THIS IS NOT A VALID DECK FOR ADAM WARLOCK, IT JUST SERVES AS A PLACE TO ADD CARDS FOR THREAT CONTROL FROM DIFFERENT ASPECTS

Game Control for Solo

The main challenge in solo play is flipping to alter-ego safely and playing around Advance (or any other scheme activation) as an encounter card. The low threat threshold is very unforgiving in solo, and for more difficult scenarios where villains have Steady/Stalwart, confuse lock isn't strong or viable.

So I decided to look for all cards that can:

• look at the encounter deck
• cancel an Advance or a Scheme from the villain
• mitigate threat added to main scheme

As you will see, Justice is the better aspect for that kind of game control with 12 cards, Under Surveillance is a notable staple for solo play.

Another other card worth to mention is Ready for a Fight that really improves the solo experience in Protection with a really clever mechanic, I really hope we can see more of cards like this for Aggression and Leadership.

For a better view I recommend sorting the cards in the deck by Aspect, so you can skim all the cards for each aspect without Adam Warlock cards mixed in.

If you have any other card that should fit in this list let me know and I would be happy to update it.

Scrying

One of the strongest mechanics I've found for solo play is the ability to look into the encounter deck. For solo play, even a small number of cards looked at can represent a couple of rounds where you know what's coming.

• Falcon: Falcon is a really strong ally with solid stats and the ability to look at the top 3 encounter cards. This allows you to see the boost card and revealed card for next turn and decide if a flip to alter-ego is viable.

Manipulative

These types of cards allow an extra powerful aspect for deck scrying—they also let you manipulate the encounter deck in your favor. Some cards are more limited in how they can manipulate the deck, but they're all decent options.

• Melinda May: Allows you to look at just the top card and maybe discard it. Could be useful if the villain is confused and you want to make sure an Advance isn't coming. This happens every time Melinda activates, so you get a couple of rounds to use it.
• Misty Knight: A little more powerful scrying effect since you look at the top 2 cards, but have to discard one. Effectively you're looking at the top 2 and deciding which one will be the boost or maybe revealed if the villain is confused.
• Blindfold: This one is more restricted on how you can manipulate the deck—you have to discard one of the 5 cards you looked at and put the rest back in the same order. Still very powerful since you get to know the boost and revealed card for the next two rounds.
• Gambit: Similar effect, but you only get to look at 3 cards. Feels great when you look at a 3-boost-icon card though. Sometimes you have to tuck a low boost card just to make the encounter deck better—not so great, but still useful.
• Heimdall: Expensive ally with a more powerful effect, allowing you to look at 3 cards. You have to discard 1 and choose the order for the remaining two cards. Great target for Rapid Response since it can trigger his effect again.
• Madame Web: Great option for Web-Warriors. She's cheap with good thwarting and can often look at 4 or 5 cards, giving you full control over those cards. You MAY discard and put them back in any order.
• Global Logistics: Requires a S.H.I.E.L.D card in play, but also gives the player full control over the next 4 cards.
• Going Undercover: One more Justice card. Allows you to look at 5 cards and you may add one to your victory display, which can get rid of a particularly bad card, and you still put back 4 cards in any order. That gives you two rounds of chosen cards to work with.
• Intelligence: This is a really interesting one and works better the more encounter cards are dealt to you. So if you advance Venom Goblin to stage 3 and in the villain phase you get your encounter card, you'll be looking at 5 cards (4 dealt + top 1). The manipulation is very restricted though, allowing you to switch one of the dealt cards for the top card. In a more ordinary use though, you could replace the Advance just dealt to you for the top card.

Threat Mitigation

This is another category of cards that can save you from losing the game due to threat by reducing the amount of threat being added to the main scheme. Big bonus points if you can use them in either form.

• Emergency: From the core set, costs 1 ER, avoids 1 threat. Not a great card, but still an option.
• Foiled!: This one can avoid 1 to 4 threat added and gives you the confidence that you won't threat out if a 3-boost card is revealed. Note that it can be used in alter-ego, so you can hold it if planning to flip up and have it as a safety option if the villain schemes for too much.
• Counterintelligence: A great option for a safety net. It's an upgrade so you just play it and use it only when needed, allowing for a more calculated flip to alter-ego and protection against Advance.
• Under Surveillance: This one might need a different category, but in theory works similarly as threat mitigation. Adding 4 to the threat value is extremely strong for solo play and I think it gets better for heroes that are good at thwarting so they can clear the main scheme more effectively.

Hero

These cards fall in the same category but are less good because they require you to be in Hero form.

• Great Responsibility: From the core set, this card is great to save you from an Advance in hero form, though you have to have it in hand when an Advance is revealed. This could combo nicely with more recent heroes like Nick Fury or Hulkling that can have the villain scheme in Hero form. There's also Invisibility Gear—even though you're trading an attack for a scheme and then back to an attack again, it might be good for villains with high attack and low scheme stats like Rhino.
• Serve and Protect: Similar idea, powerful effect, but even more restricted to play as it requires X-MEN and X-FORCE characters in play. Even harder when playing solo.

Scheme Cancelation

• Tempus: The single Aggression card I've found that fits the criteria for threat control. It's a cheap ally that can attack or thwart for 1 and stay around for one scheme cancelation, but you trade it for an encounter card.
• Psychic Manipulation: Really powerful card that's effectively a confuse + thwart that works in both hero and alter-ego form. It's restricted to Psionic heroes though.
• Ready for a Fight: One of the best cards released in recent expansions, crazy good for solo and maybe a staple for every Protection deck the same way Under Surveillance is for Justice. Allows the player to change to alter-ego, use their abilities and hand-size, and be back in hero form when the villain would scheme. Good synergy with Hidden Base.

Alter-Ego

• Investigative Journalism: This one is really restricted, but will cancel a scheme and confuse the villain. You might avoid 2 scheme activations for villains without Steady/Stalwart. Only works for Peter and Cindy though, or a Protection deck running Spider-Man and Silk.

Encounter Card Cancelation

Several heroes have ways to cancel encounter cards and there are some aspect cards that can fill in if your hero doesn't have one. Here they work as a way to cancel an Advance that would cost you the game.

• Black Widow: Great ally from the core set with good thwart stats that could be used if really needed, but she should definitely stay in play to cancel a card. Note it cancels all effects and works for any card at the cost of revealing a new one.
• Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Exact same effect, but only works in a S.H.I.E.L.D deck.
• Stepford Cuckoos: One option for X-MEN. It only cancels treachery cards though, and you also need to reveal another one.
• Spider-Tingle: This one is a good safety net for an Advance. You have to trigger the interrupt before revealing the card and deal 1 damage to a Web-Warrior. If you reveal a treachery, you cancel it and discard Spider-Tingle with no other card revealed.
• Spycraft: This combos really well with Agent Coulson as a safety net for game-ending encounter cards. It can cancel any card, but you will reveal a new one.
• Silk: Maybe this card is a little weird here, but you can use it to discard really nasty treacheries or scheme activations. Maybe you discard a card that would never be dealt to you anyways, so it's hard to value its effect.

Hero

These are restricted to hero form, so you have to be lucky to hold these in hand to cancel an Advance in hero form.

• Get Behind Me!: Can cancel a treachery, making the villain attack you instead.
• Order and Chaos: Another team-up card. This one straight up cancels a treachery and damages the villain.
• Predictable Ploy: Requires a side-scheme in victory display, but it straight up just cancels a treachery card.