Why I Got Into (and am now obsessed with) The Arkham Horror LCG

Written by JediGeekGirl

Introduction

Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen, to my first article on the Arkham Horror LCG. I am so excited to dive into this article with you. Before I do however, I would like to tell you a little bit about myself and my background with games & content creation.

Background

I have always been a tabletop gamer for as long as I can remember, even before the “geeky” games. My first entry into that world was, of course the Pokemon TCG and the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG, both I played for a good 15 years combined. I was later introduced to the larger world of non-CCG tabletop games by an ex, I was automatically hooked. Some of my favorites are Smash-Up, DC Deck Building Game, Legendary, 7 Wonders, Netrunner LCG, Lord of the Rings LCG, Dungeon!, and Thunderstone. Shortly afterwards, I stepped away from CCGs due to a drastic change in my life. It was a year or so after that, that my relationship with FFG truly begun.

FFG entered my life proper, with the Star Wars LCG, my second attempt with the game. All though this time, I was in Minnesota and around other players. I got into the game because it was both Star Wars and because it feed that “deck builder” in me. While I was ok playing it, it wasn’t until Star Wars: Destiny that my relationship with FFG went to it’s next level. With that game, I got into content creation, more on that later, and eventually, other FFG games. Some I still play today, such as Marvel Champions, and some I don’t, like Keyforge. Eventually I got to, albeit late, the Arkham Horror LCG.

My road with content creation begun in 2016 when Star Wars: Destiny was first announced. Shorting after that, I did content for the game for a whole year, till eventually, I branched out on my own with I Rebel. I focused on SWD for about 1 years and a half, with a dipping into KeyForge. At that time, Marvel Champions was announced, and I was obsessed with the idea of doing content for that game. Although I could have done a podcast on it, I am too anal to manage another podcast or to mess with the focus of my podcast. So articles it was, which lead to Jbailey86 to join our team to focus on Marvel Champion’s content. Eventually SWD was announced to be canceled, and I Rebel decided to expand and move on. The podcast on Star Wars as a whole, and the website into a more diverse line up of content.

Why the Arkham Horror LCG?

Before I get into why I decided to get into the Arkham Horror LCG proper, I need to expand on why I have really really really gotten into co-op/solo gaming.

I have always been a Player vs. Player kind of gal. I have always been competitive. That is just how I always been. Video games, tabletop games, real life activities, it didn’t matter. I always pushed myself to be successful in those games. Unfortunately, even though I was decent in them, I was not good enough to see top levels of success in those games I wanted. It did not help that I also was hindered by poor sportsmanship. It is not a sexy thing to have or to share to others, but it has always been something I struggled with. I noticed that since I have gotten older, that even though I did not act on it as much as I did when I was younger, it seems to have gotten worse (more passive/behind the scenes). It was impacting my relationship with gaming in ways I didn’t like and was even more unhealthy.

Despite all of that, one of the things I loved about tabletop gaming, were the smaller groups or the one on one settings. They were more personal and it was easier for me to not get as upset. Not to mention, everyone knew how each other were more often than not and were more understanding. Also the games in these settings were a bit more “confined”. I prefer these more intimate settings.

These things, on top of the IP, is what brought me into Marvel Champions. A game I have been obsessed with for the past year. This game brought everything I liked about gaming to my table, and removed the things I do not like. The deck building, the more intimate settings, the IP, and being able play it by myself. Up until Covid, I even was regularly having a game night with a friend playing it and we had a lot of fun playing it. However, something was missing. My love never quelled, but I needed another partner to dance with along side Marvel Champions, enter the Arkham Horror LCG.

The Arkham Horror LCG was a game I always heard about. How would I not hear about it, being into FFG games and a follower of Team Covenant’s content. I never thought much of it at the time, due to being focused on SWD. Eventually, when I made the switch to co-op/solo gaming, I never gave it much thought because the IP was not something I was into as much as ether Star Wars or Marvel. After all Marvel Champions was going to be enough for me…..

…..and it was for a while. But it did miss that one thing. It missed that connective tissue between sessions. We knew it was coming with the first story box, but that seemingly took forever. Not to mention the whole situation around Covid. That did not not help at all. I still love Marvel Champions but I was getting bored waiting. Eventually I started eyeing the Arkham Horror LCG.

It was always my intention to get into the game. For months I had an itch to try it. I even tried to see if my play partner wanted to try it, but he had no interest. Months later, I still had that itch, and was waiting for the go ahead from ether him, or being in a relationship with someone to finally jump in to play with them. When a potential relationship failed, I said F it, I am not going to wait on someone else to jump in. One night I told myself just to buy it, because it will be easier to dive in if I had it before I was “ready”, then to wait for me to be “ready” to dive in.

First Impressions

Needless to say, I did not wait to play it. After ordering the game, I already watched the “How to Play” video from FFG twice, before receiving it. I played it as soon as I got it.

My first game was with Wendy. Right away I was hooked into the story and the gameplay. The mechanics of the game were this perfect medium between the LOTR LCG and Marvel Champions for me. It also was not too hard, with outlets that did not require “victory”. I loved the RPG elements with the deck building, and the multiple paths you could go down with your character. Needlessly to say, instead of playing just the intro scenario, I played through the whole campaign. I was hooked.

