Double Dealing Lovelace

 A 50ss game of Malifaux. We took part in the global Fractured Futures campaign.

Strategy: Wedge Plant Explosives

Schemes: Protected Territory, Take Prisoner, Let Them Bleed, Ensnare, Hold Up Their Forces

My list:

Jack Daw & Lady Ligeia
Montresor
Midnight Stalker
Catalan Brawler
Auguste Hart
Dead Outlaw
Guilty

Pool: 5
Schemes: Protected Territory, Hold Up Their Forces
Thread: Dead Shot objective 1

Opponent had:

Von Schill & Steam Trunk
Hannah Lovelace
Arik Schrötterdammerung
Drachen Trooper
Freikorps Librarian
Freikorps Engineer
Freikorpsmann

Pool: 5
Schemes: Protected Territory, Let Them Bleed
Thread: Dead Shot objective 2

Turn 1:

So, both players had picked Dead Shot as their thread thing. 

I was kind of worried about Arik and his Shockwave 3. Sure enough, that what Arik did right away and blasted Catalan Brawler, Jack and Lady Ligeia. Only Lady Ligeia got the damage and distraction after cheating with Jack. Why not? He'd have to discard anyway. Arik also took a walk closer to centerpoint.

Catalan Brawler went to place a scheme marker near Nia, both to protect and maybe score fractures. 

I was planning on cursing Arik next, but Freikorps Engineer came to strengthen Arik's armor - along with giving him concealment until the end of round. I supposed I was no longer in hurry, so Lady Ligeia went to reach Arik with betrayal aura. 

Freikorpsmann took a double walk forward, and was soon given Reinforced Shield by Steam Trunk. I had tried to remove some shielding from Arik with Dead Outlaw without much success. Jack said screw this, Curse of Injustice does not require damaging. So he just walked, concentrated and unsuppressed some of Arik's memories with the help of focus. No damage done. Montresor was pushed towards Auguste, who had been running alone along the rightmost flank. 

Von Schill tossed a rocket launcher for Drachen Trooper and went to flank from the right side. He tossed a bullet into Montresor, who had walked over a tine wall to place a scheme marker for my first fracture token. 

Someone managed to deal four points of damage in to Catalan Brawler, but I forget who. Drachen Trooper it wasn't, as I had been saving my high cards in hand to not get those double blasts in the face. 

Midnight Stalker was one of my last models to activate, and he managed to run past centerline from the left already. Guilty went to hide behind the shack in the middle. Hannah was just a tad too scary. 

Entirety oh enemy crew was, like, within 8" of the center point. I had a couple of stragglers to my flanks, so I was outnumbered in the middle.

Turn 2:

And then there was this Nia marker. Only Catalan Brawler, Lady Ligeia and Arik were stunned. I lost the initiative, so I placed Nia a couple of inches away from center point to block LoS and give cover for my crew, and of course to score fracture token. 

However, opponent gave me the start to achieve activation control. I had to use the chance ot heal up Catalan Brawler and place another scheme marker. 

Steam Trunk gave Freikorpsmann Rocket Boots, and my second activation was to drop a scheme marker and an explosive with Midnight Stalker, leap deeper into enemy territory and using his last action points to run behind a thicket in top-left corner. 

Arik went to place an explosive past centerline, so that was a relief. 

To lure out Hold Up Their Forces, Guilty went to place an explosive token, even managing to startle Freikorpsmann. The geared up minion was able to leap, but not walk far enough to to place a bomb. Instead, he shot Guilty in the back for two points of damage. 

Auguste went to place a scheme marker past centerline. And looked like my trap had succeeded magnificently! Hannah charged Guilty. She, however, bought Rams and extorted another from... someone? This meant a single strike would kill Guilty. I managed to save the minion by cheating a high card from hand. She struck again, but did not use a soulstone this time around. However, she either flipped a Rams or cheated one. As a result, Hannah now offered an extra card for hand size for both players. 

With Hannah and Arik now activated, Jack Daw was emboldened to charge Drachen Trooper so that it would not get its flamethrower to bear. Daw's damage was not... impressive, but at least he was able to land a curse on the Freikorps minion.

