Arkham Horror II: Investigator victory declared!

[Gryndyl]

Arkham Horror: The Curse of the Dark Pharaoh



"Miskatonic University announced today that beginning next week they will be hosting a touring museum exhibition from the mysterious land of Egypt. Entitled 'Legacy of the Pharaohs', the exhibit will feature a marvelous collection of the most exotic and unusual artifacts to have been uncovered by recent archaeological expeditions.

Professor Armitage, who spearheaded the relations with Cairo University to arrange for the trade, said that “acquiring the visiting museum exhibit is a bold step for Miskatonic University on the world stage,” adding that the semester’s course offerings would reflect the added research potential offered by the exhibit. Father Michael from South Church, on the other hand, has asked his parishioners to boycott the exhibit. The Father was not available for comment, but sources close to him say that he is still shaken from last year’s troubles, during which several shops closed and several mysterious killings occurred. Other sources, who requested to remain anonymous, say that another such series of “troubles” has already begun…”

-Article from The Arkham Advertiser

Overview
Dimensional gates have begun springing up in Arkham and unspeakable horrors are emerging from them. If too many gates open the fabric of our dimension will be ripped open and a Great Old One will emerge to lay waste to the world. The only thing standing in the way of this happening are the eight of you. You must attempt to close the gates and, hopefully, keep the monster population in check at the same time. If you manage to close all of the gates then the world will be safe again. If you fail then you will face off against the Great Old One in a last stand against utter destruction.

Arkham Horror Rules
Curse of the Dark Pharaoh Rules

Text hidden under spoiler tags is simply for ease of navigation through this post and may be viewed by any player at any time.

Current Game Board
(click to embigify)


Gate Count: 3 of 5 Monster Count: 4 of 11 Terror Track: 6 of 10 Doom Track: 10 of 11 Gate Trophy Total: 4 of 8

Great Old One

Spoiler:

INVESTIGATORS

1. Newcastle-"Harvey Walters, the Professor"

Spoiler:

Sanity: 4 of 7
Stamina: 2 of 3
Gate Trophies: 1
Monster Trophies:
None
Money: 5$
Clues: 2
Skills:
Bravery: Exhaust to reroll a Horror Check
Common Items:
None.
Unique Items:
Enchanted Knife: (1 hand, magical weapon) +3 to combat
Exhibit Items:
Scales of Thoth: Upkeep: Choose a dimension symbol. This turn you gain +3 on all checks against monsters with that symbol and a -1 on all checks against monsters with other symbols.
Spells:
Heal: (Casting Modifier +1, Sanity Cost 1) Upkeep: Cast and exhaust to heal yourself or an investigator in your area stamina equal to number of successes rolled. Points may be distributed between multiple investigators
Mists of Releh: (Casting Modifier: special, Sanity cost: 0) Cast and exhaust to pass an Evade Check. Casting Modifier is equal to the monster's awareness
Markings of Isis: (1 hand, casting modifier: special, Sanity Cost 0) Cast and exhaust to pass a horror check. The casting modifier is equal to the monster's horror rating
Wither: (1 hand, cast mod +0 san cost 0) Cast and exhaust to gain +3 to combat checks until the end of this combat
Astral Travel: (cast mod -2 san cost 2) Instead of having an encounter, cast and exhaust to immediately enter any open gate in Arkham.
Feeding the Mind: (Cast mod -1 san cost 0) Upkeep: Cast and exhaust and sacrifice an amount of stamina equal to the number of successes rolled. For each stamina lost, gain 2 sanity.
Flesh Ward: (casting modifier -2, sanity cost 1) Any Phase: Cast and exhaust to ignore all stamina loss being dealt to you from one source. This card is discarded when the ancient one awakens.
Bind Monster: (2 hands, cast mod +4 san cost 2) Cast and discard to pass a combat check. You must roll successes equal to the monster's toughness to cast the spell. Will not work on the ancient one.
Special:
Psychic: Upkeep: You may allow any one investigator to loan a skill card to another investigator (regardless of their locations) for this turn only. Should you be Lost in Time in Space you lose the psychic ability.
Barred from Downtown: You may not enter or move through any Downtown locations
Current Stats: Speed: 2 Sneak: 3 Fight: 1 Will: 2 Lore: 5 Luck: 2

2. Wargus, "Michael McGlen, the Gangster"

Spoiler:

