Subject 5U-21 Starter Deck

This is my take on a 0xp version for one of Arkham Horror’s weirdest and most powerful investigators. This kitchen sink of a deck is a who’s who of Arkham Horror best cards from each faction, being able to take all of them Suzi can combo them together with crazy efficiency.

Benefiting from Weakness (How the deck works) Suzi is one of the few characters that can have her cake and eat it too. By combing her Regurgitation with Crystallizer of Dreams Suzi can get a handle on her hunger once and for all. The Crystallizer allows you to tuck spent events under it for committing to a skill test, which makes them cards in your play area ripe for devouring. Regurgitation allows you to spit back up 3 cards you’ve devoured either under Ravenous or in the set aside devoured pile, and heals you to boot being one of the few characters with any native healing. This lets Suzi endlessly recur events just as well as the best Survivors.

Additionally, Regurgitation itself is an event which means it can also be taken by the Crystallizer, devour, and reclaimed with a second copy. So with the Crystallizer and two copies of Regurgitation you will never be hurting for cards, Horror, or health.

Pros As said above, this deck is a who’s who of Arkham Horror’s finest. With some of the best ways to fight with Fire Axe, Meat Cleaver, and Spectral Razor. Some of the best tools to investigate with Breach the Door, Deduction, and Read the Signs. Some of the best tricks to keep the encounter deck at bay either for yourself with Deny Existence and Ward of Protection for others with "Let me handle this!" or for either with A Test of Will, and First Watch (Later Ward of Protection) can do everyone as well). Some of the best skills with Grizzled and Quick Thinking which can either be used defensively or to bolster your momentum. And finally, some of the best tools for managing cards and resources with Drawing Thin, Friends in Low Places, and Preposterous Sketches

You have essentially unlimited copies of every event in the deck, and any items with charges that don't discard themselves. Being able to play powerful spells like Read the Signs and Spectral Razor every turn sometimes even twice or three times a turn cannot be understated. Once you have the loop established you'll be able to quickly chew through enemies and the encounter deck alike. Similarly this extends your defensive cards like A Test of Will and Ward of Protection, meaning you'll always have an answer to those treacheries you really want to avoid (like those that make you lose items).

It's exceptionally flexible, this deck can fill any slot missing in a roster or flex through any role in any scenario. I've usually found myself slipping into the fighter position as being able to tank attack after attack and walk away at full health (with a few uses of Regurgitation) makes it a natural fit. But it can just as easily fill any other position or flex between them round to round with powerful control spells to manage encounters, cards that do everything in Vamp, and the capacity to reuse the most powerful cards you have.

Cons The deck is very resource hungry. With a constant need to be playing and recouping your events to keep your stats high, you'll quickly find yourself needing more of those crate tokens. Needing to get cards in play or events under the crystallizer can rapidly eat up your turns and actions to the point where a bad round can leave you stumbling to get back on course.

It's also very feast or famine. The deck is built around the Crystallizer and you need to see it. You have cards like Preposterous Sketches and Friends in Low Places to cycle through the deck to find it but you won't find it in every scenario. Even when you can't get to it, you can usually scrape by with your powerful collection of cards but you'll feel like a shadow of yourself meaning you'll probably need to lean on your fellow investigators to get yourself stable.

Early turns can make or break you. Starting at all 1s, Suzi needs to get cards devoured ASAP as without them your going to be struggling to pass even the easiest checks. So if a scenario starts you off in a bad place or the encounter deck is hitting you with all its got, you'll suffer from it more than most other investigators. It can lead to some tense situations where your desperately drawing to find the cards you need or throwing out your hand to pass one check.

Not every card in the deck has its place. While I wouldn't say any individual card is bad per se some are definitely better than others. Suzi has to maintain at least 7 cards of each class which leads to you including some cards that aren't going to see as much use. For example, Fingerprint Kit, it isn't a bad card offering a bonus to investigating and an extra clue for each charge but for the same amount of resources you could play 2 copies of Read the Signs which also get the extra clue and boast a much higher bonus capping out at a skill value of 12. So definitely pay attention to what cards you use and what end up just rotting in you hand or serve as nothing but fuel for ravenous.

Conclusion It's a very robust deck that can explode with crazy consistency, able to find and use its most powerful cards nearly every turn. But it will rapidly drain your resources and if you're not managing them little things can quickly spiral out of your control. Additionally, deck space is very tight it's hard to give one card a slot over another even with 50 cards to fill there's so many good options some inevitably end up on the chopping room floor. Needing to play 7 from each class takes up 35 cards already leaving only 15 slots to include any neutrals but each of those classes have other powerhouses you'll want to take which can make it hard to fit in the more passive maintenance cards.

Overall, I'd definitely recommend. Powerful and a lot of fun, Suzi can definitely fill the fantasy of just housing through a scenario without overshadowing everyone else at the table as even with all your options there's only so many actions so you're at your strongest keeping everyone else safe.