Unboxing Malifaux - Reva's 'The Mercy of Death' Starter Set

"They're mine now...body and soul..."

Reva’s box contains seven models, including Reva herself. Vincent St. Clair, the Exorcist who freed her, is always at her side instructing her on how to survive in Malifaux and defending her with his Crossbow. Her totems, the Corpse Candles, can be summoned at the start of her Activation and are useful because she can use them as mobile Corpse Markers. Finally, the Shieldbearers are versatile models which keep on fighting even after they have been killed.

If your fortunate enough to have a box with the following sticker...

...then the box also contains these as a bonus. This was one of Wyrd Games monthly promotions so it's possible your box might not contain any...

REVA

Reva was born to a wealthy Guild family. She was always an awkward child and never quite fit in, but all of that took on a whole new meaning when her family moved to Malifaux. She began taking walks through graveyards late at night and whispering to spirits that weren’t there. Most disturbingly, she instilled a sense of purpose and devotion in those around her that should have been beyond the ability of a child.

Her family tried everything before finally giving up and locking her in the attic in the name of propriety. In one last, desperate attempt, they sought the help of an Exorcist. Instead of helping to tame the girl, however, he freed her. Now Reva wanders the slums and Quarantine Zone, gathering followers around her as she goes. She even feels an affinity for the undead, which she treats with respect.

Reva is not just a rallying point for those who follow her. If she or her followers are threatened, she responds with fearsome violence. In these moments, her ethereal scythes slash out from nearby corpses, cleaving her victims' souls from their bodies and strengthening Reva with each death.

The 'Mercy of Death' box contains enough parts for seven miniatures...namely Reva, her Totems the Corpse Candles (2SS each but they can only be summoned), Vincent (8SS) and three Shieldbearers (6SS each). It also contains stat cards for each one and thirteen upgrade cards four of which are for Reva, one for Vincent and the rest are '0' cost upgrades for models with the 'Soulbound' type.

This makes the Soulsstone value of the box...

Reva (0), Vincent (8), Shieldbearers (6, 6, 6), Corpse Candles (2, 2) Total (26 rather than 30 as the Corpse Candles can only be summoned) or (29) with a maximum Soulstone cache and (34) with maximum 'out of the box' upgrades.

Sprues

The box has one sprue in it divided into four sub-sections as well as the aforementioned cards. Here's pictures of both sides of them...

Stat and Upgrade Cards

Wyrd Games didn't like my publishing pictures of both sides of the stat cards so you'll have to make do with this...

Reva is on a 50mm base the rest of the crew are on 30mm ones.

Lets have a look at each of these models in turn. Should there be any assembly issues with any of the models then they will be listed in the appropriate section and you can view larger versions of the smaller pictures or instruction pictures by clicking on them.

Instructions

Some General Notes on Assembly.

Many of these models contain quite small parts so depending on how dexterous you are you might consider getting yourself some tweezers. Dry-fitting is also always a good idea in case a part needs a tiny bit of extra filing or filling as some of the fits are quite tight. Where the parts on the sprue are quite thin (chains, weapon shafts, cables and the like) then it might be better to remove parts with a sharp scalpel rather than cutters.

Reva

The Sprue

Assembled

This is an odd model to assemble as certain pieces don't feel like they should fit where the instructions indicate so it's important to be systematic and check the alignment of each part before applying any glue. I've included a couple of close-up pictures of the rider and reins so you can see how this section goes together. There are also a couple of thin pieces that dangle from the end of the reins that are quite delicate so be careful when handling those parts.

Vincent

The Sprue

Assembled

This is a very simple model to assemble as the majority is the body to which the separate legs attach. The only delicate section is the crossbow as the cross-piece isn't particularly sturdy.

Corpse Candles

The Sprue

Corpse Candle A - Assembled

A very small piece attaches centrally onto the larger curling piece emerging from the prone figures chest...it's tiny and very thin so take care. The fit on the parts wasn't great either so I'll need to do a bit filling.

Corpse Candle B - Assembled

You'll have to be systematic with this one as it contains many small fiddly parts including a thin piece that attaches to the chest, a piece that wraps around the body from a small attachment point on the rear and finally a piece that looks like it's flowing from the left eye and mouth but luckily this has a tendril that wraps around the rear of the head so you don't need to glue anywhere near the face detail.

Shieldbearers

The Sprue

All three are relatively simple models to assemble with at most six pieces. The only point worth noting is that several pieces attach to the main body at slightly odd points, Shieldbearer three has the tip of his foot as part of the shield and shieldbearer one's shield has a piece of hair on the top which attaches (rather obviously) to the ladies head. In addition some of the points where arms attach are quite small though this is somewhat mitigated by the previous point about attachment locations.

Shieldbearer 1 - Assembled

Shieldbearer 2 - Assembled

Shieldbearer 3 - Assembled

Tactica

Wyrd Games have helpfully been including some basic tactical advice on their website for the various factions Masters. This is the one for Reva that I've 'borrowed' from their website...

Reva is a Master who is fantastic at dealing damage to enemies from across the board. She attacks by drawing LoS and range from Corpse Markers, meaning most enemies which fall become another potential avenue of attack for Reva. Although she is slightly less resilient than the other Resurrectionist Masters, her ability to stay out of harm’s way and still be effective more than makes up for it.

Reva’s primary attack is Ethereal Reaping, which does an impressive minimum damage of 3 and can choose to target either Defence or Willpower. Due to Strength of the Fallen, Reva can make this attack while drawing LoS and range through any Corpse Marker within 18”. Of course, this means she is hungry for corpses, so Forgotten Dead allows her to place more on the board by summoning Corpse Candles (which Reva may use as mobile Corpse Markers). If an enemy does get close enough to Reva to harm her, she can use Death Shroud to jump away from danger and even gain cover.

Reva’s Upgrades add some great abilities as well. Guises of Death allows her to begin the game with a Corpse Candle on the enemy half of the board and to use Strength of the Fallen even while engaged. Beyond Death gives Reva Regeneration and the Screaming Death Trigger, which allows her to forego damage on a melee attack in order to make a Charge Action. Finally, her Litany of the Fallen Upgrade prevents the damage from her attacks from being reduced. In total, Reva is a highly mobile Master capable of dealing impressive damage at range and jumping away when she is threatened or charging across the board in one final, brutal assault.

Thoughts and comments are (as usual) most welcome.

Should you ever choose to purchase something based on one of my features or reviews then it would be nice if you could let the company know where the inspiration came from...who knows...they might be grateful to the poor unappreciated blogger who sent you their way...if however I've put you off a product...well...you can keep that info to yourself...