New to Malifaux - Need some starter advise

[Ajax1983]

Hi all,

A friend convinced me to get back into wargaming, and I convinced him to play Malifaux, but we're both new. He's doing his own research, so I'm asking only for myself here.

I'm considering playing as Outcast. I was thinking Hired Guns w/Hired Swords, and building a list from that.

What would people advise for a new player?

Thank you in advance for your feedback

[FunWithKnives]

2 hours ago, Ajax1983 said:

I'm considering playing as Outcast. I was thinking Hired Guns w/Hired Swords, and building a list from that.

Vics:

Pros:

• Top tier in current meta
• They are gonna teach you how to use cover and terrain
• Very flexible in terms of crew composition
• Girls

Cons:

• Sad starter - you'll probably play 2-3 minis from that box
• Zero mistake tolerance
• You have to buy some expensive boxes for 50ss games
• Eventually, you will lose all your friends

 

Von Shill:

Pros:

• Pretty decent starter box
• Easy to learn 
• Moustache
• Jack of all trades...

Cons:

• ...master of none
• Tier 3 in current meta
• Kinda inflexible ~ 3 crew composition patterns 
• A bit straightforward gameplay

[CapnBloodbeard]

Hired Guns is often recommended as the Trapper and Librarian are excellent models.  

It's a shame Hired Swords comes with Taelor, she doesn't get much love on here.  

The downside to those 2 box sets is that aside from the Viks and von Schill, you don't really have anybody who can reliably deliver pain (Taelor can, I guess) - and Viks really love having Vanessa.  Probably just 1-2 extra models would fill in that gap and give you a good base to start playing.  Lazarus (big tough shooty model that works really well with Schill, but is handy in any crew) and Vanessa,, for instance - though I'm also a fan of Malifaux Child with Viks, not necessary.  You could easily replace Lazarus with Strongarm Suit, Hannah, even Bishop, though you'll probably get more utility out of the previous 3.  Either of those works in either of your proposed crews.

There's a lot of hate for Schill on here, but he got some huge buffs recently - the internet hasn't quite caught up to the change though :-)  He can do a lot more than he used to and hit like a truck.  

I disagree that he's inflexible, although he does provide benefits to a themed crew.  But there are certainly plenty of ways to build his crew.

 

 

[SirRocketPants]

Viks are awesome, and their box isn't bad as far as starter boxes go.

You use both viks, you will use the student (I play student or malifaux child based on my crew), and sometimes a Ronin (they are a much better minion than people give them credit for and they are becomming better in GG2018... maybe I'll even run 2).

 

Then with the viks you absolutely want the scion of the void, and a couple of void wretches. Personally to me the emissary is a must too (and you can use the old vik avatar as legal proxy).

 

And of course Sue... best model in outcasts.

 

Also they are very competitive if you care about that sort of thing.

 

Only downside with the Viks is the feel bad moment when you trample you opponents hopes and dreams on turn 1 and can see in their eyes that you have broken them as a human being...

 

I'm joking... but only a little... :/

[beergod]

Right now I would say Tara, Her themed crew is fantastic. for a 50 SS game all you need is another box of Wretches, the Scion and maybe Talos.  The Nothing Beast is a solid Beater, the wretches are good a minions for the cost and teaches how fast and slow work. 

 

Von Schill is a = box you're going to want to buy any way as two of the best outcast models (trapper and Librarian) are in there. He's also a really good master to learn the game as his box is pretty strait forward. It's also one of the best starter boxed point for point out there.

Hamlin is good as well but needs at least one brotherhood of the Rat box to go along. He is a NPE though for a newer player so not so fun to play against.

Jack and the Viks are fun, Both good, but have terrible starting boxes. Vick is an alpha stike crew that needs a little outside love. Jack is a sniper that needs a lot of other models to play with as the other in his box are not optimal 

Parker is fun, fluffy, but is very hard to play and has a weak starter bx as well. 

Levi has a good box but needs a lot of other pricey boxes to really click 

Avoid Misaki for now, she isn't as good as the Viks, and is a lot better in Ten Thunders 

[beergod]

8 hours ago, SirRocketPants said:

 

Only downside with the Viks is the feel bad moment when you trample you opponents hopes and dreams on turn 1 and can see in their eyes that you have broken them as a human being...

 

I'm joking... but only a little... :/

no, no not kidding at all

[Ajatros]

Welcome to the hobby! I would say that pick the box that you like better - it's not use trying to figure out power levels or other such nonsense if you are just starting. Malifaux is a really complex game because all of the models basically have different actions and abilities. The Von Schill box gives you a good starting point, because he's a fairly straightforward master to play, and the models can be used in a lot of crews later on. You can build a 35 SS list out of both boxes, so you don't need anything else to start playing and learning. If you want to expand right away, Hannah is great overall (plus the model is just bad-ass),  the Strongarm suit is thematic to the VS box and very strong by itself, and the Viks benefit greatly from Vanessa.

[misterfinn]

Hired Guns and Hired Swords were my first two boxes when I started playing last year. I learned the game with the Viks, but I'd start with Von Schill if I were to pick the game up today.

Viks
The slingshot is fun for a minute and not that difficult to get the hang of. It's also not that hard for a savvy opponent to mitigate if s/he sees it coming. I think the Viks are tremendously powerful once you get past The Big Trick, but they're not forgiving. They're fragile. Their synergistic buffs (0 actions and Blood Lines) are largely positioning-dependent, which means you need to plan at least one turn ahead and stay focused on your plan. You need to be careful about managing your hand size to take advantage of Fate's Chosen and Fate's Pariah. Using cover and terrain wisely is crucial. It was a lot to absorb while I was trying to learn the game at the same time. They were fun to paint though!

As for the other models in the box: I don't have much love for Taelor because she's slow and Outcasts have so many great options in the 10ss range, but my Ronin are solid utility. I often run with two. The third one went straight to my bits box. I rarely take the Student since I don't use the slingshot. Vanessa, Lazarus, Strongarm Suit, Freikorps Librarian, and Malifaux Child are the other models I use most often with the Viks.

Von Schill
I didn't think he was that interesting (or fun) to play until the Wave 5 upgrades. Now I play him all the time. He's durable, mobile, and flexible. He doesn't have a lot of special rules to keep track of while you're trying to learn the game. I've used every model in his box except the overpriced Specialist. Hobby-wise, you will paint the same colors over and over.

Strongarm Suit is an auto-include for me with Von Schill. I take Lazarus sometimes. Hannah's a big assembly and painting job that I haven't undertaken yet.

My 2 scrip. YMMV.

[Ajatros]

17 minutes ago, misterfinn said:

 I've used every model in his box except the overpriced Specialist.

At least there is hope that he gets a buff in the future

[Zebo]

There's always hope, but never happens. 

[Davos]

I'm guessing Specialist will get changed with the January errata.  Ideally, I'd like to see him changed to Df 5, and either get an increase in range to his gun and/or a (0) action that gives him a 4in push.  Along with a decrease in his SS cost to 7

[I'm a Teapot!]

If you play the Viks, its going to be a rough learning with some really good and some really frustrating games. But the real danger is that if you master them to fast and your friend is a bit slower in learning how to deal with them, it is really really going to be frustrating for him. This is no joke. Well played viks crush the opponent so hard that he doesnt see any hope most of the time.