Special Agent Roland Banks, Monster Hunter

Executive Summary

Agent Banks, your portfolio has a single mandate: Take out as many of those things as possible to get some clue as to what the hell is going on.

Your secondary responsibility is to the citizenry. You must provide them succor without endangering your primary directive.

Upgrading The Deck

Special Agent Roland Banks, Monster Hunter (33 experience total)

• Charisma
• .45 Thompson ⇉ .45 Thompson (2)
• Bandolier ⇉ Bandolier (2)
• .32 Colt → .32 Colt (2)
• .32 Colt → Custom Ammunition
• Beat Cop → Beat Cop (2)
• Beat Cop → Brother Xavier
• Emergency Cache ⇉ Emergency Cache (3)
• Physical Training ⇉ Physical Training (2)
• Prepared for the Worst ⇉ Ever Vigilant

Upgrading Alternatives

What is a cop without his Police Badge, and who wouldn't want the favor of the Ace of Swords? The question is what to sub out. The correct answer is nothing. But if you persist, there are some options. (NB: As you read on, keep in mind the Ace of Swords is 1 xp, Relic Hunter is 3 xp, and a single Police Badge is 2 xp.)

• If you want a Police Badge either you need to drop Hallowed Mirror or add Relic Hunter (increasing the XP cost of the badge). The mirror is a big slice of awesome pie, but it would solve the issue of what to drop.

• Calling in Favors is fiddly. Upgrade at the earliest convenience.

• The Survival Knife, in practice, is dangerous when used against anything but purely physical threats. Maybe it's worth dropping a fourth attack for a static +1 or .

• You absolutely need both tommy guns in order to make sure you land one early, and you can't drop Roland's .38 Special. You may find that you don't need a .32 Colt (even though the upgraded .32 Colt adds to the engine). Even better, you might forego the Custom Ammunition.

• I've heard a rumor that some folks just ain't keen on Ever Vigilant. With roughly half your deck being assets I'd give you a hard stare, but the option is there.

• If you have Brother Xavier and a Police Badge, do you really need Guts? Well, yes; yes you do. Buuuuttt.... it's a way to get two badges in your deck.

• I dislike Emergency Cache as a rule. However, Emergency Cache (3) is a banger for the cost of an action. You may find that with Calling in Favors you can juggle Venturer enough to keep the tommy gun train going, in which case you could drop the caches.

Mulligan Guide

As your primary job is to shoot things, logic dictates that you want a gun in your opening hand. Your tommy guns are useless until you've upgrade them, so mulligan hard for Roland's .38 Special or one of a .32 Colt.

Ideal Opening Hand (Starting Deck)

1. Surely you will get a gun or Prepared for the Worst.
2. Guts or Unexpected Courage
3. An ally
4. and 5. Physical Training | Hallowed Mirror | Survival Knife

Ideal Opening Hand (Upgraded Deck)

1. .45 Thompson (2)
2. Custom Ammunition (you probably have the one copy in your deck, but you want it as early as you can manage).
3. Brother Xavier or Venturer
4. Guts or Unexpected Courage
5. Bandolier (2) (if you have a choice) or Hallowed Mirror

Strat Guide

• Get your boosts from Bandolier (2), Brother Xavier, and Physical Training.
• In order of desirability use these as commits:
  1. Guts
  2. Physical Training (only once, unless you're desperate)
  3. Inspiring Presence (hopefully you've got a cop worse for wear)
  4. Unexpected Courage
  5. "If it bleeds..."
• You can heal allies at your location using Inspiring Presence and Hallowed Mirror:Soothing Melody. You can heal investigators at your location using Hallowed Mirror:Soothing Melody and "If it bleeds...".
• Get yer tommy gun out early: .45 Thompson (2) costs six, but eventually returns five to your resource pool. Venturer will place 3 ammo, and you have two copies; you can conceivably get four uses with Calling in Favors. Custom Ammunition gives you 2 ammo and is essentially a permanent Vicious Blow vs monsters. Using both Emergency Cache (3) will give you eight ammo. All this goes into your resource pool.
• .32 Colt has 6 ammo... and 6 more for the cost of three resources and an action... and again. I try to reserve at least one Ever Vigilant for this purpose.