Tanks do so much more than just being their team's meat shield.

In many Role-Playing Games and MOBAs, Tank characters play a huge role in a team, usually being their party’s frontliners with their toughness and defensive capabilities. Marvel Super War is no different, having bulky Tank-class Heroes whose primary role is to soak up damage directed to their team, ensuring that it is their side that outlives the other during a clash.

Now, as more and more Tanky superheroes, anti-heroes, and supervillains set foot in our Wakandan Battlefield here in MSW, it is our role as Watchers to learn and know about what these indispensable members of our team actually do, to understand how to play them effectively, and also to identify which heroes are best for this position at this current time.

Join me as we look into the 10 most powerful Tanks in MSW as of the current patch, ranking them according to how they fare in performing their duties as our ever-dependable Tank Heroes.

So, what makes Tanks good in Marvel Super War? How do you play Tank-class Heroes?

Before we charge into the actual ranking, let’s first look at what Tanks are expected to do in the early, mid, and late-game phases of the match, and then use these as our criteria in rating our Tank-class Heroes.  

• Early Game: Farm defensively; poke, but do not overcommit. Whether playing solo at the Top Lane, or as Support down the Bot Lane with your team’s Marksman, or maybe as a Jungler for a few heroes who can, your first goal as a Tank is to farm efficiently and simply survive during the early-game laning phase. We will be looking at our top Tanks’ skills to see what makes them viable early on in their lane position: offensive abilities to help them clear lane minions (and jungle monsters if applicable), pokes to disrupt their enemy farm, and various utility skills for survivability, via self-sustain, team protection, or mobility/escape.
• Mid Game: Be ready for team/enemy ganks and roams. Regardless of how the early game went, allies and opponents will then eventually start roaming the map for ganks, kills, and lane advances, getting more active in contesting map control and resources. Whether you’re still trying to push past the enemy’s first tower on your original lane, or you’re the one on the move visiting other lanes to assist your allies in theirs, you as a Tank should have good offensive and defensive skills that will help you and your team out when roaming, or when defending against enemy surprise attacks in this stage of the match.
• Late Game: Help lead and set team clashes, and make sure that your allies outlast your enemies. First note, DO NOT split push if you’re your team’s tank. You are much more needed and are much more effective in team fights at this point, so stick with your team and ensure they’re within range, especially during a clash. Always communicate, and check the positioning and movement of your allies and opponents, so that when a full-on battle breaks out, you are in a better position to do your job. We will gauge our Tanks’ different capabilities to dive into the middle of the enemy lines as they initiate or counter-initiate, how they drop their follow-through AOE attacks and disables, and their capacity to reposition themselves (or their enemies) to either continue their assault, protect their team’s backline, chase down their enemies, or otherwise retreat.

Now that we know what we’re looking for in our Tank heroes, let’s now proceed with ranking them with our chosen criteria.

Here’s our [Top 10] Best Tanks in Marvel Super War, as of the latest patch:

10. Ronan

Ronan Support Gameplay

The hammer-wielding Ronan The Accuser places 10th on our best Tank-class Heroes list.

Ronan has one of the most crowd-control-centered skill sets in the game, specializing in area-of-effect stuns and disables. His passive ability enhances his basic attacks and generates shields as his skills stun or launch enemies up in the air, improving both his damage output and survivability during teamfights. It does take time fo him to charge and better place his ultimate skill, but when it connects, this can spell brutal destruction for the enemy.

When playing as Ronan, you can lane either as a Solo Top Tank, or as a Support Tank down at Bot to babysit your MM during the early to mid-game phases of the match. Your AOE disables help counter enemy advances, serve as mid-range enemy pokes, and also help you clear the enemy minions on your lane when farming or pushing/advancing. Once you get your charged AOE damage + launch-up ultimate, you can then use this as a follow-through or counter-initiate skill during ganks and teamfights, as its charging time and lack of mobility boost make it hard for you to place it properly during fights/clashes. Having another more reliable initiator teammate is best when choosing to play Ronan, so that your team can overwhelm your enemies with continuous waves of chained AOE disables.

