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Arkham Horror: The Card Game

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Arkham Horror: The Card Game
Designers
  • Nate French and MJ Newman
  • Duke Harrist, Nicholas Kory, Waleed Ma'arouf
PublishersFantasy Flight Games
Publication15 November 2016[1]
Years active2016 – present
GenresCo-operative living card game (LCG) with deck building
LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Polish, Czech, Russian, Ukrainian
Players1 – 4
Setup time10 – 15 minutes
(excluding deck building)
Playing time60 – 120 minutes
ChanceSome (card drawing, deck building, skill tests)
SkillsCard playing, deck building, logic, strategy
Materials requiredAll included, expansions optional but all require base game.
Media typePlaying cards
WebsiteArkham Horror: The Card Game — Fantasy Flight Games

Arkham Horror: The Card Game is a cooperative living card game produced by Fantasy Flight Games since 2016. It is set in the universe of Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu role-playing game which is itself based on the Cthulhu Mythos of H. P. Lovecraft and other cosmic horror writers. The title refers to Lovecraft's fictional town of Arkham, Massachusetts which is mentioned in many Mythos stories.

Release

[edit]

News of the game was originally leaked in May 2016,[2] before being officially announced in August of that same year.[3] It made its first limited public release at Arkham Nights 2016 to a sold-out crowd.

In its original release format, as a game in Fantasy Flight Games' Living Card Game line, there was a regular release of non-random deluxe expansions that start a story or campaign, followed by multiple smaller expansions (known as mythos packs) that continue and conclude each campaign story.

With the announcement of Edge of the Earth in 2021, Fantasy Flight stated future cycles would simply be released in two larger boxes, each containing either all of the campaign's story or player cards.[4] During a Gen Con livestream in September 2021, Fantasy Flight Head of Studio Chris Gerber announced all previous expansions would be re-released in the new format, too.[5]

As of the release of The Scarlet Keys in 2022, the lead designer MJ Newman has stepped back from her role as the lead developer of the game to become a senior designer at FFG. Designer Josiah "Duke" Harrist was announced as lead designer with Nick Kory, previously of the MythosBusters Podcast, also joining the design team.[6]

Mechanics

[edit]

Campaign play is the default mode of the game,[7] allowing a player to progress through a series of scenarios. In campaign play, choices made in scenarios have lasting effects, altering the story and how later scenarios play out. Each scenario has multiple paths of divergence offering multiple playthroughs with differing experiences each time.

When players prepare to play, they first choose an investigator, most of them having a primary class of Guardian, Survivor, Rogue, Seeker, or Mystic. Each investigator deck receives cards that represent weaknesses of their investigator, one specific to each investigator, and one "basic" - drawn at random from a general pool. Investigators will also possess one or more unique cards that represent that individual's specific advantages or abilities, often complementing the backstory of that investigator. Each investigator also has different starting statistics (Willpower, Intellect, Combat, and Agility) which will be tested throughout the game. Players then build their decks from cards in their collection, conforming to the deck-building limits outlined by their investigator.

During the game, the investigators work together to progress their investigation towards a positive outcome by fulfilling the requirements set out by the Act deck. However, there are forces working against the investigators, represented by the Agenda deck and encounter deck. Each turn, a doom counter is added to the Agenda deck, acting as a timer for the investigators to complete their objectives. When the total number of doom in play reaches the doom threshold of the agenda card, the agenda will advance, often to negative consequences.

During the Investigation phase, the investigators each take up to three actions. Among other options, actions include playing cards from hand or activating those already in play, moving to or investigating locations and fighting or evading enemies. Depending on the card, cards played from hand during the investigation phase may enter an investigator's play area as an ongoing bonus (an "asset") or simply provide a powerful one-time effect and be discarded upon use (an "event"). Many cards have a resource cost which must be paid to play the card. While cards generally require an action to play, some are "fast" and do not require an action to be played.

The Investigation phase is followed by the Enemy, Upkeep, and the Mythos phase, representing the forces working against the investigators each round. Investigators may have to deal with effects or enemies that attack their sanity, health or simply their progression towards their main goal (the Act deck).

Investigators will be eliminated from a scenario if they receive horror or damage equal to their sanity or health respectively. Investigators eliminated in this way will receive permanent mental or physical trauma. This means investigators repeatedly defeated in scenarios can become progressively weaker as the campaign progresses. Investigators will, however, receive experience from scenarios (even after defeat), which can be spent to improve each investigator's deck. At certain points in a campaign, failure may lead to investigators being killed or driven insane.

