The Team Aretuza GWENT Meta Snapshot attempts to showcase the most-played decks on the Pro and Ranked ladders. We then attempt to rank them based on deck strength. These are the decks dominating the ladder right now, and this list does not represent all of the decks available nor even necessarily the best there is to be seen.
Every deck has a short guide explaining how the list works, its pros and cons, and a few other considerations to take into account. We also list a few matchups we think are particularly good or bad for each deck.
As the meta continues to shift, we will update our Snapshot to reflect the changes. Updates will continue to be announced on the Team Aretuza Discord Community and official Team Aretuza Twitter account.
Meta Snapshot #14
Patch Overview
PLEASE NOTE: This Meta Snapshot was intended for use during the Season of Love (February of 2020) and does not accurately reflect the meta as of the Season of the Bear (March 2020)
Below is Team Aretuza and Team Nova's Meta Snapshot for the Season of Love. The meta displays a large degree of variability after the balance patch that was implemented before this season's start. No true contenders stand out as one to completely dominate the meta as of yet, so we will remain diligent in following the meta to see if this changes. As always, we will make appropriate changes throughout the season to keep viewers up to date with the meta to the best of our ability. You can follow the invite link to our Discord server in the upper right hand corner of the site to ask any questions you may have at any time. Enjoy and good luck on your Gwent journey this month!
Changelog:
- 19 February 2020:
- Added: Enslave 6, Patricidal Fury Bloodthirst
- Removed: Blood Money Control
- Updated: Imperial Formation Soldiers, Blood Money Passiflora (previously Wild Card Passiflora)
- Tier adjustments:
- Precision Strike Scorch Tier 2 ⇒ Tier 3
- Patricidal Fury Regis Greatswords Tier 3 ⇒ Honorable Mention
- 26 February 2020:
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
Overview
Utilizing Passiflora is a more greedy approach to playing Syndicate, but one with large potential payoff. Generating multiple Sly Seductresses makes it difficult for the opponent to fight for the round if they lack removal for them, which allows us to take control of the game. In general, we play many engines (that we can possibly protect with Azar Javed) and overload the opposing removal options. In addition to our engine value over time, we can utilize the great removal tools offered by Syndicate to take care of opposing engines and tall units alike.
Essential Cards
- Passiflora is the core of our deck and represents a lot of what the deck seeks to accomplish. We are able to generate multiple engines with Passiflora, which strains opposing removal tools. At the end we also gain a large sum of coins which helps us to tempo ahead of the opponent if needed or utilize a swing card such as Philippa Eilhart.
- Adriano the Mink has not found a home in many Syndicate decks recently, but fits perfectly here due to the Blindeyes tag and ability to generate multiple Sly Seductresses. Typically, this is a card we seek to play with Passiflora or any time we are able to get multiple Sly Seductresses on board, but it is also a reasonable play early in some matchups if we want to get a Seductress on the board before the opponent can develop their own damage potential.
Pros
- Developing many engines makes it difficult for the opponent to have enough removal
- Typical Syndicate strengths, such as removing engines and tall units
Cons
- artifact removal is a killer, especially if we do not draw Azar Javed or the opponent can efficiently answer it
- Weaker when going first and/or unable to secure control of the round structure
Tech Choices
- Maraal, Coerced Blacksmith, Mutated Hounds ⇒ Moreelse, Pickpocket, Sea Jackal
Maraal can be an awkward card to play due to Syndicate’s lack of desire to carry its low cost poison cards into the final round in most cases. If the Poison effect is particularly weak in the meta, we can instead find a flexible removal option in Moreelse. This potentially shores up our relative lack of tall removal options when choosing Blood Money over Wild Card (with Graden) as our leader ability.
Written by JMJWilson23
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16Blood Money
Order: Damage an enemy unit by 8, then gain Coins equal to any excess damage dealt.
This ability adds 16 provisions to your deck's provisions limit.
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0Magic Lamp
Order: Transform into Lamp Djinn.
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14Passiflora
Scenario: Progress whenever you play a Blindeye.
Prologue: Spawn a Sly Seductress in this row.
Chapter 1: Spawn Passiflora Peaches in this row.
Chapter 2: Gain 6 Coins.
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510Maraal
Deploy: Poison an enemy unit.
Order: Poison an enemy unit.
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310Philippa Eilhart
Deploy: Spend a number of Coins equal to an enemy unit's power, then Seize it.
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9Vivaldi Bank
Profit 3.
Look at the top card from your deck plus an additional card for every Coin you possess. Play the top card for free, or play another card for a Coin cost equal to its distance from the top. Shuffle the remaining cards back into your deck.
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69Madame Luiza
Intimidate.
Deploy: Your next Tribute this round is free.
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69Savolla
Profit 2.
Tribute 9: Spawn a Savolla's Frightener in this row.
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59Azar Javed
Profit 3.
Deploy: Spawn a Scarab in this row.
Tribute 3: Spawn 2 Scarabs in this row instead.
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59Imke
Ranged: Every allied turn, on turn end, gain 2 Coins.
Fee 3: Gain a Shield.
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68Adriano the Mink
Profit 2.
Tribute 5: Spawn a Sly Seductress and Summon her to this row.
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68Hammond
Deploy: Move an enemy unit to the other row and give it Bleeding (2).
Increase Bleeding by 1 for each adjacent Pirate.
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48Dire Mutated Hound
Barricade: At the end of every allied turn, boost self 2.
Fee 4: Gain 1 Armor.
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48Ewald Borsodi
Profit 2.
If Horst Borsodi is in your graveyard, increase this card's initial Profit by 2.
Fee 2 (Melee): Damage an enemy unit by 2.
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45Coerced Blacksmith
Profit 1.
Fee 1: Boost an allied unit by 1.
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45Sly Seductressx2
Fee 3: Gain a Shield.
Whenever your opponent plays a unit, boost self by 1.
Bonded: Whenever your opponent plays a card, boost self by 1.
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4Fisstechx2
Profit 4.
Poison a unit.
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44Sea Jackal
Fee 2: Boost self by 2.
Hoard 7: Boost self by 3 instead.
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44Witch Hunter
Deploy: Place a Bounty on an enemy unit.
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34Fisstech Traffickerx2
Deploy: Give Poison to a unit. If it's an ally, gain 3 Coins.
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34Mutated Houndsx2
Deploy (Melee): Give an enemy unit Bleeding for 2 turns.
Deploy (Ranged): Poison a unit.
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24Street Urchinsx2
Profit: 3.
Fee 1: Boost self by 1.
