Wyrd's First National Championships (open to ALL!) @ the NOVA Open - LESS THAN A MONTH AWAY - Events from 9/3 - 9/6/2015

[Gremlin guy]

I'm not that close. Just a couple hours away. Which store are you at?

[MVBrandt]

Good on terrain. We have sufficient Malifaux terrain for 60 players without having to build more. That said, if the summer registration rush pushes us well over that, definitely is good to know.

If you're nearby, why aren't you joining us all for Monday night Malifaux? Very good community of about 40 DC area Malifaux players who game together every Monday.

 

We game out of a residence with a big ole gamin' basement and tons of terrain/tables (54 players' worth to be precise) in Springfield - no closing time and booze allowed.

[Gremlin guy]

That's a big basement. Springfield is on my way home though, send me the info and I'll see if I can pop in one day.

[MVBrandt]

Never actually have anywhere near 54 ... to make it clear about tongues and cheeks. Typical night is 12-20. I'll pm you.

[Gremlin guy]

Sounds good. I'll keep an eye out for the pm.

[valhallan42nd]

There are some solid players in that group, Gremlin; it's well worth the trip. I really wish I lived or worked closer. 

[valhallan42nd]

One of the great things about being a large, well organized convention is that you attract a ton of talent to help you out. 

One of those talents is a writing major at a local university by the name of Joey Louis. He's stepped up and volunteered to write the story introductions to all the Malifaux Narrative scenarios. 

For those of you that didn't play last year's Narrative, Nicodem tried to raise an undead horde to wipe out all life in the city, and claim it as his own. However, the ritual he used was flawed, and was taken over by the Grave Spirit. Soon, masses of undead began to crawl from their graves, threatening to drag the city into madness and death (yay!). The Governor General hired an army of sellswords to fight the invasion, and the ritual was finally stopped (boo!). [Yes, I'm a Resser player and I'm biased. Sue me. ]

This year's action starts when those very mercenaries, weighed down by coin and heavily armed, begin to cause trouble for the populace.

Here's just a taste of Joey's work:

When a man the size of Luther Scrope isn’t happy, nobody’s happy. 

 

He survived the battles against the hordes of the undead, but when he’d tripped and fallen, his left arm was taken from him, devoured by a hungry grave.  He didn’t mind too much (he was always a righty), but now the war was over, and his freshly-forged drill-gauntlet hadn’t gotten a chance to taste blood.  Now he, like all the other mercenaries under the Governor General’s command, were overpaid, and out of work. 

 

He took his seat at the Rusted Tooth Bar.  The other patrons knew it was his seat—he always sat there, and they were sure to give him a wide berth.  The bartender kept the gin flowing, and Luther was just drunk enough to be on the verge of considering taking up poetry.  

 

Then some poor sod in a fancy armor suit made the mistake of spilling gin on him...

 

 

Each scenario will build on the one before it, as players choose sides (Law and Order vs Scum and Villainy), the battles they win will change the outcome of the Nova's story. And with the new Fame and Infamy points your masters can earn, we'll see which masters feature most prominently in the stories that get told. 

I also conferred with Eshadie (aka Mahtias Crestborn), and we're going to add a special painting prize for the story event: the Star Theatre award, which isn't for the best crew, but for the best display of a crew. It's time to bust out your scenic chops, and get those terrain brains engaged. Set a scene!

[MVBrandt]

Prep for the champs and have a blast with bbq, beer, and live music at the NOVA's Summer Backyard BBQ charity tournament.

 

Reg information here: http://whiskey40k.blogspot.com/2015/06/charity-bbq-registration-open-details.html 

 

*ALL* proceeds go to charity via the NOVA Open Charitable Foundation, a formal 501©(3) charitable organization (thus ensuring no loss to taxes and full transparency of donation to our supported charities, primarily Doctors Without Borders, Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and Fisher House Foundation).

[valhallan42nd]

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT AND SUCH ABOUT THE MALIFAUX NARRATIVE'S PAINTING AWARD:
 

 

For the 2015 Malifaux Narrative, Mahtias and I worked on a story line that would draw players into the world of Malifaux just a little bit more, and I think we succeeded (but I'll let the players be the judge of that...). But we had a real problem: we were wondering how to make the painting competition for the narrative match that same level of story, and how to make it different from the Painting Competition of the North American Championships. A lot of players are talented painters, and we certainly wanted to reward them, but we didn't want it to be just about having the best looking crew. We wanted to have theme and narrative matter as well.

 

So, we're changing how it works. We want you to tell us your story through your models. The 2015 Malifaux Narrative's painting award is going to the best, most evocative displayed crew, and we're calling it the Star Theater Award. Build your best display, in whatever medium that you can sanely and reasonably transport to the Nova Open, and delight and amaze the crowds. It can be anything from the lowest depths of the sewers of Malifaux to the Governor's Mansion -or anywhere in between- but bring your best work, because the level of the competition will be stiffer than a Mindless Zombie.

