Hoods

As there is only the one review at time of writing, I want to throw my two cents in.

This is a tough weakness to deal with, though you do have options.

1) As everyone has mentioned Ornate Bow can both handle this. The problem is they cost XP, 6xp for the bow. As well as the reload cost.

2) Auto Evade with Breaking and Entering plus Waylay. A zero health cost method for dealing with the weakness. This costs 1 more resource than Ornate Bow, arguably the best method of dealing with hoods by yourself, but requires two cards, though it nets you a clue.

3) Use her combat stat of 3, to boost damage with Brute Force, .18 Derringer, Fire Axe Chainsaw. The problem with these is they are unreliable without over-commiting meaning you must drop in additional resources/cards/actions to handle the problem.

Edit: As people have pointed out Brute Force can't be used with Cheap Shot making hoods even tougher to deal with.

Now of course if you have a guardian on your location with a one shot weapon and a turn after, that's ideal...but unrealistic. So I'd say compared to other investigators this is a rough one. I would place it up there, but behind, with Call of the Unknown, Abandoned and Alone, and the horrific Dark Memory.

. · 35
Cheap Shot sounds like a very bad idea. You certainly *don't* want to evade the hoods. — trazoM · 9
I'm assuming that they were suggesting to "boost" Cheap Shot to deal 3 damage, defeating them before you apply the evade. But, Cheap Shot isn't a basic fight action anyway, so you don't get the bonus damage. — toastsushi · 74
Brute Force by itself is a pretty good answer to Hoods if you can find another combat pip or two to commit. — Death by Chocolate · 1489
Made massive edits to gramamr, spelling, and cleared up my thoughts. Was obvisouly way to tired when writing the review. Though I didn't recognize the interaction with brute force so I have left an edit: to that. — . · 35
Breaking and Entering still triggers the reaction attack from Hoods. The reaction from Hoods is on the evasion, not an evade traited action. — suika · 9511
My vote would go to Reckless Assault and a Brute Force if you aren't running the bow for some reason, though I'm not sure Rita can do much better than the Bow for her hand slots. — suika · 9511
Gené Beauregard

PRO

  • An and boosting ally. There are several rogues and (and a few seekers) whose bread and butters are those two stats. Seekers in general are starved for Intellect boosting allies as well, so Gené is a great alternative to someone who would otherwise stay with Dr. Milan for an entire campaign. Even if they wont get much use out of the boost.
  • You can move a clue or an non-Elite enemy either to or from your location. This is an amazing ability that opens up all kind of useful interactions (listed below).
  • 2 health and sanity will help Gené here soak at least some damage, or survive effects that hurt your allies such as Centuries of Secrets.

CON

  • Costs 5 resources (by time of writing Arkhamdb says 2, but I believe that's wrong). 5 is a lot, even for the two richest classes in the game. Losing poor Genè to a Crypt Chill on round 2 will be painful, so beware.
  • Genés ability to move enemies don't work on Elites. And that's fair, but it means that she'll be less useful in some scenarios than others.
  • 3 Xp will restrict this card to dedicated rogue and seekers (and Lola).

I think Genè is one of the greatest allies this game has seen so far and justly priced at 3 Xp. The one thing holding her back, really, is how expensive she is.

Gene is an upgrade over Milan in a great many decks, especially those that has some sort of synery with Genès abilities to move clues and enemies, such as Ursula Downs, Trish Scarborough and Monterey Jack. The only one left sad here is dethroned Lola Santiago, really. And don't feel too bad for her; Lola will still see actions in decks that prefer her clues-for-cash ability.


Things you can do with Genés ability

Feel free to add more in the comments

Clues

  • Drag a clue after you as you move to the next location. This is useful if you need to move away from something, for example an exhausted enemy. Or if you have a free move effect such as Pathfinder.
  • Move a clue away from a Victory Point location.
  • Move clues onto locations with lower shroud values.
  • Move a clue to your location so you can use abilities or cards that need to have a clue present. Trish' investigator ability is one example, Inquiring Mind is another.
  • Clump clues together, so you can pick them all up with cards such as Deduction or Archaic Glyphs.

