M2E Marcus

[OctaBit]

Well dancanter convinced me to look into marcus. Unfortunately he made his post a couple hours after I ordered rasputina. So far Ive just been looking at his rules and the beast he can take but already he seems right up my alley. Might a little bit before I can order him though. Good thing ive got 18 pages in this thread to hold me over (currently on page6). Thanks for all the info guys.

[decker_cky]

I think running him as more support could certainly work...the +2 Df is a big help there (and having Myranda around would make him really difficult to hit.) 

 

As a duo, Myranda and Marcus could work well for this. Myranda has Accomplice, so could end within 6" to avoid Marcus spending any time outside her 3" bubble. Particularly if you have some tomes to ditch, you can get mobility from his 8" (1) charges, and spectacular defence from Df7 with  . Myranda is also a nice target since she has high enough defence to make failing relatively easy. Not full out the same mobility as an 8" movement, but it would probably allow you to use the two of them as a support bubble behind the rest of your crew. 

[dgraz]

Finally got around to finishing up the rundown of all the beasts I know. Here you go.

 

Blessed of December

 

I can’t tell you how much I love this model. For 9ss you get a mobile, durable model that also hits well. As an Enforcer we can also give her an Upgrade.

 

Other than her above average Df, her stats don’t look too impressive for her cost, all of which are about average including her speed. But she has some abilities that allow her to get more mileage out of those average stats.

 

Almost everything on the front of her card increases her durability. As a December-themed model she has Frozen Heart making her immune to Horror and Paralyze (which is great considering her average Wp). Hard to Wound makes it so that even if you get past her good Df hopefully she won’t take much damage. Finally, if you don’t finish her off and let her finish you, she has Eat Your Fill….it has the downside of ending your Activation but you’ll welcome that if you’re down to a couple of wounds left.

 

The final ability on her card front is the almost obligatory Unimpeded for mobility. This ties in nicely with her only (0) Action. Leap. She needs an eight of anything to do it and that’s not a super high card so it’s cheatable and you have a good chance of top decking it. This also really helps her durability believe it or not. If she is engaged with a heavy hitter that almost killed her, she can Leap out of combat and Charge a weaker model to use Eat Your Fill.

 

The last thing is her Attack. A master level Ml stat with a fair damage spread and a 2” reach. She has three nice triggers. None are built in, but they all use a different suit so you have a great chance of getting something. The least inspiring is a 4” Push after damaging….until you realize that if you’re in trouble this extra 4” combined with her Leap puts her well outside the Charge range of most models.

 

Her other two triggers are attack-based. One adds +1 damage if the target doesn’t have Armor which pushes her damage into very respectable levels. Her other one lets you take a free attack against the same target if the target is not a Construct (hey, she can’t eat constructs…but flesh and blood makes her HUNGRY)….one thing to note here; she can get this trigger multiple times…..no ‘this attack may not declare triggers’ caveat. And with her high Ml stat she has the potential to trigger this off of lower cards.

 

Blessed Upgrades

She could take Armor of December or Sub Zero, but there usually aren’t enough other Frozen Heart models and I’d rather use her (1) Actions for other things….but a Df 6, Hard to Wound, Armor +2 model would be very hard to dislodge.

 

Imbued Protection. Not one I usually take on anyone. Pushing her to Df 7 would make her even more durable, but for 2ss more? I think she’s durable enough as is.

 

Imbued Energies. Always a good choice. Depends on the roll you want her to play. I rarely lose her, so I’d bank on discarding it for Fast instead of getting the four cards from it. Rarely losing her leads me to not bother putting Killswitch on her.

 

My absolute favorite for her is Pack Leader. She is durable enough that you should be able to keep it going for a long time if not the entire game. Her mobility allows her to be where she needs to be to get the most use out of it (her Ht 3 40mm base also helps to keep her in LoS). Marcus dropping one Feral or Law of Meat in the right place can be brutal and Marcus himself is a Beast so he can get a free attack as well.

 

Malifaux Raptor

 

It’s a bird right? How good can it be? Used properly; very good. For 3ss you can understand that it’s an Insignificant Peon so it isn’t going to do much for VP. Wp is below average and low wounds in keeping with it’s cost. However it’s Df and mobility are way above it’s cost.

 

Obviously it has Flight and it also has Companion. It has an awesome (2) AP Tactical Action. No card flipping, no discarding…..just Bury it. At the end of the Turn Place it anywhere on the table….engaged, unengaged, in terrain, on terrain, ANYWHERE.

