D-A-C

Thanks for all the responses guys. After having spent the night flicking through combinations of the models I have it always comes down to changes that need to be made with how Seamus and Molly actually play on the tabletop as much as crew selection lol. The pool of models I have available is: Seamus Molly Squidpiddge Avatar of Dread Copy Cat Killer Grave Spirit Madame Sybelle x3 Rotten Belles x2 Dead Doxies x2 Onryo x2 Canine Remains Bete Noir The problem I always face is that if I fill out a crew with models I think work well, then Seamus is left with a ridiculously low SS cache of 2, also, looking at Molly if she stayed as she was (faults and all) having her cost 8 SS would make her alot easier to take when combined with Seamus IMO. I guess my kind of thinking behind the discussion of Molly vs Sybelle is more: How can I build a crew around Seamus that is solely selected in order to maximize his strengths and minimize his weaknesses? In otherwords, Seamus is the lifeblood of the entire crew (which he essentially is anyway) and so rather than buying a big expensive model like Dead Rider, which simply depletes attention away from maximizing Seamus, instead spend those 10ss on models that are there entirely to make him better and help him achieve his goals So... 1. I think that unlike alot of masters Seamus' Avatar really ups his game alot by getting him Anathema so he effects all models with terrifying, becomes a melee juggernaut and generally transposes from a nimble killer in the shadows to a beatstick at usually around the time when his Soulstone cache to maiximize his 50. Flintlock and keep him alive has been used up. So starting with that, I think that no matter what that belongs in his crew even at 25ss. 2. Next he needs his Belles. I used to run three, but I have found that to be excessive, I think 2 is usually the magic number even at higher SS levels. These two are used to both pull others towards Seamus and pull him out to safety should the need arise and they can be used to interact with any objectives. 3. I believe that these first two things are always the base of any Seamus crew, so as I play at 25ss most commonly, this leaves me exactly 17 SS to play with. HOWEVER, as we all know Seamus needs a bigger cache and I think 2 soulstones extra is a decent enough amount to spend keeping him alive and getting around 2 full 50. Hand Cannon shots off. So that means I have 15 SS to spend on models. 4. Now, if I go ahead and spend 9ss on Molly, the trouble is, that that 4ss Cache needs to be split between them both, and that is just too few IMO. So realistically I need to add another 2 extra to bring the cache to 6, and so in reality, I'm bringing Molly along for 11ss ... and looking at it that is one hell of a points sink. But, Molly's saving grace is that unlike Dead Rider or Izamu, she is solely there to help Seamus and his existing two Belles and can either be used as the perfect model for the 'Bodyguard' scheme or suicide a high threat model with Philosophy of Uncertainty. 5. On the other hand, Madame Sybelle w/ Grave Spirit costs only 7ss and adds some more offensive punch to the crew. BUT ... the problem with the buxom Sybelle is that, based on my playing experiences, she is very much her own woman, I don't really see what she is bringing to the table that is specific to buffing Seamus which is kind of what I am experimenting with? In all the games I've played with her and Seamus 9/10 people still target Seamus and charge him down and attempt to kill him the first chance they get, and whilst Madame Sybelle can sometimes punish this by running interference between Seamus and the enemy (usally a master like Lady Justice, Perdita, Lilth etc), I can't tell you how many times I've ended up with Madame Sybelle alive but Seamus Dead. And at that point in the game, its usually lost unless that is near the very last turn. Summary If you've made it this far thank you for reading what is essentially a post that is me writing my thoughts down to better find a way to go forward with my Seamus crew. At the moment my crew selection options come down to these two lists based on the logic I've come up with so far: Potential 25ss lists Seamus - 2ss Avatar of Dread Molly Squidpiddge x2 Rotten Belles (6 Soulstones left to spend, but need to prob keep 2-4 for Seamus and Molly shared Cache) Seamus - 2ss Avatar of Dread Madame Sybelle w/ Grave Spirit x2 Rotten Belles (8 Soul Stones left to spend and need to only keep 2 spare to buff Seamus Cache to a decent 4) So as you can see in both instances my thinking of crew choices always hits the brick wall of Seamus meager SS cache of 2 and perhaps that Molly is ever-so-slightly overcosted. Looking at it, Molly seems to be doing exactly what I want ... buffing Seamus, because with the crew that features her there is no way victory is happening without Seamus alive and kicking, on the other hand, what is Madame Sybelle actually doing? She is a middle of the road offensive model, that can potentially allow a few alpha strike type moves ... but with Belles, not the Ortega's!!! I'm really tempted at 25ss to run with Seamus, Avatar, Molly, x2 Belles and maybe one other model or just the full cache of 8. But is that too small a crew or is it severly limited in some way that makes running it a bit useless? Because honestly (and maybe this is lack of sleep talking) but it seems it would be much better if Sybelle is the better option to just drop her entirely and pay around 3-4 extra SS for a model like Dead Rider or Izamu and go full beatstick with them, while Seamus skulks around in the background looking for weaknesses and isolated or wounded models. I hope this post makes sense, What do you guys think?

