One of the most enjoyable parts about playing card games is that you can include any card you want… if you have them. However, ranked games aren’t about creativity. You have to have strong cards in the meta, combined with cards with good synergies with your key cards. Marvel Snap shifts the meta by changing the cards’ stats, and the patches are more often than you’d expect, so here are some popular and effective decks in the current meta.

Zero Shuri

Shuri is by far the most OP card in the current meta. Its effect is to double the power of the next card you play, and when it’s paired with cards like Red Skull, Aero, or She-Hulk, followed by Taskmaster, it is nearly impossible to match the power potential. Simply put, if you play Shuri on turn 4, Red Skull on turn 5, and Taskmaster on turn 6, you will have two areas with at least 30 power regardless of the first three turns.

The first three turns are really not very important for Shuri decks. For this deck, you can start off with Zero-Lizard, or a variation of Zero-Ebony Maw. The typical stall combo in Iceman-Scorpion is good too. Armor and Cosmo are used to protect the high-power cards later on, so you should play either one of them on the second or third turn if you draw them.

There are other cards that have great synergy with Shuri, such as Typhoid Mary, Black Panther, Arnim Zola, and Wong. These cards all can amplify Shuri’s ability to its fullest. When you make a deck, make sure you have a decent balance in the low-cost and high-cost cards.

Shang-chi is the most obvious counter to this deck, but it's quite easy to protect your high-power card from being destroyed if you play your high-power card where you played Armor or Cosmo. Another counter is Aero, which can force your high-power cards into one area. 

Deadnom Zola

The main goal of this deck is to make Venom or Deadpool big and copy them with Taskmaster and Arnim Zola. When you play this deck, you generally want to keep your cards in one area, tearing apart what you played over and over again.

When you play Deadpool and Nova on the same turn, make sure you play Nova and then Deadpool. This is to apply Nova’s +1 to Deadpool before you destroy it, and this helps amplify Deadpool’s power. Titania is the best card to play just before Venom if you don’t have Deadpool big enough. If you don’t have Titania, it’s not as good, but Lizard works too.

Beast is included to retrieve destroy cards in case you want to reuse them. In this case, the enhanced power of the cards is maintained the next time you play. For example, if you play Beast where Carnage is with 4 power, you will have back in your hand a 4-power Carnage that only costs 1 energy.

This is a great deck to play, especially when you want to clear the mission: Win a location with only 1 card. However, its weakness is clear, as there are many counters — Armor, Cosmo, Shang-Chi, Aero, etc. If someone plays Armor on the 2nd turn and Cosmo on the 3rd turn, you might be better off escaping early.

Patriot

When I first started this game, I wondered why cards like Misty Knight, Shocker, or Cyclops existed, since they literally have no abilities aside from their raw power. When I picked up Patriot, I finally understood why.

Although its potential isn’t that high, its place in the meta is quite alright. This is because there are several finishing strategies for the deck. In the above deck alone, there are three finishing strategies in Dr. Doom, Onslaught, and Ultron. If you draw any of those three cards, your end game will be quite strong. 

Other cards you might want to include in this deck are Debrii, Mysterio, etc. The rocks from Debrii don’t have any abilities, so they gain power from Patriot, and they also interfere with the opponent. Mysterio’s illusions also gain power as well.

There are some counters to this deck as well, such as Enchantress or Rogue, but not too many players play them, so you don’t need to worry too much about them. You also do need to beware of Killmonger (if the opponent’s cards are revealed last), as it can destroy Misty Knight and Ultron’s Drones.

Invisible Hela

Compared to the Silver Surfer package, M.O.D.O.K. seemed pretty underwhelming, as the conditions were difficult to fulfill. However, like other discard decks, including Invisible Woman was a great solution. If you play Invisible Woman, M.O.D.O.K., and Hela in the same area, all of the cards will be revived in random areas. Other cards you could include in this deck are Apocalypse, Lockjaw, Hellcow, etc.

The most difficult part about playing a discard deck is that you can’t control which cards to discard. With this deck, the only cards that discard cards in your hand are Lady Sif, Dracula, and M.O.D.O.K. This way, you can actually control the cards you discard. If you only draw heavy cards from the beginning, don’t waste more time and just escape.

Unfortunately, hiding your M.O.D.O.K. and Hela behind Invisible Woman is quite popular. More often than not, the opponent counters it by playing Cosmo there or removing Invisible Woman’s ability with Rogue or Enchantress. Dr. Octopus can be a nuisance as well.

Steal

Did you enjoy playing Thief Priest in Hearthstone? Then this is the deck for you. This deck takes away the opponent’s cards and abilities to use for your own. The energy curve is simple, so you won’t have much trouble playing it, and as you constantly draw cards, your hand will never go dry. This deck was almost invincible before Leader was nerfed, but it isn’t as strong now. It is still quite a viable deck, and it’s fun to play when your opponent has cards you don’t have.

The way to play it is simple: draw cards using Agent 13, Cable, Sentinel, White Queen, and Nick Fury, and play by what you draw. Quinjet will reduce 1 cost for any card that didn’t start in your deck, so you will have an energy advantage over your opponent. Surprise high-power cards from Morph can be a big benefit as well.

In most Dino decks, Moongirl is included, but for this deck, there are more than enough cards in your hand to make Devil Dinosaur to its max power, so other cards are included instead.

There aren’t any critical counters to this deck, except Shang-Chi, but it only works on Devil Dinosaur. An early Cosmo could be annoying, but you can work around it. No counters could mean that the deck is strong, but its biggest weakness is that its maximum power potential is lower than those OP decks in the current meta.