Cthulhu Wars Rulebook - Final Onslaught
Cthulhu Wars Rulebook - Final Onslaught
wild and beyond good and evil, with laws and morals thrown aside and all men shouting and killing
and reveling in joy. Then the liberated Old Ones would teach them new ways to shout and kill and revel
and enjoy themselves, and all the Earth would flame with a holocaust of ecstasy and freedom.
—H. P. Lovecraft
1
P
rophets, philosophers, and madmen all saw the yet eerily compatible agendas. The poisons, waste, and
coming of the end of the world. For years they’d tried radiation had served to make the Earth more hospitable to
to warn us with their indecipherable scrawlings and them, more to their pleasures. As the stars aligned to herald
conspiratorial whispers; the signs were obvious enough, the return of the Old Ones their influence grew, hastening
and in retrospect they should have been easy to see. In the sickness of this primitive planet.
those dark days, mankind seemed to have had a death wish.
Long had we been poisoning the air we breathed, the water Finally, the Wars. The alien horrors of the Old Ones barely
we drank, and the Earth from whence our food came. Wars, had to lift a claw or tentacle. It simply took a psychic nudge
famine, and plague stretched cancerously across the globe, here, a rumbling emanation there, and mankind did the
and death followed inexorably behind. rest. Wars erupted, flowing forth from the Third World, and
engulfing the streets of the First. Massacres on Main Street
Certainly, a few cared. These foolish, kind-hearted souls were the norm. Strange new weapons were developed
tried to stem the tide, tried to reverse the damage we’d done to attempt to stem the tide, but nothing prevailed. Men,
to the planet, but it was all for naught…for the Old Ones had women, and children ran through the streets, shouting,
other plans. They’d come from the stars during the infancy of killing, burning, and destroying. Blood flowed in volumes
the world, when Earth was nothing but chaos, magma, and unparalleled in human history.
churning elemental nonsense. Their inexplicable agendas
were never made clear, but eon by eon, epoch by epoch, they As the Old Ones rose from their eons-long slumbers, the
shaped this doomed outpost more to their liking. And, by the world burned with a holocaust of ecstasy and freedom. For
end of the world, they’d finally completed their conflicting, moments, all was silent, as if all of existence held its breath...
Thus began the real battle…
2
Core GameC O M P O N E N T S
Cloth Bag
Ritual of
Annihilation
Marker
20 Six-Sided Dice
36 Elder Sign
Trophy Tokens
4 Player Hint Cards
Rulebook
Doom Track
3
2 Map Boards of Earth,
each printed on both sides
4
Great Cthulhu Yellow Sign
12 Desecration
4 Deep Ones Markers
6 Undead
2 Starspawn 4 Byakhee
6 Spellbooks 6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card & Faction Card
5
Crawling Chaos Black Goat
2 Ghouls
2 Hunting Horrors
4 Fungi from
Yuggoth
3 Flying Polyps
Nyarlathotep Shub-Niggurath
6 Spellbooks 6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card & Faction Card
6
Set Up
Place the Map
There are two pieces to the Map (Eastern and Western
Hemisphere), each of which is printed on both sides.
The two sides have identically-shaped continents, but the
5-Player side of the Map is divided into far more Land Areas
than is the 3-Player side. Alternate Set Up for 4-Player Game
2-Player Game: Go to page 39 for instructions on how to Set Up Tracks, Tokens, and Dice
set up Cthulhu Wars for 2 players.
• Place the Ritual of Annihilation track at one end of the
3-Player Game: Arrange the Map so that both 3-Player table.
hemispheres are face-up. The map will display 13 total
Areas. • Place the Ritual of Annihilation Marker pointed at, or
on, the lowest number (5) of the Track that matches
4-Player Game: Arrange the Map such that one 3-Player the number of players in your game.
and one 5-Player hemisphere are face-up.
• Place the Doom Track next to the Ritual of Annihilation
For your first games we recommend using the 5-Player Track.
Eastern Hemisphere and the 3-Player Western Hemisphere.
In either arrangement, the Map will contain 17 total Areas. • Place the Gates and Dice within easy reach of all
players to form the general Pool.
5-Player Game: Do NOT place both 5-Player sides face-up
unless you are playing a 5-Player game (this is only possible • Place the 36 Elder Sign Trophy Tokens (hereafter
if you have one of the Faction expansions). The 5-Player referred to as “Elder Signs”) in the Cloth Bag and
game Map contains 21 total Areas. shake them up.
Set Up Factions
Each player must select a Faction to represent. Players
may select their Factions randomly, or they may take their
choice. In the event of a dispute, allow younger players to
Recommended Set Up for your first 4-Player Game
have first choice.
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Set Up Start Areas on the Map
Players’ Start Areas are listed on their Faction Cards. All
Game Basics
players start with one Controlled Gate and 6 Acolyte Cultists
in the Area marked with their Faction’s Glyph. Each player Object of the Game
should place one of their Acolytes on top of their Gate.
At the end of the game, the player who has placed all 6 of
The First Player their Spellbooks on their Faction Card and has the highest
Doom on the Doom Track will be declared the winner. See
When Great Cthulhu is in play, that Faction’s player is always Victory: Ending and Winning the Game on page 37 for
the First Player at the start of the game. He takes the First- more details.
Player Token and sets it in front of him. If Great Cthulhu is
not in this game, you may choose the First Player by any Phases of Play
means you wish. (We recommend going alphabetically by
Faction name—i.e., Black Goat is before Yellow Sign). Cthulhu Wars is played out in four distinct Phases:
The First Player then chooses which side of the First- Player 3. Determine First Player Phase
Token to set face-up, thus determining the direction of play.
The First-Player Token will change hands over the course 4. Doom Phase
of the game and the direction of play may change, as well.
Play begins with the Action Phase and will proceed through
each Phase as listed above, returning to Phase 1 after
Phase 4. This cycle will continue until the end of the game
is triggered (see Victory: Ending and Winning the Game on
page 37 for more details). A typical game of Cthulhu Wars
will take approximately four to six cycles through these four
Phases.
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The Map currently in play. (Yellow Sign’s Desecration Markers are
also part of its Pool.) Players’ Pools should be set up near
The Map is divided into Areas. Each Area is printed with their Faction Cards.
its name and represents a single part of the world and is
defined as either ocean or land. On the Earth Map, ocean Each Faction has 3 categories of Units: Cultists, Monsters,
Areas consist of the North Pacific, South Pacific, North and Great Old Ones. In the Core Game, the only type of
Atlantic, South Atlantic, Indian Ocean, and Arctic Ocean. Cultist is an Acolyte Cultist; every Faction has exactly 6 of
All other Areas (including Antarctica) are counted as land. them. Each Faction has more than one type of Monster,
For most game purposes, there are no differences between and each of these has different characteristics. No two
ocean and land. Any Units can freely Move between land Factions share the same type of Monster. Great Old Ones
and ocean, perform Actions in either type of Area, etc. are individual beings, and thus every single Great Old One
However, abilities may occasionally distinguish between has a unique name; no two are the same.
ocean and land (notably Great Cthulhu’s Y’ha Nthlei and
Submerge). In certain expansion maps, the terms ‘sea’ and The number of Units available to you is limited. For instance,
‘ocean’ may be used interchangeably. In game terms, seas you can never have more than 6 Acolyte Cultists in play, nor,
and oceans are identical—any ability or text referencing one for instance, can Great Cthulhu have more than 4 Deep
is read to include the other, as well. Note that the Areas on Ones. During play, if all of your units of a particular type
the far right of the Map connect directly to those on the far have been placed onto the Map, you cannot place another
left because the Earth is round. For example, you can Move until one has been returned to your Pool.
a Unit from the Indian Ocean directly to the South Pacific.
Units in your Pool are not considered to be in play, and vice
versa. A Unit can be removed from play and returned to your
Pool by being Killed during a Battle, or by otherwise being
Eliminated. Eliminations can result from Actions, abilities,
or as part of Battle.
Gates
Each player starts the game with a Controlled Gate, meaning
that one of their Acolyte Cultists has been placed atop that
Gate, identifying its Controller. A Gate can never have more
ADJACENT than a single Cultist on top of it. Thus, a particular Gate may
only ever be Controlled by a single Faction. Gates can also
be Abandoned, as indicated by the lack of a Cultist on top.
Monsters and Great Old Ones cannot Control Gates, and
they may never be placed on top of them (with the exception
of Black Goat’s Dark Young, once their Red Sign Spellbook
is in play).
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Map 1
Special Abilities and Spellbooks
Sources of Special Abilities
Some abilities are not optional, and they must take effect
Abandoned Gate without a Controlling Cultist at the appropriate time. In such a case, this would be made
clear in the text of the ability.
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Target Chooses Unit Tip:
Each individual Spellbook enhances your Faction
If an ability targets an enemy’s Unit, the victim typically significantly, and therefore a major part of your game
selects which of his Units is targeted by that ability. (There strategy is tied to when and in which order you obtain
are some rare exceptions, which are stated in the text of the your Spellbooks.
ability.) If the ability does not specify who chooses the Unit
to be affected, then the choice belongs to the Unit’s owner. Elder Sign Trophies
Elder Sign Trophies symbolize the shattering of the bonds
that once held the Great Old Ones in check. Throughout
most of the text, these will simply be referred to as “Elder
Signs.”
Example:
Black Goat has a requirement which states “Have Units
in 4 Areas.” As soon this requirement is met, Black
Goat gains a Spellbook and places it over that slot on
her Faction Card. Even if on the very next turn someone
drives Units into three or fewer Areas, Black Goat
retains the relevant Spellbook for the rest of the game.
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A
C
B
D H
Faction Cards
F. Cultist and Monster Information: Provides
Your Faction Card contains a great deal of information. information on your Cultists and Monsters, including
their name, silhouette, Cost, and Combat, plus any
A. Faction Name notes. Next to each Unit’s name is a number indicating
how many of that Unit are available in your Pool.
B. Faction Portrait: A handy spot in which to place any
Cultists you have Captured. G. Great Old One Information: Shows your Great
Old One’s silhouette, Cost, and Combat rating, plus
C. Power Track: This is where you will keep track of notes. All Great Old Ones have extensive notes that
your available Power throughout the game. describe how to Awaken that Great Old One, provide
its Combat formula (if any), and describe its special
D. Unique Ability: This describes a Faction’s unique ability.
ability, which is available throughout the game.
H. Spellbook Requirements: Each of these spaces
E. Set Up Information and Faction Glyph describes the requirements which must be met in
order to place a Spellbook in that particular slot.
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The Four Types of Actions
Action Phase There are four categories of Actions in Cthulhu Wars:
Common, Unique, Spellbook Requirement, and Unlimited.
The Action Phase is when most of the game takes place.
During this Phase, each player can, in turn, move Units, Common Actions
cast spells, engage in Battle, and otherwise interact with
opponents. The Action Phase is where the Great Old Ones Common Actions are available to all Factions. On his or
destroy the world as they fight for supremacy. her turn, a player may choose to perform one of the seven
Common Actions, as detailed on page 14 - 16.
The Action Phase always starts with the current First Player,
who takes a single Action. When this player has finished, Unique Actions
the next player in turn then takes an Action. This continues
around until every player has taken an Action, at which A Unique Action is one that is only available to your particular
point the First Player will begin a new round of Actions. Faction. Some Unique Actions have requirements that
must be met before they can be performed. For example,
Each Action costs a certain amount of Power, which must Great Cthulhu’s Faction cannot perform the Submerge
be spent before the Action can be performed. To take an Action unless Great Cthulhu himself is in play. Likewise,
Action, simply adjust your Power Marker by the appropriate you cannot execute a Unique Action unless you are able
amount and then perform that Action. If you do not have to perform it completely. For example, Yellow Sign cannot
enough Power to perform an Action, you must select an use Zingaya to Eliminate an enemy Acolyte if there are no
Action that you can afford. Undead in its Pool.
You may never take more than a single Action on your turn, Spellbook Requirement Actions
and you cannot decline to take an Action if you still have
Power remaining. You must choose an available Action and These can be found on your Faction Card’s Spellbook
spend the appropriate amount of Power to perform that requirement slots. Most Spellbook requirements are not
Action. If you still have Power and do not wish to take any Actions; those that are will begin with the words, “As an
further Actions, you may voluntarily drop your Power to 0. Action,” or “As your Action.” Spellbook requirement Actions
only cost Power if indicated; they otherwise have a cost of 0
If you have no Power left when it is your turn to take an Power. A Spellbook requirement Action is always a discrete
Action, you are skipped. You may not even perform Actions Action, and you cannot double it up with a Common or
costing 0 Power. However, if you are at 0 Power and you are Unique Action. For example, Crawling Chaos has the
granted Power by an ability or a Spellbook, you must take Spellbook requirement of “As your Action, pay 4 Power.”
an Action as normal on your turn. This means that you would simply pay 4 Power to fulfill this
requirement and gain a Spellbook; this cannot be combined
The Action Phase continues with each player who still has with a Common or Unique Action, not can it be triggered by
Power, until all players are finally out of Power and no more performing one of those actions. Because earned Spellbooks
Actions can be taken. At this point, the Action Phase ends are never lost, any Spellbook requirement Action may only
and play continues on to the Gather Power Phase. be performed once per game (certain expansion products
Tips: may offer exceptions to this rule).
Think of the Action Phase as multi-sided chess: you
have many options, but may only take a single Action When it is your turn to take an Action, you must choose
each time. After taking that Action, the other players to perform a single Common, Unique, or Spellbook
have a chance to respond! requirement Action. You cannot take one of each; you may
only take one Action on your turn!
Being the last player to have any Power remaining
during the Action Phase is one of the best things that Unlimited Actions
can happen to you! As you are the only one who can take
Actions, you can do what you like as the other players The fourth category, Unlimited Actions, allow you to break
helplessly watch you mess with their stuff! the “one Action on your turn” rule. Unlimited Actions are
special, as you can perform them in addition to your turn
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Action. Unlimited Actions are not unique to any Faction Awaken Great Old One
and are available to all players. Unlimited Actions may 3 Cost: varies (Specific requirements apply)
sometimes have requirements that must be met in order for
them to be performed. The Awaken Great Old One Action allows you to bring your
Tips: Great Old One into play. Just as each Great Old One itself is
Once Cthulhu has the Dreams Spellbook, you should unique, so is the way in which each is placed on the Map.
never leave an Acolyte Cultist alone on a Gate in a Your Faction Card has a series of steps (always at least two),
critical area! Placing a second Cultist in the area won’t that must be done to Awaken your Great Old One. All of
prevent Dreams, but it will make it very expensive for these steps combined comprise the Awaken Great Old One
Great Cthulhu to steal the Gate. You might also consider Action.
guarding your Cultist with a Monster; if Great Cthulhu
Dreams him away, you can Capture his replacement! You may only Awaken a single Great Old One per Awaken
Action. Of course, most Factions only have a single Great
If you are not sure what to do on your turn, look at your Old One.
Spellbook requirements. You cannot go far wrong so
long as you strive to gain new Spellbooks, or try to set Once your Great Old One is in play, its Special Ability is now
yourself up for more Power in the next Gather Power available to use. If your Great Old One leaves play, its ability
Phase. will not be available to you until the Great Old One has been
Awakened once again.
The Seven Common Actions Tips:
Since a Great Old One can be “Killed” (after which it
Recruit Cultist must be re-Awakened), do not bring it out before you can
1 Cost: 1 Power (Requires any of your Units) protect it with other Units. Two exceptions are the King
in Yellow and Cthulhu, since they are (comparatively)
The Recruit Cultist Action allows you to place a Cultist inexpensive to replace.
from your Pool onto the Map. One of your Units must be in
the Area into which you Recruit the Cultist. This Unit can
Create Gate
be of any type (another Cultist, a Monster, or even a Great 4 Cost: 3 Power (Requires Cultist)
Old One). If you have no Units on the Map, you do not need
to have a Unit in the Area into which your Cultist will be
To Create a Gate in an Area, you must have a Cultist in that
Recruited. This allows you to return to play even if you have
Area and a Gate must not already be present there; only one
been wiped off the Map.
Gate can ever exist in any Area. Pay 3 Power, and place the
Gate. You may immediately place your Cultist atop the Gate
You may only Recruit 1 Cultist per Recruit Cultist Action.
to indicate that it is Controlled by you. (Technically, this is a
use of the Unlimited Control Gate Action, detailed on page
2 Summon Monster
Cost: varies (Requires a Controlled Gate)
19).
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Move
5 Cost: 1 Power per Unit Moved Map 2
You may Move as many Units as you like (and can afford)
with a Move Action. However, each Unit may only Move
once per turn.
Map 1
6 Battle
Cost: 1 Power (Requires Unit with at least 1 Combat)
You may only Battle once, and in one Area, per Battle Action.
Battle has several other rules and characteristics, all of
which are detailed on page 23.
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Capture Cultist
7 Cost: 1 Power
Avoiding Capture by Monsters
Map 1
The Capture Cultist Action is a means of removing enemy
Cultists from the Map and then later sacrificing them to
your Great Old One to gain Power. A Captured Cultist is
Eliminated, and is therefore no longer in play. However,
unlike a normal Elimination, it does not immediately return
to its Faction’s Pool until the next Gather Power Phase
(providing the Faction who Captured it with 1 Power).
To signify that a Captured Cultist is not in play nor in its
Faction’s Pool, place it on your own Faction Card.
If there is more than one Cultist in the Area, the player whose
Cultist is being Captured chooses which one is Captured.
(Thus, you do not have to allow a Gate-Controlling Cultist
to be Captured, unless it is the last remaining Cultist in the
Area.) Your Monster or Great Old One will never protect
another Faction’s Cultist from Capture by a third party. Only
Monsters and Great Old Ones from a Cultist’s Faction can
protect it.
Note:
Even if even if a Cultist has a Combat rating, or a
Capturing Monster has a Combat of 0, the Cultist can
still be Captured. Capture is not Battle, and Battle
abilities do not apply.
Guy Moves two Deep Ones and a Cultist into the Area.
Example continued on next page.
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Avoiding Capture by Monsters Avoiding Capture by a Great Old One
Map 3 Map 1
Frank, on his next turn, simply Summons a single Monster Rich has three Undead and a Cultist in Europe.
(a Nightgaunt) at his Gate, which is enough to protect his
lone Cultist from being Captured by Guy’s Monsters. Map 2
17
On his next turn, Rich must Move his Cultist out of the Area, Map 3 - Option 3
Move his own Great Old One into the Area, or drive away or
Kill Cthulhu in a Battle. Otherwise, Cthulhu could Capture
his Cultist.
Map 3 - Option 1
BATTLE!
Remember:
Monsters with Combat 0 are surprisingly useful. They
can protect Cultists from being Captured by other
Monsters, they can Capture Cultists themselves, and
Map 3 - Option 2
they can be assigned as casualties in Battle, sparing
more expensive Units.
Unlimited Actions
Unlimited Actions are special in that they are the only type of
Action you may perform beyond the one Action allowed on
your turn. They can be performed either before or after your
Action, so that a turn in the Action Phase can be expressed
in three chronological steps, like this:
18
Actions in a row. However, you may not perform an You may still Battle as a Common Action, if that is all you
Unlimited Action between the two Actions from these want to do on your turn. Unlimited Battle is simply an option
Spellbooks, as it says “Immediately.” The use of one of once you have 6 Spellbooks.
these Spellbooks would make up the entirety of Step 2,
above. Since Battle can be either Common or Unlimited once you
have all of your Spellbooks, you can execute a Battle and
There are two Unlimited Actions available to players: then decide whether it was Common or Unlimited. (You
Control or Abandon Gate, and Unlimited Battle. might do this so that after seeing the results of the Battle you
can then choose to do a single Common Action or another
Control or Abandon Gate Unlimited Battle elsewhere.)
Cost: 0 Power
There is an important restriction on Unlimited Battles,
If you have a Cultist in an Area with an Abandoned Gate however: you can still initiate only one Battle per Area.
(no enemy Cultist on top of it), this Unlimited Action moves You cannot declare a Battle as a Common Action and then
your Cultist onto the Gate to claim Control of it. When you do Unlimited Battle in the same Area. If, as a result of a
Create a Gate, you can immediately Control it. Also, if on Battle, your Units are retreated to another Area, you can do
your turn you have a Cultist in an Area with an Abandoned Unlimited Battle in that new Area, and so forth. However,
Gate, then you can Control it as part of your turn, no matter if they are then retreated back into the original Area, they
what other Action you may be taking. can’t initiate a Battle there because of the “one Battle per
Area” rule.
You can also use this Unlimited Action to take a Cultist
off a Gate, thus Abandoning it, while placing the Cultist in Ongoing Special Abilities
the same Area. Normally, you would not Abandon a Gate.
However, if your turn Action was to Move a Cultist on a Gate Ongoing special abilities are not Actions, but can take effect
to another Area, you would be Abandoning the Gate first during the Action Phase. Because they are not Actions, they
as an Unlimited Action, then performing the Move as your do not have a Power cost and you can still do them (at the
turn Action. Another common use of Abandon Gate would appropriate time) even when you are out of Power. The
be when Black Goat has the Red Sign Spellbook in play. rule about your turn being skipped when out of Power only
They might Summon a Dark Young, Abandon the Gate in applies to Actions. It does not apply to Ongoing or other
the Area with their Cultist, and then Control the Gate with types of abilities!
the newly-Summoned Dark Young, all in the same turn (they
took the Summon Action as their Action, followed up by the Between Action Effects
Unlimited Actions of Abandon and then Control Gate).
A few Ongoing abilities use the words, “After any player’s
You can perform the Control or Abandon Gate Action on Action...” or “At the end of any player’s Action...” You can
your turn as many times as you like. However, it cannot be choose to use these abilities, as written, after another
the only Action you perform. You still must perform a single
player’s Action but before the next Action takes place!
Common, Unique or Spellbook Requirement Action.
These can even be used in the middle of another player’s
Note that Unlimited Actions must occur on your turn. You
turn, if they are performing Unlimited Actions.
cannot Control an Abandoned Gate with a Cultist except
when it is your turn to take an Action. If two players both
If more than one player wants to use such an ability after a
have Cultists in an Area with an Abandoned Gate, the first
player’s Action, and there is a dispute over who will use their
player to take an Action will be able to Control the Gate.
ability first, resolve it by starting with the active player and
then going in turn order.
Unlimited Battle
Cost: 1 Power (Requires 6 Spellbooks) Note:
Yellow Sign’s The Screaming Dead and He Who is Not
If you have 6 Spellbooks on your Faction Card, you can to be Named Spellbooks, which give that Faction two
perform Unlimited Battle. Each Unlimited Battle you Actions in a row, do not prevent an Ongoing special
perform still costs 1 Power, allowing you to initiate as many ability from being used in between those two Actions.
Battles as you wish before and/or after your single Common,
Unique, or Spellbook Requirement Action.
19
Ongoing Ability During a Player’s Turn
Map 1 Map 3
Before Zoran’s Turn. Ben has the Devolve Spellbook. Fearing that Zoran will
declare an Unlimited Battle after Moving into the Area, Ben
uses Devolve immediately after Zoran’s Move Action, to
replace one of his Cultists with a Deep One.
Map 2 Map 4
Zoran has 6 Spellbooks and it is his turn. First, he performs Zoran can still choose to Battle Ben, since it is his turn and he
the Move Action and Moves several of his Monsters into an has the option to perform Unlimited Actions. But he may no
Area containing 2 of Ben’s Units, both of which are Cultists. longer want to do so now that Ben has a Monster of his own!