What Makes Ronan a Great Tank:

• Excellent crowd control with all his skills
• Passively generates shields as he deals CC to his enemies, improving his survivability
• His ultimate skill's AOE range and damage are both improved the longer it is charged

Ronan full details: MARVEL Super War - Ronan "The Arbiter"

9. Groot

Reworked Groot Jungle Gameplay

Our favorite giant sentient alien tree and member of the Guardian of the Galaxy, Groot, finds himself sprouting into our 9th spot on our list.

Groot is really more of a Support Hero than a Tank, and that’s the main reason why he’s placed this low even with his good performance as Support. He has good damage and crowd control, but as a meat shield who should be able to soak up team damage during clashes, he doesn’t fare quite as well as our other Tank Heroes. Though, he makes up for it with utility (via massive team shields and vision/position advantage) when he does get defeated by the enemy.

When playing Groot, you usually lane Bot to support your team’s MM. Your basic offensive skill sequence is a hook/pull + launch-up combo, good for peeling enemies off of your allies or pulling enemies towards you for surprise bursts and ganks/chase-downs. You also have a non-damaging utility skill that passively gives you an unlimited out-of-combat HP regeneration while you're chilling in the bushes, and an activated mobility boost that's great for roaming and repositioning during fights. Your ultimate is a continuous AOE skill that damages and slows enemies around you over the skill’s duration, which is a good combo for your other skills, and a great follow-through for your team’s initiates during a clash.

Overall, Groot is a great Support Tank to use, due to his: (1) good utility from his skills, which includes unlimited out-of-combat HP regeneration and movement boosts; (2) a great hook + launch-up attack combo that can make for good skill shots and enemy pick-offs; and, (3) his ultimate skill that deals significant damage, crowd control, and zoning against enemies.

What Makes Groot a Great Tank:

• I am Groot.
• I am Groot.
• I am Groot.

Groot full details: GROOT Rework? China Beta Server MARVEL Super War

8. Namor

Jungler Namor - SURPRISINGLY GOOD!

Namor “The Sub-Mariner” McKenzie, a mutant half-Atlantean and ruler of Atlantis, surfaces into our Wakandan Battlefield as one of our best Tanks, placing 8th. 

Namor’s tanking playstyle is a bit different from our other tanks, by mixing continuous AOE damage, self-sustain via passive HP regeneration, and some zoning that limits enemy movement, all to ensure his allies are safeguarded and his enemies swept up and washed away with his and his team’s relentless surge of attacks.

As Namor, you usually lane at the Top, relying on your sustain skills to minimize retreats and maximize your farming so you can rush getting your offensive gear as quickly as you can. Your AOE skills help you clear minion waves when laning, and establish some threat against enemies who might stray too near you or the pools of water you create. You have some mobility boosts that can help you when you participate in ganks, and you also have a skill that pulls enemy heroes towards yourself, but it’s your movement-restricting ultimate skill that makes you truly unique compared to the other Tanks. Your ult damages and traps enemies caught in the skill’s area of effect, isolating key enemy heroes during a clash, and/or stopping enemies who might want to retreat from your team’s turbulent advance.

What Makes Namor a Great Tank:

• Great damage output for a Tank Hero
• Has plenty of utility via self-sustain, mobility boosts, and positioning/zoning
• Ultimate skill is able to trap enemy heroes, preventing them from reaching your backline allies, or stopping them from retreating to safety

Namor full details: MARVEL Super War-New Hero Namor

7. Colossus

UNDERRATED TANK - Colossus Ranked Gameplay

The X-Men’s Piotr Rasputin, code-name Colossus, enters the ring and weighs in at 7th place on our Tank leaderboards.

Colossus has this mobile yet heavy/weighted play style of jumping up and around the battlefield, with enemy heroes being pushed and pulled and wrestled about to his bidding. This positioning manipulation makes him good in instigating hero combat or otherwise peeling enemy heroes off of a bullied teammate, offering himself as an alternative target for his enemies to try and beat down, if they can.

When playing Colossus, you can lane Top Tank or Bot Support. Your durability and crowd control skills allow you to safely solo up top, and your mid-range damage/CC skills make you able to assist and protect your Marksman down at the bottom lane. You also have mobility skills that let you initiate and counter-initiate during team fights once players start to roam around and shuffle their heroes around the map. Your built-in toughness makes you endure enemy damage when you jump in the middle of clashes, as you and your teammates wipe the floor with your opponents.

