Marvel Snap brings countless comic book and movie heroes and villains into players’ hands. Some of the most iconic villains have recently joined the game with the addition of series four and five cards. And as more players gain access to them, the best Galactus decks appear in Marvel Snap battles.
With the most destructive power ever seen in Marvel Snap, players can begin to find the best strategies on how to use Galactus and what are the best cards to use with him.
Galactus card abilities in Marvel Snap, explained
Galactus is a six-cost card with three power. Its effect is “On Reveal: If you’re winning this location and this is your only card here, destroy all other locations.”
It is available in series five, along with the rarest cards in the game, which can be accessed from collection level 486 or above. It can also be found in the Marvel Snap Token Shop, while it is not yet present in the collection.
Related: Marvel Snap On Reveal deck guide
Galactus’ main goal is to dispute one location but destroy all others. While it can be extremely difficult to win a game just by playing Galactus on the final turn, it is through synergy with other cards that the best Galactus decks can gain many cubes at once. Since its effect can only be used if it is the only card on the player’s side in that location, good planning is needed before using it.
Strategy for Galactus in Marvel Snap
The best way to use Galactus is to surprise the opponent with the destruction of locations in which they have invested a lot of points, then counter with powerful combos in the final turns.
To achieve this goal, cards that can grant more energy are needed in order to play Galactus before the final turn, leaving time to accumulate a sufficient amount of power to defeat the opponent.
While it can be tempting to always destroy the opponent’s card-filled locations, it’s important to keep in mind that if a location already has four cards and Galactus only leaves it active in the final round, the opponent won’t be able to play any cards, making it easier to count the opponent’s power potential.
It may be necessary to have cards that can help clear the board of your opponent’s cards, such as Debrii, which adds Rocks, and The Central Park, which adds Squirrels. Dealing with these unwanted cards allows for a strategy with Galactus to remain viable.
Best combos with Galactus in Marvel Snap
- Wave and Electro: The former makes all cards cost four regardless of their original costs. This can pave the way for playing Galactus as early as turn four. The latter, on the other hand, adds one energy each turn after it was played in exchange for restricting its user to only play one card per turn.
- Spider-Man: After playing Galactus on turn four, Spider-Man is a great follow-up in turn five to lock the opponent’s location, essentially locking it and preventing play there. This can be really advantageous on the side of the Galactus user, especially if the opponent still does not have enough Power to win the location.
- Cards that benefit from the destruction mechanic synergize well with Galactus. This includes Death, which costs one less for each card destroyed in the game, and Knull, since it gains all the total Power of all cards destroyed during a game. Wolverine is good when Power-boosted thanks to its ability to survive destruction effects and eventually gain an extra two Power every time it is destroyed. Nimrod is similarly useful when destroyed, as it adds a copy of itself to another location.
Best Marvel Snap Galactus decks
Galactus Destroy
Since Galactus destroys two out of three locations, it’s good to lean into cards that benefit from it.
Scope out which lane you want to play Galactus in, and then play out cards like Wolverine or Nimrod in the other lanes, since they will remain on the board once they’re destroyed.
Alternatively, if you don’t draw Galactus, you can play this as a base destroy deck with cards like Nova, Bucky Barnes, and Destroyer, with power supplemented from Shuri, Nimrod, and Venom.
The main downside of this deck is that it’s likely going to become quite obvious what you’re trying to do, if your opponent is familiar at all with Galactus, so you’re susceptible to cards like Cosmo that will nullify any On Reveal abilities, including Galactus’.
Win condition cards for this deck
- Wolverine
- Shuri
- Nimrod
- Destroyer
- Green Goblin or Hobgoblin
- Venom, Carnage, or Deathlok
If you’re able to play out both Wolverine and Nimrod, you will get two cards on the board that will replicate or regenerate, so you can supplement Galactus’s remaining lane with them.
You can also use Green Goblin or Hobgoblin on the same lane to put your opponent into a hole and give yourself the lead in that lane so you can play the World-Eater out. This is a hole made even bigger by Shuri on turn four.
