Tangled Web Team
A few days after the announcement of Spider Weaver through social media, we got an official confirmation with the kit of all three members of the new Tangled Web team. Besides that, Scopely has prepared for the upcoming Season 1 of Cosmic Crucible. Their focus and desire are to make Cosmic Crucible an essential MSF feature, and they will do everything to achieve that goal.
Through rewards and Saga requirements, Scopely intends to force all players seriously consider and participate in CC, even though a lot of players simply don’t like the new feature. I am not one of those players and I welcomed CC the first time I saw it. However, not everyone is happy because of increased activity. It will be interesting to see what will happen in the future considering the current circumstances.
Tangled Web
Tangled Web team consists of three new Spider-Verse characters – Spider Weaver, Spider-Man (2099), and Spider Noir. As I explained in the last article, Scopely doesn’t intend to add any new characters with the Tangled Web tag in the considerable future. The idea is to use those three characters with the help of already existing characters, to form a formidable Cosmic Crucible set-up.
Since Season 1 of Cosmic Crucible brings new global and Room bonuses, the importance of the Tangled Web team will be significant as you will see when I explain new rules in CC.
However, since many players just simply ignore Cosmic Crucible. They take rewards for granted without any intention to seriously engage in the feature, so Scopely used a simple trick to force everyone to invest in the new team. They announced that Spider-Weaver will be one of the character requirements for Apocalyptic Saga.
In short, everyone who wants to participate in the current endgame will have to level up Spider Weaver. That means that players will have a fully improved character without a team, which will force them to improve the other two members of Tangled Web. When they have a Tangled Web team, they will want to use them.
Since Tangled Web is specialized for Cosmic Crucible, Scopely hopes that players who don’t like CC will give it a try once they have a fully specialized CC team.
Honestly, that is smart thinking but there is one major flaw – no one wants to be forced to do something they don’t like. I just hope that this will not backfire on Scopely, because not all people are patient and forgiving as I am.
Anyway, let’s see those new Tangled Web characters …
Spider Weaver
I already wrote the Spider Weaver lore in the early announcement of the 6.4 Update.
Unlike all other spiders, Spider-Weaver is a Global Mystic Protector whose unique ability is to lower the Accuracy of enemies while healing and protecting her allies.
Basic Ability – Ethereal Strike
Spider-Weavers basic causes moderate damage to the single target and grants additional effects depending on her Current HP:
- 25%+ HP – 1 Bonus Piercing attack + 1 Bleed; clears 1 negative effect from Spider Weaver; clears 1 negative effect from a random ally if Spider Weaver doesn’t have negative effects
- 50%+ HP – 2 Bonus Piercing attack + 2 Bleed; clears 2 negative effects from Spider Weaver; clears 2 negative effects from a random ally if Spider Weaver doesn’t have negative effects
- 90%+ HP – 3 Bonus Piercing attack + 3 Bleed; clears 3 negative effects from Spider Weaver; clears 3 negative effects from a random ally if Spider Weaver doesn’t have negative effects
- 100% HP – 4 Bonus Piercing attack + 4 Bleed; clears 4 negative effects from Spider Weaver; clears 4 negative effects from a random ally if Spider Weaver doesn’t have negative effects
Spider Weaver’s basic can be devastating if her HP is at maximum. She can cause up to 225% damage + 500% Piercing damage and place 4 Bleeds if she uses her basic with 100% HP. There is no other character in the game who can do anything similar to a basic attack. However, it is highly unlikely that you will have a lot of opportunities to do that because maintaining 100% HP in MSF is a very hard thing to do.
Special Ability – Fateful Decision
Spider Weaver’s special ability costs 4 Energy and can be used on start. It has multiple amazing effects. Initially, it buffs Spider Weaver with Defense Up, Offense Up, and Immunity (only in CC) for 2 turns after which her buffs are spread to all tangled Web allies + 2 random allies. Also, if Spider Weaver is without Charges, it grants +1 Charged. After that, it heals all allies (additional Healing to Tangled Web).