What Makes Colossus a Great Tank:

• Can protect allies by pulling and tossing enemies about
• Good damage output and CC plus some movement, which makes for good initiation
• Great durability for soaking damage and maintaining enemy beatdown during clashes

Colossus full details: MARVELSuperWar - Video of Colossus

6. Sandman

Sandman Ranked Gameplay - UNBELIEVABLY HIGH DAMAGE!

One of Spider-Man’s long-time nemeses, the sand-fused William Baker, Sandman, finds himself swept up into rank 6 of our MSW best tanks.

Sandman has a good kit, complete with AOE damage, crowd control, sustain, mobility, and initiation skills, making him a great tank with our chosen criteria. He would actually have placed a bit higher in our rankings if not for the extra gimmicks needed for him to trigger his self-sustain and shields, and the coordination and team responsiveness required whenever he casts and uses his ultimate skill.

As Sandman, you are better suited to lane Solo Top, for you to farm your gear and be more effective with your advances and initiates as soon as possible. You have some good pokes and AOE skills, as well as good sustain to help you with your early-game farming, and once you get your ultimate skill and enough gear, you can help roam and gank with your long-ranged AOE damage+CC ult blink. However, when using your ultimate, you need to be wary of the positioning of your enemies and teammates, as you might dive in too deep and too far away for your allies to catch up with your dive if you can’t crush your enemies on your own - which, when geared and farmed right, you actually can.

What Makes Sandman a Great Tank:

• Long-ranged ultimate AOE damage+CC blink, great for initiating fights and chasing enemies
• Good follow-through skills with AOE damage and CC, with some zoning, mobility, and sustain
• Can be geared with more damage items for a more offensive playstyle

Sandman full details: MARVEL Super War - New Hero Sandman

5. Hulkbuster

Hulkbuster is TERRIFYING!

Tony Stark’s anti-Hulk armor is called upon on our Wakandan Battlefield to help subdue different levels of threats, able to switch between different equipped modules that can best deal with his enemies as the situation needs it.

Hulkbuster’s unique playstyle of switching between three distinct modules gives him an edge in battle, choosing between Attack, Defense, or Control modules to be equipped in his primary and secondary skill slots. He can even change modules in the middle of a fight, adding extra effects on his abilities depending on the combinations of modules he equips. His damage output, shielding and defense, mobility, and crowd control capabilities are already good as it is, and more so if the player gets to master all the different combos of his skills as he needs.

However, Hulkbuster is currently the game’s most difficult hero to obtain. And if you do get to acquire and use him, make sure to practice first and be acquainted with all your modules and skill combinations and effects, to be fully effective in matches. As Hulkbuster, you will usually lane Solo Top, having good laning skills and survivability for you to stay and farm until you become better suited for roaming and team fights. Eventually, you will then be able to help in roaming and ganking, especially with your extremely long-ranged ultimate. Your ult has a relatively long channel time that makes it hard for you to land it perfectly, as enemies can simply step away from your skill’s landing zone while you cast, but with proper timing and coordination, this can truly be a great tool for initiation (or escape), especially with your other skills that are great follow-throughs in team clashes, with the AOE damage and various CC and utility effects added to your attacks.

What Makes Hulkbuster a Great Tank:

• Highly reactive/adaptive gameplay, being able to choose between different added effects on his skills as needed
• Great AOE damage, CC, pokes, shielding, and mobility with his skills, good for tanking
• Ultimate is a good long-ranged, ground-targeted, charge+AOE+damage skill that can also give extra effects such as a move-speed boost and persistent AOE damage, team shields, or, enemy confinement, depending on the chosen module applied

Hulkbuster full details: #MARVELSuperWar - Hulkbuster

4. Juggernaut

Juggernaut Ranked Gameplay

Cain Marko, Charles Xavier’s stepbrother, acquires Crimson Gem powers as he becomes the Juggernaut, barging through our ranks as the top 4 Tank-class Hero for Marvel Super War.

Juggernaut is the first official Tank/Jungle-class Hero in MSW (though there are already plenty of tanky Junglers in the game). His high mobility and unique wall-breaking playstyle make him excellent as he lanes in the Jungle, but not as much if he positions on other lanes, just like how most if not all Assassin-class heroes are designed to mainly farm in the Jungle and not in the mid/side lanes. His skills revolve around his enhanced mobility, AOE damage, crowd control, and of course his unique mechanic of being able to break walls with his abilities, which also further enhances his attacks and skills, restoring his HP, applying self-shields, and dealing extra AOE damage in the process.