Von Schill walked within 3" of Nia and shot Catalan Brawler for some damage, scoring their first fracture point. Von Schill now locked in place, Montresor placed a second scheme for my second fracture point and charged Von Schill, not doing much. 

Freikorps Librarian kept healing Arik, while Drachen Trooper tried to poke a hole in Jack Daw. And did he, though! A Red Joker on damage. Jack Daw was quick to discard a card to... adjust the number slightly downwards to one. Dead Outlaw went to engage Arik.

Freikorps Engineer charged Catalan Brawler, who won the defense with Red Joker from deck. Cage Fighter resulted in maximum damage against the Engineer. Ouch.

Points went to 4-1 for Tormented with strategy for both, and Hold Up Their Forces and Dead Shot objective for global campaign.

Turn 3:

Von Schill. Jack Daw. Montresor. Lady Ligeia. Arik. Freikorps Engineer. What did all of them have in common at the start of turn 3? Yeah, stunned by Nia. 

At least Von Schill was able to shrug stun off. He gave Rocket Boots for Hannah with a free leap. He also did impressive damage on Montresor, who blocked those damages equally impressively with no net damage going in.

Same happened with Arik after Dead Outlaw had disengaged and started slogging through marshes.

Catalan Brawler had to heal himself again, and with the second remaining action point he tossed Jack Daw in the mud, removing Stunned from him.

This let Drachen Trooper free to shoot Lady Ligeia with flamethrower, killing her and setting Catalan Brawler on fire. He then proceeded to take cover inside a house with removable roof. 

Montresor just kept teasing people with ping damage. His own activations were rarely noteworthy, but that stagger sure kept buggering Freikorps.

On her own activation Hannah dropped a scheme and an explosive token, and after leaping Freikorpsmann did the same. 

Before Hannah had leaped, Jack Daw tried to do a clever activation - first by placing a scheme, the charging Librarian and finally doing a Careless Whisper imitation. It wasn't impressive I can tell - neither Hannah, Drachen Trooper, Librarian or Engineer were slowed by the disgraceful performance.

Auguste went to drop a bomb, while Midnight Stalker leaped and charged to murder Steam Trunk. Ahh, fine work of murderous art indeed. 

So, Montresor and Catalan Brawler had been blocking damage with soulstones or healing with Juggernaut way above expected curve. Of course I by then did not know what a double whammy it had on opponent's plan, as Let Them Bleed proved elusive.

Scores went 5-2 for Outcasts from strategies only.

Turn 4:

Freikorps finally tore through Tormented supply of soulstones, and was able to cut Montresor below half of his health remaining. 

Catalan Brawler, however, kept healing with severe results. But, Librarian and Hannah and who else were able to blast him below half of his health. 

Midnight Stalker took on bigger prey. After a trunk he found it appropriate to charge a Librarian, killing her. Jack Daw went to engage Drachen Trooper so that it would not cause trouble for my scheme markers. I considered trying to kill, but I was suspecting opponent had Let Them Bleed for their scheme. Killing a Demise burning +2 target was not ideal, so he tried to remove Engineer from board. Didn't happen, though. 

Auguste walks to place a scheme marker, while Dead Outlaw did the same with strategy marker. 

Both players got strategy, and Freikoprs took a leap in points, although still a 6-5 lead for Tormented.

Turn 5:

Von Schill had tried to shoot Midnight Stalker last turn, so to rob him of Let Them Bleed, Midnight Stalker leaped, walked and schemed its way to safety. 

I don't remember who opponent activated, but Auguste tried to follow Midnight Stalker as his crazed mirror image. He didn't want to move too far from Protected Territory scheme marker, so as a result he was not able to get past Von Schill's 14" range after all. However, it took most of Von Schill's activation to score a damage to Auguste, meaning I still had Dead Outlaw and Midnight Stalker completely uninjured, with Jack Daw a possibility to heal. Von Schill also gave Engineer a leap.

Montresor went back to engage Von Schill. Catalan Brawler and Montresor had been able to bring Engineer down to one health remaining, Thus he would die when he activates. Arik made a clever plan to get Charged Fists and try to push Montresor away from Engineer. Plan did not come into fruition because of cards. This meant no strategy point for Freikorps this turn. 

We ended game there, essentially in 9-6 victory for Tormented.