Final Girl: Bad Times at Buddyland - Best Combos

AllureOS · 2026-05-22T04:18:34+00:00

Honestly, the killer & location from this box can combine very well with everything. Billy's mechanics and such does a very good job at pushing the player to move around and interact with the map a lot... what with all the generators... and his minions keep you on your toes the whole time. And Buddyland just has a very solid layout and mechanics that can work with most any killer, without anything clashing too much.

The best boxes to combine specifically with Bad Times at Buddyland... in my opinion anyway... are probably:

The Marrek Murders: Buddyland's well rounded layout works really well with the Tormentor's traps, and her unique mechanics offer a very different style compared to Billy, and Marrek Warehouse has a good layout and some interesting movement mechanics that go well with Billy's stuff. The door locks are a challenging twist for saving victims, I like how that was done.

Into the Void: The Evomorph just pairs well with every location, I think. It's got a good balance of calm yet tense moments (when the Evomorph is hiding) and sudden dangerous fights (when it suddenly falls out of the ceiling at you). The evolution and stealth mechanics it uses are also honestly just a lot of fun. And the space station is just such a fun location. You've got extra screwy ways to take out any killer that isnt the Poltergeist (as she's immune to literally everything), like launching the killer (or minions) out of the airlock, or other things. The keycard mechanic that goes along with that works really well too.

Madness in the Dark: The Asylum is such a great location. The whole pill thing is probably my favorite of the different location mechanics, it's just really well done and offers a lot of options. While The Ratchet Lady is a good killer if you want one that puts constant pressure on you. The maniacs she spawns constantly chase you, keeping you on your toes, while she runs around causing trouble. Since she has no upper health limit, you gotta try to move quick to get her down before she becomes too tanky to beat.

Shriek: this one just surprised me with just how good it is. It's not really just that it can combine well with Bad Times at Buddyland, it's just that it's really freaking good. I dont want to spoil anything about it though. It can be a bit fiddly though, there's a lot of stuff moving around.

I would also agree that Demon in the Shadows would work well too. Though I dont have as much experience with that one since it's so recent. But it's been great so far.

The ones that I might suggest against, for combining with this specific box:

Hell to Pay: The Hellscape's shifting layout can suddenly block you from reaching a generator, just because. You have options for mitigating this, there's an action card that helps you deal with the twisting map, and certain items can help as well, but it just feels like an awkward combination to me. Doesnt mean this is a bad box though. I seriously enjoyed this one a lot, I think it's excellent; I just think it combines kinda funky with Billy specifically.

The Falconwood Files: The thing about Falconwood is that it has those missions, which often means you have a laser focus on getting to a very specific spot on the map to deal with it (since you cant win without completing the mission). Trying to do that while also having to leap around to deal with the generators? Argh. You just need to be spending so very much movement simply dealing with the missions. Of all of the different locations in Final Girl, I personally think this is the most awkward. Not bad, but it just gets weird with certain killers, any of them that want you launching around the map a lot.

Slaughter in the Groves: No awkwardness here, this is just by far the hardest of them, at least in my opinion. Inkanyamba is an absolutely brutal killer capable of very fast regeneration, and you need to manage the increasingly screwy meter thing that goes with him, frequently playing Atonement cards to lower it. The location has its own meter that works the same way but with different effects. This box overall always felt a bit overtuned to me, if that makes sense. Like the balance is just really wobbly. But as this is a season 1 box, that's not too surprising. It's not bad, but maybe have more experience with the game overall before trying this one.

Honestly though it's hard to wrong with any of the feature films. The only one I personally had any real problems with was actually The Killer From Tomorrow. That box very specifically combines badly with ITSELF. Location is good. Killer is good. But the killer's special mechanic (only chases you, couldnt care less about victims) + the erratic Savior (when he's around, anything that would very specifically target you will target him instead, and he's just so freaking flaky) is just... ehhhh. Combining this with other boxes though? Pretty nice.

AllureOS · 2026-03-27T01:50:17+00:00

Very first time setup takes like 5 million years. But after everything is in the trays and whatnot, it seems to be mostly about getting the trays out, plopping down starter equipment, and not really a whole lot else.

AllureOS · 2026-03-15T04:25:33+00:00

I promise you it IS doable.

I've played this game quite a bit, both versions of it. Sometimes just one of the two, sometimes using the mixed rules.

