Sign Ahead

Thank you all! I decided not to decide. Von Schill and the Viktorias are based and sitting on my desk...right next to Collodi and his small army of dolls. This is a long weekend for us, so I hope to have everything base coated and a few models finished by next week. Thanks again.

Thank you all! Sounds like there are several good options. After reading your replies and doing some of my own research, here's what I'm thinking now: Von Schill Von Schill and the Freikorps are my favorites. I like most of the Freikorps models, and there are a couple other crews in the faction that I would enjoy trying out in the future. That would give me some flexibility for the list-building phase of a Malifaux game. The limited selection of dedicated Freikorps models does make expansion interesting, but with them as the core there are several mercenary models who would look good as heroic irregulars. I'm imagining battle-tested veterans with large personalities who've earned the right to modify their uniforms. At 35 points, Taelor and Hans could round out the crew, giving it 5 fully uniformed models (2 Freikorpsmen, 1 Specialist, 1 Trapper and 1 Librarian), 2 partially-uniformed models (von Schill and Hans, whose coat and goggles are fairly close to the Trapper's) and one wildcard (Taelor, whose armor and gear make her look a little bit like a new type of Freikorpsman who jumped into battle before she put on all her gear). Or I could add the Viktorias instead of Hans and Taelor. Then it would look like crew members get more gear flexibility as they move up in rank. Lucius I do like the expandability, but I'm not as enthusiastic about the models (especially after seeing some of them in person - the Freikorps models made a much better impression, even William Shakespeare: Action Hero). I also think I prefer the selection of Outcast models in general to the selection of Guild models. Other Crews Collodi and Collette are two leaders I hadn't considered but they are both very intriguing. I'll need to read more before I decide.

I'm looking for a painting project: a small Malifaux Crew that looks good in a uniform. They don't have to be military uniforms, per se, but I do want an armed band with a strong color and costume theme. My ideal crew would: wear clothing with common themes and elements - like hats, coats or masks look good with a single dominant color - preferably something vivid, like red or royal blue rather than brown or olive drab start simple - ideally in a boxed set be expandable - in other words, there are other models in the faction who would look good in the same uniform once I finish the boxed set have a variety of body types, genders, poses and gear - even though everyone's dressed the same they should still look like individuals require very little conversion - I enjoy conversions, but don't have a lot of time for them right now. I want to get this crew painted and on the table. have a small(ish) model count - again with the "getting them painted and on the table" After browsing through the boxed sets, these are the most likely candidates: Von Schill: Freikorps Lucius: Elite Division There are a few others that might work if the criteria stretched a little. Rasputina and the Cult of December don't look like uniformed soldiers, but they do have a very strong visual theme and could be very vivid blue. Sonnia Criid and her Witch Hunters or Kaeris and her M&SU Assets would be similiar, but with a fiery color scheme instead. Since I'm not too familiar with Malifaux, I'm sure I'm missing some options. If you were trying to create an armed, uniformed band, who would you choose?

The statues surprised me too, especially after I got my first taste of Sub-Zero. If I had a bunch of armored ice gremlins that froze attackers when they were hit and exploded when they died, I'd be running up the table screaming "Hit me! C'mon, HIT ME!" But that's pretty much what I like to do in most miniature games anyway (especially if I get a chance to hit back too ). Judging by our conversation at the table, my opponent really liked denial strategies, and was happiest when his crew prevented me from using my crew's core abilities. In retrospect, I think all of my ranged models should have done more shooting. Even if each attack did only one point of damage, between Seamus, the Copycat Killer, the Convict Gunsligner, Sybelle and the two Crooked Men would have dealt 11 points of damage per turn. If my opponent had discovered Biting Chill one turn earlier, he would have destroyed Seamus. Once he brought it to bear on Sybelle, there was nothing I could do until it was time to use Slow to Die.

