This is the card that is going to open Extreme mode to the masses (like me). It greatly improves the math of the bag. Let me show how!

You have yourself a standard Extreme bag, as follows: 0, -1, -1, -2, -2, -3, -3, -4, -4, -5, -6, -8, , , , , , , . Obviously the special tokens will vary, but let's say for argument's sake that the and are -3, and the and are -4. That actually seems somewhat generous!

Here are your odds of passing checks. The first number is with the plain bag, the second is with 5 's, and the third is with 5 's AND Ancient Covenant.

Even: 11% / 16% / 29%

Up one: 21% / 29% / 38%

Up two: 32% / 42% / 46%

Up three: 58% / 64% / 67%

Up four: 79% / 81% / 83%

What's the takeaway? If you are already well up on a test (say a +4), Ancient Covenant gives you a bit of cushion but not much. You'll probably pass anyway, and if you draw a , you're even more likely to pass, because by then you're +6. But if you're starting up just one? Even after that pull, there's still plenty that can sink you. Ancient Covenant gives you a fighting chance at checks that in Extreme mode are usually long shots.

BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!!!

Sacred Covenant also helps you keep more 's in the bag. How? By cutting down on the frequency with which you draw multiple 's in one check.

BUT WAIT THERE'S SO MUCH MORE!!!!

This may be jumping the gun a little bit, but there's a new card coming out in the Lair of Dagon called Favor of the Sun (not yet up on arkhamdb but announced by FF). That card allows you to seal three bless tokens and draw them during any check instead of something from the bag. Combined with Ancient Covenant, that effect is INSANELY powerful, especially on higher difficulties. It allows you to auto-succeed in the most scandalous way. You can be two DOWN on a check, and pass it without modifying it a bit. How good is that? Let's see:

Pnakotic Manuscripts allows you to avoid pulling tokens on three tests, guaranteeing success as long as you're skill value is even with the difficulty. It costs 5xp, 5 resources, and takes up a hand slot. It also costs an action to play and an additional action every time you use it, unless the test was during a revelation effect.

Favor of the Sun + Ancient Covenant also guarantees success on three tests, but you can be down as much as two. The combo costs 3xp, 2 resources, and takes up no slot at all. And it costs no actions, not even to play, because for some reason Favor of the Sun is fast!

This combo opens up a lot of new strategies for Extreme mode. Of course, Favor of the Sun is max two cards, so you'll want to use other Extreme strats as well: automatic clues and damage whenever possible, fail-forward options. But now you don't have to fear checks quite so much. A card like Pilfer, which seems crazy to run when there's a -6 and a -8 waiting for you, now could have a spot in your deck.

So, if you've been eyeing Extreme mode for a while but haven't had the courage to take the plunge, come on in: the water's warm!

This is still seen a lot in beginner decks, so I thought I'll write an updated review (and because the existing pros and cons review is kind of misleading).

You should almost never take Physical Training (0). Not even as deck slot filler, unless you have nothing but the core set (in which case you might not have any other deck slot fillers).

This card (and this class of cards in general) is among the most inefficient cards in the game. By standard action-economy analysis, this costs 4 "actions" to play: 2 resource, a card, and a play action. That's a large investment for a card that you need to burn even more resources on to get any benefit out of. If you don't use it a lot, you just spent 4 "actions" for very little benefit. If you use it a lot, you'll find yourself short of resources to play actually useful allies weapons and events.

The + could have come from an ally or weapon you could have played if you hadn't spent resources playing and boosting with Physical Training. The horror damage you reduced by boosting could have been soaked by the same ally. Or the same boosts could have been gotten by committing cards that you drew using the tempo you gained by not playing Physical Training (+1 skill boost ~= 1 card committed ~= 1 resource anyway!).

If your 0xp deck is flush enough in resources to take Physical Training, it is a sign that you've over-invested in resources for your deck, or should take the chance to throw some Dynamites.

The upgrades don't have this problem because they have a much lower upfront cost (and synergy with Well Prepared).

I think this card is great. Even without a blessed or cursed package, it acts as a plus 2 or 3 every single turn. That alone is worth a handslot at cost 2, and it synergies with other increases given this affects base stat. Works great for over suceed rogue. I've used in Wendy Adams and it allows her to punch cultists - a huge resource save and allows her to do things that she normally can't. That situation is probably the biggest benefit - allowing investigators to do things they can't normally so each turn - pass head tests, attack, investigate. Amazing versitility!

The most broken elder sign effect with this is probably Winifred Habbamock. Play your entire „overachieve“ combo, have your mystic friend commit this, profit, take it all back. Really can win a scenario for you.

You can really force it, too by putting Word of Command in your deck. If you haven’t already Wini & Jaqueline Fine is a combo you should try! ;)

So this card lets me wonder, regarding Read the Signs: up until recently, I firmly believed, you can not ignore the trigger of the damage, because it happens after investigating. Neither could you move from Père Lachaise Cemetery after successfully "reading the signs". But I'm browsing now all the locations for a RtS review, I'm preparing, and I stumbled over the definition for Investigate Action:

If the test is successful, the investigator has succeeded in investigating the location, he or she discovers one clue at the location. (This occurs during step 7 of the skill test, per "ST.7 Apply skill test results" on page 26.)

So apparently cards, like Père Lachaise Cemetery seem to trigger, because there is a timing after succeeding in investigating within the test (which lasts until ST.8). But if "after successfully investigating" is within reach of RtS's ignore ability, this should also apply to "after investigating" in general? Weird! How are the opinions on that one? Or have there been any official ruling? (Probably not, otherwise it would be mentioned in the FAQ paragraph of RtS.)