Introduced in 1973 in the Marvel comics, Howard the Duck was never one of the company’s most popular characters, yet he somehow managed to get his own movie in 1986. He became slightly famous among the public in James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies, in a minor role voiced by actor Seth Green. That was enough for Howard the Duck to get new comic books and make special cameos on Marvel TV shows. With this season of Marvel Snap focused on Marvel’s biggest cosmic team, there’s no better time to introduce the private investigator duck. So here are the best Howard the Duck decks and if he’s worth grabbing.
Is Howard the Duck Worth Buying in Marvel Snap?
Howard the Duck comes to the game as an Ongoing 1-cost card with the ability to let players see the top card of their decks simply by tapping it. It’s surely a card that will give you an advantage if used well as it will let you plan what to do from turns 2 to 6. Is it worth 6,000 Tokens, though? Hmm, I don’t think so.
Howard is great for decks that depend on one or two specific cards to win, but that advantage doesn’t make him Series 5 worthy, even though it can be pretty fun. Not every card has to be extra powerful and a game-changer, definitely not, but considering there are still cards like Galactus, Thanos, or the newly added Iron Lad in that same high tier, a 1-cost 2-power card ends up feeling a bit unfair for the price, not to mention the possibility of being easily wasted on turn 3 by a Killmonger. For this one, I’d say it’s best to wait until he drops to a lower series.
Best Howard the Duck Decks in Marvel Snap
If you’re a card collector with tons of Tokens to spend, or you simply love this obscure character, here are three great decks to fit Howard the Duck in.
One Toxic Duck
- Howard the Duck
- Luke Cage
- Black Widow
- Hazmat
- Zabu
- Ironheart
- Absorbing Man
- Wong
- Sera
- White Tiger
- Odin
- Doctor Doom
Getting Howard the Duck out early is pretty vital to plan how you’ll play the match with this deck created by ItsGuestGaming on Youtube. If Luke Cage is in your hand and Hazmat is on the top of your deck, or vice versa, we go with the toxic duo that we love. There are many ways to land this tricky combo, my personal favorite being Zabu on turn 2 or 3, followed by Wong on turn 4, Sera on turn 5, and a wild turn 6 with Hazmat, Absorbing Man, and Luke Cage to catch the opponent by surprise.
If you don’t get the right cards, Hazmat can be activated again on turn 6 by Odin, just make sure you have Luke Cage down. If by turn 3 either Luke Cage or Hazmat is missing, stick to Wong and established On Reveal cards like White Tiger and Doctor Doom for a not-so-fun but definitely secure win.
Electro Ramp
- Sunspot
- Howard the Duck
- Ebony Maw
- Electro
- Wave
- Jubilee
- Sandman
- Devil Dinosaur
- Aero
- Odin
- Leader
- Doctor Doom
Howard the Duck can be of great value in a deck with so many impactful cards like this. Electro is also a must since he will let you play expensive cards ahead of time each turn. Putting Sandman down on turn 4 can easily disrupt opponents with a bouncing deck, or simply limit others while you keep the advantage. If you pursue power, Doctor Doom can be a really good option, being reactivated later by Odin. Wave will also make sure you get to play the strongest cards earlier, but the enemy might also benefit from this. For later turns, if you’re in trouble, you can play Jubilee and know exactly what you’re bringing in – thanks to Howard the Duck.
Buffed Ongoing
- Howard the Duck
- Ant-Man
- Armor
- Zabu
- Cosmo
- Mister Fantastic
- Iron Lad
- Super Skrull
- Klaw
- Iron Man
- Onslaught
- Spectrum
Of course, we couldn’t leave Iron Lad out of the fun considering the strong synergy he shares with Howard the Duck. After playing Zabu, on turn 3 Iron Lad will be available, but only Howard the Duck will tell if it’s a good time to use him or wait. From all of the various powerful cards that can be copied, Iron Man, Onslaught, and Klaw are the ones we desire the most. Super Skrull, although an overall great card, is pretty weak based on power, I’d only recommend using him if the opponent has played cards like Wong, Iron Man, or Knull. If you don’t have Super Skrull, he can easily be substituted for Warpath as well. Spectrum should be thrown down on the last turn to boost all of your other Ongoing cards and take home the victory.
Those are all of the best Howard the Duck decks in Marvel Snap, for now at least. If you decide to pass on the duck, we have plenty more guides, like the best Kitty Pryde decks and the best Stegron decks. Check out our related posts for more!