Thanks, Drake! I'm not sure I can piece together the individual conflicts in the order that they happened. I'm a new player and there were too many things competing for my attention. But I think I can sort them out by theme. Just for the sake of learning, here they are. Next time I’ll try to work them into my narrative. Belles vs the Icy Constructs For the first few turns, I didn't know what to do with Rasputina's Ice Golem and Ice Gamins. My opponent marched them up the table and turned them into statues. Then Rasputina and the Silent One sat back behind an un-lureable wall of constructs and used Ice Mirror to snipe at my minions. By the end of turn two one Belle was dead and two more minions were seriously injured. I may have put one point of damage on a Gamin, but I can’t remember. I tried to break up the wall by activating all of my Belles at once and luring luring a Gamin into combat before it could turn itself into a statue. But my opponent deftly cheated his way out of danger and the Gamin stopped well short of melee range. I shrieked at it with Sybelle, but she couldn’t finish it off. Seamus vs the Troublesome Ice Gamin On its activation the Gamin charged, engaging Sybelle and another Belle. Miraculously it didn’t hurt either one. “Aha!” I thought. “I’ll just finish this icy devil off with Seamus. Then I’ll walk a few more inches and summon a new Belle using that fresh corpse counter.” So Seamus stepped up to the Gamin, hit it with a melee attack and triggered Sub-Zero. His activation ended immediately, without defeating the Gamin or summoning a new Belle. Then the December Cultist stepped forward and ate my beautiful corpse counter. It was a very discouraging turn. Crooked Men vs the December Acolyte (and later vs the Wendigo) This was an odd contest. The December Acolyte set up deep in obscuring terrain, and thanks to Hunter, she could see my models but they couldn’t really see her. She was so difficult to dislodge that I decided to ignore her and focus on the rest of the December cultists. The Crooked Men were on their way to engage the Icy Construct wall when they saw her step from the woods and gobble up a precious corpse counter. Carnsarnit! Ain't nothin' worse than a claimjumper. They devoted the rest of the game to setting traps and protecting our valuable resources. Once the Shafted counters appeared, the December Acolyte retreated back into the woods where the Redchapel Gang could safely ignore her. Every December Cultist on the Table vs Seamus With Seamus frozen and out in the open, the Cult of December pressed the attack. This is where I discovered just how durable he can be with a good hand and a couple of soulstones. Before his next activation, Seamus weathered attacks from Rasputina, the Silent One and two Ice Gamins but suffered only 5 points of damage. At the end of the next turn he was fully healed and, glory of glories, he finally managed to raise a new Belle. This is when I decided to “brick up” and try a new strategy. Instead of trying to pull the Icy Construct wall apart or edge around its flanks (more on this in a moment), I’d gather up my durable band and push through it. Every December Cultist on the Table vs Sybelle The Resurrectionists marched forward with Seamus and Sybelle in the lead. Instead of going after Seamus again, Rasputina targeted Sybelle, first with a Gamin, the Silent One and the Wendigo and then with Rasputina herself. Sybelle’s defense was just high enough that Rasputina abandoned her Ice Mirrors and attacked Sybelle directly. And that’s when she stepped into range of the Convict Gunslinger. The Convict Gunslinger vs Two Action Points For most of the game, the Convict Gunslinger tried to edge around Rasputina’s wall of Icy Constructs. Each turn he’d move once and fire once, which meant he did a little bit of damage, and never quite caught Rasputina or the Silent one as their crew moved around. The Convict Gunslinger vs Rasputina It wasn’t until Rasputina’s direct attack on Sybelle that the convict had a juicy target in range and two activation points to spend on Rapid Fire. Thanks to a pair of high Masks in my hand and a Red Joker damage flip, he made the most of the opportunity. Strategies and Schemes vs the Free-for-all After Rasputina died, the rest of her crew folded pretty quickly. We called the game after the next turn. Although I enjoyed my introduction to Malifaux immensely, I don't think I saw it in its best light. Since we didn't have strategies and schemes to give ourselves a goal, the game stopped when one of us got discouraged. That's never a good way to end a game.

