For the next Malifaux tactica I'm sticking with Outcasts and talking about the crew I've been playing lately with the Freikorps. Von Schill's keyword is incredibly versatile and can adapt to almost any situation they're dealt with, which is really great from a gameplay perspective and makes for fun games.
Keyword abilities-
Armour- Fairly simple, but almost the entire keyword (thanks Metallurgist!) have Armour 1 or 2. This is important because it keeps them alive longer, but is something that can be easily teched to if you declare Von Schill.
Equipment Upgrades- A fairly big and important part of how Freikorps work is based around their Equipment. Both versions of Von Schill and the Steam Trunk all hand them out, and all of them are useful in a lot of situations
Grenade Belt- The least useful one I feel like, but Burnt to a Crisp is always a nice trigger to have to counter scheming and Distracted can be nice as well
Land Mines- Useful for janky reasons, Hazardous terrain is nice but the best part is being able to set up Research Mission and Death Beds for very little resources
Reinforced Assault Shield- My favourite upgrade in general, Shielded 2 is fantastic. Being able to put it on models that are already tanky it becomes ridiculously good
Rocket Boots- Leap and Charge Through are both great, not much else to say. It works for scheming and fighting
Rocket Launcher- Not particularly high damage unless you have the trigger (which is also pretty reliable to get in a few ways) but it does spread out tons of small damage across a lot of things which is really useful.
Keyword models-
Von Schill- I always intended to finish this, and Schill was the only thing I never wrote. With it being almost 18 months since I've played Malifaux now I'm resigning myself to not getting it done, and publishing the rest of the article as it was
Steam Trunk- The keyword's Totem, the Trunk purely exists to support other models and will almost never directly impact a game. It hands out Equipment for a 6 which isn't bad for a Totem and can help other models cycle Equipment as well, and it has a few different bonus actions to help out friendly models. Emergency Syrette is the most useful IMO because it's a heal, but also removing Poison is great to have for a 5, while the other option to remove Burning is free but a lot more situational. With a 2" range on all its actions and a 3" range on Armory for Equipment cycling you want it to be close to your crew which tends to be right on the front line, but anything that can ignore Armour can and will kill it quite easily so look out for that (especially because Explosive +2 as a Demise can hurt your own models)
Arik Schottemer- the single most important hire in the crew IMO, Arik does a lot to shut down opponents in a few ways. Whether just by taking hits and protecting your crew that way or through Gravity Well shutting down Place effects Arik is useful, and otherwise he's just a pretty simple beater for 10SS with a little bit of versatility. His Shockwaves are ok, and being able to boost them makes Lazarus a bit more enticing as a 2nd take under Schill2 as well, but the main show is his melee which you can boost to fairly reliably spike for 7 damage with Puncture or just ignore Armour with likely negatives. Either way he punches very effectively, but you need to remember to use Charge Up any time you don't need to use Leap to get somewhere which is honestly most times for Arik. Kinetic Amplifier is really great when it's relevant although costing cards is a bit of a downside, and the Metallurgist brings a slight nonbo here as most of these kinds of damage will get reduced to 0 and thus no possible Focus. Diving Charge is amazing for mobility too because nothing can get in his way of the target even without Leap (and Rocket Boots for Charge Through is actually a good use here, especially with Puncture)
Hannah Lovelace- going into writing this I knew I'd be saying some controversial things about Hannah, and while I think she's an important piece in the crew and quite good she isn't the first thing I take and is often the one I remove. While she gives a great bonus in Arcane Reservoir and the things she does are consistent she is very expensive at 10SS and taking 20SS in 2 models is something to weigh up whenever you play Schill. The min 4 combo with Arik is ok but it's still jumping through hoops and Freikorps don't exactly struggle for damage anyway, plus she can also just be doing bonus actions from Equipment which will have their own benefits. Both her attacks are good and have good triggers (which you can guarantee) as does Adaptive Tactics with being able to clear conditions if needed. In general she brings a good toolkit, but it's a toolkit that I'm deciding game by game whether I'll actually need it or not because I've often skipped her and not felt like I was missing out on anything.
