News From The Battlerealm
Summoners!
Here’s your Marvel Contest of Champions news brief for Wednesday, March 3, 2021.
Schedule Notes: February events conclude and March events begin at 1pm EST. The Tier 4 Basic Arena begins at 6pm EST.
RichTheMan weighs in on the Angela buff.
Seatin looks at the Masacre buff.
MetalSonicDude gives his take on the Civil Warrior Buff.
Karatemike shows off his Horseman Omega Red.
-Dano357
Summoners!
Here’s your Marvel Contest of Champions news brief for Tuesday, March 2, 2021.
Schedule Notes: Incursions Milestones reset at 1pm EST. Alliance War Season 24 ends with the conclusion of today’s war attack. Rewards should be issued 12-16 hours following the conclusion of the season.
Kabam announced updates to Cavalier Event Quest Rewards & Nodes, including an extra 2,500 6-Star Shards and a 10% T5cc Nexus Crystal.
The Champion Spotlights for Odin and Mangog are now live.
RichTheMan looks at the release of Odin’s abilities.
Katy Candy gave her early take on Mangog.
Seatin shared buffed gameplay for Angela.
Kam has first impressions on the 4 buffed champions.
-Dano357
Summoners!
Here’s your Marvel Contest of Champions news brief for Monday, March 1, 2021.
Schedule Notes: The Summoner Sigil Solo Event, Gold Quest, items on a 7-day timer, and the Featured Crystals in the Black-ISO Market reset at Noon EST. Round 2 of the 4-Star Basic Iceman and Super-Skrull Featured Arenas at 1pm EST. The Alliance Quest Series kicks off at 3pm EST. UMCOC Podcast, Live on Discord at 8pm EST.
Contest Realm Podcast Episode 52 is now available.
Check out my full breakdown of the Odin’s Gauntlet Side Quest with rewards spreadsheet.
-Dano357
Update 3/3/21 1:25pm EST – This event appears bugged at launch. I recommend you wait for the “all-clear” before purchasing caskets and running the Gauntlet. – Dan
Summoners!
Odin has set forth a great challenge for Summoners this March. Complete all 10 levels of Odin’s Gauntlet and prove yourself to be God Tier! Note that this is a rather complex event, so make sure to review all the info below before you get started.
Read the Official Forum Post
DOWNLOAD THE GAUNTLET REWARDS SPREADSHEET
EVENT SCHEDULE
Begins: Wednesday, March 3 at 1pm EST
Ends: Wednesday, April 7 at 1pm EST
Note that this event runs for 5 weeks (35 days) instead of the usual 28 days.
IMPORTANT EVENT STATS
Total Feathers – 35
Total Caskets – 9
Total Gauntlet Tiers – 10
UNCOLLECTED & ABOVE MAX REWARDS QUICK GUIDE
Collect In-Game Mail
Purchase Caskets 1-5
Play Tier 6 5x
Purchase Casket 6
Play Tier 7 6x
Purchase Casket 7
Play Tier 8 7x
Purchase Casket 8
Play Tier 9 10x
Purchase Casket 9
Play Tier 10 7x
HOW TO PLAY
Odin’s Gauntlet is another “entry-fee” type side-quest. Your entry-fee this month is a Feather. You’ll receive 1 Feather at the start of the event in your mailbox. The others will be earned from a daily calendar. You can claim 35 Feathers in total, meaning you can run the event 35 times. Once you use a Feather to start a Gauntlet, it is gone. If you back out of the quest, YOU WILL NOT GET YOUR FEATHER BACK.
The quest itself is called Odin’s Gauntlet. It is a single path quest that costs 0 energy. Completing the Gauntlet will earn you rewards and the unique currency of the month, Uru.
Uru is used to buy the Casket of Ancient Winters, which unlock the higher difficulties of the Gauntlet. There are 10 difficulty levels (Tiers) of the Gauntlet. The higher the Tier, the better the rewards. The Tiers must be unlocked in order and once a Tier is unlocked it is open for the rest of the event.
There are 9 Caskets of Ancient Winters to purchase. They must be purchased in order and can only be purchased once. The Caskets contain rewards and unlock the next Tier of the Gauntlet. For example, Casket 1 unlocks Gauntlet Tier 2. Tier 1 is unlocked automatically at the start of the event.
The goal is to reach Tier 10. Once Tier 10 is unlocked it stays unlocked. Tier 10 does not reward Uru because there is no need for more Uru once you have unlocked this final Tier.
Summoners who are Conqueror or below will start at Tier 1 in the event.
Summoners with the Uncollected, Cavalier, or Thronebreaker Titles will receive an in-game mail with 120 Uru at the start of the event. This is enough Uru to purchase Caskets 1-5 before you begin running the Gauntlet! Simply purchase the first 5 Caskets and you’ll automatically be able to start on Tier 6. Starting on Tier 6 is very important if you want to maximize your rewards. Make sure to do this before running any Gauntlets. Otherwise you’ll be burning valuable Feathers on the lower tiers.
Remember that it is purchasing the Caskets, not beating the previous Tier that unlocks the next Tier. Furthermore, beating a Tier doesn’t reward enough Uru in one completion to afford the Casket for the next Tier. You’ll have to run each Tier multiple times to earn enough Uru to afford the next Casket.
You are probably wondering how many runs you’ll need to do at each Tier to maximize your Feathers. There are two options, one for Uncollected and above, the other for Conqueror and below.
| Uncollected & Above | Runs |
|---|---|
| Tier 6 | 5 |
| Tier 7 | 6 |
| Tier 8 | 7 |
| Tier 9 | 10 |
| Tier 10 | 7 |
| Total | 35 |
| Conqueror & Below | Runs |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 2 |
| Tier 2 | 2 |
| Tier 3 | 2 |
| Tier 4 | 3 |
| Tier 5 | 5 |
| Tier 6 | 5 |
| Tier 7 | 6 |
| Tier 8 | 7 |
| Tier 9 | 3 |
| Tier 10 | 0 |
| Total | 35 |
DOWNLOAD THE GAUNTLET REWARDS SPREADSHEET
SOLO OBJECTIVE REWARDS
If you successfully complete Tier 10 of Odin’s Bifrost Gauntlet you will receive the “God Tier” title.
VALHALLA VICTORIES
There are also Vanquishing Blow 24-hour Solo Events to accompany the Side Quest. Be sure to look for the particular milestones criteria each day. There are no Rank Rewards for the Solo Events.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This is an event with a lot of moving parts, so be careful and make sure you double-check your selections so you don’t miss out on rewards. Events like this are often a bit confusing at the start, and sometimes buggy, so I highly recommend you don’t jump in during the first few hours the event is live. Sit back and make sure everything is working as intended before you start to spend your Feathers.
-Dano357
Summoners!
It’s Episode 52 of the Contest Realm Podcast! In this episode Rich and I discuss the v30.1 Release Notes, all the crazy events of Wandavision Episodes 6 and 7, and the Realm of Champions v2.0 update.
-Dano357
Summoners!
Here’s your Marvel Contest of Champions news brief for Sunday, February 28, 2021.
Schedule Notes: Sunday Arenas begin at 1pm EST. 100% Roster Availability begins at 2pm EST. The Alpha Arena begins at 6pm EST.
Lagacy and 4Loki take on NEWN in Alliance War. Check out Karatemike‘s fights from the same war.
Join Kam at 3pm EST today for a livestream on Arena Grind Efficiency.
-Dano357
Summoners!
Next week in Marvel Contest of Champions brings us the release of v30.1 and the launch of the March 2021 events.
I hope you and your family are staying safe during these difficult times.
Alliance Wars Seasons
We are currently in the Alliance War Season 24. Rewards eligibility locked on Friday, February 19 at 6pm EST, and the season will conclude on Tuesday, March 2. Season 25 is expected to begin on March 17.
For daily updates and the latest news, please follow @FrontlineMCOC on Twitter.
Full Roster Availability (No AW/AQ): 100% Champion Availability starting at 2pm EST on Sunday, February 28 through 2pm EST on Monday, March 1.
Sunday, February 28: Sunday Arenas begin at 1pm EST. 100% Roster Availability begins at 2pm EST. The Alpha Arena begins at 6pm EST.
