As far as balance is concerned it depends on schemes and strategies, as hippo pointed out. Table layout will also be a large determining factor in that match up. If you both took slaughter, assassinate, and bodyguard, it would be a very balanced game, as long as the terrain was set up fairly. Too much terrain and Misaki would have the advantage, too little and VonSchill would have the advantage. My advice would be to choose a faction that visually appeals to you, have your friend do the same. Get a starter box for that faction and see what setups work best for that master, then purchase things to make up for the things that don't. Most of the time crews are chosen after the board is set up and schemes and strategies are chosen. So I would recommend choosing strategies from the core encounters to start off with instead of flipping for them to see which ones the masters you have chosen are good with.