Nathaniel Cho in Return to TFA (Deck Guide)

This deck was designed for a two-handed game of Return to The Forgotten Age on Hard. Nathaniel Cho handled the enemies and performed most of the exploration, while Trish Scarborough gathered all of the clues (decklist here).

While preparing the decks for this campaign I replayed the first several scenarios a number of times, then I played a game which went all the way through to the end. I'll share some thoughts on what I learned about Nathaniel Cho's deck-building and playstyle, specifically within the context of a two-player game and this particular campaign. For other campaigns and/or a different number of players, results may vary!

Building a Deck

My general rule for building decks is to play to your investigator's strengths and not try to shore up their weaknesses. I like to build highly specialized decks for multiplayer games with the intention of performing a single role very effectively rather than two or three roles ineffectively, but I will still splash some cards for a secondary role if I think it makes sense to do so.

The Deck

This deck was almost exclusively focused on enemy management, as Nathaniel would be spending his non-punching time sorting the exploration deck and exploring. In the few scenarios where there was no exploring he had the occasional idle turn, but most of the time I found something useful for him to do to ensure Trish could take her turns unimpeded.

Nathaniel's effectiveness as a fighter depends upon having a steady source of fight events, which is why Boxing Gloves is the single most important card in the deck. Your mulligan priorities are Boxing Gloves, Randall Cho, and Prepared for the Worst, in that order.

Apart from the Gloves, the other way to maintain your supply of fight events is with draw and cycle effects, like Glory, Daring, and Overpower.

In a typical game, Nathaniel will play all of his events, tutoring more with the Boxing Gloves, and then reset the deck and do it all over again. However, once all of the Spirit events have been tutored you're left with a bunch of cards you need to slowly draw through to reset the deck, so it's important to take as many Spirit events as you can. Having said that, you want to make sure all of the cards in your deck are impactful, so don't take a card simply because it has the Spirit trait.

Also, because your deck contains so many fight events, when there isn't actually any fighting to do you can end up in the unfortunate position of having a full hand and needing to discard something.

For these reasons, I included 1 x Stand Together (and later "I've had worse…") because it's a tutorable event which I can play pretty much any time so it doesn't stay in my hand, and it's strong enough to justify the slot.

So, some individual card comments :

Clean Them Out, Monster Slayer, One-Two Punch, "Get over here!", Counterpunch : Your standard fight event package, in rough mulligan order. Monster Slayer is great for all the 3HP enemies in TFA, and One-Two Punch is your best answer to VP or elite enemies.

Glory : Try to save this for when you've tutored all of your Spirit events and you have to get through those last few cards before you can reset your deck. Play it early if you need to, though, especially if you're short on fighting power and you know the agenda deck is about to send you something that needs punching. Note that if you draw this from Boxing Gloves you can play it right away.

Take the Initiative : Mostly played during the Mythos Phase and, because of the TFA Hard token bag, typically only if it gave me at least +3 on a test.

Steadfast : This is here because Nathaniel really needs combat icons (more on this later) and because it can help him pass the test on the first agenda advancement in The Untamed Wilds. It was intended to be replaced during the first set of upgrades.

Scene of the Crime : I think of this as a kind of utility slot. It can be very beneficial for Nathaniel to be able to scoop up a couple of clues every now and then, or at least that was the theory. In practice it didn't perform very well and I probably would have replaced it with another Stand Together plus something else.

Handcuffs : Just a really great 1-of. It handles Tommy Malloy very efficiently (two actions instead of three, but only one test instead of three) and there are a lot of Humanoid enemies in TFA which are easier to evade than fight, not to mention all the cultists that show up. It also has some sweet synergy with Trish, where she can engage the handcuffed enemy and drag it around so she can make use of her ability every turn.

Some cards that were tried or considered in earlier versions :

On the Hunt : This can 'save' you from a treachery or dig out a VP enemy when you have nothing else to do, and it has obvious synergy with Scene of the Crime, but in TFA there are quite a few enemies you don't actually want to fight.

First Watch : Good value, though probably better in 3 or 4-player games. I tried this early on to eat treacheries just so Trish could have uninterrupted turns, but in the end I decided I didn't really need any Mythos Phase support cards.

