Through the Breach vs Malifaux: Which Should You Play?

By Wyrd Games Official Store | Tabletop Games & Miniatures | Published: 2026-10-15

Category: Comparisons

Through the Breach is a narrative RPG where you play a Fated in Malifaux City; Malifaux is a 32mm miniatures game of skirmish battles. Pick by whether you want to roleplay or command a crew.

Quick answer

Choose Through the Breach if you want a tabletop RPG where a handful of players build Fated characters and a GM runs stories in Malifaux City. Choose Malifaux if you want a miniatures game where you assemble and paint 32mm crews and fight skirmish battles. Both share the same setting, but they ask for completely different prep, table space, and social rhythm.

What each game actually asks of you

Through the Breach is a roleplaying game. One person runs the session as the GM, everyone else plays a Fated character, and the story moves through scenes, investigations, and choices rather than a fixed battlefield. You need the core rulebook, character sheets, dice, and a group willing to talk in character. Miniatures are optional.

Malifaux is a miniatures game. You build a crew from a faction, deploy it on a table with terrain, and play a competitive scenario using stat cards and a deck of cards instead of dice. You need miniatures, assembly tools, paint if you want them finished, and an opponent who also has a crew. The rules live in the faction books and stat cards.

The trade-off: story control versus tactical control

Through the Breach gives the group shared control over what happens next. A session can pivot because a player asks the right question or makes a desperate choice. That flexibility is the point, but it also means the GM carries the workload between sessions and the experience depends heavily on the table's willingness to improvise.

Malifaux gives each player tight control over a crew and a clear win condition. You can practice, test lists, and measure improvement. The trade-off is that the game is less about surprise narrative and more about positioning, resource management, and reading your opponent. If you want a story to emerge from play, it can, but the story is a byproduct of the battle rather than the goal.

Cost and prep before your first session

For Through the Breach, the entry cost is mostly the rulebook and time. You can start with one book and paper character sheets, then add sourcebooks like Penny Dreadful adventures when your group wants ready-made scenarios. Prep is reading and planning scenes, not building models.

For Malifaux, the entry cost is a crew box, assembly supplies, and paint if you want a finished look. Miniatures are 32mm heroic scale, supplied unpainted in high-quality plastic, and require preparation and assembly. That assembly time is part of the hobby, but it is real time before your first game. If you dislike modeling, this is the biggest friction point.

How the setting connects the two

Both games live in the same world, so lore knowledge carries over. A Malifaux faction book gives you rules, stories, lore, model profiles, stat cards, and upgrades for that faction, which is useful whether you play the miniatures game or want setting material for a Through the Breach campaign.

That shared setting is the reason this comparison comes up so often. You are not choosing between two unrelated hobbies; you are choosing how you want to engage with Malifaux. Some players do both, using the RPG for long-form stories and the miniatures game for weekly competitive play.

Trade-offs at a glance

Prep time: Through the Breach prep is reading and session planning. Malifaux prep is assembly, painting, and list building before you play. Pick the prep you enjoy, because you will do it more than you expect.
Player count: Through the Breach works well with one GM and three to five players. Malifaux is typically two players, each commanding a crew. If your group is large and wants everyone active at once, the RPG is easier to seat.
Ongoing cost: Through the Breach grows through rulebooks and adventure sourcebooks. Malifaux grows through new miniatures and faction books. Both are expandable, but only one asks you to keep a paint station set up.
Skill you build: Through the Breach rewards improvisation, character voice, and collaborative storytelling. Malifaux rewards positioning, resource timing, and matchup knowledge. Choose the skill you want to practice weekly.

Products that support each path

Penny Dreadful: Days Without Accident: Penny Dreadful: Days Without Accident is a four-session urban conspiracy set in the Corners, pulling the Fated into labor politics, divided leadership, rogue agents, and a plot larger than one Union chapter. If you are running Through the Breach and want a ready-made arc instead of writing from scratch, this gives you a structured multi-session story with personal stakes.
Malifaux Third Edition: Explorer's Society Faction Book: The Explorer's Society Faction Book combines Third Edition stat cards, faction upgrades, stories and setting material, and background for the faction's models. Useful if you play Malifaux and want a complete faction reference, or if you run Through the Breach and want canon lore and model background for the Explorer's Society.
Malifaux Third Edition: Alternative Vanessa: Alternative Vanessa is a 32mm heroic scale Outcasts Mercenary miniature supplied unpainted in high-quality plastic, requiring preparation and assembly. A concrete example of what Malifaux ownership looks like: a single character sculpt you assemble and paint before it hits the table.

Which should you play?

Best for

Players who want to roleplay characters and shape a story with a GM
Groups that prefer reading and planning over assembling and painting models
Fans of Malifaux lore who want to explore the setting beyond the battlefield
Tables that meet irregularly and can pick up a session without a fixed board

Not for

Players who want competitive, head-to-head skirmish games with clear win conditions
Hobbyists who mainly want to build, paint, and field miniatures
Groups without someone willing to run the game as GM
Players who dislike improvisation and want fixed, measurable scenarios