Arkham Horror: The Card Game Review Cthulhu on your desk: Arkham Horror and Arkham Files series of Arkham Horrors print and play

Arkham Horror: Card Game

Played by: 3 (4) parties together (completed the entire base campaign)

Some (let's not point a finger :)) were very surprised when I added the game to the wishlist, and then immediately bought it as soon as it appeared in the store. Yes, I myself did not expect two months ago, but after looking at the shelves of euros at home and studying the list of top 100 thematic games for a long time, I realized that under one of the main criteria - the duration of the game is no more than 1.5-2 hours - of the whole variety, practically only one "Card Horror" is suitable. And something so thematic, with scripts and adventures, well, I really wanted.

Well, it's time to get acquainted with the Myth, then. Before that, I had not played a single game related to Lovecraft and his work, and there was no particular desire. But, as the car in the son's cartoon says, “You never know what you’re capable of until you try it” :)

By the way, I would not even look in her direction, if the game was not just going to be localized, so thanks to MX, and still not "everyone has already bought, who wanted to." Some wanted it only because it was published in Russian. And by the way, I have no experience with any LCD, so these will be the impressions of an amateur in this area.

What is the game about?

Before us is a story-driven adventure of three scenarios, which must be completed by playing as one of the 5 available detectives. Each investigator has his own deck with different items, skills and weaknesses that must be used to fight against the undead and prevent the cunning plans of cultists and the forces of evil.

Interestingly, Investigator decks are made up of five available colors, two colors per investigator. Thus, playing with one basic box, you can only make two decks, and even then not for every combination of investigators, because some of the required colors overlap. This is to the question of whether a second box is needed. But one was enough for us.

So, as you progress through the scenes, you go through scenario after scenario. You have a hand, you have resources, there are locations that need to be explored, there is a common task and enemies, and you try to make the best use of your 3 actions per turn in order to achieve a favorable outcome for yourself in the allotted time.

Impressions

I will share the pros and cons, as well as what left a neutral impression.

What we liked

Let's go for the classics. Design and quality. In the box we will find a bunch of cards, not flax, but dense, albeit somewhat curving, and a lot of tokens. I have no complaints about the tokens, these are just under flax, no noticeable chewing and double cuts were noticed, only on the tokens of hopelessness evidence after four batches there were small abrasions along the edges. In general, this time MX did their best.

I really liked the illustrations on the maps, despite the fact that in some places there are intestines, blood and all kinds of evil spirits. At first, all sorts of frames on the cards are somewhat confused, there are quite a few different ones, but then you get used to it. So from an aesthetic point of view, there are no complaints either.

The organizer is a standard paper insert, but I am generally satisfied. Square boxes for resources from the "Sickle" (remember those with the SM logo?) Were simply gorgeous under the side flaps. I have 4 of them and for 4 types of tokens in this game they fit perfectly. And I arranged the cards in packages to make it easier to sort.

An atmospheric adventure with a script. I really love games where, during the game, you feel like a hero of either a movie or a story, and the development of the plot depends on you and your actions (well, and on luck, of course, you can't go anywhere without it :) This is very exciting and intriguing feeling, usually you immerse yourself deeply in such games and after one game you want to continue playing until you reach the end.

All this is in "UA: KI", and the atmosphere, in principle, is at the level as far as it can be created with decks of cards. In general, I definitely got what I expected from this box.

Detectives of different sensations. Due to the fact that the decks are made up of two different "colors", and each color symbolizes certain qualities and skills, each investigator has his own quite tangible character, which is great.

True, so far we have played only for the feds and the vagrant, as advised for the first campaign, but I would really like to play for someone else.

Replay value. In scenario games, the problem of replayability arises. The same "Agency TIME" is not replayable at all, only if in a couple of years with another company. In "UA: KI" this problem is solved well, which I really liked.

• Firstly, scenarios can be played by other investigators with different decks, and there will already be different sensations. For example, I really want to play with a magical purple deck. Even the order in which the cards are released can already have a profound effect on the gameplay.
• Secondly, in the scenarios, except for the first, there will be differences during the repeated passage, since there are 2 locations each placed selectively, i.e. others may be caught. And in the last scenario, one more element is selected 1 out of 4 possible.
• Thirdly, each scenario has several different possible outcomes, i.e. they can end in different ways with different results. And these outcomes will have an impact on the following scenarios.

Thus, there is variability and replayability and I personally would be interested in playing again. I have no doubt it will be fun too.

The duration of the party. I really liked that the games in UA: CI are limited, because after a certain number of rounds, Myth's plans will somehow advance, and the outcome will come in any case. Those. the game is not infinitely stretched and limits itself, our task is to have time to complete our tasks in the allotted time.

Plus, it seems like they did not completely lie on the box in terms of duration. Except for our first trial batch, the other two were within 1-2 hours.

Mechanics. It is based on the management of the hand and the implementation of various actions such as fighting, moving, etc. You have three actions per round and you yourself choose not only which actions you can take, but also the order of the players' turn in each round, which sometimes helps a lot. In general, the necessary and optimal actions are often quite obvious, although not always, but the same deck of contacts and chaos tokens can make serious adjustments to your slender plan.

I liked the different types of cards and the fact that most of them are unique. You can "pump" the character by giving him weapons or other items, putting on "armor", acquiring an ally, etc. There are weaknesses that, rest assured, will come out at the most inopportune moment and confuse all plans. Also, almost every card can be used as a stat when passing checks to increase your chances.

Between games, you can still modify the deck, however, only with the cards from the base you will not overclock at all, but for me this is even a plus, because otherwise I would break my head which cards to take in the deck.

Neutral

Much depends on luck. This is not a problem, you need to understand this when sitting down to America, albeit as if without cubes. But the cards come to hand by accident and there is a whole bag of tokens with all sorts of bad values ​​that must be drawn with each check.