Enemies

(remember, non-Elite only)

  • Moving enemies away is a great way to make them irrelevant. Even hunter enemies wont like being left several locations behind. Or you can move them to someone who will benefit from killing them off, such as Yorick.
  • If you're already engaged with an enemy and you can afford an attack of opportunity, just move to a new location. Then use Genè to move that enemy away from your location. It's kinda strange that this works, but I can't see why it shouldn't. You can even move enemies that are engaged with your team mates.
olahren · 3561
Another application: Move an enemy onto you if you want to evade it either for Pickpocketing (2) or even just to turn off retaliate. Commit some rogue skills for profit. Probably best in Finn or Trish, as Finn gets a bonus action to evade, and Trish can get bonus clues from an enemy at her location. — Zinjanthropus · 230
You can also move an ennemy to the location in which an other investigation will play Scene of the crime to get 2 testless clues. And maybe use Grete Wagner, Evidence and/or Roland Banks ability to get even more testless clues. — AlexP · 285
There's a _lot_ of situations where moving a clue is as good as discovering one. — Zinjanthropus · 230
So you can move an enemy away and just break an engagement? Or how does that work? — housh · 171
Housh: Yes, I believe you can. Genès card clearly state that you can move non-elite enemies from your location, to a connecting location. And you're only engaged to enemies that share your location. — olahren · 3561
Also use gene to try to engineer more efficient Dynamite Blast plays. Especially nice with Chuck Fergus in Jenny or Skids. — Zinjanthropus · 230
If you have the Hiking Boots from Edge of the Earth you can use Gene to feed clues back into depleted locations, making it easier to earn more free moves in a backtracking scenario. — OrionJA · 1
CON: You have to dress up some idiot in a bear suit with balloons. — profparm · 1
PRO: when someone refers to you as such, you get to say, "Or is it?" And reveal you're gene parmesan, the best. — profparm · 1
I really like the idea of exploring forward and just punting enemies back to the fighters to deal with. Often the fighters waste actions moving to or engaging enemies and you can just move into a space with an enemy and kick them back. Or if you have a way to move avoid AOO, you can just leave them behind. Excited to try it out with Monterey Jack. — Taevus · 783
One small trick (which maybe a common sense) for this card is aiming get rid of up to 2 clues on a location you are heading to. When you are 2 locations away from it, move towards it once (now you are next to that location) and drain a clue. Next turn, move to that location then push a clue away. Can be great when there is a skill on that location which says you have to get rid of all the clues first. While clues can be used to advance, now you can play the location skill ahead of time. (Then your friends maybe grabs the clue you pushed away.) — 5argon · 11258
What happens if you move an enemy that is already engaged to an investigator? Does it disengage, or does the engaged investigator move with the enemy? — Arkhon · 1
It disengages, as it no longer has an investigator present at its new location. — olahren · 3561
Yet another use for this amazing Ally lies in mitigating Ursula's signature weakness, Call of the Unknown (See my short review on that card's page). — SilverTwilightLodgeJanitor · 7
Medical Texts

Finally the upgraded version of the healy book. Do I get it right that you can use it also when it is exhausted, but the next fail has to deal the damage? It would be more punishing if you could not use it while exhausted though. But two possible heals with no limited uses? That’s just broken! Love it

holandato · 2
Yes, you can use it while exhausted, but if you failed you would have to deal 1 damage. It's not that powerful, though; 1 action to heal 1 damage is quite expensive in terms of time. This was always the complaint with First Aid (0), though in the hands of Daisy, perhaps with Abigail Foreman, this starts to look quite nifty. — AndyB · 955
Your point is taken, AndyB, but most seekers can get — togetic271 · 5
Most seekers can succeed on a 4 intellect test without breaking a sweat, so I think that makes this a reliable way of healing 2 damage for one action, which is way better. — togetic271 · 5
Thermos

This card might see more play with the upcoming neutral permanent added in the edge of the earth expansion. In the thick of it (not yet added on the site), 3 Exp and two trauma's of your choice might turn this in a very efficient heal even at the first scenario.

