For beginners, Marvel Rivals can be an overwhelming game, especially those who have never touched Overwatch or any similar title. With 50 characters on the roster as of Season 8, choosing one to start your very first match with is difficult, especially with the three team roles–Vanguard (Tanks), Duelists (DPS), and Strategists (Support)–and their unique requirements to understand.
If the growing list of Marvel Comics characters–heroes and villains–is a lot to take on at once, then take our recommendations for the best characters in each role to learn the game.
Vanguard: Tanking damage and holding space
A good defense is a good offensive, which is why a good Vanguard is the key to winning a match. To be frank, Vanguard is not the best role to jump on for players just picking up Marvel Rivals, as enemy teams will ruthlessly target poorly played tanks and melt their health bars before healers can help.
For learning this crucial role, the best characters to test out are The Thing and Dr. Strange. The Thing is a great first tank to learn on given his extremely simple kit, which mostly centers around punching, running, and slamming into enemies. Just be mindful of rushing too deep into enemy squads, as it’s easy to carried away with clobbering time and get cut off from heals.
Dr. Strange, on the other hand, may seem complicated given the whole “master-of-the-mystic-arts” thing, but his abilities are similarly easy to get a good grasp on after a game or two. Utilizing his shield to protect your team during a push is how Dr. Strange best shines, especially when ranged teammates can shoot through his shield.
Duelists: Hold space and bring the pain
Learning duelists characters can be difficult, especially when two randoms insta-lock Spider-Man and Black Panther at the beginning of every quick match. The primary goal of a duelist is to deal damage, get kills, and control space in a match, which puts a lot of pressure on good performance but also makes it (arguably) the most fun role to fill.
To learn duelists, the best two characters to start with are Squirrel Girl and Moon Knight. Both have range while dealing significant damage, which makes them ideal for players who might not be quite ready to jump in the middle of the action yet with a brawler like Iron Fist. It’s best to keep both of these characters on the backline.
For Squirrel Girl, keeping a clear sightline to launch nuts and unleash the occasional squirrel stampede is key, while Moon Knight flings darts and sets up Ankhs on the map to hurt enemies by ricocheting attacks off of it. Aim is important for both characters, so spending a little time in the firing range practicing on Galacta Bots can never hurt.
Strategists: Keeping the team alive and well
Strategists have a very straightforward goal in Marvel Rivals: keep your team alive. The issue with healing is that it requires your attention to be on practically every character around, which requires a fair amount of game sense and can be hard depending on if some allies are diving the enemy’s backline.
Key to a successful healer, especially when a player is new, is to not fall into the trap of just healing the tank for the entire game. While it’s important to heal the vanguard as they’re usually in the thick of things, keeping duelists (and other healers) alive as they deal damage is often make or break for winning a match.
To start your support journey, Cloak and Dagger or Jeff the Shark are the best heroes to learn the ropes with (though most healers, like Mantis, are also good choices to try out).
Jeff is one of the most simple characters in the game, as his stream is endless and just needs to hit an ally to heal or hit an enemy to damage (often at the same time). His ability to swim away makes him a good character for players that aren’t yet able to win in 1v1s, so they can spend more time in-game and less time waiting to spawn.
Cloak and Dagger can be a little more complicated, given that they have two skill sets as you swap between characters. Dagger works primarily as a healer (though her Lightforce Dagger ability can help finish off enemies) while Cloak can provide some upclose damage and defense with his Darkforce Cloak. This defensive capability in Cloak and Dagger makes them a great choice in learning the game – especially in how both primary abilities have a fair amount of aim assist.
With all these characters avaliable, learning Marvel Rivals should be a breeze! What’s most important is having fun, which could mean playing a starter character or playing your favorite character from the MCU or comics. Getting a good grasp on each role and then branching out in the best way to get a feel for Marvel Rivals.