Monday, March 1: The Summoner Sigil Solo Event, Gold Quest, items on a 7-day timer, and the Featured Crystals in the Black-ISO Market reset at Noon EST. Round 2 of the 4-Star Basic Iceman and Super-Skrull Featured Arenas at 1pm EST. The Alliance Quest Series kicks off at 3pm EST. UMCOC Podcast, Live on Discord at 8pm EST.
Tuesday, March 2: Incursions Milestones reset at 1pm EST. Alliance War Season 24 ends with the conclusion of today’s war attack. Rewards should be issued 12-16 hours following the conclusion of the season.
Wednesday, March 3: February events conclude and March events begin at 1pm EST. The Tier 4 Basic Arena begins at 6pm EST.
Thursday, March 4: Round 1 of the 4-Star Basic Professor X Arena and To Be Announced Featured Arenas begin at 1pm EST.
Friday, March 5: No Schedule Updates.
Saturday, March 6: No Schedule Updates.
Looking for more content from Frontline: MCOC?
Release Notes – v30.1
March 100% Roster Availability Windows
-Dano357
Summoners!
Here’s your Marvel Contest of Champions news brief for Saturday, February 27, 2021.
Schedule Notes: 100% Roster Availability ends at 2pm EST.
Check out the Release Notes for v30.1, which should be available for download on March 1 or 2.
RichTheMan shares an early look at the March Side Quest.
Seatin looks at the updated abilities of Angela and Masacre.
Katy Candy reviews the update to Civil Warrior.
Cat Murdock and Kam give their takes on the changes to The Hood.
Karatemike has Rank 5 OG Captain America game-play.
-Dano357
Summoners!
Prepare to journey across the Nine Realms in March, as an Asgardian adventure awaits! The All-Father himself, the mighty Odin is set to join the Contest, as is the villainous Mangog. Expect to see v30.1 available for download on March 1 or 2, with monthly events beginning March 3 at 1pm EST.
Read the Official Release Notes.
V30.1 HIGHLIGHTS
EQ – Sins of the Father
SQ – Odin’s Bifrost Gauntlet
Odin
Mangog
Buffs: Civil Warrior, Angela, Masacre, & The Hood
International Women’s Day Boss Rush
Bug Fixes & Improvements
EVENT QUEST
In March’s Event Quest, “Sins of the Father,” Odin has scheduled a tournament to test the strength of his fellow Asgardians, but the return of his longtime nemesis Mangog forces All-Father into battle.
ODIN’S BIFROST GAUNTLET
Compete in Odin’s Gauntlet to earn special currency and rewards throughout the month. We’ve just got the high-level details at this time, but here’s what we know so far.
There will be a Daily Calendar that gives Feathers, these will be your entry fee into the Gauntlet Quest. The Quest will have 1 path and cost 0 energy to complete.
Completing the quest will earn you Uru, which is the special monthly currency. You spend Uru in a store called Odin’s Armory, where you purchase something called a Casket of Ancient Winters, which unlocks the next tier of the Gauntlet. This event sounds like some sort of solo Incursions, where each tier you unlock has better rewards and more difficult fights.
In addition to the Gauntlet Quest there will be a special title if you can beat Tier 10, as well as Valhalla Victory Daily Solo Events that reward shards and signature stones for completing Vanquishing Blows targets.
This seems like another complicated, multi-part side-quest that will require a full breakdown, so stay tuned for a detailed post early next week.
ODIN
Odin is a Cosmic Champion and well-known as both the ruler of Asgard and Thor’s father. Odin possesses the immense cosmic power of the Odinforce, a power so great he must enter the Odinsleep to recover from its use.
Odin has all the standard abilities of Asgardians, but he is greatly enhanced by the Odinforce. He has super-human strength, stamina, and durability. His healing factor can repair almost any wound and makes him immune to Earthly diseases. He wields a spear named Gungnir in battle and has defeated powerful cosmic entities such as Thanos, Silver Surfer, and Annihilus. His exact age is unknown, but his adventures date back tens of thousands of years.
Odin first appeared in Marvel Comics in 1962 in Journey Into Mystery #85 and was created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby. This issue also contained the first appearances of Heimdall and Balder. He has made over 500 appearances in the main 616 continuity, almost all in Thor related titles. In the MCU, Odin has appeared in the 3 Thor movies and is played by legendary actor Anthony Hopkins.
Want to read some Odin comics? Check out a list of his Comic Appearances.
MANGOG
March’s other champion is the villainous Mangog, sworn enemy of Asgard. Mangog is a Mystic Champion, and feeds on negative psychic energy to increase his powers.
In the comics, Mangog draws his powers from thoughts of hate and desires of vengeance. He is actually the physical manifestation of a race wiped out by Odin long ago. It is said that as long as there is hate in the universe, Mangog can never truly be destroyed. He wields this power in the form of mystical energy, making him immensely powerful, even when facing off against the likes of Thor and Odin.
Mangog first appeared in Thor #154 in 1968 and has about three dozen appearances in Marvel Comics. He was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Mangog has not appeared in the MCU as of yet.
Want to read some Mangog comics? Check out a list of his Comic Appearances.
CHAMPION BUFFS
The champion buffs for Angela, Masacre, The Hood, and Civil Warrior will go live as soon as you update to v30.1. Angela and Masacre are the value updates, while The Hood and Civil Warrior are receiving more substantial changes. Look for updated champion spotlights for The Hood and Civil Warrior coming soon.
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY BOSS RUSH
The Boss Rush is back! Once again, the International Women’s Day Boss Rush features 6 fights designed by the community. This year’s Boss Rush features Sorcerer Supreme, Black Widow, Jubilee, Tigra, Storm Pyramid X, and Elsa Bloodstone.
BUG FIXES & IMPROVEMENTS
● A new tab will display information on long running events and deals in the Social Hub so the information is easier to access and doesn’t get lost in the read mail.
● Undo Button: Fixed an issue where players were unable to undo after traversing an already cleared Node.
● Angela: Fixed issue where Angela’s SP2 would occasionally miss if chained after cancelling from a Heavy Attack.
● Abyss of Legends – Brand of the Abyss VI Buff: Updated description to specify Unstoppable and Unblockable are not affected by Ability Accuracy alteration.
● Professor X: Fixed issue where all attacks were not classified as psychic attacks.
● Professor X: Updated info page to reflect that Channeling Vigilance and Surge Special Cost reduction do not work against Psychic Shielding.
● Daredevil (Classic) and Daredevil (Hell’s Kitchen): These two Champions now cannot “miss” when attacking.
● Ghost, Daredevil (Classic), The Hood: Updated ability descriptions to reflect how these Champions interact with “Psychic Attacks.”
● Emma Frost, Professor X, Stryfe: Updated attack descriptions to indicate which Attacks are classified as “Psychic Attacks.”
● Loki: Fixed issue where Loki would not steal and copy Prowess Buffs.
● Spider-Ham: Fixed issue where the SP2 pie projectiles would be facing the wrong way as a defender.
● Scientific Method Buff node: Fixed issue where the Fury potency was based on the defender’s attack rating instead of the attackers.
● Cosmic Ghost Rider: Fixed issue where the third hit of SP2 would occasionally whiff.
● Blade: Fixed issue where Blade’s sword and shurikens would clip into the camera during SP3 animation.
● Æegon: Fixed issue where Aegon would spam on-screen callouts.
● Thor (Ragnarok): Updated info page to specify only 2 “Boon of the Gods” can be active at a single time.
● Beast (Beauty and the Beast synergy with Elsa Bloodstone): Fixed issue where Beast would lose the Fury Buff if he had a Combo Shield.
● Red Goblin: Fixed issue where Symbiote Buff would expire instead of going on a 15-second timer.
● Magneto (House of X): Added icon to the pre-fight ability screen.
● Phoenix: Fixed issue where SP1 and SP2 flame hits were considered physical instead of a projectile.
● Psycho-Man: Fixed issue where the block VFX would appear when dashing back
● Gameplay: Fixed issue where the game would momentarily pause when interacting with the screen during the Run-In phase of a fight.
● King Groot: Fixed issue where King Groot could not use the Furys from Sasquatch’s Giant Challengers Synergy to shrug off Spectre.
● Medusa and Vision (Aarkus): Updated info page to specify Armor Shatter reduces Ability Accuracy instead of “cannot activate”.
● Sixth Sense buff: Fixed issue where Sixth Sense was unaffected by Ability Accuracy.
