further ado, take a look at our Marvel Snap beginner decks guide.
Basic Game Rules
As we are sure most of you already know the basics, we will try to be brief in this part just in case there are some newcomers to the game. These are the basic rules of Marvel Snap:
- The game has 6 turns (unless a special card is activated or a special location)
- Every deck has 12 cards (no duplicates)
- In the first turn, you have 1 mana which increases by 1 in every turn (2 on turn 2, 3 on turn 3, etc.)
- There are three locations with various modifiers that comprise the “battlefield”
- You need to win 2/3 locations in order to achieve victory (whoever has more points at a location in the end – wins it)
- You can snap and increase the reward but also lose more should the opponent defeat you
- You can retreat if the battle doesn’t go as planned
Don’t worry if you are not sure about a specific thing on the list above. We will give a full detailed guide on everything that was mentioned and discuss potential strategies that can benefit you.
How to get more cards in Marvel Snap?
First things first – in order to do anything, you need the cards. You will start with 12 basic cards. There’s really no strategy here as your only goal is to go for Hulk Smash tactics and Iron Man on the other location. However, this will change very soon – you will start to get more cards. In Marvel Snap, you get cards by reaching Collection levels. Collection levels are gained once the cards that you have are upgraded.
Take a look at each card upgrade and how many collection levels you get with it:
- Uncommon – 1 Collection Level, 25 Credits, 5 boosters
- Rare – 2 Collection Levels, 100 Credits, 10 Boosters
- Epic – 4 Collection Levels, 200 Credits, 20 Boosters
- Legendary – 6 Collection Levels, 300 Credits, 30 Boosters
- Ultra – 8 Collection Levels, 400 Credits, 40 Boosters
- Infinity – 10 Collection Levels, 500 Credits, 50 Boosters
As you can see, the first tip we have is to do the simple math – and upgrade all your cards into Uncommon ones since it’s the cheapest upgrade for the value that you get. All the other levels will be 50 credits per level on average – only the uncommon one is 25. Boosters won’t be an issue (unless you are aiming for a specific card) but keep in mind that you get Boosters for the cards that you are playing with. So, it is advisable to swap between decks from time to time, at least until you have upgraded all your cards into uncommon ones.
As we mentioned, as you become better and start assembling some Marvel Snap beginner decks, Boosters won’t be a problem – but the Credits will. Use them wisely and be sure to collect the free 50 daily credits that you get. Also, try to do the daily and weekly quests as they are usually super easy and can be done in just a few games – that’s your main source of Credits and thus, new cards. Climbing up the Game Pass ladder will also provide a lot of credits (you can also buy a Premium one but it won’t boost you that much) so be sure to collect that as well.
The importance of locations in Marvel Snap
Most players build their strategy in Marvel Snap around key cards. Although this is a viable strategy, you have to account for locations in it or it simply won’t work – especially if the locations are in synergy or worse, a counter for your build. In short, focus your strategy around locations, not the cards in your hand. Here are some beginner tips for utilizing locations in Marvel Snap.
Don’t be afraid to play on an unraveled location
Many players go for a safe option – but unless you are planning on throwing your key card with an Ongoing effect, you can take a risk and go for a shot in the dark. This is especially important if you suspect that the opponent might throw something like Rocket Racoon or Groot – be sure not to give the extra points to them and go for a surprise take on a dark location. The best thing in Marvel Snap to do when playing unraveled location is to play a card that can Move – in that way, even if it’s a bad location you can always move the unit to one of the remaining two locations.
Do not fill out the location until the last turn
One of the most common beginner mistakes is to ramp up a location and fill it to the max on turn 5 or even sooner. Unless you are playing something that has global buffs like Blue Marvel deck or Kazar, this is a very bad strategy. Not only that your opponent will know which location you are aiming for, but also he will be able to calculate the exact number of power he needs in order to defeat you.
Even if you somehow manage to play it perfectly so that the opponent can’t reach your power level, you will end up with far fewer Tessaracts because the opponent will simply escape. The best possible strategy is to have three options with a slight advantage on your side before the last turn, with at least one spot in each of them. In that way, the opponent won’t know how to counter your last move and you will have the final call on who wins the game. Never rely on your opponent making the wrong move – always plan how to counter it!
