I was playing the first scenario from Forbidden Alchemy. At some point during the game, the starting room caught on fire. After that, one of my investigator's was killed, so I brough a new one into the game. Since his turn is over when you place him in the starting square, that means "Welcome to the mansion from hell - you take two damage just for stepping in the door"!?

Well I think this can happen as well in the case of Blood Ties, and not just a case of Forbidden Alchemy which I regretably don't know the story off at present time of writing. In the case of Blood Ties it was described through the fact that the player in question had been left behind sleeping on the ground (Tied in with the fact that in choices of Blood Ties, it is because you can hear a scream in the distance that makes you move from the campsite) So yes a poor investigator woke up in a towering inferno and had luckily been spared the flames until now, 2 damage while she got to her feet and collected her gear together. Depending on the description of 'fire' this becomes easy, perhaps you could make a story that

"Seeing the flames in the front door, X (investigator) ran to the door jumping heroicly through the flames, alas not passing it unscathed."

My argument remains that a fire token doesn't mean the entire room is bathed in flames like an overall Napalm strike. The fire is just endangering the player enough that if they stay or indeed end their turn in a room with the fire they take damage, use imagination why, instead of logic. Suspension of Disbelief is an awesome card to play in a Lovecraft game, and besides Keeper should make the effort to tell the story, and the Investigators to add to the story being told, if the 'old' investigators met up with the newly added investigator, one of them could express curiosity or concern to the burn wounds, also making up the story why the people would attempt trusting this newly added character.

I can advice to watch Rodney Smith's Let's play on Youtube that covers this particular event even in a light rp tune, to explain why the new investigator was added into the mix when Kate died, in this case, just add some more about the fire. And if it is Harvey or any other less dramatic character that enters the fray, make a more 'lore' reason why this is possible, what is it that Harvey sees the fire for? Is it natural at all or is it magical? Maybe even let the player take a lore check just to add to the suspense. Use the game rules to add to the story is my suggestion overall, and then !"#¤ the crybabies that say "Oh this isn't fair." - No this isn't fair, but you try to tell a good horror story with 'fairplay', where the dangerous murderer sits in the house with a knife saying "Where are they… gee… I hope nothing's happened to them?" (Blatantly stolen from Whose Line is it Anyway). And really while saying something dumb everytime a Maniac smashes down a door (And coming up with reasons why he does instead of just using the already smashed down door), isn't really fun to some, I have had great times doing cheasy one liners for my monsters when they attack or jump through a door. (And so have my players).

Ultimately I will answer the question like this and by god I hope FFG doesn't strike me dead for this, but if you are playing Mansions of Madness to win, you are clearly playing the wrong game, this is like playing Once Upon A Time to win, instead of enjoying the horror elements and the story. If a player is deliberately stopping the game and story to plead his cause that 'something isn't fair' in a horror game, is the person playing a game that suits him? I would recommend other games if it is about winning instead of having fun. Because even I as a keeper can look satisfied back on a game that takes 2 hours (Yes we do alot of pausing and storytelling underway, almost like a game of storytelling chess), where I lost so horrificly, but I told a @"#¤'ing good story. Artemis for example had a showdown with the blood-relative in the crypt, and for sake of the story, I didn't run away, and nobody helped the player fighting him. And to be honest telling a story in which our dear Sister Mary smashes Artemis with a crowbar as another Gordon Freeman, was every bit as epic as it sounded, as I at the time only needed 1 more sample (Sister Mary had a sample taken by Artemis), this meant that I was gonna move Artemis towards the Altar if Sister Mary died, allowing the other players to chase me, in the epic finale.