TIC Blind Run #3 (In Too Deep)

Innsmouth is under attack! I wonder why. Wasn’t the entire town under Deep One sway already? Perhaps the majority was merely silent or intimidated? Perhaps there are other goals that require direct Deep One presence? The scenario setup mentions fifteen different locations. That’s a lot of clues to gather. Come to think of it, the locations are not reused, so I actually don’t know whether it’s going to be basic investigations or whether the barricade mechanic is going to be implemented differently. Based on numbers alone, fifteen locations and seven keys, In Too Deep might be even more demanding that The Vanishing of Elina Harper. However, there are two positive factors worth mentioning. First, no one being out for Jenny’s blood paid off! There’ll be no enemies on the table at the beginning of the scenario. Second, Jenny’s purchased Streetwise III. It’s going to drastically improve our consistency. Note that there seems to be an error with ArkhamDB counting XPs. Faustian Bargain being slotted in for Streetwise 0 should be free of charge. Yep, Faustian Bargain is back in the deck. Let’s see whether we’ll get to use it even once during this campaign.

Pre-Mulligan Hand: Intel Report, Leo De Luca, Elina Harper, Flashlight, Working a Hunch

Opening Hand: Leo De Luca, Lone Wolf, Lockpicks, Easy Mark, "I'm outta here!"

In Too Deep

Agenda & Act: Barricaded Streets & Through the Through the Labyrinth

No one is out for blood. The black key placed on Shoreward Slums.

#1

• PLAY Easy Mark (2 resources, draw "Watch this!")
  • In the opening of the previous scenario we had triplicate Easy Mark, but even one is good enough to put Leo De Luca and Lone Wolf on the table. Now, as I look at the map it seems that the long way around is going to be the more efficient way. Breaking through costs two clues per barrier, which is an equivalent of two move actions. However, there’s a major danger. If I draw Searching for Izzie after passing the middle of the map the backtracking required to resolve it is going to be horrific.
• PLAY Leo De Luca
• PLAY Lone Wolf
• MOVE to Innsmouth Harbour ( move to The House on Water Street, facedown key)
  • Yup. I’m positive that the designers put that extra move option to incentivize scouting. Note that the barrier-breaking abilities on these locations are significantly different from each other. If most locations have these abilities it definitely makes sense to find the easiest one.
• Upkeep: draw Deep Knowledge, 2 resources total.

#2

• Mythos: 1/6 doom, Inundated (1 barrier between The House on Water Street and Innsmouth Harbour)
  • Jenny’s position makes it irrelevant.
• Lone Wolf
• PLAY Lockpicks
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (0, 1 clue)
• claim the red key
  • This time those aren’t physical keys but pieces of information. It seems that they’re interchangeable, aside from the black one. It almost turns keys into secondary clues and that’s a bit disappointing.
• The House on Water Street (discard Deep Knowledge, no barriers between The House on Water Street and Marsh Refinery)
• MOVE to Marsh Refinery
  • More movement abilities. I’m pretty sure these represent Jenny’s spatial awareness. She easily reconstructs the layout of the town from memory and contextual clues.
• Marsh Refinery (move to Fish Street Bridge)
  • Hmmm… It's shroud 4. Jenny’s out of resources and Lockpicks is exhausted. We keep moving.
• MOVE to Shoreward Slums (facedown key)
• Upkeep: draw Eureka!, 2 resources total.

#3

• Mythos: 2/6, Furtive Locals (-3, can’t parley, 1 damage to Leo De Luca)
  • I like the new context. No wonder the locals are furtive, their town is flooding!
• Lone Wolf
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (+1, 1 clue)
• claim black and purple keys
  • Two at once.
• Through the Labyrinth (no barriers between Shoreward Slums and Innsmouth Jail)
• MOVE to Innsmouth Jail
  • I'm suddenly struck with a thought. Our goal is to reach the other side of the town, isn't it? Why are we daring the flooded barricade-riddled streets? Couldn't we circle around the town and enter wherever the distance to our cars is the shortest? Honestly, the flavor text on the backside of Innsmouth Square gives me pause. I'll have Jenny hole up for the moment and wait until she's at least able to trigger the flashback.
• INVESTIGATE ( Streetwise, -2, 1 clue)
• DRAW Hard Knocks
• Upkeep: draw Elina Harper, 3 resources total, discard Furtive Locals.

