What to do with Wolverine, Horseman of War
We’ve had Wolverine, a redesigned Wolverine, the Weapon X version of Wolverine, a Team Clash Wolverine, and a redesigned Team Clash Wolverine. And none of them have been exactly “the best there is.” Will the latest swing at Wolverine, this time as the Horseman of War, be better and have more of a meta presence? Here’s everything I’m excited to do with Wolverine, Horseman of War.
Power Output
Wolverine provides 3 Power himself and can grant up to 9 more Power, bringing him to an effective ceiling of 12 Power. A 4/12 sounds pretty good, but it all depends on how easy the Objective is to achieve. A 4/12 that is easy to achieve is great; a 4/12 that is hard to achieve is bad. Wolverine is pricey at 4-Cost, but it all comes down to the Objective. Note that his text doesn't specify "other cards," meaning you don't have to stress about getting a card in each lane as he can hit himself in a pinch.
The Threshold
In early datamines the Objective for War Wolverine required you to get to 6 or more Power. Beyond the powerhouse of Shou-Lao and mergers like Agony, that would leave us with activators such as America Chavez, Ironheart… and, uh… Morgan Le Fay? Crazy Cerebro shenanigans? An opposing Red Skull? I was pretty skeptical that the card had a chance to do anything beyond rot in your collection in that state, but how much does buffing the threshold down to 5 matter?
Granting +2 is Easy!
It’s hard to overstate how massive the bump down to 5 is. There are not only a lot more ways to grant +2, but the list includes some cards that are great on their own. New cards tend to see more success when they can slot into decks that already have proven success. Will War Wolverine help revitalize cards like Galacta, Phastos, and First Steps Mister Fantastic? There are also fringe options to buff like Scorn, Sparky, or a copied Wolverine with Victoria Hand. Kahhori could technically do the +2 on her own, but not reliably. I also want to call out Nico's +2 spell and Majestic Wingbeat as ways to get there.
+1 Can Pitch In!
These would have been a lot more important for a War Wolverine that needed 6, but there might be a place for them in more outside-the-box builds. Viv is a card that has been underrated since being buffed, so I'm looking forward to trying more with her.
Beneficiary Synergy
He needs help from the above cards, but who can he himself benefit? There is some overlap. All of these cards can further leverage a buff in a powerful way. There is an interesting tension with War Wolverine's timing. Some strategies will favor having him go off late to make him harder to counter, while others will need him to go off by Turn 5 to get maximum benefit.
The above 9 are the most synergistic or attractive ways to leverage War Wolverine's buffs, but there are plenty more. Here is a more exhaustive pipe dream list to get your creative juices flowing: Beta Ray Bill, Clea, Daken, Danger, Deadpool, First Steps Human Torch, First Steps Thing, Frankie Raye, Herbie, Infinity Ultron, Mysterio, Nico Minoru, Nightcrawler (and other movers), Nimrod, Omega Red, Professor X, Skaar, Storm, Superior Spider-Man, Terrax, Zombie Power Man.
Scott’s Day One Wolverine, Horseman of War Decks
War Shou
Buff Surfer Phastos
Big First Day
Scorn Borne
I Wanna Play Clea
Is He Worth It?
At a threshold of 6, this was the easiest skip of easiest skips. Now at 5, I think he’s likely to find some level of success and meta penetration. There are plenty of existing decks out there for whom the Objective is trivial and a 4/12 with synergy upside is appealing. If you’re interested in any of those synergies, War Wolverine is now an easy buy.
Below the paywall I've included some more outside-the-box Wolverine, Horseman of War builds. We appreciate any support we get! It helps us keep the site up and running and ad free!
