Undivided Distraction

 A 35ss game of Malifaux with a starting player.

Strategy: Standard Turf War

Scheme pool: Dig Their Graves, Vendetta, Breakthrough, Search the Ruins, Harness the Ley Lines

My list:

Madame Sybelle & Carrion Effigy
Mortimer
2x Rotten Belle
Bone Pile (vendetta on Angelica Durand)
Jaakuna Ubume

Stones: 2

Schemes: Dig Their Graves, Vendetta

Opponent had:

Colette Dubois & Doves
Cassandra Felton
Angelica Durand
Coryphee
Mannequin
2x Showgirl

Stones: 0

Schemes: Dig Their Graves, Search the Ruins

Turn 1:

Rotten Belles took the strategy markers on my table half, while a Showgirl and a Mannequin did the same on the other side.

Jaakuna Ubume and Madame Sybelle try to make a scary aura fortress but as of turn one it accomplishes little.

Angelica and Cassandra push Coryphee around, who then charges Bone Pile and engages Rotten Belle. It punched Bone Pile, like, real hard and brought it down to one health remaining. This was not ideal situation as Bone Pile had vendetta on Angelica... not to mention that Coryphee was less than 2" away from my strategy marker and able to walk on and off melee as it pleased. 

Mortimer had started spewing out corpses to act as homing beacons for Bone Pile. Then we misplayed Presto-Chango and ended up with Colette within one walk away from my deployment zone and Mortimer on roof of the factory in the middle.

Turn 2:

Resurrectionists win initiative so Bone Pile was saved. 

I bring Jaakuna Ubume to discourage Colette from starting to spam her abilities in my backline. Well, se didn't spam her abilities in my backline. She walked deep into my deployment zone and started interacting. Rotten Belle was buried with a sword trick.

Coryphee brings a Rotten Belle down to one health remaining, and most of my remaining activations from then on were spent on raining attacks on Coryphee. Madame Sybelle and both Rotten Belles finally managed to bring down the dancer - well, at least partially, since there still was this Mannequin around.

Mortimer slaps dead one dove on top of the building and digs up a zombie. I don't know, maybe it was suck on the chimney or something? 

Effigy comes and takes a shot at Angelica Durand. It was a couple of points of damage, but Angelica had flipped masks. Effigy was transported right into melee with Angelica and was quickly greeted by both a Mannequin and a Mechanical Dove that pecked it down to one health with a red joker.

So, second turn was nearing end and I had three of my models at one health remaining.

Scores go 1-1.

Turn 3:

Jaakuna Ubume leaves Colette to her own devices and relocates to catch Cassandra, Angelica and Mannequin within her drowning aura. Angelica had managed to activate before that and kill Carrion Effigy, scoring Dig Their Graves.

Mindless Zombie jumped down from the building, nearly getting killed in the process. Bone Pile re-emerges from it and charges Angelica Durand. It managed to score me vendetta, but didn't quite survive a furious attack by Mechanical Dove. No end condition for Vendetta for me now.

People and former people are also dying left and right around Madame Sybelle. Mannequin had died, Rotten Belle had died, and finally Showgirl died to Madame Sybelle, scoring Dig Their Graves for me. 

So, both players score both of their schemes when Colette spawns a few additional scheme markers on my deployment zone, but reveals Search the Ruins instead of Breakthrough. Arcanists also have two strategy markers whereas Resurrectionists sport only one, so scores go 4-3 for Arcanists.

Turn 4:

Mannequin in the middle is blasted off from board, or perhaps drowned off, by Jaakuna. I flip one of the farthest strategy markers neutral, which also takes Cassandra out of action in a way.

Angelica moves away from drowning aura to place scheme markers. This opens up way for Madame Sybelle walk to middle marker and interact it twice. Last remaining Rotten Belle also gets one strategy marker after Colette had interacted one of my first strategy markers neutral.

Mortimer slogs towards Arcanists' strategy marker behind the industrial tower and takes a random charge against Showgirl, not doing anything.

Resurrectionists score second point from strategy, evening out scores to 4-4.

Turn 5:

Neither player manages to wrestle third point from Turf War. Arcanists spawn enough scheme markers to get end condition of Search the Ruins and Resurrectionists do the same for Dig Their Graves. Game is decided with the last activation made by Cassandra, who removes one Resurrectionist scheme. Suddenly there was not enough graves. 5-4 for Arcanists.