Winifred Habbamock 2.0

The goal of 2.0 investigator starter decks is to "make them better" only with core set and Dunwich set cards. Newer cards can be added after finishing the Dunwich campaign so one can explore new stories with new cards at the same pace as years ago, when we didn’t have such vast opportunities as we do now.

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Winifred loves living on the edge. Winifred loves playing the odds. And most of all, Winifred loves winning — thanks to the odds. Or against them. It depends.

Her signature ability means one thing: you want to commit two different non-weakness cards to every single test. No excuses! Test? Double commit! Another test? Yep, double commit again! Committing cards to a test means you’re more likely to pass — two committed cards usually equals +2 to your skill test — and your signature ability lets you draw a card.

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to do the math and realize: Winifred has a gambling problem. Imagine a scenario with three upcoming tests and four cards in your hand.

Test no. 1 — commit two cards, draw one = 3 cards left
Test no. 2 — commit two cards, draw one = 2 cards left
Test no. 3 — commit two cards, draw one = 1 card left

3, 2, 1… almost like counting down the last seconds of your life. Houston? How can we proc our drawing ability with only one card left?

You can’t.

Another thing — “usually equals +2” doesn’t mean always. Sometimes it’s more, sometimes less, and yes, sometimes you’ll commit two cards, draw junk, fail the test, and with one card left, you’re out of options. Game over. Nobody cares that you just got started. Being arrogant might take you far — or straight to hell. Sure, you could still play without using your signature ability, but what’s the point? Just jump off this train and start again in your next life.

Or… maybe… tip the odds in your favor. Your cigarette case isn’t exactly lucky — more like “just in the mood for a smoke” — but the ability? That’s useful. Once per round, if — IF — you succeed by 2 or more: draw a card. It won’t solve your problems forever, but it’s extra fuel for your hand. Suddenly your ideal scenario looks like:

"Commit two cards to the test, succeed by 2, draw one for your ability and one for the cigarette case."

Now, in that three-test scenario, feel free to add a fourth line with "Test no. 4":

4, 3, 2, 1… still counting down. You know what’s coming, but hey — at least you were alive.

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Thematically, I love Winifred Habbamock the most out of all preconstructed decks. Her ability is neat. Not a “god-like” power but strong — and I like the “push your luck” vibe. Despite what I wrote above, you won’t always commit two cards — some tests will be auto-passes (especially agility, your base is five), plus you’ll want to play cards as usual too, so just be ready for the moments you really don’t wanna fail.

Speaking of cards — I’ve mentioned the Lucky Cigarette Case, but I’m also a big fan of the Leather Jacket + Lonnie Ritter combo. With them in play, you have extra +4 health, +3 sanity, and Lonnie heals both damage from the jacket and sanity from herself. It’s a cool little self-sustaining shield and Lonnie isn´t selfish — the asset doesn’t have to be yours alone — also, let’s not forget the +1 combat boost she gives you. You’ll need resources to start her engine and keep it running, but with Sneak By and especially Lone Wolf, that’s more than manageable.

The rest of the cards are pretty straightforward, but why complicate things when it’s not necessary? Backstab, Cheap Shot, Elusive, and Sneak Attack handle enemies. Pilfer grabs clues (two extras? Yes, please!) and cards like Daring Maneuver, Anything You Can Do, Better, Opportunist, Quick Thinking, and Unexpected Courage are ready to buff your skill tests — nine flexible cards with whatever symbols you need.

By the way, Opportunist and Quick Thinking both give extra value on success, and Daring Maneuver is mostly a sneaky +1 boost — unless you’re desperate for that succeed-by-2 trigger.

Lastly, Streetwise can supercharge your intellect and agility, which means you can have 7 agility for tests without even committing anything. You’ll be grateful for this with cards like Backstab or Pilfer, which are able to turn combat or intellect checks into agility ones. Sweet. In the end, you’ll struggle mostly only during willpower tests, but you can’t have Christmas every day.

Nevertheless, most of the time, you should be able to do “whatever you want.” Your specialization is that you’re not weak in any aspect, and with the right cards in your hand and smart commits, everything’s possible.

Jacqueline rewrites the future — you don’t need to. You just play the hand you’re dealt — and win anyway.

Or die trying.

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One funny thing — I’ve never played AH: LCG (actually I did, but it doesn’t really count). This is only theorycrafting based on information from ArkhamDB and my experience from other card/board games. Is this deck going to shine? I don’t know, but I’m somehow pretty sure that it’s at least much better than the preconstructed version. I’ve never ever seen a preconstructed deck that was really ready to play the moment you unpack it — such things simply don’t happen. True story. :-)

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UPDATE BELOW

out:
2 Cheap Shot
2 Lone Wolf
2 Daring Maneuver

in:
2 Mauser C96
2 Emergency Cash
2 Liquid Courage