problem is... it's still not good. it's way too expensive for the heals it provides regardless of trauma — Difrakt · 1325
I would have considered it for Agnes, if I didn't play her last before getting TFA. It has the same resource cost as a ".45 Automatic" for guardians, has 1 ammo less, but deals testless damage. (And also on a 2 damage per action ratio.) Problem is, now with upgraded "Sign Magick" spells like CoM or the new one from "Edge of the Earth" might be a better option for a healing Agnes. Beforehand the fact, that they use an arcane slot was much in favour to Thermos. However, for this combo, you don't need the new neutral permanent, as Agnes certainly rather take AR. — Susumu · 381
This card is great for Agnes. Think of it as a weapon that deals 6 testless damages that does not use up an arcane slot. And Agnes can easily pay for this using Forbidden Knowledge. — liwl0115 · 42
I do like that ITTOI "activates" half of the Thermos as of Mission 1, making this a 0XP card that heals 6d/h for 4 resources and 4 actions that anybody can take. In addition to Agnes, I'd say Bob Jenkins and Dexter Drake also may be fond of hot soup, as they can both situationally drop that cost down to 3 resources and 3 actions. They both love slotless assets, they both likely to want ITTOI for Obol or possibly even to Versatile in Geared Up, and if they pick up Haste later on, Thermos provides a flexible third "activate" action to be used whenever. — HanoverFist · 748
Flashlight

There is a lot of writing on how good flashlight is at what it does, but I think it is critical to understand why flashlight is so good in a 'meta' sense to really start to understand Arkham as a game.

As one of my friends put it, "Someone who isn't normally expected to get clues successfully getting 2-3 clues is the difference between winning and losing a scenario in multiplayer"

Arkham, at its core, all about efficiently getting through the act deck, and while there are combat or movement focused acts, the overwhelming majority of scenarios are advanced primarily through investigation: you are, after all, an investigator.

So while a strong, two handed gun, or a deck with every card focused for tackling enemies and threats, is going to be very good at clearing those threats you face out fast, you need to ask yourself why you are removing threats. In general, killing enemies is done specifically to allow you to safely go get more clues. So if your just... not assisting with clues at all, it doesn't matter that you kill enemies twice as fast. Who cares that you killed a 3 health enemy in 1 action instead of 2 because you got rid of your .45 really early in a campaign, if you are going to spend every turn sharpening your sword and polishing your gun rather than using that action to actually help win the scenario?

This doesn't mean every deck needs flashlight: Mystic, Seekers, and arguably Rogues don't really need it usually. Survivors have other tools but often want Flashlight as well. But I see so many guardians falling for the trap option of being 'pure combat' and trying to take that entire dimension of the game on alone, and abandoning all else, and that is a huge mistake.

So Flashlight teaches us this: Your deck needs plans for things to do that actually help your team win the scenario, rather than just endlessly handling threats. Yes, even in 4 player multiplayer. Yes, even if you are Mark.

Killing enemies super efficiently isn't the same as cluvering really efficiently. A seeker, mystic, or rogue just nomming up clues faster than normal is helping the entire team get through the scenario faster, reducing the amoung of encounters everyone faces, and freeing up others to explore other easier locations, regain resources, or explore because they are 'overkilling' a location and gathering faster than normal.

But a fighter like Guardians or Survivors killing the maybe the small handful of 3 health enemies they face early on in a campaign doesn't help anyone else. It just helps that fighter, because no one else really cares how fast the enemy dies, just that it isn't attacking them while they seek out clues. Outside of bosses (who, again, you spend a minority of your time fighting so being a bit less efficient at that early is totally ok), doing lots of damage very fast only helps the team if you can, after efficiently killing something, go on to do other helpful things! So have tools to do other helpful things!

Those tools don't have to be Flashlight, and eventually you may need to leave it behind to get tools to deal with escalating threats, but you need to do more than slap two Evidence! or Look what I found into your deck and calling it a day even once you leave Flashlight behind. Almost every investigator has good options for replacing it, even if it as simple as getting a 'resources for stat boost' card that can boost your investigates.

