Welcome back to Precon Recon, the series that works to make the most fun, most thematic decks out of the limited card pool FFG has provided us. If you'd like to see our article breaking down our thoughts on Ant-Man as a whole, head over here: https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2824955/1-2-punchboards-precon-recon-ant-man

Small Brain, Big Punches

Scott Lang has never been a particularly intelligent character. He's framed more so around his incompetence and thievery than he has his smarts. And while he's picked up some things here and there from his time as the smallest Avenger, he's primarily led by his heart and bravery than his brains. So the idea of a deck that's focused on him punching his problems into submission isn't just efficient, it makes a ton of thematic sense.

This deck focuses on getting Ant-Man's ATK values sky-high so you can take advantage of his events that profit off of that and his ability to ready pretty often, taking advantage of his large stature at the cost of some card draw, but once you're helmet's in play, you'll barely even notice.

Ideally, you're going to be mulligan-ing in search of:

• Ant-Man's Helmet: Surprise surprise, this is still one of the most important cards in his kit. I often consider dumping my whole hand to go searching for this unless I've drawn into a particularly helpful combo.
• Army of Ants/Giant Strength: These cheap cards are great for making each of your forms perform optimally. Depending on which of these you have in hand will likely inform what form you'll end up starting your game in. While this deck leans toward Giant Strength, Army of Ants is huge for dealing non-attack damage and setting up Hive Mind.
• Surprise Attack: This is just a super-efficient card that will get things going from the get-go. It helps with taking out pesky minions and will largely make for a strong opening play.

While you have plenty of permanents to choose from, many of them will be more valuable later in the game than from the opening, so don't feel a ton of pressure to go searching for them from the start. Similarly, Resize is a far stronger option once all the tools for your different forms have been built up, allowing you to take full advantage of flipping to Giant, smashing face, and then flipping back down to Tiny for the card draw.

Both versions of Wasp are here, which is fantastic because either can be used to trigger Swarm Tactics, allowing you to trigger it twice as often. The deck doesn't have a ton of energy resources, but I've found that I can get Janet van Dyne into play often enough, even if with only 1 or 2 HP, which is often enough for what you'll need her for.

Once your engine is built and you can get your ATK as high as 7, you can Quick Strike and Smash the Problem without using up Brute Force, giving you the extra ATK without exhausting the card. More often, though, you'll see yourself slamming for 6 ATK in whatever manner you choose. Browbeat is a backup for those instances when you're exhausted from thwarting or need to spend more time in Tiny form, plus it gives you more of those beautiful physical resources that often fuel this deck.

Speaking of which, Wrist Gauntlets, while not always fantastic, will pop off more often than not in this deck, giving you ample opportunities to stun and sometimes even confuse the villain. It won't see play every game, but it's a card that's worth having around for when you're down to your last hit point.

With all that in mind, Ant-Man's a beast and should get you through nearly every fight, assuming Yellowjacket doesn't show up and kill Iron Man through his Corporate Espionage. For everything good Ant-Man can do, you should be particularly selective with what heroes you pair him with. Anyone who relies on Tech should probably steer clear of him, as the risk far outweighs the reward.

Thanks as always for stopping by and trying out our deck, and be sure to check in often for more content, either here or over at our Discord channel: https://discord.gg/yvW6bVH7rP