20
Power, move your marker to 20 rather than 0, or else you
will be giving yourself free, extra Power!).
Gather Power Phase
Minimum Power Rule
The Action Phase ends once all players are out of Power;
the Gather Power Phase is when all players regain Power, At the end of the Gather Power Phase, after everyone has
adjusting their Power Markers to reflect their new totals. recorded their Power on their Power tracks, apply the
Players perform the Gather Power Phase simultaneously. Minimum Power Rule: if a player’s Power is less than half of
(If this is anyone’s first game of Cthulhu Wars, though, it that of the player with the most Power, that player increases
may be best to go player-by-player.) his or her Power so that it is half of the highest Power total,
rounding up.
How to Earn Power
Example:
• Earn 1 Power for each Cultist you have in play. After a disastrous turn, Rich finds himself at the end
of the Gather Power Phase with a total of 4 Power.
• Earn 2 Power for each Gate you Control. Fortunately for Rich, Angela has the highest total
at 13 Power, so Rich sets his Power to 7 (half of 13,
• Earn 1 Power for each Abandoned Gate on the Map rounding up). Once everyone has recorded their new
(each player gains 1 Power per Abandoned Gate). Power totals and applied the Minimum Power Rule, the
Gather Power Phase ends. Play then moves on to the
• Earn 1 Power for each Captured Cultist on your Determine First Player Phase.
Faction Card, then return all Captured Cultists to their
owner’s Pools. You may not choose to keep a Cultist—
they must be returned. Determine
• Check for special abilities and Spellbooks that provide First Player Phase
Power during the Gather Power Phase.
Example: This Phase is when the First Player is selected. The player
Rich has 2 Controlled Gates and 3 Cultists in play. He with the greatest amount of Power receives the First-
has also Captured an enemy Cultist. He gets 3 Power Player Token. If two or more players are tied for the most
from his Cultists, and 4 Power for his two Controlled Power, then the player who had the First-Player Token in
Gates. A Gate on the Map is currently Abandoned, so he the preceding round decides which of the tied players will
gets 1 Power from that source (as do all other players). become the new First Player. (They can choose themself, if
He must sacrifice the Captured Cultist, which earns they are involved in the tie.)
him an additional 1 Power. His total Power should be
set to 9. After the First Player has been determined, that
player chooses whether play will proceed clockwise or
Non-Cultist Units such as Monsters and Great Old Ones counterclockwise, as noted on the First-Player Token.
do not produce Power (with rare exceptions). Only Cultists Whichever side they select will determine the order of play
can produce Power! Also note that certain Factions may until the next Determine First Player Phase. (If you have
have some special way of gaining Power during the Gather a special First Player figure from one of our Kickstarter
Power Phase. These differ with each Faction and might campaigns, simply point it in the direction in which play will
require particular Spellbooks. proceed!)
The Power Track goes to 20, but you may have more than If the First Player retains this position from one round to
20 Power. If a player reaches 21 or more Power, you will the next, that player may change the direction of play for the
need to keep track of it by other means. The easiest is to next round.
“wrap around,” so that if your Power is 23, you would place
your marker on the 3 space and remember that it is really Once the First Player and the direction of play have been
23. Then, when it hits the 0 space, immediately place it on determined, play continues on to the Doom Phase.
20 instead (when you are at 21 Power and you spend 1
21
to do so. The Ritual Marker is on the “5” space, so
Rich pays 5 Power and advances the Ritual Marker to
Doom Phase the next space, which shows a 6. Rich now advances
his Doom Marker another three spaces (for his three
When the game ends, the player with the highest Doom (and Gates), and receives an Elder Sign for Nyarlathotep, his
all 6 of his or her Spellbooks) will be named the winner. The Great Old One. In this Doom Phase, Rich advanced a
Doom Phase is the most common time for players’ Doom to total of 6 spaces along the Doom Track and he received
advance; it is also the Phase in which the end of the game is an Elder Sign. As Rich’s Ritual moved the marker along,
most likely to be triggered. The Doom Phase has two steps, the next player to perform a Ritual of Annihilation must
to be completed in order: pay 6 Power. If Rich had not performed the Ritual of
Annihilation he would have had 5 more Power upon
1. Doom Track Advancement (simultaneous) entering the Action Phase, but he would not have gained
the Elder Sign and 3 extra Doom.
2. Rituals of Annihilation (in player order)
3. Advance your Doom Marker one space along the Examples include Black Goat’s Blood Sacrifice Spellbook,
Doom Track for each Gate you Control. and Great Cthulhu’s two Doom Phase Spellbook
requirements. Some other events (including those from
4. Gain one Elder Sign for each of your Faction Great certain expansion products) may also occur at this time.
Old Ones in play.
If you can use multiple abilities or events, you can choose the
Example: order in which you perform them. Example: the Tcho-Tcho
Rich is First Player; he has three Controlled Gates and can Awaken Ubbo Sathla in the Doom Phase by Eliminating
Nyarlathotep in play. At the start of the Doom Phase he a High Priest, and can also be forced to Eliminate all their
advances his Doom Marker three spaces, for his three High Priests for Elder Signs with Tablets of the Gods if
Gates. All other players also advance according to their they perform a Ritual of Annihilation. They can choose to
Gate totals. As the First Player, Rich has first choice of Awaken Ubbo Sathla first and then perform the Ritual (and
whether to perform a Ritual of Annihilation; he chooses
22
Eliminate all remaining High Priests), or perform the Ritual This means that all of the attacker’s Pre-Battle abilities take
first, Eliminating all their High Priests and thus becoming effect before any of those chosen by the defender. If the
unable to Awaken Ubbo Sathla! attacker refrains from using a Pre-Battle ability, they cannot
choose to use any of these after the defender has chosen
Once all players have advanced the Doom Track for their and used their own Pre-Battle abilities.
Controlled Gates, had a chance to perform a Ritual of
Annihilation, and performed any special abilities, play will Some Pre-Battle abilities Eliminate, Kill, or otherwise
move on to the Action Phase, thus restarting the cycle of remove a Unit from the Battle. If this happens, that Unit
Phases. does not participate for the remainder of the Battle,
including the remainder of the Pre-Battle step. For example,
if Great Cthulhu is in a Battle and his Faction is the attacker,
Battle Cthulhu may use his Devour Pre-Battle ability to Eliminate
an enemy Monster or Cultist. Any Battle-related ability
possessed by that Unit cannot be used, because that Unit is
Battle is perhaps the most complex of all events in Cthulhu no longer involved in the Battle.
Wars. It is a player-initiated Action, and is described in the
Action Phase section (see page 15). A Battle takes place However, if that Eliminated Unit had already used an ability
in a single Area and involves only two Factions, no matter that generated an effect throughout the rest of the Battle,
what other Units may be present. The Faction initiating the the effect remains. Example: Crawling Chaos can initiate
Battle must have at least 1 Combat among its Units in the a Battle and use its Flying Polyp’s Invisibility to “exempt”
Area. Even though Battle can be an Unlimited Action (once Great Cthulhu’s Shoggoth. Even if Cthulhu then Devoured
you have earned all 6 Spellbooks), an Area may only host a that Flying Polyp, the Shoggoth would remain invisible and
single Battle on a given player’s turn. “exempted” throughout the rest of the Battle. The Flying
Polyp would, of course, be Eliminated.
All Units in the Area belonging to the Battling Factions
must participate in the Battle. If all Units of one Faction are somehow removed during Pre-
Battle, you do not need to go on to the next step! The Battle
After the Battle Action has been paid for by the player who is over, and no further abilities can be used. For example,
initiated it, the Battle proceeds through the following steps: if Great Cthulhu initiates a Battle against Crawling Chaos
and Devours Crawling Chaos’ sole Unit, the Battle would
1. Pre-Battle Abilities end. Crawling Chaos could not even use Seek and Destroy,
as the Battle is already over.
2. Combat Dice Calculation and Rolls
Combat Dice Calculation and Rolls
3. Post-Battle Abilities and Assigning Battle Results
After all Pre-Battle abilities on both sides have taken effect,
4. Applying Battle Results it is time to calculate Combat and roll dice. Each Unit has a
Combat rating (listed on its Faction or Loyalty Card), which
Pre-Battle Abilities represents how powerful that Unit is in Battle. Some have
0 Combat, and some require a simple calculation (such as
The first step is to use (or choose not to use) any Pre-Battle Yellow Sign’s Monsters, or many Great Old Ones). Your
Spellbooks or abilities. As with all abilities, Pre-Battle Faction’s Combat in the Battle is equal to the sum of the
abilities are optional unless the text says otherwise. Because Combat rating of all of your Units involved in the Battle. For
they are not Actions, they typically do not require Power to example, if you are playing as Crawling Chaos and have an
use. Some of these abilities may require a particular type of Acolyte and 2 Hunting Horrors in the Battle, your Combat
Unit to be present in the Battle in order to take effect, while would be 0 + 2 + 2, for a Combat total of 4.
others may merely require one of your Units to be in play
(but not necessarily in the Battle itself!). Both sides then roll a number of dice equal to their individual
Combat totals. Players can roll simultaneously, or they may
The Faction who initiated the Battle (the attacker) uses all of take turns.
their Pre-Battle abilities first, and in any order desired. The
Faction being attacked (the defender) then does the same.
23
Count up the number of 6s you rolled; these are “Kill” Post-Battle abilities that modify Pains may be appropriate
results. Then count up the number of 4s and 5s you rolled; to use when assigning Pains, rather than (or in addition to)
these are “Pain” results. Any rolls of 1, 2, or 3 are misses; when assigning Kills. For example, Windwalker’s Eternal
they have no effect. ability could be used at this point, rather than when assigning
Kills. Also, Crawling Chaos’ Harbinger can be activated
There are a few abilities that are written simply as Battle both when a Kill and a Pain are assigned. Yellow Sign’s
abilities (instead of Pre- or Post-Battle). These abilities Vengeance is used when assigning Kills, Eliminations, AND
would modify this step. For example, Opener of the Way’s Pains.
Channel Power Spellbook allows him to re-roll dice that did
not roll a Kill or Pain result. Importantly, once a Post-Battle ability has been triggered
(whether during the assigning of Kills OR the assigning
Tip: of Pains) its effect takes place, regardless of whether the
Because Pre-Battle abilities may modify Combat totals, Unit with that ability is also or later Killed, Eliminated, etc.
wait until all Pre-Battle abilities have taken effect to In other words, Post-Battle abilities may not retroactively
calculate the final Combat total. prevent other Post-Battle abilities from having taken place,
but due to already-used Post-Battle abilities, they may modify
Post-Battle Abilities and Assigning Battle how Battle results are assigned (see the Battle Examples on
Results page 25 for how some Post-Battle abilities may interact in
this way).
After counting each side’s Battle results, players must assign
their enemy’s results to their own Units. Note that many Post-Battle abilities are triggered by
Kills or Pains. These are specific results, meaning that if
First, assign Kill results (dice rolls of 6). Kills are always an Elimination occurs, it would not trigger one of those
assigned first. If the number of Kills rolled exceeds the abilities. For example, Windwalker’s Cannibalism requires
number of vulnerable Units, ignore the excess results. an enemy Unit to be Killed, not Eliminated (such as via
Devour, Abduct, etc.). Sleeper’s Demand Sacrifice does not
When assigning Kill results, players may choose to use protect against Eliminations, only actual Kills, etc.
any available Post-Battle abilities. These abilities typically
modify Battle results or how they are assigned. Post-Battle Applying Battle Results
abilities can also add a third type of result: Elimination.
If a Post-Battle ability adds an Elimination, it must be After Battle results have been assigned, they need to be
assigned at the same time as any Kills. As with Kills, excess applied. Kills and Eliminations remove Units from the Map,
Eliminations are ignored. returning them to their Factions’ Pools. As with assigning
results, Kills and Eliminations must be applied before
Post-Battle abilities are unlike Pre-Battle abilities, as Kills, Pains. Both sides remove their Eliminated Units, and then
Eliminations, or any other removal from Battle does not their Killed units, all at the same time.
prevent that Unit from using its own Post-Battle abilities. In
other words, during this step both sides may always use any After applying Kills and Eliminations, it is time to apply
or all Post-Battle abilities they have available. Pains. Pained Units Retreat and are moved to Areas
adjacent to the Battle Area. As with assigning Kill results,
There are a few Post-Battle abilities that can be used even you choose the Areas to which they retreat. They do not
when you are not involved in the Battle. This is the only way need to all go to the same Area; they can be split up among
that a Faction not directly involved in a Battle can participate multiple Areas. Note that a Pained Unit’s Retreat does not
in that battle. A key example is Black Goat’s Necrophagy count as a Move Action.
Spellbook.
The player who initiated the Battle (the attacker) applies all
After assigning all Kills and Eliminations, it is time to of their Pains first, followed by the defender.
assign Pains (rolls of 4 or 5) to your Units. As with Kills and
Eliminations, ignore any excess Pains rolled. In the next and You cannot retreat Pained Units to any Area that contains
final step of Battle, Kills will remove a Unit from play, and Units belonging to the Faction you just Battled. If this
Pains will force Units to Retreat to adjacent Areas. Kills and prevents your Pained Units from Retreating, select a single
Eliminations must always be assigned before any Pains.
24
Unit among them and Eliminate it. Your other Units remain
while her Cultists and the King have Combat ratings of zero,
in the Battle Area as if they were not Pained.
she rolls 3 dice. Frank is playing Black Goat, and his Frenzy
Tip: Spellbook is in play, so his Cultists each have a Combat of 1.
If you are the attacker in a Battle and receive several
Pains, a good tactic may be to Pain those Units to all the Map 2
Areas around the Battle Area to completely surround
your enemy and force an extra Elimination!
Battle Examples
Simple Battle Example
Map 1
KILL
25
Complex Battle Example 1
Map 1 Map 3
KILL
Rich initiates a Battle against Angela in East Africa. He has Rich then rolls 12 dice (6 for Cthulhu, 2 + 3 for the
Cthulhu, a Shoggoth, two Deep Ones, and two Cultists. She “Absorbent” Shoggoth, and 1 for his remaining Deep One),
has the King in Yellow and five Undead. and Angela rolls her 3 dice (the amount she gets for having
4 remaining Undead in the Battle after Cthulhu Devoured
Map 2 one). Rich scores 1 Kill and 5 Pains, while Angela rolls 1
Kill and 2 Pains. Rich assigns the Kill to one Cultist, and
Angela assigns the Kill to an Undead.
Map 4
ELIMINATION
26
Map 5 Complex Battle Example 2
The following Battle Examples include abilities from
expansions:
Map 1
PAIN
KILL
ELIMINATION
27
Map 3 Map 5
PAINS
After the Kill has been assigned, Black Goat, who has The 2 Pains from the Ghouls scored against Grant send his
the Necrophagy Spellbook, decides to send in both of her remaining Leng Spider and his Acolyte to an adjacent Area.
Ghouls, adding 2 Pains each to both Grant and Spencer.
KILL
28
Map 2 Complex Battle Example 4
KILL
Map 1
KILL
Map 3 KILL
PAINS
29
Map 3 Map 5
ELIMINATION
KILL PAIN
The Gnoph-Keh’s Berserkergang ability is triggered, After applying both Kills and the Elimination, the Gnoph-
meaning John will also have to assign an Elimination to his Keh is now the only unit with a Pain, and so is relocated by
other Acolyte (since Cthugha, a Great Old One, is immune). Andrew to an adjacent Area.
Map 4
Complex Battle Example 5
Map 1
PAIN
30
Map 2 Map 4
1 KILL
KILL
Both players roll their dice, and Lincoln rolls a Kill and 2 With a single Pain and a single Kill assigned to it the
Pains. Joey rolls a single Kill. Lincoln assigns the Kill to his Starspawn is merely Pained out of the Area, due to
Acolyte, while Joey assigns the Kill to his Starspawn. Regenerate.
Map 3
KILL
31
Map 2 Complex Battle Example 7
Map 1
Map 3 PAIN
PAIN
PAINS
32
Map 3 Map 5
PAINS
PAINS
Since Gobogeg is Pained, his Threnody ability then causes Now all the Units are Pained, except for Alice’s last Acolyte
all Units (on both sides) without a result to receive a Pain. and Gug.
Alice’s remaining 2 Acolytes and her Gug will all receive a
Pain, so Alice now has 5 Pained Units, in total.
Complex Battle Example 8
KILLS Map 4
Map 1
PAINS
33
Map 2 Map 4
KILLS
Adam initiates a Battle, and rolls no Battle results. Dave rolls Adam and Greg both roll 1 Kill. Adam chooses a Mutant to
2 Pains. The Spawn of Yog-Sothoth and the Abomination be Killed, and Greg selects Y’Golonac.
both get Pained to another Area, and then promote (via
Million Favored Ones) into 4 Mutants and a new Spawn Map 5
of Yog-Sothoth, respectively. They are Pained into the Area
that contains Greg’s Shantak with Y’Golonac.
Map 3
ELIMINATE
34
Map 6 Map 2
KILLS
Adam’s 3 remaining Mutants promote into Abominations. Both sides roll exactly 1 Kill. Alex takes the Kill on his
Adam wants to Battle Greg again, hoping that he can get a Acolyte, and Joey takes his upon an Abomination.
Kill on Greg’s Shantak and transfer Y’Golonac back, but he
cannot do an Unlimited Battle in the same Area twice on his Map 3
turn, so he will have to wait.
35
Map 4 Map 6
KILLS
With a Kill assigned to Keziah Mason, her Daemon Heroine In the end, Alex’s High Priest is Killed, while Yig and his
ability triggers. This will add 2 Kill results against Alex. Acolyte are both Pained. One of Joey’s Abominations
and Keziah Mason are both Killed, leaving his other
Map 5 Abomination as the only Unit remaining in the Area. (Joey
doesn’t have the Million Favored Ones Spellbook yet, so it
doesn’t promote into a Spawn of Yog-Sothoth.)
PAINS
KILL
36
Victory Rule Omega
Ending and Winning the Game The Final Question
The end of the game is triggered in one of two ways: it We have sought diligently to cover all possible rules questions
happens either when a player reaches 30 or more Doom, and to make the game as true to Lovecraft as we can, but we
or when the Ritual of Annihilation track reaches “Instant are mere mortals. As such, we are subject to error. If you
Death.” come across a conflict with an ability or Spellbook and you
cannot find the answer in one of our FAQs (or our online
When a Faction reaches 30 or more Doom on the Doom FAQ), we recommend that the players in the game vote
Track, the game will end. Since Doom most frequently on the desired outcome—the owner of the game should
increases during the Doom Phase, the game will normally probably get a bonus; perhaps their vote counts twice. In
end during that Phase. In that case, complete the entire the end, Cthulhu Wars is your game. If you feel compelled
Doom Phase before declaring final victory. However, a to add house rules to cover such issues, please do so with
player could reveal Elder Signs during the Action Phase; if our blessing.
this new Doom increases his total to 30 or more, the game
will end when the current player’s turn ends (even if it is not
the turn of the player who revealed Elder Signs to go over
30 Doom).
Player Tips
The game can also end during the Doom Phase, when the General Tips
Ritual of Annihilation marker reaches the Instant Death
space. All players who have not had a chance to perform Play can be divided into two main periods—the early game
a Ritual of Annihilation may still do so. The game will end and the late game.
at the completion of that Doom Phase, even if no one has
reached 30 or more Doom. Early Game
No matter how the end of the game was triggered, all players In the first two or three Action Phases players should try to
may reveal their Elder Signs before the victor is declared. acquire Spellbooks, build up a power base, and Summon at
When the end of the game is triggered, and after adding least a minimal army. Be choosy about when you Awaken
everyone’s Elder Signs to their Doom totals, the player with your Great Old One, because this will generally leave you
the most Doom AND with 6 Spellbooks on his or her weak for the rest of that Action Phase. Battle in the early
Faction Card is the winner. If the player with the most game is opportunistic, and is based on attempts to take
Doom does not have 6 Spellbooks, whoever has the most Control of enemy Gates or fulfill Spellbook requirements.
Doom among those with all 6 Spellbooks on their Faction
Card is the winner. Late Game
If two or more players tie for the most Doom and both have The late game begins once you have three or four Spellbooks
all 6 of their Spellbooks, the game ends in a draw. These under your belt and your Great Old One is in play. You still
players rejoice in their shared victory! need to finish up your last Spellbooks, but you can now
afford an occasional Ritual of Annihilation. Remember that
If the game ends and no player has all 6 Spellbooks, the the earlier you perform your Rituals, the cheaper they are
players lose and humanity wins! All Great Old Ones, (and the more expensive they become for your enemies). At
Monsters, and evil Cultists are sucked back through the this point, the purpose of Battle changes: you now seek to
collapsing Gates. (Yay!) reduce your enemies’ Gates, making them less effective at
Rituals. If one player surges ahead in Doom, get the other
players to work with you against them. If you are the player
who has surged ahead, try to break up such alliances.
37
38
• Example 1: Cthulhu’s Power costs are 10/4, so Killing
• Use the 3-Player side of the Map. • Example 3: Windwalker’s Gnoph-Kehs have a Power
cost of 4/3/2/1, which when averaged is 2.5, so Killing
• Use the 4-Player Ritual of Annihilation track. a Gnoph-Keh is worth 3 Doom.
• Take an unused Faction’s Doom Marker and place it Units which are able to avoid death by means of Abilities or
at 0 on the Doom Track. This marker becomes the Spellbooks still provide Doom to the enemy which “Killed”
Decay Marker. them, but only half as much (rounded up).
• Most expansions can be used. With the multiplicity of • Example 1: If Rhan Tegoth uses Eternal to avoid
options available in Cthulhu Wars, however, it is likely dying, the enemy gets 3 Doom for “Killing” him.
that some combinations of expansions and Factions
may lead to inequity. Please be aware of this. • Example 2: If Nyarlathotep avoids death by Emissary
of the Outer Gods, the enemy still gets 5 Doom for
Changes for Two-Player Games “Killing” him.
• Example 1: Black Goat Eliminates 2 Cultists for their All adjustments to Actions are described below:
Spellbook requirement. Their enemy gains 2 Doom.
At the Start of Your Turn
• Example 2: A Shoggoth Absorbs a Cultist for Battle.
Their enemy gains 1 Doom.
Before taking your turn, you must pay Power equal to the
• Example 3: When Opener of the Way replaces a position of the Decay Marker on the Doom Track. This
Spawn with Yog-Sothoth, or promotes Monsters marker starts at 0, and then starts to increase when the
with Million Favored Ones, no Doom is gained by the other player runs out of Power, in effect penalizing you for
enemy. taking multiple Actions in a row. If you can’t pay for Decay,
or if you have 0 Power left after you pay, then set your Power
• Example 4: Cthulhu Devolves an Acolyte into a Deep to 0, and proceed with the next Phase.
One, no Doom is gained by the enemy.
Unlimited Battle
Some Units have variable Power costs. In this case, the
Doom gained is equal to the average of the Unit’s different When Unlimited Battle is unlocked for a player (by
Power costs added together, whether or not the Power possessing 6 Spellbooks), the other player also immediately
benefit is currently in effect. Always round up the final total. gains Unlimited Battle.
39
Voluntarily Dropping to 0 Power • When rolling the die for Ghroth, Thousand Forms,
and Dread Curse of Azathoth, the effects are halved
You cannot voluntarily drop to 0 Power. If you have 1 or (round up).
more Power on your turn after paying for Decay, you must
perform an Action. Example 1: If a 1–2 is rolled for Thousand Forms,
only 1 Power is extorted. If a 5–6 is rolled, 3 Power
Running Out of Power is extorted.