Sanity: 3 of 3
Stamina: 6 of 7
Gate Trophies: 0
Monster trophies:
Maniac 1, Maniac 1, Maniac 1, Dark Young 3, fire vampire 1, Formless spawn 2
Money: 2$
Clues: 0
Skills:
Speed: +1 Speed. When you spend a clue token to add to a speed check you receive an additional bonus die
Common Items:
Tommy Gun: (2 hands, physical weapon) +6 to combat checks
Dynamite: (2 hands, physical weapon) +8 to combat checks, discard after use
Unique Items:
Enchanted Blade: (1 hand, magical weapon) +4 to combat checks
Exhibit Items:
Eye of Light and Darkness: Upkeep: Discard up to 5 stamina or sanity in any combination. For each point sacrificed gain +1 to all skill checks for the rest of the turn, to a maximum of +5.
Spells:
Revelation of Script: (cast mod +1, san cost 0) Cast and exhaust to gain +3 to lore checks until the end of this phase. This bonus does not apply to spell checks.
Special:
Blessed: Success on a roll of 4,5 or 6.
Current Stats: Speed: 5(+1) Sneak: 1 Fight: 5 Will: 2 Lore: 2 Luck: 1

3. Remus West-"Darrell Simmons, the Photographer"

Spoiler:

Sanity: 3 of 4
Stamina: 5 of 6
Gate Trophies: 0
Monster trophies:
Ghoul 1
Money: 12$
Clues: 2
Skills:
Sneak +1 Sneak. When spending a clue to augment a sneak roll you gain an additional bonus die
Lore: +1 Lore. When spending a clue to add to a lore roll gain one additional bonus die)
Marksman: Exhaust to reroll a combat check
Common Items:
Motorcycle: On movement phase, exhaust to gain 2 movement points
Unique Items:
Powder of Ibn-Ghazi: (2 hands, magical weapon) +9 to combat checks. Lose 1 sanity and discard after use
The Necronomicon: Exhaust and spend 2 movement points to make a Lore(-2) check. Pass: Draw 1 spell and lose 2 sanity. Fail: nothing happens.
Nameless Cults: (tome) Movement: Exhaust and spend 1 movement point to make a lore-1 check. Pass: Draw 1 spell, lose 1 sanity and discard book. Fail: Nothing happens
Gate Box: When you return to Arkham from another world you can return to any open gate, not just those leading to the world you were in.
Elder Sign: When sealing a gate, lose 1 sanity and 1 stamina and discard Elder Sign. You do not need to roll against the gate or spend clue tokens, the gate is sealed and a doom token is removed from the Great Old One's track
Exhibit Items:
None
Spells:
Plague of Locusts: (cast mod -2 san -1) Movement: This spell affects ALL investigators and monsters in the neighborhood it is cast in (street and locations). Investigators lose 1 stamina. Monster toughness is reduced by 1. Monsters reduced to 0 are removed.
Shroud of Shadow: (cast mod -1, san cost: special) Any phase: Cast, exhaust and discard an amount of sanity of your choice. For each point of sanity spent, gain +2 sneak
Allies:
Dr. Ali Kafour: +2 horror, +2 spell
Special:
Psychic: Upkeep: You may allow any one investigator to loan a skill card to another investigator (regardless of their locations) for this turn only. Should you be Lost in Time in Space you lose the psychic ability.
Current Stats: Speed: 3 Sneak: 2(+1) Fight: 3 Will: 3 (+2 horror) Lore: 3 (+1)(+2 spell) Luck: 2

4. Isgrimnur-"Jenny Barnes, the Dilettante"

Spoiler:

Sanity: 4 of 6
Stamina: 3 of 4
Gate Trophies: 0
Monster trophies:
None
Money: 13$
Clues: 0
Skills:
Expert Occultist: Any phase: Exhaust to reroll a Spell Check
Common Items:
.18 Derringer: (1 hand, physical weapon) +2 to combat checks. Cannot be lost or stolen unless you choose to allow it.
Dark Cloak: +1 to Evade checks
Cavalry Saber: (one hand, physical weapon) +2 to combat checks
Unique Items:
Elder Sign: x2 When sealing a gate, lose 1 sanity and 1 stamina and discard Elder Sign. You do not need to roll against the gate or spend clue tokens, the gate is sealed and a doom token is removed from the Great Old One's track
Silver Key: (Any phase) Use to automatically pass an evade check. Once silver key has been used 3 times it is discarded
Exhibit Items:
None
Spells:
Enchant Weapon: (Casting Modifier: 0 Sanity Cost: 1) Any Phase: Cast and exhaust to make one physical weapon a magical weapon until the end of this combat
Dread Curse of Azathoth (2 hands, cast mod -2, san cost 2) +9 to combat checks
Revelation of Script: (cast mod +1, san cost 0) Cast and exhaust to gain +3 to lore checks until the end of this phase. This bonus does not apply to spell checks.
Astral Travel: (cast mod -2 san cost 2) Instead of having an encounter, cast and exhaust to immediately enter any open gate in Arkham.
Current Stats: Speed: 3 Sneak: 1 Fight: 3 Will: 3 Lore: 3 Luck: 3

