--- id: disposition-matchup/purge-the-foe--vs--disruption kind: matchup-analysis lang: en title: "Purge the Foe vs Disruption — Punishment / Delaying Action" subjects: - gdm:disposition/purge-the-foe - gdm:disposition/disruption - gdm:primary/purge-the-foe/punishment - gdm:primary/disruption/delaying-action sides: side0: disposition: purge-the-foe card: gdm:primary/purge-the-foe/punishment scoringCheckpoint: command-phase holdWindow: 1 side1: disposition: disruption card: gdm:primary/disruption/delaying-action scoringCheckpoint: mixed holdWindow: 1 ratings: - metric: edge value: 9 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Punishment prints more — a net 13 VP of clauses with no counterpart on Delaying Action, including an 8 VP finish on the enemy home. But 5 of its 9 VP a turn sit behind a kill on ground the Disruption player chooses whether to offer, while Delaying Action banks 7 from its own half and pays 2 VP per body with no cap. A printed lead you have to cross the board to collect is not a lead." - metric: ceiling side: 0 value: 15 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "9 VP a round, 5 VP per turn of condemned kills and an 8 VP finish." - metric: ceiling side: 1 value: 13 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "2 VP per enemy unit killed adds up against a wide army but has no single big payout." - metric: floor side: 0 value: 15 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Holding 1 objective and staying ahead on count needs no special condition." - metric: floor side: 1 value: 13 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "One central and one expansion objective pays 3 VP a turn on top of the flat hold." - metric: tempo side: 0 value: 10 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "The condemned clause resolves at the end of a turn; the engine is a Command-phase checkpoint." - metric: tempo side: 1 value: 12 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Kills and the central-plus-expansion clause both check at the end of your turn." - metric: complexity side: 0 value: 8 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Track objective parity and the condemned units." - metric: complexity side: 1 value: 10 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Needs the right 2 objectives, not just any two." - metric: exposure side: 0 value: 13 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Parity is cheap, but the 8 VP finish requires a unit to survive on the opponent home objective." - metric: activationCost side: 0 value: 9 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Little non-fighting work beyond the raid." - metric: exposure side: 1 value: 12 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Kills can be taken from cover; only the central-plus-expansion clause requires holding forward ground." - metric: activationCost side: 1 value: 9 confidence: medium basis: theory rationale: "Two well-chosen objectives, and the rest of the army fights." claims: - type: engine-note side: 0 phase: whole-game text: "Punishment pays 4 VP for holding anything and 5 VP for holding more objectives than the opponent — 9 VP a round for a one-objective lead — plus 8 VP at the end of battle for their home objective." - type: engine-note side: 1 phase: whole-game text: "Delaying Action needs one central AND one expansion objective for its 3 VP end-of-turn line: which 2 objectives you hold matters more than how many." - type: engine-note side: 1 phase: whole-game text: "Delaying Action pays 2 VP per enemy unit destroyed, counting units not points — killing three cheap units beats killing one expensive one." - type: threat phase: whole-game text: "An aggressive Purge army feeds the Delaying Action kill counter every time it over-extends; conversely, a passive Purge player loses the tempo they need for the condemned clause." - type: cost side: 0 phase: whole-game text: "This card scores at your Command phase, so an objective taken on your turn only pays if it survives a full enemy turn (hold window 1) — price the grab accordingly before committing a unit to it." - type: cost side: 1 phase: whole-game text: "This card moves its checkpoint during the game, so the same grab costs a full enemy turn early and nothing late — price the grab accordingly before committing a unit to it." - type: terrain phase: deployment text: "Measured across all 45 transcribed layouts: a central objective can be held from a spot only 4.6% of the enemy deployment zone can see (best board 0%), while taking an enemy home objective means standing where a median of 47.7% of their deployment zone has line of sight, rising to 91.7% on the most exposed board. Cards that pay for enemy home objectives are charging you that difference, and the board decides the price." refs: - rule:13.08 - rule:14.02 - type: disruption side: 0 phase: whole-game text: "Their 3 VP end-of-turn line needs one central and one expansion objective simultaneously — not two of anything. Deny either type and it is gone. Their kill line counts units, so your losses are what fund them: do not feed them three cheap units when one big one would have died anyway. Consolidate rather than scattering." - type: