Deadpool is one of the most unique heroes in Marvel Rivals. As a triple-role hero, you can play him as a Duelist, Vanguard, or a Strageist, with abilities slightly varying from role to role. Even though Deadpool is a merc, Duelist is his less popular role, while Strategist is a fun new way to play as a support.
Here’s a complete breakdown of Strategist Deadpool’s abilities in Marvel Rivals, how to use them, as well as a few tips to make the most out of his kit.
Table of contents
Strategist Deadpool’s role in Marvel Rivals
Strategist Deadpool isn’t the team’s primary healer, as his base healing (without any ability upgrades) is relatively slow compared to other supports. He shines best as a secondary Strategist when paired with powerhouses like Cloak & Dagger or Gambit.
Naturally, Deadpool is also a viable option in a triple Strategist compo, where the third healer is someone like Mantis or Ultron.
Strategist Deadpool’s playstyle and best abilities to upgrade in Marvel Rivals
Playstyle
Stay in the backlines and use your pistols as a primary source of healing. When things get more heated, use Deadpool in your Area and Bouncing Bobblehead for additional bursts of healing. If you get dived or get close to enemies, you can use katanas and Healing Hijinks for close-range AoE healing. However, make sure not to overextend as you’re extremely squishy.
While, as a Strategist, you probably won’t land many final hits, remember to take selfies with defeated enemies in case you do for a good chunk of XP.
Upgrades
When it comes to ability upgrades, the first upgrade is the Bouncing Bobblehead. The upgrade allows you to catch the Bobblehead and throw it again (it works automatically) two more times, giving you more healing, damage, and ability hits to both build and use your Ultimate.
The second upgrade is your Dual Desert Eagles to improve base healing. After that, upgrades can get a bit more situational. Deadpool in Your Area is a solid generalist pick to provide a damage buff, but if you often get into close-range fights, Healing Hijinks is also a good choice.
Ultimate
Last but not least is the Ultimate. Deadpool’s Ultimate doesn’t have a traditional charge. Instead, you build the Ultimate by landing ability hits and increasing the style meter from E to S. This means you can have your Ultimate up very quickly as the round starts. Keep in mind, though, that the style meter resets to E when you die, so remember to use your Ultimate before you die.
Deadpool has two Ultimates, one for each weapon stance. While the Pwnage Pound (pistol Ultimate) is safe and easy to use from afar, the melee Ultimate Final Exam is a better option, especially if you can complete the challenge to extend the duration and gain greatly improved healing.
After casting the Final Exam, you have 12 seconds to land seven hits of the following abilities: Healing Hop, Bouncing Bobblehead, or Healing Hijinks.
Here are a few tips to use your Final Exam Ultimate:
- Use the Final Exam in the sword mode, switch to pistols, throw the upgraded Bouncing Bobblehead into the teamfight, and keep aiming there to ensure the following throws also reach it. Weave in a Healing Hop if needed, and you should have the challenge done in seconds.
- You can also wait a little before using the Bobblehead to squeeze as much time out of your Ultimate as possible.
- If Bouncing Bobblehead doesn’t seem like a viable option, use the Healing Hop on top of your teammates’ heads.
All Strategist Deadpool abilities in Marvel Rivals
Strategist Deadpool’s kit is quite similar to the Duelist version, except that most of his abilities now also heal allies at the cost of significantly reduced damage. Thanks to his kit, Strategist Deadpool can be quite versatile, depending on the enemy team composition.
Deadpool also has a skill book through Upgrade! ability, which allows him to upgrade every ability and improve its efficiency. Choosing the right abilities to upgrade can make-or-break your performance in the match.
Below, you can find all of Strategist Deadpool’s abilities in Marvel Rivals. This includes abilities for both pistols and katanas, as well as ability upgrades.
Pistols
| Ability | Description | Upgrade | PC controls | Controller controls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Healing Factor (passive) | Heal while out of combat. When taking heavy damage, briefly become invincible and heal, similarly to Wolverine. | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Maximum Flair (passive) | Increase the style meter from E to S by landing abilities. Ultimate can be used after reaching an S rating. | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Dual Desert Eagles | Shoot to deal damage to enemies or heal allies. | Increases healing and damage. | Left click | RT/R2 |
| Bouncing Bobblehead | Remove your avatar and throw it, dealing damage and healing allies. | Bobblehead returns for two more throws. It explodes on the third throw. | Right click | LT/L2 |
| Healing Hop | Perform a double jump. Using a double jump on enemies’ heads or off walls refreshes the cooldown. Stomping enemies deals damage, while stomping allies heals them. | N/A | Space | A/X |
| Upgrade! | Deal damage to earn XP. With enough XP, choose an ability to upgrade. Landing a final hit and taking a selfie grants extra XP. Deadpool is invincible while taking selfies. | N/A | F | X/Square |
| Deadpool in Your Area | Taunt and deal damage to nearby enemies, disrupting their UI while healing allies. | Provides a damage boost to allies. | E | LB/L1 |
| Slice and Dice! | Switch to swords. | N/A | L Shift | RB/R1 |
| Pwnage Pound (Ultimate) | Select an enemy to taunt. If they miss an ability, they suffer extra damage, and nearby allies gain healing. Whenever an enemy takes damage from this ability, nearby allies gain extra healing. | Deals continuous damage to the target. | Q | LS+RS/L3+L3 |
Swords
| Ability | Description | Upgrade | PC controls | Controller controls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kick@$$ Katana | Slash forward with katanas. Hits on enemies also heal nearby allies. | Can deal critical hits; every attack after a Healing Hop is guaranteed to crit. | Left click | RT/R2 |
| Healing Hijinks | Dash forward and slash, dealing damage to enemies and healing allies. Has two charges. | Each hit refreshes the cooldown and launches you in a chosen direction, up to two times in a short period. | Right click | LT/L2 |
| Lock and Load! | Switch to pistols. | N/A | L Shift | RB/R1 |
| Final Exam (Ultimate) | Grant healing to you and nearby allies. Hitting enough enemies with abilities in time grants greatly enhanced healing. | Completing the challenge grants bonus health and resets Healing Factor. | Q | LS+RS/L3+L3 |
Our analysis on Stratpool – Strategist Deadpool in Marvel Rivals
Editor’s Notes: Strategist Deadpool is a solid and fun hero to pick as a second or third healer on a team alongside Gambit, Invisible Woman, or others. Despite having many abilities, he’s actually not that difficult to pick up and play. A bunch of his healing works on its own, especially when using swords. The only exception is maybe the Final Exam Ultimate, which may require a bit of practice to ensure you’re completing the challenge every time. You also need to be mindful of your upgrades and the Ultimate charge, as those can make or break teamfights.
