Forgotten Age Blind Run #6: The City of Archives

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The City of Archives

Supplies: Rope, Map, Binoculars, Blanket, Compass, Pickaxe

Opening Hand: Ichtaca, Take the Initiative, Cheat Death, Hot Streak, Delve Too Deep

Jenny cooperates with the Yithians and gets free 1 clue. Jenny starts the scenario Poisoned and with extra in the chaos bag. Alejandro Vela, Relic of Ages, Expedition Journal & Jenny's Twin .45s are set aside.

#1

• Arrival Chamber (draw Elusive)
• PLAY Hot Streak
• PLAY Ichtaca
• PLAY Delve Too Deep (Keeper of the Great Library)
  • Risky, I know, but the current location provides card draw I don't want to move further without getting either a Lone Wolf or Leo de Luca. In any case it went excellently since the alien failed to spawn.
• Upkeep: draw Overpower, 8 resources total.

#2:

• 1/5 doom, Scientist of Yith
  • Another fizzled encounter card. Splendid. I think Jenny is being warned not to mess with stuff. She listens intently, because these warnings are getting more and more specific. Information is power and Jenny's has no doubt the Yithians would agree with the sentiment.
• Arrival Chamber (draw Lone Wolf)
• PLAY Lone Wolf
• MOVE to Eastern Corridors
• INVESTIGATE (+3 , 0, discover 1 clue at Eastern Corridors)
• Exploring Pnakotus advances to Restricted Access (The Custodian is at Yithian Orrery)
  • Custodian offers so much card draw getting it will be Jenny's first priority.
• Upkeep: draw "Watch this!", 6 resources total.

#3

• 2/5 doom, Crypt Chill (commit Take the Initiative, Body of a Yithian, commit "Watch this!", bid 3 resources, , gain 6 resources)
  • But these aliens don't seem to wear clothing! How cold must it get for them to feel anything?
• Lone Wolf
• #Eastern Corridors (discard Overpower, move to Northern Corridors)
• MOVE to Laboratory of the Great Race
• INVESTIGATE (+3 , -2, discover 1 clue at Laboratory of the Great Race)
• MOVE to Yithian Orrery
• Upkeep: draw Leo De Luca, 9 resources total.

#4

• 3/5 doom, Keeper of the Great Library
  • Well, it's not an immediate threat. What worries me is that without being able to play weapons it likely will be inefficient to fight hunters.
• Lone Wolf
• PLAY Leo De Luca
  • Jenny easily recognized her friend, because on top of his alien head he was wearing a sheet of foil folded into something resembling a fedora hat. The Custodian is not as easy to read.
• The Custodian (+3 , -3)
  • Indeed, it isn't. If Jenny was in her own body she would've passed this test. As it stands, one clue was wasted on the attempt.
• INVESTIGATE (+3 , -1, discover 1 clue at Yithian Orrery)
• RESOURCE
• Upkeep: draw Switchblade, 3 resources total.

#5

• 4/5 doom, Lost Humanity (, 5 cards removed from the game)
  • I saw the word insane and got anxious for a second or two. But, there are lots of cards in Jenny's hand, deck and discard and no weaknesses were draw so far. Alas, no weaknesses were removed either.
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (+3 , , Jenny controls the Custodian!)
• Yithian Orrery (Jenny realizes what year it is!)
  • Actually, what year would that be? Do we as players get to know that?
• MOVE to Laboratory of the Great Race
• Enemy: Keeper of the Great Library hunts to Western Corridors
• Upkeep: draw Lockpicks, 3 resources total.

Jenny's Boardstate: 7 health, 7 sanity, 3 resources, 0 clues

Threat: Poisoned

In Play: The Custodian, Ichtaca, Leo De Luca, Lone Wolf,

In Hand: Cheat Death, Elusive, Switchblade, Lockpicks

#6

• Mythos: 5/5 doom, City of the Great Race advances to Lost Memories (draw Switchblade & Lockpicks), Locked Door (in Northern Corridors)
  • Jenny has no clues at the moment, but I don't suppose there'll be much need for the clue hidden behind these particular doors. The encounter deck hasn't been overly menacing in this scenario.
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw Lone Wolf)
• PLAY Switchblade
• Laboratory of the Great Race (+3 , commit Lone Wolf, Body of a Yithian, , Jenny activates the device! Restricted Access advances to Repossession)
  • Hmmm... If Jenny doesn't encounter some serious hand-size disruption or discard effects ending this scenario should be straightforward. There's time to gallivant around the place a bit and iron out the kinks in Jenny's plan.
• MOVE to Deconstruction Room
  • Notice that with how the map looks this might be the most likely place for Searching for Izzie to spawn later in the game. Gruesome.
• RESOURCE
• RESOURCE
• Enemies: Keeper of the Great Library hunts to Western Corridors, Yithian Observer hunts to Eastern Corridors
• Upkeep: draw Machete, 4 resources total.

