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Review of Brotherhood (full crew)
Blurb from the publisher: 'The Brotherhood's assassins are making their sneaky, silent and allegedly righteous way through the city's dark underbelly in order to bring peace and stability back to Longfall. They are just as adept at political intrigue as they are at sticking poisoned daggers into unsuspecting backs.
Life - what is it really? Transience, nothing but transience. The rain is drumming a mournfully sinister staccato on my tricorn hat. Apagado is a Brotherhood specialist and an archetype of the solitary Brotherhood assassin - swift, stealthy and back-stabbing.
Darkness surrounds me like a cloak. A star replaces my world, the pale light drawing me in like a moth.Trucco is a Brotherhood specialist and also an iconic assassin. In addition he is armed with throwing knives.
Romerto is unpredictable and almost impossible to rein back. But that suits the Brotherhood just fine because all it has to do is point him in the right direction, turn him loose and nudge him a bit occasionally. Romerto is a Brotherhood specialist. Other assassins may be quick and agile, but Romerto is strong and unrelenting. A real powerhouse of a man.
She used to have lofty ideals such as glory, justice and wealth for all. She has abandoned them in her animalistic frenzy. Bella Cigna is a Brotherhood specialist. She dances across the battlefield like a Harlequina and attacks with her poisoned daggers near and far.
No doubt about it, she has sacrificed herself for her goals, she is doomed. She leaves the ball society. And steps into the darkness of the corridor ahead of her. The corridor leading to the street. The Queen of Shadows is a Brotherhood leader. She is a capable fencer with her war fans. But her most dangerous weapon is her Kiss of Death.
Ah, poison. Lovely, shiny, bubbly, deadly poison. You can touch it, you can swallow it, you can inject it, you can inhale it. It will always kill you. Fith'Aarch is a Brotherhood specialist. He is fast, really fast, and can climb like the spider after which he was named.
I'll tell ya a tale to chill your blood and make your bones turn to ice. For I saw Miedo a Morir and lived to tell the tale. I came face to face with the dreaded spectre and still call me soul me own. Miedo a Morir is a Brotherhood specialist. His scythe is a terrible weapon and he wields in wide arcs against many foes simultaneously. His fearsome looks even frighten the bravest of men.
"It's us Battitores wot do all the hard work, know what I mean? I mean, look at it: someone needs roughing up? We does it. Someone owes the bosses money and needs a reminder all kindly-like?" Battitores and Coscrittis are Brotherhood deckhands. Coscrittis require a small hire fee only and thus help to egalize the Brotherhoods inferiority in numbers. Battitores are not stronger than Coscrittis, but can suffer more pain.
He was tired of living with the pain, tired of waking up to it and tired of fighting it for sleep at night. Tired of being reminded of his body's imperfection with each and every movement. But now, fate be praised, an end to his suffering appeared to be in sight. Dottore is a Brotherhood leader. He is not as skilled in combat than most other Brotherhood characters, but can treat their wounds and carry up to three vials of Toccasana with him, a home brewed mixture that greatly enhances physical capability.
Fog, perfect fog. You wallow through the streets. You cover us tenderly like a protective lover. You deaden sounds and leave the mundane life outside. Colpo di Mano is a Brotherhood specialist. His smoke bombs obscure the line of sight, which allows his comrades to advance without harm.
I would need all my skill to achieve a clean headshot at this distance. I held my breath, then slowly released it, tenderly squeezing the trigger. Adombra is a Brotherhood specialist. She fires poisoned bolts at her victims, before they even know she is there.
"Moonlight, Señor, it is a traitor! I prefer the day. Brightly lit are rich and poor alike then, good and evil, hunter and prey. It makes things so much easier, don't you find? All shades of grey vanish in the burning sunlight." The Master Harlequina is a Brotherhood leader. Mistress of a Thousand Masks allows her to enter the battlefield where seconds ago there still was a member of the opponent's crew. She strikes in the heart of enemy lines, which she can survive because of her indestructible trait and the whirlwind-like blows with her quarterstaff. She can be accompanied by an honour guard of lightning quick Harlequins.
"It's us Battitores wot do all the hard work, know what I mean? I mean, look at it: someone needs roughing up? We does it. Someone owes the bosses money and needs a reminder all kindly-like?" Battitores and Harlequins are Brotherhood deckhands. Battitores can suffer more pain than other Brotherhood deckhands and Harlequins carry throwing daggers and thus are the only Brotherhood deckhands with ranged weapons.
I will wear the mask. And another pig will have its back to me. Spada are Brotherhood deckhands. They stand above the Coscritti, as they are already able to perform sneak attacks.
"Hang on. Me? Fake a fight?" Pugilista hissed like an angry tiger, "My reputation! My honour! And my prize money? Who is going to feed my wife and children?" Tronco is a Brotherhood specialist. He is quite cheap for a specialist and a good brawler with an astonishing right-left punch combination.
