Start from the enemy hero, not the enemy label
Most counter advice tells you to read an “archetype” — shield wall, dive, poke — and answer with a role. That works when you are drafting blind, but once the enemy has locked a hero you can answer tighter. A Spider-Man and a Black Panther are both divers; Peni Parker’s nest ruins Spider-Man’s swing path while Mantis’ sleep defuses Black Panther’s engage. Same label, different fix.
This page is the per-hero version of the counter picks guide. Use that one to read a team shape; use this one to answer “they locked X, what do I play.”
If they locked a flier
Iron Man, Human Torch, Storm and Ultron all take height for free. The counter is not another flyer — it is a hitscan hero who punishes the air from the ground.
- Storm → Spider-Man. He closes the gap she uses to kite and removes her safe distance. Hawkeye’s anti-air also works if you can land the shot.
- Iron Man / Human Torch → Hawkeye or Punisher. Both hit the air instantly; a flier that has to respect incoming hitscan loses the height advantage.
- Ultron → coordinated pressure from Magik or Devil Dinosaur. His healing drone keeps a team alive only while he is undisrupted; force him to choose between flying and healing.
If they locked a diver
Dive heroes win by reaching your backline. The counter is a body that punishes the arrival, plus a healer kept in sight.
- Spider-Man → Peni Parker. Her nest and mines occupy the exact space he swings through, and her stun stops the engage mid-air.
- Black Panther → Mantis. Sleep ends his dash chain before it starts; a Magik with spacing also out-trades him in the close fight.
- Magik → Groot or Doctor Strange. A wall between her and her target removes the angles she needs; Strange’s shield does the same on a shorter cooldown.
If they locked a shield tank
Magneto, Doctor Strange and Groot project a barrier that blocks one direction. You beat it with damage that arrives from somewhere the barrier is not facing.
- Groot → Phoenix or Namor. Both output through and around walls; Phoenix’s area damage ignores the wall’s protection entirely.
- Magneto → Hela or Hawkeye. Sustained ranged damage wears the bubble down faster than he can reposition; Hawkeye’s pierce punishes the team standing behind him.
- Doctor Strange → Iron Man or Human Torch. Flight puts you above the shield portal’s line, so his main counter-play never connects.
If they locked a bruiser frontline
Hulk, The Thing and Wolverine are the close-range walls. The counter is range, displacement, or burst that does not let them close.
- Hulk → Magik (out-range) or Storm (kite). Both keep him at a distance he cannot cross; if he does engage, focus fire before his lifesteal compounds.
- Wolverine → The Thing. His heavy blow out-reaches Wolverine’s claws, and Emma Frost’s diamond form survives the exchange. Luna Snow’s freeze ends the grab outright.
- The Thing → Burst from range. He has no shield, so a Hela or Punisher who keeps distance removes him before the frontline brawl starts.
When not to swap
Swapping on every enemy lock is a trap. Two cases where you should hold:
- Your hero already answers the role. A hitscan Duelist into a flyer is fine — you do not need Spider-Man to kill Storm, you need to aim.
- The enemy is playing the hero badly. A strong hero piloted with missed cooldowns is cheaper to beat by focusing them than by swapping cold. Watch one fight, then decide.
The heroes tier list ranks who is strong this season; this page tells you who answers whom. Read both before you lock in.