Malifaux

Malifaux is a skirmish-level miniatures wargame manufactured by Wyrd Miniatures involving gang warfare in the ruins of a crumbling city. The setting of the game is centered around a mysterious city: Malifaux. The city of Malifaux was discovered through a breach opening into another world. This world is a source of the valuable mineral known as "soulstone" which allows for magical effects. Games pit masters and their crews against one another for control of this resource.[1]

Malifaux
Malifaux logo
Manufacturer(s)Wyrd Miniatures
Years active2009 to present
Players2+
Playing time1–2 hours
Random chanceDeck of cards used for task resolution
Websitewww.wyrd-games.net/malifaux/

Released at Gen Con in August 2009, Malifaux uses a card mechanic in lieu of dice. Numbers are randomly generated by drawing numbered cards (1–13, with a Red Joker representing 14 and a Black Joker representing 0) from a “Fate Deck”. The Fate Deck cards consist of 4 different suits similar to the suits of classic playing cards: “Masks” represent the similar suit of “Diamonds”, “Rams” represent “Hearts”, “Crows” represent “Spades”, and “Tomes” represent “Clubs”.[2] A number of mechanics in the game allow for manipulating the cards flipped from the Fate Deck, including each player having access to a "Control Hand" allowing them to "Cheat Fate" and replace any card flipped with a card from their hand. The Malifaux Core Rule set is currently on its Third Edition.

The universe of Malifaux

The fictional universe of Malifaux as presented in the rules books and the online Malifaux Record and Wyrd Cronicles is both a city-state and a world in a parallel dimension. This universe is also the setting for the role playing game Through the Breach. The first known breach (also called The Breach of The Great Boundary) to this world was created in 1787 after our own world was threatened by the decline of magic and magicians looking for a new source of magic discovered a world separated from ours by a thin barrier. The creation of the breach destroyed the city surrounding the ritual site ripping the life force from its inhabitants creating a new equilibrium between the two worlds. Beyond the breach was discovered the city of Malifaux, surprisingly similar to many of our own but devoid of inhabitants. The new world turned into a new frontier when crumbling mining towns surrounding the city were rebuilt into boom towns in the search and trade of soulstones, the source of magic. With exploration continuing during the following decade, hostile natives called Neverborn were encroached upon. Tombs were discovered and with them the magic of resurrection. Discovered too were intelligent machines powered by soulstone.

In 1797, the breach was destabilised by a blizzard collapsing while smoke and the sound of battle was heard Earthside. After turmoil the Guild was formed by those who had made the Breach in the first place, controlling the dwindling resource of soulstones left Earthside and preparing for its reopening. In 1897 the Breach spontaneously reopened. The Guild was ready and took control with the Breach and the reopened frontier fueling a new boom-trade in Soulstone.

The present is 1901 Earthside. The Guild's control is precarious. Lesser, unstable breaches have appeared. A significant part of the workforce have organised themselves in the Miners and Steamfitters Union and smuggling is rife.

The city of Malifaux

The city itself is walled. Reclamation is underway, but large segments are still uninhabited, quarantined and walled off to protect the human population. A railway runs through the breach and into Malifaux as well as to a few mining towns. The city is run by the Governor General appointed by the Guild.

The surroundings

Around Malifaux human settlements are concentrated to boomtowns and pioneer towns.

Malifaux Source Books

Each edition of Malifaux has provided numerous source books expanding upon the rules of the game and the stories of the world and its many characters.

First Edition
  • Malifaux[1]
  • Rising Powers,[3]
  • Twisting Fates[4]
  • Storm of Shadows.[5]

Second Edition
  • Malifaux 2E[6]
  • Malifaux 2E: Crossroads[7]
  • Malifaux 2E: Shifting Loyalties[8]
  • Malifaux 2E: Ripples of Fate[9]
  • Malifaux 2E: Broken Promises[10]

Third Edition
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Core Rulebook[11]
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Guild[12]
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Resurrectionists[13]
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Arcanists[14]
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Neverborn[15]
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Outcasts[16]
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Bayou[17]
  • Malifaux 3rd Edition - Ten Thunders[18]

Factions

Malifaux features eight different factions led by different masters supplemented by different crews. Each master with their own Keyword(s) denoting which models within the game are available to hire and have internal synergy.

