“In the days of the Kings most of the High Elves that still lingered in Middle-earth dwelt with Círdan or in the seawards lands of Lindon. If any now remain they are few.”
     –J.R.R. Tolkien, Appendix A

One of the greatest things about The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game is the way it reinvents itself with each new cycle and each new scenario. The structural flexibility of the game’s quest and encounter decks permit a seemingly endless array of heroic quests, perilous dungeon crawls, epic battles, and sinister mysteries. From the shadows of Mirkwood, the game has delved into the heart of Khazad-dûm, traveled through the forests of Ithilien, and ventured into the tainted realms of Angmar.

Each new adventure has heralded new challenges and afforded new experiences. And each new Nightmare Deck has taken one of those experiences and rarified it into something just a little darker, a little deadlier, and a little bit more focused—filled with terrifying surprises certain to trip the unwary travelers who fall back to their tried-and-true strategies.

Now three more of these Nightmare Decks are available via FFG’s in-house factory. Combined in a single package of 62 cards, The Grey Havens Nightmare Decks hit like a sudden squall, dramatically changing the course of the nautical adventures The Grey Havens expansion first allowed you to enjoy aboard the Dream-chaser and west of the shores of Middle-earth.

For a more detailed look at how these Nightmare Decks modify the expansion’s three scenarios, we turn to developer Matt Newman.

Voyage Across Belegaer

The first scenario in The Grey Havens, Voyage Across Belegaer was originally designed as a tutorial to introduce the new rules for sailing, ships, and boarding that the expansion introduced. These new mechanics changed up the ways that players quest and the ways they perceive enemies in the staging area, so it seemed natural to offer players a chance to experience these new mechanics for the first time in a scenario that was basically “what you see is what you get.”

That said, the scenario had one more aspect of interest in its quest deck, which contained many different Stage 2 quests, and players needed to sail through them one by one, although they could skip one each time they completed a stage while staying on-course.

For the Voyage Across Belegaer Nightmare Deck, I had two primary goals, and they ensured the scenario would no longer—by any means—be considered an introductory tutorial.

• My first goal was to ensure confrontation between the players and the Corsairs, since the original version made it possible—desirable, even—to try to stay under the radar and avoid enemies.
• The second was to make Sailing tests more difficult. The gloves are off in Nightmare Mode, after all!

To that end, two new Stage 2 quests are included in this version of the scenario,

Corsair Confrontation

(Voyage Across Belegaer Nightmare Deck, 2) and

Lost at Sea

(Voyage Across Belegaer Nightmare Deck, 3), and each requires the players to deal with Corsairs or Sailing tests.

There are also new enemies, new ship enemies, and new locations that replace some of the easier cards from the original version. These cards test the players’ ability to manage their ships, their heading, their progress, and their threat simultaneously. Finally, there is a new treachery with a deadly effect that triggers not when it is revealed from the encounter deck, but when it is discarded during a Sailing test, dealing damage to every character committed to the test.

In the end, this scenario has been transformed from an introductory tutorial into a grueling and deadly voyage across the ocean that you will be hard-pressed to survive!

The Fate of Númenor

When we designed the Nightmare version of The Fate of Númenor, we knew we wanted to work with its double-sided locations, and we ultimately decided the best way was to create a whole new set of them, creating some new ones and reprinting some of the originals. The result is that you’ll recognize some familiar locations, but you’ll also stumble into such terrifying new locations as

Desecrated Grounds

(The Fate of Númenor, 7).

Another change in this scenario comes from the

Nightmare Setup card

(The Fate of Númenor, 1), which guarantees that players at Stage 2 cannot stumble into the Shrine to Morgoth too early. In Nightmare Mode, you must explore more of the uncharted locations in the staging area before you can find the Shrine.

Finally, many of the new enemy and treachery cards in the Nightmare version of this quest enhance its manipulation of the bottom of your deck, and these cards tend to become more powerful the lower the cost of the cards in your deck.

While this theme was explored in the original scenario, it really reaches critical mass in Nightmare mode, with cards like

Corrupted Flora

(The Fate of Númenor, 11), which removes characters from the quest and deals damage. My personal favorite is

Guardian of the Golden King

(The Fate of Númenor, 9), a powerful opponent who can remove attacking characters from combat.

When you play this deadly new version of The Fate of Númenor, you’ll definitely want to stick close to

Calphon’s

(The Grey Havens, 28) side.

Raid on the Grey Havens

The climactic scenario from The Grey Havens, Raid on the Grey Havens had players on the defensive, protecting the ships in the Grey Havens from attack by deadly Corsairs.

One of the things I loved about this quest was the Aflame version of the Dream-chaser that felt really tragic and personal to me. I wanted each of the players to feel this personal connection to the quest, so the first thing I did in the Nightmare version of this quest was add a new Aflame version of the rest of the Dream-chaser’s fleet—the

Nárelenya

(Raid on the Grey Havens, 6), the

Dawn Star

(Raid on the Grey Havens, 7), and the

(Raid on the Grey Havens, 8).

