Denizens of the Underworld Review, Part 3

Our staff has put together a first blush analysis of the newly released Denizens of the Underworld. We’ve used a one through five scale; five being the best. The cards are listed in numeric order. Our reviewers are listed in alphabetical order. Let us know in the comments how you feel about the cards in this pack!


[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_wandering-tinker-dotu.jpg'] Wandering Tinker

Danigral - 2 out of 5
His ability is pretty situational and tricky to pull of since he has to be ready, and he’s a puny chud to begin with so he may even not be around to trigger. BUT he is a chance to reuse that Bound and Gagged again. He definitely won’t be stealing your opponent’s Khopesh or anything. More often than not he will be thrown under the bus.

dboeren - 3 of 5
A bit too conditional for me, but it does have combo potential so he’s potentially very good in those decks. Lethargic Miasma and Bound and Gagged are some possibilities.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
Neutral is always a bit of a drawback in CoC, and this here learned fella don’t bring that much to the board. However, he’s another answer to a puzzle - now the question is to figure out what’s the question.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
I am giving this guy a 4 just for Concrete and Chains, Concrete and Chains being able to pass that card around to other characters makes this guy worth running in a deck using that support card, or others similar, however in most decks only like a 1 or 2 because is a pretty conditional effect.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
The man has a purpose and exists solely for his purpose. Not your everyday mook, but when attempting to abuse relics a wandering tinker could be your best friend.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_zstylzhemgni-dotu.jpg'] Zstylzhemgni

Danigral - 3 out of 5
Based on a utterly unknown AO “Zstylzhemgril” - it look like they had a problem with the pdf letter recognition. haha. She’s a great defender, but not for 6, unless you want to use your restricted slot on Broken Space, Broken Time. And if you do, you might want a more high impact AO than her.

dboeren - 3 of 5
Doesn’t like pairing up with an Investigation guy so mostly he’ll get 2 tokens on your turn. Good defender too, but very pricy. He certainly doesn’t go with Syndicate well but I could see him in some decks where you can bring discounts/acceleration.

Ire & WWDrakey - 2 out of 5
Now, fer an ancient one, this guys a bit too cuddly. Also has a bad drawback on how to answer, when your opponent asks you what card you just played. “Z...mumble-mumble”. Bzzt.

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
Real problem is the 6 cost... However, being an ancient one is always a bonus giving them immunity to many effects and with 4 combat icons he will most often be able to trigger his effect. Against other Ancient Ones with invulnerability he doesn’t stand a chance, I do love the art though.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Take a trip down memory road and when Ravager of the Deep would seem like the powerful card ever! Zstylzhemgni takes all the best parts of Ravager, improves them, and covers almost all of Ravager’s weaknesses. His ability is optional, useable on offense, has a terror icon, more combat, more toughness, is now neutral, and is an Ancient One. All for a couple more resources and the loss of an arcane icon. Invulnerability and guys with a lot of toughness are still a problem, but Zesty here is one of the best targets for Broken Space, Broken Time and one of the best solo story strugglers in the game right now. Only downside is his 6 cost, but as I’ve already mentioned there are ways to get around that.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_sarnath-dotu.jpg'] Sarnath

Danigral - 3 out of 5
This could be very good...maybe??? My hesitation is based on the confusion from the wording. If I find a way to ready this and trigger it again can I then hold down multiple characters? When does the first trigger wear off? Regardless, even holding down your opponent’s best character every turn is pretty good.

dboeren - 3 out of 5
Sort of like the old CCG-era O’Bannion’s Warehouse card which is fitting for the Syndicate box. Not bad because it’s reusable, but a little slow costing two 2-domains and potentially more if I want to switch targets. Bound and Gagged plus possibly some skill reduction is a good cheaper alternative but other factions might use it.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
That be curious. The cost be prohibitive, as do the timing… but then the effect also be interesting. Lack of targeting restrictions is the real gem here.

