New Marvel Snap July Season Pass Card – Phoenix Force – Showcase, Decks, Counters, Synergies

July is upon us and we have received a new Season Pass for Marvel Snap, starting on July 4, 2023. The Marvel character that got the honor of being a season pass card is none other than Phoenix Force. In Marvel lore, Phoenix Force is the manifestation of the prime universal life force and is indestructible. In Marvel Snap, Phoenix Force exhibits the known ability of the mythical creature we know as Phoenix and has the ability to revive one of your cards. Keep reading and you will learn what Phoenix Force does in this showcase article, as well as what decks can you use with or against Phoenix Force in Marvel Snap.

What Does Phoenix Force Do in Marvel Snap?

For 5 Energy you can play this 6 Power card that has the following effect:

On Reveal: Revive one of your destroyed cards and merge with it. That card can move each turn.

In theory, a pretty useful effect that kind of leans toward supporting Destroy and Move decks. However, something is scratching me the wrong way with this card. I am not entirely sure it will make a worthwhile impact at this point. It might be too early to tell for all I know from decades of dealing with card games.

Related: How to Get to Infinite Rank in Marvel Snap: Complete First-hand Experience Guide From a Card Game Enthusiast

How Good is Phoenix Force in Marvel Snap?

Here’s the problem with card games… When you make a new card, if it ain’t overpowered/broken, not a lot of people are going to try playing it. Everybody is min-maxing, optimizing, and tuning, and if you do not have the desired performance from a piece in your deck, you remove it.

Phoenix Force costs 5 Energy and requires you to have a card destroyed. Some players are trying out move variants with Carnage and Venom, in an attempt to abuse the effects of Multiple Man and Human Torch (which would be the prime candidates for the effect of Phoenix Force).

However, I see that as a combo piece with just too many moving parts, which will probably impact its consistency. After all, in usual scenarios, you will be able to use the Move effect once, unless Limbo is delivered, or you can cheat the card out earlier by Wave (so, Turn 1 Human Torch, Turn 2 Carnage, Turn 3 Wave, Turn 4 Phoenix Force, Turn 5 whatever you can muster, Turn 6 Heimdall).

Related: Everything You Need to Know About Conquest Mode in Marvel Snap

Some players have the desire to implement Phoenix Force in Shuri-based decks instead of Vision. This, of course, considers the utilization of Kitty Pryde as well. In a perfect scenario, you will destroy your own Kitty Pryde on Turn 3 and will be able to get her back with 6 additional Power on Turn 5, hopefully with Shuri’s assistance from Turn 4. Then, on Turn 6, you drop her and Taskmaster. Ideally.

If you want to ask me how to counter Phoenix Force, I’d give out generic answers such as Armor (to prevent destruction) and Cosmo (to prevent the On Reveal effect), but I still have a belief that the deck will just counter itself due to lack of consistency. Your best bet is to know what you are dealing with, to estimate and approximate what’s the power extent the opponent can have in the last turns, and then make an informed decision about whether you are proceeding with the match or not.

Currently (I will update this article if the situation on the battlefield proves to be different) I see that Phoenix Force might be a high-roll deck, where you would retreat a lot until you “nail” the combo pieces in your hand. And that’s fine!

Example Decks for Phoenix Force in Marvel Snap

Here’s the Kitty Pryde variant:

Kitty Pryde Human Torch Iron Fist Angela Carnage Multiple Man Venom Shuri Taskmaster Phoenix Force Red Skull She-Hulk

And here’s a Shuri variant:

Human Torch Iron Fist Carnage Multiple Man Doctor Strange Venom Wave Deathlok Shuri Taskmaster Phoenix Force America Chavez

Should I Buy the July Season Pass in Marvel Snap? Is it Worth Buying?

In my opinion: No. Not yet, at least. Wait and see if anyone figures out a plausible way to have Phoenix Force dominate the meta, and then purchase it if you want to play around with it. There’s a lot of time to make an informed decision about whether you want to buy the Season Pass or not. It’s up to you in the end.

Make sure to read about Spotlight Cache: Everything You Need to Know About Marvel Snap Card Gain Improvement since they are coming on July 11, as well as many other useful articles such as New Marvel Snap Card Datamine – August 2023 – Daken, Lady Deathstrike, Silver Samurai, X-23. Happy snapping!