Marvel Snap April 27 patch notes: Sandman, Lizard nerfs, and more

Following Marvel Snap’s April 18 patch, Second Dinner shipped the card game’s weekly OTA (or “Over-the-Air”) update on April 27. A handful of cards have been nerfed and buffed, with Sandman and Lizard receiving the most notable changes.

Decks centering around Sandman became a popular strategy this season, known as Animals Assemble, because of the rise of Hit-Monkey. Lizard, on the other hand, had been a staple for most meta decks for a long time already thanks to its cheap two-cost, five-power stat line, despite the minus three power it can have.

“Welcome to the new world of regular balance updates using OTA,” Second Dinner said. “We’re making four changes today to freshen up the game balance.”

Here are all the nerfs and buffs introduced in Marvel Snap’s April 27 OTA update.

Sandman, Lizard headline 4 Snap changes

Sandman nerfs

• Previous: 5-Energy, 5-Power – Ongoing: Players can only play 1 card a turn.
• New: 5-Energy, 3-Power – Ongoing: Players can only play 1 card a turn.

Sandman saw a lot of usage in the latest season. This is because of the rise of decks using the latest season pass card, Hit-Monkey, which gains plus two power for each card its user will play on the same turn it is placed. Sera and Mister Negative decks have made great use of Hit-Monkey, making it a force to be reckoned with. Sandman’s one-card restriction per turn prevents the potential massive boost Hit-Monkey can gain, as well as the multiple “miracle” plays that can be done in turn six, especially for Sera decks.

The original stat line Sandman had when it was released in the game was four-cost, one-power. It was then buffed to five-cost, five-power and since then, Electro Sandman decks have cemented their spot in the meta where the strategy of bringing out Sandman as early as turn four disrupted a handful of decks.

With Sandman’s newest stat line of five-cost, three-power, it may contribute less to gaining enough power to win locations. Though, its effect is still a powerful one.

Related: 2 of Marvel Snap’s most sinister cards just got hit with big nerfs

Lizard nerfs

• Previous: 2-Energy, 5-Power – Ongoing: -3 Power if your opponent has 4 cards here.
• New: 2-Energy, 5-Power – Ongoing: -4 Power if your opponent has 4 cards here.

Players can get Lizard in the early stages of the game since it belongs to series one (collection level 18-214). A lot of meta decks include Lizard because of its cheap stat line. This includes Sera, Shuri/Zero, Attuma, and more. Oftentimes, players that face Lizard overcommit to a location to trigger its Ongoing ability by placing four cards there. This can be misdirection for the opponent, allowing the Lizard user to focus on other locations.

With the April 27 patch, there is no change in Lizard’s stat line. But its effect now gives it minus four Power if the opponent has four cards on its location. This hits Lizard in a big way, making it a two-cost, one-power card if the opponent plays four cards just to activate its Ongoing ability. Still, Lizard can be a good option for misdirecting the opponent, especially for Attuma decks. But for a power booster, it became weaker.

Shanna buffs

• Previous: 4-Energy, 2-Power – On Reveal: Add a random 1-Cost card to each location.
• New: 4-Energy, 4-Power – On Reveal: Add a random 1-Cost card to each location.

Since release, Shanna has not been used much. Its effect to add random cards on locations could be a risk, putting up the possibility of adding a low-cost card that can beef up your board or something that may disrupt your strategy in the process. With the April 27 patch, its power is increased to four which may give players more reason to play her.

Enchantress buffs

• Previous: 4-Energy, 4-Power – On Reveal: Remove the abilities from all Ongoing cards at this location.
• New: 4-Energy, 6-Power – On Reveal: Remove the abilities from all Ongoing cards at this location.

Enchantress was already a powerful card before the April 27 patch. It is mostly used in control decks, particularly in Sera control engines. It counters a handful of meta decks, such as the Devil Dinosaur/Darkhawk and Patriot decks. The latest OTA update even makes it more dangerous and more playable than ever.

Related: Accidental Arnim Zola pulls off chaotic clutch Marvel Snap play

Marvel Snap April 27 full patch notes

Here are the complete Marvel Snap April 27 patch notes for your reference.

April 27 — OTA Balance Updates

Welcome to the new world of regular balance updates using OTA! OTA stands for ‘Over-the-Air,’ which means we can change the game without a big download. We’re making four changes today to freshen up the game balance, let’s dive right in:

Shanna
[Old] 4/2 – On Reveal: Add a random 1-Cost card to each location.
[New] 4/4 – On Reveal: Add a random 1-Cost card to each location.

Shanna has fallen a bit flat since release. Even during the height of Zabu’s might, she was a low-performing 4-Cost card and we’d like to give her a better chance to shine. This buff is simple, but highlights that Shanna wasn’t being appropriately compensated for needing four available slots to hit her ceiling. In general, cards and decks that fill many slots early are safer to make strong, since there’s plenty of game left to react or retreat and their ability to gain cubes is impeded. This is especially true in Shanna’s case, where the randomness and the existence of cards like Killmonger makes her a bit riskier. Hopefully, this additional Power is enough.

Lizard
[Old] 2/5 – Ongoing: -3 Power if your opponent has 4 cards here.
[New] 2/5 – Ongoing: -4 Power if your opponent has 4 cards here.

When one card becomes a clear outlier on play rate because it’s playable in a huge number of decks, that’s something we flag and keep an eye on. That doesn’t mean we always take action–it’s important for us to keep in mind that the Series structure can serve to make cards appear overplayed when they’re actually just widely available. However, when we have a clear top card for the Cost and can slice a little bit of strength away from it without necessarily dethroning it, that’s largely a solid change for us to make. So that’s what’s happening here, with arguably the softest nerf we’ve ever made.

Sandman
[Old] 5/5 – Ongoing: Players can only play 1 card a turn.
[New] 5/3 – Ongoing: Players can only play 1 card a turn.

Since Sandman’s change from 4/1 to 5/5, we’ve seen him become a foundational piece of an Electro-based strategy that slows down the opponent and makes his effect feel asymmetrical by contesting multiple lanes with Dr. Doom or just some heavy hitters. That’s certainly the deck we expected to see, but it’s become more popular than we’d like. This tap on the main man makes him a less competitive source of Power, giving an added edge to players committing cards early and making the endgame choices of each player more likely to ultimately determine the outcome of the game.

Enchantress
[Old] 4/4 – On Reveal: Remove the abilities from all Ongoing cards at this location. [New] 4/6 – On Reveal: Remove the abilities from all Ongoing cards at this location.

It’s been particularly telling to us that in a world where Armor, Patriot, Darkhawk, Devil Dinosaur, Sandman, Blue Marvel, and even Knull are major players that Enchantress is a poor performer on both popularity and actual winning. There are mitigating factors, of course–Energy curves, priority battles, and so forth. But ultimately, she’s not functioning as a solid counter for Ongoing cards, especially the symmetrical ones that Rogue can’t interact with. Hopefully, this change lets her contest locations in addition to neutralizing major Power problems like Darkhawk or reclaiming a big turn 6 from an early Sandman.