Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order has a massive roster of heroes designed to aid the player in progressing through the game’s not insignificant difficulty. One of those is Doctor Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme, who has been in the game since launch and plays an integral part in the latter stages of the main story.
One of the most successful aspects of the Ultimate Alliance series is its ability to make players feel like the superheroes they control. Doctor Strange is no exception to the rule, playing exactly as expected for a caster with a wide variety of spells and incantations. Although the developers have done a great job of replicating the character, players may find this one lacking in the power they expect when placed in the context of both the comics and Marvel Cinematic Universe.
How to Unlock Doctor Strange in MUA3
Like many of his compatriots on the roster, Doctor Strange is unlocked during the game’s story. Specifically, defeating the possessed version of him in Chapter 6 will open up the standard version for use during story progression and Infinity Rifts.
Discovered attempting to widen a rift under the control of Dormammu, this is one of the more challenging fights the main narrative has to offer. The fight itself comes in two phases, with the second essentially providing a dialed-up version of the first. Other than dodging to avoid his inordinately powerful attacks, keep an eye out for his shielding ability. Additionally, stuns are very useful for opening windows to attack.
Doctor Strange’s Abilities
Flames of the Faltine is arguably Doctor Strange’s best ability, as it is a solid multi-target damage option. It has the ethereal tag and its damage comes in at an A rating. Stagger is down at a D, though, so using another character to stagger first before attacking with Flames is a good idea. It can also add the fire element to ally attacks at higher ranks.
Crimson Bands of Cyttorak is another magic attack that shoots tendrils to bind enemies together and in place. Oddly, it carries the melee tag, but remains a valuable utility skill that can lessen the effect of the fact that Flames of the Faltine roots Strange in place.
Winds of Watoomb is a directional ability that heals those in front of the caster. Unfortunately, two significant issues make it an ineffective option for healing. First, it simply doesn’t restore enough health to make it worth the root and potential damage Doctor Strange will take. Second, it doesn’t heal the caster, rendering him vulnerable.
Finally, Bolts of Balthakk is a beam cast in two directions with a rotation that casts the ability in a full 360-degree radius. Although the overall damage is a little underwhelming, its vast area-of-effect makes it a helpful skill for clearing large groups of mobs. Before using it, casting Crimson Bands is recommended, as this ability also roots Strange and makes him vulnerable to crowd control.
Doctor Strange Character Build and Gameplay Suggestions
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As many of his abilities suggest, Doctor Strange is intended for use as ranged support. To position Strange as a valuable team member who can hold his own in terms of damage, orange ISO-8 is the way to go. Offering increased crit chance and damage for abilities with the ethereal tag (of which both primary damage abilities are included) also increases mastery level overall. Additionally, purple ISO-8 is a good option for bolstering Strange’s ability set. It increases damage and crit chance overall, adding a nice extra layer of bonuses for use in addition to the orange.
Pairing Doctor Strange up with team members that synergize well is also a great way to increase his utility, Characters like Drax and Ms. Marvel great selections here. For those looking to do something a little different, extra crowd control buffs from orange ISO-8 should work well in conjunction with Crimson Bands.
Overall, though, Doctor Strange suffers from the fact that Scarlet Witch can fill his role better than he can, as her heal also works on both the caster and the group. Plus, while Flames of the Faltine is a good damaging ability, there is not enough to justify Strange’s inclusion independently. However, placing him with another hero with stagger makes him more viable and helps reduce the adverse effects of abilities that restrict his mobility.
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