By the way, there was no bag in the kit, they suggest replacing something like a plate, although in the rules they still call it a "bag". I took a bag from another game, but it’s all the same for petty fighting, would the FFG be completely ruined if they put the much needed bag in the box?

But back to luck. We went through the second scenario so-so, and all because we were unlucky: the cards in the deck of contacts came across evil, weaknesses came out of the deck at the wrong time, etc. But the third scenario was dragged in like the gods, everything worked out as it should and luck favored.

Layout and deck building. If you start preparing for a game right before it, it can take you 20 minutes to select and shuffle the cards, especially if you are also planning to update your deck.

I solved this problem for myself by preparing for the game in advance, selecting all locations, contacts, etc. in the afternoon before the evening game, so that in the evening you can just get it, spread it out in a couple of minutes and go.

The base is just a seed. Base box - just the first bite to try and figure out the rules. The first scenario is especially weak. Already in the second, it becomes more interesting due to actions on locations and other things. And the goals for promoting the scenes are becoming more diverse.

And all the fun begins in the add-ons, fortunately, they are also going to be localized. But on the other hand, if you didn't like the first piece, it is easy to jump off and not get involved further in this adventure. But we seem to be :)

And, to be honest, I didn't really like my heroine, Wendy. Her fight is weak and at the same time in the deck there is a bat for you, and all sorts of knives, and even a pistol is available. And after all, she's kind of written to run away from all enemies, so why so many weapons? Plus, I never learned how to use her amulet, I still couldn't find the right moment to play it.

In general, after the very first game, I wanted to take another heroine, with magic. But this is not a minus of the game, it is not just those who run well and dodge well, but they also know how to beat :))

What did not like

Rules. There are a lot of rules, as many as two books, but damn it, how hard it is to wade through them, especially through a reference book. It is written so vaguely and verbosely that you begin to doubt that you are doing anything right at all, some things are written out so much unnecessarily. All this could be much better structured, shortened, singled out by topic, and not in alphabetical order, focus on important points, and not to write for granted to the last comma, etc. Tech.pis. in me it is very indignant.

For example, the fact that the enemies are involved after you left them is written somewhere in the left place, and not at all in the chapter Involved ... And there is a lot of that, no wonder there are such long threads with questions everywhere. Some kind of reminder with the main things that are really important and often forgotten would be very helpful. For I am always jarred to play not by the rules, and rummaging through the reference book tires me (yes, I read about the dark rule, but I don’t want to complicate my life out of the blue because of the crookedly written rules). The rules themselves seem to be uncomplicated, why should they be so complicated on paper?

In general, because of this, our first game lasted as long as two evenings (we had to come up with a mechanism to "save" the game), and the impressions were not at all the best. I thought we weren’t going to play anymore, I didn’t like it myself. But the rules seemed to be sorted out and after 2-3 games everything went easier.

Conclusion

Arkham Horror: Card game"Is a very exciting atmospheric adventure for two, which is addictive and captivating. I don't play alone, and for more players you need more basic boxes, but it still seems to me that two are optimal. You can play in separate scenarios, but the juice, of course, is a campaign where you can get experience, injuries and between scenarios to buy new advanced cards in the deck, and your decisions affect subsequent scenarios.

As for the mechanics, I can not compare with other LCDs, but I liked it: the execution of actions and the management of the hand from what comes to hand in order to overcome the forces of evil before the plans of the Myth advance.

I liked that each investigator has his own tangible character due to decks of different colors. The games run lively and cheerfully (after learning the rules ...), and the game will not let you relax, because everything needs to be done in a limited time, and the enemies are not asleep. It's great that even being a scenario game, the game is very replayable if desired. He rules randomly, but without planning actions in advance, you will not be able to win.

We were very saddened by the muddy and difficult rules with the simplicity of the process, which almost ruined our whole experience. The campaign of the base box raced very quickly, we only had time to finally figure out the rules, pump up a little and get a taste.

Put the game 8,25 points (that is, I completely agree with the mark on BGG), if the stages are more exciting than the base, I will raise it. In the recent list of favorite games for two, I would now put this box higher, because the game clearly liked her husband. Let's wait for the additions!

Arkham Horror - addicting board game, which transports the participants to the world created Howard Lovecraft... Thoughtful instructions and beautiful decoration create a magical atmosphere. Games take a lot of time - 180-240 minutes.

Difficulty level: above the average

Number of players: 2-8

Develops skills: logical thinking, deduction

What's in the box?

• book with rules;
• playing field;
• bones - 5 pieces;
• sheets, chips " Detectives" and coasters for them - 16 pcs.;
• tokens with " Detectives» – 196 pc.;
• cards " Detectives» – 189 pc.;
• leaflets " The ancients» – 8 pcs.;
• tokens with " Hopelessness» – 20 pcs.;
• cards " The ancients» – 179 pcs;
• tokens with " Monsters» – 60 pcs.;
• tokens with " Gates» – 16 pcs.;
• marker " Activity» – 3 pcs.;
• marker " Investigated» – 3 pcs.;
• marker " Closed» – 6 pcs.;
• Horror marker – 1 PC.;
• first participant token - 1 piece;
• skill sliders - 24 pieces.

Are you ready for a horror game?

Outside 1926 year. Fictional town Arkham in state Massachusetts... Everywhere gates began to open to wild and terrible places that cannot be described in words. Frightening creatures hit the streets. But further it will be even worse, because “ portals"Will become even more, the essence of incredible power will fall on the world. Invasion of evil is resisted by a small group of Investigators who are determined to rein in the terrible creatures. They will need to get into the mysteries of Myth and use knowledge, all kinds of weapons, magic spells, if they want to successfully complete the goal of freeing the whole world from the evil.

