Games/Elder Sign

Elder Sign

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/elder-sign/

We shall see that at which dogs howl in the dark, and that at which cats prick up their ears after midnight.
–H.P. Lovecraft, “From Beyond”

It is 1926, and the museum’s exotic curios and occult artifacts open barriers between our world and the elder evils lurking between dimensions. Other Worlds begin to leak through and terrifying creatures of increasing strength steal through them. Animals, the mad, and those of susceptible minds are driven to desperation by the supernatural forces that the portals unleash. In the midst of this chaos, a handful of investigators race against time to locate the eldritch symbols necessary to seal the portals forever and stop evil Ancient Ones from reducing humanity to cinders.

Elder Sign is a fast-paced, cooperative dice game of supernatural intrigue for one to eight players by Richard Launius and Kevin Wilson, the designers of Arkham Horror. Players take the roles of investigators racing against time to stave off the imminent return of the Ancient Ones. Armed with cards for tools, allies, and occult knowledge, investigators must put their sanity and stamina to the test as they adventure to locate Elder Signs, the eldritch symbols used to seal away the Ancient Ones and win the game.

Expansions

Unseen Forces (2013)

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/elder-sign/products/unseen-forces/

Unseen Forces are at work in the first expansion for Elder Sign, the cooperative dice game for one to eight players set in the world of H.P. Lovecraft’s weird fiction. Mysterious powers subtly grant blessings and level curses at your investigators. Master Mythos cards present horrifying new challenges for veteran players, and Entrance Cards offer players new options and new locations to visit. Two custom dice along with new Ancient Ones, investigators, monsters, and adventures await in Elder Sign: Unseen Forces!

Elder Sign: Unseen Forces includes:

• Two new custom dice
• Seventy-six mini cards
• Sixty-three tarot size cards
• Forty two tokens
• One rulebook

Gates of Arkham (2015)

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/elder-sign/products/gates-of-arkham/

The struggle against the Ancient Ones spreads out of the museum and into the haunted city of Arkham in the Gates of Arkham expansion for Elder Sign. Adventures take place in over twenty locations including Velma’s Diner and the Curiositie Shoppe, Arkham Asylum and the Uninvited Isle. Meanwhile, gates to Other Worlds open throughout Arkham, destabilizing time and space.

Four new Ancient Ones threaten humanity and eight new investigators join the quest for elder signs. Investigators can also now acquire skills that give them lasting advantages. Memberships in either the brutal Sheldon Gang or the mysterious Silver Twilight Lodge help investigators complete tasks and grant them added rewards. It will take all the skills, resources, strength, and sanity you can muster to prevent the Ancient Ones from awakening – and to stay alive in the rough streets of Arkham.

Gates of Arkham contains:

• A complete deck of Arkham Adventure cards and Other World cards
• Eight Investigators and four Ancient Ones
• Twenty-five Event cards and thirty Mythos cards
• Eight Memberships and twelve Skill cards
• Additional items, spells, allies, gate markers, monsters and more

Omens of Ice (2016)

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/elder-sign/products/omens-ice/

Venture into the far north and combat ancient American horrors in Omens of Ice, an expansion for the cooperative dice game Elder Sign. Deep in the Alaskan wilderness Ancient Ones are awakening whose diabolical forces cannot be fought within the safe confines of the Arkham Museum. You must brave the Tundra, solve the mysteries of native Inuit traditions, and make the treacherous ascent up the mountains of the Alaska Range. There, wild animals and monsters are far from the only dangers you’ll encounter, for frostbite and starvation are among the Ancient Ones’ deadliest weapons.

Omens of Ice features a complete deck of sixty Alaskan Adventure cards. They open up locations across that frozen territory, where three new Ancient Ones threaten to awaken, and a new deck of Mythos cards makes midnight more terrifying than ever. For the first time in Elder Sign, the season matters as much as the time of day, and you can choose whether to take up your quest in the summer sun or, for a greater challenge, the winter dark. Eight additional investigators contribute their abilities to the struggle against evil, and new Allies, Spells, Common Items and Unique Items help you prevent the freezing of the entire Earth.

Grave Consequences (2016)

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/elder-sign/products/grave-consequences/

Designed by Richard Launius, the creator of Arkham Horror, the Grave Consequences expansion for Elder Sign introduces fifty new cards in three modular decks: Phobia, Epic Battle, and Epitaph.

• Phobia cards give investigators lasting negative effects.
• Epitaph cards build a tiny graveyard for the fallen.
• Epic Battle cards ramp up the difficulty and danger when battling the Ancient One.

All three of these decks and their cards can be used together or separately, and they’re all fully compatible with the core game, as well as all of its expansions. Whether you use one deck, or all of them, you’ll find they increase the challenge and drama of your Elder Sign adventure. Even more, they’ll immerse you more deeply into its world and help you connect more fully to the investigator that you're playing.

Omens of the Deep (2017)

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/elder-sign/products/omens-of-the-deep/

The murky depths of the Pacific ocean conceal untold horrors in Omens of the Deep, a new expansion for Elder Sign, the cooperative dice game steeped in the lore of H.P. Lovecraft’s terrifying mythos. Based on the popular The Call of Cthulhu expansion for the Elder Sign: Omens app, players can now venture forth from the confines of the museum and board The Ultima Thule to combat the Ancient Ones that have begun to stir in the depths of the Pacific.

The new R’lyeh Rising mode of gameplay features two stages as you first navigate the Dark Waters track and then assemble the Amulet of R’lyeh to stop one of three dangerous new Ancient Ones from waking and devouring the world. Engage the newly introduced mission tokens for hard-won rewards and fend off the dogged Deep One Legion as your investigators move to unknown dangers on the Pacific Adventure cards. The depths of the Pacific are filled with fresh terrors that only the bravest can attempt to seal with the power of the Elder Signs in the Omens of the Deep expansion for Elder Sign!