Marcus and the Purple Beasts

[Fluffaluffacus]

I have marcus. Never played him. I've picked up the Grootslang for him, but now I'm questioning the last 6 ss in my list. Do I add a second Waldgeist, a second Grootslang. Or something else? This is a very tarpitty, guard the stash style crew.

50 SS Arcanists Crew Marcus + 4 Pool
- The Hunger Cry (1)
- God's Path (1)
- Feral Instincts (1)
Jackalope (2)
Myranda (8)
- Imbued Energies (1)
Sabretooth Cerberus (9)
- Pack Leader (1)
Rougarou (8)
Waldgeist (6)
Grootslang (6)

[Averru]

Puh, in my Opinion, the Cerberus is not that good with guard the stash-i usually allthough dont hire him but let myranda transform into it.

Here are some beasts which i found quite usefull for Encounters like guard the stash ("Holding Points"):

The Blessing of December

Rogue Necromancy

Waldgeists

Dawn Serpent

Mechanical Rider

 

These Models are all quite resistant and have some good damage Output. From here it depends on what the schemes are, do i Need more minions over enforcer for example or is it important for the beasts to can do a leap (to deny accusation fe)

 

And i always take trail of the gods over gods Domain (dont know what you mean with "gods path" but if u meant gods Domain swap it to trail of the gods, it is so gooood and makes Marcus to a killing machine :-O )

 

And i never Play without at least one Malifaux Raptor! Guard the stash isnt the Strategie where the raptor really shines but he is so damned good and im sure he will find his Job in your Crew ;-)

[BFOmega]

5 hours ago, Averru said:

dont know what you mean with "gods path"

God's Path is one of his new upgrades that gives him Wicked and choice of armor 2, +1 ca, or 2 damage to enemies ending activation in his engagement range.

5 hours ago, Averru said:

And i never Play without at least one Malifaux Raptor!

Why? Is it just to turn enemies into beasts? I just don't see that much of a place for them unless you're turning friendlies into beasts or engaging snipers or in interference.

[Nikodemus]

Engaging snipers, engaging beaters who would rather charge, engaging interacters who would rather interact. Plain old standing in the way with their fat 40mm base.

I don't always hire one but I'm rarely disappointed if I do.

[Franchute]

Raptors are great of you anticipate the opponent will take Claim Jump too.

[FoolishMonkey]

I didn't start this, But im painted up the Marcus Crew now and Im interested to read these ideas as I am definitely keen to get a few more models. Raptors and the Blessing of December seem to be right up there.
 

[Nikodemus]

"very tarpitty, guard the stash style crew".

If you can squeeze in an extra SS consider a Razorspine Rattler. Great at sitting on a stash marker. Decent tarpitter with Ml5++ and Wicked. 40mm base + 2' engagement controls a lot of space. Slithers where you need it to be for scoring or to maximise disruption on the enemy crew. Df6 9Wd is legit durable for 7ss. Terrify Living adds card drain to the mix and severe 6 is situationally worthwhile. I think it's legitimately most underappreciated model in Marcus' box. There's more to it than just Myranda and Cerberus 

Cerberus wouldn't be my go-to guy for carrying Pack Leader. Bit too fragile for my tastes. Blessed has been good in that role.

For that crew, keeping in with the 6ss budget... Waldgeist if you're fine with base cache. I'd probably go for a Raptor or Canine Remains and enjoy the ss. Depends a bit on the specifics. Admittedly I've not examined Grootslang card in detail but I've got an understanding of what it does.

[KingCrow]

I second not using the Cerberus for the Pack Leader upgrade.  The Blessed is a good option but I personally like to use the Rogue Necromancy.  It is a bit easy to hit with the Df 4 but Terrifying 13 (All) and Impossible to Wound helps.  Also has the 3-headed buff like the Cerberus with an awesome damage track.  It also has a Ranged min damage 3 attack!  If you want to be tanky, the Blessed is probably better as it can heal by killing things and has a high defense, but the RN is definitely a killer.

I haven't seen anyone mention it yet but I have grown to love Hoarcat Prides.  Only 5 SS for a manipulative 12 model that causes negatives on Sh actions vs it while having min 3 damage if above half wounds.  These little beasts have won me quite a few games since they are great scheme runners but also chasing down other scheme runners or even engaging enemies.  

[Adran]

Just to start the answer with a point. I can't build lists this way. My most important question in a game of malifaux is How are you scoring your points?

DO you need a scheme runner? in which case do you want Silurid or Gupps? What schemes are you trying to acomplish? What does the table look like? 

These sort of questions will help you come to an answer. 

