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How to Play Deadpool in Marvel Rivals (All 3 Roles)

Updated 25 Oct 2026 Source Marvel Rivals Wiki (Fandom) — Deadpool hero page, overview and role sections, retrieved 25 October 2026 By Antewise Editorial
Data status: The facts on this page were checked against the source named above. Game values can still shift with a patch, so re-check anything that looks off.

Deadpool is the game’s first Multi-Role hero: three separate characters in one pick — Vanguard, Duelist, and Strategist — each with its own health pool, kit, and ultimate. In Competitive, each role is banned separately. Master the two shared passives and the upgrade system first; the roles themselves play very differently.

The two passives (shared by all roles)

  • Healing Factor: out of combat for 5 seconds, Deadpool regenerates 25 health per second. If he takes more than 200 damage within a 2-second window, the passive triggers at 50 per second and grants brief damage immunity — enough to survive one-shot abilities. 45-second cooldown.
  • Maximum Flair: Deadpool’s ultimate charges through a Style gauge, from rank E up to S, instead of the usual over-time charge. Hitting enemies and healing allies earns Style Points, and landing abilities in quick succession earns the most. At rank S the ultimate unlocks.

The upgrade system

Combat actions fill a red experience gauge under your health bar. Each full gauge lets you upgrade one ability, empowering it. Upgrades are unique to each role, but the experience gauge is shared across all three variants — if you swap roles mid-match, earned XP carries over while role-specific upgrades reset, so you can immediately re-allocate to the new role’s skills.

Shared abilities (all three roles)

  • Dual Desert Eagles (primary): hitscan, moderate damage, fast fire rate. Upgraded, every shot charges an icon; when full, the next shot launches a slow explosive projectile and max ammo increases.
  • Kick@$$ Katanas (alternate primary): very fast melee string; the second strike is a quick jab that carries most of the damage. Upgraded, the jab can crit — and bouncing off an enemy with your double jump guarantees a jab.
  • Deadpool In Your Area: a 5-second zone around Deadpool that clutters enemy screens and deals continuous damage. The taunt ends once Deadpool takes enough damage. Upgraded, enemies lingering in the zone get their health bars taped over.
  • Selfie with corpses: landing a final blow lets Deadpool pose with the enemy before they respawn for bonus XP — during the selfie he cannot be damaged and is immune to crowd control.

Playing Deadpool as a Vanguard (500 HP)

The survivability pick: double health, a deployable barrier, and team utility.

  • Magical Unicorn Shield lobs a plushie barrier that blocks enemy line-of-sight and sustains damage from any ability in the game — including ultimates like Iron Man’s Invincible Iron Cannon and Scarlet Witch’s Reality Erasure. Upgraded, it turns golden with more health and size.
  • Hazardous Hijinx dashes forward and slashes; on hit, a 5-second window lets you chain up to two more slashes before the cooldown. Upgraded, it gains an extra charge and Deadpool bounces airborne after each hit.
  • Bunny Bounce is a double jump on a 6-second cooldown, instantly refreshed when you jump off a wall or an enemy while The Big Test is active.
  • Deadpool In Your Area buffs attack speed for Deadpool and nearby allies; upgraded, it adds damage reduction (40% to Deadpool, 20% to allies).
  • Ultimates: The Ban Hammer (with the desert eagles) taunts a targeted enemy — they take damage every time they miss an attack, while Deadpool gains bonus health and healing over time. The Big Test (katanas) grants speed, healing, and bonus health to allies, then challenges you to land Bunny Bounce or Hazardous Hijinx five times within 12 seconds for the Jackpot — doubling speed and healing and refreshing Healing Factor. All Hijinx charges refresh when the challenge starts.

Playing Deadpool as a Duelist (275 HP)

The raw damage pick — no shield, no team utility, all offense.

