Two games of Skip-Bo with five players.

I lost both.

Two Reds in one attack

A 50ss game of Malifaux. 

Strategy: Corner Turf War

Scheme pool: Assassinate, Breakthrough, Hidden Martyrs, Claim Jump, Detonate Charges

My list:

Jack Daw & Ligeia
Montresor
Jaakuna Ubume
Midnight Stalker
Hanged
Guilty
Catalan Rifleman

Stones: 7
Schemes: Hidden Martyrs (Hanged & Guilty), Detonate Charges

Opponent:

Titania the Autumn Queen & Gorar
Malisaurus Rex (Claim Jump)
Hooded Rider
Rougarou
2x Autumn Knight

Stones: 7
Schemes: Claim Jump, Assassinate

Turn 1:

Knowing I would most likely get the horrible corner of bottom-right, I tried to take models which would actually get out of that bottleneck before turn 3. By then I didn't know that my side of the board would be filled with severe terrain templates right away.

Well, at least I had Jack Daw, Hanged, Jaakuna and Lady Ligeia incorporeal enough. Guilty, Montresor and Catalan Rifleman were the only models severely hampered by severe terrain since Midnight Stalker would just leap over things. Or so I thought. Midnight Stalker wasted its first turn because I didn't draw a mask for my hand. So he kind of got about 2" past my deployment zone.

Anyway, I opted to shovel pretty much the entirety of my crew to threaten the board center. Catalan Rifleman took bottom-right turf marker.

Neverborn were a little more spread out with Hooded Rider rushing to bottom-left marker and Malisaurus Rex as close to top-right marker as middle marker. Gorar, Rougarou and Titania were chilling around top-left marker while both Autumn Knights engaged middle marker.

Turn 2:

Resurrectionists win initiative, and Jaakuna puts up a hazardous aura. What a waste.

Then goes Titania. I had Red Joker in my hand, so I wouldn't have needed to let Third Law pass on Jack Daw... This was because I woefully underestimated the distance that is 4" - I thought it wouldn't bring Jack Daw into melee with Autumn Knights. Well, it did. And now Jack Daw was stunned.

To make matters even worse I somehow didn't register that stunned doesn't let you declare triggers on your own models, too. Because of this I walked Jack Daw a little forward to place Curse of Injustice on Malisaurus Rex. After that I only needed to use Suppressed Memories on The Guilty and buy a trigger to escape... oh wait, stunned.

At least Autumn Knight received Curse of Injustice, too.

Malisaurus then charges Jack Daw and after a brutal mauling and a staggering expenditure of stones and cards, Jack Daw is at two health points remaining.

The Guilty tries to save the outcast master by charging another Autumn Knight, not doing much. But neither did the Autumn Knights. Both tried to attack The Guilty, which all but confirmed opponent had taken Assassinate.

Midnight Stalker runs towards top-right turf marker while Rougarou seems to have the same idea.

Hooded Rider takes bottom-left marker and rides into woods to collapse my lines next turn. Or not.

Catalan Rifleman takes a point of damage to get tomes for a warning shot against Hooded Rider,  fails on purpose and then takes the actual shot. He takes a point of damage again to get stun trigger.

Hooded Rider wins the duel hard, so I have to cheat Red Joker from my hand to hit. Then I get to do a damage flip with some negatives. My deck went empty, so it was reshuffled. Damage: Red Joker. 

Then Hanged walks, charges and fails its attack on Hooded Rider. Last, it uses bonus whispers on the Rider, buys crows and kills the Rider with Mental Trauma.

What just happened?

Both players score turf, and Neverborn gets Assassinate for a score of 1-2.

Turn 3:

And again, Red Joker in my starting hand. Luckily this game was played on a virtual platform, because by now I'd have become really suspicious about my shuffling skills had we played a live game.

My starting hand was pretty good otherwise, too. I "won" the initiative, but opponent cheated a 13 for initiative (he had one pass token). I thought that I had good chances to win even if I wasted my Red to get a re-flip. So I did. I lose, but cheat in a 13. Opponent also cheats 13, winning the initiative. So he had two 13's in starting hand.

I suppose I can't complain, though, because past 10 cards or so had included three Red Jokers for me...

Titania butchers Jack Daw, but at least she spends all of her stones while doing that.

Remaining Outcast forces gain a good position in the middle, because Malisaurus and both Autumn Knights have staggered on them and Montresor nearby keeping that stagger in place. Jaakuna Ubume is offering hazardous terrain and Lady Ligeia making all cheats costly. While my wet noodle attacks weren't impressive, damage was steadily pouring in via these eroding abilities.

Hanged takes a charge against Autumn Knight and scores a lucky tomes, placing an unsuspicious scheme marker.

