ParaLola Lines (Current 2025)

This deck is based on a powerful (albeit janky) combo that I started exploring in my recent Art of Chuck deck (https://arkhamdb.com/deck/view/5336872).

Important note: This Lola deck is built using the recently announced Parallel Lola Hayes rules and cards. They aren’t yet available on ArkhamDB and wouldn’t copy over from ArkhamBuild, so please be aware that this deck also includes five neutral events and one ally weakness (not shown), which can be viewed here: https://www.reddit.com/r/arkhamhorrorlcg/comments/1nfv9ei/parallel_lola/. (Many thanks to Head Librarian Chad from the excellent Restricted Collection Podcast). I’m also limiting myself to the Current (2025) card pool.

||Lola’s deckbuilding requires you to choose two classes at deck creation that can include cards levels 0 to 4. The other three classes can include cards from levels 0 to 1 (and Neutrals levels 0 to 5). The deck size is 40 and, as noted above, must also include 5 replacement events. Oh, and you need to include at least six cards from each of the five (non-neutral) classes!

As with vanilla Lola, you can only play and commit cards of your current role. Excitingly, you can ACTIVATE assets in play from any class during your turn (regardless of your role), but you MUST switch classes at the start of every turn. So, if you’ve played a lot of vanilla Lola, there’s a lot to unlearn.

For this deck, Lola can have Seeker and Rogue cards levels 0 to 4. This makes her the only investigator to date who can play Chuck, Book of War, Forbidden Knowledge, and a loaded-up Raven Quill. What’s so great about that? Well: Chuck Fergus allows you to play Tactics fast, cheap, or with a skill boost; The Book of War allows you to recur those tactics; and The Raven Quill's Energy Sap option allows you to use Forbidden Knowledge as a battery to add Secrets back to The Book of War.

Setup is this deck's biggest challenge. Research Librarian helps find The Book of War and Old Book of Lore. The latter can dig for the other three pieces of the deck’s key combo.

I tried to assign a general role to each class: --Lola's Survivor cards make her an effective cluever. --Her Mystic cards act as batteries to keep The Book of War in Secrets and the Spectral Shield in charges. She can also chip in clues and light damage with the Spell assets. --Her Rogue cards generate resources (some of which can be shared with teammates). --Her Guardian cards deal primarily damage. --And her Seeker cards do a little of everything. --Charisma is there to keep Chuck in play when Lola's new ally weakness shows up.

Meanwhile, Lola can support the team in a wide variety of ways. The Old Book of Lore, Bank Job, Spectral Shield, Task Force, and Unexpected Courage can each be played on another investigator. Furthermore, Dynamite Blast, Cunning Distraction, and Map the Area are all area-of-effect Tactics that benefit everyone (and can be discounted, recurred, etc.). I imagine this deck will be at its best in a four-player game, where Lola can ramp up to full power over several turns while supporting her teammates.

Tactics that Chuck can enhance (and that The Book can almost infinitely recur) include: "I've got a plan!", Backstab, Cunning Distraction, Dynamite Blast, Map the Area, One-Two Punch, Pushed to the Limit, Task Force, and Unconventional Method.

After initial setup, your role choice will be driven primarily by what events you want to play that turn (since Assets in play can be Activated regardless of role).

I acknowledge that this deck is super janky and overall suboptimal, but it was a brain-burny puzzle to assemble. I look forward to seeing what greater minds than mine can come up with, and I welcome your feedback and suggestions!