Each of these has a Forced effect that mirrors the ship’s original ability, dealing damage to the ship if triggered. These new locations also advance one of this Nightmare Deck’s greatest goals—to burn more ships to the ground! The more Ship locations you have in play—and the more you have damage dealt to them—the more likely you are to lose from

The Havens Burn

(The Grey Havens, 38), which amplifies the quest’s tension and excitement.

The other major goal we pursued with this version of the quest is to make the battle with

Captain Sahír

(The Grey Havens, 76) and

Na’asiyah

(The Grey Havens, 78) deadlier and more thrilling. The new version of Stage 2,

Sahír’s Advance

(Raid on the Grey Havens, 2), works toward this goal.

First, it does away with the ability to remove damage from locations by questing successfully, which means Aflame locations and The Havens Burn remain a huge threat during Stage 2. Second, Na’asiyah actually supports her captain during this stage, adding her resources to his throughout the battle. Finally, both Na’asiyah and Sahír must be defeated in order for the players to win. No longer can players effectively ignore Na’asiyah and go straight for Sahír; they must contend with both of them fighting in unison!

These new threats, along with those posed by its new Raider enemies, Aflame locations, and treachery cards, should make the scenario a harrowing experience even for experienced The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game players!

Face the Raging Seas

Continuing in the greatest traditions of The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game, The Grey Havens Nightmare Decks build upon the game’s versatile framework—and the thrilling adventures from The Grey Havens expansion—to offer you bold, colorful, and thematic new experiences in the world of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth.

Are you ready to face these deadly new challenges? Pick up your copy of The Grey Havens Nightmare Decks today!

“Taking risks is what makes it fun!”
–Kabonesa Wu

Life on Mars is defined by hardships. Mining accidents, radiation poison, and ancient grudges keep the life expectancy down. There’s simply not enough water to go around, and too much blood has been spilled over the planet’s red deserts. 

An outsider—someone accustomed to the on-demand comforts of life in New Angeles—might expect to find the citizens of Mars downtrodden and depressed. But unless you’re actually two klicks deep in one of Whampoa’s infamous mines, you’ll probably see more than a few smiles on the faces of the Martians around you that could rival the famous grin of Haarpsichord’s latest star.

Blood and Water, the fourth Data Pack in the Red Sand cycle for Android: Netrunner is on sale now and introduces sixty new cards (three copies each of twenty unique cards) that explore not only the everyday hardships of life on Mars, but also the exciting new thrills that can’t be found anywhere else in the galaxy!

Come for the Tech

The challenges of Mars can prove irresistible to runners with an innovative streak. And the hardware developed by these runners reflects the joy they take in overcoming obstacles. Both Los’ preferred console,

Maui

(Blood and Water, 63), and the mysterious

Daredevil

(Blood and Water, 66) console, reward players for running against servers protected by multiple pieces of ice. 

Criminals have always presented a significant threat to the Corp’s HQ. While cards like

HQ Interface

(Humanity’s Shadow, 85) and

Legwork

(Honor and Profit, 35) offer them multiple chances at finding an agenda, other cards, including

Political Operative

(Democracy and Dogma, 43) and

Emergency Shutdown

(Cyber Exodus, 43), let them wreak havoc on the Corp’s board state after they’ve made a successful attack. It’s no surprise, then, that most Corp players defend HQ as heavily as they can when they see a Criminal ID hit the table. 

Maui tilts this strategy against the Corp by giving the Runner a recurring credit for each piece of ice protecting HQ. These credits can only be used while running against HQ—and if you’re playing blue, you were going to do that anyway, right?—but advantageously, they can be used for anything, even if the ice protecting HQ isn’t rezzed. So, if your opponent can’t afford to rez those three pieces of ice you just

Exploited

(Daedalus Complex, 4), you have three credits for your first Psi-game to steal

The Future Perfect

(Honor and Profit, 7) or to pay for trashing any assets you find there.

Meanwhile, Daredevil rewards Shapers with two cards for running against any server protected by at least two pieces of ice. Although it only offers them this reward once per turn, the tempo advantage is significant for players who want to dig up some

Dirty Laundry

(Creation and Control, 52) and find their next

Sure Gamble

(Core Set, 50) simultaneously. It may be even more significant for Shapers like

Smoke

(Intervention, 66) who can use recurring stealth credits for their first run each turn. 

Stay for the Challenge

Runners aren’t the only ones having fun on Mars. Without the suits from Central breathing down their necks, corporate sysops are free to get creative too. And any sysop with the skill and free reign to do so would want to create a piece of ice like

Loki

(Blood and Water, 69). 

Like

Mother Goddess

(Upstalk, 10), Loki gains the subtypes of another piece of rezzed ice. Unlike Mother Goddess though, it only gains the subtypes of a single piece of ice, and it gains the subroutines of that ice! 

Of course, this means that some trickster playing HB could protect R&D with Mother Goddess and HQ with Loki—and no fracter, decoder, or killer would be sufficient for accessing those key servers. 