5. Chaosraven-"Joe Diamond, the Private Eye"

Spoiler:

Sanity: 4 of 4
Stamina: 1 of 6
Gate Trophies: 1
Monster trophies:
Chthonian 3
Money: 10$
Clues: 0
Skills:
Will: +1 Will. When you spend a clue to augment a Will check you gain an additional bonus die
Common Items:
.45 Automatic: (1 hand, physical weapon) +4 to combat checks
Unique Items:
None
Exhibit Items:
None
Spells:
Markings of Isis: (1 hand, casting modifier: special, Sanity Cost 0) Cast and exhaust to pass a horror check. The casting modifier is equal to the monster's horror rating
Allies:
None
Special:
None
Current Stats: Speed: 6 Sneak: 1 Fight: 2 Will: 3(+1) Lore: 3 Luck: 0

6. Qantaga-"Amanda Sharpe, the Student"

Spoiler:

Sanity: 4 of 5
Stamina: 4 of 5
Gate Trophies: 0
Monster trophies:
None
Money: 5$
Clues: 4
Allies:
Sarah Danforth: +1 Focus (Focus 4)
David Packard: +2 combat, + 2 Evade
Skills:
Marksman: Exhaust to reroll a combat check.
Will: +1 Will. When you spend a clue token to add to a will check you gain an additional bonus die
Stealth: Exhaust to reroll an evade check
Fight: +1 Fight. When spending a clue on a fight roll you gain an additional bonus die.
Common Items:
None
Unique Items:
Obsidian Statue: Any Phase: Discard to cancel all stamina or sanity loss being dealt to you from one source
The King in Yellow: Movement: Exhaust and spend 2 movement points to make a Lore(-2) check. Success: +4 clues, -1 sanity, discard tome. Fail: Nothing happens.
Exhibit Items:
Parchment of the Elder Sign: Any Phase: You may discard this when attempting to close a gate with a fight or lore roll. If you succeed, the gate is sealed and a token is removed from the doom track
Spirit Vessel: All of your monster trophies count as being one toughness point higher for the purpose of spending them.
Book of Anubis: When another investigaor goes insane, goes unconscious or is devoured you gain 1 san and 1 stam and any clue tokens they discard
Spells:
Dread Curse of Azathoth: (Casting Modifier: -2 Sanity Cost: 2, 2 hands) Any Phase: Cast and exhaust to gain +9 to combat checks until the end of this combat
Denying the Ancient One: (cast mod -1 san -1) Upkeep: Worshipers of the ancient one lose any abilities granted to them by the ancient one this turn
Special:
Visions: Upkeep: You many allow any other investigator to discard a spell in order to gain clue tokens equal to 1 plus the spell's sanity coast. If a gate ever opens on top of you during the mythos phase this card is discarded.
Current Stats: Speed: 3 Sneak: 2 (+2 evade) Fight: 2 (+1) (+2 combat) Will: 3(+1) Lore: 2 Luck: 3

7. rshetts2-Dexter Drake

Spoiler:

Sanity: 5 of 5
Stamina: 5 of 5
Gate Trophies: 1
Monster trophies:
Zombie 1 point, nightgaunt 2 points
Money: $15
Clues: 2
Skills:
Bravery: Any Phase: Exhaust to reroll a horror check
Common Items:
.45 Automatic: (physical weapon, 1 hand) +4 to combat
Unique Items:
Warding Statue: Any phase: Discard after failing a combat check to reduce the monster's combat damage to 0 stamina. This can also be used to cancel a Great Old One's attack for an entire round.
Spells:
Shriveling: (casting modifier: -1 Sanity Cost: 1, 1 hand) Any Phase: Cast and exhaust to gain +6 to combat checks until the end of this combat
Find Gate: (casting modifier: -1 Sanity cost: 1) Movement: Cast and exhaust to immediately return to Arkham from an Other World.
Heal: (casting modifier: +1 Sanity Cost: 1) Upkeep: Cast and exhaust to heal yourself or an investigator in your area stamina equal to number of successes rolled. Points may be distributed between multiple investigators
Flesh Ward: (casting modifier -2, sanity cost 1) Any Phase: Cast and exhaust to ignore all stamina loss being dealt to you from one source. This card is discarded when the ancient one awakens.
Wither: (1 hand, cast mod +0 san cost 0) Cast and exhaust to gain +3 to combat checks until the end of this combat
Special:
Private Investigator: Upkeep: Exhaust to allow any other investigator to ignore being barred from a location for this turn only. Should you ever be barred from a location this card is lost.
Current Stats: Speed: 5 Sneak: 1 Fight: 2 Will: 2 Lore: 4 Luck: 1

