An extremely simple yet powerful card, Bulletproof Vest remains at the pinnacle of efficient defensive options in terms of cost, value, and flexibility. As a 3xp card, this can easily be slotted into any investigator's deck without much thought:

Need a way to circumvent Azure Flame (5) from burning your Father Mateo? Take Bulletproof Vest and watch those self-destructive flames turn to ashes. Your Norman Withers took a bit too much Physical Trauma over the campaign? Slap on a Bulletproof Vest and watch his effective health nearly double in one action.

In terms of action efficiency, Bulletproof Vest is a simple 1 action, 2 resource card, with no setup needed other than simply drawing the card and having a body slot open. For Mystics, this slot competes with Robes of Endless Night (which is only for Spell-Mystics), and Astral Mirror (for Arcane-Mystics), neither of which are highly used even in their own respective archetypes. As for Seekers, their alternative tends to be Lab Coat, which is a possible +1 on skill tests and is good if your Seeker tends to be doing more skill tests that are closer to DC match.

In Investigation Phase, Fast Engage gives you equivalent of redirection of enemy draw from clue finders, allowing them to go first anyway. Though more expensive than options like "Let me handle this!", Martyr's Vambrace, "Get behind me!", it has bigger location coverage.

Using it in window in Enemy Phase after Hunter enemy moves but before it attacks adds one more location away coverage (and can pull the enemy out of your clue finders that is about to get hit) if you could one-shot it. Otherwise you will get hit, which in that case you'd rather use it in Investigation Phase so you can perform follow up hits with weapons that have damage and bonus.

Since the card has no damage and accuracy bonus, commits and additional damage (e.g. Vicious Blow, Long Shot, Michael Leigh, ...) are handy to make a play in weird phases.

Many Basic Weakness are all about dealing you damage/horror. (The longer it stays, or each time it came back.) The mask gives both and which are very useful if you are in some trouble that makes you can't fix the weakness in the first place. In longer fights over multiple rounds, my friend even keep the slip damage/horror weakness going so he always have an offering ready.

• Hypochondria : (2 copies to randomized into.)
• Psychosis : (2 copies to randomized into.)
• Internal Injury : (2 copies to randomized into.)
• Chronophobia : (2 copies to randomized into.)
• Self-Destructive
• Atychiphobia
• Dendromorphosis
• Kleptomania
• Vow of Drzytelech, Maimed Hand, The Silver Moth, Back Injury : Take damage/horror with the postpone option.
• Pay Your Due (Rogue only), Quantum Paradox (Seeker only).

Or, for some relief from various signature weaknesses :

• Agnes Baker : Dark Memory.
• Wendy Adams : Abandoned and Alone.
• Jim Culver : Final Rhapsody.
• Calvin Wright : Voice of the Messenger.
• Patrice Hathaway : Watcher from Another Dimension.
• Bob Jenkins : Greed.
• Darrell Simmons : Ruined Film.
• Hank Samson : "Where's Pa?".
• Stella Clark : Called by the Mists.

Simply making a mistake on Retaliate or Alert enemy would give you back some treats. It also replenishes repeatedly after getting attacked multiple times by Swarming enemy. And there are countless location and attachment treachery effects that deal you end of turn / end of round damage or horror.

This card is just so universal. Take a look at how much more limited Bangle of Jinxes was. Only enemy attack (big constraint since enemy attack hits too hard), take an accessory slot, 1 XP, higher cost, get start with only 1 charge. All in exchange of able to boost the other two stats and accumulate unlimited charges.

There are already reviews written like you have purchased all cards in the game to pick from, so this one is in perspective of newer players arbitrarily buying Investigator Expansion as they like.

Mandy has similar vibe to Vincent Lee and Carolyn Fern that the ability can't work on its own, and the Investigator Expansion box that give you the investigator doesn't give you many Lv. 0 card that trigger the ability to get start with. No choice of subclass (, , ) adds any more search card for her either. (But to be fair this TDE box adds a ton to Daisy Walker...)

For Mandy, you get just Practice Makes Perfect (while Otherworld Codex is Lv. 2), and a new Practiced card is just The Eye of Truth Lv. 5. You have Deduction, Perception, and Overpower (that you might try committing for friends) to work with Practice Makes Perfect. You can get Versatile to add one Vicious Blow but that's a big stretch.

The designer seemed to think that since there is Old Book of Lore in the core set (and Lv. 3 in Revised Core Set) Mandy is minimally playable, but this is further gimped by how Research Librarian's full deck search will immediately get canceled by Shocking Discovery. Trying to draw into the book could just run into Research card like Astounding Revelation (which you are aiming to add secrets to Old Book of Lore (3)) too, making you sad.

Even if you want to work with other player's search card, there are only Tetsuo Mori (might be your savior to find Old Book of Lore without Research Librarian), Lucid Dreaming, and Arcane Initiate (which is quite potent to use her ability on). So if you have small collection, I recommend teaming up with using Tetsuo Mori or using Arcane Initiate so there is less downtime of her ability.

Now if we look at what Investigator Expansion you could own prior to The Dream-Eaters that would greatly expand Mandy, I think it's The Path to Carcosa Investigator Expansion. This box gives Eureka!, Calling in Favors (which Tommy Muldoon can also make use of), On the Hunt (for other deck), and No Stone Unturned / No Stone Unturned (5) that could search. Carcosa also let Practice Makes Perfect + Mark Harrigan popular combo happen, to play with his Vicious Blow and The Home Front. I guess Quantum Flux could be handy for subclass choice to bring back Research cards back to deck all at once for more searches. subclass also gets Resourceful for use while investigating. Lastly, Minh Thi Phan in the box can add a commit icon to Brute Force, Sharp Vision, Expeditious Retreat, and A Glimmer of Hope. Plus she is on Extensive Research art so I guess they are good friends.

It’s kind of like Runic Axe, except you can’t regenerate 1 ammo per turn, you can’t spend a 2nd ammo to get +2 Combat, you can’t choose to deal 1 less damage in exchange for +2 Combat, and once it’s out of ammo, you can’t fight with it at all.

But you DO only take up one hand slot, so there’s that.