Rise to the Occasion

This card raises a question with regards to base skill vs skill value. As other people have pointed out, this card will synergize with Dark Horse but not Duke since Duke effects your base skill, but Dark Horse simply grants you a bonus. Given that Dark Horse shores up all the skill icons (, , , and ) it is safe to assume that any other asset that grants a passive icon boost such as Peter Sylvestre or Moonstone would also apply here.

I bring these up because if I am playing Calvin Wright or Patrice Hathaway with their measly 0 or 2 in the majority of their stats, it isn't all that uncommon to find 4 value targets to pitch Rise to the Occasion, putting you at +1, then whatever additional bonuses you gain from your assets or additional committed cards. Coincidentally, running upgraded Peter, Moonstone, Dark Horse, +1 from Dig Deep, puts me at a 9 vs 5 when dealing with Watcher from Another Dimension, and all I had to do was pitch this and spend a resource. What I'm saying is, RTTO gives you one up or at least evens the odds of a particularly difficult test, and then it's up to you to do the rest of the legwork. If the test is important, then you'll be glad to have this card along.

The philosophy of the card isn't to make you succeed though; it's designed to give you a fighting chance at a skill test you ordinarily would have no business attempting. You might wonder why you'd attempt to do something you aren't good at to begin with, but I'd argue that comes up far more often than you might think, especially in solo, and especially if you have specific goals you want to achieve.

This card would be helpful for someone like "Ashcan" Pete because you can only use Duke for Fight Actions, which means you can't use him to break down Locked Doors or to break into the Museum Halls, and don't even think about making a Parley. You also might need just one more hit on enemies with 3 or 5 hit points. Most scenarios do in fact have enemies and shroud values of 4, and sometimes even 5. William Yorick and Rita Young both might like a copy for checks on Treacheries of 5 (combined with Guts, not instead of, is the key. Or like I mentioned, combined with Dark Horse, Peter, etc.) or for tests on high shroud values, especially if playing solo or if there isn't a in the group for whatever reason. Or if you're simply seperated. The rule of thumb is to be 2 up, so in most cases, you'll only need one other card to pitch, but you don't even need to do that if you've got an asset or two giving you passive +1's everywhere.

The trick with this card, I think, is to know which stat you'll intend to use it for when adding it to your deck. If you have 2 , then most likely you'll use it with that. If you have low , then hold onto it for that lethal encounter card. And who knows, you might find yourself facing those rare 6 shroud or combat values, and suddenly you have a shot against something you couldn't have predicted.

LaRoix · 1645
Got some suspect that I would have misplayed it with Duke and your comment confirmed it. The fact that it came out together kinda trick me. — Pawley · 30
Charon's Obol

Ok, so I have a probably very niche question:

So the card reads "When earning experience during the resolution of a scenario, if you were not defeated during that scenario, you earn 2 additional experience. If you were defeated during that scenario, you are killed."

My question focuses on the last "that". My reading is that if you were defeated but did not earn any experience, you wouldn't die. Because the "that" is referring to a scenario in which you earned experience during the resolution. Is this reading correct?

PanicMoon · 2
Every scenario has the investigators earn experience as part of its resolution, even if the amount earned was zero, so I think your reading is not correct. To the best of my recollection, every resolution that doesn't involve the investigators being killed has the phrase, "The investigators earn X experience, where X is equal to the amount of victory points in the victory display." It is during this step that the obol would trigger and kill you, even if X=0. — SGPrometheus · 821
There are a few exceptions where no experience clause exists. Although without explicitely looking them up, the one I specifically remember involves redoing the scenario instead of advancing. — Death by Chocolate · 1479
That's an interesting case Death by Chocolate brings up. It does specifically say to resolve investigator death IIRC (or maybe it was just defeat?). I always assumed that was code for "Yes, you still get Obol'd, even though everybody else gets to try again." lol — Zinjanthropus · 229
But, say if you are defeated and get no XP but instead have to redo the scenario: what happens when you then get to non-redo resolution next time around? I mean you were still defeated 'during this scenario' even if it wasn't this latest attempt. Surely the XP line kills you now, even if the redo gave you a brief unexpected reprieve? — RichardPlunkett · 12
Research Librarian

Oh, you bespectacled, bookish, innocent old man. You harmless, selfless, peace-loving soul! How much you have been made to suffer in your Arkham career! It makes me shiver to think of it. The investigators use you, and then they lose you. They send you into the stacks for that all-important tome that only YOU know how to find. Then they whisk it from your hands and, by way of thank you, kick you, screaming, into the jaws of the next ghoul who wanders by. You serve the investigators, and then the investigators serve you (to the ghoul, that is).

I cannot save you from your fate, you bow-backed bringer of books, you ambler of aisles, you sorter of scrolls and meal of monsters. But I can honor you by providing an updated review of what you add to our decks, all while receiving nothing -- oh, worse than nothing! -- in return.

LikeAssur's review below was right for the moment (three years ago), but since then much has changed, and the humble research librarian has become an increasingly excellent asset. Here are the main changes:

1) We now have quite a few very high-powered tomes. Pnakotic Manuscripts and The Necronomicon occupy the top shelf of the updated tome library. The new Old Book of Lore is also quite good. These tomes cost quite a bit of XP, so it's be a shame for them to molder at the bottom of your deck all scenario. Research Librarian prevents that from happening. Think of it this way. You know that granddaddy of all search cards, No Stone Unturned. It costs a gigantic 5xp. If the best couple cards in your deck happen to be tomes, then in many situations the research librarian is just as good, at 0xp! If you don't have an ally out, he's actually better, crazy as that sounds. In the past he may have only been able to find you, at best, the Encyclopedia. But our man ain't dealing that weak sh*t anymore. Like that kid in Breaking Bad, he's got the REAL stuff now. It ain't always blue, but it IS always magic.