8. Zurai-"Monterey Jack, the Archaeologist"

Spoiler:

Sanity: 1 of 3
Stamina: 5 of 7
Gate Trophies: 1
Monster trophies:
Ghoul, 1 point; Ghost, 1 point
Money: 0$
Clues: 4
Skills:
Speed: +1 Speed. When spending a clue to augment a speed check you gain an additional bonus die
Fight +1 Fight. When you spend a clue token to augment a fight roll you gain an additional bonus die.
Common Items:
Bullwhip: (1 hand, physical weapon) +1 to combat checks. Any phase: Exhaust to reroll 1 die after making a combat check
.38 Revolver: (1 hand, physical weapon) +3 to combat checks
Unique Items:
Sword of Glory: (2 hands, magical weapon) +6 to combat checks.
Ancient Tablet: Movement Phaes: Spend 3 movement points and discard ancient tablet to roll 2 dice. For every success rolled, draw 1 spell. For every failure rolled, gain 2 clue tokens.
Spells:
Feeding the Mind: (cast mod -1 san 0) Upkeep: Cast and exhaust and sacrifice an amount of stamina up to or equal the number of successes rolled when casting. Gain 2 sanity for each stamina point sacrificed.
Mists of Releh: (cast mod special, san 0) Cast and exhaust to pass an evade check. Casting modifier is equal to the monsters awareness.
Premonition: (cast mod -1, san 1) Any Phase: Cast and exhaust to move 1 skill slider up to 2 steps.
Red Sign of Shudde M'Ell: (1 hand, cast mod -1 san -1) Cast and exhaust to lower a monster's toughness by 1 (minimum of 1) and ignore one of its special abilities (magical immunity is exempt)
Exhibit Items:
Summoning Glass: (encounter phase, in Arkham only) In addition to your normal encounter, you may discard this card to resolve the special ability of any Arkham location that has no gate. You may trade in trophies, buy items, gain san/stam etc. as if you were there.
Chime of Ra: This item has 3 tokens. Discard one or more to gain +2 to all Horror checks OR Combat checks this phase for each token discarded. Once all tokens are gone the chime is no more.
Pentagram of Blood: (movement phase) Discard this item and X stamina to ward your current street. Monsters must have toughness greater than the number of stamina spent in order to enter that street location. Upkeep: If this item is in play, it loses one point of strength per upkeep phase until it is exhausted.
Allies:
Tom "Mountain" Murphy: +2 Fight. You take no stamina loss from the Overwhelming ability
Special:
Barred from Downtown
Blessed: Success on a roll of 4,5 or 6.
Current Stats: Speed: 3(+1) Sneak: 1 Fight: 2(+1,+2) Will: 3 Lore: 4 Luck: 2

The original game board can be found here. Requires a boardgamegeek account, which you should probably go ahead and get if you don't have one as they're pretty awesome

Board Quick Reference Guide:

Spoiler:

Administration: Classes: Instead of having an encounter here, you may pay $8 to draw 2 Skills. Keep one of them and discard the other.

Arkham Asylum: Psychiatric Care: Instead of having an encounter here, you may recover Sanity by receiving psychiatric care. You may either regain 1 Sanity for free, or pay $2 to restore your Sanity to its maximum value.

Bank of Arkham: Receive a loan of $10. Upkeep: Roll a die. On a 1-3, pay $1 or discard all of your items along with this card. You cannot get another Bank Loan this game.
Any Phase: Pay $10 to pay off your Bank Loan and discard this card. You may choose to take out a new Bank Loan later on during this game.

Curiositie Shoppe: Shop: Instead of having an encounter here, you may draw 3 Unique Items and purchase one of them for its list price. Discard the other two items.

General Store: Shop: Instead of having an encounter here, you may draw 3 Common Items and purchase one of them for its list price. Discard the other two items.

Ma's Boarding House: Recruit: Instead of having an encounter here, you may spend 10 toughness worth of monster trophies, 2 gate trophies, or 5 toughness worth of monster trophies and 1 gate trophy to take 1 Ally of your choice from the Ally deck.

River Docks: Shady Character: Instead of having an encounter here, you may spend 5 toughness worth of monster trophies or 1 gate trophy to gain $5.

Police Station: Deputized: Instead of having an encounter here, you may spend 10 toughness worth of monster trophies, 2 gate trophies, or 5 toughness worth of monster trophies and 1 gate trophy to become the Deputy of Arkham. Take the Deputy of Arkham card (comes with free gun and police car!).