list-building side: 0 phase: list-building text: "Purge the Foe needs: Board presence for parity — 5 VP a round for 1 objective of lead. Units that die expensively rather than in threes; their card counts bodies, not points. A raid package for their home objective, set up by round 4. Restraint on kills: the condemned clause is a bonus, parity is the engine." - type: disruption side: 1 phase: whole-game text: "Their parity bonus is worth 5 VP a round and needs strictly more objectives than you. Choose your central and expansion pair so that it also matches their count: the same 2 objectives then score your 3 VP and deny their 5 VP, an 8 VP swing per round from one deployment decision. Screen your home from round 4 against the 8 VP finish. And their condemned clause needs specific units gone, so protecting the marked one is worth more than saving a bigger unit." - type: list-building side: 1 phase: list-building text: "Disruption needs: Focused firepower that reliably finishes a unit every turn — the card counts kills, not damage. Cheap targets preferred: killing three 60-point units beats killing one 300-point one. 2 objectives chosen at deployment to score AND deny parity. A home screen from round 4." - type: layout phase: deployment text: "All three boards for this pairing are transcribed and measured. Layout 1 (diagonal halves) reads 7/20 for openness, Layout 2 (diagonal across the long axis) reads 2/20 for openness, Layout 3 (diagonal across the short axis) reads 5/20 for openness. Taking a home marker off the opponent costs 14.2% deployment-zone exposure on Layout 2 and 66.8% on Layout 1 — the same play, priced very differently. Central markers stay the safest ground on all three, bottoming out at 3.9% on Layout 2." listRequirements: - side: 0 role: "Board presence for parity" count: 5 trait: - objective-control phase: list-building why: "Board presence for parity — 5 VP a round for 1 objective of lead." - side: 0 role: "Units that die expensively rather than in threes" trait: - expendable-bodies phase: list-building why: "Units that die expensively rather than in threes; their card counts bodies, not points." - side: 0 role: "A raid package for their home objective, set up by round 4" count: 4 trait: - objective-control phase: list-building why: "A raid package for their home objective, set up by round 4." - side: 0 role: "Restraint on kills" trait: - damage phase: list-building why: "Restraint on kills: the condemned clause is a bonus, parity is the engine." - side: 0 role: "A reactive threat that makes the approach cost something" count: 1 trait: - reactive-deterrence phase: rounds-2-3 why: "This card checks its hold at the Command phase, so every grab has to live through a full enemy turn. Heroic Intervention, Fire Overwatch and Counter-Offensive make that survivable by taxing the commit instead of answering it after the fact — cheaper than buying enough wounds to tank it." - side: 1 role: "Focused firepower that reliably finishes a unit every turn" trait: - damage phase: list-building why: "Focused firepower that reliably finishes a unit every turn — the card counts kills, not damage." - side: 1 role: "Cheap targets preferred" count: 3 trait: - expendable-bodies - damage phase: list-building why: "Cheap targets preferred: killing three 60-point units beats killing one 300-point one." - side: 1 role: "2 objectives chosen at deployment to score AND deny parity" count: 2 trait: - objective-control phase: list-building why: "2 objectives chosen at deployment to score AND deny parity." - side: 1 role: "A home screen from round 4" count: 4 trait: - screening phase: list-building why: "A home screen from round 4." - side: 1 role: "A reactive threat that makes the approach cost something" count: 1 trait: - reactive-deterrence phase: rounds-2-3 why: "This card checks its hold at the Command phase, so every grab has to live through a full enemy turn. Heroic Intervention, Fire Overwatch and Counter-Offensive make that survivable by taxing the commit instead of answering it after the fact — cheaper than buying enough wounds to tank it." dependsOn: corpus: "2026-05-09 23:42:21" gdmPack: "GDM" status: draft sources: [] --- ## The matchup in a nutshell Two killers with different accountants. Punishment pays a generous flat rate for objective parity and treats kills as a bonus; Delaying Action pays **2 VP per enemy unit destroyed**, counting units rather than points. Edge to Punishment on reliability, but two well-chosen objectives can swing 8 VP a round for the Disruption player. | | Purge the Foe | Disruption | |---|---|---| | Card | Punishment | Delaying Action | | Scores at | command phase | mixed | | Hold window | 1 enemy turn | 1 enemy turn | | Exposure | 13/20 | 12/20 | | Activation cost | 9/20 | 9/20 | A hold window of 1 cuts both ways, and most players only think about one of them. It means your grab has to survive a full enemy turn before it pays — but it also means **you get a whole turn to shoot theirs off the marker before they bank it**. Denial is not a side quest on this card; it is half the card. ## Playing Purge the Foe *Your card: Punishment. Scoring checkpoint: command phase. Hold window: 1 enemy turn.