Roland Banks needs to cover up ASAP

This deck is about dealing with Roland's weaknesses. Let's look at them:

• A. Cover Up is a card you don't want to draw near the end of a scenario, especially since it hurts Roland's sanity.

• B. Resources are an issue for Roland, since Guardian weapons and cards that get him clues without tests are expensive.

• C. Roland's sanity is very low, and his isn't great.

• D. I find I never have the right tool/card with Roland, and it is not easy to have a solid card drawing engine.

But the federal agent has an idea: he'll call Mr. "Rook"; he knows secrets that Roland can use. This will help him:

• A. deal with Cover Up much earlier - keep in mind that fellow investigators can help you discard clues from it.

• B. collect a few handy resources thanks to Astounding Revelation.

• C. get his hands on the Hallowed Mirror, which is hard to find usually.

• D. draw several specific cards without spending any action.

Of course, you will likely draw your basic weakness also, but if you look up the great review of Mr. "Rook" written by StyxTBeuford, you'll have advice on how to prepare for each basic weakness. Drawing a weakness willingly at a point when you're ready to deal with it is much better than drawing it at the worst moment in the scenario. It is especially true of Cover Up...

Once you have Cover Up in your threat area, you can plan ahead - notice that discarding clues from the card rather than picking clues from a location is a reaction triggered ability, which means it is optional. If you'd rather pick clues at your location and deal with Cover Up later, you can.

The rest is pretty traditional for Roland: get cards that let him collect clues without drawing Chaos tokens (Art Student, Working a Hunch, Scene of the Crime, True Understanding, Evidence!), play them or kill enemies in high shroud locations (Shortcut can help you get there while engaged) and collect resources for yourself and your friends with Crack the Case.

Mulligan: You want to have a weapon and Mr. "Rook"; also, get rid of Astounding Revelation. If you have a weapon and Mr. "Rook", then just mulligan Astounding Revelation and not the rest, you might get another copy of Astounding Revelation and lose potential resources.

Upgrade path: Enchanted Blade is great as an additional tool to heal Roland's sanity. .45 Automatic is a great upgrade for Roland, but Quick Study and Forewarned. "I've had worse…" or its upgraded version will protect Roland as well as make him better off. Finally, buying a more effective, 2-handed weapon like the Lightning Gun, the .45 Thompson or the M1918 BAR would be in order.