Character Rankings February 2016 Edition: The Results

Ebolamonkey84
Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
edited October 2016 in MPQ Character Discussion
We had 1145 total surveys this time, which more than doubles the responses from the last character rankings. It's possible that allowing you to choose to not respond on certain characters made people feel more comfortable filling it out, as I noticed the number of "No opinion/experience" responses increased dramatically from 3* to 4* ranking.

It made sense to me to split out the star tiers instead of doing an overall ranking, as it is obvious that very few lower tier characters are still useful once you move on to the next tier. Just for fun, I'll combine all 5 lists together into 1, but you should really focus on their placement within their respective tiers.

Thank you to the following contributors so far: El Satanno, Tenaciousdecaf

Past character rankings:
12/2013 - the beginning
03/2014 - standard deviation edition
06/2014 - meme edition
10/2014 - theme song edition
12/2014 - MM's last stand
05/2015 - Ebola's first time

1* - Gotta Start Somewhere
1. Jean Grey (All New X-Men)
2. Black Widow (Original)
3. Iron Fist (Immortal Weapon)
4. Cyclops (Uncanny X-Men)
5. Wolverine (Old Man Logan)
6. Luke Cage (Hero For Hire)
7. Iron Man (Hulkbuster)
8. Iceman (All New X-Men)
9. Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel)
10. Magneto (Classic)
11. Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff)
12. Storm (Classic)
13. Juggernaut (Classic)
14. Thor (Modern)
15. Thor (Marvel NOW!)
16. Steve Rogers (Super Soldier)
17. Professor X (Charles Xavier)
18. Jean Grey (Phoenix)
19. Blade (Daywalker)
20. Red Hulk (Thunderbolt Ross)
21. Cyclops (Classic)
22. Ares (Dark Avengers)
23. Black Panther (T'Challa)
24. Deadpool (Uncanny X-Force)
25. Magneto (Marvel NOW!)
26. The Hood (Classic)
27. Wolverine (Patch)
28. Deadpool (It's Me, Deadpool)
29. Black Widow (Grey Suit)
30. Loki (Dark Reign)
31. Wolverine (Astonishing X-Men)
32. Daken (Classic)
33. Doctor Doom (Classic)
34. Silver Surfer (Skyrider)
35. Kingpin (Wilson Fisk)
36. The Thing (Classic)
37. Thor (Goddess of Thunder)
38. X-23 (All New Wolverine)
39. Spider-Man (Back in Black)
40. Rocket & Groot (Most Wanted)
41. Wolverine (X-Force)
42. Nova (Sam Alexander)
43. The Hulk (Indestructible)
44. Daken (Dark Avengers)
45. Human Torch (Classic)
46. Iron Man (Model 35)
47. Nick Fury (Director of S.H.I.E.L.D)
48. Mystique (Raven Darkholme)
49. Black Widow (Modern)
50. Sam Wilson (Falcon)
51. Storm (Mohawk)
52. Spider-Gwen (Gwen Stacy)
53. Venom (Eddie Brock)
54. Ant-Man (Scott Lang)
55. Daredevil (Man Without Fear)
56. Spider-Man (Original)
57. Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze)
58. Hawkeye (Modern)
59. Storm (Modern)
60. She-Hulk (Modern)
61. Human Torch (Johnny Storm)
62. Carnage (Cletus Kasady)
63. Gamora (Guardians of the Galaxy)
64. Bullseye (Classic)
65. Sam Wilson (Captain America)
66. The Punisher(Dark Reign)
67.Captain Marvel (Modern)
68. Miles Morales (Spider-Man)
69. Captain Marvel (Ms. Marvel)
70. Beast (Classic)
71. Squirrel Girl (Unbeatable)
72. Colossus (Classic)
73. Bullseye (Dark Avengers)
74. Quicksilver (Pietro Maximoff)
75. Iron Man (Model 40)
76. Steve Rogers (Captain America)
77. Psylocke (Classic)
78. Doctor Octopus (Otto Octavius)
79. Elektra (Unkillable)
80. Moonstone (Dark Avengers)
81. Spider-Man (Classic)
82. Vision (Android Avenger)
83. Venom (Dark Avengers)
84. Hawkeye (Classic)
85. Star-Lord (Legendary Outlaw)
86. Mr. Fantastic (Reed Richards)
87. Invisible Woman (Classic)
88. Sentry (Dark Avengers)
89. Ragnarok (Dark Avengers)
90. Devil Dinosaur (Gigantic Reptile)
91. The Hulk (Totally Awesome)
92. Yelena Belova (Dark Avengers)
93. Spider-Man (Bag-Man)
«134567

