Marvel Snap’s Next Season Is a Fiery Start to 2026

Marvel Snap‘s first fresh season of the year is here, and it’s setting up a lot of interesting new strategies for players. Centered around one of Marvel’s most powerful dragons, the season is loosely connected through a focus on fantasy imagery and dragon creatures. While a good deal of the focus is on K’un-Lao, the mystical lost city that is home to Iron Fist and Shou-Lao the Undying, other dragons (like the space-faring Lockheed and the Monster Island behemoth Fing Fang Foom) also fit into the season.

This blend of origins for the characters lends itself well to the season’s greater flexibility in card types, with a variety of strategies getting interesting new possibilities across the season’s new batch of cards. The season is also going to be introducing some exciting locations, bringing back some fan-favorite modes, and introducing a gorgeous new line of variant art. Here are all the things Marvel Snap fans can expect in the Dragon season.

Marvel Snap’s New Dragon Season Cards, Explained

Marvel Snap‘s upcoming Dragon Season has a lot of exciting new cards to add to any player’s library, with a refreshing amount of variety baked into the season. Available for $10.00, the Premium Pass card for this season is Shou-Lao, The Undying. A 5/8 behemoth, the dragon gives the last character you played +3 Power for each turn you played 2 or more cards. Similar to Thena, Shou-Lao’s ability seems ideal for a controlled cost load-out. Even playing Shou-Lao on turn 6 alongside a 1-cost card seems like a likely way to activate the power. Players who go a little further and purchase the Super Premium Pass will also get the fearsome Dragon of the Moon. This 3/2 also has an On Reveal, where they steal 1 power from even-costed cards in all hands. While it can come as a blow to the player, it can also be devastating to an opponent who doesn’t see it coming. The season pass is reflective of both the dragon imagery and the connection to the martial-arts-heavy corner of the Marvel Universe, with the other four new cards for the season going back and forth.

New Marvel Snap Cards (Dragon Season)	Card Description
Shou-Lao, The Undying (5/8)	On Reveal: Give the last character you played +3 Power for each turn you played 2 or more cards.
Dragon Of The Moon (3/2)	On Reveal: Steal 1 Power from even-costed cards in ALL hands.
Lockheed (2/1)	End of Turn: If you played a 1-Cost card this turn, afflict an enemy card here with -2 Power.
Lie Lie Iron Fist (2/2)	On Reveal: Add the Sword of Fu Xi to another location. Swod of Fu Xi is a 2/2 and has Ongoing: If Lin Lie Iron Fist is here, he has +7 Power.
Fing Fang Foom (7/12)	On Reveal: Gain the Power of front-row enemy cards here.
Shang-Chi Master of the Rings (3/5)	Game Start: The Ten Rings starts in your hand. On Reveal: Unlock their potential.
Majestic Wingbeast (1)	On Reveal: Give the leftmost card in your hand +2 Power. If it’s 5-Cost or higher, -1 Cost too.
Dragon Lord (5/5)	On Reveal: Put a card from your hand here.

Available at the start of the season, Lockheed is a potentially devastating 2/1 card that, at the end of every turn, afflicts an enemy card at his location with -2 power so long as you played a 1-cost card this turn. This will naturally blend well with cards like Kitty Pryde, as well as 1-cost heavy decks. On January 13th, players will be able to unlock Lin Lie Iron Fist, a 2/2 On Reveal card who adds the Sword of Fu Xi to another location. The 2/2 sword is an ongoing card, giving Lie Lie Iron Fist +7 if they are at the same location. This likely requires movement cards to fully utilize, making it the only real movement-centric card in the season.

January 20 introduces Fing Fang Foom, a 7/12 who has the on reveal to gain the power of front-row opponent cards at that location — potentially setting up Foom to become an absolutely devastating new powerhouse that can turn an opponent’s strength into a boon. Marvel Snap is also introducing a new variant of a classic card with Shang-Chi Master of the Rings. This 3/5 card gives the player a copy of the Ten Rings at the start of the game. Playing Shang-Chi unlocks their potential, which can be used to boost other cards at the location by +1 power.

Two new Series 4 cards are being introduced as well. There’s Majestic Wingbeast, a 1-cost ability that, on reveal, gives the leftmost card in your hand +2 power — and if it has a cost of 5 or higher, it also lowers that cost by 1. The season will bring back the popular High Voltage mode, with Dragon Lord available as a prize for the limited-time event. The 5/5 comes with the On Reveal ability to put a card from your hand at the same location.

Dragon Season’s Other Additions To Marvel Snap

Marvel Snap’s seasons tend to also come with some tweaks and additions to the game, beyond the new card drops. While there are likely going to be balancing updates as the game continues to evolve, we do know a few other details. As usual, unlocking the Season Pass will give players unique avatars, card backs, and variants — this time for Stegron, Sauron, and Shou-Lao.

If you missed out on Weapon X Wolverine and some of the other new cards from the past season (like Wild Child and the Fastball Special), then you’ll be able to access them either through the Seasonal Series 5 or Seasonal Series 4 packs. Two locations are also being introduced to the game. Cave of the Dragon is a boon for both sides, with a random 5-cost card (or higher) being added to each side after turn 4. Meanwhile, Ta-Lo gives +1 power to a character in each hand at the end of each turn. High Voltage: Overdrive will run from January 11 through the 18th, with Dragon Lord as the major reward players will be after.

There will now also be a premium pass for the mode, pulling it more in line with recent temporary modes. Sanctum Showdown is also coming back, and will run from January 25 through February 1. Sometime during the month, there will also be a Winterverse Snowball Fight mode, with the winner being featured on the Marvel Snap website. Although the mode will only feature cosmetics this time, the new variants from James Ryman, Derrick Chew, and Ben Harvey will be an exciting reward for players who can do well in the mode. There will also be a new fantasy-themed takeover, with new looks for various characters released by Winking Studios on January 8, and the ADIA variants coming to the shop on January 22 and 23rd.

What Cards Will Synergize With Marvel Snap’s Dragon Season?

The new season is an interesting mix of cards, with a broader focus than many previous seasons. Whereas seasons like the recent Weapon X, for example, were very rooted in destruction-themed decks, the Dragon season is rewarding different playstyles. While some of the cards do have broad synergy between one another (particularly Shou-Lou and Lockheed, who seem perfectly suited to a Kitty Pryde/Thena-focused deck), others are more dependent on mechanics like movement or increased energy output. The abundance of On Reveal powers will likely see Wong as a major fixture of decks — and in contrast, plenty of counters from the likes of Cosmo, Rogue, or Enchantress.

The Dragon Season cards seem, at least from the onset, to be a useful medley of cards that can benefit a lot of different strategies. This is the kind of season drop to see from Marvel Snap, with a focus on experimentation and invention rooted in the variety of cards. While some are monstrosities all on their own, others (like Shang-Chi Master of the Rings or Lockheed) are focused on buffing cards in your hand or debuffing enemy characters. It’ll be interesting to see how classic archetypes mold and morph to contend with or utilize these cards, and to discover what synergies players can turn into instant wins.