LF advice on running a demo game for friends

[binstat]

Hey all,

I just discovered Malifaux and am excited to give it a try. My gaming friends will need an easy introduction - which I think i can handle if i essentially 'referee' the first few games. They will also need to feel like the game is 'fun'.

For it to be 'fun' they all have to feel like they were able to put up a good fight with their limited grasp of rules and with the crew they were assigned. (Not ideal, but hey, I pander to their needs in order to pique their interest. As the sales people say, there has to be a level of 'buy in' to the game - otherwise the game will get shelved.) While I am more inclined to spend time trying to 'get' a game, these dudes, by and large, are quick to write games off if somebody feels like the rules screwed them over. (Which does happen sometimes with miniature games. Designing for team balance while keeping army/unit diversity is just really hard. Er, so I would imagine.)

So, here are the questions for the community:

1) Any tips on running a decently fun exhibition-style game? We have all played various tabletop wargames (40k, warmachine, mordheim, and some heroclix) so we are familiar with the format. If anyone has any experience with this or other games and can offer some general advice I would be grateful.

2) Suggestions on at least 2 out-of-the-box crews that I can pick up that will be relatively evenly matched? (i.e. both crews win the occasional match against each other)

If not, I might just proxy two identical crews with the models i have so that nobody feels cheated out of a good crew.

Thanks in advance, all I hope this all works out and that we can add Malifaux to our list of regularly played games. I can't wait to paint some of these figs!

[Rob1981]

My friend and I were the first of our group to pick up Malifaux and have subsequently had to bring Malifaux to the masses. The only advice I can give is KEEP IT SIMPLE! avoid more unusual gangs (i.e. Pandora, The Hag, Kirai, Leveticus etc.) our demo games typically use the Death Marshalls (the most straightforward box) and another gang, usually Lilith or Ramos (simply due to availability).

Depending on the level of experience you may want to keep the Strategy simple and limit the players to a single Scheme so they get the idea behind the mechanics without being overwhelmed. The simplest starter game we've run is a shared slaughter with no schemes

[Cenotaph]

I would suggest going with crews that are obvious to play. When I'm introducing new players I tend to use something like Lady Justice or Perdita vs Seamus. They are fairly evenly matched and simple to understand (they have hidden depths but you can play without needing to understand them). Most people can relate to playing shooty cowboys vs undead so it tends to make the game more mentally tactile.

[gunpowder saint]

Rasputina vs. Sonnia is actually one of the more "balanced out of box games" I've played. it's very thematic too lol

[Borthcollective]

Rasputina vs. Sonnia is actually one of the more "balanced out of box games" I've played. it's very thematic too lol

Was going to suggest this one also.

[binstat]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I am going to visit my local game store after work today. If I can ever get the group of us calm and in the same place for a few hours, I may have some news on how it goes.

Thanks again, all.