The Guild

The Guild is the law in Malifaux. They exert a fascist control over the city and are more concerned with the production and mining of soulstones, a material which allows for wielders to perform supernatural feats, than they are with the safety of its inhabitants. The Guild offers a mix of ranged and melee combat, making The Guild a very rounded and even crew, and aesthetically possesses a number of Wild West motifs. The crew masters of the Guild are:

  • Sonnia Criid - Witch Hunter - A Guild master, Sonnia uses fire magic and her runic blade to hunt down illegal magic users and recover soulstones and other magical artifacts.
  • Lady Justice - Marshal - A Guild master, Lady Justice leads a group of Death Marshals against the undead and is loved by the populace as a protector of the people.
  • Perdita Ortega - Family - A Guild master, Perdita is a gunslinger who leads the Ortega family against the native monsters that roam the lands outside Malifaux City.
  • Charles Hoffman - Augmented - A Guild and Arcanist master, Hoffman is a senior Guild official who commands multiple constructs in his crew and works secretly to end the fighting in Malifaux by working with the Arcanists.
  • Lucius Mattheson - Elite & Mimic - A Guild and Neverborn master and the Secretary to the Governor General of Malifaux, Lucius works secretly to take over the Guild and take power for himself.
  • Nellie Cochrane - Journalist - A Guild master, Nellie is the Editor in Chief of the Malifaux Tattler and does not hesitate to expose the truth behind the happenings of the Malifaux universe, provided they show the Guild in a good light.
  • Cornelius Basse - Frontier - A Guild and Explorers Society master, Basse is working to secure his freedoms from the crimes of his family and works to bring Law and Order back to the fringes of Malifaux Society.
  • Dashel Barker - Guard- A Guild master, Dashel acts as the head of the Guild Guard, working to secure the populace within the city walls, provided there is not too much paperwork.

The Resurrectionists

The Resurrectionists are necromancers who command forces of the undead. Where the other factions are concerned with collecting soulstones, the Resurrectionists loot the ruins of Malifaux for magical devices and tomes of knowledge. They are very resilient characters in play, with the ability to absorb a lot of damage and to raise dead models as additional combatants. The crew masters of the Resurrectionsts are:

  • Seamus - Redchapel - A Resurrectionist master, Seamus is an audacious and vile serial killer in the Malifaux universe, raising his victoms, often harlots, from the dead so that they may be a part of his entourage.
  • Molly Squidpiddge - Forgotten - A Resurrectionist master, Molly was once a journalist before being brutally murdered and raised by Seamus. Mysteriously, she had developed autonomy and seeks to shelter those other undead who find themselves free of a Master.
  • Jack Daw - Tormented - A Resurrectionist and Outcast master, Jack Daw is a mysterious force in Malifaux, often ravaging the towns and people which he finds are guilty betrayal and torment.
  • Kirai Ankoku - Urami - A Resurrectionist master, Kirai's is fueled by her revenge over the loss of her fiancé, resulting in grief so powerful that it led her to break the barrier between life and death and summon a host of vengeful spirits to fight against her enemies.
  • Dr. McMourning - Experimental - A Resurrectionist master, McMourning was once the Guild's coroner, but after being exposed for his experiments with the dead bodies that come his way, he fled from the guild and is now on the run.
  • Reva Cortinas - Revenant - A Resurrectionst master, Reva was discovered with incredible powers of communicating with the dead by a priest and now instills purpose in the undead, often resulting in fevorish cultists worshiping her as a divine entity.
  • Albus Von Schtook - Transmortis - A Resurrectionist master, Albus was once a professor until he was driven mad. Now, Albus acts as the Headmaster for the University of Transmortis, a macabre school of undead which kidnap and torture the citizens of Malifaux.

