Snapshot Header Image

Meta Snapshot #9

Patch Overview

Updated: 27 July 2019

First published: 15 July 2019 (Game version: 3.0.3)

 

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

Tier 2

Overview

A classic deck returns to give Northern Realms the most point-slam-focused archetype available to them. The basic idea is to thin out our Blue Stripes Commandos from the deck, Spawning multiple copies of them with Blue Stripes Scout, and gain enough tempo to get out of the round safely. Princess Pavetta can move them all back from the graveyard to the deck, and then all of them can be pulled in one powerful play, swarming the field with Humans that can be converted into Kaedweni Revenants using Draug. This is our finishing play or it can be used in some cases to preserve card advantage for the final round where strong Orders units and/or swarming out Blue Stripes Commandos is hopefully enough. The deck does not run a great number of King Foltest targets, making it easier to apply the Charges to some of the Revenants later in the game for even more value.

 

Essential Cards

  • Draug is our finisher and the main reason why our deck is full of Humans. On a board swarming with Humans, its ability to generate Kaedweni Revenants is immense, representing huge value if we are able to align some 1-strength units, or decent value even if we cannot. After the Gimpy Gerwin rework some patches ago, we are safe from our previous biggest counter.
  • Princess Pavetta enables us to play Blue Stripes Commando in Round 1, generating a good amount of tempo which ideally lets us win the round. After that, we use Pavetta to return all the copies to the deck to re-Summon in Round 3, swarming the field in one or two turns to provide more Human bodies for Draug.

 
Pros

  • Northern Realms’s point-slam deck with a good matchup against control decks in comparison to other NR decks
  • Ability to generate tempo using only bronzes in Round 1 with Blue Stripes package

Cons

  • Dependency on drawing our combo (or Royal Decree)
  • Lack of points in comparison with other meta decks

 

Tech Choices

  • Queen Adalia ⇒ Operator
  • Botchling ⇒ Summoning Circle

As we need to assure having a Commando for Round 3, Queen Adalia is a solid way to get it, but that requires us to spend 11 provisions on the combo. If we do not care too much about flexibility, we can do nearly the same combo with Operator. This only allows us to copy a Blue Stripes Commando, a significant downgrade in the flexibility Adalia gives us, but gains 1 provision in the process.

The second tech choice should be considered when we find ourselves in a meta with many opponents running artifact removal. While Summoning Circle gives us a bunch of extra tempo and thinning from the deck, it is very slow. Botchling is always an amazing engine, providing 1 point per turn.

      

    6,670 25 23 164

    • 14
      King Foltest
      Leader
      King Foltest Order: Boost an allied unit by 1 and give it Zeal. Charge: 3.
    • 7
      13
      Draug
      Draug Deploy: Transform all allied Human units into Kaedweni Revenants without changing their power.
    • 5
      12
      Gaunter O'Dimm
      Gaunter O'Dimm Deploy: Give an enemy unit Doomed. Order: Destroy a Doomed enemy unit.
    • 11
      Royal Decree
      Royal Decree Play a unit from your deck.
    • 3
      11
      Queen Adalia
      Queen Adalia Deploy: Spawn and play a base copy of a bronze unit from your hand, then give it a Shield.
    • 4
      10
      Prince Anséis
      Prince Anséis Formation. Order: Damage an enemy unit by 4. If Prince Anséis is boosted, Duel an enemy instead.
    • 9
      Alzur's Double-Cross
      Alzur's Double-Cross Play the highest unit from your deck.
    • 5
      9
      Seltkirk of Gulet
      Seltkirk of Gulet Order (Melee): Duel an enemy unit.
    • 5
      8
      Botchling
      Botchling Every allied turn, on turn end, damage the highest enemy unit by 1. Order: Transform into Lubberkin.
    • 1
      8
      Ronvid the Incessant
      Ronvid the Incessant Deploy: Boost self by 5. Whenever you play a Soldier, Summon this unit from your graveyard to a random allied row.
    • 6
      7
      Princess Pavetta
      Princess Pavetta Deploy: Shuffle a bronze unit and all copies of it from your graveyard into your deck.
    • 1
      6
      Sabrina Glevissig
      Sabrina Glevissig Spying. Deathwish: Damage all units on this row by 2.
    • 4
      6
      Blue Stripes Commando
      x2
      Blue Stripes Commando Order: Summon all copies of this unit from your deck to this row.
    • 4
      4
      Blue Stripes Scout
      x2
      Blue Stripes Scout Deploy (Melee): Spawn a copy of a bronze allied unit at the bottom of your deck.
    • 3
      4
      Cintrian Enchantress
      x2
      Cintrian Enchantress Deploy (Ranged): Give an allied unit Vitality for 2 turns. Bonded: Give it Vitality for 4 turns instead.
    • 3
      4
      Cutthroat
      Cutthroat Deploy: Give an enemy unit Bleeding for 2 turns.
    • 3
      4
      Oxenfurt Scholar
      x2
      Oxenfurt Scholar Deploy: Give an allied unit Vitality for 2 turns.
    • 3
      4
      Tridam Infantry
      Tridam Infantry Whenever this unit receives a boost, damage a random enemy unit by 1.
    • 2
      4
      Cintrian Knight
      x2
      Cintrian Knight Deploy (Melee): Damage an enemy unit by 2. Deathblow: Gain Vitality for 2 turns.
    • 2
      4
      Temple Guard
      x2
      Temple Guard Deploy (Melee): Boost 3 adjacent allied units by 1.

    Matchups

    Favorable against
    Struggles against

    Tier 3

    Honorable Mentions