As Juggernaut, you will have to lane in the Jungle, as you can effortlessly weave through and clear jungle camps using your wall-breaking AOE damage+CC skills. This unique mechanic not only gives you enhanced and unhindered mobility when jungling and roaming/ganking, but it also gives you extra damage, and tons of self-sustain and survivability during team clashes, making you able to take on a heavy beating and last longer when compared to the other more squishy Fighter/Assassin-class Jungler Heroes in the game.

What Makes Juggernaut a Great Tank:

• All of his skills have the ability to break down walls, adding a unique mechanic that improves his mobility and jungling/ganking/initiation capabilities
• Has great AOE damage and CC output with all his skills, plus a passive that gives him HP recovery, shields, and extra AOE damage, perfect for tanking
• His ultimate makes him charge into opponents, damaging and knocking back enemies in his path, tearing down walls he comes in contact with, before finally dealing AOE damage and launching enemies up at the end of his attack, which is one of the better charge/dash-type initiate skills in the game

Juggernaut full details: #MARVELSuperWar - Juggernaut

3. Heimdall

Heimdall Ranked Gameplay - DAMAGE+SUSTAIN!

Asgard’s Heimdall beams himself up into our rankings, coming in at a close third, although his skills could easily contend for the top spot under different criteria and circumstances.

Heimdall deals high burst damage, has good mobility and sustain, and even has a utility skill that allows him to resist damage for a short time. His damage output and mobility make him great with initiates and follow-throughs, having enough self-healing, shields, and durability to endure enemy attacks as he continually deals significant damage to his enemies. He also has some zoning and a bit of CC with his mobility skill, but other than that, he has no other crowd control abilities which would have otherwise made him a more well-rounded defensive tank. But his lack in this aspect, he makes up for with his high burst damage output, making him one of the (if not THE) strongest damage-dealing tanks in the game.

As Heimdall, you are better suited to lane solo at the Top Lane, so that you can farm your items and acquire your damage and/or defense-enhancing gear as early as possible. This helps you become proficient in ganks and teamfights once you’re done with your early-game laning phase. Mid game, you should use your mobility and burst damage in roaming and ganking enemies, until you reach the end game, where your main duty is to set and do follow-ups during full-on team clashes, maximizing all your skills as you guide your team to victory.

What Makes Heimdall a Great Tank:

• Extremely high burst damage output for a Tank Hero
• Has high sustain via self-healing passive, plus damage mitigation and some shields, and an ultimate that can also conditionally heal allied heroes, giving him great survivability
• Good mobility with his blink/dash skill that’s great for diving and initiation

Heimdall full details: HEIMDALL THE CONFUSED TANK - MARVEL SUPER WAR

2. The Thing

The Thing is SO GOOD now!

Rolling in at number 2 is the Fantastic Four’s Ben Grimm, nicknamed “The Thing”.

The Thing gets extra points for his added mobility and more reliable initiation and crowd control skills when compared to our previous tanky contender. This makes The Thing arguably better at protecting his allies and setting up team clashes for the kill, hence, a better tank with our chosen criteria.

When playing The Thing, your position can either be Top or Bot. You’re quite hard to beat 1v1 when you’re soloing Top due to your pokes and extra protection via your crowd control and shields. Also, with the same pokes and CC skills, you are able to protect your team's Marksman effectively when laning Bottom as your MM's meat shield. On top of that, your ranged ground-targeted charge + AOE + damage + CC ultimate, followed through with a continuous skill that stacks shields on you as it deals persistent AOE damage and slow to surrounding enemies, makes you something that the enemy can’t simply ignore as you clobber them down.

What Makes The Thing a Great Tank:

• Has great AOE damage and CC output, good for laning and during clashes
• Has good mobility for repositioning
• Has one of the best initiate and follow-through combos, applying plenty of enemy CC and adding self-shields to help him sustain their team’s offense

The Thing full details: MARVEL Super War - Pirate Thing

Bonus: Other Tanks worthy of mention

Only two Tank-class Heroes didn’t make it to the list, so, let’s also look at what these heroes are good at - and what they lacked, for them to not be included in our top 10 list. Also, there are several noteworthy non-Tank-class Tanky Heroes who can also position themselves as Tanks in MSW.

