Welcome back to Meta Monday! Over the last week, the game has had significant changes with both a patch and an OTA. Also, alliances and the bounties accompanying them have shaken some deck choices, so the meta has felt diverse for the first time in a while. However, by removing the outliers and focusing solely on people's main strategies, we can establish the main pillars and go from there.
Pillar One: Thena
Although there was both a patch and an OTA, Thena's decks remained untouched. However, just because they were untouched doesn’t mean that they are the top, best, and only viable deck. They take up a considerable portion of the metagame but are less than before as some counter strategies have started to appear. Either way, here are a few viable decks, and the main play lines from these decks have not changed.
Thena Alioth
Thena Movers
Thena Darkhawk
The most notable change to these decks is the inclusion of Alioth as a top-end last-turn play. This is a reaction to the emergence of Sandman, which we will discuss in the next pillar. The second and third decks are more straightforward; however, they have started to include some slight differences in tech, like US Agent and Cosmo, to interact with what other decks are doing in the format.
Pillar Two: Sandman/Cassandra Nova
Sandman decks and the different variations have started to appear as a reaction to last week's metagame, consisting mainly of Arishem, Thena, and Junk. You can play multiple versions of this deck, and while they both work, the fundamental idea is to play Sandman on 5 and win by limiting your opponent's play on the last turn. Thena can no longer play a Juggernaut plus a second card to win 2 lanes. Arishem can't abuse its extra energy to play many threats on the last turn. This is less harmful to junk, but if they were hoping to get a Titania back and play a finisher card like Cannonball or Shang-Chi, they would be out of luck.
Sandman
Sandman Patriot
The first version uses Patriot and Ultron to get a massive buff on the last turn, while the last one uses move cards like Captain Marvel to keep all lanes viable regardless of where the power is played. These decks make up about 10% of the metagame and have good win and cube rates across the board. If your opponent is snapping turn 5 and there is a Makkari on the board, expect Sandman.
Pillar Three: Arishem
Although its supporting cast was the main target for the patch and OTA, Arishem still makes up a huge chunk of the meta game—but it is much less than before. The extra energy, even with the random card draw, just keeps him in the game regardless of the OTA changes made to his supporting cast from last week's lists.
Arishem
This is the main version that has been around, and like always, Arishem is incredibly versatile, so there are many options to change cards here. The main difference between Arishem now and before is that instead of trying to employ high-powered disruptive threats a turn early, Arishem wants to have Loki on turn 2 to accomplish two main things. Get cards with more synergy and protect themselves from their natural predators with Cassandra Nova and Darkhawk. By no means do these threats just become null and void, but an 11-power Cassandra is much better to deal with than a 19-power Cassandra.
Pillar Four: Old Reliable
The rest of the main meta game is full of various decks, but three main archetypes take up the majority. These are all decks that have had some tweaks but have been decks throughout Snap's history.
Discard
With Discard’s main play coming down on turn 5, there is much less room for it to be countered with a turn 6 Juggernaut or caught off guard with Sandman. Add to this that the majority of their power is not killable, and you have a potent mix to be competitive.
Surfer
With the many different 3-cost cards released recently, Surfer has many tools to use. Additionally, they typically have power that can stay on the board and not get destroyed, they are semi-immune to Juggernaut plays, and can usually win out on a Sandman play as well. This makes Surfer well-positioned against the other pillars of the metagame.
Zoo
Zoo is a reliable deck that can run Shadow King easily, which helps in the Thena matchup and typically fills the board, negating the last-turn Juggernaut play used in many Thena decks. Also, most of the time, the majority of the power is on the board before turn 5, meaning Sandman isn’t going to be that big of an issue.
Each of these decks is reliable, has high power output, and contests the main threats in the meta game in various ways. I feel comfortable running all three on the high infinite ladder against anything I can encounter.
Meta Cards
A couple of cards are featured in most decks in the meta game mainly due to their versatility.
Cassandra Nova
Everyone's favorite person to hang out with at the diner is one of the most played cards currently in the metagame. While being completely free from a resource standpoint, it's hopeful to assume that most players have received this card. If not, you have one more day and should go for it. She is a solid 3-cost card that helps combat a major archetype in the meta game but also puts out good value for any deck. Plus, there is almost zero drawback to running her in your list. I expect her usage to keep growing.
Copycat
This is an odd one because I think during her initial release, there was a lot of uncertainty about her power level, but she currently occupies the same amount of usage as Cassandra Nova. She can be run in almost any list without a drawback, and the asymmetrical (sort of, make sure to keep your sound on*) information gained can make her have a lot higher cube equity than other cards, putting her in a category of her own. She only gets better as more cards get made, so I also don’t see her usage changing anytime soon.
*When a Copycat is drawn by your opponent, both players hear the “negate” sound, indicating that the Copycat has stolen a card from your deck. Now, you don’t know what that card is. But if Copycat hasn’t been played before turn 6, it is one of your last three cards unless your deck has been shuffled. Be mindful.
Meta Health
The meta is in a flux state and hasn’t completely settled. While there are established pillars, the addition of Alliances and bounties and multiple days of changes have left the meta game wide open. There are still decks that take up the majority, but none are completely overpowering another. Given more time, one of the pillars might start to get out ahead, but this is where things stand today. What do you think of the current metagame? Let me know in the comments below.