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Doom 2016 has been one of the most successful first-person shooter games of our times, and Doom Eternal is a sequel that managed to improve almost everything from the first game and took it a step further.
The gameplay received many fresh additions and the game even featured a bit of a storyline accompanying the different levels of the game which is something different for a traditional Doom game, but it all worked and the game has been received extremely well.
However, not every addition was welcomed and one of the new types of enemies in the game has been a divisive topic ever since people reached that point in the game. That enemy is the Marauder, who plays more like a fighting/beat ‘em up game enemy instead of a first-person shooter one. How? Let’s break his gameplay structure down.
What makes the Marauder different?
He can block you for as long as he wants and, in most cases, you can only attack him when he finally provides you the opening – and even in that case you need to specifically parry him to get anywhere with it.
You have to be precise and time your attacks well, otherwise, you will find yourself lower and lower in health. Additionally, he can also summon a spirit of a wolf which can bother you for as long as you don’t kill it, making it harder to parry the enemy’s attacks.
Due to this unique type of gameplay, the enemy has been liked by half the community for the challenge but also hated by the other half for being something that breaks the rhythm of an otherwise straightforward game.
Fighting against the Marauder (Single Player)
The basic pattern to fighting the Marauder cannot be altered because even hitting them with a rocket launcher does not deal any special tier of damage to them if they’re blocking. So, whatever you do, you need to set up the perfect opportunity for yourself to use the parrying window and attack him. But of course, not all methods are created equal so here’s how to best fight them:
- The most over-used and extremely effective method is to stagger the Marauder when they give an opening (their eyes turn green when they are about to attack you) is to use the Super Shotgun. This will stagger them and you can use either the Ballista or the BFG immediately and the max tier of damage will be dealt. If they’re still standing, just repeat the method. This method has even been used for speed runs where the Marauder was defeated within 30 seconds.
- A less intense method is to just keep attacking him every time he gives an opening and not bother with the stagger. It takes longer but is calmer and if your health goes down you can kill some of the random enemies around you to regain health and so on. You can also use sticky bombs and other simpler guns to increase the damage too.
- If you go too far, he uses projectile attacks, if you got too close, he melees. So, keep a medium distance and wait for the openings. It’s very important to keep this in mind at all times.
With the new expansion The Ancient Gods adding more Marauder enemies, you’ll need to remember these details now more than ever!
Playing as the Marauder (Multiplayer)
In the multiplayer Battlemode section of the game, you can play as the menacing Marauder himself. The gameplay here is very similar to the single-player version of the Marauder, but there are a few differences.
Once you find a match to play and pick the Marauder, you can use attacks such as throwing the axe for long-range attacks, a shotgun for close-range attacks, and the ability to summon the wolf.
The shotgun is best used when you need to create a distance between your enemy, the axe is great for long-ranged attacks, and the wolf is for distracting your opponent so you can use the opportunity to get a damaging attack in (such as the explosive axe).
While it sounds fairly simple, you will notice that it’s a bit difficult to master the use of the axe and it will take some time getting used to. Thankfully, there’s a practice mode so you can use it to get better and once you do, it’s more than worth it to play as the Marauder because of the very useful diversity between the long range and close-range attacks available, and let’s be real – he’s a complete badass as a character.
Playing against the Marauder (Multiplayer)
Unlike the single player version of the Marauder, the online one is very straightforward to fight against as you won’t need to parry them or have them block everything you do.
But it’s still recommended to not just attack without a strategy as they’re still very threatening and have the wolf to distract you with. So, just be a bit patient and try to counter them as much as you can while attacking them every chance you get.
That covers everything related to the Marauder, both for the single-player story-mode and the multiplayer Battlemode. We hope this guide helped you, and if you have any questions let us know in the comments below. And while you’re here, make sure to check out some of our other helpful guides on the website as well.
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