Know how to bluff on a location
Now, Marvel Snap does feature superheroes, powers, and all sorts of things from science fiction – but it is still a card game. Like in most card games, bluffing is an option. This is something of an advance tip and can’t be done in every game – but think about it when the locations show on turn 3. Is it possible to play some cards on a location just so that you can lure the opponent to the same? Can you still manage to win on the remaining 2 locations with the rest of the cards in your hand? Will the opponent take the bait or is it too obvious?
These are the questions that you should ask yourself and we will discuss this later on in our deck-building part of this Marvel Snap Guide. For now, we will just say that bluffing is an option with almost all decks but you need to have an in-depth knowledge of your opponent’s deck (or at least make a good guess) in order to accomplish it.
Always have an exit strategy for a location
Yeah, we admit that this sounds cheesy and like we are writing just for the sake of writing – but this is actually the most important thing. Things might go south – and this is why you shouldn’t put all your eggs in one basket. The easiest way would be to spread your cards on all three locations according to the synergy of what you have in your hands (and guessing what you might draw next).
You can’t do this indefinitely as the strategy of winning all three locations is not a good one – but it will provide you with enough tempo in turns 3-4 to decide based on what your opponent played, which locations you should focus on. This will also confuse the opponent as he won’t be sure where you are going so he will either do the same or if you are lucky, reveal which locations he is aiming for.
The importance of snapping in Marvel Snap
Well you know, the game is called Marvel Snap – so snapping is a pretty important segment of the game. Snapping is a mechanic in which you can double the stakes of each game – and should the opponent snap as well, the stakes double again. So, it’s like raising stakes in poker – and similar to poker, here you can also bluff. Before we get into this, the general rule of thumb is – snap if you are in the lead and have enough cards in your hand to finish the game.
Easier said than done some will say, but when it comes to climbing up the Rank ladder, this is literally the most important thing – you can have a 60% win rate and still lose ranks because you win on low stakes and lose on high ones. Generally speaking, if you are losing at 2/3 locations at the beginning of turn 6 and have enough power to just take over one, you should retreat. The chances are not in your favor – 66% of the time you will lose.
To sum it up, these are the general tips when it comes to snapping in Marvel Snap:
- Snap when you are in the lead, before turn 5
- Try not to use your best cards before Snapping
- Don’t play the last turn if you are losing 2/3 positions – Retreat
- Keep in mind that the opponents sometimes bluff when they Snap
Marvel Snap Deck Types
There are many deck archetypes that you can choose from once you get more cards. Since you probably can’t use any of these, we will just list some of the well-known types so that you can check it later once you get more pool 3-5 cards. This is the list of deck archetypes:
- Discard Decks
- Destroy Decks
- High Evolutionary Decks
- Loki Decks
- Wong Decks
- Patriot Decks
- Toxic Decks
- Location Control Decks
- Shuri decks
- Ms. Marvel decks
- Sera decks
- Mr. Negative decks
- Thanos decks
- Cerebro decks
There are many more decks as we mentioned – we just gave you this list so that you can see all the potential of various cards. Now, let’s continue with our beginner decks that you can use right now.
Marvel Snap Beginner Decks
Probably the most interesting thing about Marvel Snap is deck-building. This is the main reason why most people get hooked on it – although the gameplay mechanics are simple enough, the deckbuilding is not. First of all, it’s very diverse – out of more than 250 cards, one deck holds just 12. Sure, cards are divided from tier 1 to tier 6 but the sheer number of cards still means that there are a couple of dozens of various decks and deck variations to choose from.
If you are a beginner in Marvel Snap, that means that most of the time, only Pool 1 and Pool 2 pool cards will be available during the first few weeks. However, this doesn’t mean that there aren’t any good Marvel Snap beginner decks – on the contrary, there are quite a few decks that contain cards from those pools. That being said, certain meta niche decks won’t be available to you in the beginning as they rely heavily on combos of one or two cards. Without theorizing (too much) about deck-building for beginners in Marvel Snap, let’s see some examples of pool 1 and pool 2 decks that you can make.
