The Saboteur and YouThe Saboteur is a defensively classed specialists whose strength comes in redirecting oncoming enemy subs back to the owner’s closest outpost. Often used as a throwaway last resort to
stall for time, this way of using the Saboteur is almost encouraged as saboteurs
come in pair. While a simple and seemingly lame specialist when compared to his other defensive brethren, the pair of saboteurs packs more utility than first suspected.
Lets dive a bit deeper into his effect and how it works- In any sub-to-sub combat the Saboteur will redirect the enemy sub to its closest owned outpost. This means a couple things-
A. The Interaction does not take place during the Specialist Phase but
after the Driller Phase- similar to how the Engineer will repair after battle.
B. The Combat Priority of the Saboteur a high 3. Only a
Reverend Elder or a Martyr (Please don’t send a Saboteur to try and turn back a Martyr- She’s pretty determined)
can negate the effect of the Saboteur. Even though his effect occurs after battle, Capturing, Assassinating or Turning him with a Double Agent during the Specialist phase
will not stop redirection.
C. The affected sub will redirect to the
nearest owned outpost- not from the sub origins. After the Saboteurs interaction in which the sub goes to an outpost that it did not originate, it becomes unable to be intercepted by normal means similar to a sub with a Navigator aboard.
Okay now that we got those details out of the way let's look into the specialist synergies.
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-Specialists Synergies-Rescue Specialists- Diplomat, Pirate, and AdmiralOften when you are sending the saboteur to deflect an oncoming sub he gets captured in the process. A noble sacrifice, but what if you could bring him back and
recycle him instead of losing him forever?
-Diplomat- Diplomats while their negotiation tactics to this day remain a mystery, are certainly useful in turning the Sab into a reusable unit by
releasing the Saboteur as soon as the he reaches an enemy outpost. Sending a single driller to intercept him midway off his release can also bar faster enemy subs from attacking from that route.
-Pirate- While most will initially see the Pirate as an offensive specialist meant to terrorize your enemies gifts and unguarded specialists, Some will see him as
a savior, Capable of targeting captured Specialists that you have suicided and returning them to safety. A Pirate and a Pair of Saboteurs can hold off a legion of enemy subs if necessary. One of the Better less known Synergy in the game of subterfuge.
The Pirate can also be used to target and redirect enemy subs that the Saboteur is currently can’t intercept at his residing outpost, thought this often leads to the capture of both specialists.
-Admiral- A Saboteur can be
rescued by an unmanned sub that is under the global influence of an admiral, in a similar fashion that one might perform a Triple Agent.
Speed Specialists*Both of these rescuing tactics can be enhanced with speed specialists. Keep in mind that a speed specialist must not be captured in order to work, so intercepting captured specialists released from the diplomats charms is important.
Aside from that, Speed specialists are important in
properly positioning the saboteurs to intercept incoming death subs.
GeneralBecause Saboteurs come in pairs, the General benefits doubley-so when using them offensively as suicide fighters. The General does a decent job at covering the Saboteurs crobar in barb wire and g
iving their defense some teeth- This combined with the above mentioned Rescue Specialists is an excellent recipe.
Sprinkle in your Thiefs and Reverend Elders, and add 2 more cups of Generals, Bake for 48hrs at 320 degrees Fahrenheit. Marinate in enemies tears and enjoy. SentriesMany defensive specialists benefit well from the cover fire of a Sentry, and the Saboteur is no different. The Saboteur effectively forces the enemy sub into
remaining in the Sentries range for twice as long.
Shred Specialists-Inspector, War Hero, Lieutenants, and GeneralsOne of the weaknesses of the Saboteur is that he can only redirect one enemy sub at a time; if the enemy sends a multitude of smaller subs at an outpost, the
Sabo becomes useless. A Specialist that can eliminate a set amount of drillers d
iscourage smaller sub strategies and cover this weakness of the Saboteur. War Hero's, Inspectors, Lieutenants, and Generals can all fill the role of a Shred Specialist.
Speed+Infiltrator + Enemy Double AgentNot really a combination but an interesting interaction. The DA will turn colors with the Saboteur and his crew. The Saboteur will Redirect the DA back to his outpost of origin. The Speed specialist will catch up and run over the DA activating his effect once again, turning every specialist back to their original color. Because at the time the the DA was your color, his sub will now be redirected to your nearest outpost.
Because this interaction will leave both parties devoid of any drillers, it is up to your sent specialists to capture the targeted outpost without drillers- This is possible only if they do not have a shield through the King's effect, or if you're carrying an infiltrator aboard.
Another note- If the Saboteur is sent at the last possible moment to intercept a sub, the game will occasionally glitch, sending the Saboteur but teleporting the targeted enemy sub to its nearest outpost. This is problematic as the Saboteurs purpose is to stall combat- so porting your enemy [color=#BFFFFF]reduces that stall time in half.
A way to avoid this is to send the Saboteur at least 20 minutes before the enemy sub docks your outpost.
Credit goes to Mathwiz9 for information regarding this glitch. [/color]
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Placement and When to Hire the SaboteurPlacing the Saboteur is fairly simple. Place him where you believe your enemy might attack with a death sub or keep him out of sight with a speed specialist so your Enemy will not try to counter him, similarly how you'd use most defensive specialists.
When should you hire the Saboteur? The Saboteur by himself is
at his worst a weak defensive deterrent that is easily circumvented and at his best a stall against a Death Sub that will probably head back at you as soon as it docks. To be used to his fullest potentially he
really needs supporting cast, so if you want to use the Saboteur be looking for the above listed synergies- Especially the Rescue and General synergies.
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How to Counter the Saboteur Here is a list of the many ways to counter the mighty Saboteurs.
-Sending Drillers in smaller groups to take a outpost as opposed to a single large sub.
-The Reverend Elder can completely negate the Saboteurs effect.
-The Navigator make the Saboteur cry deep salty tears
-Any speed Specialist can mitigate the time the Saboteur stalls for- Admirals work well if you intend on sending multiple smaller subs.
-Assassins can solve your problem if your opponent has acquired a means to retrieve their saboteur.
As you can see the Saboteur is a fairly easy specialist to counter by itself as its counters are simple or readily hireable, so it might be more effective to try and disengage its supporting specialists.
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So in Summary, while not the best defensive specialist- he may be the worst when compared to other defensive specialists when it comes to being effective- he does have one some fun uses and is the only defensive intercept that doesn't become completely unusable by blowing up or switching sides.
So all in all? Pretty bad but kinda fun to use if you have a supporting cast.
This has been G-Complex with the specialist miniseries, and remember Saboteurs before Martyrs. Stay Classy Subterfuge. Edited 01- Cosmetic issues.