Comments

  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    Reserved to discuss changes since last ranking.
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
    vnF1i6q.png
    With the increased availability of 2 star covers, 1 stars are quickly left behind by most players. If there wasn't a DDQ node, many players would not keep any of them on their roster. They are good for learning the game, though, and introduce you to most of the core gameplay elements of MPQ.

    8. Yelena Belova (Dark Avengers), even

    Average score: 1.6509, 971 votes
    Health: 1540

    Only people with a Pokemon mentality should have Yelena on their rosters. She is outclassed by Modern Black Widow, and doesn't have TU potential.

    Purple: Costs 3 more than MBW purple at 5 covers, but only adds 275 damage. Time would be better spent actually gathering the AP for other powers instead of focusing on purple.
    Black: It can be super annoying when she uses this on you in PVE, but is unlikely to be used by the player due to its AP cost. There are better crit generators in this tier.

    Pros
    • She is easiest Dark Avenger that you will face, so it is nice when she is in a PVE node.
    • Her black can overwrite Ultron bombs and invisibility tiles.
    Cons
    • AP costs are way too expensive.
    • Low HP.
    • You win her covers after you already have an established roster of 1*.
    Recommended build: 5/5, if you have her at all
    Good partners: Don't bother

    7. Hawkeye (Classic), even

    Average score: 3.7601, 988 votes
    Health: 1320

    Hawkeye is not bad as an introductory character. His powers are pretty cheap and are good at manipulating the board. He is just very inessential once you get past the beginning stages of the game.

    Purple: Purple can be used pretty effectively to eliminate an enemy tile or set up a small cascade.
    Red: Red has its value as the only targeted special tile destroyer in this tier, but red is better used for our damage dealers like IM35 and Juggernaut.

    Pros
    • Decent board control
    • High crit multiplier
    Cons
    • Worst HP in the game
    • There are better uses for red at this level.
    Recommended build: 5/5
    Good partners: Storm and IM35

    6. Venom (Dark Avengers), even

    Average score: 3.8135, 981 votes
    HP: 2640
    (Write up by El Satanno, meme by me)
    hnsF7cG.jpg
    With the renewed interest in web tiles, 1* Venom seemed like he'd be on the fast track to be the next 5/0 TU champ. Whether you thought that having an instant-kill TU for 12AP + 8 web tiles was overpowered is a moot point, as they put the kibosh on that right quick, didn't they? Thus, Venom stays in the low middle of the one-star pack. Pretty much just a meatshield for your better 1* guys.

    Black: Does damage. Does lots of damage if you somehow manage to get 8 web tiles on the board. Not so good.
    Purple: A fairly quick stun at 4 covers, and a team stun at 5, but you're probably leaning on MBW more for both stuns and a purple outlet.

    Pros:
    • High health
    • Quick purple stun at 4> covers

    Cons:
    • Black is expensive, and now, not even capable of the OHKO.
    • Ironically needs Spidey to get web tiles on the board.

    Recommended build: 5/4 or 5/5

    Good partners: Iron Man (Model 35), Spider-Man (Original)

    5. Storm (Modern), -1

    Average score: 5.7684, 1045 votes
    HP: 1620

    (Write up by El Satanno)
    Yet another character that has suffered behind updates, Storm was once an old school Winfinite back in the day of environment tiles. Still, her powers provide excellent support and versatility. A lack of health and offense punch prevent her from being ranked higher.

