Discussing The Guardian Class | The Arkham Horror "Podcast"

[@PlayingBoardGames]

Hey everyone! I've bumped up this video to release a week earlier than we anticipated due to the audio issues that plagued the Will Yorick Expanded Guide. My apologies for that! I couldn't leave you guys without an Arkham video today, so enjoy the first episode of our "podcast". :)

[@FlarkeFiasco]

Will Yorick is next? Yesss! Any chance we can see your projected plan for the expanded deck guides? You keep releasing them for really exciting investigators. I'd love to plan a new campaign around how many guides (and of you) there plans to be released by that date. If this is a hassle, don't worry about it. I just think the expanded guides are some of your best content, you nailed some magic with them.

[@blinxy511]

@@FlarkeFiasco I believe the patreon members are voting on the order.

[@markusschmidt9260]

A thematic option for a Guardian XP, and I think on a fair power level, somewhere between the overpowered Arcane Research and the terrible Sharon's Obol would be: If no other investigator is defeated during a scenario, gain 2 extra XP. If at least one other investigator is defeated during a scenario, gain 1 mental trauma. Caveat is, this would be again a strictly multiplayer cards.

[@TastyToast1]

I'm literally 2 minutes in and I'm already loving this. Edit: I'm now all the way through and I think this is one of the best pieces of content you've done, and I hope they continue for many weeks.

[@dutyfreeadventures5924]

I love this format. No need for the quotes. "video podcast" is an existing term and perfectly describes what this is.

[@SlebenGates]

I was waiting for this kind of video. Personally, I can't endure podcasts, I like to see who is talking and the mannerism and the visual aid for mentioned cards, so, thank you for this one.

[@LaboratoryGrey]

I enjoy the speculation! Thanks for another solid video.

[@FlarkeFiasco]

This podcast format is great, thanks Travis! I really like how you guys get to explore ideas without the constraints of a specific video type or format. While you do very well with specific formats, I think you all have a lot of worthwhile ideas and things to explore in an open space like this. More would be great. I especially recommend having specific cards to talk about in advance, that way if you get stuck, you just hop to a card and Kickstart another discussion

[@matthiasmuller7273]

Nice discussion, lots of interesting points. I tink you are right that the design space occupied by the class is much more limited than that of any other class. Guardians have too little cards that encroach on other areas of the game to be interesting. But I believe the new release model makes frees up design space for player cards too. After all you can now play any campaign with any player card box. so you are not forced anymore to add all niches to each playerbox. What I also find problematic is the limited pool of one handed experienced Weapons. Every Rogue weapon has a slightly improved L2 Counterpart. But as a guardian you can only upgrade to 2handed ones, meaning you are stuck at either L0 Weapons or cannot use Flashlights or other things helping to diversify you. Bandolier isn't even a permanent asset so you must first find it. And as a guardian a body slot without soak might even be problematic.

[@bardofsnow]

Great podcast guys! I really enjoy the theoretical discussion behind Arkham Horror, so this is scratching a discussion itch I don't always get to have with my playgroup. With the light comments on the core set redesign, I agree that this was an opportunity to shore up the weaknesses of the core set to allow for more interesting design choices in the future and they completely flubbed it. If I were to compare it to Netrunners Revised Core (RIP), Netrunner had the benefit of having cards rotating that could be easily slotted in to the revised core, removing the problem cards like 'Account Siphon' or 'Noise', but keeping around classic cards that would be rotating like 'Liberated Account' or 'Imp'. Arkham Horror has the problem that without that 'rotation' the Revised Core has to include everything that was in the original core. Should it have included more cards to shore up it's weaknesses? Totally, but I can see Asmodee throwing a hissy fit that there is redundancy that might cut into the profit margins. As far as thoughts on the Guardian Class, its definitely the class that I have the least experience with as I primarily play Rogue/Survivor. I find the Guardian class to be especially interesting when there are deckbuilding restrictions on them like Carolyn, or who have interesting gameplans that are tertiary to the game like Tommy. Being the fair and consistent class is pretty nice at times, but I personally enjoy trying to build some jank, or having some themes to my decks and Guardian can make that difficult at times. Excited for the next part in this series, you guys always do great work!

[@constantinoscaro3536]

You guys rock! greetings from Greece!

[@kiddota]

Re: bless archetype. I played Innsmouth with Sister Mary recently and struggled through most of the campaign until I got the Holy Spear running in the last couple of scenarios. With Sister Mary's "add 1 bless at the end of the round" plus Sacred Covenant, having bless in the bag was never a problem. To me it feels like the upgraded Holy Rosary is there to make bless work with other investigators.

[@L0grak]

I like this new format. Good stuff!

[@DrugsForRobots]

As for what mechanic Guardians feel like they're missing, I would like to see more cards that let them tackle the Mythos deck. Stuff like On The Hunt which is proactive feeling vs First Watch / Let Me Handle This which are reactive. Imagine a Drawn To The Flame but Guardian flavored, or an Overzealous but not a weakness and with some upside... something that lets Guardians really feel like "yeah, my family has been hunting monsters and combating the Mythos for generations, keeping mankind safe, we know a thing or two."

[@davidja1336]

This would be great as it also allows a guardian who isn’t so great at fighting but can manage the encounter deck for the team, and perhaps use that to advance the game. Say a 5-3-3-1 stat line? Would be a good and more inconsistent approach (to the PBG point about being boring).

[@joshuawestlund]

Do any of you sleep? I don’t know how you can make this much great content. This casual vibe is great but the other stuff is rewatchable numerous times for newer players like me. Love you guys.

