The Brawler and the Brain: Zoey Samaras (2-player, Core + Du

Card draw simulator

Odds: 0% – 0% – 0% more
Derived from
None. Self-made deck here.
Inspiration for
None yet

Lord_Herman · 1

The Brawler and the Brain

Card pool: Revised Core Set and The Dunwich Legacy Investigator Expansion only.

Introduction

Zoey Samaras is a fighter built around a single idea: being engaged with enemies. Every time she becomes engaged with one she gains a resource, and her makes her attacks hit harder, so the more fights she picks, the better she performs. This deck commits to that idea completely, with one important condition: it is designed to be played in pairs, not solo.

Zoey's role is that of the brawler who gets into a scrap with everything that moves, while the more cerebral tasks are handled by her partner. Finding clues and passing the tests she is simply not built for (she has only 2 and 2 ) fall to the other investigator. In my case that partner is Jim Culver (his deck is here: The Brain and the Brawler), but the deck should work with any investigator who can take care of the clues. Zoey does not try to be a jack of all trades: the deck only includes a small safety net for investigating, for the moments when her partner is not around, and everything else is there to help her fight and survive.

Because of this division of labour, the two investigators are meant to stay close, almost hand in hand, and to split up only on rare occasions. Zoey pulls enemies onto herself, which lets her partner investigate in peace, and a big part of the deck's tools can only help the investigators at her location: First Aid and Emergency Aid heal them, and Taunt engages the enemies around them. Splitting up is the exception, not the rule: it makes sense when there are no enemies around and the clues are far apart, and even then Zoey should not stray more than a move away.

Her weak point is not damage but horror. With 9 health and only 6 sanity, the thing that will take her down is usually horror, so the deck is built with allies that act as shields and with several sources of healing for both damage and horror. The rhythm is simple: engage, gain resources, spend them on weapons and allies, and keep standing while the partner does their job. This is not a deck for explosive turns, but for sustained ones.

Core cards and why

The core of this deck exists to make Zoey fight constantly and to keep her alive while she does it. Everything else is built on top of three ideas: engage as many enemies as possible, kill them efficiently, and have shields and healing to absorb what comes back.

Zoey's Cross is where it all starts. After an enemy engages you, you can exhaust it and spend 1 resource to deal 1 damage to that enemy. Since Zoey's own ability gives you a resource at that very moment, the damage is effectively free, and it is enough to finish off any enemy with 1 health on the spot or to leave the last point of damage for your weapon. Because it exhausts, it will only fire once per round, and it occupies the accessory slot, so avoid any other accessory. It is a single copy and you will not always find it in time, so keep it if it shows up in your opening hand, but do not mulligan away good cards looking for it: your priority at the start is a weapon.

The weapons are built so that Zoey always has the right tool for the situation. The .45 Automatic is the answer when several enemies are engaged with you, because it deals extra damage without any condition, as long as it has ammo. The Machete is the answer when you are dealing with a single enemy, like a big boss or the last one standing after you have cleared the weak ones, and it never runs out of ammo, which makes it your backup when the .45s are empty. Both are one-handed, so the ideal setup is one of each. Prepared for the Worst, which searches the top nine cards of your deck for a weapon, is what makes this reliable: with five weapons in the deck and two copies of it, you will almost always start with something to shoot or swing. Remember that it only looks at the top nine cards, so it is not a guarantee, which is why the deck runs five weapons and not fewer.

Taunt is the card that best exploits Zoey's ability. Playing it engages any number of enemies at your location as a fast action, and each enemy that engages you gives you a resource, including every card of a swarm. It also pulls enemies off your partner, which is exactly what this deck is meant to do. Two things to keep in mind: the Cross only fires once per round, so it will deal damage to one of them, and Massive enemies are only considered engaged, so they will not trigger Zoey's ability or the Cross.

The allies are shields. Beat Cop and Guard Dog are there to take hits for Zoey and her partner, not to be kept around. Only one ally can be in play at a time, so you will keep replacing them as they fall, and that is fine. Beat Cop gives +1 and, when he is about to die, can be discarded to deal 1 damage to an enemy at your location, so he never leaves empty-handed. Guard Dog has more health and deals 1 damage back to any enemy that hurts him, which fits a deck that constantly has enemies engaged. Running four of them gives you spare bodies in a long scenario. Only one of the two Guard Dogs counts as core: the other is the flexible shield that several of the alternatives replace, so it is listed in the next section.

