Torch the Joint now costs two to play. Agency just got better. But is resource destruction a strong tactic? Is there some lightning situation just created?

Preemptive Strike (destroy resource during ops phase cost 3), Cleaning House (choose and destroy 2 resources attached to a single domain any time cost 4 loyal), Time Bomb (cost 3), Back to Basics, some characters, all these resource destruction options for agency are at least three cost.

i have some resource destruction in my mono agency deck, its mostly a wounding deck, but resource destorying can really screw up their plans. i have mystery agent in my deck even though its a late game card, if i get him out i stop them from every increasing their resources again. a two cost rd card is pretty nice though. torch the joint may be in my top 5 cards in the coreset.

dont forget urban renewal.

With only 2 double resource removals the chances of getting them soon enough to matter are very low. TtJ at cost 2 makes it slightly more useful, but I'd say it doesn't make Resource Destruction for Agency a more viable strategy, as the chances for a t1 significative blow are limited and, while a 2 cost TtJ somehow improve them, it doesn't improve them so much to make them consistant enough.

Of course further testing could disprove this, but this is my gut feeling.

you dont have to play torch the joint first turn for it to work. if they only have one-of a faction of a domain of 3 or 4 you can cripple them possibly or take out their one resource domain. thats one less pulp writer action to worry about, plus all the other cards with pay 1 or drain a domain. or for that matter you can stave off a bigger creature for another turn, make them wait one more turn before yig or some other nasty comes. plus if you throw one other rd in there you can do some damage. its not hard with agency's wounding to keep the game in check until you can play those rd cards and change the tide of the game.

sure torch the joint wont win any games, but it can help.

Well, for sure its lowered cost opens up some recursability.

If you would be playing the "all white" format, TtJ can be really useful since the only faction that has retained some form of cost lowering is Shub-Niggurath (not counting Lord of the Silver Twilight for Cthulhu faction since he only lowers the cost of 1 card).

This basically means that most of the other factions (usually the bad guys) can be hurt pretty badly by this card (when most of your useful characters are cost 4+).

What expansion is Torch the Joint from? I can not find identify it.

From the Core Set cards I can not identify also:

Celano Fragments – The Life’s Work of Dr. Shrewsbury

The Bootleg Whiskey Cover-Up

I have those card names from the other post with the Core Set card list on here. Please help

Max Wax said:

Torch the Joint! - Spawn of Madness (Asylum) - F2

Celano Fragments, The Life's Work of Dr. Shrewsbury - Arkham Edition - U56

The Bootleg Whiskey Cover-Up - Dunwich Denizens (Asylum) - F19

If I'm not mistaken, previously Celano was spelled as Celaeno.

Thanks a lot. I am a bit shocked they reprinted cards from Asylum Packs already. I wonder if the black-bordered AP's won't be included in the LGC tournament play by FFG?!

Max Wax said:

I would say that's a pretty safe bet, based on the fact that they did reprint them and what they did with Game of Thrones.

Hastur said:

Yes, as far as I remember, AGOT players knew before the AGOT Core Set came out, that the black-bordered Chapter Packs will be included in the LCG tournaments. So there was no reprints of any Chapter Pack card in the AGOT Core Set.

Manitou is correct. They respelled Celaeno to Celano. It would be a mis-spelling, but this is H.P. Mythos, where names change on a Mask of Coin, going back 80 years. I'll add Celano to the list of changes, even if minor. Can't wait to find the next one.

Max Wax, download the deck builder.

Back on topic, so New Torch the Joint is well received. It is useful for Agency, perhaps stronger. It is still not the only go to resource destruction option out there. But it sure looks it to me. It is perhaps essential in any Agency deck as support for Agency strengths, specifically wounding. It can stall the big monsters mid game and stop the early pests too. If pulled twice it could do some real damage to an opponents pace.

I feel the same way as Carioz about the card and resource destruction as a deck type. Torch the Joint is amazing at cost 2. also note that it can get locations, and if you take a closer look, most of the good supports are in fact locations. However, my concern is Agency as a faction and the RD deck. It probably won't be tier 1 because it may be a bit too slow and/or inefficient.

I think I'll have to build a RD deck to be sure, though.

...which requires the purchase of three cores. The new versions of Torch the Joint and Anthropology Advisor are leaning me in that direction.

Also note that Agency has Transient to make 'Torch...' more viable in some circumstances.

Both Torch the Joint cards are Steadfast Two Agency Resources, one Agency Resource to make a resource match on the domain drained to pay for Torch the Joint, and the second Agency Resource under any domain drained or not. But Torch the Joint is not Transient.

It is thus less viable in non mono-agency decks, but not by much now that it costs two.

Actually, I'm going to play Agency/Miskatonic combo from now on. (We're all transitioning to "all white" format right now here)

At first I wanted to play mono Hastur but its most viable strategy (discard) is non existent now (and there's no worm-ridden one, court jester, vessel of hastur and other characters I love - I hate artists). Then I just showed everyone the cards from the last two asylums and core set (as I bought them first) and just let them choose the faction they want to play. No one really wanted the good guys so I took them and I'm pretty happy with that.

Torch the Joint! can be a great card, but right now it doesn't cut it in the deck I'm planning to use at start. Sure it slows everyone except shub and syndicate but in the new format you don't have that many useful locations and instead of slowing down most decks I can speed up myself by fielding one more character, tough choice but after all wounding is better than destroying a resource card (it's better to get rid of a key character than a resource usually) and in a 2-faction deck there just is not enough space to put TtJ in. In mono Agency it's a must though.

I'm glad that core has only one of each card. And the selction is dazzling. But for any real tactics, you need three of a number of cards.