Malediction Looks Ahead to 2026 With Organized Play, Lore Expansion, and Competitive Growth

After its initial launch and fulfillment in 2025, Malediction enters 2026 positioned less as a promising newcomer and more as an established hybrid tabletop system finding its long-term rhythm. Over the past year, Loot Studios delivered its Gamefound campaign to backers, expanded its presence across major conventions, and gathered player feedback from a wide range of hobby backgrounds. That feedback now shapes a slate of interconnected updates aimed at organized play, narrative depth, and accessibility.

In a late December 2025 conversation with PopGeeks, Fabio Cury, Head of Games at Loot Studios, outlined how Malediction has evolved during its first full year in players’ hands and what comes next as the game accelerates into competitive and community-driven spaces.

Malediction Found Its Audience

Malediction was designed as a strategic miniatures card game supporting 1v1 and 2v2 play. 2025 confirmed that its hybrid structure resonates across multiple tabletop communities. According to Cury, players with card game backgrounds, miniature wargame experience, and even RPG-first habits all found entry points into the system. The single-D20 combat resolution, persistent forward momentum through hits and grazes, and heavy card synergy lowered friction for newcomers without flattening tactical depth.

That crossover appeal has become one of Malediction’s defining traits. Rather than competing directly with traditional skirmish games or collectible card games, it acts as a convergence point where players often expand into adjacent hobbies after initial exposure.

Expanding Ways to Play

Player feedback also drove additions to Malediction’s game modes. Alongside existing 1v1 and 2v2 formats, Loot Studios introduced Nemesis Mode, a 2v1 configuration that gives the solo player additional resources and asymmetric challenges. The goal, according to the design team, is to ensure both sides feel like they are fighting uphill, regardless of role.

Looking further ahead, development is underway on a four-player free-for-all mode, currently in active testing. While no release date was confirmed, its inclusion reflects a broader push toward flexible table sizes and social play options, particularly for groups that fall outside standard pairings.

Organized Play and Malediction’s Herald Program

One of the most significant shifts for 2026 is Malediction’s move into structured organized play. The Malediction Play Network, launching through Carde.io, introduces a rewards-based system where players earn points through sanctioned events. These points can be redeemed for alternate art cards and other exclusive items, creating incentives for consistent participation rather than one-off demos.

Complementing that system is the Herald Program, Loot Studios’ ambassador initiative. Heralds receive tools, digital assets, and training materials to help run demos, work with local game stores, and organize official events. Rather than focusing on raw promotion, the program emphasizes approachability, teaching, and community health.

Competitive Milestones at Adepticon 2026

Malediction’s first official tournament, Trial of the Seekers, takes place at Adepticon 2026 in late March. The event features a 32-player 1v1 tournament, a notable scale for a game entering its second year, alongside a smaller 2v2 team tournament. Loot Studios views these events as both competitive showcases and learning opportunities, with room to expand team-based formats later in the year.

Convention presence remains central to the game’s visibility, with likely returns to Adepticon, Gen Con, Essen Spiel, UK Games Expo, and PAX Unplugged.

Malediction Lore, Seekers, and the Umberland Lantern

January 2026 brings Malediction’s first lore primer, a free digital release exceeding 60 pages. Developed in collaboration with veteran writer George Mann, the primer establishes tone, history, and thematic grounding for the setting, marking the game’s first major narrative milestone.

February follows with the release of two new dual-faction Seekers, each packaged with a unique deck of new cards. Among these additions is the Umberland Lantern, an item that can transform units into spirits, unlocking new synergies with flying, phasing, and spirit-based effects. These mechanics deepen list-building complexity while reinforcing Malediction’s supernatural identity.

Miniatures, Packaging, and Long-Term Support

Responding directly to player preferences, Loot Studios now offers resin miniature packs for those who want physical models without owning a 3D printer. This option joins existing standees and STL support, giving players flexibility in how they engage with the tabletop.

Looking forward, all 2026 releases introduce entirely new content, with no reprinted cards in upcoming decks or SKUs. Updated digital rulebooks and FAQs will roll out on a regular schedule, focusing on clarity and streamlining rather than mechanical overhauls.

