Luke addresses the reaction to his controversial claim that pre-CP Plague and Marauders were 'the same'. Strap in!
What did I say?
On Episode 1 of Controlled Fire - the inaugeral episode, no less - I made a statement that caused ripples across the globe! We were discussing the Command Protocols changes that create further distinction between factions, which I said was excellent because now Plague and Marauders are unique, whereas they basically use to be the same army.
What was the reaction?
Amused surprise and disagreement. Lots of raised eyebrows and a dismissive shake of the head. If you had a different reaction, let me know and I'll add it to the list. Bemused bewilderment, perhaps?
Why did I say it?
Because it's true.
Nice one, wise guy.
Sorry. Also, stop talking to yourself.
The claim is, dear reader, that pre-Command Protocols (remember! This is discussing PRE-command protocols), most lists you would build for each faction would share a striking number of similarities. Or, at the very least, any list you could make in one faction could be made with minimal differences in the other.
It's worth calling out that there's things that Marauders could do above and beyond Plague, so it's more accurate to say I think that Plague were basically a subset of Marauders.
Also remember this isn't a damning indictment of the Creators. Pretty much every system starts with things being necessarily simlar due to templating units, and they diverge over time... just like what's happened here!
The Obvious Parallels
The most obvious similarities between the lists were the vehicles. Mules, Striders (stuntbots), and Hornets were all in both lists, with no (or minimal) differences between them. By extension "Mule Rush", which was probably one of the strongest tactics back then, was a viable and common build across both factions.
So, the arguably strongest builds in both factions were extremely similar, but what about those people that played other styles (i.e. people that didn't want to win)?
Digging Deeper
The next thing we can look at is the unit parallels. I won't break down all units, but I'll do enough that you can get the idea of what I'm looking at.
Zombies vs Mawbeasts
Let's get the weakest comparison out of the way. There is no parallel for Zombies in Marauders, however I'd argue that despite a lower body count, units like Mawbeasts could be used in much the same way as an expendable screening unit. Sure there's fewer of them, but what's there are more survivable, so it's not a huge stretch. Arguably Brawlers could be used the same way, but I'd say that IS a bit of a stretch.
Commandos vs Ghouls
Arguably also Brawlers again (as a parallel to melee-focused ghouls - e.g. in a Mule).
These are reasonbly comparable units in terms of stats, cost, and how you would use them. You can make a comparison on shoot stats, body count etc but at the end of the day, there's a large similarity (point-for-point) in the number of wounds they can put out at what ranges, and the amount of punishment they can take. So role-wise, they were very similar. Let's move on.
Skyscrapers (ripper talons) vs Leapers
AGAIN arguably Brawlers, for 2 reasons. 1) if you're charging from a mule, the sprint difference isn't always that bad, and 2) the order to increase sprint by 3"... anyway, skyscrapers...
Sure, Skyscrapers have scout and aerial deployment, which you don't get in Plague, but otherwise the ripper talon Skyscrapers and leapers can be a pretty darn close approximation of each other. At least good enough for government work.
Skyscrapers (ripper talons) vs Murderbirds
Close enough.
Don't give me lip. They're melee-focused fast units that can ignore some terrain and attack fliers. The Skyscrapers can do some things the Murderbirds can't, but 9 times out of 10 they're being used the same way.
Teratons and Bursters
Let's leave the bad units out of this.
Aberration/Corruption vs Maulers
For similar points to a Corruption or Aberration you can get 2 or 3 Maulers. I think the Aberration/Corruption are better for these points. However, considering units purely as stat-blocks you can see some obvious parallels with Maulers. Yes they're different, but overall similar stats, similar usage.
Leaders and Orders
This is where we're getting murkier. The orders were different, sure, but I want to make 2 specific points about the comparison:
- Plague Lord? When you look at it, his order is "make combat good". Similar to the Marauder Warlord 🤷
- My memory is letting me down a bit but I'd like to make the claim that the faction orders, while nice, didn't really make me feel like they materially changed the way you would play each faction. Therefore: nice buffs, but not game-changing.
Closing Thoughts
I was going to post a couple of comparisons of lists from each, but I realised this was getting too long, so if you're interested, I challenge you to pick up a list you had pre-CP for one or the other and try to make it in the other faction (it's easier going from Plague to Marauders). Then, look at the analogue list and decide how close that is to something you might have played (for me, it's "very close").
Finally, you may or not be swayed by this, and that's OK. What I wanted to do was pose you some food for thought and show that something that seems like a flippant statement may actually have some considerations behind it.
So, do you agree, or disagree? Let me know on whatever platform led you here!
Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.