Altered Beast

Does this card contain a typo? It isn't clear if you are supposed to attach this card to the abomination or not. We went ahead and attached it, assuming it was a typo.

SaraNoH92 · 2
for others benefit it says "attached" with a D, took me three reads to realise where the typo was. — Zerogrim · 295
I know, the English version is the relevant reference for everything, but still want to point out, the German version has not this kind of typo, and it reads the way, it's obviously suposed to be read in the original version as well. — Susumu · 381
Curse of Aeons

So I've seen a lot of people talking about this with Jim or this with a effect where you want a symbol like sixth sense and those are fair "wants" for curse of aeons but I'd like to bring a different approach I've not seen discussed about it.

Capping the bag.

When there are curses in the chaos bag the number you can draw is anywhere from +1 to -far too much, if you have three curses in the bad and a -4 then in that instance you can draw anything from +1 to -10, with some math's and programs you can figure out the odds, but the possibility is always there for super insane pulls where you draw 3+ curses.

Not so with curse of Aeons in play, how many curses are in the bag? irrelevant!, the worst draw you can pull from the bag is now always -2 AND the worst token in the bag, in the above example even with 10 curses in the bag you can only draw a -6, which as a mystic is not that hard to overcome with commits, rogues also will find a -6 beatable if they HAVE to pass.

What Curse of Aeons does is allows more reliability with the "uhoh all curses" table, sure blessing of Isis is cool in its own way but just knowing that even with a whole ton of curses floating about there is now a non insane number you can match to succeed at any test is very liberating.

And like with such classics as lucky, curse of aeons need never actually trigger once to still be useful, did you go an entire game and never trigger its effect with a curse heavy bag, well 3 xp and 2 resources to not suffer for high cursed bags seems A-Okay to me.

O scratch that, I just drew a crit fail....

Zerogrim · 295
Well that’s why Jim plays the blues. — MrGoldbee · 1484
Thanks, that is an interesting perspective on this card. I still think 3xp is pretty rough but hopefully it finds a place. — housh · 171
So it has a function similar to the one of Ancient Coveant, right ? Avoiding to draw all the tokens at once. — AlexP · 268
It's a bummer, it is not a permanent, unlike the Covenants. 4 XP more (to get 2 copies), 2 resources, a card and a playaction to pay, that's quite a lot in comparison. — Susumu · 381
Maybe as a covenant? — MrGoldbee · 1484
Pathfinder

I am about to start playing “Horror in High Gear” and this question popped in my mind: Can I use this while I am the driver in a vehicle? Do the rest of the investigators in the same vehicle move with me?

Per "Vehicles" in the campaign guide, "While an investigator is in a vehicle, that investigator cannot move independently of the vehicle". That means that any card effect that would move you doesn't (and neither does the basic move action), and the only way to move is indirectly via card effects that say they move that vehicle. — Thatwasademo · 58
(well, the "enter/exit vehicle" implicit free triggered ability also works, but from the wording that doesn't count as "moving" even though your mini-card is physically moved between the location card and the vehicle card) — Thatwasademo · 58
So in short, no, Pathfinder can't be used while you're in a vehicle, only if you stop the vehicle and get out. — Thatwasademo · 58
(and, of course, doing so means you're spending 2 actions every time you use it, due to the text on the Agenda) — Thatwasademo · 58
TIC is tricky. It has gigantic maps, and some maps that make movement cards useless — MrGoldbee · 1484
I would strongly recommend this for Innsmouth (Taboo or no). It makes a huge difference in most scenarios and in the one scenario where it isn't good you can just not play it. — CaiusDrewart · 3188
The above analysis is about right. I’d definitely advocate for pathfinder and safeguard(2) for the group that wants to get around Innsmouths large maps (horror in high gear aside due to the vehicle mechanics, as mentioned). . — AndyN · 42
Why does it cost two additional actions to use pathfinder? The FAQ above for frozen in fear seems like it would apply. — Jtreher · 9
Actually, looking at the FAQ on frozen in fear seems at odds with the comment here on this card. — Jtreher · 9
2nd para of 2.19 on the official FAQ says that Quick draw doesn't count as an action taken or spent. — Jtreher · 9
Déjà Vu

The card starts with "In between two scenarios of a campaign," That makes me wonder if, mid-campaign, I'm playing though a side-story, am I not allowed to repurchase exiled cards before starting the side story, after finishing it, or both? Or is it considered a 'scenario of the campaign' for this purpose?

khoshekh · 5
It's strange, that they changed the wording compared to "Adaptable", where it is "In between each game of a campaign". However, the rules booklet of every Standalone scenario states, that you treat it "as if it was part of the campaign", if you are adding it to one. So there is no reason for me to believe, this card could not be used in that case. — Susumu · 381
If you aren't playing the scenario in standalone mode, and you paid the 2XP entry fee, the scenario is part of the campaign. — KingsGambit · 15
Enchanted Blade

The level 0 Enchanted Blade is a staple that sees play as a two-of in the vast majority of Guardian decks at my table. You can tell the designers worked hard to make sure this upgrade would have special appeal to Guardian players. Everyone knows that Guardians are a bit soft to horror and (Soldiers excepted) a bit short on card draw. This card addresses both issues. And everyone knows how bad it feels to spend ammo only to draw the autofail and miss. That will never happen with this upgrade. Plus, this card is just cool.

