PlayingBoardGames Beginner Deck - Daisy Walker (Core only)

This is a copy of a deck from PlayingBoardGames' beginner deck series - all credit goes to them and please watch their video on this deck linked here

Each deck from this series is built using only the revised core (or two old cores) plus cards from the cycle that the investigator was released in (or in the case of core set investigators, only cards from the core set).

I've added all the suggested upgrade cards from the core set to the side deck. There are many suggested upgrades and alternative starting cards from other cycles too, which I did not add to the side deck, because I didn't want it to be too huge of a list.

The original notes from PlayingBoardGames are below:

In this guide, I'll be going over a basic Daisy build with two core sets, then talking about upgrade paths as well as talking about what cards to look for from each cycle, as an aid for newer players who may only have access to one or two cycles. If you do not have multiple core sets, I highly recommend either purchasing a second, or proxying the cards you are missing. All decks from this series will be ignoring mutations as well as the taboo list. I also won't be looking at the cards from the Return To expansions for this, as newer players really should look at picking up most of the cycles before delving into them.

Daisy's basic deck is mostly yellow, with a smattering of purple cards. We've got Flashlight, Dr. Milan Christopher and Magnifying Glass to really push her stat over the top. Drawn to the Flame and Working a Hunch to grab even the trickiest clues. Mind over Matter and Ward of Protection are here to help keep you safe, and Research Librarian, while unimpressive here, really starts looking good when we pick up some new tomes.

Daisy gets access to some fairly unique upgrades out of the core set. Magnifying Glass (1) and Disc of Itzamna (2) are both handy, but our librarian is the only core set investigator who really looks for Encyclopedia (2). Cryptic Research (4) is a fine choice as well.

Looking into the first cycle, the Dunwich Legacy is a strong start. Seeker cards here are very strong. Shortcut is a staple and "I've got a plan!" is a good source of damage. Alyssa Graham does some cute things, as does Dr. William T. Maleson. Inquiring Mind is a solid skill as well.

This cycle brings Strange Solution and its associated upgrades in addition to Delve Too Deep to pay for them. Deduction, Deciphered Reality and Pathfinder are always good. Finally, it wouldn't do to go without mentioning Higher Education, which feels like cheating.

Next on the list is the Path to Carcosa. Fieldwork looks unimpressive, but it'll surprise you. No Stone Unturned is a strong support option, David Renfield is his own economy, Logical Reasoning is surprisingly flexible and St. Hubert's Key fits very comfortably in your accessory slot.

This cycle's mystery upgrade card, Archaic GlyphsArchaic Glyphs has some useful upgrades. Arcane Insight can slot into a neat spell build. Other experienced cards of note include Forewarned, Shortcut and Ward of Protection.

The third cycle, The Forgotten Age, has a few exciting cards, including the first really strong tome. Here you'll find Tooth of Eztli to help with those pesky encounter cards, as well as Ancient Stone and the experienced versions. You should always be happy to play Premonition.

The other purple cards here are a little lackluster, but there's some solid options to buy, namely Counterspell, Recall the Future and DefianceDefiance. Finally, the "pièce de résistance": Pnakotic Manuscripts. This baby crushes tests, and Daisy drools over its Tome subtype.

The Circle Undone really fleshes out the tome pool for Daisy. At level 0 the cycle offers Hawk-Eye Folding Camera as a replacement Magnifying Glass, Crack the Case if you're hurting for resources, and Deny Existence as a different, but not better or worse, Ward of Protection (though you should consider playing both). Finally the books: Occult Lexicon, De Vermis Mysteriis and Esoteric Atlas all carry Tome designation and Knowledge is Power helps get full use out of them. You'll notice Scroll of Secrets and relevant upgrade are also Tomes, and while they tend to drag other builds down a little, Daisy's free action actually makes them feel pretty good.

The Dream-Eaters cycle is great for Daisy; it's like the designers remembered she exists. She gets new tomes in Scroll of Prophecies and Dream DiaryDream Diary (as well as its three upgrades), a useful Spell in Read the Signs and a great Skill support event in Practice Makes Perfect.

For experienced cards she gets Empower SelfEmpower Self to shore up her stats and make her Intellect a monstrous 7 and The Eye of Truth as a big defensive play. She also gets access to a couple of Tomes: Old Book of Lore and Otherworld Codex. She also has the option of playing another copy of, well, herself: Abigail Foreman.

Innsmouth brings a strong, curse-focused deck for Daisy with her ability to use Seeker and Mystic cards. Cryptic Grimoire (and its upgrades) is the big Seeker payoff for the Curse archetype. This is supported by Stirring Up Trouble, Deep Knowledge, Tempt Fate, and Promise of Power dumping Curse tokens into the bag, as well as Gaze of Ouraxsh, Fey, The Stygian Eye, and Blasphemous Covenant to mitigate the downside of drawing the tokens. Eldritch Sophist and Ariadne's Twine give a nice boost to secret-focused decks, and Abyssal Tome is a cool, somewhat dangerous way to answer enemies for Daisy.

Hopefully this has helped some new players with their deck building and collection buying without being overbearing. I'll be looking at doing this for the rest of the core set investigators, as well as a less comprehensive deck building guide for the other investigators with only cards from two core sets and their respective cycles.

You can find a video of us discussing this deck here: https://youtu.be/0u2NrinN2TU