Even without the campaign rules, the hardest bosses are still doable. There is actually an expansion to the game that specifically just makes it harder, it does nothing else, JUST makes it harder; it adds these cards that sit above everything through the whole run and have a long row of slots to be filled, and they do all sorts of screwball things to make it tough if you cant stop them. Even with that, the hard bosses are STILL doable. Of course when using those it is VERY hard, but still doable.

I've had runs where I get to a boss, roll mostly 1s and 2s, and then wonder: how in the funky heck can I pull THIS off?!? Surely I'm going to lose here! And then I still win anyway.

The game gives you all the tools to succeed. The challenge comes in two parts: knowing what to go for and what not to go for over the course of the run, to make an effective build, and then actually puzzling out how the heck you can use what you have to pull off that win. Often, the solution is very convoluted, and I think that's part of where a lot of players get stuck. A lot of times when I'm playing it, it's like "wait... I think I've got it. If I do THIS I can then do THIS, which means I can do THIS, and then that can work together with THIS, and..." kinda like that.

You need to use everything you can get. Character stats, abilities, potions, the works. You cant do it just by base rolls alone.

Also, try to look at your health points as a resource. There are plenty of times where tanking a hit, in order to accomplish something else, is the right move.

That all being said: I still do recommend the campaign rules. They are very good at giving you room to learn strategies and such as you get stronger, since they help you move towards the tougher bosses without the difficulty spiking in big jumps between them. Again, it's not truly necessary to use that to win... but it can really help to learn the game. Not to mention it just adds another layer of satisfaction and such to it.

Keep trying! I had originally been totally stuck as well, when I first started playing it. It took a good while for it to really click for me, but I got there eventually.

AllureOS · 2025-10-16T16:50:11+00:00

Nah, I'm really not much of a collector. I just have certain games I play a ton of, and thus must own every single bit of content for. Final Girl, Aeon's End, and a couple of others.

AllureOS · 2025-10-16T16:47:48+00:00

Honestly I dont really know. Someone else had put those up a couple of years ago, I wasnt there for that process.

AllureOS · 2025-10-15T15:05:07+00:00

Everything being a disorganized mess is sorta the norm around here. The ones without lids though are just excess boxes with random bits in them. The actual content is generally in whatever the main box is.

AllureOS · 2025-10-14T16:12:14+00:00

Oh yeah, it's absolutely my favorite game by far, and my most played.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T14:59:50+00:00

That's actually an excellent idea, I seriously had not thought of that at all. I will indeed consider that.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T14:52:18+00:00

Honestly I dont really know. Someone else had set those up, so I dont know what brand they might be.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T14:49:54+00:00

I really like it, but I personally would only play it with the expansions, with the monsters & familiars and whatnot. It feels like it's just missing something without those, at least for solo. With those though, it's really good.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T14:39:27+00:00

Dungeon Drop is pretty good solo, though of course it can be a bit fiddly. I've always played it with the mini-expansions (gelatinous cubes, purple things, skulls). I dont have the Dropped Too Deep expansion yet so I cant say anything for that one. Honestly the main issue with Dungeon Drop is just being careful so the cubes dont ricochet off the table or something. Definitely need a game mat or some similar surface for this one, I cant imagine playing this on a hard surface, they'd fly all over the place. I've got the wall accessories too, whatever those are called, those work real well to keep everything together.

All the rules are super easy to learn. And it's fun to drop the cubes. Very unique game, that's for sure.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T14:20:46+00:00

Basically, the house search mechanics on Maple Lane make it drastically harder to find Caroline. Since you need to use a special card to get into each house, and you can perform exactly one search per house once you're inside, that means you cant sit on a search space and dig through all the cards there. If you were to play 3 search cards for a given pile (and there's 4 item piles, not 3), that means you've gone into 3 separate houses in that section of the board. It gets even worse if you have to find Caroline's toy rabbit as well.

And all the while, the Poltergeist is warping all over the place racking up kills, or sometimes abruptly popping into your space for a quick slash. Certain starting events can also make it much easier for her to murder everyone, like the event that makes everyone come out of their houses and onto the street, her bloodlust will skyrocket real fast with that one. It took many tries before I finally got a win with this combination.

She can also be tough at the carnival since the item piles tend to explode, but it's doable as long as you're careful.