 

A few rules:

 

1. The display must reasonably fit in a crowed hall. Use your best judgment here, but I'll say that if it exceeds 2 length x2 width x3 height without a grandly compelling reason, you have likely used too much space. Sometimes, smaller is better!

 

2. The display must contain models able to be used by you in the story encounter. This is not meant to be a static diorama. If it contains models that are static on the display, that's fine (for example, piles of dead enemy models), but the models you're using in the Narrative should be able to taken from the display and readily put into the game. How you do that is up to you. 

[valhallan42nd]

THe Charity Tournament being held on July 18th will have the exact strats and schemes used in the National Championship's last three rounds. If you want practice, I'd recommend checking out the Charity Tournament here:

http://novaopenfoundation.org/?tcp_product=nocf-charity-game-bbq-fundraiser-gaming-bbq

[valhallan42nd]

OH, and I've gotten some feedback regarding the Malifaux North American Championships, and I'd like to clear up some confusion.

 

THE MALIFAUX CHAMPIONSHIPS ARE **NOT** AN INVITATIONAL. ALL PEOPLE CAN REGISTER.

 

THE MALIFAUX CHAMPIONSHIPS ARE **NOT** AN INVITATIONAL. ALL PEOPLE CAN REGISTER.

 

THE MALIFAUX CHAMPIONSHIPS ARE **NOT** AN INVITATIONAL. ALL PEOPLE CAN REGISTER.

 

Personally, I understand the confusion, as certain events were referred to as "qualifying events." They were events that gained the winner free admission into the tournament, which is great. But that label, "qualifying," confused a lot of people, and rightly so.  I think "Event that Gives the Winner Free Admission To Another Really Great Event" Event is more accurate, but ultimately much more cumbersome. But the longer name appeals to the German side of me (Germans, of course, being more known for their precision than their poetics). Still, the name "Qualifier Event" is what we went with, despite its inaccuracy. 

 

But still, if you want to paticipate in the first ever Malifaux  North American Championships, now is the time to register here: www.novaopen.com

 

[Stupid Bob]

Had a great time at the BBQ today! Thanks to everyone for lots of fun!

[valhallan42nd]

Glad you had a good time, Bob! See you at Nova, man!

[Terrible_Knowledge]

Was wondering if you could post schemes and strata for the national championship?

[MVBrandt]

They are in the primer on http://novaopen.Com ... under the Malifaux tab.

[PolishSausage]

1. Can anyone enter the championship?

2. Are there still tickets for the championship

3. Will the deployment be changed to standard per gaining grounds document?

4. Will there be someone adjusting the tables in between rounds per close/ corner deployment rules?

5. Are conversions based on wyrd official models with a print out of the card be allowed?

6. Can you run models not officially released?

7. What is the best/ recommended hotel?

Thanks!

[valhallan42nd]

1. Can anyone enter the championship?

2. Are there still tickets for the championship

3. Will the deployment be changed to standard per gaining grounds document?

4. Will there be someone adjusting the tables in between rounds per close/ corner deployment rules?

5. Are conversions based on wyrd official models with a print out of the card be allowed?

6. Can you run models not officially released?

7. What is the best/ recommended hotel?

Thanks!

 

1. Yes. Yes. Also, yes.

2. They are limited, but yes.

3. All deployments/Strats follow the GG for this quarter. So that they will change each round.

4. The tables will not change between rounds. They are terrain dense enough to support all deployment types.

5. As per the GG rules, if the model is over EDIT: 1/3 Wyrd [original misquote the rules as 2/3 Wyrd] , and clearly can represent the model is meant to represent, then it can be used. If the player has no cards available, but has a clear photocopy or printout of the correct rules, a printout can be used. 

6. Yes, as we are allowing Wave 3 models, as Shifting Loyalties will have been released for a month plus at that point. So, yes, valid proxies (see the Wyrd conversion guide) can be use if they are 66% Wyrd Model.

7. The Hyatt Regency @ Regan National: https://aws.passkey.com/g/40463125?utm_campaign=2014%20NOVA%20Open%20Wrap-Up%20and%20Results

[PolishSausage]

Pew pew!

[valhallan42nd]

For the Malifaux Narrative Update: We've almost finalized the primer. We've updated the last two rounds, as three rounds of assassinate in a row is two rounds too many, as evidenced by play-testing.  Assassinate has been replaced by Bodygaurd in round 4, and Protect Territory (which is much more fun in close deployment than it seems).

We've also added background stories, added scenarios, and included rules for  the Fame/Infamy tracks to the Quarantine Quarrel and Capital Carnage narrative events. Nicholas Cage may or may not be referenced in those events. They will be awesome, and the biggest villains and best heroes will become part of the Nova Malifaux Narrative for next year, and possibly years to come.

That primer will be going live soon.

Due to popular demand, we've also added a formal Henchman Hardcore event in addition to our Critical Mass Hardcore events.