First Aid and Emergency Aid are what make the shields sustainable. First Aid heals damage or horror, and horror is exactly what is most likely to take Zoey down. Emergency Aid heals 2 damage on an investigator or on an ally, so a wounded Guard Dog or Beat Cop can keep absorbing hits for another round or two. Together they let you spend your health and sanity as a resource instead of treating it as a countdown.

In summary, the core cards are focused on three goals: engaging and killing enemies efficiently, protecting Zoey and her partner with shields, and healing so the shields keep working.

A total of 15 (these ones, not counting Zoey's Cross) + 15 (the rest) = 30.

Rest of the deck and why

The rest of the cards add protection, a safety net for clues, and the tools to keep Zoey's skill tests reliable. Three of them come from outside the Guardian pool (two copies of Working a Hunch and one of Liquid Courage), which leaves two of the five off-class slots free.

Knife is the cheapest weapon in the deck and the one that solves a problem the others have. You only have two hands, so once the .45 Automatic and the Machete are in play, any other weapon would have nowhere to go. Knife gets around that: it costs 1, so it can be played on the first turn next to a .45 (5 resources in total), it gives +1 , and once you have a better weapon in hand you can discard it for an attack with +2 and +1 damage, which frees the slot at the same time. It is also a neutral card, so it does not use up any of your off-class slots.

The second Guard Dog is the flexible card of the deck. It is the shield that the alternatives in the next section replace with other allies, such as Art Student, Peter Sylvestre or Joey "The Rat" Vigil, so it stays out of the core.

Dodge is the extra layer of protection for the tank. It is a fast event that cancels an enemy attack against any investigator at your location, so it protects Zoey, but also her partner, and it can be played without spending an action. Two copies are enough to keep a Guard Dog or a Beat Cop alive through a bad turn too, and since horror usually comes from enemy attacks, it also stops some of the damage you would otherwise need to heal.

Dynamite Blast is the deck's big punch and it is meant for the middle and late game. It costs 5, which Zoey can afford thanks to her resource generation, and it deals 3 damage to each enemy and each investigator at your location or at a connecting location, with no test required. You can throw it at an enemy that is about to arrive while you and your partner stay out of the blast, or you can ask your partner to step away and let Zoey take the hit if the enemy is already on top of you. Since it is not a card you want to play on turn one, mulligan it away if it shows up in your opening hand: it goes back into the deck and you may draw it again later, when you can use it. If you draw it later in the game, holding it until you have the resources is fine, but keep in mind that Liquid Courage's failure effect can discard it from your hand. One copy is enough, as holding too many expensive cards in hand is not what this deck wants.

Working a Hunch is the deck's safety net for clues. Zoey is bad at investigating, and the deck relies on her partner for it, but you cannot count on the partner being next to you every time a clue is needed. Working a Hunch is a fast event that discovers 1 clue at your location with no test, which means Zoey's low does not matter. Two copies give you a minimum of options without turning her into an investigator.

For healing horror, Liquid Courage and Smoking Pipe complement First Aid. Liquid Courage heals 1 horror and then the investigator tests (2): on a success it heals one more, and on a failure the investigator discards a random card from their hand. With 4 base , Zoey will pass this test almost every time, but the risk is real, since the discard could hit a valuable card, and that is why the deck only runs one copy. Smoking Pipe is the safer option: it is fast, needs no test and heals 1 horror in exchange for taking 1 damage, which the allies and the damage-healing cards can absorb. It is also a neutral card, so it does not take up an off-class slot.

Physical Training is the deck's skill-boosting talent, and it fits Zoey very well. She gains a resource every time she engages an enemy, and this card lets her convert them into +1 or +1 on any test, at no cost in actions. Her key tests are attacks and horror tests, so it covers exactly what she needs.

The skills are chosen to keep her tests reliable and to keep the hand moving. Vicious Blow adds +1 damage to a successful attack. Overpower has and draws a card on a success, which is valuable in a game where you only draw one card per round. Guts does the same with icons, which makes it the deck's only skill for horror tests, and it can also help her partner. Remember that Overpower and Guts can only be committed once per test.

In summary, the rest of the cards cover protection, a minimum of clue-finding and consistency, while the core cards do the fighting:

A total of 15 (these ones) + 15 (core) = 30.

Useful cards

This section highlights cards that are not part of the default configuration, but that can be good replacements depending on what you want to strengthen in your own deck. For each one I suggest which card to cut. Keep in mind that Zoey can use up to five off-class level 0 cards, and the default list only uses three of them.

