Decoy Trap

This card has a lot of intriguing niche cases. First, if you have survivor access with a low dexterity but high intellect (like Darrell the photographer or Minh the non-photographer), this is a fast evade at +1. Dodge an enemy with your best stat without taking an action.

This is also a favorite of mine with Rita. If you suspect (or know) an enemy will spawn at a certain place under a certain condition, and they have one hit point, you get a chance to instant kill them. And that doesn’t even discard the card! OR just autotap a boss spawn.

In four player, when people can be all over the map, or enemies with doom can spawn far away, this card is insurance. This trick used to cost 2XP in rogue; now survivors get it for 0. Plus, a free teleport. On huge maps like in End of the Earth, this can help you cross the map and save entire turns. That used to only be the purview of mystics with portals.

The most normal use case is with the Trapper Miguel. Playing this and other traps adjacently (with his backpack) means that your team can set up a crude headquarters, an area where hunters or people that spawn adjacent simply start tapped. And if you’re moving steadily, multiple enemies can move into your trap over the course of a game, piling on the free actions.

I also see this as extremely useful in the Innsmouth conspiracy, which combines large maps with enemies you don’t want to engage. Leaving these behind you in a car chase guarantees enemies are going to have to deal with them.

Great symbols, too.

4/28/26

MrGoldbee · 1563

I know this is meant to make the card better, because if it costed an action to play it would be much, much worse, but I think a problem with these traps being fast is that they don't synergise at all with Miguel's ability (though they do with his signature). What I noticed is a lot of Survivor events are either fast or very contextual, which makes it hard to get the most of his extra action regularly. Granted, you can just have an extra action for emergency cache, and that is still great. — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/28/26

He wants to loop Ecache for economy. Few other options in Ch2. — MrGoldbee · 1563 4/28/26

What do you mean "autotap a boss spawn"? — AlderSign · 469 4/29/26

A boss spawns (when you advance an act, maybe) and you can get a free evade for 0 actions. — MrGoldbee · 1563 5/1/26

Need to further test the card, but my understanding is that if you evade any Hunter enemy, they will become exhausted but then become ready before the mythos phase, thus making this card totally useless.

4/26/26

floren · 2

No, it is not? You can attach it where you are, and if an hunter/patroler moves to your location, you can evade it to stop them from attacking you. I wouldn't say it's amazing, but it has its niche uses — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/26/26

You still end up engaged to the enemy, so need to spend another action to evade the enemy again. A card like dodge achieves the same, without a test and for one less resource, and I don't feel like I'm very excited to include Dodge in my guardian decks. Also the second part of the card does not do anything in the example you give. I feel like a line should be added to specify that if an enemy is evaded during the enemy phase, said enemy does not ready during that enemy phase, then I would be glad to play this. I mean the card surely has it's niche uses, but most of the time felt like a card that doesn't have any synergy with Miguel's ability and that needs multiple conditions to meet to become somewhat usable. — floren · 2 4/26/26

@floren It does something if you evade an enemy that is about to engage and attack ANOTHER Investigator. Meaning it can be used to protect someone from far away and them immediately tel — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/26/26

(thank you Arkham db) ...and then immediately teleport to deal with the enemy. It's not amazing by any means, but it's not actually useless — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/26/26

Also, enemies do not ready during the enemy phase, they ready during Upkeep. They EXHAUST during the enemy phase after attacking. — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/26/26

This card does a lot! The discard + teleport is even optional, so you can delay enemies in funnels. Speaking of, the teleport itself can be a game-changer in some scenarios, simply to traverse long distances and get to objectives. Not even mentioning the flexible and improved evade itself. Really, this is a good card. — AlderSign · 469 4/26/26

Rita can auto kill 1hp enemies far away. Goodbye, cultist. — MrGoldbee · 1563 4/26/26

Unlike Dodge, it might work against multiple enemies. (Over several rounds, unless you discard the card for the move.) Or dodge all attacks of a massive enemy. Or evade a newly spawned enemy in the mythos phase, rather than a hunter in enemy phase. — Susumu · 389 4/26/26

That said: we'll se, how good these traps will work in Chapter 2 context, in Chapter 1cards like Ambush, Snare Trap, Hiding Spot were never great. — Susumu · 389 4/26/26

@Susumu It really depends how Chapter 2 handles enemy spawning and movement. The more enemies move around, like Hunters and Patrolers, the stronger the traps get, specifically if they don't spawn on your ass automatically, but far away. This card ironically might get better on the opposite condition however, if the enemy spawns on top of you, at least assuming spawning is considered also entering (I know for a fact "moving" isn't considered "spawning"). — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/27/26

Spawning is also entering, that's for sure. Check the 2026 Core random weakness "Pursued" for reference, if you doubt it: https://arkhamdb.com/card/12102 — Susumu · 389 4/27/26

Even as a one shot evade event at level 0 I find it okay. The evasion doesn't cost an action, you can choose between agility and intellect and you get a skill bonus. All for the restriction, that your enemy needs to move. Additional uses on other enemies makes ist just better. — Tharzax · 1 4/27/26

I still agree with the sentiment, that if all it does is a one shot evade, it is not great, even at level 0, as Dodge does the same for 1 resource less and testless. And Dodge was a card, that got outclassed after a few expansions outside Diana. — Susumu · 389 4/27/26

That said, given, that it can also react in Mythos phase, not only after the hunter enemy moves, makes it already more aplicable outside the use cases of Dodge. — Susumu · 389 4/27/26

i don't think the comparison to Dodge is appropriate, overall. They simply do different things; cancelling an attack not evading an enemy. Many possible distinct interactions there. — AlderSign · 469 4/29/26

Decoy Trap stops an enemy from being engaged with you, so if you can move out, you can get away from them. Dodge just stops an attack, and delays the inevitable. That said, because of the usual timing of this card, it basically acts as dodge with a test, which is... Not great. — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/29/26

I think this gets better to counter enemies that move *outside* the enemy phase, like Maniacs/Possessed enemies affect by Dance of the Yellow King and Deep One Bull — HeroesOfTomorrow · 95 4/29/26

Well, enemies much more commonly spawn in mythos phase, than they move outside enemy phase. For that application, the comparison with Dodge is off, if you use it in enemy phase, it is apt. — Susumu · 389 4/29/26

They will not be ready during the Enemy phase which will keep them from moving and attacking, just as good as any evade. — Frickenator · 26 4/29/26

Oops! I posted that comment too fast. I now understand the issue better. — Frickenator · 26 4/29/26

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