Sabretooth doesn't need to be the mastermind to make the Marauders feel dangerous. Put him in a tunnel with someone who can't get away and the problem is already clear.

Sabretooth doesn't need to be the mastermind to make the Marauders feel dangerous. Put him in a tunnel with someone who can't get away and the problem is already clear. During the Massacre, he attacks Caliban and pursues the children hiding nearby. That tells you plenty about the kind of opponent he is. There is no code about proving himself against the strongest person in the room. If someone is frightened, injured or small enough to corner, he is perfectly willing to take advantage of it. His encounters with Wolverine in Uncanny X-Men #212–213 make the violence personal, but the school attack is especially nasty. The X-Men have brought injured people home. They are supposed to be recovering, and Creed turns up where they should have been safest. Betsy Braddock has to face him there before she is an established member of the team. She can't match him claw for claw. Buying time, staying alive and getting information become part of the same fight. His presence forces somebody still finding her place around the X-Men to show what she can do under awful circumstances. The contrast with Scalphunter is useful. Both will kill for the same operation, but Creed makes a performance out of fear. He talks, taunts and pushes until his opponent is thinking about him instead of the people who still need help. The Marauders would be terrible without him. With him, the danger doesn't end when the immediate attack is over. He can follow the survivors home, and he enjoys making sure they know it.