A new season in Marvel Rivals is right around the corner with Season 4, Heart of the Dragon, poised to land, alongside the latest balance changes with a host of buffs and nerfs.
Releasing September 12, Season 4 of Marvel Rivals has some big additions, including a release on PlayStation 4, a new character, new maps, and plenty more.
Balance changes are just as important as any new content, however, and we’ve got all the details on the buffs and nerfs in Season 4.
All Marvel Rivals Season 4 Buffs & Nerfs
As is customary at the start of a new season, a huge number of balance changes are being made in Marvel Rivals, with buffs and nerfs to several heroes.
In the Vanguard department, Peni Parker and Thor receive boosts to their Ultimate abilities, while Doctor Strange has increased damage output. On the flip side, Captain America and Emma Frost have both been nerfed, having dominated throughout Season 3.
Duelists receiving a boost in the patch are Scarlet Witch, Blade, and Moon Knight, with Blade still finding his feet following an introduction in Season 3.5, while Scarlet Witch and Moon Knight have seen their effectiveness drop off. Counteracting that are nerfs to Squirrel Girl, Black Panther, and Psylocke, while Magik has a bunch of changes following the removal of the Dimensional Shortcut Team-Up ability.
Finally, Invisible Woman, Jeff the Land Shark, and Ultron are receiving boosts, while Luna Snow is having the duration of her Ultimate ability reduced, and Loki is also affected by nerfs.
Here’s a full list of all the characters affected with buffs and nerfs.
Buffs
- Peni Parker
- Thor
- Doctor Strange
- Scarlet Witch
- Blade
- Moon Knight
- Invisible Woman
- Jeff the Land Shark
- Ultron
Nerfs
- Emma Frost
- Captain America
- Squirrel Girl
- Black Panther
- Psylocke
- Luna Snow
- Loki
Full Marvel Rivals Version 20250912 Season 4 Balance Post Patch Notes
Check out the complete patch notes below, as shared on the official Marvel Rivals website.
Captain America
Cap’s damage output is getting a slight downgrade.
– Remove Team-Up Anchor bonus 5% Damage boost.
Doctor Strange
The Sorcerer Supreme is now casting faster, but he’s trading a bit of survivability for offensive mystique!
– Reduce Maelstrom of Madness cooldown from 8s to 6s.
– Reduce base health from 600 to 575.
Emma Frost
The White Queen’s control and survivability are getting a little less unbreakable!
– Increase Diamond Form cooldown from 15s to 18s.
– Reduce Telepathic Pulse energy gained when hitting shields from 10/s to 5/s.
Peni Parker
Enemies caught in Peni’s webs are in for a stickier situation, and her Ultimate Ability just got slightly more threatening!
– Spider-Drone New Effect: Now slows hit enemies by 8% for 2s, each hit stacks the effect and resets the slow period, stacking up to 40%.
– Reduce Spider-Drone release interval during Ultimate Ability from 0.7s to 0.5s.
Thor
The God of Thunder’s Ultimate is getting an upgrade. More speed, new stun, greater “Bring the Thunder!”
– Increase Movement Speed during Ultimate Ability from 600 to 700.
– After Ultimate Ability lands, Stun surrounding enemies for 1s.
Black Panther
T’Challa’s survivability after striking a marked enemy is now less kingly.
– Reduce Bonus Health gained when striking Vibranium Marked enemies with Spirit Rend from 30 to 25.
– Reduce base health from 300 to 275.
Blade
The Daywalker’s sword just got a little sharper. More melee damage for those who hunt in the night!
– Increase Ancestral Sword damage per single slash from 22 to 24.
Magik
Magik loses her Team-Up Anchor bonus, but gets a whole arsenal upgrade to compensate!
– Remove Team-Up Anchor bonus 15% Damage boost.
– Reduce charge time required for Magik Slash maximum damage from 1.8 s to 1.2s.
– Magik Slash New Effect: Projectile now pierces enemies and reduces Stepping Discs cooldown by 1s per enemy pierced.
– Increase to Soulsword damage from 65 to 75.
– Increased Eldritch Whirl damage from 45 to 50.
– Increase Demon’s Rage damage per hit from 18 to 20.
– Increase Melee Normal Attack Damage from 30 to 40.
– During Darkchild (Ultimate Ability), increase Eldritch Whirl single-hit damage from 35 to 45 and Umbral Incursion damage from 135 to 140.
Moon Knight
Marc Spector’s blade is now moon-charged for maximum chaos!
– Moon Blade now holds up to 2 charges, each taking 6s to recharge.
Psylocke
Sai’s burst damage has been slightly dialed back.
– Decrease the retrieve damage of Wing Shurikens per hit from 12 to 8.
Scarlet Witch
Wanda’s survivability and Ultimate are getting a magical upgrade.
– Can now be healed by teammates during Mystic Projection.
– Increase Reality Erasure damage from 800 to 9999.
– New Effect: Now pulls in nearby enemies (within 15m radius) during cast charge. Max pull speed up to 2.4m/s.
Squirrel Girl
Doreen is less of a menace from afar.
– Reduce Burst Acorn damage from 110 to 100.
– Increase the hit damage of Squirrel Blockade from 35 to 50.
– Increase Mammal Bond cooldown from 10s to 15s.
Winter Soldier
Bucky is getting a handy improvement to his close-quarters control.
– Trooper’s Fist New Effect: Second strike now applies a 1s debuff to enemies hit, preventing them from using mobility abilities.
Invisible Woman
Sue Storm’s control and Ultimate abilities just got more fantastic!
– Increase Slow effect to enemies passing through Guardian Shield from 30% to 35%.
– Increase Invisible Boundary (Ultimate Ability) healing per second from 165 to 180.
– New Effect: Slows enemies within range by 20%.
Jeff the Land Shark
Jeff’s Ultimate leaves a healing pool after use. Dive in for some aquatic rejuvenation!
– It’s Jeff! (Ultimate Ability) now leaves an 8m radius Healing Pool at the point of activation that heals allies within range by 100/s. Healing Pool lasts for 8s.
Loki
Less damage, healing, and Ultimate Ability active time for the God of Mischief.
– Reduce illusion’s damage and healing ratio from 100% to 80%.
– Reduce God of Mischief (Ultimate Ability) shapeshift period from 15s to 12s. If using an active duration ability (E.g. Luna Snow’s Ultimate Ability), reduce shapeshift residual period after the ability ends from 5s to 3s.
Luna Snow
Seol Hee’s Ultimate Ability duration is getting cooled down. (See, we do nerf her!)
– Reduce Fate of Both Worlds (Ultimate Ability) duration from 12s to 10s.
Mantis
Mantis gets a little more slippery.
– Movement Boost from Nature’s Favor now decays to 0 over 2s after being hit, instead of instantly disappearing.
Ultron
Ultron’s Ultimate now deals extra pain. No defense is too strong for the AI Overlord!
– Ultimate Ability New Effect: Deals 125% damage to Bonus Health.
Which of the buffs and nerfs has caught your eye? Is there anyone who should have been targeted in this patch? Let us know in the Insider Gaming forum.
For more Marvel Rivals, read confirmation that Placement Matches are coming to Ranked, and check out the devs explanation of the matchmaking system.
