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What makes a good malifaux demo?


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Hello everyone

I am not sure where to post this so I am just putting it here.... malifaux is my favorite miniatures game and I am trying to grow the community in my local FLGS. I have run one or two small events but no real miniature games yet. 

I am thinking of doing 20 or 25 SS 

On a 2x2 over 2 or 3 rounds. 

And just basically kill each other.

 This is just to show people the core of the game. I will be doing other demos that will go deeper into the game and tournament and so on..  I am trying to become a henchmen for my area but I don't want to put that much effort into a game that no one is playing.   

I have been looking for good advice on running demos and can not find any. So does anyone have any good tip or ideas or just general information that they would be willing to share. 

Thank you for your time

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I'm setting up an introduction series next month. Here's the plan:

  • Everyone needs one core box.
  • There's a $20 entry fee, which we use to cover the costs of a fate deck + scheme markers for all participants.
  • Each week, we play slightly larger games, with more and more rules introduced each week.

This makes for a super low barrier to entry. People get to try a whole new game for only about $80NZ.

Over the weeks...

  • We'll start with 2-3 minions at 10-15 soulstones, working up to a full core box vs. a full core box (approximately, you have to adjust to match stone costs a bit).
  • The first week is 2x2 map, with plant explosives + claim jump. This means that they will get used to the interaction-focus of Malifaux, but still probably end up fighting over the claim jump points.
  • Each week we'll do a different strategy, eventually working up to a full scheme pool.

That's the basic gist of it, anyway! Has worked really well for us. This is the second one we'll be running.

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I don't know if I can provide good advice, but...

If you have enough models, All Out Brawl would probably be a decent format for a group game that you could use to explain rules concepts.

Playing a "just basically kill each other" game has never really seemed like a good idea to me, it gives people a wrong idea about the game's priorities.  I think a better idea for a demo game, once you've gone over the basic mechanics, would be something like a combination of Breakthrough and Harness the Ley Line, and for Strategy "1VP if you kill the enemy Leader.  1VP if your leader survives the game."

Or the Henchman Hardcore modified rules, and encounter choices.  

Because if they haven't used Interact, they haven't played a real game of Malifaux yet.  :) 

If you want to teach someone the rules in detail, a 2x2 game with basic minions trying to kill each other was essentially encounter two of the two player starter box.

  • Encounter Three
    • Angel Eyes, 2 Bloodwretches
    • Dr. Grimwell, 2 Orderlies
  • Encounter Four and Five
    • Angel Eyes, Maurice (formerly "Scion of the Black Blood"), 2 Bloodwretches
    • Dr. Grimwell, Nurse Heartsbane, 2 Orderlies

where soul stones weren't used until encounter five.

 

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 not using the interact was a problem when I started so that is a good point I will change it to fit that in.  I really like the escalation idea and I planned on running one soon thank you for the outline  but I want to start free just so the people I am showing it to gets a feel for the game before they invest into it. Thank you for the input it is much appreciated 😊.. 

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I start off with a one on one with two models walking, shooting and charging for a few rounds to show duels and actions off. Follow it up with a small game where you use a strategy, 25ss is good. Without VP you get a strange sense of the game, I like plant explosives for demos.

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Hey Wyrdos! Loving these suggestions! It's great to see players come together to share ways to spread the love. If you haven't already, I highly encourage you, @Otherside casualty, to apply for our Henchmen Program. You'll have access to prize support for larger events, as well as a whole forum area to discuss stuff like this with other Henchmen! Same for you, @Maniacal_cackle and @solkan :) Keep up the great work, guys!

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In my experience, I think there are 3 key elements to a good demo: 1) Keep it basic, 2) Keep it flexible and 3) (arguably the MOST important) Keep it fun!

I usually run Henchmen Hardcore rules for most of my demos - keeps the model count down (Henchman plus I'll use 3 of the same Minion for ease of learning rules), it gives the feel of a full game without being one (using actual strats/schemes that will teach some more complex rules like Interact, etc.), yet still designed to wrap up in a relatively short timeframe. I also like giving the person I demo for choices, so they feel more involved. For example, my 'set' demo crews are Taelor w/ 3 Ronin and Mad Dog w/ 3 Banditos. The first question I'll ask is whether they prefer ranged or close combat and let them play the Bandits or Mercenaries accordingly.

This isn't set in stone though, as the experience of the player influences things heavily and I let them have a say in their experience. I've demoed for folks who have never played a tabletop wargame in their lives, so I've offered to drop things down to a super basic 2 model "kill the other guy" encounter just to teach fundamental concepts. For more experienced wargamers, sometimes they want a full 'tournament level' experience right out of the gate, so I accommodate. The whole idea is to hook people into the game, and if they feel as though they have options/control, even at a demo level, more often then not they walk away wanting to get more involved.

Lastly, making things as light-hearted as possible is the way to go. If I owned Bayou, I'd probably run them exclusively for demos, just for the humor factor. I would also encourage you to pull your punches to an extent - steamrolling a new play is the quickest way to lose them. I'm not saying let them win, but don't capitalize on their mistakes or don't always cheat in a card when you normally would. Say you happen to flip a Red Joker on damage, maybe sheepishly say "Ok, this is a good time to talk about Jokers... " and then move on as if it hadn't been flipped.

Good luck with the demos!

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Introducing Strats and Keywords is vital, but needs to be limited in demo games to avoid overwhelming new players. Maybe the strategy and one scheme in a 25-30 SS game?

I like the idea of using two crews with strong themes, something Malifaux has plenty of. The crews should have straight-forward Keywords with limited complexity; that way players get a sense of how significant they are in-game, without being overwhelmed.

 

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5 hours ago, Hench Wrangler said:

Hey Wyrdos! Loving these suggestions! It's great to see players come together to share ways to spread the love. If you haven't already, I highly encourage you, @Otherside casualty, to apply for our Henchmen Program. You'll have access to prize support for larger events, as well as a whole forum area to discuss stuff like this with other Henchmen! Same for you, @Maniacal_cackle and @solkan :) Keep up the great work, guys!

Cheers! We have a henchmen organising events at the moment. I just do some small demos. He is doing the big tournaments and things :)

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 10/31/2019 at 7:27 AM, solkan said:

Playing a "just basically kill each other" game has never really seemed like a good idea to me, it gives people a wrong idea about the game's priorities.

 

This is very true!

From when the game was demo'ed to me it didn't really feel like anything special to me until i suddenly realised at the start of turn 2 that I could actually win the game easily without killing any of my opponent's crew. Having that kind of versatility where I could win by actively avoiding the conflict really grabbed me.

I like the idea of running a single hench with 2-3 of the same minion for simplicity sake as having 4 different things might be a bit of info overload for new players.

My locals only really play Malifaux when the club has it's annual campaign, so I've been wanting to grow the local community a bit so that we have more interest outside of those few weeks each year. What have worked for you to grow the local scene?

 

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