Setting the Stage for What Comes Next

Taken together, Malediction’s 2026 plans reflect a game transitioning from launch momentum to sustainable growth. Organized play infrastructure, narrative investment, competitive milestones, and community-driven design form a cohesive roadmap. As the following interview illustrates in detail, Loot Studios is less concerned with rapid expansion than with building a durable, welcoming ecosystem around a dark fantasy world that continues to deepen.

To find out more about Malediction, visit malediction.gg, watch on YouTube,  follow on Facebook and Instagram, or join their Discord.

Welcome, people of PopGeeks. My name is Eileen, and I am here today with Fabio Cury, the Head of Games at Loot Studios. And this is the second time we’re meeting, because the first time we met was about a year ago. We were discussing Malediction. Malediction had just launched, and why don’t you tell us what’s been happening in the year since we last talked?

Fabio Cury: Hey, Eileen, it’s great to be here again. I really enjoy participating, and thank you for inviting me once more. So this last year was, I’d like to say, the year that Malediction started walking on its own two legs, right? And next year is the year we’ll be sprinting.

But this was an amazing year where we finally delivered all the Malediction boxes to all our Gamefound backers. The Gamefound was in February, and we’ve managed to deliver to basically everyone at this point. Like, a couple of people in Brazil are getting theirs this week, and that’s it, like, really.

So we’re very, very excited. And we were also able to sell Malediction at a lot of conventions. So we’ve been to like, eight trade shows this year, something, don’t quote me on this number, but it’s like, busy around that. It was a very, very busy year, and with that, we were able to get a lot of feedback from players and also people who had never played anything in their lives.

So we kind of discovered that it was our intent originally, but we we know now as a fact that Malediction really works as a hybrid game of miniature games, not trading, but collectible card games and RPGs, where we became this convergence point, you know, like this unique game inside The hobby industry, where people who have experienced it and only one of these three pillars actually can relate to Malediction, and then they can grow interest in the other hobbies, right?

So we’ve had a lot of card game players coming and saying, Look, I’ve never played a miniatures game, and this is my first one, because I love the card aspect, and then I get hooked with the miniatures right afterwards. And we had a lot of miniature players coming and saying the same thing, like, Look, I’ve only played miniature games, but the card has so fundamental to Malediction that I’m getting hooked.

And I want to now try new card games, and the RPG crowd gets hooked as well, because although for them, it may seem a little more distant, it still has all the components that an RPG player likes. And the combat system is super simple. You just roll one D20, and so it is also something that the RPG players enjoy, and we’ve been getting a lot of their attention as well, which was an unexpected surprise. You know, we’re very happy for that.

PopGeeks: Yeah, I’m glad that there’s room, a little room for role-playing in there.

Fabio Cury: for sure.

PopGeeks: And for those that haven’t, uh. I’ve heard of Malediction quite yet. I just wanted to say that Malediction is a strategic miniatures card game, which, if I remember correctly, has 1v1 and 2v2 players.

Fabio Cury: Also, if you don’t mind, this year we also released a 2v1 player called Nemesis mode. Oh, cool. So you have like a team they’re playing just as if they were playing a 2v2, but their opponent is the Nemesis, and that player gets extra resources and has challenges of their own.

So we like to say that no matter if you’re the Nemesis or if you’re in the team, you should always feel like you’re in an uphill battle. And I think we managed to achieve that. And lastly, this is sort of a spoiler, but next year, we’ll be having the four-player free-for-all.

I won’t give you any dates, but that’s something we’re really excited about, and that our game design team is working on right now.

PopGeeks:  That’s really exciting to hear. It’s nice to know that you’re really getting to branch out in this next year of Malediction.

Fabio Cury: Yeah, and it was really based on a lot of, as I said, player feedback, like people are really enjoying the team play, but they’re like, Oh, bummer. We only have three people, so we’re like, Okay, here’s the solution for you. And a lot of people asked us about free-for-all. So that’s something that we’re going to work on, and we are working on it currently.

Yeah, I’ve seen, I’ve seen that you’re very in tune with the community. You also have, I believe, a herald program, and also it looks like a Malediction Play Network at Carde.io, which is, is that a rewards program? Yeah.