#7

• Mythos: 1/7 doom, Obscuring Fog
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw Machete)
• PLAY Lockpicks
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (+3 , , 2 supplies left, discover 1 clue at #Deconstruction Room, discard Obscuring Fog)
• Deconstruction Room (commit Machete, Body of a Yithian, 0, Jenny dissects an organ!)
• MOVE to Laboratory of the Great Race
• Enemies: Keeper of the Great Library hunts and attacks (1 damage & 1 horror to Ichtaca), Yithian Observer hunts to Northern Corridors
• Upkeep: draw High Roller, 1 resource total.

#8

• Mythos: 2/7 doom, Yithian Presence
  • I don't quite get the intent behind this encounter card. The effect seems to next to irrelevant past Act 1 and even then it's quite mild.
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw Take the Initiative)
• FIGHT with Switchblade (commit Machete, Body of a Yithian, , 2 damage to Keeper of the Great Library
• FIGHT with Switchblade (commit Switchblade, Body of a Yithian, , defeat Keeper of the Great Library)
  • OK, Team Human is now committed. However, for the moment Jenny and her companions will retreat to Yithian Orrery and leave the Observer for later.
• PLAY High Roller
• MOVE to Yithian Orrery
• Enemies: Yithian Observer hunts to #Laboratory of the Great Race
• Upkeep: draw Elusive, 1 resource total.

#9

• Mythos: 3/7 doom, Dissonant Voices
  • So much for that plan. I assume that plan B is Ichtaca's idea an involves lots of stabbing and slashing. She does provide a significant combat bonus against the Yithian Observer after all.
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw Searching for Izzie (at unreavealed Interview Room))
• MOVE to Laboratory of the Great Race
• FIGHT with Switchblade (0, 2 damage to Yithian Observer)
• FIGHT with Switchblade (, draw Mob Enforcer, defeat Yithian Observer, Ichtaca, heal 1 horror from Ichtaca)
  • What? A human?! If he appeared at any other time Jenny would happily give him some stuff and at the very least shoo him away from the main corridors where the aliens tend to wander. Alas... Ichtaca reacted first.
• FIGHT with Switchblade (0 , 1 damage to Mob Enforcer)
• Enemies: Mob Enforcer attacks (1 damage to Ichtaca)
• Upkeep: draw Unexpected Courage, 3 resources total, discard Dissonant Voices.

#10

• Mythos: 4/7 doom, Frozen in Fear
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw Hard Knocks)
• Elusive to Halls of Pnakotus: Eastern Corridors
  • Jenny panicked and had her companions run and leave the bleeding human. Hopefully, it won't take too long for her to shake off the lingering anxiety.
• MOVE to #Interview Room (reveal #Restraining Chamber)
  • Few cards are left in the deck. I'll delay resolving the Izzie weakness so that it doesn't get shuffled back into the deck.
• PLAY Hard Knocks
• INVESTIGATE with Lockpicks (commit Lockpicks, #Body of a Yithian, , 1 supply left, discover 1 clue at Restraining Chamber)
• Frozen in Fear (commit Unexpected Courage, Body of a Yithian, , discard Frozen in Fear)
• Enemies: Mob Enforcer hunts to #Northern Corridors
• Upkeep: draw Hard Knocks, 3 resources total.