Arkham City

Welcome to the Arkham at the very peak " turbulent 90s". The taverns are full of dancing girls and bandits. Suddenly, black shadows began to descend on the city - they began to act. They lurk in the void and are about to break out of the gates that separate the worlds. When the gates are nevertheless opened, they must be closed urgently, otherwise they will forever take possession of the real world.

In addition to terrible monsters play the main role in the game "Arkham Horror". They carefully examine the corners of the fictional city, meet with other people - all in order to reveal evidence that will help weaken the threatening evil.

At the initial stage, the characters avoid encounters with terrible creatures, move to Arkham in search of clues. Next, investigators try to close the gates and seal active doors for monsters.

When the weapon is acquired, the spells are collected - you can start sealing latest portals... If everything works out, then the world is saved, but a mistake can awaken the Ancient One for the final battle.

Investigator parameters

Everyone in Arkham Horror has individual parameters that can be useful in some areas:

1. Indicators... The character is given a fixed limit of Health, Sanity, which can be varied.
2. Starting location- the place where the character starts.
3. Characteristic possibilities inherent to the individual players. At times, the ability gives the investigator a dominance, or even harm.
4. Personal property- a value that includes evidence, money, and more.
5. Resources- Simple, Unique items and Spells.

Old gods

The Ancients are terrible powerful entities from other worlds and time limits. They awaken in Arkham Horror after a long period of inactivity. The detectives will have to work hard to stop the awakening! The Ancient sheet contains parameters: strength, battle parameters, minions of the creature. Before the start of the game, a terrible Ancient One is randomly selected, which this time threatens Arkham.

And among the ancients there are well-known names from the world Lovecraft:

The Ancients' mechanics in Arkham Horror are four points: the track of hopelessness, terror, the emergence of the Ancient, and the Final Battle.

Monsters

Tokens with them represent creatures who found themselves on the streets of mystical Arkham. On the front side, the investigator will find the answer, which direction of movement the opponent has, on the back - how strong he is in battle. When an entity in Arkham Horror walks through the city, its token is turned to face, and at the beginning of the fight it is turned over.

Myths

Myths cards tell Arkham Horror participants where and under what positions unseen forces or ordinary circumstances operate. In any round, the map opens, changing the situation: in the unstable points of the city, gates are opened, fresh evidence is revealed, the characters are affected by events that contribute to the hunt.

Arkham Horror Board Game Rules

The mystical board game "Arkham Horror" is a team entertainment of a difficult level, designed for a maximum of eight participants, united in a group of detectives. The rules are drawn up in such a way that the player will definitely need the help of others to survive, and even more so to defeat evil forces.

The mechanic is designed for several pairs of skills, checks of which make it possible to overcome obstacles:

• speed along with stealth
• will together with battle
• luck with knowledge is inversely dependent

This means that the more the character is prepared for hand-to-hand combat, the worse it will be for him when attacking with magic Other Worlds.

Guessing in "Arkham Horror" is useless, because all the components are subject to a random factor. Therefore, an experienced player can imagine what awaits him in the games.

Preparing to play

1. Prepare the area for the game by opening the field on it. Consider the fact that there must be some space around the field to accommodate card stacks Investigator Sheets Required dice and tokens. Do not forget to place the "horror" token in the zero compartment of the tracker of the same name.
2. Place the starting clues one at a time in any location in the Arkham Horror with a red diamond at the top. These are the unstable points of the city, where the Gates open and fearsome entities awaken.
3. Find out who will start the game, give him the first player token.
4. Sort the available investigators. The first player shuffles 16 sheets of paper, without peeping, distributes to the others one at a time, including himself. It is allowed to agree to choose individually, then the choice will be made first by the first player, then the rest clockwise. Every self-respecting player needs a detective.
5. Open the sheet with the Ancient One. The first participant interferes with the indicated sheets, without looking, selects one and places it near the field. The sheet needs to be opened. It is the Ancient One who is the fear of all of Arkham throughout the game. It is possible and not to randomly choose the Ancient, but to appoint a specific person responsible for the fate of Arkham. This method is good when the time in the game is limited.
6. Separate the cards related to the Investigator and Ancients decks. Decks are placed close to playing field Arkham Horror.
7. Receive the first part of the property, which is written on the detective's sheet with the note "always with you", which means "at the beginning of each game." The property is given in turn: the first participant finds required maps in a pile, then passes the deck to the next one, according to the list of property on his card.
8. Shuffle the stacks of investigators thoroughly, place them next to the playing field. If the participant is instructed to take or receive a card, he takes the outermost card from the required deck.
9. Collect the equipment available at the start of the Arkham Horror game. One by one, the players draw the required number of cards from the piles containing the equipment, in accordance with the lists of assets "can take" on their cards.
10. Receive the Mind and Body tokens with the highest Mind and Body scores. The values ​​are written on the sheets of the detectives. Tokens are placed in separate areas of the sheet. Players also acquire three sliders for use and place them on the existing skill tracks.
11. Place the monster tokens in the jar and stir carefully. In the Arkham Horror instructions, an opaque vessel is called a pool, it can be like a coffee mug or container. When a monster appears, the first participant, without looking, selects a token from there, puts it on the playing field.
12. Shuffle the Gate tokens and the Ancients cards, and place the corresponding stacks face down next to the board.
13. Place detectives on an area of ​​the Arkham Horror board using the location tokens shown on the sheet.
14. Play the Myth card with the help of a beginner. Having pulled out the Rumors, you should discard the card and continue to recruit until something that is not Rumors appears. It is she who will indicate in which of the unstable places the Gates will open, and a terrible monster will appear. While the Myths card is played, you can proceed to the first round.

