I like the reasoning behind the removal of XP and leveling up, but how exactly are you planning to represent character growth?
As for the Premade characters...That, to me, defeats the purpose of this genre. The game's always been about creating a character and playing him; I don't see anything wrong with getting attached.
"Premades get rid of the attachment feeling. Instead of having to worry about a player not showing and having to put game on hold or have GM play their character, now the players that do show up can play with the character without upsetting the creator."
This seems to be a fault with the player group, not the RPG rules themselves. I also don't agree with this statement:
"but in actuality they say "create anything you want, but...it can't be an experienced mage, or wartorn vet, or a famed gladiator...make sure it is a weak lvl 1 that can only take on goblins and kolbolds" statement.
What's stopping you from making an experience mage or wartorn vet or anything else in an RPG other than the thematic restrictions? Character's don't have to begin at level one--as you mentioned yourself, the main characters in the malifaux storyline are already above even those with above-average magical ability.
I'd like to see a character creation system (because I want to play a unique character in the malifaux setting, not an existing character or a premade that others use. That's part of the fun) that looks somewhat like the stat cards. Then, the malifaux game could still be used to simulate a combat encounter.
I'm curious as to what the Pro/Con list looks like, mind posting it up?