Science Building: Dissection: Instead of having an encounter here, you may spend 5 toughness worth of monster trophies or 1 gate trophy to gain 2 Clue tokens.

South Church: Blessing: Instead of having an encounter here, you may spend 5 toughness worth of monster trophies or 1 gate trophy to have any investigator you choose be Blessed.

St. Mary's Hospital: Medical Care: Instead of having an encounter here, you may recover Stamina by receiving medical care. You may either regain 1 Stamina for free, or pay $2 to restore your Stamina to its maximum value.

Ye Olde Magick Shoppe: Magic Lessons: Instead of having an encounter here, you may pay $5 to draw 2 Spells. Keep one of them and discard the other.

Rules Specific to an 8 player game:

Spoiler:

-There can be a maximum of 5 gates open at a time. If there are 5 gates open and another one tries to open then the Old One will awaken.
-The monster limit is 11. Any monsters in excess of 11 go to the Outskirts and go towards raising the terror level. However, the Outskirts limit is zero. In other words, each monster over the limit of 11 causes the terror level to go up a point. If the number of monsters on the board manages to hit 22 then the Old One awakens
-Whenever a new gate opens on an unstable, unsealed location it spawns two monsters instead of one.
-Considering that the maximum number of allowable gates is less than the number of players, monster surges will spawn 8 monsters (equal to number of players). This is definitely something to keep in mind as if there are already 3 or more monsters on the board this is going to cause the terror level to increase, possibly quite significantly

[Remus West]

Definitely IN. Bring on the risk to my sanity.

[Newcastle]

in-er-roosky!

i watched the last game, but this is the first time i've ever played it...so any advice during gameplay and prior in terms of character selection would be welcomed.

[Chaosraven]

INsane to imagine sitting out of an arkham game

[Isgrimnur]

In.

[Wargus]

confirmed in

[Qantaga]

This sounds awesome.

I completely understand that you have others that may have missed out on the first game who will have priority for the remaining slots. I will definitely watch the game with great interest from the sidelines, if the priority slots fill up.

However, if you do have the 8th spot available, I would definitely be IN.

[Grundbegriff]

Out. This looks fascinating, but I don't have the time this semester to learn a complex game.

[Gryndyl]

Those already signed up can begin claiming investigators. A list of available investigators can be found here.

As we are using only the base game and the Dark Pharaoh expansion, only investigators with no expansion symbol listed are available. For new players, as a general rule investigators with high sanity are ideal for spellcasters whereas investigators with high stamina are ideal for using weapons. Investigators with a balance between the two stats can kind of go with the flow depending on what cards they get but are unlikely to be as efficient as the more specialized investigators. The focus stat indicates the investigator's flexibility in adapting to situations as it determines how much they may adjust their stats each turn.

Feel free to peruse and stake your claim. If two players want the same investigator preference will be given in order of sign-up. If you have any questions about an investigator's special ability just ask away!

[Wargus]

Changed my mind - this is a bad game to ask the GM for surprises. I'll take Michael McGlen

[Isgrimnur]

Jenny Barnes, Dilettante

[Remus West]

Darrell Simmons - Photographer

[rshetts2]

sounds like fun, Ill give Dexter Drake a try

[Newcastle]

professor harvey walters please!

[Newcastle]

the link to the rules didnt work for me.

[Qantaga]

Amanda Sharpe (the Student).

Here's hoping gates to R'lyeh aren't too common.

Just examining the Investigators and trying to figure out who to play was a lot of fun. I'm really looking forward to playing the game.

[Qantaga]

the link to the rules didnt work for me.

I'm getting an "Oops, you have arrived at the wrong place!" message on the rules link, too.

[Wargus]

You can find all of the rules at the Arkham Horror Wiki and specifically here (links to pdf):

Arkham Horror Rules

Curse of the Dark Pharaoh Rules

[Qantaga]

Thanks for the links Wargus.

The more I read about the game, the cooler it sounds.

[Chaosraven]

The forum was quiet as the grave when chaosraven chose Joe Diamond, and smelled worse. This would be a game to remember.

[Gryndyl]

I'll rev things up and get 'em started tomorrow (Monday) morning regardless of if we have an 8th player or not.

[Remus West]

Quick question but are retainers limited to one at a time or can players gain multiple retainers?

[Chaosraven]

Quick question but are retainers limited to one at a time or can players gain multiple retainers?

isn't there a rule in there somewhere that states you cannot have more than copy of a card?

[Gryndyl]

Quick question but are retainers limited to one at a time or can players gain multiple retainers?

You may only have one retainer at a time. Likewise you may have only one bank loan, one Silver Twilight Membership and one Blessing/Curse. Nothing to stop you from trying to get one of each, however.