Fabio Cury: So we have a Herald Program, which is, I like to say, like a brand ambassador program, where, if you’re already a Malediction player, and you’re really enthusiastic about it, and you want to help spread the word, by joining our Herald program, we will give you tools to do so.

So obviously, not only just like credit, store credit, or things like that, but we’ll give you digital assets. We’ll give you field guides and things that will train you to become a better Herald right out of the gate, meaning that you will speak to your LGs and try to convince them. We’ll give you some tips.

If you want to run a demo day, we can teach you how to run better demos. And we’ll give, basically, we’re going to, how do you say this? Like, oh, I’m sorry, the word is fleeing. We’ll give you enhancements so that you can be better at what you want to do. Already, if you’re passionate, right?

PopGeeks: Just make sure that they have the tools to make it work.

Fabio Cury: Exactly, exactly. And we also have the Play Network, like you said, that we’re doing through Carde.io. And that will is a reward program where, if you play, especially in events that were made by heralds, you’ll start acquiring Malediction points that you can redeem for alternative art cards and other goodies.

PopGeeks:  That’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool. So is there anything else that’s happening? There’s not much time left in 2025. Is there anything else happening in 2025?

Fabio Cury: Oh, no. Now, just getting ready for 2026 and Christmas, right?

Yeah, definitely, definitely. So in 2026, it sounds like there’s a lot that’s coming up. I see that there’s going to be the first official Malediction tournament.

Fabio Cury: Yeah, that’s super awesome. I’m super excited for that; that will be at Adepticon. We’ll actually have a couple of really interesting things there. Not only will we have our first official Malediction tournament, which, if I’m not mistaken, is a 32-person tournament, which is very big, if you consider the game has only been out for a year. But we’ll also have a Teams tournament.

We’ve had a 2v2 game mode since launch. We’re like, okay, let’s, let’s do a Teams tournament. That one is smaller, so it will be eight teams, meaning 16 people total. But we are very excited to see how that turns out, and if that starts picking up steam, we can still, in 2026, adapt to have larger, 2v2 tournaments in other conventions.

PopGeeks: So you’re going to be at Adepticon. And I believe I saw PAX Unplugged. Probably. At what other conventions can people check you out?

Fabio Cury: We are still in the planning phase of exactly which conventions will be or not, but I’ll tell you the ones we were at this year, and we’ll likely be there next year as well. But I can’t 100% guarantee, right?

We were at Adepticon, Gen Con, UK Games Expo, Essen Spiel, and PAX Unplugged; those for sure. We were there this year, and it’s very likely that we’ll be there next year as well, if not with a giant booth for sure, with like a tournament area, and hopefully with a giant booth.

PopGeeks: Cool. And just in case, you know, everyone should obviously follow you on social, just to double check what conferences, what conventions you’re going to be at next year. 

In 2026, there’s the first official tournament going on. There’s going to be a lore primer coming up.

Fabio Cury: Oh, okay, cool. Yes, in January, we’ll have our first lore primer, which is a hefty one right now, it’s over 60 pages of lore and images, and that’s going to be really cool, because it will help set the tone of Malediction even further.

We spent this year working alongside George Mann, who is an amazing guy with a huge background in writing and developing stuff for not only GW, but for a myriad of other companies. Though I think he’s most known for, is it? I forgot the name, but the collection of GW books, right? He worked a lot with them, so we are very, very excited to have him aboard.

He’s been working with us for over six months now, if I’m not mistaken, and I think our lower primer is all the better for it, right? George is amazing, and we are super impressed with what he was able to contribute.

And so yeah, expect that lower primary in January. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be free online, and we’re very excited, because that will be our first lore milestone, and you can expect a bunch of other cool stuff regarding Laura’s for 2026 as well, but I won’t get into that many details because it’s a little outside my ballpark.

PopGeeks: And also, we want to leave some surprise anyway.

Fabio Cury: For sure.

So I saw that there’s going to be a new card coming out sometime in 2026, the Umberland Lantern. And I believe I saw that it allows a unit to become a spirit. How does that change gameplay, because you’ve gotten to play with this card already?

Fabio Cury: Oh, yeah. Okay, that’s a very good question. So the Umberland Lantern, um, basically turns any unit into a spirit, and it also gives them, based on their rank, other effects, so basic units also gain flying and phasing, and elite units would also just gain flying.

