The Phoenix Force Guide and Best Decks: Everything You Need to Know - Marvel Snap Zone (2024)

Welcome to our new series of Marvel Snap guides, where we feature a Series 4 or 5 card and analyze how to use it. The goal is to give you a tutorial on how to use the card most effectively in an everchanging meta, as well as help you decide if the card is worth the tokens or if you should pick it up during a Spotlight Cache week!

We will aim to revise this guide each time it becomes featured in a Spotlight Cache. If the card becomes rebalanced or the meta has changed a lot, please let us know in the comments and we will look to update it based on demand!

Spotlight Cache

Series 4 cards can be purchased for 3,000 Collector’s Tokens from the Token Shop initially as a Weekly Spotlight card, or opened as one of the featured cards in the Spotlight Caches that are found every 120 Levels on the Collection Level Track after Collection Level 500 (until the next new card releases the following week).

Who is Phoenix Force?

The Phoenix Force is an immortal being that roams the cosmos as the embodiment of life and energy itself. It is often revered as a God to many civilizations who witness it. It’s power is immeasurable, but fully capable of destroying entire planets. It is capable of attaching itself to a host, and is also able to become corrupted. This corrupted version is known as Dark Phoenix.

Most recognizability, Phoenix Force merges with Jean Grey after finding a connection with her as a telepath. Once Jean nearly perishes, she calls to the Phoenix, who then revives her and merges as her host. Jean would become her strongest with the Phoenix, but would fall to the corruption and transform into Dark Phoenix.

As a popular storyline, Phoenix Force makes multiple appearances across different shows and movies. Most notably, she has a multiple episode arc in X-Men the Animated Series. She also has versions of Dark Phoenix in the X-Men live action trilogy, as well as X-Men Apocalypse and X-Men Dark Phoenix.

How to Use

The Phoenix Force is more of a deck – than a card. It requires multiple moving pieces in order to get value. It first requires a good target that benefits from Movement. Next, you need a Destroy card to enable the destruction of your target. Finally, you need The Phoenix Force to revive your target. The multi step process requires you to draw well and have multiple targets and enablers in order to be consistent.

Best Synergies

Your best destroy options are Carnage, Venom, and Deathlok. Without these, you will have a hard time getting value out of The Phoenix Force.

There are lots of move targets that could benefit from moving around each turn. The most reliable two are Human Torch and Multiple Man. This is because Torch can double Power each turn to guarantee escalating value, and Multiple Man can duplicate copies of himself that can each be moved around!

To maximize your benefit with The Phoenix Force, you can use your move enablers! This includes Ghost-Spider, Doctor Strange, and Iron Fist.

Best Deck

This is one of the most consistent The Phoenix Force decks there is. It utilizes maximum destroy options and your 2 best move options. If you don’t draw The Phoenix Force, you can pivot to a Shuri Nimrod list!

Fun Off-Meta Deck

Since The Phoenix Force requires so much to get value, most lists have similar cards. This list runs the alternate play line of Iron Man, Onslaught, and The Living Tribunal! The deck also runs Magik, which gives you an extra turn to find your The Phoenix Force combo!

Weaknesses and Things to Avoid

Getting a card destroyed that wasn’t your intended target can cause you to revive the wrong card. Early game, your opponent can use Yondu or Gladiator to force destroy one of your cards. This could directly counter your gameplan and create a risk that The Phoenix Force will pull the unintended card.

Due to how card merging works, avoid reviving Hulkbuster. If you manage to destroy an unattached Hulkbuster and revive it, it will merge with a card at its location. This causes The Phoenix Force to “lose track” of where Hulkbuster went, so it basically disappears and doesn’t give you the extra stats or abilities. It’s a pretty niche interaction, but worth noting.

A final point worth noting is The Phoenix Force only works if a card is in your destroy graveyard. This means cards that regenerate can’t be revived. So if you destroy X-23, Wolverine, or Deadpool, they will be unable to be revived.

Closing Thoughts

The Phoenix Force creates a fun, unique deck that can often hold its own in the ever-changing meta. It is by no means a required card though. I would only recommend searching to collect it if you had your heart set out on the deck style or you have an abundance of Collector’s Tokens or Spotlight Keys.

Is The Phoenix Force worth using 3,000 Collector’s Tokens?