(It's on page 23 in the rules, for the lawyers among us)

[Zurai]

I'll take the last slot. I wanted in on the first game, but didn't make the cut.

Gimme a bit to look over the available investigators.

EDIT: I'll take Indiana Jones Cheddar Monterey Jack.

[Chaosraven]

(i swear to the old ones, remus asks that every time we sit down to play arkham... Greedy bastard)

[Remus West]

(i swear to the old ones, remus asks that every time we sit down to play arkham... Greedy bastard)

You lie. It wasn't until the very end of the last time we played that LORDMORTIS asked that. I just hadn't bothered to look for the answer yet. Jerk.

[Gryndyl]

Game Set Up

Arkham Advertiser Headline:

Escape From Arkham Asylum!

A spokesman for Arkham Asylum has informed us that there was a serious disturbance in the wards late last night that resulted in the escape of three patients. It was reported that all of the patients, for unknown reasons, began loudly chanting the phrase "Nephren-Ka! Nephren-Ka" at a time believed to be just after midnight. The guards attempted to subdue and quiet the inmates and, during the confusion, some of the guards were overpowered and three of the inmates escaped into the streets of Arkham.

Authorities are on the lookout for the escapees and advise all Arkham residents to exercise extreme caution as the escaped patients are considered extremely dangerous. If you see someone in the streets whom you suspect to be one of the escapees, do NOT approach them! Remove yourself to a safe place and notify authorities immediately!

Three maniacs are loose on the streets in downtown. If the Investigators successfully defeat all three by the end of turn 2 then all players will receive an exhibit item.
EDIT: This was incorrect. Only investigators involved in defeating the maniacs receive an exhibit item.

A mysterious gate has opened in the woods. A vampire and a man with obsidian black skin emerge from it and move into the nearby streets. A clue has appeared at Independence Square.

Game Board at start of game:

Gate Count: 1 Monster Count: 5 Terror Track: 0 Doom Track: 1 of 11 Gate Trophy Total: 0

Gate Report:
The Woods: Unknown destination

Monster Report:
Downtown Streets:
3 Maniacs: Threat: Low
Uptown Streets:
Vampire: Threat: Moderate
The Black Man: Threat: Extreme

At this point, all players need to announce their starting attribute focus and their first move.

For the newbies:

Spoiler:

Notice that the attributes are listed in pairs. Each pair may be set wherever you like. As an example, Harvey Walters (the 1st character in the first post) wants to have a speed of 3 for turn 1. This will automatically set his sneak at 2 as it's the other half of the pair. Best way to announce these to me (continuing to use Harvey as our example) would be along the lines of: Sp/Sn: 3/2, F/W: 2/1, Lo/Lu: 4/3.

These attributes may be adjusted during the upkeep phase of each turn a number of steps equal to your Focus score. Harvey has a focus of two so he can adjust two steps. He could move his Sp/Sn to 0/5, Lo/Lu to 6/1, etc.

Several of you have additional start of game decisions to make and have been notified of this in a PM.

First turn order and move declarations:

1. Newcastle-remain at location, use tome. (tome+encounter)
2. Wargus-Move Downtown to kill Maniacs
3. Remus West-Move to Graveyard (clue+encounter)
4. Isgrimnur-Move to Unvisited Isle (clue+encounter)
5. Chaosraven-Move to Hibb's Roadhouse (clue+encounter)
6. Qantaga-Move to Independence Square (2 clues+encounter
7. rshetts2-remain at magic shop, use journal (tome+shopping)
8. Zurai-Use Cabala, move to The Unnameable (clue+encounter)

All characters sheets, starting equipment, additional info, etc. have been updated and amended to the first post. The first post will be continually updated as the game progresses to reflect all current character statistics. Please check the gear on your character over and make sure that it corresponds to what you're supposed to start with. Also, please be sure and pay attention throughout the game to changes made to your character to make sure that they are accurate. I do my best but I ain't perfect

In addition to announcing your attributes, go ahead and announce your first move as well. All moves should be posted in the thread. PLEASE read over the moves/suggestions/questions other players have made. This was the biggest source of player Keystone Kop syndrome in game 1 as we would end up with multiple people moving to the same place to fight a single monster and they'd all end up standing around.

Also, please always double check your route on the game board each turn and be aware of any monsters that you may have to sneak past along the way.

So, now I'll stop with the stern GM voice

Let the terror begin!

[Wargus]

Sp/Sn: 5/1, F/W: 5/2, Lo/Lu: 2/1

I'll head over to the Downtown streets for some cleanup duties against the maniacs.

[Newcastle]

gah i was hoping to "officially" go last so I could get up to speed and watch what other people do....i need to reread the rules and see what i should do. Sorry for the slacking!