The Arcanists

The Arcanists are individuals who practice magic. The Miners and Steamfitters Union is run by one of Malifaux' prominent Arcanists, Ramos. The Miners & Steamfitters Union (M&SU) is an organization that represents the labor class in the city. The Arcanists are actually made up from different groups that range from the Order of the Chimera to the show girls of the Star Theater. Their primary strength is in the wide variety of spells they can cast and they also boast a number of mechanical and elemental constructs as well as beast minions. The Arcanists have a strong blend of ranged magic and mechanical tank front-men that makes them a formidable foe. The crew masters of the Arcanists are:

  • Charles Hoffman - Augmented - A Guild and Arcanist master, Hoffman is a senior Guild official who commands multiple constructs in his crew and works secretly to end the fighting in Malifaux by working with the Arcanists.
  • Rasputina - December - An Arcanist master, Rasputina was a strong willed woman who made a deal with a primordial being known as December, acting as the head of his Cult of cannibalistic Ice Witches.
  • Colette Du Bois - Performer- An Arcanist master, Colette is the owner of the Star Theater, a playhouse which acts as a front for the Arcanists and their soulstone smuggling operations.
  • Marcus - Chimera - An Arcanist and Neverborn master, Marcus was a professor who discovered the primal energies of the wilds of Malifaux, becoming a bestial and mystical shaman.
  • Toni Ironsides - M&SU - An Arcanist master, Toni Ironsides is the current president of the MS&U, after having taken over from the previous President Victor Ramos, following his stepping down and subsequent arrest.
  • Kaeris - Wildfire - An Arcanist master, Kaeris wields a fiery temperament and hatred for the Guild. Now acting as the head of the Arcanists, Kaeris has no-tolerance for the Guild's treachery, often leaving their Operations in a smoldering heap.
  • Sandeep Desai - Academic & Elemental - An Arcanist master, Sandeep was born in Guild occupied India devoted to learning before his own master was arrested by the Guild. Since then, Sandeep had dedicated his life in a quest for arcane knowledge and took up his master's cursed Gada to fight the Guild's occupational control.
  • Mei Feng - Foundry - A Ten Thunders and Arcanists master, Mei Feng is the Foreman of the Foundry, the working class group laying the track for the trains of Malifaux. Mei is focused on the health of her workers and will do what's in their best interest even if that means betraying those who've had her back.

The Neverborn

The Neverborn are the native inhabitants of the world of Malifaux. They are nightmarish monsters that terrorize the human settlers in Malifaux. Their existence is linked with a calamity that occurred in the world's ancient past. They are known for their speed and abilities that confound their enemies. They possess few ranged attacks but are very deadly in melee combat. The crew masters of the Neverborn are:

  • Nekima - Nephilim - A Neverborn master, Nekima is the proud and boastful Queen of the Nephilim, seeking to destroy any humans wandering Malifaux so as to remove their tainted race from the realm.
  • Pandora - Woe - A Neverborn master, Pandora is a youthful Neverborn who carries an ancient box of suffering and toys with the humans who live in Malifaux, killing all hope around her, leaving only Despair.
  • The Dreamer - Nightmare - A Neverborn master, the Dreamer is a young boy whose nightmares are transformed into reality, followed by a Neverborn monster called Nytmare, or as he calls him, "Lord Chompy Bits".
  • Euripides - Savage - A Neverborn master, Euripides is an ancient prophet descending from the mountains of Malifaux to play his part in Fate's unchanging plan.
  • Zoraida - Swampfiend - A Neverborn and Bayou master, known as the Swamp Hag, Zoraida is a witch that has lived in Malifaux for so long that she has been twisted by its local environment and become privy to Fate's design.
  • Titania - Fae - A Neverborn master, the Queen of the Fae, and the Keeper of the Old World. TItania is attempting to reclaim control of Malifaux as its rightful Queen and abolish everything else from Malifaux, whether human or tyrant.
  • Marcus - Chimera - An Arcanist and Neverborn master, Marcus was a professor who discovered the primal energies of the wilds of Malifaux, becoming a bestial and mystical shaman.