In the end, the special causes high damage to the primary target and Rebound Chains to up to 3 adjacent targets with slightly decreased damage. This ability ignores Stealth, Dodge, and Block, but the chain is broken if counterattacked.
This is an insane special ability. Depending on Spider-Weaver’s speed and her allies those buffs can fully change the course of battles. It can be a liability against enemies who can flip positive effects but still, it is better than most existing special abilities. The damage caused is nothing special. However, any skill that cannot be dodged or blocked, which will also affect targets in Stealth, is more than useful.
Ultimate – Threads of Fate
Spider Weaver’s ultimate costs 8 Energy and can be used on start. It causes heavy damage against a single target while placing Trauma and Stun. It also grants Safeguard to Spider Weaver for up to 2 turns and fills her with 3 Charged (5 Charged in Cosmic Crucible)
Ok, the ultimate doesn’t sound bombastic but nonetheless, it is really amazing and fully utilizes Spider Weaver’s main strength. As you can see, you can decide to use ultimate at the start of combat, which will protect Spider-Woman’s buffs when she uses special in the second turn (having Safeguard can fully protect you from flipping and clearing your buffs). Also, it will eliminate your target for at least 1 Turn giving you an opportunity to control the course of the battle.
The most important thing about the ultimate grants is those Charges. As you will see in passive with each Charge, Spider Weaver prevents a single enemy from causing damage. Depending on your team set-up and your enemies you will have to decide either to use ultimate first or special.
Passive Ability – Weaver of Destiny
Passive ability grants all Tangled Web characters Stealth for up to 2 turns on spawn. In addition, in Cosmic Crucible all Tangled Web and 2 random allies will spawn with Barrier. Spider-Weaver will generate an additional Barrier each turn. Whenever any Tangled Web character is attacked, Spider Weaver will generate 1 Ability energy and her Speed Bar will be increased by up to 10%.
While Spider Weaver is charged, she lowers the Accuracy of all enemies by 100%. When an enemy misses, she loses Charged. Enemies killed by Spider Weaver, cannot be revived. Lastly, Spider Weaver permanently increases the HP of all allies by up to 40%.
This passive ability basically divides Spider Weaver from other characters. It says that all Tangled Web characters will be in stealth when a battle starts. This is an important piece of information for several reasons. It is true that they will be vulnerable against Eternals, but at the same time, they will be fully protected from teams like Bionic Avengers who will not have an opportunity to use Ability Block on them (for example).
The most important thing about this passive is its charge mechanics. With each Charged, Spider Weaver will lower accuracy for 100% of all enemies. She will lose Charged when the first enemy misses. In simple words, the number of Charged grants you the same number of harmless attacks against you.
It is like Spider Weaver passively places Blind on the next enemy with one major difference – you can easily clear Blind, but you cannot easily increase Accuracy. Well, Bullseye increases accuracy by 10% if you know what I mean 😉
The number of charges will closely depend on how often you can use Spider Woman’s ultimate which costs 8 energy. Keep in mind that she will gain energy every time the Tangled Web character is attacked. Mathematics says that in the first 2 turns Spider Woman will have a maximum of 4 Charged (6 in Cosmic Crucible).
That means that enemies will perform only 6 attacks out of 10 in the first 2 turns. Depending on enemy rotation this can literally make you invulnerable, especially since Immunity will not work for enemies.
With Ability Energy refills, Spider Weaver will be able to generate Charged very fast, but keep in mind that enemies must hit your Tangled Web characters. I don’t know if I succeeded in explaining how this Spider Weaver Charged mechanics is insane, but trust me, Tangled Web will be an extremely difficult opponent.
Characters with guaranteed hits (abilities that cannot be dodged or blocked) will be the only counter against Spider-Weaver at the moment.
Spider Man (2099)
The lore behind Spider-Man (2099) is interesting. Miguel O’Hara is a scientist in an alternate future. He tries to use the DNA of the late human Superhero Spider-Man to create a formula that can improve human capabilities.