Registration for this event is currently live. Please register before space fills up.

http://www.novaopen.com/?page_id=5407

[PolishSausage]

any chance of adding extra spots for the friday story encounter?

[rover1013]

6. Yes, as we are allowing Wave 3 models, as Shifting Loyalties will have been released for a month plus at that point. So, yes, valid proxies (see the Wyrd conversion guide) can be use if they are 66% Wyrd Model.

 

To say that Shifting Loyalties will have been released for a month+ is disingenuous. I don't believe anyone has tried to treat GenCon sale prereleases as an official release date.  I understand, based on the newsletter, that Justin has approved its use but to suggest that it has been released that long is (in my opinion) not ok. General release date (when the book will be generally available at any number of retailers) for Shifting Loyalties is August 28th. It will have been "released" for less than a week by the start of the NOVA Open.

 

I understand that a number of the players who bother to come out to the NOVA for Malifaux will likely have purchased the book from the convention or ordered from the online store (if they were able to do so). I do feel badly for anyone who has been playing through 2015 with an eye on the prize for the National Championships who suddenly has to learn to play and play against a bunch of new models.

 

Realistically, with the VERY strict adherence to the Wyrd conversion rules (which I personally disagree with for unreleased models), it also seems fairly unlikely that anyone is going to have to worry about facing anything but the Emissaries that had Avatars in 1.5, Crossroads Seven and the Starter Box models.

[valhallan42nd]

I understand your point, Ron, and I disagree.

 

Here's why:

• Beta testing let us preview the contents of Shifting Loyalties months in advance of the actual release.
• Though Gencon is not an in-store release date, the majority of people who are going to be at the Nationals probably have it, or have someone in their group who does
• The models that have changed from the Beta have not changed drastically. Subtle changes have been made to improve them, but for the most part, they are (with a few exceptions) essentially the same thing with tweaked powers
• The community will also be endlessly discussing the new book in exhaustive detail, either on forums, podcasts, or blogs

And I also understand where some people might be upset by the inclusion of Shifting Loyalties. Believe me, I do. It's not a lightly made decision. The choice was to remain static and conservative, or to shake things up and do something different and probably exciting. If it were any other company with any other designers, I don't think we'd be seeing these new rules being used. The Wyrd designers know balance.

 

I also know the Wyrd community and the Nova community; it'll rise to the challenge. And I think it'll have fun doing it. There's nothing disingenuous about that.  

PS. re proxies - We reserve the right to remove a proxy model for being confusing, misleading, or otherwise "aesthetically challenged."

[rover1013]

Just to be clear, as I have no desire to sound like I have a problem with the decision to make Wave 3/Shifting Loyalties legal for the NOVA Open:  My primary issue was simply the statement that it will have been released for over a month.

 

When it comes to a tournament, any TO can make any decision they like. I can absolutely understand where the decision to do so or not in this case would have been difficult as it really could go either way and be fine.  I mostly agree with everything you've stated regarding making Shifting Loyalties legal.

 

The only thing I mean to say is that it is, in my opinion, disingenuous to state that Shifting Loyalties will have been released for over a month by NOVA.

 

I see that I did point out several of the negative impacts of making it legal without really addressing the positives of doing so, and that is my mistake. I apologize for that.

 

Specifically regarding the proxies issue: Gaining Grounds states that if a model has a non-beta stat card, but does not have a model, that a conversion can be fielded. A conversion, in Gaining Grounds, is defined above that with the Custom Sculpted/33% or less non-Wyrd, etc.  I take this (and the way you phrased it) to mean that a proxy fielded for a non-beta, non-released model could not be say a Reaper model painted and based (and closely resembling the art).  Is this accurate?

[PeregrineFalcon]

I do feel badly for anyone who has been playing through 2015 with an eye on the prize for the National Championships who suddenly has to learn to play and play against a bunch of new models.

 

This is the main reason I disagree with Wave 3 being allowed. Lead up to NoVA has all been based on a certain set of models available since Aug 2014 in some form or another. Introducing Wave 3 at the 'final' event seems a little disingenuous to the entire 2015 National circuit. I love that Wave 3 is available to the greater public, just think it will misrepresent the 'state of Malifaux in 2015' at our National Finals. 

 

Also, the fact cards have been in beta for a long time means nothing. I looked at maybe 1 week of beta stuff. Not to mention no events used Wave 3 beta.

 

I do agree with a later statement made my NoVAMatt, that if it was any other company we wouldn't even consider the Wave 3 stuff. I think it is exciting to 'mix' things up, but in the future with the time of year NoVA is, I'd suggest having a 2015 National event, and a "Whats new GG event". The latter allowing for inclusion of newly pre-released models.

 

I think NoVA is going to be great regardless. I'm interested to hear how it goes and to get feedback.

[Guy in Suit]

I'm glad the Wave 3 models are in, so I have a great excuse if I don't win! :-o