Best Gladiator Decks in Marvel Snap

Kicking off Ms. Marvel’s November season, Gladiator is the second new card released in Marvel Snap following Kamala herself. Gladiator (or Kallark) is a 3-cost card with 7-power. Not only is that stat line extremely overpowered, but he used to be 8-power in the data mines. If history has taught us anything, it’s that nerfs right before release usually means a card is overpowered. A good example of this is Alioth, who used to be a 5-cost prior to release! Unfortunately, with premium stats, there often comes a hefty downside (see Maximus for example). In this card’s case, it is his ability. The effect reads: On Reveal: Add a card from your opponent’s deck to their side of this location. If it has less power, destroy it. At phase value, this sounds incredibly powerful. However, as we get into the mechanics of the card, you’ll soon realize why this is a big disadvantage. That being said, these are the best Gladiator decks in Marvel Snap.

For more relevant content, make sure to check out these KeenGamer articles:

1. Best Black Knight Decks in Marvel Snap
2. Best Nico Minoru Decks in Marvel Snap
3. Best Elsa Bloodstone Decks in Marvel Snap
4. Best Ms. Marvel Decks in Marvel Snap

Below is the official Marvel Snap PC launch trailer:

Card Mechanics & Frequently Asked Questions

Before taking a look at the best Gladiator decks in Marvel Snap, we must first understand how the card works. These bullet points below should realistically answer most questions that otherwise would’ve left players perplexed.

• If Gladiator adds an opponent’s On Reveal card, does the On Reveal effect trigger before Gladiator destroys the card? Yes. Unfortunately, this is an extreme drawback as most On Reveal cards generally care about the effect rather than the card itself. Therefore, by giving them an extra On Reveal trigger that otherwise wouldn’t have been drawn, you are effectively giving them an advantage. Not only that but there are many examples where this can prove disadvantageous for you. The main example is Black Panther. You play Gladiator, and he pulls Black Panther (5-cost, 4-power) but he doesn’t get destroyed. Instead, Black Panther triggers his On Reveal effect (which is to double his power). As a result, Black Panther is now 8-power and will not be destroyed by Gladiator.
• If Gladiator adds an opponent’s Ongoing card, does he calculate base power or ongoing power? Gladiator will only take into account the ongoing card’s ongoing power once the ability resolves. For example, if Gladiator pulls Devil Dinosaur, he will not destroy it as a 5-cost, 3-power card. Instead, he will first let Devil Dinosaur’s ability trigger and then read the total power (depending on how many cards are in your opponent’s hand). This is of course a huge disadvantage as cards like Darkhawk can still survive his ability.
• Does playing Gladiator with Cosmo, Shuri, or Forge work? Of course, it would! If you play Gladiator under Cosmo, you effectively play a 3-cost, 7-power with no disadvantage. There are a lot of interesting combos, so let’s get into the best Gladiator decks in Marvel Snap.

Glad(iator) to be here! – Surfer Destroy List

Despite both Destroy and Surfer being incredibly popular at the moment, the combination deck does not see much play. This is because both deck lists are incredibly tight as is and it is hard to fit in other cards. However, could Gladiator have been the missing puzzle piece to connect both decks together? Let’s check it out as we dive into the deck list:

• Nova (or Yondu, X-23, Nico Minoru)
• Wolverine (or Bucky Barnes)
• Carnage
• Brood
• Killmonger
• Gladiator
• Deathlok
• Sabretooth (or Shang-Chi)
• Venom
• Silver Surfer
• Knull (or Alioth, Werewolf By Night)
• Death

Gladiator Surfer destroy deck list

This deck offers many lines of play, being great in most scenarios. Destroy naturally has many 3-costs and now with Gladiator, we could use Surfer to buff them up further. In fact, playing Surfer early is not a bad plan, buffing up Sabretooth, and giving you a 0-cost, 6-power card. Brood is obviously there for Surfer, but feel free to eat it to achieve Carnage’s maximum power in a lane. Furthermore, Shang-Chi is extremely useful in this deck. This is because if Gladiator pulls a bigger card, chances are they are Shang-Chi-able. Therefore, keep an eye out for that! We didn’t include him in this deck list just so we can highlight the plethora of viable destroy and Surfer cards that work together but definitely do consider adding him to your lists!

