Loki, God of Mischief

Looks like the list I posted on Reddit a few days ago

I want to test a couple of changes.. I want to try out Iceman again (probably in place of Doc Oc), and there probably needs to be another Dr Strange as well (in place of the second Dormammu.)

Haha, ya, I haven't seen ANYONE talk about him so I wanted to post what I have been testing.

I am probably suffering from my meta and that vacuum, so discussion is good. I have tested quite a few things but I feel like the core is pretty solid.

A couple things I want to test more:

Iceman - He is pretty good late game and can screen for Loki in the early game if necessary. It gives you a turn against other control builds late game and a little bit of reprieve in the early game against very aggressive decks.

Gambit - Something to toy with.. the ability to remove opposing cards like Wolverine/Sabertooth (with gambit/extinguish) is worth probing I think... Honestly, it usually isn't people bombing you out when you lose, it is a strong midgame with cards like Sabertooth/Wolverine that give you trouble.. You end up burning all of your tricks to maneuver around those but they are hard to get rid of.

Thor - 6/5 with 2hp is ok and the ability to shrink guys (or just kill some guys outright) may be ok.. I still just think Dormammu is better, but maybe not

Storm - Storm may also be viable, but only having 1hp scares me. The other 4 drops in the deck are SUPER strong because of savage surprise, so the competition is stiff.

Emma Frost - Probably worth testing more since I haven't much. Even if you only cycle 3 or 4 cards, it is probably pretty strong. We can't really take advantage of the fact that she is a strong ranged fighter since we don't have a lot of team attack action in that faction here.

Cosmo - I have tested this guy a little bit and he is really good when he is good, but just kind of meh when he is bad. Properly protected he can wreak a lot of havoc on certain characters or relevant supporting guys if necessary, the problem is that he is fragile and just dies to a lot of stuff. Realistically we wont be playing him until turn 4 or 5, so if we can build a nice screen by then it may be worth it just to turn off problem guys.

I really, really like Dormammu but I will probably make the cut for the Dr Strange since more and more people are running things that generate counters. My initial build was a guardians combo that ran even the odds, but it just offered much less than the avengers package overall. I would love to run think again here but i'm really scared about splashing with only a few out of faction guys. I think the only thing you could cut realistically is trickster god, but that card is pretty cool. The ability to force early game stuns on defense and level up Loki is nice, but I don't know if its good enough.

So I had initially cut the second Dormammu for a second Dr. Strange, but with only two locations to activate Professor X I found myself never using him and ended up cutting him which allows me to play two Dr. Strange AND two Dormammu.

I haven't tested any of the other cards that have been suggested so far but I am especially interested in two cards:

Emma Frost - Seems especially interesting due to Loki's ability to recur plot twists that would be discarded.

Cosmo - If anyone can protect Cosmo from being killed immediately I think it's Loki, although Namor could put a wrench in that I still think Cosmo may be worth a slot as it fits in most every deck.

I will be playing Loki a lot more over the coming days and will post any changes or discoveries.

Here's the list I am on right now:

1 Loki (MC)

4 Mantis
4 Nick Fury
3 Doctor Octopus
4 Sabertooth
3 Beast
1 Wolverine
2 Dr. Strange
1 Emma Frost
1 Magneto
2 Dormammu
1 Hulk
2 Thanos

4 Trickster God
4 Extinguish
4 Savage Surprise
4 Metal and Fire

4 The Vault
3 Avengers Mansion
4 Training Ground
2 Academy
2 Fortress
1 Laboratory

Nathan: I have changed the list around a little bit after playing another 30 games or so, lol.

4 Mantis
4 Nick Fury
3 Sabertooth
4 Beast
2 Dr. Strange
2 Dormammu
4 Drax
2 Thanos
2 Adam Warlock

4 Even the Odds
4 Extinguish
4 Savage Surprise
4 Metal and Fire

4 The Vault
2 Avengers Mansion
4 Training Ground
3 Academy
2 Fortress
2 Laboratory

Basically I cut the Prof X.. your point is good, I never wanted to play him.. He is good in an ideal situation, but usually you are stealing their biggest guy to knock out someone smaller, and it doesn't really answer their big hitter. I much prefer Dormammu because it gives you a real body, which is nice.