● Falcon: Update pre-awakened Signature Ability description.
● Guardian: Fixed issue where the Armor-Up cooldown was not triggering in certain scenarios.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I know Odin has been a highly requested champion for a very long time, so I’m quite happy he is finally joining the Contest. Boss Rushes are always a good time, but I think I’m most excited to see the Gauntlet challenge. There has been talk about a “Solo Dungeons/Incursions” mode for a while, and this seems like a step in that direction. I’m looking forward to seeing how it all plays out.
-Dano357
Summoners –
If you plan on clearing some difficult content in Marvel Contest of Champions this March, you’ll need to know when all your champs will be available. Here is the full schedule of 100% Roster Availability Windows (no AQ/AW) for the month. All times are EST, 2pm is based off of the approximate end of AW attack.
Sunday, February 28 at 2pm EST – Monday, March 1 at 2pm EST
Sunday, March 7 at 2pm EST – Monday, March 8 at 2pm EST
Sunday, March 14 at 3pm EST – Monday, March 15 at 2pm EST
Tuesday, March 16 at 2pm EST – Wednesday, March 17 at 3pm EST
Tuesday, March 23 at 2pm EST – Thursday, March 25 at 2pm EST
Tuesday, March 30 at 3pm EST – Thursday, April 1 at 2pm EST
Note: 2pm EST = 7pm GMT.
-Dano357
Summoners!
Here’s my guide for Act 4.2.3 “Straight Outta Queens” in Marvel Contest of Champions.
General Thoughts:
Act 4.2.3 introduces the concept of Global Nodes to the Story Quest. Global Nodes operate similarly to regular Link Nodes, except they apply to every fight on the map. If you defeat a Global Node, it is removed just like a Link Node would be. Global Nodes are often located on the final node of a quest, so you might not actually be able to remove them. If you restart the quest, all the Global Nodes will go back up, just as with regular Link Nodes.
In the case of 4.2.3, the Global Nodes are located on the main line of the quest, allowing you to take them all down on your way to the boss for an initial completion. For example, the first Black Bolt fight in this quest has a 100% Attack & Health Boost. By defeating Black Bolt, this bonus is removed from all the subsequent fights. To 100% the quest, you’ll need to take on the side paths, which force you to leave Global Nodes up. Depending on your roster strength, you may be able to take multiple side paths on a single run.
I ran all the side paths in one go, but you can break them up into multiple runs as I have below. Remember the more side paths you take, the more Global Nodes you’ll leave up on the final boss.
I didn’t acquire any meaningful new champions or make any important rank-ups while exploring this quest.
If you have questions about the basic attack moves and combos in Marvel Contest of Champions, please check out my MCOC 101: Combos guide.
Best Champs:
Restrictions: Need 1 Science, 1 Cosmic, 1 Skill, and 1 Mutant to 100% Explore.
Global Nodes: +100% Attack & Health (Black Bolt), +100% Attack & Health (Hulk), Stun (Spider-Man), Fury (Electro), +20% Armor (Ronan)
Boss: Yellowjacket
Boss Notes:
Power Sting 2.0
+500% Attack & Health
Lane 1 – Center – Easy Path
Gate: None
Defenders: Black Bolt, Hulk, Spider-Man, Gamora, Electro, Punisher, Ronan, Captain Marvel Classic
Nodes: None
Team: 6-Star Red Skull, 5-Star Captain America Infinity War, 4-Star Aarkus, 4-Star Black Widow Deadly Origin, 4-Star Man-Thing
Tips: This is the easiest and most direct route for initial completion. You’ll remove the Global Nodes along the way.
Lane 2 – 1st Side Path
Gate: Need 1 Mutant Gate
Defenders: Black Bolt, Drax, Scarlet Witch, Black Panther, Daredevil, Elektra, Spider-Man, Gamora, Electro, Punisher, Ronan, Captain Marvel Classic
Nodes: None
Team: 5-Star Captain America Infinity War, 4-Star Aarkus, 4-Star Emma Frost, 4-Star Black Widow Deadly Origin, 4-Star Man-Thing
Tips: None of the side fights pose any real difficulty.
Lane 3 – 2nd Side Path
Gate: Need 1 Skill Champion
Defenders: Black Bolt, Hulk, Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel Carol Danvers, Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, Gamora, Elektra, Punisher, Ronan, Captain Marvel Classic
Nodes: None
Team: 5-Star Captain America Infinity War, 4-Star Aarkus, 4-Star Emma Frost, 4-Star Black Widow Deadly Origin, 4-Star Man-Thing
Tips: None of the side fights pose any real difficulty.
Lane 4 – 3rd Side Path
Gate: Need 1 Cosmic Champion
Defenders: Black Bolt, Hulk, Spider-Man, Gamora, Iron Patriot, Cyclops New Xavier School, Rhino, Star-Lord, Deadpool, OG Vision, Juggernaut, Drax, Punisher, Ronan, Captain Marvel Classic
Nodes: None
Team: 5-Star Captain America Infinity War, 4-Star Aarkus, 4-Star Emma Frost, 4-Star Black Widow Deadly Origin, 4-Star Man-Thing
Tips: This is the most difficult of the side paths.
Lane 5 – 4th Side Path
Gate: Need 1 Science Champion
Defenders: Black Bolt, Hulk, Spider-Man, Gamora, Electro, Punisher, Black Panther, Elektra, Ms. Marvel Carol Danvers, Thor, Iron Patriot, Rhino, Deadpool, Juggernaut, Captain Marvel Classic
Nodes: None
Team: 5-Star Captain America Infinity War, 4-Star Aarkus, 4-Star Emma Frost, 4-Star Black Widow Deadly Origin, 4-Star Man-Thing
Tips: Just watch your matchups on the hidden nodes as there is a Rhino, Deadpool, and Juggernaut.
My Roster:
Jump To:
-Dano357
Summoners!
Here’s my guide for Act 7.1.3 “Recycle” in Marvel Contest of Champions.
General Thoughts:
This is another enjoyable quest in Act 7.1. I didn’t have too many problems, as once again it comes down to reading the nodes and proper team construction.
Best Champs: Void, Venom, Kingpin, Mephisto, Human Torch
Restrictions: 5-Star & 6-Star Champions Only
Global Nodes: Star Power, Adrenaline Rush, Hold The Line, Special Attack 3, +200% Attack & Health, +700% Health
Boss: Hulkbuster
Boss Notes:
+150% Attack
+500% Health
Hit Me, I Dare You
Spiked Armor
Shockingly Brilliant
Dulled
So the big challenge here is not getting a Shock Debuff placed on your attacker. There is a 60% chance when striking Hulkbuster with a Critical Hit for him to consume an Armor-Up buff as part of his base kit. The problem is once you get the first Shock, the Shockingly Brilliant node kicks in and then all your hits are Critical, so the Shocks will start stacking up quickly and you’ll be triggering Spiked Armor with every hit. At this point the fight has spiraled out of control and you’ll be dead shortly.
The key to getting around all this is not Shock-Immunity but the Dulled node. Usually, you don’t want to see Dulled, but here it is your friend. Dulled reduces your Crit Chance by 50% for each active buff on your attacker and each Debuff on the defender.
My two workhorses for this boss were Void and Venom. Void was able to go most of the fight without getting shocked, but I wasn’t able to solo. Venom never got shocked, and by spamming his SP1 you can heal and keep Hulkbuster’s Armor-Up buffs under control.
I would also consider Hyperion, Angela, Medusa, Aarkus, Venom The Duck, Cosmic Ghost-Rider, duped Captain America Infinity War, Spider-Ham, and Crossbones for this fight.
Boss: Aarkus
Boss Notes:
+150% Attack
+500% Health
Special Burst Lock Down 2
Power Shield
Power Reversal
Fissure
Aarkus comes with his usual challenges. You’ll need to bring either an Armor-Break Immune or Coldsnap-Immune. My go-to for this fight was Mephisto with the Morningstar synergy. Other options include Thing, Colossus, Man-Thing, and Sasquatch.
If you can get Aarkus to throw his Sp1 and you bring the right champ you should be fine, but his power gain may end up costing you a few revives if you can’t keep it under control. I think most players will find Aarkus the most difficult boss in this quest.