Tempo Deck: Kazar Zoo (Pool 1 Cards)
Key Cards: Captain America, Kazar, Blue Marvel, Onslaught
Support Cards: Hawkeye, Mantis, Nightcrawler, Rocket Racoon, Squirrel Girl, Antman, Ironheart, Wolfsbane
Deck Code:
eyJDYXJkcyI6W3siQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiQW50TWFuIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJDYXB0YWluQW1lcmljYSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiSGF3a2V5ZSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTWFudGlzIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJSb2NrZXRSYWNjb29uIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJTcXVpcnJlbEdpcmwifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ik1yU2luaXN0ZXIifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Iklyb25oZWFydCJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiV29sZnNiYW5lIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJLYVphciJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiQmx1ZU1hcnZlbCJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiT25zbGF1Z2h0In1dfQ==
This is probably the easiest one of the safest Marvel Snap beginner decks to play. The mechanics of it are really simple – you will basically be throwing all kinds of Tier 1 cards just so that you can buff them with combined effects of Kazar, Blue Marvel, and Onslaught. Since you have 5 Tier 1 Cards in the deck, you should be able to spend all your mana easily in every turn, not wasting any of it. Try to utilize Mantis and Rocket Racoon in the best way you can – if it’s possible, don’t play them on turn 1 unless you have a pretty good idea of which location your opponent will go at.
Later on, Captain America and Kazar will start buffing your lower-tier minions and you should have a decent advantage before Turn 5 on at least 2 locations. Be sure to leave an empty spot for Blue Marvel and Onslaught in the same location so that the buffs really kick in. It is easier said than done but really, if you are a beginner, this is the first deck you will be able to master completely and with ease.
The biggest problem this deck has is the fact that you will be leading during most of the game. Your opponents will often retreat and you will be left with 1-2 Tesseracts per win – try to be smart about this and don’t snap as soon as you get into the lead. Also, note that this deck is really good for winning all three positions but if your opponent focuses on just two, you might be in trouble – it’s OK to retreat if you see that you can’t win.
Tip: If you don’t have any option but to play Mantis or Rocket Raccoon on Turn 1, throw them on the left location. Most players don’t go for unrevealed locations so that’s where they will likely play their cards, thus triggering the effects of Mantis or Rocket Racoon.
Ongoing Deck: Iron Spectrum (Pool 1 cards)
Key cards: Ant-man, Armor, Colossus, The Punisher, Mister Fantastic, Namor, Ironman, Klaw, Spectrum
Support cards: Nightcrawler, Medusa
Deck Code: eyJDYXJkcyI6W3siQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTXJGYW50YXN0aWMifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IkFudE1hbiJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiU3BlY3RydW0ifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ik5pZ2h0Y3Jhd2xlciJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiQXJtb3IifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ik1lZHVzYSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiQ29sb3NzdXMifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IlB1bmlzaGVyIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJDYXB0YWluQW1lcmljYSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTmFtb3IifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Iklyb25NYW4ifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IktsYXcifV19
This is probably one of the easiest decks out there and the synergy between cards is pretty simple: almost all of your cards are ongoing except for Nightcrawler and Medusa. The reason why Nightcrawler is there is its mobility and Medusa is basically a 2-cost, 5-power card which is also great. In an ideal scenario, you should play like this: Nightcrawler or Ant-man anywhere on turn 1. Medusa on middle on turn 3 followed by Mister Fantastic on Turn 3. On turn 4 you can choose between throwing Namor on the empty location or playing something else. On turn 5 it’s either Ironman or Klaw and Spectrum in the end.
This type of gameplay is a no-brainer – you just need to pay attention to locations and where you will play Namor. Other than that, it’s super easy and, at least in the beginning, you will be able to gain a lot of cubes with Spectrum play on Turn 6. Later on, this deck will fall off the meta completely as you start gaining pool 3 cards (and as your opponents start playing different decks) because its main downside is its extreme predictability.
