We live in a different meta. A new season is coming next week, more cards are on the way, and another OTA is due Thursday. What do I play right now to get through the weekend?
Escany West makes your hand order matter
The first deck, Escany West, is a straight-up double Gambit deck. It can destroy the board while keeping enough created cards in hand that a full run of Gambits is still acceptable. Escany West rewards you for arranging your hand carefully, then knowing which card you want reduced and which created card you want copied.
I want to play from left to right in hand as much as possible. I want those created cards to end up in the first position in my hand so I can get another copy. If Valentina gives me a Dr. Doom, one reduced version seems like a good thing. Two Dr. Dooms are even better when one is reduced and the other is reduced further, especially with Quinjet involved.
I have both unknown power and known power. I have a lot of unknown power because of cards like Iron Patriot and Valentina. Fria gives me known power in hand, and I also have obvious plays on the board. Multiple Victoria Hands can add power of their own alongside Gambit removing major pieces.
Against Doom 2099, I lean into Gambit itself because I need to hit the big cards.
As long as I keep that early matchup read in line, some variation of this is probably the best deck in the game. I also think its moment may be brief. My tinfoil-hat read is that the moved-up OTA could explain why Gambit and Juggernaut were not adjusted this time, and I expect they may be hit next week. Whether both deserve that hit, or whether something else should be hit alongside them, remains the open question.
Captain Carter, Moonstone, and final-turn choices
The second recommendation is an ongoing shell.
I am still weighing Hope Summers against Storm Horsemen of Famine. Captain Carter and Moonstone did not take hits. The list can build through its one-drops and Kate Bishop, then make a final-turn decision that is harder to forecast.
Captain Carter and Moonstone are central to those closing turns, while Cosmo and Armor can either defend or press the opponent depending on the matchup. Hope Summers can also open surprise plays after I have been building on top of her since turn four. I can make surprise plays with Captain Carter and Moonstone to win a lane by themselves on the final turn.
Nightcrawler is a reasonable substitution for Ant-Man if I value movement more. I am probably going to test Hope Summers and Storm Horsemen of Famine back and forth. Do I really need the energy, or do I want the extra points?
End of Turn is an old answer with new late choices
The third deck is not an original cook. It is an old friend, and depending on how far back you go, an even older enemy: End of Turn. The reason I’m bringing End of Turn back into the conversation is its late-turn flexibility.
The broader doubling changes matter here. Doubling does not scale exponentially in the same way it once did. End of Turn is more flexible than a lot of people give it credit for.
A Sunspot on the board tells the opponent I am playing End of Turn, but how much I am willing to skip remains a major decision. A turn-five play can look blank, yet I can redirect on turn six and put another card in that same lane to activate.
I think End of Turn is worth revisiting for the next couple of days.
Watch the full discussion on YouTube: the original episode.
