Malfaux Musings Week 1: Four Quadrants, A Funeral, and an Information Broker

The mysterious stranger stood amongst the abandoned ruins, immaculately dressed despite the dust and grit that seemed to blow its way into everything in the Badlands. His masked face was unreadable as he stared into the bloody charnel pit, still smoldering with the remains of whatever poor souls had been ritualistically destroyed here some time in the past. He reached into his vest pocket, retrieving a gold pocket watch. He flipped it open and nodded. "Ten minutes to midnight," he said to himself, nodding. "They'll be here soon." He looked up, eyes peering unnaturally into the gloom. They would come for Nythera, the fools. They would come thinking they could claim for themselves that which was unclaimable, and what once was would be again. And, as always, he would profit from their sorrow. That was his nature.

As the shadowy forms became visible on the horizon, eight small groups dashing towards him at full tilt, he let out a quiet, high-pitched titter of laughter. "Time to let the killing start..." 

The arsenals have been assembled, the rules are finalized, and we are underway with the Malifaux Musings Vassal Campaign League (MMVCL? sure, we'll go with that.) And the week one scenario is...

Deployment: Standard

Strategy: Interference

Scheme Pool: A Line in the Sand, Assassination, Bodyguard, Cursed Object, Plant Explosive

Vassal Map: Funeral Home

Weekly Event: 

The Information Broker

Tales tell of a masked information broker, in a dapper suit and top hat, who seems to know a little too much... Reports have sighted him all over Breachside, telling tales in the city and through the Badlands. Whether it is one man or many is uncertain, but only a fool would pass up this chance...

An Information Broker joins every Encounter this week. Place a 30mm Information Broker Marker in the center of the table (or as close as possible). This Marker is Ht 2, impassable, blocking, and it may be attacked. When it is attacked it is considered to have Df and Wp of 6 and 8 Wd. The Crew which is not Attacking it flips and cheats for it. It can only be damaged by attacks which directly target it.

Any model within 1” of the Information Broker may make a (1) Interact Action targeting it to ask it for guidance. When this happens, flip on the following chart (this flip may not be cheated): 

Black Joker	The model is immediately killed.
Ram	Heal all damage on the model.
Tome	The model’s controller may place a Scheme Marker anywhere on the table.
Crow	The model’s controller gains 2 Scrip.
Mask	The model’s controller gains 2 Scrip.
Red Joker	The model’s controller makes an additional Barter flip at the end of the game.

Alternately, any model within 1" of the Information Broker may make a (1) Interact Action targeting it to ask it for information. The player may spend 1 Scrip to gain 2 LP in any non-Nythera location controlled by another Faction. A player may not earn more than 6 LP from this event during Week 3.

Wanted to use Wyrd's weekly event, but of course there's a hiccup because we're only in week 1 and nobody has any scrip to spend on the information broker. Solution: add in the ability to use the action this guy is based on from Shifting Loyalties and get some scrip or other bonuses from him, which you could theoretically use later in the game to get some LP for your faction. 

And here are the week 1 crews. 

Player Name	Andrew Casterline	Scrip			Current Bounty	Do the job. Get paid.
Crew Name	Hannah's Hellions				Progress	0/3
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Hannah	10					Survivalist – 1SS
Hodgepodge Effigy	4
Sue	8
Freikorps Librarian	7
Freikorpsmann	5
Total Models	34
Maximum Game Size	39

Player Name	DoctorWhat	Scrip			Current Bounty	Hit-List
Crew Name	Anna's Executioners				Progress	0/2
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Anna Lovelace	9					Spare Parts (2 SS)
Canine Remains	4
Carrion Emissary	10
Rotten Belle	5
Rotten Belle	5
Total Models	33
Maximum Game Size	38

Player Name	Brian Schoner	Scrip			Current Bounty	Covert Operations
Crew Name	Rolling Thunder	0			Progress	0/2
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Ototo	10					Call the Thunder
Katanaka Sniper	7
Komainu	5
Wastrel	4
Yin the Penangalan	8
Total Models	34
Maximum Game Size	39

Player Name	Joe B	Scrip			Current Bounty	Lessons learned in Blood 0/4
Crew Name	Flash of Brilliance				Progress
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Hungering Darkness	8					Nexus of Power (1)
The Illuminated	7
Beckoner	7
Beckoner	7
The Depleted	4
Total Models	33
Maximum Game Size	38

Player Name	Adam Rogers	Scrip			Current Bounty	Strange Times
Crew Name	Ryle's Retaliators	0			Progress	0/2
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Ryle	10					Wade In!
Francisco Ortega	8
Austringer	6
Death Marshall Burns	6
Brutal Effigy	4
Total Models	34
Maximum Game Size	39

Player Name	Travis DeVoll	Scrip			Current Bounty	Clean up crew
Crew Name	Tokkun	0			Progress	0/3
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Yamazaki	7					Blot the Sky [1]
Takehiko (Thunder Archer)	7
Yuuto (Thunder Archer)	7
Jorogumo Takaide	9
Tengu Asuka	4
Total Models	34
Maximum Game Size	39

