Keen Eye Leo, Boss Killer (Big Money, Big Actions)

Leo has some interesting deck options, basically "Skids" O'Toole reversed.

As your deck revolses around money, what do you think about the Cat Burglar and Dynamite Blast combo?

@DjangoThat's a fun idea! I personally love Cat Burglar in Leo, since it opens him up to a bunch of new options, and can be quite helpful in The Forgotten Age where you don't want to necessarily kill everything due to Vengeance.

Cat Burglar + Dynamite Blast is great! I would recommend this for The Devourer Below in NotZ/RtNotZ if you were unable to get very many cultists in Midnight Masks. This prevents Leo from getting bogged down on the Main Path when advancing the Act Deck, and also opens up a multi-kill with Dynamite Blast (a very satisfying experience). An Adaptable (to sub in 2x Dynamite Blast) and 2x Cat Burglars cost a whole 3xp, so this is very feasible!

Cat Burglar + Marksmanship (a card I personally love) is another great combo.

If you don't want to try to squeeze in Cat Burglar, you can always opt for Elusive, which, though more situational to gain the same effect, has great versatility.

I forgot to point out that Double or Nothing can make Leo's attacks highly efficient. Take the Ghoul Priest, for example. Since you know when and where it arrives, you can prepare for a highly efficient power turn.

Leo, armed with a Machete, fights at 5 versus the Ghoul Priest's 4. Toss a Double or Nothing to bring it to 6 vs 8, then 2x Vicious Blow to even it up at 8 vs 8. Not good odds. With Physical Training down and a few resources, you can easily pump this up to 13 vs 8 (at a cost of 5 resources), as sure a thing you can get in Standard. Barring a , you will deal a whopping 8 damage in one swing!

OR

If you are a little down on Resources and have Physical Training down, you can play a vanilla "Watch This!" (meaning no Double or Nothings or Quick Thinkings) to boost your fight to 6 vs 4. Maybe commit your extra Machete in hand or an Unexpected Courage to boost to 7 vs 4 or 8 vs 4. A success on this test will yield you up to 6 resources, which you can use to boost your next two tests by 3 for 8 vs 4. Those are good odds.

Once you get Keen Eye out in subsequent scenarios, those 6 Resources could be used to boost your or by +3 for 3 actions (4 with the other Leo in play), which is enough to clear quite a few clues (especially with a Flashlight) or dish out 6-8 damage with a Machete.

I really love this deck! :D

Elusive and Dynamite Blast cost 7 ressources in total, which the player might not have. Cat Burglar can be played in a previous turn (but costs more), so you don't have to save ressources for a long time to pull of the combo. I mean both are old, they could be played with the core set.

New options for this combo are the addition of On the Hunt, "Let me handle this!" and Heroic Rescue. All of these allow you to gather enemies on your yourself and some of them to remove enemies from allies, to go for an even bigger boom.

On the other hand the new Dynamite Blast 2 allows you to blow up yourself without OA. Most Guardians have lots of health, so this makes disengaging redudant if you've got lots of HP left.

You're aware that you can edit published decks descriptions, but not comments? So you could add your above comment to the deck description and post a comment like "updated deck description to clarify Double or Nothing's purpose".

Thanks for the suggestion @Django ! I added the additional uses for Double or Nothing into the body of the post, under a Double or Nothing Action Efficiency sub-heading beneath THE ACTIONS heading.

I updated the section under Upgrades to include some of the new player cards from the Boundary Beyond, which burst this deck wide open for an uber shotgun build. I made a separate heading where I discuss these in detail, in case someone wishes to avoid player card spoilers.

@TheBlackHorror I don't quite get a match behind the ubershotgun. Doesn't shotgun deal a maximum of just 5 base damage per shot?

Yeah, Shotgun is limited to 5 damage at most (not including other cards to boost damage, such as vicious blow). Sorry to burst your bubble (or really just deflate it a little.) It's still great. Considering all the other bonuses you can run, Beat Cop becomes just a little bit pointless. I think I would swap him out for venture, for more ammo/flashlights.