What this means is that not only are we going to play a lot with the spirit keyword, so other cards that reference spirit units now can reference your unit, even if it wasn’t originally because of the lantern, and flying is just straight up good, and it really helps you with the mobility.

And finally, as I said, basic units also gain phasing, meaning that if your opponent scores a grace, I’ll go into a little bit more detail for people who have never played Malediction.

Basically, when you attack, you either score a hit or a grace. You cannot miss at all, right? And so there’s always damage being done, and the game is always being pushed forward, which is really a unique, cool characteristic of Malediction. So when you have phasing, basically, if someone scores a graze on you, they do zero damage. The entire damage is prevented.

That makes a unit last much longer than you’d expect on the battlefield. But this card is actually part of a bundle of cards called a Seeker deck, which we’ll be releasing in February, which is basically that the Seeker is the leader of your warband.

Currently, we have eight of them, and in February, we’re going to release two more, which are the super cool units. One of them is Griza, The Lingering Wound, which is a Seeker that brings likes to use the lantern in its deck. I’m not sure if it’s he or she, because it’s a ghost, but And Griza has special effects. Effects on his legacy card, which interact with spirits. So obviously, you’re going to really want to put some spirits in your deck because of that, if you’re playing with the seeker. But at the same time, if there’s this really cool unit you want to bring, and it’s not a spirit, if you put the lantern on it, then for sure, you’ll start having even more synergy inside the deck, right?

Oh, and there are now resin miniature packs available for purchase on the site.

Fabio Cury: Oh yeah, that’s something that we found out throughout this year. We’re all about customer feedback and player feedback. So the more people buy and play, the more we’re always asking, we’re always doing surveys. And we noticed that, due to the fact that we are, like I said, this very hybrid game, we have players who really enjoy just playing with the standees.

They’re fine with that, and they think it’s practical and easy to travel with. But then we’ve also had a lot of players who are like, no, no, I’m an STL guy. I’m going to 3d print everything, and I just wanted to print it all, and I don’t care. And 3d printing is part of the hobby for me. And finally, we have people who said, “Well, neither of those options is attractive to me. I don’t want to play with standies, and I don’t have a 3D printer, or I don’t have a friend who has a 3D printer.”, because that’s usually it, right? Either you have a printer, or you have a friend.

PopGeeks: Definitely, or you have a filament printer like me, or maybe you just want that resin print.

Fabio Cury: print exactly right, just for those very crispy details and so on, that currently only resin can achieve, but I’m hoping, because I want to do it in filament as well. I’ve seen people actually print the miniatures in filament, and they look pretty good, but they don’t have this, like, Uber high quality that we expect as loose studios, right?

So, yeah, we put the resin option there, the 3d printed option there already for the physical miniatures, basically, just because of client feedback, right? It was never in our plans, and we went through many challenges to be able to do it still this year, but that’s how we roll. You know, we listen to feedback, and we try to get it out as soon as possible.

Are there any other tidbits for 2026 that you would like everyone to know about?

Fabio Cury: Yeah, for sure, I think the main thing is that our Herald program and our organized play will start going faster and faster now, in leaps and bounds. If you are a Malediction player and you want to spread the word, check our website and join the Herald program.

It’s the best way, and you’ll get a lot of cool stuff, you know, like hats and T-shirts and pins and badges. The other thing that I’m really excited about is the release schedule. So like I said, in February, we’ll have two new seekers, and they come with their own decks, with all unique cards.

We also listened a lot to customer feedback about how we were packaging our boxes, and we are doing a revamp on the way we package stuff. But that one, I’ll hold some secrets, but I’m very excited for that, that’s still going to be in February, and then we have a very healthy release schedule of all new cards.

So in 2026, everything we release that was not just repackaged will be all new content. So there are no reprinted cards in any of the new decks or SKUs that will come out.

PopGeeks: That’s really exciting. I’ve always, ever since I saw Malediction. I really, just really loved the art and exactly how dark it goes.

Fabio Cury: Yeah, I’m a gamer myself, of course, you know. And I’ve been playing miniature games, card games in RPGs since, like, I was 12, there’s like over 20 years of playing, right? I assume many of us are nowadays, right? And I really love Malediction because of the very dark aesthetic tied with a very joyful community.

