Waldo's Weekly - 2024 Errata and Elite/Mimic Rework

[Hobby Wyrd]

Heya Wyrdos!

Today is a thrilling day for Malifaux Third Edition. We’re releasing the 2024 Errata and FAQ, alongside a Keyword Rework for Mimic and Elite. 

2024 Errata

Today we are excited to release the 2024 errata and FAQ. The errata includes balance adjustments to models such as Botanists. Of course, we aren’t just targeting problematic models; this errata also includes some love for older iconic models that needed a helping hand, like Asura Roten. To show some of our reasoning for our selections for the 2024 errata here’s some information about how and why the models have changed:

Guild

• Sonnia Criid - The goal here was to separate out the two versions of Sonnia Criid by allowing this version to focus more on Burning and Summoning. Burning gets a boost with the new Sapping Flames Action, and her Summoning options expand with the Magical Inquisition Action and Scorch the Soul Trigger.

Resurrectionists

• Asura Roten - With the release of Ezekiel, Asura Roten needed a bit more of a role. Solidifying her role as a Mindless Zombie support model, Asura Roten gains the Grave Dynamo Ability that allows her to increase the Model Limit of Mindless Zombies to 10 and the new Macabre Infusion Action, which allows Mindless Zombies to move and take an Action. 
• Reva Cortinas, Luminary - Reva Cortinas, Luminary had a lot of interactions that interrupted opponent Activations and slowed down play. This update remedies that by removing the Enkindle the Cult Ability and simplifying Visions of Fire.

Arcanists

• Damian Ravencroft, Aspirant - Damian Ravencroft, Aspirant was a bit too flexible, especially in damage-focused matches. To temper this, the Memories of the Yellow Crypt Ability was removed and his F Action is updated to the new Knowledge is Power Action.
• Showgirl - Showgirls were showing their age and didn’t contribute to the focus of Performer. This version gives them options. Whether it is supporting Colette Du Bois with Distracted from Wow the Audience, protecting friendly models with Backup Dancer, or keeping up with Coryphee with Onward, there’s always room for a Showgirl.

Neverborn

• Killjoy - Killjoy was a good model that was a bit too close to the Malisaurus Rex. They competed for the same role as they are both in the same Keyword with similar damage tracks and defensive stats. This new version sees Killjoy as a mobile damage threat with Made to Kill and Bloody Gate to teleport him to Underbrush Markers. Swapping Hooked Chain for the new Rosewood Chains with On Your Heels gives him numerous options in the melee-focused Fae Keyword.

Bayou

• McTavish - McTavish felt like a model pulled between two ideals - a ranged gun threat or a melee monster. As Zoraida and Bayou have more melee threats today, this update focuses on McTavish as a ranged unit. The new Gator Scramble Action with Quick Shot means that McTavish has plenty of opportunities to use his new Stat 6 Long Carbine.
• Uncle Bogg - Uncle Bogg was a model that was a bit too complex. He had multiple end of Activation Abilities, which meant he required a lot of record-keeping. This version simplifies some of that load by removing the Uninvited Guest and Inclement Weather Abilities. Making sure he retained a role in Angler, Off the Path gained the Sinkhole Trigger.

Ten Thunders

• Yasunori - Yasunori was in an odd spot for many years. It wasn’t a Horseman but had Horseman-like Abilities. This version differentiates Yasunori from Horseman models by adding two Upgrades that allow it to flip between damage and support roles.

Explorer’s Society

• Botanist - Botanists were a bit too efficient into Marker based Crews with their “Feed Me!” and Strong Roots Abilities. The new “Feed Me!” Ability tones down the Stat boost, but rewards players who stack Grow Tokens with the option to Summon Botanists with Cuttings.
• Hopeful Prospect - Hopeful Prospects were in a difficult spot. They were good models but not great choices for starting with Malifaux. To help this, they’ve lost Insignificant and have gained the Society Keyword and Society Honors Ability.
• Tannenbaum - Similar to Hopeful Prospects, Tannenbaum didn’t quite fit the mold of other Starter box models. To help with this, he’s lost his Seeker synergy and picked up Society Honors and the new Well-Provisioned Ability.
• Mr. Ngaatoro - Mr. Ngaatoro changed the least of the Explorer’s Starter models as he was already a solid Obey model. To tie closer to the rest of his box, he gained the Society Keyword and Society Honors.