The Outcasts

The Outcasts are a group of smaller interests unassociated with the major factions in Malifaux, while they previously would lend their services to the other Factions in Malifaux, with the ban of Mercenary work from the Governor General they have begun to form together into a semi-cooperative force working out of the Freikorps run town of Freiholt. The crew masters of the Outcasts are:

  • Victoria Chambers - Mercenary - As Outcast masters, Viktoria Chambers and her doppleganger sister are the head of a powerful mercenary force seeking out artifacts and are often toted as the deadliest duo in Malifaux.
  • Jack Daw - Tormented - A Resurrectionist and Outcast master, Jack Daw is a mysterious force in Malifaux, often ravaging the towns and people which he finds are guilty betrayal and torment.
  • Leveticus - Amalgam - An Outcast master, Leveticus is a scavenger who has discovered how to cheat death via soul transfer and has spent his days working to expand his research and reach true immortality, even if it means embracing necromancy.
  • Hamelin - Plague - An Outcast master, Hamelin, also known as the Tyrant Plague, is a master of disease and misfortune, spreading his deadly blight across the citizens of Malifaux, hoping to obtain enough power to truly ascend into a god-like being.
  • Von Schill - Freikorps - An Outcast master, Von Schill is a leader of his own specialist paramilitary mercenary group, the Freikorps. These high-trained and morally suspect soldiers are willing to work for anyone, provided they can pay.
  • Tara - Obliteration - An Outcast master, Tara is the herald of the Tyrant Obliteration. Often working to bring-about her master's goals, Tara focuses her magic on the Void, an endless dimension held outside of reality.
  • Parker Barrows - Bandit - An Outcast master, Parker Barrows is the leader of the Barrows gang, a group of outlaws and bandits who rob from any group in Malifaux for profit.
  • Zipp - Infamous - A Bayou and Outcast master, Zipp is the most feared Sky Pirate of all of Malifaux, owning the sky-ship Infamy and raiding all the other organizations of Malifaux with his pirate crew.

Ten Thunders

Inspired by the Triads and Yakuza, the Ten Thunders spring from the Three Kingdoms (an unified Japan, China and Vietnam) and is led by the Katanaka clan after their exile from the Three Kingdoms. Having found a second smaller breach in the mountains of Tibet leading into Malifaux, the Ten Thunders have become a powerhouse of smuggling and crime within Malifaux City. The crew masters of the Ten Thunders are:

  • Shenlong - Monk - A Ten Thunders master, Shenlong was possessed by a primordial being known as the Dragon after discovering his temple, a being who has now turned its sights towards Malifaux.
  • Misaki - Last Blossom - A Ten Thunders master, Misaki slowly gained the respect of the Ten Thunders, until ultimately taking control of the organization after beheading her father in a duel..
  • Lucas McCabe - Wastrel - A Ten Thunders and Explorers Society master, Lucas McCabe was an adventurous explorer who became even more reckless after his fiancée died.
  • Yan Lo - Ancestor & Retainer - A Ten Thunders and Resurrectionist master, Yan Lo was cursed to walk the Paths between life and death for eternity before being brought back into the material world, and later Malifaux, by his niece Chiaki.
  • Jakob Lynch - Honeypot - A Ten Thunders master, Jakob Lynch owns the Honeypot Casino. After making a deal to house a monstrous creature underneath his basement, Lynch found its magic to be enthralling his clientele, forcing them into an everlasting stay. .
  • Asami Tanaka - Oni - A Ten Thunders master, Asami experienced great pain in her entire life. When she became mortally wounded, she allowed a demon into her soul, granting her power in exchange for a ravenous hunger for life.
  • Youko Hamasaki - Qi and Gong - A Ten Thunders master, Youko is the proprietor of the Qi and Gong, a Tea House nestled in the heart of the Little Kingdom, a neighborhood in Malifaux, where she primarily deals in secrets and information.
  • Mei Feng - Foundry - A Ten Thunders and Arcanists master, Mei Feng is the Foreman of the Foundry, the working class group laying the track for the trains of Malifaux. Mei is focused on the health of her workers and will do what's in their best interest even if that means betraying those who've had her back.

