UPDATE -- Removed Scorpion, Cosmo, Shang-Chi
-- Added Quinjet, Agent Coulson, Chavez
I still think you can sub Cosmo & Shang-Chi as tech depending on what you're seeing on the ladder, but this list feels tighter and more consistent. Coulson is really cool with Zabu.
---Original Notes ---
This deck is insane, although I do understand most players won't have access to Darkhawk yet. This list got me to infinite in szn 3, and even though we got there about 10 days into the season, it felt like the grindiest climb yet. My MMR is getting pretty high and I tend to see the same high ranking players on ladder over and over, which can make climbing arduous.
I think a general comment about high-level play might be helpful. The best way to get better at this game is to just play a TON of games, but after each loss try to understand what went wrong, why you lost, and what you could have done different. And if there was nothing you could have done different, should you have retreated earlier? The best players usually know what's coming, because they know and have played against all the meta lists. Knowing what the opponent could play next, based upon what they have already played, is true skill. The only way to improve at this is understanding the card pool inside and out and having a ton of game experience.
Card Breakdown:
Korg - 1 drop who buffs Darkhawk
Mystique - Didn't have her in the list at first, which was a mistake because she's bonkers. 2 targets for her in the deck - Hawk and Dino. Never use her on Zabu. You can double her with Moongirl and Play her twice on 6 after playing Dino or RockSlide/Hawk on 5. She's insane in this list.
Zabu - If you don't draw him by 4 or 5 and you're behind, and they snap, it's a retreat 99% of the time. Although, sometimes Moongirl on 4, Dino on 5 + Dino on 6 wins games.
Cosmo - strongest tech card in the game. Specifically for the insanely popular silver surfer decks. I see silver surfer in probably north of 70% of my games (which is a ton, some play sessions feel like all I'm playing against is surfer). Usually they will storm a lane, which actually hurts them when playing me (don't tell them that ;) ), because we will then lock down another lane with spider-man on 5, which FORCES them into the 3rd lane where if we have prio we can cosmo and their surfer won't go off. I realize a lot has to come together for that to happen (priority is huge), but usually surfers won't have prio on 6 because all their playing on 5 is sera. Usually they won't be too concerned to winn the storm lane initially because they're banking on surfer to buff those cards later; although, Juggernut is potentially problematic for us. If we don't win the storm lane, Spider-man on 5 can feel bad.
P2W-hawk - If you're looking to spend 6k tokens in the shop on an S-tier card I believe it's either Shuri or Hawk. Shuri might be a little better tbh, but I've had a TON of fun playing this card. The locations that put stuff in your opponents deck are insanely strong for us (lechuguilla and vibranium mines), while locations that draw cards are obviously bad. Korg and Rock-slide are his buddies. There are games where with Moon-girl doubling your hand you can play 2 Hawks on 5 + 2 Mystique'd Hawks on 6, so basically 4 Hawks on the board. It's fun lol.
Shang-Chi - self explanatory blow up their big stuff tech card. If they're playing Shuri big boi deck you can copy him with Moon-Girl and play him in multiple lanes. I've had games against Shuri-Vision where I just chi 2 lanes and it doesn't matter where the vision moves he's getting blown up.
Spider-man - Super solid tech card against silver surfer decks, which want to drop a lot of power on 6 and need to avoid the offensive cosmo. They lock down a lane with storm (usually), you then lock down one of the other lanes on 5 (they play Sera), now they're stuck and have to play in a single lane. Offensive cosmo dominates. This is a very solid game-plan against one of the strongest decks in the game right now. That being said, this slot is actually a flex, and you can pretty much play anything. Ice man if you want to lower your curve, or Aero if you like a higher curve. You can use Crossbones, enchantress, you could even use leader. I've found Spider-man to be the most consistent, and with Moon-girl doubling him, present a win-condition for the deck all by himself. Moongirl on 4 to copy Spider-man, Snap!, lock down 2 lanes on 5, watch the opponent retreat instantly, profit!
Moon-Girl - I like to think she's the MVP of the deck. Being able to copy your 4-costs (which are now 2-costs with Zabu), is seriously OP. Zabu is obviously the king here, he's overpowered as hell, but moon-girl functions to accelerate him in a way that that no other card can.
Rock-Slide - 2-6 body that accelerates Hawk.
White Queen - Accelerates Dino and gives us valuable information about the opponent's hand. You need to be very careful with the order of cards played with her and Moon-girl. Remember that if you play White Queen BEFORE Moon-girl, Moon will copy the card White-queen acquired. Sometimes you will want this to happen (if your hand is small and you are trying to accelerate dino), and sometimes you will NOT want this to happen (if you are trying to copy specific cards in your hand). Always count the cards in your hand and understand what you are about to do. Remember that if you end the round with 7 cards in your hand you will NOT draw. Awareness of these variables is crucial to piloting this deck successfully.
Devil Dino - Big body boi. MOST of the time if you have him, playing him on 5 is the correct decision. Sometimes with this deck you're playing a ton of cards, and if you don't draw moon-girl, he's gonna feel really bad because you're hand will get pretty small. Hand-management is pivotal.
Closing Comments:
I think this list has potential staying-power in the meta. Much like surfer has stayed relevant, I think Zabu could be meta-relevant for a long time. And I think the dark-hawk shell is the best version of Zabu you can play. As the meta develops, I will continue to test this and make updates/changes. If you made it to the end, I really appreciate you reading this guide.
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