Lazarus- A model that I really love but just never end up taking, mainly because he doesn't do a huge amount that synergises with the rest of the crew that can't be done elsewhere. He's decently tanky for 9SS but not hugely so, and Unyielding combined with Bodyguard let him be a defensive pin for the crew but he is very slow and won't keep up with the rest of the crew as easily. Both his attacks are ok, but the Grenade Launcher is a Shockwave in a crew that using Shockwaves cuts into their efficiency in other ways isn't fantastic, although it will drain the hand of opponents ideally to stop them taking big chunks of damage (or just doing the damage itself). Juggernaut for healing is great but at the cost of a card, and Assimilate is good depending on what Constructs you're using (mainly Arik). His ability through Assimilate and Elimination Protocols to get effectively 3AP for not much work is also nice and you can hurt the opponent a lot, but at 9SS and not being Arik or Hannah he's the 3rd expensive model I look at in a list, and I tend to grab cheaper models instead to bump up activations at that point.
Metallurgist- The newest piece for Freikorps and almost pure support, but I really love it for what it does passively in a lot of matchups. No Armour is unique for Freikorps, but it does have native Arcane Shield 2 for some protection and Evasive to completely remove Blasts, Pulses and Shockwaves as a threat. Power Tokens in Freikorps won't do much often, but Enchanted Steel makes your already tanky models an absolute slog to take out unless you ignore Armour (which at least some things likely will as tech picks against Freikorps) and is mostly a huge benefit with Hazardous Terrain- your own Land Mines can't even affect your stuff as long as the Metallurgist is nearby. Her attack is nice but low damage, and Vent Steam helps keep her safe and hurts the opponent a lot but as far as actions go its her bonus actions that are the reason for using her and her actual actions are mostly just going to be done as needed for damage or protection. Command Construct in Freikorps is good but not fantastic (Hannah and Arik are what you'll do it on the most) and built in Temper Steel is very nice although the action itself still needs a 9 of Tomes to be successful. Like Clockwork is slightly less limited in use as it doesn't need to target a Construct (although it still needs one in play) and moves the target 3" towards any Construct or Scrap marker (even enemy), with Power token gain for Augmented on a Tome (in Freikorps only useful on the Metallurgist herself) and on a Mask for Freikorps the ability to attach Equipment at the cost of a card which is just another way to pick things up and it always welcome.
Drachen Trooper- what is really the biggest finesse piece of the keyword and often not very useful in comparison to other models, the Drachen shines based on what your opponent is using. Clearing Distracted, Slow and Staggered is their main reason to be taken with a huge range and only needing a 4 (and with the Metallurgist doing no damage to Freikorps for the full benefit) and removing markers is also very useful to have in the right matchup (but only Corpse, Scrap and Destructible so still not a lot of the things you want marker removal for). The Flamethrower is pretty good at dealing damage to a lot of models and 6 vs Mv is good, but at 8SS compared to other options in keyword its very tough competition and means you won't really see the Drachen Trooper very often.
Freikorps Librarian- honestly my favourite minion in keyword (and there's a lot of competition) because they can pivot so easily into almost any role and have really great synergy with a bunch of the Equipment. Arcane Shield on top of Assault Shields and Rocket Launchers with Siphon Power are both great options, Consolidate Power with your Minions is a nice option to have (but not so great that you won't want to flex into bonus actions from Equipment) and their actions are all great. Ancient Words is a good ranged option and the triggers are both very useful (although the Rocket Launcher makes for a better blaster) and Healing Words is the real reason to take them in the crew. They have tons of ways to reduce damage in keyword but with ranged healing it becomes so much more punishing for the opponent and you can make sure you're staying around for a very long time
Freikorps Scout- The sniper of the keyword, Scouts have some
good rules on their own and some really great interactions with Equipment
(mainly the Rocket Launcher). From the Shadows is great for early shots and
with a 14" gun they can easily achieve this, while ignoring Concealment
and Friendly Fire on the front of card (meaning it makes Rocket Launchers
ignore it) is also very good in the right situations. Stat wise there's not
much to say other than they're very average with nothing excelling, although
Pursue helps with duels against models that have already activated so
offensively they are fairly reliable (stat 7 Rocket Launcher for example).
