For some time now I've been wondering when Monterrey Jack will be released for this game. I remember him being mentioned in the Forgotten Age campaign guide as a compulsory lead investigator if he is included in a party for that campaign.

Based on this information I had hoped he would be a 'special release' for the forthcoming Return To... box, but so far not a word.

Any ideas anyone?

My conspiracy theory: There is no Monterey Jack, only Zuul.

Non-conspiracy theory: I expect him to be released either as A: part of investigator pack similar to Marvel hero packs as one of their new products we have no details to; B: he is released in the next set to partly coincide with the release of Return to Forgotten Age; or C : He will be "released" with a currently unannounced Novella to coincide with the release of RtFA. I hope either B or C is correct, but am not holding my breath in anticipation of his release.

If there's a full Egypt or "Strange Remnants" style big box expansion coming I'd anticipate Jack in that one. He won't be in the RTTFA I'm sure.

I'm still waiting for the original main man, Harvey Walters! Have a feeling he'll show up in the same big box as Monty.

Rogue and/or Seeker classes seem to fit as has been mentioned here. What about a Survivor?

I think they were just future-proofing the campaign guide for whichever expansion he eventually appears in.

I also wonder whether they'll continue the tradition of designing Monterey as a Seeker, but accidentally printing him as a guardian.

4 hours ago, Rejoinder said:

I also wonder whether they'll continue the tradition of designing Monterey as a Seeker, but accidentally printing him as a guardian.

You surprise me. Forgive me as I'm not all that well-up on Arkham lore, but from what I've read on earlier posts I was expecting Monty to be a rogue. That would seem to make sense given that we already have guardian and seeker 'compulsory lead investigators' for the FA campaign.

5 hours ago, Rejoinder said:

I think they were just future-proofing the campaign guide for whichever expansion he eventually appears in.

Either that or it's a deliberate tactic by FFG to make you buy more of their product before the elusive Monty appears.

I suspect his build may end up being a bit cheesy...

5 hours ago, Leematon said:

You surprise me. Forgive me as I'm not all that well-up on Arkham lore, but from what I've read on earlier posts I was expecting Monty to be a rogue. That would seem to make sense given that we already have guardian and seeker 'compulsory lead investigators' for the FA campaign.

Either that or it's a deliberate tactic by FFG to make you buy more of their product before the elusive Monty appears.

Monterrey is an archeologist why would he be a rogue?

Rogue seems like a good bet, with all the dirty fighting, unscrupulous investors, daredevil stunts, etc., perfect for an unsubtle Indiana Jones expy.

12 minutes ago, Villefere said:

Monterrey is an archeologist why would he be a rogue?

yeah, nothing archaeological in Rogue ... 😉

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Monterrey is an archeologist why would he be a rogue?

Oh, I don't know. He could be like Ray Winstone's character in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. 😀

It's easy to misunderstand what the classes represent thematically. It's called Rogue so you think criminal and thief, but that's not what the rules reference says:

"Rogues are self-serving and out for themselves. Wily and opportunistic, they are always eager for a way to exploit their current situation."

If you read any of the fluff featuring Monterrey then I think you can easily slot him into that motivation. While Seekers are:

"Seekers are primarily concerned with learning more about the world and about the mythos. They wish to research forgotten lore, map out uncharted areas, and study strange creatures"

So if Monterrey was a pure Seeker then his motivation for going on expeditions is purely academic. He just wants to advance his understanding and satisfy his curiosity. If Monterrey was a pure Rogue then his motivation for going on expeditions might be more about fame and/or fortune. No investigator in this game is a pure anything really so they all are some blend of the different motivations.

3 hours ago, phillos said:

If you read any of the fluff featuring Monterrey then I think you can easily slot him into that motivation.

I haven't read The Investigators of Arkham book, is Monterrey portrayed as a self-serving treasure hunter? Arkham Horror and Eldritch Horror certainly never portrayed him that way. Quite the opposite.

I think that might be him on Pathfinder .

Maybe not purely fame and fortune no. I do think he has self serving motives from his depiction in the Investigator book, and he's clearly shown breaking the law and lying to get what he wants. Two of his strong skills in his original AH depiction were Fast Talk and Sneak. I feel his motive in the story is finishing his father's work IIRC. So it's similar to Jenny's motivation to find her sister over more altruistic goals like protecting humanity or advancing knowledge.

2 hours ago, Villefere said:

I haven't read The Investigators of Arkham book, is Monterrey portrayed as a self-serving treasure hunter? Arkham Horror and Eldritch Horror certainly never portrayed him that way. Quite the opposite.

I think that might be him on Pathfinder .

He's literally described as a Treasure Hunter in his Arkham Horror description, and neither Arkham nor Eldritch portray him as actively selfless.