I'm not sure if you are really generating enough wp duels to make Pack leader worthwhile. I wouldn't want  acerberus to be a model that I was exp[osign to attacks, so whilst I might field one in a guard the stash list, its more likely to be away from the action doing its ambush hunting style stuff and tryign to preserve its 3 headed bonus. 

On 05/09/2017 at 11:57 AM, Averru said:

always take trail of the gods over gods Domain (dont know what you mean with "gods path" but if u meant gods Domain swap it to trail of the gods, it is so gooood and makes Marcus to a killing machine :-O )

If you are trying to build a Tanking guard the stash type list, then Df 7 Marcus with regen and more likelyhood to hit his triggers and turn enemies into beasts to make use of your Df trigger, then you really want to use Gods Domian. Both are useful upgrades, but Marcus has a very different role depending on which he has. 

[Franchute]

38 minutes ago, Adran said:

If you are trying to build a Tanking guard the stash type list, then Df 7 Marcus with regen and more likelyhood to hit his triggers and turn enemies into beasts to make use of your Df trigger, then you really want to use Gods Domian. Both are useful upgrades, but Marcus has a very different role depending on which he has. 

@Adran I remember you are one that was defending Gods Domain over the other limited upgrade depending on the scheme pool. What do you (and others) think about the new limited upgrade The Gods Path? It gives Wicked and, at the beginning of your activation, you can choose from: i) Armour +2, ii) +1 Ca, iii) ennemies that end their activation within engagement suffers 2 damage. By discarding one or two  at the begining of your activation, you can also add one or two of these extra abilities.

Armour 2 (or 3 with steamfitter) sounds great, but Def 7 and regen too, especially if you're facing a neverborn or an outcast that ignores armour. The new upgrade also has (free) offensive abilities that the other upgrade was lacking.

[Adran]

7 minutes ago, Franchute said:

@Adran I remember you are one that was defending Gods Domain over the other limited upgrade depending on the scheme pool. What do you (and others) think about the new limited upgrade The Gods Path? It gives Wicked and, at the beginning of your activation, you can choose from: i) Armour +2, ii) +1 Ca, iii) ennemies that end their activation within engagement suffers 2 damage. By discarding one or two  at the begining of your activation, you can also add one or two of these extra abilities.

Armour 2 (or 3 with steamfitter) sounds great, but Def 7 and regen too, especially if you're facing a neverborn or an outcast that ignores armour. The new upgrade also has (free) offensive abilities that the other upgrade was lacking.

Its hard to comment on an upgrade I've not really seen, and certainly not used. 

You can probably try and build a list to abuse wicked. I do like the interaction of Wicked and the 3rd ability. Its not quite as neat as the wicked/terryfying interaction rattlers have, but its still there. 

I found Charging for a 1 action was fairly offensive if you wanted it to be. Gave Marcus a possible 9 attacks in 1 turn (perfect storm I know, but hey) if you wanted. Also can be used to give a solid boost to mobility by charging your own models to move 8" for 1 AP. 

This upgrade seems to have no movement boost, which is potentially a weak point for it. Armour probably has a lower use in Arcanists that other factions, because lots of people think that they are going to face it, so plan against it. Otherwise I'd be happy with Armour+2. The Ca bonus seems to be supporting a Support style Marcus, using feral and Alpha and Law of meat. I'm not sure +1 is enough of a bonus. + would have been more tempting. The 3rd ability is probably the one you aim to abuse, but I'm not sure how much it is worth. 

Overall, it seems to lead to playing Marcus wanting to engage enemies, and hold them up. Mixing up Law of meat and ability 3 is a fairly interesting pseaudo paralyse, with Wicked increasing the risk of trying to move. If I want Marcus to be holding up an area, this is probably a slightly better upgrade than the other two, but I'm not sure how often it is going to be picked. Df+2 is better than Armour+2 a lot of the time, and the raw power of minimum damage 4 with Ml expert is hard to beat

 

 

[Mxbedlam]

I feel like if you hire 1 grootslang you should hire 2 if not 3. Depends on what you do of course, but grootslang tend to create better situations in quantity

[WWHSD]

10 minutes ago, Mrbedlam said:

I feel like if you hire 1 grootslang you should hire 2 if not 3. Depends on what you do of course, but grootslang tend to create better situations in quantity

Probably only ever need a single Steamfitter - 3 in a box for $21.
Can reasonably run 3 Grootslang - $30 each.

Not evil or shady, just kind of disappointing.

[Mxbedlam]

Yeah the price tag on groots is rough. Our meta allows proxies for non released models though. So I don't mind getting some GW monsters to fit for now. Grootslang is a lot of plastic, which is why its so expensive.