Boss: Red Hulk
Boss Notes:
+150% Attack
+500% Health
Defective Defense
Buffet
Power Focus 1
Foresight
Red Hulk is the easiest of the 7.1.3 bosses. You just want to keep your blocked hits to a minimum and cycle his SP1 for openings. Since he has Power Focus 1, you can pretty much do that every combo. While you can use most champions here, I would stay away from buff-heavy champions that will trigger Buffet. I used Blade both times.
Lane 1 – Top Right – Hulkbuster Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Star-Lord, Spider-Man, Elsa Bloodstone, Symbiote Spider-Man, Ronin, Namor
Nodes: Mesmerize, Dizzy, Stun Vulnerability
Team: Void (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Killmonger (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 159), Iceman (5 Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Venom (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Human Torch (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 1)
Tips: This your classic “Super Evade” path but if you have the right counters, you can take it down quite easily. Venom is an obvious choice for Spider-Man. You’ll want a Mutant for Elsa Bloodstone, and since Iceman can prevent evade with his Coldsnap, he makes for an excellent choice. Killmonger can take the other fights (although I did use Void for Namor) as long as you Parry and 3-hit combo until the defender gets to a SP1. Once Killmonger gets True Strike, it’s all over.
Human Torch was mostly on the team for synergies (he boosts damage for Iceman and Killmonger) but I did want to try his pre-fight on the Hulkbuster boss. Bad idea, he absolutely got annihilated by Shock. I should have swapped him out. Void ended up doing most of the work on Hulkbuster, and then Killmonger and Venom finished up. I didn’t use any items, but it wasn’t the cleanest boss takedown.
Lane 2 – Up To Black Widow – Hulkbuster Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Black Widow, Cyclops New Xavier School, Spider-Gwen, Rogue, Stark Spider-Man, Hit Monkey
Nodes: Crumbling Armor, The Gloves Are Off, Kinetic Transference 1, Heal Block
Team: Hulkbuster (6-Star Rank 2 Sig 20), Doctor Doom (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Venom (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Archangel (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 80), Void (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200)
Tips: I don’t think the nodes are a huge factor for this path, either for or against you. Just remember Heal Block will prevent any Willpower Healing from the Armor Break.
Archangel was my main path clearer, using the standard Heavy spam method against Black Widow, Cyclops, and Hit Monkey. Venom took the two Spider-verse champions, and I used Hulkbuster for Rogue, since she is a bad matchup for Archangel.
Void and the Venom carried the day against Hulkbuster.
Lane 3 – Center Up Paths – Red Hulk Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Black Bolt, Aegon, Rocket Raccoon, Nova, Squirrel Girl, Mojo
Nodes: Life Transfer, Gimme, Redouble Determination, Spectre
Team: Blade (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Stark Spider-Man (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Ghost-Rider (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Kingpin (6-Star Rank 1 Sig 0), The Hood 6-Star Rank 1 Sig 0)
Tips: So the goal here is to regenerate to take advantage of the Gimme node, which Life Transfer allows any champion to do. The problem of course is the Spectre node, which is on a recurring timer and will reverse your Regeneration. However, if you can somehow shrug the Spectre Debuff, you don’t have to worry about the Heal Reversal and can get down to business at the start of the fight.
My team was picked with that in mind. This was my first chance to use Kingpin post-buff, and The Hood was brought along for the +100% Rage Purify Ability Accuracy. Kingpin was my main damage dealer, but I did solo Nova with The Hood. Then I had Blade (with the Danger Sense bonus from Ghost-Rider and Sparky) for Mojo and the Red Hulk Boss.
The fights will go a lot faster if you are constantly regenerating, so let Life Transfer Degenerate you a bit, or just take some hits if you can. Once you go on the attack you’ll heal back up and deal major damage.
These fights aren’t too tricky. Nova is a pain as usual, but I was surprised at how well The Hood did against him. Mojo turtled on me a bit which was a problem with the health bar ticking down, but Blade got it done. Red Hulk is just a simple SP1 cycle until he’s dead.
Lane 4 – Center & Lower Lanes – Red Hulk Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Sentry, Black Panther Civil War, She-Hulk, Thor Ragnarok, Jane Foster, Venompool
Nodes: Special Connoisseur, Mutant Mastery, Shifting Immunity – Bleed & Poison
Team: Blade (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Stark Spider-Man (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Ghost-Rider (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Sunspot (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Namor (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200)
Tips: For this lane you want Mutants that deal debuffs, ideally not Bleed or Poison ones because of the Shifting Immunity Node. Sunspot is an absolute monster on this lane because he just spams Incinerate Debuffs all day long and does huge SP2 damage. Note that with Sunspot, the Mutant Mastery node was removing his natural Prowess buffs as well, so there is no point in throwing SP1s to build him up.
If you don’t have Sunspot, Havok should also be very good for this lane because his Plasma counts as Debuffs. Jubilee and Iceman could also be very good options for this lane.
None of these fights are that tricky. Just keep in mind Black Panther Civil War’s stun reflection and that Jane Foster has increased energy resistance.
Lane 5 – Down, the Upper Paths – Aarkus Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Gambit, Karnak, Captain America, Falcon, Sorcerer Supreme, Joe Fixit
Nodes: Blaze, Power Axis 2, Power Shield
Team: Mephisto (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Mornignstar (6-Star Rank 2 Sig 0), The Champion (6-Star Rank 2 Sig 20), Thing (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Hyperion (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 100)
Tips: With this path you must work very quickly. Don’t go for ramp-up champions. Power Gain, stuns, and big specials are your friends here.
Hyperion is an obvious choice, but he only lasted the first fight and a half because of the Degen. Mephisto carried me, for a couple reasons. With his Persistent Charges, he can actually survive the Direct Damage from the Blaze node. He’ll gain 1 Persistent Charge when entering the fight (with the Morningstar synergy), and then another for winning the fight. You may have to use a few health potions but it will save you revives. The Champion also grants Mephisto an attack bonus.
Aarkus is the most difficult of the three bosses. If you want to survive for any length of time you need to be able to counter his Coldsnap or Armor Breaks. The Heal Block is another big factor in this fight.
I went in first with Thing. He is ok for this fight but doesn’t do a ton of damage. I tried Morningstar since she was on the team and got off one satisfying SP2 before the Coldsnap got me. Once again, Mephisto was up to the task.
Mephisto has a couple of key bits of utility that help in the first. He’s Coldsnap-Immune, so that worry is off the table. He also Soul Locks Aarkus at the top of the fight, so he can’t immediately start building Power Gain Buffs.
Because of the Heal Block node in this fight you likely won’t be able to use your Persistent Charges to heal Mephisto, so instead utilize your SP1 to keep Aarkus Soul Locked. Mephisto’s SP2 is your best bet for big damage. Do your best to bait Aarkus’ SP1 as the SP2 is tricky if you haven’t practiced it.
Lane 6 – Down and Lower Paths – Aarkus Boss – Easy Path
Gate: None
Defenders: Dr. Strange, Cable, Hyperion, OG Vision, Phoenix, Loki
Nodes: That’s Gonna Sting, Backfire, Power Alternator, Power Snack 1
Team: Void (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Thing (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Mephisto (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Morningstar (6-Star Rank 2 Sig 0), Human Torch (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 21)
Tips: Load up on your best Science champions here to take advantage of the Power Sting debuff granted from Backfire. I used Void for every fight on the main path. His ability to mitigate the power gain of defenders such as Dr. Strange, Cable, and Hyperion effectively kept them power locked once the fights got going.
For Aarkus I just used the whole team, with Mephisto once again getting the KO.
The newly buffed Yellowjacket should be excellent for the main path, as should Human Torch, Spider-Ham, and Captain America Infinity War
Jump To:
Kingslayer – 7.1.3 Blaze Path
Karatemike – Sasquatch vs Aarkus
RichTheMan – Corvus vs Blaze Path
-Dano357
Summoners!
Wow, I’ve been playing Marvel Contest of Champions for 6 years! Let’s see how much progress I’ve made since my last account update in mid-November.
Champions – 680 (+40)
PI – 1,709,380 (+165,775)
Prestige – 10,689 (+0)
(increase over the past 3 months)
In the last three months I achieved the Thronebreaker title, with Captain Marvel Movie entering my profile as my first Rank 3 6-Star Champion. Because she is unduped, my Prestige hasn’t moved. I was Cavalier at the time of Cyber Weekend and was really banking on those deals containing items that would help raise my Prestige, but they weren’t helpful for Cavalier players pushing Thronebreaker. I’ve also been spinning 6-Star Featured Crystals in hopes of landing (and duping) a champion that can raise my Prestige like Dragon Man, Apocalypse, or Cosmic Ghost-Rider, but so far I’ve struck out. My Prestige is close to the maximum limit achievable with only 5-Stars. Silver Surfer is the only 5-Star that would make a real impact.