Board State Reminder: 8 health, 7 sanity, 3 resources, 1 clue

In Play: Leo De Luca (1 damage), Lockpicks (3 supplies), Lone Wolf

In Hand: "I'm outta here!", "Watch this!", Eureka!, Hard Knocks, Elina Harper

#4

• Mythos: 3/6 doom, Pulled Back ( Innsmouth Jail, a memory of jailbreak, remove , 0)
  • Safe! The encounters so far are rather mild. That said, imagine if I pulled a Cultist token in this test. I'd be around five to six actions behind. In the heat of the moment I thought barriers were more impactful and the modifier on the Tablet token was worse, but in retrospect removing the last Cultist token would've better. At least in In Too Deep. There is no way to predict what the token effects are going to be in the unreleased scenarios.
• Lone Wolf
• MOVE to Innsmouth Square (Innsmouth Shoggoth)
  • Ohohoho!
• Innsmouth Square (a memory of a deal with Joe Sergant, take Joe Sargent)
  • Let me get this straight, this man honors a verbal agreement made weeks ago in wholly different circumstances. Joe almost certainly knows I'm hiding from the Deep Ones and is willing to drive me around in the single largest and most noticeable vehicle in Innsmouth? I've got so much respect for this man! Not to mention, his movement ability is perfect for escaping from the Innsmouth Shoggoth or other massive enemies.
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks ( Streetwise, -4, 2 supplies left, 1 clue)
• MOVE to New Church Green (facedown key)
• INVESTIGATE ( Streetwise, )
  • Since Jenny and her group are riding a bus I'm going to pretend that was a literal speed bump. Note that I'm halfway done with the scenario and it's still Agenda 1. This is great, because Searching for Izzie is a looming threat and finishing early makes me draw less cards overall.
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth readies
• Upkeep: draw Working a Hunch, 2 resources total.

#5

• Mythos: 4/6 doom, Rising Tides (New Church Green is partially flooded)
  • New Church Green floods where no connected locations are flooded? It's either a drainage overflow or the church was built on top of an underground river. In either case we continue on as if nothing happened. The only difference is water gushing from both sides of Joe's bus.
• Lone Wolf
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (, 1 clue)
• claim the yellow key
• New Church Green (no barriers between New Church Green and Esoteric Order of Dagon)
• MOVE to Esoteric Order of Dagon (facedown key)
• INVESTIGATE (commit Eureka!, Streetwise, -1, 1 clue, draw Jenny's Twin .45s))
• claim the blue key
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth hunts to New Church Green
• Upkeep: draw Intel Report, 3 resources total.
  • Notice that if Jenny had the resources she'd be in the perfect position to grab clues from Fish Street Bridge.

#6

• Mythos: 5/6 doom, Undertow, Deep One Bull (discard Hard Knocks)
  • The inevitable slowdown begins. This guy has 5 health so there's no way Jenny's going to consider fighting it. We've got Jenny's signature guns, but to put them into play would require displacing Lockpicks and there's still two supplies on that card.
• Lone Wolf
• EVADE ( Streetwise, 0, exhaust Deep One Bull)
• MOVE to First National Grocery (1 barrier between First National Grocery and Esoteric Order of Dagon)
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (-2, 1 clue, 1 supply left)
• Working a Hunch (1 clue)
• Joe Sargent (2 tickets left, move to Gilman House, facedown key)
  • Step on it, Joe! Seriously, I'm having way too much fun with the idea of driving around Innsmouth in a bus.
• RESOURCE
  • The shroud is low, but I think the convenience of Intel Report is worth it in this situation. Last time Brian Burnham gave Jenny some reliable information so she is going to search for him again. We could even take the guy with us. There's lots of room in the bus.
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth hunts to Esoteric Order of Dagon, Deep One Bull readies
• Upkeep: draw Flashlight, 3 resources total.

Board State Reminder: 8 health, 7 sanity, 3 resources, 6 clues

In Play: Leo De Luca (1 damage), Joe Sargent, Lockpicks (1 supply), Lone Wolf

In Hand: "I'm outta here!", "Watch this!", Elina Harper, Jenny's Twin .45s, Intel Report, Flashlight

