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Welcome to the Untapped.gg Marvel SNAP Meta Report (Ranked) for the week of August 13, 202. The Meta Report is a weekly article series where we review the best Ranked decks and strategies in the top ranks of Marvel SNAP.
Marvel SNAP Tier List
This week's Marvel SNAP Meta Snapshot, or Tier List, shows a four-way tie between Sandman, Thena, Surfer and Darkhawk, all of which are sitting comfortably in Tier A with an Average Cube Rate sitting between +0.18 and +0.24. Although these four archetypes share the top of the Tier List, they only represent an average 3.8% Popularity, which means you're still more likely to run into Arishem (16% Popularity) or Zoo (8.2% Popularity) on ladder.
Diving a bit deeper into the data, we can see that Sandman decks continue to evolve as Sandman itself has become the premiere 5-Cost card in the absence of Doctor Octopus and Leech. Amongst the archetype, five of the most commonly played cards, including Nebula, Jeff, Klaw and Ultron, are present in nearly 100% of Sandman decks. The most popular Sandman deck sports a 50.3% winrate and -0.19 average cube rate, demonstrating that many players are looking to the latest deck without having the necessary grasp on the archetype or core cards.
Most Popular Sandman Cards
Moving on to Thena, we see that the archetype typically features titular card Thena alongside Kitty Pryde, and Angela as staples, and its most popular build has a 54.9% winrate and +0.13 average cube rate.
Most Popular Thena Cards
With only a difference of 0.3 average cubes gained and 0.03% winrate, we find Surfer, which has found new life with Cassandra Nova, Copycat, and Gwenpool. Similarly, just under Surfer is Darkhawk, another archetype that phases in and out of the meta, with a respectable +0.18 average cubes and 54.3% winrate. The four archetypes in Tier A of the Meta Snapshot all share similar cube rates, win rates, and popularity, proving each one is a powerful force to climb with. The most popular Surfer and Darkhawk decks even have higher average cube rates and win rates than the archetypes themselves.
Going down one step in the Tier List we find Zoo, Negative, Toxic Surfer, Arishem, Patriot, and Destroy on Tier B. While these types of decks are not the meta overlords, they still present positive average cube stats. Furthermore, as it was mentioned before, Arishem and Zoo are the two most popular decks at the moment, so you should at least understand how they work since you are going to run into them often. Looking at popularity rates also helps you understand what other players might start teching against, so be mindful of the possibility of facing cards that could affect your play.
Most Popular Cards in Marvel SNAP
To truly understand the Marvel SNAP meta you must understand all the tools both at your and your opponent's disposal. A great way to get a handle on this at a more granular level is to look at our Card Tier List and check for popular cards.
Out of the nine most popular Marvel SNAP cards in Infinite Rank since the Latest Patch, only one is a tech card (depending on how you classify Alioth) that you should be prepared to face. Shang-Chi, present in 34.3% of decks, remains the premiere tech card to include in a deck's flex slot. If your deck is particularly susceptible to it, you may want to adjust your game plan or even which deck to play. Furthermore, Alioth with 16.6% popularity has found proper footing at 10 Power and works double time as a finisher and big tech card for some decks.
While this doesn't render susceptible decks unplayable, you may find yourself wanting to gain or throw priority depending on the match up. Remember, your opponent still needs to draw the card, find the right time to play them to generate impact, and execute their main game plan. Staying cognizant of the possibilities, however, could elevate your performance by a significant margin.
Similarly, next Tuesday Speed will be released. New cards see a spike in popularity on release day, so pivot and adjust accordingly as players experiment.
Understanding Matchups
Adding a new dimension to our analysis, we can talk about Deck or Archetype matchups. As mentioned, Marvel SNAP decks have strengths and weaknesses, and understanding these can help you dominate the Meta. If you realize you are facing a deck you are favored against, snap more aggressively and increase the stakes at play, given that you are more likely to win those games. On the contrary, when in an unfavored game, you should consider retreating every time your opponent Snaps if you don’t feel like you have a great hand.
This discipline will boost the average cubes you win and help you climb more easily since gaining cubes is more important than wins in SNAP. For those who want to explore the infinite possibilities, the Untapped.gg Marvel SNAP Premium subscription unlocks our Matchups table, with thousands of games for each archetype for you to know who is the top dog of every encounter.
For this Sandman-dominated meta, the only deck currently giving Sandman a run for its money when it comes to gaining cubes is Zoo, as it is favored against Arishem, Patriot and Thena.
All Untapped analytics are Powered by data, not opinions, and backed up by thousands of games. Our Marvel SNAP Meta Tier List and Deck Database include a variety of lists that will allow you to find the perfect deck to play and even replacements for cards you are missing. Sync your collection to filter for only decks you can build.
For a look at the decks performing well in Conquest mode, make sure to visit our Conquest page.
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