Check out the change log and the links below to see everything that has changed and the new cards:

2024 Errata Changelog

2024 Frequently Asked Questions

2024 Errata Cards

Elite and Mimic Keyword Rework

In addition to the normal errata cycle, we are thrilled to include a full Keyword rework of Mimic and Elite! Lucius Mattheson and his Elite and Mimic Keywords are long-time favorites in the lore of Malifaux. Just look at Lucius Mattheson’s rise from a Henchman to a Master and his involvement in the Malifaux story.

While a fan-favorite Master, the fantasy of Lucius Mattheson was never quite fulfilled by his mechanics in Third Edition. Commanding friendly models to fight for you feels very thematic, but in general, a strong hit is more useful. Another issue is that in Neverborn, Lucius was often compared against Zoraida, as they both lean heavily into generated Action mechanics as their main draw This diluted his uniqueness and role within the Faction. Today, we set out to fix those issues and make Lucius and his Keyword the ominous manipulators they were always meant to be.

Reasoning for Keyword Rework

There are a few reasons for looking to Elite and Mimic for a Keyword Rework, including: the Keyword’s reliance on generated Actions, the way it encouraged noninteractive solo play, its role in its Factions, and its survivability.

Generated Actions are very fun in Malifaux as a mechanic, as they allow for a lot of variety and opportunity for counterplay. That said, Lucius Mattheson’s generated Actions are mostly focused on friendly models or are generated by lower cost models. This made his generated Action effects very resource intensive, which was balanced by the Following Orders Ability that allowed models to draw cards as a result of generated Actions. However, as a Keyword Ability Following Orders was dead text if the model was not targeted by another friendly model of higher Cost. This meant that if an Elite or Mimic model moved away from other friendly models to score or run a flank, they were unable to get any benefit from their Keyword Ability, which felt bad for Lucius Mattheson’s player. Additionally, since Following Orders required the Action to be generated by a model with a higher Cost, the higher the Cost of a model the less often the Ability mattered. Thus, it often required other Abilities, such as Court Authority, to allow the pieces to work together properly.

Even if a player was able to line up all the pieces perfectly, Lucius Mattheson still had problems. As a dual Faction Master, Lucius had twice as many Keywords to compare himself against. Lore wise, Elite and Mimic models felt like they should play with Conditions and excel at Scheme Marker focused pools. In Guild, this meant that Lucuis was fighting for space versus Nellie Cochrane and her Journalist Keyword, who puts out a lot of Conditions and are able to control Interact Actions. As a Master focused on generated Actions, in Neverborn he butted up against Zoraida and her powerful Ensorcel Trigger. These conflicts left the Elite and Mimic models very little room to breathe. They usually felt like a slightly more generalist version of either Swampfiend or Journalist.

Rounding out the reasons for a Rework was general survivability. The Keyword had a smattering of defensive Abilities but nothing was truly standardized across the Keyword. This meant they performed very poorly into certain matchups where their advantages could be neutralized. The biggest weakness was the reliance on Intimidating Authority, which allowed the Elite or Mimic model to discard a card to give an Attack targeting it a - . On paper, Intimidating Authority is effective, but Crews with easy access to Soulstones, Focus, or + flips powered right through it. In addition to this, it was yet another resource drain on the Crew.

Focus of the Keyword Rework

After reviewing the reasons why a Keyword Rework made sense for Elite and Mimic, we took a different path toward a solution than with Big Hat or Oni. In the Oni rework, we focused on the elements that existed already in the Keyword (like Rift Markers) and expanded their usefulness and prevalence. This gave Oni a unified feel and a goal. Elite and Mimic needed a unique mechanical draw that other Keywords in their Factions did not have, which brings us to Upgrades. Guild and Neverborn have Upgrade-focused Masters in Marcus and Perdita Ortega, Neverborn Hunter, but it is a space with a deep well of possibility, as seen by things like the Double-Sided Bygone Upgrades.

