Though nowadays, whales invest only in 6* (six star) champions, that doesn't mean that 5* champions are not still super useful! Here are ten of the best 5* champions in the game.
Four years ago, 6* champions were introduced into the Marvel: Contest of Champions meta, significantly shaking up the players’ collecting focus, and allowing for content to scale much more aggressively than it had before. Nowadays, 6* champions tend to be the focus of collectors and whales, but middle-of-the-road players still heavily rely on their 5* roster, due to the difficulty of acquiring, ranking, duplicating, and increasing the signature level of a 6* champion.
This list will focus on the best 5* either not available as 6*, or that are not in the basic 6* crystal pool (you have to pay using units, the in-game currency gained slowly through normal gameplay or quickly by opening your wallet, in order to obtain these champions).
10 – Deadpool
Deadpool takes your $$$ and gives you nothing in return. Jerk.
Deadpool is a trophy champ – he is a paid acquisition that is not available as a 6* yet. However, though he is exclusive to deals where you literally spend money to purchase him, Deadpool remains outclassed by many, many champions in the game.
Pros
- Bleed damage and regen
Cons
- Very basic kit with low damage
- No utility
- Bleed and regen are outclassed by most other champions that have a focus in these two areas.
9 – Ultron (Classic)
I do not have the patience to get this champion.
Ultron (Classic) is unique in the fact that it is the only champion exclusively available as a 5*. He only exists as a reward for beating one of the most challenging pieces of content in the game – Labyrinth of Legends. However, despite this exclusivity, Ultron remains a very weak champion – serving mostly as a trophy piece.
Pros
- Bleed/Cauterize
- Can be a decent defender (especially for the sake of diversity)
- Trophy champion
Cons
- Everything he can do, someone else can do better
8 – Ghost Rider
His powerset does not match how cool he looks, sadly.
This is the first champion on this list that is available as a 6*, just not readily. Worried about breaking the game, Kabam! (the company behind Marvel: Contest of Champions) kept Ghost Rider, Blade, and Spider-Man (Stark Enhanced) out of the 6* pool for a while, as these three champions were considered the best trinity in the game. Even though they have finally released him, he is not yet in the basic 6* pool, so he is much more readily available as a 5*
Pros
- Fun gimmicky playstyle
- Still shines brightly when combined with Spider-Man (Stark Enhanced) and Blade
Cons
- Again, kit is outclassed by many better champs
- Judgements should land with consistency – the randomness associated with Ghost Rider makes him unnecessarily finicky
7 – Wolverine
I mean, it's Wolverine.
Wolverine is still a lot of fun to play. One of the old gods in Marvel: Contest of Champions, he used to be at the top of the mutant totem pole. However, he has since been greatly outclassed by other champions released later on. That said, he is still a lot of fun, and Kabam! Is still a bit nervous about releasing him as a 6*. Even his 5* has been difficult to snag and was introduced to the game relatively recently.
Pros
- Solid bleed damage
- Excellent regeneration
Cons
- Better champions that do the same thing more effectively
- Difficult to acquire
6 – Wolverine (Weapon X)
I'd expect a trophy champ to be cuter.
A strange situation surrounds Wolverine (Weapon X). There are very few champions that are this hard to get (the other two being Kang and Thanos) due to the fact that he was only available as a reward for top alliances or players (and therefore mostly for whales). Both his 5* and 6* versions are difficult to get, but he is worth mentioning because he is the best of the trophy champions available. Weapon X is very similar to Wolverine, but is an improvement on that champ’s mechanics in almost every way.
Pros
- Brutal bleed damage
- Excellent on defense
- Effective regen
Cons
- Incredibly difficult to acquire
- There are more readily available champions that are better
5 – Doctor Voodoo
Doctor Voodoo: Your buffs are his property
Another champion that is only available as a 6* to people with insanely good luck or a nice, beefy wallet, Doctor Voodoo was an old Marvel: Contest of Champions god-tier champion. He still remains an excellent choice for much content, and is still worth ranking and using in 2022.
Pros
- Fun poison mechanic (converting buffs into poison)
- Power drain
- Regen 12% of health at the beginning of each fight, making Voodoo an excellent sustain champion
Cons
- Damage still pretty weak relative to other champions
- Utility kit would benefit from being broader
4 – Scarlet Witch
I miss my 3* Scarlet Witch that could solo Realm of Legends.
Ah, Scarlet Witch. The champion so incredibly powerful that she broke the entire game, resulting in the infamous patch 12.0 that almost destroyed Marvel: Contest of Champions forever (and took champions that used to be incredible and nerfed them so badly that they are terrible to this day, including the original Thor and Doctor Strange).
One could use a 3* Scarlet Witch to solo the hardest content in the game at the time, due to an incredibly overpowered kit focusing on buffs, debuffs, nullify, and power drain. Nowadays, Scarlet Witch is a shadow of her former self, but some of that flare still remains within the champion, making her fun to play even in 2022. Unfortunately, she is still not available as a 6*, and is difficult to get even as a 5*.
Pros
- Incredibly versatile utility kit, including regen, power drain, power lock, and nullify.
- Solid damage that scales with buffs
- Traditional playstyle – no need to learn anything new to play her effectively
Cons
- Damage on the lower end when compared to other, higher tier champions
- Kit completely relies on randomness, making her finicky and resulting in many battles where you are hoping that she triggers an ability the whole time
3 – Blade
Blade.
The best of the MCoC trinity, Blade is excellent to this day as a 5* and is viable in quite a bit of content. His 6* is now possible to obtain but is still very difficult to acquire (wallet or luck needed).
Pros
- Some of the best regen in the game
- Excellent bleed damage
- Significant advantage against Dimensional Beings
- Excellent passive power gain
Cons
- Not great against bleed immunity
- Damage could be a bit better
2 – Magik
Magik, the one to call if you need to stop your enemies from having a power bar.
Magik is one of the champions that has always been just under top tier, and for good reason. Magik has some of the best power control in the game, making her a key champion for quite a few fights. She is not yet available as a 6*, but I would not be surprised if she was announced as a 6* champion in the near future.
Pros
- Incredible power drain/lock
- Specific play method that allows for her to win many fights taking minimal block damage
Cons
- Challenging to master
- Lower damage leads to long fights
1 – Quake
The queen of gimmicky nonsense.
This is the one champion in the game that most players would not want to see as a 6*, because of how incredibly good she is. If she was released as a 6*, she would need to be nerfed for the sake of game balance, which would anger the significant portion of MCoC players who use Quake for a ton of content.
Pros
- Unique playstyle that allows Quake to win fights without taking a single damage
Cons
- Long fights
- Challenging playstyle
And there you have it! These are ten of the best champions that are not readily available as 6*, and thus are some of the best 5* in the game!