See, I'm glad I asked this question already, I never even thought of that, so it seems that CCK is a bit of a waste in that type of crew. But I have also read that Molly is already pretty tough to take out without the grave spirit anyway, so maybe I could just use the 2 SS saved from CCK to buff Seamus' really low SS cache, that way he would have a couple more to burn on defence should he need it, have a couple extra to maximize his Flintlock shots before manifesting and also they could be of some use to Molly in her casting as she is very suit dependant somewhat unreliable.

Hey guys. I've been playing Seamus for a few months now, so you think I should know this but, just to clarify that I'm interpreting this correctly: Seamus has 12 Wounds and suffers 14 in a turn (ouch!) thus activating his Hard to Kill ability and leaving him alive with one wound remaining. If he were to activate in his next turn and cast Live For Pain and heal 2 wounds (putting his total at 3) and then suffer 4 wounds, would Hard to Kill activate again leaving him with 1 Wound and potentially allowing him to heal over and over provided he never loses that final wound? Or can it only be used once, and once its triggered he is on his last life, so to speak, regardless of whether or not he heals up using his soulstones or abilities? I play it that he always has it, so if he heals above a single wound, you have to reduce him to 1 again before you can deal the finishing blow. Silly question I know, but I did search the forum before asking (didn't find this specifically) and so I'm just confirming the rule in my mind. Thanks.

Hey everyone. I'm just wondering what the consensus opinion is on Madame Sybelle? I personally think she is an awesome character in terms of looks, fluff and is pretty solid for 6ss in terms of survivabilty, offence and chain activating Seamus' Belle crews. But after having recently purchased Molly (have yet to use her) I was just wondering if Madame Sybelle should maybe be changed out more often than not in favour of Molly? I know that Malifaux crews aren't pre-built one-size-fits all, but I'm just wondering if any more experienced players could maybe suggest times when Molly or Sybelle would be superior choices i.e vs certain crews either one is weak or near useless or during certain schemes etc? We generally play 25ss at my gaming group and I usually run: Seamus - 3ss Cache Madame Sybelle w/ Grave Spirit x3 Rotten Belles Onryo But I'm thinking of switching this up for: Seamus + Avatar of Dread - 2ss Cache Molly Squidpiddge Copy Cat Killer x3 Rotten Belles My thinking is, that let's face it, Seamus crews 9 time out of 10 succeed or fail off of the success of the Master himself. My new list is focused entirely around helping Seamus succeed rather than dissipating the crews focus into other areas such as Sybelle as an alternate source of Offence or the Onryo. The new crew will get all of its offence entire from Seamus (and that's why I added CCK for an extra 50. Flintlock and his Avatar for all the nastiness that brings to his game) and will have Molly and the Belles focus entirely on helping to buff Seamus, debuff enemies and do the heavy lifting when it comes to objective interactions. Also, because Seamus will try and manifest into his Avatar at some point Molly can take over alot of Seamus duties such as summoning and buffing the Belles movement. Plus, and please correct me if I'm wrong, but I have read that Molly can actually summon Madame Sybelle should two corpse counters make themselves available, so the old buxom girl can still posibble make the odd appearence at the cost of maybe a Belle and an enemy crew corpse? Anyway, I'm just wondering if this is a good idea to switch out Sybelle for Molly, and if you have any ideas for situations were one could possibly be more beneficial than the other. Thanks