So, pick up your copy of Blood and Water (ADN46) today and start getting creative! 

“There be those who say that things and places have souls, and there be those who say they have not; I dare not say, myself, but I will tell of The Street.”
  – H.P. Lovecraft, “The Street”

Evil extends its reach and spills into the Streets of Arkham, the newest expansion for Mansions of Madness Second Edition! The city’s façade of normalcy fails as strange happenings begin to infect key places around town. You’re likely to find odd circumstances at many areas, including the Miskatonic University, the hidden gang-run speakeasies, and the curious storefronts that populate the once quiet neighborhoods. As an invested citizen with a penchant for noticing when “odd” becomes “too odd,” you gather a team of likeminded investigators to examine these supernatural threats. It’ll take all of your wits, grit, and the occasional bit of luck to do what needs doing, but somebody has to.

Fantasy Flight Games is excited to announce Streets of Arkham, a new expansion for Mansions of Madness: Second Edition. Three new digital scenarios build upon the Arkham Files universe with yet unseen tiles, mythos events, investigators, and cards to expand upon your investigations.

Assemble Your Team

Ancient supernatural forces have abandoned the confines of the dark mansions and gloomy crypts, and the once peaceful streets now serve as a battleground. A new team of investigators joins the fray as the battle to quell the Ancient Ones spills out into the open. Streets of Arkham unites four new investigators with a wide range of backgrounds, including a rookie cop, a bootlegger, an entertainer, and even a reformed cultist.

Each new investigator comes with their own unique ability to align with the backstory detailed on the back of their character cards. Finn Edwards’s past as a bootlegger has prepared him to be quick as he moves about the shadows, allowing him to move an extra space before or after performing a search action. The reformed cultist, Diana Stanley, has seen more terrors than any other investigator of the Arkham universe. As such, when she would suffer two or more horror, she suffers one fewer horror instead. Officer Tommy Muldoon of Boston always has his trusty rifle, Becky, at his side, which he can use on any test. And last but certainly not least, the enchanting singer Marie Lambeau can use the skills learned from her grand-mere in the bayou to cast a spell without spending an action.

Taking the action outside the confines of the mansion forces investigators to adapt and learn on the fly. After all, the only way to forge a weapon of great power is by hammering it into shape. With Streets of Arkham, players can now strengthen their investigators with new Improvement tokens. When as investigator is instructed to improve one of their six skills, he or she claims an Improvement Token associated with that skill, placing it on his or her play area. This increases the printed value of their corresponding skill by one. A skill cannot be improved more than once, but these boons will benefit the entire investigation in ways previously impossible.

Fortify Your Being

Beyond Improvement tokens, Streets of Arkham also introduces a new item to aide investigators in their mission in the form of Elixirs, fortifying potions that can improve a player’s skill… for a price. Elixirs are chemical concoctions the investigators encounter during their investigation. In addition to encountering the potions throughout their searches, some effects in Streets of Arkham cause investigators to gain Elixirs.

When an investigator first gains an Elixir, they draw it faceup and treat it as an item. As such, they can be dropped, picked up, or traded. However, these tricky elixirs are double sided. If an investigator flips an elixir facedown, they must immediately resolve the effect described on the card, and it is no longer considered an item.

Explore Arkham

Streets of Arkham comprises of three new adventures with various levels of difficulty that draw investigators across the city. The first of these, Astral Alchemy, leads investigators to Miskatonic University where strange beasts from beyond the stars are stalking the shadowy halls. With help from the academic elite, players may just be able to push the astral abominations back from whence they came.

In Gangs of Arkham, investigators must solve an inhuman murder to prevent an all-out war between the Sheldon and O’Bannon gangs. Each gang accuses the other as the culprit, but the real killer may be something more sinister, something unnatural. The stakes are high; if investigators fail, innocent lives can be lost in the crossfire and the true murderer will be free to continue tormenting the citizens of Arkham.

Finally, Ill-Fated Exhibit takes place at the Miskatonic Museum where the opening of a new exhibit featuring several ancient artifacts is marred by a series of impossible accidents. After several deaths, the assistant curator has called in the investigators to determine which artifact is cursed and destroy it before anyone else gets hurt.

Within these perplexing scenarios, Streets of Arkham includes a new digital game to further puzzle the investigators. The tower puzzle consists of three columns with randomized blocks of various sizes stacked atop one another. Players must move the topmost piece of one column to the top of any other. The puzzle is solved when each piece of the puzzle is on the correct position in a single column and the tower is properly displayed with the largest piece on the bottom and the stack descending in block size to the top.

Save the City

The citizens of Arkham need your aide. Otherworldly terrors stalk their streets and prey upon their sanity. The inexplicable is slowly becoming undeniable and reality itself is beginning to unwind where all can witness. The danger is only escalating, and there are few who can rise to meet the danger. Except you, of course. Always you. Answer the call, journey outside the mansion, and defeat the forces of darkness.

Look for Streets of Arkham (MAD25) at your local retailer in Q4 of 2017!