In one of his tests, he accidentally mixes his own genes with Spider-Man’s and becomes Spider-Man himself. He is granted superhuman strength reflexes and dexterity, as well as rapid Health Regeneration. Becoming aware of his power he decides to do exactly the same as his famous predecessor. The Spider-Man mantle is alive once again to be used against all evils in the city!
Spider Man (2099) is a Bio Controller who is especially effective after causing critical hits. He also grants Drain to his Tangled Web allies.
Basic Ability – Talon Slash
Basic ability causes heavy damage against the single target and clears up to 2 positive effects while placing Defense Down and Bleed. After that it chains to an adjacent target causing slightly reduced damage, clearing 2 positive effects, and placing only Bleed. In Cosmic Crucible if Spider Man (2099) crits, basic ability prolong the duration of all effects except Stun Ability Block and Trauma and prolong Bleed for an additional turn.
This Basic ability combines the Basic Abilities of various Spiders. It places Defense Down only on the primary target and causes decent damage. In Cosmic Crucible it will prolong negative effects after critical hits which can be crucial depending on circumstances.
Special Ability – Shock! And Awe
Special Ability costs only 3 Energy and can be used in the first turn. It places Ability Block on the primary target, flips Offense Up on primary and adjacent targets, and applies Bleed. Primary and adjacent targets will be equally damaged by up to 350%, which is ok. At the same time, 2 random allies (Tangled Web is prioritized) will be buffed with Offense Up. This attack cannot be avoided or blocked.
In Cosmic Crucible on a critical hit, Spider Man (2099) will prolong all negative effects but Stun, Trauma, and Ability Block by 1 Turn and Bleed by an additional turn.
This special ability is ok. Being able to place Abi Block is always good. Also, the fact that this attack cannot miss makes it really important against certain enemies. Offense Up that will be granted to Spider Weaver and Spider Noir comes last but not least.
Ultimate Ability – Future Flurry
Ultimate costs 7 Energy and can be used on start. It is AOE that causes heavy damage to all enemies, clears 3 random positive effects, and places Slow and Defense Down for 2 turns on each target. Simultaneously it increases the Speed Bar of all Tangled Web characters by 20% and places 2 Deathproofs on all allies if the primary target has Deathproof.
Similar to Basic and Special Ability, In Cosmic Crucible on Crit, Spider Man (2099) will prolong all negative effects but Stun, Trauma, and Ability Block by 1 Turn and Bleed by an additional turn.
This ultimate is all that you want for enemies to suffer. Placing Defense Down and Slow on all enemies is a favorite players’ combo. The damage is not insane, but Spider Man (2099) is Controller, not a Blaster. Depending on his speed and the enemy composition, he will soften enemies right from the start. For someone who is not supposed to be META, you cannot ask for more.
Passive – Spider from the Future
Spider-Man (2099) will start battles with Speed Up if Spider Weaver is on the team. Every turn he will flip 1 random positive effect on each enemy. In addition, Spider Man (2099) is granted that he will always successfully clear positive effects with his active abilities (Basic and Ultimate).
In cosmic Crucible, as long as Spider Weaver is in the team, he will lower the Damage reduction of all enemies with Bleed by up to 25%. Also, he grants Drain to Tangled Web allies and permanently increases their Focus and Resistance (increased even further in Cosmic Crucible).
The Drain that Spider Man (2099) offers is not great, but it exists and will crucially influence sustain of the Tangled Web team. His ability to passively flip 1 positive effect on all enemies each turn is something new in the game. It will be of utmost importance that he places and exploits all his debuffs and utility. Having that in mind, it will give us a dilemma about the ISO-8 class.
He needs a critical chance in Cosmic Crucible but he also needs additional Focus for all his abilities. It seems like we will have to be prepared to give him 2 ISO-8 Classes – Raider for Cosmic Crucible and Skirmisher outside it.
Spider-Man [Noir]
In a parallel dimension between the 2 World Wars, Piter Parker lives happily with his aunt and uncle. One day, his uncle Ben got murdered without any reason by mobs linked with the Crime Lord Goblin. Peter decides to get revenge and while investigating the warehouse with antiques he got bitten by a spider from one of the crates in the warehouse. This led Piter to become Spider-Man in an alternate dimension.
