A surprise balance patch has dropped for Marvel Rivals, just weeks before Season 3. While the patch isn’t massive in size, several impactful adjustments are here to shake up the current meta—starting with a major Thor rework, team-up nerfs, and a survivability buff for Moon Knight.
Thor’s Awaken Rework Changes Everything (Marvel Rivals Hero Balance Update)
The most dramatic change goes to Thor. Previously locked into his Awakening Rune state with little flexibility, Thor now gains the ability to cancel the awakened mode manually after a short delay. This adjustment resolves one of his biggest weaknesses—predictability.
Top players have long criticized Thor’s locked-in commitment post-awakening, which often left him vulnerable and limited his kit’s versatility. With this update, players can now burst into awakened mode for a kill and instantly pivot out using hammer twirl, making him significantly more viable in high-skill lobbies.
While he’s still not top-tier in pro meta, this gives Thor the mobility to balance his raw damage output, especially in lower to mid ranks where he already dominates. Expect to see more of him on the ranked ladder and possibly creeping into pro-level drafts soon.
Moon Knight Health Buff Adds Needed Survivability
Moon Knight receives a base health increase from 250 to 275. While a 10% boost may not sound like much, it allows him to survive more burst combos from characters like Psylocke and Hela. This change particularly benefits low to mid-tier players who’ve struggled with Moon Knight’s fragility, and it’s a subtle but meaningful buff for those playing him at the highest level.
With teams like 100 Thieves already showcasing strong Moon Knight play in competitive matches, this change could encourage more players to give the hero a chance.
Team-Up Nerfs: Jeffnado, Chilling Assault, and Penny’s Spider Nest (Marvel Rivals Hero Balance Update)
Some of the most overpowered team-ups in the game finally get addressed:
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Jeffnado (Storm + Jeff): The charge time on Storm’s ultimate has been increased from 3,100 to 3,400, and the swallowing animation now takes longer—1.2 seconds increased to 1.5 seconds. These two changes make the combo less oppressive across all skill levels, giving players a better chance to react and counter.
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Chilling Assault (Hawkeye + Luna): Developers heavily nerfed this team-up. They dropped ice arrow damage from 30 (120 max) to 25 (100 max), reduced the freeze stun duration, and shrank the spell field AoE from 3 meters to just 1 meter.The changes demand better aim and limit random multi-freezes through walls, bringing balance back to this formerly dominant setup.
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Penny Parker + Rocket Raccoon: The Spider Nest cooldown for the armored variant now rises from 20 to 30 seconds. This delays how frequently Rocket can capitalize on Penny’s strong setup and pulls the team-up in line with others in the 30-second range.
Star-Lord Gets a Damage Bump
Star-Lord sees a small buff to his mid-range effectiveness. His Element Guns now deal 65% max damage at 25 meters instead of 60%, a flat 5% boost. Combined with his already-improved ultimate, this gives him more consistency in neutral fights and helps charge his ult faster.
While not meta-defining, it’s a smart tweak to a hero who performs well across all skill brackets.
Thoughts Before Season 3
These balance changes, though limited in number, will definitely impact the Marvel Rivals meta over the next few weeks. Thor’s rework alone may shift how teams think about mobility and burst potential, while the nerfs to dominant team-ups should open space for more creative combinations.
No buffs for dive heroes like Spider-Man, Panther, or Magic this time, which suggests the developers may be holding bigger shifts for the Season 3 launch. Until then, players will need to adapt quickly, especially in ranked and competitive settings.
