Look, I love playing Ben Grimm. When I first brought The Thing into my ranked Marvel Rivals lobbies back in the day, I felt unstoppable. That dual movement kit — an unstoppable charge that plows through the frontline, and a leap that instantly gives bonus shields to both me and a teammate — made me think I'd found the ultimate Vanguard bully. And with his massive base health pool, I could soak punishment for days. Even now in 2026, after multiple balance patches and new heroes entering the fray, a well-played Thing can dominate a match if left unanswered. But as I climbed the competitive ladder, I quickly learned that certain characters can turn my joyful clobbering time into a nightmare. Those matches taught me exactly who the best The Thing counters in Marvel Rivals really are, and today I'm going to share every painful lesson I've absorbed.
These counters aren't just about raw damage. Ben's entire identity revolves around closing gaps and staying in the fight — he can't be displaced by abilities, making him immune to the usual "grab and isolate" tactics. So the most effective answers lean into movement-canceling crowd control, high burst damage that ignores his shields, or map geometry that punishes his grounded, wall-averse pathing. I still get chills thinking about the first time I was systematically shut down by a good Hela. Let's break down the heroes that have personally made me swap off The Thing more times than I can count.
Hela: The Hawk-Eyed Nightmare
If there's one Duelist that haunts my dreams, it's Hela. She has been at the top of the meta for what feels like forever, and her kit is the perfect antidote to my rock-solid confidence. Her hitscan Piercing Night projectiles deal absurd damage from range, and I can't even close the distance before my health bar melts. Two headshots crumble a squishy target; on my Vanguard, it\u2019s maybe three or four, but the pressure is constant and unforgiving.
What really shuts me down is her Soul Drainer stun. The moment I activate my charge or prepare to leap to a teammate, a well-timed stun cancels everything. That\u2019s it. No movement, no bonus shields, just me standing there looking like a pile of rocks waiting to be shattered. And if I try to reposition or retreat? Her Astral Flock lets Hela vanish and reappear instantly, keeping her safe while maintaining line of sight. The Team-Up ability that respawns Thor and Loki on the final hit or grants bonus health is just the cherry on top — she\u2019s almost always paired with them in my games. When I see a Hela on the enemy team, I know I need my Duelists to focus her first, or I\u2019m going to have a very bad time.
Moon Knight: From The Sky, Vengeance Falls
Moon Knight is another Duelist I\u2019ve grown to fear, specifically because he can make my ground-bound existence absolutely miserable. His Ancient Ankhs are deceptively simple: toss one near me, and suddenly his Crescent Darts bounce and replicate, dealing amplified damage that cuts through my shields like butter. A smart Moon Knight won\u2019t just throw an Ankh in my face while I\u2019m charging; they\u2019ll wait until I\u2019ve exhausted my movement cooldowns trying to reach a target, then place it exactly where I\u2019m standing. I can\u2019t destroy it fast enough while being pummeled.
Then there\u2019s his verticality. I\u2019m a tank who can\u2019t run up walls, and Moon Knight\u2019s grappling hook plus double jump let him pivot from high ground to high ground effortlessly. I\u2019ll charge at him only for him to glide away, peppering me from a rooftop. It\u2019s maddening. He doesn\u2019t even need to kill me directly — just forcing me to waste time chasing shadows means my backline is left unprotected. The moment I see that crescent symbol in the kill feed, I mentally prepare to swap strategies.
Mantis: The Sleep That Ends A Rampage
My relationship with Mantis as a Thing player is pure frustration. She looks harmless back there, healing and boosting her team, but that Spore Slumber ability? It\u2019s the ultimate \u201cnope\u201d button. The second I start an engagement, she can flick a spore and put me into a deep sleep. My charge is unstoppable — unless I\u2019m literally knocked out. That one-second disruption is all it takes for my target to escape or for the enemy team to surround and collapse on me. I lose all my built-up momentum, and suddenly I\u2019m the one on the back foot.
A skilled Mantis player also knows how to juggle her resources. They\u2019ll self-boost damage to farm Life Orbs by poking me at range, then cycle between healing and boosting their allies. I can\u2019t ignore her because she\u2019s constantly enabling the enemy Duelists, but I also can\u2019t reliably reach her without getting slept. Playing behind teammates is a given for her, so I\u2019m often forced to deal with two or three threats at once. It\u2019s the subtle way she makes my life a chaotic mess that earns her a spot on this list.
