Nine Lives (Expert Ronan defeated!)

Shadowcat is an amazing hero who, in my opinion, is most powerful when played in the Protection aspect! If you haven't tried it, I recommend it! And if you have tried it, I ask you this: have you tried her in Protection with Jocasta to grab Quick Shift?

End the villain form in Phased, defend for cheap, and profit wildly from a guaranteed Unflappable. Defeat the villain with Electrostatic Armor and Flow Like Water while Shadowcat's versatility covers board control!

This deck is built for solo play and has defeated Expert Ronan.

If you like this deck, feel free to give it a ❤ ! Thank you so much!

Letting the Cat Out of the Bag - Misconceptions

I have seen talk about Shadowcat on multiple platforms that Shadowcat does not need allies or double resource cards. And, from a certain point of view, this is true - because she is a very powerful hero who can perform extremely well without them. However, just because she doesn't need them doesn't mean she doesn't want them.

The Double Resource Cards (Energy, Genius, Strength)
Most Shadowcat decks will usually have at least 12 cards that cost 2 or more. If having that many aspect cards of such a cost would normally justify the inclusion of the Power of X resource cards, then having that many across aspect/basic/hero cards absolutely justifies the basic double resource cards. Especially with the amount of card draw Shadowcat has in Protection to help things line up!

Shadowcat and Allies Similar to the double resource cards, Shadowcat doesn't need allies. However, I again argue that she does want at least a couple - notably when played solo. For one, Protection lacks threat removal and allies can help provide it. Hard to Ignore is fantastic, and her 2 THW is usually good enough to handle the main scheme otherwise, but what happens when a nasty side scheme enters play with 5+ threat as is the case with many beyond Rise of Red Skull? If Airwalk isn't in your hand - and there are only two copies anyway - you could be in major trouble.

Allies like Daredevil, Black Widow and Jocasta provide up to 4 threat removal when used twice to THW. Jocasta can also find Quick Shift and hold it, giving us a third use of Quick Shift per deck cycle most of the time and, in the "worst case", can simply hold Powerful Punch or Defiance. And Black Widow can use her ability to help us dodge the worst side schemes in the first place, along with helping us avoid Kitty's crippling obligation, Shadow of the Past, etc!

They also provide an emergency block in case the villain activates multiple times or you want to stay readied to put out some extra damage instead!

A Cat Always Lands on its Feet - Defense Events

Why do I think Protection is Shadowcat's most powerful aspect? Quick Shift and Defiance prevent you from taking damage from an attack for 0-cost when you're Phased. Quick Shift even replaces itself and gives you an extra card!

Preemptive Strike and Side Step stop an attack for 1-cost (2 effective resources), but also deal damage! These are back-ups to be used when your 0-cost options are not in hand - but are still excellent.

And Powerful Punch exists to cover your defense if the villain attacks twice, or - more likely - you have a minion out against you that you couldn't finish off on the previous turn with Protection's low damage output. It also helps if you ended your turn in the wrong form, though this should be extremely rare.

And then there's Defensive Energy. Did you know you can spend Defensive Energy on a 0-cost card? You can overpay with it, helping you cycle through your deck for more options. Of course, if you have it in hand with a 1-cost defense event you should prioritize it there instead. Just make sure you spend it on something!

Between Unflappable, Defensive Energy and Quick Shift, you can often end the villain phase with at least as many cards as you started with! Sometimes more! All with no damage taken. It's extraordinarily efficient.

Look What the Cat Dragged In - Allies in Detail

We mostly covered the allies earlier, but here's a quick breakdown of each:

• Lockheed - 2-cost (3 effective resources) for up to 4 damage or threat removal, or 3 and a block. While blocks are worth less to Shadowcat, he's a great candidate to bring in, deal 3 damage or threat removal, and then keep on the board for an emergency.

• Jocasta - She is out best ally because she has the ability to hold our best card Quick Shift. Holding a card is usually equivalent to reducing her cost by 1, but since Quick Shift draws us two cards, it roughly works out that she removes 2 threat and blocks 2 attacks for 1-cost (2 effective resources). And that's very, very good. You can also use her to hold Powerful Punch for emergencies or Defiance as the next-best option. Don't underestimate the android!

• Black Widow - An oft-forgotten ally, but extremely useful. There are some things Protection is just not equipped to deal with, and she helps us dodge them. Shadow of the Past and Advance are the obvious choices, but I've also found great use in trading away nasty side schemes or big minions that Protection is ill-equipped to deal with such as Mystique. Kitty's obligation isn't talked about much but is, in my opinion, far nastier than the average obligation. Spending 1 resource to avoid it? I'll always take that deal.

• Daredevil - Like the other Protection allies, Daredevil has 2 THW. But he's 1 cheaper with no strings attached. It's a little plain, but you can ignore his ability in most cases and just thwart away. Keep him in reserve with 1 hp to block in a pinch or, in the event of a tricky side scheme or Advance, thwart again.

Did Someone say Cat Nip? - Upgrades/Supports

The usual upgrades/supports are all here. Unflappable, Hard to Ignore and Deft Focus. It's hard to make a case for any kind of Shadowcat Protection deck not having these. They are excellent and are your priorities when you mulligan!

Plan B provides damage on demand, something Protection lacks. So, while initially a 2 resource investment (1-cost + the card itself), playing this on a quiet turn really helps you deal with minions for the rest of the game and helps turn excess defense events into damage. Having this around as a permanent way to get damage is not to be underestimated.

While I'm not usually a huge fan of Flow Like Water and Electrostatic Armor, Shadowcat's desire to play at least 1 defense event per turn combined with Powerful Punch as a tool against minions makes them especially worthwhile. With both of them, you're usually dealing 2 damage to the villain every turn - more if you trigger Preemptive Strike or Side Step. This tends to make up almost 50% of my damage against villains, all for just doing what you want to do anyway. And it means that Powerful Punch effectively deals 6 damage to a minion when used to defend against one!

With a built-in resource generator in Solid, great value from Deft Focus and great card draw from Unflappable, it's arguable whether she even needs another - but I have found The X-Jet to be useful. It can still be used like Nerves of Steel, but can also help make your hero phase stronger if you instead defended with a 0-cost card as well as helping you deal with any encounter cards that demand a certain type of resource.

Cat Got Your Tongue? - Shadowcat Help

Shadowcat is, without a doubt, one of the trickiest heroes to play in all of Marvel Champions, up there in complexity with the likes of Nova and Adam Warlock. It's easy to get lose in the puzzle that is her form changing, and it's easy to forget how the attack and defend rules interact with either form.

Check out these great videos by the amazing SC0E for help on playing her!

• Shadowcat Xplained: Part 1
• Shadowcat Xplained: Part 2

Good luck and have fun!