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Once players upgrade their cards in Marvel Snap and reach Collection Level 215, they are able to access the Pool 2 group of characters of iconic comic heroes and villains, which expand upon the foundational strategies from the initial Pool 1 into stronger decks with better cards. With several types of ability archetypes gaining new support in Pool 2, players may replace older characters with the 25 "Mystery Cards" they collect at a slightly slower rate from Pool 1 after completing daily objectives to upgrade card rarity through Credits. Since Pool 2 cards broaden the approach players are able to take in the six-round matches of Marvel Snap, there are far more complex choices available when selecting the best cards possible for a deck.
Destruction decks in Marvel Snap gain their best cards in Pool 2 through the characters Bucky Barnes and Killmonger, while the Discard archetype benefits from Morbius and Swarm being included in this collection. Iceman, Shang-Chi, Storm, and Scorpion all provide extra power to Control decks, which players might have struggled with in the gameplay of Pool 1. Strong cards that can go into any deck from Pool 2 include Sunspot, the Infinaut, Hobgoblin, and Jubilee, while Movement characters such as Vulture, Cloak, and Vision finally give players more Power to a formerly underwhelming strategy.
Activate the Winter Soldier and Sweep Enemy Cards in Pool 2
Players have likely already had the chance to level up quickly in Marvel Snap through the use of a rudimentary Destruction deck featuring Pool 1 cards like Carnage combining with Nova or Wolverine. However, in Pool 2, this strategy grows even further with Bucky Barnes, a seemingly weak card with 2 Energy cost and 1 Power. The true strength of this character comes when it is destroyed, as Bucky transforms into a 6-Power Winter Soldier that gives a large boost to a Location. Although it takes a bit of time to set up with cards such as Deathlock that enact destruction, players will find the reward to be incredibly helpful in contested areas during a match.
Killmonger may be added to players' decks as one of the best cards in Marvel Snap due to it being a direct counter to one of the most prevalent archetypes in Pool 1, the Zoo deck. Usually, these decks play around Kazar and his +1 Power boost to 1 Energy cards, which populate a number of Locations at once. The 3 Energy 3 Power Killmonger destroys every 1 Energy card on the field at every Location On Reveal, completely dismantling an opponent's strategy either before it can form or at the very end of a game to steal a victory. Useful even beyond in Pool 3, Killmonger's effect may be blocked by the Wakanda Location or cards like Armor, but the widespread range still guarantees results.
Discard Without Worry with Morbius and Swarm
While the anchor card Apocalypse in Marvel Snap has a plethora of supporting characters such as Lady Sif, Blade, and Sword Master in Pool 1 that encourage his ability, Morbius and Swarm give this deck better functionality going into Pool 2. Players likely had moments where using the discard effect of Blade or Sword Master got rid of the wrong card in hand without any benefits. Morbius, a 2 Energy 0 Power card, reassures this unfortunate circumstance by having +2 Power for every card the player has discarded during a match. Since this ability applies when Morbius is on a Location, in the deck, or in the player's hand, there are no downsides to discarding more cards in order to build an absurd Power value out of the vampire.
Although Apocalypse should always be the priority discard when building this deck type in Marvel Snap, Swarm gives players a second valuable option. The 2 Energy 3 Power card returns to the player's hand after being discarded, only this time with two versions of itself that do not cost any Energy at all to play. Through these two cards, Pool 2 gives players a great opportunity to improve their Discard decks, as Morbius and Swarm are staples to this archetype that improve it significantly even when transitioning into Pool 3 and beyond.
Control Power and Locations With Pool 2 Cards
Professor X, a 5 Energy 3 Power card in Pool 1, demonstrates the pinnacle of Control decks in the previous collection, but Iceman, Scorpion, and Storm all represent an evolution to those strategies through Energy and Location manipulation in Marvel Snap. The 1 Energy 2 Power Iceman immediately makes one random card in the opponent's hand cost 1 more Energy to use, while the 2 Energy 2 Power Scorpion reduces all the Power of all cards in the foe's hand by 1. This kind of disruption, whether used early in a game or close toward the end, throws off standard plans that would otherwise be fairly consistent. Storm, a 3 Energy 2 Power card, takes this idea to an extreme, Flooding a Location the turn after it was played and preventing either player from placing cards there, forcing a rival to either commit to building Power there or abandoning the spot.
On the opposite end, Shang-Chi does not alter Locations or Power values, instead using its 4 Energy 3 Power value to negate the greed of the other player. Completely shutting down powerful combos seen from Devil Dinosaur or Onslaught in Marvel Snap that dominated Pool 1 play, Shang-Chi destroys any card that has more than 9 Power on the other side of its Location On Reveal. Players that have been frustrated and lost to those deck patterns in the past are capable of turning the tables through Shang-Chi, whose utility could be applied in a variety of decks.
Find New Combos From Sunspot, Jubilee, Hobgoblin, and The Infinaut
Remarkable cards that can fit into any deck come into Pool 2 through Sunspot and Jubilee, which are 1 Energy 1 Power and 4 Energy 1 Power respectively. Sunspot gains Power for each unspent Energy players have not used at the end of their turn, giving it remarkable potential throughout a match to improve should players not have many cards to play. Jubilee randomly takes one card from a player's deck and places it at her Location, which can be risky depending on what kind of cards players have at their disposal. A popular combo in Pool 2 involves using this ability with The Infinaut, whose ridiculous 6 Energy 20 Power ordinarily cannot be played unless players do not place any cards the turn prior.
The Hobgoblin takes a risky approach in Pool 2, but introduces players to the concept of a card with a negative Power value. Sporting -8 Power at a 5 Energy cost, Hobgoblin On Reveal travels to the enemy player's Location, devaluing their overall Power built up and sometimes filling the last of the four spaces that make up a Location. A card that functions within numerous archetypes, Hobgoblin carries a fun and unorthodox gameplay angle that players could find great purpose in the later stages of a match.
Demonstrate Greater Movement with Vision, Vulture, and Cloak
Movement decks are notoriously difficult to play in Marvel Snap, requiring certain anchors such as Heimdall to achieve their maximum potential. However, in Pool 2 the 5 Energy 7 Power Vision breathes new life into this archetype, creating combos with Kraven by being able to move to whatever Location it wants on any turn. Used in tandem with the 2 Energy 4 Power Cloak, who allows players on both sides to move whatever cards they like into its Location the following turn, players are finally able to ramp up more Power than what originally was possible. Vulture, a 3 Energy 3 Power card, gains +5 Power when moved, giving players another reason to create new decks using the best cards from Pool 2 in Marvel Snap.
Source: YouTube/Marvel Entertainment
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Marvel SNAP
- Summary:
- Marvel brings its multiversal madness to the digital collectible card game scene with Marvel SNAP, a 1v1 multiplayer Digital TCG on iOS, Android, and PC. In Marvel Snap, players will assemble teams of their favorite heroes and villains as they battle against other players in three-minute games in this high-speed card battler. Animations are dynamic and feature artwork from several artists from Marvel's history, including some new talent - all designing pieces exclusively for the game - with over 150 illustrations at launch. Decks are kept small, and turns are limited to six per player. The game comes from the former Hearthstone CCG director Ben Brode and is free-to-play with monetization elements.
- Franchise:
- Marvel
- Platform:
- iOS, Android, Microsoft Windows
- Released:
- 2022-10-18
- Developer:
- Second Dinner
- Publisher:
- Nuverse
- Genre:
- Digital Card Game
- How Long To Beat:
- 20 hours
