Nothing Tames the Savage Hulk

Nothing Tames the Savage Hulk

VERSION 2: A few changes in the pursuit of making Hulk STRONGER!

OK, so we all know the impact Ready for a Fight has had on the game, so here's my version for Hulk. Thematically this is the Savage Hulk in all his rage, and the epic struggle Banner faces to contain him.

Banner struggles with his Inner Demon

What we want to do for this deck is to flip down to Banner as soon as you get Ready for a Fight on the table - which coupled with 3 x copies in the deck and ample physical resources should be possible. This represents Banner trying to exert dominance, and keep the monster at bay. When the villain phase begins, at step 2, use Ready for a Fight to transform to Hulk! This signifies the Hulk bursting through Banner's persona - he can't be contained! It also means that the villain doesn't scheme, which is a good thing, as we want to mitigate scheming at all costs due to Hulk's lack of thwart.

The Angrier Hulk Gets, the Stronger Hulk Gets

Once transforming to the Savage Hulk from Ready for a Fight, either take the attack to the face, or defend- with 3 x copies of What Doesn't Kill Me, hopefully Hulk just stands back up again in the hero phase to heal and continue on his rampage!

There are various options here - dependent on the villain you face, consider replacing What Doesn't Kill Me with Perseverance. Perseverance works well with Ready for a Fight and can keep Hulk standing for the next hero phase.

Another modification to this deck is Face the Past. Ensure you have ways to hit for 6 damage to get rid of Abomination easily...you gain a ready and a 3-card draw which should help in not only defeating Abomination but hopefully setting you up with an upgrade or support.

As Mental as it is Physical

As Banner struggles against the Hulk, so too does the notion of Brain vs Brawn...Mental vs Physical. The mental battle is just as important so one of the top priorities would be to try and play Ingenuity which can be done in alter-ego. Four cards rely on the mental resource - Black Widow, Dr. Sinclair, Warlock and Grant Ward.

Black Widow can thwart for 2 but more importantly she can do away with any nasty encounters cards that pop up. Try to keep her around and use her ability when needed to get rid of any encounter cards that may hinder your progress.

Dr. Sinclair is probably one of the most important cards in this deck as she removes status tokens on Hulk and heals him with his REC. If you get Banner's Laboratory and Down Time out, you'll be healing for 8REC!

Warlock - and odd ally to Hulk - is not top priority, but his purpose is to keep threat down and with a mental resource, he can hang around for the whole game;

Keep Grant Ward around amd ensure he doesn't betrayed you by paying with a resource each time a treachery is revealed.

You Are Not Alone

Although Hulk always wants to be left alone, there are always heroes willing to help him (and make sure he doesn't cause too much destruction!)

Blade is a mainstay ally for Hulk...his immortality using physical resources allows him to thwart (similar to Warlock ) or punch a minion for various turns. If needed, his cheap cost also makes him a quick chump blocker if needed;

Brother Voodoo can thwart well but he can also get you an additional card - either a event you need, or just another resource to use for your hand;

Machine Man can also be massively helpful by using any left over cards in Hulk's hand (which would be discarded by the end of the turn anyway) to allow Aaron Stack to thwart for 1-4 or attack for as much!

A couple of S.H.I.E.L.D agents help out with thwarting as qell as card draw.

Grant Ward has solid stats and can hang around for 3 activations as long as you have a resource...that's a solid 6THWT (or 6ATK) up your sleeve;

Nick Fury is as Nick Fury does...can thwart for 4, deal 6 damage or have one activation, 3-card draw and defend for Hulk....why wouldn't you include him?

Banner's built-in Insurance

Finally, rounding out the deck are a few cards that are handy to have when supporting Banner and the Hulk.

Practiced Plan helps you keep a copy of Ready for a Fight in hand to ensure you get that all important card down as soon as you can;

Quincarrier will help ease the pressure of a small hand size...look to get it out as soon as you can...as it provides a resource, it can help with the resource type kickers for the hero cards as well as the resource kickers mentioned above;

Avengers Mansion is Banner's plea to the Avengers to help him. It gives you an extra card/resource each turn, so this (especially when in alter-ego, and alongside Banner's Scientific Research) allows you fish for the card you want - e.g look for a copy of Perseverance if you plan to trigger Ready for a Fight...or look for Hulk Smash for that big hit...or Thunderclap if you have minions out..

Unshakable isn't essential as you can use Dr. Sinclair to remove status cards...but it does help in keeping the tempo up...

Whatever the scenario, the battle within Bruce Banner rages even whilst the battle with the villain ensues...

You need Banner to control the situation...but no matter what...in the end....

Nothing Tames the Savage Hulk!