So a couple of questions, my char. the prof, is more suited to dealing with the portals that are opening right? And shutting those down, and if I am not mistaken he can heal up folks who get hurt. So probably the best way for me to play is heal up folks, and shut down portals? I'll go through the rules more carefully to understand my options and what not.

-How do I regain sanity?

- The Book of Dyzan thing - says i can use it for 2 spells. Are those spells permanent? Think it would be a good idea to grab those spells now early in the game? Or wait till later, I am thinking best to use this up now so it frees me up later.


Edit to add-thinking out loud, nothing permanent in terms of movement
I think what i want to do, is put my skills to middle of the road, since I cant move too far on any of them this will give me a basis to move with. I think also I will end up grabbing a clue in either the science building or one of the two clues in french hill.

Spd / Snk -3/2
F/W - 1/2
Lore/Luck 5/2

OK am thinking of making these my stats..decent movement, but keeps my lore heavy up, but i can still move them if needed. Thoughts?

[Gryndyl]

gah i was hoping to "officially" go last so I could get up to speed and watch what other people do...

That's part of the terror!

So a couple of questions, my char. the prof, is more suited to dealing with the portals that are opening right? And shutting those down, and if I am not mistaken he can heal up folks who get hurt. So probably the best way for me to play is heal up folks, and shut down portals? I'll go through the rules more carefully to understand my options and what not.

With your starting items you can do some healing but you're not necessarily better at dealing with gates than anyone else. You are, however, good at hiding from monsters and withstanding blows to the sanity. Harvey's strength is in spellcasting. His high sanity plus the ability to ignore a point of sanity loss lets him cast most spells without losing sanity and cast the big ones more often before he has to patch his sanity up. You have $5 so a good early move might be to head to the Magic Shop and buy another spell or to try to obtain some money to be able to afford even more spells (you can get money most easily by going to the bank for a loan or by going to the newspaper and hoping for a retainer. Or you can try mooching from other players)

-How do I regain sanity?

Spending a turn at Arkham Asylum will gain you 1 sanity point. Spending a turn at the Asylum and spending $2 will refill your sanity entirely.

- The Book of Dyzan thing - says i can use it for 2 spells. Are those spells permanent? Think it would be a good idea to grab those spells now early in the game? Or wait till later, I am thinking best to use this up now so it frees me up later.

Yep, those are permanent and that was a great bit of starting gear for Harvey to get. The earlier you get the spells the more you can use 'em

As per your thinking out loud, any of those are feasible ideas and I'll let other players chime in on that bit if they have any suggestions to offer. You don't need to totally memorize the rules or anything-I try and make sure that new players hear about rules they need to as they come up in play Think of it almost like an RPG. As Harvey, what would you do first?

[Qantaga]

[In addition to announcing your attributes, go ahead and announce your first move as well. All moves should be posted in the thread. PLEASE read over the moves/suggestions/questions other players have made. This was the biggest source of player Keystone Kop syndrome in game 1 as we would end up with multiple people moving to the same place to fight a single monster and they'd all end up standing around.

Sp/Sn: 5/1, F/W: 5/2, Lo/Lu: 2/1

I'll head over to the Downtown streets for some cleanup duties against the maniacs.

Here's my first (of many, I'm sure) n00b question:

Since Wargus is heading to the three maniacs, is there any benefit to me going there, too? In other words, will he engage all three, leaving me with a wasted turn (as Gryndyl describes above)? Or, since there are three of them, would I be able to help him in the fight? Or would he take the first one and I could take the second one?

I have a chance to choose two of [Marksman (combat reroll), +1 Will, or +1 Sneak] and knowing if it would be wise for me to join Wargus Downtown will help me in my choice and my initial stat setup.

If I can't help Wargus Downtown (him having resolved it and me just standing around), then I think my second choice would be to head into Independence Square for the clue cards there.

My third choice would be to head to the Newspaper to try for a retainer, since I only start with $1. That brings my second question. Am I correct in reading that I would need a speed of 3 to get to the Newpaper (start in Bank, 1 to Downtown, 1 to Northside, 1 to Newspaper for a total for 3)?

So, any advice on whether my joining Wargus Downtown, heading to Independence Square for clues, or heading to the Newspaper would be most beneficial to our overall effort would be appreciated.

Gryndyl, thanks so much for setting this up and running it for us. I am enjoying this immensely.

[Qantaga]

I'm on my way to the Zoo today (both my girls are out of school, so I took a day, too). I'll be offline for a few hours, but back to the game board tonight. My apologies if this causes a delay.

[Isgrimnur]

Put me on 3/1; 3/3; 3/3.

I'll beat feet and go Northside-Merchant District-Uninvited Isle for a Clue.