2) There is an easy, SO easy way to offset the Research Librarian's 2 resource cost. Just stick a copy or two of Astounding Revelation in your deck. Since the RL searches your whole deck, Astounding Revelation is guaranteed to trigger every time you play him. I do hesitate to recommend this strategy on humanitarian grounds, though... I really don't know how many mind-blowing revelations this poor guy can take. It just seems mean, every time you send him for a tome, to also demolish all his safe assumptions and confront him with the terrifying magnitude of the mythos.

3) The Research Librarian can now be recycled. If you have him in your deck, also consider a copy or two of Calling in Favors. This card lets you pull the librarian back to your hand, and go fishing in your deck for a stronger ally, offsetting the cost of the new ally by two. Thus, the RL not only lends you sweet books for free that you, because you're a crappy friend, never return; he'll also introduce you to his cool best friend Dr. Milan, who, because you are a REALLY crappy friend, you'll start hanging out with separately.

There are two takeaways here. 1) The Research Librarian is a giving, lovely person who makes our decks better in so many ways. 2) We do not deserve him! The RL deserves an investigator willing to invest in a committed, long term relationship. I will be that investigator! When I get around to it, I'm going to post my Literary Lives Matter deck to Arkhamdb, which will have the research librarian as the only ally, NO tomes because, seriously, he's an ally, not an errand boy, and two copies of Trusted, so my man knows he's appreciated.

10/10 review. That poor Research Librarian deserves so much more respect from people — Zinjanthropus · 229
We all must make some sacrifices for the greater good — Django · 5108
I always knew Django was a front for Carl Sanford... — Mordenlordgrandison · 456
The research librarian is hard done by, but at least this review gives him the recognition he deserves. All hail the research librarian! — SGPrometheus · 821
Interesting read. I definitely think you've nailed the head on the coffin with this one. I think cards that search your entire deck are VERY powerful and I am always wondering if we will get upgrades for cards like Flare or Prepared for the Worst that will expand to search more cards, if not the entire deck. However, I got to ask, is he any good with Mandy? Because Mandy's treachery shuts down the search, doesn't it? And it's bound to be there if you're searching the entire deck (unless you've managed to discard it I suppose). — LaRoix · 1645
@LaRoix I'd include the librarian in Mandy even without any tomes - specifically to force her weakness and make all future searches safe. — TheNameWasTaken · 3
I prefer rook in Mandy. Just 1 more resource for 2 soak, 3 searches and weakness removal — Django · 5108
@TheNameWasTaken So I like the idea of getting a treachery over and done with but... are you saying you'd play Research Librarian for the sole purpose of removing Mandy's signature weakness? Because Shocking Discovery will prevent you from getting the tome. So if you play Research Librarian turn 1, you are effectively spending a card, an action, and two resources for a 1/1 soak and an encounter card. I'm usually all for getting rid of weaknesses so I don't have to worry about them, but man. Guess it comes down to how important it is to get rid of Shocking Discovery vs improvising if it ruins a search mid game. — LaRoix · 1645
With Protecting the Aniriq, the dream of protecting our boy has finally come true. — suika · 9483
Prophesy

A binder filler, unfortunately. Depending on the scenario, it could be better than an Unexpected Courage or worse, but the reward when it DOES work is not enough to justify it. I'm hard pressed to think of a single deck I would include this in, even a Marie Lambeau Doom deck. There are a few things that could be done to make this card, if not good, at least playable:

  • Reduce the threshold to get the bonus, maybe to 2 and 5. It would only be worse than Unexpected Courage if there is 0 or 1 Doom, and becomes better quicker.

  • Remove the word "Instead" at the end. In other words, it becomes an Unexpected Courage at 3 Doom, then twice an Unexpected (???? Icons) at 6 doom.

I don't think either of these options makes it a staple, great card. They just push it into being playable in the Doom archetype.

JunkerMethod · 61
Both Patrice and possibly Amanda do just fine with this card. Definitely not binder fodder imo, but like most Mystic skills it’s below par. — StyxTBeuford · 13028
"Get over here!"

Do we think playing this card would provoke an attack of opportunity? I'm thinking yes since it's an action that counts as an Engage (as well as a Fight) and Engage actions do provoke and thus playing the multi-type card does get you hit by enemies already engaged with you. That is also counts as an Fight action doesn't save you.

krish · 50
I think if you aren't engaged with an enemy already, that would be the same as engaging an already engaged enemy and then fighting it as a single action — brkndevil · 19
It is Fast, so no. — duke_loves_biscuits · 1264
As duke_loves_biscuits noted, it is fast, so this question is a moot point for the level 2 version, but the level 0 isn't. A multi-type card won't get you hit because AoOs happen when an investigator "takes an action other than to fight, to evade, or to activate a parley or resign ability," The fight keyword makes this an action taken to fight (among other things) and thus it wouldn't provoke an AoO. — Death by Chocolate · 1479
Note that when you use a weapon's ability you are taking both a Fight action AND an Activate action. This was confirmed when MJ explained how Haste works. So Get Over Here is far from being an exceptional case where you are taking two types of action at the same time, once of which proviking AoO and the other not provoking AoO. It goes without saying that an action does not provoke AoO as long as even one of the types it qualifies as doesn't provoke AoO. — Killbray · 12015