I now have 38 6-Stars, up from 28 last update. Captain Marvel Movie moved from Rank 2 to Rank 3, but I don’t have any new Rank 2 6-Stars. As of now, I don’t have any 6-Stars that I plan on ranking-up. If I dupe Vision AoU, Thor Ragnarok, Phoenix, Night Thrasher, Kingpin, Gambit, or Red Goblin I would consider investing more in those champions. As you can see from my duped Green Goblin, my luck with the 6-Star Featured Crystals has not been great so far.
Because I have been unable to pull and dupe high value 6-Stars I have continued to build my 5-Star roster. I now have 33 Rank 5s, up from 27 three months ago. The 6 new champs are OG Vision, Proxima Midnight, Psylocke, Archangel, Black Widow Deadly Origin, and Quake. I also just brought Magneto to Rank 5, but I haven’t leveled him up yet.
I am really happy with these rank-ups. I’ve been playing a ton of Archangel in Act 7 and Cavalier EQ. Proxima Midnight and Psylocke have helped shore up my Map 7 teams. OG Vision has been good for the new Cavalier Tech node. Black Widow DO and Quake I haven’t used much, but I believe they will be useful when I circle back to Act 6.
I now have 19 4/55 5-Star champions, down from 21 last update. My new Rank 4s are Ultron Classic, Claire Voyant, and Captain America Infinity War.
Because of the relative lack of Tier 2 Alpha, I have mostly focused on my moving existing pool of Rank 4s up to Rank 5 so that any excess Tier 5 Basic doesn’t expire. I need to get into Variant 6 to acquire another round of 3-4 Rank Up Gems to increase my Rank 4 roster. I’m hopeful there will be more quality buffs to 2015-2017 champs to make these gems more valuable.
Top 5 Most Wanted (5* or 6*)
Aegon – Abyss
Silver Surfer – Prestige
Apocalypse – For Horsemen
Spider-Ham – Fun/Degen Counter
Cosmic Ghost-Rider – Damage/Prestige
I didn’t pull anyone off my last Top 5 list. Aegon continues to avoid me in the Dual Class crystals (I believe I’ve opened 43 so far), and until I pull him I can’t begin the “Search for Silver Surfer.”
Kabam has released 2 important pieces of permanent content over the past 3 months: Variant 6 and Act 7.1. I’ve been focused on 100% Exploration of 7.1, and once that is done, hopefully in the next month, I will move on to 100% Variant 6. With the Act 7.2 Beta currently running, I expect we’ll see that content in late spring. If I explore both 7.1 and Variant 6 before 7.2 is released, I’ll return to Act 6.2.
For alliance play, I’m currently in STARS, which runs AQ 7×5 and earns four 2% T5cc a week with Gold 1 wars.
Total Account Spend: $473 USD (+$53 past 3 months)
Content Progress
(% as of November 16 in parenthesis for comparison)
Story Quest
Act 7: 21% – (N/A)
Act 7.1: 62% – (N/A)
Act 6: 51% – (49%)
6.1: 100% – (100%)
6.2: 80% – (72%)
6.3: 19% – (19%)
6.4: 19% – (19%)
Acts 1-5: 100% – (100%)
Labyrinth of Legends: 100% – (100%)
Abyss of Legends: 0% – (0%)
Back Issues:
Volume 1 Classic: 100% – (100%)
Volume 1 Variant: 100% – (100%)
Volume 2 Classic: 100% – (100%)
Volume 2 Variant: 100% – (100%)
Volume 3 Classic: 100% – (100%)
Volume 3 Variant: 100% – (100%)
Volume 4 Classic: 100% – (100%)
Volume 4 Variant: 100% – (100%)
Volume 5 Classic: 100% – (100%)
Volume 5 Variant: 100% – (100%)
Volume 6 Classic: 100% – (N/A)
Volume 6 Variant: 0% – (N/A)
-Dano357
Summoners!
It’s Episode 51 of the Contest Realm Podcast! In this episode Rich and I discuss the new Cavalier Nodes, Wandavision Episode 5, and the Realm of Champions v2.0 Release Notes.
-Dano357
When Long Island teenager Christopher Powell discovered an alien amulet, he unlocked a suit of armor that transformed him into Darkhawk. The suit gave him many powers including superhuman strength, flight, force-fields, and energy blasts. He decided to fight crime with his new powers, often teaming up with Spider-Man and the New Warriors.
It wasn’t until years later, during the War of Kings, when Darkhawk met Talon and learned of the Fraternity of Raptors. Although Talon deceived Darkhawk as to his true intentions, Chris did learn that the Darkhawk armor was actually of Shi’ar origin and was much more versatile than he ever imagined. As The War of Kings progressed Chris learned about Null Space as well as how to shift into different armor modes, which is a key part of the champion’s design in MCOC.
Darkhawk first appeared in Marvel Comics in 1991 in Darkhawk #1. He has over 150 appearances in the main Earth-616 Comics continuity but has not yet appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Darkhawk joined the Contest in December of 2018 and is two-way champion that can help your roster on both offense and defense. Darkhawk is double-immune, safe-to-play, and can deal big time damage while in Null mode.
View Darkhawk on Auntm.ai
Key Information:
Darkhawk is a Tech Champion in MCOC and has the robot tag. He can fill a similar role in your roster as Guillotine 2099, Sentinel, Nebula, or Warlock. As a robot, Darkhawk is immune to Bleed and Poison effects.
The unique part of Darkhawk’s kit is his three modes. They are Shield Mode, Stealth Mode, and Null Mode.
Shield Mode is a defensive mode triggered when Darkhawk is knocked down and lasts for 10 seconds. If Darkhawk blocks a Contact attack while in Shield Mode he will place a Shock Debuff on the opponent. If duped, Darkhawk has a scaling chance to Auto-Block the opponent.
Stealth Mode is Darkhawk’s power control mode. It is triggered by launching Darkhawk’s SP2 and lasts for 20 seconds. During Stealth Mode Darkhawk passively reduces the opponent’s defensive power gain (meaning when you are hitting them) by 70%. When Darkhawk is attacked in Stealth Mode, enemy Light and Medium attacks have a 30% chance to Miss. When duped, Darkhawk has a scaling Offensive Combat Power Rate increase while in Stealth Mode.
Null Mode is Darkhawk’s damage mode. It is triggered by launching Darkhawk’s SP3 and lasts for 30 seconds. It provides Darkhawk with a large attack rating increase, +25% Block Penetration, and Heal-Blocks the opponent for 30 seconds. When duped, there is an additional scaling Attack Rating increase while in Null Mode.
Transitioning from one active mode to another automatically triggers Darkhawk’s Null Space regeneration, which restores approximately 10% of Darkhawk’s health for a 5/65 5-Star over the course of 2 seconds.
Moving on from the Modes, Darkhawk also gets 100% Armor and Resistance Penetration on his Wing attacks. This is useful against high-armor champions.
Signature Ability:
Darkhawk’s signature ability provides additional boosts to his three different modes. In Shield Mode Darkhawk gains a chance to Auto-Block enemy attacks. This can trigger Parry. In Stealth Mode, Darkhawk gains increased Offensive Combat Power. In Null Mode, Darkhawk gains a significant boost to Attack Rating. All three of these abilities scale with Signature Level. Darkhawk gains a significant benefit from being awakened and at Signature Level 200. He certainly isn’t unplayable at low signature level, but ideally, he should be at max signature.
Team Building/Key Synergies:
Darkhawk has many valuable synergy partners. None are necessary to play the champion. If I were going to put together a “Darkhawk Team,” it would be Darkhawk with Night Thrasher, Elsa Bloodstone, and Nova, with either Venom or Ghost-Rider in the final slot.
Birds of Prey with Vulture, Falcon, & Hawkeye – Darkhawk gains +5% Critical Rating and Damaging Debffs are 40% Stronger. This isn’t a common synergy to use, but now that Falcon has been buffed it could be fun to try, especially in Incursions where you can stack on the Shock and Incinerate Hacks.