Once we decided on having Elite and Mimic use Upgrades, the next task was figuring out their role in their Factions. As previously stated, Lucius feels like he should play on the Schemier side of Malifaux and we wanted the Keyword to represent that. To differentiate Elite and Mimic from Journalists, we decided to have Elite and Mimic focus on Scheme Markers and leave Interact Action shenanigans to Journalists. This opened up a lot of possible uses for Dropping and Removing Scheme Markers for Actions and effects.

With these two goals, it became clear where the role of Elite and Mimic models would be in their Faction. They would be a Scheme Marker focused Keyword that would try to set up powerful but situational effects that are hidden from an opponent. This allows Lucius players to play out their backroom lawyer fantasies on the table.

Card Breakdowns

New Legalese Upgrades

To separate the new Elite and Mimic Upgrades from other Upgrades and for them to fit the lore of Elite and Mimic models better, we decided to play with hidden information. Taking bits from both English Ivan, Double Agent and the Bygone Keyword, Elite and Mimic now have 5 Unique Upgrades that are Double-Sided.

Let's Look at the Upgrades:

 

Each of these Upgrades has the same front: Above the Law, the first card shown above. This is the side that opponents will see after a Double-Sided Legalese Upgrade is Attached to a Mimic or Elite model. This Upgrade only gives one Ability, Sign on the Dotted Line, which provides the rules for flipping the Upgrade over. 

Looking at the hidden back of cards, we have 5 unique effects with a shared thread of resource generation. We kept card draw as a part of Lucius Mattheson’s identity since the resource generation from Following Orders was one item Lucius Mattheson players really enjoyed. Beyond card draw, each Upgrade has its own focus, whether that is card cycling, model movement, Scheme Marker creation, or negative Conditions. One Upgrade that is especially exciting is Take the Stand, which allows a model to Replace into another Mimic or Elite model for their Activation. This allows a Guild Lawyer to act as Klaus Norwood or Agent 46 for a brief time. The combination of these different hidden card backs will keep the opponent guessing throughout the whole game, constantly wondering what Lucius is planning!

Note that you may have only one copy of each Upgrade in play at a time in one Crew, even though they share the same front. For example, while you may have up to five Above the Law Upgrades in play, only one of them may be Fee Negotiation. 

Lucius Mattheson

While the Upgrade Mechanic is the biggest surprise of this Keyword Rework, we also made significant changes to both Lucius Mattheson Titles. Lucius Mattheson was generally known for supporting friendly models within a bubble thanks to a combination of generated Actions and movement tricks, and we wanted to keep that same style while giving him more opportunities to control the battlefield.

To help accomplish this, we thought a lot about where Lucius Mattheson’s Actions would go. Previously, the majority of Lucius Mattheson’s Actions went to Issue Command. Hidden Sniper had engagement issues and Fancy Cane required Lucius Mattheson to be a bit too close to enemies for his safety. 

In the rework, we remedied those oddities by focusing on giving Lucius options for his Activation and rewarding players with useful Triggers when taking those Actions. As such, Issue Command is now a F Action with the Quick Reflexes Trigger. This means that while a Lucius Mattheson player will probably Issue Command to one or two friendly models per Activation, they still have 3 Actions left to affect the battlefield. Filling that role are the two new Actions on his card: Gather Intel and Subpoena. Gather Intel is a great Action with the ability to move models and give out Distracted. While good on its own, the new According to Plan Trigger on Gather Intel makes it amazing by giving Lucius Mattheson a way to power up friendly models. 