Wakandan Smite – Shuri List

Ah, Shuri! One of the most consistently overpowered decks in the game. Not only does it have good counters to a lot of cards in Enchantress and Alioth, but it is capable of putting out extremely high numbers. As a result, we felt as though Gladiator could have a home in a Shuri-based list, doubling his power and thus guaranteeing destruction. The deck list is as follows:

• Ebony Maw
• Zero
• Lizard
• Gladiator
• Sauron
• Typhoid Mary
• Shuri
• Enchantress
• Taskmaster
• Red Skull
• Vision
• Alioth (or America Chavez, Armor)

Gladiator Shuri deck list

As previously mentioned, playing Shuri into Gladiator is a phenomenal play. This is because you get a 14-powered Gladiator that surely will obliterate the card he adds from your opponent’s deck. Furthermore, a 3-cost, 7-power is simply good stats and Shuri lists are all about power. A deck like this usually tends to be expensive, however, every single card here except Alioth (who is easily substitutable) is Series 3. Due to its accessibility and how easy it is to pilot this deck, this Shuri list is guaranteed to net you a lot of cubes! In terms of replacements, you can remove Alioth and add America Chavez for better draws. You can also remove Ebony Maw and instead add Nebula to add further pressure on your opponents. At the end of the day, not much can counter this solid deck.

Electric Boost – Ramp List

The whole idea of Ramp is to cheat out cards early by playing Electro or Wave. By restricting your opponents using Sandman, Wave, and Odin, you will be able to play better cards on the curve thus winning you the game. Here is the deck list:

• Nebula (or Sunspot)
• Jeff
• Gladiator
• Wave
• Electro
• Aero (or Jubilee)
• Sandman
• Black Panther
• Arnim Zola
• Odin
• Alioth (or White Tiger)
• Doctor Doom

Gladiator ramp deck list

There are a few play patterns while piloting this deck. First is playing Electro into Sandman into Black Panther into Arnim Zola. This is the optimal line that will win you most games comfortably. However, if you play Wave instead, you can Odin into Wave to further limit your opponents or play Doom or Alioth. An interesting play is dropping Gladiator and Jeff on turn 4 having played Electro earlier. This is a decent play if you don’t have your Arnim Zola combo ready. Remember, Jeff can’t be stopped by Electro’s effect! If you don’t own Jeff, then maybe Lizard could be an option as your opponent won’t be able to play a lot of cards.

W(On)g Reveal – On Reveal List

Everybody loves a little combo-based deck that can go crazy. Wong is the prime candidate when forming these deck lists and fortunately, we’ve found a fun way to play both Gladiator and Wong in a reliable list. Of course, it is not the most meta, but it definitely could be the most fun. Try piloting this deck when there’s Kamar Taj featured or when you simply want to play Proving Grounds and distance yourself from playing sweaty games. This is the deck list:

• Forge
• Nebula (or Iceman)
• Hazmat
• Luke Cage
• Zabu (or Wolfsbane, Gambit)
• Ironheart
• Mystique
• Gladiator
• Wong
• Absorbing Man (or Doom)
• White Tiger
• Odin

Gladiator On Reveal list

First of all, let’s take a look at the optimal line of play. You play Nebula and Zabu in a lane, then elsewhere, you play Wong, into Mystique and Forge, into Gladiator and Hazmat or White Tiger. Turn 6, you can play Luke Cage and Ironheart or simply Odin. There are a lot of different interesting combinations to be had so feel free to substitute cards to your liking! Regardless, buffing up Gladiator with Forge is extremely powerful and can win you the entire lane all by itself. You can win the other lanes using the recently buffed White Tiger followed by Odin. All in all, this deck’s main aim is to formulate some insane combo plays, especially in locations such as Kamar Taj and Onslaught Citadel.

That being said, these were the absolute best Gladiator decks in Marvel Snap.