Marvel Rivals: All Season 2 Buffs & Nerfs Explained

Buffs and nerfs for multiple characters in Marvel Rivals were added in Season 2, making some heroes stronger while others were balanced to match the universal strength of the game’s roster. Alongside changes to general mechanics and unique Team-Ups, many characters’ abilities have undergone adjustments. This patch may impact how powerful team comps work, including how some nerfs or buffs give rise to new team synergies.

The update for Season 2 includes the new Vanguard character Emma Frost in Marvel Rivals, making a new Team-Up available with Magneto and Psylocke. You won’t see any changes to Emma’s abilities until Season 2.5, the halfway point of the Hellfire Gala Season. When Ultron releases with the Season 2.5 update, Emma Frost may receive buffs or nerfs depending on her strength compared to other heroes.

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All Universal Changes Explained

All Characters Buffs & Nerfs

All Universal Changes Explained

New Currency Systems And Several Mode Adjustments

Unlike Season 1, several universal changes alter existing game modes and currency systems in Marvel Rivals, changing the content players are used to. For starters, every player’s Competitive Rank is reduced by nine spots, resetting your status for the new Season. You’ll have to grind through the Ranks again to reach the heights you had before in Season 2.

As of Season 2, the number of maps that are in the rotation for Competitive has been reduced. There are only four maps you’ll play on in Competitive matches, including the new Krakoa: Hellfire Gala Domination map.

According to the Season 2 Roadmap published by the developers, another big universal change is how Team-Up abilities are being adjusted. As of this time of writing, two Team-Ups have been removed, while some characters have been added or dropped from pre-existing ones. The Team-Up changes in Season 2 are extensive, so feel free to check out which ones have been adjusted from the “Heroes” menu of the game.

The biggest universal change comes from how you earn Chrono Tokens, Lattice, or Units currency through in-game challenges. Weekly missions and character-specific challenges have been separated, giving you new ways to earn in-game currency for new cosmetics. With the addition of a fourth currency type, Unstable Molecules, you even have a new type of money to earn for custom colors for certain character costumes.

All Characters Buffs & Nerfs

Heroes Made Stronger Or Weaker

Not every character from the Duelist, Vanguard, or Strategist roles received a buff or a nerf. However, heroes that did receive changes got a variety of balance adjustments that vastly affected multiple facets of their kit. To my knowledge, the modifications to characters can be boiled down into these categories:

An existing ability was changed (larger/smaller cooldown, adjustments to damage, etc.).
A character’s health total was made bigger or smaller.
An Ultimate ability’s charge time was made longer or shorter.

The character changes in Season 2 either created a Buff, Nerf, or Neutral adjustment to a hero when you combine all their changes. For example, one character may get a nerf to their strongest ability, but also gain a boost to their total health to keep them viable on different team comps.

The following tables showcase each of the changes on different characters for Season 2, including whether they were Buffed, Nerfed, or remained Neutral with their balance:

Every Vanguard Buffs & Nerfs

Character	Season 2 Status	All Changes
Captain America	Nerfed	Slight decrease to overall resilience Base health reduced from 675 to 650 Shield value of Living Legend reduced from 400 to 350
Doctor Strange	Nerfed	Reduced offensive capabilities Daggers of Denak damage per projectile reduced Maelstrom of Madness conversion ratio of Dark Magic to damage reduced
Hulk	Buffed	Increase base movement speed from 600 to 650 Cooldown time for the Indestructible Guard ability reduced Decrease minimum charge for Incredible Leap
Magneto	Nerfed	Increase Energy cost for Meteor M Ultimate ability
Peni Parker	Buffed	Primary fire can now trigger Critical Hits on headshots Movement speed penalty during primary attack is reduced Increase base health from 650 to 750
The Thing	Nerfed	Reduced Embattled Leap’s damage reduction for himself and allies
Thor	Buffed	Increase base health from 525 to 650 Increase base movement speed from 600 to 650

Character

Season 2 Status

All Changes

Captain America

Nerfed

Slight decrease to overall resilience
Base health reduced from 675 to 650
Shield value of Living Legend reduced from 400 to 350

Doctor Strange

Nerfed

Reduced offensive capabilities
Daggers of Denak damage per projectile reduced
Maelstrom of Madness conversion ratio of Dark Magic to damage reduced

Hulk

Buffed

Increase base movement speed from 600 to 650
Cooldown time for the Indestructible Guard ability reduced
Decrease minimum charge for Incredible Leap

Magneto

Nerfed

Increase Energy cost for Meteor M Ultimate ability

Peni Parker

Buffed

Primary fire can now trigger Critical Hits on headshots
Movement speed penalty during primary attack is reduced
Increase base health from 650 to 750

The Thing

Nerfed

Reduced Embattled Leap’s damage reduction for himself and allies

Thor

Buffed

Increase base health from 525 to 650
Increase base movement speed from 600 to 650

Vanguards did not receive too many changes, but the ones that did have adjustments were drastically changed. Doctor Strange has heavy nerfs while Peni Parker has substantial buffs, with damage and survivability being the key focuses. With Vanguards in Marvel Rivals being the core of any team, this could greatly impact which synergies end up working the best in Season 2.