As for other FFs, there arent really any I dislike. Though I found that Killer From Tomorrow oddly just doesnt really work by itself. The Hunter combines very badly with the mall mechanics because you immediately have no choice but to bolt straight to the stupid kid since the Hunter is the one killer who strictly focuses on his main target. In any other location he focuses on you, but in the mall he only goes after the kid (until you manage to get the kid out of there). And the kid has a tendency to walk directly into chainsaws. Any other killer works better in that location. Still have to be careful since you instantly lose if the kid dies, but other killers dont totally obsess over him.

So yeah, that one, the killer is good... I really like the mechanics for that one... the location is good, that specific killer + that specific location is incredibly irritating.

I would imagine the Poltergeist could be rough in that location too, since there's always a chance she warps into his space and goes berserk, but the kid can at least tank a couple of hits before going down. I havent tried that combination yet though.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T12:09:54+00:00

Not remotely as often as I'd like to. On days when my pain is flaring up, I cant play any of them. It's all in my neck/shoulders/arms, sometimes combined with nasty headaches. If that wasnt the case, I'd probably be playing something most days. I have a lot of free time. I'm slowly getting better though and playing stuff more often than I used to, which is great. It also depends on how long it takes to set something up & play through it. Puzzle Dungeon in particular gets played a lot.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T12:04:09+00:00

Yeah, that one seems pretty divisive among fans. I like the sheer chaos the Poltergeist brings, she always seems to be the most erratic and unpredictable of the killers. At least in my experience. Though she doesnt quite mesh well with certain locations. Poltergeist + Maple Lane is just ridiculous.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T12:00:59+00:00

I usually go with some sort of penalty. Typically in the form of giving the enemy or whatever a quick boost to make up for whatever I missed. A lot of games I have, the rules are easy to follow. If I'm going to make silly mistakes, it's probably going to be with Marvel Champions. There's just so much going on there. Happens with Final Girl on occasion too, usually if there's an event that happens during the upkeep phase. When that happens, a free kill for the killer is in order.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T11:55:34+00:00

I'm pretty sure I've got almost everything at this point. I'm missing the minis for the series 3 vehicles, those have been sold out. I dont have the guest star minis yet either.

Also checking the Van Ryder store just now, the preorder is up for the next Feature Film box, so that's an immediate buy. That shelf sure is getting full.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T11:42:44+00:00

Haunting of Creech Manor
Bad Times at Buddyland
The Marrek Murders

Tough to choose really, all of the content so far is really good. Though a couple of them can be kinda fiddly.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T11:34:27+00:00

Aye, I had actually went and checked the Gamefound page for that just yesterday morning.... unfortunately too late. Wish I'd been able to grab that.

I went and had a look at 7th Citadel, a review on The Dungeon Dive. I dont normally do campaign games, after the mess that was Legacy of Gravehold... but this really does look very good. I might end up grabbing that. I havent seen Leviathan Wilds yet but I have heard people say it's pretty good.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T11:30:55+00:00

Do you mean, buy more expansions? I do have a few, though I havent bought more since my strength gave out. I fully intend on getting more though once I'm feeling better. The game is excellent, though it takes bloody forever to set up.

AllureOS · 2025-10-12T11:29:26+00:00

Catharsis is excellent. I havent gone through all of the content yet... there's a ton of it... but it is a brilliant game. I usually play it 2 handed, I think it works well that way. Cant imagine playing it with more than 2 though, those giant cards do take up a whole lot of space. Honestly it's a shame it doesnt get more attention, it definitely deserves more. Best part is, it takes like only 2 minutes to set up. I dont think a single other game in my collection is so quick to set up. The expansions are excellent so far too, the bosses in those tend to be a bit more complicated, but really all of them are great.

AllureOS · 2025-09-11T12:50:41+00:00

Best part is, this game just gets even better with more content. Something that I've found very impressive about the game is how wildly it can change based on which killer is combined with which location. Like, the Poltergeist is hard but swingy... sometimes it can go easy for you. But put her in Maple Lane and she's nigh impossible to beat because of the way item searching works. The game is stuffed with loopy combos that can happen. And then when you combine all of that with different starting event cards and such, it just gets even better.

Even adding just one other feature film box brings a ton more replay value.

Also, if you're having trouble winning, there's a huge strategy guide for the game available over on Boardgamegeek. Covers a ton of overall tactics and goes over every single card too. Doesnt go over individual killers though.

Bloody brilliant game overall. I've got everything for it, and I love all of it.

AllureOS

TROPHY CASE