Groot: Walls That Say "You Shall Not Pass"
Groot went from being a mild nuisance to one of my hardest counters after the Season 1.5 buff that let him place walls from much longer ranges. Now, instead of needing to be close to block my path, he can erect barriers from a comfortable distance the moment I attempt to dive. I\u2019ll be mid-charge, aiming for a juicy backline pick, and suddenly a Thornlash Wall sprouts right in my face. My ability is on cooldown, I\u2019m isolated from my healers, and I can\u2019t leap to an ally because the geometry is blocking line of sight.
Groot can also turn the terrain into a healing trap. The Ironwood Wall gives bonus healing to nearby allies, and if I\u2019m boxed in with enemies alongside a Thornlash that damages me, I\u2019m basically stuck in a high-sustain death zone. His ultimate, which binds everyone together, is a team-wipe machine. Whenever I see Groot on the loading screen, I know I\u2019m going to spend half the match trying to navigate a wooden labyrinth. It requires serious team coordination to burn his walls before engaging, and in solo queue, that\u2019s a luxury I rarely have.
The Punisher: Fortified Firepower
When The Punisher sets up a Culling Turret, I know I\u2019m about to experience some of the fastest damage in the game. That immobile turret comes with 300 shield, meaning I can\u2019t just swat it away with a single punch, and its rate of fire shreds my health pool as if I were made of paper. I\u2019ve tried walking up and tanking it with my own shields — it never ends well. The only play is to either flank with my team or avoid that sightline entirely, which is easier said than done on certain maps.
His assault rifle and shotgun give him consistent pressure at any range, and that smoke grenade creates the kind of visual clutter that lets him reposition or set up an ambush. But the real terror is his Final Judgement ultimate. Two Gatling guns mow down everything, and since I can\u2019t be displaced, I\u2019m a very large, very slow target. A good Punisher forces me to play ultra conservatively, and if I overcommit even slightly, his grappling hook lets him escape my grasp while his turret finishes the job. He\u2019s a straightforward, brutally effective counter.
Peni Parker: The Web Of Doom
Peni Parker is the Vanguard mirror I dread the most. She isn\u2019t just tanky — she turns the entire battlefield into a minefield with her Cyber-Web ability. Those webs give her constant health regeneration at 40 HP/s and cloak her mines, making them invulnerable. I\u2019ve lost count of how many times I\u2019ve confidently marched forward only to detonate three pulses that wipe half my health before I even see an enemy. The Bionic Spider-Nest drones add even more indirect damage, and if I try to retreat, I just trigger more spiderbots.
But the truly infuriating part is her alt-fire web snare. It\u2019s a short cooldown, low-skill-shot that roots me in place, completely canceling my charge or leap. A patient Peni will wait until I commit, trap me, and then watch as her team collapses. She can also create web networks that allow her to reposition quickly, so even if I manage to corner her, she zips away and leaves me standing on a live grenade. Her combination of zone control, sustain, and movement denial makes her the most complete counter I face — I usually feel out-tanked before the fight even starts.
Wolverine: The Unstoppable Feast
It may seem ironic that Wolverine is one of my worst matchups, considering I\u2019m immune to being grabbed and displaced. But Logan doesn\u2019t need to drag me across the map; his entire damage model is designed to melt Vanguards. His claws deal damage based on a percentage of the target\u2019s max health, so the more HP I have, the faster I die. Against a character built around high health and shields, this mechanic is a death sentence. I\u2019ve seen my nearly 800 HP vanish in seconds while Wolverine just laughs.
His Rage meter makes everything worse. As he lands hits, he gains attack speed and damage, plus he heals himself. A full Rage Wolverine diving onto me is like watching a blender. I try to peel for my Strategists, but he simply ignores me and goes for the juicier targets first, knowing he can wipe me later. His pounce may not move me, but it closes the gap instantly, and suddenly I\u2019m trading blows with a hero who outdamages and outheals me. Honestly, if I don\u2019t have a hard stun or a Hela on my team to peel him, I\u2019m forced to play extremely cautiously — and that defeats the whole point of being The Thing.
Wrapping Up My Rocky Journey
Learning these counters has been a humbling experience. I still instalock Ben Grimm when I need that frontline pressure, but I now have a healthy respect for the enemy roster. The key to surviving as The Thing isn\u2019t just knowing who can shut you down — it\u2019s about tracking cooldowns, using your unstoppable charge to bait out stuns and sleeps before committing, and relying on your Duelists to deal with the Hela and Moon Knight threats. At the end of the day, counter-play in Marvel Rivals is a dance, and even the toughest rock has cracks. Watch for these punishers, and maybe you\u2019ll keep your clobbering streak alive longer than I did.