Player Name	Jon / Sensei Phiasco	Scrip			Current Bounty	Mark our Territory
Crew Name	Wu Kang	0			Progress	0/2
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Kang	9					Misdirection
Chiaki the Niece	6
The Thunder Brother	5
Katanaka Sniper	7
Guild Pathfinder	6
Total Models	33
Maximum Game Size	38

Player Name	LittleGreenGuy	Scrip			Current Bounty
Crew Name	Big Hats	0			Progress
Model Name	SS Cost	Skills	Injuries		Equipment	Upgrades
Francois (Leader)	7					I'll Love It And Pet It (Lenny) (1)
Lenny	9
War Pig	9
Piglet	4
Hog Whisperer	5
Total Models	34
Maximum Game Size	39

The Spectral Line: A Through the Breach Campaign Hook

         

            In the last days of the Black Powder Wars, General Hiram Beauregard Trask, considered by many to be the bloody hand of the Guild, had an idea that would ultimately lead to his ruination and the destruction of hundreds of other lives. Only a young lad when he fled with his family through the First Breach prior to its closing, he still remembered the riches in soulstones and fantastic artifacts they had left behind. An avaricious man by nature, he spent his life dedicated to returning and claiming what was lost. A permanent breach presented too much of a risk of invasion, he thought, but a device that could make the journey on its own had potential for short-term raids that could make any man rich beyond the dreams of the age. And thus, the bloody seeds of the Spectral Line were planted in history.

            The Wars gave him access to the soulstones he would need to power such a device. His troops had a reputation as looters and pillagers more akin to pirates and privateers than actual soldiers. His lieutenants were terrors, each infamous in their own right, granted a weapon imbued with potent magic that made them nearly unstoppable and terrible to behold on the battlefield. His forces devastated enemy civilian populations, leaving their armies to watch helplessly behind the walls of their fortifications while their farms, cities, and homes were looted and burned. And all the while, the plan smoldered away in General Trask’s brain.

            As the war was entering its final days, Trask’s engineers reported to him that, at long last, the device was nearing completion. Dozens of Guild Mages spent their best years exhausting their magical prowess and in many cases their lives in the construction of a locomotive capable of crossing the space between worlds. It was a fearsome steel and black-sooted monstrosity, towering over mundane trains and eerily lit from within by the pale green and white light shed by its soulstone engines. But you can only deny the Guild their share of the spoils for so long before they come to collect. When their ledgers finally started to come up light, three agents were sent to Trask’s army to settle accounts. His lieutenants took it upon themselves to send payment back to the Guild personally, in the form of the agents’ heads packed in a shipping crate. The army was then dispatched to bring in Trask, leading to a clash near Trask's personal fortification near Roanoke, VA that left both sides bloody.

Knowing that time was running out, Trask loaded his arcane monstrosity with all of his ill-gotten gains and activated the device, ignoring the pleas of his engineers to wait until further testing could be completed. Guild cavalrymen chased the locomotive as it sped away from the factory, peppering it with futile gunfire before the massive train vanished with a terrific crack and flash of light. It's said that half the men who looked through the hole ripped between the worlds were driven instantly mad from the terrors they saw through the breach, and many more were struck permanently blind. The last anyone heard of Trask was his mocking laughter as he leaned out the window of the locomotive, waving his hat in a mock salute, followed for a split second by the horrified, agonized screams of every soul trapped in that steel prison when it rocketed into the aether. None of them were ever seen again.

            What happened to Trask and his cache of plundered soulstones is the subject of much speculation and legend among the folk of Malifaux, today. Any attempts to recreate the Locomotive have failed, as the notes left behind by the engineers seem to be no more than the ramblings of madmen, so most sane folk who know the particulars of the story assume that the device simply exploded and destroyed everything onboard. The Guild is more than happy to accept this explanation, and Trask’s expedition is considered to be officially lost with all hands in the space between worlds. Expeditions to search for it are flatly discouraged. However, Travelers in the Badlands have repeatedly told tales of hearing the haunting sound of a ghostly train whistle echoing in the night despite being miles away from the closest railroad tracks. Rumors abound that one or more of the Lieutenants’ weapons have been recovered and used in scraps in and around Malifaux proper. The engines in the locomotive used up soulstones by the barrel when running at full burn, and Trask’s logs recorded his supply train as carrying enough fuel for three round-trips. Anyone who could find it would be instantly rich beyond his or her wildest imaginings, so expeditions still form from to seek the legendary Spectral Line in the wilderness. For the time being, however, none of them have found anything besides dust and frustration. It seems likely, however, that one way or another this horde of soulstones will be found if it still exists. The only question is how many more souls will be ground beneath the wheels of Trask’s locomotive, first.