The Bayou

Originally included as part of the Outcasts faction, it was announced as part of the update to Malifaux Second Edition that the Gremlins, now Bayou, would be a faction of their own. Natives to the lands around Malifaux, the Gremlins are a wild and rambunctious group. Their playstyle is characterized by often random acts that can at times injure their own fellows as easily as their enemies.The crew masters of the Gremlins are:

  • Som'er Teeth Jones - Big Hat - A Bayou master, Som'er is a notorious Gremlin crime boss who works to lead his large family to power in the Bayou. He wears a big hat as a symbol of his authority over all the other gremlins in his crew.
  • Ophelia LaCroix - Kin - A Bayou master, Ophelia was an ambitious gremlin before her crew was massacred by the Ortega family. Having stolen Perdita Ortega's hat herself, she now leads another crew of gremlins, causing trouble wherever she goes.
  • Mah Tucket - Tricksy - A Bayou master, Mah is the leader of the Bayou Bushwackers, a crew wanted for multiple counts of assault and battery. She uses cookware and is a formidable foe against her enemies.
  • Ulix Turner - Sooey & Pig - A Bayou master, Ulix is a hog breeder, and the master of hogs and all things hoggish.
  • Wong - Wizz-Bang - A Bayou master, Wong is one of the most eccentric master of all of Malifaux, wearing blue robes and uses theatrical firework displays to hide his own powerful magical potential, which he plans to use against the Ten Thunders organization.
  • The Brewmaster - Tri-Chi - A Bayou master, the Brewmaster discovered moonshine, and brews multiple variants of this cocktail within a group of fiercely loyal and independent gremlins known as the "Tri-Chi".
  • Zipp - Infamous - A Bayou and Outcast master, Zipp is the most feared Sky Pirate of all of Malifaux, owning the sky-ship Infamy and raiding all the other organizations of Malifaux with his pirate crew.
  • Zoraida - Swampfiend - A Neverborn and Bayou master, known as the Swamp Hag, Zoraida is a witch that has lived in Malifaux for so long that she has been twisted by its local environment and become privy to Fate's design.

The Explorer's Society

Originally announced as part of Third Edition, much about the Explorer's Society is unknown.

  • Lucas McCabe - Wastrel - A Ten Thunders and Explorers Society master, Lucas McCabe was an adventurous explorer who became even more reckless after his fiancée died.
  • Cornelius Basse - Frontier - A Guild and Explorers Society master, Basse is working to secure his freedoms from the crimes of his family and works to bring Law and Order back to the fringes of Malifaux Society.
  • Lord Cooper - Apex - An Explorer's Society master, Lord Justin Cooper is the founder of the Explorer's Society, though little has been revealed regarding his motives since his announcement as a new master in Malifaux.

References
  1. Malifaux Rule Book. ISBN 0-9841509-0-0.
  2. Hanold, David; May, Charles, eds. (2013). Malifaux 2nd Edition Rules Manual. Wyrd.
  3. Malifaux Rising Powers. ISBN 978-0-9841509-1-5.
  4. Malifaux: Twisting Fates. 2011. ISBN 978-0-9841509-3-9.
  5. Malifaux Storm of Shadows. ISBN 978-0-9841509-5-3.
  6. Malifaux 2E. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-0-9841509-6-0.
  7. Malifaux 2E: Crossroads. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-0-9905896-0-0.
  8. Malifaux 2E: Shifting Loyalties. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-0-9905896-4-8.
  9. Malifaux 2E: Ripples of Fate. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-0-9905896-8-6.
  10. Malifaux 2E: Broken Promises. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-0-9971304-4-7.
  11. Malifaux 3rd Edition - Core Rulebook. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-0-9971304-8-5.
  12. Malifaux Third Edition - Guild. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-1-7331627-1-5.
  13. Malifaux Third Edition - Resurrectionists. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-1-7331627-4-6.
  14. Malifaux Third Edition - Arcanists. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-1-7331627-2-2.
  15. Malifaux Third Edition - Neverborn. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-1-7331627-0-8.
  16. Malifaux Third Edition - Outcasts. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-1-7331627-5-3.
  17. Malifaux Third Edition - Bayou. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-1-7331627-6-0.
  18. Malifaux Third Edition - Ten Thunders. Wyrd Miniatures. ISBN 978-1-7331627-3-9.
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