Start

Once the preparation for the Arkham Horror entertainment is complete, the game begins with a draw first Myth... The top card from the corresponding pile will indicate at which point in the city random gates will open and an arbitrary monster will appear. When opening the gates, it is necessary to place a token at track of hopelessness if it fills up entirely - The ancient will awaken.

Sequence of the move

A round in Arkham Horror is 5 phases... The participant, in his turn, performs the actions inherent in each phase. When all players have finished a step, the next phase begins. At the end of the last phase, the first player to move passes his token, and the next round begins.

The Arkham Horror entertainment stages include the following steps:

1. Take a break.
2. Moving.
3. Various contacts in Arkham, including certain actions.
4. Contacts in Other Worlds.
5. Phases of myths with several points.

Respite

The stage implies:

1. Return of involved cards... Using some cards, a participant in "Arkham Horror" temporarily needs to throw them out of the game. Show that their properties have worked and there is no way to apply them for a while. Such a card is turned face up, they say about it "involved". At the initial stage of the Respite, they return to their original state. If a card is face down, then it cannot be counted on until it is face up in the next Break.
2. Actions... When completing cases with the applied cards, the Arkham Horror participants are supposed to check the cards for the existence of Respite for all rounds. Actions are performed in a chaotic manner. In the first phase, when participants receive cards with the names of Loan, Curse, Companions and Blessings, there is no respite being thrown.
3. Skill change... Any participant is allowed to change the detective skill by moving the tracks along the detective sheet accordingly.

Movements

In this phase, the "Arkham Horror" participant is supposed to perform one of a couple of actions, based on the location of the character: Arkham or Other Worlds.

If an investigator is located in an urban area of ​​the playing field, then he receives a number of movement units equivalent to the Investigator's Speed ​​placed on the tracker. The player has the right to move from one location to another if the two zones are connected by a yellow stripe. It gives the character the opportunity to go out from the point of the city, move from one to another, or get from the street to any other location in a unit of movement.

It is also possible to move around Other Worlds. You can find both creepy places and strange dimensions with which the world is teeming. Participants get there by exploring the Gateway. If the player's character is initially in the described phase in the Other World, he will not receive movement units. Its action is associated with its placement:

• when the character is in the first zone, the character moves to the second in the Movement phase;
• if he is in the second zone, then in the indicated phase he finds himself again in the terrible Arkham.

Arkham Contacts

Here the participant of the game "Arkham Horror", holding the detective at the point of the mystical city, takes a certain action. It depends on the gates that were open at that time.

1. With no gate open the character gets contact to the location. The participant shuffles the pile with the points of the area where his character is located, takes a card. Next, the player reads the text on the card and finds the location of the character on the map, does everything that is ordered in the message. The card may announce that "a monster appears," and the investigator will urgently have to leave him or fight him. Further, when the actions are played, the card is returned to the pile. Essences and gates cannot find themselves in closed points of the city, even if the situation is that the map requires it. And monsters never linger on the field after contact ends.
2. With open gates the investigator moves to the first zone of the Otherworld.

Contacts in Other Worlds

In this particular phase, detectives who are located at that time in Other Worlds, their fields are marked with multi-colored circles - contact symbols. The player draws cards from the gate pile, one at a time, until he draws a card whose color is identical to the color of any of the contact symbols of this world. Those that do not match the color go to the bottom of the deck.

After a successful finding, the Arkham Horror participant searches the card for a separate contact text for the Other World where his character is located. If there is one, the player reads it out in front of all the players and executes all his orders. In the absence of text, the participant fulfills the requirements of the text under the heading “ Other". Also, the text can cause the appearance of a monster, and the investigator must fight with him or leave. The played card is returned under the deck.

Phase of myths

The participant in this phase of "Arkham Horror" draws the card of the same name and performs the steps:

1. Open the gates and multiply the creatures.
2. Decompose the collected evidence.
3. Go monsters.
4. Apply the properties of the Myth.

How to beat the game?

The Arkham Horror game ends in two ways: detectives defeat a mystical threat or die in battle.

Investigators can win in three cases:

• tighten spontaneously arising gates;
• to seal the gates forever;
• plunge down the Ancient Creature.

A special scheme can be used to assess the greatness of the victory in Arkham Horror. It is necessary to start with the highest value of the hopelessness tracker of the most dangerous entity, subtract the degree of horror, and add:

• minus 1 for any Loan that is not repaid;
• minus 1 for the old seal applied in the course of entertainment;
• plus 1 for each trophy gate;
• plus 1 for three surviving monster trophies;
• plus 1 for any living investigator.

Impressions of the game

The game is definitely not for those who have just got acquainted with the world of board games. Although the rules are relatively simple, they contain nuances that sometimes need to be clarified even on the forums. Also, "Arkham Horror" requires concentration, attentiveness, interest and complete immersion in the atmosphere from the party members.

The game "Arkham Horror" can give many exciting evenings in a circle of pleasant company, but sometimes the brain can melt and the game wants to burn. If you are a fan of creativity Lovecraft then the game is definitely worthy of your attention. There is also a version “ Ancient Horror", but base game Arkham Horror is more variable and contains more components.

For the game "Arkham Horror" developed a dozen add-ons that brought new cards with events and characters. Fresh ingredients add originality to the basic entertainment, which dilutes routine parts.

"Curse of the Dark Pharaoh" (reprint)

This modification was released in 2011, and it is full of innovations:

• Ancient Whispers are heard throughout the city. At the end of the movement, the detective draws a card from the set of "show contacts". This step involves getting content from exhibitions.
• Instead of exile (a card inherent in the 2006 edition) - Civil Patrol.
• The package now contains a leaf of the harbinger of the great "Dark Pharaoh".

The Dunwich Horror

The next appendix to Arkham Horror, which introduces a different mechanic to chase monsters: Injury, Circumstance, and Whirlwind. Investigators and Ancient Essences also appeared in the configuration. When the hero loses a decisive health point, he has the right to discard the evidence and half of the things, take a card from the "Madness" pile inherent in the application.