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
Although actually is a pretty good effect paying 4 (two for the support and 2 for the effect) makes this support probably not worth a spot in most decks. Understand this effect in this box with all the Exhaust effects but feel can do the same effect much cheaper.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Not the quickest card, but extremely versatile. Putting your opponent’s best character on lockdown is strong enough, but being able to switch it to a new threat makes this an amazing card. Combine with effects like Unending Festivities and watch your opponent struggle to find an answer.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_outmaneuvered-dotu.jpg'] Outmaneuvered

Danigral - 3 out of 5
I actually think this might be good if you know that your deck is weak to one popular event (such as the ones released in this set, although other examples are Pushed into the Beyond, Deep One Assault, or A Small Price to Pay). This can be especially worthwhile if your deck is dependent on one special character, like Savio Corvi decks, or extra insurance for your AO that you worked so hard to get out. You’ll notice that it cancels even events with global effects; there aren’t really that many good ones, but it can...

dboeren - 2 out of 5
A 2 domain is big enough that I could be doing something useful with it instead of holding it as a contingency and getting their domain back could let them cause more mischief. I’m either going to take it like a man or call Hastur for my cancels.

Ire & WWDrakey - 2 out of 5
Well, it’s mostly a stopgap solution for big events… and one that only delays the issue.

mnBroncos - 1 out of 5
In any card game I haven’t been the biggest fan of cancel the main reason is because you have to hold onto this card until your opponent does something I’d rather have cards that actually do something when I want them too.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
A simple cancel can be the difference between a win and a loss. Being neutral allows this to show up in any deck that is able to keep a free 2 domain open. This is a very scary card and one worth respecting. Especially if your deck has only a moderate number of ways to re-use the domain it refreshed, otherwise Outmaneuvered becomes a hard cancel for events.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_special-agent-callahan-dotu.jpg'] Special Agent Callahan

Danigral - 3 out of 5
Another vanilla Government character. Yes he’s good vs. Syndicate, but pretty “meh” otherwise. If you really want to get creative, you can use Arrest Warrant for some surprise effect, but why would you do that for a 2-cost dude?

dboeren - 4 out of 5
Gotta admit, the Syndicate box is the best time to release this card. Yes, he’s pretty much an anti-Syndicate card. However, he’s good enough that he stands on his own merits too and the metagaming comes along for free. Loyal isn’t too bad for cost 2, he’s got Government which is a plus, and Toughness is always appreciated. He’s unique though so he might just stay as a 2x character in my decks. Agency does actually have ways to grant Criminal to an opponent’s character too if you want it…

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
Now this here copper’s exactly what an anti-Meta card should be. Stands firmly on his own two legs, has a gun in hand and a fist ready for pummeling. Leg it, fellas!

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
Solid character and for the time being will probably face good amount of Criminal characters so a 2 cost character for 4 icons and fast is great. Downside of Loyal is something though. Nothing too special and after the meta calms down from playing with the new stuff this guy will be around a 2.

Tom Capor - Magnus Arcanis
Not quite where agency needs him to be right now. Best compliment I can give him is that he’s a “solid” 2 cost character. If your meta is new and flooded by Syndicate Criminal decks… it’s not a bad choice for Agency.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_deep-undercover-dotu.jpg'] Deep Undercover

Danigral - 2 out of 5
This card is best in a rush deck where you may be sending a weenie with investigation to a story where he would otherwise go insane or get wounded. You just have to be careful that it doesn’t just deflect terror and combat to another of your characters. It will be better out of faction to shore up some weaknesses, such as with Syndicate or M.U., but otherwise it will stay in the binder. The subtype effect is too situational to even comment on.

dboeren - 2 out of 5
Mainly it’s Invulnerability and Willpower for one phase for one guy. It’s cheap, but ask yourself this - how often do you see Bred to Survive played? That costs 1 and gives Invulnerability to ALL your guys. And in a faction that has a good amount of Willpower too… Maybe better in Agency/Syndicate with Naomi or against enemies that grant buffs to a subtype. Could be crazy against a Mi-Go deck for instance

Ire & WWDrakey - 2 out of 5
Usually them coppers favor shooting, before fancyness. And this here, it not be shootin’. Well, at least it’s not gettin’ shot at, which has it’s benefits.

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
Giving a character a direct Invulnerability or Willpower is great but with it only being a one time use isn’t the best event when there are supports that give the same effect permanently, however, the element of surprise is a fair trade off and this card will see some play.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
“I will survive!” It’s cheap, it lets a guy compete, and adding a subtype could have some cool applications. It’s a niche card that offers an answer to a few problems. Won’t make many decks, but a fun curveball as no one will expect that you had a guy go deep undercover.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_robert-friendly-dotu.jpg'] Robert Friendly

Danigral - 3 out of 5
this guy is looking a little green under the gills. yukyuk. He’s decently statted, and can help slow down some rush decks, but in a Cthulhu deck you probably have better options, unless you are going deep ones, in that case he is one of the few with a terror icon.