Their own attacks aren't especially better than Freikorpsmenn for the extra
cost, but their bonus action to get out of engagement is nice and they do have
good triggers on both actions as well.
Freikorps Engineer- Engineers are a weird support/close
range model that will be useful in a scrum, but really exists to make sure
other things are harder to kill. Their stats are standard for Freikorps and
they have Armour 1 like almost everyone else, but Tools for the Job makes their
triggers a lot more reliable and gives you some good card cycling, and although
Sabotage won't always be useful it will be handy when it is and could
potentially allow some sneaky scoring setups for later in a turn. Their melee
is actually not too bad, with stat 5 2/3/5 being on the low end but having 2
great triggers. Severe Injury is always useful but being able to set up attacks
later in the turn from your big hitters (or Scouts shooting rockets for
reliable blasts) and Armour Piercing is pretty self explanatory (plus synergy
with Sabotage. Their big thing though is their bonus action Strengthen Armour,
which gives the target Shielded 2 (great for keeping Assault Shields active)
and if they're a Construct they heal 1. At the cost of a card you won't see it
super often outside of Freikorps where it becomes a cycle, but also being able
to hand out Focus or put Concealment on the target is very nice and you can
keep things in a fight for a very long time this way (especially because most
of the value models are Constructs). I personally prefer the Librarian for 1
extra stone, but ultimately both have good tools and can be used well so it
really depends what you need in any given situation like most of Freikorps
Freikorpsmenn are the cheapest keyword minion, but they do a
ton of work for 5SS. Armour and Survivalist together make for a far more
survivable model than they deserve to be for 5SS, although 5s in all their
stats is squarely average so they will fairly often need to rely on extra
defences over their native stats (Assault Shield here is fantastic). They can
choose to take a damage to keep any Equipment they'd otherwise discard which is
great for Rocket Launchers and Boots to get more efficiency out of them, and
Ruthless is always amazing to get around a bunch of defensive tech. Their
actions aren't amazing, although Crit Strike on both attacks is nice for sure,
and Reference the Field Guide also enables the damage boosts via Crit Strike if
you have the right cards. In general Freikorpsmenn are great budget minions and
I find they always do work
Upgrades-
Servant of Dark Powers- On either version of Von Schill I find this autotake because he wants to be killing models anyway, and you can use it to make sure you're healing while you do so (and Schill 1 gets the extra +1 this way) while Herald is also excellent
Wanted Criminal- It's really just janky in Freikorps, although on Freikorpsmenn for scheming it's not a bad take. Outflank for example you can threaten from turn 2
Soldier for Hire- Hard to Kill on anything in the keyword is excellent, but the rest of it is more just meh
Deployments- With Freikorps having lots of ways to move in weird ways and out of activations the deployments don't really matter to them outside of how they affect Schemes and Strategies.
Strategies-
Reckoning- The best strat for Freikorps IMO, because they're sturdy and can also dish out damage. It's really simple
Turf War- Being able to both survive to avoid flipping your markers and jump into the opponent's half to challenge their markers this is a good option
Corrupted Idols- Spend wounds to chuck Idols, then use your Librarians to heal them back up. Freikorpsmenn especially are great here because of Survivalist, and you can use Leap and cheating initiative to make sure you can reach the Idols as well
Plant Explosives- I like this strat, but it isn't as great as Reckoning or Turf War for Freikorps
Schemes-
Detonate Charges- I wouldn't take this purely because it isn't reliable enough and you can't get scheme markers in without interacting
Breakthrough- Not something I'd recommend, I tend to prefer mid-board schemes or things that need you to get into the opponent
Harness the Ley Line- With how you want to scrum and semi-bubble this one can be great, but it can also potentially be difficult.
