Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Put your hobby and modelling logs in here.
User avatar
jus
Moderator
Posts: 1205
Joined: Wed May 19, 2010 4:11 am

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by jus » Mon Dec 12, 2016 7:12 am

While I'm not much of a malifaux man, I did enjoy reading your flavor text descriptors...it might actually be better than the actual, ya'know, malifaux fluff. I get a real Kill Bill feel from your post. THose ruins are a good choice for a backdrop. mmm flavor.

User avatar
Primarch
Evil Overlord
Posts: 11392
Joined: Fri May 14, 2010 9:33 am
Location: Nagoya
Contact:

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by Primarch » Mon Dec 12, 2016 9:15 am

@Jus - Thanks, I hope to get back to that at some stage.
But for now, this is all about Malifaux. :D

Back on the subject of Cards...

As I said previously, I think card draw abilities are a very important part of crew's arsenal. Being able to improve the resources available to you can make a big difference in your game.
At the end of each turn (most importantly, the largely uneventful Turn 1), you get to reset your hand.

The sequence is:
Shuffle your discard pile into your deck.
Discard cards to your discard pile.
Draw new cards up to your hand size.
Optional
(Spend a Soulstone to draw 2 extra cards.
Discard down to your hand size.)

This has several effects on game play.
Firstly, any card you discard will NOT get flipped unless you run through your entire deck in a turn (which is possible in a very busy turn).
Secondly, any card you discard will NOT be available to you until next turn at the earliest.
Finally, any card that you didn't discard or draw WILL get flipped at some stage.

But 'Prim,' I hear you say, 'Those are all the same thing!'

Well, yes, but also no and possibly, perhaps.

It all comes down to what you want to flip, what you need to flip and what you want to avoid.

By dumping low value cards, you know you won't flip them in duels this turn. Knowing the Black Joker is in your discard pile means that it won't get flipped this turn. Therefore you know you will be able to cheat up any duels you need to, so you can be more aggressive.

Generally speaking high flips are vital in duels, but there are some situations where a medium value card of the right suit is more useful than a 13 of the wrong suit. Throwing away cards of your key suit that you might need means you won't randomly flip them this turn, so lowering your chance of hitting key triggers.

Finally, knowing that your deck is stuffed full of chaff because your hand contains only high value cards and you discarded a bunch of medium values is also important. If you didn't see the Black Joker in the Discard/Draw steps, you need to be prepared for it to come up. Likewise, having a handful of dud cards means your average flips should be better.

I'm not suggesting people start counting cards, but an awareness of possibilities will help you determine how aggressive you want to be and if you really want to risk throwing your Master in front of the enemy killing machine or not.
Painted Minis in 2014: 510, in 2015: 300, in 2016 :369, in 2019: 417, in 2020: 450

User avatar
Primarch
Evil Overlord
Posts: 11392
Joined: Fri May 14, 2010 9:33 am
Location: Nagoya
Contact:

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by Primarch » Mon Dec 12, 2016 9:18 am

So, on a more interactive note, what do you consider important when putting a crew together?
Painted Minis in 2014: 510, in 2015: 300, in 2016 :369, in 2019: 417, in 2020: 450

User avatar
me_in_japan
Moderator of Swoosh!
Posts: 7382
Joined: Fri May 14, 2010 2:46 pm
Location: Tsu, Mie, Japan

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by me_in_japan » Mon Dec 12, 2016 12:53 pm

For me, synergy is critical when crew-building. Of the three crews I own (Colette and her showgirls, Ramos and his mechaspiders, Lynch and his light-junkies) both Colette and Lynch are highly dependant on having certain model types in the crew to function, well, at all. Without "showgirl" types, most of Colette's abilities are non-starters, and Lynch has massive dependance on models with the "illuminated" type. Ramos isn't quite so bad, but still, he has a lot of things he can do with the "construct" type. I actually go so far as to include things like the Oiran (and when I get some cash, Ice-Dancers) from other crews with my showgirls just because they have the "showgirl" type.

So, aye, short version is: Synergy (and thus theming) is important for me.
current (2019) hobby interests
eh, y'know. Stuff, and things

Wow. And then Corona happened. Just....crickets, all the way through to 2023...