 

It’s melee attack has an average stat and pretty pathetic damage, for his price though I’m actually pretty impressed with the stat. But, the attack has two very good triggers. Neither are built in, but totally worth cheating if you have the cards….it’s a very tough decision though as one suit competes with the Cerberus and the other competes with Marcus.

 

One lets you look at the top three cards of the target’s deck (you could use this on yourself) and put them back in any order either on top of the deck or in the discard pile….well I’ll dump this ten and queen in the discard pile and put that two on the deck…..sweet.

 

The other is money for Marcus. Hand out the Beast Condition for the rest of the game. It’s a Condition so it’s removable, and the target can discard two cards at the start of its Activation to end it. Great if you’re running Marcus as a de-buffer with Domesticate.

 

Let’s put it all together. First, if I think I might be facing a big ranged crew I’ll take at least one Raptor. At the end of Turn one he can engage an enemy shooter to shut them down. It’s high Df makes it difficult to get rid of and it’s average Ml can stop disengaging. Once you have a heavier hitter in range to deal with that shooting threat you can go ahead and Bury the Raptor again to annoy someone else. Second, if I want to use a non-Beast model in my crew the Raptor can go ahead and make it a Beast…..the Canine Remains can also do that, but it also inflicts a -1 Wp de-buff. Third, if I really feel like fooling around (happens to the best of us), this model makes a fantastic Killjoy Delivery System.

 

Slate Ridge Mauler

 

I’ll give a little rundown but to be honest I haven’t used this model much. The couple games I did try him I wasn’t able to get much out of him so he dropped down my list. I like him in theory and maybe it was just bad match-ups for him, I do think that he deserves another shot.

 

He’s a big 8ss Minion. 50mm and Ht 3. Below average Df and Wk, average Wp, a decent Cg, and a good chunk of wounds. He seems durable with Hard to Kill and Impossible to Wound (the crews I seemed to face with him had high Weak damage so his Df really let me down). He’d be much better with some Armor I think. But he does have Bearskin Armor which is sometimes helpful.

His final card front ability is Frenzied; when at half wounds or less his melee attack does +2 damage. This has been my greatest difficulty, keeping him in that range. Even with Hard to Kill, knowing that they’re looking at four Weak Damage, the enemy usually doesn’t let him survive in that range.

 

The other issue is his average Ml stat. The damage track is fair and could be really good if Frenzied and he has a good reach. I think if the stat was one point higher his attack would be much more reliable and useful. It does have a useful trigger to let him Heal two damage to get him above that Hard to Kill level, but you need the suit making the Ml stat more important.

 

He does have a nifty (0) Action; Bear Hug. It’s a better stat and has double the reach of his regular attack. It doesn’t do any damage, but gives Slow and pushes the model into base with the bear. It’s only trigger (needing the suit), lets him take an attack after the hug.

 

I want to like this model for a Turf War or Squatter’s Rights Strategy but so far I rate Cojo much higher in those situations.

[dgraz]

Guild Hound

 

Our only addition from the Guild faction and it’s a good one.  For 3ss he’s got pretty average stats but above average movement. He’s a Minion so is good for scoring VP when you need placement like Reconnoiter or Turf War, unfortunately they’re Insignificant so aren’t too useful for Squatter’s…..but wait.

 

They have one stand out ability called Pack Mentality…..while within 5” of another Hound they may ignore Insignificant….they are a Hound and at 3ss each, you can easily have two or three highly mobile objective runners. They also have Companion to help them stay together. With Marcus this gets even better. Canine Remains are Hounds. Pairing a Canine Remain with a Guild Hound has been golden for me. It really helps to play up another one of their abilities; Scent of Evidence. They can charge enemies close to a Scheme Marker for only (1) AP. So the Canine Remains can move up, drop a Scheme Marker, Companion the Guild Hound who can now charge in for three attacks.

 

They’re both pretty cheap models so don’t expect them to stay around too long, but the Canine with it’s Hard to Wound does have some staying power and if you don’t need the Scheme Marker they can move in closer to reduce the enemy Df , giving the Guild Hound a much greater chance of connecting on attacks. Speaking of the Guild Hound’s attacks….it’s not bad. Average stat with a fair damage spread except for the Weak damage of one. They do have Critical Strike (not built in) that can get their damage up a little better. However, don’t underestimate what a pack of dogs can do. I’ve pulled down some pretty tough guys with two or three dogs, especially if they’re getting three attacks each.

 

These models are certainly a good addition for Marcus. A decent attack coupled with great mobility and potential objective running makes them very versatile for their cost. Also, keep in mind that out-activating your opponent can be a pretty big deal…..a few of these cheap versatile models can easily fit in with some pricier, heavier models to give you a real edge.

