Leo Anderson releases the hounds, a consistent Sled Dog Deck

Introduction:

Sled Dog decks typically end up being wildly inconsistent with some scenarios finishing the game with 1 dog in play and you having essentially wasted resources on playing the dog. This deck aims to fix the inconsistency and provide a list that can reasonably hit 3-4 sled dogs alongside other support cards to supplement the inconsistency of sled dogs meaning even in the worst of cases the deck will just handle any enemies your group needs.

Card Notes for the starting list:

In the Thick of it This card is insanely overpowered and should be taken on all characters if you are trying to make an optimal deck, the trauma is negligible given the amount of soak included and the xp is invaluable

Charon's Obol The first 2 XP out of the 3 XP from In the thick of It goes here, now this is pretty optional as people generally have strong opinions on this card. As I mentioned above though given the soak available in this deck you are highly unlikely to be in danger of dying and this card is pretty unbalanced.

Rod of Animalism For the 3rd XP I recommend this card with Leo Anderson and his passive + this you get both Sled Dog and Guard Dog to essentially being free since you get the 1 resource in upkeep to play them with your free action. Additionally, the Rod of Animalism allows for 2 more ally slots for your only allies in the deck which makes Charisma much less mandatory as an early purchase.

Machete, Enchanted Blade, Prepared for the Worst These are the early weapons of the deck all of which eventually will be replaced but in the early stages I typically go by the rule of having 6 ways to get a weapon. If you prepared for the worst and hit both, Machete is usually better to choose.

Guard Dog and Sled Dog In the first 1-2 scenarios it is incredibly hard to hit 4 sled dogs out, not only due to lack of ally slots without either Mitch Brown or Rod of Animalism but also due to just not having the card draw in Guardian or rogue to hit the cards needed. Due to this its a good idea to put out any ally with your free action even if it blocks your ally slots. By scenario 3 we will have enough xp that this is not a problem anymore.

Upgrades/Core cards spending priority:

1. Rod of Animalism: 2nd copy for more consistency replacing Steadfast

2. Runic Axe or Cyclopean Hammer x2: these will replace the slot of enchanted blade and is entirely up to preference, cyclopean hammer is probably the better of the 2 but runic axe has its upsides and is more fun to play with. (Alternatively you can go with upgrades 3 and 4 and get the deck to the point it is consistent with dogs faster. But these weapons are a huge upgrade and this will be better for success.)

3. Charisma This card is entirely optional but will make the game feel much better when you dont draw Rod of Animalism.

4. Black Market x2: this is where the consistency comes in not only can this hit sled dogs but it can hit the calling in favors which if played the same turn with the thinned deck will guarantee a dog. This will replace Machete as it also can draw your weapon.

Nice to have upgrades:

Cards to drop when upgrading: Steadfast, lone wolf, let me handle this

1. Stick to the Plan Consistency for drawing weapon and resource management. Under this should go Emergency Cache, Ever Vigilant, Prepared for the Worst

2. Ever Vigilant This card is insane when under stick to the plan, net 3 action gain for the team often times this lets your seeker skip their setup turn and just immediately start clueing.

3. Guard Dog Tankier and can reflect mental dmg never bad

4. Charisma Getting a 2nd makes it so you can run the full 6 dog setup

5. Stand Together Great support for the team super good for helping your seeker ramp faster.

6. Observed Passive power every scenario prioritize the doom clearing, mulligans, draw, resources over stat boosting but definitely personal preference.

7. Vicious Blow Never bad to do a little bit more damage

8. On the Hunt If scenarios end up being low enemy this card is one of the best cards in the game it does so much, mythos deck scouting, protection, victory point acquisition, resource generation.

9. Prepared for the Worst 1x upgrade for Stick to the Plan this gets massive value if you have 2 players with weapons but solid either way.

Mulligan phase:

Mulligan every card that is not a weapon or Prepared for the Worst (mulligan this too if you have Stick to the Plan )

If you get a weapon in your opener you can Mulligan for dogs priority here will be: Rod of Animalism > Sled Dog = Black Market > Calling in Favors everything else you want to mulligan to try and hit the above.

Hitting an early Black market is a game changer especially once you have Stick to the Plan with Ever Vigilant as it can allow you to get out an insane amount of assets turn 1.

Flex Cards and other Notable Choices

Still Struggling with consistency:

This deck includes a bunch of ways to draw dogs already and I found the list to be consistent in my play to get 4 dogs by the time you would want them but if scenarios play faster or you are upset with the speed more draw can be added with the downside that the draw becomes dead in the later stages here are some great options for more draw:

Friends in Low Places Lucid Dreaming

One alternative swap you can choose to make is to swap out one prepared for the worst for a Backpack, you still want to keep 1 as it will go under stick to the plan. This can lead to better Rod of Animalism draw and better Weapon draw but does cost an XP so its good to weigh the option against other upgrades.(Great use of a leftover XP though)