Certain options suggest the entry of a creature - the Dunwich Horror, which is many times stronger than monsters, but will not defeat the Ancients.

"The King in Yellow"

This Arkham Horror app contains maps only. The appearance of the "Harbinger" card - a powerful creature whose purpose is to approach the awakening of the Ancient One - has become a rarity.

The Kingsport Horror

The basis of the modification is the city of Kingsport, located near Arkham. Here newest maps Ancients, Guardians and a unique stack - "Epic Battles". Monsters have a different type of movement, including movement on water, and terrible creatures that avoid meeting have appeared. Included cracks in space, letting in the mystical Arkham new terrible creatures.

"Black goat of the woods"

The "Arkham Horror" card add-on includes status cards in the "One of a Thousand" cult, which change contacts in the Black Cave, the Woods to contacts with the cult. There are also fresh "Corruption" cards that have a bad effect on researchers.

"The Horror of Innsmouth"

The place of events is the town of Innsmouth. There are also new cards, Ancient, Terrible Entities, as well as Personal Stories, an Innsmouth View card, and a unique Horror Scale.

"Lurking at the Threshold"

This Arkham Horror app is based on the novel of the same name by Howard Lovecraft and August Derleth. In addition to fresh cards, a deck has also appeared - Relationship cards, which describe possible relationships in which detectives can be with each other. There are other mechanics for making Dark Pacts and Ancient Creatures.

"Miskatonic Horror"

The main innovations of the "Arkham Horror" add-on are the emergence of institutions that provide the necessary help in exchange for various resources.

• Miskatonic University: a researcher has the right to be a student, to benefit from it, to start exciting expeditions to a nearby town, to purchase library books.
• Bureau of Investigation: All researchers are now recruiting agents for the found evidence to help destroy the terrible entities.
• Fighting crime: Before the start of the party is announced, you can get a deposit or become a member of Sheldon's gang. When arrested, he has the right to hire a defense lawyer, pay or ignore the arrest.

  "Pandemic"

  A game for combining efforts and for well-coordinated interaction. Participants will have to create a unique strategy for using in the game strengths various experts of the Center until the moment when diseases attack the whole world.

  « Fortune and Glory: The Cliffhanger Game "

  Role-playing fun with villains threatening dangers and deaths. Events take place on the field, which is a map of the world. Players become treasure hunters roaming the the globe in search of the oldest artifacts.

  Arkham Horror: Card Game is a cooperative Live Card Game (LCD) in which players work together to unravel mystical mysteries and conspiracies, while trying to overcome their haunting past. Each player takes on the role of one of the investigators and builds a deck based on their abilities the chosen investigator.

  A sequence of related scenarios creates an artistic narrative called a campaign, based on a mystery that the characters intend to uncover throughout the story. In each scenario, detectives go to different locations and investigate them in search of clues that are necessary to advance their investigation, and also try to avoid or destroy the insidious forces of Myth. As the campaign progresses, each investigator gains experience and a deeper awareness of the events taking place, which allows him to improve his abilities and capabilities, adding more strong cards to your deck.

  But be careful: the deeper you plunge into the world of the unknown, the more likely your madness is. Investigators must be able to defend their sanity against the terror that comes their way and survive to uncover the mystery. "

  Number of players: 1-4 Time: 60-120 minutes Age: 14+

  
  

  Lovecraft's creepy Cthulhu myths continue to live and develop thanks to his followers - and not just writers. Many learned about the Old Gods not from books, but from role-playing Call games of Cthulhu, whose authors have systematized disparate stories. In this game, the characters were faced with an unforgettable horror that cannot be defeated. Others have picked up the baton, and now every year there are new video games, board games, fan films and books based on Lovecraft's mythology.

  In the world of board games, the popularity of Cthulhu is phenomenal. To many popular series, add-ons are released on the theme of Lovecraft Ancients ("Kneading. Inevitable release about Cthulhu", "Worlds of Cthulhu"). Even the family games Pandemic and Kingsburg did not escape such a fate. Sometimes it turns out hack-work - the rules for insanity are "screwed up" to the old mechanics, the illustrator draws more tentacles, and the add-on is ready! But fortunately, good games according to myths, Cthulhu is enough. First of all, this is a series Arkham games Files, which we will now talk about.

  Arkham Horror

  One of the most famous games according to myths, Cthulhu was so fond of the audience that it spawned a string of spin-offs of varying degrees of "severity", and Fantasy Flight Games decided to create its own setting based on the Lovecraft universe. The publisher came up with the characters, backstories and key events that formed the basis of the entire line, and if you wish, you can trace how the characters change from game to game.

  Surprisingly, the first version of Arkham Horror was itself originally a spin-off of the tabletop role-playing game Call of Cthulhu, published in 1987 by Chaosium. That board was created by game designer Richard Launius, who had a wealth of experience working with role-playing games. Originally it was supposed to be called simply "Call of Cthulhu: Board Game", but in Chaosium they came up with another name, now familiar to everyone - "Arkham Horror". And in addition, the mechanics were improved - for example, the famous hopelessness counter was added, which tracked the mistakes of the players.

  The edition of the board was sold out completely. The game earned the Origins Award for Best Fantasy or Sci-Fi Board Game right after its release - and hasn't lost its popularity ever since. But, although Chaosium has repeatedly announced the upcoming re-release, new copies never came out.

  
  

  In 2004, Skotos acquired the rights to the game from Launius and asked Fantasy Flight Games to release an updated version of Arkham Horror. Skotos reworked the rules, and Launius himself added several new mechanics and helped reorganize components. The action was transferred to the setting of the online game Lovecraft Country: Arkham by Night, which is again based on the materials of The Call of Cthulhu. The second edition was released in 2005 - and the game again became a real hit! Since then, the publishing house has repeatedly printed additional runs, and also established the release of supplements.