 

Night Terror

 

Marcus certainly isn’t hurting in the cheap model department. Here is another 3ss option. As expected for that price it is Insignificant, however it’s a Minion so is good for Reconnoiter or Turf War type Strategies. With a 6” Wk they can easily get where they need to be to score points. Average Wp (and Wounds for it’s price), and an abysmal Df probably won’t keep it around too long so be careful with it but it isn’t as fragile as it looks. It’s also a Spirit, so maybe we can find something later to help with that.

 

It’s Hard to Kill so at minimum it’s taking two hits to put down. But it’s also Incorporeal and that can make it more annoying for some crews to get rid of. The Incorporeal also helps with mobility and it’s Attracted to Noise ability gives it a little more…allowing a 3” Push toward an enemy (within 8”) that used an action with the gun icon. It’s not an Aura so the Night Terror doesn’t need LoS to use it and there is no limit to how many times it can use it….against a big shooty crew this model could be bouncing around all game.

 

Its main Attack Action isn’t too special with an average stat and range and very low damage track. It does have a nifty trigger that if you can pull the suit makes this model awesome against gunfighters. It places a condition (that can be removed by the target at the start of its Activation for two cards) that stops them from taking Sh actions. This can really hurt something like a Gunsmith or a Convict Gunslinger whose only attack is a Sh action.

 

Night Falls is a nice (1) AP Tactical Action. No requirements, other than the AP. Enemy models reduce the range of their Ca actions by 4” while within an 8” Aura of this model. For a lot of casting masters like Kaeris or Sonnia or Pandora that 4” is a really big deal. Going from 12” down to an 8” range is a lot in this game….or from 10” to 6”….wow.

 

Shikome

 

I have to admit that I haven’t really used this model. I think that it would function better in a crew that can hand out the Adversary Condition a little more. That said, after re-reading the card for this article I think I need to give her a shot as she could be helpful in a few situations.

 

For 8ss we get a model with average Df, Wp, and Wounds. She has above average Wk with a Cg of the same distance but she does have Flight which always greatly enhances mobility.  She also comes with Hard to Wound which helps her durability.

 

Now Adversary is a Condition that gives Spirits a   when attacking an Adversary. (If you read the Night Terror above, you’ll know I was looking for something that helped Spirits……here it is.) She has two (0) Actions, one of which has an above average Ca and can give the Adversary Condition to one enemy model at medium range. It’s other (0) has all the same stats and allows you to place the Shikome in base contact with an enemy model that has the Adversary Condition…..this is why I always thought it would be better with other models that can give Adversary…..if it gives the Condition, it can’t place itself in base contact because they’re both (0) Actions. However, I think she’d still be worth it even without that Place Action. If she is in range to give Adversary then she is most likely in range to Charge that model given that her threat range is only 1” less than the spell. Another buff for this model that goes along with Adversary is Long Memory on the front of her card….it lets you choose whether the target resists the Shikome’s attacks with it’s Df or Wp.

 

She has one more ability on the front of her card that fits in with a Marcus crew pretty well.  She has Scent of Death which allows her to Charge Poisoned models for only (1) AP….and we do have access to quite a few Poison dealers. She could either get three attacks, or be able to move into position to allow a Charge and if she can put Adversary on that enemy first she can hit much harder.

 

This brings us to her melee attack. Only a 1” reach, but an above average stat and a good damage spread……couple that with   against Adversaries and being able to choose the lower defensive stat, she’s going to hit pretty often……..and she also has built into her attack a flat +1 damage against Adversaries pushing her damage into very respectable levels. She has three triggers one of which is extremely helpful for beast crews and is conveniently built in…..she ignores Armor. Armor is something that beasts struggle with. She also has a Poison trigger that can automatically give one Poison and potentially two if you flip the Crow. Her final trigger requires a suit, but gives a plus     to the damage.

 

Yeah…..I think she deserves a shot.

[dgraz]

Rogue Necromancy

 

Another one I don’t have much experience with yet (the smoking hot new plastic model is on it’s way though).

 

It’s a 10ss big boy with Ht 3 on a 50mm base. It is an Enforcer so it does have access to some Upgrades. It’s an Undead Construct which for us is potentially a weakness since we have nothing that works with those things and there are some models that get bonuses against those things. It’s not a big deal, just something to keep in mind. Stats aren’t great with below average Df, average Wp and Wk, with a Cg only slightly better than the Wk.

