Snapshot Header Image

Meta Snapshot #6

Patch Overview

The five new faction leaders introduced to Gwent with the Thronebreaker Leaders Update at the beginning of the month have had a mixed impact on the Gwent meta, while nerfs to some familiar faces have left more room for a wider variety of played cards.

Published: 15 February 2019 (Patch: 1.2.0.9_541)

Contributors

Consultants: Adzikov, Damorquis, Jamedi, JMJWilson23, Kochua, Kolemoen, Molegion, Santtu2x, Sergi2Vamos.
Editors: Apero, Kochua
Manager: JMJWilson23

Tier 1

Decks in this tier have favourable matchups against the majority of lower tier decks and some favourable matchups against other Tier 1 lists. Another criterion is that these decks should be able to win against lower-tier decks on blue coin most of the time.

 

Tier 2

Decks in this tier can beat Tier 1 decks if the player can access its full potential, or are strong decks with a clear counter; in addition, these decks should win consistently against lower tiers.

 

Tier 3

While decks in this tier remain good laddering options that can successfully achieve high winrates, they can struggle to achieve the same winrate when matched up against decks we place in higher tiers. They may make for strong tournament options.

 

Honorable Mentions

Decks here aren't strong or popular enough to be tiered, but have enough potential to be better with the adequate support cards. They may win against unsuspecting opponents and can make for interesting tournament options, but are otherwise worth just keeping an eye on.


Written by Jamedi; Consultation: Damorquis, JMJWilson23 and SwanDive

 

What is a Meta Snapshot?

A Meta Snapshot is a comprehensive list of the decks which are played in a CCG. The decks are ordered by criteria, accounting for their power level through a tier (used by Team Aretuza & Team Nova), star or numerical system. If you would like to discuss our current Meta Snapshot, you can join our Discord server.

 

Which kind of criteria are used to classify a deck into a tier?

While the list of criteria is extensive, here are the most important aspects:

  • Power level is the amount of points a deck can output in comparison to others in the meta. In general, decks of higher tiers tend to have a greater number of unconditional points without depending on what rival decks do.
  • Consistency is focused on the draw dependency of a deck and the amount of thinning this deck has. Better thinning means more consistency, which usually means easier access to higher-value cards. If a deck is too dependent on drawing one or two certain cards but runs no thinning, it lacks consistency.
  • Counterability is the difficulty that other decks have to tech for the matchup against a certain deck and how much they need to sacrifice to improve the matchup. In Gwent, there are a lot of ways to prepare a deck for a concrete matchup and we can expect players to tech against the strongest/most popular decks of the metagame. The capability of a deck to win despite teching plays a role in its tier placement.

The data are collected by the players in several hundred matches and is then translated into the Snapshot. While the normal ladder experience can be different, tiered decks are good to climb the ladder to Pro Rank with relative ease.

 

What is the meaning of the different tiers?
  • Tier 1: Decks in this tier are the strongest, the most difficult to counter and heavily influence how decks in other tiers adapt.
  • Tier 2: Usually this tier covers decks which are still good, but due to some reason, they cannot be qualified as Tier 1. They usually have less strength than Tier 1 decks or have another factor that makes them slightly worse than top tier decks. In some particular metagames, a deck can be Tier 2 due to how easy it is to tech against it.
  • Tier 3: Decks in this category are still viable for climbing the ranked ladder, but they encounter more difficulty at high fMMR. They can still be used as tournament picks (in formats in which you can ban). They may still have favorable matchups versus some Tier 1 decks, but they are usually unfavored. Decks which are inconsistent or too draw-dependent also fall into this category.
  • Honorable Mentions: Here, we put decks whose strength is not enough to be tiered, but which have the potential to be much better with some support. These decks are always worth keeping an eye on. A deck which has been discovered recently and has not been played enough to be tiered can also fall into this category.

 

My experience differs from what you describe in the Snapshot. Does this mean that the Snapshot is not accurate?

Short answer, no. Long answer, there are a huge number of factors that can influence the development of a matchup between two players with their respective decks, which includes player skill, knowledge of the matchup and the respective decks, cards drawn and how they have played the match. Also, it is worth noting that a meta snapshot represents a picture of how the meta is in a particular moment. “Tiers” as defined above are never rigid constructs. In any given day, the meta can shift dramatically.

In general, inexperienced players tend to play worse and with more unpredictable lists. As we move up on the ladder, decklists tend to be more optimized, sometimes influenced by content creators such as popular streamers or the most recent meta snapshot. Reaching Pro Rank, we can expect to face the best possible players with the most optimized decklists.

 

I have a different list from the one shown in the Snapshot. Does this mean that one of the lists is incorrect?

Lists provided in our snapshots are usually stock lists, which are supposed to be a base to be modified according to the meta you are currently facing and your own playstyle. The tech section provides some card replacement options which may be more effective within a particular meta. This normally does not affect a deck’s overall consistency.

 

I haven’t seen this deck which appears in the Snapshot / I play this list or this archetype and it isn’t in the Snapshot.

The Snapshot tries to be as accurate and complete as possible. We release an initial snapshot as soon as the meta has settled after a game patch and make as many updates as possible afterwards. If a deck is not included, it will most likely be added in one of the next updates, as we try to prioritize the most popular and relevant decks. Despite that, we have to skip some decks which are unpopular or are very similar to existing ones. If you would like to be informed about our updates, feel free to check our website regularly or follow Team Aretuza or Team Nova on Twitter or Discord.

