Tale of Malifaux Bloggers - Month 1

Now that I have my models I suppose I'm into month 1.
The Colette Crew turned up, and I managed without any issues to build the crew, and I found them a joy to build to be honest. They were quite challenging in a good way, requiring a bit of work for mould lines, and some trimming of very fine pieces to fit (looking at you, individual Mannequin blades...), but after a few hours I had the whole crew finished without any problems.

Unfortunately due to my decision to sculpt the bases in the end, I don't have any models glued to them to show off.
The bases were going to be cobblestone, made with greenstuff to reduce the issue I found with my Gremlins (overtime I wish to buy a box set, I then have to order new bases to go with them too), instead I would try my hand at sculpting, and with a low cost (just the greenstuff, which I managed to get 36" for £8 off eBay) I would be able to afford extra models.

These were the first cobblestones:

They turned out ok, although I felt that I would prefer round cobblestones, and the one I attempted didn't look very good, so back to the drawing board (or hobby station).

The second option was using balsa wood to create a wooden plank base:

This look ok too, but the process was really time consuming, and a bit soul destroying. Plus I felt that the look was a bit too rough for a theatre floor for the showgirls, and maybe better for Gremlins.

The third option was for larger flagstones:

The initial ones I made I was happy with, so have made the full crew worth now. I will still add another layer to the 50mm base once it dries, I think. Then I will look for something to embellish some of the character bases with, maybe some cards on the floor for Colette. 

Martin and I also managed our first game, which we decided to use the majority of our first month models and play 50ss. 

I chose: Colette (cache 4) Nothing Up Her Sleeve, Shell Game, Cabaret Choreography. Cassandra with Recharge Soulstone and Smoke and Mirrors. 2 Performers, 2 Mannequins, 2 Coryphee and 1 Mechanical Dove.

We played Extraction, from Gaining Grounds 2016, with a Scheme pool of: Convict Labour, Exhaust their Forces, Leave your Mark, Neutralise the Leader and Set Up.

I had chosen Exhaust Their Forces and Leave Your Mark, which due to Colette's ability to make (1) Interacts, a (0) action instead, were very achievable, with me Exhausting 3 models at one point to secure the 3/3 VP, I managed 3/3 for Leave Your Mark, unfortunately I hadn't been able to score a single VP for Extraction due to having quite a few Peons in the list and combining the Coryphee into a Duet early, reduced my numbers within the centre of the table. 

The game ended on turn 5, 6-6 on VP, with Lucius sneaking Convict Labour by stealing 3 of my Scheme Markers, which if I had remembered I could have attempted a Siren Call from my surviving Performer to move him out of range of all of them, but to be fair I though he had unveiled both Schemes by that point and had also forgot about the ability. 

There were quite a few learning points to consider: 

1. Although Prompt is awesome, there are other things Colette can do!
2. Shell Game paid for itself many times over with Surge trigger for Prompt, coupled with Nothing Up My Sleeve.
3. For 2ss, Cabaret Choreography is not worth it if you don't use it once in the game...
4. Condition Removal is key for facing Lawyers, with this in mind I may bring forward the purchase of the Arcane Effigy.
5. Always in Motion and Silk and Steel seem really good on the Coryphee.
6. Something heavier hitting is required as the Coryphee aren't the most dangerous on the attack, Miss Step will hopefully fill this void. 
7. Bluetacking unpainted models to blank bases does not look cool on the table regardless of how nice the sculpts are!

It was a tough game, but one I enjoyed, I think I had most of the luck, with great hands drawn consistently, and some mean defensive triggers that really negated a lot of Martin's abilities. I think he was getting quite frustrated by the shenanigans I was wheeling out (queue point 8, Seduction ruins Lucius' day!).


I will try to get a game in tomorrow too, unfortunately I won't have much more done, as I need to spray the crew first. Hopefully will have another update soon with some painting, and I will ponder the purchase for next month, this looks likely so far:

Month 2 (£15.81)
Angelica £6.38 (whom I already have picked up to bring it above the cost for Miss Step).
Arcane Effigy £6.38
Leaving £3.05 for the following month.