 

It does have a fair chunk of wounds though and with Impossible to Wound it has some staying power just watch out for anything with high Weak damage otherwise the low Df will be a real problem. It’s defensive ability that really intrigues me is Terrifying (All) with a good number meaning most models will need eights to pass it. It really intrigues me because of Marcus and Howl. Dropping enemy Wp by 2 puts this Terrifying into…..well, scary levels. The Rogue can follow up on this with Smell Fear, and of course you could also take Pack Leader in the crew allowing other models to take advantage of it as well.

 

Like the Cerberus, the Rogue has the Three-Headed ability which is pretty interesting as this model actually has a ranged attack that will get that benefit; Acid Breath.  I don’t usually take too many slow models with Marcus, but the massive range on this attack will let the Rogue be effective early game even if it can’t get up close and personal. It’s a Ca attack with an average stat and it carries the Ranged icon but with Three-Headed you can virtually ignore cover with it. The damage track is tight with a high Weak damage but low Severe, however Moderate and Severe damage both produce a Blast so that high Weak damage is really going to spread the pain. It has a built in trigger to put a point of damage on the original target (not others damaged by blasts) and can put an additional point if you flip the suit. So, now we have a slow model that can put out Poison at range, and some really fast models that can take advantage of Poison with (1) AP Charges….that’s some nice Synergy right there.

 

If you can get the Rogue into melee above the Three-Headed threshold, its attack will hurt more than the Cerberus with a higher (Henchman / Master level) stat, a longer reach and a higher Moderate damage (all other levels are equal). It has the same built in trigger to give a little Poison and another trigger that needs a suit but gives a     on the damage. If you can hit that trigger with the high stat this model can still cause damage even without Three-Headed.

 

His final Action is a (0); Stalk. The Rogue can pick an enemy in LoS and if that enemy Walks or Charges, the Rogue can take a walk action toward them. The weakness in this ability to me is that the walk must end as close to the enemy as possible. This can cause the model to walk out into the open, however it doesn’t have to take the walk so it turns into more of a psychological attack against the other player. They know you can do it, so they have to wonder about it every time he moves that model. If you also have a Cerberus in your list, the Cerberus also has Stalk so you could Stalk up to two enemy models and whenever either enemy walks or charges, either the Rogue or the Cerberus could walk.

 

Gupps

 

I’ve used them a couple times. They don’t find their way into just any list. If I plan on using several Swampfiend models like Silurids and Waldgeists then I strongly consider Gupps.

 

Another cheap model at 4ss they are Significant Minions. Below average Wp with average Df and Wk and a Cg the same as their Wk. If you want something like that the Canine Remains is generally faster but as I said Gupps become better with other Swampfiends.

 

Like their older brother, the Silurid, they have Perfect Camouflage (Sh and Charge attacks suffer a neg flip if the Gupp hasn’t activated yet) and Silent (enemies can’t ignore LoS to this model). With several Swampfiends in the list, this can be pretty annoying for the opponent if they want to kill anything especially if you’re careful with your activation order. They have Companion if you need them to go right away.

 

They’re attack isn’t great with an average stat, a short reach, and a damage spread that’s about as low as it can get. With a suit they have a trigger that gives a point of Poison. With a different suit, if you can kill something bigger than a Peon, you can sacrifice this model to summon a Silurid…..this isn’t going to happen unless you soften up the target with something else first so don’t count on it.

 

They have two (0) actions. The first is the almost obligatory Leap. It works much like the Silurid, except it’s both a little harder and a little easier to use…it needs the suit, but it can be anything higher than the Black Joker. The other is the main reason these guys work well with other Swampfiends; Juvenile’s Wail. If an enemy kills or sacrifices the Gupp, friendly Swampfiends within 6” get a flat +2 damage to their melee attacks. Waldgeists and Silurids can become brutal with this buff.

 

Spawn Mother

 

A second Henchman beast for Marcus (thanks Neverborn). For 9ss she’s a bit of a jack of all trades. With some support, a little summoning, and she can do some surprising damage at the right times. Her stats are okay with an above average Df and average Wp, Wk, and Cg. Her wounds aren’t bad, but she really isn’t meant for the front lines right away. She’s a big presence with her Ht 3 and 50mm base.