Expansions

[edit]

The main story expansions are grouped into "cycles" that each constitute a complete player campaign. The first six cycles (The Dunwich Legacy to The Innsmouth Conspiracy) consist of one Deluxe Expansion followed by six mythos packs. Deluxe expansions contain new investigators, about 60 new player cards and the first two scenarios of a campaign, while mythos packs contain about 24 new player cards and a single scenario of a campaign. These are listed below in order of release date, which is also the order in which they are meant to be played. Later cycles, starting with Edge of the Earth, have abandoned the deluxe/mythos format and are instead split into two releases, an "investigator expansion" (featuring all of the new player cards) and a "campaign expansion" (featuring all scenarios of the campaign). This new format release has since been retroactively adopted for the previous cycles. New players seeking all cards in a particular campaign now need only purchase the two new-format boxes ("investigator expansion" and "campaign expansion"), these two boxes between them collect every card contained in the prior release format ("deluxe expansion" and six "mythos packs").

Standalone scenarios are scenarios that exist outside of a campaign/cycle and are self-contained. As such, a player does not need any other expansions to play them or encounter cards from the core box—only the player cards. Stand-alone scenarios are at times printed in house at Fantasy Flight Games and are referred to as Print on Demand (POD). This means the card quality in that case is lower than the packs shipped from overseas but Fantasy Flight Games can push these packs faster out to players at conventions or (in the case of Curse of the Rougarou and Carnevale of Horrors) for general release.

Upgrade expansions (the "return to" boxes) are akin to the "nightmare packs" from the Lord of the Rings LCG. However, instead of just increasing the difficulty, these expansions provide an alternate way to play through the campaign with alternate story effects. They also include a small selection of new player cards (e.g. the first box includes 20 player cards).

Cycles

[edit]

The Dunwich Legacy

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Dunwich Legacy 12 January 2017[8] Deluxe Expansion
The Miskatonic Museum 16 February 2017[9] Mythos Pack
The Essex County Express 16 March 2017[10] Mythos Pack
Blood on the Altar 13 April 2017[11] Mythos Pack
Undimensioned and Unseen 11 May 2017[12] Mythos Pack
Where Doom Awaits 8 June 2017[13] Mythos Pack
Lost in Time and Space 6 July 2017[14] Mythos Pack
The Dunwich Legacy Investigator Expansion 25 February 2022[15] Investigator Expansion
The Dunwich Legacy Campaign Expansion 18 March 2022[16] Campaign Expansion

The Path to Carcosa

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Path to Carcosa 14 September 2017[17] Deluxe Expansion
Echoes of the Past 26 October 2017[18] Mythos Pack
The Unspeakable Oath 24 November 2017[19] Mythos Pack
A Phantom of Truth 21 December 2017[20] Mythos Pack
The Pallid Mask 25 January 2018[21] Mythos Pack
Black Stars Rise 22 February 2018[22] Mythos Pack
Dim Carcosa 22 March 2018[23] Mythos Pack
The Path to Carcosa Investigator Expansion 27 May 2022[24] Investigator Expansion
The Path to Carcosa Campaign Expansion 1 July 2022[25] Campaign Expansion

The Forgotten Age

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Forgotten Age 10 May 2018[26] Deluxe Expansion
Threads of Fate 14 June 2018[27] Mythos Pack
The Boundary Beyond 19 July 2018[28] Mythos Pack
Heart of the Elders 16 August 2018[29] Mythos Pack
The City of Archives 13 September 2018[30] Mythos Pack
The Depths of Yoth 11 October 2018[31] Mythos Pack
Shattered Aeons 15 November 2018[32] Mythos Pack
The Forgotten Age Investigator Expansion 17 February 2023[33] Investigator Expansion
The Forgotten Age Campaign Expansion 17 March 2023[34] Campaign Expansion

The Circle Undone

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Circle Undone 31 January 2019[35] Deluxe Expansion
The Secret Name 14 March 2019[36] Mythos Pack
The Wages of Sin 4 April 2019[37] Mythos Pack
For the Greater Good 2 May 2019[38] Mythos Pack
Union and Disillusion 6 June 2019[39] Mythos Pack
In the Clutches of Chaos 5 July 2019[40] Mythos Pack
Before the Black Throne 26 July 2019[41] Mythos Pack
The Circle Undone Investigator Expansion 9 June 2023[42] Investigator Expansion
The Circle Undone Campaign Expansion 14 July 2023[43] Campaign Expansion

