Marvel Snap April 27 update patch notes: Shanna & Enchantress buffs, Sandman & Lizard nerfs

Marvel Snap’s April 27 update is now live and we’ve got the full rundown on everything in the latest patch notes, including all the card buffs and nerfs.

The end of the Animals Assemble season is fast approaching, with a potential new Guardians of the Galaxy season on the horizon for May.

With a few days left in the season to make a push to Infinite (or whatever your goal rank is), these latest balance changes could dictate significant changes to the meta.

Here is everything in the Marvel Snap update released on April 27, with all the buffs and nerfs that are coming to the game.

Lizard nerfs

Lizard has been one of the most-played cards in Marvel Snap for quite some time, which is why the developers targeted him for these nerfs.

By upping the penalty on Lizard when the opponent has the location he is played on filled, it means that Lizard will be more harshly punished when he faces off with cards like Ultron, Debris, and Doctor Doom.

Enchantress buffs

The Marvel Snap developers pointed out the irony that Enchantress hasn’t really been seeing much play in a meta that’s been dominated by Patriot, Darkhawk, and Galactus/Knull decks.

A two-power buff is definitely not insignificant and it could mean that she’ll rise in priority when it comes to Disrupt decks or countering those meta decks.

Marvel Snap April 27 update patch notes

The full Marvel Snap April 27 update patch notes are as follows, courtesy of pwnius22:

OTA Updates 4/27
byu/pwnius22 inMarvelSnap

Card balance updates

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.

Developer comments: 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.

Developer comments: 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.

Developer comments: 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 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.

Developer comments: 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.