If you are out of Power (or, for Windwalker, if you are Example 2: Ghroth Eliminates 1 Cultist on a roll
Hibernating) when it would be your turn to take an Action, of 1–2, and 2 Cultists on a roll of 3–4 (assuming
instead increase the Decay Marker by 1. Then the other Black Goat has 4 Fungi From Yuggoth in 4 Areas).
player takes their turn.
Example 3: Dread Curse of Azathoth doesn’t halve
Example: the results; instead the number of dice are halved.
Rich has 1 Power left, while Frank has 10. Rich decides Thus, if Opener of the Way has three relevant
to Recruit an Acolyte, going down to 0 Power. Frank Monsters in play, he rolls 2 dice (instead of 3).
then takes his turn, Moving 1 Unit. Now Frank has 9
Power. Rich is out of Power at the start of his turn, so • Opener of the Way’s Spellbook requirement for 12
he bumps the Decay Marker up to 1. Frank now pays 1 Gates is reduced to 10 (as noted on the Faction Card).
Power for Decay, then takes another Action (declaring
• Yog-Sothoth’s Combat is always 4.
Battle, for 1 Power). Frank is now down to 7 Power.
Rich is still out of Power, so he bumps the Decay Marker Note:
up to 2. Now Frank, before taking his next Action, pays In a 2-player game, some Factions may grief Windwalker
2 Power for the Decay Marker. His Action is to Recruit by not taking their 6th Spellbook. Therefore, only in
a Cultist, for 1 Power. Now Frank is down to 4 Power. a 2-player game, Windwalker may fulfill his "Another
Rich, on his “turn,” moves the Decay Marker to 3. Frank Faction has 6 Spellbooks” requirement by sacrificing
pays 3 Power and then has 1 Power left for what will be Ithaqua, instead.
his last Action of the Phase.
• Return the Decay Marker to the 0 spot on the track at The damage from the Decay Marker is significant, and
the start of the Gather Power Phase. significantly changes the flow of the game. Early game
strategies that work in multi-player games of Cthulhu
• Gain Power as per normal rules. Wars may no longer be effective in the two-player version.
However, rest assured that new strategies have arisen to
Determine First Player Phase meet that challenge, and the game has as much depth,
aggression, and chicanery as before. Have fun exploring!
• Unchanged
Keeping your Great Old One alive is even more important
Doom Phase than before, because his death gives the enemy a major
Doom boost. Some Spellbooks become more important—
• You do not gain Doom for simply Controlling Gates! Ghroth, for instance, is now one of the mightiest weapons
available to Black Goat.
• The Ritual of Annihilation still produces Doom equal
to your Controlled Gates (plus an Elder Sign for ech of Also, choosing when to NOT use abilities can become a
your Faction Great Old Ones in play). critical decision. For example, Yellow Sign may not always
want to use Passion’s Power gain (since it’s not always
Balance Adjustments beneficial).
Some of the normal rules and Spellbooks from Cthulhu We advise against using Bokrug, Servitors of the Outer
Wars need adjustment for the two-player game. Gods, the Dhole, or the Library of Celaeno map for the two-
player game. That said, it’s your game and you can do as
you please.
40
41
CORE FACTIONS
Great Cthulhu • Yellow Sign • Crawling Chaos • Black Goat
42
Great Cthulhu
C O M P O N E N T S
4 Deep Ones
Faction
Token
Doom
Marker
Power
Marker
6 Acolyte
Cultists
2 Shoggoths
2 Starspawn Cthulhu
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
43
Cthulhu accompanied by two Starspawn is well-armored
against even enemy Great Old Ones.
Playing as Great Cthulhu
Submerge
Your Spellbooks and abilities, even unused, exert a baleful
influence on your enemy’s activities. Submerge, Dreams, A critical Spellbook in the late game. Once Cthulhu’s army
and Y’ha Nthlei all cast a pall over the map, hindering your Submerges, not only is he safe from harm, but other players
opponents. react in desperation. If you attack an ocean Area, you can
Submerge again after the strike.
You get Spellbooks quickly in the early game. Get Cthulhu
out on Action Phase two or three, even if he is vulnerable to Y’ha Nthlei
an enemy attack. After all, you can re-Awaken him cheaply
and gain an Elder Sign. It is far easier to get your two “Kill/ Like Dreams, this inhibits your enemies. Your foes are less
Devour” Spellbooks once Cthulhu has taken the field. likely to conquer your ocean Gates, and you don’t care as
much if they do.
In the late game, use Submerge to strike critical enemy
Areas. With Regeneration or Absorb, plus Cthulhu’s Thwarting Great Cthulhu
Immortal ability, you can hurl your forces into Battle with
impunity. Cthulhu only rolls six dice, but an Absorbent Cthulhu has strong Units, but not many of them. Each loss
Shoggoth gives you heft; Cthulhu’s Devour ability is better is a setback for him. When he hurls his might against an
than a free Kill. Area, he will win. You can mitigate this by not putting all your
eggs in one basket. Killing Cthulhu himself isn’t particularly
Cthulhu’s Faction is focused on destruction. Of all Factions, effective (unless you are Crawling Chaos, since Harbinger
your Units are the most effective in a fight. However, your then gives you two Power or Elder Signs), because soon
access to Elder Signs is limited, so you will need to use your he’ll be back at R’lyeh, ready to Submerge and make your
combat strength to ruin your enemy’s bases and keep them life hell once again.
from taking the lead.
Absorb
Turns Shoggoths into major Combat dice. You only need
one Shoggoth per attack, as long as he has “food” available.
Remember that Cultists and Deep Ones are also useful for
soaking up hits, so you may not want to Absorb them all.
Devolve
Keep a Deep One in your Pool to render you immune to
Capture. Just Devolve a threatened Cultist.
Dreams
This means that your enemies dare not leave a Cultist
alone on a Gate. You may not use Dreams often against
experienced players, but it will affect their behaviors
throughout the game.
Regeneration
With this, Starspawn inure your army to harm, making
them the flip-side to Absorb’s massive damage output.
44
Great Cthulhu:
Epilogue
“It was gargantuan. A mountainous form rising from the sea,
surrounded by lesser monstrosities that oozed and dragged
themselves toward us with distorted limbs, tentacles, and
pseudopods. When we heard that the Pacific Islands were empty,
we didn’t understand. We still thought in human terms. We hadn’t
considered that the colossal Thing had been eating, scouring the
islands of life. And now it was here, hungry again.”
—David Mendiola
Yellow Sign
C O M P O N E N T S
Faction 6 Undead
Token
Doom
Marker
12 Desecration
Markers
Power
Marker
6 Acolyte
Cultists
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
47
of scattered Units across the map, forcing foes to spend
an inordinate amount of time and energy to expunge your
Playing as Yellow Sign traces. You are nomadic, with no real home base, and you
leave ruin in your wake. You get Actions more quickly than
You earn Spellbooks more slowly than other players, and you can often do two things on the same
other players in the early game, but you turn, which gives you a flexibility no one else has. Your Units
should concentrate on obtaining them. are weak, but they are numerous and usually free, making
Awaken the King in Yellow early (in the first you resistant to loss. In effect, you can’t dish it out but you
Action Phase). It’s easy to send the King sure can take it.
to North America after Desecrating Europe or Asia, but
occasionally it’s wiser to get into Africa early and play rough He Who is Not to be Named
with enemies by Capturing Cultists with the King, or by
spreading Zingaya. Many players prefer to migrate straight The basic function is to assassinate an opposing Great
to Africa or America after Awakening the King, saving the Old One, but it has other uses which become obvious with
Desecration of Europe or Asia for last. experience. Remember that the extra Action does not have
to involve Hastur.
The King in Yellow, despite its lack of Combat,
is a nightmare. It moves quickly around Passion
the board with its Undead bodyguard, and
its ability to take a second Action (with Can actually “resurrect” you when out of Power. It also
Screaming Dead) means that you can Move hinders your foes (i.e., they may choose to attack someone
into an enemy area and immediately use Zingaya, Capture else rather than give you Power).
a Cultist, or Shriek additional Byakhee there in preparation
for a devastating attack. You don’t spend much Power on Screaming Dead
Summoning Monsters (most are generated via Desecration
attempts), so focus on other priorities. Remember to leave You’ll use this a LOT, so don’t dawdle in obtaining it. It
a trail of Monster “breadcrumbs” behind you, so they can needn’t be the first Spellbook you acquire, but neither
suckle Power from your Desecrations. If an enemy moves should it be the last.
to attack you, it will cost them 2 Power (one to move, one
to Battle), so the Elimination of a rear guard is no tragedy. Shriek of the Byakhee
Plus, it puts your Monster back into your Pool to be recalled
upon the next Desecration or Zingaya. Flexible, and gives both defense and offense. Shriek when
an enemy invades, or after Screaming Dead or He Who is
In the late game, you will need to finish your Not to be Named to give some ‘oomph’ to your Great Old
remaining Spellbooks. You will usually have Ones.
few Gates, so you must rely on Third Eye or
your two Great Old Ones for Elder Signs. Third Eye
Thanks to Vengeance, you can ensure the
death of an enemy Great Old One once Hastur rolls into Once you finish earning Spellbooks, Third Eye keeps you
action. By this time you should be getting significant Power interested in Desecrating. In effect, you get an Elder Sign
from Feast, to be used for Rituals or other purposes. With for 2 Power (one to move and one to Desecrate), and at the
Hastur you now have two choices for your double-Actions: same time you earn a potential power source and a new
either the King or Hastur can move, and then you can do Monster. It’s the best bargain in the game!
something else useful. In the late game, Hastur’s signature
move is to use He Who Is Not to be Named to enter an Zingaya
enemy’s space, followed by Shriek of the Byakhee to give
him a bodyguard, and then declare Battle (Unlimited, with The biggest problem with Desecration is mustering your
six Spellbooks) to assassinate any other Great Old One. troops. With Zingaya you not only get a Unit, but your enemy
will also find himself down a Cultist.
You are constrained by strange rules, and seem to be playing
your own separate game. However, in doing so you plunge
the other players into a living nightmare. You leave a trail
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Thwarting the Yellow Sign
If you are playing against Yellow Sign, remember that their
Monsters are puny. Because they are also numerous, you
will need to attack them more than once to knock them out
of an Area, but at least you don’t have to fear serious losses.
Third Eye is terrifying, but they need both of their Great Old
Ones out, plus enough Monsters to succeed at Desecration.
Thus, you have many tools with which to stop them.
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50
51
Yellow Sign:
Epilogue
“I’ve done horrible things. I killed lifelong friends. Parents.
Children. Why, you ask? Because ... the King in Yellow. He
whispered ... secrets and portents. It just made sense. Don’t worry,
my victims didn’t stay dead. They are a gift to the Unnamed One
and so they follow, like the others. So the King in Yellow has his
entourage as he spreads his message.”
—David Mendiola
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Crawling Chaos
C O M P O N E N T S
Faction 6 Acolyte
Token Cultists
3 Flying Polyps
Doom
Marker 3 Nightgaunts
Power
Marker
Nyarlathotep
2 Hunting Horrors
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
53
Invisibility
Playing as Crawling Chaos Safely place an invulnerable Flying Polyp in an enemy Area.
This is also helpful in canceling obnoxious Units such as
In the early game, focus on safety and power-building. Use Starspawn.
Flight to set up bases in inaccessible Areas. Nightgaunts
with Abduct discourage enemies from attacking your Madness
Cultists—at least, they’ll need to send more than one
Monster. You won’t need Nyarlathotep for a while, and he Your signature Spellbook. Madness is not immediately
is stronger later in the game anyway. Your most awkward destructive, but over the course of the game your enemies’
Spellbook requirement is often “Capture a Cultist,” so look Units will scatter inconveniently, taking them time and
for any chance to pull this off. energy to remedy the situation.
In the late game, everything changes. Nyarlathotep now Seek and Destroy
has a huge combat ability (up to twelve dice); instead of
fearing Battle, you should seek it. Smite enemies’ Great Your Gates across the world are now protected from weak-
Old Ones for the Harbinger bonus. You can perform Rituals to-medium attacks, since you can throw in a Combat 2
more safely than other players because you can restore the Monster at will. While on the offensive your attacks are
Power imbalance with Thousand Forms, so you are not left cheaper, since your Horror joins in for free. This also gives
as vulnerable afterwards. Nyarlathotep extra meat shields in the event of an ambush.
More than any other player, you can hit an enemy where he Thousand Forms
is weak. As a result, if one player has surged ahead, the rest
may try to convince you to save the day. Go ahead and save Early in the game, Thousand Forms forces enemies to give
the day, but be sure to exact promises and tribute from the up a Power advantage. Late in the game, it gives you a boost
others. For instance, “Before I strike, I want you to evacuate when your enemies are most vulnerable. Combined with
your Gate in South America.” Promises are not binding in Harbinger, you can achieve a surprise Power surge that will
Cthulhu Wars, so make sure you “see the money” before make your foes whine.
taking whatever Action(s) you see fit.
Thwarting Crawling Chaos
Crawling Chaos is all about opportunism; striking at the
weak and vulnerable. While some other Factions have a Crawling Chaos’ Units are excellent at staving off weak
faster start on attaining Spellbooks, Crawling Chaos is often raids, but less effective against major attacks. Therefore,
the Faction that completes his collection first. Your Units take the gloves off and hit Crawling Chaos with everything.
are not mighty in Battle, and your Spellbooks are defensive As the Germans say, “Klotzen, nicht Kleckern!”*
in nature. You are good at harassment, and at debilitating
foes over time. Nyarlathotep is terrifying, but Killing him represents a major
setback. Crawling Chaos may take a whole Action Phase
Abduct to recover! Unlike those of other Factions, his Cultists have
no real defensive capability (Cthulhu has Devolve, Yellow
In the early game, this protects Gates from enemy Monsters. Sign has Passion, and Black Goat has Frenzy), so they are
It is not as good in the late game, as you will often need your vulnerable.
Nightgaunts to soak up enemy Kills. Abduct can sometimes
be combined with Invisibility to pick off troublesome There is not much you can do about Crawling Chaos’ Power
Monsters. drain abilities; just suck it up and remember that it may be
better to let your own Power drop rather than give him an
Emissary of the Outer Gods undeserved boost.
Less useful when Great Old Ones are out, but it does keep * Essentially, “If you do it, do it right!”
costly Nyarlathotep safe from cheap attacks. Remember to
use a Pain to Retreat him somewhere safe!
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Crawling Chaos:
Epilogue
“The uncertainty is the worst. No one looks up. I remember when
we could see the sun. You can’t now, because They blanket the sky.
No one wants to look up, and They know that. Everyday we live
with the knowledge that it might be our last day. The only warning
is a slither of sucking wind, flapping of wings, or the brush of
something utterly alien on your skin. Then you’re gone. I see fewer
and fewer friends as time passes. How long before it is my time?”
—David Mendiola
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Black Goat
C O M P O N E N T S
Doom
Marker
Power
Marker
6 Acolyte
Cultists
2 Ghouls
3 Dark Young
Shub-Niggurath
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
57
Gate. Teleporting Ghouls around the world also helps meet
Spellbook requirements.
Playing as Black Goat
Blood Sacrifice
The most common mistake novice Black Goat players
make in the early game is to initiate diasporas of Cultists in This lets you earn an Elder Sign in every Doom Phase. As
hopes of immediately achieving the “Have Units in X Areas” a bonus, it puts Cultists back into your Pool, so that you
Spellbooks; this leads enemies to move in once you are can Recruit them for use with Avatar or Necrophagy Gate-
helpless from lack of Power. Build up at a sedate rate; ensure stealing.
that when you move Units into an Area they have support
and protection, and in general use cheap Monsters, rather Ghroth
than Cultists, to occupy Areas for Spellbook purposes. The
Thousand Young is best when used defensively; for instance, A complex Action requiring timing and preparation, but
when an enemy moves on one of your Gates, reactively worth the trouble. Some players focus on Ghroth as a
Summon a heap of trouble for him. Create a stronghold central strategy, while others keep it as an occasional treat.
where you can safely Summon Shub-Niggurath. Both techniques are effective.
In the late game, you can annoy other players. Ghroth slows Red Sign
and cripples rivals. Battle becomes common, so Necrophagy
can occur multiple times in a single Action Phase. Avatar Gives you potentially more baseline Power than any other
steals weak enemy bases with prejudice—teleport to the Faction, plus Gate-Controlling Units that can’t be Captured.
spot, and they must send someone to your homeland. You Remember, when you Summon a Dark Young under Red
can then Capture their Cultist or, if the Gate is Abandoned, Sign, you can place it right on the Gate (replacing the Cultist
Recruit your own Cultist to take it over. who Summoned it).
The enemy often comes to you in an attempt to stop the The Thousand Young
hurting, so sit tight. If you do need to strike at a distance,
you have Avatar. You may not have as many Gates as other, Its utility is obvious, but it contains subtle touches. For
more mobile, Factions, but you can make up for this: even instance, Summon a single Ghoul for 0 Power, in effect
with just two Gates and Shub-Niggurath, Blood Sacrifice marking time while seeing what the other players do. It is
nets you two Elder Signs and four Doom every time you also demoralizing for a foe to launch a mighty attack on
perform a Ritual during the Doom Phase. you, destroying three or four of your Units only to see you
Summon those Units back at a trivial cost.
As befits a fertility cult, Black Goat’s emphasis is on
occupation and expansion, sort of like a fungal infection. Thwarting Black Goat
Unlike other Factions, you tend to be geographically
restricted. You are not deadly in Battle (in fact, you have Once settled in, Black Goat is hard to dig out. However,
no battle Spellbooks except Frenzy), but you have plenty of they are easy to fend off in the first place, as their offensive
cheap, throwaway Units, so you are resilient. As you hole up Actions are limited. Their Monsters are feeble, and they have
in your homeland, your abilities let you target enemies by other tasks to perform besides fighting. This means that
remote control. This is your true strength. their main tools for conquest are Avatar and Necrophagy,
and both involve starting out weak in the target Area. React
Frenzy vigorously to drive them back.
Excellent both defensively and offensively. If a foe moves a They are hard to stop once established, because they get
Monster into an area hoping for a cheap Capture, declare extra Power from Red Sign and extra Elder Signs from
Battle and Pain him right back out. Blood Sacrifice. At some point you may need to go take out
one of their citadels; luckily, all three of the other Factions
Necrophagy can pull this off with proper use of their Great Old Ones.
Don’t make the mistake of trying to eradicate Black Goat
Use with impunity, as Ghouls are cheap (free, after entirely—you will fail, and if you keep focusing on them
Thousand Young). In a small battle it can clean out an entire other enemies may surge ahead. Remember: Don’t try to
Area, allowing your Ghoul to Recruit a Cultist and take the cure the Black Goat infection, just keep it contained.
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Black Goat:
Epilogue
“You can’t rest these days. We have nowhere to simply lie down.
Our streets are overrun with beasts, loping with cloven hooves and
jackal grins. The skies are no better, filled by flying abominations
dripping with fungus. I hear they take your brain. I don’t know
what they do with it. Eat it? They say not. Something worse. But
whatever you do, don’t go into the newly-grown woodlands. You’ll
find Them there, giant horrors all mouths and tentacles. And at
the center stands the one who made Them. No, my friend, stay out
of the forest.”
—David Mendiola
ADDITIONAL
FACTIONS The Ancients • Bubastis • Daemon Sultan • Opener of the Way
Sleeper • Tcho-Tcho • Tcho-Tcho Tribes • Windwalker
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The Ancients
C O M P O N E N T S
Power 3 Un-Men
Marker
3 Reanimated
Doom
Marker Faction
Token
6 Acolyte 3 Yothans
Cultists 4 Cathedrals
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
63
• Only one Cathedral can be placed in an Area
containing:
Introduction
• Only one Cathedral can be placed in an Area that does
Set Up not contain any of these:
The Ancients do not have a Glyph on the Map. Instead, they Unlike a Gate, you do not “Control” a Cathedral. It always
set up in any Area that contains no other Glyph or game belongs to you, even if you have no Units in an Area. These
symbol, unless it is in some way related to Movement are not Units, and they do not participate in any Battles.
(you may set up in an Area containing one of Yellow Sign’s
three Spellbook Glyphs, if desired). This means that they
cannot start on the Map in another Faction’s Start Area. Playing as The Ancients
The Ancients set up before the Tcho-Tcho, Windwalker, and
Opener.
The Ancients represent the decadent humans who dwell
underground in the cavern of K’n-yan. Sensing the doom
Here are the specific rules per Map:
of the surface world, they have emerged to seize their
opportunity for power. Uniquely, they are not led by a Great
• Primeval Map: The Ancients may not set up in an
Old One.
Area with a Glacier Glyph.
Obviously you must focus on constructing Cathedrals,
• Dreamlands Map: The Ancients may not set up in an
but you must balance Cathedral creation with Gate
Area with a Citadel. However, they may set up where
construction and building your army. You need sufficient
there is a Tunnel.
combat effectiveness to place Cathedrals without much
interference. You’ll need a Monster to protect your Gate,
• Yuggoth Map: The Ancients may not set up in the
so Mindless or Festival are good first Spellbooks, but
Slime Sea, the Slime Sea Overlook, or anywhere on
Extinction is terrifying. Unholy Ground can protect you if
the Green Pyramid or the Laboratory, as all of these
your foes go for early Great Old One strategies.
Areas are marked.
Don’t pay full price for creatures–always get their
• Library of Celaeno Map: The Ancients may not set up
Spellbooks first, despite any perceived disadvantage.
in a Special Collection room (they may still set up in
You’re far better off in the long run.
an Area with a Stairwell or Archway).
Because you don’t have any Great Old Ones, you enjoy major
• Shaggai Map: The Ancients may not set up on the
Power savings in the early game, this is ultimately negated
Worm That Gnaws in the Night Area (but who would
by your need to spend 4-10 Power on Cathedrals, but as this
want to?)
is spread out over time you (unlike other Factions) never
lose a whole Action Phase to an Awakening. And of course,
The Cathedrals your indestructible Cathedrals earn extra Power, eventually
paying for themselves.
When performing the Create Gate Action as the Ancients,
you may construct either a Cathedral OR a Gate. As
Your great weaknesses are that you have no Great Old Ones,
with Gates, you must have a Cultist in the selected Area.
and that you must travel around the Map. Your strategies
A Cathedral can be placed in the same Area as a Gate,
must be based around this. Please notice that with Yothans,
following these restrictions:
you have more Combat dice than any Great Old One. You
have opportunities for diplomacy with other players, as they
• Only one Cathedral can be placed in an Area
will typically want you to place your Cathedrals in Areas
containing:
with their Controlled Gates. You also have the Un-Man
Power that you can use to your advantage.
• Only one Cathedral can be placed in an Area
containing:
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Festival
This not only gives you a useful Monster, but lets you engage
in social engineering. Abuse this authority, but remember
that your Un-Men are not actually free.
Brainless
Reanimated need to be placed properly, and they are
inflexible. Because they’re so cheap, it’s often worth Killing
them in place of your Cultists–a Reanimated Pained off by
itself is nigh-worthless.
Extinction
Your other Units are cheap, so look ahead to keep your
Yothans protected.
Worship Services
As with Festival, use and abuse this to your advantage by
offering to build Cathedrals in Areas where other players
will return the favor.
Consecration
Not necessary until you are ready for Rituals of Annihilation.
Unholy Ground
An excellent defensive Spellbook in the mid-to-late game, it
is often better used as a threat than as a weapon.