I cut basically all the 5 drops since 5 is a really weird number on the curve.. I am normally never playing 5s on turn 4 or 5. I also cut Doc Oc because he was the weakest body in the deck IMO... The card draw is awesome but he NEVER lives a round unless you protect him. I ended up putting in 4x Drax and 2x Adam Warlock mostly to have Guardians characters for Even the Odds. The more I play with Drax the more I like him though, even though he is still primarily here to turn on Guardians twists

I have thought about fitting in Cosmo here, im just not sure where. You can usually hold him until later when you need to turn off something.. With the list right now it would probably be cutting 2x Dr Strange for 2x Cosmo.. the addition of Even the Odds gives a lot of redundancy with Dr. Strange. I like his ability and the fact that it can just KO certain MCs, but maybe Cosmo is better in that slot with the addition of Even the Odds. Testing will tell, I guess

jmicscar: Thanks for contributing to the Loki discussion I saw your list but I will be honest, I wasn't a big fan. I understand the theme of counters, which is cool, but relatively low impact. I tested Avengers originally but the problem is with those two again is pretty low impact overall. Think Again is fine, but it really just buys you a turn at most.. Against some decks it is devastating (Gamora/Deadpool/Wolverine, etc), but those decks run tools to prevent Think Again and Even the Odds (primarily, Ronan.) Dc. Oc is good, but beast is just 100% better. It sucks because they both die pretty easily

I think Loki just needs consistency to out tempo your opponent. With the ramp package, you can out threat your opponent pretty quickly. The advantage here over the other control strategies is that you just have more good plot twists to play, period. Playing through 4 savage surprised ferocious guys is bad enough, but having to worry about attacking into Loki and what he has available at the time has a lot of impact on your opponents plays. Savage Surprise on Loki in the early turns just to stun a guy back is honestly a very solid play, considering your early game is pretty weak and it levels you up

You definitely make some good points.. Dormammu is something I personally like but probably needs more field testing. Right now, he is really good, but that could just be my meta. The fact that he is a 6/7 flyer with 2 hp is good by itself, and his ability is probably one of the strongest tempo swings in the game. The only thing I don't like about him is that he is usually only animating a 4-5 cost guy since you are ramping ahead of everyone else. Still though, a free Sabertooth/Abomination/Wolverine or whatever is really, really good for you. I think running find cover just to keep a mediocre guy alive is pretty lackluster, but that's just my opinion. I am already on the fence about doc oc as it is since his stats are pretty poor, and having to run some kind of protection for a guy I already don't want is pretty meh.

Onto plot twist versatility: I do agree somewhat. You could test running most of the twists at 3 to fit in another twist all together, I just don't know what that mix is yet. I have played extinguish in every game I have ever drawn it in (I would say at least 40), but I can see the argument about it being "necessary". The fact that you can't flash it back is also lame, but honestly, Loki's flashback ability doesn't see much play anyway since it is specific to his combat. I use it a couple times each game, but really its just icing on the cake. I don't think trimming Metal and Fire or Even the Odds is good though, since those cards are soooo good. I could see the argument for cutting 2 extinguish for 2 find cover just to give a little extra coverage though

The main problem I see with the deck is that late game you will have plot twist that you can't use. Stun Drax and you won't be able to use "Even the odds," Stun Loki, you won't be able to use "metal and fire"

Nothing is worse than having to play mantis late game so you can shrink your opponents Thanos. I personally think you need to focus more on the guardians and villain characters so you can always use your plot twist and make Loki insane.

If you aren't playing Loki for his plot twist, then why play him? Thanos/ Green Goblin are better at stripping your opponents hand