Another Daughter of Thanos joined Marvel Snap alongside her sister, Gamora—Nebula has been added to the ranks of other Guardians of the Galaxy in the card-battling game.
As part of the May 2023 season of Marvel Snap, Guardians Greatest Hits, Nebula was added to the game as a Series Five card and already shapes as an excellent addition to the game’s already-existing roster of solid one-drops.
Here’s everything to know about Nebula, decks to build with her, and how to counter her in Marvel Snap.
Nebula card abilities in Marvel Snap
- Card stats: One Energy, One Power
- Card text: Each turn your opponent doesn’t play a card here, +2 Power. (except the turn you play this)
Nebula is one of the stronger one-drop cards in all of Marvel Snap. Starting at just one power, she only becomes a problem if neglected, but can be utilized to gain steady power throughout any given match.
She’s a well-balanced card that is easily countered, but strong enough to be played around with some supporting cards or locations to make her a real problem if your hand works out for you.
Nebula strategy in Marvel Snap
As she gains power when your opponent does not play a card at her location, the general idea with Nebula is to manipulate the board to either prevent your opponent from playing cards where she is or fill up your side of the board when they try to stack their own cards at her location to prevent her from growing.
But as she’s simply just a solid one-cost card, to begin with, Nebula fits into several existing deck-build archetypes right out of the gate and is better suited as an addition as opposed to a card that you build entire strategies around.
Best combo synergy with Nebula in Marvel Snap
Nebula has several cards that will enable her growth or help her thrive in Marvel Snap:
- Bast
- Hit-Monkey
- Armor
- Mojo
- Storm
- Cosmo
- Spider-Man
- Jessica Jones
- Professor X
Bast will buff Nebula, allowing her to begin at three power and then gain more on subsequent turns. Armor will protect her from Killmonger, which is crucial for Zoo decks and other similar builds. Cosmo will do the same, negating On Reveal effects after she’s been played.
When the opponent stacks their side with cards, you can use Mojo on yours to fill up the entire location for a big power gain. If they attempt to hard counter her, Mojo will make up for it, and if not, she’ll be gaining power throughout.
Related: Best Jeff the Baby Land Shark decks in Marvel Snap and how to counter them
Storm, Spider-Man, and Professor X will all prevent your opponent from playing on their side of Nebula’s location, which is basically free power.
The best Nebula decks in Marvel Snap for September 2023
Control Supremacy
Nebula’s effect to stack Power whenever the opponent does not play a card in the same location as her can be maximized in a control deck, with lockdown abilities as the main weapons. The deck focuses on executing control effects to disrupt the opponent’s setup, converting it as offense for your side.
The cards that enable the lockdown mechanic in this deck are Storm and Professor X. The former floods a location, meaning the next turn would be the last time cards can be played there. The latter, on the other hand, completely shuts down a location and prevents the addition and removal of cards in any form (except for Jeff the Baby Landshark, since he can’t be stopped from being played or moved).
Legion can be added for more location control, since he can change all the locations to the location where he is played. High Evolutionary creations such as Wasp, Cyclops, and Hulk are also great additions thanks to their negative Power infliction abilities, as well as Hulk’s potential to be a massive power source.
Doctor Doom is another great choice to provide more Power to your locations, and Spider-Man is there for more unpredictability. Cap off the deck with Spider-Ham which transforms the highest-cost card from your opponent’s hand into a pig.
Win condition cards for this deck
The win condition cards for this deck are:
- Storm
- Professor X
- Jeff the Baby Landshark
- Legion
- Hulk
- Doctor Doom
- Spider-Man
There are a lot of game-changing cards in this deck which can dictate its win conditions. Storm and Professor X provide the lockdown mechanic, possibly securing you a win on at least one location. Jeff ca be used to surprise the opponent for more Power, especially in a Professor X location. As for Legion, he can be used on turn five to flood all locations, assuming you did the Storm play on turn four.
Hulk can single-handedly take a location with his Power potential, especially if you are able to stack Power on him during the turns you finished with unsent energy. Doctor Doom can create four-Power Doombots on each other location, which may include the flooded location. Spider-Man’s card moving ability, on the other hand, is beneficial to potentially disrupt your opponent’s setup.
Stature Shark
Another deck where Nebula can shine is in a Stature Shark deck—a staple top meta deck for quite some time already. This deck’s strategy focuses on playing cards with different types of effects which can be used depending on the opponent’s current situation while building enough Power to win on the locations.
Aside from Nebula and Jeff, the cards that can be considered as the deck’s main Power sources are Black Bolt, Stature, Darkhawk, and Iron Lad. The discard and cost reduction combo of Black Bolt and Stature are the best turn five and six plays for the deck given that their Power greatly boosts the locations. Darkhawk’s Ongoing ability to gain plus two Power for every card in your opponent’s deck is beneficial to win the match.
As for Iron Lad, he is a four-cost, six-Power unit that copies the text of the top card of your deck, giving you another potential effect from a card and vision at the same time. The other support cards in the deck are Korg and Rock Slide (to boost Darkhawk’s Power), Zabu (to reduce the cost of four-cost cards), Polaris (for possible location disruption), and the control combo of Shang-Chi and Enchantress.
Win condition cards for this deck
The win condition cards for this deck are:
- Black Bolt
- Stature
- Darkhawk
- Iron Lad
- Shang-Chi
- Enchantress
- Zabu
This deck does not have a main win condition since your cards mostly have general effects, but can adjust depending on the current situation of your opponent’s setup. However, the Black Bolt and Stature combo provides the main offensive engine of this strategy, as well as giving the added card removal bonus on your opponent’s hand.
Darkhawk is the main Power source of the deck. So, maximizing both Korg and Rock Slide as much as possible would be very much ideal in the early to mid game. Iron Lad provides that extra Power and effect, while both Shang-Chi and Enchantress’ control and disruption prowess can become converted offense for you side. Zabu is there to give your more chances of playing your four-cost cards.
How to counter Nebula in Marvel Snap
As a one-drop, Nebula is highly susceptible to Killmonger, who will live up to his name and kill her with his On Reveal ability. If she’s protected by Armor, you can use Enchantress to take away Armor’s Ongoing ability and leave her open for the kill.