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The Ancients:
Epilogue
Some thought that because the enemy was scientifically advanced,
they would also be socially advanced. Instead, they turned out
to be brutal, bloody, uncontrolled, and savage. They see us as
toys for their pleasure, and they don’t try to rule us or even give
us instructions. We don’t know what’s allowed or forbidden; a
cruel and instant death is typically the only indication that one
of us has transgressed. Their intangible spies flow unimpeded
among us, and even our departed loved ones are not out of sight
as their transfigured bodies, resurrected to awful new life, wait
grimly on street corners. At the same time, writhing, prehistoric
monstrosities are seen guarding the loathsome citadels that have
sprung up everywhere.”
—Sandy Petersen
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Bubastis
C O M P O N E N T S
Power
Marker 1 Dark Demon
4 Brain
Cylinders
Faction
Token
4 Brain
Cylinder
Tokens
Doom
Marker
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
69
Introduction
The Bubastis Faction is that of the cats, that icon of
Lovecraft’s abiding love.
Set Up
Start with 8 Power. Place the Moon tile next to your Faction
Card. Place 6 Earth Cats on the Moon. (Please note that
the Bubastis High Priest, Dark Demon, and Brain Cylinder
Tokens are included for your convenience if you are playing a
game in which these are available to other players. Bubastis
does not use these otherwise.) Here are the specific rules
per Map:
The Moon
Moon Tile
The Moon is only used in games featuring Bubastis. The
Moon counts as a land Area with a Bubastis-Controlled
Gate for all purposes, except that Control may not be seized
by another Faction. No other Gate can be built or moved
there, except for Yog-Sothoth via Catnapping. Your Units
can Move and be Pained freely between the Moon and any
other Map Area. Other Factions may Move or be Pained
from the Moon to another Map Area, but not the reverse.
Elder Gods
Bastet is an Elder God; these beings are treated as Great
Old Ones for all purposes except: they do not provide an
inherent Elder Sign for a Ritual of Annihilation, though they
often have other means of creating Elder Signs; and Elder
Gods never roll Combat dice, but provide some fixed benefit.
They do count as equal to Great Old Ones otherwise, so they
can block Unit Captures. Nyarlathotep gets 2 Elder Signs or
half-Power cost from his Harbinger ability compared with
that of other Great Old Ones. You can use them to Capture
Cultists even if an enemy Monster is present, and so forth.
Note for the Library of Celaeno Map:
On the Library of Celaeno Map, Bubastis gets 2 Silence
1 Bastet Tokens at the start of each Doom Phase, instead of 1.
Bubastis can have up to 2 Silence Tokens at a time
(instead of 1), and must discard all unspent Silence
Tokens when the Gather Power Phase starts (as
normal).
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Note for the Shaggai Map: Catabolism
Bubastis is allowed to use the "Pay 6 Power" rule even
though the Moon can't have a Worm. Get this as early as possible so you can Recruit kitties on
the main Map.
Lets you remove potential foes from a target Area, and later
gives you Power when those Units must depart the Moon.
Ailurophobia
This is how to score Doom, since otherwise you’ll only get
1 Doom per turn (from the Moon). We recommend taking it
early. Remember, Cats on the Moon don’t count toward this
Spellbook.
Zagazig
Makes your Cats from Mars really mean. Also note that it
does not affect Bastet’s Combat. It does affect the enemy’s
die rolls too, though, so be careful!
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Bubastis:
Epilogue
“Seen fair and lovely on a dream-throne of silk and gold under
a chryselephantine dome, is a shape of deathless grace not
always given its due among groping mortals—the haughty, the
unconquered, the mysterious, the luxurious, the Babylonian, the
impersonal, the eternal companion of superiority and art—the
type of perfect beauty and the brother of poetry—the bland, grave,
compliant, and patrician cat.”
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Daemon Sultan
C O M P O N E N T S
6 Acolyte
4 Brain Cultists
Cylinders
Azathoth
Glyph
Power Token
Marker
Azathoth Die
1 High Priest
1 Dark Demon
3 Chaos Gates
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Cards
75
Introduction
The Daemon Sultan represents those few madmen who
Doom seek to learn of Azathoth, or who have already done so.
Marker
Set Up
The Daemon Sultan player starts with nothing on the Map,
and begins with minimum Power (4, because the other
players have 8). He must use his Psychosis ability to place
his first Units.
Faction
Token Please note that the Daemon Sultan High Priest, Dark
Demon, and Brain Cylinder Tokens are included for your
convenience if you are playing a game in which these are
available to other players. The Daemon Sultan does not use
these otherwise.
1Avatar Synthesis
4 Brain
Cylinder Playing as Daemon Sultan
Tokens
During the first turn, typically Daemon Sultan Summons
free Cultists for a while. Near the end of the turn, build a
Gate and either Move a second Cultist to it, or Summon
a Larva. That’ll use up your 4 Power. Yes, someone may
Capture one of your Cultists, but it’s cheaper to replace it
(free) than to flee, unless you fear letting that player gain the
Power next turn.
1 Avatar Thesis Your hardest Spellbook to achieve is the Abandoned Gate;
often, you can’t accomplish it until you have a Chaos Gate
available. However, in theory, you could get the “every other
player chooses whether he receives 1 Power or 1 Doom”
Spellbook, in your first Action Phase but it can be risky
giving your foes that early boost.
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your Avatars all cost. Don’t forget, however, that if you have up all his Great Old Ones, which means he has a long, slow
a 0-cost Avatar, you can Sacrifice it cheaply to keep another, buildup.
better Avatar alive via Synthesis’ Cosmic Ruler ability. Don’t
forget to re-Awaken your cheap Avatar. You can pre-emptively hamper him by checking which
Larvae he has out. If he doesn’t have a relevant Larva, he
Your Spellbooks activate once per turn, so you need to can’t Awaken that Great Old One. You should also kick him
position yourself properly to maximize their value. You’ll off his Chaos Gates. An Abandoned Gate is still good for
seem weak early, but later your three Great Old Ones help you, after all, and you’ll need the Power to rebuild your lost
you surge ahead. Experienced enemies will figure this out; Gates.
don’t fall into the trap of spending your entire turn managing
Spellbooks and slacking off on essential tasks, such as
building Gates. Eventually, you may have only your Chaos
Gates, but if you can manage to perform Rituals, you can get
up to 3 Elder Signs each time.
Consummation
A core Spellbook, but pointless to take as your first one.
Traitors
An excellent Spellbook, though it may not appear so at first
glance. You get an Elder Sign, another player gets saddled
with a hard-to-protect Gate in the middle of nowhere, and
you get a new Cultist to place for free with Psychosis.
Chaos Gate
This gives you a comparatively safe Gate, and also sets you
up for the Terror weapon of Animate Matter.
Animate Matter
Your signature move. As the click-bait ad goes, “Other Great
Old Ones hate him!”
Undirected Energy
It requires you to put Thesis in harm’s way, but if he’s cheap,
you shouldn’t care.
Fiendish Growth
Lets you set up for lots of stuff and, unlike Undirected
Energy, since you get Units immediately, Antithesis is
protected.
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79
Daemon Sultan:
Epilogue
A touch of rhythm celestial reach'd my soul;
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Opener of the Way
C O M P O N E N T S
Faction 3 Abominations
Token
6 Acolyte
Cultists
Doom
Marker
Power
Marker
2 Spawn of Yog-Sothoth
4 Mutants Yog-Sothoth
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
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Dragon Ascending
Playing as Opener Choose the right time and this can reverse the course of
of the Way play. Remember that using this Spellbook is NOT an Action,
which means that you can do it even if you are out of Power.
Opener of the Way is probably the weirdest Faction of them
Dragon Descending
all. Your Faction is delicate and requires precision, but has
unparalleled flexibility. In fact, your Faction begins with an
If you wait until the perfect moment, you might not get its
important strategic decision—where to start! More than any
benefits—seize the day.
other Faction, you must react on the fly to other players’
actions. You can always do something effective, but what
Dread Curse of Azathoth
that is differs depending on the situation.
Pester enemies with death from the sky. Enemy Units are
Keep a Mutant with your Cultists—if someone enters your
often in the same Area as Gates, and you can drive them out
Area, this is a perfect opportunity to Battle and promote
with Dread Curse while your Units stay behind.
with Million Favored Ones! This also puts Cultists back
into your Pool to be Recruited by Monsters placed via They
Million Favored Ones
Break Through.
A core ability, and one you’ll want early.
Though Yog-Sothoth really costs 10 Power to Awaken (6 for
him and 4 for the Spawn you give up), he is flexible because
They Break Through
you can pay on the installment plan: Summon a Spawn on
one turn, then Yog-Sothoth on the next. Everyone else has
Possibly the Spellbook most hated by Enemy players.
to pay for their Great Old Ones all at once. Don’t forget that
you can Summon Monsters through him.
Thwarting Opener of the Way
Beyond One is best in the early game. You not only steal a
Opener of the Way’s Monsters are expensive, so he tries to
Gate, but also Move long distances and escape threats.
promote rather than Summon. If you can Kill a Monster
in each Battle, it will become a losing proposition for him.
Summon a Spawn of Yog-Sothoth early despite the huge
He is restricted by his need to share territories to earn
cost, so that you can bring your Great Old One out at the
Spellbooks. Turn this to your advantage by setting up
right time (usually once two or three other Great Old Ones
traps—Areas where you can counter Opener’s moves with
have taken the field). You won’t dominate the game in the
overwhelming force.
beginning; you must grow over time by promoting Units
and re-designing the map’s Gate structure. Movement is not Tip:
cheap for you, so use Beyond One and They Break Through Don’t just use Million Favored Ones to get your
as affordable alternatives. big Units into play; remember that you can always
purchase them outright .
Once you’ve built up, use your numbers to swamp an
Enemy. Do not fear to “promote” a Spawn of Yog-Sothoth
into as few as two Mutants. Remember that once you have
six Spellbooks, you can declare more than one Battle in a
turn. This is huge for you.
Channel Power
For obvious reasons, this is a handy spell to have. Your
Faction is often Power-hungry, so save it for special
occasions.
82
83
Opener of the Way:
Epilogue
“At first we thought it was a disease. We even tried to treat it. People,
seemingly at random, developed disgusting deformities. But those
people couldn’t be treated. They didn’t want to be treated. They
lashed out, and in their anger became more and more monstrous.
Near the end fire came from the skies, destroying cities, farmland,
countryside. Finally, It appeared. It was bigger than human words
and seen all around the world, by everyone at the same time.
Impossible? That word is now useless. We pretend to hope it won’t
find us, but hiding hasn’t worked yet. No, it simply hasn’t gotten
around to all of us.”
—David Mendiola
84
Sleeper
C O M P O N E N T S
Faction
Token
Power
Marker
Doom
Marker 6 Acolyte
Cultists
2 Wizards
3 Serpent Men
Tsathoggua 4 Formless Spawn
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
85
Demand Sacrifice
Playing as Sleeper They’ll spend the Doom when facing Tsathoggua, but
otherwise you can act with impunity.
Your Faction is not particularly interested in combat.
Instead, your Units debilitate your foes outside of Battle. Energy Nexus
You are not the quickest Faction to gain the lead, but you
can be lethally and viciously petty.
This Spellbook has SO many different ramifications and
possibilities that we can’t list them all! Here are just two
Try to build up your Power base in the early game. Summon
possibilities: use Cursed Slumber to Move a threatened
cheap Monsters in the first Action Phase, so that you can
Gate off-map, or use it to fulfill one of Sleeper’s Spellbook
start to spawn better ones via Death From Below. Do not
requirements and immediately gain the Demand Sacrifice
discount the usefulness of Cursed Slumber, especially in
Spellbook to use in the following Battle!
the early game. You have a Spellbook requirement that
gives another player 3 Power—use this to bribe or bully your
opponents into doing your will. Thwarting Sleeper
In the late game, ability accumulation bears grim fruit for Sleeper is weak in Battle until he has two or more
your foes. With Tsathoggua on the Map, you can spend Formless Spawn out; take advantage of his early weakness.
Action after Action in Lethargy. If your foes don’t react you’ll Unfortunately, Demand Sacrifice makes him hard to Kill.
be the last player left with any Power, and you can use it Sometimes you just have to suck up the pain of giving him
to march Tsathoggua (cheaply, using Burrow) to Capture an extra Elder Sign. To suppress Sleeper, take Actions that
Monsters. Even though Tsathoggua’s Combat is reduced force him to spend Power and lose his late-turn advantage.
late in the Action Phase, a couple of Formless Spawn let For instance—Killing two Formless Spawn will cost him six
you inflict Kills. Demand Sacrifice either protects you from Power to restore. Of course, Killing Tsathoggua is always a
retribution or makes your opponents pay for their attacks treat. Without giving him an Elder Sign, you can Eliminate
against you. If you Move with a Wizard, you can use Energy his Cultists outside of Battle (using Dreams, Zingaya, or just
Nexus to run away before any fight. plain Capture). He usually does not have many Gates, and
they are often ill-protected, so it is effective to strike at his
Ancient Sorcery Gates. Even if you can’t Kill him, you can Pain him away.
There are too many choices to list them all. To name just Tip:
one possibility: copy Cthulhu’s Faction ability to replace a Sleeper gets the equivalent of a two-to-three Power
dead Tsathoggua on the cheap (and earn an Elder Sign!). boost every turn via his free Monster from Death From
Below. Do not forget this.
Burrow
Spectacularly useful. Doubled up with Lethargy, you can
save Power like crazy.
Capture Monster
The advantages are clear, even for the most inexperienced
player.
Cursed Slumber
Gives you a smaller footprint on the Map, and you can
reverse it to teleport a Gate anywhere on the Map. Then,
Cursed Slumber a new Gate from your home base and set
up a Gate factory.
86
87
Sleeper:
Epilogue
“The end came unexpectedly. I always thought it would be zombies
or aliens or nuclear weapons. Instead, it was this ooze. It was as
if the earth itself was falling apart, bleeding black tar. You couldn’t
fight it any more than you could fight the ocean. Slowly, but surely,
the ooze dragged us from our homes, from our families. It dragged
us to that awful beast’s waiting maw. I can still see it, every time I
close my eyes.”
—David Mendiola
88
Tcho -Tcho
C O M P O N E N T S
Faction
Token
3 High Priests
6 Acolyte Ubbo Sathla
Cultists 6 Proto-Shoggoths
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
89
High Priests or expend them to gain immediate Power?
Which enemy Start Areas should you target? It is almost
Introduction impossible to gain all of your Spellbooks until at least the
fourth Action Phase, so in which order should you take
Set Up them? Your choices affect not just you, but also the other
Factions who will be vying to discourage your attention.
The Tcho-Tcho do not have a Glyph on the Map. Instead,
once all other players except for Windwalker and Opener The only Spellbook available to you in the first Action phase
have set up, the Tcho-Tcho set up in any unoccupied Area is the one for removing your starting Gate (which we do
with a Faction Glyph. not recommend doing!). Since you’ll need a High Priest to
Awaken Ubbo Sathla, one of your Actions should always be
Please note that the Tcho-Tcho can set up in one of to Recruit a High Priest. You now have to choose between
Windwalker’s starting Areas, in which case Windwalker is trying to create a Gate or recruiting a second High Priest;
forced to set up in the other one. We recommend avoiding remember that having an extra High Priest lets you jump-
this if possible, though, because it gives Windwalker an start your second round with 12+ Power (by sacrificing your
instant Spellbook (for having a Gate in another start Area). extra Priest), giving you a slight leg up on the other players,
In an 8-player game this is unavoidable, but due to the even those with two Gates.
nature of 8-player games it does not provide Windwalker
with any significant advantage. At the start, you are weak on defense. However, due to
Martyrdom, enemies are typically reluctant to attack an
If you are using the High Priests expansion, replace one Area containing your High Priests. If your enemies don’t
of the Tcho-Tcho’s six starting Acolytes with a High Priest. send in Great Old Ones, you can often use Proto-Shoggoths
(Thus, they will start with a Controlled Gate, five Acolyte to handle the riffraff.
Cultists, and a High Priest.) The inclusion of High Priests
gives the other factions a boost in strength, and so the Tcho- In the first Doom Phase, take your first Spellbook for
Tcho need a slight nudge, too. This also gives them some Awakening Ubbo Sathla. If you take Hierophants as your
flexibility in the early game. (Note that this does not give reward, you’ve set yourself up for 6 free High Priests over
the Tcho-Tcho an extra High Priest; they still only have 3). the rest of the game.
The High Priests expansion also changes the way the Tcho-
Tcho’s Hierophants Spellbook is played. You have a major Power advantage in the early game,
because you normally spend 0 Power on your Great Old
If Opener of the Way is in play, place Opener’s Faction Glyph One. You can use this offensively not only to capture or
token in his starting Area (The Tcho-Tcho need to know build Gates, but also to harass your enemies by placing your
where this is, for their Idolatry Spellbook). Units in their Start Areas.
Also, please note that if you are using the Unique High Priest As the game goes on your Faction loses steam, so you will
rules (available from Petersen Games), the Tcho-Tcho may eventually have to fight a rear-guard action, clinging to your
only have one such High Priest. You will need to somehow remaining Gates for as long as possible. This is the time to
distinguish this Unit from your other two “generic” High finally get Tablets of the Gods, start churning through your
Priests. High Priests, and stacking up those Elder Signs. Properly
using and recycling High Priests is the key to your success.
Playing as Tcho-Tcho Be sure to keep a sharp eye out and pay attention to when
people perform Rituals of Annihilation, so that you can seek
your Sycophancy reward.
The Tcho-Tcho are an exciting, human-controlled Faction.
Representing the psychically advanced but ethically Hierophants
repulsive Tcho-Tcho tribe, their Great Old One, Ubbo Sathla,
is a tool and a slave rather than an object of worship! Should be your first Spellbook about 90% of the time.
90
Idolatry
Useful both for escaping an enemy as well as massing for
an attack.
Soulless
An excellent protective Spellbook, and the signature ability
of the Tcho-Tcho. 3 Leng Tribe Spellbook Cards
Tablets of the Gods
Best in the late game, though its effects do add up over time.
It lets you get an Elder Sign for what amounts to 3 Power,
an excellent bargain.
92
93
Tcho-Tcho:
Epilogue
“At first we thought them laughable primitives. Our obvious
technical and educational superiority made us pity them. As they
moved among us, they were true to their ancient law, ‘Another’s
sorrow is thy joy.’ It took time to realize that our religious, business,
and political leaders were being targeted disproportionately,
dying to mysterious tumors, poisons, and fanatical assassins.
Meanwhile, their agents whipped up frenzied mobs among the
hopeless and homeless, and spent ominously vast quantities
of money on mass amnesties of prisoners. Gangs of criminals
terrorized the population. Anyone on the streets ran the risk of
being kidnapped or murdered. Wild hordes broke into homes,
plundered, and raped. Then came the next step—the Tcho-Tcho
emerged openly and began to round us up to sacrifice to their
foul deities. It is now clear that they share no empathy with the
rest of humankind. Our so-called “superiority” in law, medicine,
and engineering were useless against the arcane science they
practiced—they were nothing if not practical. Were any of them
ever human, mentally? They are in my hotel. I hear screams
and gunshots, though no police are left. Who is shooting? I hear
footsteps in the corridor—not all of them are human.”
—Sandy Petersen
94
Windwalker
C O M P O N E N T S
Doom
Marker
Power
Marker
6 Acolyte Faction
Cultists Token
Rhan Tegoth
4 Wendigos
6 Spellbooks
& Faction Card
95
Arctic Wind
Playing as Windwalker Useful for marching your unstoppable horde to victory.
96
Windwalker:
Epilogue
“They came from the North, with fur and claw. We were confident
in our weapons: guns, tanks, aircraft. We tried to fight back,
and at first we held on. Little by little, they overcame us. They
kept getting stronger, and our armies melted away. When the
impossible juggernaut appeared, indestructible and unrelenting,
all hope seemed lost. We fled, choosing to hide rather than fight.
We hoped that would keep us safe, that maybe they’d stay in the
cold. But then we heard it—the sound that brought the winter.
MONSTERS
Summon a Neutral Monster or
Terror during the Doom Phase. You
may only gain one Loyalty Card per
Doom Phase, but there is no limit
NEUTRAL to the number of Neutral Monster
or Terror Loyalty Cards you may
obtain.
99
100
Dreamlands Surface
Monsters
Dreamlands Underworld
4 Moonbeasts & Loyalty Card Monsters
101
Giant Blind
Albino Penguins
102
Terror’s Loyalty Card during the
TERRORS
Doom Phase.
103
104
Cosmic Terrors
105
Worms of Ghroth Brown Jenkin
The Worms of Ghroth miniatures are found in the Shaggai
Map expansion (see page 161). To use them as Terrors,
please refer to the Loyalty Card. Note: Worms of Ghroth
cannot be used as Terrors if you are playing on the Shaggai
Map.
Cacodemon
6 Worms of Ghroth & Loyalty Card
Elder Shoggoth
107
108
Independent Great Great Old One Pack 1
Old Ones
The rules below govern all Independent Great Old Ones:
Awakening
The specific requirements to Awaken any Independent
Great Old One are found on its Loyalty Card. On Awakening
an Independent Great Old One, take its Loyalty Card and
place its figure on the map, under your Control. Add its
Spellbook and any associated tokens to your Pool. There
is no limit to how many Independents you may Control. You
may use one Independent to help Awaken another.
Death
If your Independent Great Old One is Killed, place its Loyalty
Card, figure, unused tokens, and Spellbook back into the
general Pool (tokens already on the map remain there). If
you had earned its Spellbook, it “falls off ” the Loyalty Card
and is no longer in effect. If this Independent is Awakened Mother Hydra, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards
again, even by a player who had previously Controlled it, its
Spellbook must be earned again.
Spellbook
Each Independent has its own Spellbook; when the
requirements to earn this Spellbook are met, place it on its
Independent’s Loyalty Card and reap its benefits as long
as you Control that Independent. These Spellbooks never
count as one of the Spellbooks on your Faction Card (you
cannot place it on your Faction Card, it does not unlock
Unlimited Battle, and does not count for winning the game!).
Doom Phase
When you perform a Ritual of Annihilation, do NOT gain an
Elder Sign for any of the Independent Great Old Ones you
Control. We did not specify this rule in the original release
of Cthulhu Wars, and this led to particular and problematic
balance issues. Therefore, ONLY Faction Great Old
Ones provide Elder Signs when you perform a Ritual of
Annihilation. (Great Cthulhu still gets an Elder Sign when
Awakening any Great Old One, however).
Note:
For your first game with Independents, we recommend
using one fewer Independent than the number of
players.
Chaugnar Faugn, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards
109
6 Filth
Tokens
Yig, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards Abhoth, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards
6 Web
Tokens
Ghatanothoa, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards Atlach-Nacha, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards
111
Great Old One Pack 3
2 Nyogtha, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards Tulzscha, Loyalty & Spellbook Cards
112
Faction Great Old Ones
as Independents
These Loyalty Cards, Spellbooks, and abilities were
designed by Sandy so that Faction Great Old Ones could
be used as Independents. We do NOT recommend using a
Great Old One as an Independent if a player is playing as
that Great Old One’s Faction.
Ubbo Sathla Loyalty & Rhan Tegoth Loyalty Ithaqua Loyalty &
Spellbook Cards & Spellbook Cards Spellbook Cards
114
Dire Cthulhu
115
Nodens
Dire Azathoth
116
MISCELLANEOUS
EXPANSIONS
MIXED and
Azathoth Itself
Azathoth is an Independent Great Old One, and as such is
governed by the same basic rules for all Independent Great
Old Ones as detailed on page 109.
