Thanks for the welcome!
As far as faction background, all you need to know is that my wife says I have no compassion. So I tend towards the witch-hunter, GW Black Templars, inquisitors (in both fantasy and sci-fi), and so on. I guess in Malifaux, that would mean the Guild. Not sure yet which of the Guild crews appeals to me the most. I do like aspects of all of them. The Wild West feel of the Ortegas is sweet, but the Grave Marshals are just flat out awesome models!
I like to be a self-contained gamer, so I'll need to collect an opposing force as well. As I mentioned, I'd like to be able to play some games with the kids, and besides, in all honesty, I am not a huge fan of gore. So probably the Resurrectionists and Neverborn are out. I am leaning towards Arcanists (Cult of December) and Outcasts (the Steamfitters Guild).
Lastly, I'll probably get some mercenaries to mix things up a bit (I'm leaning towards the Viktorias boxed set - because those figures are just plain terrific!).
As far as playing style, I usually prefer a balance between shooty and melee, tending more towards shooty. And I tend not to use a whole lot of magic - I put my faith in my trusty old six-shooter rather than in some hocus-pocus!
I've not yet read the rules, so I am at a bit of a loss as to what I'll need to start (what is the points value of an average crew, how many points do different models cost, which models go together in the various factions, etc.) I am also looking for more background information. I've read the three volumes of the Chronicles, but I am a bit disappointed to not see more fluff on the website. I know that generally mixing characters from different factions is a no-no, but among the Arcanists, for example, which figures go with the Cult of December and which go with Lilith?
Another question: since I use figures from several different gaming systems and I mix and match using various rulesets, I try to base all my figures, regardless of origin, uniformly. I use a 25mm round base. How important is it in terms of the rules for Malifaux figs to be based on 30mm bases?
Thanks in advance for the info, and for the welcome. Between family, work, church, etc., my time is spread pretty thin (I know, join the club!). But I will try to make an effort to get on over to Giga-bites one Saturday soon to see how Malifaux works, and hopefully I'll run into Drew while I am there.