The most anticipated (feared?) card of the season is coming to Spotlight caches. Will Snap be able to fight back against Doctor Doom 2099 or will we find ourselves trapped in the world of Doom?
At the end of 1992 Marvel leapt into the future with a new line of comics set in the year 2099. The 2099 comics included great-looking characters like Spider-Man, the Punisher, and Ghost Rider, but it was Doom 2099 that had the writing to back up the cool techno-futuristic designs.
Doctor Doom suddenly appears in the future to discover that he no longer rules Latveria and the world is ruled by an oligarchy of corrupt technology megacorporations.
Doom manages to liberate Latveria and eventually goes on to install himself as the ruler of America and assists in fighting off an extraterrestrial invasion by the Phalanx.
Powerful Synergy
Yes, the 2099 DoomBots will boost the original Doom and his DoomBots! Doom 2099 will generate a DoomBot 2099 after turn 4 if he is played alone, another one on turn 5 if you play a single card, and a third one on turn 6 if you just play Doctor Doom. That will get you 41 power just from your Doom cards!
Because Doom 2099 has a built-in disincentive to playing more than one card per turn, there's no downside to strictly limiting ourselves to one card with Electro or making all cards more expensive on the final turn with Sandman.
Gilgamesh has been a stellar performer in the Zoo archetype, but hasn't gained any traction outside of that archetype. It's possible he could find his way into Doom lists either as a turn 5 play or, perhaps more importantly, a strong turn 6 play in the unfortunate games where you don't draw the original Doctor Doom.
One of the issues that Doom 2099 decks are likely to have is a lack of space. One card that turns that into an advantage is Dazzler. I think she has a chance to provide some free value in Doom 2099 decks.
Whenever we get a new 4-Cost card, Zabu is always going to be top of mind. However, Zabu might be even more important for Doom 2099 than other 4-Cost cards since getting him out a turn earlier means we have a chance to produce an extra DoomBot 2099.
Another issue that Doom 2099 decks may have is that they are heavily reliant on drawing both Doom 2099 and Doctor Doom. Iron Lad alleviates this by giving you one last chance to hit them in games where you don't draw it on them, while simultaneously providing the high-roll potential to double up on one of your Doom cards once in a while.
DoomBots are going to fill up our board and, especially since the 2099 DoomBots will be generated to locations randomly, having the flexibility of movement cards will be beneficial. You can use these cards to prevent DoomBots from locking a lane for which you want to keep your options open, as well as reorganizing your board later in the game.
There are several 6-Cost cards that can benefit Doom 2099 with a power boost or added protection, but we'll have to ramp them out.
Finally, the third major problem facing Doom decks will be opponents aggressively trying to attack Doom 2099’s relatively linear strategy. I expect Cosmo to be a necessity in Doom 2099 decks, especially during release week. Cosmo isn't perfect protection though, since it can only protect one lane and we'll have to play it out proactively to protect Doom 2099 or our DoomBots from Red Guardian.
You should expect to see a lot of the following tech cards while piloting a Doom 2099 deck. Red Guardian is of particular concern since he can hit the prime Doom 2099. Hazmat and affliction generally will be good against Doom 2099’s full boards. Clog will be an important strategy against Doom 2099 so I expect the archetype to continue its recent resurgence.
The Numbers
Doom can produce some staggering numbers. Obviously, some of the sequences below are unlikely since they would require a bit of luck as far as where your 2099 DoomBots spawn and no interference from your opponent, but they're illustrative of how much power Doom 2099 is able to generate with just a few cards played from hand.
- Doom 2099, Legion, Magneto - 24 Power
- Doom 2099, Blue Marvel, Onslaught - Up to 43 Power
- Doom 2099, Vision, Doctor Doom - 49 Power
- Ant-man, Dazzler, Cosmo, Doom 2099, Vision, Doctor Doom - Up to 63 Power
- Doom 2099, Magik, Doctor Doom, Odin - Up to 81 Power
Scosco's Day One Doom 2099 Decks
Doom Origin
This list can happily go 1-2-3-4-5-6, but we'll occasionally get Doom 2099 out on 3 or we can play Doom 2099 on top of Hope to play two 6-Cost cards.
Doom 4 6 6
Ramping with 3-Cost cards when a 4-Cost card is the lynchpin of our deck may seem odd, but it's the best way we have to follow Doom 2099 up with two consecutive 4-Cost cards.
RG Biff
One of the sneaky ways we can protect against the flurry of Red Guardians I'm expecting on release week is by playing Doom2099 into a lane with a card with lower power like Spider-Ham or the Hood. I'm also interested in trying Nova out in the Hood spot. I expect clog to be prevalent as well and this list might be able to fight it off to achieve our Doom strategy. Just be sure to draw Doom 2099 by turn 4!
M Kondo
This is another list designed to circumvent the space issues Doom 2099 presents by keeping up compact and mobile.
Gilgaternative
What happens if you don't draw the original Doctor Doom or if you need to go tall? Play Gilgamesh!
Cheaters
This is a ramp list with the ability to clear space if we need to. We can ramp into Doom 2099 early or play him on 4 followed by two 6-Cost cards.
Smakka
A Doom 2099 list built to be more resilient in games where we don't draw our new card, this deck can squeeze out greedy turn 6 decks with a timely Sandman.
Variants
Final Thoughts
Doctor Doom 2099 is clearly a powerful card. He can generate massive amounts of power spread wide across the board. However, the card does lend itself to a relatively linear strategy and could prove fragile to interaction. That being said, he's likely going to be the centerpiece of his deck which means he'll be irreplaceable in the decks he is in.
I would say if the deck style and character especially appeal to you, you're unlikely to regret your purchase. If you're unsure or think you might not enjoy the new Doom play pattern, I think you can safely wait. I think with any especially hyped card, players have a fear that they will be left behind or unable to compete if they don't have the new, powerful card. I think, because of Doom's lack of flexibility and the demands he makes on how you build around him, that's unlikely in this case.
You're more likely to feel behind the meta by missing out on very flexible cards like Galacta and Rocket & Groot than a card like Doom 2099, so if FOMO is your primary reason for picking him up, I recommend waiting, at least until closer to the end of the week. Furthermore, the cards sharing the spotlight this week aren't likely to be very appealing, unless you're an Inkpulp completionist.
