The official Marvel Rivals Version 20261009 Balance Post, published October 6, 2026, announces adjustments for 14 heroes across Vanguard, Duelist, and Strategist. These are announced changes for the version dated 20261009; the post does not establish whether every adjustment is already live. Here is the complete breakdown, including changes that only apply with a specific Team-Up.
Season 10.5 balance changes at a glance
The detailed balance values come from the [official Marvel Rivals Version 20261009 Balance Post]. The [Season 10.5 preview published October 7] frames the season around new modes but does not list these ability adjustments. The balance post gives no win rates, pick rates, or measured competitive outcomes, so a numerical increase or reduction should not be read as proof of a hero’s overall strength.
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| Role | Heroes with announced changes |
|---|---|
| Vanguard | Devil Dinosaur, Hulk, Magneto, The Thing |
| Duelist | Cyclops, Gorr the God Butcher, Hawkeye, Iron Man, Phoenix, Scarlet Witch |
| Strategist | Adam Warlock, Gambit, Jubilee |
Vanguard changes
Devil Dinosaur
- Base health decreases from 850 to 825.
Hulk
- In Banner form, Gamma Ray Gun projectile speed increases from 80m/s to 120m/s.
- Gamma Grenade self-hit gamma energy increases from 50 to 100.
- With the Wolverine Team-Up: entering Furious state raises the attack- and movement-speed boosts from 20% to 25%. Unstoppable’s health threshold rises from 300 to 400, while its cooldown falls from 60s to 45s.
Magneto
- With the Emma Frost Team-Up: Magnetic Resonance’s magnetic projection damage rises from 45% to 50%, and its maximum duration rises from 5s to 6s.
The Thing
- With the Invisible Woman Team-Up: Unbreakable Forces cooldown falls from 20s to 15s. Its enhanced effect’s healing-trigger damage threshold falls from 150 to 125.
Duelist changes
Cyclops
- Optic Blast single-hit damage rises from 22 to 23.
- Each hit reduces Ricochet Force cooldown by 0.3s instead of 0.25s.
- Ruby Rage energy cost falls from 3700 to 3400.
- With Gambit: Kinetic Kin duration rises from 6s to 8s.
Gorr the God Butcher
- Shadow Scythe damage changes from 55 plus 2% of the target’s maximum health to 50 plus the same 2% of maximum health.
- Shockwave damage falls from 60 to 55.
- Twilight of the Gods duration falls from 12s to 10s.
- Living Abyss cooldown falls from 15s to 12s, but movement speed during it also falls from 13m/s to 10m/s.
Hawkeye
- Piercing Arrow projectile speed changes from 130–195m/s to 140–210m/s.
- Crescent Slash animation recovery is slightly reduced; no exact amount is stated.
- Hypersonic Arrow’s initial-hit spell field width increases from 3m to 5m.
- With Psylocke: Psionic Arrow single-shot damage rises from 32 to 33.
- With Cloak & Dagger: Moonlit Slash also gives Hawkeye self-healing equal to the healing dealt.
Iron Man
- Micro-Missile Barrage: after launch, missiles automatically track nearby enemies. Single-shot damage falls from 20 to 10, projectile speed rises from 15m/s to 60m/s, and the maximum lock-on count per target is 5.
- During Armor Overdrive: missiles track enemies in front after launch. Single-shot damage falls from 15 to 10, with a maximum lock-on count of 5 per target.
- With Thor: Unibeam outer-ring damage rises from 70/s to 80/s. Thunder Overdrive enhanced outer-ring damage rises from 85/s to 90/s.
Phoenix
- Cosmic Flames damage rises from 60 to 65.
- Sparks direct detonation damage rises from 40 to 45, and explosion damage rises from 15 to 20.
- Sparks detonation no longer self-heals. Instead, it grants 5 Bonus Health for 4s, capped at 25.
- When Endsong Inferno’s explosion field and shockwave hit enemies, the number of Sparks applied rises from 1 to 2.
- With Hela: the ability cooldown falls from 12s to 10s.
Scarlet Witch
- Chthonian Burst single-shot spell-field damage falls from 40 to 35.
Strategist changes
Adam Warlock
- With Ultron: a Cosmic Cluster’s healing rises from 16 to 18. The enhanced explosion spell field’s healing rises from 5 to 7 while the Team-Up is active.
Gambit
- Healing Hearts and Breaking Spades charge time per stack falls from 8s to 7s.
- Ragin’ Royal Flush target search range falls from 40m to 30m. Its extra Jump Boost for Gambit and allies falls from 500 to 300.
- With Jubilee: Sparkling Staff duration rises from 1.5s to 2s.
Jubilee
- Sparking Sprint adds continuous self-healing at 25/s.
- Dazzling Detonation blind duration falls from 1.5s to 0.8s.
- With Blade: Vampiric Kin continuously heals nearby allies at 15/s for 6s.
- Firework Finale field healing rises from 150/s to 180/s.
What the announced adjustments mean for reading the patch
Several heroes receive mixed changes rather than a simple buff or nerf. Iron Man gains missile tracking and much higher projectile speed while losing damage per missile; Gorr’s Living Abyss becomes available sooner but grants less movement speed; Phoenix’s Sparks trades self-healing for capped Bonus Health. Team-Up-specific adjustments apply only when the named Team-Up is active, as indicated above.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesThe balance post specifies ability parameters, not resulting performance. It does not confirm live-server status at publication or report how the changes affect viability, win rates, or the competitive meta.
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