I wondered if Loot Studios would stick with their “world’s first” claim for Malediction. They have! However, the game is now the world’s first 3D-printable Miniatures Card Game. The acronym MCG isn’t a common one.
These are details. The headline is that it took less than a quarter of an hour to fund a game that blends the strategy of a customisable deck builder with a skirmish game.
The first 1,800 backers at Master, Legacy or Everlasting pledges will get a special edition which won’t be printed again. There’s still time to be in that cohort.
The PDF of the basic rules is free to download. However, I rather like Alex Paints‘ intro to the game because I get to watch a painting video. He stresses you don’t actually need to 3d print anything and speculates on just how much of a big change to the board game market Malediction might be.
Alex’s video “What if MTG & Warhammer had a baby?” notes that some studios might want to control the mini quality. I get that. I also get that some publishers want to sell you expensive minis, too!
The connection to Dragonlance’s Tracy Hickman is significant. We’ve seen RPG and novel writers picked up by computer game studios to write plots and worlds. It happens less often for board games and it’s nice of Loot to splash their cash for us.
The gameplay uses cards to mix up powers, works with customisable terrain options and launches with four factions for players to adopt.
The Seeker Pledge, which gets you one faction (including standees and STL files if you’re a 3d printer bod) unlocks at $55.90 pledges.
Getting two boxes is, therefore, quite tempting as they unlock at the $89.90 tier.

However, there’s a jump after that to the Master Pledge Limited Editon which is the reward at $178.90. The campaign is on GameFound, which integrates with StretchPay so that backers can pony up that cash through monthly instalments.
There are higher tiers after that: $239 and $319. There are also add-ons, such as a 2.5ft x 2.5ft playmat. A watch out is shipping. It’s good that Loot has provided some clear costs, but sit’s cary to think that those costs might be as high as $165. It’s between $10 and $30 in the States.
The campaign runs until the 3rd of February. What’s especially impressive is the shipping date – this April. I guess that’s what the lack of plastic models does to the logistics of a game.