Marvel Snap’s latest patch just annihilated Alioth and Zabu with hefty nerfs

Marvel Snap’s April 2024 patch was delayed by just one day, but judging by the changes, it was worth the wait.

Alioth and Zabu, two of the most influential cards in the game, were both hit with some sizeable nerfs in the update. While these cards were strong or annoying for different reasons, they were both overdue for changes.

Alioth has gone from a six/two to a six/eight, but will now “remove the text from all unrevealed enemy cards here” as opposed to simply destroying them. And Zabu is now a two/three, up from a two/two, but has gone from an Ongoing to an On Reveal with the ability “until the end of next turn, your four-cost cards cost one less.”

“Since release, Alioth has been an important but polarizing card in the Snap metagame,” Second Dinner said in the patch notes. “It’s been hugely effective in creating more tension on turn 6, but the in-game effect can also be really frustrating. Losing your cards completely, no questions asked, is very powerful. We’re sensitive to that, so as we monitored Alioth we’ve also thought about other ways we could implement the card. With the ‘turn six metagame’ fairly settled these days, it felt like the time was ripe to freshen up the purple cloud with a new effect.”

Second Dinner said its goal is to keep Alioth in a similar role but allow for more meaningful counterplay, as opposed to just a catch-all on the final turn of the game.

Zabu, meanwhile, was nerfed for his impact on several powerful four-cost cards in the game, such as Shang-Chi, Enchantress, and others. The dev said the re-work is temporary for now, as it’s “also expecting to make a larger set of impactful changes later this year.”

The update also includes another nerf to a slightly-less annoying card in Sandman, tweaks to some other cards, changes to the shop, new audio and visual effects for cards and locations, and more. You can check out the full list of changes in the patch notes on Marvel Snap’s website.

Marvel Snap April 10 patch notes

Nerfed

• Alioth
• Zabu

Buffed

• Strong Guy

Changed

• Lady Deathstrike
• Sandman
• Shadow King
• Pixie