Dynamic Duo - Dexter and Bob

Dexter Drake and Bob Jenkins

Dynamic duo!

This deck is part of a dynamic duo series, and is meant to be played together with Dynamic Duo - Bob Jenkins. It works just fine when paired with other investigators too, of course, but some cards might be less effective.

Premise

Two asset focused tricksters on the romp! Bob will find clues and help play and pay for Dexter’s items. For Dexter, getting discounted items in play without spending a Play action is a huge tempo boost. Dexter will in turn take care of most of the monsters and funnel money over to Bob when needed with Faustian Bargain. Black Market will act as a tutor to find needed cards.

Weakness: Not many, really. It's always a bit scary relying on mystic to do all the fighting. But Dexter with a hammer is a truly a force of nature, especially with all his spells as backup. Bob is not the greatest clue finder out there, but he'll manage and Dexter will help him out with Read the Signs and eventually Divination. And Bob will improve greatly with Xp, believe me.

Synergy

Tempo, tempo, tempo. My version of the Drake is more dependant on items than usual, items often played by our dear Bob. Often financed by Bob as well; Schoffner's Catalogue work wonders here.

Upgrade path

Hammer, then spells.

Important upgrades, in my order of priority

• Charon's Obol if you dare, because you'll need the Xp. But only if you're a seasoned player and you've played the campaign before.
• Cyclopean Hammer - buy two, replacing the Enchanted Blades. Yes, 10 Xp is a lot. Yes, using both your hand slots will limit Drake's options a bit. But it's gonna be worth it.
• Now we're gonna start branching out a bit. First Brand of Cthugha (replacing the Azure Flames) and the Scrying Mirror. Then Divination (replacing Shrivelling to help out with clues. The new set Edge of Earth spells are cheap and easily replaced with Dexters investigator ability when they run out of charges.
• Ward of Protection. These are great targets for upgrading with Arcane Research. Bob has 2 so there's a good chance he might need some help.

Then upgrade your spells as you find the Xp and time. Arcane Resarch will make it quite lucrative to upgrade one spell each scenario.

Other upgrades (in any order you’d like)

• Four of Cups for more . You can manage without, but life will be easier with +1 .
• Consider a single False Covenant. Dexter and Bob have 6 curse generating cards (possibly more in time) and 2 Xp is a fair price to pay for not have to worry about errant -2 tokens. You might want to skip the Covenant, but it's not a bad option, believe me.
• Geas is a great card for Dexter. Pick commit and enjoy the stat boosts. Dexter can actually get rid Geas if needed. Just use his investigator ability to replace it and it'll go away without triggering any s.
• Black Market is an interesting card. I didn't like it at first, but then I realized it's a rougish tutor. Ala No Stone Unturned but more versatile. Use it to find cards such as the Cyclopean Hammer or to help Bob. It's also just plain fun card to play, and there might even be a few cases where Bob can borrow a Divination or a Ward of Protection.
• Blur is a great evade card, and that can be useful in some campaigns.
• I'm a huge fan of Lucky Dice but you'll need a Relic Hunter first. If you're swimming in Xp, go for it.
• Cheat the System is an option if you need more resources. With Arcane Research and the Charon's Obol and/or False Covenant in play, Cheat the System is a bit better than Emergency Cache (2 resources, zero actions to play). With the Cyclopean Hammer or Brand of Cthugha in play, it's fast, 3 resources. With a Divination and hammer/brand in play, it's fast, 4 resources. Bob, David Renfield and Faustian Bargains were plenty enough for me.

Tips and advice

The wording on the Cyclopean Hammer is a bit confusing: ": Fight. Add your to your skill value for this attack. You deal +1 damage for this attack. If you succeed and the enemy is non-Elite, you may move it one location away from you. (If you succeed by 3 or more, you instead deal +2 damage and may move the enemy up to two locations away from you.)

MJ has confirmed that you always deal +2 damage if you succeed by 3 or more, even to elite enemies. But elite enemies can never be moved by the hammer effect.

Non-elite enemies can be moved 1 location away as long as you hit them, 2 locations away if you succeed by 3 or more. , Me I take extra joy in punching Deep One Bulls.

I've only added 1 Delve Too Deep. It's easily found with Molly Maxwell (it's your only Insight traited card). Adding another wont hurt.

*There's just enough spell cards here to defend [Arcane Research].(/card/04109). I suggest using the free Xp to upgrade the Ward of Protection for free for the first two scenarios. By then you should have bought Brands of Cthugha and Divinations. Storm of Spirits and Deny Existence is also possible upgrades.

Disclaimer

Disclaimer - many of these "dynamic duo" decks are inspired by other decks found here on Arkhamdb. Thanks to everyone who shares the fruits of their labor - this is an amazing community . :)