Welcome to the Marvel Universe, where superheroes and supervillains battle it out. Get ready to explore Marvel Champions: The Card Game – the best (in my opinion) in the Marvel tabletop gaming family. In this review, we’ll dive into the Marvel Champions Core Set heroes and villains that brings this game to life.
Whether you’re a Marvel fan, a card enthusiast, or a gamer seeking a cooperative challenge, get ready for an immersive journey through the Marvel Champions the card game core set. I’ll guide you through the contents, gameplay mechanics, and the thrilling superhero action. From Spider-Man’s web-slinging to Iron Man’s high-tech heroics, and the cunning traps of villains like Rhino, we’ll cover it all. So, gear up and let’s get started!
Game Overview: A Cooperative Living Card Game
Marvel Champions: The Card Game is a cooperative living card game (LCG) set in the Marvel Universe. Designed by Michael Boggs, Nate French, and Caleb Grace, it was published by Fantasy Flight Games and released to critical and fan acclaim. The game allows up to four players to take on the roles of iconic Marvel Heroes and work together to overcome impossible odds to stop infamous villains and to thwart their schemes. It happens to also play very well solo and is one of the highest rated solo games on Board Game Geek. I only played this solo for the first two years I played and had a blast and, now that I’ve joined a game group, I might love playing on a team even more. Not sure. It’s a toss up.
Marvel Champions Core Set Contents and Components
The core box is where you’ll start your superhero journey. It includes over 350 cards and features five pre-constructed decks, each representing a core hero – Iron Man, Black Panther, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, and Spider-Man. The box also comes with modular encounter sets that provide different battle scenarios for your heroes, ensuring unique gameplay every time.
When you unbox the core set, you’ll find hero-specific decks, modular encounter sets, obligation cards, allies, attachments, and all the necessary tokens for damage, threat, as well as five hit point trackers (four for heroes and one for the villain). There’s some debate about the artwork, but I dig the comic book style, sometimes original, sometimes pulled from the actual comics. In any case it does the work of bringing the Marvel characters to life on your tabletop.
Do I need to get the Core Box First?
Yes. The core box of Marvel Champions: The Card Game is essential to play the game. It includes the initial heroes and villains, along with important game mechanics and components like damage and threat tokens, obligation cards, and more. Additionally, the core box contains the standard cards that are included every time you set up a villain deck, making it necessary for playing any content. While expansions enhance and diversify gameplay, and you might be excited about a specific group of heroes, but you have to start here.
In case you curious, and in the spirit of writing a comprehensive reivew, there are three (top secret) ways to avoid getting the core box.
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If you buy The Hood encounter pack, you’ll get the cards for Standard 2, which can be used in place of Standard 1, from the base box. Standard 2, is HARD. Keep in mind you’ll still need to grab a couple hero packs.
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If you buy the upcoming Age of Apocalypse box, you’ll get Standard 3. Haven’t played it yet, so I don’t know, but it looks cool. Puts you up against your nemesis a lot. Would it cause me to skip the core box though? Not likely.
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If you have a friend with a core box, then you are in luck. Only one player needs the villains, so just grab a deck for a hero you like and you are ready to play. (warning: you’ll end up buying the core box yourself, just wait.)
None of these strategies include counters and tokens, so if you do any of these, get ready to dust of your old magic dice. But let’s be serious. You really cannot beat the value for money of FIVE heroes and THREE Villains. So yeah, just get the core box.
For more information on what to get and in what order, check out our comprehensive buyers guide.
Gameplay Mechanics
Marvel Champions is a highly accessible game that combines deck-construction with combat and strategic card play. The gameplay revolves around the interaction between heroes and the encounter deck, which determines the actions of the villain. Your objective is to reduce the villain’s health, before they can complete their nefarious schemes.
Card Types, Deck-Building, and Strategy
The core box introduces four fundamental card types: Hero cards – showing the hero’s actions and stats, Alter-Ego cards – for healing and recovery, Supporting cards – allies and equipment to help you, and Event cards – the main actions you can take.
Deck-building in the core box is minimal since the hero decks are pre-built. However, as you explore the Marvel Champions universe, you’ll have the freedom to customize your hero’s deck with available cards. Each card enhances your hero’s abilities and potential.
Strategy is crucial as you balance between your hero mode’s offensive power and your alter-ego mode’s utility and healing. This is how you can influence what the villain does on their turn. If you are in hero mode, they’ll attack you, but careful not to spend too much time in alter-ego mode because then they will advance their schemes, unopposed. You can lose by being defeated, but more often you lose when the scheme is completed, so you’ll need to make decisions on whether to thwart the villain’s plans, defend against attacks, or unleash powerful hero abilities.