[Remus West]

My intention is to go to the graveyard if someone else is beating down the maniacs. So, since the man with the tommygun is off to remove the Mnaiacs I see no reason for me to bother. I'll be off to the graveyard.

Speed/Sneak 3/2
Fight/Will 5/1
Lore/Luck 2/2

[Isgrimnur]

Don't run me over with that motorsickle.

[rshetts2]

hey everybody. I'm at work and on my cell til this afternoon. I can really see the game board on this thing, so I'll handle my turn around 3pm est. I do have some rookie qestion regarding my spell choices and what best suits my in game role. I'll be back at 3

[Newcastle]

Thanks Gryndyl...

another question - what type of spells are there in game? Like dealing with monsters? Closing gates etc...

-what do the various buildings do? Do they have special or unique abilities...I was thinking of going to the science building initially would anything happen there? (edit) ok i looked around teh wiki and see the various encounters and things can happen in buildings.

-how do we get money in game? I realize retainers in the newspaper is one way..but anyway else?

-At what stage in teh game would I the book ? Would it use a movement point? Could I in theory say, move me to the science building...should be 2 moves...then I grab a clue, then use the book 1 time?

-what is the best method of disposing of the monsters who popped up at the area by the ye olde magic shoppe?

-in order for me to get to the old magick shop could I move into the area, cast my mist spell and hop into the magic shop?

[Gryndyl]

Since Wargus is heading to the three maniacs, is there any benefit to me going there, too? In other words, will he engage all three, leaving me with a wasted turn (as Gryndyl describes above)? Or, since there are three of them, would I be able to help him in the fight? Or would he take the first one and I could take the second one?

Wargus is a combat focused character and has a Tommy gun so it's likely that he'll be able to handle all three unless the dice gods seriously frown upon him. Having said that, backing someone up in combat is often a good idea, particularly if the monsters are a bit more of a threat than the maniacs or if the character is lee combat focused. If Harvey Walters, for instance, had announced that he was going to have a go at the maniacs then showing up as back-up would be a good idea. In this case it's probably not necessary.

In your particular situation, the maniacs are right outside your location. All movement is resolved before combat, meaning that if you choose to do anything other than stay where your at and have an encounter or move to the streets to back wargus up you will have to sneak past all three of the maniacs. They are pretty easy to sneak past(sneak-1) but you'd have to make all three rolls to pull it off. Failing a roll would cause you to take some damage and stop you in the streets where you'd back Wargus up.

Am I correct in reading that I would need a speed of 3 to get to the Newpaper (start in Bank, 1 to Downtown, 1 to Northside, 1 to Newspaper for a total for 3)?

That is correct.

Gryndyl, thanks so much for setting this up and running it for us. I am enjoying this immensely.

Good! They're fun to run also, albeit quite a lot of work on this end.

[Remus West]

Thanks Gryndyl...

another question - what type of spells are there in game? Like dealing with monsters? Closing gates etc...

Spells do all types of different things. I do not think any actually close a gate but there are ones that will allow you to return directly to Arkham and thus attempt to close the gate sooner.

-what do the various buildings do? Do they have special or unique abilities...I was thinking of going to the science building initially would anything happen there?

The buildings with the red diamonds above their location are "unstable". This is where the gates can appear. This is also where the clues can appear. Other than that most locations have two options - either encounter the space or draw a card. Encountering the space is written on the space (for instance the Hospital allows you to either heal one stamina for free or pay $2 and get fully healed stamnina). Drawing a card gives you an encounter based on the color of the location. What you might typically gain from the card is noted by the symbol on the location (check the rules for what each symbol means).

-how do we get money in game? I realize retainers in the newspaper is one way..but anyway else?

Some encounters (Hibbs Roadhouse among other places) and the Bank for a loan.

-At what stage in teh game would I the book ? Would it use a movement point? Could I in theory say, move me to the science building...should be 2 moves...then I grab a clue, then use the book 1 time?

Should be explained by the book you carry. I assume from what you wrote it costs MP to use it so any time you have MP (basically if you are in Arkham) you can choose to use it but keep in mind it burns those MP so you won't be able to move far. If you intend to remain in one place that is usually a good time to use tomes.

-what is the best method of disposing of the monsters who popped up at the area by the ye olde magic shoppe?

Depends what type of monster it is. They have different abilities so you may need magic or physical fighting to get rid of them. The area of the board has nothing to do with the type of monster appearing. I have no idea what abilities those two have but you probably don't want to mess with them.

-in order for me to get to the old magick shop could I move into the area, cast my mist spell and hop into the magic shop?

You are already in the shop so you don't have to move at all. Were I you I would simply use the tome and encounter the space.