The following contains spoilers for X-Men #23, Bishop's War College #5, and X-Men Before the Fall: Mutant First Strike #1, now on sale from Marvel Comics
Orchis has been carrying out a crusade against the mutant nation since the concept was first introduced to the Marvel Universe. The anti-mutant organization has been hard at work recruiting villains and geniuses from across both heroic and villainous groups to create horrifying new weapons, all in the name of wiping out the X-Men and their allies. In that time, they've utilized a lot of different methods, with varying degrees of success.
But for all the cybernetic warfare, overt attacks, and specific subterfuge, Orchis' most powerful weapon might just be public opinion. Orchis has been increasingly focusing their attention on turning public sentiment against the mutant nation, with the events of X-Men #23 (by Gerry Duggan, Joshua Cassara, Dee Cunniffe, and VC's Clayton Cowles), Bishop's War College #5 (by J. Holtham, Sean Damien Hill, Alberto Foche, Victor Nava, Espen Grundetjern, and Travis Lanham) and X-Men Before the Fall: Mutant First Strike #1 (by Steve Orlando, Valentine Pinti, Frank William, and VC's Travis Lanham) highlighting their success in that field. As a key component of creating an Orchis-dominated future, it seems gaining the public's trust might be a major factor for the organization going into Fall of X.
Orchis' War Against The X-Men Needs To Win Hearts & Minds
Orchis has been increasingly focused on a public reception victory, taking cues from their publicly celebrated role in Judgment Day. Turning public opinion against mutants at large comes in multiple forms, with many of these methods highlighted across different series. In X-Men #23, it's revealed that Orchis has upgraded classic Sentinels with Iron Man design aesthetic and weaponry. While this makes them far more dangerous in combat, this co-opting of a heroic legacy has granted a confirmed upswing in public approval for the organization.
While they excuse any efforts to kill innocent mutants as computing errors, they quickly use their allies in the media to paint the X-Men as villains for intervening and destroying the Sentinel before it killed anyone. When the X-Men respond to a secret Orchis attack on a civilian city in X-Men Before the Fall: Mutant First Strike #1, their allies in the press accuse the X-Men of having carried out the attack. The town themselves come to see the first responder X-Men as heroes, but the public is largely led to believe the lies that Orchis feeds them.
Orchis Has Gained A Major Advantage Over The X-Men
Even a largely victorious outcome for the X-Men in Bishop's War College #5 gives Orchis intel about Sabretooth and the other prisoners of the Pit being free in the world. Moira MacTaggert openly suggest they reveal that info to the public as a means of scaring people about "dangerous" mutants being on the loose. All of this could be used to further implicate Krakoa as a lawless hotbed for dangerous killers. It all goes a long way towards convincing the public to turn their backs on the mutants, which would be a true victory for the hateful organization.
While the X-Men gained a lot of credibility at the beginning of the Krakoa Era by spreading mutant medicines throughout the world, the efforts of groups like Orchis to counter that have finally been taking root. It's similar to when Dox News openly revealed information of mutants and their loved ones in New Mutants, falsely reporting on them as enemies of the public. Their plans have only grown more bold and more horrendous, with X-Men #22 hinting at their plans to hijack the Sinister strain hidden within Krakoan medicine and use it to frame the mutants for mass slaughter. Orchis' victories in the war for public perception could make those atrocities easier to try and justify, allowing the world to potentially even cheer on as the X-Men face their greatest threat yet. It's a grim and horrifying advantage for Orchis, and speaks to their truly insidious nature.