New player

[Unifex]

Hi there,

Looking for some advice/thoughts:

A group of friends and I have been lured into giving Malifaux a try - we're all gamers of different ilks, and enough people have praised the game to us that we're willing to get some basics together and see what all the noise is about.

My questions are basically: What is a good starting point? We'd obviously like a few basic items to start - enough to play a few quick games, in depth without being massively complicated, and ideally not too expensive until we decide if we want to stick with the game or not.

In terms of experience we pretty much run the gamut from "Long term casual gamer, but not that into it" to "Die hard systems monkies". I'd considered asking a henchman if they would help us out, but hoenstl,y for onyl a few people it seems like it would be a bit of a waste/overkill.

Cheers for any thoughts!

[dgraz]

I strongly suggest you take a look at the wiki. It has a section on starting out and gives a nice breakdown on all of the available masters and minions (well, most at least...there may be a few missing).

Link: http://pullmyfinger.wikispaces.com/

Most starter boxes are around a similar point level so make for decent small games to get your feet wet.

If you have a henchman that is based anywhere nearby, don't hesitate to ask. I'm sure they'd be happy to help. Anything to help grow the community. Even if you're just a few people...that doesn't matter....from small seeds come big trees and all that.

Oh, and welcome to Malifaux, enjoy your stay.

[Adran]

There are henchmen all over the place. It might be worth posting your location and see if there is one nearby.

To start as a group I would recomend buying book 1.5, 2 decks of cards and 2 starter sets. Not all starter sets are equal, but every master has one, and they give you a semi decent crew to play to learn the game with.

Pick ones that look interesting to you and you are more likely to enjoy them.

When you start playign I would start with very small games which include a master each and then a couple of minions (ideally I would suggest using multiple copies of the same minion to reduce what you need to learn. Most boxes come with multiple figures of one minion, but not all do. IF it doesn't then just use what you have).

For a basic demo with 2 new players I would often suggets a shared statragy as then you only need to keep that 1 win condition in your head, but also picking at least 1 scheme. I'd normally suggest sticking to the simpler to remember ones, Bodyguard, Assasinate, Breakthrough, Hold out for example.

I enjoy the asymetric nature of malifaux, but it can make it harder for new people to remember how they win which is why I recomend starting with shared stratergy.

Then once you've got the basic rules, go up to 20 ss games (often the limit of starter boxes) using the proper random stratergies and scheme selection and then start looking at what you want to expand your crews or switch to another master. Typically games vary from between 25-40 ss but it depends on what your group likes. (Me and my reagular opponet flip a bunch of cards and add them up to decide what size we are going to play

[Claymore65]

First of all, welcome. I hope you have fun with the game. The easisest suggestion is to have everyone get a starter box. The starter boxes let you play around the 25 SS (think points) range, which is pretty good. Most starter boxes give you a pretty decent crew to start with. I would advise your players to take a quick look at the different masters/box sets out there and just try one. The box sets aren't too expensive, and the game is cheaper to expand (overall) than Warmahordes or 40k. For your casual players, I would suggest an easier crew, like the Freikorps box set (it is fantastic) or try some of the guild box sets. For your "system monkies" players, you can try a harder crew, like Hoffman's box set (and a Peacekeeper, otherwise he doesn't have 25 SS worth), or Leveticus. Most importantly, have them try out a set they think looks cool/plays interestingly. There is enough variety between the factions/masters that everyone can find something they think is cool. After playing some box set games, feel free to expand whenever you feel like. The normal game size for many players is in the 30-35SS range, which would only require a few models worth of expansion. Check out the Pullmyfinger wiki (just search Malifaux wiki on google) for more information on the masters and the box sets (which one's are good, etc.). Good luck, and more importantly have fun.

[Jonasty]

Welcome! As mentioned above, picking starters based on their "cool" factor is a good idea as the game is so full of theme and flavor that it helps make the game.

One thing you can do if you're trying to see if the game is right for you without spending money is use regular card decks when you're first trying things out. If you decide you like the game then you really should invest in the Malifaux specific decks as they're gorgeous and make it that much easier to run a turn quickly but if you're wary of spending monies that's an easy way to try before you buy.

Lastly, I'll +1 the idea of finding a local Henchman to help you and your friends out. Obviously can't speak for everyone but most every Henchman on here would be more than happy to run demos for you and your friends or even just meet with you at your local store to help provide answers for any questions you may have. We're all very eager to build the hobby up so just let them know you're interested and you'll get tons of support.

[Huang Da Wei]

Definitely get in touch with your nearest Henchman, even if its just for a chat and a quick demo game. After all, thats what we are here for.

[Unifex]

Thank you for the comments!

I've pinged the two henchmen closest to me (Hertfordshire, UK here), and asked for a moment of their time, and been to the local Game Store to touch base there on the subject - so here's hoping for a good result!

A couple more questions did come up.

The Game Store was quite keen on the Terra Clips scenery, and I was receiving a slightly mixed message: What I think I heard was "It's my job to sell you this, and it's cool and fun, but if I'm entirely honest, it's not necessary" - is that a fair summary?

Something that I only thought of as I left the store (And felt stupid for not having thought of earlier): Are Malifaux models assembled/painted or need work when bought from the box?

[Joel]

the models come as bare plastic on a sprue, or as metal components - they need assembly and painting when you buy them (a side of the hobby that's a whole lot of fun in itself) - but you don't need to paint them before you play with them.

terraclips is fun for building your own terrain to play games on, but isn't a necessity. It looks great and its something to think about a way down the track, but I'd not jump into that just yet - get to know (and love) this crazy game first