Arkham Horror: The Card Game – The Innsmouth Conspiracy: Expansion
Arkham Horror: The Card Game – The Innsmouth Conspiracy: Expansion Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Additional Rules and Clarifications
- Campaign Setup
- Scenario I: The Pit of Despair
- Interlude I: Puzzle Pieces
- If nothing is listed under "Memories Recovered"
- If a meeting with Thomas Dawson is listed under "Memories Recovered"
- If a battle with a horrifying devil is listed under "Memories Recovered"
- If an encounter with a secret cult is listed under "Memories Recovered"
- If a decision to stick together is listed under "Memories Recovered"
- Scenario II: The Vanishing of Elina Harper
- Interlude II: The Syzygy
- Encounter Set Icons
- What's Next?
- Frequently Asked Questions
Additional Rules and Clarifications
Keys
This expansion introduces key tokens that represent important objects or pieces of information that can be claimed and used during scenarios. Key tokens have two sides. When facedown, all seven keys have the same universal key symbol, so they can be randomized without the investigators knowing which is which. When faceup, each key is color coded with a unique color.
If a scenario uses one or more keys, the setup of that scenario indicates how many are set aside and whether they should be faceup or facedown. Keys can enter play via several different card effects, and they are usually placed on an enemy, location, or story asset. Keys can be acquired in any of three ways:
- If a location with a key on it has no clues, an investigator may take control of each of the location's keys as a free ability.
- If an investigator causes an enemy with a key on it to leave play, that investigator must take control of each of the keys that were on that enemy. (If it leaves play through some other means, place its keys on its location.)
- Some card effects may allow an investigator to take control of keys in other ways.
When an investigator takes control of a key, they flip it faceup (if it is facedown) and place it on their investigator card. If an investigator who controls one or more keys is eliminated, place each of their keys on their location. As a free ability, an investigator may give any number of their keys to another investigator at the same location.
Keys have no inherent game effect. However, some card effects may change depending on which keys an investigator controls. Additionally, keys may sometimes be required in order to progress during a scenario.
Flood Tokens
Throughout this campaign, scenario card effects can flood locations. Each location has one of three different flood levels: it is either unflooded, partially flooded, or fully flooded. A location's flood level can be tracked using the double-sided flood tokens included in this deluxe box. A location's flood level has no inherent game effect. However, some card effects may change or become stronger while you are at a flooded location, particularly if that location is fully flooded.
- A location with no flood token is unflooded.
- If a location becomes partially flooded, place a flood token on it with the partially flooded side faceup to designate this.
- If a location becomes fully flooded, place a flood token on it with the fully flooded side faceup (or if it is already partially flooded, flip its flood token over) to designate this.
- If a location's flood level is "increased," it changes from unflooded to partially flooded, or from partially flooded to fully flooded. A fully flooded location cannot have its flood level increased.
- If a location's flood level is "decreased," it changes from fully flooded to partially flooded, or from partially flooded to unflooded. If a location becomes unflooded, remove its flood token.
- For the purposes of card effects, both partially flooded locations and fully flooded locations are considered to be "flooded."
- Bless and curse tokens revealed outside of a skill test have no effect on their own unless otherwise specified by a card effect.
Seal
As an additional cost for a card with the seal keyword to enter play, its controller must search the chaos bag for the specified chaos token and place it on top of the card, thereby sealing the token. If there is a choice of which token to seal, the card's controller chooses. If the specified token is not in the chaos bag, the card cannot enter play.
A sealed chaos token is not considered to be in the chaos bag and therefore cannot be revealed from the chaos bag as part of a skill test or ability. When a chaos token is "released," it is returned to the chaos bag and is no longer considered sealed. If a card with one or more chaos tokens sealed on it leaves play for any reason, any chaos tokens sealed on it are immediately released.
Some cards (with or without the seal keyword) may also have abilities that seal one or more chaos tokens as part of their effect. This is done following the same process as above: searching the chaos bag for the specified token, removing it from the chaos bag, and placing it on the card. If the specified token is not in the chaos bag, the effect fails.
