Arishem Guide: Best Decks, How to Play, and Synergies (So Far)

Marvel Snap’s newest card Arishem has taken the game by storm! His ability is feels like a way to play draft mode, as you get random cards and have to adapt each game. Players are raving about the crazy situations Arishem creates and his ability to shake up the meta. While it remains unclear how good he will be in the long run, we have already begun to understand aspects of the card that works, his synergies, things to avoid, and some of the best decks to appear (so far). In this guide, we will break all of this down!

Arishem Gameplay Tips

• Arishem cannot generate the same card twice.
• When Arishem generates a card with an “at the start of the game” (like Agatha Harkness, Thanos‘ Infinity Stones, Uatu the Watcher, or High Evolutionary) ability, that card’s ability will not trigger.
• Abilities like Quicksilver, and the second part of Thanos‘ ability (being in your starting hand) will trigger.
• Arishem can generate another Arishem.
• Arishem can’t generate Kang.
• Cards generated by Arishem will reduce Mockingbird‘s cost and have their cost reduced by Quinjet.
• Max energy applies for all turns; after the game starts you’ll receive one extra energy each turn, even if Arishem is destroyed or disabled.
• If Arishem and The High Evolutionary are in the same starting deck, theres a 50% chance for no ability cards generated by Arishem to get abilities from High Evolutionary.
• If Arishem is shuffled higher in the starting deck, cards generated by him will get abilities from High Evo. If High Evo is shuffled higher in the starting deck, cards generated by Arishem won’t get abilities from High Evo.
• Arishem adds cards to your deck before you draw your starting hand.

Best Synergies

Adding 12 random cards to your deck can make it hard to know which cards you choose to add will make a difference. There are a few cards that we find to be particularly useful to include in your Arishem list:

Quinjet is a simple, early game way to add extra value to your random cards. It can allow you to play a random 6-Cost card as early as turn 4, or simply play multiple cards in a turn more flexibly. Your biggest weakness is drawing Quinjet too late, which often won’t help you and will be a dead draw. Many of the best Arishem decks are even gravitating away from Quinjet to another card…

With your extra energy, Sera can be played on turn 4. Her discount provides you the same discount as Quinjet, but with the added effect that it targets your regular deck cards too! Sera decks are already strong, so playing her early and having an unpredictable decks makes for a potent combo.

Speaking of potent combos, Blob pairs perfectly with Arishem! With such a large deck, you can safely play Blob on turn 5 without running out of cards. It also ensures Blob will reach his Power cap, making him a reliable Power slam. In the current meta, Blob also counters players that capitalize on your deck size by using Darkhawk.

While he doesn’t make every list, Phastos also pairs well with Arishem for a number of reasons. First, you can play him as early as turn 2 for extra value. Second, his Power buffs can help empower your Blob. Finally, any discounted cards can add to your already flexible gameplans.

With all of those random cards, Mockingbird makes a great value card for your deck. She often will Cost 0 to 2 energy by the final turn, which can help to dump your Power into key locations.

Arguably one of the best ways to maximize positive draws Arishem‘s random draw is to use Loki. If you get a bad starting hand, your extra energy means nothing. Loki can be played as soon as turn 3, giving you a quick hand reset with a discount with it! It can single-handedly give your bad RNG matches a reset option for a higher chance at victory.

With so many random cards in your deck, you may often find an ability that would be really strong if you could play it twice. Absorbing Man helps you to get a second trigger and remain adaptive. He also works as a great follow-up to a turn 5 Blob by literally becoming a second Blob!

Best Decks So Far

Sera Control

Sera Control decks are already a strong way to combat an ever-evolving meta. With Arishem, the deck becomes a control deck that is unpredictable to opponents, adaptable for the pilot, and full of answers for whatever your opponent is doing. Arishem’s random cards also help to mask what the deck really is, which can make all of your counter plays much more effective. By having a deck full of counter cards, you are much more likely to draw something to interact with your opponent without relying on your random cards to save you.