#7

• Mythos: 6/6 doom, advance agenda (flood level increases on coastal locations, Relentless Tide), Rising Tides (First National Grocery is partially flooded)
• Lone Wolf
• PLAY Intel Report ( 2 clues)
• claim the white key
• Through the Labyrinth (no barriers between Gilman House and Sawbone Alley)
• MOVE to Sawbone Alley
  • Seven keys?! I've got six and that already feels like an achievement. Hmmm... There are two unrevealed locations on the map and both are close by. Getting that flashback should be doable.
• MOVE to The Little Bookshop
• The Little Bookshop (a memory of a followed lead, take Teachings of the Order)
  • Speaking of flashbacks. Jenny has some reading material to pour over when the situation settles down. Notice that Teachings of the Order is permanent and that makes it a reliable safety net. On the other hand I'm going to be so reluctant to use it because each use is once-per-campaign.
• RESOURCE
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth & Deep One Bull hunt to First National Grocery (no barriers between First National Grocery and Esoteric Order of Dagon)
• Upkeep: draw Dark Pact, 3 resources total.
  • OK. Better Dark Pact than Searching for Izzie.

#8

• Mythos: 1/5 doom, Tidal Alignment (partially flooded, 1 damage)
• Lone Wolf
• Through the Labyrinth (no barrier between The Little Bookshop and Railroad Station)
• Joe Sargent (1 ticket left, move to Railroad Station)
  • Huh? There's no key here either? Where is it? I looked over the setup instructions and I think I've made no mistakes. There's just one card still set aside, the Angry Mob, but these guys don't carry keys. We haven't seen the Ravagers from the Deep yet, but the keys are supposed to be pieces of information from humans. It might be on the backside of the Agenda, but there are still three Agendas left so getting that last flashback could easily lead to mental trauma from Searching from Izzie. Hmmm... I'll chance it for one more Agenda.
• MOVE to The Little Bookshop
• MOVE to Sawbone Alley
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (0, 1 clue)
  • I'll have Jenny clean up the leftover XPs from locations and if time permits we'll chase after the Innsmouth Shoggoth as well.
• PLAY Dark Pact (2 damage)
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth & Deep One Bull hunt to The Little Bookshop (no barriers between The Little Bookshop and First National Grocery)
• Upkeep: draw Leo De Luca, 4 resources total.

#9

• Mythos: 2/5 doom, Emerging Deep One
  • It's not engaged, so it's not an issue. It's one more card that goes great with TIC's theme of escalating danger. I feel for investigators who didn't or, as might be the case with our non-Rogue friends, couldn't take "I'm outta here!" as insurance.
• Lone Wolf
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (commit Leo De Luca, -2 , 1 clue, discard Lockpicks)
  • That frees up Jenny's hand slots. There just one minor problem. One Hard Knocks is already in the discard pile, so unless I find the other one Jenny's going to shoot at the Shoggoth with plus two leeway. The odds aren't terrible, but considering there are three enemies on the map the fight might take too long.
• MOVE to Gilman House
• MOVE to First National Grocery (1 barrier between First National Grocery and Gilman House)
• MOVE to Esoteric Order of Dagon
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth & Deep One Bull hunt to Railroad Station, Emerging Deep One readies
• Upkeep: draw Nimble, 7 resources total.

Board State Reminder: 5 health, 7 sanity, 7 resources, 6 clues

In Play: Leo De Luca (1 damage), Joe Sargent (1 ticket), Lone Wolf

In Hand: "I'm outta here!", "Watch this!", Elina Harper, Jenny's Twin .45s, Flashlight, Nimble

#10

• Mythos: 3/5 doom, Deep One Assault (Deep One Bull engages, discard Flashlight)
  • I'm tempted to exploit that to separate the Shoggoth from other enemies.
• Lone Wolf
• EVADE (commit Nimble & "Watch this!", bid 3 resources, , exhaust Deep One Bull)
  • That's good enough to evade the Deep One, but it wastes the effects of both skill cards. Suddenly there's not enough resources to put excess ammo on Jenny's Twin .45s this round.
• MOVE to New Church Green
• MOVE to Innsmouth Square
• Innsmouth Square (1 barrier between Innsmouth Square and New Church Green, 1 barrier between Innsmouth Square and Fish Street Bridge)
  • At this point I've looked the rules and saw that hunters ignore barriers when cordoned-off. However, the central position still has its benefits.
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth hunts to Esoteric Order of Dagon (no barriers between Railroad Station & Esoteric Order of Dagon), Deep One Bull readies, Emerging Deep One hunts to The Little Bookshop.
  • That's four barriers down!
• Upkeep: draw "I'm outta here!", 7 resources total.

