Struggling to make it above Gold rank? Here’s how to improve your game
Marvel Snap is one of the best collectible card games on Android, thanks to its innovative mechanics and approachable gameplay. However, it’s also brutally competitive at the higher ranks, so new players may find themselves trapped at the bottom of the ladder.
Our Marvel Snap beginners guide will get you up to speed on the basics (but won’t get you to the fabled Infinite rank). These tips are perfect if you’ve worked your way into Series 3 and are ready to improve your game. So grab your favorite Android tablet, and let’s start winning games.
1. Build your Marvel Snap deck around one or two cards
Browsing the best meta decks is something everyone should do. While playing with prebuilt decks isn’t as satisfying, they can teach you important lessons about building your own. Most importantly, you’ll notice they’re built around one or two “anchor” cards rather than a random selection of “good” cards.
These anchor cards usually cost five or six power and will dramatically affect your deck. So when building a deck, start with a couple of high-cost cards, and choose lower-cost cards that complement them.
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2. Upgrade your cards in a specific order
You’ll quickly notice that Boosters and Credits at earned at vastly different rates. By the time you start heading into Pool 3, you’ll likely have some cards with over a hundred boosters but no credits to upgrade them.
To upgrade your cards efficiently, follow these steps:
- Ensure every card is at least Uncommon rank.
- Upgrade one card at a time to Infinity rank, then Split it.
- Go back to step 1.
- This method will ensure you’re making the most efficient use of your Credits and is the quickest way to increase your Collection Level.
The final Infinity level allows you to create an alternate, rainbow version of the card.
3. Snap earlier rather than later
While it may be tempting only to Snap when victory is all but assured, your opponent will likely surrender in these situations. Alternatively, If your opponent calls your Snap on Turn 5, they presumably believe they can beat you, resulting in a potential loss of eight cubes, and it’ll be too late to back out. Know your deck well, and Snap as soon as you’ve got the winning combo in your hand.
While this strategy can result in disaster, experienced players will be able to read the board well. Snapping early results in two cubes if your opponent surrenders rather than one, and this will also allow you to back out early and avoid losing eight cubes.
4. Don’t fret about missing out on early turns
It’s a rare game that’s won on Turn 1, so don’t worry if you can’t put a card down immediately. Having more 2-cost cards can result in a better Turn 2 and set up powerful cards like Sera later on.
While missing out on Turn 2 can be a little riskier, it’s still OK to skip it sometimes. For example, saving Lizard for later turns will prevent your opponent from countering it.
Both of these cards, while powerful, have easily countered abilities when played early.
5. Build your Marvel Snap strategy around locations, not cards
In our Marvel Snap review, we noted that locations were possibly the best feature of Marvel Snap. They’re also the most important feature, as they have a decisive effect on your strategy. Locations favor certain decks, but barring including Uatu (which we don’t recommend), you’ll be waiting until turn three to finalize your strategy. Locations like Onslaught’s Citadel and Kamar-Taj can be critical to winning or losing, so make these a priority when choosing what card to play next.
Rhino and Scarlet Witch are handy cards to circumvent problematic locations, so it’s worth keeping one of these on hand if the locations aren’t in your favor.
6. Learn your cards
You can’t know exactly what your opponent has in their hands, but you can make some educated guesses based on what cards they play. Keep track of common combinations, and review popular decks for meta combos.
