Trish and Whitton (0 XP, Taboo 2020-10-15)

Trish and Whitton

Because You Don't Always Start with XP For Everything

Primary Role: Clue Gatherer

Secondary Role: N/A

Inspired by Trish Goes Brrrr!, this is my attempt at making a version of Trish prior to being able to access the full engine, while also accounting for the most recent Taboo list. The XP Cost on Mr. Rook means that the deck now needs some fairly specific build-around in order to easily access Segment of Onyx, once it becomes affordable. This iteration is a version that attempts to do so using Whitton Greene from the start - both to trigger Astounding Revelation, and to fetch useful items in the meantime.

This does lead to a few unusual choices in an attempt to squeeze as many icons and as much use as possible from those searches and draws. While it still uses Magnifying Glass to help standard investigations, this build also attempts to leverage Celaeno Fragments, Scroll of Secrets, and Disc of Itzamna to give Whitton additional targets. It's certainly a shakier build for a first iteration, but the choices are available to give a clear path to something more solid.

Strategy

Mulligan Strategy

• Always Keep: Whitton Greene, Magnifying Glass, Practice Makes Perfect. These are the important cards that will let you perform your investigations early on, while things are still ramping up.
• Sometimes Keep: Scroll of Secrets (If you have Whitton, or have neither Whitton nor a Magnifying Glass). Scroll of Secrets is probably the easiest Whitton tool to use, making it a good option if Whitton is available. If Whitton is not, Scroll of Secrets is still a useful draw tool, and is still worth keeping if you might need it to dig in deeper.
• Sometimes Keep: Celaeno Fragments (If you have Whitton and no Scroll of Secrets, or you have Scroll of Secrets and no Magnifying Glass.) Celaeno Fragments is a more awkward option on turn 1. However, it can either help enable Whitton, or can use Scroll of Secrets to keep your card count reasonable.

General Strategy

Go in first and investigate. Use some combination of Whitton Greene, Celaeno Fragments, and Magnifying Glass to try to get your up to reasonable levels, and then use it to grab any clues you can. Early on, you'll want to be careful with your commits to make sure you can still keep Celaeno Fragments functioning. You can be a little looser once Dream-Enhancing Serum comes online and you can draw more. Note that you'll still need to rely on your allies for damage - Trish can pack two copies of "I've got a plan!" and can use Perception to help fuel them, but she still tends to evade enemies rather than fight them.

Deck Variations

Substitutions / Adaptable Options

• 1x/2x Disc of Itzamna for Lucky Cigarette Case: By default, I don't think this deck reliably succeeds by high enough numbers to use Lucky Cigarette Case, and the Disc is one search option for Whitton. However, if you're playing with enough XP to justify Lockpicks (1), are willing to tough out a first mission before purchasing them, or plan on using Adaptable, you can consider the cigarette case.
• 1x Breaking and Entering for Intel Report/Narrow Escape/Obfuscation: I personally prefer Breaking and Entering after getting dropped into awkward situations with Shadow Agents a few too many times. I'm uncertain if it also means you can get 2 Clues when evading Shadow Agents (depending on if BaE resolves at Step 6 or Step 7 of skill test resolution), but it does mean you can when evading most other monsters. However, the other options are also available if you prefer a more reliable/tricky clue gathering mechanism or a reusable/cheaper method of escaping enemies.
• 1x "I'm outta here!" for Breaking and Entering/Intel Report/Narrow Escape/Obfuscation: This is a very campaign-dependant option, and may not be relevant every campaign, or even every scenario. However, this is very much a deck that considers playing with Charon's Obol, and therefore should consider keeping this on hand.
• 1x/2x "I've got a plan!" for Logical Reasoning/Smoking Pipe: Logical Reasoning is a reasonable backup for both Horror soak and for dealing with Trish's awkward 2 , while Smoking Pipe is a little more focused in evening out damage and horror. If you really need the adjustment, you can use these to help soak.

