Unlike the release of Makkari, the next Eternal to join Marvel Snap has some clear decks to slot into. Yes, Phastos is here, though whether or not he’s amazing or will often be too little too late remains to be seen. Here are the best Phastos decks in Marvel Snap.
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How Phastos Works in Marvel Snap
Phastos is a 3-cost, 3-power card with an ability that reads: “On Reveal: Give each card in your deck -1 Cost or +2 Power.”
Phastos’ effect works fairly similarly to Nakia, who is a 2-cost, 2-power card that gives all cards remaining in your deck +1. Like Nakia, the likes of Sebastian Shaw and Brood will benefit most from having their power buffed. And as you can imagine, he sucks being played on the final turn of the game.
Whether Phastos will assign +2 power or -1 cost is random. You can have all +2 power or all -1 cost, making it difficult to predict future plays depending on what cards you top deck.
Pixie and Phastos have the ability to discount cards further, though what happens when you also play Mobius M. Mobius remains to be seen. Frankly, it might break my brain a little bit, but I’m excited to test it out.
Best Phastos Decks in Marvel Snap
While I’m itching to try Phastos and Pixie together, I do believe two styles of decks will be way more consistent right off the back with him. These are Silver Surfer and Thanos decks, both of which are currently B-tier but may see a nice boost in the meta, thanks to him. Let’s take a look at Silver Surfer first:
- Nova
- Forge
- Ravonna Renslayer
- Sage
- Wolfsbane
- Brood
- SIlver Surfer
- Killmonger
- Phastos
- Sebastian Shaw
- Wong
- Sera
Click here to copy the deck list from Untapped.
If you do not have expensive cards like Ravonna Renslayer and Sage, you can swap them out for Hope Summers and Absorbing Man for a more traditional list.
This is currently the best Silver Surfer deck on the block, except with Phastos slotted in instead of Red Guardian. You may think Ravonna Renslayer is weird here; however, with her, you can further discount both Wolfsbane and Sage alongside Sera for an incredibly explosive final turn. Phastos furthers this deck’s explosive potential by possibly adding power to the likes of Brood and Sebastian Shaw, while any discounts in this deck are welcome – especially if you hit Sera. Expect to see Phastos in some variation of this list a lot during his first week.
I have to give credit where it’s due: Cozy Snap and Alex Coccia posited this idea on their SnapChat podcast on YouTube. One of Phastos’ weaknesses is being drawn and played late in the game; however, Thanos can draw multiple cards on later turns if Phastos is played prior with Infinity Stones. Furthermore, he can discount powerful 6-cost cards and reduce them in cost, allowing you to play them earlier or discount the stones completely. This list will do well right out of the gate with Phastos:
- Psylocke
- Jeff!
- Mobius M. Mobius
- Phastos
- Hope Summers
- Shang-Chi
- Vision
- Mockingbird
- Blob
- Thanos
- Skaar
- Magneto
Click here to copy the deck list from Untapped.
There isn’t any easy substitutions in this list, though if you do not have Mobius M. Mobius or Hope Summers, you can replace them with Caiera or Red Guardian.
I believe having Phastos in hand for turn 3 is a Snap condition for a deck like this, as there’s so much potential for strong synergies. A buffed Vision and Mockingbird will discount Skaar. Free or buffed stones are simply overpowered, while a turn 5 Magneto can definitely win games. Playing Phastos and following up with the Mind Stone can win games. I truly think this will become a force in the meta and one of the best Phastos decks in Marvel Snap.
Other than these two decks, it’s difficult to say if Phastos will find a home where he adds to the deck rather than adding some unnecessary variance.
Related: Best Sasquatch Decks in Marvel Snap
Phastos Counters in Marvel Snap
Unfortunately for Phastos, he has a direct counter: Mobius M. Mobius will stop the more powerful of his ability in its tracks. This is especially true for Silver Surfer, as that deck looks to discount cards further with Sera, and Thanos lists will lose out on Mockingbird. You could run Shadow King to remove the +2 power from cards; however, this is likely a waste of a deck slot if you’re specifically trying to counter Phastos. For the first week, Mobius M. Mobius is going to be your best friend.
Who Is Phastos?
Phastos, like the other cards released this season, is a super-powered human known as an Eternal. He has all your superhero trappings: superpower and speed, near invulnerability, flight, and so on. Phastos differs from his fellow Eternals by having a genius-level intellect that makes him a great engineer, which is where the Marvel Snap team pulled his ability from. Like many of his peers, he was mistaken as a mythological figure in Ancient Greece: Hephaestus, the god of blacksmiths.
Is Phastos Worth Your Spotlight Cache Keys or Collector’s Tokens?
Unless you’re hoarding keys for next week’s Arishem (and you should be if you value fun more than competitiveness), then yes – Phastos is worth rolling for this week or spending Collector’s Tokens on. He may not be a meta-breaking force, but I believe his ability is flexible enough to find its way into at least two powerful decks immediately and to be a consideration in deck building in the future.
And those are the best Phastos decks in Marvel Snap.
Marvel Snap is available now.
