SinJ

I'm planning on running Parker alongside Hamelin for most schemes/strats. Parker's mobility and potentially nasty burst damage seems very solid. I think Envy is almost an auto-include with him and the Effigy also seems solid.

They can create voodoo dolls for Zoraida which is honestly a pretty decent buff.

Ahh I see where you are coming from now. I do think that is pretty card/suit intensive but true! I think that Sparks with regular stuffed piglets and Wong would be pretty fantastic after packing them with more explosives.

Unless the book is wrong the Emissary is not a Construct. Effigies are constructs but not Emissaries.

Technically available to anyone McTavish can do it with Gator Snack, and corner case but Dust Storm can remove scrap to heal. That's what I can think of off the top of my head.

@Clockwork_Fish I am planning on running Mah with Sparks and Survivors post Gen Con. My planned list looks a bit different but I think Survivors will be solid with Mah.

It's Aionus he was a limited release last year. You can still find him online. He was cast in a different material than the usual plastics so is a bit more flexible. Also he comes pre-assembled.

Also while not particularly potent Kirai generally brings Onryo which absolutely have ranged attacks. In general I do think Wong is your Ressur drop as blasts are usually solid. Glowy is the real winner here ignoring Incorporeal. On McTavish he can also devour corpse or scrap to gain additional attacks.

@Kobayashi I'm buying the Emissary because I think it's a lot better in play than on paper. I also love the model and I think it has solid synergy in Mah or Wong crews. Don't worry about what people on a forum say or suggest do what you enjoy!

Taxidermists seems pretty decent for the cost. I play mine as a counter to weak scheme runners on the flank. I would consider him if you are also bringing Stuffed Piglets as his Dead Man's Switch ability can be quite nasty!

I don't have the card in front of me but I was planning on bringing the Emissary with Mah alongside Mancha Roja. Being able to have additional instances of slow or paralyzed can be crucial on a big turn. In general Gremlins don't seem to have a lot of sources to hand out Slow, especially at range. The Emissary also looks to be really good with Somer. Positive Flips on Bayou Two-Card seems really strong!

Yu leaving the spotlight is overall a good thing. I love having a very good second support option. Also now your opponent's have something else to lament so you get to hear less complaining about the Sensei!

The Emissary is pretty fantastic with Hamelin, adding a second source of ranged blighted is extremely useful. In general if you need a model built to run schemes the Emissary is going to make a big difference. Running a set up with I Pay Better on Hannah and Sewer king on Hamelin his (0) doesn't drain your hand too much. Otherwise I have mostly played him in my four horsemen lists as a proxy as he's gone on the first turn. The Horsemen list in general is actually quite strong. The Rider's speed and ability to push into and out of combat is extremely useful for different schemes. Usually your opponent can/will kill a rider around turn two if they want but the remaining three will usually carry me through the game. Leveticus in the four horsemen is a speed bump for your opponent to overcome in the early turns. He will generally go hunting scheme runners while I keep the Horsemen and the waifs safe.

Always keep your strats and schemes in mind before each model's activation. In general you will be fortunate to make it to round 4 so pick schemes that you can complete by yourself that require as little of the opponent's cooperating as possible. Also keep a cheat sheet of what you can spend soul stones on. Choosing the right moment to impose a negative flip on your opponent can make or break a game.

Ten Thunders are pretty spoiled with the Katanaka Snipers. The Trapper is still a solid piece but in Thunders I would definitely reach for the Katanaka first but rarely more than one.

@Merellin If you want a self-contained box Lynch is solid.

This is a great resource for newer players. Thank you for putting this together!

Three to a box, not sure on the story but there are pictures out there showing the back of the box with three separate renders.

