Marvel Snap Jan. 19, 2024 OTA Update Explained

Each couple of weeks, Second Dinner pushes out an over-the-air replace for Marvel Snap. These are normally simply numerical modifications relatively than full card textual content modifications like we normally get within the full patches. Nonetheless, they will additionally shake up the meta considerably. Right here’s all the pieces you have to learn about Marvel Snap’s Jan. 19 OTA replace.

All Adjustments in Marvel Snap’s Jan. 19 OTA Replace

The headline right here is, Blob has been nerfed! I do know I simply stated OTA updates don’t normally embrace card textual content modifications, however that is an exception.

After dominating the Marvel Snap meta ever because it dropped late final yr, Second Dinner is lastly knocking Blob down a peg. As a 6-Price card that would eke out no less than 30 Energy for those who performed your playing cards proper every time, Blob has been a menace.

The remainder of the playing cards included on this OTA replace have been buffed. Hercules, who solely simply launched final week, received a slight Energy bump. Elektra, Viper, Selene, and Destroyer have all been bumped up as properly, and we should always begin seeing them a bit extra going ahead.

Listed below are the total modifications:

Blob

• [Old] 6/4 – On Reveal: Merge your deck into this. (and achieve its whole Energy) Ongoing: Can’t be moved.
• [New] 6/0 – On Reveal: Merge playing cards out of your deck into this till it features 15 or extra Energy. Ongoing: Can’t be moved.

Blob has been a metagame terror for a very good minute, so the one shocking factor about this modification might be that it features a textual content adjustment throughout the OTA. This card threatens to create absurd quantities of Energy, and “launch valves” within the format like Shang-Chi and Shadow King have confirmed wholly inadequate in restraining that. The latter is a good bit on us–internally, we feared being so simply dusted by (on the time) 2/3 Shadow King, one of many strongest playing cards within the metagame, could be too punishing for the brand new card. However occasions modified, and it seems that 4 “defensive” Energy was completely pointless!

It was necessary to retain a pair key components of Blob. The primary was rewarding consuming giant quantities of Energy, particularly from high-Energy playing cards. The second was conserving the full Energy of Blob variable for the opponent, to make the cardboard tougher to fight straight. This variation accomplishes each, creating totally different Blobs relying on the order of the playing cards in your deck. It additionally weakens Blob in Thanos particularly, as smaller-Energy playing cards usually tend to land nearer to the edge. Lastly, it provides a simple dial for us to tune–if our math on the best targets for Blob have been fallacious, the mix of base Energy and this threshold give us room to regulate additional.

Destroyer

• [Old] 6/15 – On Reveal: Destroy your different playing cards.
• [Change] 6/15 -> 6/16

This variation is reverting a nerf to Destroyer from some time in the past. The overall Energy values within the recreation have improved even amongst Collection 1 and Collection 2, the place Destroyer’s impression was most felt. We’ll proceed evaluating the relative Energy of 6-Price playing cards all year long, and anticipate to make extra modifications.

Viper

• [Old] 3/4 – On Reveal: One in every of your different playing cards right here switches sides.
• [Change] 3/4 -> 3/5

We took a conservative method to adjusting Viper over the vacations for causes associated particularly to Havok, and thankfully these fears have been unfounded. Nonetheless, we’ve determined to maintain Viper at 3-Price for a couple of causes. One is that it lets Viper extra naturally combo with places like Savage Land or Shadowland, which reveal on flip 3 one-third of the time. One other is that it will increase the design area for constructing playing cards like The Hood as 2-Price playing cards, as a result of Viper can present them on-curve.

Selene

• [Old] 1/-1 – On Reveal: On Reveal: Afflict the lowest-Energy card in every participant’s hand with -3 Energy.
• [Change] 1/-1 -> 1/2

Selene was initially designed to explicitly combo with Viper and Black Widow, which is a part of why her personal Energy was unfavorable–it elevated the danger/reward of those sturdy mixtures. Nonetheless, it seems that subsequent modifications to Viper and Black Widow additionally weakened these mixtures lots, and Annihilus hasn’t been a lot of an element for Selene, both. So we’re including some Energy right here to let the cardboard higher stand by itself.

Elektra

• [Old] 1/1 – On Reveal: Destroy an enemy 1-Price card right here.
• [Change] 1/1 -> 1/2

We’ve explored a wide range of instructions for bettering Elektra, and we’ll probably proceed doing so. Elektra has a tremendous story and plenty of nice variants, but additionally performs an necessary position in educating new gamers about sequencing playing cards and managing totally different places. We’ve needed to enhance Elektra for some time to make this iconic character extra gratifying, however don’t need to lose out on that necessary perform for early play. For now, we’re simply giving further Energy and seeing how that goes.

Dazzler

• [Old] 3/2 – Ongoing: +2 Energy for every location that’s full in your facet.
• [Change] 3/2 -> 2/2

Dazzler is one other card that would use some shine. Our intention with the preliminary change to 3-Price Dazzler was to see if Silver Surfer gamers could be excited to pair Dazzler with Brood, however issues haven’t labored out that method. So it’s time to strive one thing else! Dazzler as a card rewards enjoying effectively as a way to get all of your playing cards out, which suggests an Power discount needs to be useful.

Hercules

• [Old] 4/6 – The primary time one other card strikes right here every flip, transfer it to a different location.
• [Change] 4/6 -> 4/7

Hercules launched weaker than we’d like, so we’re including a little bit Energy. Our purpose stays to attempt to discover an execution that builds an attention-grabbing “transfer card” at 4-Price, as a result of diversifying the strategic choices throughout extra Prices is vital for guaranteeing we now have plenty of gameplay selection. We could contemplate revising the impact sooner or later if it proves unworkable at this Price.

Dagger

• [Old] 2/2 – When this strikes to a location, +2 Energy for every enemy card there.
• [New] 2/0 – When this strikes to a location, +3 Energy for every enemy card there.

Talking of transfer playing cards, Dagger has been one of many weaker ones for some time. We’d like there to be some further competitors and energy for the archetype, so we’re making an attempt a change right here that sizably will increase the Energy potential. This does make Dagger weaker to Shadow King, so it’s not all upside, however general it ought to enhance gamers’ choices “shifting” ahead.