Marvel Rivals Per-Role Advanced Playbook: What Vanguards, Duelists, and Strategists Do at Diamond+
Role-specific intermediate play: when tanks should push vs hold, how duelists pick their flanks, and how strategists pre-heal + peel. The 5 mistakes each role makes at Diamond and how to fix them.
TL;DR: At Diamond+, Vanguards stop being bullet sponges and start being space makers, Duelists stop being aim bots and start being flankers with intent, Strategists stop being heal bots and start being co-playmakers. The role-specific mistakes below are what keep most players stuck at Platinum.
Who this guide is for
- You have read the general combat awareness guide and applied it ~70% of the time
- You are stuck in Platinum and feel like “I am doing the right things but not climbing”
- You main one role and want to know the role-specific rules for the other two
- You are not yet thinking about Master rank
This is the sixth guide in our zero-to-competitive Marvel Rivals series and the last one in the “intermediate” block.
1. The three roles at Diamond+: a 30-second recap
| Role | Job at Bronze–Gold | Job at Diamond+ |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard | Stand in front, take damage, hope team follows | Make space for the team to take a position the enemy would otherwise deny |
| Duelist | Click on enemies, get kills | Pick priority targets (supports, flankers) at the right time, from the right angle |
| Strategist | Press heal on whoever is low | Co-playmake — pre-heal key cooldowns, peel for the carry, enable the team’s big plays |
The biggest shift is: at Diamond+, every role is also a “what is the team doing right now” role. You are not playing in isolation.
2. Vanguard advanced: how to actually make space
The space-making mindset
New tanks think their job is to take damage. Wrong. Your job is to take a position the enemy would otherwise deny, and then stay there long enough for your team to use that space.
The 5 Vanguard mistakes at Diamond
| Mistake | What it looks like | Why it loses | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charging spawn | You run into 4 enemies on first contact | You die without your team | Walk forward, check sightlines, commit |
| Standing in the open “being a tank” | You are in the middle of nowhere with 5 enemies shooting you | You feed enemy Ults | Position behind cover, peek for abilities, retreat to heal |
| Ignoring the Strategist | You never look at where your support is | The support gets dove, the team collapses | Constantly check: “Where is my Strategist? Am I near them?” |
| Pressing the wrong objective | You push the cart alone, the team is fighting at the point | You stagger | Coordinate with the team before pushing |
| Using Ult on cooldown | You Hulk-smash the moment your bar fills | You trade your biggest ability for a single kill | Hold for a coordinated push (see Ultimate Economy) |
The space-making playbook
| Phase | What you do |
|---|---|
| 0:00–0:10 | Walk to the choke. Check sightlines. Tell the team where you are pushing. |
| 0:10–0:30 | Take the front line. Use cover. Peek to deal damage. Retreat if HP < 40%. |
| 0:30 onward | When the team is grouped, push. When the team is staggered, fall back. Sync your aggression to the team. |
| Ult ready | Ping “Going in,” use Ult when 3+ enemies are on the objective. |
Vanguard micro-tips
- Body-block for your Strategist when they are getting dove. Even if you die, the Strategist surviving is worth the trade.
- Don’t fight a 1v1 at low HP. Retreat to a health pack, or to your support. Tanks have peel, use it.
- Punch the flanker who is diving your back line, not the tank who is at 80% HP. The flanker is the threat.
Common pitfall: thinking the tank is the team’s “first blood” generator. The tank is the team’s space-opener. Your value is the space you create, not the kills you get.
3. Duelist advanced: how to pick the right target from the right angle
The duelist mindset at Diamond
New Duelists think their job is to get kills. Wrong. Your job is to kill the priority target at the right time, from the right angle, without dying in a way that feeds the enemy.
The Duelist’s three questions, every 10 seconds:
- Who is the priority target right now? (Usually the support, or the flanker on your back line)
- What angle do I need to be at to kill them? (Often a flank angle, not a frontal one)
- Is my team ready to follow up? (If no, do not commit — a kill without follow-up is a trade you lose)
The 5 Duelist mistakes at Diamond
| Mistake | What it looks like | Why it loses | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shooting the tank | You keep firing at the enemy Vanguard, ignoring the support | The tank is unkillable in time, the support lives | Find the support. Switch targets. |
| Flighting solo with no comms | You flank, kill 1, then die because no one pushed with you | The trade is even, you stagger | Either tell your team to follow up, or don’t take the fight |
| Predictable positioning | You stand in the same spot every fight | The enemy kills you first every time | Reposition every 10–15 seconds |
| Using Ult on a 1v1 | You burn your Ult for a single kill | You have no Ult for the next team fight | Save for 3+ enemies grouped |
| Ignoring the objective | You are dueling in spawn while the cart rolls back | Your team loses time | Check the objective every 30 seconds |
The flanker vs. the sustained duelist
| Sub-role | Job at Diamond+ | Hero examples |
|---|---|---|
| Flanker / diver | Get behind the enemy, kill the support, escape | Spider-Man, Magik, Black Panther, Psylocke |
| Sustained / skirmisher | Stay at mid-range, apply pressure, win duels | Hela, Iron Man, Storm, Punisher, Mister Fantastic |
A common mistake is playing a flanker like a sustained duelist (hanging back, taking potshots) or playing a sustained duelist like a flanker (going for the lone support 1v1 and dying). Play the role your hero is designed for.
