May 23 Balance Update

Card Changes and Impact Analysis

These changes are designed to fine-tune the balance without dramatically altering the metagame. Spectrum decks will remain viable but less dominant, afflict and control decks might see a resurgence, and new strategic avenues for underused cards like Grand Master and Leader could emerge. Expect a more diverse and balanced competitive environment with increased opportunities for varied deck strategies.

This week’s update focuses on rebalancing several key cards to reshape the current metagame, aiming for a more balanced and healthy play environment. Here’s a detailed breakdown of the changes and their potential impact:

Captain America

Old: 3/3 – Ongoing: Your other cards here have +1 Power.
New: 3/2 – Ongoing: Your other Ongoing cards here have +2 Power.

Impact: This change aims to simplify early-game strategies while enhancing the Spectrum deck for newer players. By shifting Captain America’s power focus, the Spectrum archetype becomes more accessible and balanced across different player levels.

Spectrum

Old: 6/7 – On Reveal: Give your Ongoing cards +2 Power.
New: 6/6 – On Reveal: Give your Ongoing cards +2 Power.

Impact: This slight nerf is to balance the enhanced power of Captain America, ensuring Spectrum decks remain strong but not overpowered. This keeps the competitive field balanced without significantly weakening the Spectrum archetype.

Luke Cage

Old: 3/4 – Ongoing: Your cards can’t have their Power reduced.
New: 3/3 – Ongoing: Your cards can’t have their Power reduced.

Impact: Reducing Luke Cage’s power slightly helps balance his effectiveness in Spectrum decks and opens opportunities for other strategies, particularly for afflict decks to regain prominence.

Baron Mordo

Old: 2/3 – On Reveal: Your opponent draws a card. Set its Cost to 6.
New: 2/3 – On Reveal: The top card of your opponent’s deck costs 6 until turn 6.

Impact: This change makes Baron Mordo’s effect more consistently disruptive, ensuring it hinders the opponent rather than providing them with a potential advantage.

Grand Master

Old: 2/0 – On Reveal: Move one of your other On Reveal cards here to the middle location. Its ability happens again.
New: 2/2 – On Reveal: Move one of your other On Reveal cards here to the middle location. Its ability happens again.

Impact: Increasing Grand Master’s power helps him find a stronger role in the metagame, encouraging more diverse strategic applications and improving his overall utility.

Werewolf By Night

Old: 4/4 – After you play a card, move there to gain +2 Power if it has an On Reveal.
New: 3/1 – After you play a card, move there to gain +2 Power if it has an On Reveal.

Impact: Adjusting Werewolf By Night’s cost and power reflects its evolving balance needs, allowing for fairer competition among 3-Cost cards and more thematic gameplay aligned with its werewolf lore.

Leader

Old: 6/2 – On Reveal: Copy the enemy card(s) with the highest Power played this turn, but on your side.
New: 6/3 – On Reveal: Copy the enemy card(s) with the highest Power played this turn, but on your side.

Impact: Boosting Leader’s power aims to reintegrate him into the metagame as a viable counter to high-cost threats, promoting strategic depth without making him overly prevalent.

Leech

Old: 4/2 – On Reveal: Remove the text from cards with On Reveal abilities in your opponent’s hand.
New: 5/5 – On Reveal: Remove the text from cards with On Reveal abilities in your opponent’s hand.

Impact: Returning Leech to 5-Cost with increased power addresses previous balance concerns and reduces his overuse against certain strategies, making him a more situational but impactful card.

Sentry

Old: 4/10 – You can’t play this at the right location. On Reveal: Add a -8 Power Void to the right location.
New: 4/8 – You can’t play this at the right location. On Reveal: Add a -8 Power Void to the right location.
The Void: 4/-10 -> 4/-8

Impact: This nerf to Sentry and The Void aims to weaken the Annihilus shell, maintaining metagame health by making this powerful combo less dominant.