"Ride the Lightning" AOE - Thor (A)

Card draw simulator

Odds: 0% – 0% – 0% more
Derived from
None. Self-made deck here.
Inspiration for
Thor Multiplayer 0 0 0 1.0
"Ride the Lightning" AOE - Thor (A) 2 0 0 1.0
"Ride the Lightning" AOE - Thor (A) 3 3 2 1.0
Thor TPS 2.0 0 0 0 1.0
Thor TPS 2.0 0 0 0 2.0
"Ride the Lightning" AOE - Thor (A) 0 0 0 1.0
"Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy..." 1 0 2 1.0
Thor Solo 0 0 0 1.0
Wilk Thor TTS Adri mika 0 0 0 1.0
ThorPedo 0 0 0 1.0
Thor - The God of Aggression 1 1 0 1.0

Brian-V · 46010

Ride_The_Lightning.jpg?auto=compress&fit=max&w=2048

Playthroughs:

Objective:

  • I wanted to design a deck that: 1) Has an interesting concept that works well in solo & multiplayer, 2) Is thematic and synergistic with my Valkyrie deck, and 3) Is fun to play and above all, wins (no one likes to lose!)

  • Results: I've done a lot of playtesting on Expert with this deck using proxies until I got my Valkyrie pack. This version is a lot of fun to play for me, and I've had no problems (unless the scenario has only like one or two minions -- which is always going to be the case for Thor really).

Strategy:

This deck concentrates on Thor's events rather than the basic attack version, specifically its primary focus being Lightning Strike & Hall of Heroes, as well as The Bifrost.

The Cards & Combos:

The Bifrost:

  • This card that has really opened up Thor because of it essentially giving you an extra card in hand. A hand full of Power Ofs are now your friend. I often use For Asgard! to grab it, it's that good. If you have no way of proc'ing "Have at Thee!" ability, I often bring in Angela for free to do so.

Looking for Trouble & Defender of the Nine Realms:

  • Use these as often as possible if you can get any kind of benefit from thwart even if you've already drawn cards from "Have at Thee!" if you have a Lightning Strike. You'll be able to kill what you bring out anyway, you'll have more cards to draw for "Bring It!" and more counters for Hall of Heroes.

"Bring It!":

  • This version of Thor needed badly. There are situations I bring another minion into play just to draw another card if I have a Lightning Strike in hand, sometimes even if it doesn't really benefit me in doing so with regard to threat or "Have at Thee!".

Hall of Heroes:

  • Really goes well in this deck. You'll always have a massive amount of counters here. Ideally you want 6 when you flip and hopefully will also have timed it with Heimdall so you know what to expect (especially solo when your margin for error on SCH is next to nil). Also this card really works well with The Bifrost, remember it works Alter Ego, so often you can flip and draw 3 cards and get into a better situation with more resources to play an ally through The Bifrost.

The Power in All of Us:

  • Let's not get into it (lol), but I would not put this in if there wasn't a great combo with The Bifrost -> Heimdall who allows you to flip for Hall of Heroes or "Worthy" with confidence. I also have many set-up/engine targets which is really important for Thor as well as a for Lightning Strike if needed.

Early Game:

  • I don't even really try to get Mjolnir down early unless I absolutely have to. I'm using it as a resource that I can recur until I can get Asgard. This will help you mitigate that low hand-size along with The Bifrost.

  • The cards I try to get down as soon as possible are The Bifrost, Asgard, and Hall of Heroes.

  • Of course the other card I'm trying to get down that is not an Asgard card as quickly as possible is Team-Building Exercise which will help your setup that much quicker early game.

Late Game:

  • Once you have your set up, I still lightning as much as possible, and then wait until I have 6 counters on Hall of Heroes and flip. I actually do flip with Thor, just not as frequently and want to make it worth it when I do. You'll do it to heal, draw your 3 + 3 cards with Hall of Heroes. And ideally after you've done a Hammer Throw, which you've then used as a resource or discarded so you can use "Worthy" next turn.

  • You'll probably have had to have faced a few times and be low on health after you've gotten everything set up. So once you have your card drawing engine going you'll also try to get a max Moment of Triumph in with Hammer Throw, or even Into the Fray if needed. You'll also use Thor's Helmet to help as well of course.

  • At that point, you should easily have 3 allies out, and just concentrate on pulling minions for threat mitigation and dishing out the damage with Lightning Strike and now leaning more heavily on Hammer Throw.

  • Lots of Lightning Strike & Hammer Throw shouldn't be too difficult with the cards that lessen the cost of your damage like Martial Prowess and Deft Focus. I also use Team-Building Exercise after my Hammer Throw to play Mjolnir again unless I'm flipping to alter ego.