Thanks for all the responses so far guys. I'm glad to read that I am not the only one who tends to avoid sinking 8-10ss on a model in low ss games. In saying that, I can actually appreciate the sentiment, that for Seamus in particular, a high ss model like the Dead Rider that brinks toughness and damage potential to the table (especially when linked with Gave Spirit) can still be a good investment in small games due to the sheer amount of focus he will take away from Seamus and his Belles.

Thanks for all the responses guys. I think I might try out Rafkin eventually as I love his model, but when I get round to purchasing Nico for Christmas I'll go ahead and stick with buying his boxset which includes mortimer and the always useful Punk Zombies. My final question would be, Mortimer seems far from an 'auto-include' in Nicodem lists, so what kinds of strategies/schemes or opponents warrant his inclusion?

Hey everyone. I was just wondering what your go-to schemes are when running your rezzer crews? For example, I have recently been running Frame For Murder on Madame Sybelle, my reasoning be being, that apart from Seamus its the only model with high damage output, and all my recent games have been against Guild (L.J & Perdita) so the chances of those masters putting the smackdown on Sybelle are reasonably high. I've only managed it one time in my last three attempts, but one of my failures was due to actually being too successful at killing L.J as I Red Jokered her with Seamus. Then, the other scheme I have been trying is Grudge, which I usually announce and to be honest find really simple with Seamus crews as I just lure the model in amongst my minions then alpha strike him with multiple activations. Also the crew I run has no real ranged attacks so killing a model with melee attacks is how I run things anyway. So far with this scheme I am three for three with Seamus and am considering this one of my favs with this crew. So, like I said, what are your favourite schemes to run with your various rezzer masters? Or do you combine certain schemes with certain strategies, and if so which one do you select and why?

Hey everyone. I was just wondering if any of you guys could recommend a really good glue for malifaux figures. Thanks to all your help I have a pin vice and pin the models wherever possible, but after trying to assemble the Rotten Belle with the curved arm and unmbrella it is pretty impossible to pin it at the brand of glue I use (Krazy Glue), just doesn't seem to be getting it done. So any ideas for a really good and secure glue for metal malifaux figures? (The picture at the bottom isn't mine, its just a pic of the particular belle whose curved arm I cannot pin and doesn't seem very secure with my brand of glue.)

Hey everyone. I was just wondering if anyone else suffers from an aversion to high SS costing models and if I am maybe missing anything by playing this way? Basically, atm I run Seamus, am new to Kirai and will be expanding into Nicodem soon, so basically I am going total rezzers. However, when playing at my local gaming group people always suggest that I try out Molly or Undead Rider in a 25-35ss game and I really just shudder at the thought. I always look at high costing models and think I could have x2 Belles, x2 Doxies, x2 Crooked Men, x2 Punk Zombies, x3 Necropunks or even x4 Canine Remains (which I can turn into something better), etc, etc, for the price of that one model. Now in higher SS brawls (around 50) I am all for using henchmen like Molly with Seamus, adding in a second totem, using Undead Rider, Jack Daw etc but in small games I really just don't see why people are always taking high SS models. Am I missing something? Is my thinking fundamentally unsound? I know you build your crew to fit your strategy and schemes but I really never see an instance were I would want to invest 1/3 of my SS's in a model in order to pursue a strategy. That's why I love the fact that rezzers can turn really cheap models into big scary ones. Why buy a Rogue Necromancy for 8ss when I can build one with McMourning for 3ss total (canine remain + totem)? In my gaming group 25ss is the 'standard' game and I am always amused when I see people running my main Master Seamus along with Molly, Undead Rider or even Hanged ... I just sit there thinking WTF are you doing? Even when they win I just think they could have done better with different models. I haven't been playing Malifaux long, and am still getting used to the in & outs of the game, but do you guys think I am wrong for avoiding higher SS models in order to have more cheaper ones instead? Does anyone else have this philosophy when choosing models for their crews? Are there any high costing Rezzer models that tend to justify their cost?