Subpoena fills a similar role to Hidden Sniper, but better. Like Hidden Sniper, Subpoena is able to draw LoS and range from friendly Elite and Mimic models, but since it is not a Z Action, it can be used to target models engaged with friendly models, this is a huge upgrade. Additionally, Subpoena benefits from three exciting Triggers - Missing Forms, Draw Out Secrets, and Summons. These Triggers allow Lucius to control scoring by preventing Interact Actions, Dropping Scheme Markers, or moving the target.

On the Ability side of Lucius Mattheson, there are two big changes. The first is that Lucius Mattheson loses his trademark Serene Countenance Ability for Flexible Morality. This was done to help standardize the defensive Abilities across the keyword. In the rework, Elite models gravitate towards having Flexible Morality and Mimics generally have Disguised. This is a minor hit to Lucius but a huge step up for his Keyword as a whole, making it more than worth it. The second change is that Lucius picked up an updated version of Lucius Mattheson, Dishonored’s Planning Ahead Ability. This Ability was moved to this version as Lucius Mattheson, Dishonorable is more focused with assassinating enemies than Dropping Scheme Markers.

Lucius Mattheson, Dishonorable

Lucius Mattheson, Dishonorable is a model that players enjoy today. Being able to teleport around the board with Secret Passage and assassinate enemies with Daggerlike Claw is a playstyle that resonates with Elite and Mimic players. As such, we kept these Actions when updating the Lucius Mattheson, Dishonorable card. The changes that were made allow him to synergize with the Legalese Upgrades, increase the versatility of his Actions, and reduce complexity.

An example of a change to work better with the Legalese Upgrades is the updated Daggerlike Claw. Previously, Daggerlike Claw gained + flips when targeting models with the Staggered Condition. In this rework, the Staggered sub-theme has been removed, so the Condition reliant version of Daggerlike Claw didn’t make sense going forward. Now Daggerlike Claw gains a + flip if a model has flipped a Legalese Upgrade over the course of a Turn, which ties it to the new mechanics.

The changes to Down the Wrong Path are an example of increasing options. The old version of Down the Wrong Path was a way to move an enemy model out of position and have a friendly model attack them. Today’s version retains that functionality with the built-in Coordinated Strike Trigger; however, now that the Action isn’t restricted to enemy models and has three useful Triggers, it is another decision point on whether to target friendly or enemy models.

A way we reduced complexity is Lucius Mattheson, Dishonorable’s new F Action, Peak Efficiency. “You Have Your Orders” was a great F Action, but it was very similar to the new version of Issue Command. “You Have Your Orders” was also a bit confusing with the Keyword restricted Triggers, as few models have both Elite and Mimic Keywords, so one of the Triggers was generally unavailable when taking the Action. The new Peak Efficiency Action is exciting as it mirrors Lucius Mattheson’s Issue Command Action. Like with Issue Command, Peak Efficiency allows the target to take an Action and Attach a Legalese Upgrade. The difference is that Peak Efficiency is restricted to F Actions. This gives the Elite and Mimic Crew a lot of exciting options because they have very powerful F Actions, such as Boring Conversation and Impassioned Defense. Peak Efficiency also increases a Lucius Mattheson, Dishonorable player’s options because it can always Heal the target even if all the Legalese Upgrades are in play. 

Rest of the Cards

Without further ado, let's look at the rest of the cards!

 

For those excited for the Elite and Mimic Rework as well as the 2024 Errata, updated cards will be available soon in a few ways:

• Visible in the Malifaux Crew Builder Application.
• Print for free from the Wyrd Dropbox.
• Order from Drive Thru RPG.

That’s it for Elite and Mimic and the 2024 errata! Errata and Rework cards, the updated FAQ and Changelogs are available at the links below.

 

2024 Errata Changelog

2024 Frequently Asked Questions

2024 Errata Cards

 

 

[The_Lightkeeper]

What's everyone their thoughts on this?

Personally, I like the idea and the overarching thematic changes. But there's a few things that are a bit strange to me. While most models seem to have changed for the better, by taking and giving stuff there's a few things that bug me a bit.

