Burning Questions 3/13/26
Welcome back to Burning Questions, your weekly peek at Marvel Snap's hottest topics! Second Dinner released a controversial OTA and Team Clash got underway!
1) Does Shou-Lao need a nerf?
Shou-Lao is in a fascinating position. It's almost the opposite as Star-Lord was before his nerf in that he's much more hated at super high MMR than further down. We've had that before with cards like Batroc and Loki, but this one is a bit different. Instead of just ease of play, the additional thing keeping Shou in check lower down the MMR scale seems to be his bad match-ups. Mega-combo strategies have a relatively easier time with Shou. I'm talking about decks like Mr. Negative, greedy End of Turn decks, and Galactus. Other decks that are good into Shou-Lao are Supergiant and Aurora, while quite a few things that can carry Shadowking have a fighting chance, too.
While I do think the decision tree and lack of a pre-planned set of play lines does suppress Shou-Lao's win rate among the majority of players, my point here is that his win rate is kept in check by decks that the nosebleed MMR players just don't like to play.
Mr. Negative and Doom 2099 are perfect examples of this. They have healthy win and cube rates across all cohorts, but their linearity (or perceived linearity) makes them less desirable among the top players. It's not just “style” and self-expression that causes this. The better a player is and the more micro-decisions that you have control over, the more margin there is to out-duel opponents. Shou-Lao is perfect both for and against that. Moreover, aspiring nosebleed MMR players, whether they're those on the cusp of super-high MMR or just fans of that group, are also more likely to disfavor the same decks.
This all adds up to Shou-Lao having an inflated win rate high, a suppressed win rate low, and an inflated play rate everywhere. In other words, his win rate is probably within Second Dinner’s thresholds while maintaining a lot of play. That doesn't generally describe a card that needs to be nerfed. I would definitely support a nerf for Shou-Lao, but maybe a very small one like to 5/5 or a removal of his synergy with Skills.
2) Was Second Dinner too quick to buff En Sabah Nur, White Tiger, and Debrii?
I understand En Sabah Nur came in a little low in his first few days and that's not what you want for a thematic season pass card, nor a ten pole of a new mechanic. However, by the end of the week people had started to come around on En Sabah Nur and a lot of interesting cooks had started to develop.
As to whether the nerfs were too quick, it depends on the goal. Do they want these cards to be at the top of the meta game and have high play rates? If so, then these buffs probably were a solid idea. The goal isn't necessarily perfect balance in win rates, it's a varied and interesting meta game that matches the story they want to tell with each season.
So, while I do think these cards were already good enough and didn't need buffs, I'm fine with the decision. The single points on each of them aren't going to make them oppressive, or certainly not as oppressive as some recent top archetypes, but they will get them to be prevalent cards in successful decks. Debrii at 3/8 is a little crazy, but it's a fun kind of crazy. I'm going to embrace it.
3) What's your favorite team in Team Clash?
The most fun from the last run was to be had with the X-Men. Extra Energy just enables fun, splashy plays. But now, on the other end of an oppressive Star-Lord Energy meta, I'm seeking different styles of play. I've been really enjoying the new Brotherhood and the improved Spider-Verse.
Spider-Verse was one of the big disappointments of the last run and a lot of that was due to how bad the Anti-Venom design felt. The new one adds to rather than inhibits your strategy and getting some extra Energy to play with, like the X-Men, while dodging and bobbing and weaving has been fun. Brotherhood on the other hand... just may be the worst team... which always gets my creative juices flowing. Here are my favorite lists for each team so far.
That's it for this week! Come find me on social media and come back next week for more Burning Questions. Supporters of Fourth Location and Patreons of Snap Judgements, stick around and listen to PulseGlazer share his opinion on the same topics! Have a happy and lucky Friday the 13th!