Considered and Unused

• Crystallizer of Dreams: I gave this some substantial thought when considering if it should be used instead of Lucky Cigarette Case, for the purposes of having another Whitton target. However, in the end, the Cigarette Case won out for the simply fact that the events included don't see a lot of reliable play. Practice Makes Perfect is the only card that can be played 'on a whim' - everything else needs appropriate setup. Combined with the fact that most events here only have one relevant symbol, and you simply can't get all much value from it all.
• Occult Invocation: While this is a bit cheaper than "I've got a plan!", you can't try to both fuel this and still keep enough for Celaeno Fragments, and it's much easier to keep clues and an extra resource on hand than cycle through for even more cards.

Upgrade Recommendations

Essential Upgrades

Upgrades are generally ordered with the most important upgrades first.

• Lockpicks (1): This should almost always be your first purchase. Before Lockpicks are available, Investigations can cut it closer than is ideal. After you have a pair of Lockpicks, your ability to investigate consistently becomes much, much better. (Replaces Celeano Fragments or Magnifying Glass.)
• Charon's Obol: This is here so you can always have a relic asset for Whitton Greene. (And, you know, that whole 'extra XP' thing.)

Brrrr Upgrades

• Segment of Onyx: Before this point, the upgrade options were all cards that you'd want to use to effectively function. Once you have that, you can start looking into getting the Combo potential of this started. The XP cost is high, but four XP means you can remove a lot of the more 'clutter-ish' relics and tomes, and begin consistently searching for the Segments with Whitton. This is where the deck goes from a more regular investigator to taking full advantage of the draw power involved to start doing absurd things. (Replaces Celaeno Fragments/Scroll of Secrets/Disc of Itzamna).
• Three Aces/Easy Mark/Surprising Find: The various Myriad cards can come alive at this time, possibly even before Segment of Onyx, depending on how much XP you have to work with. (Replaces various cards.)- Backpack (2): You have a lot of items. Backpack (2) will help you find a pair of items for your hands on turn 1, and has the extra benefit of helping to rigger Astounding Revelation on top. (Replaces Eureka!)
• Whitton Greene(2)/Mr. "Rook": The one you pick depends on how much XP to work with, and if you prefer more raw card draw or more sustained power and relevant stats. Both of these are valid methods of continuing to work through your deck and hitting Research card or effects. Remember, if you're using Mr. "Rook", you should trigger the fast action during investigate actions if possible - that will allow you to potentially spawn your Shadow Agents without triggering an attack, and can potentially allow you to remove them the moment they appear using Trish's ability. (Replaces Whitton Greene.)

Synergistic Upgrades

• Relic Hunter: Allows you to wear both the Pendant of the Queen and your accessory of choice at the same time. Also worth consideration for...
• Lucky Cigarette Case (3): The base version was a little finicky, but comes online once you get Lockpicks. However, you may also want to consider a direct upgrade to this, which allows you more impressive searches into Research cards. (Replaces Disc of Itzamna.)
• Another Day, Another Dollar: Worth particular note because this will be what enables Whitton to be played on turn 1 with more expensive options, as well as enables Disc of Itzamna, should you keep it. Its value depends on how much you value consistency over searching through for Astounding Revelation.
• Deduction (2): Worth mentioning as a classic mainstay that works well when you cycle through your deck or when using Practice Makes Perfect.
• Moxie: As mentioned in the original, this is a passable option for boosting and is otherwise there to help soak the consequences of cycling through your deck frequently.

Other Upgrades

Use whatever you like! After the core of the deck is built, go with what sounds good or fits your group or the campaign. Charisma remains a common powerful option, and All In is still ridiculous if you're cycling through your entire deck every turn. As a relic, The Gold Pocket Watch synergizes with Whitton. Perception (2) can help smoothly draw cards. By the time you've gotten enough XP to reach this point, player preference becomes more important than the general guidelines.

Thanks

Thanks for looking through all of this! If you're interested in my decks, feel free to check out the other decks I've made:

• Testless Infinite Wendy
• Everywhere and Nowhere (Luke Robinson)
• Shallow Gravedigger William
• Minimalist Zoey Samaras
• Minimalist Jenny Barnes
• Minimalist Rex Murphy

Thoughts and comments are appreciated!