Dark Justice with Venom, Punisher, & Ghost-Rider – This is a solid synergy, as it helps Darkhawk in most fights. The Power Gain bonus is huge because it gets Darkhawk to the SP3 faster. It’s usually easy to justify adding Venom to the team since he is such a great champion in his own right.
Night Hawks with Moon Knight & Night Thrasher – This is a very popular Darkhawk synergy as you start the fight in a random mode. If you hit the jackpot and start in Null Mode you can end the fight quickly in most cases. The Night Thrasher/Darkhawk combo is great for Incursions.
A.I. Uprising with Guillotine 2099 – Gain 70% of a Bar of Power each time an immunity prevents a Bleed or Poison (12 second cooldown). This is a solid synergy, but Guillotine 2099 and Darkhawk cover a lot of the same territory when it comes to utility, so you may not want to have two robots on the team at once.
Hunting Party with Elsa Bloodstone – Darkhawk instantly charges 50% of a Bar of Power when entering a mode from a different one. If you see yourself using the SP3-to-SP2 rotation this is a great synergy to have.
New Warrior Blood with Nova – Darkhawk starts the fight with a Permanent Armor Buff increasing Armor by 45%. This is important if you need Darkhawk as a Havok counter.
Mastery Setup:
Darkhawk is one of the most Suicides friendly champions in the Marvel Contest of Champions. He’s immune to both Bleed and Poison, so no Debuff damage. His most important special attack is the SP3, so no Recoil worries. If you do have to throw the other specials, you can out-heal Recoil when switching between modes.
Many Summoners debate ranking Darkhawk vs Sentinel. If you are running Suicides, Darkhawk gets a big edge over Sentinel.
Darkhawk can be an unconventional power control champion when you combine his Stealth Mode with the Collar Tech Mastery.
Alliance War Defense:
Darkhawk should be awakened and ideally at high Signature Level for Alliance War Defense use. This is because Darkhawk’s Auto-Block chance increases with Signature Level. Additionally, Darkhawk should be placed on a node that forces the opponent to knock him down or gets Darkhawk to throw his SP2, as he is a much trickier defender in a mode. Aegis Heavy is a popular node for Darkhawk.
Special Attacks:
Darkhawk’s SP1 is the only one of his specials that does not activate a mode. Instead, you will get a different benefit based on the current mode Darkhawk is in. Shield Mode grants a 3.5 second stun, Stealth Mode the opponent gains no power from the attack, and Null Mode a 4-second Shock Debuff.
The SP2 puts Darkhawk into Stealth Mode for 20 seconds. While in Stealth Mode, Darkhawk passively reduces the opponent’s Defensive Power Gain by 70%. The opponent’s Light and Medium attacks have a 30% chance to miss Darkhawk.
The SP3 puts Darkhawk into Null Mode for 30 seconds, which gives him a massive boost to Attack Rating, +25% Block Penetration, and 100% change to inflict shock on his Basic Attacks. It also places a 30-second Heal Block on the opponent.
For most fights, if you get to your SP3, the fight is over. I like to launch the SP3 right after the opponent throws their special so I can maximize my time in Null Mode. Without a double, Darkhawk’s SP3 is the special you want to rely on in most circumstances.
Pros:
Base attack, Crit Rate, and Physical Resistance are slightly above average.
Massive Damage increase in Null Mode. 30 seconds is just about enough time to build up to another SP3 so that you can immediately reactive Null Mode once it expires.
SP3 Heal Block is one of the longest in the game. Excellent for shutting down Omega Red, Namor, Wolverine, Deadpool, and other mutants.
Very effective attacker to take against 6.2.2 Mr. Sinister if you have the Heimdall with Angela/Hela synergy.
Very Suicides friendly champion but still has solid damage without the damage boost from Double Edge and Liquid Courage.
Cons:
Not a high prestige Champion, which is unfortunate as Darkhawk is most effective at Signature Level 200.
More valuable as a 5-Star than as a 6-Star at the current time because of the limited availability of 6-Star Sig Stones.
Below average health pool, Crit Damage, and Crit Resistance.
Nodes that slow or cap Darkhawk’s power gain severely hamper his damage potential. Not a champion you want to bring for Special Delivery days in AQ.
Heath regeneration isn’t actually useful in most situations.
Pro Tips:
Bait your opponent’s special just before launching your SP3 and activating Null Mode so that you can maximize your damage before you have to back off and bait another special.
Depending on the opponent and fight length, I usually just throw SP3s, but sometimes an SP3-SP2-SP3-SP2 rotation can also be effective.
Recommended Videos:
Dorklesson – Darkhawk Review
Seatin – Darkhawk in 2020
Jason Voorhess – Darkhawk Guide
Karatemike – Darkhawk Rank-Up and Gameplay
-Dano357
Summoners!
If you are looking to acquire Pyscho-Man and Super-Skrull in Marvel Contest of Champions here are some important dates to mark on your calendar. Please note that Kabam can make changes to the Arena and Basic Pool release schedules, and all these dates are based off my understanding of their champion release process.
Psycho-Man
2/11/21 – 1st Arena
3/23/21 – 6-Star Featured Crystal
4/20/21 – 5-Star Featured Crystal
6/22/21 – Basic Pool (Projected)
6/29/21 – 6-Star Basic Pool
8/19/21 – 4-Star Basic Arena (Projected)
Super-Skrull
2/25/21 – 1st Arena
3/23/21 – 6-Star Featured Crystal
4/20/21 – 5-Star Featured Crystal
6/29/21 – 6-Star Basic Pool
7/6/21 – Basic Pool (Projected)
9/2/21 – 4-Star Basic Arena (Projected)
-Dano357
Summoners!
Here’s my guide for Book 2 Act 7.1.2 “Break Out” in Marvel Contest of Champions.
General Thoughts:
Another solid quest for Act 7.1. There isn’t anything that really stands out in terms of difficulty here. A few of the fights such as Extinction Protocol Bishop and Guardian are tough but nothing feels unfair. Read the nodes, use them to your advantage, and you’ll be fine.
One of my favorite parts of the design of Act 7.1.2 is that it allowed me to use some old favorites such as Archangel and Vision again. The usual suspects (for me) such as Venom, Hyperion, and Void continued to perform well, and I was finally able to unleash by Rank 3 Captain Marvel Movie in Book 2.
Best Champs: Void, Archangel, Captain Marvel Movie, Hyperion
Restrictions: Only 5-Star & 6-Star Champions
Global Nodes:
Star Power – 6-Star Attackers gain a permanent Passive Fury increasing attack rating by +700
Adrenaline Rush – Attacker gains up to +100% Damage Reduction at all times, scaling with their current Adrenaline. Adrenaline is gained after being struck.
Hold The Line – Attacker gains up to +80% Block Proficiency at all times, scaling with their current Adrenaline. Adrenaline is gained after being struck.
Special 3 Active
+200% Attack & Health Boost
+700% Health Boost
Boss: Venom
Boss Notes:
+150% Attack
+500% Health
No Hit Mercy 3
Chitinous Thorns
Cutting Wires
Foresight
When selecting your attacker for the Venom boss make sure that they are either Bleed-Immune or have a way to consistently nullify Venom’s Armor Up Buffs. The Cutting Wire node eliminates Robots as an option, so no Dragon Man. Most of the other top-tier Mystics such as Doctor Doom, Sorcerer Supreme, Symbiote Supreme, Claire Voyant, Man-Thing, and Morningstar should be able to take this fight with ease. I would say that Venom is the easiest of the three 7.1.2 Bosses, just because there are so many Mystic options that completely shut him down. Once you’ve accounted for Chitinous Thorns, it’s really just a regular Venom with a lot of health.
Boss: Rhino
Boss Notes:
+150% Attack
+500% Health
Tantrum
Power Shield
Bubble Shield
Matador
For this fight you need to account for the Tantrum node by constantly placing a Concussion, Disorient, Enervate, or Taunt Debuff on Rhino. Nick Fury was my go-to for this fight, as you can simply spam his SP1 thanks to Matador. If you are using Nick Fury, I suggest getting him into his second life early (assuming he’s not there already) because otherwise it will be a very long fight. Once you get into the rotation, it’s not difficult.
Other options to consider for this fight include Quake, Spider-Ham, Spider-Gwen, or Night Thrasher.