Multiplayer (with my Valkyrie deck):

  • My Valkyrie deck: Aerial Annabelle - Valkyrie (L)

  • I really like using this deck with Thor, because there is so much synergy. Both can pull out minions for each other and capitalize off all of the cards that benefit from minion killing.

  • You'll find that often it is really beneficial for constantly calling for actions for whoever has the cards to get minions out and kill them for example: Chooser of the Slain, The Bifrost -> Angela, Defender of the Nine Realms, & Looking for Trouble.

  • You'll then call for actions to kill them, especially with your AOE tools. I don't like multiplayer so much when both are just playing their own game and there isn't much interaction. But I've been 2-hand solo'ing these decks and having a ton of fun.

4183599-fantastic-thor-lightning-image.jpg
25 comments

Dec 22, 2021 InigoMontoya · 4722

This gets a like for the Metallica reference and picture!

Dec 22, 2021 neothechosen · 10794

Wow is Thor getting a lot of love since we got the Bifrost! Love it!

Dec 23, 2021 Brian-V · 46010

@InigoMontoya Haha, I have a reference in the write-up too. Nice that you caught that. I just saw them for their 2-day show in SF celebrating their 40th anniversary.

@neothechosen Definitely! Thor really needed Bi-Frost to help with that reduced hand size. Being able to get it with For Asgard! is clutch. I was super frustrated with Thor when he was released, but no more!

Dec 24, 2021 Marctimmins89 · 304

What do you replace Valkyrie with when playing 2p with her?

Dec 24, 2021 Brian-V · 46010

@Marctimmins89 I still use Valkyrie, according to the rules, their sub-titles differ. I think we might be waiting for a ruling though, not sure. I'm not super familiar, but I think it would make sense, aren't there many Valkyrie and not just Brunnhilde? I assumed it was something somewhat similar to Ronin not having just one alter-ego and it being left blank. I thought you could have Clint Barton & Ronin in the same deck, because you're assuming it's a different version of Ronin.

Dec 27, 2021 Armstrmatt · 2

Great deck! Were you going to post the playthroughs soon? Thanks again for all you do for this game.

Dec 29, 2021 Tenchizard · 1

What about Quincarrier when in multiplayer with Valkyrie? Both decks use it but it's unique...

Dec 30, 2021 Brian-V · 46010

@Armstrmatt

Thank you! Yes, went ahead and posted the first playthrough, link is at the top of the page.

Dec 30, 2021 Brian-V · 46010

@Tenchizard True, I use Quincarrier with Thor (for Lightning Strike) and then replace it in my Valkyrie deck when I play them multiplayer. You can replace it with Helicarrier or just take it out if you like, that deck is over 40 cards. Just FYI I did post the Thor playthrough, and will post Valkyrie soon. I also end up adding Get Over Here x2 to Thor for multiplayer. Let me know if you end up trying them out.

Dec 30, 2021 Armstrmatt · 2

Thank you for posting the playthrough! I'd love to see more of this on your channel. I just subscribed :)

Dec 30, 2021 Rvd1ofakind · 1

Just tried this deck. So sick. I tried a bunch of "Thor punches stuff" decks and every time I did, I just ended up lightning striking everything off the board anyway. So this deck just seems better to me. First game I tried I had a turn where I have 16 cards and 30 resources among them+upgrades. So satisfying to play. What would you replace to add Get Over Here or do you just go to 42.

Jan 04, 2022 Brian-V · 46010

@Armstrmatt Thanks! I just posted a Valkyrie playthrough as well. It's a lot more difficult than I anticipated, I don't think I'm a person that thinks aloud naturally.

@Rvd1ofakind Nice! Haha. Yeah, I just go to 42 usually.

Jan 12, 2022 suras12 · 1

One of the must fun and interesting deck I have ever played! Thank you very much :)

Jan 19, 2022 Carquinyoli · 280

Very nice deck!! I want to get back to Thor and I'll do it this way :) Have you considered using Godlike Stamina? that will always heal (while Moment of Triumph is more situational). Thanks for your decks!

Jan 19, 2022 Brian-V · 46010

@suras12 Thanks!

