Eldritch Horror is a cooperative board game where players, as investigators, travel the globe to prevent an Ancient One from awakening and destroying the world. Successfully navigating this intricate game involves managing resources, battling monsters, solving mysteries, and strategically cooperating to avert global doom.
Preparing for the Inevitable: Setting Up Your Game
The game board for Eldritch Horror depicts the world map, sectioned into regions connected by sea and land. Understanding how to set up the game correctly is vital for a smooth (and terrifying) experience.
Choosing Your Ancient One
Each Ancient One presents a unique challenge. Select one from the available Ancient One sheets. This sheet dictates the difficulty, prelude card, and unique mysteries you’ll face. Note the Doom track value – the game ends if it reaches zero.
Preparing the Board
- Place the game board in the center of the playing area.
- Place the Mythos deck (shuffled) nearby. This deck drives the game forward, spawning monsters and events.
- Set up the Monster Cup with the required monsters indicated by the Ancient One sheet.
- Set up the Gate box, Clue box, and Improvement box.
- Create the Omen track with its tokens and place it beside the board.
- Place the Rumor, Condition, and Adventure decks nearby.
Choosing and Preparing Investigators
Each player chooses an Investigator sheet. Investigators have unique abilities, starting possessions, and backgrounds that impact gameplay.
- Each player receives their chosen Investigator sheet, miniature, and standee.
- Gather the starting assets, skills, and spells indicated on the Investigator sheet.
- Place your Investigator miniature on their starting location shown on the map.
Solving Mysteries
The key to winning Eldritch Horror lies in solving the Mysteries. These are unique to each Ancient One and provide the main objectives of the game.
- Take the Mystery cards associated with your chosen Ancient One.
- Read the text on the first Mystery card. These often involve traveling to specific locations or completing certain tasks.
- Solving Mysteries moves you closer to defeating the Ancient One and preventing the end of the world.
Gameplay: Surviving the Horrors
Eldritch Horror is played over a series of rounds, each consisting of three phases: the Action Phase, the Encounter Phase, and the Mythos Phase.
The Action Phase
Each Investigator takes three actions in any order. Common actions include:
- Travel: Move your Investigator between connected locations.
- Acquire Asset: Purchase assets (items, weapons, allies) from a location’s asset pool, using your influence.
- Rest: Recover sanity and health.
- Trade: Exchange items or clues with other Investigators at the same location.
- Prepare for Travel: Reserve a train or ship ticket for later use.
- Focus: Gain focus tokens to improve your chances in future skill tests.
Strategic use of actions is crucial for managing resources, healing, and positioning yourself to deal with the challenges presented by the Encounter and Mythos phases.
The Encounter Phase
During the Encounter Phase, each Investigator encounters the location they are currently at.
- Location Encounters: Draw a card from the Location Encounter deck associated with your current location (e.g., Europe, Asia). These encounters present unique challenges, often requiring skill tests to overcome.
- Gate Encounters: If a gate is present at your location, you must attempt a Gate Encounter, which involves delving into Other Worlds. These are often perilous and can inflict sanity and health damage.
- Monster Encounters: If there are monsters at your location, you can choose to fight them or evade them. Combat involves skill tests against the monster’s attributes.
The Mythos Phase
The Mythos Phase is when the game actively fights back.
- Draw a Mythos Card: Reveal a card from the Mythos deck.
- Resolve the Mythos Card: The Mythos card often triggers events like:
- Spawning Monsters: New monsters appear on the board.
- Opening Gates: New gates open to Other Worlds.
- Advancing the Doom Track: The Doom track moves closer to zero.
- Applying Ongoing Effects: Persistent effects that impact the game.
- Advance the Omen Track: The Omen track moves, potentially triggering additional negative effects.
The Mythos Phase is often the most unpredictable and challenging part of the game, requiring constant adaptation and cooperation.
Winning and Losing the Game
- Winning: You win the game by successfully solving all the Mysteries outlined on the Ancient One’s Mystery cards before the Doom track reaches zero.
- Losing: You lose the game if:
- The Doom track reaches zero.
- The Omen track cycles to the starting position, triggering the Ancient One’s awakening ability.
- All the Investigators are defeated (i.e., their sanity or health reaches zero).
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some common questions about playing Eldritch Horror:
H3 1. What happens if an Investigator runs out of Health or Sanity?
If an Investigator runs out of Health or Sanity, they become defeated. Place their miniature on the “Hospital” or “Asylum” location, respectively. They lose all their possessions and gain a Condition card representing their trauma. On their next turn, they can attempt to recover (spending actions to regain health or sanity). If they are defeated again before recovering, they are eliminated from the game.
H3 2. How do Skill Tests work?
To perform a Skill Test, you roll a number of dice equal to your Investigator’s skill value. Each die that rolls a 5 or 6 is considered a success. You need to achieve the required number of successes indicated in the test description to succeed. Focus tokens can be used to reroll dice during Skill Tests.
H3 3. What is the difference between “Lost in Time and Space” and “Devoured”?
Both are negative conditions. “Lost in Time and Space” places your Investigator’s miniature on the “Lost in Time and Space” space on the board. They are effectively out of the game until they can resolve the condition, typically through a specific encounter or action. “Devoured” means the Investigator is completely removed from the game and is no longer playable.
H3 4. Can I trade items with another player across the board?
No, you can only trade items with other Investigators who are at the same location as you. This reinforces the importance of strategic positioning and teamwork.
H3 5. How do I close Gates?
Closing Gates usually involves completing a specific action at the location of the gate, often requiring a Skill Test and the expenditure of clues. The exact method is often detailed on the location’s encounter card or a specific card related to the Ancient One.
H3 6. What are Rumor cards and how do I resolve them?
Rumor cards introduce new challenges and often penalize players if they are not resolved within a certain number of Mythos phases. They often require specific actions to be taken, such as defeating monsters or traveling to specific locations. Failure to resolve them often results in negative consequences.
H3 7. What happens if I draw a Mythos card I don’t understand?
Re-read the card carefully. Mythos cards can be complex. If you’re still unsure, consult the rulebook. If you still can’t figure it out, make a consensus decision as a group and proceed. Document your interpretation for future reference.
H3 8. How does combat work?
Combat involves a series of Skill Tests. First, determine initiative (who attacks first). Then, the attacker rolls dice equal to their combat skill. Each success deals one damage to the monster. The monster then attacks, and the process repeats until either the monster or the Investigator is defeated. Some monsters have special abilities that affect combat.
H3 9. What does “discard an asset” mean?
To discard an asset means to remove it from your Investigator sheet and return it to the appropriate box (e.g., the Asset box). You no longer benefit from the effects of that asset.
H3 10. Can I use the same Train Ticket multiple times?
No. A Train Ticket or Ship Ticket is discarded after it is used to travel. They are one-time use items.
H3 11. How many clues do I need to solve a mystery?
The number of clues required to solve a mystery varies depending on the mystery card and the specific Ancient One. Check the card carefully for the required number and any specific conditions.
H3 12. What happens if the Monster Cup runs out of monsters?
If the Monster Cup runs out, don’t panic! Continue drawing Mythos cards. The game does not end simply because the Monster Cup is empty. Focus on managing the monsters already on the board and preventing further gate openings.
Eldritch Horror is a challenging but rewarding game that demands cooperation, strategy, and a little bit of luck. By understanding the rules and working together, you and your fellow Investigators can stand against the encroaching darkness and save the world! Good luck, you’ll need it.