Fern

The character we all wanted to succeed so badly, has now gotten the support she deserves.

This outlines the basis for what a Fern deck can do, while leaving lots of room for customization. The side deck even has a few suggestions for later improvements. (this deck only uses 21 xp, thanks to Shrewd Analysis, and gets a +3 xp bonus from In the Thick of It, making it possible to build 18 xp into the campaign.)

I hope this deck will inspire you, despite not having any dark secrets or power combos.

Role on the team

This Fern acts as the party healer and econ support, which allows your team to just take the punishment from the treachery deck, rather than spend cards and resources protecting themselves.

Good action economy

Every horror healed is a resource gained. And thanks to Soul Sanctification, nothing is ever wasted. Better than that, horror not healed is actually bonuses stored for grabbing clues later (or fighting, or resisting, or...).

For instance, assuming Archive of Conduits is on the table and you have an ally with no horror taken, a single action will grant: 1 draw, 1 resource, 1 "+2" token for a later test. If you have Hypnotic Therapy down, that's 1 additional token.

Clue getting

Fern starts with an admirably 4 . But the real power comes from Field Agent. 1 clue per turn, and a +1 , assuming you can heal her fast enough.

Soul Sanctification is also a primary source of clues, in that it allows you to spend actions building your teammates economy, and then take some checks with a +4. This can be rather slow in some circumstances, but hey - how bad is your day really, if everyone is in perfect health?

Drawbacks

Dealing with enemies

This deck deals with enemies by ignoring them. Simply put, just provoke if you want to, heal up the damage, wait for the fighter to take care of the problems, then carry on with your day. Soul Sanctification works fine for running away or punching someone, and there is Toe to Toe, but ultimately, you're not a fighter.

Wrong order of cards

Getting Field Agent early, but then not getting any ally healing can be a bit of a downer. There is plenty of card draw in the deck, but you still want either the Ancient Stone, Hallowed Mirror, upgraded First Aid to keep it flowing. Having an ally playing your own Solemn Vow by using "You owe me one!" is of course the best scenario. Just transfer the horror to yourself, and heal it away. Or use Teamwork to transfer Field Agent to someone with Solemn Vow, and let them pick up the clues.

Alternatives

There's plenty of cards that can be swapped here, without affecting the overall idea. Need more damage support? Add in Gray's Anatomy. Got another mystic? Remove Delve Too Deep. Maybe you just don't like Teamwork - add more card draw instead? There's still plenty of " and/or " slots left.

Alice Luxley has been included for the +1 , and the ability to trigger the future Gray's Anatomy, but it's not an essential card. If your fighter is good, maybe just grab Dr. Milan Christopher or Whitton Greene instead.

Gray's Anatomy is a clear upgrade from here. So is Surgical Kit. Neither has been included, because they're not essential to the deck, and they are kinda expensive in xp. You'll probably want them around the time you want to get rid of Delve Too Deep.

Need more cats? It's absolutely doable to replace Alice Luxley with Ferns pet. I'd suggest just adding the additional cards, rather than replace the old ones, but it's no big difference. Foolishness stacks pretty well with Solemn Vow, as it allows for easy healing (and thus also easy econ). And Ancient Stone easily mitigates the worst parts of To Fight the Black Wind. If you go this route, I'd suggest replacing Delve Too Deep with Deny Existence and keep one ready for the Black Wind.