Standard Galactus
This deck should be the simplest and most straightforward way to play Galactus effectively. But after a while, his plays can become more predictable.
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The main way to win with Galactus will always be to play him before turn six while accumulating more power than the opponent on the final turn. In addition to being able to use Electro to add energy, Wave is another important tool that allows you to play Galactus on turn four. After Galactus, Death, Knull, and Destroyer will be the key cards to add points to beat your opponent.
Other cards that help increase the power difference on the final turn are Wolverine, who will be destroyed in one location and regenerated in the only available location after Galactus, and the duo of Green Goblin and Hobgoblin, who can be played either before or after Galactus if the opponent fails to play enough cards to fill their spaces in the final location.
Yondu helps lower the cost of Death while posing a considerable threat to an enemy’s key strategy, like destroying a Mister Negative or Lockjaw on the first turn, for example. Doctor Octopus and Spider-Man, on the other hand, both help to lock down locations an opponent may look to exploit.
The best win condition cards for Standard Galactus
Aside from Galactus, the other win condition cards for this deck are:
- Knull
- Death
- Spider-Man
- Hobgoblin
- Doctor Octopus
Knull and Death are your main source of Power for this deck. Maximizing the destruction mechanic is the main strategy of this deck’s engine to take advantage of these high-Powered cards, especially with Knull.
Spider-Man, Hobgoblin, and Doctor Octopus are the cards that can lock up your opponents. Typically, these cards are your options for turn five which can set up a devastating turn six courtesy of Knull, Death, or Destroyer, unless your opponent already retreats after you lock their location.
Combo Galactus deck
This deck has a more combo-based strategy to ensure that Galactus effect could be activated, courtesy of Iron Fist and Shuri.
Iron Fist moves the next card you will play one location to the left. With Shuri being the next card you will play after Iron Fist, this will leave the now lone location with the double the Power effect. This will pave the way for you to play Galactus on the open location where Shuri was originally placed while giving the big bad 14-Power.
Shuri’s effect can also be a flexible strategy to double some of the usual Galactus staples. This includes Hobgoblin, who can achieve negative 16-Power while having the ability to place itself if the opponent has an open spot on their side of the location. Doctor Octopus can also have a massive 20-Power with Shuri’s help.
Win condition cards for this deck
Aside from Galactus, the other win condition cards for this deck are:
- Iron Fist
- Shuri
- Hobgoblin
- Doctor Octopus
- Knull
- Death
As mentioned, the Iron Fist-Shuri combo helps Galactus to trigger its effect more consistently. Though, it can be a bit predictable. But if you are successful on pulling this off, it would definitely be a great setup for the big bad to dismantle your opponent’s strategy.
Related: Best Venom decks in Marvel Snap (August 2023)
Of course, the usual Galactus staples help the deck become effective such as Hobgoblin, Doctor Octopus, Knull, and Death.
How to counter Galactus decks in Marvel Snap
The most direct way to counter a Galactus deck is to prevent it from being able to use its ability. For Galactus to destroy the other locations, he needs to be the only card on the opponent’s side of the board, so cards that interact with the opponent’s board are some of the best options.
Debrii is a very solid option present in Patriot decks that can give a Galactus deck a hard time. Just be sure to play it in a location where the opponent already has a card.
An interesting combo is using Viper to send a card with negative power to the opponent in the location they are keeping empty, like The Hood. Not only does this make the opponent lose power, but it also renders a location unusable for playing Galactus.
Green Goblin is a card that has synergy with Galactus, but also is effective against him since it can normally be played turn before Galactus. Occupying the location where Galactus would be played can end the opponent’s strategy.
Related: The best Patriot decks in Marvel Snap: strategy, counters, and more
Cosmo is another very common answer in most decks that prevents Galactus’ effect from being activated, causing the opponent to lose a lot of value when adding a five-cost card with only three power on the board.
The best way for all these strategies to work is to gain priority in the early turns so cards like Mister Fantastic can help indirectly.