 

Like the rest of the Silurid family, she has the Silent and Perfect Camouflage abilities. A Mother’s Rage is a fun ability that lets her immediately take a free Charge action at an enemy model that kills a friendly Swampfiend within 6” of her…the really fun thing is if that Swampfiend happens to be a Gupp that used its Juvenile’s Wail she’s coming in at brutal damage levels. Her final ability is The Hatching which automatically hatches any eggs that she laid during the game if she is killed or sacrificed……which leads to her only (0) Action…

 

….Lay Eggs. With a suited six, she can drop an Egg Marker in base contact. The action includes a ‘once per turn’ caveat to prevent any Alpha shenanigans. This also ties in to her (2) Action; Nesting Pool. She can summon a Gupp in contact with each Egg Marker then discard the Marker. If you drop eggs early in the game and don’t use Nesting Pool until later, the nice thing is that Nesting Pool has no range so you could spread the Eggs out, then hatch them all at once. She can not use the Nesting Pool if she already used Lay Eggs in the turn. But she can use the Nesting Pool first then Lay Eggs to set up for next turn.

 

Her final Tactical Action is a (1) AP buff called Nourish the Young. It costs nothing other than the AP and gives all friendly models that activate within 6” of her a +2 to their Cg stat. Not only does that obviously let you charge farther, but Cg is the stat that Leap is keyed off of.

 

She has a melee attack with an above average stat and reach. The damage spread is okay but nothing special for a Henchman. As I mentioned earlier, combined with a Juvenile’s Wail it’s brutal and it could turn her into a killing machine for a turn. She gets the bonus to damage along with a free charge which is during the enemy turn, then it’s your turn and she can charge again with that big damage as it lasts until the end of the turn…..then, when it’s your turn again, Marcus could Alpha her. The attack only has one Trigger and it isn’t built in. It gives one point of Poison so isn’t a big deal and probably not worth cheating for, just a nice bonus if you flip it.

 

I haven’t had a chance to do it yet, but I’m extremely interested in running a big Swampfiend list with Marcus containing the Spawn Mother, Waldgeists, Silurids, and Gupps………it might be worth bringing in a certain Swampfiend mercenary at that point.

 

Pigs

 

I still haven’t made the plunge with any of the Gremlin Beasts yet, but there is one that I plan on trying since it doesn’t have the Set’er Off problem. That would be the Sow….basically a pig Cerberus. I’m also interested in trying the Wild Boar as a distraction since it has From the Shadows and you can get first turn charges into the enemy deployment zone which when combined with some beasts could make for a hyper-aggressive crew since you could get them into position to back up the pigs on turn 2, or at worst bring a second wave assault…..maybe a good time to play with Killjoy again. I haven’t tried or looked too hard at any of the pigs so I’m not comfortable discussing them. Once I get around to trying them I’ll post some things about them.

[surly]

Since I finally got the chance to use my Marcus crew a few times during the last few weeks, I'd love to share some thoughts about him

Also, I do have a question about Alpha ... Marcus can't Alpha himself, since he can't target himself with an Attack Action, am I right? Would be quite awesome if you could though

 

 

I had a game where Marcus first turned my MechRider into a beast, then Alpha'd it to get a second summoning and activation out of it. In another game he Alpha'd one of my Silurids to Leap over 2/3 of the table and win the mission. Beside any super-awesome enemy targets like Levi or Ramos, when are you going for enemy models to Alpha? Anything beside these two masters, that can sacrifice or weaken itself heavily? (Myranda maybe, who gets sacrificed into a Malifaux Raptor )

 

Also, how are you using Darzee's Chant? I mainly use it to debuff opponents (first change them into a beast, then chant them) but found it very ressource intensive. However, especially with 4/4/6 damage and Melee Expert, Marcus can pretty much take out everything when he gets his debuff through.

 

The last thing that I came up with, I found him much less beast-dependant as I initially thought. Jackalope is nice, Myranda is awesome for sure, as are Silurids and Waldgeists sometimes, but beside those I found myself using mostly non-beasts. Since I can turn them into beasts anyway with his upgrade, Alpha'ing or healing them with Myranda hasn't been much of a problem so far.

I actually would use them more, but I simply can't find much synergy here. Myranda provides some synergy (but got sacrificed early often), Jackalope adds a little bit of synnergy, while Marcus actually doesn't add much (at least for my thinking). Most of the time I Chant my opponent anyway, and for Alpha I can turn them into beasts anyway.

His other upgrades provide some more utility for sure (that Wp thing for example) but I haven't used them yet tbh)

[Dirial]

This is an awesome thread. Fact.

[Sybarite]

If you feel Darzee's chaunt is too resource intensive then why not just use domesticate instead? It's an awesome debuff. Have you tried alphaing a cerberus to leap and attack a model you just domesticated? It's a really good tactic.