I will start by saying that I am also collecting Gremlins, and there is not a lot of crossover with Outcasts unless you build Wong. Of the two factions Outcasts are much more specialized which means generally less cross-over even in their native faction. For example with Hamelin you will need at least one Brotherhood of the Rat box as well as his crew box. You may also want Taelor which only comes new in the Viks box and a Trapper or Libraraian which are in the Von Schill box. That's just to play Hamelin. Gremlins also have this issue as well with Trixiebelle, Lenny, and Francois which are home to their own crewboxes. If you were to start either Outcasts or Gremlins the crews that will give you the most bang for your buck will be Ophelia's Kin Box and Von Schills Freikorps. Both of those boxes easily expand out into the faction are are solid crews for beginners. They also both have models that you will take into other lists. The worst box to begin Outcasts with would probably be Hamelin's as you still need the catchers and kings out of Brotherhood of the Rat to effectively play him. The worst box to start Gremlins with would probably be Mah Tucket as she wants Rooser Riders, Francois and/or Mancho to lay down the pain. For Outcasts: Leveticus - As others have already mentioned he can be a difficult master to start with. He has unique requirements to come back to life and requirements to do so which can be difficult to balance as a new player. He has the largest hiring pool in the game and you will want to fill it so RIP your wallet. If you have experience with other war games and are good at picking up new ideas he is not terrible to start with. If you have a competitive meta then you should expect that you will play against him. If you are just playing with your friends then maybe skip. Hamelin - The Rat master although he can play a solid Obey game with heavy hitting mercs. Overall more of a Denial master and will play to schemes and strats rather than focusing on killing your opponent's models. The Rat Machine is almost integral to his playstyle, but can provide a less than thrilling experience for your opponent if you are not fast with activations and summons. I would recommend him the least out of the four you suggested for a new player. Von Schill and Viks I don't really have experience with but generally what others have mentioned is solid advice. I highly recommend checking out the Podcast Schemes and Stones as they have episodes for almost every master. It will give you a better idea if they sound more like your play style and what models work well with them. Either way just take the plunge and start playing, I began in Ten Thunders moved to Outcasts and am now collecting Gremlins so you never know where you'll end up.

I think Wyrd hasn't placed hiring or summoning restrictions so far due to a smaller model pool. I'm not trying to advocate for an entirely fluffy game but does it make sense that you can hire those things you mentioned in other crews? Especially with the advent of now wave three and four incoming I think that there are plenty of models where restriction could make sense, especially in regards to summoning. I think that making Malifaux Rats unhirable would be a solid solution as well as making the Obedient Wretch only hirable to models with the Nihilist characteristic *for Henchman hardcore Nix. As a Hamelin player this feels like it retains his rat game while not crossing into the ridiculous territory allowed with the Rat Engine plus Leveticus and Belles or the Viks. However most people think excessive activation control is overall the problem. The solution needs to originate from an overall change or option not just spot treating one at a time.

If the terrain rule you both agreed on was due to the forest being so thick you couldn't place a base then you should probably treat it as an impassable object for the purposes of pushing.

The best Chi gainer if you want to damage/kill your own models is Komainu. They will survive the double severe due to armor and HTK. You can actually use them for a second turn of chi creation then remake them via Toshiro's upgrade from their scrap. Focusing then charging is also not a terrible idea to not deplete your hand as fast. I generally will walk to Komainu and go defensive then have Yan Lo charge to their side and in cover. Soul Porters are the break class in case of emergency contingency plan if you don't have the cards to guarantee a second upgrade equip on turn two (severes). Unless you think you are actively going to be threatened turn one your control hand is not that important. In general though Yan Lo is very card hungry, I highly recommend bringing models that are either card efficient with built in or give you draw such as Sue, or Lust.

SH 5 with to attack is no joke. At the worst it makes shooting into cover cheatable. At the least it puts less pressure on your hand. I'm sure that SH 7 would be preferable but I'll take positive flips on SH 5 any day over SH 6. For his point cost he brings a ton to the table. A very reliable piece and bringing card draw via Hurt is amazing. I usually activate Sue fairly early in the turn to get up whatever defensive ability is more relevant so the duration doesn't really bother me. I don't flinch at the Merc tax taking him with Thunders out of faction. At regular cost he's a bargain.

In general Sue is excellent as he brings abilities besides the Man in Black that are almost always useful. I regularly hire him as a Merc for other factions, so I feel he is almost under-costed in Outcasts.

Sorry, but you are incorrect. Dual faction masters retain their faction qualities even when hired into another faction. Ruling on Misaki Healing