The viks

[slowlauris]

Ok so I started playing malifaux with my bf about a month ago.

After him telling me about all the fractions and stuff I felt a connection to molly and the ressers, obviously I cant play molly so I started off with seamus to see how it went. I seemed to fail miserably.

After my ego took quite a beating I decided maybe the ressers weren't for me. So I decided to try the outcasts as I liked the power the viks have.

Played them for the first time the other day and although I didnt win, and I lost both of the viks by turn 2, I think, I enjoyed playing the crew I had alot more.

My crew was a convict, 2 ronin, vanessa, sue, student of conflict, I think there was something else but cant remember.

Anyway, he played arcs and did most of the damage with ramos by controlling my convict and getting him to shoot the crap out of my crew, well played I thought.

He said my main downfall was that I held the viks back too long as they work better in combat.

Anyone got any tips as who I should have in my crew to benefit them and what the best upgrades are.

Also the whole sisters thing confuses me, like the moving them to be near eachother and stuff so help with that would be much appreciated

[izikial]

It was turn 3, you moved to shoot the raptor turn 2 so I shot your bloody vick with your convict.

And I was using marcus not ramos

[Mason]

Welcome to the game!

 

The Malifaux Wiki, Pull My Finger, has lots of useful information on Masters and models that can be a help when trying to figure out how everyone works. 

 

The Vikis really do want to be played aggressively, though that doesn't mean you have to charge them in at the first thing that gets within range, either. 

 

When I was learning the Viktorias, I gave Ashes the Synchronized Slaying upgrade (just to give her Accomplice) and Survivalist (for Hard to Kill) and then gave Viktoria of Blood the Mark of Shez'uul (to let her ignore lots of common defensive abilities) and Tally Sheet (to let her draw a card whenever she kills something). 

 

I mostly just ran them together-ish and tried to close into melee range by turn 2.  Getting the hang of their distance-related actions takes a few games, but generally you want to keep the Sisters within 2" of each other, or more than 6" apart.  

 

For instance, you can use East and West on Ashes to give her a   to her attacks (while 6" from a Sister) and then charge a distant model, gaining the bonuses for being far away, then activate Blood, use The Falling Star to give her +1 ML (when within 2" of another Sister), and then charge something near Ashes to benefit from the bonus. 

On the next turn, since they're both likely near enemy models, you can start using Dragon's Bite and Flight of Dragons to move them around together in a little cyclone of murder. 

 

 

I also found that they survived longer if I took a full cache of 7 soulstones and spent one to prevent damage whenever the Vikis were hit for 2 damage or more.  Adding a healer to your crew - such as the Freikorps Librarian - also helps quite a bit, as healing one Viki will heal both of them. 

 

In any case, good luck with them, and let us know how things go. 

[Kadeton]

Just to show that there's no one true way to play the Viks, the upgrades I usually run with are Sisters in Fury and Oathkeeper on Ashes, and Mark of Shez'uul and Oathkeeper on Blood. I like them to have that one turn of blazing glory where they kill everything they can reach, and put such a dent in the enemy crew that even if they die later, the game is weighted heavily in my favour.

The basic crew you've got there is fine, to be honest. Bishop (once his new model is finished, or if you can get hold of an old one) is well worth a look, as is Hans. If you've already got Vanessa, she's quite good in combination with Lazarus, as he's a construct that she can command.

In general, though, it's hard to go wrong with Ronin and Gunslingers. If you take a lot of them, consider the Howling Wolf Tattoo upgrade as it can really make a difference over the course of a game.

As far as the East and West, Lonely Path, Setting Sun and Falling Star actions (the positional ones), at the start I'd recommend that you stick mainly to the ones that work within 2", and try to keep your Viktorias close together as much as you can. You'll soon start to see situations where it would be more helpful to use the ones that require separation - when you do, give it a try.

One thing I will say: Viktoria is very unforgiving of mistakes. That applies equally to your own, and your opponent's - once you're practiced enough to recognise your opponent's mistakes, the Viks will let you punish them severely. At the start, though, you'll mostly be making the mistakes yourself. Just try to keep in mind that it's all part of the learning process, and don't take losing as a sign that either you or the Viks suck - you'll get a feel for them quickly, and they're very rewarding once you get the hang of their game.