Fantasy

Citadels (2016 edition)

In Citadels, players take on new roles each round to represent characters they hire in order to help them acquire gold and erect buildings. The game ends at the close of a round in which a player erects their eighth building. Players then tally their points, and the player with the highest score wins.

Players start the game with a number of building cards in their hand; buildings come in five colors, with the purple buildings typically having a special ability and the other colored buildings providing a benefit when you play particular characters. At the start of each round, the player who was king the previous round discards one of the eight character cards at random, chooses one, then passes the cards to the next player, etc. until each player has secretly chosen a character. Each character has a special ability, and the usefulness of any character depends upon your situation, and that of your opponents. The characters then carry out their actions in numerical order: the assassin eliminating another character for the round, the thief stealing all gold from another character, the wizard swapping building cards with another player, the warlord optionally destroys a building in play, and so on.

On a turn, a player earns two or more gold (or draws two building cards then discards one), then optionally constructs one building (or up to three if playing the architect this round). Buildings cost gold equal to the number of symbols on them, and each building is worth a certain number of points. In addition to points from buildings, at the end of the game a player scores bonus points for having eight buildings or buildings of all five colors.

The 2016 edition of Citadels includes twenty-seven characters — eight from the original Citadels, ten from the Dark City expansion, and nine new ones — along with thirty unique building districts, and the rulebook includes six preset lists of characters and districts beyond the starter list, each crafted to encourage a different style and intensity of gameplay.

HeroQuest

HeroQuest is Milton Bradley's approach to a Dungeons & Dragons-style adventure game. One player acts as game master, revealing the maze-like dungeon piecemeal as the players wander. Up to four other players take on a character (wizard, elf, dwarf, or barbarian) and venture forth into dungeons on fantasy quests. Plastic miniatures and 3-D furniture make this game very approachable. Expansions were also released for this system.

The HeroQuest series consists of the main game and a number of expansions.

This game was made in cooperation with Games Workshop who designed the miniatures and helped in many of the production details including background world and art in the rule book and scenario book.

Additional material which is generally missed since it is not technically an expansion was published in the HeroQuest: Adventure Design Kit which did feature one more Heroquest adventure: A Plague of Zombies.

Foretold: Rise of a God

Foretold is a turn-based strategy game for 2-4 players. Play features Cards (Faithful, Fate Cards and Relics) and Tiles (Temple) acquired through a central Marketplace board. Games feature a period of economic build-up, preparation for combat, then Raiding and end-game. Players will align with one of four unique Fate Decks, boosting replay value and interaction. Craftiness, table politics and strategic play determine the winner.
Overview:
Players take on the role of an aspiring deity. They must build up a Temple, gather Faithful followers and collect powerful Relics in an attempt to wipe their opponents off the map – only one deity can reign eternal in this free-for-all of legendary proportions!

Play Time:
2 players (1-hour), 3 players (1.5 hours), 4 players (2-2.5 hours)

Basic Play:

Play follows a 4-step turn: Reveal (start), Marketplace (buy), Raid (combat), Reinforce (end).
The Tile Deck, Faithful Deck and Relic Deck feed into a central board called the Marketplace.
Players use Faithful (human followers) in their Temple to collect gold and defend in combat.
Faithful placed in the Raiding Party can attack opposing Temples during combat.
Relics (4 of which are aligned to each Fate) further increase strategic play and add variety.
Players will purchase Tiles from a randomized stack (the Tile Deck) to customize their Temple, which is then arranged strategically to increase hand-size and defenses.
The four fates are: Chaos, Grace, Prosperity and Wisdom, each tailored to a unique play-style.
Each Fate Deck has a powerful set of 20 different cards, in theme with each of the Fates.

Combat:
A Raiding Party ventures into an opposing Temple, encountering Defenders and Traps along a Tile path to the Heart of the Temple, where the opposing life force dwells. Combat is resolved through dice rolls, with Defense rolling first and combining its total. Faithful played from the Raiding Party must beat defending total or they are forced to retreat. If the Temple is conquered, damage is dealt through Smiting. When an opponent’s life hits zero (20 max), they are defeated. The last remaining player has achieved immortality!

Hero Realms

Hero Realms is a fantasy-themed deck-building game that is an adaptation of the award-winning Star Realms game. The game includes basic rules for two-player games, along with rules for multiplayer formats such as Free-For-All, Hunter, and Hydra.

Each player starts the game with a ten-card personal deck containing gold (for buying) and weapons (for combat). You start each turn with a new hand of five cards from your personal deck. When your deck runs out of cards, you shuffle your discard pile into your new deck. An 80-card Market deck is shared by all players, with five cards being revealed from that deck to create the Market Row. As you play, you use gold to buy champion cards and action cards from the Market. These champions and actions can generate large amounts of gold, combat, or other powerful effects. You use combat to attack your opponent and their champions. When you reduce your opponent's score (called health) to zero, you win!

Multiple expansions are available for Hero Realms that allow players to start as a particular character (Cleric, Wizard, Fighter, etc.), fight cooperatively against a Boss, fight Boss decks against one another, or compete in a campaign mode that has you gain experience to work through different levels of missions.

Arkham Horror: The Card Game

Description from the publisher:

Something evil stirs in Arkham, and only you can stop it. Blurring the traditional lines between roleplaying and card game experiences, Arkham Horror: The Card Game is a Living Card Game of Lovecraftian mystery, monsters, and madness!

In the game, you and your friend (or up to three friends with two Core Sets) become characters within the quiet New England town of Arkham. You have your talents, sure, but you also have your flaws. Perhaps you've dabbled a little too much in the writings of the Necronomicon, and its words continue to haunt you. Perhaps you feel compelled to cover up any signs of otherworldly evils, hampering your own investigations in order to protect the quiet confidence of the greater population. Perhaps you'll be scarred by your encounters with a ghoulish cult.

No matter what compels you, no matter what haunts you, you'll find both your strengths and weaknesses reflected in your custom deck of cards, and these cards will be your resources as you work with your friends to unravel the world's most terrifying mysteries.

Each of your adventures in Arkham Horror LCG carries you deeper into mystery. You'll find cultists and foul rituals. You'll find haunted houses and strange creatures. And you may find signs of the Ancient Ones straining against the barriers to our world...

The basic mode of play in Arkham LCG is not the adventure, but the campaign. You might be scarred by your adventures, your sanity may be strained, and you may alter Arkham's landscape, burning buildings to the ground. All your choices and actions have consequences that reach far beyond the immediate resolution of the scenario at hand — and your actions may earn you valuable experience with which you can better prepare yourself for the adventures that still lie before you.