• Squirrel Girl: The ever-so-bubbly Doreen Green, Squirrel Girl, has a very interesting skill set and mechanic, with excellent damage output, self-sustain, mobility, and defense that’s enough for her to even defeat multiple enemy heroes all by herself. However, she lacks crowd control, and relies on having to fight multiple enemies for her to maximize her abilities, making her offensive and defensive performance as a Tank just a teeny bit inferior to the other Tank-class Heroes who made it to this list. She’s extremely fun to use, but she also needs a bit of practice and teamwork to use effectively in matches.
• Cull Obsidian: This scythe-wielding member of Thanos’ Black Order can actually hold out on his own during the early to mid-game stages as either Solo Top or as Support Bot, but his effectiveness in battle kind of falls off during the late game. He has good AOE damage and CC great for laning, and a couple of self and enemy repositioning mechanics (a “blink” skill, a hook skill, and an AOE knockback ult), great for attacking or defending up until the mid game, but during late-game clashes, his skills can be a bit too chaotic to use effectively and reliably for his team.
• Other non-Tanks who can position as a Tank: The following heroes are Fighter-class Heroes with enough durability or sustain, and skills/abilities that can allow them to perform a tank’s role and position (with a few of them even being able to play as a Support-Tank at the bottom lane, with the right team dynamics and composition). However, as these characters are more of bruiser Tank-Fighter hybrids, they might not be able to play their hero’s full offensive potential should you choose to play them more defensively and equip them with some tank gear, and, they might not have enough durability when compared to the true Tank-class Heroes for them to face enemies head-on for longer periods of time. But, when the team truly needs it, they can indeed jump in and be their team’s main or secondary Tanks. Ant-Man, Captain America, Corvus Glaive, Thanos, Thor, Venom, War Tiger, Wolverine

And now, our top Tank Hero for Marvel Super War:

1. Hulk

Immortal Hulk Ranked Gameplay - FREE SKIN!

Dr. Bruce Banner, the Incredible Hulk, grabs the top spot as our current best Tank in MSW.

The Hulk’s durability, self-sustain, crowd control, and damage output make him truly one of the most powerful yet still well-balanced Tanks of the game. His skill set allows him to lane Solo Top, Support Bot, or even Jungle, and he can perform each of these roles quite well from the early, mid, up to the late-game phases of the match, enough for him to earn this top spot on our rankings.

As Hulk, regardless of where you’re laned, you have a good early-game performance with your AOE damage and pokes, as well as the HP regeneration and move-speed bonuses from your passive. Your skills all apply some crowd control to enemies as well, making enemies think twice before charging in whenever you’re nearby. You also have one of the best initiation skills in the game with your ranged ground-targeted blink+AOE+damage+CC ultimate, which is paired with great follow-through skills and attacks, giving you plenty of presence during a fight. So, once you get your ultimate skill and some gear, you must be on the constant lookout for openings with your teammates to smash your enemies, using your incredible set-up and follow-through abilities.

What Makes Hulk a Great Tank:

• Reliable, consistent skill set and playstyle that perfectly fits the role of a Tank hero
• Great initiate and follow-through skills, paired with durability and self-sustain for easy tanking
• Good damage and CC output to help win team fights

Hulk full details: MARVEL Super War - Hulk Hero Spotlight

Final notes for Tank-class Heroes in Marvel Super War:

As we’ve seen here, Tanks do come in many shapes and sizes.

In learning where these different Tank Heroes shine, we should then know which of these Heroes would best suit our playstyle if and when we pick this central role.

And don’t wait for lost matches to be your motivation in choosing to play as a Tank when your team needs it. Among all the other classes and roles here in MSW, a Tank Hero is an almost must-have in ALL team-ups, because, if your team doesn't have a Tank (or at least someone with tanky gear), your enemies can simply charge in and burst all the squishy heroes in your team one by one.

So as much as possible, make sure that your team has a Tank. It is then indeed best for you to have at least one or two Tank-class Heroes you can play well, for you and your team’s sake.

What’s left for you to do now, Watcher, is to gear up, hunker down, and prepare to defend our Wakandan Battlefield.

Credits and thanks to Althanor Gaming for the great Marvel Super War gameplay footages: https://www.youtube.com/c/AlthanorGaming

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