3 hours ago, Allonym said:

He's literally described as a Treasure Hunter in his Arkham Horror description, and neither Arkham nor Eldritch portray him as actively selfless.

Identifying as a Treasure Hunter does kinda paint you in a bit of a selfish light in my opinion. There's a suggestion that you are doing it for the prize rather than for something more high minded or altruistic.

On 2/22/2020 at 2:02 AM, Redclock said:

My conspiracy theory: There is no Monterey Jack, only Zuul.

Non-conspiracy theory: I expect him to be released either as A: part of investigator pack similar to Marvel hero packs as one of their new products we have no details to; B: he is released in the next set to partly coincide with the release of Return to Forgotten Age; or C : He will be "released" with a currently unannounced Novella to coincide with the release of RtFA. I hope either B or C is correct, but am not holding my breath in anticipation of his release.

That is an interesting thought though. Carolyn Fern was obviously a hint for Dream Eaters, but positioned where you could use her in the RtPoC release which is pretty horror rich, except RttFA will release before Innsmouth.

I wonder... They’ve haven’t released a new investigator in a Return to, but do you think it’s possible they may release him in RttFA and the campaign guide was a hint to that effect, since the two others mentioned were released in TFA?

3 hours ago, Allonym said:

He's literally described as a Treasure Hunter in his Arkham Horror description, and neither Arkham nor Eldritch portray him as actively selfless.

Monterrey hunts relics for museums, not to sell on the black market He and his Dad are straight shooters.. His main motivation seems to be solving his fathers murder from what ive read.

3 hours ago, phillos said:

I do think he has self serving motives from his depiction in the Investigator book,

Ive not read the book So ill have to take your word for it. Do you have an example?

He seems driven to finish his father's work. He is willing to lie and bend the law to do it over the course of the story. I wouldn't call him a straight shooter, but I also wouldn't say he is an overt criminal.

I don't think it's a stretch to point out that Jack is an Indian Jones analogue, and I'd also paint Jones as some sort of Rogue/Seeker as far as motivations go. He hunts artifacts for museums, but the how and why he does it align with the Rogue description. Jones lies, steals and sneaks into places. He's often shown interacting with the less savory elements of the society that he's visiting. Also he's an archeologist that walks around with a gun and a whip as tools of his trade. Why does he do it? There is some moral posturing in the Last Crusade that would align with the Seeker description (it belongs in a museum!), but at the same time we are shown that he enjoys the adventure. So I'd argue to a certain extent he does it for himself. He does it for the way it makes him feel. So I'd say he's somewhere in the middle of that adventurer mindset and the more Seeker-y desire to uncover and preserve history.

Jack doesn't need to sell artifacts to black market dealers to make the work self serving. The question is why does he do it? Does he do it for the paycheck the museum gives him? Does he do it for the thrill of the chase? Is he doing it out of some loyalty to his father? I suspect from the short story some combination of those things are in play though they don't explicitly say why he is a treasure hunter. I don't think of Rogues as criminals or morally bankrupt people. Even the literal criminals like Skids have a heroic bend to them in that he's just trying to help his mother. Jenny is just trying to save her sister. Leo is clearly described as being remorseful at having lost people in his expeditions.

Maybe Monty is the “new product” lol!

I want a Bob Jenkins scenario where your goal is to just make as many resources as possible, but selling all the items in your deck to the NPCs.

56 minutes ago, phillos said:

I want a Bob Jenkins scenario where your goal is to just make as many resources as possible, but selling all the items in your deck to the NPCs.

What’s that Mr Cultist? Did you say you’re out of ritual knives? For the low low price of your sanity (and a sawbuck), you can be the new owner of this Hungering Blade! Guaranteed to complete your ritual even if that means you feed the eldritch powers yourself!

1 hour ago, Soakman said:

What’s that Mr Cultist? Did you say you’re out of ritual knives? For the low low price of your sanity (and a sawbuck), you can be the new owner of this Hungering Blade! Guaranteed to complete your ritual even if that means you feed the eldritch powers yourself!

Edited 1 hour ago by Soakman

Move over Parley, there’s a new whole new game mechanic in town. Barter.

8 hours ago, Mimi61 said:

Move over Parley, there’s a new whole new game mechanic in town. Barter.

I think you've just about nailed that one. Are you reading, Matt?

21 hours ago, Mimi61 said:

Move over Parley, there’s a new whole new game mechanic in town. Barter.

Hm. Homebrew investigator ideas are coming to mind...

Bob Jenkins:

Discard an Item Asset with Resource cost X from play: Evade target nonelite enemy with Fight X or less at your location and move it to a connecting loation.

On 2/24/2020 at 10:22 AM, phillos said:

He is willing to lie and bend the law to do it over the course of the story. I wouldn't call him a straight shooter, but I also wouldn't say he is an overt criminal.

Which investigator is not willing to do this, considering what they're facing?