Renee Delaney EVENT: Prevents your opponent from playing a Special card next turn. Perhaps no other card has gone so abruptly from relative obscurity to "This card must be banned/restricted!" then Renee Delaney. Frankly, I'm kind of surprised. I've been using Renee since it was first released. Even with the release of other anti-Special cards like Wargames West and Honor Bound, Renee remains the most reliable way to stop the play of Specials. But first, the game mechanic questions. Fortunately, there isn't much. Renee Delaney is an Ally. Although Renee refers to the play of _a_ Special card in the singular, this encompasses the entire turn. Thus, even if you are using Chessex, you can't skip playing one of your two Specials and then playing the second: that second one is still _a_ Special and thus unplayable due to Renee. So what use is Renee? You play your only Special, your opponent can't play a Special. It seems like an equal trade, and one that gives you no huge advantage. However, anyone who has run up against the recent spate of lean and mean "buzzsaw" decks can tell you that isn't the case. Why? Primarily because you, the Renee user, are building your deck around Renee. You can de-emphasize the use of Specials in your deck other than Renee. While your deck is built to de-emphasize Special usage, your opponent's probably isn't. Nefertiri or her Quickening(s) are a popular choice when using Renee Delaney. Using Nefertiri gives you access to Desperation, a powerful card that lets you cycle cards quickly, get to your Ranees faster, and still play her the same turn you use Desperation(s). If we're examining Nefertiri and Renee Delaney, then consider using Battlefield (CotW #3) or Factory (#23) as your Location of choice. Both of these are countered if your opponent uses Nefertiri or her Quickening(s) themselves. However, against anyone else you can almost inevitably put them into a cycle of defense loss plus inability to play Specials that can give you the game. Another helpful card here is Dirty Trick/Shove. If your opponent is hit by this card, they can't attack _or_ play a Special. And if they dodge it. . .they probably still can't play a non-Ranged Attack. Duck, Distract, and Jump users (Duncan, Connor, Nakano, Amanda, Annie) can bypass this to some degree. Those who use Combination or Extra Shot to play Dodge for that additional attack can _not_ however, since they have to be able to play those cards . . . which Renee prevents! One note: to pull off this rapid playing/cycling of Renee Delaney, you will probably want to use the Khan Quickening to reduce Endurance loss as you burn through your deck. That's the most popular use for Renee Delaney these days. There are others. One of this author's favorites is the simple expedient of a "free" Power Blow user like Slan or The Kurgan who plays Renee Delaney and then makes a Power Blow. An opponent faced with this choice will probably have to dodge, since they are probably unwilling to Power Block. if they were holding on to their Ancestral Blades, waiting for a Power Blow, they can't play them due to Renee. And if they're dodging, they usually can't make a Hidden counter-attack. Why wouldn't they already have an Ancestral Blade out? Because AB is best played the turn _after_ your opponent makes a Power Blow. Play it out earlier, and your opponent can Thief or Misfortune it. Ancestral Blades are best played conservatively. Renee Delaney plus Catwalk is a formidable combination for Slan and The Kurgan. Both tend to use Ranged Attacks, since they have Shooting Blade and do an extra point of damage with Pistols, respectively. If you have a Catwalk in play, on your next turn play a Ranged Attack plus Renee. Your opponent can't use Holy Ground, Narrow Escape, or Disappear, and can't play a Location to remove Catwalk. If they don't have Reconnaissance, you've nailed them. Renee Delaney is also a nice supplement to some of the other non-Special cards. If you have a Wargames West on the table, play RD. Yes, you played a Special so your opponent can also . . . however, due to Renee, he can't! Even Focus or a Katana-Exertion won't let her get out of that one. If you want to use Focus, this tactic will also work with Honor Bound (ME version). This can extend your opponent's inability to play Specials just that little bit further. Renee can also help Special "lock down" for Garfield (CotW #25). You are advised not to have multiples of this card down when doing so, since you must Focus past Garfield to play RD. Turn of Events (#17) might also warrant the use of Renee, although it can get rather expensive for you Exertion-wise to do so (unless you use Focus). So overall, Steve gives Renee a _9_. Her ability to stop Special playing is unparalleled, much like that of Challenge/SE (CotW #31). Once Renee Delaney hits the table, there's nothing your opponent can do about it. In a tight lean & mean deck, or in conjunction with other anti-Special cards, you can keep opponents dancing to your tune indefinitely. What Our Other Raters Say: Ben - [Abstain] Jeff - My first thought with this card is: huh? Why would I give up playing a Special for a turn just to prevent my opponent from playing a Special? That was before I came across the theories of card cycling. Renee, as an Event, allows you to cycle a card a turn, but locks up your opponent's Specials. No Focus required. In the right deck, it's borderline abusive. My current fave card that, like my Katana cheese deck, I'm sure I'll tire of when every other deck becomes this type. =) Rick - It keeps them from playing Specials but it keeps you from playing one too (since you had to play Renee). I'd only use this deck in a degenerate denial deck like "The Buzzsaw". Hank - Renee is a fun card for hack & slash decks, especially combined with other non-Special cards like Honor Bound and Wargames West. I like it a lot, it does exactly what I would want it to do... Alan - Until recently, this card was _seriously_ overlooked. But then it was discovered that when used in a slim deck (typically Lean & Mean), it can be one of the most annoying cards around, creating an "active lock" for your opponent. Great when you're using it, but seems broken when you're on the receiving end . . . Jim - One of the best active denial cards in the game. You can use Renee in a slim deck to deny your opponent the ability to play Specials. If you play with six Ranees in a slim deck (L&M for instance), you can keep your opponent from playing for a good deal of the game. This card may be vulnerable to future anti-Ally cards, and is vulnerable to current anti-Events. Since the anti-Event cards such as Garfield and Turn of Events are short-lived, Renee remains a very powerful card. Wayne - Renee is the most powerful card available for straight combat decks. It shuts down cheese, heal, Sedarius, while loading up your opponent's hand with Special cards. Eventually there will be an Edge card that counters Renee, but presently I consider this to be a staple card in almost any attack deck. Ratings Overall: Steve 9 Ben N/A Jeff 9 Rick 7 Hank 9 Alan 8 Jim 9 Wayne 10 Average: 8.71