@Carquinyoli Thank you! I did consider Godlike Stamina, but preferred Moment of Triumph for a few reasons. First, because I focus more on Lightning Strike in this deck, I want to have as many as possible. You'll notice I really have very few resources that aren't, and those are must includes or upgrades/supports. Second, is that usually the way it plays out is that I take a little bit of a beating while I get set up, and then I'll do a Lightning Strike to clear the table. Often, if possible I'll leave 1 HP on the last minion that way I can Hammer Throw and play Moment of Triumph to heal back up to full. I'd rather have that 1 big heal and just have to play a card once, than have a 2 heal where the status effect removal is really situational, whose resource I can't use for what I'm trying to do for the deck. From then on it's very situational, but like I said, I can always use that for Lightning Strike. Also playing Moment of Triumph with a Hammer Throw is the equivalent of me having to play Godlike Stamina almost 4 times. And one last reason is that I'm not affected by stun/confuse too much, because Lightning Strike isn't an attack. I guess that's quite a long reply, but hopefully answered your question as to why I prefer Moment of Triumph for this particular deck. That being said, I do think that Godlike Stamina can be a good card for decks that are more built to attack/ready. But totally up to you! Thanks for the suggestion.

Jan 20, 2022 Carquinyoli · 280

@Brian-V thanks a lot for the elaborated reply, I really appreciate it and it's clear that you deeply thought about it! It's just that I use to play with MoT and I don't always have it at hand when I have a large attack to heal, so at first sight only 1 copy felt short to me, but since this deck allows going to AE and you don't "need" to base attack or thwart I guess you can RECover instead if needed. Again, thanks a lot! Can't wait for the weekend to arrive to try it :).

Jan 26, 2022 journeyman2 · 25533

After running this, I think this deck is a bit underrated. Maybe only because it came out around other similar Thor decks, but I don’t think this got enough time to shine.

For multiplayer, I removed 2x The Power of Aggression, Martial Prowess, and Into the Fray and added 2x Get Over Here, Spider-Girl, and Godlike Stamina.

One overlooked part of Godlike Stamina, is how much of a direct counter to Thor’s obligation it is. Thor’s obligation discard Mjolnir and stuns him (if you don’t exhaust to remove it). If you take the free flip, you can get Mjolnir back and Godlike Stamina solves the stun. I found this deck can really rack up acceleration tokens with how often I was using DotNR and similar effects. Keeping the obligation in the deck was great since I’d rather see it as an encounter card than most villain or expert cards. It is also more playable while Thor is still getting set up. Thor’s early game can be rough and it can be hard to get Hammer Throw in hand at the same time as Moment of Triumph, much less be able to afford it. Even if drawn together, it is impossible to play them both from a 4 hand size, so the combo is reliant on having a good start. Meanwhile, Godlike Stamina can help alleviate a bad start and provide some breathing room. Being able to help in a bad situation gives it a little edge for me, but I did keep Moment of Triumph in.

Into the Fray I might put back in if I play modulars with higher health minions. As is, I got most of the thwarting I needed from DotNR etc. This led to cutting Martial Prowess which had less targets and isn’t as widely useful as Deft Focus. Since Thor is tanking more hits, allies weren’t cycling very fast and I didn’t get much use out of being able to play them more often from hand or Bifrost; so with allies being its main targets after MP/Into the Fray’s removal, The Power of Aggression was cut.

Spider-Girl helps tank the minions a little better to set up a larger Bring It play the next turn.

I like the loop of this deck. Turning DotNR into a free card using Bring It is clever. Nuking a board with Lightning Strike feels great. Drawing 20 cards in a turn is ridiculous. I often found myself drawing half my deck, playing as much as I could and essentially “choosing” my hand for the next turn.

Thank you for the deck!

Jan 29, 2022 Dansome · 1

This deck is really good and really fun.

May 23, 2022 Iskander4000 · 4

Hi, thank you for publishing this. May I ask what the strategy is for defending when you're playing this along with the Thor deck?

May 23, 2022 Iskander4000 · 4

Sorry I meant to say when you’re playing alongside the Valkyrie deck.

Sep 05, 2022 dnlytras · 1

This deck has been a joy to play. Massive draw, massive damage, all around tons of fun - thank you @Brian-V!

Oct 23, 2023 wormy · 50

Toon this for a spring vs Ultron and blew my own mind.

Jan 03, 2024 Floridarainmaker · 1

Really enjoyed this deck. It saved the day versus the Sentinels. I was in a 3 player multiplayer game. Swamped with minions. Both my teammates were defeated and it looked bleak as I suddenly have 11 minions to deal with. I used Lightning Strike with all my lightning based powers and cards I can spend and I do 8 damage to all minions and the boss, clear the whole board, 96 damage total. One last round and it's just the boss and I and we pulled out a WIN. TONS of fun and felt so incredibly thematic to be the GOD OF THUNDER!

Jan 23, 2024 Brian-V · 46010

@Floridarainmaker Thanks for sharing! That's an awesome game story. What a win, flying in and striking lightning to save the day. I wish I could have seen it!

Mar 26, 2024 thoralpha · 1

What do you remove for the 2x Get Over Here! in two player?