Malifaux Musings Vassal Nythera Campaign League

A long time ago in a play area far, far away (Nebraska) my friend Phiasco and I played in the Lincoln Blood Bowl League, once of the best organized play groups in which I've been privileged to participate. The model was built around players being assigned an opponent during a week, working with them to set up a time to meet and play their game, and then reporting them back to the commish for accountability to make sure of no collusion. It was my favorite, and the recently released Shifting Loyalties Malifaux Campaign system allows for the possibility of doing it with Malifaux in the future. Problem: Phiasco now lives in Atlanta and I live in Virginia. Solution: Vassal!

Phiasco and I are looking to organize a campaign league for a small number of players to run the length of the Nythera event (starting in week 3 at the earliest, obviously, since we're already under way.) I'm hoping to get 6 people who are willing to commit to one game a week against a predetermined opponent with a strategy and scheme pool defined (IE everybody is playing the same game, with the weekly event in place, so everything should be roughly level.) To counter the somewhat reduced growth people would see from limiting the number of games to one a week, the factions will put in place "Emergency Resource Allocation," a home rule wherein factions will receive 1 scrip per vp they acquire in game (as opposed to 1 per 2 vp) and all crews start the campaign with a bounty of their choice pre-purchased. 

Rules are still being written and finalized at the moment, but I wanted to take people's temperature on them and start gathering interest. Players will be responsible for scheduling their game with each other each week, and I'm still determining what exactly will be the consequence if people can't get their game lined up. We're North American Eastern Time Zone players, so unless you want to be up until the odd hours, probably best to stay within the North American time zones. Skype will probably be required for communication during the game. Obviously you need Vassal. It's meant to be a fairly light-hearted league/campaign (IE not super-competitive) so if you can't get your game in during a specific week it will probably just count as a double forfeit with no penalty/benefit for either player. Repeatedly missing will result in removal from the league and replacement with another player. I'm open to discussion on this point, however.

Ideally, I'd like to have everybody using a different faction, so I'll keep this up to date with players and their faction as they sign-up.

Edit: I've added a second ten thunders crew. Essentially, if they play in-faction their games won't count for the Nythera Event. 

1. AWOL - Guild 

2. Phiasco - Ten Thunders

3. Asrian - Outcasts

4. Tawg - Ten Thunders

Hit me up with sign-ups on the Wyrd Forums Thread if you're interested, or to provide rules suggestions. 

Nythera or Bust pt. 1

Seems like a lovely place to visit...

Today the details were released for Wyrd’s Fall 2016 organized event, in which players will battle to claim and profit from the discovery of a ruined city in the Badlands, Nythera. For the fluff heads out there, Nythera is sister city to Kythera, which the factions battled over back in book 1 due to it containing a portal to a realm of death. The living managed to seal it up and deal the Resurrectionists a blow there, but with the discovery of this sister city, the battle is on once again.

            On the Malifaux side of things, players sign up on the Wyrd forums for one particular faction that they will represent during the event. The factions will then battle it out on a map of the Badlands, fighting to seize territory for their side and defend their holdings from the enemy. Players will report their game results, and will be granted access to secret forums where the factions can plan their objectives for the week. It sounds very similar to the Dead of Winter event from several years ago which, ultimately, led to the creation of the Tara crew and the Kaeris alternate sculpt released earlier this year. This time around, the winning faction gets to be the 2016 Nightmare Edition Gencon crew, and second place gets the Miss alternate sculpt model. Cool stuff. I’m also intrigued by their integration of the Campaign system from Shifting Loyalties into the event, with players working towards constructing strongholds for their faction during the course of the event.

The campaign map, pre-violence.

            Excitingly, they’re also including the Through the Breach roleplaying game as part of the event. Fatemasters sign up to receive three one-session scenarios with characters responding to the Nythera events back in Malifaux city. Character generation will be skipped for this event in favor of pre-gens, which is a little bit of a bummer, but I understand why it will be necessary. In place of the destiny mechanic, each player will have individual goals that they will be trying to accomplish for their character. At the end of the event, the character which most-frequently accomplishes their personal goal will be made into a model for the Malifaux skirmish game! Awesome!

            I’m signed up for both sides of the event, so I see a lot of time spent on the other side of the breach in my future. My regular Wednesday Google plus gaming group is down for the Through the Breach stuff, though I’m going to have to figure out how to do it online, using Vassal perhaps. I am signed up for the Guild in the Skirmish game (natch) so I’ll be doing my best to earn us some new miniatures at next Gencon. “But Adam,” I hear you saying, “The Guild has already had a Nightmare Edition boxed set and two Miss models. Wouldn’t you rather see the Ten Thunders get something new?” And my answer is, frankly, no. We’re the Guild. We’re Law and Order. We deserve to get more Nightmare models, just in exchange for keeping peace and order in the city. And, frankly, that kind of seditionist talk is just the sort of thing that could get you thrown in prison or added to a work gang.

You wouldn’t want that, would you?

For more information, head to the Event section of the new and improved Wyrd forums.