If you want more clues. The deck relies on the partner for investigating, but the safety net can be widened. Evidence! is a fast event that discovers a clue after you defeat an enemy, and being Guardian it does not use an off-class slot, so it is a good swap for one Working a Hunch. Drawn to the Flame discovers 2 clues for free, at the cost of drawing an encounter card and spending an action to play it. Zoey is well suited to survive the encounter draw, thanks to her 4 , but it is a card to play once the board is set up. Art Student discovers a clue when it enters play, but it occupies the ally slot and replaces whichever shield you have in play, so it works best in place of a Guard Dog. If your partner is the one who needs help with the tests, Perception (draws a card on a success) and Unexpected Courage () can be committed to their investigations, and either one is a reasonable replacement for an Overpower.

If you want more protection against horror. Horror is Zoey's weak point, and there are several ways to cover it further. Fearless is a skill that heals 1 horror when the test is successful, and Zoey passes tests easily. Clarity of Mind has 3 charges of horror healing with no test, though it costs 2 and takes an action to use; it is a good replacement for Liquid Courage if you do not want to risk discarding a card, and for Smoking Pipe if you would rather heal without taking damage, and it can heal your partner too. "If it bleeds..." is a fast event that heals horror equal to the horror value of a Monster you have just defeated, to every investigator at your location, so it is only worth it if you expect many monsters. Finally, Peter Sylvestre is an ally that heals 1 horror from himself at the end of your turn, which makes him a more durable shield against horror than Guard Dog, and he is a good swap for one of them.

If you want more protection against damage. Leather Coat has 2 health that can soak damage, costs nothing and carries , and it takes the body slot. It uses an off-class slot, so you may want to cut one Overpower to make room for it. Healing is already well covered with First Aid and Emergency Aid, so I would only add it if you find yourself losing allies too quickly.

If you want more damage. Fire Axe is a Survivor weapon that lets you spend resources for +2 each (up to three times per attack), and Zoey has resources to spare, so it is the strongest option if you are willing to use an off-class slot. If you want to carry more weapons than you have hands, Bandolier gives you one extra hand slot that can only hold a Weapon, which also lets you hold a one-handed weapon next to the Lightning Gun once you have it. And if you find you have resources left over, a second Dynamite Blast can replace Guts.

If you want more economy and actions. Zoey already generates resources, so this is more about actions. Joey "The Rat" Vigil lets you play an Item from your hand as a fast action for 1 resource, and weapons are Items. Leo De Luca gives an additional action every turn, but at a cost of 6 he is better suited to the partner's deck, and playing an ally in Zoey's deck would replace him. Teamwork is a free event that lets investigators at the same location give or trade Items, Allies and resources, which allows Zoey to pass her surplus resources to her partner.

If you want to help your partner more. Leadership is a Guardian skill that gains and when it is committed to another investigator's test, so it gives them two icons, but it is useless for Zoey's own tests. Together with Perception and Unexpected Courage, it is a good replacement for Overpower if you want the deck to lean toward support. If you often find enemies engaged with your partner, Blackjack is a cheap weapon that lets you attack them without dealing the damage to your partner if you fail, but it competes with your other weapons for the hand slots, so it is best as a replacement for the Knife.

These substitutions do not change the core of the deck, but they allow you to tune it according to your partner and your campaign.

Upgrades with XP

This deck is meant to be played through a campaign, so it is going to grow. Zoey can only use level 0 cards from other classes, which means that every upgrade comes from the Guardian and Neutral pools. Below are the ones I would spend experience on, and at the end of the section there is a table with the recommended order of purchase and the card that each upgrade replaces, for one copy. The number in brackets after a card is its level.

The most efficient upgrades are the ones that improve cards the deck already runs. Taunt (2) draws a card for each enemy you engage with it, and since each of those enemies also gives Zoey a resource, it turns her main combo into a draw engine for just 2 XP. Beat Cop (2) has 3 health and no longer has to be discarded to use his ability: you exhaust him and he takes 1 damage to deal 1 damage to an enemy at your location, so he keeps contributing while he soaks hits. Vicious Blow (2) adds an extra point of damage when the attack succeeds by 2 or more. First Aid (3), at 3 XP, is the best of the group: it has 4 supplies and heals 1 damage and 1 horror at the same time, from an investigator or from an ally, so it covers both the shield and Zoey's sanity with a single action.