His struggle against Goblin was victorious as in all other dimensions but unlike other Spider-Men, Spider-Man [Noir] picks a way of the anti-hero who doesn’t try to bring justice. Instead, he strives for revenge. Spider-Man [Noir] wears his Uncle’s aviator suit from World War I and uses his super-human strength for settling scores with villains.
Spider-Man [Noir] is a City Mystic Blaster specialized in fighting Hydra and Swarm who can revive once he falls down.
Basic Ability – Put ‘em Up
The basic attack causes heavy damage against a single target and grants Stealth to Spider-Man [Noir]. Additionally, there is a 50% chance that he gains Stealth (100% in Cosmic Crucible).
This basic ability seems less than ordinary but whenever Spider-Man [Noir] uses it he will go in Stealth and possibly gain Evade. You will see the effect of this only in battle because only then can you realize how powerful can be that main enemy damage dealer goes to Stealth in the 4th turn of battle leaving you with nothing to stop him.
Special – Chicago Typewriter
Special Ability costs 3 Energy and can be used at the start of combat. It causes heavy Piercing damage against the primary and most injured target in quick succession. It also places Bleed on both targets. If the primary target is without any debuffs when Spider-Man [Noir] attacks him, Spider-Man [Noir] will have his SPeed Bar filled by 50%.
Causing 300% Piercing damage with a special ability is a lot of damage, especially if that same ability can fill half of your Speed Bar. Also, this ability grants you a free attack against a most injured enemy which is awesome. The only thing you need to do is to pick an enemy without debuffs and cause free damage to the most injured target. It is simple and really effective.
Ultimate – Lead Rain
Ultimate costs 5 Energy and can also be used in the first turn. It causes heavy Piercing damage against primary and adjacent targets while placing up to 3 Bleeds and a Heal Block for 1 Turn. If Spider-Man [Noir] is in stealth, he will also place Disrupt on the primary target.
Since Spider-Man [Noir] will most likely start with stealth gained from Spider Weaver, this ultimate can be freely upon the battle. Every Piercing damage is good damage, but this ultimate is somewhat limited, honestly. It causes almost identical harm as special ability, and it is nothing amazing about it. Spider-Man [Noir] is Blaster, though, so his base damage potential could be really high which would make this ultimate more logical then. However, if we look only at percentages (up to 350% Piercing), it looks somewhat disappointing.
Passive – Monochromatic Menace
Spider-Man [Noir] is granted Revive once but only in Cosmic Crucible. He has increased damage against Hydra and Swarm enemies. Also, whenever an enemy gains a buff his Speed Bar is increased by 10%. Aside from that he permanently increases the damage of Tangled Web characters by 15% (30% in Cosmic Crucible).
So, whenever an enemy gains a buff Spider-Man [Noir] will gain a 10% Speed Bar. For example, when the enemy applies mass Def Up Spider-Man [Noir] will gain 50% Speed Bar, etc … In short, he will play a lot meaning that he will constantly harass enemies with his piercing damage.
His special ability will be especially effective because he will passively target most injured enemies with Piercing attacks that will prevent them from staying alive. When you read the description of his passive it seems short, but trust me, the strongest passives were always those with simple nonavoidable effects. I have a feeling that this passive is one of those.
Spider-Man [Noir] is not a character with fancy abilities. His kit is straightforward. He is meant to harm enemies and to do that often. If his damage percentages and his base damage are high enough to be really effective, we will have to wait and see. When I think of Spider-Man [Noir], I have Elsa Bloodstone in my mind. No one ever considers her a threat, but no one is indifferent when she is about to attack.
Conclusion
The Tangled Web team will be a strong team, in Cosmic Crucible for sure but even outside it. Deciding who to put to help them will be a big dilemma. Instead of having doubts look at this as an opportunity to use some previously “useless” characters with great efficiency.
Tangled Web’s potential is great especially once you learn new Room composition in Cosmic Crucible. The only thing I can tell you at this moment is that Scopely makes sure that everyone will want to improve them. Knowing that there is really no option to ignore them.