Tonight, a new Redchapel Gang took to the streets of Malifaux, where they squared off against the Cult of December in a 35ss scrap. On one side (Hip, hip. Hooray!) we had: Seamus A Copycat Killer the lovely Sybelle 3 Rotten Belles 2 Crooked Men 1 Convict Gunslinger And on the other (Boo! Hiss!) side we had: Rasputina A Wendigo 3 Ice Gamins 1 Ice Golem 1 Silent One 1 December Cultist Because both crews were relatively new to Malifaux (Seamus had just arrived and Rasputina had only played a single game), we eschewed strategies and schemes and declared a free-for-all. "Let's beat each other up and see what happens!" we said. And then the game, as they say, was afoot. Our devilishly handsome hero started the encounter with a simple plan: advance in a loose group with enough space between minions to protect against Rasputina's pulse and blast attacks. Focus on one foe at a time. Pull it from the group and beat it into a crimson stain on the white, white snow. But Rasputina's band was well prepared for Seamus' shennanigans, and with careful activation she was able to hold off the worst of his enticements and terrors. She was careful to root her models at the end of each activation (to keep them from being pushed), freeze the hearts of her living minions (to protect them from terror), and devour corpse counters as soon as they appeared (before Seamus could put them to better use). With the help of the Ice Mirror talent (and the undead's generally poor defense) she cast her spells from relative safety, well away from the melee. She slowed models who had yet to activate, and locked up models in melee with well-timed defensive triggers that froze them in place and ended their activations. Shell-shocked, slowed and lightly frozen (thanks to an ill-considered melee attack on an Ice Gamin), Seamus saw his crew dropping one by one. By the end of turn three, he had lost two Belles and a Crooked Man, without inflicting a single casualty on his opponent. So he formulated a new plan. He called his minions back from their far-flung positions and formed them into a tight brick, right out in the open. Now, although they were no longer protected from the Cult's shooting and fierce blast attacks, they were close enough to Seamus that he could draw a card every time one died. And if one of Rasputina's cold-hearted crew wanted to gobble up the corpse counter, he would have come out in the open to get it. They were still taking damage, but their natural resilience was enough to slow the bleeding Then the Redchapel Gang sprang a trap. The lovely (and thoroughly tempting) Sybelle moved to the front of the pack and waited for an attack. Such a delectable morsel was too much for Rasputina to resist. The Cult's minions threw everything they had at the grand olde madame, but she stood her ground and shrieked her defiance. In the end, Rasputina delivered the killing blow herself...and stepped into range of the Convict Gunslinger. Pistols blazed and the smell of cordite filled the air. When the smoke cleared, Rasputina was mortally wounded, and her crew was in shambles. The scrap continued for a few more turns, but while the cultists’ crew shrank, Seamus’ crew grew larger. Surrounded by the undead, and with one of their number paralyzed in a surprise cave-in, the cultists fled into the night.

I'm still brand new to Malifaux, so there's a good chance that I have this wrong, but if you bring the lovely Sybelle, can't you also activate a bunch of Belles at once? That seems like it would be useful in an objective game, especially if your opponent doesn't have a lot of models (so your early activation doesn't come back to bite you later in the turn).

Thanks all! In an odd twist of fate, I went to the store planning to order Gremlins, and came home with a set of Resurrectionists. Ophelia looks like a lot of fun, but so does Seamus. Plus, when everything else is relatively equal, "in-stock and ready to go" beats "we'll call you when it arrives" every single time. MadArcanist — Thanks for pointing me towards the tactics discussions on the forums. Although I landed with a different crew than I expected, it gave me an idea of what to look for when I got home with my new models. I'm using the condensed rulebook that was released earlier this year. It has very little information about the models themselves, so I have almost no idea how Seamus and his belles compare to other crews. Good online guides and discussions are a big help for new players (like me) as we build our expectations of the game.

Hi all. I'm a...what's newer than new?...um...prospective Malifaux player living near Phoenix, Arizona. I'm usually a board-gamer, and most of the miniature gamers I know play other things, like WH40K and Warmachine. But this is the first miniature game that's gotten my housemates excited (I think it's the giant, terrifying teddy bear). Now that I've looked around a bit, I'm intrigued too. I've got the rulebook and I'm getting ready to place my first order, which will most likely be the "Born on the Bayou" boxed set, via my friendly local game store (the Game Depot in Tempe). But before I do, I'm going to do a little more online exploring.