Introduction
An archetype made possible by Sera's ability to reduce the energy cost of cards enabling some spectacular power swings on the final turn.
Game plan
The core strategy of the deck revolves around playing Sera as soon as possible and then unloading your hand on the final turn with a burst of stats. Depending on your hand (if you're holding Sera), you can at times get away with skipping the first three turns and still win. You usually want to be a bit more proactive though, especially if Sera's not drawn by turn 4 and the deck comes equipped with the tools to do so.
The other core component is Goose, it's important to play him early on a location your opponent's not heavily contesting. Doing so will effectively lock them out of any powerful late game plays, depending on the archetype you'll be facing, you can safely deduce how much power they'll be able to add and give you a better understanding on how you'll have to distribute power into the various lanes.
Rescue's a great (though not mandatory) addition as she gains a lot of stats after a card's played on her location, you usually want to play her on curve followed by Sera (just the two can contest a lane with 13 power).
Mojo, who is also a powerful turn 6 surprise in a lane the opponent heavily committed to and is nice to have, is also optional and can be replaced with a well statted 2-drop.
Apart from these 4, the deck is complemented with premium cost-stat ratio cards in order to push as much power on that final turn as possible.
Card suggestions
This version of the deck is designed for players who've already made strides into Pool 3 and have already collected about a third of the cards. Good news though, the archetype is really flexible. So if you opened Sera as one of your first Pool 3 cards, you can always swap in a Discard package with Blade and Strong Guy as an example of a fairly consistent early version.
Vice versa, if you have a larger Pool 3 collection or just happened to open different cards, you can add Maximus (for either Sword Master or Wolfsbane) or Mysterio in conjunction with Bishop (all 3 copies of Mysterio count as being played, therefore the clones give buffs to both Angela and Bishop).
Decklist
Let's go over the choice of cards:
- Ant-Man, everyone's favorite Pool 1 card finds a home in this deck as well. You usually don't want to play him on turn 1 so keep him in your hand for later.
- Angela, still very strong after being nerfed, your first choice of turn 2 play.
- Goose, the general strategy's already been explained. The other turn 2 priority card, play on turn 3 at latest if you wish to take advantage of his ability for the late game.
- Mojo, you can get away with playing him on curve. However, it's better save him for turn 6 if you're playing Sera, as he'll help you contest the location you actually want to win.
- The same goes for Lizard.
- Scarlet Witch, my favorite tech card. Get rid of unfavorable locations such as Dream Dimension, Mindscape, etc. You can also swing locations such as Bar With No Name, Death's Domain or Luke's Bar on the final turn with minimal investment, reopen a Flooding location or cut the game short/extend the game by removing either Limbo or TVA. I don't recommend playing her for tempo or ever if the game's in your favor as she can also screw you over.
- Wolfsbane, get those 7 stats on turn 6. There's also always the good old Cloning Vats alternative strategy of dropping Goose or Angela (or anything else at hand early) on turn 2 and filling the vats with her on turns 3, 4 and 5 and then just winning another location on turn 6 with a massive Wolfsbane.
- Captain America, can be played on curve if you have nothing better to do.
- Sword Master is also here to provide a bunch of stats for a low cost. Never play on curve unless you're dropping him into Dark Dimension or need to win TVA.
- Rescue, usually wants to be played into the same lane where you'll be playing Sera. If Sera is a no-show on turn 5 and you drew her instead, you can also go for a Rescue + Ant-Man on that turn and follow her up with America Chavez, Sword Master + Wolfsbane (or whatever's available).
- Sera, the lady who makes the archetype, play on turn 5 or earlier and reap the benefits on the final turn. Congratulations if you've managed to get her into Onslaught's Citadel.
- America Chavez, she'll enable to draw all your combo pieces earlier. Will rarely serve as an alternative finisher.
Final thoughts
Every new archetype requires some time to perfect your play and a mindset adjustment. This one's no different. Whether you're playing Sera or not, always be mindful of how much the remaining cards in your hand will cost on the final turn and plan your turns accordingly.
When to snap: if you're already holding Sera and Rescue by turn 4, you should already mostly know your playline for the last 3 turns. So if you like what you see, consider snapping.
Same goes for when you're missing Sera, by turn 4 you'll want to start unloading your hand. If things are looking bleak, just retreat early.
Watch out for:
- Shang-Chi, if you're counting on Rescue to carry a lane, though in a lot of cases if the opponent's committing 4 energy on the final turn into that lane then you're winning anyway (unless it's Nidavelir or you've committed either Mojo or Ant-Man).
- Aero or even Magneto can be much more devastating, you can try to mitigate the potential damage by contesting/filling the location where they're likely going to be played or just retreat.
Have fun!