  The main goal of the players in "Arkham Horror" is to close the gates, portals to other worlds. Before the start, players choose which Ancient will burst into our world, and during the game they must stop him. Players can explore every nook and cranny of Arkham, from Independence Square to the outskirts of the Southside, and get in touch with the locals.

  Skill checks (there are six of them in the game) are carried out by throwing dice - you need to roll at least one five or six. Skills are linked to each other in pairs - for example, the faster the hero runs, the worse he sneaks. At the beginning of the turn, the player can slightly change the priorities by moving the "magnets" on the character sheet. At the end of the turn of the whole group, the Myth card is revealed, new gates are opened, monsters appear on the field, and sometimes something else bad happens.

  
  

  A total of eight add-ons were released to "Arkham Horror": three large (expanding the field), four small (adding only cards and tokens and introducing new mechanics) and one expansion to the add-ons.

  "The Dunwich Horror" is based on the plot of the story of the same name. A quiet village with a terrible monster is added to the game, which is not much easier to kill than the Ancient One. Among the monsters, pursuers appear, who, when activated, run to the nearest investigator. Madness and Trauma cards make life even more difficult for investigators, which partially compensates for new types of assets, task cards (small quests) and the opportunity to join a gang.

  The Kingsport Horror makes it easier for detectives. Mystic Guardians help the heroes to get evidence and fight monsters (for example, spending a couple of dollars on food for stray cats, you can get Bast's favor). But at the same time, cracks in reality appear in the city, and even more monsters climb out of them, which are difficult to keep track of. Final battles with the Ancients are becoming more varied due to the new deck epic battles... Here, for the first time, water locations appear, between which monsters can swim.

  The Horror of Innsmouth adds more more problems... Instead of new Other Worlds, the Innsmouth tablet contains the track of the Deep Ones, which can awaken the Ancient One. The situation in the city may become tense, and then the detectives have a chance to end up in prison. Among other things, each investigator (including heroes of the add-ons) has a personal story line, having successfully completed which, you can get a nice bonus.

  "The Curse of the Dark Pharaoh" opens a museum exhibition in Arkham. The exhibits cannot be bought - only purchased during the contact phase. In addition to these, curses and blessings are added. Myth cards have become more dangerous - they can not only open new gates, but also bring the Ancient One closer to awakening. And the townspeople are no longer so friendly: they can forbid the fined detectives from appearing in their area. If this is not enough, you can increase the difficulty and expand the game with the Herald of Nyarlathotep.

  
  

  "The King in Yellow" follows the plot of the story by Robert Chambers. In it, a strange troupe of actors arrives in Arkham, driving the city crazy with their acting. In addition to fighting the Ancient One, you have to keep track of the act cards: as soon as the latter opens, the investigators lose. The first Herald of the Ancient appeared in this add-on (it was added to the "Dark Pharaoh" later).

  "Black Goat of the thickets" concentrates on Shub-Niggurath and her offspring. Investigators can infiltrate a cult and be subject to several types of corruption. In addition to the next Herald, the add-on offers difficulty maps that affect the game from the very beginning.

  "Lurking at the Threshold" modifies the gate stack, making it much more deadly, and allows investigators to make dark deals with the Ancients. Relationship cards link investigators to each other, adding one useful ability for two. The new Herald (after which the addition is named) forces each time the gate is opened to play a reckoning card - sometimes useful, sometimes dangerous.

  "Horror Miskatonic" for the most part expands on already released add-ons, adding new contacts, injuries, exhibits, and so on. There is only one innovation here: before starting the game, you can choose who will help the detectives fight evil - the police, scientists, criminals, and so on.

  
  

  In early August 2018, FFG released the third edition of Arkham Horror. The updates are immediately striking: now the playing field consists of separate double-sided modules. The phase of Myths has also changed - instead of one large-scale negative effect in the third edition, players draw two tokens from the bag, which determine troubles. In general, the third edition of "Arkham Horror" has changed so much that it is easier to consider it as a separate game.

  If you liked the second edition, hurry up. FFG is phasing out production. However, through the efforts of the publishing house Hobby world most of the line is available in Russian, and The Horror of Innsmouth is about to hit store shelves.

  Ancient Horror

  In 2013, FFG released Ancient Horror, a co-op board game inspired by Arkham Horror. The formula remains the same - a group of detectives walks through locations, collects evidence, fights monsters and tries to stop the invasion of the Ancients. Only now the scene is not a town, but the whole world!

  
  

  The game was written by the creator of Battlestar Galactica and StarCraft Corey Konichka. He did some serious bug fixing and streamlining of the gameplay, adding variability and bringing the rules into a more coherent system. For example, now the game has three phases instead of five, and monsters move themselves only in exceptional cases.

  The game is distinguished from its predecessor by the much more unique Ancients. Because of Cthulhu, it is scary to move on the water, Shub-Niggurat breeds monsters in large numbers, and Yog-Sothoth forces him to acquire spells - otherwise he will not be defeated.

  Additions to " Ancient horror"Contain fewer mechanics than the" Arkham Horror ", but more immersed in the chosen theme. Additional tablets, expanding the field, here are rather optional mechanics - they are used only with certain Ancients or if you play a certain card at the beginning. There are eight add-ons, like Arkham Horror, (four large, four small), and although the line is actually closed, they can be easily found in stores and flea markets. Only half of them have been translated into Russian, but new ones are planned.

  Forgotten Secrets is essentially a cut out of the base game. Compared to the Arkham Horror box, there are far fewer cards. The add-on adds the missing cards of secrets and contacts, so that they almost cease to be repeated. The plot is built around a confrontation with Yigu, who can poison the detectives, from which they will be treated for a long time and unsuccessfully.

