MacGhille · 229
This deck is inspired by the "Venom Confuse Lock!" created by IlEmperator, which was a fantastically focused deck. Confusion left and right, as well as ways to capitalize on that confusion. I was very impressed.
I found though, that the original deck was best played in solo since it gave you greater control over how you abused the villain being Confused. If there were additional heroes, Venom might not directly benefit from the Confusion, since it could be knocked off by another hero in Alter-ego mode. Not as detrimental (individually) as having the Stunned status removed before the villain gets to you, but still a limiting factor.
After a few plays, it also became clear that Venom could very easily become a towering menace on the board if he leans into his already impressive healing capability. I saw a version of Venom that held the line in Hero mode for extended periods while confusing the villain so that squishier heroes could stay in alter-ego mode longer.
(I want to point out that I edited this breakdown to reflect my new understanding of Helicarrier, which I am now aware cannot be used to reduce the cost of an interrupt during the villain phase. -MacGhille)
So here is what I built.
I changed his allies. I ditched Nick Fury because he's expensive and I almost always used him as a resource in the short and mid-game. I ditched Jessica Jones and Jack Flag because they were also expensive for limited benefit. Quake, Wiccan and Eros aren't really anything special in and of themselves, but their main purpose is to be blockers, and everything else is gravy. If you run into a minion situation that utilizes Quake and Eros, then all the better.
Groot on the other hand is what I consider a 'must-add' if you are playing a Guardian hero. Six health for 3? And he heals 2 damage when he survives a block? That is insane. He can easily take the full brunt of a villain attack and stick around for a second pass, which is incredible.
One of the worst situations I find myself in with Champions is falling into a cycle of defending every round and then being exhausted and incapable of action on my turn. While chump-blockers are great, Venom's generous healing opened up a different option. To that end, I added Endurance and Down Time. These two cards (combined with Venom's 4REC and Project Rebirth 2.0) super-charge Venom into a 15HP powerhouse that can recover for 9 health with one action. That is stupendous, and the benefit it provides can't be overstated. Venom can now take the villain hit squarely on the chin regularly in order to be ready on his turn.
The last area I wanted to buff Venom was in reducing the cost of cards. A lot of heroes can can build an engine for this with their Hero cards, but Venom oddly has resource generation as a character ability...and nowhere else. To help out with this in the long game, I added the Helicarrier.
My final alteration was to swap out the Concussive Blow and Swift Retribution from IlEmperator's original for Clear the Area, Crisis Averted and Lay Down the Law. I removed Concussive Blow because its cost drastically limited my choices until the late game, and there were plenty of cards that Confused the Villain already. I removed Swift Retribution because I found I almost never wanted to force the villain to scheme. Particularly since the original combo was to Confuse the villain and then force a scheme to get a free hit. But my version of Venom uses Confuse to give other heroes a breather.
As a solo hero, Venom can handle threat by simply preventing the villain from scheming, but that strategy doesn't work as well when there's another hero in Alter-Ego mode. That is why I elected to add some threat removal, making Venom just as useful in a multi-hero environment. That being said, you can easily manipulate the numbers of the trio of cards I swapped in (Clear the Area, Crisis Averted, Lay Down the Law) to better suit your approach. Swap a Crisis for Nick Fury. Remove Clear the Area for the Energy resource card. Go nuts.
But let me say...Lay Down the Law seems like it was custom built for Venom. When he changes form, he can take a point of damage and activate his Symbiotic Bond to guarantee he gets the full benefit of the card. You literally never have to worry about it.
Playing this Venom deck:
Venom's mulligan is a bit more strategic than other weapon-centric Heroes, since he has to burn through his deck looking for a Weapon upgrade rather than search and shuffle. This means you need to heavily prioritize your cards for the mulligan prior to burning your deck.
First, his recovery ability is crucial for the 'in your face' style of play this deck wants. Do NOT discard Endurance, Down Time or Project Rebirth 2.0 for your mulligan. They are stupid cheap, and provide you with unbelievable room to maneuver in the short and mid-game. If you are lucky enough to have all three in the opening hand, just keep that hand and play them all, you are now nearly invincible. Plus, Project Rebirth lets you draw an extra card if you aren't severely injured, which pays massive dividends if you get it early.
Next in order of importance are Weapon Upgrades. For me, the Multi-Gun is the main goal since it is so versatile and can be used even if your hero is exhausted. If it is in your hand, keep it. Venom's Pistols are excellent, but there are two of them, so no need to be precious about one copy in the short game. The Sonic Rifle is your last worry, and can easily be sacrificed in the mulligan in search of recovery cards or the Multi-Gun. Also, Venom Has Locked and Loaded, which lets you search for any weapon card and costs 0 resources. You are going to get your weapons in due course.
Therefore, I recommend keeping any recovery upgrades or the Multi-Gun. Mulligan anything else in search of these items.
The final level of importance is the Helicarrier. Venom has four very powerful cards (Behind Enemy Lines and Savage Attack) that require you to pay for them exclusively with one type of resource for the full benefit. If you have the Helicarrier in play, you can use the Symbiotic Bond and play one of these cards in exchange for a single point of damage.
Once the game is in full swing, Venom is an amazingly versatile character. His hero cards cover every facet of gameplay, and we haven't even mentioned that he gets Spider-Man's ability (draw a card when the villain attacks) as a 2-cost upgrade.
Now, it is conceivable that you can have a huge damage round, but it requires a lot of things to converge at once. Let me describe the 'perfect' scenario;
You have the Multi-Gun, both Venom's Pistols and a Sonic Rifle with both charges on the table, as well as Side Holster and the Helicarrier. In your hand is a Savage Attack and a Run and Gun. In this perfect moment, you could deal 20 total damage. (Attack for 2, +2 from the Pistols, 2 more for the Multi-gun (6). Stun with the Rifle, then play Run and Gun, reset Venom and his weapons, attack for 6 again, then use the rifle to deal 3 more damage and finally hit him for 5 with the Savage Attack. 6+6+3+5=20)
But I wouldn't wait around for that perfect storm to show up.
More consistently, you are going to swing for 4 damage with the Pistols and use the Multi-gun to negate the threat added to the main scheme each round. You should reserve the Rifles for the confuse token, and you will occasionally pot-shot with Scare Tactic and Savage Attack.
The true strength of this Venom is that including him in a multi-hero game ensures schemes get little to no threat added. He can survive a direct hit from the villain and then defend another hero with health to spare, thus preventing scheming. He can regularly confuse the villain and use a myriad of cards to eliminate threat in the rare event that scheming has taken place.
Certainly, Venom can dish some pain...but it's a slow process and therefore a secondary function. This Venom is designed to control the board while a bruiser hero pounds on the villain. That in mind, might I suggest my Never Stop Jarbjorning Quicksilver deck? He can regularly dish out 15 damage in a single turn if you get three crucial cards onto the table. I have had a ton of fun pairing these two, and the anti-hero vibe of both their characters just adds to the appeal.