The Circle Undone Blind Run #0: Prologue

It has became a time-honored traditions for me to publish detailed logs from my blind runs and The Circle Undone shall be no different. Enjoy!

Disappearance at the Twilight Estate

In later scenarios I’ll be using Jenny as usual, but the prologue requires us to choose from four neutral investigators. I think Valentino is our guy. His job in the prologue is to survive for as long as possible and his high Agility is bound to be useful in that regard. He has an average Intellect so we can also expect him to pick up some clues on the way. Not to mention, I can definitely see Jenny being friends with Tino.

Valentino begins at Billiards Room with 10 resources, Well Connected in play and Shadow Hound in the threat area.

Opening Hand: .41 Derringer, Sure Gamble, 2x Money Talks, Opportunist, 2x Cunning

#1

• EVADE ( Well Connected, commit Opportunist, -2, return Opportunist, exhaust Shadow Hound)
  • There’s no point in committing Opportunist to this test.
• INVESTIGATE (commit Cunning, , gain 2 resources, discover 1 clue at Billiards Room)
  • Nice! This gives us enough resources to play Tino’s Derringer while retaining the double Well Connected bonus. At first I intended to run, but I now think I’ll have Tino stand his ground.
• PLAY .41 Derringer
• Enemy: The Spectral Watcher hunts to Victorian Halls, Shadow Hound readies
• Upkeep: 10 resources total.

#2

• Mythos: 1/∞ doom, 1 horror, Whispers in the Dark
  • Our first encounter card deals with Circle’s signature mechanic. Now each and every location can be Haunted and that definitely opens up additional design opportunities. That being said, the card itself seems mild. I can’t see it discourage investigations with the threat of just one horror.
• FIGHT with .41 Derringer (2 ammo left, Well Connected, commit Opportunist, , gain 2 resources, return Opportunist, 2 damage to Shadow Hound)
  • Second in a row! Tino is doing great so far.
• FIGHT ( Money Talks, -1, defeat Shadow Hound)
  • Money Talks works wonders because Tino is built around having resources. I’m not sure it’ll work as well for the regular investigators. Narratively, I can see Tino feeding the hound silver coins. He just shot it point-blank and it’s still standing, so it’s the perfect time for some highly unorthodox tactics.
• RESOURCE
• Enemy: The Spectral Watcher hunts to Trophy Room
• Upkeep: 13 resources total, discard Whispers in the Dark.

#3

• Mythos: 2/∞ doom, 1 horror, Watcher's Grasp (The Spectral Watcher hunts and attacks, 1 damage & 1 horror)
  • Nasty! Our recurring villain isn’t as beefy as the Harbinger from the last campaign, but without doubt it’s going to be more persistent. Note that Watcher's Grasp is relevant for both fighters and evaders.
• EVADE ( Well Connected, Valentino, commit Opportunist, -2, return Opportunist, exhaust The Spectral Watcher)
  • I’m only noticing it now as I’m editing the logs, but once again I’ve needlessly committed Opportunist. It made no difference to the odds.
• MOVE to Trophy Room
• INVESTIGATE (commit Cunning, , discover 1 clue at Trophy Room)
• Enemy: The Spectral Watcher readies
• Upkeep: 12 resources total.

#4

• Mythos: 3/∞ doom, 1 damage, Shapes in the Mist (◊ Trophy Room, lose 2 resources), Nether Mist
  • Nether Mist is aloof, so Tino will do his best to ignore it. I gotta say, I like idea of aloof enemies with XPs on them.
• MOVE to Victorian Halls
  • Nothing. Where should Tino run now? I think we can afford a peek into the Office to scout the map for Jenny.
• MOVE to Office
• INVESTIGATE ( Well Connected, commit Opportunist, -1, discover 1 clue at Office)
• Enemy: The Spectral Watcher hunts to the Trophy Room, Nether Mist hunts to Victorian Halls
• Upkeep: 11 resources total.

#5

• Mythos: 4/∞ doom, 1 horror, Wraith
  • Excellent design! Compare this guy to Poltergeist. It sells the idea of ‘ghost’ perfectly and it’s memorable without being overly difficult to handle.
• FIGHT with .41 Derringer (1 ammo left, Well Connected, , 1 damage to Wraith)
  • Tino succeeded, but couldn’t defeat the Wraith in one shot. Let’s pepper it with silver instead!
• FIGHT ( Money Talks, +1, defeat Wraith)
• INVESTIGATE ( Valentino, , Sure Gamble, discover 1 clue at Office)
  • That was our last card. Tino is out of options.
• Enemy: The Spectral Watcher hunts to the Victorian Halls, Nether Mist hunts to Office
• Upkeep: 8 resources total.

Valentino's Board State: 3 health, 3 sanity, 4 clues, 8 resources

• In Play: .41 Derringer (1 ammo), Well Connected

#6

• Mythos: 5/∞ doom, 2 damage, Obscuring Fog
  • We had the ticking clock from the start, but now it’s 2 damage or 2 horror per tick. It’ll be over soon.
• MOVE to Victorian Halls
• EVADE ( Well Connected, Valentino, -1, exhaust The Spectral Watcher)
• MOVE to Master Bedroom
• Enemy: The Spectral Watcher readies, Nether Mist hunts to Victorian Halls
• Upkeep: 7 resources total.

#7

• Mythos: 6/∞ doom, 2 horror, Realm of Torment
• ◊ Master Bedroom (drop 1 clue)
  • Annoying! Tino can no longer expect to reliably find clues and I don’t want to risk losing more, so I’ll have him escape towards the Balcony.
• MOVE to Balcony
• INVESTIGATE ( Well Connected, Valentino, 0, discover 1 clue at Balcony)
• ◊ Realm of Torment ()
• Enemy: The Spectral Watcher and Nether Mist hunt to Master Bedroom
• Upkeep: 6 resources total.

#8

• Mythos: 7/∞ doom, 2 damage, DEFEAT.

Tino couldn’t see past the mist. He heard ghostly moans and wails from all around. It was over, but at least let it be over on his terms. He hopped over the balustrade.

The scenario was short and to the point and served as good preview of the mechanics. I appreciate the fact that we've got some low-health-low-combat opponents as it suggests this campaign might the tiniest bit easier than Forgotten Age. As for the resolution, at this point I'm not sure whether it's more important to stay alive longer or to pick more clues. But, I've got the feeling that disappearing into the mist was the best outcome. At the same time I doubt I'll be able to reach it that often. This time around Valentino had the chaos bag on his side, but the margin of error is very slim. Now, it's up to Jenny to search for and hopefully save her friend.

Campaign Log:

Disappearance at the Twilight Estate: Valentino disappeared into the mist. 4 pieces of evidence were left behind.