#11

• Mythos: 4/5 doom, Dreams of R'lyeh
  • Irrelevant.
• Lone Wolf
• Through the Labyrinth (no barriers between Innsmouth Square and Fish Street Bridge)
• Joe Sargent (no tickets left, move to Fish Street Bridge)
  • It's currently shroud 2.
• INVESTIGATE (commit Elina Harper, , 1 clue)
• INVESTIGATE ( Streetwise, 0, 1 clue)
• MOVE to Innsmouth Square
• PLAY Jenny's Twin .45s (6 ammo)
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth, Deep One Bull & Emerging Deep One hunt to First National Grocery
  • I forgot I wanted to keep them separate. I'll take a short break before the Agenda advances.
• Upkeep: draw Easy Mark, 2 resources total.

#12

• Mythos: 5/5 doom, advance agenda (midtown locations flood, Angry Mob with facedown key), Riptide (-2, discard Lone Wolf)
  • OK, let's consider what happened. On one hand the townies have the key I wanted and Jenny's on the correct location. On the other hand Angry Mob retaliates, Jenny has zero combat boosts and there are multiple hunters nearby. I need to whittle though 8 health and reach Sawbone Alley. That's at least two rounds. But the numbers seem to be on Jenny's side and "I'm outta here!" is always an option. Let's do it!
• FIGHT with Jenny's Twin .45s (5 ammo left, -2, 2 damage to Angry Mob)
• FIGHT with Jenny's Twin .45s (4 ammo left, -2, 2 damage to Angry Mob)
• FIGHT with Jenny's Twin .45s (3 ammo left, -1, 2 damage to Angry Mob)
  • Are we going to pretend these were all warning shots? Let's do that, because the alternative is Jenny shooting straight into the crowd.
• MOVE to Innsmouth Jail
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth, Deep One Bull & Emerging Deep One hunt to Innsmouth Square (no barriers between Innsmouth Square and First National Grocery, Angry Mob hunts and attacks (1 horror to Joe Sargent, 1 damage)
• Upkeep: draw Eureka!, 4 resources total.

Board State Reminder: 4 health, 6 sanity, 4 resources, 6 clues

In Play: Leo De Luca (1 damage), Joe Sargent (1 horror), Jenny's Twin .45s

In Hand: 2x "I'm outta here!", Easy MarkEureka!

Threat: Dreams of R'lyeh

#13

• Mythos: 1/4 doom, Pulled Back (commit [Eureka!](/card/03231. -2, move to Shoreward Slums, drop all keys)
• claim all six keys
• MOVE to Innsmouth Jail
• FIGHT with Jenny's Twin .45s (2 ammo left, -2, defeat Angry Mob, claim the white key)
  • YES! All hail Minus Twos! The crowd disperses and I've got just just enough clues to break three barriers on the way to Sawbone Alley.
• Through the Labyrinth (no barriers between Innsmouth Jail and Gilman House)
• MOVE to Gilman House
• MOVE to Sawbone Alley
• Sawbone Alley (a memory of an intervention, add +1)
• Enemy: Innsmouth Shoggoth, Deep One Bull & Emerging Deep One hunts to Innsmouth Square (no barriers between Innsmouth Square and First National Grocery)
• Upkeep: draw Streetwise, 6 resources total.
  • Safe! All aboard the bus!

#14

• Mythos: 2/4 doom, Young Deep One (1 horror to Leo De Luca)
• PLAY "I'm outta here!"
• R1.

Flasback VII netted me an incredible extra +1 token for the entire campaign. I think the designers assumed that this scenario would be much longer than it was for Jenny. Then again, Jenny had to risk more than most other investigators to stick around on the map. It paid off. In fact, it was a near-perfect run, with just one potential XP missed. BTW, were there Shoggoths mentioned in the original novel? Let me look into it... Yup! That's unexpected. I really should read the Shadow over Innsmouth before the next scenario is published. In either case it seems the next scenario is going to take place in the past. Even if this time around Jenny doesn't get to spend XP, she still gets to keep the Teachings of the Order in her deck. That inconsistency niggles at me. See you next time around!

Campaign Log:

Pit of Despair: 5 XP, Memories Recovered: a meeting with Thomas Dowson, a battle with a horrifying devil, a decision to stick together, an encounter with a secret cult.

The Vanishing of Elina Harper: The mission was successful. 3 XP.

In Too Deep: Jenny made it safely to her vehicle. 7 XP, Memories Recovered: a deal with Joe Sargent, a followed lead, an intervention, a jailbreak.