My second time I played through with Roland, because I didn’t do that well with Wendy and I thought why not try him. Man, he is so much better for the kind of player I am. My second play through was even better. He gave me options as a solo player that I wanted. Despite not getting the “win”, I knew that I wanted to try again, knowing he was the Investigator for me. I did two more runs with him, till eventually I got the “win”.

Between campaign 2 and 3, I was off to the races, buying more product. The first box and the Guardian Starter, being among my first couple of products brought, with more being bought later when I sold off somethings I no longer needed.

What Do I Love About the Arkham Horror LCG?

There is so much I love about this game that I can explore, but here are some of the highlights.

1. It’s a co-op/solo game
   I love that I can play this game alone or with a friend and I do not have to worry about my, or someone else’s, poor sportsmanship coming into play because I/they can not beat my opponent/me. I also love the ability to forgo having to have a partner to play with.
   
2. The RPG elements
   My favorite kind of video games are RPG. I love the ability to grow your characters and modify them as they grow and you progress through a story. This is also why I love Thunderstone so much. It is customization you earn through gameplay and your own efforts, instead of buying or trading for like you do in other forms of games.
   
3. The story/world
   I love being apart of a story/world that engages me in a way that it feels like it is its own huge universe that you can explore within or outside of the game. The Arkham Horror LCG has this. Not only with in the game, but withing FFG’s Arkham Horror Files AND Lovecraftian stories as a whole. It is this whole new world that I have never dove into before, that I can explore AND be apart of.
   
4. The gameplay
   The Arkahm Horror LCG feels like a video game in tabletop form. It has the story and RPG elements sure, but with the map and the slots you have on you as a person, you are engaged in a way that you would be as if you were in a video game. Ya, you start out with a deck of pre-established cards that is known to the player, but the same can be said about a video game. The only exceptions is that they are unknown to a first time player in a video game. Despite that though, everything else in the Arkham Horror LCG is usually unknown to the player, like in a video game. Unless you cheat and look of course.
   
5. The replayability
   5 character classes, multiple Investigators, different story choices you can make, multiple scenarios, branching story path, deck building, engaging gameplay, and more. You also are not focus down one path in order to “win” or to finish the scenarios. These are the elements that keep me coming back to play the game over and over and over again.
   
6. It’s not based on someone else’s IP
   Ok, so yes, it has pieces in it from Lovecraft, but that is public domain. The Arkham Horror LCG itself, is apart of The Arkham Horror Files, an IP owned by FFG. They are invested in it, and it is because of that, that they put a lot into the game and its story. As they say, you do your best when the money you are playing with, is your own. You do not have to worry about the game’s future and content because it is apart of an IP that belongs to or is managed by someone else. You do not have to wait on licensing approval or worry about the licensing contract expiring, not to mention other issues. It gives you a peace of mind that the game, and that the world itself, will be here to stay.
   
7. There is so much to explore
   The world itself, is so wide and diverse. Not just in The Arkham Horror Files, but in Lovecraftian stories in general. This is something that will continually be engaging to me.
   
   The game itself is about to enter its 6th cycle. With multiple Standalone Adventures, Return Tos, Barkham Horror, Novellas, Lore connected to other Arkham Horror Files content and more, there is a lot here to keep me busy for a long time to come.
   
   For those who want a wider view of the Arkham Horror LCG, you of course have Lovecraft himself, as well as other works he inspired. This allows those who want a deeper insight into the game, a way they can if they do so choose. This is also something, I’ve been slowly exploring

I barely touched the surface I am sure of why I, or someone else, loves this game. I am obsessed with this game. Both learning & experiencing more about the game, and the Mythos itself.

So What’s Next?

Well, for me, it will be slowly working my way through the game and buying things at a pace that will not break me. I have other obligations, such as the podcast itself, and content I am consuming, like Star Wars and Marvel Champions to name a few, that I also have to balance. So you will not see many articles from me, but do know that I will be deeply engaged with the Mythos. I just started 2 runs (Roland & Stella) through the Dunwich Legacy campaign, ordered all 6 of the first cycle Mytho packs, bought all of the starter decks, consumed content from content creators from this period of time AND listened to The Dunwich Horror. All of this is just the beginning for me.

As for I Rebel? I would love to do a podcast about this game, but due to me being so new and the reasons why I did not start a Marvel Champions podcast, the only way for me to go with content is with articles. I will be writing Arkham Horror LCG articles every now and then, but mainly it will be others writing for us about it. I can not wait to get those articles out there, and I hope you will enjoy the articles we do put out about this game.

Before I wrap this up, I would like to mention the writers who’s first couple pieces of work, you may have already have seen. Those writers are: DarkAngelAz, Dalia, Gladwin J. Singh and Sweepinglotus. Of course, this may change in the future, but we can not wait to feature work from these writers. And of course, we always will have an open door for anybody who would like to write for us in the future, for anything they want to write about.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Arkham Horror LCG is a great game, a great world, and a great experience that I can not wait to explore and experience more of. I am obsessed. I can not wait to expand my knowledge and experiences with it. I hope you’ll join me, and I Rebel, on this ride.

See ya around Investigators, and take care of yourselves.

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