Boss: Green Goblin
Boss Notes:
+150% Attack
+500% Health
Redlining
Power Reserve
Cramping
Debilitate
Green Goblin is the trickiest of the three 7.1.2 Bosses, but he’s not a huge step up in difficulty from the other three. You will have to deal with the Redlining node, so you need to be ready to throw your SP2 as soon as you gain two bars of Power. Any attackers that require their SP3 are off the table for this fight.
Personally, I really like OG Vision for this fight. Now that Vision Age of Ultron is available as a 6-Star, he would also be great. The two big issues in this fight are Green Goblin’s power gain and healing, and the Visions easily counter both. With the Power Reserve node you can spam SP2s all day long to keep him power drained and heal blocked.
If you don’t have either Vision, consider Doctor Octopus, Guillotine 2099, or Warlock.
If you don’t go with a Power Control option, the fight is much riskier. If you mess up dodging one of Norman’s SP2s you are dead, and you’ll have to dodge that special a lot. Archangel, Quake, Human Torch, and Ghost are the only non-Power Control champions I’d recommend for this fight. Captain Marvel Movie might be ok if she’s ready to go into Binary at the top of the fight.
Lane 1 – Up & Right to Daredevil HK – Venom Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Daredevil (Hell’s Kitchen), Invisible Woman, Masacre, Doctor Voodoo, Daredevil, Miles Morales
Nodes: Destructive Feedback, Evolutionary Advantage, Overreach Fury 3 (Entire Path)
Team: Void (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Venom (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Killmonger (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 159), Nick Fury (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 1), Symbiote Supreme (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 60)
Tips: Destructive Feedback is the key node for this path. The only champion you absolutely need a counter for is Invisible Woman (need anti-miss champ), although it is nice to bring Venom if you can fit him on the team for Miles Morales. Other than those fights, you can bring whoever you are most comfortable with. Personally, I like Killmonger for Destructive Feedback because his SP2 Invulnerability charges give you a large margin for error and negate any Destructive Feedback damage. Ghost and Quake will likely be popular choices for many players for this path.
If you do go the Killmonger route, the key is to spam SP2 to keep your Invulnerability Charges up, then go for the big SP3 bleed once the defender is below 50% health. I used Killmonger for both Daredevils and Masacre, Nick Fury for Invisible Woman, Void for Doctor Voodoo, and Venom for Miles Morales. None of these defenders are difficult on their own, it’s just about avoiding Destructive Feedback damage.
At the end of the path I swapped out Venom for my 6-Star Morningstar to take on the Venom boss. Symbiote Supreme is excellent for Venom as well, but since it doesn’t cost you anything to swap, I figured might as well bring in a second option for the fight. I SP2 spammed with Morningstar and got Venom down to 20% health before he backed me into a corner and caught me with his SP2. Then Symbiote Supreme easily finished the fight.
Lane 2 – Up & Left – Venom Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Omega, Red, Stealth Spider-Man, Man-Thing, Colossus, Squirrel Girl, Captain America Infinity War
Nodes: Encroaching Stun, Hurt Locker, Power Axis 2, Specialist 1
Team: Hyperion (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 100), Venom (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Killmonger (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 180), Sentinel (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 137), Void (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200)
Tips: This path is about juggling a few different nodes. You need to have a special ready to counter Encroaching Stun, and it needs to be a different special than the last one you threw because of Hurt Locker. On top of that, you have Power Axis 2, so it is really easy to overshoot your SP1 and very difficult to get to your SP3. This means you’ll likely need to cut-off your combo when you’re in the SP1 stage of your rotation, otherwise you’ll gain too much power.
For my team I mainly used Void and Sentinel. Both have long specials, which is helpful for Encroaching Stun. Void does damage from his debuffs, which is helpful when you have to play keep-away to avoid gaining power. Sentinel’s SP2 incinerates will trigger through block at 100 Analysis, which can be useful if you have to throw it to not get stunned. Both Sentinel’s specials are hard to punish even if they are blocked which comes in handy.
I used Void for Man-Thing, Colossus, and Captain America IW, Sentinel for Omega Red and Squirrel Girl, and Venom for Stealth Spider-Man. I then swapped Killmonger out for Symbiote Supreme to solo the Venom Boss. I took a few hits but this was an item-free path for me.
Lane 3 – Left & Up – Rhino Boss – Hard Path
Gate: None
Defenders: Red Guardian, Rogue, Guardian, Magneto House of X, Hawkeye, Bishop
Nodes: Static Blast, Extinction Protocol, Specialist 2 (Entire Lane)
Team: Captain Marvel Movie (6-Star Rank 3 Sig 0), Nick Fury (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 21), Hulkbuster (6-Star Rank 2 Sig 20), Warlock (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 0), Archangel (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 80)
Tips: You’re going to have limited access to your special attacks because of the constant power drain, and your SP1s won’t do much damage if you get to them. Focus on champions that can do big damage without specials if you can. If you have an Archangel I think he’s a must bring, because he is so safe and so fast.
Red Guardian, Rogue, Magneto House of X and Hawkeye should all be easy. Guardian and Bishop are the ones to plan for. For Guardian I had to use a few champs, including Hulkbuster, Archangel, and Captain Marvel Movie, His Shock damage and SP2 are nasty, so you are a bit on the clock here with the Extinction Protocol node.
For Bishop I revived and healed up Archangel. That is a fight where you want to give him as little power as possible. Looking back, I probably should have gone with OG Vision instead of Hulkbuster and used him for this fight.
The Rhino Boss was all Nick Fury. Nick has a Disorient Debuff on his SP1 counters the Tantrum node. It’s just a constant cycle of evading Rhino’s SP1 and throwing your own. This is a long fight, so get Nick out of the LMD phase early unless you want to be there all day. There isn’t anything tricky to the fight, and Matador actually helps you out here by giving you constant access to your SP1.
Lane 4 – Left & Down – Rhino Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Jane Foster, Heimdall, Longshot, Ghost, Tigra, Phoenix
Nodes: Vivified, Power Suppression, Power Alternator, Unblockable Specials
Team: Hulk Ragnarok (6-Star Rank 2 Sig 0), Void(5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Thing (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), Killmonger (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 180), Human Torch (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 21)
Tips: Vivified is another of those nodes I’m usually not too happy to see, but Power Suppression supplies a very useful counter. Load up on your Science champs that spam Debuffs. In my case that meant Void and Human Torch, but Captain America Infinity War, Luke Cage, Spider-Gwen, Mr. Fantastic, Spider-Ham, and Immortal Abomination should all be very strong for this lane.
The key is setting up the fight. If you’re using a champion that deals a lot of debuffs, once you get to the first SP1 and apply Enervate the difficult part of the fight is over. As long as you keep the debuffs up, Enervate will automatically re-apply.
Two things to look out for. Enervate consumes a debuff when it reapplies. Sometimes, it will consume the stun debuff right after a Parry and you’ll get clobbered. Second, don’t forget about Power Alternator. Spam your SP1. You don’t want to give the opponent a free SP3 because you’ve saved up all your power and then the power bars switch.
I used Human Torch for Jane Foster and Longshot, and Void for the other fights. Tigra is the tough fight, just because her SP2 takes up so much space and is unblockable. She got me once.
For Rhino I switched out Killmonger for Nick Fury and took him down.
Lane 5 – Right & Up – Green Goblin Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Venom The Duck, Hit Monkey, Magneto, Sorcerer Supreme, Human Torch, Vision Age of Ultron
Nodes: Typhoon, Spite, Power Axis 2
Team: Void (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 200), OG Vision (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Killmonger (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 180), Archangel (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 80), Magik (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40)
Tips: Normally I find the Spite node pretty punishing, but this was actually a fairly easy lane. It was all Archangel and Void for me. Between Archangel’s Neurotoxic and Void’s Petrify, that’s everything I needed to counter the power gain. I used AA for Venom the Duck, Hit Monkey, and Human Torch, and Void for Magneto, Sorcerer Supreme, and Vision AoU. None of the defenders really stand out in terms of difficulty.
I brought Killmonger just for the Void synergy (keeps his health topped up) and Magik never got off the bench. I used OG Vision for the Green Goblin boss. It’s a long but super-safe way to approach this boss, since OG Vision’s SP2 keeps him power drained while also heal-blocking him.
For alternative options, Quake and Red Guardian should be excellent for this lane.