The Heroes
The core box features five iconic heroes, each with their own play style and flavor.
Iron Man
Iron Man is a powerhouse once he suits up, his high-tech armor giving him extra abilities, additional health, and extra actions each turn. However, assembling all the necessary pieces can be tricky. Until you draw the right cards and acquire the right upgrades, your options (and crucially, your card draw) are limited.
That’s why it’s crucial to prioritize getting tech upgrades into play, allowing him to unleash even more formidable attacks and defenses. Otherwise, he might find himself stuck in alter-ego mode, unable to fully utilize his true potential. Can be a little tricky to steer at first, but with careful strategy and a little bit of luck, Iron Man can become an unstoppable force, ready to face any challenge that comes his way.
Black Panther
Like Iron Man, Black Panther relies on the components of his, in this case Vibranium suit. Once set up, he can use his Wakanda Forever cards to unleash a devastating array of action chains. To fully harness his true potential, he relies on Siri to retrieve all the pieces of his armor. Similar to the revered king of Wakanda, Black Panther decks include abundant resources derived from Vibranium, granting him unparalleled advantages on the battlefield. The Golden City enhances his card draw, allowing him to maintain strategic advantage and adapt swiftly to any situation.
Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel is still one of the most powerful heroes in the game, even though she made her debut in the Core set. She excels at drawing cards and dealing damage. Her versatility allows her to adapt to any situation. Her main strategy is to gather energy resources in her deck, which she uses to unleash devastating Energy Channels on villains. Captain Marvel is a straightforward and formidable character, without any unnecessary flashy gimmicks. She is a well-rounded powerhouse that never disappoints.
She-Hulk
She-Hulk is skilled at transitioning between her hero and alter ego forms, which sets her apart in the game. In her alter ego, she cleverly uses her legal abilities to stop villains. When she switches back to her hero form, she deals damage effortlessly without getting tired. She can absorb a lot of damage and deliver devastating attacks when she’s at her last health point. However, this strategy relies on a single card and can be challenging to set up. Despite some of her cards being expensive or less powerful, playing as She-Hulk can be really satisfying when her decks are optimized. She got a bad rap, early on, I think because she was hard to steer in true solo, but now that I play more multiplayer games, I can lean into her ability to flip every turn because I’m more insulated from the main scheme flipping. Personally, I find the deck-building challenge she presents intriguing, making her a character that I continue to return to.
Spider-Man
Spider-Man was my go-to character when I first got the original box. I played him a lot because he excelled in protection and thrived on being attacked, thanks to his unique abilities. Although his thwart options were limited, I strategically wore down the villain, hoping to stop their scheme before I could unleash my swinging web kicks to finish them off. These games often lasted a long time, but Spider-Man proved to be invincible – as long as I could avoid too much threat.
Now that I’ve improved my skills and acquired more cards, Spider-Man swiftly defeats the villain by capitalizing on the advantages he gains from being attacked while skillfully avoiding any damage. He’s still one of my favorites to play – old habits die hard, I guess.
The Villains
In the core box, you’ll encounter formidable nemeses like Rhino, Klaw, and Ultron. These infamous villains offer unique challenges and require different strategies to overcome.
Rhino
Rhino is known for his brute strength, making him a formidable opponent. His powerful attacks deplete your resources quickly, keeping you on high alert. Defeating him requires precise timing, skillfully dodging his charges, and exploiting his weaknesses.
Some people in the community like to complain about Rhino, but the reality is they are just tired of the old guy. Personally, I’ve fought against Rhino many times as he was my go-to choice for testing decks for a long time. Contrary to popular belief, I don’t think he’s all that easy, especially when facing him solo. He’s got some cards that set him up to deal devastating blows, causing significant amount of damage in a single turn that can’t really be blocked. Additionally, his threat level is particularly low for solo play. Even though he’s a brute with low scheme stats, I’ve lost countless games to Rhino completing his scheme.
However, Rhino undeniably serves as an exceptional introductory scenario, showcasing various gameplay elements. It provides a valuable opportunity to understand important keywords and icons. It can be challenging for players to withstand Rhino’s assault or to avoid letting his scheme advance.
Klaw
I used to use Rhino as my go-to deck testing scenario, but now I use Klaw because he provides the most well-rounded scenario that tests everything a hero needs to be able to do. Can you handle that damage output? I hope so; Klaw swings hard because he gets an extra boost card. Can you handle threat removal? I hope so, because Klaw starts with extra side schemes and has a low threshold on the main scheme. Klaw puts out lots of minions, and has some nasty ones too. Can you deal with minions? I hope so, because he’s got a lot of them. Basically, he throws everything at you, amplified, so he’s guaranteed to identify the weakness of any deck you throw against him. It’s a good, fair fight, with a little bit of everything.
