Learning True Solo #9 - Tools and Tricks (TCU Campaign)

The topic today is tech: how to tech for specific scenarios in a campaign to find the edges that let even "fighter only" characters effectively solo.

This deck was built to beat TCU, moderate spoilers (no story, but enemy names, scenario specific mechanics, preferred resolutions) are mentioned below. Rita is a tough Solo so there's some scenario specific advice in this one too. If you're blind, I'd skip this guide/deck until you've played the campaign once.

Rita got some interesting new tools in the last few sets, and is now more capable at soloing than she used to be. Investigating is still pretty rough, but there's a few nice tricks, like Grizzled (more on that in a bit), and discounted Pilfer (3) thanks to Crafty.

That part isn't exactly new tech (Edge is 3 years old now), but what is new tech is that Crafty can also boost Hatchet (1) which happens to be a tool.

The 3XP from In the Thick of It is used for the Hatchets and the Alter Fate, the Grizzled should be level 0 in the first scenario. (I just wanted to show what I recommend ticking on the upgrade card.)

Mulligan

• Bewitch: Dirty Fighting (2), Sweeping Kick (1), Pilfer (3)

• Dig for: Crafty (3), Peter Sylvester, Shroud Reduction (Old Keyring)

• Keep: "Look What I found!", Hatchet (1), Track Shoes, Grizled - Always Prepared (but not before) Pitch: Other Events, Manual Dexterity

General Playstyle

Investigating - Shroud Reduction, Clue events like "Look What I found!", and just gambling for it are how you'll get clues in early scenarios, Later on it'll be repeat plays of Pilfer (3). You'll have 7 with your assets in play. Resourceful can help you reuse the "Look What I Found!" or Old Keyring.

Enemy Management - in TCU you can't usually afford to leave enemies around. Doom-laden Cultists, Hunters, Whippoorwills, Familiars that throw entire hands away... it's all terrible to let stick around. Between Hatchet and Rita's you'll dispatch all but the beefiest enemies in 1-2 actions.

Tools and Tricks and Specific Tech

Both of your core assets are Tools so you get to buff their tests with Crafty (3).

You can use the recurring resources to discount Pilfer (3); Crafty is not unique so you can play both copies if you find them, playing it for 'free'. If you wind up rich from Grift you can use them to buff the test instead even.

Bewitching is a toolbox that helps find a few key cards: Sweeping Kick (1) is a nice piece of tech from Edge of the Earth that dispatches Hoods in one action, although they'll still hit you once (see rules reference pages 2-3 regarding "forced abilities" timing.); Dirty Fighting (2) is a Trick, so by putting it on bewitching you can get away with just one copy at the cost of not having it in play for the first evade. Finally, stick a copy of Pilfer on it and you'll find it relatively early in most of these scenarios.

Specific Tech decisions -

There's quite a few Treacheries that attach to the agenda or stick around in your threat area, Alter Fate (1) helps with these. If you don't have RtTFA, you can use Alter Fate (3) instead, but you can't start with it (or use the 3XP version as a proxy for the 1XP version...) A second copy is a nice upgrade for later in the campaign.

Grizzled naming "Spectral" can be applied to tests against Spectral Locations (see FAQ point 2.15); we also name "Terror" to give us two more cards that can help deal with the very crippling "Frozen in Fear" which is troublesome in scenarios 1 and 7; and doubles up on the Spectral/Terror Treacheries. Other good options would be "Humanoid" (helps with some Parleys), "Hex" or "Curse" - I chose Terror because Hex and Curse can be cleared by evading a witch. Finally we add "Otherworld" for the final scenario since we will regularly draw these as part of the scenario mechanic and can repeatedly recur it to help with investigating.

Sweeping Kick (1) kills Hoods in one action, and we can stick it to bewitching so we can always draw it when Hoods engages us. (You do still take the forced attack from hoods though, it triggers with the same timing as your so both will happen.)

Dauntless Spirit (1) will provide at least 6 icons for a critical final test in scenario 6.

Upgrade / Side Deck

(View at arkham-starter.com)

Tips for Success in the Circle Undone

Scenario 0 - I'd take Jerome Davids and try really hard to get 6 pieces of evidence and disappeared into the mists. If you can pull both off you'll make the campaign easier. I also recommend Rejecting your Fate.

Scenario 1 - you have Two goals here: clear all the Woods VPs and Finish the Scenario successfully. I went with axe-murder. (But if you've got the cards to get the clues quickly, that can work too.) You will probably want to actually kill all the witches you draw, even though most of them don't hunt, for... reasons, yeah.

You aren't likely to get the Encounter VP card into play as a solo, And you want 8 XP so basically you need to full-clear this one. I would consider restarting if you don't get at least 6XP (Bewitching)

Scenario 2 - Priority one is clearing the rest of those clues to max out the evidence. Priority 2 is getting out alive. a 4 Parley is almost impossible for Rita, so I'd probably just axe-murder Meiger too. Aiming for at least 6 VP here and 1 VP is in the encounter deck, so another one to try to full clear. (6 VP gets you Crafty (3) and Pilfer (3), if you can only get one, get Crafty first). Oppose the Lodge, the "Enemy of the Lodge" version of Scenario 5 is much easier for Rita.

Scenario 3 - This is one of the easier scenarios for Rita because you'll have a couple opportunities to hack and slash your way to picking up clues. Take it slow and steady, and keep the "Familiar" off the board. Again we're looking for a full clear here to get the second copies of Crafty (3) and Pilfer (3).

Scenario 4 - This scenario is not remotely fair for True Solo. You're forgiven if you just want to resign out of it immediately, but ideally you'd get at least 2 Unfinished Business before you bail. Any amount of XP here is acceptable. It's relatively easy to secure at least 2 from locations regardless of how you do on the banishing, so aim for that.

Scenario 5 - Assuming you are an Enemy of the Lodge, this is another easier scenario for Rita. Try to get a full clear, although 2VP are in the Encounter Deck and you might have to give up on those. Either way you must get the puzzle box if you want to be confident you'll beat the next scenario. 6 XP should be your goal, but we're at the point where your core upgrades are done, so focus on getting the box if you run low on time.

Scenario 6 - I sided with the witches. There is a small chance you get an unwinnable configuration: there's 6 combinations of skills on the locations, if you get no locations (there's 3) you most likely won't be able to successfully clear all the necessary circle tests, and should probably just clear the clues and resign out. If you get 2/3 use the puzzle box on the third. If you only get 1/3, puzzle box one and spend all your clues on the other. The final test is probably doable just with icon commits, throw your whole hand at it maybe, but don't pull the .

Scenario 7 - Time to play "Pandemic" (the board game.) Mulligan for Track Shoes and you'll probably have an easy scenario, Although this is a highly random setup and it can be pretty punishing if you wind up with the wrong mix of locations / get a bad spread of breaches. Your deck should be complete more or less at this point, but there's a few things to grab going into the finale with whatever XP you do end up earning.

Remarks

I actually had a lot of fun with this one, Rita has a reputation as a pretty poor soloist, but with some of the recent expansions she's gained some additional flexibility and power that makes her much more capable than she used to be.

I have one more topic I want to talk about then I think I might be out of ideas! (well, for topics, not for decks...)