You're right! I'll go back and edit that when I get a chance. Once Leo starts picking up big guns, Venturer might be a good option :)

I fixed the Shotgun entry. That's what I get for writing it first thing in the morning!

I am wondering if it might be beneficial to Adaptable in 2x Lucky Cigarette Case, especially once you've begun to acquire Hot Streaks, Well Prepared, High Rollers, Shotgun, Lightning Gun, etc. With this build Leo will be succeeding by 2 a lot, which gives him a reasonable chance of activating LCC each turn. This would nearly double his card draw, making it easier to find those important XP cards.

Adaptable to swap Venturer?

With shotgun don’t forget Extra Ammunition, Contraband and Venturer + Emergency Cache 3

@TheBlackHorror "Toss a Double or Nothing to bring it to 6 vs 8, then 2x Vicious Blow to even it up at 8 vs 8. Not good odds. With Physical Training down and a few resources, you can easily pump this up to 13 vs 8 (at a cost of 5 resources), as sure a thing you can get in Standard. Barring a , you will deal a whopping 8 damage in one swing!" - I'm a bit of a noob. Could you explain how you manage to get 8 damage in one hit? Have I been playing this game wrong?

Also, Those permanents (or any card that is 'Spend resource for +x bonus)... Does that stack?? Like, if I spend 8 resources on Keen Eye, is that +4 for the rest of my turn? I've always assumed it's only 2 resource for +1. :/

@Deadlykipper base damage with a weapon is +2. Add 2 for 2x Vicious Blow and... Double or Nothing brings you to 8.

Anything with can be used as often as you like and costs can be paid. Those that exhaust can only be used once until refreshing.

Fascinating Deck. Since it requires some set up, what is the group think of pairing this deck with Father Mateo to get a free Elder Sign on the Big Turn?

@SagesseI'd say it's a match made in heaven! I'm one of the game's biggest Father Mateo proponents, and I probably should have suggested this in the description!

I‘d rather pair him with a seeker to speed up his Setup, like No Stone Unturned, No Stone Unturned or Cryptic Research.

Or he packs his Lucky Cigarette Case to draw more cards.

With so much ammo Leo could play "Eat lead!" to guarantee succees on Import shots. So no Seal of the Elder Sign necessary.

That is also a great idea @Django! That's something I love about this game. Even when we don't agree on something, it doesn't mean that either idea is bad! (And I don't think Django and I agree about most things, lol. He's still full of great ideas, though. Just a different style of play.)

As a former Magic the gathering player, i love deck building. But i've come to hate competetive games in general, only playing coop games today. So arkham LCG is a great alternative.

Building combo decks is nice, but building decks that form a combo together is even better.

Side note, this deck might be able to one shot Harbinger of Valusia.

Awesome deck idea. I'll likely be using this when I get a chance to use Leo soon. I did note in the Uber Shotgun section, you shoot 3 times and it only has 2 ammo.

"Shoot the Harbinger of Valusia again with the Shotgun for the next two actions at 19 vs 3 for a solid 5 damage each"

It's facinating, because while Lola doesn't have the higher base stat like Leo does, she can pull that super action combo off as well, but she could also use Will to Survive so she doesn't have to pull a token for any of the tests. But she can't use a shotgun, so not AS explosive. Still an interesting option.

and I love the idea of using Double or Nothing to double Quick Thinking... I'd never considered you getting another bonus action from it. thanks!

@slothgodfather I'm glad you enjoy it! Trust me, you have to play this deck to really see how crazy it is. You should try experimenting with your Lola idea. She has so many interesting possibilities now, especially since she can use the Ornate Bow!

Yea I used Lola in our 4 man Carcossa play through and it was amazing. Using Will to Survivor + Sneak Attack + Double or Nothing was how we beat up many boss types. I'll be sure to add Quick Thinking into that mix!

