When forces unknown are set upon the invasion of your home, your lands and everything you hold dear, it brings out true patriotism, honour and love for one’s home to defend it to the end. In the Neverborns case, the true inhabitants of Malifaux, they don’t care about any of that wishy washy nonsense. They are only interested in getting rid of every single outlander out of Malifaux so they can have their world back to twist and manipulate as they see fit. Preferring manipulation over the battlefield and their enemies, the Neverborn can be straight to the point, or complex and challenging to play.

The first master to check out this week is Lilith the mother of monsters. A whirlwind of destruction and dismay, Lilith enjoys sending her armies of Nephilim into battle, evolving/growing them to become stronger still. Don’t let that fool you though, Lilith is no slouch herself when it comes to the sword. She can be as destructive as some of the strongest melee masters out there such as Lady Justice. Sucking the blood out of her victims to feed her minions and help them grow up all big and strong. She has a few tactics that can ensure her and her minions stay around in that she can create forests and earthquakes to block charging routes as well as providing cover against ranged attacks. If you like the idea of a master who is full of utility and busy with a sword too, Lilith is the gal for you.

So from one end of the spectrum to the total and complete opposite, here we wander into the labyrinth of the mind to the lair of the mind freak, Pandora. As a master, Pandora has an almost unique method of defeating her enemies, and that is an almost Cthulhu-esqe way by using willpower tests and skills to drive her foes to the brink of madness. She is most known for her incredible control powers on the board through her Pacify/Incite power in that she can control in what order affected models will activate, putting a real cog in the works for the opponent. She can take a few models that can take a punch in a fist fight, but when it comes down to her real powers on the battlefield, models that have synergy with her abilities and her willpower effects take precedence. So if the sneaky and sly, the dark and dismal, the upsetting and downright depressing is the way you want to bring the hurt to your opponent, Pandora’s Box is waiting to be opened.

Where Lilith and Pandora could almost be called attractive in some, twisted, monstrous sense, here comes the ugliest of them all. From the slime covered, bog of eternal stench comes the swamp hag herself, Zoraida. Control is one thing, the battlefield needs control to function, but with control comes a further form that takes true skill to master and that is manipulation. This is where Zoraida shines (probably her slime covered skin in the light) as a true horror on the battlefield. As a crew, Zoraida has her pick of the litter and plays in a very unusual style. She can sit back behind the lines and cause so many issues with her powers of manipulation while the rest of her crew cleans up, it is almost absurd. Zoraida will enjoy taking any Neverborn models with her onto the field and will play well with pretty much all other Neverborn minions so she can be played however you want to build your crew. Versatility and flexibility come with the territory of being mistress of the bog, and if this is what you want, peg your nose and dive in with Zoraida.

The thought of the psychotic mindscape that is Malifaux is enough to drive the most hardened veteran to insanity, but that doesn’t seem to be the case for The Dreamer. A small child who wandered a little too far and ended up in Malifaux, developing strange and unique powers. The dreamer believes and he receives, he dreams and he gets. Whatever The Dreamer can think of will be made reality and that’s where his darker side comes in. As the name implies The Dreamer believes all he does is in a dream and isn’t real, so when he decides he wants to kill things and be a general nasty little boy, he turns himself into an enormous demon by the name of Lord Chompy Bits. Another crew that can take pretty much anything he wants from the Neverborn line-up, Dreamer is heavily used for Chompy Bits’ terrifying power on the battlefield. Nothing is more imposing that the huge model that is the Lord. If scary, nasty and generally terrifying nightmarish creatures are your forte, then time to hit the sheets and meet The Dreamer.

So we come to a close on the Neverborn and who could ever forget the owner of the local….ahem…pleasure house, than the card shark himself, Jakob Lynch. A man of little morals, Lynch harbours a truly dark secret in that he shares a parasitic relationship with the very darkness itself. A devilishly untrustworthy character, Lynch does a very good job of playing around with both yours and your opponents control hand, while working on infecting his enemies with “brilliance” to increase the effectiveness of his crews damage output. With few models that can synergize with his skills properly, he sticks to using the guests of his house and its employees to bring the locals into his dark palace of pleasure. So if your looking for a bouncer, a card cheat, a barman and some ladies of the night to tempt your favour, the Mr Lynch and his staff are awaiting your patronage.

So this concludes another faction introduction for you to, yet again, be tempted into the dark and delicious world of Malifaux. The Neverborn want their lands back from the invading peoples, can you make this happen?

Nick Gouldstone

Keep those cards hidden and remember, Cheat Fate or Lose Your Soul!