    Green: Good board shake plus AP generation make this an excellent power in the tier.
    Yellow: TU powers are of dubious value at this tier, but getting those tiles off the board can be useful.
    Black: Decent attrition damage. Handy for clogging up the board.

    Pros:
    • Excellent green power
    • Best black power in the tier
    Cons:
    • Squishy
    • Lacks direct offense

    Recommended build: 5/3/5, 5/5/3 for baking

    Good partners: Iron Man (Model 35), Spider-Man (Original)

    4. Spider-Man (Original), New

    Average score: 5.8810, 874 votes
    HP: 2754

    (Write up by El Satanno)
    Why isn't Spider-Man ranked higher? Because you unwashed buffoons don't appreciate the dope stylings of the original legend, that's why! Seriously: good damage, cheap stuns, crits, and iconic threads. Spidey even kicks **** as a TU and rocks the house during the off-season Balance of Power and Combined Arms events. What is wrong with you people?

    Red: Good damage, boosts itself with web tiles.
    Blue: Targeted stuns that get cheaper and better, boosts itself with web tiles.
    Purple: Crits are a double-edged sword, but can wreak havoc. Boosts itself with web tiles.

    Pros:
    • Dope classic style
    • Good offense, good stuns
    Cons:
    • Overlaps with the superlative MBW (Yes, this is the Achilles Heel)
    • Purple crits just as likely to kick your own ****

    Recommended build: 5/5/3, x/x/5 when using as TU for 5*

    Good partners: Iron Man (Model 35), Storm (Modern)

    (Note: Author may be biased in favor of Ol' Web-head.)

    3. Black Widow (Modern), -1

    Average score: 6.0712, 1025 votes
    HP: 1540

    Why is Black Widow rated so much higher than Yelena if they have almost all the same stats? The answer, of course, is MBW's brutal blue power. A targeted 5 turn stun plus 1 turn team stun is game changing. This power would not be out of place on a 3-4* character, which is why many advanced rosters keep one or more 0/5 MBWs on their roster.

    Purple: Suffers from high AP cost. Similar to Yelena's purple in that it is better to just chase the colors you actually want.
    Blue: See above. One of the best stuns in the game.


    Pros
    • Dat stun!
    • Redheads are better than blondes
    Cons
    • Poor HP
    • Purple costs way too much. Some people build 2/5 or 3/5 to reduce the cost, but then she is even squishier than at max.
    Recommended build: 5/5
    Good partners: Storm and IM35

    2. Iron Man (Model 35), +2

    Average score: 6.2372, 1096 votes
    HP: 2700

    (Write up by El Satanno)
    Perhaps the most instantly recognizable version of Iron Man and everyone's first character in the game. A solid all-rounder who will be the linchpin of your team until your 2* roster gets up to speed. Iron Man provides the main offense for the classic 1* triumvirate of IM/BW/Storm.

    Red: Good damage, not too expensive.
    Yellow: Okay damage for cheap, only source of protect tiles for 1*.
    Blue: Way too pricey, but fun if you can get it off.

    Pros:
    • Dependable offense
    • Good health
    Cons:
    • Unremarkable

    Recommended build: 5/5/3

    Good partners: Storm (Modern), Black Widow (Modern)

    1. Juggernaut (Classic), even

    Average score: 8.2412, 1078 votes
    HP: 3520

    I believe Juggernaut's score has been inflated quite a bit by people who are beyond the 1* portion of the game, which is pretty much anyone who has played for more than a month. As a 1* player, Juggs has the same problem as the other villians: you get his covers after you have established a team of heroes and you can't use him on some nodes as he is the opponent. He is also your introduction to self-damage, which some people like to avoid like the plague.

    Two things caused the value of Juggs to rise: the 1* required node in DDQ and Balance of Power. He can single-handedly beat the node by himself, and doesn't have a 2* equivalent forcing him to get locked out occasionally. (The new DDQ has had 1* characters as opponents, so it may be useful to have a backup just in case). Before the scaling changes and the move from 270 to 550, almost every team in BoP had him, as he had the highest HP and ridiculous damage, plus quick heal times. Even with the reduced value in BoP, he is still the best 1* to keep on your roster.