The Dream-Eaters

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Dream-Eaters 27 September 2019[44] Deluxe Expansion
The Search for Kadath 15 November 2019[45] Mythos Pack
A Thousand Shapes of Horror 13 December 2019[46] Mythos Pack
Dark Side of the Moon 10 January 2020[47] Mythos Pack
Point of No Return 7 February 2020[48] Mythos Pack
Where the Gods Dwell 6 March 2020[49] Mythos Pack
Weaver of the Cosmos 5 June 2020[50] Mythos Pack
The Dream-Eaters Investigator Expansion 10 May 2024[51] Investigator Expansion
The Dream-Eaters Campaign Expansion 5 July 2024[52] Campaign Expansion

The Innsmouth Conspiracy

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Innsmouth Conspiracy 2 October 2020[53] Deluxe Expansion
In Too Deep 6 November 2020[54] Mythos Pack
Devil Reef 4 December 2020[55] Mythos Pack
Horror in High Gear 22 January 2021[56] Mythos Pack
A Light in the Fog 19 February 2021[57] Mythos Pack
The Lair of Dagon 19 March 2021[58] Mythos Pack
Into the Maelstrom 21 May 2021[59] Mythos Pack
The Innsmouth Conspiracy Investigator Expansion 13 September 2024[60] Investigator Expansion
The Innsmouth Conspiracy Campaign Expansion 11 October 2024[61] Campaign Expansion

Edge of the Earth

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
Edge of the Earth Investigator Expansion 19 November 2021[62] Investigator Expansion
Edge of the Earth Campaign Expansion 3 December 2021[63] Campaign Expansion

The Scarlet Keys

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Scarlet Keys Investigator Expansion 30 September 2022[64] Investigator Expansion
The Scarlet Keys Campaign Expansion 18 November 2022[65] Campaign Expansion

The Feast of Hemlock Vale

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Feast of Hemlock Vale Investigator Expansion 16 February 2024[66] Investigator Expansion
The Feast of Hemlock Vale Campaign Expansion 23 February 2024[67] Campaign Expansion

The Drowned City

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date Type
The Drowned City Investigator Expansion 7 February 2025[68] Investigator Expansion
The Drowned City Campaign Expansion 7 March 2025[68] Campaign Expansion

Standalone scenarios

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date
Curse of the Rougarou 17 November 2016[69]
Carnevale of Horrors 8 December 2016[70]
The Labyrinths of Lunacy 7 June 2018[71]
The Eternal Slumber 6 December 2018[72]
The Night's Usurper 6 December 2018[72]
Guardians of the Abyss 6 December 2018[72]
The Blob that Ate Everything 3 July 2020[73]
Murder at the Excelsior Hotel 25 October 2019[74]
Barkham Horror: The Meddling of Meowlathotep 18 September 2020[75]
War of the Outer Gods 4 December 2020[55]
Machinations Through Time 4 February 2022[76]
Fortune And Folly 14 April 2023[77]
The Midwinter Gala 23 August 2024[78]

Upgrade expansions

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date
Return to the Night of the Zealot 28 June 2018[79]
Return to the Dunwich Legacy 10 January 2019[80]
Return to the Path to Carcosa 6 September 2019[81]
Return to the Forgotten Age 7 August 2020[82]
Return to the Circle Undone 27 August 2021[83]

Investigator starter decks

[edit]
Expansion Name Release Date
Harvey Walters 28 August 2020[84]
Winifred Habbamock 28 August 2020[84]
Jacqueline Fine 28 August 2020[84]
Stella Clark 28 August 2020[84]
Nathaniel Cho 28 August 2020[84]

Novellas

[edit]

Asmodee's publishing house Aconyte Books released several tie-in novellas for Arkham Horror: The Card Game, each focused around a specific investigator. Each novella comes with 5 promo cards: 1 alternate art investigator card, 1 alternate art mini investigator card, 1 replacement signature card, 1 replacement signature weakness, and 1 rules card for using the replacement cards in the game.

Expansion Name Release Date Investigator focus Author
Hour of the Huntress 13 October 2017[85] Jenny Barnes Dave Gross
Ire of the Void 7 December 2017[86] Norman Withers Richard Lee Byers
The Dirge of Reason 22 February 2018[87] Roland Banks Graeme Davis
To Fight the Black Wind 5 April 2018[88] Carolyn Fern Jennifer Brozek
The Deep Gate 7 June 2018[89] Silas Marsh Chris A. Jackson
The Blood of Baalshandor 5 June 2020[50] Dexter Drake Richard Lee Byers
Dark Revelations 6 November 2020[54] Gloria Goldberg Amanda Downum

References

[edit]
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  59. ^ "Available Now: May 21". Fantasy Flight Games. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
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  61. ^ "Available Now: October 11". Fantasy Flight Games. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
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