My guess, most people will point to guild lawyers. But I'm glad they lost tools for the job. I shouldn't be able to take the red joker out of my discard pile. Losing both chatty and obey seems a bit to much for me though.

My main concerns are 4 other models.

1. Doppelganger: Before the change they were a niche versatile model, now they're even less likely to be used a such. They lost their stagger (stat 5 or 7, depending on your usage) and while not used much, the no witnesses trigger was thematic for the model. And while I get that you want to add the brand new thing to a lot of things. This is a versatile model and that should have been put on a trigger, not as their new melee action. They lost their zoraida combo because the whole keyword lost following orders and got nothing for it. And while the change to blend in is actually really good, the subtraction from some of the stuff on the card makes this model even less likely to appear as a versatile model.

2. Alan Reid: this model just lost half it's text, got 1 attack action that I don't get on the model. How he remains 8 soulstones with these changes is justt strange.

3. Cavatica: This one is minor, but I want to point out that the loss of their shield will hurt this model a lot they are a 7 health model that can't use soulstones. Every other change on this model look really good though.

4. Investigator: This model is what bothers me most, it was a 7 soulstone tech piece that got changed into a generic 6 soulstone model. I much rather have a model with no projectile damage attack action. And while people really like extra movement, this model just seems to be emptied from all fun and have 3 things added, a melee attack action that just doesn't add much, a gun that isn't needed and a bonus action that is something good, but not something that comes close to what was lost. This model could have had its following orders ability changed into something scheme marker related and this tech piece would have slotted in perfectly in the new theme.

 

But again, I want to point out that I like the overarching theme and changes a lot, and this is just some point that come to mind when I went trough the changes. And these are a personal first opinion, that could be completely wrong.

[Brilliance Laced Whiskey]

 

1.  Doppleganger is a bit of a wash.  A movement 6 model that basically has a leap that zeroes in specifically on a model has many applications.  Plus the Don't Mind Me helps with the crews setup.  However, the juicy mimic is always going to probably take precedence, unless you really need a certain upgrade in a certain spot and need to move 12 inches to do so.

2.  Alan is an interesting one.  That trigger, and being a henchmen, gives him a 2" range 4/5/6 later in the game.  He died?  Not to worry, I can change my Changeling into a 4/5/6 beater for an activation.  Boring conversation can also be triggered outside his activation with Lucius 2.  And his defensive ability is arguably better than the one before (assuming you didn't take Guild Mages).  He looks less impressive at first, but the ceiling is much higher than before.

3.  Cavatica can set up gnarly combos with the lawyer, a false witness, and built in suits.  A stat 5, 2/3/5 at 8" range where your opponent is at a negative flip, that guarantees me a scheme marker is quite strong.  Requires setup obviously.

4.  Investigators are card farms now, and help your models get into position.  It does feel like some character was lost, but they did maintain a bit of that identity.

 

Losing Tools was inevitable, especially on a relatively cheap minion.  It was too be expected. 

 

I really wish we got to keep obey somewhere.  Hopefully we'll get one in a future release.

 

As a whole it is a very strong release.  Across the board things got better, with the exception of Lucius 2 and Lawyers who were problematic for fairly obvious reasons.  Having the minions also be slightly cheaper is a massive boon when you consider how much application each one has.

[Da Git]

Most excited for:

Sonnia - really different from the Title (great, because she was so outshone before). Really like the look of Melee Sonnia, although it's got a bit of anti-synergy in that all the Witch Hunters only ignore Witchlings, so Sonnia will hamper her crew's guns. It's also really interesting that she summons Witch Hunters now, that's going to really open up the keyword (although you'll probs generally summon Archers). Would have liked for the Summon to come in with Health equal to the Burning removed as there doesn't seem much point in build stacks of Burning other than the extra damage. May as well just spread it around. Shame Sam still isn't great.

The Silent Knight - Could we get an updated card on Dropbox for him? (and any other special editions). Love a big beater hopping and bopping around! Feel he shoud have been Terrifying 12 though.