    Red: Best damage per AP on this tier by far at 183.33. IM35 red and Spider-Man red are 2nd and 3rd (not counting super Devour) at 94.5 and 89.33.
    Green: Great board shake at a reasonable price. Good as a TU.

    Pros
    • Best HP at 1* level
    • Best damage
    • Great board shake
    Cons
    • Self-damage with no healers at this tier
    • Will cause you to pull your hair out when max scaled in PVE
    Recommended build: 5/5
    Good partners: I usually pair him with Storm and SM/mBW for a rainbow team.
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
    ExVOcgF.png

    14. Spider-Man (Bag-Man), even

    Average: 1.4518, 965 votes
    HP: 4998

    Bag-Man is the only character that is so bad that he has been removed from tokens. The devs combined their seeming hatred of Spider-Man and the Fantatic Four to create the pinnacle of suckiness. Bag-Man should only be on your roster as a status symbol, or if you want to insult someone in PVP.

    Purple: It can swap all non TU tiles at 4 covers or better. 13/18 AP is just too damn high.
    Blue: Costs too much as you get more covers. Destruction of special tiles is almost always better than locking them.
    Yellow: Somewhat pitiful compared to OBW's blue.

    Pros
    • Can't win him in tokens
    • Is the only 2* that rewards a Legendary token for Champion rewards
    • Occasionally, the AI will have Snarky Remark and increase the CD timer on its own tiles.
    Cons
    • No offensive capabilities
    • 2 of 3 powers cost more as you add covers. No powers should cost this much, especially with no direct damage.
    Recommended build: 5/3/5
    Good partners: No one

    13. Moonstone (Dark Avengers), -1
    12. Steve Rogers (Captain America), -1
    11. Bullseye (Dark Avengers Hawkeye), +2
    10. Captain Marvel (Ms. Marvel), even
    9. Human Torch (Johnny Storm), -1
    8. Hawkeye (Modern), +1
    7. Daken (Dark Avengers), -1
    6. Wolverine (Astonishing X-Men), +1
    5. Magneto (Marvel NOW!), even
    4. Ares (Dark Avengers), -2
    3. Thor (Marvel NOW!), even
    2. Storm (Classic), +2
    1. Black Widow (Original), even
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
    BPmctEu.png

    40. Ragnarok (Dark Avengers) , even
    39. Sentry (Dark Avengers) , -3
    38. Vision (Android Avenger) , New
    37. Spider-Man (Classic) , -4
    36. Doctor Octopus (Otto Octavius) , +2
    35. Psylocke (Classic) , -5
    34. Iron Man (Model 40) , even
    33. Quicksilver (Pietro Maximoff) , +3
    32. Colossus (Classic) , even
    31. Squirrel Girl (Unbeatable) , even
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
    30. Beast (Classic) , +7
    29. Captain Marvel (Modern) , -3
    28. The Punisher(Dark Reign) , -3
    27. Bullseye (Classic) , New
    26. Gamora (Guardians of the Galaxy) , +1
    25. She-Hulk (Modern) , +2
    24. Daredevil (Man Without Fear) , -2
    23. Storm (Mohawk) , +3
    22. Sam Wilson (Falcon) , -3
    21. Mystique (Raven Darkholme) , +2
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
    20. Human Torch (Classic) , even
    19. The Hulk (Indestructible) , -3
    18. Rocket & Groot (Most Wanted) , -1
    17. Doctor Doom (Classic) , -4
    16. Daken (Classic) , -5
    15. Loki (Dark Reign) , -3
    14. Black Widow (Grey Suit) , +4
    13. Deadpool (It's Me, Deadpool) , +2
    12. Wolverine (Patch) , -5
    11. The Hood (Classic) , -7
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
    10. Black Panther (T'Challa) , even
    9. Blade (Daywalker) , -1
    8. Steve Rogers (Super Soldier) , -2
    7. Thor (Modern) , -6
    6. Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) , +15
    5. Magneto (Classic) , even
    4. Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel) , +10
    3. Luke Cage (Hero For Hire) , even
    2. Cyclops (Uncanny X-Men) , +7
    1. Iron Fist (Immortal Weapon) , +1
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
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  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    Mid tier 4*
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    The gap between 7th and 8th was large enough to divide the 4 star tier here.
  • Ebolamonkey84
    Ebolamonkey84 Posts: 509 Critical Contributor
    edited March 2016
    9vwBZub.png
  • Dayv
    Dayv Posts: 4,449 Chairperson of the Boards
    I made it sticky! My mother must be so proud.
  • atomzed
    atomzed Posts: 1,753 Chairperson of the Boards
    Can't wait to see the results icon_e_smile.gif

