DPBellathrom wrote:Ok so today I was looking through my local gaming shops models for something pretty to paint and came across the stunning "ten thunders oiran" models. now I've always loved the models in this range but these really jumped out at me as I've been wanting to build/work on something that looks both sexy, graceful and deadly (a gap
GW hasn't been filling since they replaced the old daemonettes) and the ten thunders set really fits the bill.
Anyway, being a complete noob to the game (I know that you use cards rather than dice....that’s about it q.q) I have a few questions:
Welcome to Malifaux!
Can I get a legal/good army/warband/force out of the ten thunders starter set (the one with misaki, the nine tailed fox etc) and also the oiran set :? If so I can see myself really enjoying this game as it won't break the bank anywhere close to the level that GW has been doing. If not, what would you suggest to add to the set? (I will be getting it anyway as the models are too gorgeous not to own but if I need more then that’s not really a problem)
The 10 Thunders (10T) faction is a fully fleshed out faction, they're not like Mercs or Minions in Warmachine/Hordes, and they're not like Sisters of Battle or some other minor faction in
40k, The 10T can hold their own quite well, and picking up The Thunder box (Misaki's starter) is a great way to jump into the 10T. I'm sure you've looked at it, but Misaki's box comes with her, Shang, Ototo, and 3 Torkage, picking up the Oiran gives you three more good models to work with, so you can easily have the tools to make a decent little crew

. As you're learning the game, I would try to stick just with Misaki's box, but once you think you have the feel for the game, start changing things out, maybe take 2 Torkage and 1 Oiran, I would also suggest picking up the Ten Thunders Archers, Ten Thunders Brothers, and Yamaziko, that should flesh out the crew nicely, and give you all the things within the "pure" 10T faction.
The other thing about the Ten Thunders is that many of their models are duel faction, so there are some models that are Neverborn/10T, Ressers/10T, Arcanists/10T, and Guild/10T, which expands the things your crews can do even more
How long do games tend to be? Not really an issue either way, just want to know :?
When you're first learning the rules and trying to play a full game, 2 hours or so, once you've got the hang of things games can take an hour to an hour and a half.
How easy is the game to pick up? I play both warhammer and warmahordes if that helps though I imagine this differs a lot from those
The game is very easy to learn, but like with Warmahordes, its difficult to master. Once you learn the Duel system (simple or opposed), and activations, you've basically got the tools to play the game, the hard part comes from learning when certain models should be activated, learning all of the different abilities, actions, and triggers are, it can kind of bog you down. I normally play Pandora and some other neverborn, but recently I've picked up Ressers and it's like learning the game all over.
edit: also what books do I need for this game :? I got some cards with my oiran box which I assume work in the same way as the warmahordes ones. so do I just buy the rule book and a deck :? or are there also army books for them?
All of the rules in the game are contained in 1 of 2 books. The little 15 dollar Rules Manual, which is great for taking to tournaments or to the
FLGS, but some of the rules contained within need updating, which is where Malifaux Book 1.5 comes in. Book 1.5 contains all of the rules, fluff, and stat cards from book 1, but have been updated with all of the latest
FAQs and Errata, as well as some tweaks to the fluff and stories in the book to make it easier to read (no retconning of fluff, just smoothing it out). If you don't mind printing out the errata from Wyrd's website, I would suggest getting the Rules Manual since you seem to really only be interested in 10T
atm (if it was a book 1 master I would suggest Book 1.5). As for army books, every faction gets new models and new stories in each of the books, so there are things for the 5 main factions (Guild, Ressers, Neverborn, Arcanists, & Outcasts) in all 4 of the books (Malifaux, Rising Powers, Twisting Fates, and Storm of Shadows), but since the 10T were only introduced in Storm of Shadows, then you'll probably only want to pick up that book eventually. Since all of the stat cards give you the info you need, the books become mostly for the fluff and stories.
So I would suggest buying the 15 dollar Rules Manual, printing off the errata from Wyrd's website, and buying Storm of Shadows when you can.
Also, what city do you live in, or game store do you frequent? It would be possible to check this list:
http://malifaux.com/Henchman.php, and this one:
http://www.wyrd-games.net/content.php?118-where-to-buy-wyrd, and see if you can't get a hold of your local henchman (if you have one) to give you a demo of the game.