How do we feel about M1918 BAR? It's incredible with Sleight of Hand. Likely with an XP spend for Stick to the Plan attaching Contraband and then a mix of Marksmanship, "Eat lead!", Custom Ammunition or Dynamite Blast (not a bad little variant for this Shotgun build in any case).

@OuterCr0wI love it! I haven't gotten back around to adding an update for all the great new cards from Heart of the Elders and The City of Archives. I honestly think M1918 might even have better potential than Shotgun.

Imagine Leo Anderson with Leo DeLuca out (so 4 actions). Play Sleight of Hand to whip the M1918 BAR out, play Contraband to double the ammo to 16, then unleash with 3 shots at +5 Fight and 5 damage. Throw in a Vicious Blow (2) for potentially 14 damage with the first shot, then 5 and 5 on the subsequent two. :D :D :D

Hello everyone. I added in a few updates under the Money section highlighting how good Pay Day is in Keen Eye Leo. I also formally added a section beneath Uber Shotgun Leo called "SET THE BAR HIGH - BOSS-KILLER M1918 BAR FIGHT LEO" to highlight just how good the new M1918 Bar rifle is for Keen Eye Leo, especially with Contraband.

@TheBlackHorror what are your thoughts on Decorated Skull or Guard Dog. Do you find that you need a tanky ally like Guard Dog and do you think the resource generation (and card draw) from decorated skull makes it worth it, or is its outpaced by the other resource combos the deck provides.

@TheBlackHorrorAlso do you just not play Mitch Brown? Since he would take up Leo's slot. Or do you just play whichever you draw first and wait until you can afford Charisma?

@theamerikan When I first started building Leo Anderson decks, I kept trying to make Guard Dog, Survival Knife, and Decorated Skull work. They did, sometimes, but they were mostly too slow. In large part I believe it is because things like Guard Dog are REACTIVE, and your action efficiency is always much better when you are PRO-ACTIVE. And yes, they are generally outpaced by the combos in this deck.

Concerning Mitch Brown: Yes. If you get Mitch Brown down first, he is, well, expendable :)

@TheBlackHorrorThanks for the tips :) Ive got another question. Do you find Cat Burglar to be of any use? While obviously this Leo build can blast a MF really quick. There might be situations where you simple don't want to fight or movement is key. Do find him or similar evasion options to be useful?

@TheBlackHorrorAlso since there is plenty of cash flowing and I personally dont have access to Scene of the Crime. Im considering adding some more allies. Have you found the Hired Muscle, Treasure Hunter, Dario El-Amin, Joey "The Rat" Vigil or Brother Xavier to be of use?

@theamerikanYou're in luck! Scene of the Crime is not essential to this deck.

I personally like Hired Muscle and Treasure Hunter, since they can be used in tandem with Mitch's ability, and they amount to efficient stat boosts with damage and horror soak. With Leo's ability you can play them for free without requiring an action. Then the 1 Resource upkeep is really no different than a stat booster where you pay 1 Resource for +1 or +1 for the round...and that's efficient!

My personal recommendation would be Treasure Hunter, which has more horror soak, and will help Leo investigate. But if Keen Eye Leo is going to be the main monster killer in a 3-4 player group with a dedicated seeker, then Hired Muscle might be the way to go.

Regarding Decorated Skull, i don't think it's a useful card. Most decks need the correct cards and ressources at the start of the game and it does not help with that. Even if you have it in your starting hand you need to kill some enemies to get charges, which means you also need a weapon. In my experience from playing all campaigns except forgotten age, you rarely can afford to spend actions to make use of the skulls charges in mid to late game, when would have some.

I concur with @Django. On paper, Decorated Skull looks like a great card for Leo and for this deck, but in practice it rarely gets played, and on the whole is too slow.