Brother Xavier (1) is the cheapest card on the list at only 1 XP, and he fits the deck perfectly. He costs 5, but he can be assigned the damage and horror dealt to other investigators at your location, so he protects your partner too, and when he is defeated he deals 2 damage to an enemy at your location. Charisma (3) gives you a second ally slot, which means you can have two shields in play at the same time instead of replacing one with the other, so it is probably the most transformative upgrade for this deck.

Keen Eye (3) is a permanent talent that, like Charisma (3), does not take a slot from the deck: it lets you spend 2 resources for +1 or +1 until the end of the phase. It costs more per use than Physical Training, but the bonus lasts for all the tests of the phase, so it pays off on turns when Zoey attacks several times, and it gives her a use for the resources she generates.

Once you have the core upgrades, there are a few that are worth the XP for specific purposes. Stand Together (3) costs 0, and lets you and your partner draw 2 cards and gain 2 resources each, which is very good in a deck designed to play as a pair. "I've had worse…" (4) is a fast event that cancels up to 5 damage or horror dealt to Zoey and gives you that many resources, which is expensive at 4 XP but excellent for a tank.

For damage, the strongest upgrade is Lightning Gun (5). It costs 6, which Zoey can afford thanks to her resources, and each shot gives +5 and +2 damage, so it almost always hits and deals 3 damage per ammo (4 with Vicious Blow (2)), enough to one-shot most of the enemies you will face. Its drawbacks are that it takes both hands and has only 3 ammo, so it replaces a Machete in the deck and you will alternate between it and the .45 Automatic depending on the ammo you have left. Extra Ammunition (1), a 1 XP event that places 3 ammo on a Firearm for 2 resources, solves most of that, and it also works on the .45. Monster Slayer (5), which defeats any non-Elite enemy if the attack succeeds, is a late-game finisher, and Shotgun (4) is a similar but less reliable option, with only 2 ammo, and it would cut the same Machete. I would skip Springfield M1903 (4), as it cannot be used against enemies engaged with you, and Zoey is engaged with enemies almost all the time.

Since the deck always stays at 30 cards, every new card has to push another one out, with one exception. Taunt (2), Beat Cop (2), First Aid (3) and Vicious Blow (2) simply replace their level 0 versions one for one. Charisma (3) and Keen Eye (3) are permanent cards: they start the game in play and do not count toward your deck size, so they do not take a slot from the 30. For the rest, here is what I would cut: Brother Xavier (1) replaces a Guard Dog, Stand Together (3) replaces an Overpower, "I've had worse…" (4) replaces Guts, Lightning Gun (5) replaces a Machete, Extra Ammunition (1) replaces the other Overpower, and Monster Slayer (5) replaces the Knife once you have enough other weapons. These are my suggestions and not fixed rules, so adjust them to what your own games show you.

As a recommended order of purchase, with the experience spent so far in the last column (a dash in the first column means that the card is permanent and replaces nothing), I would start with the ones that improve cards you already play and protect Zoey, then take Charisma once you have allies worth keeping in play, and leave the damage and the situational cards for last:

Card out Card in Cumulative XP
1 x Taunt 1 x Taunt (2) 2
1 x Guard Dog 1 x Brother Xavier (1) 3
1 x First Aid 1 x First Aid (3) 6
1 x Beat Cop 1 x Beat Cop (2) 8
- 1 x Charisma (3) 11
1 x Vicious Blow 1 x Vicious Blow (2) 13
- 1 x Keen Eye (3) 16
1 x Machete 1 x Lightning Gun (5) 21
1 x Overpower 1 x Extra Ammunition (1) 22
1 x Overpower 1 x Stand Together (3) 25
1 x Guts 1 x "I've had worse…" (4) 29
1 x Knife 1 x Monster Slayer (5) 34

Extra Ammunition (1) only makes sense once you have the Lightning Gun (5) or are relying on the .45s, which is why it comes right after it. If horror is the thing that keeps hurting you, move First Aid (3) up; and if you lose allies too quickly, move Beat Cop (2) up. The second copies of the level 2 upgrades come after this list, in the same order.

Gameplay

Initial hand & mulligan strategy

The priority in the opening hand is clear: a weapon. Either a .45 Automatic or a Machete will do, and Prepared for the Worst counts as the next best thing, since it goes looking for one in the top nine cards of your deck. With a full mulligan you will see at least one weapon around 85% of the time, which is why the deck runs five of them, and counting Prepared for the Worst the chance goes up to roughly 93%. Do not expect to start with two weapons, as that only happens about half of the time.