[Adran]

Since I finally got the chance to use my Marcus crew a few times during the last few weeks, I'd love to share some thoughts about him

Also, I do have a question about Alpha ... Marcus can't Alpha himself, since he can't target himself with an Attack Action, am I right? Would be quite awesome if you could though

 

 

I had a game where Marcus first turned my MechRider into a beast, then Alpha'd it to get a second summoning and activation out of it. In another game he Alpha'd one of my Silurids to Leap over 2/3 of the table and win the mission. Beside any super-awesome enemy targets like Levi or Ramos, when are you going for enemy models to Alpha? Anything beside these two masters, that can sacrifice or weaken itself heavily? (Myranda maybe, who gets sacrificed into a Malifaux Raptor )

 

Also, how are you using Darzee's Chant? I mainly use it to debuff opponents (first change them into a beast, then chant them) but found it very ressource intensive. However, especially with 4/4/6 damage and Melee Expert, Marcus can pretty much take out everything when he gets his debuff through.

 

The last thing that I came up with, I found him much less beast-dependant as I initially thought. Jackalope is nice, Myranda is awesome for sure, as are Silurids and Waldgeists sometimes, but beside those I found myself using mostly non-beasts. Since I can turn them into beasts anyway with his upgrade, Alpha'ing or healing them with Myranda hasn't been much of a problem so far.

I actually would use them more, but I simply can't find much synergy here. Myranda provides some synergy (but got sacrificed early often), Jackalope adds a little bit of synnergy, while Marcus actually doesn't add much (at least for my thinking). Most of the time I Chant my opponent anyway, and for Alpha I can turn them into beasts anyway.

His other upgrades provide some more utility for sure (that Wp thing for example) but I haven't used them yet tbh)

 

Correct - Alpha is an attack, and a model can not attack itself. It can be used as a decent re-activate on your own models. It can be used on enemy models, but you can't plan for those so much, as you don't know what they'll bring. Some good common targets would be Joss when he is with RAmos, or Illuminated with a Jacob crew, but there are no hard rules, just when you find somethign that ypou would Rather get 1 activation from rather than 2 AP from MArcus.

 

Personally I chant in 3 situations. Firstly on enemies that have already activated, so they don't get teh advantage, secondly when I've out activated them, I'll do it on Friendlys to get ther positive attacks, and thirdly when I get to companion in the Chaunted frinedly straight away, so it gets the most from its bonus to hit.

 

Marcus can run beast heavy, but can also run Beast light. If I don't have at least 3 beasts I p[robably wouldn't bother with the jackolope unless I really want activation control. There isn't a right way to run him. Both can get you great results.

[decker_cky]

Darzee's chaunt lets you turn Marcus into a real combat threat against even masters. For example, I had Marcus walk through Lilith in a game last week. At the end of the turn, I made sure to feral her, then hit her with Darzee's chaunt and charged her. Even with her high defence,     meant I was hitting reliably, and with some moderate cards I could set up straight flips easily. And it only needs two Ca7 vs Wp duels to go off, which in that case was not tough. 

 

I also was able to make good use of rogue necromancies. I took a pair a few times, and adding a reliable blast with fairly high damage to the Marcus crew really put one opponent on his back feet, making him hug terrain in a way crews normally wouldn't need to against Marcus. In a turf war, this, along with Cojo was enough to keep a lot of pressure on my opponent. 

 

One thing about Night terrors that's worth mentioning is that night falls isn't a condition, so it stacks. I had a night terror against a daw crew, and let me tell you - neither hanged nor daw himself like -8 Rg on their Ca actions. 

 

I don't think too much about pigs, but Wild boar are worth a second look since their bayou rampage is much more controllable than pig charge (doesn't have to charge the closest model). It's not too hard to take one of them as a set it and forget it model, so you don't need to hire a babysitter for it.

[dgraz]

I actually just went through and outlined the synergy Marcus gets with Beasts in the Emissary upgrade thread.

 

Howl is a fantastic buff/de-buff which only helps if you're a beast and hurts you if you aren't.....I often use it against Wp intensive crews like Neverborn and Rezzers as a buff.....I'll de-buff enemies if I want to push through a couple of Law of Meats or if I have some Terrifying models in my crew....even Terrifying 11 becomes more powerful when you're at a -2 to Wp...and the Rogue Necro becomes truly scary

 

Alpha is only beasts. Darzhee's Chaunt is only beasts. Marcus' Df trigger is only beasts. The Jackalope comes back from beasts (and some days that can be at the least extremely annoying and at best game changing by holding enemies in place). Myranda's abilities are all beast oriented.......her heal and hunting call are both beast only and her Df buff aura is beast only.