I’d like to say that when we go to events, everyone is always so excited and enthusiastic, but in a very respectful manner, which I think is very important. And it’s funny, because I’ve worked for over 10 years already in the gaming industry, and obviously.

Everyone wants to build a healthy community of very polite people, but sometimes it just doesn’t go the way you want, and it really depends on, like, who were the early birds and the first comers to the game, because they’re going to bring people who think like they do, and we got very lucky that we brought in a very chill crowd. And so, as I said, our Herald program, I think, is also going to help to strengthen that, because we’re only going to approve heralds who are happy people. You know, maybe you’re not happy is the right word, but like engaging and excited and polite people that will want to bring more people like them, yeah.

PopGeeks: definitely, definitely people who are all about, you know, building the community and keeping positivity.

Fabio Cury: Yeah, that’s what I’m most excited for, just seeing the community grow a lot. Our Discord is booming. We started a Facebook group just last month, and it’s also steadily growing, so you can see that everyone is always very encouraging towards each other.

As I said, a lot of people came from card games, and they’re like, Okay, I want to print and paint my minis. What do I do? And you can see people helping each other. We’re also always trying to stay in touch with the community as much as possible.

So we are going to, in January, release an updated rule book online for free, of course, and the updated FAQ. And our plan is to do that every semester. So January, then July, and try to keep that pace this way. We’re not changing the rules; we’re just making it more comprehensible and more streamlined.

So what? Not only just like stamping stuff on the FAQ, we’re like, Oh, if we change this one word in the rule book, but this question goes away, and that’s what we’re doing right now.

It sounds like you’re really taking steps to also, you know, not only keep existing players engaged, but you’re also making steps to also, you know, make it easier for new people to get in.

Fabio Cury: Yeah, for sure, we’re very, very open to newcomers, and our community, which we have no control over, our players, right? But they are very excited when someone is new, and with zero experience, they’re still very welcoming.

I’ve seen kids play Malediction, of course, if their parents approve of them, playing with that really dark, gritty esthetics, right?

There’s, like, no gatekeepers. Everyone is just trying to bring everyone in. You know, like, I don’t know if this expression translates to English, but like, the pool is very warm right now, you can jump in.

What was the faction that you were originally drawn to? And is that still the faction you prefer to play with?

Fabio Cury: Okay, I was originally drawn to the Primal Blood because of their looks. You know, I really like that terrain piece of the giant spewing blood. I think that that’s one of the coolest things, and that’s a showstopper, and all the events as well. And I think that originally, also, if I’m starting a game, I usually try to choose, like the very aggressive headfirst faction, and that and primal blood can be that faction if you want. So originally, that was the one that drew my attention the most. And now that I’ve played so much more Malediction.

My favorite faction is currently the Conclave of the Spheres, which is like the schools of mages. I like them because they have many, many dark secrets that the lore will slowly expand upon, and I’m really excited to see how that goes. And I also like their play style a lot, like many ranged units, where you’re always going to try to triangulate your opponent and have them in a situation where it’s like, damned if they stay still, damned if they don’t, and try to move towards you.

So, currently, my favorite is Conclave of the Spheres, but I’ve been through all of them in one year. Each one has been my favorite at least for a month. And I think the interesting thing about malate addiction is that by having all these seeker options, two people can play the same faction, in separate and completely unique and distinct ways, and so I’d recommend you try them all out before you pick a favorite.

PopGeeks: awesome, awesome. Hopefully, we get to talk again next year, and I’ll check in with you again to see what your favorite faction is.

Fabio Cury: Then. Awesome, yeah, hope to see you. Next year as well. And I actually wanted to see which is your favorite faction.

PopGeeks: Oh, my goodness, I really liked looking at the Primal Blood faction. I’m sure that’s going to change over time. And I’m really curious to see the new seekers come out. So you know, my opinion might change, for sure, for sure, definitely.

So thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us today, and I hope you have an amazing holiday. And I’m sure 2026 is going to be great too.

Fabio Cury: Thank you so much, Eileen. I hope you have a great holiday season, and as you said, I’ll talk to you next year.

PopGeeks: Sounds good!