  "Ridges of Madness" add the field of Antarctica and allow you to measure your strength with the Elders and Ithaqua. This is the first major addition, and most of the mechanics that have been successfully used later appeared here. First, there are collection tokens that allow you to reroll the dice without wasting valuable evidence. Secondly, unique assets - characters from Lovecraft's stories, powerful artifacts and more. Thirdly, prelude cards that change the starting alignment. Fourth, the challenge cards are much more varied than in Arkham Horror. Fifth, Adventure Decks are short stories that give investigators unique rewards.

  "Mysterious ruins" instead of the Ancient one, they propose to fight Syzygia, the End of the World. If you remember the hysteria about 2012 and the Mayan calendar, you will understand what this is about. The game with this add-on focuses on moving around the map and collecting clues more than fighting monsters. This is also where aura spells appear for the first time, which work without being activated.

  "Under the pyramids" again addresses the Egyptian theme, adding an Africa tablet and proposing Abhota and Nefren-Ka as rivals. This is a very aggressive stage with dangerous contacts. New spells, assets, and the field board are sure to help investigators ... but now they risk diminishing their skills after a failed contact or scary card Myth.

  
  

  "Signs of Carcosa" in addition to the return of the maddening Hastur, one of the most dangerous Ancients, they add useful states-talents to the game, partially duplicating the effects of spells.

  "Dream world", perhaps, the most "kind" addition to the game. Most of the new cards - conditions, allies, artifacts, and contacts - greatly enhance the investigators. The new tablet is different from the previous two, it is not associated with the field, and each party the entrance to the Dream World is in a different place. Interestingly, Hypnos, who was one of the Guardians in Arkham Horror, is a negative character here.

  "Cities in ruins" encroach on the field itself. If you play with Ancient Shudde-Mjell, then the locations on the field will disappear as often as shops closed in Arkham. The new earthquake deck can be used with other Ancients, though not so effectively.

  "Masks of Nyarlathotep" give each investigator a personal story (as was the case in The Horror of Innsmouth) and finally ties the games into a single campaign. In this mode, resource tokens are added, essentially a reinforced version of the collection tokens. With their help, you can both heal and add dice to the roll.

  Arkham Horror. Card game"

  Released in 2016, the card spin-off is not at all like the classic "Arkham Horror" and even less like the Call of Cthulhu card game, which was issued by FFG for a long time. This is cooperative game, but with a completely different scale and mechanics - in fact, a reimagining of The Lord of the Rings LCG. Players in the role of detectives are still fighting representatives of mystical cults, but all the misfortunes, monsters, assets and skills of the heroes are depicted on the cards.

  
  

  Unlike most other card games, the Investigator Decks here have more than just useful maps... Before the start of the game, everyone is mixed with several weakness cards in the deck, which surprise the players right in the process of investigation.

  Game process implies advancement in the plot (with tragic choices inherent in the genre) and character development - improving old and acquiring new cards. Instead of dice, a bag with special tokens is used here; depending on the complexity of the scenario, it will have more or less disadvantages to the characteristics. There are only three scenarios in the base box, each can be completed in an hour or two. But they can be passed by other heroes, relying not on brute force, but, say, on magic.

  “To the horror of Arkham. Card game "add-ons are needed like air. The base box has a small resource, but it is cheaper than other games in the line and can be easily expanded. Additions for it, as well as for other "live card games", come out in cycles: first, a large one, setting the theme of the cycle, with two scenarios, then six small ones, with one scenario each. New Investigator Cards are found a little bit everywhere.

  
  

  Dunwich Legacy allows you to follow Armitage to a small town and uncover the secret of the Whateleys. You have to explore the museum and in a hurry to start the stopped train. And the place of cultists and unfriendly locals will be taken by terrible monsters.

  "The path to Carcosa" will allow you to personally stop the action of the legendary play "The King in Yellow". You will seek help from the Arkham Historical Society, explore the tunnels under the city and fly to Paris to eventually see the spiers of Carcosa.

  Forgotten Era sends detectives to the jungles of southern Mexico, where explorer Alejandro Vela discovered the forgotten city of the Aztecs. You will not only visit the rainforests, but also visit the city of the Great Race and even take over the body of a Yithian.

  Also for the card game, four separate high difficulty scenarios and an expansion for the campaign were released from the base box. The base game and half of the first cycle have been published in Russian so far.

  Mansions of Madness

  Closest to role-playing games board in the entire line about Arkham. Heroes are all the same detectives who investigate intricate cases in gloomy mansions, dungeons and laboratories. Each scenario is a chamber story. The playing field is fixed in the scenarios, but this allows you to more actively use it in the plot.

  Variability is created due to the goals of the scenario: in the same story, the task can be to kill an epic monster or the successful escape of investigators with a valuable item, which makes the tactics change a lot. The spice is added by the fact that the victory conditions remain hidden almost to the end - in any case, the detectives will have to inspect the entire mansion, otherwise they will not win.

  
  

  The current version of the game uses the Android / iOS app. What is described in the book in the first edition has been transferred “digitally”: the placement of monsters and their activation, the distribution of evidence and “feeding” the players new portions of the plot. For some, such a move was a loss - previously, the monsters were controlled by an individual player. The app also creates atmosphere by playing dark music and making background sounds.

  The approach of the two editions to game design is very different. In the first, the characteristics of the character determine which number is enough to throw out on the decahedron for success. A handful of special cubes are thrown into the second, and a lot of successes are needed. In the first edition, story cards told you where to go next, in the second they give bonuses to checks. It is a pity that the best mini-games from the first edition - "fix the wiring" and "assemble the mosaic" - had to be abandoned, at least from their physical incarnations.

