So what is the meta for essential nodes?

ayatorahxephon

Assuming you have a low covered essential character, what are the two best characters in the 4* or 3* land you could use the clear that node especially 5* essential where I usually only have 1 or 2 cover

ayatorahxephon

Please refrain from saying any two buffed characters as this question is more towards specific combo than general buffed mix and match

D4Ni13

I don't think there is a meta for this, and it really depends on what you're facing and who is boosted for the week. In the Doc Ock challenge Vulture was very good first 2 subs, because he had the means to stay safe and also destroy CD tiles. But when the last mission came (Bolt, Medusa & Lockjaw) Vulture didn't work anymore. I personally defeat it with Carol and Cloak & Dagger 3 times and then nothing.

In the current Spidey essential I use Gamora & Grocket, both boosted this week and they work really well with my 0-2-1 (also boosted) Spidey.

So it depends on who you have and what's your strategy for that particular game. If I say that I like using C&D and you don't have them, it doesn't matter anymore.

It also depends on clearance level. I play in CL9 because I rarely compete for placement and I want more CP from the 5* essential node. If you play in other CL, then other heroes can be used as well. If you compete and you want speed in your clears then Phantos or Gamora/Grocket is a must (especially when boosted). If you're casual, like I am, you can just enjoy yourself and try different teams and see what works best for you.

And if you don't compete for placement, but you would in the future, knowing what your roster is capable of is very important for your final result.

For example I competed in the last Hearts of Darkness for Rogue covers. I chose CL9, because I knew I would be able to finish in top100 and get 1 cover moreso than in lower CL levels where the competition was higher. I surpased my initial idea and finished on #29 and got 2 Rogue covers. Having won most of the 5* mission clears helped me a lot. And the inhumans mission was really hard for better rosters than mine, and that helped too.

So depending on what you want from that particular event and the strength of your roster you are the only one who can decide what are the best choices. If you compete, health packs are also an issue you have too keep in mind and maybe addressing a mission later in the grind or choosing regen heroes would make a difference. Hard to say without other details.

Hope this helps

thisone

There's loads of good combos in game.

3*
Cap and IM40.
Fist and cage.

4*
Deadpool and wolverine.
Starlord/Gamora and Grocket.
Fist and cage.
Carol and Medusa/wasp/coulson/c&d/blade
Hulk buster and C&D
Fist and C&D

Mixed
Peggy/Thor/Iceman and IM40
Rhulk and Switch
Jean and Switch
Hulk buster and Fist
Blade and Gambit

Heck I could be here all day listing them. Decent start though.

Dormammu

If the enemies include at least two goons I just let Doc Strange handle it.

If the enemies are active I like IM40 + Peggy (or Riri).

If Rhulk is boosted I just let him and switch take care of the entire sub.

shartattack

vulture medusa.  perma stun all day. drop 2 offensive tiles each time, damage adds up.

Jarvind

Dormammu said:

If the enemies are active I like IM40 + Peggy (or Riri).

This is my go-to if there isn't a decent buffed combo available.

Vhailorx

The weekly boost list is essential knowledge to answer this question.

But a good place to start is the strongest boosted nuker/stun-locker for the week + their ideal battery.  So when 4* thor or cyclops is boosted, go with im40 to generate red + blue.  When carol or wasp is boosted, use c&d for black + yellow.  When imhb is boosted, use 3* if to generate black for him.

The best batteries in the game are probably as follows (though i am missing a few):

3*
Im40 for red/blue
Switch for purple
If for black

4*
Cyclops for red
Vulture fo green/blue/black
C&d for yellow/black
Medusa (if the aibwill have lots of specials) for purple/green/blue
Rulk for purple
Kp for yellow
(Plus rogue, bobbi, and carol for "strongest" ap)

Borstock

What V said. A battery, a nuke, preferably a stunner. And if specials are a big factor, Medusa.

Milk Jugz

The meta? A champ essential 5* makes that node trivial, even in cl9..... Outside of that, I think it is mostly about good board luck and who is boosted. Hard to defeat 515 anything without boosted characters......

Vhailorx

Milk Jugz said:

The meta? A champ essential 5* makes that node trivial, even in cl9..... Outside of that, I think it is mostly about good board luck and who is boosted. Hard to defeat 515 anything without boosted characters......

True, but irrelevant for about 90% of the playerbase.  How many people have champed 5*s at all, let alone multiple ones, including the most recent releases that have been essential most frequently?  For most players grinding 6/6 on that node means beating 515s with a 2 character team.

Also tc specifically asked about non-5* solutions.

Pants1000

For 5* essentials with all goons, Vulture is amazing.  Add your best boosted character as the 2nd, or C&D to help feed Vulture's black.  Set Vulture at 5/3/5, so his blue takes out more special tiles.

It's not fast, but you can beat the level 515 CL9 goon nodes consistently with that team without taking any damage.

For tile movers and all other essential nodes, I rely heavily on the boosted list.