User avatar
kojibear
Legend
Posts: 1678
Joined: Sat Oct 02, 2010 11:00 am
Location: Nagoya

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by kojibear » Tue Dec 13, 2016 12:26 pm

Primarch wrote:So, on a more interactive note, what do you consider important when putting a crew together?
Theme is also important for me where possible.

Both of my crews are offensive - the Viktorias and her gang of ronan vixens, and MeiFeng with her Railworking thugs. In order to make them work, I have to cross the board fast and luckily both crews have tricks to make that a little easier. Viktorias have sisters in spirit that allows some sling shot shenanigans, whereas Mei Feng has an albility called 'walk the line' which enables her to leap frog using models with the 'construct' type - so things part machine.

The issue, of course, is that the opponent is fully aware of these tricks and will do their very best to stop that from happening. This is where going outside of the theme becomes a little necessary. Having some ranged attacks for both crews offers the opponent a threat that cannot be avoided - well, you hope :D. The ranged threats can take damage off of the enemy before the melee types get stuck in and mop up. The ranged threats can also create firing lanes that can essentially funnel enemies a certain direction and keep them out of certain areas, too.

Luckily, the world of malifuax has a lot of guns for hire. Prim mentioned the convict gunslinger. She is my go to for both crews to add some ranged. However I also picked up the Friekorps Trapper, who is a sniper with a kind of a scout deployment.

Prim - have you read much about the new Emissaries model types?

User avatar
Primarch
Evil Overlord
Posts: 11392
Joined: Fri May 14, 2010 9:33 am
Location: Nagoya
Contact:

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by Primarch » Tue Dec 13, 2016 1:40 pm

The Emissaries are big, tough models that embody the aspects of their faction. Each comes with a generic upgrade or a master specific upgrade, free of charge. They all share some common mechanics, as you score VP from the mission strategy, they power up. Once they reach a certain level they discharge and boost your crew. They can help buff your crew and can dish out a fair amount of damage in the process. They are pricey though, 10 Soulstones a pop I believe.
Painted Minis in 2014: 510, in 2015: 300, in 2016 :369, in 2019: 417, in 2020: 450

User avatar
Primarch
Evil Overlord
Posts: 11392
Joined: Fri May 14, 2010 9:33 am
Location: Nagoya
Contact:

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by Primarch » Wed Dec 14, 2016 11:14 am

I guess I should put some Painting and Modelling stuff in this blog too, so here is a little WIP.
Image
Image
The basic model is one of 4Ground's cheap unpainted, single layer houses. I added some boards across the windows, a knocked down door and some torn up curtains.
Painted Minis in 2014: 510, in 2015: 300, in 2016 :369, in 2019: 417, in 2020: 450

User avatar
Primarch
Evil Overlord
Posts: 11392
Joined: Fri May 14, 2010 9:33 am
Location: Nagoya
Contact:

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by Primarch » Thu Dec 22, 2016 1:34 pm

Rasputina and Wendigo
Image
Rasputina is an Arcanist Master, the leader of the Cult of December and one of the best spell-slingers in the game. She is very slow (a walk of only 3"), but with the right crew, this isn't a huge drawback. Rasputina has some very potent damage spells in her repertoire, allowing her to deal moderate amounts of damage to her target and to other models nearby. While she isn't particularly tough, she has a Df trigger that can prevent enemy models from making more than one attack against her.
Rasputina really shines when taken alongside models which have the Frozen Heart ability. When she casts spells, rather than measuring Range and LoS from herself, she can instead arc her spells through the Frozen Heart models and measure Range and LoS from them instead. If she is in the middle of the table, there is nowhere you can hide from her.

The Wendigo is Rasputina's Totem. For a small little bundle of fur, the Wendigo is quite ferocious. With a decent melee attack and the ability to devour Ht1 and Paralyzed models whole the Wendigo can be quite deadly, especially in a crew which can Paralyze opponents fairly easily. Luckily the Wendigo isn't very tough, but for a 3SS mini it can quickly earn back it's cost.