Move Deck: Multiple Man Focus (Pool 1 Cards)
Key Cards: Multiple Man, Hulk Buster, Doctor Strange, Heimdall, Forge, Kraven, Iron Fist
Support Cards: Morph, Jessica Jones, Nightcrawler, Mister Sinister, Claw
Deck Code:
eyJDYXJkcyI6W3siQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiSXJvbkZpc3QifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ik5pZ2h0Y3Jhd2xlciJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiRm9yZ2UifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IktyYXZlbiJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTXJTaW5pc3RlciJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTXVsdGlwbGVNYW4ifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ik1vcnBoIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJEb2N0b3JTdHJhbmdlIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJIdWxrYnVzdGVyIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJKZXNzaWNhSm9uZXMifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IkhlaW1kYWxsIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJLbGF3In1dfQ==
Move Decks are really fun to play with and, although they might not be the ones with the highest percentage of win rate, they are worth a shot. Above is an example of a Pool 1 Move Deck that focuses on Multiple Man. The idea is to use Hulk Buster and/or Forge to boost Multiple Man stats and move it by using Doctor Strange and/or Iron Fist in order to trigger his effect of multiplying. Sometimes there are going to be some useful locations that can help you with that but in general, this is how you need to play it.
The other combo in this deck is Kraven and all moving cards – whenever something moves to his location, he gets 2 Power. This works really well with Heimdall just be sure not to fill the locations too. Morph, Jessica Jones, and Klaw are there to fill in the gaps and provide additional Power since this deck is not known for very high power output. If you can’t get Multiple Man you can also provide some tempo with the Forge and Mister Sinister combo although you need to be careful not to fill in the locations before Heimdall arrives.
Haimdall effect will push your cards one location to the left – meaning that probability your end goal should be to focus on the middle and the left location. Keep that in mind but also note that your opponent probably knows this as well since this Marvel Snap beginner deck is a bit predictable. However, Haimdall has 8 power and Klaw provides an additional 6 to the location on his right meaning that it will still be possible to go for a win on the right location. The biggest issue this build has is the fact that it’s super slow – you need time to build all that up and if your opponent uses any kind of control deck, you will probably lose.
Tip: Note that the Hulk Buster effect has priority over the Iron Fist effect – meaning that if you play Iron Fist and in the next turn merge Hulk Buster with Multiple Man, the fist will move Multiple Man with buffs and trigger its multiply effect.
Move Deck: Cloak Location Control (Pool 1 & Pool 2 Cards)
Key Cards: Vulture, Multiple Man, Iron Fist, Kraven, Cloak, Heimdall, Hulk Buster, Doctor Strange
Support Cards: Vision, Storm, Warpath, Nightcrawler
Deck Code:
eyJDYXJkcyI6W3siQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiSXJvbkZpc3QifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ik5pZ2h0Y3Jhd2xlciJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiRm9yZ2UifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IktyYXZlbiJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTXVsdGlwbGVNYW4ifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IkRvY3RvclN0cmFuZ2UifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ikh1bGtidXN0ZXIifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IkhlaW1kYWxsIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJTdG9ybSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiQ2xvYWsifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IldhcnBhdGgifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IlZpc2lvbiJ9XX0=
This one is a semi-control move deck that does require some skill in order to be put to the proper use. Your key minions are similar to the Pool 1 move deck, but this time you have more cards that can move – Vision, Vulture, and Cloak are in this one. The whole purpose of this deck is to go for a clean win on 2 locations so that’s why Warpath is a viable card to use in this Marvel Snap beginner deck.
You should start by buffing Multiple Man if you can – if this is not the option, then you can start by moving Vulture to the middle or right location. Destroying a location with Storm on turn 3 is done so that you would force your opponent to focus on two locations instead of three – you are going to move your cards easily to the destroyed location later on anyway. Cloak’s effect does seem super useful but bear in mind that your opponent can move units to that location as well once you use the card. This is not necessarily a bad thing because Kraven will get buffs even if your opponent’s cards move to its location.
The biggest problem this Marven Snap beginner deck has is the lack of firepower – this is why it’s easy to counter it. However, due to its high movability, this deck is still performing really well, especially if you are climbing the rank ladder (and as a beginner you surely are).
Tip: If you use the Iron Fist effect on Cloak, the location that Cloak was initially on will be the one where you can move your cards. This is particularly useful if you are moving Kraven as you will have more space for your cards, thus Kraven will receive more buffs.