Malisaurus beats Montresor and Montresor fails to Execute Malisaurus even when opponent had no stones or cards in hand.

Midnight Stalker jumps to top-right turf marker, interacts and charges Rougarou for a couple points of damage.

Scores go 2-2 when Outcasts manage to get their second turf.

Turn 4:

Neverborn wins initiative and Titania heals 80% of all damage I managed to do last round. Feels good.

Malisaurus doesn't manage to kill Jaakuna Ubume, who then walks to offer Autumn Knights some hazardous terrain. Autumn Knight then tries to kill my enforcer, and fails. And last but not least - Gorar takes a ranged attack against Jaakuna Ubume who has Serene Countenance and gets Friendly Fire. And scores a kill. Thanks to Black Joker Jaakuna flipped.

Rougarou smacks Midnight Stalker down to two health remaining, and Midnight Stalker pays the debt, bringing the beast down to one.

Montresor & Jaakuna and their various abilities had brought Malisaurus down to one health remaining.

Hanged & Catalan Rifleman brought Autumn Knight down to one health remaining.

Gee, wouldn't it be a shame if enemy master was able to heal six points and hand out shielded as required in a situation like this? (Well, at least she wouldn't do anything else.)

Alright, there were reasons for this, though. Lady Ligeia didn't succeed to deliver the last point required to Malisaurus, which honestly was to be expected. But Hanged could have killed Autumn Knight, but chose to get Draw Out Secrets instead, securing me reveal condition for Detonate Charges.

3-2 for Outcasts.

Turn 5:

Red Joker in my starting hand again. Opponent flipping 13 for initiative again while having a pass token.

Titania heals Malisaurus for six and gives Shielded +3 for it. Malisaurus doesn't get to do anything useful, though.

Montresor kills one of the Autumn Knights with his bonus action and then is cursed to watch while Hanged takes a walk and interacts with turf marker. Autumn Knight then attacks The Guilty and declares Into Thorns. I win, but as a perverted act of mercy I cheat to lose the duel. Unfortunately it's minimum damage and I didn't get Hidden Martyrs.

Autumn Knight then interacts with middle turf. Hanged then interacts with middle turf and places a scheme marker for Detonate Charges. Catalan Rifleman takes a double walk and interacts with bonus action.

Outcasts get third turf and end condition of Detonate Charges, and Neverborn declares Claim Jump on Malisaurus.

Outcasts win 5-4 this tough game that was considered confusing by both participants.

Chilly day for the good doctor

 A 50 soul stones game of Malifaux.

Strategy: Flank Symbols of Authority

Scheme pool: Claim Jump, Outflank, Detonate Charges, Death Beds, Hidden Martyrs

My list:
McMourning with Grave Spirit Touch & Zombie Chihuahua
Dead Rider
Rogue Necromancy
Hanged with Grave Spirit Touch (Martyr)
Nurse
Canine Remains (Martyr)

Stones: 7
Schemes: Death Beds (Ice Pillar), Hidden Martyrs

Opponent had:

Euripides & Primordial Magic
Thoon
The Damned
2x Geryon
2x Bultungin (Martyrs)

Stones: 7
Schemes: Death Beds (Ice Pillar), Hidden Martyrs

Turn 1

Never having played against Euripides, I was scared even if my starting hand was absurdly good. Lowest card I had was 5, and lowest next was 10. I was counting the black joker as red, because I had Hanged hanging around.

Zombie Chihuahua, Nurse and Rogue Necromancy were sort of holding the middle, or maybe it was more like that nobody was contesting that area. Except for a ton of Ice Pillars that Euripides had tossed around.

My 50mm bases had hard time moving around various terrain pieces, which kind of ruined some of the mobility I had with Dead Rider. I still managed to Ride With Me Hanged next to the building in the middle. Idea was to charge Bultungin, smack it down to one health with black joker and then kill it with remaining attack. I didn't know it, but that would have been wonderful indeed, since that Bultungin was opponent's martyr.

Euripides had dealt a worrying amount of damage to Rogue Necromancy, Dead Rider and Hanged, but Rogue Necromancy was patched up by Nurse and Hanged regenerated a bit.

Geryon was turned incorporeal by Euripides' totem, and it charged the Hanged inside building, but didn't deal damage. Although that was thanks to soulstones.

Speaking of which, The Damned tried to go skulking somewhere in top-right quarter. Doctor McMourning had to discard my last card (the black joker) to get within charge range of The Damned. And then, without cards in hand, Dr. McMourning killed the enforcer in one activation. This took some stones, though, as he needed critical strikes.