dboeren - 4 out of 5
I like this type of character, worth playing without their ability, and then an ability that conditionally pays off in the right situation. He’s worth packing as a meta against Miskatonic and Agency, plus he’s a Criminal so he fits into a Cthulhu/Syndicate deck fairly well which fits to the theme of the box. However, he’s also a Deep One so he’s worth taking in mono-Cthulhu too. Never really your first pick, but he’ll often make the cut.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Another fella with some good legs on him, while still bringing the heat for specific gangs. A good Deep One with a horror-icon, and otherwise good stats… we’ll take ‘im.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
Just another very solid character for the cost. Kind of a meta call with the ability but a character that won’t make every deck but never a real bad card either. Just kinda bleh.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
An ok stat block, and interesting subtypes. Beyond that, he’s weak unless your deck’s weakness is Government and/or Investigator decks. Not enough reach for me in most cases, but Rob is not without his uses.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_calculated-mutation-dotu.jpg'] Calculated Mutation

Danigral - 4 out of 5
This event will really shine depending on which factions you pair Cthulhu with. In a deck with Yog, those arcane icons can suddenly become investigation which can win you stories. You can also use it defensively for some surprising struggle swings.

dboeren - 4 out of 5
This is a strong event provided that you have enough Arcane to take good advantage of it. Don’t forget to pack your Master of the Myths! If your opponent contests you can set it to Combat or Terror, if he doesn’t you can go Arcane for one of the few ways Cthulhu has in faction to get extra success tokens.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Now… That’s just a grand frenzy of fishy fun. Investigative Deep Ones should bring the fear of Cthulhu to all.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
Another amazing Tactic event! Being able to control the icons you have in play on both offense and defense is never ever bad. This will wreak some of your opponent's games. This is a great effect for only 1 cost and don’t see how couldn’t run this in any Cthulhu deck that has a solid amount of Arcana icons.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Arcane icons are super important right now and this gives them even more reach in what they can do. A bit too niche for me in most cases, but in a (at least part) Cthulhu deck that packs plenty of Arcane icons… I won’t not consider it.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_jeff-harson-dotu.jpg'] Jeff Harson

Danigral - 4 out of 5
This guy is very nice. The coolest part if planning your operations and story phases with perfect knowledge of what your opponent can do. The gravy is getting to use his own event against him. Now, this will only work on Action: events (since responses won’t have the opportunity to trigger), but that can still hit a lot of things, especially those shiny new 0-cost Syndicate events!

dboeren - 3 out of 5
This is a really interesting card and at times can do something amazing, but it’s dependent on your opponent’s deck/hand. Basically once your opponent sees him hit the table he can resource his Events or use them before it gets back to your Operations phase. I suggest trying to hit your opponent early and snag a good Event before he gets wise.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Now that’s one cool Lunatic. Best triggered right after playing to prevent your opponent from wasting away their events, and has nice synergy with ‘em other madhats.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
This guy is just all around solid. Being able to look at an opponents hand and see what tricks they could have up their sleeves is nice but being able to get rid of an opponents event is even more useful.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
I foresee an entry on the restricted list that reads the name of Jeff Harson. If Outmaneuvered wasn’t enough to scare you off of event cards, Jeff should. Hastur needed some oomph and Hastur got it.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_halis-directive-dotu.jpg'] Hali's Directive

Danigral - 4 out of 5
Good card. Lots of great character abilities out there worth cancelling.

dboeren - 4 out of 5
Great card for 1, although watch out because a lot of good character abilities occur on character with Terror or Willpower. The flip side is that most characters with abilities are good ones worth driving insane. Being a Tactic is a bonus in this set.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Hastur. Hastur. Haa….. *gibbering*

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
Although earlier I mentioned I'm not a fan of Cancel, canceling a character ability in CoC seems much more useful than canceling an event and being able to then make the character insane is just a great icing to the cake.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Acanis
Every once and while you’ll see a 1 cost card that is physical embodiment of a factions principles. I.e. Alternative Historian for Miskatonic, Yithian Scout for Yog-Sothoth, Lena for Syndicate, etc.. this is one for Hastur. Negation and madness all rolled into one beautiful card.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_elijah-conrad-dotu.jpg'] Elijah Conrad

Danigral - 5 out of 5
There are a lot of good locations in the game, and this enables being able to run more expensive ones in your deck. Figure out a way to bounce him and you’ve got a very fun thing going on. He’s not bad for his stats, but his ability is awesome.

dboeren - 5 of 5
A free Location is quite good, plus he’s good enough on his own to be playable even if you don’t currently have a Location to use. One key point is that you can use a Location of any faction with him and don’t need a matching resource. There are currently 96 Location cards in the game, so get creative! Maybe 607 Walter Street so he can do it again each time he dies?

