Hello again, Malifolks!

I’m back to talk about some Resser themes in M3E this time. Specifically, their Corpse Marker economy; a few models that create them, and what models make the best use of them.

To start with, several versatile Mortuary models. Mortimer and the Gravediggers–which may also be the name of my upcoming Meatloaf acid jazz cover band.

Now that I’ve buried that joke, these models all allow you at least one way to put out more corpse markers on the board. Not only are more corpses good for Ressers in general for many of their models, but the ability to put them where you want them is paramount. Both models have a bonus action, Grave Robber to drop a Corpse Marker within 2″ of them. The Gravediggers have a higher stat, but Morty has a trigger to summon in a Mindless Zombie–which is literally a walking corpse marker–off the dropped corpse. They both also have a Dismember trigger on their melee attack to drop a corpse into base contact with the target so long as it wasn’t a construct. The Gravediggers also drop one in your deployment zone after deployment.

Given that Grave Robber is a bonus action–the only one Morty has, and the other the Gravediggers have requires a corpse to remove–there’s no reason to not at least try for it every turn, which could mean quite a few extra dead bodies on the field over the course of a game.

Asura is another versatile model, and while she doesn’t create Corpse Markers exactly, she can summon Mindless Zombies, which as mentioned are mobile Corpse Markers. The Carrion Emissary can summon a Mindless Zombie as well, along with several other models which can summon one either touching an existing Corpse, or upon killing a targeted model. All told, this will make for a good number of Corpse Markers on the field, some still surprisingly ambulatory.

So what can you do with them? First off, the Gravedigger’s other bonus action allows them to remove a corpse to give out Focus +1 to other friendlies in a 3″ pulse, which sounds like a great way to give potentially your entire crew a free Focus turn 1 before they get on the move. The Gravediggers also count Corpse Markers in a 6″ aura as Scheme Markers at the end of the game, which has quite a few interesting applications, like an easy Detonate the Charges point, not worrying about placing schemes within 4″ of one another, since one will be a corpse.

Other versatile models with uses for these corpse markers include the Bone Pile, which I’ve previously covered as the only versatile condition removal in Ressers, can remove one nearby to heal itself, and the Grave Golem. Both of them have the Unearth ability, which allows them to unbury in base contact with a Corpse Marker. If they are not, they are killed instead of unburying in their deployment zone as the core rules allow for. The Grave Golem buries and heals 4 instead of dying, plus can remove corpses as a bonus action to heal models in its LoS for 1, which can include itself. It can also throw a Corpse marker and throw it at a ranged target, possibly removing the thrown corpse and another to do more damage.

Outside of the Versatile models, nearly all Resser keywords have a use for Corpse Markers. Some of course will want more than others.

McMourning and his Experimental crew like them to summon Flesh Constructs, and they need to be close to the good doctor to make it happen. Without some extra Corpse dropping tech, this would be a rather rare occurrence. But with a Gravedigger and a way to get one more corpse out–like the Emissary or Asura–you can make this happen turn 1. With two Gravediggers you’ll be able to keep McMourning flush with corpses the whole game, and Canine Remains can reposition them with their bonus action. Sebastian can summon a Canine Remains off of a single corpse as well, so corpse marker tech really opens Experimental up to a summoning playstyle, and one that doesn’t bother with Summoning Upgrades, at that. Guild Autopsies can also remove a nearby corpse at the end of their action for a Soulstone, which I’ve never heard anyone complain about.

Molly’s crew has almost Forgotten about Corpse Markers by comparison, with only Archie specifically using them, throwing them with the same ranged attack the Grave Golem uses. Molly herself can remove them or any marker to draw two cards though, so that is another use for them.

In the streets of Redchapel, Seamus loves to celebrate, and a Corpse Marker on his opponent’s side of the table is enough cause for celebration that he can dig deep and reload his gun quick enough for a second shot, find a secret passage without any blocking terrain to hide it, or even put on a scary enough face to terrify his own models. Bete Noire uses Corpses as a point to unbury and charge from, so getting them into useful positions will allow her to have a more controlled effect on the game. Mourners not only drop a Corpse in your deployment at the start of a game, but they also get a positive flip to their ranged attack if the target is near a Corpse, and can cause nearby Corpse Markers to count as scheme markers for any turn, so precision Corpse placement is useful both offensively and scheme-wise. Dead Dandies, assuming no last minute change between the Beta files and their official cards, can swap schemes for corpses and vice versa, so can not only help get corpses where you need them, but also can turn your opponent’s scheme markers against them.

Yan Lo’s Ancestor/Retainer crew uses Corpses to summon Ashigaru using Toshiro, and Yin shares her ranged attack with the Mourners so that positive flip is always welcome.

Reva’s Revenants like corpse markers a good bit. Not only do Mourners appear again in this crew, but Reva can use her melee attack through any corpse within an 8″ aura, and also has the same ranged attack as Yin and the Mourners. Vincent and Drauger can turn Corpses into Pyre Markers instead, which is pretty key for the crew. Shieldbearers can remove Corpses to pulse out Focused. Corpse Candles can move nearby Corpse Markers.

The Transmortis headmaster Von Schtook does not care about Corpses himself, but one of his Henchmen, Anna, and his Undergraduates can replace them with Scheme markers.

Kirai’s Urami crew almost doesn’t care about Corpse Markers at all, being ghosts. But Gaki do get hungry, both occasionally Dismembering their melee targets, and eating the bits left behind to heal.

In the Mortuary, Nicodem, despite being the most dead of the Dead Man’s Hand masters, summons off of Corpse Markers, and luckily shares Mortimer’s bonus action to both drop a Corpse and possibly make it a Mindless Zombie. His Vulture also turns Corpses into scheme markers at the end of the game and can move them around like the Canine remains do.

Jack Daw and his Tormented fellows care as little for Corpse Markers as Kirai does. Again, being mostly ghosts, it makes sense. His Guilty once again have the Feed On Grief ranged attack which gains a positive flip if the target is near a Corpse, but otherwise, this crew cares about corpses only as much as the Versatile or Out of Keyword models you hire.

As you can see, apart from the restless spirits, the Ressers all appreciate a pile of dead bodies. So I encourage you to take a look out of keyword to bring in some extra Corpse Marker tech, and see how it can make the crew run differently, especially if it can lead to avoiding any normal counters the crew would need to watch out for, or bring some unexpected angle on a game against your opponent!

Thank you for reading, I hope it was a thriller. Please let me know if you have any specific models or sub-themes you’d like for me to break down. In the coming weeks I’ll be looking at the Half-Bloods, the Asylum, and…yes, I do believe I hear some blues music playing at the crossroads. But we’ll wait for the opening act to finish their set.