  • Headshot! throws Deadpool’s avatar icon to spin in place for continuous damage before retracting. Upgraded, he throws it three times and the last throw explodes. Upgrading this early is the fastest way to farm XP.
  • Hazardous Hijinx starts with two charges even without upgrades; upgraded, it chains unlimited times, bouncing after each hit. Note the upgraded version does not start recharging until you miss a dash.
  • Deadpool In Your Area grants 20% damage reduction to Deadpool only.
  • Bunny Hop resets when bouncing off a wall or enemy, granting bonus health each time.
  • Ultimates: Skill Issue (desert eagles) taunts an enemy to suffer damage per missed attack; upgraded, it adds per-second damage and stacks Vulnerability (10% per stack, up to 4). Pop Quiz! (katanas) grants speed and healing, then challenges you to land Bunny Hop or Hijinx seven times in 12 seconds — the Jackpot doubles speed and healing, and upgraded adds a 15% damage boost that doubles on completion. Landing the Jackpot resets all cooldowns except Healing Factor.

Playing Deadpool as a Strategist (275 HP)

The support pick — his guns and blades heal.

  • Both primaries heal: Dual Desert Eagles heal allies directly; Kick@$$ Katanas heal nearby allies after every hit. Upgraded, the desert eagles’ explosive projectile also heals allies caught in the blast.
  • Bouncing Bobblehead (desert eagles) works like Headshot!, but the avatar heals allies while spinning and on the explosion. Upgrading early is again the fast XP route.
  • Healing Hijinx (katanas) is a short dash that heals nearby allies on impact; upgraded, it chains up to three times and Deadpool bounces after each hit.
  • Deadpool In Your Area heals nearby allies; upgraded, healing and damage increase while allies gain a damage boost.
  • Healing Hop restores health for allies you bounce off of and resets its cooldown.
  • Ultimates: Pwnage Pound (desert eagles) is the taunt-ult with healing over time on activation and extra healing per missed attack. Final Exam (katanas) applies healing over time and challenges you to land Healing Hop, Healing Hijinx, or Bouncing Bobblehead eight times in 12 seconds; the Jackpot greatly increases healing, and upgraded it grants bonus health and refreshes Healing Factor.

Deadpool’s weaknesses

  • Dying resets the Style gauge to rank E — even at rank S with a charged ultimate. He is the only hero who can lose his ultimate once earned.
  • His ultimates have a 60-second cooldown after each use, so they favor frequency over raw effectiveness.
  • As a Vanguard he earns XP the slowest of his three roles; as a Duelist his utility is outclassed by the Vanguard; as a Strategist he depends on his team to convert plays while his ultimate is active.

Team-ups

  • Active: Gumbo Chimichangas (with Gambit) and Hel-Yeah, Honey (with Hela).
  • Enhanced by Deadpool: Loudmouth Mercs (for Elsa Bloodstone) and Mr. Pool’s Interdimensional Toy Box (for Jeff the Land Shark).

Frequently asked questions

Which Deadpool role is the best in Marvel Rivals?

There is no single answer — each role is technically a separate character. Vanguard (500 HP) brings a plushie shield and taunt ults for survivability, Duelist (275 HP) is raw damage with chained katana bounces, and Strategist (275 HP) heals through his bobblehead and hijinx dashes. Pick by what your team needs.

How does Deadpool's ultimate work?

Deadpool does not charge his ultimate over time. He fills a Style gauge from rank E to S by hitting enemies and healing allies, and landing abilities in quick succession fills it fastest. If he dies, the gauge resets to E — the only hero who can lose a charged ultimate.

Can you switch Deadpool roles mid-match?

Yes. The experience gauge is shared across all three variants, so earned XP is retained when you swap — but ability upgrades are role-specific and reset, so you re-allocate upgrade points to the new role's skills.

Which Deadpool role is the best?

Each role is a separate character. Vanguard for shield and survivability, Duelist for damage, Strategist for healing — choose by team need. Remember each is banned separately in Competitive.

More Marvel Rivals guides

Sources

Figures and item data on this site are read from the game’s own reference wiki before publishing. Where a value could not be confirmed there, the page says so instead of filling the gap.