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
Solid rush legs, with an exceptional ability… Never underestimate the power of entering play abilities.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
If this guy gets errated he may not be as great but right now he is able to put any support card into play from hand or discard. Doesn’t matter the cost or what faction it is from and that combination can have a possible game breaking effect, as well as also being a solid 3 cost character.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
A niche card for a potent niche. Some of the games strongest support cards tend to be Locations and being an ‘enters play’ effect should give him some extra mileage. Not for every deck, but if you’re looking travel, you’ll want Elijah’s phone number.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_strategic-planning-dotu.jpg'] Strategic Planning

Danigral - 3 out of 5
Similar to Deep Undercover, this will shine in a rush deck, but is best on a character that will be able to win the skill check on his own, or when you really need to slow your opponent down on defense.

dboeren - 3 out of 5
Rather limited on targets, but handy. Best in mono-Miskatonic since other factions have few Student/Faculty cards to use it on. You’ll likely want to use this on characters with Investigation, especially if you can wrangle an extra Investigation struggle too or win skill.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Deep Undercover it is not, due to the faction in question. Agency may be swimming in Combat icons and have Willpower to spare… but Miskatonic is usually looking to bolster good Rush characters with both.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
Just a slightly better Deep Undercover that was reviewed earlier.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
The comparison to Deep Undercover is obvious. Generally, Strategic Planning will be better as it can be applied to more applications but Miskatonic isn’t exactly weak on Arcane icons. Odds are neither will see much play, in fact I except DU to edge out because of its Subtype manipulation giving it a purpose.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_bill-strauss-dotu.jpg'] Bill Strauss

Danigral - 5 out of 5
Cultist and Servitor are great subtypes, and his icons are perfect. This gives great card advantage too, and can easily be worked into a deck that take advantage of any cards that would go to the discard. Just a perfect card with a great ability. The art is fantastic! I wonder what he needs all those canteens for. All that jerky must make you thirsty.

dboeren - 4 out of 5
Free card draw is handy, particularly in a faction that is good at getting their characters out on the board with discounts and acceleration. Try to get some Arcane so you can use his ability on both turns.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Some solid icons with a nice ability. What’s not to love with his furry hide?

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
Solid character that can give you card advantage as well as the discard effect maybe a plus as well if have ways in your deck to bring that card back. Another solid character from this box.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Solid stats with extra faux draw power that can also accelerate your discard pile. The cursed life of Bill is a win for Shub players.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_ambush-dotu.jpg'] Ambush

Danigral - 3 out of 5
This can be very useful, but requires either telegraphing or potentially mis-managing your domains. It will be most useful on those characters with enters play abilities that may not otherwise happen to have the most efficient impact if played during your operations phase.

dboeren - 2 out of 5
You still have to pay for the character, this just lets you play them out of the normal phase. Not bad, but you will have to judge when it’s worth losing the character and an additional card in return for whatever surprise damage he inflicts.

Ire & WWDrakey - 2 out of 5
Only works in mono-Shub, and mono-Shub has better tricks up their sleeve. The impact would have to be big for this to be worth it, since Shub is one of those factions that likes to snowball with it’s board presence.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
Surprise defender for free is amazing this will be a frustrating card to see against you. I can already see the nightmares this event could cause in ruining your plans.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Surprise characters are always awesome. However, the scope of ambush is not one I particularly enjoy. Odds other events will have the same result or better for less investment. That being said, it’s a nice tool for mono-Shub deck as they usually lack any big surprises.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_josef-meiger-dotu.jpg'] Josef Meiger

Danigral - 4 out of 5
Again, great icons and a great ability. His passive ability can be a little detrimental, unless those Rituals and Artifacts you fetch have immediate impact, like Cursed Skull, The Three Bells, or Rite of the Silver Gate. Then it doesn’t matter if they’re destroyed because you’ve already gotten a boost on tempo.

