Zoey Samaras Solo Deck

Hey all! With the quarantine on, I thought it would be the perfect time to throw together a highly thematic, solo starter deck. (To be honest I leaned harder on theme than on uber-dominance, but the deck is quite playable.) Here’s a brief summary of how the deck functions:

~Investigation~

Sixth Sense – Enables Zoey to investigate using a (solid) base stat of 4 as opposed to a (mediocre) base stat of 2. This is ALMOST like converting her stat line to 4/4/4/2. The additional effect (involving , , , and icons) is a nice bonus. Additionally, in a guardian starter deck the occupied spell slot isn’t much of a loss. Given Zoey’s backstory, a ‘Sixth Sense’ of sorts is also highly thematic.

St. Hubert's Key – In a scenario in which you’re being rapidly bombarded with enemies with high health and combat stats you’ll likely reserve your accessory slot for Zoey's Cross. However, in scenarios in which you’re desperately scrambling around the board trying to scrape up clues before you run out of time, St. Hubert's Key is preferable. If you’ve already played Sixth Sense this will raise Zoey’s base skill during investigations up to 5! Even if you’ve yet to draw Sixth Sense you’ll increase her up to a respectable 3, which will be useful during investigations and (as a bonus) the odd treachery or scenario card that involves an check. As a final added perk, given Zoey’s religious zealotry, having her dragging around a Saint’s relic seems pretty thematic.

Guts – Once Sixth Sense is on the board this card functions as an investigation booster, with a card draw effect to boot.

Evidence! – This card would not have made the cut were it not for its 2 x icons, which (again) can be funneled into the odd treachery or scenario card that involves an check if necessary. It’s also useful when the stars align just a bit and Zoey cuts down an enemy while standing at a location housing a clue.

~Resource Generation~

Lone Wolf – In a solo starter deck, virtually any investigator who can include Lone Wolf should be including Lone Wolf, Dark Horses aside. (Also, I’d guess that religiously-motivated, borderline serial killers are typically “Lone Wolves”.)

Zoey Samaras herself should be funneling some free resources your way, particularly in a solo game in which every enemy that engages an investigator is engaging the sole investigator.

~Combat~

I went with blades here principally for thematic reasons, (i.e. who and what Zoey is), but they also play quite nicely.

Machete – An excellent base weapon for most guardians before they have the experience saved up for more exotic weaponry.

Survival Knife – Pairs nicely with Machete, and enables you to punish enemies putting the hurt on you (which they will on occasion, as you’re the only investigator to attack). Additionally, a likely-to-land 2 damage attack (typically made during the enemy phase) that does not consume an action is great for action economy (which is even more important in solo play than group play).

Zoey's Cross – A non-optional inclusion, but one that will shine in the aforementioned scenarios that are peppered with challenging enemies; test-less damage is one of the more powerful mechanisms in the game. If you’re running through a scenario in which St. Hubert's Key is preferable, simply burn this card off for the icons.

Vicious Blow – A Zoey Samaras equipped with a Machete and Zoey's Cross, who attacks while committing Vicious Blow, can deal a total of 4 damage having used only one action (with a skill of 6 BEFORE committing further skill cards, or 7 if your Beat Cop is in play)!

Daring – Once Zoey has her hands on a Machete or Survival Knife, with the possible addition of a Beat Cop, you can play this card with very little risk of it backfiring.

Overpower – Make a souped up attack with some built in card draw to boot.

Beat Cop – A solid increase to , damage and horror soak, and test-less damage in an emergency? Yes please. (Of note; Beat Cop may get swapped out for another ally or a tougher Beat Cop as you accumulate experience.)

Dodge – It’s a solo game. You’re on your own. As you work your way through a campaign you WILL be getting swiped at by bosses and some of the nastier elites on occasion.

~Other Inclusions~

Take the Initiative – This card absolutely SHINES in solo play! Use it to shore up an attack, investigation, or any other action for that matter as the FIRST action you take during the investigation phase. There’s no other investigators around to muck this up! Additionally, this card is great for passing skill tests that arise on treacheries or scenario cards during the mythos phase. Because the text on the card reads “this phase” (as opposed to the more typical “this turn” or “per turn”) you could pass the skill test on a horrific treachery during the mythos phase, and then bang out a successful attack or investigation during the investigation phase, all during the same turn (if you happen to have two copies of Take the Initiative in your hand). Generally speaking, if you draw this card, save it for when you really need it; it’s something of an insurance policy.

Unexpected Courage – Again, shore up an attack, investigation, other action, reaction to a treachery or scenario card, etc. ad nauseam.

Manual Dexterity – There are enough tests on treachery cards to make this inclusion worth it. Additionally, on the rare occasion Zoey absolutely has to evade an enemy, combining this card with Daring gives her chance (albeit with some risk involved). Plus good old card draw.

Guts (Again) – There is no shortage of treacheries that involve skill tests in this game. Pass said skill tests and pop some card draw while you’re at it.

~Survivability~

Something Worth Fighting For – Guardians with mediocre sanity stats fall to horror far more often than they do to damage. Additionally, you may be running with St. Hubert's Key. This card functions as an offset.

Dodge – . . . has already been covered.

~Recap~

So that’s the deck. Again, I’m hoping it fits into a niche for players who are running a solo game, and enjoy a hearty serving of theme in their decks. I also think it’s a solid deck for beginners. Lastly, if you want to use it in a group game, just tear out those two copies of Lone Wolf and replace them with two level 0 cards from literally any class/color and you’ll still have a newbie friendly, easily playable deck.