Hey guys. For every Rezzer master it seems there is a really obvious '2nd in command' so to speak. Seamus = Madame Sybelle McMourning = Sebastian Kirai = Datsue-Ba However I was just wondering for Nico who do you think is a better 7ss investment Mortimer or Rafkin? Mortimer would seem like the obvious choice, but reading his wiki entry it seems that without the right cards he can actually be quite useless in some games. On the other hand we have Rafkin ... who I know nothing about lol. I've never seen his stat card and the wiki entry isn't the most detailed when it comes to explaining his abilities. Apparently he has uses for Mindless Zombies, summoning them or getting Body Parts off them, so maybe if your running Avatar of Decay he is a better choice??? So I was just wondering, for those who know, which would be a better underling for Nico in the majority of situations, Mortimer or Rafkin? (Also as a side, if someone could maybe take the time and explain a little bit what Rafkin is actually about I would appreciate it)

I'm still new to the game, but I have never felt that with my limited pool of models I have ever been at a significant disadvantage against another crew or that the game was over before it began. I've played most of my games with Seamus and until recently have only had 3 Rotten Belles, 2 Dead Doxies, Madame Sybelle, Grave Spirit and CCK to choose from and I've yet to be wiped off the board in a manner that felt completely imbalanced or an 'auto-lose'. I haven't played enough Malifaux to know, but who do you realistically consider to have the ability to easily play for all the strategies out of the box?

Fixed lists in tournaments makes complete sense. Why should people who have a bigger wallet or started playing earlier have the significant advanatage of tailoring their crews to the strategies, when other players who are newer to the game or have a small pool of models are forced to run the same crew time after time? Plus from a straight up strategic point of view it makes picking a crew really interesting as you have to balance you selections over a variety of scenarios rather than just one. Its (kind of) simple to tailor your selections for particular strategies once you've played them enough, its much harder to find a crew that is capable of multi-tasking several strategies and schemes against several different crews. That is a really rewarding competitive way to play that penalises no-one and creates a really fun atmosphere. At least in my opinion.

Instead of doing a short Malifaux novel, why don't you write a short Malifaux story? Keep it simple, maybe a couple of thousand words, a short crew vs crew engagement, bit of examination of a couple of Masters, bit of Malifaux mise-en-scene, then post it up and get some community feedback. Why spend weeks or more likely months labouring on something extensive when you haven't even dipped your toe in the water yet? Something short, simple and sweet would be better as it would let us see your writing style and character ideas and then if it proves popular you can take it from there. Believe me, writing short stories inside an established universe is difficult when it isn't your own, as you have to play by someones elses rules on what you can and cannot do. I have several ideas for 40k short stories that got really positive feedback when I discussed them, but sitting and writing the damn things is a pain as you have to constantly cross reference when major events happened, how they effected your protagonist as well as limiting some avenues of characterisation and developement. Long story short, a quick short story to let us see your ideas would be better. Otherwise, realistically, your largely wasting your time IMO.

Hey everyone. I was just wondering if anyone would have any tips for basing my two rezzer crews Seamus and Kirai? My original thought was: For Seamus, do a woodboard style that's so popular to represent the inside of a saloon or Madame Sybelles 'establishment', but I was wondering if you guys have any ideas for things I could add in to the bases so it isn't just several plane wooden floors? For Kirai I was just going to cut out the middle man and go for the asian zen bases. What do you think, any Kirai players do anything different? What do you guys think, any ideas?