The deck offers multiple location manipulators, ways to disable enemy cards, ways to remove threats, and even ways to drop surprisingly high amounts of late game Power. U.S. Agent is a great example. With Sera and your extra energy, you can safely hold him until the end of a match and drop him precisely where he is most effective. Even disrupting 1 card makes him a 2/7 (or a [1/7] with Sera). Playing him late game will often net you 2 cards you can effect. With Luke Cage as another tech option, you can even avoid your own penalty. The deck so far has proven to be the most interactive usage of an Arishem deck.

High Evo Arishem

This list makes the most out of the extra energy by floating it. High Evo decks already want to float at least 1 energy each turn in order to trigger your evolved cards. Arishem’s extra energy let’s you more reliable float energy to ensure those triggers activate. That energy also let’s you full skip turn 5 for a free Hulk and She-Hulk, or play Blob on turn 5 and Hulk on turn 6.

With Arishem giving you random cards, you may often find yourself playing cards sub-optimally from your available energy. High Evo turns that excess energy into a positive energy float. Mockingbird also lowers in Cost from the random cards, which further helps you float energy.

As for tech options, this deck brings Shang-Chi and Rogue as ways to interact with your opponent. If your opponent plays Blob, Rogue can steal the text and become a Blob herself! Caiera is also in this list to protect those turn 5, 6-Cost cards you play, as well as your valuable 1-Costs.

Arishem Loki

For many players, Loki deck variations like this one are often the go to choice for Arishem lists. Since Loki already wants cards like Quinjet and card generation, the random cards are more natural to adapt to. The extra energy helps to utilize the random cards well, or simply reset your hand with Loki at an earlier round.

This version uses the strong synergies of Blob, Mockingbird, and Phastos. These cards, along with Quinjet, help maximize the benefits you get from the random cards you draw.

For more unique picks, Adam Warlock can be a surprise way to draw more cards on turn 4. Wave allows you to make cards cost a max of 4 Energy on turn 3. This means only you can play a big card because your opponent will only have 3 energy (unless they are also playing Arishem. Magneto offers a turn 5 way of messing with your opponent’s board state to interrupt their setup for the final turn.

Things to Avoid With Arishem

• Avoid making decks that rely on synergy. The random cards will often mess up your ability to frequently pull off your combo.
• Don’t Snap a match just because you started the match with Quinjet. Random card draw means you could draw only 6-Cost cards, or a bunch Power cards, or you just draw your regular deck. Only Snap the Quinjet if you have a clear play line for the next few turns.
• Don’t stay in a match in the hopes you draw what you need. Your opponent may Snap and you think “if I draw my Shang-Chi, I can easily win this!” With a 24 card deck, you can’t rely on what’s in your deck like you would traditionally do. Snap and retreat smart. Snap when you have a strong play line, retreat when you have bad rng.
• When deckbuilding, don’t stack your deck with too many big cards. It may he tempting with that extra energy, but you may often find yourself with a dead hand for the first few turns which could snowball the game in your opponent’s favor.
• Similarly, don’t add a bunch of 1 or 2-Cost cards to your deck. Focus more on 3, 4, and 5-Costs to maximize your likelihood of drawing good cards at a playable round. Too many low cost cards may cause you to have lots of extra energy and nothing good to play.

Summary

Arishem has taken the meta by storm, and he will likely be around for quite a while as players continue to experiment. As the weeks go on, Arishem’s best decks and card pairings may increase as players make optimal lists. Even in his current state, the card’s unpredictability combined with the energy ramp has made him plenty viable in the meta. If you are on the fence about getting this card, he is an excellent way to learn how to adapt match to match. If you are a newer player, I wouldn’t recommend getting him right away. With nearly 400 cards in the game, trying to adapt to a match will be very difficult when every card you draw is a new ability you may have never seen before. If you want a trial by fire though, Arishem will let you preview more cards than you previously ever could.

Big thanks to the community and content creators like TLSG, Jeff Hoogland, OrdinaryHarry, PulseGlazer, and Den. The decks featured in this article are inspired (or copied) from existing lists these guys helped cook, so shout out to everyone involved in creating them. As the weeks go on, we may see more wacky builds featured!

Do you have a unique Arishem build? What’s your craziest interaction with Arishem? Are there other good synergies we missed? Let us know in the comments!