[@PlayingBoardGames]

Thanks for the comment. :) And no, I don't sleep. 🐙

[@markusschmidt9260]

Mystics got a new XP accelerating card with Down the Rabbit Hole. Even Survivors got one with Déjà vu, which is kind of weird, because exiled cards was kind of their way to counter, that they hardly have anything above 3 XP to buy. It's really strange, that Guardians yet don't have any at all. But it's a matter of time.

[@patali2941]

Just to chime in here: you were all kinda right with Charlie Kane, since he's neutral and gets to choose two colors he gets 0-2 in. So the Blue/Purple vampire hunter Charlie of your dreams can become a reality!

[@DrugsForRobots]

Guardians definitely need more ways of getting clues, I think. It makes thematic sense in a way, to discover clues and to solve the mystery IS to defeat the Mythos, to win IS to defend mankind.

[@Steve_Keen]

The Knight character that Bryn mentioned could just be a descendant of a Knight Templar or something and had a family heirloom sword. Or for Travis' idea for a Guardian that deals with dodging, could maybe be a Fencer.

[@astutedunsparce4036]

The Tony discussion is interesting. My group never really thought of him as the *best* fighter because we like to try all of the characters, but he really is just better than nearly every Guardian at their own game. Also adding on to stat changes, I wish Skids' stats were 2-3-4-3 instead of 2-3-3-4; he'd be such a better character imo but he's gradually getting love throughout the newer cycles now.

[@FlarkeFiasco]

I've also never realized this about Tony, but I'll be crazy to disagree. They're absolutely right

[@SaniFakhouri]

Skids is just one of those characters that just has Guardian cards and a 3 in the matching stat. It's kind of like how Luke Robinson has a 3 in Intellect, but he can investigate just fine if you lean a bit heavy into all those Seeker cards. It makes Skids a fairly flexible character. On Standard difficulty he can do just about anything you focus him on. On Hard/Expert, you really need to lean more into his Agility and the Rogue side of his deckbuilding. Parallel Skids feels a lot more useful in building a "Gotta Go Fast" playstyle for Skids; minimal assets, maximum high-impact events and skills to get him through any scenario.

[@SaniFakhouri]

Both Intrepid and Keen Eye have this weird "improve your overall stats by a small amount over your entire turn" sorta effect. I feel like the Guardian class could really own this type of playstyle if there were some more cards that played off this sort of effect and/or if they had an investigator that benefited from that. An investigator with something like that would be really cool. Here's what it could look like: "Reaction: Whenever a card effect you play, commit, or trigger (not including skill icons from committing cards to skill checks) would increase one or more of your skills, gain an additional +1 to each of those skills for the rest of the round [Limit once per card per round]". So the first use of Keen Eye would give +2 to the stat you boosted for the rest of the phase. Intrepid would give +2 to each of those stats. Other printed cards could help out too!

[@davidko9289]

I've been thinking about a card like Arcane Research, but for Guardians and weapons. Something like "Battle Scarred" (I would say Shell Shocked, but that's already taken). Take a physical trauma and your weapons cost one less XP to buy? That's probably too strong, but there aren't as many weapon direct upgrades as there are spells.

[@FlarkeFiasco]

Or maybe an effect like take a trauma, and then once per scenario, you can get a 1 xp discount on cards that help you heal that. I definitely think guardians should have some physical trauma permanent though, we are on the right track with that

[@davidko9289]

@@FlarkeFiasco Physical trauma and +1 on skill tests on fight actions.

[@funwithknive]

it would be nice if they added a bonus to cards if you where the lead investigator. Test of Will - willpower test, Leadership - just play it whatever. Maybe even do something with the lead investigator token, like what is that thing even for? does anyone use it?

[@radamescorujo5578]

One thing they could do is make some of the named allies into a investigator. Kind like a level up.

[@nuraby_9228]

If they do another color change style like EotE, Hank absolutely should go Survivor-> Guardian. Though with his trademark sledgehammer being released in EotE (and reusing the EH art), dunno what his unique asset should be. Maybe an even bigger sledgehammer lol

[@RipVanWinkleXX]

Michael McGlen should be a guardian with Illicit cards and excludes police/agency tags.

[@Zeroyue622]

I like to do double survival knife 2 with small guns

[@SlebenGates]

Justin, why don't you continue with this series with the Encounter Deck / Scenario thoughts for the future and so far / Neutral and Weaknesses talk. Hope it comes!

[@Frankzoar]

10:56 LOL

[@simonsuter4553]

Would it be good for guardians to have a card that enables using a weapon ability on events with fight. Text?

[@DanPyre]

>Police-trait-caring Guardian experience bump card idea >Police Badge doesn't even have the Police trait Being a Guardian lover is hard :(

[@justthedecoy4687]

Yellow miskatonic Red Sheldon gang Blue police Green O'Bannon gang Purple silver Twilight lodge

[@sasimirobot]

dude starts the video drinking a water bottle like a Vietnam vet , hella bro

[@marekbugiel6893]

Tony undoubtedly is very good, but that may be also the way to allow inexperienced players to have a character that just works.

[@PlayingBoardGames]

I think that's a very fair point. Likewise with Stella. It's going to be hard for me to play her again because she's so strong it's kinda boring, but for new players, it's nice to have a character that allows some security and strength in the game.

[@marekbugiel6893]

@@PlayingBoardGames If I ever go mad and try playing on extreme difficulty then I think I may end up picking Tony. Even more reasons why it's good having Tony. ;)

[@siege1289]

DBBBB: DON'T BRING BACK BEARDED BRYN!

[@FlarkeFiasco]

Huh, why the pivot

[@siege1289]

@@FlarkeFiasco They released a video earlier today about William Yorick, but replaced it with this upload after there was static in the audio. However, at the start of the video, they talked about BBBB, and Bryn said he would not grow his beard back out of spite for BBBB. SO, we must change our tactics! DBBBB!