Card draw is not as much of an issues as you'd think, and that's largely because Guardians can fulfill their main function (killing monsters) without any assets down; and to fulfill this function well, all they need is a single weapon. You'll be wanting to save many of the combos in this deck for mid- to late-game anyway, which gives you plenty of time to collect a hand full of cards. That has been my personal experience, anyway.

Great deck thanks! Eat Lead and sleight of hand would work well together for this deck

Cheers. Quick question: how about adding The Red-Gloved Man later in the campaign? Is he a valuable addition to the deck?

I don’t think he really helps as it’s only +2 to combat and with Leo’s ally focus he’s got many soaks already. You’d also need charisma if you got other allies out.

Ok @DjangoI can see that. And what about the substitution of Double or Nothing with something more clue-gathering oriented card such as Evidence! or even Scene of the Crime? I find Double or Nothing too much situational for my tastes.

I'm blind, Scene of the Crime is already present in the deck, I apologize.

@elenneth89your are correct that Double or Nothing is highly situational most of the time. However, in this deck you have more opportunity to use it because it works so well with Watch This! Or High Roller. You can use it for damage, but that part is highly situational. Most of the time it’s used wit Watch This +/ Quick Thinking, which makes it more likely to play. The strategy is to pitch Watch This + DoN to an easy test of 1 or 2, something you could still pass if doubled to 2 or 4, like a 2 fight Ghoul.

You could also add The Skeleton Key and Lola Santiago if you wanted a lot more clueing with this deck. The key makes ability a lot cheaper.

The Skeleton Key is incredibly valuable, it would make a fine substitution to the Flashlight right away.

I tried the deck a couple of times, and my goal was to put in play Leo De Luca asap, so I ended up fishing for him right at the beginning, by mulligan at least two cards. It worked most of the times, but I was barely able to get enough resources to play with during the game, even with the "Watch this!" and Double or Nothing combo, until I ended up taking 2X of Hot Streak.

It is very funny thou and I'll try to tweak it in order to adjust it to my needs, like switching the Machete with the Survival Knife which I like more.

I think I'll post a list in a couple of weeks.

@Django Forgive me if I'm wrong, but Leo Anderson's deckbuilding restrictions prevent him from including Lola Santiago.

You're right, my bad. Leo can take guardian 1-5, but rogue only 1-2 and Lola Santiago is rogue 3.

What does pay day replace?

@BiasOldZombieDepending on when you get it and what other investigators you have Leo paired with, Pay Day can either replace Scene of the Crime (which is not as useful in, say, 3-4 players) or Emergency Cache. If clue-acquisition is completely covered, you could even sub out the Flashlights.

What are your thoughts on Calling in Favors in this deck? Maybe adaptable into them with upgraded beat cops, what are your candidates for replacement?

@iGnominyYou typically need at least 6 allies to make Calling in Favors mostly reliable. You also usually include allies that give you something by being returned to your hand (such as healing Beat Cops so you can replay them). That said, it might be something to try, especially if you plan on acquiring more allies later. If you want to include Calling In Favors, you can easily replace Scene of the Crime.

there is anything particular good in the new cards? I'm starting the last campaign and I think I will use Leo.

Overpower or Guts synergise with Double or Nothing too.

Safeguard feels like an autoinclude in 2+ players for anyone

what do you think about replacing 2x Emergency Cache with 2x Faustian Bargain ?

@TheBlackHorrorthis deck is fantastic! Just took it for a spin in TFA and finally feel like I have a deck that can make it through.

I do want to mention, though, that you recommend Hot Streak as a card to purchase, but it is a level 4 Rogue card. Leo can only support up to Rogue Level 2, sadly.

I think they're talking about the other Hot Streak for 2 XP.

@Django oh my gosh, I feel like an absolute doofus! I have no idea how I missed that. #derp

@TheBlackHorror any suggestions for Double or Nothing replacement since is forbidden in the taboo list?

Looks like this decklist requires Return to the NotZ for access to Hot Streak (2). Would you mind editing the packs used?