dboeren - 3 of 5
This guy is not so much a character as a deck type. I feel like I’m either going to make a Josef Meiger deck packed with Artifacts & Rituals (which can be of any faction - 39 to choose from) or else I’m probably going to leave him out. The 3 of 5 rating is a bit deceiving, I actually quite like him, but he’s not a character that I feel would go into very many decks so I didn’t feel a 4 was quite right.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
Interesting… especially with the tie-ins to both Agency and Syndicate. The ‘leaves play’ drawback here seems a bit prohibitive though.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
Just like Conrad being able to put in support cards for free, not worrying about cost or faction makes this guy scary good! Has a big downside though as in you really want to keep this guy alive which brings him down from a 5.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Josef could be an archetype all onto himself. He’s has a hefty drawback should he fall from grace, but his upside is game changing. Those that really enjoy ingenuitive deckbuilding will have a lot of fun working Josef into their decks.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_hoarding-knowledge-dotu.jpg'] Hoarding Knowledge

Danigral - 2 out of 5
I don’t think this card is actually useless. It obviously works best in a mono-ST deck, which is one downside itself but getting better. It does allow you to resource critical but too expensive cards on turn 1 or 2 and be able to get them back later. I’m thinking of something like Jeffrey Farrington or B. Ramsdale Brown, High Wizard, or even Magnus Stiles.

dboeren - 1 of 5
Probably a 2 of 5 if a new Silver Twilight box comes out, but that won’t be for quite a while. The issue here is that it’s somewhat useful to fetch a resourced card that you need, but it’s limited to only pure-ST domains and Silver Twilight isn’t currently equipped to run well as a mono deck which limits its usefulness.

Ire & WWDrakey - 1 out of 5
That there vault’s where they keep all of the magic fairy dust, the books are actually in the library.

mnBroncos - 1 out of 5
So this doesn’t increase your resources and costs and is using 2 cards to get 1 card back. I just don’t see playing this card as of now.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Resource switching has always been tricky to justify. Being that it really only works with well in mono-Silver Twilight and such a deck right now is really weak this will sit largely unused until Silver Twilight gains enough cards that it doesn’t want another faction. Should that day come, Hoarding Knowledge value should go up. Till then… meh.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_sebastion-blake-dotu.jpg'] Sebastion Blake

Danigral - 4 out of 5
Another good cheap sorcerer with alright stats. He can recur any card you want for next turn, such as Pushed into the Beyond or Twilight Gate. Very nice.

dboeren - 3 out of 5
Good ability for retrieving key cards, although I wouldn’t expect to use it too many times per game. Luckily it’s not Forced so you don’t need to do it if there aren’t any cards you need. Being a Sorcerer is a significant plus, he could be a 4 in the right deck that can leverage this.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
Kinda decent for re-using some powerful cards… but that succeeding isn’t really going to be as easy as it sounds. The positive trait is probably the biggest point here.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
I love controlling the card that I will be getting next turn and although this isn’t nearly as good as putting it into your hand as this effect clogs up your draw, but it being a response and not a forced response you can get a key card back whenever you need it.

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
If Yog-Sothoth can smile, it does so when talking about Sebastian Blake. Decent stat block and a decent effect that help keep the wheels moving for some of your better cards that like to hit the discard pile.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/coc/med_mind-swap-dotu.jpg'] Mind Swap

Danigral - 3 out of 5
The draw makes this better than marginal. It can sometimes be good for surprises at a story, and then drawing a card is icing. What is this dude going to do with his new body I wonder???

dboeren - 4 out of 5
In general, this is kind of like a weaker form of Steal the Soul that costs 1 more but also gives you a free card to replace itself. Still very good, and it has two useful keywords as well. This also gives you an incentive to search for poorly iconed characters with strong abilities to put in your deck which is interesting. I like things that make deckbuilding more interesting and more varied.

Ire & WWDrakey - 2 out of 5
It’s a spell. And one that cantrips to boot, while messing with stories to boot and at a decent price. Now there’s some proper space-time-bending right there.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
TRADE icons wow that seems a pretty rare effect and for good reason, it is strong! and trades all icons not just one, oh and to just push it over the top you then get to draw a card because why not! On a final note this art throughout this whole deluxe expansion was amazing well done ffg!

Tom Capor - aka Magnus Arcanis
Icon manipulation is often underrated, but I probably like this card more than I should. Its’ subtypes can make for some crazy awesome recursion. Drawing a card helps keep your hand up, and trading stats is just wonderful. With some effort Mind Swap can act as a cornerstone for an entire deck.
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