Ant-Man - Quit Bugging Me!

Welcome to one of the most fun decks with another new hero - surprise surprise - this deck uses Leadership! But what would you say is Ant-Man's leadership style? He's a big fan of swarm, whether it be ants or cheap Avenger's allies, Ant-Man has a solution to your villainous pest problem. So how does super-thief Scott Lang make it happen? Play this deck and find out. To start the game you'll have to use your resources wisely and by the end you'll just be making the motions as you attack for 6-7 damage twice per turn.

The Basics

This leadership deck tries to not use your allies as chump blockers. No, instead we are going to treat each ally as if it's a copy of Avengers Mansion. How do we do this? With Strength In Numbers normally card draw allies like Maria Hill are staples in leadership decks but the Ant-Man hero pack offers some new efficient allies that can really make this deck function. Your first deck cycle will be all about getting allies on the board, end this deck pass with 5-6 allies on the board and you'll be going wild the rest of the game.

Form Decisions

The most important decision you make with this deck is what form to end your turn in. Typically, the early game you spend lots of time in Tiny hero form so you have higher card draw and can ramp allies out onto the board. You also have higher thwart to keep the scheme at bay while you get allies out. Later in the game you'll want to smash face in Giant hero form. Often using 1-2 Morale Boost and 1-2 Moxie you can get your basic attack up to 5-7 and that's without including Giant Strength. Make good use of those allies you have put out to the board and Earth's Mightiest Heroes to attack multiple times as the true hero of this story, Ant-Man.

This isn't always the clear path. Leadership is nice in that it is very versatile and so is Ant-Man. Against minion heavy scenarios it may be best to remain in Giant form to begin the game. Keeping the board clear so you don't have to sacrifice your allies is key. So see what comes of the villain deck and always think about how you can keep your allies up!

Army of Ally Ants

I've said it a few times - you want to build an Army of Ally Ants. You can get up to 6 allies using The Triskelion, Avengers Tower, and Stinger but often the combo is well enough off at 4-5 allies on the board. Don't forget about your Army of Ants support cards as well as they can help take down minions and keep your allies alive.

How To Recover From Disaster

As happens in most games disaster is likely to strike. Whether you have to sacrifice an ally to thwart or defend or get hit by an untimely Concussive Blast make sure you have a back up plan for your allies. Make the Call may be a suitable swap for Call for Aid and 1 Moxie but I enjoy using new cards so I've left it as is for now. I often begin my Giant form stomping at 4-5 allies. A Strength In Numbers for 4 cards is still a huge boon. This way I have more allies in my deck to keep my tempo going. Getting down Avengers Tower and Team-Building Exercise really helps- if allies go down it can be hard to afford allies and maintain Morale Boost and other Ant-Man shenanigans. With these two cards your allies can be very cheap and keep your cost curve minimal when recovering.

Cost Curve In the Grass

The cost curve on this deck is in-sane! Not only does this deck not have any 4 cost cards. Only 10 cards in the deck cost 2+. And only 3 of those 10 cards are events. When the deck is set-up you will often find yourself playing 5+ 0 or 1 cost cards each turn. When modifying try to keep the cost curve low. It lets you get away without using The Power of Leadership and other resource generators without lagging due to your 4 card hand size in Giant form.

The Mulligan

I can not stress enough. Ant-Man can have some really explosive openers. I often really focus on maintaining the board and building your engine. You are going to want to get Ant-Man's Helmet and cheap allies out ASAP look for allies like Stinger and Ant-Man (Ally) early. Don't be afraid to play 1-2 cheap allies and set up an early Strength In Numbers. Most importantly, do NOT toss Avengers Tower or Team-Building Exercise you'll want those cards down to fuel your allies and keep you in the game.