Arkham Horror (Third Edition)

In the board game Arkham Horror (Third Edition), players strive to uncover the secrets of the city of Arkham and fend off the looming horrors. Each player’s turn consists of three main phases: the Action Phase, the Monster Phase, and the Encounter Phase. Here’s a detailed breakdown of each phase:

The Action Phase: During the Action Phase, a player can perform up to two different actions. However, they can’t perform the same action twice. The options include:

• Gather Resources: The player collects one dollar token that they can use later to purchase items or services.
• Focus: The player increases one of their skill values by taking a focus token.
• Ward: The player attempts to remove doom from their location. They make a lore test and for each success, they can remove one doom.
• Research: The player tries to discover clues at their location. They make an observation test and if successful, they can place one of their clue tokens on the scenario sheet.
• Move: The player can move up to two spaces. If there are monsters in the starting location, the player must evade each monster before moving.
• Attack: The player can attempt to defeat a monster at their location. They make a strength test and if successful, they inflict damage on the monster.

The Monster Phase: During the Monster Phase, all monsters on the board activate and perform their indicated actions. These could include moving, attacking, or causing other effects.

The Encounter Phase: During the Encounter Phase, the player draws an encounter card that corresponds to their location and resolves it. These encounters can provide benefits or impose penalties, and often involve tests that the players must pass.

Strategic choices in Arkham Horror revolve around managing resources, positioning, and risk. Players must balance their need to gather resources and clues with the constant threat of doom and monsters. Deciding when to focus on personal advancement, when to tackle monsters, and when to deal with doom are all critical decisions that can greatly impact the course of the game.

Arkham Horror (Third Edition) is an intricate and immersive board game with a significant number of rules. Here are some of the special rules, exceptions, and clarifications that are important to comprehend:

1. Monster Movement: Unlike most games, monsters in Arkham Horror don’t move during each mythos phase. Instead, the symbols on the mythos tokens drawn determine which monsters move.

2. Evading Monsters: When a player attempts to leave a space with a monster, they must evade it. However, evading does not mean the monster is defeated. The monster remains on the board and can still hinder other investigators.

3. Clue Spawning: Clues don’t always appear at the start of the game. They only spawn when a headline card or mythos token instructs you to place a clue.

4. The Doom Track: The doom of each neighborhood is tracked separately, and if the doom in any neighborhood reaches its threshold, the scenario’s final Act card is revealed. This is a rare case where the rules work differently than expected, as the doom is usually summed up across the entire board in other games.

5. Anomalies: If there are ever five or more doom tokens in a neighborhood, an anomaly occurs. All clues in that neighborhood are returned to the supply and the anomaly token is placed in that neighborhood.

6. Combat: A successful attack doesn’t automatically kill a monster. Instead, it deals damage equal to the test’s margin of success or the weapon’s damage rating, whichever is higher.

7. Encounter Cards: When drawing encounter cards, ensure to draw from the deck that matches the neighborhood of the investigator’s location.

8. Unique Items and Spells: Unlike in other games, unique items and spells are not discarded after use, but instead flipped to their “exhausted” side.

9. Focus Limit: Each investigator has a focus limit, which is the maximum number of focus tokens they can have. This limit is typically two, but some investigators may have a higher limit.

10. Win/Lose Conditions: Winning conditions can vary from scenario to scenario. Similarly, there are many ways to lose, including when the doom track fills up, the deck of mythos cards runs out, or all investigators are driven insane or wounded.

While these rules may seem daunting at first, they contribute to the rich and immersive experience of playing Arkham Horror (Third Edition).

Advanced Strategies:

• Plan Ahead: The game is unpredictable, but having a rough plan for your investigator team can help. Discuss with your fellow players about which tasks everyone should focus on, and how you can best use your investigators’ abilities.
• Keep an eye on the doom: Doom is a mechanic that advances the game towards an undesirable end. Always be aware of how much doom is on the board and try to mitigate its spread wherever possible.
• Use Clues Effectively: Clues can be used to advance the Act Deck, so gather them efficiently and use them wisely.

Beginner Tips:

• Understand the rules: Arkham Horror is a complex game with many rules. Make sure you understand them fully before starting to play.
• Work together: Arkham Horror is a cooperative game. Make sure you’re communicating with your team and working together to tackle the challenges of the game.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help: If you’re unsure about a rule or strategy, don’t be afraid to ask more experienced players or look up the rulebook.

Common Mistakes to Avoid:

• Ignoring doom: It can be easy to focus on other aspects of the game and forget about doom. However, ignoring it can lead to a swift and unexpected end of the game.
• Not working together: Arkham Horror is a cooperative game, and trying to go it alone can lead to disaster. Always communicate and work with your team.
• Not utilizing investigator abilities: Each investigator has unique abilities that can significantly aid in the game. Not using these abilities can make the game unnecessarily difficult.

Ways to Optimize Gameplay:

• Use your actions wisely: Actions are a limited resource in Arkham Horror. Ensure you’re using them as efficiently as possible to get the most out of each turn.
• Manage resources: Resources like money and items can be crucial to success. Make sure you’re managing them well and not wasting them.
• Choose investigators strategically: Different investigators excel in different scenarios. Choose your investigators based on the scenario you’re playing and the strategies you plan to use.