As always, Incantenabra was full of loathing when thinking of the person she used to be. A naïve girl from a good family who believed that all humans were basically good underneath. Incantenebra is a Brotherhood specialist. Her armament has been built to hunt down mystics. With shadow run she ensures, that no mystic escapes her.
I have no name - unless it is darkness.I have no body - unless it is dust. I have no purpose - unless it is revenge. I have no soul - unless it is Death. I have no voice - unless it is the wind over an empty grave. Sagitario is a Brotherhood specialist. He can fire his two hand crossbows simultaneously in a firestorm and while running at full speed.
Bones creaked. The leather straps of the leg brace tore apart, its metal rods were bent out of shape. Seams burst. Clothing was torn apart. Waves of pure rage flooded through every fibre of his body. Muscles swelled and grew. Convulsive spasms racked the tortured, swelling flesh. The spine bent backwards as though two giant invisible hands were attempting to snap him in half. An animal howl forced its way from a muscle-packed throat while a gigantic fist crushed an empty syringe into a thousand shards... Señor Nefando is a leader of the Brotherhood, or to be precise - he is the dark side of Dottore. Thus you have to hire him before getting access to Señor Nefando. In the game you can switch character between those two, depending on whether you need Dottores healing abilities or Señor Nefando's brute melee strength.
That's not a crossbow! Piccina is a Brotherhood specialist. She waits with watchful eyes for the perfect moment in which to react to an opponent's move with a shot from her heavy crossbow.
Morena lurches effortlessly along on the slippery quay wall, and skips silent pile of boxes without any difficulty. Nobody hears death coming on tiptoes. Morena is a Brotherhood specialist. In narrow blind alleys, none are safe from Morena with her amazing agility and acrobatics... ...and she leaves the marksmen in despair!
Since time immemorial, ravens have been known as the bringers of bad news, their black feathers supposedly their punishment for that. A mystical togetherness bounds Corvana and her Raven. They are her extended eyes, arms and ears. They deliver messages, warn her from harm and protect her. Corvana is a specialist of the Brotherhood. If Corvana and their Ravens are nearby, you are not safe anywhere!
Falcatas springing into her hands with metallic song. Arcs of steel and light - and finally a stranger's blood. Hard wood where her head had been. Alicija Degollara is a specialist of the Imperial Armada and the Brotherhood. She is a Sansame-Huntress, who literally cuts her enemies short.'
What you get: The Freebooter's Fate game line, the rich pirate miniatures game needs no special introduction, seeing how we have seen most of the game line together up to now. The Brotherhood are the bruisers of the setting, with lightning fast reflexes and strong melee attacks. In addition to the initial four we saw together in the Brotherhood Starter Box, there are 25 additional Brotherhood members in 22 new products. As things stand in January 2017, the full Brotherhood faction, Starter Box excluded, consists of the following. One item (Alicija Degollara) doesn't have the ASS designator because she is as much a Brotherhood member as she belongs to the Imperial Armada. After each product's code and name, I indicate the in-game cost in doubloons, how many parts each package includes, its actual cost in real life, as well as the rulebook in which the character is described, if he is described in one (FF: Freebooter's Fate Rule Book, DJ: Deep Jungle, MS: Mystic Spirits, ToL1: Tales of Longfall #1: La Noche De Brujas, ToL3: Tales of Longfall #3: Big Trouble).
ASS001 Apagado - Specialist - 90 - 5 parts - EUR 11,90 - FF
ASS002 Trucco - Specialist - 100 - 5 parts - EUR 11,90 - FF
ASS004 Romerto - Specialist - 95 - 7 parts - EUR 11,90 - FF
ASS006 Bella Cigna- Specialist - 80 - 5 parts - EUR 11,90 - FF
ASS008 Queen of Shadows - Leader - 110 - 9 parts - EUR 13,90 - FF
ASS009 Fith'Aarch the Spider- Specialist - 85 - 7 parts - EUR 10,90 - FF
ASS010 Miedo a Morir - Specialist - 95 - 9 parts - EUR 13,90 - FF
ASS011 Battitore and Coscritti - Deckhands - 45 / 35 - 9 parts - EUR 15,50 - DJ / FF
ASS012 Dottore - Leader - 75 - 7 parts - EUR 11,90 - DJ
ASS013 Colpo di Mano - Specialist - 85 - 5 parts - EUR 11,90 - DJ
ASS014 Adombra - Specialist - 30 / 30 - 12 parts - EUR 11,90 - DJ
ASS015 Master Harelquina - Leader- 115 - 5 parts - EUR 13,90 - MS
ASS016 Battitora and Harlequin - Deckhands - 45 / 55 - 8 parts - EUR 15,50 - DJ / FF
ASS017 Spada - Deckhands- 50 / 50 - 8 parts - EUR 15,50 - MS
ASS018 Tronco - Specialist - 65 - 3 parts - EUR 10,90 - MS
ASS019 Incantenebra - Specialist - 85 - 6 parts - EUR 11,90 - MS
ASS020 Sagitario - Specialist - 100 - 6 parts - EUR 11,90 - MS
ASS021 Señor Nefando - Leader - +40 - 6 parts - EUR 15,50 - ToL1
ASS022 Piccina - Specialist - 85 - 7 parts - EUR 13,90 - ToL3
ASS023 Morena Feligatta - Specialist - 95 - 6 parts - EUR 11,90 - ToL3
ASS025 Corvana - Specialist - 80 - 6 parts - EUR 11,90 - ToL3
IMP026 Alicija Degollara - Specialist - 85 - 5 parts - EUR 11,90 - ToL1
As usual, there is no shadow reviewing here; Freebooter Miniatures graciously provided all the aforementioned products for me to be able to run this review.
