It's actually relatively easy to have one Science or Tool asset in play, and if you do, this is Unexpected Courage copies 3 and 4.

Do you want 4 copies of unexpected courage? maybe not, but unless you're a very specific kind of deck, you probably will find tests to commit to several times in every scenario.

I think this one of those cards that doesn't seem exciting, but ends up being a consistent include that just quietly helps pass more tests, and passing tests is a good way to win.

The obvious comparison is Ornate Bow.

But the bow has ways to cheat the reload action, can be fired multiple times in a turn, and is of course a tech weapon for foot investigators. The TANKGEWEHR does not have any of those qualities. The TANKGEWEHR has more in common with the Sledgehammer and its big brother as a highly accurate fist weapon that requires multiple actions per attack.

Compared to Sledgehammer (0) you spend 5 XP for +3 fight and +1 dmg, but are still using the same number of actions per attack. You will of course "front" the reload action by reloading the turn before you use it, but you can't capitalize on it since it exhaust after reloading. Which means that your potential damage per turn is just 4.

For a primary fighter, like the majority of those who have access to the TANKGEWEHR, a potential of 4 damage per turn is quite low. And being able to split your damage over at least two foes is very important in multiplayer. Which means that the TANKGEWEHR needs support weapons and the XP, resources, and actions to play them out.

I am not impressed. If you pay 5 XP for a weapon it should be able to stand on its own.

If you instead slap Enchanted Weapon on your Sledgehammer (0) you'd have a potential of 6 damage per turn, can split it over two enemies, will not provoke when you're stuck in a boss fight, and have similar accuracy for the big 4 dmg attack if you exhaust on it.

I think they could have given the TANKGEWEHR a special feature like being able to attack enemies at connecting locations (it's a BIG gun) or whatever, or even just automatic reload at the upkeep phase. The fact that you can only fire once per turn would make it balanced.

Nathaniel Cho (with Bandolier) might like it though. Once per turn is offset by him having events to play, and by using the TANKGEWEHR he can maximize the +1 dmg from his investigator ability.

The Fast keyword saves an action, playable in various player window, and ignores Attacks of Opportunity. For this expansion plus the Revised Core Set, all Survivor weapons can abruptly disappear from hand (Baseball Bat, Pitchfork, and Hatchet.) If the fight hasn't ended you may have to fight barehanded or with events, or have others take the heat while you re-setup. Two of those are 2 handed so you cannot setup an another sub-weapon to use when it disappear. So this seemingly lazy addition actually has some synergy going on. I was quite surprised at its ability to "upgrade" the original Baseball Bat and made me want to continue keeping that in the deck.

Many times I want to attack-pickup-attack with the Pitchfork to deal required damage but can't take any more AoO, if I play Fire Axe (2) in its place and finish the job then Pitchfork can be passed on to your friend. With Hatchet equipped Fire Axe (2) is also good to have ready on hand because you are not sure of enemy's HP and what it'll do with your Hatchet. If Fire Axe (2) is not yet in your hand, if you can get draws mid-fight like Overpower or Rabbit's Foot (or even Upkeep Draw while you still have enemies) it can come into play right away. In any cases where you are hiding Fire Axe (2) on hand, you are also ready to commit to anyone.

There is also a little in-box combo with Hunting Jacket where you may get the axe back after taking hits and you can immediately setup with it to fight back.

The action saved by Fast can be used with Double events in this box like Elaborate Distraction.

Very interesting card that will definitely find use somewhere. At the time of release this is only the second card that lets you investigate with (the other being a telescanner upgraded Hyperphysical Shotcaster ) and unlike the shotcaster, it's level 0.

Crowbar does only grab one clue, so it's not Scene of the Crime; but it's another way that the fighter can help get clues when there aren't enemies on the field, and if you're completely solo, one clue is usually enough anyway.

I think Mark Harrigan probably benefits the most, getting +3 skill for the test compared to using Although he may want a Bandolier later in the campaign so he can still wield a 2-handed weapon.

This used to be an auto-include for me, even would use it as 1/3 of my ITTOI experience if I wanted to have something with more ceiling potential than E Cache. The problem I've been finding is that it can be dead weight late in a campaign because it's so many card slots. This makes me think that there are some cases where you wouldn't want this card, weighed against the times you definitely will.

Surprised no one has talked about how good it is with Bewitching, but here you go, now someone has.

I suppose my last warning is that if your play style involves your ending deck bearing little resemblance to your starting deck because of all the new cards you put in as you rack up the xp, be careful about putting 3x of a Level 1 card in. It can feel great overperforming E Cache in the first half, but then you have to face the decision of whether to cut cards that you paid for to make room for new ones. For example, Easy Mark might look a little silly in a deck that will eventually leverage Pickpocketing (2) or some other type of card that provides both cards and resources in a more efficient fashion.