dezzmont · 222
Hard disagree. Your role in a team depends on team composition, but in general specialization at higher player counts as a guardian is more effective than trying to also be able to flex investigate. You can contribute to clues, but your contribution should stop at Evidence! or Grete (3) rather than to keep a Flashlight and use a 1h weapon, or god forbid getting Keen Eye. If there isn't a threat on the board, fill your hand to get more commits, get more resources to play that Extra Ammunition, or play some Soothing Melodies to support your team. Trying to investigate by boosting Int on a Guardian is generally a poor use of actions and resources. — suika · 9511
And course it matters how fast the enemy dies. It means that, if you miss (because you inevitably will), you have another swing at it instead of having your Seeker waste their turn with a monster on them. It means that on a bad mythos and three enemies spawn, you can kill two with vicious blows while the rogue engages and evades the last one. It means that you have spare actions to follow your team around instead of lagging behind because it took you three actions to kill a monster. It means that if a monster spawns on your teamate 2 locations away, you can move x2 and kill it in a single round. This is why two-handed weapons are generally favored. — suika · 9511
Hawkeye is trash, and most guardians will either run Flashlight or some cross class stuff. — dezzmont · 222
Accidently hit enter: However, spending your entire game just building up ammo and drawing smashing blows makes you a huge dead weight in most scenarios. It is FAR PREFERABLE for you to invest time and resources into ending the scenario sooner than prepping for it to go longer. Yes, if you use a .45 or enchanted blade for scenario 2 you are gunna sometimes have to toss in an extra attack, or the seeker or rogue will have to use their combat tool to finish something off because you missed once in maybe 16 or, if your really struggling, one in 8 attacks. However, a seeker losing 1/8th an action in exchange for not having to spend TURNS going to a low shroud location to clear that out as well. By all means, don't feel obligated to stick to Timeworn Brand if the scenarios start tossing high HP at you, and for the love of god don't get hawkeye, but strongly consider skill boosts like Lucky! or Live and Learn on Tommy or Yorick, or using flashlight for the first few scenarios on Mark (who is, in fact, top tier specifically BECAUSE of his investigative power weirdly enough). People who are ONLY "Hitters" tend to be consistently be dead weight, and the difference between a good and bad guardian is being able to find the opening to snipe 3 clues to save a Seeker a 4 move tax. — dezzmont · 222
This difference only increases with XP. "Wasting" an action or two drawing cards when there's no enemies around doesn't cost you the game. On the other hand, enemies spawning on your teammates while you're split up from them and unable to get to them in time because you want to investigate another location can waste their entire turn, and considering how a typical seeker approximately 2x-3x as effective as getting clues as a guardian will be with, that will make a far greater difference. Arkham is a game of risk mitigation. The downside of the risk of having a monster spawn that you can't deal with far outweighs the downside of wasting a few actions when no enemies are around. — suika · 9511
It's not that you can't investigate or get clues as a guardian. Flashlight at 0xp is fine, and if needed you can use Evidence for its icons, Grete (3) is also a great card. However, that doesn't change the overall point that specialization as a guardian is more effective in the majority of 3-4 player teams, simply because of the power differential between 1h and 2h weapons. — suika · 9511
and the inability to effectively add action compression for investigate actions as a guardian. — suika · 9511
I had mainly played with 4 players on normal and in my experience every player should take some tools to get clues. With 4 players there are man 8 clues/ 2 shroud locations in every scenario and seekers are surpringly bad at getting more than one clue/action. So I think on lower difficulties it's always fine to help your seeker. — Tharzax · 1
I lean towards Suika on this one. I think the review dismisses way too easily the importance of enemy and encounter mitigation in multiplayer. First off, 2-3 clues is very rarely the difference between winning and losing in multiplayer because the doom clock is looser in higher counts, your Seeker/Cluever can spend the time getting the clues as long as they have an open path to do so. The challenge in high counts isn't action efficiency, it's encounter survival. As a fighter, you care very much about spending time "sharpening your weapons" because you don't want a potential draw of 4 enemies in a single round to end one of your investigators. The goal is momentum, not steamrolling. — StyxTBeuford · 13049
I mean even just looking at it from an efficiency standpoint, a Flashlight is at best 3 clues for 4 actions assuming all those actions succeed (which in fairness they typically do). Very good in solo where most locations only have one clue, and obviously for low in gators especially who don't investigate so well with Mag Glass. But 3 clues is at best 3/4 of a location's worth of clues in 4 player, or a full location in 3 player, with many locations being double that number of clues. — StyxTBeuford · 13049
I also agree with Suika here. I have played many 4-player campaigns with friends, and after all this time the best resolution was making highly specialized cluever-fighter pairs, where cluever was able to consistently investigate at least 4 clues per turn (not counting movement) and fighter was able to deal (also consistently) 6+ damage per turn. In my opinion, ideally, there is no place for any clue cards for fighters in multi. — error · 35