Ice Golem
Image
This big guy is the Cult of December's Enforcer. He's big, slow and easy to hit, but comes with some impressive melee attacks and Melee Expert (giving him an extra attack action). With a couple of points of armour, the Ice Golem can shrug off weaker attacks and even weather a couple of harder hits. Like all CoD models, he has Frozen Heart, allowing Rasputina to use him for spells. He can also throw Ht1 models around, allowing him to reposition some of his crew. His final ability to take note of is his tendency to violently explode when killed. Boom!

Hoarcat Prides
Image
The Hoarcats are small, wild little beasties that like having their bellies rubbed. Oh, and gorging on human flesh. They like that a lot too.
These little kitties are reasonably mobile, with a good charge range of 7" and the ability to pass through other models. Because they are so cute and cuddly, they are hard to target with attacks until they actually get stuck into melee. Their combat ability is ok, but gets worse as they get wounded. Should they actually kill someone they heal all of the damage they have taken. By far their most noteworthy attribute is their ability to devour living models. One pride can devour a Ht1 model, but two prides can eat most human sized targets.
Painted Minis in 2014: 510, in 2015: 300, in 2016 :369, in 2019: 417, in 2020: 450

User avatar
The Underdweller
Legend
Posts: 1146
Joined: Wed May 26, 2010 3:08 am

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by The Underdweller » Fri Dec 23, 2016 8:25 am

Primarch wrote:So, on a more interactive note, what do you consider important when putting a crew together?
Yeah, pretty much the same as MIJ and Kojibear, theme and synergy. When buying a new crew, I generally chooses Masters I like thematically, then head over to Pull My Finger, and read up on the models they recommend for his/her crew. I don't automatically pick whatever they recommend - I try to choose models that I can visualize using personally. I try to capitalize on whatever strengths the Master has (lots of disposable undead for Nicodem, models to aid in Mobility and Horror duels for Seamus), and get something to fill in the different roles (bodyguard, something fast to hold table quarters/drop scheme markers etc.). Or sometimes I just like the model.

User avatar
Primarch
Evil Overlord
Posts: 11392
Joined: Fri May 14, 2010 9:33 am
Location: Nagoya
Contact:

Re: Welcome to Malifaux - Prim's Breachside Blog

Post by Primarch » Sat Dec 31, 2016 10:55 am

Some end of December updates for my Cult of er... December.
First of all a repaint of Rasputina to bring her paint job more inline with the other members of her crew. Alongside her is one of her minions, a December Acolyte.
Image
The December Acolyte is a ranged support/scheme runner type of minion. He can deploy anywhere on the table outside of enemy deployment zones, making him useful at dropping scheme markers in hard to reach places. He has a harpoon gun which lets him drag victims towards himself and a couple of abilities to debuff opposing models by handing out the Slow condition or removing Armour.

The Blessed of December and a Silent One.
Image
The Blessed of December is a fast moving, melee Enforcer. She ignores most terrain and can use her zero action to make an additional move so long as she flips/cheats a high card. Her wounds aren't particularly high, but if she kills a target and eats it, she can heal back to full. Her melee attack is ok, but has a variety of triggers for extra damage. Essentially the Blessed is going to run up to something and try to tear it's face off.
The Silent One is a support Minion. She has a decent ranged attack with some versatile triggers and a pathetic Melee attack. She isn't particularly tough, but her abilities work in both melee and at range. She also provides healing to her crew, able to heal up friendly models in a burst around a target.

Snowstorm
Image
Snowstorm - or more accurately Snow and Storm - is Rasputina's Henchman and a fine one at that. Like all good right-hand men/women/yetis should, Snowstorm fills in the gaps in the crew and shores up Rasputina's weak points. Snowstorm is fairly fast compared to the rest of the crew and has a few abilities that allow him/her to move models around. Snowstorm is a good melee fighter as you'd expect from a hulking great brute but also has a few ranged magical attacks. Capable of leading a crew by him/herself in low point games, Snowstorm changes the dynamic of the entire Cult of December crew.
Painted Minis in 2014: 510, in 2015: 300, in 2016 :369, in 2019: 417, in 2020: 450

Post Reply

Return to “Hobby Logs”