Search the Ruins- I don't hate this scheme but I also don't love it with Freikorps. Depending on the table setup I'll take it
Dig Their Graves- I don't really rate it honestly, but it can be achievable in a lot of ways
Hold Up Their Forces- Freikorpsmenn are great here because they're both cheap and tanky, especially with Assault Shields and healing.
Take Prisoner- Depends entirely on the opponent, but even then I don't really like it
Power Ritual- Corner or Flank only, as usual
Outflank- Not bad, and I do like doing this with Freikorpsmenn or Scouts but you also need to make sure you aren't just handing over 2 of your models for no gain
Assassinate- This one is difficult for either version of Schill for different reasons, but Schill 1 with the right setup is almost unkillable for a lot of reasons. Play Schill to deny it, but also depending on how easily you can kill the enemy Master I'd take it as well
Deliver a Message- 1st point is very doable but then I'm not a huge fan of the 2nd point because it can be countered in a lot of ways
Claim Jump- Not bad, but not fantastic either
Vendetta- Being able to punch up with cheap models makes this a pretty great option, especially because you can then do as much as you can to keep said model alive the rest of the game after they kill their target
GG1
Strategies-
Symbols of Authority- Sending things far enough up the table to grab Symbols is fairly easy, and protecting yours with a scrum of Freikorps is also easy enough to do
Recover Evidence- Not a terrible scheme, slap Intel on your most tanky models and watch as your opponent struggles to collect more than a couple of points
Corrupted Ley Lines- Although they have a lot of movement, it's mostly placing so it isn't hugely reliable like other crews are.
Public Enemies- Same as Reckoning, you have tankiness and damage to make sure you can both deny and score this which is great
Schemes-
Breakthrough, Take Prisoner, Vendetta, Assassinate, Claim Jump- Nothing changed here, so my points from above are still my opinion on them.
Hidden Martyrs- With almost anything in the keyword being tough as nails for their cost you can fairly reliably get points from this, although it does become more obvious when you come to let opponents kill your models and they can just choose to stop attacking you (which in turn lets you dictate the terms of the game)
Sabotage- I really don't like this one with Schill simply cause it means you have to push really deep into the opponent's half and you're better suited to other schemes
Catch and Release- Freikorpsmenn (for cheap) or Librarians (for tankier) with Shield and Rocket Boots are a pretty funny, if not entirely guaranteed, option for this and I'd do it just for the fun of it but like a lot of things there are probably better options.
Let Them Bleed- You have a lot of damage reduction, a lot of healing and good damage. All of these added up make your crew great for this scheme
Leave Your Mark- Not a bad option because you can scrum in the middle and block out the opponent from scoring, but also not guaranteed so dependent on what the opponent is playing and table setup
Research Mission- Drop Landmines for it and you can do it pretty self-sufficiently wherever you need to
Spread Them Out- It's very doable but I'd also not want to risk getting things out of ranges from other models so you can keep overlapping abilities and making sure you can pass things around where you want to. It makes a bit of a pivot in terms of Schill's lifestyle so you have to consider what other schemes you have.
Runic Binding- Leaps make it less difficult, and in a scrum situation I'd consider this an alright (if not perfect) take
GG2
Strategies-
Symbols of Authority, Corrupted Ley Lines- Same as in GG1, my thoughts are the same.
Turf War- Same as it used to be, same opinion as before
Break the Line- All I'd suggest is push hard onto 2 markers and shove them up as quickly as possible, because you can also quite easily double Interact on them in single activations with Rocket Boots
Schemes-
Breakthrough, Vendetta, Assassinate, Hidden Martyrs, Research Mission, Let Them Bleed, Catch and Release, Spread Them Out- These are all very much the same as before and I wouldn't change how I play them now.
Detonate Charges, Claim Jump- They’re the same as GG0, same as my thoughts there.
Death Beds- With Land Mines you can pull it off pretty well, I actually like this scheme with Freikorps because you can score it and you're also tanky enough to try and deny it hard.
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