If you were hoping for any major nerfs to the top decks, this OTA will disappoint. But buffs are always more fun anyway! Let's talk about how to get the most out of this new meta game!
Just as Kate Bishop has the arrows in her quiver, Second Dinner has OTA changes as their balance arsenal. I'll give each change a rating from 0 to 4 arrows and a final overall rating as well. Did Second Dinner hit the target with this OTA or did they miss the mark?
The Changes
- [Old] 2/3 - Activate: +2 Power for each 5-Cost or higher card you have here and in hand.
- [Change] 2/3 > 2/2
Chamber is the lone nerf, and it's a deserved one. Cards like Moondragon that might otherwise make their way into Ramp decks are completely locked out by Chamber's obvious superiority. Now, at least there is a little bit of risk involved with Chamber. He's still one of the premier 2 drops in the game, though.
- [Old] 2/1 - On Reveal: Give one of your other cards here +1 Power.
- [Change] 2/1 > 2/2
- [Old] 2/2 - End of Turn: Give your other cards here +1 Power.
- [Change] 2/2 > 2/3
The big problem with Shang Chi is it's a package that wants to draw a particular card to get its big payoff (Shang-Chi), but includes another card that makes drawing that card less likely (The Ten Rings). It's a deck that literally gets in its own way. They should have made the basic Ten Rings a 2/3 as well, to make up for how infrequently you're upgrading them.
- [Old] 2/3 - On Reveal: For each of your full locations, give one of your cards there +2 Power.
- [New] 2/3 - On Reveal: For each of your full locations, give one of your cards there +3 Power.
- [Old] 2/3 - On Reveal: Put a card from your hand here.
- [Change] 2/3 > 2/4
- [Old] 2/5 - On Reveal: Move the lowest-Power enemy card here to the location of Infinity Ultron.
- [Change] 2/5 > 2/6
Wow, Infinity Ultron’s stones are getting some major buffs! Anyone who has played a high-volume of Infinity Ultron games can tell you, you're largely praying for Infinity Power Stone. By buffing the Soul, Time, and Space stones, you'll have fewer games where you feel like you got no value from either of your stones. Time Stone in particular feels interesting as there is a lot more incentive to pull a card from hand these days.
- [Old] 1/2 - Activate: Draw a created card from your deck.
- [Change] 1/2 > 1/3
I love Eitri as a card. But I'm planning to use him nefariously, not with hammers as they suggest, but with Loki, who is currently a bit underrated. New Kang is the other synergy payoff with Eitri, and he's extremely fun, even if he hasn't proven himself to be a powerhouse.
- [Old] 3/4 - On Reveal: Shuffle Mjolnir into your deck.
- [Change] 3/4 > 3/5
Thor being a 3/5 even when you don't get Mjolnir is pretty nice! It gives the deck a higher floor and should get people trying him out in places like Surfer or decks that heavily draw, as well as the usual dedicated hammers decks.
- [Old] 3/3 - On Reveal: If your opponent played a card here this turn, +4 Power.
- [Change] 3/3 > 3/4
At a minimum, this will make Groot into a Sanctum Showdown staple. He's now as big as Gladiator when he hits, which is actually a pretty big deal. It's still doubtful he'll see mainstream ladder play though. Perhaps some of the new Jean Grey decks could take advantage of this buff, despite the main Jean Grey payoff for those decks being Cosmo.
- [Old] 1/2 - On Reveal: If your opponent played any cards here this turn, copy one of them into your hand.
- [Change] 1/2 > 1/3
This isn't the Mantis change I wanted. I would have loved to see her get a more substantial rework. Her Grand Arena form would've been amazing, but even a tweak to her mechanic would have helped. I'm happy she's buffed, but this is not going to move the needle much, just make her a slightly less awful hit for Major Victory, who released inside Grand Arena.
- [Old] 1/2 - When an enemy card moves here, afflict it with -2 Power.
- [Change] 1/2 > 1/3
Kingpin has had a hard time staying relevant and has seen multiple changes in this lifetime. I doubt Kingpin will ever see play as part of a small package outside of Scream decks, unless there is a major buff to Polaris or Stegron, but this should help him at least crack into Scream lists, instead of being the 13th or 14th card there.
- [Old] 1/2 - You can move this once.
- [Change] 1/2 > 1/3
Ooh, this is an unexpected buff. At a minimum, people will immediately add this to C3, but a 1/3 that moves is probably just a solid card for a deck that wants a little reach or flexibility from its 1-Cost slot. It's nice to see the team keep an iconic character and a popular Snap card relevant.
Final Rating - 2/4 Arrows
Buffs are fun, but most of the small +1 Power buffs aren't especially exciting to build with. Infinity Ultron is the highlight, and I expect people to enjoy the week tinkering with him, but if he's not good enough to compete in or against current ramp decks, it will be a short honeymoon. Chamber is a deserved nerf, but I would have loved something to make the game feel less combo heavy and bring back the importance of card placement and board management that feels missing from this point slam meta.