All that said, this card basically never sees play in my group. Why is that? Well, the main problem with Enchanted Blade is that it's a mid-tier weapon, and that's a really awkward spot to be in this game. Think of it this way. If you're a Guardian playing the classic Guardian role of protecting your teammates and hunting down monsters, your weapon is very likely the most important card in your deck. It's going to have the biggest impact of any card in your deck on the effectiveness of your Fight actions--and those actions are what makes or breaks your success as a character.

So, when you're shopping for weapons, why would you settle for anything but the best? It makes so much more sense to save up a bit and get the truly amazing weapons, like the Flamethrower or the Lightning Gun. The extra damage and to-hit granted by those weapons just does so much to make your character stronger. Enchanted Blade dealing a measly 2 damage per action (and that at most 3 times) just can't hold a candle to the power of the 5 XP weapons. And, once you have your superweapons, it just doesn't make much sense to spend 3-6 XP on what would basically be a sidearm or a backup weapon. If you have Enchanted Blade and Flamethrower in your deck, and draw them both, Enchanted Blade will probably do literally nothing for you that scenario. That's not a good return on an XP card. It would be much better to spend XP on cards that would complement your superweapon, like Stick to the Plan or Stand Together or Custom Ammunition or what have you.

And yes, I'm aware that Bandolier exists. But if you already have one super-great weapon in play, do you really need to spend a lot of resources and XP to get a worse weapon in play to go alongside that? Probably not.

Enchanted Blade is not the only card to fall victim to this complex. The upgraded Blackjack and the Taboo'd Machete face similar issues. It's not that these are weak cards--Machete was famously dominant back when it cost 0 XP. But they're not as strong as other options for your primary weapon, and people usually aren't willing to spend XP on backups.

That leaves Enchanted Blade with only a very small niche. It is one-handed, so if for some reason you really, really need that extra hand slot (perhaps you're a solo Guardian who wants a Flashlight but is allergic to the Timeworn Brand), you can justify it. But in multiplayer, for the focused Guardian, this card just isn't really up to the task.

CaiusDrewart · 3188
Roland can pair it with his gun & Dr Elli. — MrGoldbee · 1484
big super weapons are nice and powerful at hitting once very well, but survival knife (2) shows that sometimes more is better, I think as more people try the wild power of survival knife we will see enchanted blade and similar powerhouse one handed weapons see a fair bit more play. — Zerogrim · 295
"You can tell the designers worked hard to make sure this upgrade would have special appeal to Guardian players." But that's at least something. Thy Mystics got a weapon, that fights with fist and uses up an arcane slot. I must admit, I was jealouse to the Guardian blade! — Susumu · 381
Survival Knife (2) most certainly fall short of the big guns. — suika · 9497
Eblade (3) does has a niche where once you've gotten your big gun and the support for it, you might consider this as a backup weapon. If you have a standard loadout of 2x Flamethrower + support and 2x Eblade (0) as backup weapon, upgrading to Eblade (3) isn't the worst idea as the draw can help you find your Flamethrower. 6 damage is still rather low though at endgame though especially can't be reloaded by normal means...you'd rather want a 3rd big gun (or the Brand, or the new Holy Spear) instead if XP permits. — suika · 9497
I think one other thing to add to this review is that only Lola and Ursula have access to this and not flamethrower. If this were level 2 it might have a cool niche in secondary guardians, but alas not — NarkasisBroon · 11
You are right in that the threshold between starting weapons and the big guns is too small so the incentive to pick up an improved 2 damager is not very high. However, I will add that the biggest shame with this card is that Carolyn can't take it. The fact that it heals horror is a slap in the face and probably the biggest oversight in the game. — LaRoix · 1646
One other thing, with the new Enchant Weapon in Light in the Fog, some of these low to middle tier weapons maintain some longer validity. You get effectively the same benefit for the same XP and resource cost. The only downside being you'd need to locate two cards in your deck instead of one. — LaRoix · 1646
@LaRoix: I agree that Enchant Weapon is an exciting card that has the potential to make mid-tier weapons stronger. Enchanted Blade III specifically is probably not a great target though, because it's so low on charges and difficult to reload. — CaiusDrewart · 3188
@Zerogrim @suika: I have played with the XP Survival Knife quite a bit. My verdict is that it's fine, it can get the job done, and if you're looking for some variety in your Guardian builds, go ahead and try it. But I would agree with suika that it is far less effective than the big-gun builds. — CaiusDrewart · 3188
@susumu: Haha, I totally agree about the Mystic upgrade to Enchanted Blade. At least for how I like to play Mystics, that card is pretty much a non-starter. — CaiusDrewart · 3188
Ironically, the Mystic version is arguably better for Guardians than the Guardian version. — suika · 9497
The funny thing is I actually like E Blade 3 a lot as a generically useful side arm. This alongside Timeworn Brand works pretty well in TCU for instance. In higher counts, I think you would splurge for Flamethrower, but as far as melee options go, this one is pretty incredible in low count games. The horror heal and card draw, the extra damage, and all of that essentially being a response to a known outcome instead of having to be spend before hand, makes it a very precise and helpful weapon. I think Bandoliering for this is absolutely worth it. — StyxTBeuford · 13043