Kick in the Door and Stab Them in the Face - (guide included

This was my deck to pair with a cluever Barnaby, and it worked so well I had to share it. I went for Gambit, since the usual Fortune and Improvised deck builds have too much overlap with George's pool, and though the only gambit card I ended up taking was Kicking the Hornet's Nest, it was so effective (and fun!) I don't regret it at all.

This is primarily a fighter/support deck, but with some ways to pick up a few clues as you go, and we ultimately forget we had access to Survivor cards, favoring instead the beautiful array of Guardian events.

We're light on assets with just one copy of each, but you should be be playing enough events and getting enough card draw that you'll go through most of your deck. That said, you may wish to pick up a second copy of your hand-weapon.

(I know people love Book of War on Marion, but I wanted a more straightforward reusable stab things for 2 damage option.)

Gameplay

Try to play an event every turn for the card draw, even if you don't have a good follow-up event ready to play.

Overall, this is a deck that wants enemies to fight, but you could investigate if you had to.

Go ahead and blow your Determineds on non-event tests if that's what you have to help you pass. You don't usually need them for your fight events, you have other means to add to , and they'll be the first thing you drop if you have to discard cards.

Don't be afraid to take a little damage or horror. Evading and will tests are not your strong suit and that's okay. You have some healing.

Example of a great turn:

On a location with a couple clues, fish for an enemy in the encounter deck with Kicking the Hornet's Nest, which gets you a free clue (even if you're unlucky and don't find an enemy), an enemy engaged with you (maybe something annoying that'd normally be aloof or spawn elsewhere), which replenishes an offering on your Wolf Mask, gives you some resources, a card draw from your base ability, and a free event play. If it's a 3 health enemy, you might play Clean Them Out for another couple resources, doing 1 damage, then exhaust your Blessed Blade, adding a couple tokens to the bag and finishing them off. Then use Grete Wagner to nab a second clue token, and you still have one more action on your turn to do with what you will.

Or:

Go fishing during the Mythos phase with On the Hunt (lvl 3) and pull out that Elite baddie with a VP. Start your turn with a Scene of the Crime for 2 clues, a card draw, and another event play. Say this guy has 5 health. Hit him with a One-Two Punch, and then an old-school regular punch with a Vicious Blow, and you still finish off the enemy with an action to spare.

Boost your skills as needed between your Wolf Mask, Physical Training, and Soul Sanctification.

Help your Friends:

Manage enemies around the board with "Get over here!", Righteous Hunt, and On the Trail.

Heal other investigators with Soothing Melody or toss them a Jury-Rig for their items. Not to mention, support with the ever-popular Stand Together for cards and resources!

Note for Drowned City:

This is a good deck for the Do No Harm task, since you have a good amount of healing. (And take a look at Soul Sanctification, you can "heal" even at full health and still get credit for it!) Though I do recommend bringing Laudanum or Expedition Gear on your expedition as a reliable supplement for task progress.

Upgrade Path and Card Notes

Top Priorities:

• Machete > Blessed Blade (lvl 4)
  Machete's limitations can be difficult in multiplayer—upgrade to level 4 Blessed Blade as soon as possible.

• Daring x 2 > Sweeping Kick x 2
  Sweeping Kick is key in this deck. A cheap +3 +1 damage fight event with an automatic evade? You need it. Don't be afraid to play this even if you end up killing the enemy with it if it's the event you have on hand. Losing your free evade is a problem for future Marion.

Diversify:

Marion's ability wants you to have different events, and there are a lot of nice higher level cards to pick from. The Diversify upgrades are all singletons, don't take more than one.

• Elaborate Distraction > On the Trail (lvl 1)
  Elaborate Distraction can be fun, but it's also expensive and situational. On the Trail is far more generally useful. Prioritize this one.

• Clean Them Out > On the Hunt (lvl 3)
  Played during the Mythos phase, On the Hunt won't trigger your ability, but level 3 On the Hunt is so good. Free to play, dig out any enemy you like (which also shuffles the encounter deck in scenarios that try to make you churn to the bottom few cards), and you get resources when you beat it!

• Jury-Rig > Righteous Hunt
  You don't need two copies of jury-rig. Go grab that aloof enemy over there! Or the monster engaged with your buddy. And who could say no to a few bless tokens to boot.