Neutral Monsters
The 4 Neutral Monsters in the Azathoth expansion are
governed by the same basic rules for all Neutral Monsters,
as found on page 99.
3 Servitors of the Outer Gods & Loyalty Card
Neutral Spellbooks
These Spellbooks are unique gameplay items. When you
fulfill one of your Faction’s Spellbook requirements, you may
take an Azathoth Spellbook instead of a Faction Spellbook
from your Pool.
119
6 Neutral Spellbooks
123
Shadow Pharaoh & Loyalty Card
125
Hound of Tindalos & Loyalty Card
126
Ramsey Campbell
Horrors 1
6 Brood
Tokens
Ramsey Campbell
Horrors 2
130
High Priests
131
One (and still have Power remaining) in the second
Action Phase.
132
Alternate Faction
Acolytes
133
The Prophetess Handicap Acolytes
& Loyalty Card
The Eidolon
& Loyalty Card
134
The Investigators
135
136
Colour Out of Space THE COLOUR
The rules for the Colour Out of Space expansion are
OUT OF SPACE
presented below, and you can also download them in
PDF form from www. PetersenGames.com.
TURQUOISE: The
Gate’s Controller chooses
2 Colour Gates and
swaps them just before
Gate effects happen.
137
When you Create a Gate, you may chose and place either an available Colour Gate or a normal Gate. You can ONLY Create
the Glow Gate if you already Control another Colour Gate. You do not have to Create the Gate of your Faction color. So
Crawling Chaos can Create a red Gate. A Colour Gate acts as a normal Gate during the Gather Power Phase. At the START
of each Doom Phase, roll 1d6 and consult the appropriate column of the chart below:
3 4 5 6
FEASTING MADNESS BLIGHT DEPARTURE
BLUE: The Gate’s BLUE: The Gate’s BLUE: The Gate’s The player with the lowest
Controller loses 1 Power. Controller gains 1 Power. Controller loses 1 Power. Doom total may select 1
Colour Gate anywhere on
GREEN: The Gate’s GREEN: The Gate’s GREEN: The Gate’s the map and replace it with
Controller earns an extra Controller may not Controller may not a normal Gate. On a tie for
Elder Sign for a Ritual of perform a Ritual of perform a Ritual of lowest Doom, all tied players
Annihilation this Doom Annihilation this Doom Annihilation this Doom do this in player order. When
Phase. Phase. Phase. finished, reroll the Colour
die. On a second roll of 6,
ORANGE: The Gate’s ORANGE: The Gate’s ORANGE: The Gate’s nothing further happens. On
Controller gains 1 Power. Controller loses 1 Power. Controller loses 1 Power. any other roll, consult the
appropriate column of the
PURPLE: The Gate’s PURPLE: The Gate’s PURPLE: The Gate’s chart.
Controller loses 1 Doom. Controller gains 1 Doom. Controller loses 1 Doom.
138
The Shining Eradication
Trapezohedron First-Player Marker
This product provides plastic replacements for most die-cut You may use this marker in place of the First-Player token
tokens. supplied with the core game. When you are the First Player,
simply point this marker in your chosen direction of play.
44 Brain Cylinders
*4 Per Color
Custom
Timer (For
Ghroth and
Thousand
Forms)
Ritual of Annihilation
Marker
Lovecraft Bust
First-Player Marker
12 Desecration
Markers (For You may use this marker in place of the First-Player token
Yellow Sign) supplied with the core game. When you are the First Player,
simply point this bust in your chosen direction of play.
18 Elder Sign
Trophies Marked “1”
6 Web Tokens
12 Elder Sign
Trophies Marked “2”
6 Brood Figures
Battle Dice
6 Unnameable Unnameable Use these in place of regular six-sided dice during Battle.
Acolyte Cultists High Priest This image represents a Kill; this image represents
a Pain.
140
ADDITIONAL
MAPS
141
142
dreamlands
map
C O M P O N E N T S
6 Zoogs
Bhole
Set Up and Map Basics
The Dreamlands Map has a Surface and an Underworld,
each with the normal 3 and 5-Player sides. Arrange the
Map for your player count, using one Surface side and one
Underworld side. For your first 4-Player Dreamlands game,
we recommend using the 5-Player Surface side.
Tunnels
Moving Between the Maps
Four Areas on each board are marked with Tunnel Glyphs.
An Area with one of these Glyphs is adjacent to the Area
on the other board having the matching
Tunnel Glyph. For example, a Unit in Zura
can directly Move to the Ruins of Karoth.
(So, for example, since Crawling Chaos’
Units may Move 2 spaces, Nyarlathotep
in Zura could Move to the Ruins of
Karoth, and then to another, adjacent
TUNNEL Underworld Area, such as the Tower of
GLYPH Koth or Vale of Pnath).
144
geography of the two boards. This is just how things are in If the Bhole is not in an Area with a Gate, roll a six-sided
the Dreamlands. die and Move the Bhole to the Underworld Citadel labeled
with the appropriate number (even if the designated Citadel
Citadels (Victory) lacks a Gate). For example, on a five-player map, when a
1 or a 2 is rolled, the Bhole goes to the Sea of Pitch. On
The Dreamlands Map provides an a 3, it is sent to the Vaults of Zin. If the Citadel the Bhole
alternate source of victory. Each board enters contains a Gate, that Gate is immediately destroyed
has 4 Citadels. If a single player Controls along with any Controlling Unit. The Bhole does not affect
Gates on all 4 Citadel Areas of a single anything else in that Area.
board, he immediately wins, regardless
of how many Spellbooks he has earned If Opener of the Way is in play, and the Bhole attacks the
or how much Doom he has. To win in Area with Yog-Sothoth, it destroys and Eliminates Yog-
this way, you must Control a Gate at all 4 Sothoth! (Sometimes it’s not beneficial to be coterminous
Citadel Areas of a single board—Surface with all space and time!) It does this in addition to destroying
OR Underworld, and not merely some any normal Gate in the Area.
CITADEL from each.
GLYPH
How to Defeat the Bhole
If this alternate victory condition is not met, the game will
end once someone reaches 30 Doom or the Ritual track Any player may initiate a Battle against the Bhole (with a
reaches Instant Death; victory will then be determined in Unit in the same Area). The Bhole has a Combat rating of 6.
the same way as in a standard game of Cthulhu Wars. A single Kill result destroys the Bhole (though it will return
in the next Doom Phase!) A Pain always sends the Bhole
If Opener of the Way is in play, Yog-Sothoth’s presence in to the Vale of Pnath, regardless of the presence of other
a Citadel Area DOES counts as Controlling a Gate in that Units (it may not be Eliminated due to being surrounded).
Citadel Area—even if another Faction Controls the normal Crawling Chaos’ Madness Spellbook cannot send the Bhole
Gate in such an Area, Opener of the Way could win the elsewhere, nor can Units who Battled the Bhole be Pained
game by simply Controlling 3 normal Gates in the other 3 to the Vale of Pnath (if the Bhole is Pained). If the Bhole is
Citadel Areas! already in the Vale of Pnath, it ignores the Pain.
Citadels are numbered, and some have more than one The Bhole is a Terror Unit. Additionally, while Spellbooks
number—these Citadels are especially attractive to pesky and abilities can be used in Battle against the Bhole, they
creatures, as the numbers control Bhole and Zoog activity. can only affect your own Units. For example, you cannot use
Windwalker’s Howl to send the Bhole out of the Battle Area,
The Bhole (Underworld) nor does Demand Sacrifice have any effect on the Bhole’s
dice results. The Bhole costs 0 Power, has no Spellbooks
The Bhole is a gigantic creature that normally dwells or Doom, and has no Power of its own or any other normal
peacefully in the Vale of Pnath. Overstimulated by the features of a Faction for any purposes, such as calculating
clash of forces that is Cthulhu Wars, the Bhole, ravenous, the Combat of Tsathoggua, Ithaqua, Nyarlathotep, etc.
emerges to feast upon the otherworldly energies released
by the Factions and their Great Old Ones. The Bhole Respawns!
Bhole Activation and Attack If the Bhole is Killed, a new Bhole re-appears in the Vale
of Pnath at the end of the Doom Phase! A newly-spawned
At the end of each Doom Phase, after all players have had Bhole does not immediately roll to Move to a Citadel, but
a chance to perform a Ritual of Annihilation, check for the is merely placed and stays in the Vale during that Doom
Bhole’s Activation and Attack. Phase. However, when the Bhole reappears, if there is a
Gate (and any Controlling Unit) in the Vale of Pnath, those
If the Bhole is in an Area containing a Gate, it remains in are destroyed. This means that if Killed, the Bhole goes
place and destroys that Gate, Eliminating any Controlling to the Vale of Pnath for one Doom Phase, giving players a
Unit. The Bhole does not affect anything else in that Area. short respite (as there is no Citadel in the Vale of Pnath).
This Elimination counts as an enemy Eliminating your Unit
(for example, Yellow Sign can benefit from Passion).
145
abilities. If a Zoog is somehow Moved to an Area that is not
Zoogs (Surface) a Citadel, it is instead Eliminated from the Map. Regardless
of your efforts, all Killed and Eliminated Zoogs return to the
Zoogs are small, mischievous creatures native to the forests Map in the next Doom Phase.
of the Dreamlands. When Cthulhu Wars erupts, these
clever creatures seize their opportunity to make their mark
and torment your Cultists. The Zoogs are Monsters, and can
thus be affected by any Spellbooks or abilities that target or
reference Monsters.
146
DREAMLANDS
MAP
Librarian
Custodian
8 Silence
Tokens
4 Library Tomes
150
Archways
Set Up and Map Basics
Several Areas contain Archways. These are similar to
The Library at Celaeno Map consists of two levels, the
Stairwells, except that they are not lettered. For purposes of
Lower Floor and the Upper Floor. These are separate
the Move Action and movement-type abilities, each Archway
boards; they should be kept near each other in play, but do
Area is adjacent to EVERY OTHER Archway Area on both
not need to be adjacent. Their edges do not wrap around,
Floors of the Library.
as the Library is not a globe. Therefore, the two levels have
edges and corners, and Units cannot move around from one
However, unlike the Stairwells, the Archways are NOT
edge to another.
adjacent when being Pained or Retreated. Players using
other movement-type abilities to travel may do so freely
As with other maps in Cthulhu Wars, use the 3-Player sides
between the two boards. For instance, Shub-Niggurath can
for a 3-Player game, use the 5-Player sides for a 5-Player
Avatar to either side, Crawling Chaos Hunting Horrors can
game, and use one 3-Player and one 5-Player side for a
use Seek and Destroy to access either board, Cthulhu can
4-Player game.
use Submerge to hit both boards, etc.
There are 4 Upper Floor Areas which have square slots on
them. These are: Barrier of Naach-Tith, Guardian Under The Library Tomes
the Lake, Larvae of the Outer Gods, and Yr and the Nhhngr.
Place each Library Tome in its corresponding slot. If Opener Spontaneous Gate Creation
of the Way is in the game, it CANNOT start in any of these
four Areas. The Librarian and Custodian figures begin off- At the start of the first Doom Phase, place a Gate in each of
Map. the four Areas where the Library Tomes were placed during
set up (unless a Gate is already present).
Part of the library is flooded, which makes these Areas seas.
These Areas are all labeled with the word ‘Sea’ in their This Gate Creation happens only once. If one or more
name, or in parentheses as (sea). All sea Areas count as both of these Areas is missing its Gate in later Doom Phases,
oceans and seas for all game purposes. Note, for example, nothing happens.
that the word “Lake” in the name does NOT denote an
ocean or sea Area—it must include the word sea or ocean. The Library Tomes
The Library Tomes act as additional, available Spellbooks.
The Stairwells & Archways However, they are not placed on your Faction Card and do
not count toward having 6 Spellbooks (for the purposes of
Stairwells Unlimited Battle or winning the game).
Certain Areas contain Stairwells; these When you Control a Gate in an Area with a Tome, take that
are lettered A-F on each floor. These Area’s Library Tome (if it is still on the Map) and place it by
Areas are adjacent to their matching your Faction Card. You may now use its ability as though it
Areas on the other level. For instance, in were a standard Spellbook.
the 3-Player side of the Lower Floor, the
Chamber of Apkallu contains Stairwell Overdue Library Tomes
D. It is therefore adjacent to the Area
STAIRWELL of Barrier of Naach-Tith, which is also If you lose Control of a Gate in a Library Tome Area, then
marked with a D but is on the Upper that Area’s Library Tome is now Overdue. This does not
Floor (for both 3- and 5-player sides). affect your use of the Tome—it remains next to your Faction
Card, and you can keep using its effects.
A Pained Unit in a Stairwell Area can go
through the Stairwell to the other Floor, However, having an Overdue Library Tome means you are
because these Areas are adjacent for all now vulnerable to the Librarian’s Agony (see: The Librarian,
ARCHWAY
purposes. on the following page). At the start of each Doom Phase,
all players take 1 Silence Token. At the start of the Gather
151
Power Phase, all players must discard all Silence Tokens. Example:
A player can never have more than a single Silence Token The Yellow Sign spends 1 Silence Token, Activating the
at a time. Custodian in the Black Chamber. There are 3 Factions
present: Great Cthulhu (Cthulhu plus 2 Cultists),
Silence Tokens Crawling Chaos (a Nightgaunt and 2 Cultists), and The
Yellow Sign (King in Yellow, alone). A 2 is rolled, which
On your turn, as an Action, you may spend 0 Power, discard is increased to a 3 because the Custodian was already
your Silence Token, and do one of the following: in the Black Chamber and didn’t Move. The Yellow
Sign selects himself as one of the victims, and happily
• Activate the Custodian evacuates his King to The Oubliette. He decides that
• Activate the Librarian, if an enemy player has an Crawling Chaos must Move the remaining 2 units, and
Overdue Library Tome that means Cthulhu need not Move any. Crawling Chaos
chooses to Move his 2 Cultists, leaving his Nightgaunt
Notes: behind.
You may also discard a Silence Token to flip certain
Library Tomes over, or to cancel the effects of the
Barrier of Naach-Tith. The Librarian
A player controlling the Bubastis Faction takes 2 Silence The Librarian may only be Activated if at least one enemy
Tokens at the start of each Doom phase, and may have Faction has an Overdue Library Tome. The Librarian is
up to 2 Silence Tokens at a time. Activated when a player spends a Silence Token and places
the Librarian into any Area containing at least one Unit
from an enemy Faction with an Overdue Library Tome.
The Custodian The Activating player then rolls the Agony die; as with the
Custodian, if the Librarian stays in the same Area without
When you Activate the Custodian, you may place or Move Moving, add +1 to the Agony die’s final total.
it into any area (or keep it in the same Area). Then, roll the
Agony die. If the Custodian stays in the same Area without If there is more than one enemy Faction in the Area with an
Moving, add +1 to the Agony die’s final total. Overdue Tome, the Activating player divides up the Agony
die’s total between them as he pleases.
A number of Units in the Custodian’s Area equal to the
result on the Agony die must be Moved to The Oubliette. If Satisfying Agony
more than one Faction is present, the Activating player gets
to choose how many Units must go from each Faction (up Each victim must satisfy all the Agony assigned to him by
to the total on the Agony die), but the affected players get to choosing from the following options:
choose which Units are Moved. The player who Activated
the Custodian can choose his own Units to be affected, as • Satisfy one Agony for each of your Units in the Area
well. If there are fewer Units in the Area than the result of the you choose to Eliminate.
Agony die roll, then Move all Units present to the Oubliette.
• Satisfy one Agony for each 1 Doom you choose to
No player may take Control of an Abandoned Gate in an lose.
Area inhabited by the Custodian. If the Custodian is sent
to an Area with a Controlled Gate, the Gate may remain • Satisfy one Agony for each Overdue Tome you return
Controlled (for the time being). If you Create a Gate in an to its slot.
Area with the Custodian, it must remain Abandoned until
the Custodian leaves! If the victim does not have enough collective Units, Doom
and Overdue Tomes to satisfy the Agony assigned to him,
Additionally, players may not Battle the Custodian. It is then the remaining Agony can be ignored.
immune to all Spellbooks, abilities, and other effects. The
only interaction it has with a Faction is when a player When a player replaces an Overdue Tome to satisfy his
activates it with a Silence Token. The Custodian has no Unit Agony, and a Faction currently Controls the Gate in that
type.
152
Tome’s Area, the player Controlling that Gate immediately
takes possession of the Tome.
Example:
It is the start of the Action Phase, and two Tomes are
Overdue. Cthulhu has one of the Overdue Tomes, and
Black Goat has the other. The Librarian is currently at
The Oubliette.
153
LIBRARY
MAP
13 Glaciers
Set up the Map in the same way you would with the Cthulhu Effect of Glaciers
Wars Earth Map. One of the 4-Player Map configurations
has 9 Glacier Glyphs; the other has 11. This gives you a During the Gather Power Phase, Gates in Areas occupied
choice of having a game that is more or less “icy.” by Glaciers are considered Abandoned. For example, if
there are 4 Gates occupied by Glaciers, these would provide
The Primeval Map significantly changes the layout of the each Faction with 4 Power.
world. Continents include Atlantis, Hyperborea, Lemuria,
and Mu. One huge continent runs all the way from Lomar, at Once placed, Glaciers are permanent. They can never be
the North Pole, to Antarctica, while Hyperborea, Lemuria, moved or removed from the Map. If someone ever Creates a
and Mu are continental islands, like modern-day Australia. Gate in an Area that already contains a Glacier, that Glacier
The ocean Areas are all Areas with the word “Ocean” in is immediately placed atop the new Gate—the Unit that
their names, and no others. Created the Gate will never have a chance to Control it.
The Glaciers You’ll notice that all the Power from Abandoned Gates with
Glaciers supercharges your Faction. This is a Power-rich
At the end of the first Doom Phase (after Map!
everyone has had a chance to perform a
Ritual of Annihilation), place a Glacier in
each player’s Start Area (whether or not
it contains a Glacier Glyph). If you have
any Units Controlling Gates, remove
them from these Gates (they stay in their
GLACIER
GLYPH respective Areas) and replace them by
placing a Glacier onto each of these
Gates.
Note:
If Windwalker is in play, add a Glacier only in the Area
in which his Faction started; do not place a Glacier on
Windwalker’s other, vacant, Start Area.
158
PRIMEVAL
MAP
6 Worms of Ghroth
Eradicators
The Eradicators have been provided with special, optional
rules for use by experienced players. To use these rules,
you’ll need the 15 plastic Eradication markers from the
Shaggai Map. Note: do not use these rules in any games
that take place on the Shaggai Map. Petersen Games does
NOT recommend using the Eradicators in every game.
15 Eradication
Markers &
Loyalty Card
5 Worm Degradation Dice
162
WORM EFFECTS
Set Up and Map Basics
Millennia ago, the fabled world of Shaggai was destroyed.
The Worms of Ghroth
This Map represents the struggles and events surrounding
Aside from being replaced by Eradication Markers (and
that disaster, in which entities of cosmic power feasted on
effects!) at the end of the Doom Phase, the Worms by
the catastrophe while seeking to avoid their own oblivion.
themselves do nothing. They are merely harbingers of
a possible Eradication. The Worms cannot be Battled,
Set up the Map in the same way you would with the
Eliminated, or otherwise interacted with in any way.
Cthulhu Wars Earth Map. The oceans are organized in
a single band around Shaggai’s equator and all have the
words “Ocean Belt” in their titles.
The Cosmic Power
A player Controlling a Gate in an Area that contains a Worm
The First Player places any one Worm of Ghroth figure
can tap into the Cosmic Power. As an Action, you can place
into the Area labeled "The Worm that Gnaws in the Night".
any Spellbook (including those of the Independent Great
After all other Doom Phase events:
Old Ones) simply by spending 6 Power instead of meeting
that Spellbook’s requirement. Thanks to the Cosmic Power,
Worms & Eradication you need never fear Eradication depriving you of a potential
Spellbook. It’s usually cheaper to earn Spellbooks the old
DEGRADE WORMS: Roll one Worm Degradation die fashioned way, though.
for each player. Each Worm has a number on its base;
each Worm whose number corresponds to a rolled result In addition, when you Control a Gate in an Area with a
is removed from the Map & replaced with an Eradication Worm, you may bypass Area restrictions on Awakening or
token. If no Worm matches any rolled result, no Eradication Summoning your Units by paying 2 additional Power (all
Markers are placed. For example, in the first Doom Phase other Awakening or Summoning requirements must still be
of a 4-player game, four dice would be rolled. If the starting met).
Worm has a 3 on its base and one or more dice turned up as
“3,” that Worm would be Eradicated. Example:
Cthulhu need not be Awakened to the Area with his
In each newly-Eradicated Area: Glyph, as long as you pay 2 additional Power and
Control a Gate in a Worm’s Area.
I. Remove any Gate, Cathedral, or other game marker
(such as the Ice Age Marker). If a removed Gate was You need not actually Awaken Cthulhu to the Area with
Controlled by a player, that player earns 1 Elder your Gate and the Worm; he can be placed in ANY Area!
Sign. A removed Cathedral provides 1 Doom to the
Ancients’ player. By Controlling a Gate in a Worm’s Area, the Cosmic Power
also allows the Ancients’ Cathedrals to be placed similarly.
II. Eliminate all Units. Those Units’ owners receive 1 For example, you can Create a second Cathedral in an
Power for each of their Units so Eliminated. Each Area with by paying 2 extra Power. This also means
Faction Great Old One that is Eliminated also the Ancients can earn Spellbooks via substitution. If the
provides its owner with 1 Elder Sign. (Since Yog- Ancients have not yet earned the Spellbook requirement for
Sothoth counts as a Gate, he provides 1 Power and 2 placing a Cathedral in an Area with , they may need to
Elder Signs if Eliminated). use the Cosmic Power Action of spending 6 Power to attain
it.
PLACE NEW WORMS: Beginning with the Starting Player, Special Rule for Bubastis:
each player places one Worm either adjacent to the Worm Bubastis is allowed to use the "Pay 6 Power" rule but
that Gnaws in the Night Area, or adjacent to any already- not the "Pay 2 Power" rule even though the Moon can't
Eradicated Area. Only one Worm may be placed in an Area. have a Worm. Cats are like that.
If there are no more Worms or legal Areas by the time this
segment gets around to a given player, that player and any
after him do not place any Worms.
163
Eradication Marker Effects
Once an Eradication Marker has been placed in an Area,
no Units or gameplay pieces may be Moved or placed into
that Area. Such Areas are completely gone. Spellbooks
and abilities that involuntarily Move enemy Units may not
Move (or Retreat, etc.) them into Eradicated Areas.
164
Map 1
It is a 3-player game, and The Worm that Gnaws, Haddathic Residue, and the Ocean Belt: Orange have all been Eradicated.
Map 2
Windwalker wants to Move his army from the Lower Pole to the Ocean Belt: Red (using Arctic Wind). He picks up his
Army, pays 1 Power for movement, and skips over both Eradicated Areas in his way, landing in the Ocean Belt: Red.
165
Map 3
KILL
Because Windwalker had to skip over an Eradicated Area (actually two, in this case) he must lose a Unit en route, and
so selects a Wendigo to be Eliminated.
Map 4
Windwalker also had a Gnoph-Keh in the City of Doom. He could have Moved it for 1 more Power and landed it in the
Ocean Belt: Yellow. He doesn’t need to lose that particular Unit, because it is all part of the same Move Action, and he
already Eliminated a Unit for this Move. This is true even though the City of Doom Unit did not join up with his main
army. Note that even if the City of Doom Unit were to Move across a completely different Eradicated Area, he would still
only lose 1 Unit for his entire Move (of course, it could be the City of Doom Unit, in which case his main army moving
from the Lower Pole wouldn’t lose anything).