Destroy Deck: Enduring Wolverine (Pool 1 & Pool 2 Cards)
Key Cards: Nova, Bucky Barnes, Carnage, Wolverine, Sabretooth, Deathlock
Support Cards: Angel, Killmonger, Lady Sif, Shang Chi, Klaw, Apocalypse
Deck Code:
eyJDYXJkcyI6W3siQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTm92YSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiQW5nZWwifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IkJ1Y2t5QmFybmVzIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJDYXJuYWdlIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJXb2x2ZXJpbmUifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IktpbGxtb25nZXIifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IlNhYnJldG9vdGgifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IkRlYXRobG9rIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJMYWR5U2lmIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJTaGFuZ0NoaSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiS2xhdyJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiQXBvY2FseXBzZSJ9XX0=
When it comes to your first destroy deck, you need to have several Pool 2 cards – it’s simply not good enough if you try it with only Pool 1 cards. Even with Pool 2, you will still need certain support in terms of additional Power in order to win – in our deck that support is Lady Sif combined with Apocalypse. You can say that this Marvel Snap beginner deck is actually a combo of destroy-discard mechanics.
Be it as it may, your main goal, like with most destroy decks is the same – you need to put Bucky Barnes, Wolverine, and/or Sabretooth in one location and destroy them with either Carnage or Deathlok. Once you do, their effects will be triggered and you can do the same thing again, buffing your forces even further. Shang Chi is in this deck in order to prevent your opponent from playing any kind of high-power cards that can overwhelm you. On the other hand, discarding Apokalypse with the Lady Sif effect will allow you to slam on turn 6 all while Klaw provides support on turn before that.
The greatest weakness of this deck is its high dependability on various combos in the deck (Lady Sif + Apocalypse, Carnage+Bucky Burnes, Nova+Killmonger, etc.). Although on paper it does look really powerful in reality the opponent can easily counter you with Armor or similar control cards. That being said, most players won’t do this so you should definitely give this one a try.
Tip: Wait until you have several cards on locations before you destroy Nova since it will buff up all your existing cards.
On-Reveal Deck: Odin Slam (Pool 1 Cards)
Key Cards: Odin, White Tiger, Ironheart
Support Cards: Elektra, Rocket Raccoon, Forge, Medusa, Mister Sinister, Star Lord, Wolfsbane, Jessica Jones
Deck Code:
eyJDYXJkcyI6W3siQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiRWxla3RyYSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiUm9ja2V0UmFjY29vbiJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiRm9yZ2UifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6Ik1lZHVzYSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiTXJTaW5pc3RlciJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiU3RhcmxvcmQifSx7IkNhcmREZWZJZCI6IldvbGZzYmFuZSJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiSmVzc2ljYUpvbmVzIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJXaGl0ZVRpZ2VyIn0seyJDYXJkRGVmSWQiOiJTcGlkZXJXb21hbiJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiT2RpbiJ9LHsiQ2FyZERlZklkIjoiSXJvbmhlYXJ0In1dfQ==
The first on-reveal deck that you can make as a beginner in Marvel Snap relies heavily on Odin – thus the name “Odin Slam”. The whole purpose of this deck is to have various on-reveal cards that provide enough tempo during the first 5 turns just so that you can overwhelm your opponent by slamming Odin on Turn 6.
Elektra is a great card for this deck as you can re-activate her effect in the end, neutralizing two enemy Tier 1 cards. Star Lord and Ironheart should provide enough Power to stay competitive on a location and the same goes for Jessica Jones. However, the fun part starts when White Tiger is played – and her on-reveal effect is re-triggered by Odin. Optionally you can do the same with Spider Woman if your opponent has several cards on the opposing side.
The great issue with this deck is the fact that it relies heavily on one card – Odin. If you get it, the deck will work really well but if you don’t, the only way to win is to focus on just two locations and pray that your opponent doesn’t do the same. Luckily, you will have enough Power to stay competitive even without Odin, just don’t risk too much if your opponent Snaps.
Tip: Be sure to utilize the full potential of Ironheart so don’t use it unless you have at least three cards already on locations.
Final Thoughts on Marvel Snap Beginner Decks
As you can see, there are quite a few options for decks even if you are just starting to play Marvel Snap. Note that these decks are not irreplaceable so feel free to change things a bit and see what works for you the best – especially when it comes to support cards. None of these decks are real meta-decks as there are none of those on such a low collection range – but they are meta in terms of Pool 1 and Pool 2 cards which you will be using in the beginning. Good luck!
Image Credits: Marvel Snap
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