Bless and Curse Tokens
This expansion introduces two new kinds of chaos tokens: bless tokens and curse tokens. By default, the chaos bag does not contain any bless or curse tokens. However, certain card effects can add these tokens or remove them from the chaos bag.
- Bless tokens revealed during a skill test have the following effect: "+2. Reveal another token. Instead of returning this token to the chaos bag, return it to the token pool."
- No more than 10 total bless tokens can be included in the chaos bag or sealed on cards in play at any given time.
- Curse tokens revealed during a skill test have the following effect: "–2. Reveal another token. Instead of returning this token to the chaos bag, return it to the token pool."
- No more than 10 total curse tokens can be included in the chaos bag or sealed on cards in play at any given time.
Expansion Icon
The cards in The Innsmouth Conspiracy cycle can be identified by this symbol before each card's collector number: [Innsmouth Conspiracy expansion icon]
Campaign Setup
To set up The Innsmouth Conspiracy campaign, perform the following steps in order.
- Choose investigator(s).
- Each player assembles their investigator deck.
- Choose difficulty level.
- Assemble the campaign chaos bag.
- Easy (I want to experience the story): +1, +1, 0, 0, 0, –1, –1, –1, –2, –2, skull, skull, cultist, cultist, tablet, tablet, elder thing, elder thing, auto-fail, elder sign.
- Standard (I want a challenge): +1, 0, 0, –1, –1, –1, –2, –2, –3, –4, skull, skull, cultist, cultist, tablet, tablet, elder thing, elder thing, auto-fail, elder sign.
- Hard (I want a true nightmare): 0, 0, 0, –1, –1, –2, –2, –3, –3, –4, –5, skull, skull, cultist, cultist, tablet, tablet, elder thing, elder thing, auto-fail, elder sign.
- Expert (I want Arkham Horror): 0, –1, –1, –2, –2, –3, –3, –4, –4, –5, –6, –8, skull, skull, cultist, cultist, tablet, tablet, elder thing, elder thing, auto-fail, elder sign.
You are now ready to begin Scenario I: The Pit of Despair.
Scenario I: The Pit of Despair
Intro narrative omitted: the investigators wake in a flooded cave with no memory of the recent past.
Scenario Setup
- Gather all cards from the following encounter sets: The Pit of Despair, Creatures of the Deep, Flooded Caverns, Rising Tide, Shattered Memories, Agents of Cthulhu, and Rats. These sets are indicated by encounter set icons printed on the cards (icon artwork not reproduced).
- Note: The encounter set icon for each Tidal Tunnel location appears only on the location's revealed side (see "Tidal Tunnels" below).
- Place each key as follows:
- Set the blue and green key aside, faceup.
- Set the red, yellow, and purple keys aside, facedown. Shuffle them so you do not know which is which.
- Remove the black and white keys from the game. They are not used in this scenario.
- Put the Unfamiliar Chamber location into play. Each investigator begins play at the Unfamiliar Chamber.
- Find each of the following locations and set them aside, out of play: Idol Chamber, Altar to Dagon, and Sealed Exit (each of these locations is on the reverse side of a Tidal Tunnel location).
- Shuffle the remainder of the Tidal Tunnel locations and randomly put three of them into play below, to the left, and to the right of the Unfamiliar Chamber, unrevealed side faceup (see location placement below).
- Set the rest of the Tidal Tunnel locations aside, out of play.
- Set each of the following cards aside, out of play: The Amalgam enemy, both copies of the Blindsense treachery, and all 3 copies of the From the Depths treachery.
- Add the flood tokens to the token pool.
- Shuffle the remainder of the encounter cards to build the encounter deck.
- You are now ready to begin.
Tidal Tunnels
Locations with unrevealed Tidal Tunnel sides exist in multiple encounter sets. (For example, in this scenario, both the Flooded Caverns encounter set and The Pit of Despair encounter set contain unrevealed Tidal Tunnel locations.) Because these locations can come from multiple different encounter sets, they have no encounter set icon on their unrevealed side. To see which encounter set a Tidal Tunnel location belongs to, check its revealed side.
Location Adjacency in the Pit
During this scenario, locations are arranged in a set pattern, with new locations from the Tidal Tunnel deck emerging below, to the left, or to the right of existing locations. (Note: The Tidal Tunnel deck does not exist at the beginning of this scenario. You will be instructed when and how to create it at a later time during the scenario.)