  
  

  The second edition of "Mansions" came out recently, and only three additions have appeared in print (not counting the Conversion Kit for the first edition), and one more is being prepared for release. In terms of content, they are modest, with two or three new scenarios against five in the previous version.

  "Beyond the threshold" adds even more dangerous slave monsters. One of the add-on scenarios differs from the usual plot of the game, offering a classic detective story with a search for the killer and interrogation of suspects in a locked house.

  "Shrine of Twilight" cannot boast of interesting items and monsters, although the scenarios are still executed at a high level. The plot of both revolves around the Silver Twilight Lodge. One of the plots consists of two parts: first, you collect evidence during the parade, and then you find yourself at the cultists' masquerade.

  "Streets of Arkham" will take you away from dungeons and gloomy gothic mansions, allowing you to play as a cop and a bootlegger. The other two characters are excellent magicians, superior to the heroes from the base. One plot takes detectives to the university quarter, another throws them into the thick of gang wars, and the third is a classic detective story, which is difficult to succeed without taking notes.

  There have been rumors about the localization of the game for a long time, but it makes no sense to release it without a localized application.

  "Sign of the Ancients"

  This spin-off was released back in 2011. Compared to Arkham Horror and Ancient Horror, the game can be considered an easy filler, a starting point for exploring the rest of the series. The Sign of the Ancients is another cooperative about detectives of the early 20th century. Only now are they fighting the mythical monsters in the Arkham Museum. Due to magical artifacts, the connection between the worlds has become unstable, and the Ancient One is about to wake up.

  
  

  Some elements of the "Sign of the Ancients" resemble other games in the series - for example, a hopelessness counter, special talents of heroes and useful items. But in general, it is radically different from other board games about Arkham. The gameplay is almost unpredictable, since all actions depend solely on the dropped dice. But the board can be decomposed in just 5-10 minutes, it has a low entry threshold and excellent replayability - it is provided by the choice of the Ancient One and the adventure card.

  The additions to the Sign of the Ancients generally complicate the game with little or no gameplay change.

  "Invisible Forces" add curses and blessings to the game, as well as locations, the properties of which are triggered immediately when an investigator appears in them.

  "Arkham Gate" change the game decks: from the museum, the action moves to the streets of the city. Adventure cards are first hidden, which makes it more dangerous to walk on other worlds.

  "Signs in Ice", "Signs in the Deep" and "Signs of the Pharaoh" turn a simple family game into a serious test. The plot scheme is the same: first, you collect supplies and acquire allies, and then a race of new adventure cards awaits you, in which you will spend the accumulated resources.

  "Serious consequences" adds three decks: Phobias, Epitaphs and Epic Battles, which can be used together or separately with any set of expansions.

  Only the base game has been translated into Russian, no additions are expected. In addition, there is an official electronic version of the game - Elder Sign: Omens.

  

  * * *

  Fantasy Flight Games can be criticized for peculiar game design decisions and support policy for some games. Some players even call it "EA from the board". But the company has a number of projects that it is developing most actively - and the Arkham Horror family is just one of them. Such episodes receive the widest possible support, from the release of numerous add-ons to the release of fillers to attract new audiences.

  Among other things, for Arkham Horror, FFG is actively publishing fiction novels about the characters on the tabletop. These books reveal the backstories that we could see on the backs of the cards. This strange yet interesting solution adds depth to the stories played out at the table. And for Lovecraft fans, the novels are of separate interest - regardless of their hobby for board games.

  So it was crumbled) The work on creating the PnP Arkham Horror is finished. The long history of trying to heap and process all this mass of materials has come to an end. We worked as a team, so first of all, thanks must be said:

  Molfar- who took over most of the work on layout and processing of materials, without him, with my blockage at work, all this would have dragged on for a very long time;
  altark- for great help with materials, and an advance payment for help in preparing the supplement;
  Dorian- for constructive comments, suggestions and informational support;
  Romantic- that is, me, who has caught all this disgrace).

  08/12/2010:

  The link to the full archive with the game materials has been changed. Those who have already downloaded materials with an insufficient number of "lodge membership", "bank loan", "Whiskey", etc. cards, can download a separate archive with missing cards (link at the end of the article) or a full archive with PnP
  Arkham (link modified). We are sorry for the inconvenience.

  About the game itself.
  Anticipating the disgruntled exclamations of people who viewed the archive, I will immediately unsubscribe. Yes, we relied on the Smart translation, correcting its shortcomings whenever possible. Yes, a lot of that (the same names of locations) that was an eyesore remained in place. This was the result of a certain, rather lengthy discussion, especially since we started just with an amateur translation. The main reason was reasonably suggested to me by Sefes - these are add-ons. In the future, we plan to make add-ons for Arkheim, so the question arose quite logically, if in add-ons we vary all locations in our own way, then by doing so we will create inconvenience for people who are waiting for the translated additions, but already have the original Russian-language Arkheim in their hands. Therefore - do not blame me. Selfishly adjust only for myself or for the people who will print. I did not want to. There are materials - you can translate as you like.
  The shape of many tokens has been corrected, and it was agreed upon immediately. For cutting out such a number of round tokens - you can lose 5 units. Reason)

  In the archive:
  - 9 Pdf files with materials for Arheim;
  - 1 Pdf file with rules;
  - 1 jpg file with a solid map of the playing field (among Pfd there is a version with a map fitted for printing on A4).

  In the load, I can offer a version of the money that I personally used for printing. I didn't really like the small money tokens, and despite the fact that money in Arkheim Horror is far from the first value - I wanted paper money... Therefore, from the real bills of the game time - I photographed my version of the reduced bills. I printed it on plain thin paper, it turned out well.
  

  

  Analogue of money for Arkheim ifolder.ru/19466522

  08/12/2010 link to file with missing maps

  The materials of the game are posted for informational purposes only.