This April, the Thunderbolts season in Marvel Snap features new cards based from some of the versions of the renowned factions of the same name. One of those is the Red Guardian, who is a member of the Thunderbolts team made by Bucky Barnes.
In the Marvel universe, the Red Guardian is a master pilot and uses his excellence as a hand-to-hand combatant to fight off his enemies along the way. In Marvel Snap, he has a good support ability which converts control-based effects to added offense.
Here are the best Red Guardian decks in Marvel Snap.
Red Guardian abilities, explained
Red Guardian is a three-Cost, three-Power card with the ability that reads “On Reveal:Â Afflict the lowest-Power enemy card here with -2 Power and remove its text.” On paper, it’s not a game-changing ability and is more used as a tool effect to inflict damage to one of your opponent’s units. Still, it can help you win games during crucial matches, especially if the difference in location Powers are very close.
You can get Red Guardian as a series five card, meaning you need to spend 6,000 tokens to directly purchase it from the Weekly Spotlight section of the Token Shop from April 16-23. It is also available as part of the four-card pool from the Spotlight Caches of the same week.
Strategy and best combos for Red Guardian decks in Marvel Snap
Red Guardian is a decent card when it comes to giving negative Power to an opponent’s units. And there are other cards that can bring out the best of the newest Thunderbolt addition to Marvel Snap.
Wong can be a great card to synergize with Red Guardian thanks to its ability to double all On Reveal effects of cards played in the same location. This takes Red Guardian’s damage up to four, but using Mystique to copy Wong’s Ongoing ability can even double the damage up to eight.
Odin is also a good card to pair with Red Guardian, since it re-activates all On Reveal abilities of cards already placed on the same location. Using Odin with a Red Guardian, Wong, and Mystique setup can give even more negative Power.
Red Guardian also helps the evolved version of Abomination lower its cost, assuming that the former has inflicted negative Power to one of your opponent’s units, while Silver Surfer gives plus two Power to all three-Cost cards you have in play, giving Red Guardian a boost.
Best Red Guardian decks to play in Marvel Snap
Sera Surfer
As mentioned, Red Guardian can take advantage of the Power boost provided by Silver Surfer to three-Cost cards. Making a deck around the latter is one of the best homes for the former, especially with the help of Sera, who can lower the Cost of the cards in your hand by one. This can pave the way for you to play up to three three-Cost cards in the final turn.
Aside from Red Guardian and Silver Surfer, the other three-Cost cards you can use in this deck are Ironheart (for added Power boost), Hope Summers (for potentially gaining bonus Energy), Sebastian Shaw (for permanently stacking Power every time it gains permanent Power), and Gladiator (for its high-Power but with a possible drawback ability).
Absorbing Man is there to copy any On Reveal ability from your cards, while Forge gives a permanent Power boost to the next card you will play.
Toxic
Another deck where Red Guardian can be used is in a Toxic deck that focuses on dealing negative Power to your opponent’s units while also gaining Power for your units.
Aside from Red Guardian, the combo of Hazmat and Luke Cage is in the deck to inflict more negative Power to all units while also protecting your cards from the Hazmat effect. Debrii can create unnecessary rocks that are also great targets for the negative Power your cards can give.
Nebula is a great option in creating and building up Power for your side, especially in the early game. Magik, on the other hand, turns a location to Limbo and extends the game to a turn seven since you would need more time to set up the Wong and Mystique strategy.
Negative High Evolution
High Evolution creations that focus on dealing negative Power to your opponent are also good units to cater to Red Guardian’s ability. Energy conservation is another mechanic in this deck which can help you create potential huge Power in the late game.
The other cards in this deck that can inflict negative Power are the evolved versions of Wasp, Misty Knight, Cyclops, and The Thing, as well as Scorpion, U.S. Agent, and Man-Thing. Hulk is there to stack Power every time you end your turn with unspent Energy as long as it’s in your hand or in play.
Misty Knight adds another layer of offense since it can give plus one Power to one of your other units whenever you won’t spend all of your Energies in a turn.
How to counter Red Guardian decks
Red Guardian has an On Reveal ability, making it a target for Cosmo since the latter can prevent On Reveal abilities from happening at its location for both players. Always be cautious if the space dog is in play because playing Red Guardian.
Luke Cage is also a counter to Red Guardian because of its Ongoing ability to prevent cards from receiving negative Power in any form. Ongoing disruption cards such as Enchantress, Rogue, and Echo can help you get rid off of Luke Cage in case your opponent uses it.
Is Red Guardian worth pulling?
If we are talking about using the majority of your resources for the sake of having Red Guardian, then the answer is no. Red Guardian is not worth your tokens or Spotlight Keys, especially if you have only a few of those. Despite being a decent support card for decks that revolve around dealing negative Power, there isn’t much use for Red Guardian in most decks, especially those which dominate the current meta.
Still, if you have spare tokens or Spotlight Keys to use, then Red Guardian can still be a good addition to your collection. But if you are tight in terms of having those resources, then you might just save those for more impactful cards in the future.