In addition to the metal parts and plastic bases, each product contains also the unit's or units' card(s) for fast reference. Just like the cards in the previous products of Freebooter's Fate, the cards describing the statistics of each unit come at a standard 63 x 91 mm and can be easily sleeved. All miniatures are metal and come unassembled and unpainted. One needs hobby tools, seeing how many metal parts are still attached to sprues.
A fast look at this list demonstrates that in addition to the characters in the Starter Box (one Leader, 1 Specialist and 2 Deckhands), the Brotherhood have at their disposal 3 additional Leaders (or four, depending on how one sees it), 15 additional Specialists and 6 additional Deckhands (in three products).
As per the game's rules, introductory games have crew values of 250 doubloons, usual games have crew values of 500 doubloons, while very challenging games have values of 750 doubloons or higher, the cost of Equipment Cards and Loa And Invocation Cards included. A Brotherhood crew can contain only one Leader, any number of Deckhands, of which two can be identical provided other deckhands exist as well, as well as one Specialist per Deckhand.
Adding this all up together means that even the most dedicated, completist, practically obsessed Brotherhood player would need to buy everything mentioned in this review once only, and that would be exclusively to show off, setting himself back some EUR 282,20 plus the cost of the Starter Box.
The three new Leaders are very different to the Master Assassin, the Leader in the Starter Box. The only think they appear to have in common is their unwavering Authority at 20. As an example, skill-wise, the Queen of Shadows has nothing in common with the initial Leader, unless one excludes Lightning Reflexes. By far the most interesting when it comes to theme is the Dottore. Not only he is immune to poison, not only he can create enhancing drugs (with repercussions for his crew but not himself), he can also turn himself into Señor Nefando, a brute that hands out melee damage indiscriminately. That's right, the Dottore can be two figures in one, depending on the flow of the game, and whether the player has the blood price to keep on paying for the miniature shapeshifting here and there.
The specialists of the Brotherhood are a very diverse lot. No need for me to repeat again what they do seeing how the blurb gives a very good initial taste. There appears however to be a character for any situation, depending on who your opponents are. Morena Feligatta will do great against the Imperial Armada and its ranged attacks; Sagitario doesn't care about waiting characters ambushing him. Incantenebra is tough against those that want to fight him in willpower duels; Miedo a Morir, one of my favourites by far, excels at melee and even more so when it touches more than one characters base-to-base at the same time; added to that, his ability to practically ignore obstacles is icing on the cake. And if the sansame piss you off, you can always recruit Alicija Degollara from the Imperial Armada. There's a lot of combos that can be done with this crew, if one takes the time to deconstruct their plays.
As usual, Deckhands have the least differences, irrespective of who they are. Spada have sneak attack, while the Harlequin is agile and fares better against ranged attacks. Depending on what you want them for, you can invest on someone with throwing knives, or go for more traditional deckhands like the Coscritti and the Battitore.
The strong points: One of the reasons I really enjoy Freebooter's Fate is that it is a miniatures game that respects your wallet. It will not create a debt in the thousands just to field an ok-ish crew. Its rules allow the use of most miniatures only once in your crew, and in some cases with caveats about who else is there or not. This means that miniatures are not just sculpted unique; they remain unique. The Brotherhood faction, Starter Box included, costs EUR 312,10 with everything and the kitchen sink purchased once. That applies only if one wears all the hats of super-gamer, completist, collector, compulsive painter and what have you.