Next Thoon comes and charges Dr. McMourning. And this is when I take a closer look at Thoon's triggers, notably Frozen Trophy. So. This model just needs to score tomes on a successful attack and the defender is gone for good, unless it receives helping hand from another friendly model? Cool. Literally.

Thoon did not succeed, but both players were spending stones as if they were mere pennies. Out of seven available for both, opponent had spent three and me four on first turn alone.

Another Bultungin starts to block path to one strategy symbol next to corner in middle-left, and disheartened Canine Remains wonders if it can ever score that.

Turn 2

What's the worst that could happen?

Opponent winning initiative and me drawing a terrible hand? Why... that's exactly what happened. 

Before he was even able to activate, McMourning had turned into a frozen trophy with only one action point from Thoon, who then walked to a strategy symbol.

Situation is less than ideal, but I do figure out a way to perhaps free my master.

Nurse charges Zombie Chihuahua and plants some poison into it. Then, she offers the puppy some painkillers which pulls Chihuahua here and there, and lastly the dog is seduced to walk a bit forward. Now, it was within walk & slam distance to the frozen trophy of Dr. McMourning.

Next we see some absurd mental image. 

Considering that there is an enormous undead chimera and one of the riders of the apocalypse, plus an eternally doomed undead spirit of a hanged man in the middle challenging both Geryons and Euripides, you might imagine that situation somewhat more pressing than, say, running away from everything just to smack dead a tiny chihuahua. But that's what Euripides did. 

Oh well. Doctor won't come online at least this turn, and prospects for that in any of the upcoming turns were looking grim.

Both Geryons succeed in killing the Hanged, and Rogue Necromancy fails to offer them some projectile vomit. At least Hanged manages to kill the Bultungin before perishing.

Dead Rider takes a flight with Canine Remains to hopefully next turn score strategy on the left that now had two ice pillars in front of it.

Both players score Hidden Martyrs, and opponent also gets Death Beds for a score of 1-2 for Neverborn.

Turn 3

Nurse tries to charge Thoon in an attempt to deny scoring a point, but that was unlikely as there were essentially four action points Euripides and Thoon would be able to rain on Nurse and still score strategy. Failed.

Geryon turned incorporeal charged Dead Rider, but doesn't kill - although does give slow for the rider.

But Dead Rider still had everything it needed to Ride With Me on Canine Remains and slam one of the ice pillars. Canine Remains was, in fact, able to score one point.

Rogue Necromancy tries to come and bite Geryon for a bit, but Geryon just heaves it away still within its own melee range - this way Rogue Necromancy would need to waste an action point again to take a shot at it. Scores go 2-3.

Turn 4

We did not play fourth round. In an imaginary wonder land I might have scored two or three points in the last two rounds, although realistically we were looking at one or zero.

Opponent, on the other hand, would have no trouble at all to score at least three points with likely chance of success for four.

Lesson learned. No more offering isolated masters for Thoon.

Demography

One more Malifaux demo. When will they start to bear fruit? 

Since it was a physical demo, I used 2x2 board again. 

My team

Philip & the Nanny
2x Crooligan
Shikome

And for the opponent:

Sebastian
Flesh Construct
2x Guild Autopsy

Scheme pool for this time around was: Detonate Charges, Assassinate, Deliver a Message and Breakthrough. I dropped Search the ruins because it isn't that good of a scheme on 2x2.

I chose Breakthrough once more, and opponent picked Deliver a Message.

As for strategy I had this tried and tested demo scenario of one victory point for one kill.

First activation on turn 2 had me worrying if game would go too one-sided for the wrong side. Crooligan slapped a Guild Autopsy dead with a red joker. Fortunately this evened out by opponent red jokering that Crooligan dead. Today there were no wet noodles on the menu.

Throughout most of the game Boring Conversation was more than a nuisance - it was annoyance for opponent, as I caught the entire Experimental crew inside the bubble, and opponent had blocked Flesh Construct from easily entering fight that was being fought right on the doorsteps of Experimental deployment zone. 

Sebastian starts stitching up Canine Remains from corpses of both Crooligans and both Guild Autopsies. This almost backfires when Philip & Nanny kills one of the woofies before leaving only a squeaking wheel of the pram behind when Flesh Construct finally manages to haul itself into melee.

Opponent scored only one point from Deliver a Message because of this.

Last activation on fourth turn was Shikome trying to kill an additional Canine Remains, but failing to do that. I had scored three victory points from killing models and one from Breakthrough reveal. Both players were at 4 victory points, so initiative for last turn was pretty much a deciding factor if we'd have a draw. 

Both of us flipped a "1" for initiative.

Experimentals had a better hand and was able to seize initiative. 

Shikome died.

4-5 for Experimental.