Safeguard : This was an early 1-of, and it's a good card which will always get some use, but with all of Trish's evade effects plus the fact that Nathaniel would spend a lot of turns just sitting put to punch something, free moves just didn't have a lot of impact.

Guts : Nathaniel has average Willpower so for most such tests in TFA a single Guts will only be +2, which just isn't good enough. If the campaign had more high-impact non-binary Willpower treacheries I might have considered it, but as it is it's not worth the slot.

As mentioned before, I would commit Take the Initiative to tests if it gave me at least +3 (including Willpower tests, of course) but otherwise I think it's a waste except perhaps in very dire circumstances, in which case anything goes.

Also, yes, this means Nathaniel took most of the campaign's Agility tests to the face!

The Campaign

Spoiler warning! If you care about TFA or Return to TFA spoilers I would advise you to not read any further!

In general, Return adds more variety rather than big swings in difficulty, and all of the replacement card sets are better than the originals. The change to the exploration action is a good one, both mechanically and thematically (the exploration deck starts off without any treacheries in it, then you add the top card of the encounter deck after each successful exploration).

I'll share some notes from my campaign log for each scenario then explain my upgrade choices.

Supplies

Nathaniel : Map (3), Torches (3), Pendant (1)

As mentioned before, Nathaniel would do most of the exploration and filtering of the exploration deck. A pendant is essential for him to be able to escape the alien city later on.

Trish : Compass (2), Chalk (2), Binoculars (2), Provisions (1)

Trish carried all the things that countered investigation tempo loss, which is more important than medicine, at least for this first trip.

The Untamed Wilds

I always felt this scenario had pretty high variance, and Return doesn't really change that. My strategy was to get the two 1VP locations into play as quickly as possible and then try to grab the clues from them to advance the first act. I would try to clear at least one of the 2VP temples later on, if at all possible.

I wanted Ichtaca on our side for Nathaniel's deck later so I took the parley option, which often cost a lot of resources to succeed at (I never attempted it at lower than +4).

If the vengeance snakes showed up early I tried to dump them in a location we didn't have to return to, but if that wasn't possible they just got punched. Same thing for my nemesis, the Boa Constrictor. I would try to delay the inevitable as long as possible with Slip Away or Trish's ability just to keep those Skull tokens manageable, but if he ever appeared within the first few turns he got punched out, because tempo is more important than vengeance. In the proper run I don't think he showed up at all, but we did both get poisoned.

Resolution 1.

8 Victory.

3 Vengeance.

Yig's Fury : 3

Trauma : Nathaniel (2P, 1M), Trish (1P, 1M) (poison + no blanket + Nathaniel got defeated right before the end).

Upgrades

Nathaniel : 7XP spent, 1XP left.

Boxing Gloves (3) x 1

Upgrading one copy of the Gloves is enough for the entire campaign.

Steadfast x 2 -> Physical Training (2) x 2

Physical Training (2) is free to play so you can drop it early, and as an asset it protects your Gloves from Crypt Chill and Tindalos Alpha. More importantly, I think it provides something Nathaniel really wants on Hard : a consistent +4 or +6 generator. When you rely on events to fight you really need them to succeed every time and there are only so many icons you can get from your skills and other non-event cards.

The deck has a low curve, and I often found in the mid-to-late game Nathaniel would build up a pile of resources and have nothing to spend them on. I know Physical Training is generally considered to be a bad card, so this was something of an experiment, but it performed really well throughout the campaign.

The other thing worth mentioning is that at this point his basic fight events are still fine for the second scenario, so I don't need to upgrade his damage yet.

The Doom of Eztli

In all of my previous runs I found that this scenario turned out to be either a cakewalk or one of those escape rooms from Saw, with nothing in between. Trish sweeps up clues so quickly you can game the Harbinger of Valusia pretty easily, by which I mean you can trigger the final act and position him wherever you like for optimal confrontation chances.