 

For me another HUGE thing is the Pack Leader upgrade.....it's beast only....and I take it almost every game. I get great mileage out of it.....running an all beast crew I can guarantee at least 1-2 extra attacks per turn and when set up properly I can pull 4-6 extras.....that's massive. It's alpha-strike hell.....I've gutted many enemy crews around turn 3 with that.

 

It's true that Marcus is not necessarily 'beast reliant' but I've found I can get the most out of him that way. You can use all of Marcus' AP for work instead of wasting some of it for support that you wouldn't need to with all beasts....why would I want to waste a (0) just to make a friend a beast when I can use that on an enemy as a de-buff? I'm also not a fan of using a Raptor or Canine Remains to turn my models into beasts for several reasons.....first, again, you're wasting AP....second, they both require a suit (and woe to you if you don't draw it on turn one...now you're really wasting time)...third, you're doing damage to your own models (and forcing a -1 Wp de-buff with the dog).....and fourth, it's a Condition that can be removed (one Witchling Stalker or something can ruin your plans).

 

Marcus has a massive hiring pool....even just looking at beasts there is nothing....nothing....not one Strategy or Scheme....not one hole that can't be plugged...that Marcus can't deal with with the right crew choice. He is one of THE best masters to use when you just want to play one Master because he can compete anywhere at anytime.

 

You're correct that Marcus can not Alpha himself. I rarely attempt to use it on an enemy....only if they have some glaring weakness to exploit.....though it can sometimes be really nasty if you have the enemy master engaged with say an RSR or two and maybe Myranda too.....Alpha the master and just have it walk away three times....those Wicked disengaging strikes really add up. But I normally use it on my own models for an extra activation.

 

Darzhee's Chaunt is probably one of his most situational abilities....as a de-buff you really only want to put it on a model that has already activated unless you can guarantee the kill right now.....I usually use it as a buff late turn when most or all of the enemy crew has activated already.....it can make even mid-range models hit way above their weight class....consider the RSR with its high severe damage with plus flips on attack and damage.

[surly]

Thanks for all the great replies, really appreciated

[Bumpasses]

So I have been through this thread and SSSK's blog a few times now.

 

4 games with Marcus

-3 losses

-1 draw

 

not phased, dig him still overall.

 

This is more of a question of suits...

he is suit hungry and so is his crew as we all know...how to deal with this?

I seem to generally not pull what I need each hand which is why I always drop a stone for 2 more cards.

 

I have been running 6 stones with his base crew + a Waldgeist. (irregardless of scheme or strat so I can learn them)

Not getting what I need suit wise for him or leap.

 

Going to drop the Waldgeist for BoD

dropping RSR for another cat.

Since I have no shooty thought more leap potential could mitigate that and the theory that if I can Alpha kill a key model or 2 of his it will throw their game.

 

I played a buddy yesterday.

 

Marcus crew + Waldgesit and 6 stones

 

he had:

Seamus

Copy Cat Killer

Bete Noire

Madame Sybelle

and 4 belles

 

between Seamus's sweet murder and copycat hedge trimmers he bled 4 of my stones so I wouldn't lose models as I had no cards to drop.

between that and 8 slows a turn to fight off from the belles, I kind of felt paralyzed. Marcus couldn't draw any suits and had no stones.

One hand I drew all crowes....ALL CROWES!!!!

 

What do people do with Marcus, run stone heavy 6+?

 

 

 

-j

[Sybarite]

I often have 5 stones but often boost that rather early by sacrificing Myranda with Imbued energies which tends to give me a good hand. Although you sometimes want Myranda alive longer than that

[Breng77]

Surprising I don't find him all that suit hungry. But if I did I certainly would not add another cat for leaping which needs a suit. What models are you using that you find need suits so much.

[AnythingBut]

I love Marcus and he's become my go to master both in tournament and a friendly game setting but his box set is hardly a great start for playing games with on its own as it really lacks any sort of cheap scheme runner. While it's fun to play with all the big beasts Marcus has GREAT scheme runner choices which you should include in most crews.

From his box set Myranda and the sabre tooth and the stand out choices. I rarely run cojo although he does have his place in turf war and I don't rate the rattler much myself.

As Marcus and the sabretooth are fighting for tomes I find one kitty to be all I need and usually find myself not starting with a single sabretooth on the board as myranda with imbued energies is the same cost with free card draw and as she can only turn into arcanist beast, it's usually the sabretooth. Instead I like to start with the rogue necromancy, it puts out similar damage to the sabretooth but trades his movement tricks for a tougher defence and a ranged attack. Terrifying 13 will often drain a decent card from your opponent and impossible to wound means he will be sticking around longer. About that ranged attack; it's great!! Built in positive flips means you ignore cover and have min damage 3 and hands out poison to boot.