Jenny's Boardstate: 7 health, 7 sanity, 3 resources, 3 clues

Threat: Poisoned, #Yithian Presence

In Play: The Custodian, Ichtaca (2 damage), Leo De Luca, Switchblade, Lockpicks (1 supply), Lone Wolf, Hard Knocks, High Roller

In Hand: Cheat Death, Elusive, Take the Initiative, Hard Knocks

#11

• Mythos: 5/7 doom, Dissonant Voices
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw High Roller)
• #Repossession (1 horror to Ichtaca, draw "I'm outta here!", Overpower & Lone Wolf)
• Searching for Izzie (+3 , commit High Roller, Body of a Yithian, -2, discard Searching for Izzie)
• #Restraining Chamber (commit Hard Knocks, #Body of a Yithian, commit Overpower, 0, Jenny interviews a subject!, draw Unexpected Courage)
• Enemies: Mob Enforcer hunts to #Eastern Corridors
• Upkeep: draw Take the Initiative, discard Lone Wolf, 5 resources total, discard Dissonant Voices)

#12

• Mythos: 6/7 doom, Captive Mind (commit Take the Initiative, Body of a Yithian, )
  • Flavorful design! The card is very contextual, but what I like the most is that it outright says it doesn't matter whether you pass or fail.
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw Hot Streak)
• Elusive to Halls of Pnakotus: Northern Corridors
• Northern Corridors (discard "I'm outta here!", move to Western Corridors)
  • There doesn't seem to be any resign option in this scenario. Fitting. In any case Jenny has her Obol, but I do wonder if this isn't one of these do-or-die scenarios for everyone.
• MOVE to Great Library
• Great Library (+6 , )
• Great Library (+3 , , draw Switchblade, Jenny finds the process!)
  • We're out of clues, but Jenny should be able to draw enough cards via actions alone next round.
• RESOURCE
• Enemies: Mob Enforcer hunts to Western Corridors
• Upkeep: draw Lockpicks, 2 resources total.

#13

• Mythos: 7/7 doom, Lost Memories advances to Humanity Fading, Rotting Remains (, 3 horror)
  • Yup. No curveballs. There are two unrevealed locations left and the doom threshold on the last agenda is quite high, but there's little incentive to get explore further. Even if I'm missing on XP Jenny is plenty experienced already.
• Lone Wolf
• The Custodian (draw Machete)
• DRAW Overpower
• DRAW Elusive
• DRAW Machete
• R1
  • I was right! Alejandro wasn't bad from the start. Sadly, even if his requirements are easier to meet than Ichtaca's, I didn't get to keep him in this blind run. More than that, Jenny is out of provisions and medicine, so the interlude hit her hard. As for the scenario itself, it's great. The mechanics complement the story and some of the possible resolutions are hilarious. It think it might be my favorites Forgotten Age scenario thus far. Full disclosure, I lost the original log near the end of the game and basically had to replay the scenario as if I was playing it blind. The coolest moment in the lost log was discarding three Cruel Interrogations using Cheat Death.

Campaign Log:

The Untamed Wilds: Jenny cleared a path to the Eztli ruins. Alejandro chose to remain at camp. Jenny has earned Ichtaca’s trust. 7 XP (Ichtaca, Ruins of Eztli, Serpent's Haven, Circuitous Trail, 2 bonus XP). 1 Physical Trauma. Yig’s Fury: 0.

The Doom of Eztli: Jenny recovered the Relic of Ages. The Harbinger is still alive (0). Jenny gave custody of the relic to Alejandro. 6 XP (Burial Pit, Grand Chamber, Secret Passage, Charon's Obol, Delve Too Deep). Yig’s Fury: 1.

Threads of Fate: Jenny found the missing relic. Jenny rescued Alejandro. Jenny forged a bond with Ichtaca. 7 XP (Maria DeSilva, Northside, Eztli Exhibit, Arkham Police Station, Town Hall, Charon's Obol, 2x Delve Too Deep, 3 bonus XP, 5 XP spent do heal trauma). Yig’s Fury: 1.

The Boundary Beyond: 6 paths are known to Jenny. Ichtaca has confidence in Jenny. The Harbinger is still alive (0). Jenny mapped the way forward. Ichtaca's faith is restored. 8 XP (Charon's Obol, 6 locations). Yig’s Fury: 1.

Heart of the Elders: The jungle watches. The Harbinger is still alive (0). 9 XP (Serpent from Yoth, Hall of Idolatry, Dark Hollow, Perilous Gulch, Crystal Pillars, 2x Charon's Obol), Yig’s Fury: 2.

The City of Archives: Jenny cooperated with the Yithians. The process was perfected. Alejandro is set against Jenny. 9 XP (Yithian Observer, Yithian Orrery, Deconstruction Room, Restraining Chamber, Delve Too Deep, 4 bonus XP). 1 Physical Trauma. Yig’s Fury: 2.