This run was more on the cakewalk side of things, and in fact it went so well I decided, with four turns remaining, that Trish would resign (with the macguffin) and Nathaniel would go back three locations from the exit to the Grand Chamber and perform the action to get us another victory point. Of course, in true Arkham Horror fashion, on the following two turns he failed treacheries after revealing the heart thing which places doom on your location, so the place collapsed on him on the way back. Good thing Yig's Fury wasn't at four points or the resolution would have killed him.

Resolution 1.

5 Victory.

4 Vengeance.

Yig's Fury : 10 (+3 from Nathaniel's defeat).

Upgrades

Nathaniel : 6XP spent, 0XP left.

Stick to the Plan x 1

An essential upgrade for Nathaniel, as it thins your deck and provides a guaranteed copy of Prepared for the Worst. It also guarantees you a copy of your highest damage card, One-Two Punch.

Threads of Fate

The Return version adds a new Act deck, to make four in total. It's a good addition, and the reward from the new deck is worth getting (Veda Whitsley). Since he couldn't grab clues the normal way, Nathaniel chilled at Velma's Diner and then ran interference for Trish, who managed to draw two Hunting Nightgaunts. I wanted to maximize my XP by clearing as many VP locations as possible, but I remember getting Locked Doors on the university and police station, which was annoying.

I cleared three of the new acts : satisfying Ichtaca, recovering the relic, and gaining Veda Whitsley (for Trish's deck).

Resolution 1.

3 Victory.

10 bonus experience for removing poison or trauma, or gaining more supply points (a Return feature).

Trauma : Nathaniel -1P (1P, 1M remaining), Trish -1P (1M remaining)

Both : Cleared Poison, +1 Supply Point

Upgrades

Nathaniel : 3XP spent, 0XP left

Dynamite Blast (3) x 1

Dynamite Blast goes under SttP. Nathaniel can hit one target for four damage and any others for three. It's real good.

Ichtaca

Ichtaca provides a very valuable +1/+2 combat boost and a useful horror heal, plus good soak. I was considering Beat Cop (2) at one point, and if I wasn't taking the Ichtaca path I might've done that, but both won't work in the same deck without Charisma and I didn't want to take that.

Resupply

Nathaniel : Provisions x 4 (4), Medicine (2)

Trish : Medicine (2), Canteen (2), Pickaxe (2)

I was less familiar with the back half of TFA and I wasn't sure what new supply-related effects Return was going to add, but since we already had most of the useful supplies and I wanted to ease up on the trauma I took Medicine this time around. Note that we didn't take any Gas, which means we can't mulligan for the first part of Heart of the Elders. But since Nathaniel now has an on-demand Prepared for the Worst this is less of an issue.

The Boundary Beyond

This is one of the few scenarios in the entire game that just feels bad to play. Not going to say much except that I wanted to clear three locations to get the bonus Ichtaca resolution effect, and I did. For some reason ArkhamDB doesn't have the new Padma Amrita, not that she's much different. She caught a stick of dynamite then got punched, and that was that.

Resolution 1.

6 Victory.

3 Vengeance.

Yig's Fury : 13.

Upgrades

Nathaniel : 6XP spent, 0XP left.

Counterpunch (2) x 2

Prepared for the Worst x 1 -> "I've had worse…" (2)

It's time to boost Nathaniel's damage output, and I feel like Counterpunch is the best place to start as it can double as damage prevention and gives you some flexibility in the investigation phase if you need to leave an enemy up. "I've had worse..." is another experiment I had confidence in, as two points of damage or horror is a pretty standard treachery/attack package, and it's another Spirit event that can be tutored but won't sit in my hand forever.

Heart of the Elders

Part 1

I remember having nightmares on my very first TFA run with Leo Anderson meeting swarms of Ants! Luckily, Nathaniel didn't run into any, and in fact from playing the Returns version of this one a few times in previous runs it just seems to be really easy now. On this run I had three pillars already but on earlier ones I only had one and I still came out of it pretty well.

Didn't have the 'mysterious scepter' from the second scenario, but it's not a huge boost if you do have it. I remember giving 2-3 enemies the run-around in a high stakes game of 'I hope this exploration is successful', but it wouldn't have been the end of the world if Nathaniel had to actually tank them for a turn or two. In the end I was able to add the three pillars I needed in one attempt.

