Cosmic Crucible – Ultimate 32

Intro

Ultimate 32 is returning again, between Seasons 22 and 23. Matchmaking and the period to set your Defenses begins most likely on July 1st with the battles beginning on July 2nd.

Quick recap – Ultimate 32 is essentially still the same Cosmic Crucible that we have on a weekly basis, but it increases the total number of players from 8 to 32, making it a bigger tournament. Ultimate 32 lasts for 5 days to accommodate the increase in the number of players, and this year, we have some additional changes. First, the number of Stages is reduced to half – only 3 Stages. This should help with the balance. We also get special Stage rules, but aside from that, everything else still should feel familiar to avid Crucible players.

Due to there being only three Stages, we’ll get 6 attacks per room with the Attempt Bonus decreasing from 1,000, 800, 600, 400, 200, and then 0.

It’s important to note that during Ultimate 32, your ranking will not change. By all indications, although we’re still not completely sure (as soon as we have confirmed information, we’ll update you). This means that whether you win or lose, you won’t gain or lose any ranking points. Take this opportunity to experiment with different counters or test the effectiveness of a particular defensive team. Or, if you prefer, simply take a break from Crucible for a week. The choice is yours.

Stage Rules

Global Rules for Ultimate 32 are the standard set of rules that boosts the Defensive teams slightly and adds Exhausted to them after each Defensive win.

On Defense, all Characters:

• Gain +20% Max Health and +10% Damage.
• After each completed attack, gain +1 Exhausted. Canceled combats do not apply +1 Exhausted.

Global Rules – Mark of the Serpent

On Offense and Defense

All characters gain:

• On turn, take 15% of their max health as damage.

Stage 1 – Team Tactics 

On Offense and Defense:

All characters gain:

• On ally Turn, gain Assist Now

Stage 2 – Mirror Match

On Offense and Defense:

All characters gain:

• On turn end, remove Safeguard and Trauma from all characters
• On successful Attack, Copy and Clear all Negative Effects from self to primary target

Stage 3 – Blood Transfusion

On Offense and Defense:

All characters gain:

• On turn, gain Bleed
• Character’s with Bleed, gain +5% Damage per Bleed
• When applying Bleed, gain Defense Up

Defense Recomendations

Stage 1

Here are our suggested defensive setups for this Stage. The strongest options will be listed at the top, and as we progress down the list, we will include teams that are relatively weaker—those that attackers are likely to eliminate more easily.

1. Symbiote Six + Sentry
2. Fantastic Four (MCU) + Professor Xavier
3. Accursed
4. Winter Guard

Stage 2

Here are our suggested defensive setups for this Stage. The strongest options will be listed at the top, and as we progress down the list, we will include teams that are relatively weaker—those that attackers are likely to eliminate more easily.

1. Exalted X-Men + Professor Xavier
2. Daring Warrior + Blue Marvel
3. Illuminati + Blue Marvel + Executioner
4. Shadow Conclave + Odin

Stage 3

Here are our suggested defensive setups for this Stage. The strongest options will be listed at the top, and as we progress down the list, we will include teams that are relatively weaker—those that attackers are likely to eliminate more easily.

1. Phoenix Force + Phantom Rider + Gwenpool
2. New Mutant + Mephisto
3. Starjammer
4. Immortal Weapon + Super Skrull

Counters

Some counters for normal teams that we provide on our Counters page will function as intended. But some won’t. On this page, we will highlight the trickiest of counters and we will add more as the tournament progresses.

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 3

If you have any questions about Ultimate 32 or need any help with MSF feel free to reach out to us via our Discord: