Play@YSDC

Eldritch Horror,I played as Leo Anderson, the Expedition Leader, and I was up against Cthulhu. I started in Buenos Aires with HIred Muscle. A Gate opened in Rome, and a Cultist spawned there. The Active Expedition was in the Amazon, which was luckily right next door. A Clue token appeared in the Australian outback. The initial mystery I faced was that Cthulhu's daughter Cthylla surfaced in the sea between Buenos Aires and Antarctica. Even though she was only one space away, I didn't see how I could defeat her, but I had to do it in order to advance to the next mystery. The first thing I did was try to Acquire Assets. On offer in the Reserve were a .38 revolver (cheap), a double-barrelled shotgun (very expensive), a card that would heal all Health and Sanity (didn't need it yet), and an Agency Quarantine (also very expensive). This last card deals 4 damage to all monsters on a given space. I was lucky enough to roll boxcars on my Influence roll, and with the help of a Bank Loan I was barely able to get it. It did enough damage to take out Cthylla, who would have been hard to beat in a fight even with the shotgun - not to mention that it would have taken me extra travel time and I'd have lost Sanity and possibly Health in the process. This way, I took her out and cleared the mystery on the first turn (lucky I did, or she'd have sent Deep Ones after me periodically)! Actually, i was only halfway done the first turn, as I still had my second action, so I went to the Amazon. I encountered the expedition and found an Artifact, a Gate Box. I never ended up using it, as I didn't get around to encountering any Gates and exploring Other Worlds. I also picked up a Clue. In the Mythos phase, another Gate opened in San Francisco and a Ghoul emerged. No sooner had I taken out the loan than someone came after me to collect, but he didn't want money - he was after my very soul! Fortunately, I was able to withstand him (my bonus die for being in the wilderness helped there) There was an earthquake that destroyed the Active Expedition (currently the Pyramids) and injured anyone in or next to that space. It would have been the Amazon had I not encountered that expedition. The next mystery was also revealed. The stars were now right, and Cthulhu's worshippers began to take to the seas and gather, anticipating his return. The Clue in Australia moved into the South Pacific between Sydney and Buenos Aires, and all I needed to do to complete that mystery was to get a Clue from a research encounter there. I returned to Buenos Aires and went shopping, but I flubbed my Influence roll and got nothing. I discarded the healing Asset card, which was replaced by a helpful Ally, the Arcane Scholar. I encountered some Deep Ones performing a ritual, but I failed my Lore roll and wasn't able to learn a spell; I just lost some Sanity instead. However, the Mythos card helped me out, and I was able to get that Sanity right back. It also opened a Gate in London, and a Gnoph-Keh entered the world and made its way to the Himalayas. On the third turn, I went shopping again and picked up the Lucky Rabbit's Foot, which was replaced by a Personal Assistant. Then I set out to sea to search for the Clue. A Deep One surfaced and attacked. I lost a Sanity, but I was able to defeat it easily and picked up that Clue (which I used to solve the mystery) and an extra one. The next Mythos card was a Rumor, which spawned the Spinner of Webs in Greenland. Eventually it would cause me to lose the game if I didn't defeat it first, but I was confident I'd be able to win before that happened, as I'd now solved two of the required three mysteries in three turns. A Clue also appeared at the Pyramids. The third mystery was that R'lyeh rose from the sea - exactly in my current location! I needed to explore the island and get an Eldritch token from the special encounters there to win. On the fourth turn, I spent one action to use my special ability to try to recruit an Ally, but I failed the Influence roll. Then I rested to recover my Sanity. I failed the Lore roll in my R'lyeh encounter, and the Doom track advanced, but it still had quite a way to go before Cthulhu awoke. The Mythos card was another Rumor, this one in the North Atlantic. I could have dealt with it, but I was right where I needed to be to win the game. On the fifth turn, I tried to recruit again, and this time I succeeded. I chose the Arcane Scholar, as I had a feeling I'd need Lore, and I was right. A Witch Doctor replaced him in the Reserve. I passed on the second action, as there was nothing else I could do on that spot. My next R'lyeh encounter required a hard Will roll first, which I passed. Then there was a hard Lore roll, which I passed with the help of my Arcane Scholar. The Mythos card and active Rumors had some effects before the game officially ended, but I had won handily. I'd figured out how to send R'lyeh back to the bottom of the sea, returning Cthulhu to his slumber...until the next time the stars come right! It was a great game, and I haven't even seen most of it yet. I spent all of my time on only three spaces (and half of it on a single space), and I'd won in just five turns, which was quick, but I was lucky. The special decks for each Ancient One ensure that the core encounters remain thematic, and that the game plays differently for each of them. I'd like to play again, but I do have a pile of other games I haven't even tried once yet that I'd like to play first before I give it another go.