Every Duelist Buffs & Nerfs

Character

Season 2 Status

All Changes

Black Widow

Buffed

Can directly shoot after second kick of Edge Dancer
Can directly shoot after using Electro-Plasma Explosion Ultimate

Hawkeye

Buffed

Reduce slow effect when charging bow shots
Increased damage from Hypersonic Arrow
Decreased Energy Cost for Hunter’s Sight Ultimate
Improved bow draw speed during Ultimate

Hela

Neutral

Increased cooldown for Astral Flock ability
Increased spell field damage for Piercing Night ability
Decreased cooldown for Soul Drainer ability

Human Torch

Buffed

Reduced attack interval for Fire Cluster
Launch timing of primary attack projectile has been advanced
Gain degrading Bonus Health after using Flaming Meteor
Increased cooldown for Flaming Meteor ability

Iron Man

Buffed

Slightly reduced Iron Man’s hitbox size
Gain 100 Bonus Health when activating Armor or Gamma Overdrive

Character

Season 2 Status

All Changes

Iron Fist

Neutral

Reduced Bonus Health gained during Harmony Recovery
Slowed Bonus Health falloff rate from Harmony Recovery
Lower fixed damage from Yat Jee Chung Kuen
Higher percentage damage from Yat Jee Chung Kuen based on Max Health
Decreased cooldown for K’un-Lun Kick ability

Mister Fantastic

Buffed

Increased base health from 350 to 375
Boosted damage from Stretch Punch primary attack
Flexible Elongation ability now causes slow effect on enemies
Reduced cooldown for Flexible Elongation
Less Elasticity from Elastic Strength, but more from other abilities
Gain Bonus Health for every successful hit during Braniac Bounce Ultimate

Moon Knight

Buffed

Increased Crescent Dart projectile speed
Gain Bonus Health from Moon Blade projectile per enemy hit
Speed up Moonlight Hook ability start-up time
Hand of Khonshu Ultimate lasts longer, is faster, and generates more damage

Scarlet Witch

Buffed

Removed Chaos Control percentage damage while increasing fixed damage
Increased Chtonian Burst projectile damage and spell field damage
Increased cooldown for Mystic Projection ability
Reduced phase state time during Mystic Projection
Slow effect of Reality Erasure Ultimate starts later during animation

Star-Lord

Nerfed

Reduced Blaster Barrage damage
New damage falloff mechanic to Blaster Barrage ability

Winter Soldier

Nerfed

Increased cooldown for Bionic Hook ability
Reduced base damage of Kraken Impact Ultimate
Culling threshold of Ultimate reduced

Wolverine

Neutral

Increased Rage gain from Savage Claws primary attack
Decreased Rage gain from Berserk Claw Strike attack
Reduced Rage gained from Feral Leap ability
Increased Rage from taking damage
Reduced time when enemy is knocked down after Last Stand Ultimate

As you can see, most of the Duelist characters got buffed in Season 2, especially ones that were struggling. Some stand-out winners from the Season 2 patch include The Human Torch and Mister Fantastic in Marvel Rivals, whose abilities received some much-needed modifications. With so many viable Duelists in Season 2, it will be hard to predict which ones are the strongest.

Every Strategist Buffs & Nerfs

Character

Season 2 Status

All Changes

Adam Warlock

Neutral

Increased cooldown for Soul Bond ability
Karmic Revival Ultimate now restores 30% of a fallen allies’ health

Cloak & Dagger

Nerfed

Eternal Bond Ultimate healing zones no longer stack on top of each other

Invisible Woman

Nerfed

Guardian Shield shield value decreased from 300 to 250

Loki

Nerfed

Regeneration Domain ability cooldown increased from 25 to 30 seconds

Mantis

Neutral

Reduced base health from 275 to 250
Effects of Healing Flower or Allied Inspiration can stack

Rocket Racoon

Neutral

Decreased healing area of Repair Mode spheres
Repair Mode spheres now have a one-time healing effect
Repair Mode sphere speed reduced
Increased cooldown and reduced distance of Jetpack Dash ability
Reduced C.Y.A. Ultimate ability damage boost
C.Y.A. Ultimate now heals allies by giving them degrading Bonus Health

The Strategist characters in Marvel Rivals got significantly nerfed or adjusted in Season 2, likely to counter the “Triple Support” meta that was dominant in the previous Season. Despite some major adjustments, Strategist nerfs make a few characters stand out as much stronger than they were before. The biggest example of this is Rocket Raccoon, whose healing prowess is much more fearsome in Season 2.

The long list of changes for different characters may impact what strategies work best for them, so don’t be afraid to experiment with certain heroes to find their best playstyle. While the nerfs and buffs for characters in Marvel Rivals Season 2 are extensive, many still perform strongly in any match if you understand what makes them tick.