Marvel Rivals, the 6v6 hero shooter developed by NetEase Games, will launch with over 30 playable characters distributed between three distinct roles. But new players to the genre might not immediately know how each of these roles work.
Marvel Rivals has many similarities to other hero shooters and it’s set to host players across a variety of platforms. While there are plenty of characters that focus on dealing the most damage possible, that’s not where every character’s strength lies. Some are able to help allies while others are simply hard to kill.
Find out below the strengths and weaknesses of each role in Marvel Rivals and their most prominent characters at launch.
All Marvel Rivals roles, explained
Marvel Rivals has three roles, being the duelist, strategist, and vanguard. These three roles fit into the same general conventions of hero shooters, serving as DPS, support, and tanks, respectively. Here’s how all three fit together, what sets them apart from each other, and which heroes fall into each role.
Duelist
The main strength of duelists is their ability to deal damage and score eliminations for the team. However, most characters in Marvel Rivals’ duelist role can’t sustain fights for too long, as they generally don’t have as much health as other characters. Without proper support and self-awareness, duelists can feed the enemy team and fuel their victory instead of killing them.
Here are all the duelists in Marvel Rivals for its global release:
- Black Panther
- Black Widow
- Hawkeye
- Hela
- Iron Fist
- Iron Man
- Magik
- Moon Knight
- Namor
- Psylocke
- Punisher
- Scarlet Witch
- Spider-Man
- Squirrel Girl
- Star-Lord
- Storm
- Winter Soldier
- Wolverine
Strategist
Strategists provide support in Marvel Rivals. They can heal teammates, buff them, and sew chaos within the enemy team. While a good strategist can make the difference for their team, it isn’t usually due to their ability to score kills. Strategists lack the firepower to deal burst or continuous damage to enemies, and instead help their team from afar.
Here are all the Marvel Rivals characters in the strategist role at launch:
- Adam Warlock
- Cloak and Dagger
- Jeff the Land Shark
- Loki
- Luna Snow
- Mantis
- Rocket Raccoon
Vanguard
Marvel Rivals’ vanguard role is defined by having the most health. Their job, for the most part, is to tank damage. When paired with a good strategist, they can set the stage for engagements and protect their teammates.
Not only is the vanguard important for defense, but it also contributes on offense by taking control of the field for the team with precise dives and using crowd-control elements. There are vanguards that deal a good amount of damage too. Vanguards typically have one major weakness that ultimately keeps them from being too powerful. Some deal a prohibitively low amount of damage
The Vanguards available in Marvel Rivals include:
- Captain America
- Doctor Strange
- Groot
- Hulk
- Magneto
- Peni Parker
- Thor
- Venom
