Slept-on Marvel Rivals hero is even better than Namor at countering divers

Since Marvel Rivals’ release, Namor has emerged as the absolute best pick for countering divers. If your team is getting dived, he’s the default pick. However, if your aim is purely to keep your supports from getting killed, there is one hero who’s a better pick for the job.

To be clear, Namor is still good. S tier, in fact. He’s a strong pick in almost any circumstance, is very easy to play, and has tools that do well in the hands of top-level players. The feeling of bodyblocking Iron Man’s ult with his bubble shield is incredible.

He does, however, have a few shortcomings. Him lacking hitscan can make hitting heroes like Black Panther surprisingly difficult outside of your turret damage. He also really needs Luna Snow to reach peak effectiveness, which not everyone’s willing to play or may be banned. Not to mention the potential for Namor himself to get banned as well.

There is, however, another hero who’s more than fit for the job. In a lot of ways, he’s even better than Namor: Mister Fantastic.

Mister Fantastic is the best anti-dive hero in Marvel Rivals

Mister Fantastic is in a bizarre spot, balance-wise. Despite his ultimate being borderline abysmal and one of the worst in the game, he’s got enough strengths in his kit to make him the bane of pretty much any dive hero’s existence. Anyone who relies on melee should fear him.

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But what makes him so good at specifically countering dive comps?

First up is Flexible Elongation (E by default). It allows you to snap right to an ally, giving them and yourself 75 bonus health. This preventative shield helps out immensely against a ton of burst heroes.

For instance, good Magik players know the combo of attack > E > attack > teleport > attack out of TP that does 260 damage. If you properly animation cancel, this combo can be done in less than a second while locking a target down.

If a Magik is already in your backline, Namor’s turrets won’t do anything to keep this from happening. If you’ve ever had a teammate lock him in and claim that they’re going to keep your supports from getting dived, only for them to keep getting one-shot like they were before, this is probably what happened.

Instead of having to pelt a diver and constantly keep tabs on them, Mister Fantastic can merely provide a shield and keep divers from crossing the break point that lets them one shot backliners. The same is true of other burst-reliant divers like Spider-Man and Black Panther, that 75 shield makes all the difference in the world.

Also, Mister Fantastic’s Distended Grip (Right Click by default) can grab onto anyone trying to get into your backline and pull them away. Got a Thor smacking your Mantis? Just yoink him right away. Hitting this ability on small DPS heroes is a bit harder, but not impossible.

Reed’s normal punches, however, are very easy to hit on mobile heroes. Due to the fact they can be dragged across the screen, he’s exceptionally strong at hitting heroes that are typically too fast to hit with normal projectiles.

Reflexive Rubber (Shift by default) is also great if the enemy divers decide trying to take you out before supports is a good idea (it isn’t), giving him complete damage immunity up to a certain cap. Not to mention making his hitbox big enough to stand behind for supports to stand behind.

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That’s on top of Mister Fantastic’s bulky 350 health bar (800 with his passive shield active) that make him harder to kill than most tanks.

While Mister Fantastic can play like a diver himself, protecting your backline is so much more useful. He’s the perfect hero to play between frontline and backline to provide support wherever your team needs it.

Namor has his strengths still, with him having much more range and overall higher DPS than Mister Fantastic. But, if you’re looking to toe the line between DPS and tank while keeping your entire team alive in the process, Reed’s your man.

Though I’m a little biased considering Mister Fantastic carried me out of Diamond, I also wouldn’t be surprised to see this hero become increasingly popular as people realize just how strong he is when it comes to shutting down the most annoying picks in Marvel Rivals.