Alessandra Zorzi
The Countess

Дослідник

Drifter. Socialite.

Спритник
  • 3
  • 4
  • 2
  • 4
Health: 7. Sanity: 7.

You may take an additional action during your turn, which can only be used to parley.

effect: +2. If you succeed, choose a non-Elite enemy at your location or at a revealed connecting location. Automatically evade that enemy.

"I love a good party."
Aleksander Karcz
The Feast of Hemlock Vale Investigator Expansion #9.

Alessandra Zorzi - Back

Дослідник

Deck Size: 30.

Deckbuilding Options: Rogue cards () level 0-5, cards with "parley" level 0-5, Neutral cards level 0-5.

Deckbuilding Requirements (do not count toward deck size): 3 copies of Beguile, Zamacona, 1 random basic weakness.

Alessandra's life of carefree luxury enables her to hop from a stately gala in New York City to a banquet with the Maharaja of India with ease. The Countess has sampled every dish, drink, and dame from Marrakesh to Chicago. The regal title is just an act, however: behind the scenes, Alessandra uses her cover to pilfer from art galleries, banks, and the hearts and pocketbooks of the rich and frivolous. Her silver tongue has gotten her into and out of plenty of trouble. A new job with the shadowy Zamacona brought Alessandra to Arkham, Massachusetts, where the Countess learned that more lurks beyond the suggestible rich and frivolous excess than she previously thought.
Alessandra Zorzi
Alessandra Zorzi

FAQs

(from the official FAQ or responses to the official rules question form)
  • Q: Can Alessandra Zorzi take Grizzled? A: Yes, Alessandra Zorzi can take Grizzled, because the word “parley” is physically printed on the card. (February 2024)
Last updated

Reviews

FoHV has been out for a month and still no reviews, so here's the description from my "One for All" series of decks that has a similar breakdown for each investigator:

Right out of the gate, Ali has an above average statline, the coveted 7/7 in health / sanity, AND a free action she should be able to use nearly every turn. What we're actually doing with that action is not at all straightforward. Parley actions are consistently inconsistent, but they are mostly event cards, and mostly require a nearby enemy. Events and variability means that as long as our Duchess has lots of cards and somebody to talk to, she should have solutions to lots of problems. Her signature card isn't just a powerful tool to make enemies do your bidding, it's a guide that shows you exactly where Alessandra wants to be: elegantly dancing around the board with her short-term frienemies.

True to her Rogue roots, this presents a very risky playstyle. You never know when you're going to run out of interesting things to say, and suddenly all those fishmen you've enamored remember that you stole 6 clams from them, and you're not actually their friend. You'll always want an exit strategy for when you run out of cards, resources, or pull an inopportune autofail. Or when your weakness Zamacona shows up... that guy's a serious creep!

Some archetypes that work well for this template:

  • The Socialite - Ali just wants to parley, so give her lots of parley cards that work with her stats (foot and book, naturally. Brain if you've got some boosts!). Anything that powers up your parley is important, and Fine Clothes is mandatory if you have it. You'll probably want some improved card draw to keep your hand flush with options (and to find your clothes!). Resources shouldn't be an issue if you bring along cards like Grift and Bianca "Die Katz". Speaking of Bianca, cards that potentially spawn enemies gain utility here as well.

  • Big Money - The previously mentioned resource generating parley cards are reason enough to give our Countess a head start on a big money build. The fact that having oodles of resources gives you ample opportunity to beef up any and all of your stats (with either static or temporary boosts) is also a very nice way to power up your parleys, regardless of the stat they're testing. Find some wealthy financiers to generate you some resources, and use those resources to fuel engines that make you better at telling everyone how rich and powerful you are! That's capitalism, baby!

  • Less is More Clues - With your signature in play, you don't really need a tonne of extra parley cards to fully utilize your bonus action. While there are some clue-oriented parley cards worth taking, this still leaves a lot of space for tools that help you investigate and boost your book; so you'll have a really smart army of baddies doing your dirty work at a good safe distance.

  • Less is More Fights - Agility based characters have gotten a lot of solid options to eliminate enemies over various releases, and Ali can use the same principles in the previous archetype to make her exceptional at enemy management and flying solo. You'll have unrivalled control over when, where, and how many enemies you want to tangle with, and can set the board up for some big multi-target hits. Perhaps best of all, you can laugh at Zamacona whenever he's dumb enough to show his ugly mug in your town.

  • Uniquely effective and staple cards for Alessandra: British Bull Dog, Fake Credentials, Eldritch Tongue, Fine Clothes, Bianca "Die Katz", Fox Mask, Backstab, Grift, Persuasion, Stir the Pot, Well-Dressed, Vamp, Flashlight, Leo De Luca, Lockpicks, Lone Wolf, Lucky Cigarette Case, Scrimshaw Charm, Streetwise, Underworld Support, "Hit me!", "I'm outta here!", Bank Job, Coup de Grâce, Narrow Escape, Scout Ahead, Slip Away, Nimble, Quick Thinking, basic neutral skills, Drain Essence

EzieBaikUben · 433
Black Fan and Leo (paired with Motivational Speech) are a great combo. 6 actions a turn. — MrGoldbee · 1402
Yeah, I'm very tempted to try a big money Zorzi deck! — EzieBaikUben · 433
Nice review, I miss one card to mention though, which should be a staple for her in any campaign, that has big non-elite enemies like the "Conglamoration of Spheres" or "Brood of Yog-Sothoth": String of Curses". Pair it with "Eldritch Tongue" (or "Double, Double" if you have the XP for that) for an auto-defeat and auto-clue. This tech was found by a fellow player of me, and he had a great target for the combo in "Hemlock Vale", too. — Susumu · 338
Nice, that looks like a good one! For my own sanity, I've restricted my list to cards I actually own, but I welcome anybody to use it to add to their own list! — EzieBaikUben · 433
String of curses is also a great solution for her weakness enemy. SoC can defeat an enemy with doom on them, which Zamacona gets by Ali doing parlays, which SoC triggers as being a parley. Surprised it not being noticed sooner as a solution to her weakness. — bookwyrm4 · 1
Unfortunately you can't parley with Zamacona, so I don't think that trick works. He doesn't care how many naughty words you know. — EzieBaikUben · 433