For everybody else, gaming with the Brotherhood costs substantially less, much less, and here is why. All in all, the Brotherhood is more costly in doubloons per figure than a faction like, say, the Goblin Pirates. At an average of 85 doubloons per specialist and less than 50 doubloons per Deckhand, and including a 120 doubloon Leader (the highest value Leader, which happens to be the one in the Starter Box), one needs 11 figures to reach a pool with a value of 800 doubloons... ...and 4 of them are provided in the Starter Box for a value of 305 doubloons. Thus, there remain 7 figs to buy, some of which Deckhands which are always sold in packs of two. That shouldn't cost more than the Starter Box plus EUR 100, and bang, many of the faction's options are unlocked. Sure, that won't allow for much choice when playing a much bigger game of 750 doubloons, but for medium games this is more than cool already. What other miniatures wargame gets this sort of inexpensive support?
I keep on praising Werner Klocke about his outstanding sculpts, but in the case of the Brotherhood I feel he outdid himself. The combine many elements, none of which is necessarily linked to the main pirate genre of the game: there's the dance macabre, a certain decadence, renaissance and the vile mobility, yet at the same time they touch on horror, on deformed creatures and some figures that would have felt comfortable in a Vampire: the Masquerade miniatures game, had such a thing existed. If the Brotherhood had a theme, that would have been arrogance. It's as if every miniature is shouting 'we are better than you and you know it', including the (purposefully) uglier ones. Take a look at the horrific Miedo a Morir, or Master Harlequina who effectively is a circus jester. When it comes to action poses, nobody gets more active than Incantenebra who is practically flying towards his victims.
When it comes to the rules, the Brotherhood still remains the strongest melee-oriented faction out there, no matter how buffed up some of the other factions got with all their expansions. They can move around the terrain with ease (be it through the Agile trait like Bella Cigna, the Stilt Dance of Miedo a Morir, the Rigger trait of Fith' Aarch or the terrifying Mistress of a Thousand Masks of Master Harlequina that eliminates one member of an opposing crew just because, and can cause significant additional damage), bypass waiting opponents, and have all sorts of buffs against people shooting against them from afar. Many of them, like Tronco or Miedo a Morir can use their skills better when engaged against multiple opponents in melee. They are not below adding value amongst themselves (Master Harlequina plus many Harlequins means lightning reflexes for all the lowly deckhands), or using tricks like smoke bombs to make the battlefield even more unpredictable. When building a terrain with this crew, and depending on your personnel choices, make it busy. Force the opponent to lose time going from point A to point B. You on the other hand will be able to navigate the battlefield with relative ease, bringing you one step closer to victory. Don't look towards fighting opponents from afar; you will hardly be able to do that, seeing the weapons that your crew has at its disposal.
I haven't finished treating every single miniature in the bunch (that would have stalled the review by a few... years), but up to now they behaved very well to my clumsy cleaning, cutting, priming, partial gluing and partial painting (with all the intermediary steps). I initially used a magnifying glance to travel within the seas of detail these figures incorporate but frankly it is not needed. As much as there is still work to do, there is zero flash on the figures. I simply washed them and they were good to go. Interlocking pieces worked with only a minor need of filing.
I liked the very egalitarian stance that Freebooter's Fate adopts towards its crews. The Brotherhood is full of very strong female characters. Bonus points for providing the female equivalent of a deckhand with the exact same stats as its male counterpart. This isn't a game just for boys.
The weak points: I will state the obvious, just in case you stumbled upon this review before reading anything else about Freebooter's Fate. This is not a plug and play board game, it is a miniatures game. Each miniature needs assembly (often requiring just a bit of work for components to better fit), priming, painting and what have you. All these miniatures are sold separately, so there might be the inconsequential disappointment if your vendor sells a few but not all of them and you wanted to build your crew in one go.
The Brotherhood might not be the right faction for you if you dislike either their tactics or their aesthetics (see: mostly melee fighting and an exaggerated, attire straight out of the most opulent Venitian carnival). Seeing how the game's seven factions look and play differently, finding something else to your liking shouldn't be a problem.
I wish that the miniatures on the cards were always depicted by real-life pictures instead of drawings. I could use all sorts of hints from there on how to paint the minis and how to landscape the bases. On the other hand, the same pictures also appear on the books where these minis are described. Incidentally, a few stat cards have corners while the others are rounded, probably a print-run mishap that will disappear soon as new print runs are ordered. Not a biggie.
The packaging is rather basic. None of them are sold on boxes, they are sold in ziplock bags. I personally didn't face any trouble with any, even though they all arrived in the same parcel.
Conclusion: The Brotherhood are good for adrenaline junkies, for those who like to look at their victim in the eyes when stabbing them in the heart. Fighting from afar is for the meek. They have the flair of the preposterous, while projecting an innate arrogance exuding power and contempt. Strong, flamboyant, and patently different to the other factions of Freebooter's Fate, they are as colourful and up-market as a refined, high-end carnival. You wouldn't expect that from a faction of deadly assassins, would you?
To find out more about the full crew of the Brotherhood and the Freebooter's Fate pirate world overall, visit its website at http://www.freebooterminiatures.de.
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