The Smoky Velvet

Card draw simulator

Odds: 0% – 0% – 0% more
Derived from
None. Self-made deck here.
Inspiration for
Rambeau 0 0 0 1.0
Marievelous Glambeau 2 1 0 1.0
The Smoky Velvet Dreaming Edition 1 0 1 1.0

thekinginperiwinkle · 134

(tl;dr: -2 Knowledge is Power, +1 Magnifying Glass, +1 Hallowed Mirror are the final changes I would make after playing through 3 Standard difficulty campaigns. Upgrade path is Blood Pact, Charisma, Shrivel(s)(3), Wither(s)(4), Shrivel(s)(5), Ward of Protection(s)(2) and/or Deny Existence(5) and/or Seal of the Elder Sign.)

This is my 2nd pass with Marie after some minor edits. Destroyed Dunwich (Standard difficulty) while partnered with Zoey, and accumulated over 30xp as the primary clue-er, occasional monster slayer, weaver and controller of doom, and capable mistress of particularly nasty treacheries.

The original version ran Hallowed Mirror and one Storm of Spirits, but after lack of a chance to really use either for either want of resources or decent opportunity, Magnifying Glass and a 2nd Drawn to the Flame seem like strictly better choices, so here's hoping. Hallowed Mirror may be a solid choice, but I just could never seem to draw it.

While spending xp, make sure to weave in the bonus xp from Arcane Research to get the most out of the investment. That being said, the upgrade path is Blood Pact, Charisma, two Shrivel (level 3), two Ward of Protections (level 2), and then either two Shrivel (level 5), or two Wither (level 4). Possible choices over Wither (4) would be Seal of the Elder Sign (for improved Baron management), or Deny Existence (5), because why not? In my first run, I chose two Dayana Esperence near the end of the campaign, subbing out the original Withers, but every time I drew her I would have rather had Wither (4) which would have cost the same amount of xp. Shrivel (5) is the weapon of choice, but a backup spell for damage dealing seems necessary in the event you don't find it like me. Any xp beyond this is just cake. I attempted to run De Vermis Mysteriis but the setup time was too slow for little payout concerning the card choices in the deck - at least that was my mileage. I won't be running it again, even with two Knowledge is Power in the deck.

Take all of this with a grain of salt. It's only my first runthrough with Marie on Standard with a dedicated guardian, but I found Marie to be very capable. You want clues? She can clue. You want something dead? It's gone. You don't like Ancient Evils, because who does, begone. You like putting fat stacks of doom on cards then preventing the doom from advancing by singing Mystifying Song, then putting fat stacks of doom on cards again??? This is your girl. You like being able to consistently get a 4th action to do something useful without needing Leo - bam. I found her very satisfying to play. You drew Ancient Evils? No you didn't. The doom is advancing? No it's not. There's 4 doom on Blood Pact? Not anymore. You lost actions because of an encounter card? You actually didn't. She feels like a witch, which I guess is all you can ask for out of a mystic.

6 comments

Sep 11, 2019 thekinginperiwinkle · 134

Okay, on the second runthrough with Marie I was paired with Joe Diamond, and we did the original Night of the Zealot and won the campaign by finishing the ritual. Joe was the shining light in Midnight Masks, (amazing draws, hunches, and Time-worn branding everything) as we got all 6 cultists and all but one vp location. I've never even seen the back of the act card before. Marie mostly clued and didn't kill anything. However, Marie carried on the last adventure with a mix of ward of protection (2), clueing, drawn to the flame, withering a few monsters, and was adept at being able to reliably get and send clues at the very end, while Joe drew poorly, had a miserable time and died at the very end... poor Joe.

After a second run, I feel like the most underperforming card is Knowledge is Power. On paper it looks great, but in 11 straight scenarios I can't recall a single time I ever got to use it. On the next run (maybe Carcosa), I will swap one Knowledge of Power for a second Magnifying Glass which performed admirably. I only had the unupgraded Wither for the last scenario which was barely good enough, which makes me think that Wither (4) shouldn't be overlooked for my next run. Rite of Seeking did well on my Dunwich run, but saw zero play in Night of the Gathering. Alyssa also never showed up but was an all-star in Dunwich. Shrugs. I need more playthroughs to get a feel for whether or not Rite of Seeking is bad... maybe with the magnifying glasses and extra drawn to the flame they aren't as critical? I've never finished Forgotten Age, but maybe Mists would be good replacements there.

