Marvel Rivals Black Panther guide: Abilities, how to play, and more

Marvel Rivals Black Panther is a duelist-class hero. Unlike most characters in the game, Black Panther excels in close-quarter combat, and his abilities allow him to absolutely rip his enemies to shreds. This hero has quite a high skill ceiling, and it's pretty hard to get good with him immediately after picking the hero on your first go.

Panther's kit offers him high mobility, area-of-effect denial attacks, crowd-control abilities, and much more, which allow him to subdue enemies, and then get close to them to inflict maximum damage.

Without any debate, it must be understood that Black Panther needs specialized practice, and if you want to get better at this hero, you have to put in quite a few hours to improve your proficiency with him. That said, this article will provide a detailed guide to help you dominate the battlefield with Marvel Rivals Black Panther. Read below for a detailed brief.

Editor's Note: The contents of this guide have been updated to the latest patch deployed on January 25, 2025. This article will be further updated as a new balance update goes live for Marvel Rivals in the near future.

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Marvel Rivals Black Panther: All abilities

Marvel Rivals Black Panther is a Duelist character (Image via NetEase Games)

In Marvel Rivals, Black Panther holds a niche-space, that makes him a devastating Hero. He is extremely difficult to play, and players will need countless hours to get into his tempo. That said, here's a detailed list of all his abilities:

Abilities	Effect
Vibranium Claws (LMB)	Slice Vibranium claws forward.
Spear Toss (RMB)	Toss a Vibranium Spear forward, creating a Vibranium forcefield and attaching a Vibranium mark to enemies in a radius
Sprint Rend (LShift)	Lunge forward and deal damage to enemies.
Spiral Kick (E)	Spiral forward and attach a Vibranium mark on affected enemies.
Subtle Step (Space)	Press and hold Space to run up a wall. You can press Space again to detach and jump off a wall.
Bast's descent (Q)	Summon Bast, and deal damage in a forward direction, while simultaneously attaching a Vibranium Mark on affected enemies.
Panther's Cunning (Passive)	Deal higher damage when at low health.
Wakandan Master (C)	When Magik is on the field, Black Panther and Psylocke can tap into Limbo to rewind a few seconds back to a previous position; after passing through Limbo, Black Panther and Psylocke will gain Bonus Health based on missing health

How to play as Black Panther in Marvel Rivals?

Mobility

Black Panther movement ability in Marvel Rivals (Image via NetEase Games)

Black Panther in Marvel Rivals has been offered a ton of mobility tools. Starting from Subtle Step to Sprint Rend and Spiral Kick, you will have a ton of options to quickly traverse the map and close the gap between yourself and enemy players.

Use your climbing and horizontal mobility tools to scale areas that will be highly inaccessible for most grounded heroes, and use them to your advantage. These abilities open up options for flanking and executing last-minute combos to eliminate low-health enemies.

Playstyle

Marvel Rivals Black Panther Spear Toss ability (Image via NetEase Games)

As Black Panther in Marvel Rivals, you will remain at a significant disadvantage over other ranged heroes in the game. With only close-quarter combat being your effective fighting strategy, arresting the gap between you and your enemies will be your highest priority.

You should always engage with a Spear Toss from range. With Vibranium Marks attached to your foes, you can get another charge for the ability, and use it in-between fights. Engage with the enemy players, and continuously leash out combos using Vibranium Claws, Spiral Kick, and of course, the Spear Toss.

Use your mobility tools to get behind enemy lines and take them by surprise. Fighting head-on with this Hero will never be ideal. Use natural cover to block line-of-sight from enemies, and keep track of their health as your team fights them. Whenever you see the health-pool drop-down, engage with all your abilities to quickly score an elimination.

Ultimate

Black Panther's Ultimate ability, Bast's Descent, is quite underwhelming for the most part. There's no point reserving it for issuing combos with other teammates. Use Bast's Descent as an engagement tool, and proceed to all-out attack anyone who gets hit by the Vibranium mark.

Best team-ups for Black Panther in Marvel Rivals

1) Magik (Duelist)

Magik is a great duo for Marvel Rivals Black Panther (Image via NetEase Games)

Black Panther along with Magik and Psylocke form the extremely powerful team-up, Dimensional Shortcut. This grants Black Panther the unique ability called Wakandan Master.

With this team-up active, Black Panther can tap into Limbo to go back five seconds. Moreover, he gains some bonus health based on missing health upon passing through Limbo. This enhances Black Panther’s survivability which is already high owing to his high-mobility kit.

2) Mantis (Strategist)

Mantis is a great duo for Marvel Rivals Black Panther (Image via NetEase Games)

Mantis is excellent and provides immense value when paired with Black Panther in Marvel Rivals. She is one of the very few heroes who can keep up with Black Panther's movement and continuously heal him over time. Her Healing Flower ability and her ultimate, Soul Resurgence, are particularly useful in this case.

Moreover, Mantis’ Allied Inspiration and Spore Slumber are a big help for Black Panther enabling him to quickly take down the sedated enemies with his now increased damage.

Best Marvel Rivals Black Panther counters

1) Hawkeye (Duelist)

Hawkeye is a counter to Marvel Rivals Black Panther (Image via NetEase Games)

Hawkeye is an excellent counter to Black Panther in Marvel Rivals. His Hypersonic Arrow can deal with Black Panther’s movement and is a direct counter to him. Hawkeye’s Ronin Slash and Crescent Slash also help him counter Black Panther up close, making it difficult for Black Panther to deal damage consistently.

Moreover, Hawkeye’s Hunter’s Sight can spot and damage afterimages of enemies which is again detrimental for Black Panther to face off against.

2) Venom (Vanguard)

Venom is a counter to Marvel Rivals Black Panther (Image via NetEase Games)

Venom is a Vanguard in Marvel Rivals who can go toe-to-toe with Black Panther’s movement owing to his Venom Swing and Alien Biology abilities. Venom is also deadly up-close with his Frenzied Arrival, Cellular Corrosion, and Dark Predation abilities, which restrict Black Panther from moving around freely and deal damage.

Moreover, Venom’s ultimate, Feast of the Abyss, lets him easily maneuver out of difficult situations and launch a surprise attack further neutralizing Black Panther’s ability to fight up close.

Marvel Rivals Black Panther Lore

Now that we have explored his entire kit and the best way to use him, players should also explore the rich history and lore behind the character. Here's an excerpt from the official Marvel Rivals website that provides a glimpse into the character's backstory:

"King T'Challa of Wakanda is more than just the ruler of the most advanced civilization known to man. He also wears the mantle of the Black Panther, the sacred protector of his people. It is his sworn duty to ensure Wakanda' s continued survival against any threat imaginable. T'Challa recently expanded his reign into the cosmos, creating the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda. As he awaits a sign from Bast to tell him if either Doom can be trusted, he protects the Empire's Chronovium supply and shares its tech with trusted allies — including Reed Richards."

That's everything that you need to know about playing and dominating your matches as Black Panther in Marvel Rivals. If you're interested, you can check out our other hero guides below:

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Edited by Sijo Samuel Paul