Duelist micro-tips
- Don’t take a 1v1 against your hard counter. If the enemy Storm is up and you are on Hela, switch heroes or wait for your team.
- Pre-position on high ground. Aerial heroes have a huge advantage. Use it.
- Reload behind cover. Duelists who reload in the open die first.
Common pitfall: thinking “I died because my aim is bad.” Most deaths above Gold are positioning deaths, not aim deaths. Move to a better angle. Aim is secondary.
4. Strategist advanced: pre-heal, peel, and co-playmake
The strategist mindset at Diamond
New Strategists think their job is to heal whoever is low. Wrong. Your job is to enable your team’s plays — through pre-heal, peel, and utility usage that the team could not execute without you.
The 5 Strategist mistakes at Diamond
| Mistake | What it looks like | Why it loses | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heal-botting | You spend 90% of the match pressing heal on whoever is low | You never contribute damage, never peel, never counter-engage | Split your attention: 50% heal, 30% damage/peel, 20% positioning |
| Healing the full-HP tank | The tank is at 100%, you are healing them | The DPS at 30% dies | Heal the lowest-HP teammate in active danger, not the closest |
| Standing behind the tank all game | You are glued to the Vanguard | You are predictable, the enemy flanks you | Take high ground, play off-angles, reposition |
| Ignoring enemy flankers | You don’t track where the enemy flanker is | You get dove, your team has no healer for 10 seconds | Track the flanker. Save your CC for when they appear. |
| Using Ult to save yourself | You Ult when you are at 10% HP | You didn’t help the team fight | Use Ult to enable the team push, even if you are at 50% HP |
The pre-heal principle
The biggest Strategist skill at Diamond is pre-heal — healing a teammate before they take damage, so they survive the burst that would have killed them.
| Reactive heal | Pre-heal |
|---|---|
| Teammate at 30% HP, you heal them to 80% | Teammate at 80% HP about to take a Hulk smash, you heal them to 100% so they survive |
| They survive the fight, but at 30% HP, they take the next hit and die | They stay at 100% HP and win the team fight |
You can see the burst coming because the enemy just used a big ability. Pre-heal the burst target right before the burst.
Peel: defending your back line
The Strategist’s second-biggest job at Diamond is peel — using your abilities to stop the flanker who is diving you or your other DPS.
| Peel action | When to use it |
|---|---|
| Sleep dart (Mantis) | When the flanker is in your face |
| Self-save (Luna) | When you are at <30% HP and the flanker is close |
| Shield (Cloak & Dagger / others) | When the flanker is about to kill your other DPS |
| Damage boost / anti-heal | When the enemy team is grouped and you want to enable your team’s burst |
Common pitfall: thinking “I am a healer, my KDA doesn’t matter.” KDA does matter, but more importantly, your ability usage matters. A Strategist who sleeps the enemy flanker every fight wins more than one who just heals.
Strategist micro-tips
- Take high ground (rooftops, ledges). Strategists on high ground are harder to dive.
- Track enemy cooldowns, especially their dive and CC abilities. If their Spider-Man just used web pull, you have ~8 seconds to play aggressive.
- Position near a health pack or your other support. If you are the only Strategist, you need a fallback.
Common pitfall: blaming the tank for not peeling. The tank has their own job. You are responsible for your own positioning. If the enemy flanker gets to you, you positioned wrong.
5. The cross-role truth: you are all support
At Diamond+, the roles blur:
- The Vanguard supports the team by making space
- The Duelist supports the team by killing priority targets
- The Strategist supports the team by enabling plays
The team that treats every role as “support the team’s win condition” wins more than the team where each role plays in isolation.
Common pitfall: “I am the tank, my job is to be a tank.” Your job is to make space for the team to win. The tank who is a bullet sponge in the wrong place is a worse tank than the one who takes a smart position.
6. Role-specific self-review (VOD checklist)
After a match, review your own play:
If you main Vanguard
- Did I take space or just take damage?
- Did I check on my Strategist?
- Did I push when the team was ready, or alone?
- Did I use my Ult at the right time?
If you main Duelist
- Did I shoot the priority target or the easy target?
- Did I reposition, or stand still?
- Did I use my Ult for a team fight or a duel?
- Did I check the objective every 30 seconds?
If you main Strategist
- Did I pre-heal the burst, or react to the low HP?
- Did I track the enemy flanker?
- Did I take high ground, or hide behind the tank?
- Did I use my Ult to enable the team or save myself?
Pick one question per match and improve on that one.
7. Next steps
You now have the per-role playbook. The natural next read is the Ranked block: Ranked System: Ranks, Bans, and Draft — once you can play your role at Diamond level, you need to draft around the enemy team.
If you want to specialize in one hero first, our Hero Mastery section (coming soon) covers Hulk, Storm, Spider-Man, and more with full role-specific combos.
Version note (2026-07-15): Based on Marvel Rivals Season 9 (“Convergence”). Role definitions and the space-making / priority-target / pre-heal frameworks are stable and have not changed since launch. Specific hero tier rankings shift with patches — see our Season 9 Tier List for the current meta.
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