Then with the SS saved from cojo and the rattler you can start to look at scheme runners and the best place to start (possibly in the whole of Malifaux) is the silurid. Best leap in the game needing only a 5 of any suit is insane! And with perfect camo they can be hard to tie down and kill. Often a great idea to pair silurids with molemen. Nice ittle tanky scheme runner with deceptive speed once your silurids drops a turn one marker 8" away giving the molemen chance for a free move up the bord.

Waldgeists are great as I'm sure you've noticed, tanky minions who bring mobile cover and the ability to lock down a huge area with a 4'' melee range.

So I guess my main advice is to not take too many big beasts but have a decent spread of hitters and scheme runners. With Marcus kitted up with trail of the gods and domesticate, the necro and myranda's ability to turn into a sabretooth you have plenty of models capable of handing out a world of pain, and often as long as assassinate isn't in the pool Marcus is best used in the thick of it killing and distracting while you're cheaper runners get you all the VP. Although Movement 8 Marcus is also a fantastic way to guarantee entourage or help with claims markers

[Bumpasses]

hmmmm

 

seems like the RN would pair nicely with the Cerebrus due to stalk and the Pack upgrade...a low rent leap.

[Adran]

The way I play Marcus he is hungry for low tomes. (I can see high masks if you are wanting to Alpha, but I generally don't))

Cerberus likes a mid Mask and High tomes. The High tomes Are a bonus, and if he is still 3 headed, there is a reasonable chance he doesn't need much hand support.

I like Arcane resevoir for an extra card.

 

Will happily spend soulstone to give Marcus the suit he needs or more cards as required, and that is what most of my stones go on.

I like my sabertooths with Imbued energies. So I'm not a fan of the Myrnda becoming one rather than me starting with one.

 

If i only have high tomes then I have to decide if an extra attack on teh cerberus beats an extra ability on Marcus, and thats a turn by turn decision.

But generally I don't find them especially wanting. If you have a leap card in hand, be prepared to hold onto it at the end of turn, Likewise with low tomes. otherwise, I count triggers as bonuses. Yes I like free attacks with a cerberus, but it can do things without a tome.

[Sybarite]

hmmmm

 

seems like the RN would pair nicely with the Cerebrus due to stalk and the Pack upgrade...a low rent leap.

 

Pack upgrade is Resser only though isn't it?

[AnythingBut]

Pack upgrade is Resser only though isn't it?

It is yeah, can't take it when declaring arcanists and using him with Marcus.

He does love it when people push a 4 wound scheme runner up behind some terrain, then blasts it with the positive to cancel out the cover, do 3 weak and kill it at the end of the turn with poison 1 though Ht3 particularity great for that and it works amazingly well against incoporial. Pulled it off against a couple of void wretches in a tournament a few weeks ago.

[Sybarite]

Cool! I need to paint my rogue necromancy

[decker_cky]

Yeah....I played a couple games with a pair of rogue necromancies advancing behind my crew and they get such easy blasts when they're above half health that they really change how opponents play. If terrain is short overall, then the necro essentially tells the opponent "I'm going to kill a small thing within 17" each turn until you do something about it."

[Bumpasses]

Do people use canine remains much?

Pooping out markers and the rabies trigger seems worth it.

If you can beast out a bad guy then marcus isn't wasting his actions to do it.

[dgraz]

I use them in most games. The corpse marker thing is useless since we have nothing that uses them but everything else is still well worth the cost. They're fast, significant minions.....low Df, but they do have H2W so they usually take at least 2 hits to put down. The rabies trigger is good but nothing something I bank on. What I really like about them is the -1 to an enemy Df.....most of your attackers already have a good Ml stat, and reducing the enemy Df helps guarantee the hit.....a lot of times you may not even need to cheat, you can hit well with mid-level cards or at the least, force them to cheat first.

 

I like to run them in pairs with Guild Hounds.....the Canine has some resilience and the Hound has some hitting power...especially if 1) the enemy Df is lower and/or 2) the Canine moves in and drops a Scheme Marker allowing the Hound to charge for only (1) AP.

 

I usually run those teams up flanks for VP running, but if the enemy puts pressure there, it's easy to redirect any of your other crew to catch those enemies in a Pincer attack when you turn the dogs back in towards them.

[decker_cky]

Aside from tag teaming with guild hounds....what strats/schemes are they better at than Molemen and/or Silurids?