Because he has to spend his opening turns chopping things up, hence not moving forwards towards objectives, and he has no movement shennanigens that significantly boost his crew, and Sebastian his loveable sidekick, is incredibly slow as are Flesh Constructs which you'll most likely be trying to summon. The Seamus crew buffs each other much better IMO than McMourning and in objective games will just have a much easier time delivering the message, playing line in the sand, and achieeing a certain couple of schemes than McMourning would. Also the list you posted is my original one, with the exception of McM instead of Seamus. Why would you take all those Belles without Seamus, when he simply makes them better? It defeats the purpose of the crew IMO, what is McM doing there? He isn't chopping Belles for parts (that's a waste), so he's got two AP with no boosts for the crew.

I've just started collecting Kirai myself, and not be disrespectful to anyone, but maybe take some of the suggestions so far with a pinch of salt, as they are more 'generally good' rather than being specific to first time kirai players. What you really need is: 2 Boxes of Seishin - 2 in each box, 5 total (as thats the maximum limit) these are mandatory, you need them so she can summon stronger spirits, protect herself from damage, and when things die around you get free ones on the table! Lost Love - Her totem syncs with her so well with her that it is another mandatory buy. He sacrifices himself if she dies so she comes back to life, and can heal spirits. 1 Box of Gaki - Sure you could buy two, but why bother? Until you've played several games and see how many Gaki you regularly summon or manifest, then one box is enough to get you started and to help learn their strengths and weakness. 1 Shikome - A really powerful minion that should always be summoned, never purchased. Eventually you'll probably want two, but again, when starting out, why bother? Learn its rules, see if it fits your playstyle and take it from there The above purchases are exactly what you need to get started out with Kirai (including her boxset of course!) as it gives all of the minions she can summon, the seishin she needs to summon things, protect herself etc and her totem which is a must have. Get a few games under your belt with these models then start to add where you think necessary. Always summoning loads of Gaki? Get another box. Love that Shikome? Get another one (you can only have two max though). The above purchases are the ones that sync most with Kirai and which are ncessary for you to take advantage of all her summoning possibilities. Hope that helps.

Sybelle w/ Grave Spirit is the competitive way to go IMO. However, as you don't have the model how about keeping it simple with: Seamus - 3ss Cache Copy Cat Killer - 2ss x3 Rotten Belles - 12ss Its simple, its tough and it should be pretty effective. Remember, its a small ss game, so Copy Cat Killer doesn't have a whole load of threats to worry about each activation, and if he gets a single shot off then he is golden. Think of CCK as an area denial piece. Put it somewhere near and objective, table quarter etc and dare your opponent to end a minions (or Masters!) activation nearby. Then, three rotten belles are just tough rock solid minions that don't do alot of damage, but do move fast towards objectives, or tie models in place for Seamus to finish them off. Plus if you have dead doxies, when one rotten belle dies, summon a doxy for a 1ss saving. I would take Seamus over mcmourning anyday, especially at such a small points level.

Thanks of all the quick responses guys. Since starting Malifaux this is my first time working with metal models (I used to just collect plastic GW daemons), and so was having a tough time understanding what tools I needed to attach things like Seamus' Bag o Tools to the model, or Madame Sybelles fan arm so that they wouldn't just keep falling off after a while. Also, I think for the base insert things I'll get a better set of clippers as the 'official' games workshop ones are too broad for precise cutting so leave alot of excess metal and are likely to bend the feet of certain models if used to hard. Also, those files will come in handy for getting rid of the bumps left behind after clipping. Thanks alot guys, like I said, I really am in the middle of nowehere when it comes to getting modelling items, getting simple cork sheets for custom 40k bases was like trying to aquire weapons grade plutonium. Actually, come to think of it, that probably would have been easier to aquire. I'll put an order in at Amazon for the pin vice and files and hopefully will be able to get my models securely attached together and then place them on some custom bases. Thanks alot!!!

