Fatemaster Friday - Though wise men at their end know dark is right...

[Kimberly]

Happy Friday Breachers!

With Autumn upon us here in the US, it’s a great time to start getting into the Halloween spirit. @Vorzakk 2.0 seems to be of a similar mind based on their response to last week’s question, as they said:

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...my favorite sort of creepy setting is a good ol' Spooky Forest.  For that reason (and because I've read far less about it than the Northern Hills, the Bayou, or even the Badlands), I'd really like more official information about the Knotwoods.  

You can see the other responses here.

This week I’m going to explore ways to utilize our spookiest expansion, Under Quarantine, to up the creep factor with your campaign. As I mentioned in the Malifaux Grand Tour post, there is a great deal of unique and engaging areas within the Quarantine Zone, and likewise, Under Quarantine has a great deal of content to enhance your campaign!

The locations within Under Quarantine aren’t limited to the Malifaux City. Subterranean caverns, tunnels, and even a railway in progress are locations introduced in the expansion, making it more than simply a deeper look at the Quarantine Zone. Rather than running your Fated through all the locations mentioned, it’s more manageable and meaningful to pick a location in particular that enhances your story, letting the Fated explore a little at a time. If you want your group to feel menaced and on edge, you could orchestrate their need to enter the crime-ridden Passage. If you want a feeling of isolation or claustrophobia, try the Necropolis or the Northern Caverns.

Under Quarantine covers a great variety of mundane and magical Conditions and their workings. This gives Fatemasters a diverse set of unfortunate things to unleash upon their players! The Conditions included in location descriptions are a valuable resource for Fatemasters, even if they aren’t using those particular locations. For example, the Tuberculosis, Red Eye, and Claustrophobia Conditions can be used outside of the locations they are mentioned in. A lot of personal story can come from Fated trying to overcome a bought of Infection or Brilliance addiction.

Create a more nuanced and interesting Fatemaster Character or tempt an unwitting Fated to the path of a Resurrectionist with the practicals of raising the dead. There is additional Magia available for magically inclined Fated or Fatemaster Characters, showing that Resurrectionists utilize more than just the “typical” methods of their craft. The bestiary includes the terrifying Killjoy and the disturbing spell that summons him, written from the perspective of Emeline Bellerose, former Elite Division agent turned rogue (and undead). 

Under Quarantine has many methods for Fatemasters to enhance the horror of Malifaux, and if you don’t have this book, I cannot recommend it enough! You can find this book digitally on Drive-Thru RPG here. Additionally, A Night in Rottenburg and Recruitment Drive are self contained adventures, featuring locations of the Quarantine Zone and some notable Resurrectionists! If you haven’t already, be sure to check out the Through the Breach focused contest thread. Flex your creativity and have fun with your entry; there are already some great ones so check them out!

Finally, this week’s question is: “Which Resurrectionist do you think is the creepiest, and why?”
 

[J4bberw0ck]

Wow, tough question! Based purely on concept, I'd say McMourning, cuz I have a thing about surgery. The actual character, though, is more adorably deranged than anything else.

In terms of actual character, though, it will have to be Seamus, the Mad Hatter. He's not tormented, or someone else's victim, or out of touch with reality. He knows exactly what he's doing, and how horrible it is, and that's why he likes it. He's a predator, a tiger shark surrounded by plump tourists. He doesn't want to dominate or rule, he only cares about Death. That kind of wild, unhinged hedonism is inherently scary.

[Vorzakk 2.0]

I'm going to have to say McMouring as well.  Hospitals under the best condition are nightmare fuel for a lot of people.  Filthy hospital-like secret labs run by mad men with a penchant for body horror... yea, no contest IMHO.  And though it's no longer a thing, I thought he was even creepier back when he was still operating right under the collective nose of the Guild.  

[Steamtastic Vagabond]

I’d have to answer with my M2E main, Tara. The other resurrectionists are creepy in their own right, but my terrible experiences with death anxiety make her connections to entities that represent literal nothingness, an infinity of obliteration is much more off putting to me than a run of the mill necromancer.

[Sol_Sorrowsong]

I'm going to have to second Seamus, he dances to the sound of his own fiddle, and so you don't really know when or where he'll strike next or why.  Maybe he just needs more belles, maybe he saw you being too cheerful for your own good. Maybe he was just bored and thought you'd give a nice chase.  If I was in Malifaux, I'd steer far far away from any haunts he might enjoy. Better grabbed by a gator than find myself in the wrong alley after dark.

[stump_chunkman]

I like that Y'all are horrified by McMourning, but what's worse with having horrible surgery performed on you in a filthy hospital? Having surgery performed on you in a filthy sewer by a zombie that don't even have an M.D.! That's why my vote is for Albus VonSchtook. As if the man's creative taxidermy hobbies weren't' spooky enough, he's a man what TEACHES THE UNDEAD CONSTRUCTS HOW TO MAKE MORE UNDEAD CONSTRUCTS. And then he broadcasts fan-fiction about how cool it is to be an undead construct. 

[Douglas Scoundrels]

I vote for Von Schtook. While many other Resurrectionists are terrifying in their own right, Albus has ambitions that can only compare to the late great Nicodem. If you left Seamus and McMourning alone, you'd have to deal with a near constant stream of murders, monsters, and undead. If you left Von Schtook alone, however, you'd slowly see the entire populace of Malifaux turned into his student body. A Resurrectionist is scary. A Resurrectionist that makes MORE Resurrectionists is an absolute nightmare. Whether through his Voxcast or forceful recruitment Albus represents the greatest Resser threat to Malifaux. Maybe even more so then the Undertaker himself when he was still kicking.