166
SHAGGAI
MAP
6 Slime Molds
Watcher
Brain Cylinder Token (4 in Each of the Faction Colors)
Loyalty Card
171
Important: If you Control a Gate on the Slime Sea
In addition, Brain Cylinders by themselves do NOT Overlook, place a Slime Mold into any
prevent Units from being Pained into their Areas in a Slime Sea Area. If there are no Slimes in
Battle. Brain Cylinders by themselves cannot surround play, this costs 0; if at least one Slime is
and therefore Eliminate enemy Units. in play, the cost is 1. Slimes are Monsters,
SLIME MOLD but they cannot be Summoned. They may
Capturing a Brain Cylinder is like Capturing any other only be brought into play via this Action.
Cultist, and follows the same rules. However, when a
Cylinder is Captured, you may choose instead to “Convert” Slime Molds have a Combat of 2 and no
it into a Cylinder of your own Faction’s Color, leaving it on inherent abilities.
the Map. Each Faction has a hard limit of 4 Cylinders, so if
you already have four Brain Cylinders in play and Capture Slimes cannot use a Move Action to go to
a fifth, it cannot be Converted. It must be placed on your NO SLIME
the Slime Sea Overlook (but they may be
Faction Card to be Sacrificed in next Gather Power Phase. MOLD Pained there or arrive via other means,
such as Great Cthulhu’s Submerge or
Note: Shub-Niggurath’s Avatar).
A special bonus Laboratory token has been included
in this Expansion. This is not for the Yuggoth Map The Faction that Controls a Gate in the Slime Sea Overlook
itself (as there is already a Laboratory Glyph on the controls all Slime Molds. If this Gate becomes Controlled
Yuggoth Map). This token is intended to allow players by another Faction, all Slime Molds in play change their
to experiment with their own house rules, permitting allegiance to the Gate’s new Controller. If the Gate is
them to access the Laboratory Area, the Surgery Action, Abandoned, the Slime Molds become uncontrolled.
and Brain Cylinders on other Cthulhu Wars Maps! We
suggest a hard rule that no player may have a Start Area It is possible to declare Battle against uncontrolled Slime
in the Laboratory Area (including Opener of the Way). Molds without affecting any other Faction. The Slime Molds
do fight back—roll dice for them and mark losses normally.
Alternately, you may play a variant where Yuggoth has If an uncontrolled Slime Mold is Pained (or Retreated)
2 Areas where you can perform the Surgery Action. If and Madness is not in effect, their attacker chooses the
you use the token on Yuggoth, we suggest not putting it Area to which they are Pained, following normal Pain
on the Slime Sea Overlook, nor anywhere on the Green rules. Uncontrolled Slime Molds can also be affected by
Pyramid. other abilities that target Monsters (or Units). For example,
Tsathoggua may use Capture Monster on one, and Shub-
This token is purely for player experimentation; Niggurath may Avatar with an uncontrolled Slime Mold.
Petersen Games has not extensively tested these
variants for game balance! Special Rule for Black Goat:
Although you may not Summon Slime Molds (you
may only “Call” them), Black Goat’s Fertility Cult will
The Slime Seas allow it to Call as many Slime Molds as desired, and
in conjunction with Summoning other Monsters. The
Slime Molds must still appear in the Slime Sea, even
The Faction that Controls a Gate on the Slime Sea Overlook
when Fertility Cult is used in their creation.
takes this Loyalty Card and is allowed to perform the new
Call Slime Mold Action. Note:
Two bonus Slime Tokens are included in this Expansion.
If Opener of the Way is in play, Yog-Sothoth may perform the These cannot be used on the Yuggoth Map, as they
Call Slime Mold Action by being in the Slime Sea Overlook. would lead to confusion. To use them, place each one
However, if there is also a normal Gate in the Overlook and in a separate Area of another Map expansion (or on the
it is Controlled by a different Faction, then Yog-Sothoth Earth Map). You can perform the Call Slime Mold Action
CANNOT perform this Action. Only one Faction at a time in the “No Slimes Allowed” Area, if you Control a Gate
may perform the Call Slime Mold Action, and a normal there. The other Area is where the Slimes must appear
Gate in the Overlook takes precedence over Yog-Sothoth. when Called. All the same rules for Slimes apply. These
tokens are purely for player experimentation; Petersen
Call Slime Mold Games has not extensively tested this variant for game
Cost: 0 or 1 balance!
172
Signs, for example), the Watcher won’t Awaken until the
The Green Pyramid following Doom Phase.
Abandoned Gates on the Green Pyramid still only produce The Watcher Attacks once per player. The First Player
1 Power for all Factions. Controls its first Attack, followed by the next player, and so
forth, until each player has had a chance to Control it once
The Watcher or until it has been destroyed.
The Watcher of the Green Pyramid is a hideous abnormality, Controlling the Watcher
a monstrous fellow to the Great Old Ones. It dwells in the
abysses beneath the Green Pyramid. Activity on Yuggoth On each Watcher Attack, the controlling player must Move
periodically brings forth the Watcher, to ravage and destroy. the Watcher into an adjacent Area of his choice that contains
Units belonging to any Faction. If no player’s Units are in
Doom Phase-The Watcher Awakens an adjacent Area, the Watcher may be teleported to any
Area containing any player’s Units. The Watcher may never
remain in the same Area. A player may return the Watcher
At the end of the Doom Phase, after all players have had a
to Attack an Area it moved from earlier in the same Action
chance to perform a Ritual of Annihilation and if there is
Phase.
a Controlled Gate in any Green Pyramid Area, roll a die.
If the result equals the number printed on an Area with a
Immediately after moving, the Watcher initiates a Battle
Controlled Gate, the Watcher Awakens. Flip the Watcher
with Combat dice equal to the Watcher Token’s position
Token to the lit-up (Awakened) side, and place its figure on
(initially, twelve). It attacks EACH Faction in the Area
the Watcher Postern (regardless of the number rolled).
separately and independently, in the order chosen by the
controller. Example: if two Factions, including the player’s
Yog-Sothoth’s presence in a Green Pyramid Area counts
Units, are in the Area, the player can choose to have himself
for Awakening the Watcher, even if a normal Gate is not
attacked second, hoping the Watcher will have lost strength
Controlled in the same Area.
by the time it gets to him. If the Slime Molds are neutral,
it does not attack them. Any number of Battles in a single
Should any player’s Doom Marker pass over the dark
Area, against multiple Factions, counts as a single Watcher
Watcher Token, flip it to the light (Awake) side. Thus, when
Attack.
a player first reaches or exceeds 12 Doom, the Watcher
Awakens (if it is not already Awake). If a player’s Doom
The defending Faction rolls Combat dice against the
reaches 12 during an Action Phase (due to turning in Elder
Watcher as normal; each Kill rolled drops the Watcher
173
Token down 1 point on the Doom Track. The Watcher is
immune to all Pain. Map 1
The Watcher is a Great Old One. While Spellbooks and
abilities can be used in Battle against it, they may only affect
your own Units. For example, you cannot use Windwalker’s
Howl to send the Watcher out of the Battle Area, nor does
Demand Sacrifice have any effect on the Watcher’s dice
results.
Once the first Watcher Attack has been completed, the Map 2
second player then takes Control of the Watcher for the next
Attack (which, again, includes both a Move and a Battle).
This continues until all players have Controlled the Watcher
once (or until it has been destroyed). At that point, the First
Player takes his own first turn as normal. During the rest
of the Action Phase, any player may initiate a Battle against
the Watcher. It will roll its Combat dice and ignore all Pains
as normal.
174
Map 3 Map 5
PAIN
KILL
KILL
1 KILL
KILL 2 KILLS
Rich is the first player, and he is also the only player with Now Angela (the next player in turn order) Moves the
Units on the Green Pyramid. He is forced to Move the Watcher into The Twin Desolations, the Area to which
Watcher into his own Area, where he has a Cultist, a Deep Cthulhu had been Pained. This Area also contains Frank’s
One, and Great Cthulhu. The Watcher now rolls 12 Combat Yellow Sign Units. Angela, having a beef with Rich, decides
dice. Rich rolls 7 Combat dice (Cthulhu’s Devour ability is that the Watcher will attack Cthulhu first. The Watcher rolls
useless on The Watcher). Cthulhu gets 1 Kill, moving the 11 dice against Cthulhu, who rolls 6 dice and gets 2 Kills.
Watcher Token to 11 (The Watcher ignores any Pains). The The Watcher’s Combat drops to 9 and Cthulhu, sadly, is
Watcher got 2 Kills and at least 1 Pain, so Rich chooses to Killed.
have the Cultist and Deep One Killed, and Cthulhu Pained.
Map 4 Map 6
3 PAINS
PAIN
5 KILLS
2 KILL
Angela, who is playing as Crawling Chaos, uses Madness to Before the Watcher can be Controlled by the next player,
Pain Cthulhu to an adjacent Area (The Twin Desolations) it has to Battle every Faction in the Area it now occupies.
where Frank has his Yellow Sign Units. The first Watcher The Watcher now attacks Frank’s Yellow Sign Units. Frank
Attack is over. has Hastur, the King in Yellow, 3 Undead, a Byakhee,
and 2 Acolytes, who roll a total of 11 dice (the Ritual of
Annihilation track is at 7). The Watcher rolls 9 dice. Frank
gets 2 Kills, dropping The Watcher to 7. The Watcher gets a
whopping 5 Kills and 3 Pains. Frank lets his 3 Undead and
2 Cultists be Killed (Frank gains 1 Power, since he has the
Passion Spellbook).
175
Map 7 Map 9
PAINS KILL
PAINS
Angela, using Madness, Pains Hastur, the King in Yellow, It is now Chris’ turn to Move the Watcher. Though he could
and the Byakhee to the Methane Sea. Move the Watcher west, he is feeling devious and decides
to Move the Watcher back to the Twin Desolations to attack
Frank for the third time. This time the Watcher rolls no Kills
with his 5 dice, but it does Pain both Hastur and the King in
Yellow. Frank scores a Kill, dropping the Watcher to 4.
Map 8 Map 10
2 KILL
PAINS
Frank is the next player in line. However, the only Area with Angela, sad that neither Hastur nor the King in Yellow were
Units adjacent to the Watcher is the Methane Sea, to which Killed by the Watcher, decides to split them up and Pain
his own Yellow Sign Units were just Pained. Sadly, he now one to the Ammonia Sea and the other to the Nitrogen Sea,
must Move the Watcher there and Battle it again. The leaving them vulnerable. As all players have now taken a turn
Watcher rolls 7 dice, getting 1 Kill and 2 Pains. Frank opts Attacking with the Watcher, it stays in the Twin Desolations,
to lose his Byakhee, and his Units are Pained right back to the Area to which it was last Moved. The players now begin
the Twin Desolations. At least Frank rolled 2 Kills with his the rest of the Action Phase starting with Rich, who is the
Units, dropping the Watcher to 5. First Player.
176
YUGGOTH
MAP
2 Primeval
Maps Boards
2 Earth
Map Boards
2 Shaggai
Maps Boards
2 Dreamland
Maps Boards
2 Yuggoth
Maps Boards
2 Library at Celaeno
Maps Boards *MAP BOARDS FOR 6-8 PLAYERS, PRINTED ON BOTH SIDES.
179
Oversized 3-5 Player
Earth Map
This is a larger version of the Earth Map than the one that
comes with the Core Game. It provides more room and
creates less clutter on your game board.
180
want him to? What if a player has no Power or no
Frequently Asked Cultists—can he “disagree” with the division?
A. Yes, he must obey normal Retreat rules. He also does Q. When Yellow Sign takes the Screaming Dead or He
not get to choose WHICH Units Retreat, only their Who is Not to be Named Action, does he have to pay
destination. Also note that with Madness, Crawling the normal Power cost for his second, subsequent
Chaos can Retreat players in either order. That is, he Action?
may Retreat the defender first.
A. Yes! For instance, if he Moved using Screaming Dead
Q. Black Goat has a Spellbook requirement, “Share and then immediately attempted a Desecration, this
Areas with all enemies.” Do the enemies all have to be would cost him a total of 3 Power (or 2 Power, if Third
in a single Area with your Unit(s)? Eye was in effect).
A. No. For example, in a three-player game versus Cthulhu Q. What happens when Crawling Chaos uses Thousand
and Yellow Sign, if you have a Unit in an Area with Forms and the number rolled is higher than the sum
Cthulhu’s Units and also have a Unit in an Area with of all other players’ power?
a Yellow Sign Unit, this requirement is immediately
fulfilled. Note that this requirement can be met during A. Crawling Chaos gets Power equal to the die roll.
an enemy’s turn.
Q. If I fail a Ghroth roll, is the free Acolyte (of any
Q. When Crawling Chaos’s Thousand Forms or Black Faction) an optional placement?
Goat’s Ghroth abilities are used, can a player insist on
taking part of the loss, even if the other players don’t
181
A. No. Abilities themselves are always optional (unless A. No, because Unholy Ground produces an Elimination,
stated otherwise on their text), but if you choose to not a Kill.
use an Ability, you must then do what it says—once
you choose to use Ghroth, you cannot simply decide Q. Can I use Unholy Ground to Eliminate Azathoth or the
to avoid the consequences! You knew what you were Watcher of the Green Pyramid?
getting into when you joined with Black Goat’s cult!
Basically, a failed Ghroth is still intended to be a good A. No. Unlike other Units, the Watcher just loses 1 from his
thing; Black Goat usually has Acolytes in its Pool, but if strength when he is “Eliminated”, and Azathoth loses 1
not, this can be used to place an enemy Acolyte into an die from his Combat.
Area with your Monsters so that you can Capture it! Or,
you might help a potential ally, perhaps even requesting Q. If I remove Cathedrals via Unholy Ground, where can I
that they do something for you on their turn in return for rebuild them?
your giving them a free Acolyte.
A. When replacing a removed Cathedral, you must obey
Q. Similar to the question above, but what if I want to use Cathedral placement rules. For example, if you removed
Ghroth, but there are NO Acolytes remaining to be a Cathedral from a particular Yellow Sign Glyph’s Area,
placed in any Faction’s Pool (in case of a failed roll)? and all your other Cathedrals were in play, you could
only rebuild it in an Area with that same Yellow Sign
A. If you fail, then nothing happens! This is not similar to Glyph.
abilities such as Zingaya, which prevents from using the
ability if there are no Undead in your Pool with which Q. If I have Reanimated in an Area by themselves, can
to replace the enemy Acolyte. With Ghroth, chance is I use them to take actions besides Move, Capture, or
involved - you could Eliminate enemy Cultists (which is Battle?
the main purpose of Ghroth). To be clear, because you
cannot normally choose to fulfill only part of an ability, A. Yes, if such Actions are available to you.
Ghroth’s free Acolyte is a compensation you cannot
refuse. But, having no Cultists to place does not prevent Q. Do Reanimated need to be accompanied by another
you from attempting a Ghroth roll. Unit to Move?
Q. Can Elder Gods declare Battle since they have no A. No. They simply need to start their Move in an Area with
Combat dice? another friendly (non-Reanimated) Unit.
Q. If there is more than one enemy Great Old One in a A. No, a Cathedral is not a Unit.
Battle against me and I invoke Unholy Ground, can
I remove two Cathedrals to Eliminate two Great Old Q. Can Opener of the Way use They Break Through when
Ones? the Ancients allow everyone to Summon their cheap-
est / most expensive monster?
A. Yes.
A. Yes.
Q. Can Rhan Tegoth avoid Unholy Ground’s Kill by
spending 1 Power as per his Eternal Ability?
182
Q. How do the Ancients generally interact with require- A. No. They’re not Cultists, though Dreams, Zingaya, and
ments or rules necessitating all Factions to have a Ghroth treat them that way. Crawling Chaos can never
Great Old One? get his “Capture” Spellbook requirement from Bubastis,
which means you can’t use Crawling Chaos and Bubastis
A. The Ancients are ignored for this purpose. For example, as opponents in a 2-player game. Except as a prank, I
the Ancients need not have a Great Old One for an inde- guess.
pendent Azathoth’s controller to earn his Nuclear Chaos
Spellbook. Q. If Bastet is in a Battle by herself, does she still get to
inflict her one Kill, even though no Combat dice are
Bubastis rolled for her side?
Q. Can other Factions use Move-like actions, such as A. Yes, of course. Elder Gods just inflict results. They don’t
Avatar or Submerge, to transfer Units to the Moon? roll dice, and they don’t require dice to be rolled for their
results to take place. Also, if Bastet is alone, she also still
A. Yes. They just can’t use the Move action itself, nor actions gets her ability to reduce the enemy-rolled Kills by 1.
that specifically mimic Move (like Screaming Dead).
Q. If no Earth Cats are in play, how can I get more of them?
Q. Do I get an Elder Sign for Ritualing with Bastet if I’m
not using her Requires Attention ability? A. You’d have to Summon them on the Moon, which always
counts as an Area with a Controlled Gate.
A. No. Elder Gods do not provide Elder Signs for Rituals of
Annihilation, except in conjunction with special abilities. Q. Can Opener of the Way use They Break Through on
Also, since Bubastis can only “Control” one Gate (the the Moon? How about The Beyond One?
Moon), a non-Requires Attention ritual only ever adds
1 Doom. Finally, if you DO use the Requires Attention A. Yes, he can use They Break Through. No, he cannot
ritual, you do NOT add another 1 Doom for the Moon’s “Move” the Moon via Beyond One. He also cannot Move
“Gate.” You only get the flat 4 Doom bonus. Really, it’s a Gate TO the Moon, because there is already a Gate
Bastet adding 3 Doom, plus the 1 extra for the Moon, so present. He can’t Move Yog-Sothoth to the Moon, but
you’re not losing anything. he could Awaken him there, if he had a Spawn of Yog-
Sothoth on the Moon.
Q. The Zagazig Spellbook seems to apply to both sides in
a Battle. Is this so? Does it also reverse Kills & Pains Q. What happens if Sleeper uses Ancient Sorcery to
for my opponent? target Bubastis?
A. Yes. If you choose to use Zagazig, both sides get the A. Nothing, unless he has some way to add Earth Cats to
benefits. his faction.
Q. What happens in a Battle with Sleeper if Bubastis Q. If Sleeper uses Burrowing to Move 2 Units from the
chooses to both use Zagazig and chooses option 2 Moon back to the main Map, how much Power does
from Sleeper’s Demand Sacrifice (“All of their Kill Bubastis get, if Catnapping is in effect?
results against your Units in this Battle count as Pains,
instead.”)? A. She gets two Power, because Sleeper must first pay 2
Power to Move the two Units. He then gets a refund of 1
A. First Zagazig changes Bubastis’ rolled Kills to Pains, Power back, but that doesn’t apply to Bubastis.
and rolled Pains to Kills. Then all of Bubastis’ rolled
Kill results count as Pains due to Demand Sacrifice. Q. If a player gets the Dark Demon (from the Masks
Sleeper’s rolled Kills and Pains are reversed as per expansion), how does this affect Bubastis?
Zagazig.
A. She gets stuck with a Dark Demon, like anyone else and
Q. Since Spellbooks target Earth Cats as they would loses an Earth Cat, Because spells affect her Earth Cats
Cultists, can they be Captured? as if they were Cultists, this means she cannot Summon
Earth Cats unless her Dark Demon is in play.
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Q. On the Primeval Earth Map, does a Glacier appear on Q. In the rare case that another Faction’s Start Area is the
the Moon during the first Doom phase? first Area in which Daemon Sultan places a Cultist,
where is Daemon Sultan’s Start Area?
A. No, because Control may not be seized from Bubastis,
including by a Glacier. I guess you could put a Glacier A. In that rare case, that start area counts as both Daemon
there if you wanted, but it would have no effect. Sultan and the other Faction’s start. Place his token
there.
Q. On the Yuggoth Map, can Earth Cats be turned into
Brain Cylinders? Q. The neutral Azathoth Spellbook Umr-at-Tawil makes
Gates cost 1 less. Does this have an effect on the Chaos
A. Yes. Gate Spellbook?
Q. Several Independent Units affect Cultists. When under A. No. Using the Chaos Gate Spellbook still costs 1 Power.
your control, do these work on Earth Cats? (e.g. Eihort)
Q. If I’m in a Battle and I assign Kills to both Avatar Thesis
A. Yes. and Avatar Antithesis, can I then use Synthesis’s
Cosmic Ruler ability to “transfer” Avatar Thesis’s
Q. Is the Moon tile considered adjacent to all tiles for death to Avatar Antithesis, thus saving the latter?
Spellbooks and Abilities?
A. You can only use Cosmic Ruler to transfer a death to an
A. Yes. Avatar which isn’t already being Killed in the Battle. In
other words, you can’t use it to “double up” Kills in this
Q. If Bastet is in an area with Yog-Sothoth, and you ritual, way.
do you get 3 Elder Signs?
Q. Can Daemon Sultan use Psychosis to place a Cultist in
A. Yes. But the presence of another Enemy Controlled Gate an area with an Abandoned Gate? How about a Chaos
does not increase this reward. Gate or a Cathedral?
Q. When the independent neutral Great Old One Azathoth Q. Can abilities which affect Gates, such as Beyond One,
(from the Azathoth expansion) is Awakened, he rolls or Ithaqua’s Awakening, target a Chaos Gate?
the Azathoth die, and places the marker on the track.
Does this still happen if Daemon Sultan is in the game? A. Yes.
A. Yes, of course. For example, say Daemon Sultan Q. When using the Traitors spellbook, who chooses the
Awakened Avatar Thesis, paying 2 Power. The Azathoth Cultist to be placed on the Gate? Can your enemy place
Glyph Token is set to 2. Then, on the next turn, a player their High Priest?
Awakens the independent Azathoth. As part of that
process, he rolls the Azathoth die and scores 7. The A. The Daemon Sultan player chooses and they can select
Azathoth Glyph Token is therefore moved from 2 to 7. any Cultist. This includes High Priests, Eihort Brood
Now, if Daemon Sultan Awakens Azathoth Antithesis, Tokens, Brain Cylinders, etc., assuming that Eihort or
he’ll only have to pay 1 Power. Brain Cylinders are in this game.
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Opener of the Way A. No. The Invisibility Spellbook states that the Unit “takes
no part in the rest of the Battle.” This includes all Post-
Q. How does Key and the Gate Work? Battle abilities and effects.
A. Opener gets 2 Power for Yog-Sothoth during the Q. If I have a Mutant and an Abomination eligible to
Gather Power Phase. He also gets 1 Doom for having promote via Million Favored Ones, but I do not have
Yog-Sothoth on the Map during the Doom Phase. If he an Abomination figure in my Pool, can I first promote
performs a Ritual of Annihilation, he gets 1 point for Yog- the Abomination, then the Mutant (now that an
Sothoth as a Gate (plus an Elder Sign for Yog-Sothoth as Abomination figure has returned to the Pool)?
a Great Old One).
A. Yes. You can cycle Units through your Pool in this way to
As a Gate, Yog-Sothoth can always Summon Monsters promote them.
into his Area. Unlike other Gates, he can coexist with
a normal Gate, and he is never considered to be Q. If I promote a Spawn of Yog-Sothoth into 2 or more
Abandoned. Cultists do not Control him, nor can they Mutants via Million Favored Ones, and that Spawn was
ride him. He cannot be Moved with The Beyond One Pained in the Battle, are all of his Mutant “progeny”
as if he were a Gate. Pained?
