- Primary Focus: Marvel Rivals Season 9 introduces Jubilee at launch and The Hood in the mid-season update.
- Launch Hero: Jubilee joins the roster on July 10, 2026 UTC as a highly mobile Strategist.
- Mid-Season Hero: The Hood is set to arrive as a playable character in the second half of the season.
- Story Antagonist: Apocalypse serves as the narrative centerpiece driving the ancient Egyptian storyline.
- Major Systems: A ground-up Team-Up system overhaul and a complete Black Widow rework redefine the meta.
Marvel Rivals Season 9 New Characters Overview
Marvel Rivals Season 9: The Mystery of Thebes officially launches on July 10, 2026 UTC, bringing a massive wave of content, core system reworks, and highly anticipated roster additions. Centered around a collapsing timeline and the mysterious assassination of Apocalypse, this season introduces Jubilee as a playable launch hero and positions The Hood as the major mid-season addition.
Video Highlights:
- Cinematic Storyline: Highlights Apocalypse targeting the gods for culling before his mysterious assassination.
- Jubilee Gameplay: Showcases her pyrotechnic plasma abilities, healing bubbles, and high-mobility hover jumps.
- Roster Changes: Teases the visual designs and upcoming roles for both Jubilee and The Hood.
With these new arrivals, the character selection screen expands significantly, offering fresh avenues for team synergy. The table below outlines the core details of the new characters debuting throughout the season.
| Character | Role Type | Release Schedule | Primary Gameplay Weapon | Core Lore Hook |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jubilee | Strategist | Launch (July 10, 2026) | Pyrotechnic Plasma Bursts | X-Men mutant tied to Apocalypse |
| The Hood | Duelist / TBA | Mid-Season (August 2026) | Dual Pistols / Dark Magic | Mystical villain investigating the murders |
| Apocalypse | Narrative Boss | Non-Playable (Story Driver) | Ancient Celestial Armor | The first mutant seeking godhood |
Unlike previous seasons where new characters operated as standalone units, the marvel rivals season 9 new characters are designed from the ground up to integrate with the newly overhauled Team-Up loadout system.
Jubilee: The Pyrotechnic Strategist
Jubilee joins the roster on day one of Season 9 as a dynamic, high-mobility Strategist. Known for her signature style and explosive mutant fireworks, she bridges the gap between high-output healing and offensive crowd control. She is the second major X-Men member to arrive in recent updates, following the release of Cyclops.
Core Ability Kit
Jubilee's gameplay is fast-paced, relying on positioning, aerial hover mechanics, and careful placement of her healing utilities.
| Ability Name | Description | Combat Application |
|---|---|---|
| Plasma Projectiles | Fires explosive firework-style energy bursts at enemies. | Deals moderate damage and applies a blinding effect. |
| Healing Bubbles | Deploys localized bubbles of energy that restore health. | Provides burst healing to grouped allies in choke points. |
| Aerial Hover | Allows Jubilee to hover briefly in the air after jumping. | Grants vertical safety and better angles for throwing heals. |
| Dazzling Finale (Ult) | Unleashes a massive, lethal firework show across the field. | Deals continuous AoE damage and displaces hostile teams. |
High Mobility
Utilize her Aerial Hover to escape dive Vanguards and maintain safe high-ground positioning during chaotic team fights.
Blinding Utility
Her primary plasma bursts don't just damage; they blind enemies, making her a nightmare for hitscan Duelists.
Area Denial
Save her Ultimate for objective captures to easily displace enemies and secure the area for your Vanguards.
Pair Jubilee with highly mobile Vanguards like Venom or Thor. She can easily match their dive speed using her hover jumps while keeping them topped off with her lobbed healing bubbles.
The Hood: August Mid-Season Arrival
Arriving in the second half of the season during the Season 9.5 update in August, The Hood is set to shake up the damage-dealing meta. While NetEase has kept his full ability numbers under wraps, official teasers and dev diaries paint him as a dual-pistol-wielding criminal mastermind who blends street-level gunplay with dark, mystical forces.
Expected Playstyle and Lore Connection
The Hood's narrative is deeply intertwined with the season's core plot. Following the sudden assassination of Apocalypse, The Hood finds himself navigating a web of murders and shifting alliances among both heroes and villains.
Mystical Gunplay
Expect a hybrid kit that combines rapid-fire dual pistols with teleportation or stealth capabilities driven by his demonic cloak.
Mid-Season Meta Shift
His launch in August will act as a direct counter-meta to the heavily defensive, shield-reliant Vanguards dominating the early weeks of the season.
Synergy Integration
He is expected to launch with dedicated Team-Up abilities that interact directly with other street-level or mystical characters in the roster.
Do not expect to play The Hood on July 10. He is locked behind the mid-season milestone, meaning players will have roughly four weeks to master Jubilee and the new map before he joins the battlefield.
Thebes Convoy Map & Story Antagonists
The battlefield of Season 9 moves to Thebes, a brand-new Egyptian-themed Convoy map. Tied directly to the season's overarching Apocalypse storyline, this map introduces unique verticality and environmental hazards.
| Map Feature | Release Date | Gameplay Style | Strategic Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thebes Convoy | July 23, 2026 | Escort / Payload | Choke-point control, high-ground defense, and destructible pyramids. |
Apocalypse: The Catalyst of the Mystery
Though not a playable character at the launch of Season 9, Apocalypse serves as the central narrative force. In this collapsed timeline, the ancient mutant attempts to harvest the faith of the gods to ascend to godhood, only to be mysteriously assassinated. This kicks off the seasonal event "The Death of Apocalypse".
Season 9 Content Timeline:
- July 10: Death of Apocalypse and Resurrection of the Horsemen events begin.
- July 23: Thebes Egyptian-themed Convoy map officially joins the rotation.
- July 30: Path to Doomsday - Avengers: Age of Ultron game mode launches.
- August 7: Season 9.5 begins, introducing The Hood to the playable roster.
Alongside the new characters, Season 9 introduces Regenerative Shields (a health pool that automatically regenerates after 5 seconds of avoiding damage) and a complete ground-up overhaul of the Team-Up system, giving every hero two selectable independent loadouts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Who are the marvel rivals season 9 new characters?
The new characters for Season 9 are Jubilee (a Strategist launching on July 10) and The Hood (a mid-season addition coming in August).
Q: Is Apocalypse playable in Marvel Rivals Season 9?
No, Apocalypse is not a playable hero at launch. He serves as the central narrative figure, boss, and catalyst for the season's murder mystery storyline.
Q: When does the new map, Thebes, release?
The Egyptian-themed Convoy map, Thebes, is scheduled to go live following the mid-season update on July 23, 2026.
Q: How do you unlock Jubilee and The Hood?
As Marvel Rivals is a free-to-play shooter, all gameplay heroes remain free to unlock. You do not need to purchase the Premium Battle Pass to play them.