Part 2

This one can get a bit hairy, but Trish is so good at scooping up clues now that any setbacks are short-lived. Don't remember much except that I picked up the goop (but it didn't matter in the end).

Resolution 2 (Alejandro is missing).

12 Victory.

3 Vengeance.

Yig's Fury : 16.

Upgrades

Nathaniel : 12XP spent, 0XP left.

One-Two Punch (5) x 2

Vicious Blow (2) x 1

Alright, if we're ever going to bag ourselves a snake god we're going to need to up our game in the ring. The upgraded One-Two Punch is a very fun card.

The City of Archives

This scenario makes my head spin. The Return version adds a new wing with two new locations, increasing the number of available tasks for getting home to eight (you still only need six for the best win condition). As in Threads of Fate, Nathaniel's inability to grab clues really makes him a liability here, especially since it's actually quite hard to kill enemies, but I made the most of it and had him do the two Combat tasks.

But yeah, when you've opened up most locations on the map and you're trying to plan out the order in which to do things so that the aloof enemies activate in the most optimal way and then they line up properly for their dynamite dinner and then you need to get rid of these treacheries in this order and also how do you maintain your hand size and... it's just overwhelming. The decision tree is like no other in any scenario I can remember playing. I worked it out in the end, though, but it was a very, very close call. Six tasks completed.

Resolution 1.

3 Victory.

Trauma : Nathaniel +1P (2P, 1M), Trish +1P (1P, 1M) (no blanket)

Upgrades

Nathaniel : 7XP spent, 0XP left (+4 bonus from resolution)

Overpower (2) x 2

Vicious Blow (2) x 1

Unexciting upgrades, but they add consistency.

The Depths of Yoth

So yeah, about that vengeance. I had only played this one through once before in my Leo run back at release so I only had a vague notion of exactly how I would be paying for all that Yig's Fury I'd racked up. It turned out to be not that bad, at least in not-ending-the-campaign terms. My Fury threshold meant I started at Agenda 4a, which gave me just enough time to reach depth level three (five is the 'best' resolution, four is 'safe') before the big bad himself showed up.

So, Yig was in play. But Trish had a couple of guaranteed evades up her sleeve, and Nathaniel was ready.

In the end, Yig went two rounds with Nathaniel Cho, and lost.

Then, uh, we got overrun by snake dudes and fell off the bridge. But hey, we made it to level four in the end so at least we had a soft landing.

Resolution 1.

12 Victory.

9 Vengeance.

Yig's Fury : (25, not that it matters anymore).

Trauma : Nathaniel +1P (3P, 1M), Trish +1P (2P, 1M).

Upgrades

Nathaniel : 14XP spent, 0XP left (+2 from having a Map).

1 x Scene of the Crime + "I've had worse…" (2) -> "I've had worse…" (4) x 2

"Get over here!" (2) x 2

Physical Training (4) x 2

Physical Training (2) had been good so far (it was great in City of Archives) so I wanted to try the upgrade, and "Get over here!" (2) is kind of a no-brainer and would be very useful for all of the cultists that would appear in the final scenario. I was tempted to try Monster Slayer (5) but there weren't any beefy non-elites like there are in other finales. I was going to pick up another IHW (2) but then I realized I'd probably have to fight the Formless Spawn so IHW (4) would actually let me tank it.

Shattered Aeons

Final scenarios in this game tend to throw a lot of damage and horror at you and I was a bit worried at the start that I'd get overwhelmed. But things quietened down and Nathaniel sat at the Nexus of N'kai and then A Pocket in Time all game and punched (or pulled then punched) a bunch of cultists while Trish ran back and forth scooping up clues from other worlds.

Nathaniel did tank the Formless Spawn for a turn with IHW (4), but then the second time it appeared he One-Two Punched it with two Vicious Blows, which is ten damage, which is how much life it has.

We won! Shame about not getting the bonus scenario but I guess I'll know what to do next time. Nathaniel is very fun but not an optimal pick for TFA, I think. Trish is really a Seeker in disguise and just damn efficient at everything she does.

For reference, here is the deck in its final form :

Nathaniel Cho (54xp)

And the Trish deck :

Trish Scarborough (56xp)