Strains are a way to unlock various, usually smaller, additions to your game. They typically have fairly obscure or extremely specific unlock criteria and once they have been achieved they are added to your game .. forever.. These are meant as a way to make your game unique in a sense and add further variance to all your future settlements.
Whilst there are notable exceptions, most strains thus far come with the Echoes of Death boxes and unlock a single Fighting Art each. Especially with these Fighting Arts, their power level can vary quite heavily, some being game-warpingly powerful, whilst others are little more than fluff, or have unlock requirements that likely end your campaign.
It is intended that you limit yourself a bit when starting a new game – as only 5 strain fighting arts are to be added to your FA-deck at any given time, but speaking for myself, I will just add all of them as I unlock them.
I have not unlocked too many so far though. And there is one strain I am unsure with how I would handle it – because I don’t think removing Heatwave (SE) .. forever .. is the right thing to do.
This page is meant to be part overview of existing strains and part checklist for me showing what I have unlocked so far. It will contain spoilers for the strain unlock triggers.
Bold is for Strains I have access to that have been unlocked
Italic is for Strains I don’t have in my collection
Echoes of Death
EoD1:
| Giant’s Strain | a survivor with Marrowhunger has a child | Giant’s Blood (FA) |
| Trepanning Strain | a survivor survives Trepanning 5 times | Infinite Lives (FA) |
| Ethereal Culture Strain | use a Brain Mint whilst having at least 4 Black Lichen in storage | Ethereal Pact (FA) |
| Opportunist Strain | a survivor with prey (D) or Secretive (D) has 15+ Insanity | Backstabber (FA) |
EoD2:
| Hyper Cerebellum | two survivors with Prey (D) have a child | Shielderang (FA) |
| Marrow Transformation | a bow specialist survivor’s Broken Leg severe injury is healed by the Hand | Rolling Gait (FA) |
| Memetic Symphony | tell a Well Told Weird Dream (SE) including the Devil’s Symphony | Infernal Rhythm (FA) |
| Surgical Sight | a survivor with Ocular Parasites gains Extra Sense (FA) | Convalescer (FA) |
EoD3:
| Carnage Worms | a survivor with Crazed (FA) witnesses a settlement with Cannibalize use Sacrifice (I) 8 times in a single Lantern Year | Dark Manifestation (FA) |
| Ashen Claw Strain | get defeated by the Gold Smoke Knight | Armored Fist (FA) and adds Fiddler Crab Spider to the vermin deck |
| Material Feedback Strain | a survivor archives 4 resources with Hoarder (D) | Stockist (FA) |
| Sweat Stained Oath | a survivor gains a sword during hunt or showdown and deals the killing blow that Lantern Year with it | Sword Oath (FA) |
EoD4:
| Resolute Pillar Strain | razor maggots kill a survivor during Herb Gathering | Sieging Offensive (FA) |
| Snarling Amygdala Strain | a survivor with Rageholic (D) and Berserker (FA) uses a Frenzy Drink | Cross Counter (FA) |
| Colluded Birth | a settlement with Protect the Young rolls a 10 and 1 during intimacy, picking the 10. | Beginner’s Luck (FA) |
| Lifebound Page Strain | a survivor watches their partner disappear during Scribe’s Book (Basic HE84) | Curse Conductor (FA) |
Survivors of Death
SoD1:
| Incidental Learning Strain | a survivor with Rhythm Chaser (FA) and Hyperactive (D) lands the killing blow on a Lvl3+ monster | Agility Fighter (FA) |
SoD2:
| Fast Twitch Strain | a Quixotic (D) survivor uses Pounce, Slam or Charge 7+ times during a single showdown | Soaring Advance (FA) |
Vignettes
White Gigalion Vignette:
| Somatotropin Surge | the vignette survivors slay the Gigalion | unlocks the Gigalion as a White Lion Lvl2+ variant for campaign play |
Screaming Nukealope Vignette:
| Fissile Contamination | at least one of the vignette survivors dies during the fight with the Nukealope | unlocks the Screaming Nukealope as a Screaming Antelope Lvl2+ variant for campaign play |
Killennium Butcher Vignette:
| Final Lantern Trophies | the vignette survivors get defeated by the Killennium Butcher | unlocks the Killennium Butcher as a Butcher Lvl2+ variant for campaign play |
| Brave Cocoon | Brave is the sole survivor of the fight | unlocks the Timeworn Statue terrain |
Wanderers
Death Drifter:
| Dash Eternal | Use the Dash Survival Action 8 or more times in a single round | turns the Death Drifter Cloak rare gear into the Violet Drifter Cloak rare gear |
Other White Boxes
10th Anniversary White Speaker:
| Plot Twist Strain | a settlement has remembered all different stories during White Secret | Plot Twist (FA) |
Santa Satan:
| Atmospheric Change | a settlement triggers either Necrotic Mistletoe (Flower Knight) or Story in the Snow (SE) | removes Heat Wave (SE) and adds Lump of Atnas to the basic resource deck |
So I’m looking at 11 unlocks out of 18 currently possible (25 in total). I’d say I am getting there.
And I will get that Carnage Worms strain eventually!
Milestones
I don’t think these are technically strains – the Squire Campaign one definitely is not, which I found strange – but I will list similar unlocks as Milestones as I stumble upon them here as well for now.
| Left Overs | 5 lost settlements | add 1 Survivor Corpse (T) to the prologue fight |
| Those before us | 10 lost settlements | after prologue, gain 1 Skull (R) and +1 Survival Limit |
| Ocular Parasites | 15 lost settlements | All Survivors have +1ACC, prologue White Lion has +1DMG-token, -1MOV-token |
| Rainy Season | 20 lost settlements | add Acid Storm (SE) to lantern years 3,7, 13 and 19 |
| Character Unlock | defeat the God-Hand | Characters (I) |
| Black Knight event bonus | complete the Squire Campaign | Red Hair from an event |
These general milestones, especially the Game Over related ones will be activated/deactivated at my discretion.
I sure hope they will be turned into Pillar cards for Campaigns of Death.
Exhausted Lantern Hoard 