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Since Marvel Rivals reached its closed beta not long ago, you know it was a matter of time for us to put up a tier list. And why shouldn’t we? With so many heroes and villains to choose from, it is important to know which ones stand at the top. With 19 characters to pick, it is clear that some are winners and others not so much. So, to help you pick the best character for each role or give you an idea of where your favorite is, we’ve made our personal tier list. Also, keep in mind that things will likely change as the game’s development cycle progresses, so be sure to visit this list constantly to see any changes in the ranking.
Vanguard
Let’s begin with the Vanguards, or tanks as many call them. These characters are suited for the frontlines and are great at taking several hits for the team. While they shine more for their defensive capabilities, they are also great at dealing damage and even pestering foes with certain skills. Thankfully, this role is quite balanced, with the exception of two heroes.
| Character | Rank |
|---|---|
| Doctor Strange | S |
| Magneto | A |
| Peni Parker | A |
| Groot | B |
| Bruce Banner/Hulk | C |
With the Vanguard tier list of Marvel Rivals out there, let us go over why we picked these spots for the above characters. Doctor Strange is, hands down, the best Vanguard you can pick. His ability to open portals paired with his high damage output make him an almost DPS-like tank if that’s what you want.
Moving on to the A-ranks, we have Magneto. He is also a fantastic Vanguard to have, as he does a lot of damage, and his shields resist a lot of hits. The only downside is that he gets slowed down when using defensive skills. Peni Parker, on the other hand, is all about crowd control. She isn’t the tankiest of Vanguards, but she can create a literal minefield to annoy enemies.
Lastly, we have Groot and Bruce Banner. The former is great because he can spam walls that block projectiles and enemies, but that’s the only real useful thing he has. The latter, sadly, doesn’t smash as hard as in other media. For a tank, he’s quite squishy, and you’ll be sent to Bruce Banner’s weak form more often than you’d like. Also, the leaping gimmick isn’t bad, but it just doesn’t have a lot of use when foes are bouncing around faster than you.
Duelist
We now move on to the Duelist tier list in Marvel Rivals. The role with the most characters is the Duelist one, to no one’s surprise. The heroes and villains of this role are your DPS characters. They all have gimmicks to defeat foes fast and traverse the stage at high speed to complete objectives. Sadly, the role isn’t as balanced, and players will clearly grab the same character repeatedly.
| Character | Rank |
|---|---|
| The Punisher | S |
| Iron Man | S |
| Scarlet Witch | S |
| Hela | S |
| Star Lord | A |
| Magik | A |
| Spider-Man | B |
| Namor | B |
| Black Panther | C |
| Storm | C |
Let’s start with the S-rank Duelists. The Punisher might seem too simple for many, but that’s the beauty of this anti-hero. His kit is straightforward, does a lot of damage, and overwhelms enemies easily. Iron Man is a great hero that shines more when he’s up in the air. With high-damage skills and strong AoE capabilities, you can clear an area quickly. Scarlet Witch, while squishy, brings the highest DPS numbers of all Duelists. Lastly, Hela is your sniper-like character who can also dash extremely fast across the stage.
Our A-ranks aren’t bad and are quite useful in the right hands. Star-Lord has a lot of mobility and raw damage but doesn’t shine much with any of his other skills. Magik hits extremely hard and can even increase her health as she damages enemies, but her lack of mobility might deter some from using her.
B-rank characters are useful, too, but you’re better with any of the above. While I’m a huge Spider-Man fan, his movement is quite clunky, and it’ll take you a long time to set up the right attack. Namor only has one thing going for him: his ultimate, which is enough to put him in this rank.
Finally, our C-ranks, while beloved in other media, they fall flat here. Black Panther doesn’t have a lot of damage output and can’t even hold his own in 1v1 duels. Storm doesn’t know if she wants to be a Duelist or a Strategist, and it is better not to use her until the developers do a complete rework on her skills.
Strategist
To finish up this tier list, we have the Strategists of Marvel Rivals. These are your support characters who can heal, buff, or offer other beneficial effects to a party. They can even hinder the enemy team, allowing Duelists and Vanguards to take center stage.
| Character | Rank |
|---|---|
| Luna Snow | S |
| Loki | A |
| Rocket Racoon | A |
| Mantis | A |
With so few members in this role, there is little room for unbalancing. The best of them all is Luna Snow. She can dash across the map at high speed and top everyone’s HP up while doing so. As a jack-of-all-trades, you should always bring Luna to any match you play. Luna can even make poor Namor shine as her team-up skill does wonders with Namor.
As the true God of Mischief, Loki brings that to the battlefield. He can confuse enemies with his projections and even copy some of their foes’ skills. While Rocket Racoon isn’t the best healer, he can support allies without issues while also doing great damage. Lastly, Mantis could be the best healer in the game, but her damage output is mediocre compared to others.
When looking at this tier list, remember that this is only for the closed beta. Things will likely change as the game progresses, but it is good to have a bit of guidance on who to choose. And while this is our tier list, don’t take it as definitive. In the end, what matters is how you use your characters, so don’t be afraid to try them all in this new competitive game.