    What is the final sample size for the poll?
  • udonomefoo
    udonomefoo Posts: 1,630 Chairperson of the Boards
    Place holder for future discussion of the posted character discussion discussions. Or maybe a stupid meme. Or I'll just forget that I put this here. Until a grammar nut loses it and tells me to stop starting sentences with 'Or'. And and. And then I'll explain to them that it's not improper to start a sentence with a conjunction. Grammar beatdown critical hit! Much suspense! Can't wait.
  • cardoor
    cardoor Posts: 185 Tile Toppler
    edited February 2016
    In order to develop any latent mutant powers I wish I had, I will now try to prognosticate the top ranking for each * lvl currently under the black veil of mystery.

    star.png - icon_juggernaut.png

    star.pngstar.png - icon_blackwidow.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_cyclops.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_jeangrey.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_wolverine.png

    Edit: Many of you called it, IF wins the 3* (I blame the Morlock, Leech) icon_redface.gif
  • cardoor wrote:
    In order to develop any latent mutant powers I wish I had, I will now try to prognosticate the top ranking for each * lvl currently under the black veil of mystery.

    star.png - icon_juggernaut.png

    star.pngstar.png - icon_blackwidow.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_cyclops.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_jeangrey.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_wolverine.png

    Seems like a solid list. I'm fairly certain the top 3* will be IF and I have no idea about the 5*s, but the rest seems spot on.
  • Nah nah nah

    star.pngicon_juggernaut.png
    star.pngstar.pngicon_blackwidow.png
    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngicon_cyclops.png
    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.pngicon_cyclops.png
    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.pngicon_wolverine.png
  • Vhailorx
    Vhailorx Posts: 6,085 Chairperson of the Boards
    cardoor wrote:
    In order to develop any latent mutant powers I wish I had, I will now try to prognosticate the top ranking for each * lvl currently under the black veil of mystery.

    star.png - icon_juggernaut.png

    star.pngstar.png - icon_blackwidow.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_cyclops.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_jeangrey.png

    star.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.pngstar.png - icon_wolverine.png

    Iron fist is stronger than 3* cyclops

    Iceman is stronger than Jean grey in 4* land (but jg might still win because she is covered/maxed on many more rosters).

    Otherwise it's a good list.
  • Cousin Simpson
    Cousin Simpson Posts: 1,086 Chairperson of the Boards
    udonomefoo wrote:
    Place holder for future discussion of the posted character discussion discussions. Or maybe a stupid meme. Or I'll just forget that I put this here. Until a grammar nut loses it and tells me to stop starting sentences with 'Or'. And and. And then I'll explain to them that it's not improper to start a sentence with a conjunction. Grammar beatdown critical hit! Much suspense! Can't wait.

    If they're a real grammar nut, they'd know that conjunctions are grammatically acceptable at the beginning of a sentence, and that the false rule of splitting infinitives is a silly and inapplicable emulation of Latin, and probably the same goes with ending a sentence in a preposition at.
  • udonomefoo
    udonomefoo Posts: 1,630 Chairperson of the Boards
    3* #34 has to be IM40. No other line has that high a number of both 1 and 10 votes.

    Also, poor bagman. He had easily the most concentrated percentage of votes for one number, all 1s. icon_cry.gif