Q. Does Yog-Sothoth provide Power to Cthulhu via Y’ha A. Million Favored Ones happens after all the Pains and
Nthlei if he is in an ocean? Kills are applied, so the Spawn first Retreats into a
neighboring Area and THEN shatters into multiple
A. Yes, because Yog-Sothoth is an Enemy-controlled Gate Mutants. This also means that if a Spawn is Eliminated
in the ocean! by a Pain result because it was surrounded by its
opponent, you do not receive the Mutants.
Q. If Yog-Sothoth is in the Area where Ithaqua is Awak-
ened, do you have to replace Yog-Sothoth (as the Gate) Q. If Windwalker’s Howl is used to Retreat one of
with Ithaqua? Opener’s Monsters, can it still promote via Million
Favored Ones?
A. If Yog-Sothoth is the ONLY Gate in the Area, then yes. If
there is another available Gate, then you must replace A. No, they do not participate in the rest of the Battle and so
THAT Gate with Ithaqua instead. cannot use their abilities.
Q. Can I use Beyond One to teleport a Gate to an Area Q. How do Battle abilities interact with Dread Curse of
containing Yog-Sothoth, since he is also a Gate? Azathoth?
A. Despite this fact, yes, you can Beyond One to Yog- A. Dread Curse is not considered a Battle, despite the fact
Sothoth’s Area. that Combat dice are rolled. It cannot be combined with
Channel Power or any other Pre-Battle, Battle, or Post-
Q. Do enemy Great Old Ones still cancel Beyond One if Battle effects (such as Regeneration, Necrophagy, or
the Gate in question is not Controlled by their Faction? even Madness).
And do enemy Independent Great Old Ones still cancel
it, too? What about the Watcher from the Yuggoth Q. Who selects the targets of Dread Curse of Azathoth?
expansion?
A. The victim selects the targets; you just choose which
A. Yes, to all three. results apply to which Faction. Thus, if you rolled a Kill
and two Pains, you could apply the Kill and a Pain to one
Q. If an Opener of the Way Unit in an Area is turned Faction, and the remaining Pain to another.
Invisible by a Flying Polyp, does it count as
“participating in a Battle” for the purpose of getting Q. Regarding Dread Curse of Azathoth, to where do
promoted by Million Favored Ones? Pained Units Retreat?
185
A. After the victim selects which Units are Pained, Opener “in an Area,” which means that you get the Combat
of the Way selects to which adjacent Area each Unit bonus once per Area rather than once per Gate.
Retreats. He can include Areas that contain Opener
of the Way Units (these Units cannot be Eliminated by Q. If Sleeper uses Cursed Slumber to remove a Gate from
being surrounded). the Map, does that lower the count towards Opener’s
two Spellbooks requiring 8 or 12 Gates to exist on the
Q. Can the Dread Curse of Azathoth be used to attack Map, respectively?
Units that are not Controlled by any Faction, such the
Dreamlands Surface Map’s Zoogs, or Abhoth’s Filth A. Yes, it lowers the count. A Gate on Sleeper’s Faction
tokens after Abhoth has been Killed? Card is not on the Map.
A. No, because that Spellbook requires you to apply the Q. Can Sleeper use Cursed Slumber to place a Gate from
Combat results to particular Factions. In the case of his Faction Card onto the Area containing Yog-Sothoth,
Abhoth, once he is back in play the Filth tokens may be but lacking a normal Gate?
targeted, but as the Zoogs are never under the Control of
a particular Faction they can never be targeted. A. Yes.
Q. Can I use Channel Power more than once in the same Sleeper
Battle?
Q. If I have Energy Nexus and 0 Power, can I still do
A. Yes. You can keep re-rolling misses (rolls of one, two or an Action that Costs 0 (or Hibernating, via Ancient
three), paying one Power per re-roll, until you run out of Sorcery)?
Power or all the dice score results.
A. Yes! Using Energy Nexus does not require it to be your
Q. Can I use Dragon Ascending even if I am out of Power? turn, so the rule that your turn is skipped when at 0
Power (or Hibernating) doesn’t apply.
A. Yes, because it is not an Action—it is simply an effect that
you can apply at any time. Q. If my Serpent Man returns to the Map during the Doom
Phase (Ancient Sorcery) to an Area with Windwalker’s
Q. If I use Dragon Ascending during the Gather Power Ice Age token, do I pay 1 Power?
Phase, who becomes the First Player?
A. No, because returning the Serpent Man is not an Action;
A. You and another player will be tied for most Power, so it occurs during the Doom Phase.
the previous First Player will make that decision.
Q. How does Demand Sacrifice interact with the Leng
Q. To Awaken an Independent Great Old One, you need a Spider’s Bloodthirst?
Controlled Gate and your own Great Old One. Does Yog-
Sothoth, by himself, fulfill both these requirements? A. Any Pains converted into Kills become single Pains. I
recommend against using Bloodthirst!
A. No, because Yog-Sothoth is not technically a Controlled
Gate. Q. Can I use Lethargy forever, thus preventing the game
from ending?
Q. Chaugnar Faugn’s Miri Nigri ability gives Gates 3
Combat dice. Does this apply to Yog-Sothoth? A. We recommend defenestration as the quickest way of
managing such a player. More seriously, Sleeper cannot
A. Yes! For example, if there are 4 Enemy Faction Great use Lethargy if no one else is active; just go ahead and
Old Ones on the Map and Opener Controlled Chaugnar finish out the Action Phase.
Faugn, then Yog-Sothoth’s Combat would be 11 (8 + 3).
However, if Opener also Controlled a normal Gate in the
same Area as Yog-Sothoth, you would still only add 3,
and not 6, to your Combat in that Area. The ability reads
186
Q. How does Ancient Sorcery affect Great Cthulhu or Q. Can I use Energy Nexus even if the Battle in the Area
Yellow Sign? was not declared against me (or by me)?
A. Ancient Sorcery doesn’t affect the targeted Faction A. Energy Nexus simply requires a Battle to be declared in
at all. However, I think what you mean is, “how does the same Area as your Wizard. For example, if two other
Sleeper benefit from using Ancient Sorcery on Great Factions Battled in an Area containing your Wizard,
Cthulhu or Yellow Sign?” The answer in the first case Sleeper could immediately Recruit a Cultist. If all the
is that a unique ability that names a specific Great Old Units involved in the Battle were Killed and/or Pained,
One allows Sleeper to apply that ability to Tsathoggua. then Sleeper could take Control of an abandoned Gate
Thus, if Ancient Sorcery affects Great Cthulhu, Sleeper on his turn without having to use his next turn’s Action to
can re-Awaken Tsathoggua for 4 Power (and will also Recruit a Cultist there!
earn 1 Elder Sign). With regards to Yellow Sign, during
the Gather Power Phase, Sleeper will gain 1 Power for Q. Can I perform Unlimited Actions in addition to my one
each Area containing one or more of his Units plus a Action when using Energy Nexus?
Desecration token (which, admittedly, had to be created
by Yellow Sign). A. You may Abandon and/or Control a Gate in addition
to your 1 Action, but may not do Unlimited Battle (one
Q. If a Serpent Man uses Ancient Sorcery on Crawling regular Battle is okay).
Chaos, thus giving Sleeper the Flight ability, can this
be combined with the Burrow Spellbook? Q. Do Battle abilities still apply if Energy Nexus removes
all Units of one side so that a Battle does not really take
A. Yes. Sleeper’s Units are able to fly while burrowing. place? For example, what if a single Monster declares
Tsathoggua is not from this part of the universe. Battle on Sleeper, and Tsathoggua simply uses Energy
Nexus to Capture the Monster? Or if Sleeper simply
Q. What does it mean that an Action must originate in the Moves all of his units out of the Area?
Battle Area when using Energy Nexus?
A. Although Energy Nexus takes place prior to Pre-Battle,
A. It means that the Action, if tied to Map Areas, must begin follow the same rule as to what happens when all Units
in those Areas. For example, you can only use it to Move of a side are removed during Pre-Battle. The Battle ends,
OUT of the Area (Burrow would apply), and not into it. no dice are rolled, and no abilities (including Pre-Battle!)
You could only use Ancient Sorcery if the Serpent Man can be used. The Power is paid to initiate the Battle, but
comes from that Area. You could Recruit, Summon, no Battle actually takes place!
Awaken, or Capture a Unit in that Area. In a multi-Area
situation, such as using Mother Hydra’s Zygote Action, Q. Does Demand Sacrifice protect against Eliminations?
then at least one Recruited Cultist must be placed in
that Area. If it is not tied to a Map Area, then you may A. No, it only protects against Kill results.
do it (such as one of Sleeper’s Spellbook requirements
that is an Action). You could even do Lethargy if you Q. Does Tsathoggua have to be personally involved in a
wanted, but that really wouldn’t make much sense from Battle to use Demand Sacrifice?
a strategic standpoint.
A. No. So long as Tsathoggua is in play, Demand Sacrifice
Q. Can I do the Battle Action with Energy Nexus? applies to all Battles against Sleeper’s Units.
A. Yes. This results in an immediate Battle with you as Q. Can the Opener of the Way use They Break Through to
the Attacker, which would be followed by the already- Summon a Monster onto the Cursed Slumber Gate?
declared Battle, between whatever Units remain. You
can only do 2 total Battles in a row (i.e., you cannot use A. No. The Gate and Cultist under Cursed Slumber are
Energy Nexus to “chain” Battles together into an infinite immune to Enemy abilities.
loop). However, you could use Energy Nexus to perform
a non-Battle Action before the Energy Nexus Battle, Q. Can Sleeper choose to Eliminate his Cultist on a
which will happen before the Battle that was originally Cursed Slumber Gate to satisfy losses inflicted by
declared. Ghroth (or any similar ability)?
187
A. Yes, but he doesn’t have to even if it is the only Cultist he Power to an Elder Sign). The Yithian’s Possession adds
has left (since it is protected from all enemy abilities). If to whatever the base reward is (whether 1, 0, or an Elder
he DOES choose to lose it, the Gate becomes Abandoned Sign). Thus, a Yithian who Captured a Soulless Tcho-
and now provides Power to all Factions. It can still later Tcho still provides at least 1 Power.
be returned to the Map by Sleeper for 1 Power.
Q. What if the Tcho-Tcho has no Controlled Gate when
Q. If a Cursed Slumber Gate has a High Priest on it, can you have the Hierophants Spellbook, and you earn
that High Priest be sacrificed for Power? If so, what another Spellbook?
happens to the Gate?
A. Place the High Priest anywhere on the Map where you
A. Yes. The Gate becomes Abandoned, as described in the have Units. If you don’t have Units, place it anywhere on
previous answer. the Map. You’re probably going to lose this game.
Q. If I have acquired the Ghast Neutral Monsters, how Q. In an 8 player game, it seems like the Tcho-Tcho are
and when would I spawn them via Death from Below? forced to appear in one of Windwalker’s start Areas. Is
this really so?
A. Since they cost 2 Power, they are 2-cost Monsters. You
will only receive 1 Ghast per spawning, so it is usually A. Yep.
preferable to get some other Monster with Death from
Below. Q. When performing the Spellbook requirement of
“Remove my Controlled Gate in my Start Area,” can I
Q. If Sleeper uses Cursed Slumber to remove a Gate remove Yog-Sothoth?
from the Map, does that change the count towards
Opener’s two Spellbooks that require 8 or 12 Gates to A. Of course not. He is not your Controlled Gate.
exist on the Map, respectively?
Q. If I control Yig as the Tcho-Tchos, and perform
A. Yes, it lowers the count. A Gate on Sleeper’s Faction Yig’s Spellbook requirement of “Remove one of my
Card is not on the Map. Controlled Gates” can this count as my own Spellbook
requirement of “Remove my Controlled Gate...” or vice
Q. Can Sleeper use Cursed Slumber to place a Gate from versa?
his Faction Card onto the Area containing Yog-Sothoth,
but lacking a normal Gate? A. No. They must be two separate removals. One per
Spellbook.
A. Yes.
Q. Do I benefit from Martyrdom if my High Priest is
Q. If I Move a single Shantak who brings along a Cultist Eliminated in Battle (such as by being Abducted or
(using the Horror Steed ability), does Burrow give me Devoured), but not actually Killed?
a refund of 1 Power?
A. No. Martyrdom only takes effect if the High Priest is
A. No. Burrow gives you a refund based on spending 2 or actually Killed.
more Power during a Move Action, not on Moving 2 or
more Units. In this situation, you would have to pay to Q. Give me an example of how Tablets of the Gods works.
Move at least one more Unit to benefit from Burrow.
A. If the Tcho-Tcho have this Spellbook and perform a
Tcho-Tcho Ritual of Annihilation, then they MUST Eliminate all
of their High Priests, even those who do not qualify for
Q. How does Soulless interact with Gla’aki’s Green Decay Elder Signs. Their only element of choice in the matter
and the Yithian’s Possession abilities? is whether or not they perform the Ritual. They could
sacrifice their High Priests for the Power reward, and
A. Soulless makes the base reward 0 Power. Gla’aki’s Green then do the Ritual.
Decay modifies that reward to be an Elder Sign (meaning
that it overrides Soulless, by changing its reward from
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Q. Can I use Terror to have some of my Proto-Shoggoths A. Despite the fact that Windwalker is not an active
reduce enemy combat, while the rest roll 2 dice each? Faction when Hibernating, he does participate in the
negotiations for how much Power is lost, and he may
A. No. All Proto-Shoggoths must “vibrate” in the same way, choose to lose Power due to Thousand Forms.
so if you have 4 in an Area, you can either roll 8 dice, OR
roll 4 dice and subtract 4 from the enemy dice total; no Q. Normally, when a Faction with 0 Power somehow gains
Mister In-Between. (and if the enemy’s reduction goes to new Power, it re-enters the Action Phase sequence.
below 0, he still just rolls 0. No negative Combat ratings!) What happens if Windwalker under Hibernation gains
Power?
Q. If the Tcho-Tcho Recruit a Unique High Priest, are
they affected by the various abilities of the Tcho-Tcho A. You gain the Power, but remain under the effects of
regarding High Priests (Hierophants, Martyrdom, Hibernation and may take no Actions. You may only
Tablets, etc.) and can they be used to Awaken Ubbo- spend Power when given the option via Spellbooks or
Sathla? abilities. For example, Rhan Tegoth’s Eternal ability can
keep him from being Killed or Pained.
A. Yes to all—the Unique High Priest acts as your other
two “regular” High Priests in every way, EXCEPT that Q. Gnoph-Keh cost depends on the number of Gnoph-
it cannot use the normal Unspeakable Oath ability. High Kehs in the Pool. Please give a precise breakdown.
Priests can only use the abilities on their own Loyalty
Cards. A. If no Gnoph-Kehs are on the Map, Summoning one
costs 4 Power. With one on the Map (and three in the
Q: How does Sycophancy interact with Sleeper while Pool), the cost is 3. With two each in the Pool and on the
using Ancient Sorcery? Map, the third will cost 2, and the final Gnoph-Keh will
only cost 1. Remember that a Gnoph-Keh Captured by
A. Because the Tcho-Tcho Sycophancy unique ability Tsathoggua is not in the Pool, and thus decreases the
applies to the entire Doom Phase, Sleeper can use cost for future Summons!
Ancient Sorcery to gain its benefit throughout that
Phase. In such a case, return the Serpent Man to the Q. If I have no Wendigos in my Pool, and one is Killed in
Map at the very end of the Doom Phase, rather then Battle, can I immediately re-spawn it via Cannibalism
when it is Sleeper’s turn to perform a Ritual, which is (assuming I’d Killed an Enemy Unit in that same
normally when you use abilities in the Doom Phase. Battle)?
Q. With the Hierophants Spellbook, do the Tcho-Tcho A. Yes. Obnoxious, eh? It also works with Cultists.
get to place a free High Priest when they earn an
Independent Great Old One’s Spellbook, too? Q. If Cannibalism is used in a Battle, immediately followed
by Black Goat’s Necrophagy, could the newly placed
A. No, that is not the intent. It reads “Faction Spellbooks.” Acolyte or Wendigo be Pained out?
Otherwise it would be too gross.
A. No, because that particular Acolyte or Wendigo did not
Windwalker participate in the Battle.
Q. If my Serpent Man returns to the Map during the Doom Q. How does Rhan Tegoth’s Eternal ability interact with
Phase (Ancient Sorcery) to an Area with Windwalker’s abilities such as Nyarlathotep’s Harbinger or Cthulhu’s
Ice Age token, do I pay 1 Power? Spellbook requirement that must be fulfilled with a
Kill?
A. No, because returning the Serpent Man is not an
Action—it occurs during the Doom Phase. A. Rhan Tegoth’s Eternal ability only cancels the effect of
a Kill or Pain on Rhan Tegoth itself, not the effect such
Q. How does Windwalker’s Hibernate interact with a result has on other abilities and Spellbooks. In other
Crawling Chaos’ Thousand Forms? words, Nyarlathotep can gain Power or Elder Signs
and Cthulhu can earn a Spellbook when the result is
189
assigned to Rhan Tegoth, even when Eternal is used to Q. If Yog-Sothoth is in the Area in which you Awaken
cancel the effect. Ithaqua, can Yog-Sothoth be the Gate you replace with
Ithaqua?
Q. If Cthugha rolls a Kill on Rhan Tegoth, but the latter
uses Eternal to cancel it, does Cthugha still have a A. If Yog-Sothoth is the only Gate in the Area, then yes. If
chance to spare Rhan Tegoth, too? there is another available Gate, then you must replace
THAT Gate with Ithaqua instead.
A. No, Eternal takes precedence—if Windwalker chooses
to remove the Kill or Pain from Rhan Tegoth, Cthugha Q. Who determines where a Unit is Retreated to when
cannot spare him. Howl is used?
Q. What does it mean in the description of Ice Age when it A. The victim decides which Unit is Retreated, and to
refers to “any Action ending in the Ice Age Area”? which adjacent Area it goes.
A. This describes any Actions involving Units that finish Q. If Windwalker’s Units completely surround an Area
their turn in the Area, or that do something to the Area before a Battle, and Windwalker uses Howl, is the
itself. For example, Units can Move OUT of the Area Retreated Unit Killed (as per the rule that surrounded
for no extra cost. But moving INTO the Area costs an Units must receive an extra Elimination if they cannot
additional Power (not per Unit, just for the entire Move be Pained)?
Action). For other examples, if Yellow Sign tried to
Desecrate the Area, it would cost one additional Power. A. No. It may retreat to an Area containing Windwalker’s
If Cthulhu emerged from Submerge in the Ice Age Area, Units, because Howl does not inflict a Pain.
he would pay one additional Power (but not if he left the
Area via Submerge). Great Cthulhu’s Devolve is not an Q. Can Units retreated due to Howl still use Battle Abilities
Action, so it is still free, though using Dreams would cost that have not yet been activated (such as promoting
him three Power. Black Goat’s Avatar would cost one Units via Million Favored Ones, or Nyarlathotep’s
additional Power as at least one Unit will be ending that Harbinger)?
Action in that Area (even if the Unit ending up in that Area
is not a Black Goat Unit). Opener of the Way’s Units can A. No, they do not participate in the rest of the Battle, and
Promote after Battle and Sleeper can use Death From so cannot use their Abilities.
Below in the Ice Age Area free of cost, as these are not
Actions. If Sleeper declares Lethargy while Tsathoggua Q. Can Howl be used on Map enemies such as Zoogs,
is in the Ice Age Area, it costs one Power. If you use a Bhole, the Watcher, etc.?
multiple-Area Action, such as if you used Mother Hydra’s
Zygote, and placed at least one Recruited Cultist there, it A. Although Howl works on any Unit, rather than the typical
would cost an additional Power. specification of a Monster or Cultist, it does not work
on the larger Map enemies such as the Bhole, Watcher,
Q. Controlling or Abandoning a Gate is defined in the Librarian or Custodian. It would, however, work on
rules as an Unlimited Action that costs 0 Power. Does Zoogs and uncontrolled Slimes. (In the former case, it
this mean it costs 1 Power to Control or Abandon a Eliminates it but does not reflect a Pain back, and in the
Gate if the Ice Age marker is in the Area? latter, you choose where the Slime is sent).
A. No. These are the only two Actions (Controlling a Gate Q. Does Crawling Chaos’ Madness ability allow him to
and Abandoning a Gate) exempted from Ice Age’s Power choose the Area to which victims of Howl are retreated?
tax. Unlimited Battle still costs +1 Power to initiate.
A. No. Howl is a Retreat, not a Pain.
Q. Can Crawling Chaos Units fly over (but not land in) an
Ice Age Area without spending extra Power? Q. Can Windwalker’s Howl retreat a Brain Cylinder on
the Yuggoth map?
A. Yes. They are not ending their Action in that Area!
A. No. Brain Cylinders turn off their sensors, so they don’t
hear the Howl.
190
Q. Can a Ghoul that was forced to Retreat by Howl use A. Yes.
Necrophagy to return to the Area (and add a Pain) after
the Battle? Q. If Shriveling is used on one of Black Goat’s Monsters,
and Black Goat has the Spellbook Thousand Young,
A. Yes. The Ghoul did not participate in the Battle. how much Power does Black Goat receive?
Q. If you have Herald of the Outer Gods, do you still A. The Thousand Young Spellbook changes the cost of
advance the Ritual of Annihilation marker up when each of Black Goat’s Faction Monsters, so Shriveling
paying the 5 Power? would grant Black Goat the reduced cost to Summon.
For example, Black Goat would receive 0 Power when a
A. Yes. Ghoul is Shriveled.
Q. During the Action Phase, if a Player reveals his Elder Q. How many points does the owner get when her Gnoph-
Signs and causes the game to end, does Windwalker Keh is Shriveled?
still get to fulfill his Spellbook requirement which
states “Take this Spellbook at any time”? A. When a Gnoph-Keh is Shriveled, calculate the cost
it would take to Summon it at that moment, not how
A. Yes. Treat this Spellbook requirement similar to the much it would cost to re-Summon it. This means that if
way in which every player may reveal Elder Signs at the Windwalker had all four Gnoph-Keh on the board at the
moment the game ends. This means that Windwalker moment of Shriveling, it would grant him 0 Power.
could also immediately turn in all the Elder Signs he
might receive from fulfilling that Spellbook requirement. Q. Why is The Mao Ceremony worded cumbersomely,
No one said Windwalker played fair! reading “after the minimum Power rule, but before
Determine First Player”?
Q. If one of Windwalker’s Gnoph-Keh has been captured
by Sleeper via Capture Monster, how does this affect A. Because it is always the very last Power to be added—
the Summoning cost of the next Gnoph-Keh? even after the minimum Power rule. This is the only
ability in the game which must take place at that
A. A Gnoph-Keh on Sleeper’s Faction Card is not moment. To be clear, when Mao Ceremony is in play,
considered to be in your Unit Pool. For example, if you first all players tally up their Power, then the minimum
had one Gnoph-Keh in play and one on Sleeper’s Faction Power rule occurs, and finally Mao Ceremony can be
Card, then the next Gnoph-Keh would cost 2 Power to used. (By the way, a High Priest can still be sacrificed for
Summon, because 2 are currently in your Unit Pool. 2 Power at any time, Mao Ceremony notwithstanding).
191
A. While you could take them back onto your Faction Q. Can Yellow Sign spawn Neutral Monsters as the
Card, you cannot flip them. The Spellbook states “flip result of a Desecration Attempt?
it face down to indicate that it cannot be used again.”
This is categorical. It also works this way with Crawling A. Yes, so long as they cost 2 or fewer Power.