Sep 17, 2019 thekinginperiwinkle · 134

Decided to run Forgotten Age next (with Joe again), and it's kind-of-sort-of my first run? About a year ago me and a friend got our asses handed to us by scenario 4 and the pain was so bad I haven't fired it up since. Currently starting scenario 7 with 49! experience, which is more than twice as many as I've ever accumulated before. I feel like I haven't planned properly for over the top insanity and just chose no-frill upgrades compared to things that might actually break the game (not that I would know how).

I'm started the deck as it is listed, except I decided to drop both Knowledge is Power from the deck for that 2nd Magnifying Glass I mentioned above and put Hallowed Mirror back in after considering Joe's poor demise in NotZ. I am really satisfied by the changes and for me the deck is finished this way. The occult items really shine in adventures where your deck starts to thin out and your odds of drawings Rites or Melodies really increases (especially with Acolytes), and I've never found myself for want of Knowledge is Power (mostly thanks to Wither (4).

I've really fallen in love with Wither over the course of learning this deck, and grabbed Wither (4)'s before Ward of Protection (2) and Shrivel (5) on the previous upgrade path where it made sense considering Arcane Research and vp wise. I did not sub out Rite of Seeking for Mists and they've performed well for double scooping clues on rounds where the agenda is going to advance anyway (or not -- thanks Mystifying song) with Blood Pact.

So for Forgotten Age has been fun, though scenario 2 kicked our ass. Minor spoiler? -- but we might get hosed on scenario 7 thanks to our vengeance score (it's pretty high), which may or may not break the entire campaign... ?? I have no idea what happens next.

After Blood Pact, Charisma Shrivels (3), Withers(4), Shrivels(5) WoPs(2) I reached for Deny Existences(5), Seal of the Elder Sign x1 (5), and a second Blood Pact and Relic Hunter for that rare moment when Key and Mirror conflict, and possible double doom shenanigans.

Sep 17, 2019 thekinginperiwinkle · 134

Well, I should say I've spent 49xp worth of stuff including the bonus from Arcane Research. I finished upgrading my spells after scenario 5, so I guess I grabbed 44 from the campaign. I can't wait to die to vengeance accumulation :)

Sep 23, 2019 thekinginperiwinkle · 134

Scenario 7 did indeed kick our asses! The end resolution was we died, but we redid 7 just to see the end and are currently making way through 8. I'm really quite happy with how Marie played. I'm sticking to final changes of -2 Knowledge is Power, +1 Magnifying Glass, +1 Hallowed Mirror. During the mulligan phase I usually have a playable hand. I personally look for an ally (and/or) key, an attacking spell, and always keep mystifying song. There's probably a paragraph worth of if-then scenarios during mulligan but that's the rule of thumb.

Jun 26, 2020 Django · 4920

I've seen that you removed Knowledge is Power in the newer version of this deck. I've used the card in my last daisy deck and i'd say it's power is totally bonkers. So you must either be easily crushing scenario and all challenges or you're misunderstanding the card.

I think it's so good for these reason's:

  • It costs nothing to play (including action, ressources, secrets, charges,...).
  • The targeted tome/ spell can be in your hand or play

Some examples:

  • You can use an empty Shrivelling 5 or Spectral Razor to kill an enemy and have 3-4 actions left.
  • Kill an enemy with an asset spell from your hand without provoking an OA
  • Use an empty Rite of Seeking 5 again after your last action if you didnt draw a symbol
  • Use Moonlight Ritual more often to remove more doom. Or you're missing just one action to remove doom but also need to clear some enemies or they'll kill you

Jun 26, 2020 thekinginperiwinkle · 134

It's certainly really good! I just found myself never using it after several scenarios. I sort of 'intuit' what I like based on how it's panned out for me, not so much based on what it can actually do. I will mention though, that some of the things you've said it can do - it can't, or I really am misunderstanding the card. Knowledge is Power is for assets only, so Spectral Razor and Moonlight Ritual is out, though getting an extra use out of an existing asset or playing one outright that isn't even in play is amazing!