Lane 6 – Right and Down – Green Goblin Boss
Gate: None
Defenders: Red Skull, Black Panther, Doctor Octopus, Silver Surfer, Guillotine 2099, Emma Frost
Nodes: Special Delivery, Cosmic Avalanche, Mix Master
Team: The Champion (6-Star Rank 2 Sig 20), Venom (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 40), Symbiote Supreme (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 60), Archangel (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 80), Hyperion (5-Star Rank 5 Sig 100)
Tips: Load up on Cosmics to take advantage of Cosmic Avalanche if you can. Hyperion is a beast for this lane. His ability to end most combos with a Special takes away the worry of Special Delivery, and since you’re naturally mixing in Heavy Attacks, that counters Mix Master a bit. Doctor Octopus can slow him down but he’s still a fantastic option but Hyperion is still great for that fight.
I used Archangel for Black Panther. His rotation gets a little weird since you can’t just Heavy spam but he’s still quite effective.
For Silver Surfer I used Symbiote Supreme. Yes, you can get to the SP3 with Special Delivery, you just have to be patient and let his natural power gain do its work. This might happen while you’re baiting Surfer’s SP1 anyways.
Guillotine 2099 is the hardest fight, because her SP1 will power drain you and of course, that can get you in trouble with Special Delivery. I actually soloed this with my 6-Star Champion. The trick is to use the L-M-L-M combo as much as you can to get yourself a bar of power. Being a 6-Star, Champion gets the attack bonus, and with the healing on his SP1 he can hang in this fight a long time.
I finished off using Venom for Emma Frost. In Diamond Form Emma is stun-immune, which is a bit rough with Mix Master. What’s great about Venom is he has an Armor Break on his Heavy Attack, which shuts her down and makes the fight much easier. Try to throw a Heavy or Light Attack just before you bait her SP1, that makes it much easier to punish her special.
Green Goblin wasn’t too bad of a boss, you just have to dodge the SP2. I did switch out Symbiote Supreme for OG Vision, but I managed to take him down with AA, Hype, and Venom before that became a factor to finish off an item-free run.
Jump To:
7.1.1 – “Reboot” – So This Is Actually Fun
-Dano357
Summoners!
I hope you’re ready for a busy month in Marvel Contest of Champions as v30.0 will bring us Love Is A Battlerealm 4 One, the Lunar New Year Event, a Valentine’s Calendar, and two classic Fantastic Four villains: Psycho-Man and Super-Skrull!
Read the Official Release Notes
V30.0 HIGHLIGHTS
EQ – Mixed Emotions
Love Is a Battlerealm 4 One
Psycho-Man
Super-Skrull
Champion Buffs
A Month of Love
Lunar New Year
Bug Fixes & Improvements
EVENT QUEST
In February’s Event Quest, Johnny Storm notices that the heroes of the Battlerealm are acting strangely. What could be causing this and is the Fantastic Four’s old adversary the Super-Skrull responsible?
LOVE IS A BATTLEREALM 4 ONE
Once against, Deadpool is up to no good in the month of love. Deadpool has sought out Psycho-Man to use his Control Box to solve his emotional problems, but as one would expect, unintended consequences ensue. It’s up to you to sort things out, and if you need some help, bring champions with the Romance Synergy to feel the Power of Love.
Read the Forum Post on Love is a Battlerealm 4 One
PSYCHO-MAN
Psycho-Man is a Tech Champion from the Microverse set on dominating our regular-sized universe. His suit carries the Control Box, which allows him to control the emotions of his opponents, especially negative feelings such as doubt and fear.
Note that every Summoner will receive a 3-Star Psycho-Man in February, which can be used to complete Solo Objectives and earn rewards including Profile Pictures and Self Love Boosts.
Psycho-Man is a bit of a deep-cut from the Fantastic Four’s rogue gallery. He first appeared in Fantastic Four Annual #5 (1967), and then in a couple more issues of Fantastic Four in the 60s before disappearing entirely in the 1970s. He was brought back in the 80s in the Micronauts series and for an arc in John Byrne’s Fantastic Four run. For the past 30 years he’s made sporadic appearances, tangling with Cable, Silver Surfer, and Spider-Man among others.
Want to read some Psycho-Man comics? Check out a list of his Comic Appearances.
SUPER-SKRULL
February’s other champion, the Super-Skrull, is a classic Fantastic Four villain, and in fact has all the powers of Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny. It will be very interesting to see how this plays out in game! Super-Skrull will be a Cosmic Champion in MCOC.
Super-Skrull’s real name is Kl’rt, and he was created way back in 1963 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. His first appearance was in Fantastic Four #18 “A Skrull Walks Among Us.” Originally, he was sent to Earth to defeat the Fantastic Four, who had previously repelled a Skrull Invasion. To do so, he was given the combined powers of the Fantastic Four. He is also a master of many forms of combat and has proven immune to detection by Wolverine’s sense of smell and Charles Xavier’s telepathy.
In addition to his battles with the Fantastic Four, Kl’rt played a part in the Kree-Skrull war, and the major Cosmic events Annihilation and Annihilation: Conquest. Both Annihilation series are must reads if you are into cosmic Marvel and want to learn the origins of the modern Guardians of the Galaxy. One thing that is very important to note about Kl’rt’s backstory is that Galactus destroyed his homeworld, and we all know the Devourer of Worlds is on his way to the Battlerealm.
Want to read some Super-Skrull comics? Check out a list of his Comic Appearances.
CHAMPION BUFFS
The champion buffs for Kingpin, Mole Man, Terrax, and Yellowjacket will go live as soon as you update to v30.0. Look for champion spotlights for these four coming soon.
A MONTH OF LOVE
There will be several Valentine’s themed events going on in February. The Shattered Heart Crystals make a return. If you remember these from past years, they feature champions that have a Romance or It’s Complicated synergy. Earn Shattered Heart Shards from Love is a Battlerealm, Arena Milestones, and Solo Objectives. You can also send out Valentine’s Cards in a special Gifting event to earn more shards. Finally, there will be a special Valentine’s Calendar featuring even more Shattered Heart Shards, Love Juice, and Self Love Boosts.
LUNAR NEW YEAR
Celebrate the Lunar New Year with a special Lunar New Year Calendar and send Red Tickets to your friends to contribute to the Alliance Gifting Event. There will also be a special “beginner friendly” quest.
BUG FIXES & IMPROVEMENTS
● Class Catalyst Selectors will now display the player’s inventory of full Catalysts or Fragments on the selection screen.
● New Class and Challenge Buffs for Cavalier Difficulty Event Quest.
● Professor X: Fixed issue where the Surge abilities were not treated as a passive.
● Rocket Raccoon: Updated Signature description to show Crit Rating potency every hit in the combo instead of every 10 hits. Fixed issue where the Signature Critical Rating potency was calculating as 1 less than the combo meter specified.
● Vulture: Fixed Special 3 effects which were overlapping other effects.
● Armored Assault Buff: Added the Unblockable icon when the defender becomes Unblockable.
● Auto Fight Button: Turning off Auto Fight while the attacker is blocking no longer keeps the attacker in the blocked state.
● Do Not Go Gentle Buff: Edited Description to clarify the buff in more detail. Edited description to clarify Intercepting and Heavy attacks reduce charges even when the opponent is not about to be KOed.
● Power Sting 3.0 Buff: Updated to now inflict the Attacker with a permanent Power Sting with infinite duration that deals the Defenders Attack rating as direct damage to the Attacker when casting specials.
● Scientific Method 2 Buff: Edited Description to specify the max is 55.5% instead of 50%. Edited Description to specify 11.1% is removed every 10 hits.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I’m excited to turn the page to February, and with any luck, v30.0 will be a much better update in terms of game stability. I don’t know much about Psycho-Man, but Super-Skrull has the potential to be a very cool addition to the Contest. I’m interested in seeing how the design team addresses the challenge of incorporating all the powers of the Fantastic Four into one champion. Love is A Battlerealm is always a good time, as I love 80s music references and the Deadpool dialogue is usually a lot of fun to read. Here’s hoping for a quality month in MCOC.
-Dano357
Summoners!
Need some advice on which villains to use in Variant 6, and what buffs to pair them with? You’re in luck, because RichTheMan has you covered!
DOWNLOAD THE VARIANT 6 SPREADSHEET
-Dano357
