TL;DR: Included links for list of cards, and notable cards as of 9/6/2021 based on what is on the site. Lots of interesting tricks. Stargazing is the most surprisingly good use I've seen of this.

For those who are interested in a list of non-guardian Insights and Tactics that alternate Roland Banks can take and which are not already fast, here is a search. The list that includes Guardian cards is also helpful, but is much, much larger - here is a search.

There are a lot of cards that are impractical to use - often due to Roland's base stats not fitting well. I've done my best to list out any of particular note.

• Damaging
  • Act of Desperation is a tactic that can be useful as extra supplies if you have a build which churns through hand items.
  • Coup de Grâce is marginally easier to time correctly when it can be played during any fast window, and when it can be used outside your turn (Though it is still expensive in terms of cost).
  • Dynamite Blast can work, though it's expensive. You can also treat Dynamite Blast (2) as Dynamite Blast (3)!
  • Flare can be used in Stick to the Plan, and can do double duty as emergency damage or an ally search, if you're willing to pay the cost.
  • Improvised Weapon isn't great as an initial fight, though it looks a little better as a cheap, quick 2-damage fight that you can use from your discard. I think using it will likely require some very odd build (like, say, using the 5 bonus XP from alternate Roland to take Versatile for Short Supply or Forced Learning (TBA) during deck creation.
  • One-Two Punch can be a solid double attack in larger player counts, but will be much iffier when using Directive (Due Diligance).
  • Sneak Attack is tricky to use, but not impossible with Directive (Due Diligence) or Sweeping Kick.
  • Sneak Attack (2), however, can be much more flexible, especially in larger games.
  • Sweeping Kick gets extra points for being a good tactic for Stick to the Plan should you need it, combined with being both emergency damage and an evade that's likely to succeed. It's not perfect due to Roland's low , but still can be used to avoid something big for a bit of time.
  • Toe to Toe is great if you have the soak for it - two guaranteed damage for free is amazing, and the right combinations can help mitigate the downside, as long as you're careful about who you use it with.
• Clueing (Keep these in mind, especially when using Directive (Seek the Truth) - that tends to come up more in larger player games, but you might find a few opportunities to squeeze a card out here or there.
  • Burning the Midnight Oil is a weaker attempt, but also can be used as a fast resource gain.
  • Drawn to the Flame can be a bit risky to use, but it remains one very strong cluing option - and works well on a character who might need to immediately deal with the enemy that pops out.
  • Eavesdrop is a very situational attempt, but if you're dealing with a lot of enemies with low evade values, this might squeeze a couple of extra clues out.
  • Extensive Research and Extensive Research (1) can work, but you're unlikely to have the hand sizes to support it outside of some fairly specific situations.
  • Fortuitous Discovery is an odd one to use and you won't have Survivor discard support, but also allows for a cheap attempt with potentially large rewards.
  • On the Trail is a good hybrid of movement and clue gathering, as long as you're in the right place for it - which may be difficult if you're using Directive (Leave No Doubt).
  • Scene of the Crime can turn into a quick variation of Working a Hunch, as long as you watch your location.
  • Seeking Answers and Seeking Answers (2) still have the downside of a check, but can potentially grab you more items from nearby areas for relatively low costs.
  • Stirring Up Trouble is still a very powerful source of clues when used with curse counts in mind - having it fast only makes it better.
  • Winging It is another potentially small bump that likely requires focused deck construction - make sure you're thinking carefully when using it!
• Other
  • Cryptic Writings and Cryptic Writings (2) can do double-duty for resource gain, both when drawn and when played quickly for the resources.
  • Deep Knowledge, Preposterous Sketches, Preposterous Sketches (2), and No Stone Unturned are all reasonable card draw options that can normally be a bit slow to use.
  • Similarly, Prepared for the Worst might not seem quite so iffy if it's fast - though be sure you have the spare card play for the weapon.
  • Delve Too Deep can be dangerous, but can also be a good source of XP. Is having it as a fast action any better? Probably not, since it's often saved for the end of the game. Still, who knows!
  • Glimpse the Unthinkable is another potentially useful draw/mulligan tool when it doesn't take your action.
  • Guidance likely seems a lot better when it only costs you a card to give someone else an action.
  • Impromptu Barrier is more awkward than the offensive equivalent, but still can give you some bonus evade or mass evade should you need it - often made more practical if you also have Directive (Due Diligence).
  • Join the Caravan, Scout Ahead, and The Truth Beckons are all various options for movement, but remember that movement can be restricted when using Directive (Leave No Doubt) - and that's often one that Roland will want to take. If you really want extra movement, you might consider sticking to good old Shortcut or Safeguard.
  • Logical Reasoning can be used as a quick heal, or to handle terrors if there wasn't quite enough Willpower to a check.
  • Righteous Hunt is another movement option that can add a few blessings in to the deck, though that is more for the normal deck-building rules - without access to Holy Spear, there isn't nearly as much payoff.
  • Stargazing is probably the most amusing card to use in conjunction with the effect. More than any other card I've tried to use, it's a very flexible one - as long as the Encounter deck isn't close to empty, you can add it in at any point, effectively exchanging the card to give someone that card, action, resource, and skip of the encounter draw.

There's definitely a lot here to process, so think carefully about which packages you want to include - it can be hard to balance the amount of combat and clue gathering correctly, but good use of your fast plays can sneak in a lot of extra actions and avoid tests altogether.

Just remember, if you're trying to get access to the whole suite of these cards, Roland's combat power will suffer - loss of access to the 5 XP Guardian weapons hurts a lot. It's not impossible to fight - Enchanted Blade (Guardian), Survival Knife (2), Timeworn Brand, and Enchant Weapon can make reasonable weapons, Beat Cop (2) and Guard Dog can still help deal some extra damage, Alice Luxley can help pivot towards a slight Investigation focus, and you have more events to try to squeeze out some damage through action compression. However, that choice will mean that Roland's offense tends to suffer in exchange for a few interesting tricks and some extra early XP - and if you're using Directive (Due Diligance), you will almost certainly be playing a more flexible role than a primary fighter.

(My money's still on Stargazing being the most surprisingly useful purchase, though.)

This directive can be cheated using Bob Jenkins free action to play item assets from your hand. Since Bob's ability is a free action for himself Roland isn't playing the card. I think that's pretty neat and synchronizes pretty well between Bob and Roland.

Very funny and tricky Directive card, I think. You can very strange play by triggering. Note that you may play a event during any player window as in Fence FAQ, as I know. If it's revealed that it's not true, please ignore this review at all.

• Sneak Attack: you can play after the enemy attack and is exhausted. (Timing) between 3.3 and 3.4
• Ambush, Under Surveillance with First Watch: you can play after you check whether the enemy is spawn or not by First Watch. (Timing) during test -- you need to find & resolve skill test from another encounter card.
• Any card with fight, evade or dealing damage ("I've got a plan!", Backstab, Coup de Grâce, Flare, Impromptu Barrier, Improvised Weapon, One-Two Punch, Clean Them Out, Dynamite Blast): you can play after the hunter enemy moved but before attack. (Timing) between 3.2 and 3.3
• Delve Too Deep: you could play Delve at strange timming.

However, the Regulation is strong. You can play at most 2 cards for each round. Don't forget this limit includes not only events, but also assets. If you plan to trigger , you can only play 1 card for each round. One solution is Stick to the Plan + Ever Vigilant combo. Just reveal , and play Ever Vigilant.

I think here is a dilemma that the commit-based deck seems to be suitable due to play-regulation. However, parallel deckbuilding may access limited number of skills and normal deckbuilding may access limited number of tactic/insight events.