A small McMourning crew would suck IMO as you would be so slow. Realistically you can summon a Flesh Construct on turn one, but for what use? The crew would pack no punch if it consisted of models to be sacrificed for powerful, but slow models, with few ranged attacks. I think Seamus is the way to go as his crew is tough as nails to begin with, and at that points level there is going to be little except other masters that his .50 cannot handle in one shot.

Thanks for the quick reponse. I don't suppose you could point me in the direction of a good file and a device for pinning malifaux models? Most people just say, "go to your local gaming store or market and pickup x", but I live in the middle of nowhere when it comes to specialist items like that, so online is the only resource I've got. Basically, I need a pinning device with a drill small enough to insert the sharp end of tacks or pins, due to the smallish size of malifaux models. (I don't no why I bothered explaining that, you play Malifaux you know what i mean!) Anyway, any ideas for a drilling/pinning device and file would be really appeciated, especially if they are on somewhere accessable like Amazon.com or places you can buy Malifaux figures.

Hey everyone. I was just wondering if anyone had tips for cleanly removing the metal strip parts of Malifaux models that insert into the bases. Obviously, if you are using a base insert (custom or bought) you don't need them, but I was wondering what method you guys use to cleanly remove them? With my Seamus crew I just used brute force and ignorance and used a pair of Games Workshop model clippers that you use to remove models from sprues . It wasn't too bad, but unfortunately left small rough bumps underneath the models feet that mean they don't stand perfectly flat. Anyway other suggestions that might be preferable to my rough method?

Hey guys, sorry if the thread title was misleading, it never really occurred to me that it would be confusing, but now that you have pointed it out it is quite funny. Anyway, I went ahead and bought the ortega boxet for the simple fact I played against them at the weekend with Seamus and they were a total hoot to play against, and were actually so fun i wanted to have a go with them myself someday, whereas Lady Justice is not my style as she is very CC orientated and I just find I spend entire turns walking, (quite slowly too). So it was a busy (and expensive) weekend, as not only did I order the Ortegas but I also aquired a Kirai boxset and put an order in for several models to round out her crew (sheishin, lost love, gaki, etc). However in order to round out my current crew sets, I was wondering what you guys think of the Ophelia Gremlin crew? I have a real weakness for themed lists and the models look like a blast to paint and play, but I was wondering how they would sync up with Seamus, Kirai and the Ortegas? Essentially, what i am asking is, would they be a good fourth crew to round out my collection so that I will have my two favourite rezzers, and two fun opponents to play against with friends?

Whoops, I played it wrong in my last game! As I mentioned I was using Sybelles Shriek ability with Grave Spirit to fire three off in a single turn. Thanks for the clarification.

Hey everyone. I am pretty much going complete rezzers, getting all the masters and models, bit by bit, but I am also looking to aquire a couple of oppositional crews so that when friends want to play we can get a good 35ss game going. At the moment all I have is a pretty decent sized Seamus crew, so I was just wondering if anyone has any ideas about what crew would be a good opposition against Seamus in terms of balance for both crews. In otherwords, crews that were made up of largely constructs or things immune to wp duels wouldn't be good as an entire side of Seamus' play would be removed. But equally I don't want an opposition crew that is a walkover either. So I was thinking that maybe Lady Justice or the Ortega's might be a good opposite crew for friends to play? What do you guys think, any ideas? Hopefully both crews Seamus and X would be able to effect each in other in some way, be able to play to a decent variety of objectives and schemes, and be fun and themed to boot. A tall order, but all suggestions would be really welcome, as I've already made the mistake of investing in crews I eventually end up shelving, so I don't want to throw anymore money away ( I want to save it for my rezzers!)

Hey everyone, sorry if this question is a bit simplistic but I am still learning the game. For Grave Spirit magical extension states that Grave Spirit can cast 'one of the connected master's spells'. So, does this mean that if Grave Spirit is attached to Madame Sybelle it is allowed to cast Shriek ... or ... does it mean that Grave Spirit can only cast Seamus' (the master I'm running) spells, even though Grave Spirit isn't attached to him. Thanks.