• Jury-Rig > Enchant Weapon
  Maybe you don't need any copies of jury-rig. They're nice early on as a 0 cost event to toss around with your free play, but Enchant Weapon is just better. Your may only be 2, but +2 is still +2, and an extra +1 damage on your blade each round could come in very handy. Plus, every so often the game is mean and you need a Relic specifically, to kill something.

• Ready for Anything > Galvanize
  While a good card for Marion on its face, as a Bold event, Ready for Anything's play opportunities are highly limited. You can't combo it with Scene of the Crime or Kicking the Hornet's Nest. Drop at least one copy of it soon. Galvanize is great for when you really gotta fight, and you have up to three targets for it between Grete Wagner, Blessed Blade, and Enchant Weapon.

• Clean Them Out or Monster Slayer > Fang of Tyr'thrha
  I am going ahead and putting this upgrade down, but it's honestly a very low priority purchase. It's a tempting buy, I know, but at 4 XP and 3 resources to play, it's expensive. It's also a bit of a trap. It's so good you'll want to save it for something worthwhile, which means it's taking the place of something else you'd be more likely to play, and you may never play it at all.

Upgrade:

Higher level versions of your cards to upgrade when you can. Some are more key than others. These and the Diversify options are only loosely listed in order of priority. Do what feels right for you.

• Inspiring Presence > Inspiring Presence (lvl 2)
  Base or upgraded, try to use this card on a turn where you're killing two enemies to get two uses from Grete Wagner. The upgrade is great for the pip and horror heal if you'd used Grete for a bit of sanity soak.

• Physical Training > Physical Training (lvl 2)
  Straightforward way to boost your and when needed. Wolf Mask and Soul Sanctification are better of course, if you have the offerings on them, but sometimes you don't and you need the 1 to 1 fallback option. The upgraded version makes it more worth the action to put into play.

• Vicious Blow > Vicious Blow (lvl 2)
  Always a classic. Not a super-high priority upgrade, but definitely one to get at some point.

• Stand Together > Stand Together (lvl 3)
  A great card for Marion, as a non-situational event you can use any time, and the upgrade is excellent. Who doesn't love more card draw. Ideally you'd have another investigator at your location to share with, but don't be afraid to be selfish if it's the event you have to play. Keep your engine going.

• "Get over here!" > "Get over here!" (lvl 2)
  Fast events are less important for Marion, but the up to two locations away is really what makes the upgrade worth it.

• Grete Wagner > Grete Wagner (lvl 3)
  You love the + on either version, and she's your best friend for finding clues. You'll get little use from the + on the upgrade, but one more health is one more clue, and being able to nab from connecting locations can be very handy.

• Hallowed Mirror > Hallowed Mirror (lvl 3)
  The Soothing Melodies you get from the Hallowed Mirror are amazing events for Marion. Good to play almost any time to heal yourself, heal Grete, heal other investigators, their allies, or as offerings on Soul Sanctification, and you get even more card draw! The upgrade is very nice, making great events even better.

• One-Two Punch > One-Two Punch (lvl 5)
  The best fight event, keep both copies to the end. Base One-Two Punch is already a very strong card and the upgraded version, while very nice, is also expensive XP-wise. Like Fang of Tyr'thrha, as tempted as you may be, this is a low priority upgrade.

• On the Trail (lvl 1) > On the Trail (lvl 3)
  Rescue your friends and pick up some clues on your way! Level 3 is nice to have, but low priority honestly.

• Second Wind > Second Wind (lvl 2)
  Heal and draw a card (then draw another card and play an event!). A solid upgrade to lessen the cost and increase the healing.

• Monster Slayer > Monster Slayer (lvl 5)
  Note the strikethrough, I do not recommend this upgrade. It's expensive to purchase, it can no longer be used on Elite enemies, it doesn't even give you a bonus to your skill check, and it's a trap, tempting you to save it for someone "worth it."

And More:

• Take the Initiative > Double Down
  These are your all-purpose skill cards, for when you've really got to pass a test outside of your usual wheelhouse. Double Down gives you flexibility on when in the turn you can play it, with a much higher +skill potential depending on how much you spend on it. You might decide to upgrade both your Take the Initiatives into it, but sometimes resources are dear, so I only took one.

• Soul Sanctification
  I've mentioned this card a few times now. I took it late in my own upgrade path, and wish I'd gotten it a little sooner, but it'll also be more worth it to take after you've upgraded Hallowed Mirror. Marion wants to play events every turn, and sometimes the event you have is for healing that you don't need. Soul Sanctification is an elegant solution, transforming the waste into bonuses on future skill tests.