Best Served Cold - Agnes Baker Combat

Mystics are a flexible bunch, able to turn their dark knowledge to investigation, fighting, or evasion through strange powers that expose them to madness and death. When a mystic turns her full might to plumbing the depths of the mythos and killing anything that crawls out, she's a force to be reckoned with!

This deck combines Agnes' Forbidden Knowledge with Fire Axe, so Agnes can spend all her resources on Fire Axe for bonus damage, trigger Forbidden Knowledge to do a point of damage with her reaction, then swing Fire Axe again with a fresh +2 for 2 more damage. A second Forbidden Knowledge gives her one more swing with the same bonus, or gives her the resources for a +4 on the second attack.

Her combat focus and Ward of Protection allow her to Delve Too Deep or be Drawn to the Flame without fear. They might burn her, but she'll strike back.

Shrivelling is her other major weapon, and revealing an icon while attacking also triggers her ability to deal damage for horror. With Forbidden Knowledge and Painkillers on the board, and a Ward of Protection or a horror-dealing enemy, Agnes can trigger her reaction once each phase, dealing 6 damage to an enemy in a single turn by spending only one action on a Shrivelling. Alternately, she can intentionally trigger an Attack of Opportunity from a horror-dealing enemy during her turn to inflict 4 damage at no action cost. In a pinch, she can even hold her Dark Memory to deal a point of damage during the upkeep phase.

Of course, all that killing plays tricks on the mind, and Agnes and her fellow investigators may suffer a few bumps and bruises along the way. Painkillers soothe the aches and pains, while Clarity of Mind and Fearless ease the side effects of morphine -- and the mythos!

Thankfully, Agnes has Guts enough to tough it out and succeed at most difficult spells. If that fails, she'll Overpower enemies with her Fire Axe, with Unexpected Courage to stand up to the toughest enemies.

The Arcane Initiate digs into Agnes' deck for the spells Agnes needs, but she isn't exactly trustworthy. If Agnes can't serve her up to the encounter deck as she explores the outer reaches of reality, sic a Stray Cat on her to kick her out of your ally slot before her doom token advances the agenda. Then serve up the Stray Cat as an amuse-bouche to distract the next mind-bending creature that tears through the dimensions to come after Agnes. Life's tough for apprentices and familiars. So is death.

But don't worry about Mr. Mittens. Revenge is a dish best served cold.

If Agnes' is overshadowed in investigation by a seeker or another investigator, Rite of Seeking can be dropped in favor of Song of the Dead as you level up. Grotesque Statue is another excellent choice, allowing Agnes to both succeed consistently and maximize her ability to trigger the icon effects of Shrivelling and Song of the Dead, while protecting herself from Rite of Seeking. Bind Monster and Blinding Light keep tough enemies at bay, while Mind Wipe switches off Retaliate and other enemy abilities -- particularly useful if a Stubborn Detective is on your trail! Elite enemies are immune, however, so take Mind Wipe with care.

Bulletproof Vest and Elder Sign Amulet each improve Agnes' survivability, and each comes with a combat-ready icon and a wild to commit to important tests. Elder Sign Amulet also serves as a horror sink when there are no nearby enemies.

Book of Shadows is simply too slow to be useful when you have a Fire Axe in one hand and reality by the throat in the other, but if Agnes can't rely on her partners to investigate, she can squeeze a few more uses out of Rite of Seeking.

Peter Sylvestre buffs Agnes' Willpower, but his higher cost means he might not arrive in time to save Agnes from the sudden and inevitable betrayal of the Arcane Initiate. The same goes for Aquinnah, even though her ability can be useful. Lucky! is always attractive, but conflicts with the damage bonus of Fire Axe.

With many of her ideal upgrades costing significant experience, it can be hard to justify Exile cards. Flare is a good choice with a powerful attack. More importantly, she can use it to retrieve an early Arcane Initiate or an emergency Stray Cat to discard the Arcane Initiate. If the search fails to retrieve an ally, Exile doesn't trigger, and Flare merely discards for later use. It can steal helpful allies from other investigators' decks, such as Leo De Luca, a Beat Cop, or a Guard Dog.