After the weapon, look for a shield. Beat Cop and Guard Dog cost 4 and 3, and with 5 starting resources you can usually afford one of them together with a cheap card. First Aid is also a good keep if you expect an early fight. If Zoey's Cross shows up in your opening hand, keep it, but do not mulligan good cards away looking for it.

The cards you should be happy to get rid of in the mulligan are Dynamite Blast (it costs 5 and is meant for later), the skills you will not need yet, and any copy of a card you already have in hand, such as a second weapon when you already have the first one.

Early game

The early game is about setting up a weapon and a first shield while getting into your first fights. Zoey earns resources by engaging enemies, so there is no reason to avoid them: engaging one and attacking it is exactly what you want to be doing. A typical opening turn is to play your weapon and then engage and attack, using Zoey's Cross if the damage is enough to finish the enemy. Next, use the resources you gain to play your first shield.

Stay close to your partner from the very beginning. Zoey's job is to arrive at the enemies before they reach your partner, so that your partner can investigate undisturbed. Do not spend your early actions healing, since it is better to wait until the damage actually matters, and do not worry about clues: that is what your partner is for.

Mid game

Once you have a weapon in your hand, an ally in play and the Cross on the table, the deck enters its most stable phase. This is where Taunt starts to shine: as a fast event it engages every enemy at your location, gives you a resource for each of them and takes them off your partner. Be careful with it, though, because every enemy you engage will attack you in the enemy phase. Use it when you can kill them or absorb their attacks with a shield or a Dodge, and not just to collect resources.

Emergency Aid and First Aid keep the allies standing, and horror is the thing to watch: heal it before it becomes a problem, and do not wait until the last point of sanity. Liquid Courage and Smoking Pipe are there for this, and Physical Training lets you turn your surplus resources into more reliable tests.

Late game

In the late game Zoey should have plenty of resources, a weapon with ammo or a Machete, and enough healing to keep going. This is the moment for Dynamite Blast: with your partner out of the way, you can use Taunt to gather the enemies at your location and then drop the bomb on them, for a total of 6 resources. If you cannot get your partner out of the location, throw it at a connecting location instead.

Do not forget the sources of resources you have left: every new enemy that engages you gives one, and with Physical Training you can convert them into +1 on the test that matters. Zoey is at her best when she turns a pile of resources into one decisive turn, and then goes back to protecting her partner.

Final notes

Do not try to make Zoey do everything. Her strength is that she knows exactly what her job is: to engage, to fight, to absorb and to keep her partner safe while the partner does the rest. The more you stick to that, the better the deck works, and the more you try to turn her into an investigator, the more you will feel her limitations.

Stay close to your partner. Many of the deck's tools only work on the investigators at your location, and being in the same place is what lets Zoey pull enemies off them. Separate only when there are no enemies around and the clues are far apart, and even then try not to stray more than one move away.

Treat your allies and your healing as resources to be spent. Beat Cop and Guard Dog are shields, and it is fine to lose them. It is much better to use them to absorb a hit than to keep them in play at full health until the scenario ends. The same goes for First Aid, Smoking Pipe and Liquid Courage: they are there to be used, so do not hoard their supplies.

Keep an eye on horror, and not only on damage. Zoey has 9 health and only 6 sanity, and it is almost always horror that ends up taking her down. Heal it before it becomes a problem, and do not wait until you are one point away from being defeated.

Do not use Taunt just to collect resources. Every enemy you engage will attack you in the enemy phase, so use it when you can kill them or absorb their attacks, and remember that Massive enemies will not trigger Zoey's ability or the Cross.

Finally, the number of copies of cards such as Dynamite Blast, Liquid Courage and Working a Hunch is where I would look first after your first games: if you find yourself holding expensive cards for too long, cut one, and if you keep running out of clues, add another. As long as each turn contributes to fighting, protecting or healing, the deck will do what it was built to do: let the brawler brawl.

If you want to see the other half of the pair, here is Jim's deck: The Brain and the Brawler: Jim Culver (2-player, Core + Dunwich).

Summary of cards

If your intention is to have this deck ready, you only need The Revised Core Set and The Dunwich Legacy Investigator Expansion. In addition to the 30 cards of the deck, Zoey requires Zoey's Cross, Smite the Wicked and 1 random basic weakness.

Deck (30 cards):

Asset

Event

Skill

Off-class slots: 3 of 5 used (2 x Working a Hunch, 1 x Liquid Courage).

Cards mentioned as alternatives:

Ally

Asset

Event

Skill

Upgrades with XP:

Asset

Event

Skill

0 comments