Dealings in the Dark

Scenario

Mythos

Easy / Standard

: –X. X is the highest number of clues on a Cultist enemy in play, to a maximum of 3. (If it is act 3, X is 3.)

: –5. You may place 1 doom on the nearest Cultist enemy to change this token's modifier to a -1.

: –3. If you fail, place 1 of your clues on your location.

: -2. If you fail, place 1 doom on the nearest Cultist enemy.

The Scarlet Keys Campaign Expansion #66. Dealings in the Dark #1.

Dealings in the Dark - Back

Scenario

Hard / Expert

: –X. X is the total number of clues on Cultist enemies in play, to a maximum of 4. (If it is act 3, X is 4.)

: –7. You may place 1 doom on the nearest Cultist enemy to change this token's modifier to a -3.

: –4. If you fail, place 1 of your clues on your location.

: -2. Place 1 doom on the nearest Cultist enemy.

Dealings in the Dark
Dealings in the Dark

FAQs

(from the official FAQ or responses to the official rules question form)

  • Q: Hello, got a few lingering questions/bug reports for Dealings in the Dark! 1) The ability on The Unveiling which lets you take control of The Twisted Antiprism when you evade/defeat an enemy is a reaction-triggered ability, making it optional. What happens if an investigator declines to activate it? There are no instructions for what happens to the Twisted Antiprism if it is attached to neither an enemy nor an investigator. 2) Similarly, what happens if the enemy with the Twisted Antiprism is removed from play by means other than defeat? Such as Kymani's ability, Dumb Luck, Otherworldly Codex, etc. 3) What happens to Ece when she leaves play? She has an encounter card back, which suggests she should go to the encounter discard pile like Jazz Mulligan. However, she doesn't have a Relevation effect, so it's unclear what to do if she is drawn in that case. The more intuitive result would be to remove her from the game, returning attached carsd to their owners' discard piles, but we're not sure if there's any RAW text leading to that result. 4) When Act 2 advances by the Cult winning the clue race, we are instructed to "attach The Twisted Antiprism key to the Cultist enemy with the most clues". However, it's possible to advance the act with zero Cultists in play or in the Shadows, by placing clues on Clues Unveiled when the Agenda advances. In this case, where should The Twisted Antiprism go? 5) How should random basic weaknesses with the Cultist trait be handled in this scenario, generally? All sorts of weird things can happen with them, including that evading them sends them to The Shadows where they aren't intended to end up, and they may end up with The Twisted Antiprism attached to them.-

  • A (1) Although it is optional, if you don’t use the reaction ability on The Unsealing, the Twisted Antiprism must be removed from the game. The only way to complete the scenario at that point is through defeat. (2) Same as before; the Antiprism is removed from the game. (3) If Ece Sahin leaves play, remove her from the game. (4) In that situation, you should search the encounter deck and discard pile for a Cultist enemy and spawn it at the East Gate, then attach The Twisted Antiprism key to that enemy. Then you’d keep resolving the rest of Act 2b, potentially moving the Cultist toward Galata Docks. (5) Enemies without concealed can’t be placed in the shadows, so ignore that part of the instruction on “Agents of the Dark.” And it’s not an issue of a weakness Cultist enemy has The Twisted Antiprism attached to it; keep playing the scenario as normal. (October 2023)

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Reviews

Perhaps someone can rule whether the following is a brilliant strategy, or a misreading of the rules:

You cuff some cultist, which, according to the rules of the scenario, sends him back to the shadows, now with cuffs attached. Now, if you leave all cultists alone, this guy will be tied for "nearest cultist enemy", which means you can choose him as the target for mysterious chanting, accosted, and shadowed, and prevent any of them from adding doom (and hence clues).

Does that work? The answer matters quite a bit whenever you're running handcuffs in a scenario with cards like mysterious chanting. Certainly if your cuffed cultist is the sole nearest cultist, the effect whiffs. But what if he's only tied for nearest cultist?

Mordenlordgrandison · 448
We haven’t played dealings in the dark yet but the rules about placing enemy in shadows is always a spawn so this implies it’s a new instance of the enemy so it’s reset and cuffs discarded. See keys guide where they explain the conceal stuff regarding tied cultists and 1 is cuffed you have to choose the non-cuffed one cause choosing the cuffed one doesn’t change game state — Django · 5072
Hmm, I doubt the resolution of the "concealed" keyword requires you to shed all attachments -- and, following that logic, any clues on them as well. That's clearly not the intent, since players are instructed, upon evading a cultist enemy, to take control of one of its clues AFTER resolving it's concealed keyword. As for your point about placing doom, I understand but wonder if the "must" rule applies:Must If an investigator is instructed that he or she “must” choose among multiple options, the investigator is compelled to choose an option that has the potential to change the game state. =In the absence of the word “must” while choosing among multiple options, any option may be chosen upon the resolution of the effect—even an option that does not change the game state. — Mordenlordgrandison · 448