As the ruler of this reality, Apocalypse has his plans already placed solidly in place, which put the Heroes, especially mutants, at a distinct disadvantage. The first card he plays forces them to refresh their hands, so they miss out on any vital Starting Hand cards they may possess. His BAM! also further limit the Heroes’ powers by removing cards directly from their deck, which also happens if they are KO’d. Apocalypse doesn’t actually attack the Heroes directly, instead using Overflows and his Henchmen to deal damage to them. In order to stop Apocalypse, Heroes will have to complete a special Mission in order to reset the timeline!
Apocalypse’s position of power gives him an army of powerful Henchmen to do his bidding, with only one attacking each turn, but only that Henchmen being vulnerable to damage. Nemesis deals devastating damage all around him, Shadow King turns Heroes’ cards facedown, Abyss attacks everyone regardless of where they are, Mister Sinister removes Hero cards and temporarily cancels their special effects, Dark Beast drains other Henchmen’s Health to empower Apocalypse, Havok deals unpreventable damage to adjacent locations, and Sugar Man jumps around, turning Civilians into Thugs and making them attack the Heroes. You might have noticed this is a total of 7 Henchmen. That’s because Apocalypse keeps a Surprise Henchmen in reserve, waiting for the right time to bring them into the fray.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cmon/marvel-united-multiverse/posts/3714850