Ultron
Ultron has a really cool mechanic where he turns cards from your deck into his drones, who then attack you. This messes with your deck by, sometimes, taking the exact card you need and turning it into an enemy. Basically, fighting Ultron can go one of two ways – either you spend all your time keeping the amount of drones out to a manageable level, or you lose. He’s the most difficult in the box, I think, but over time the game has introduced more ways to benefit from killing minions, which has caused him to become a little less formidable than he used to be. When I just had the core though, he was the villain where I felt pressure to deck build specifically to beat that specific scenario – rather than just building a good deck.
Starting with these villains in the core box is a great choice, as they continue to be some of the best adversaries in the game. They have done a good job of giving a range of difficulty. Moreover, they have included additional modular sets, allowing you to increase the difficulty even further on these scenarios. This provides you with lots of options and challenges to beat, all from this one box. There’s plenty to enjoy about the ones included in the core box, and personally, I still find them highly enjoyable to play against.
Game Experience: The Marvelous Challenge and Endless Universe
Playing Marvel Champions is an exciting experience. You’ll love strategizing against villains and seeing how your cards and strategies seamlessly interact. The game effortlessly combines theme and mechanics, with each card ability reflecting its associated character or item.
The game offers a satisfying level of depth that becomes more apparent as you master combining cards and collaborating with other players. Unlocking each hero’s potential and navigating various scenarios gives a real sense of growth and progression, like building your own Avengers team.
Replayability is a standout feature, with multiple difficulty levels for each villain and the ability to mix and match modular sets for a personalized gaming experience. The ongoing expansion cycle ensures a continuous infusion of new heroes, villains, and scenarios, keeping the game fresh and diverse.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Accessible yet strategic gameplay.
- Strong cooperative angle, encouraging teamwork and communication.
- High-quality artwork and components, capturing the Marvel theme.
- Expansive potential for growth and replayability through a steady stream of expansions.
- Excellent solo play experience, allowing for immersive and engaging gameplay even when playing alone.
Cons
- Learning curve for understanding the different card types and abilities.
- Limited variety within the core box for long-term play.
- Requires additional purchases to expand hero and villain roster significantly.
Conclusion: Get Started; There’s a Lot to Explore
With engaging gameplay, stunning artwork, and an expanding universe, the Marvel Champions core set offers a thrilling introduction that will keep you hooked. There is so much content in this game, and more coming all the time, but don’t let that intimidate you. All you need is this core box to get going. Assemble your team and dive into a cooperative card game like no other. Maybe you’re looking for one of the best solo experiences in board gaming. Well that’s right here in this box too.
So, fellow champions, what are you waiting for? The Marvel Universe is calling, and it’s time for you to answer. Unbox the core set, build your decks, and get started; there’s a lot to explore.
When you are ready to dive ALL the way in, check out our comprehensive buyer’s guide to help you decide how best to expand your collection.
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For more Marvel Champions content check out our comprehensive list of expansions with links to all our reviews.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about Marvel Champions the Card Game:
Q: Is the Marvel Champions core box suitable for beginners in card games?
A: Yes, the core box is designed to be accessible, making it a great choice for newcomers to card games. It has a manageable learning curve and clear, comprehensive instructions.
Q: How many players can play Marvel Champions?
A: Marvel Champions is designed for 1-4 players, offering an excellent solo play experience as well as encouraging teamwork and communication in multiplayer mode.
Q: How long does a typical game of Marvel Champions last?
A: Game length can vary depending on the chosen villain and players’ experience level, as well as player count. On average, expect a game to last between 45 minutes to 2 hours.
Q: Are there planned expansions for Marvel Champions?
A: Yes, Marvel Champions has an ongoing expansion cycle, introducing new heroes, villains, and scenarios to keep the game fresh and diverse. This game is still being actively supported and new expansions are being released all the time.
Q: Is Marvel Champions still fun if you aren’t into Marvel movies, comics, or shows?
A: Absolutely! While familiarity with the Marvel universe can enhance the thematic enjoyment, it is not required to play or enjoy the game. Marvel Champions is fundamentally a strategic card game that can be enjoyed by all.
Q: What ages is Marvel Champions recommended for?
A: Marvel Champions is recommended for ages 14 and up due to its strategic nature and complexity. However, younger players can also enjoy the game with appropriate guidance.