Chaos’ Thousand Forms, which won’t flip over until the
following Gather Power Phase. Q. How does Mind Control (the Elder Thing’s ability)
work?
Q. If I use Recriminations to remove another Neutral
Spellbook from my Faction Card, does that Spellbook A. In an Elder Thing’s Area, Cthulhu can’t Devour. He
go back to the general Pool, where anyone can can still use Submerge and Y’Ha Nthlei, as those are
now earn it, or does it remain in my own, exclusive Spellbooks, not Great Old One special abilities. This
Spellbook Pool? ability also works on Independent Great Old Ones (but
only their special abilities, and not their Spellbooks).
A. It goes back to the general, Neutral Spellbook Pool. If a Nyarlathotep can’t use Harbinger, Azathoth can be Killed
Neutral Spellbook is not currently on your Faction Card, with a single Kill result, and so on. Shub-Niggurath can’t
then any Faction may earn it. Avatar out of an Area containing an Elder Thing, but she
could use Avatar to enter an Area containing an Elder
Q. How many points does the owner get when her Ghast Thing because she is not in that Area at the moment
is Shriveled? she uses her Avatar ability. (And the player controlling
Bokrug could lose his Loyalty Card!)
A. Two, since that’s how much a single Ghast costs to
Summon. In some cases, Mind Control can cancel the abilities of
Great Old Ones. For example—if Tsathoggua is in an
Q. What happens when you use Recriminations on a Elder Thing’s Area, then he can’t use Lethargy. If Ithaqua
Spellbook that contains a Moonbeast? is in an Elder Thing’s Area, then Ferox is not in effect for
any of his Cultists (of course, if an Elder Thing is merely
A. The Moonbeast is removed with the Spellbook (costing in the same Area as one of Windwalker’s Cultists, but
nothing to do so) and follows normal rules for returning NOT in Ithaqua’s Area, Ferox is still in effect). Likewise,
it to the Map. Abhoth could put a Filth Token in an Elder Thing’s Area,
so long as Abhoth himself does not share an Area with
an Elder Thing. Some Spellbooks might be affected,
Neutral Monsters even though they are not directly negated by Elder
Things. For example: The King in Yellow can’t Desecrate,
Q. How does Demand Sacrifice interact with the Leng which means that his Third Eye Spellbook can’t be
Spiders’ Bloodthirst? used, either (a similar effect happens to Cthugha and
Ghatanothoa when they have their respective Firestorm
A. Any Pains converted into Kills become single Pains. I and Execration of Mu Spellbooks).
recommend against using Bloodthirst!
Q. Is there any way to get rid of the Servitor of the Outer
Q. How does Bubastis’ Zagazig Spellbook interact with Gods Loyalty Card once it has been given to you?
the Leng Spiders’ Bloodthirst?
A. No.
A. First, Zagazig swaps all rolled Kills and Pains. Then
apply Bloodthirst to the resultant Pains. Q. If I have been given Servitor of the Outer Gods, can I
still gain non-Servitor Monsters by means other than
Q. Can Black Goat Summon a Neutral Monster at the Summoning?
same time as her Faction Monsters?
A. Yes. For example, Windwalker can use Cannibalism to
A. Yes. She may Summon any number of Monsters at place Wendigos, Opener of the Way can promote Units
once, as long as they are hers to Summon. via Million Favored Ones, and Yellow Sign can place via
Desecration attempts. The Servitor of the Outer Gods’
ability only affects normal Summons.
192
Q. Can I use Black Goat’s Fertility Cult ability to Q. If Yellow Sign Recruits a Dimensional Shambler (or
simultaneously Summon all the remaining Servitors Moonbeast) while attempting a Desecration, where
in my Pool, as well as other Monsters? does the Shambler appear?
A. Yes, you can do this as long as no Servitors remain in A. Sadly, in the Desecrated Area, as described in the ability.
your Pool at the end of this Action. This also applies to Moonbeasts.
Q. If the presence of Servitors of the Outer Gods reduces Q. If a Moonbeast is placed on Great Cthulhu’s Submerge
my Combat total to less than zero, what happens? Spellbook when Cthulhu is currently off the map,
does the Great Cthulhu player have to remove the
A. Just leave it at zero. That’s bad enough. Moonbeast before those units can return?
Q. What if I have both Star Vampires and Servitors of A. A Spellbook action or effect that is partly complete
the Outer Gods in the same Area, reducing my overall remains that way and can be completed despite a
Combat dice to less than what the Star Vampires Moonbeast’s cancellation. A new action or effect would
would normally roll, or even 0. How do I roll my Star be prevented. So for example, if Cthulhu has Submerged
Vampire dice “separately”? before the Moonbeast’s arrival, he can emerge. Similarly,
if Sleeper has a Cursed Slumber Gate, it can remain
A. Just go ahead and roll your Star Vampires’ total Combat where it is or return, but a new Gate can’t be Cursed.
dice. In this case, you will actually get to roll Combat
dice, even though your total is technically zero. However, Q. If a Moonbeast is placed on Black Goat’s Red Sign
if your total dice are technically zero, you cannot Declare Spellbook, are Dark Young kicked off of Gates they
Battle. Weird, I know, but if Servitors are in play, you’re were Controlling?
already dealing with multiple realities and alternate
dimensions. And yes, in this case, the Combat results of A. No. However, the Dark Young no longer provides Power
the Star Vampires still DO apply in the Battle, as usual. during the Gather Power phase, and if it leaves the Gate
cannot occupy a new one.
Q. When a Star Vampire rolls a Kill or a Pain, in addition
to the Doom or Power that is drained from the target,
is the Kill or Pain inflicted on the Enemy? Terrors
A. Yes, you always add the Star Vampire’s Combat results
Q. How does the Tcho-Tcho’s Soulless interact with the
to the Battle (even if, as in the question above, you
Yithian’s Possession ability?
technically have zero Combat dice). However, if the
Enemy has no Power (or no Doom), then the Star
A. Soulless makes the base reward 0 Power, rather than
Vampire’s drain does nothing.
1. The Yithian’s Possession adds to whatever the base
reward is, whether 1 or 0. Thus, a Yithian who Captured
Q. What if my Star Vampires roll more Kill and/or Pain
a Soulless Tcho-Tcho still provides at least 1 Power.
results than there are Enemy Units in the Battle?
Q. If my Great Old One shares an enemy Cacodemon’s
A. You still get to take the Doom and/or Power from
Area, can I pain other non-Great Old One Units into
your Enemy, even if some of the Battle results are not
that Area?
applied to Enemy Units (unless, of course, your Enemy
doesn’t have enough Doom or Power to take). This also
A. No. They are not accompanied by a Great Old One.
means, for example, that if Rhan Tegoth uses his Eternal
ability when fighting your Star Vampires, you still get to
Q. If the Shadow Pharaoh is on the Moon, what happens
take the Doom or Power if a Kill or Pain was initially
to Bubastis’ control of the Moon Gate?
assigned to Rhan Tegoth! Likewise, if your Star Vampire
rolls a Kill against Nyarlathotep when he is protected by
A. Nothing. Like Yog-Sothoth, Bubastis’ Moon Gate is
Emissary of the Outer Gods, you get 1 Doom but the Kill
inherent and always present.
is reduced to a Pain (as per Emissary).
193
A. The Ancients are ignored for the purpose of Azathoth’s
Independent Great spellbook requirement.
Q. Can Azathoth absorb more than one Kill result in a Chaugnar Faugn
single Battle?
Q. If I have a Controlled Gate and only Units with 0
A. No. Combat, can I declare Battle due to Miri Nigri?
Q. How much Power can Nyarlathotep get when he Pains A. Yes! Although Miri Nigri does not technically add 3
or Kills Azathoth in Battle (under Harbinger)? Combat to a particular Unit (as with Absorb), the fact
that you will roll Combat dice means that you can
A. Zero. Technically, Azathoth costs 0 Power to Awaken. initiate Battle even if all you have is a single Cultist (on
The one die plus 2 Power you pay to Awaken him is a that Gate) in the Area.
loss, not a cost. Nyarlathotep can get at most 2 Elder
Signs when fighting Azathoth. Q. Chaugnar Faugn’s Miri Nigri ability gives Gates 3
Combat dice. Does this apply to Yog-Sothoth?
Q. What happens when Azathoth is surrounded by Enemy
Units he just Battled, and he receives a Pain? A. Yes! For example, if there are 4 Enemy Great Old
Ones on the Map and an Opener-Controlled Chaugnar
A. Treat it as if he received a Kill and roll a die. Faugn, then Yog-Sothoth’s Combat would be 11 (8 + 3).
However, if Opener also Controlled a normal Gate in the
Q. What happens when Azathoth is chosen to receive a same Area as Yog-Sothoth, you would still only add 3 to
Kill as a result of Dread Curse of Azathoth (since no your Combat in that Area, not 6. The ability reads “in an
Battle abilities apply)? Area,” which means that you only get the Combat bonus
once per Area, rather than once per Gate.
A. Azathoth’s special ability is Ongoing and not a Battle
ability, so just reduce his Combat by a d6. (Yog-Sothoth Cthugha
can’t use Azathoth’s own curse against him, you
cadaverous fool! But because Azathoth is the Blind Idiot Q. If Cthugha rolls a Kill on Rhan Tegoth, but the latter
God, he can still harm himself somewhat). uses Eternal to cancel it, does Cthugha still have a
chance to spare Rhan Tegoth, too?
Q. Is Azathoth’s spellbook requirement; “...all players
must have at least one Great Old One in play...”, A. No, Eternal takes precedence—if Windwalker chooses
achievable after The Ancients have all 4 Cathedrals in to remove the Kill or Pain from Rhan Tegoth, Cthugha
play? cannot spare him.
194
Q. Does Cthugha copy the combat of Elder Gods? Nodens
A. Cthugha rolls no dice when facing an Elder God, and Q. If Nodens copies The Ancients’ Extinction Spellbook,
gets no further benefit vs. Elder Gods. is He removed from the game upon being killed or
eliminated?
Q. When Awakened by Daemon Sultan, how much power
does Cthugha cost? A. Yes. But at least He was cheaper to Awaken.
Eihort A. Yes.
Q. Can a Brood be Moved via Cursed Slumber, since it’s Q. Can two Nyogtha Units in the same Area cause two
not really a “movement-like” ability? Battles to happen in that Area?
A. No, you may not use Cursed Slumber on a Brood, as you A. No.
can go to another Area on the Map! Brood are already in
a terrible slumber… Q. If only one of the two Nyogtha Units is Killed or
Eliminated in Battle, does this trigger any effects
related to the Elimination of a Great Old One?
Gla’aki
A. No, both Nyogtha Units must be Killed / Eliminated.
Q. How does the Tcho-Tcho’s Soulless interact with
Gla’aki’s Green Decay? Q. Can Nyarlathotep get 4 Elder Signs for hitting both
Nyogtha figures in the same Area or is he awarded 2
A. Soulless makes the base reward 0 Power, rather than since it is the same Great Old One?
1. Gla’aki’s Green Decay modifies that reward to be
an Elder Sign (meaning that it overrides Soulless by A. He only gets 2, whether he Kills or Pains one or both
changing its reward from Power to an Elder Sign). Nyogtha figures.
195
Q. If a Nyogtha Unit is Killed in Battle, but the other Unit In this situation, Moving Yog-Sothoth to Citadel 4 would
survives in a different Area, does this count towards give you the win.
Nyogtha’s Spellbook requirement?
Q. What happens if I fight three Zoogs and roll two Kills
A. No. All Nyogtha Units in the Areas where the Battle(s) and three Pains? How many of my Units are affected by
happened must survive. the reflected Pains?
196
Q. Does the Shantaks’ Horror Steed ability allow it to Primeval Map
Move freely between the two maps?
Q. I think the Map layout for Primeval Earth is interest-
A. Yes. ing, and I would like to try playing it in a normal game,
without the Glaciers. Would this work?
Library at Celaeno Map
A. It’s your game. Give it a try! Then try Glaciers on Yuggoth!
Q. If the Custodian Moves my Units to The Oubliette, and
an Abandoned Gate is there, can I immediately occupy Q. If Opener of the Way uses Beyond One to Move a Gate
it? from a Glacier-infested Area to a clear Area, does the
Glacier travel with the Gate?
A. Only when it is your turn to take an Action.
A. No. The Glacier is removed from the Gate in this case. If
Q. To Battle the player who currently has the Barrier of a Gate is Moved to where there is a Glacier, the Glacier
Naach Tith Tome, must I release a Captured Cultist immediately pops on top of it.
from that Faction?
Q. How do the Glaciers work with Cursed Slumber?
A. No. You can release a Captured Cultist from any Faction
to bypass the Barrier. A. Since you can only use Cursed Slumber with a
Controlled Gate, then you may not use it in an Area
Q. What if I want to Battle the owner of Barrier of Naach already containing a Glacier. However, if you place a
Tith, and I don’t have a Captured Cultist, a Silence Cursed Slumbering Gate back on the Map onto an Area
Token, nor an Elder Sign? with a Glacier, then the Cultist must immediately step off
the Gate.
A. You can’t declare Battle on that Faction. Do something
else. Q. Can Opener’s They Break Through Spellbook be used
to Summon Monsters at a Gate covered by a Glacier?
Q. One of the options for Yr and Nhhngr says you gain
2 Power, but the Action itself costs 1 Power. Is this A. Yes. They Break Through permits you to Summon at
basically a net gain of 1 Power? Abandoned Gates.
A. Yes, but you must have had at least one Power to take Q. In the first Doom Phase, do I add a Glacier to the Start
the Action. Areas of Factions not in this game?
197
Q. Does Yellow Sign get his Passion Power when his A. The Dark Rituals Spellbook works normally - but since
cultists are Eradicated? no High Priest may move to an Eradicated area, factions
whose Start Areas are gone are immune.
A. Yes.
Yuggoth Map
Q. Does Yog-Sothoth give Opener two Elder Signs if he is
Eradicated? Q. Can Cthulhu get his Kill Spellbook requirements from
scoring a Kill on the Watcher?
A. Yes, because he is not only a faction Great Old One but
also a Gate. You’d also get 1 Power, since he is a Unit. A. Yes! (But not for Devour, since that doesn’t affect the
Watcher).
Q. Can Windwalker use Cosmic Power to pay 8 Power
and summon Ithaqua “on top of” Yog-Sothoth, thus Q. I have two Units in an Area, one of which is a Brain
killing the latter? Cylinder. In Battle, the enemy rolls one Kill and one
Pain. What are my options?
A. Only if Yog-Sothoth is the only Gate in the Area.
Otherwise, Windwalker must destroy the normal Gate. A. Kills are always assigned first. If you assign the Kill to
the Cylinder, it dies and the other Unit is Pained. If you
Q. Can a Worm of Groth be placed on the Bubastis Moon assign the Kill to the other Unit, then the Pain is ignored.
tile?
Q. Can Windwalker’s Howl Retreat a Brain Cylinder?
A. No, it is not considered adjacent to any Area except for
Bubastis, and cats don't bring Worms home. A. No. Brain Cylinders turn off their sensors, so they don’t
hear the Howl.
Q. How does the Bubastis faction fulfill the Spellbook
requirement: “...a Cat is in every other faction’s Start Q. Does Black Goat’s Frenzy affect Brain Cylinders?
Area...” when starting Areas are destroyed?
A. Yes. This represents them casting spells, planning
A. Bubastis is allowed to use the "Pay 6 Power" rule but strategy, or cheering others on.
not the "Pay 2 Power" rule even though the Moon can't
have a Worm. Cats are like that. Q. How does Yellow Sign’s Passion Spellbook apply to
Brain Cylinders?
Q. Does a Retreat across a destroyed Area on the Shaggai
Map also cost an Elimination to the Retreating Units? A. When a Brain Cylinder is either directly Captured or
Converted to an Enemy Brain Cylinder, Yellow Sign
A. You cannot Retreat across an Eradicated Area. If you gains 1 Power if Passion is in play (his Cultist has been
cannot Retreat due to this, you lose a Unit as with any lost!). Of course, Yellow Sign does not gain 1 Power
other blocked Pain result. when removing his own Acolyte in order to replace it
with a Brain Cylinder.
Q. Can Bubastis ignore Eradicated Areas for the “Be in
all Start Areas” Spellbook requirement? Q. How does Ghatanothoa’s Mummify ability affect Brain
Cylinders?
A. No. But She can use the “Pay 6 Power” rule.
A. Brain Cylinders are immune to Mummify. They are only
Q. Can the Daemon Sultan’s Chaos Gate move through a brains, and according to Lovecraft, they are not affected
destroyed area with Animate Matter? by the mummification process. Also, Mummify specifies
“Acolyte Cultist,” you n00b.
A. Yes, but the Controlling Unit is Eliminated.
198
Q. If a Battle takes place on the Slime Sea Overlook and
the Gate’s Controller is Pained or Killed, can his enemy
Retreat into an adjacent Area containing only Slimes?
A. No.
A. No, Slime Molds may only be placed via the Call Slime
Mold Action.
199
Designer's Notes
power. You never get to see Cthulhu with all his “toys”—
telepathic visions blanketing the earth, mountains of
protoplasm rising from the sea, et cetera.
Many years ago I wrote an unusual tabletop roleplaying
I made a few tries at running a role-playing campaign set in
game named Call of Cthulhu, which changed my life. I
expected it to be a minor cult game that a few would love a “post-Cthulhu-holocaust” world. These were abortive, but
and others would ignore. I certainly never expected it the concept fired my imagination and it lurked in my mind
to become as well-known as it did, spawning numerous for decades.
spin-offs and imitations. It transformed me from a humble
graduate student into a full-time game designer. The years of 2011–2012 were a dark time in my life. I had
left my job to become a partner at a tiny, ultimately-failed
In Call of Cthulhu I created a pattern for gamers to use to game company, and had been without gainful employment
allow them to interact with the loathsome monsters from for almost two years. I had tried to use crowdfunding to get
Lovecraft’s tales. Basically, they were heroic investigators support for a Cthulhu phone game, and it failed utterly. My
facing off against creepy monsters and cultists. This partner, Rob Atkins, convinced me to try to launch a tabletop
proved to be a powerful concept, and pretty much every board game. I was doubtful, but I gave it a shot. My theory
single Lovecraftian game since then has followed this was that it might make a couple hundred thousand dollars
example: Arkham Horror, Dark Corners of the Earth, for myself and my partners, and perhaps set up some sort of
even Pandemic: Reign of Cthulhu. But all of these games, small cash cow as supplemental income. In the meantime,
including my own, ended before the Elder Gods’ return to I sought employment elsewhere.
It was my belief that this crowdfunded game would be the but he proved ideal for the task of illustrating Lovecraft’s
very last game that I, Sandy Petersen, would ever create creations. All went well.
entirely from my own mind. I had full expectations of working
on other people’s assignments for the rest of my life. (I’m not Then, we launched our campaign. By this time my hopes
complaining. This is typical for a game designer; we rarely were higher; I was now hoping to gross as much as $300–
get to pick the topics of our games.) So, as as this would be 400K. This was my swan song and I was excited to see how
my last personal game, I pulled out all the stops. I wanted it would do. Well, it earned well over a million dollars, vastly
this to be the ultimate Lovecraft game. I wanted the best art, exceeding my hopes, dreams, prayers, and expectations! It
the coolest plastic figures (all in 28mm scale so I could use also turned out to be a monstrous game to create, requiring
them in Call of Cthulhu), asymmetric strategy (my favorite our factory to invent new processes. The million dollars we
play element), colorful components, fast-moving gameplay, earned was barely enough to cover our costs!
and of course, emphasizing the theme of post-Cthulhu
holocaust. But if Cthulhu awakens to take over the world, In the end, I am grateful to all who believed in me and to
who could stop him? Only other Great Old Ones, of course! everyone who bought this game. It turned my swan song
This became my theme. As I said, my wife and I were out into a phoenix—my rebirth. The success of Cthulhu Wars
of cash at the time, and we needed this game to succeed. launched my new company, Petersen Games, and now we
As believers, we prayed for the project’s success. The game have several games under our belt (mostly designed by me).
flowed out of my mind and into reality at an amazing pace. We intend to keep moving forward and try to surprise our
No other game I’ve worked on had ever gone this smoothly. fans pleasingly. Thank you for your support.
My artist, Richard Luong, knew nothing about Lovecraft, —Sandy Petersen
Yig Daoloth
Credits Ed Fortae James van Schaik
203
Playtest Brain Cylinders
David Amarasinghe, Joe Anaszewicz, Amit
Arnon, Chuck Bartholomew, Frank Bauroth,
Ryan Beall, Kyle Beasley, Sasha Begovic,
Jamie Bergman, Jazcek Jon Bolt! \o/, Braden,
Simon Cailly, Alex Celler, Jonathan Cohen,
David Coon, John Coon, Peter Dannenberg,
Mike Davis, Ben Donges, Patrick Fenn, Angela
Fleider, Rich Fleider, Brad Gaffney, Nick Gaffney,
Bardo J. García Martínez, Frédéric Goxe,
Pat Guarino, Ell Hamilton, Aaron Harvey,
Jared Harvey, Joseph Harvey, Brian Hehmann,
Guy Hoyle, Mike Junio, Fabian Kuechler,
Chris Lemens, Andrew Lucio, Julio Luna, David Malecek,
Dave Mendiola, Luke Murthwaite, Chase Norton,
Shovaen Patel, Arthur Petersen, Grant Petersen, Lincoln
Petersen, Spencer Petersen, Greg Robertson, Ajay Sims,
Paul Slusser, Ian Starcher, Adam Starks, Sam Tyler,
Lukas Vodicka, Jessica Watkins, Craig Whithead, Lori
Wilson, Pedro Ziviani.
Proof Readers
Alexander Büchöl, John Card II, Alex Celler, Paul Ellis,
Sean D. Ford, Josh Kocher, J. Jason Lau, Ulrich Lehmann,
Ville Mankinen, David Maiden Mueller, Luke Murthwaite,
Chase Norton, Zachary Petriw, Ivan V. A. N. Slipper,
Antonio H. G. Vieira.
Special Thanks
from Beyond Time and Space
Ameliazoth, Henry Akeley, Donovan Albanesi, Ben
Ayerbach, Lloydy Boy, Craig Brown, Sean Brulet,
Anthony Callison, Randolph Carter, Alex Celler, Squirrel
Eiserloh, David Evans, Gearbox Software, Eric Glasgow,
Ian Guistino, Susan Guistino, Vance Hampton, John
Hannasch, Cyran J. Harrington, Ken Harward, Jason
Harvey, Seth Harvey, Michelle Harvey, Justin Hoeger, Jerry
Howland, Mike Langlois, Joey Larsen, Michelle Larsen,
Hector-Xavier de Lastic, John Raymond Legrasse, Cora
Lemens, Tara Lemens, Reed Little, Andrew Lucio, Tiffany
Lucio, Johnny Lundell, Ryan Medeiros, Dave Mendiola,
Mius, Justin Moe, Chris Mortin, Christopher Musgrave,
Jeff Okamoto, Dan Pepin, Deborah Petersen, Elizabeth
Petersen, Wendy Petersen, Ben Pope, Brian Pope, Aaron
Porter, Rayden Porter, Rylee Porter, Andrew Olson,
Kolby Reddish, Greg Robertson, Stephen Robertson,
Graham Robinson, Robot Entertainment, Eric Saxton,
Adam Starks, Ryan Stelly, Jordon Trebas, Wilbur Whateley,
Jim Wilson, and Naomi the Pup of Tindalos.
“He spoke very gently of
—H.P. Lovecraft
205
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