 

Are you just including the most popular decks/FOTM lists? Do you keep the best lists for yourselves?

No. While it is true that part of our work is to try and create a representation of the meta that is as accurate as possible and this, of course, includes the popularity of decks, popularity has no impact on how decks are tiered. We do not keep the best lists for ourselves. We are creating meta snapshots to share our collective knowledge of this game and provide players of all levels with a more enjoyable Gwent experience.

 

Do you have more questions? Join the discussion on Discord!


Tier 1

High Tier 2

Overview

Playing Lippy Gudmund feels at times like cheating the provision system, as it enables us to play our gold cards in two different rounds while Discarding any low quality or tech cards in bad matchups. Crach an Craite is used as a leader in this deck due to its high number of provisions and its ability to enable Geralt: Professional. This deck was created by Gnurrgard and Wusubi.

 

Essential Cards

  • Lippy Gudmund’s ability of swapping cards from the graveyard back into the deck is the core of this list. Besides being a tool for easy disposal of our low-value cards, it also allows for a longer than normal Round 1, as we are not afraid to commit our finishers, which are usually reserved for Round 3 in others decks. Thus, we are able to win the first round easily and remain in control for the rest of the game.
  • Geralt: Professional's ability requirement is relatively easy to achieve in this deck, as every card is at most one point damage or boost away from being a multiple of 3. Geralt: Professional is really effective in most of cases, but in the worst of situations, it will still be a 6-point card, which is decent value.

 

Pros

  • Higher quality of cards than in other decks due to Lippy Gudmund
  • Great consistency because of Discard package (Birna Bran, Heymaey Skald, Morkvarg and Tuirseach Skirmisher)

Cons

  • Can struggle against other midrange decks such as Shupe's Day Off decks if they take a timely pass in R1
  • Too many reactive cards, which can be rough without last say

 

Tech Choices

  • Skjall ⇒ Gimpy Gerwin
  • Unicorn, Chironex ⇒ Olaf, Hym

There is a difference between Skjall and Gimpy Gerwin that must be considered when taking this deck into the meta: Skjall’s single-target damage is far safer and more consistent, but the possible AoE of Gimpy Gerwin can be far more powerful against decks such as Big Monsters or Slave Infantry NG.

The decision of whether to replace the Unicorn/Chironex combination with Olaf and Hym depends very much on how many mirrors we face - it is far safer to play the horses in a mirror match. However, if we face more uninteractive decks, Olaf and Hym are almost assured value, especially against Monsters.

 

Video Guide

0 25 24 176

  • 16
    Crach an Craite
    Leader
    Crach an Craite Order: Damage an enemy unit by 1. Cooldown: 2.
  • 13
    Hanmarvyn's Blue Dream
    Hanmarvyn's Blue Dream Play a unit from the opponent's graveyard and give it Doomed.
  • 3
    11
    Geralt: Professional
    Geralt: Professional Deploy (Melee): Damage an enemy unit by 3. If its power was a multiple of 3, destroy it instead.
  • 5
    10
    Birna Bran
    Birna Bran Deploy: Draw 2 cards, then Discard 2 cards.
  • 3
    10
    Roach
    Roach Whenever you play a gold card, Summon this unit from your deck to a random allied row.
  • 2
    10
    Lippy Gudmund
    Lippy Gudmund Deploy (Ranged): Swap your graveyard with your deck.
  • 5
    9
    Morkvarg
    Morkvarg If this unit moves to the graveyard during the round, Summon it to the melee row and give it Doomed.
  • 4
    9
    Chironex
    Chironex Deploy: Damage a unit by 3. If you control Unicorn, double that amount.
  • 4
    9
    Unicorn
    Unicorn Deploy: Boost a unit by 3. If you control Chironex, double that amount.
  • 4
    8
    Donar an Hindar
    Donar an Hindar Deploy: Damage an enemy unit by 2. Bloodthirst 2: Damage an enemy unit by 5 instead.
  • 3
    8
    Skjall
    Skjall Deploy: Damage an undamaged enemy unit by 4.
  • 2
    8
    Eskel
    Eskel Deploy: Summon Vesemir and Lambert from your deck to this row.
  • 2
    8
    Lambert
    Lambert Deploy: Summon Eskel and Vesemir from your deck to this row.
  • 2
    8
    Vesemir
    Vesemir Deploy: Summon Eskel and Lambert from your deck to this row.
  • 4
    7
    Ulfhedinn
    Ulfhedinn Deploy: Damage an enemy unit by half of its current power.
  • 5
    5
    Dimun Light Longship
    Dimun Light Longship Order: Damage self and an enemy unit by 1. Cooldown: 1.
  • 3
    5
    Bomb Heaver
    Bomb Heaver Deploy: Destroy an enemy artifact.
  • 3
    5
    Heymaey Skald
    x2
    Heymaey Skald Deploy: Discard a card, then draw a card.
  • 3
    4
    Dimun Pirate Captain
    x2
    Dimun Pirate Captain Deploy, Bloodthirst 2: Damage an enemy unit by 3.
  • 2
    4
    An Craite Marauder
    An Craite Marauder Deploy (Melee): Split 4 damage randomly between all other units.
  • 2
    4
    Tuirseach Skirmisher
    x2
    Tuirseach Skirmisher When this unit is Discarded, Summon it from your graveyard to the melee row.
  • 2
    4
    Wolf Pack
    x2
    Wolf Pack Deploy: Damage an enemy unit by 2.

Low Tier 2

Tier 3