The Thug
The Thug is what you might consider Ravenous Beyond's basic melee troop. In this article, I'll go through the original concept, some play-testing results, and why I've settled on the current Thug as is.
The Present
In her current iteration, the Thug clearly wants to be in melee. Her two distinct melee attack actions (Jab and Hook) let her attack twice if she starts her activation fighting an enemy model, which is already better than most models get. When she is attacking damaged models, she gets an extra die on all her attacks, thanks to Bloody and Fatal. All of this means that you want to get her into close combat as soon as you can, so she can start beating down her preferred targets.
The Thug also has both a reaction and a special rule that support her melee focus. Bob and Weave help her get as close as she can on your opponent's Charge spends, as a well-placed Thug can take advantage of as many enemy movements as possible to trigger those extra bumps of movement. Scrapper allows her to act as a sort of tar-pit model, making it harder for non-outside enemies to just walk away - especially once she's done some damage.
And hey, as an added bonus, you can give her the wrath tag for an extra point, just in case you wanted to dip into some Thin and Bare mercenary models.
The Past
The Thug wasn't always this way, though. She started out in version 0 as the "Gangbanger", a member of a team (almost everything was in teams, back then) that had a puny melee weapon and a slightly less puny ranged attack. She also had a defence ability that was only usable against ranged attacks, which made her a lot less likely to want to be in melee.
As you can see, profiles looked a bit different back then - Flesh and Spirit were much lower (we were using d6 instead of d10), and units both came in groups and contributed Charge. Each unit also had its very own custom kit it could take, which ended up in a very complicated mess when players brought 15+ models to the table.
Old quirks aside, though, it was clear that the Thug (or Gangbanger) was designed more for ranged combat with a little splash of melee (most of which involved pushing the enemy away or stabbing them to make them bleed). She has since turned into a more menacing combatant, focused on her particular role in the faction and in your lists.
Useful Leader Kit
Wisely using your leader's kit can be very helpful, especially on a basic unit like the Thug. Let's focus on the no-brainer mob leader first.
Andres Salinas brings a few useful options for the Thug. Salinas' Trust lets you toss the Thug headlong into battle, using her as a lever (especially in the early round) to push your opponent to give up their activation. Salinas' Failure lets her play as a more mobile vector for those demons you have hiding off the table, while Bulletproof Vest makes her harder to hit (thus, more durable) as she crosses the table to close with the enemy. Supplies (specifically the mob version) is almost a no-brainer, because you're going to want to be spending charge on her every turn, if only to threaten areas and keep your opponent out.
Dr. Paul Abberline brings a lot less for the Thug to be excited about, but the Polished Silver Jar does help her in her role as melee tar-pit. The ability to apply Cripple to your enemies a few times a game is great for a model that wants to be as close as possible to the action.
Finally, the Koken doesn't bring any particular gems for the Thug, but Stage Presence lets your melee beater distribute some extra Spirit damage if her demon allies are around.
Conclusions
All in all, I think the Thug is in a much better place now than she was in the very early iterations of the game. I also think that she has specific synergies with certain models and leaders, and a clear focus as to what she wants to do on the battlefield. If you need to get up close, smash heads, and claim objectives without the whole world realizing that you work for the demons, a few Thugs might be the way to go!
The Present
In her current iteration, the Thug clearly wants to be in melee. Her two distinct melee attack actions (Jab and Hook) let her attack twice if she starts her activation fighting an enemy model, which is already better than most models get. When she is attacking damaged models, she gets an extra die on all her attacks, thanks to Bloody and Fatal. All of this means that you want to get her into close combat as soon as you can, so she can start beating down her preferred targets.The Thug also has both a reaction and a special rule that support her melee focus. Bob and Weave help her get as close as she can on your opponent's Charge spends, as a well-placed Thug can take advantage of as many enemy movements as possible to trigger those extra bumps of movement. Scrapper allows her to act as a sort of tar-pit model, making it harder for non-outside enemies to just walk away - especially once she's done some damage.
And hey, as an added bonus, you can give her the wrath tag for an extra point, just in case you wanted to dip into some Thin and Bare mercenary models.
The Past
The Thug wasn't always this way, though. She started out in version 0 as the "Gangbanger", a member of a team (almost everything was in teams, back then) that had a puny melee weapon and a slightly less puny ranged attack. She also had a defence ability that was only usable against ranged attacks, which made her a lot less likely to want to be in melee.
As you can see, profiles looked a bit different back then - Flesh and Spirit were much lower (we were using d6 instead of d10), and units both came in groups and contributed Charge. Each unit also had its very own custom kit it could take, which ended up in a very complicated mess when players brought 15+ models to the table.
Old quirks aside, though, it was clear that the Thug (or Gangbanger) was designed more for ranged combat with a little splash of melee (most of which involved pushing the enemy away or stabbing them to make them bleed). She has since turned into a more menacing combatant, focused on her particular role in the faction and in your lists.
Useful Leader Kit
Wisely using your leader's kit can be very helpful, especially on a basic unit like the Thug. Let's focus on the no-brainer mob leader first.
Andres Salinas brings a few useful options for the Thug. Salinas' Trust lets you toss the Thug headlong into battle, using her as a lever (especially in the early round) to push your opponent to give up their activation. Salinas' Failure lets her play as a more mobile vector for those demons you have hiding off the table, while Bulletproof Vest makes her harder to hit (thus, more durable) as she crosses the table to close with the enemy. Supplies (specifically the mob version) is almost a no-brainer, because you're going to want to be spending charge on her every turn, if only to threaten areas and keep your opponent out.
Dr. Paul Abberline brings a lot less for the Thug to be excited about, but the Polished Silver Jar does help her in her role as melee tar-pit. The ability to apply Cripple to your enemies a few times a game is great for a model that wants to be as close as possible to the action.
Finally, the Koken doesn't bring any particular gems for the Thug, but Stage Presence lets your melee beater distribute some extra Spirit damage if her demon allies are around.
Conclusions
All in all, I think the Thug is in a much better place now than she was in the very early iterations of the game. I also think that she has specific synergies with certain models and leaders, and a clear focus as to what she wants to do on the battlefield. If you need to get up close, smash heads, and claim objectives without the whole world realizing that you work for the demons, a few Thugs might be the way to go!
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