* ### How you score At your Command phase, 4 VP for holding anything and 5 VP for holding more objectives than them. 5 VP at the end of a turn when a condemned enemy unit leaves the battlefield. And 8 VP at the end of battle for their home objective. ### What it costs you Parity is cheap. The 8 VP finish is not — it needs a unit to survive on their home objective, which on the boards we have measured means standing in the open. Exposure 13/20, activation cost 9/20. ### How you break them Their 3 VP end-of-turn line needs **one central and one expansion objective simultaneously** — not two of anything. Deny either type and it is gone. Their kill line counts units, so your losses are what fund them: do not feed them three cheap units when one big one would have died anyway. Consolidate rather than scattering. ### What your list needs - Board presence for parity — 5 VP a round for 1 objective of lead. - Units that die expensively rather than in threes; their card counts bodies, not points. - A raid package for their home objective, set up by round 4. - Restraint on kills: the condemned clause is a bonus, parity is the engine. ## Playing Disruption *Your card: Delaying Action. Scoring checkpoint: mixed. Hold window: 1 enemy turn.* ### How you score 2 VP per enemy unit destroyed each turn. 4 VP at your Command phase for holding anything. And 3 VP at the end of your turn for holding one or more central objectives **and** one or more expansion objectives at the same time. ### What it costs you Kills can be taken from cover, so your exposure is genuinely low. The central-plus-expansion clause forces you to hold two specific pieces of ground, but you choose which. Exposure 12/20, activation cost 9/20. ### How you break them Their parity bonus is worth 5 VP a round and needs **strictly more** objectives than you. Choose your central and expansion pair so that it also matches their count: the same 2 objectives then score your 3 VP and deny their 5 VP, an 8 VP swing per round from one deployment decision. Screen your home from round 4 against the 8 VP finish. And their condemned clause needs specific units gone, so protecting the marked one is worth more than saving a bigger unit. ### What your list needs - Focused firepower that reliably finishes a unit every turn — the card counts kills, not damage. - Cheap targets preferred: killing three 60-point units beats killing one 300-point one. - 2 objectives chosen at deployment to score AND deny parity. - A home screen from round 4. ## The three layouts Purge the Foe vs Disruption is played on one of three boards, and they are not the same game. All three are transcribed and measured below. | Board | Deployment | Openness | Centre exposure | Cost to raid a home marker | No-man's-land | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Layout 1 | diagonal halves | 7/20 | 20.7% | 66.8% | 0% | | Layout 2 | diagonal across the long axis | 2/20 | 3.9% | 14.2% | — | | Layout 3 | diagonal across the short axis | 5/20 | 8.1% | 46.2% | 2.4% | - **Layout 1** — diagonal halves, openness **7/20**. The middle is contested ground — the best holding spot on a central marker is still visible to **20.7%** of the enemy deployment zone. Home markers are a fortress: taking one means standing in front of **66.8%** of their deployment zone. No-man's-land markers sit at **0%**. 70% of the legal holding spots can go fully out of sight — pick the spot, not the marker. - **Layout 2** — diagonal across the long axis, openness **2/20**. The middle is free real estate: there is a legal spot within range of a central marker that only **3.9%** of the enemy deployment zone can see. Home markers are soft: walking onto one of theirs exposes you to only **14.2%** of their zone. 63% of the legal holding spots can go fully out of sight — pick the spot, not the marker. - **Layout 3** — diagonal across the short axis, openness **5/20**. The middle is free real estate: there is a legal spot within range of a central marker that only **8.1%** of the enemy deployment zone can see. Raiding a home marker costs **46.2%** exposure — real, but payable with one screened unit. No-man's-land markers sit at **2.4%**. Almost anywhere you stand near a marker (87% of legal spots) can be put fully out of sight. If your plan needs enemy ground, **Layout 2** is where it is cheapest (14.2% exposure against 66.8% on Layout 1) — the same raid can be a bargain or a suicide depending on which board you drew. Purge the Foe and Disruption must survive a full enemy turn before banking a grab, so **Layout 2** (openness 2/20) is the board where that plan is cheapest, and **Layout 1** (7/20) the one where it bleeds. Numbers are measured on the transcribed sheets: every legal spot within control range of each marker is tested, and the best one is reported — the way a real player looks for the safest place to stand, not the middle of the marker. ## Decision points - Deployment — Disruption picks the central-plus-expansion pair that also contests parity. - Every turn — Disruption asks "which unit can I actually finish?", not "what is the best target?". - Round 4 — Purge the Foe commits to the home raid; Disruption decides whether to screen or keep scoring.