- During this scenario, adjacent locations are considered to be connected to one another.
- A location that is put into play below or to the left or right of another location should be set next to that location in the indicated position, with no other locations between them. A location that is next to another location in this manner is considered "adjacent."
- Locations are only adjacent orthogonally (left, right, above, or below); they are not adjacent diagonally.
- You cannot put a location into play where an existing location already is. If you are instructed to place a new location from the Tidal Tunnel deck in a spot that is already occupied by an existing location, the new location does not enter play.
Location placement diagram omitted (image). Printed beside it: "Note: During act 2, more locations will be added below, to the left, and/or to the right of the location shown here."
The Depths
Some cards in this scenario refer to an area called "the depths." The depths is an out-of-play area next to the act and agenda decks that The Amalgam enemy can enter and leave via card effects. While The Amalgam is in the depths, it is out of play and cannot be affected by player cards or investigator actions.
- When The Amalgam moves from play to the depths, remove all tokens from it except for its key tokens. Key tokens are not removed from The Amalgam when it enters the depths unless it was defeated by an investigator, in which case that investigator takes control of each of its keys.
Keys in The Pit of Despair
In this scenario, keys represent the following:
- Blue: An idol of a malformed aquatic creature.
- Green: An emerald key with four prongs.
- Red: A piece of amber in the shape of a fish's heart that whispers something alien to you when you hold it.
- Yellow: A calcified piece of chitin in the shape of a tentacle.
- Purple: A jagged key of twisted marble and onyx.
Flashbacks
Throughout The Innsmouth Conspiracy campaign, you will occasionally be instructed to read "flashback" sequences. Each flashback is marked "Do not read unless instructed." Flashback narrative is omitted; the Campaign Log entries and chaos bag changes are transcribed.
Flashback I
Narrative omitted. Do not read unless instructed.
- In your Campaign Log, under "Memories Recovered," record a meeting with Thomas Dawson.
Flashback II
Narrative omitted. Do not read unless instructed.
- In your Campaign Log, under "Memories Recovered," record a battle with a horrifying devil.
- Remove 1 cultist token from the chaos bag for the remainder of the campaign.
Flashback III
Narrative omitted. Do not read unless instructed.
- In your Campaign Log, under "Memories Recovered," record a decision to stick together.
- Remove 1 skull token from the chaos bag for the remainder of the campaign.
Flashback IV
Narrative omitted. Do not read unless instructed.
- In your Campaign Log, under "Memories Recovered," record an encounter with a secret cult.
- Remove 1 elder thing token from the chaos bag for the remainder of the campaign.
DO NOT READ (until the end of the scenario)
Narrative omitted. If no resolution was reached because each investigator was defeated:
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- Proceed to Interlude I: Puzzle Pieces.
Resolution 1
Narrative omitted.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- Proceed to Interlude I: Puzzle Pieces.
Interlude I: Puzzle Pieces
Narrative omitted throughout this interlude.
Check the "Memories Recovered" section of the Campaign Log. Read each of the sections below that apply to your situation. Then, proceed to the following text.
If nothing is listed under "Memories Recovered"
Narrative omitted. No experience is recorded in this case.
If a meeting with Thomas Dawson is listed under "Memories Recovered"
Narrative omitted.
- The conspiracy deepens. Each investigator records 1 additional experience under "Unspent Experience."
If a battle with a horrifying devil is listed under "Memories Recovered"
Narrative omitted.
- The conspiracy deepens. Each investigator records 1 additional experience under "Unspent Experience."
If an encounter with a secret cult is listed under "Memories Recovered"
Narrative omitted.
- The conspiracy deepens. Each investigator records 1 additional experience under "Unspent Experience."
If a decision to stick together is listed under "Memories Recovered"
Narrative omitted.
- The conspiracy deepens. Each investigator records 1 additional experience under "Unspent Experience."
Common text, read in every case (narrative omitted):
- Proceed to Scenario II: The Vanishing of Elina Harper.
Scenario II: The Vanishing of Elina Harper
Narrative omitted: the scenario's intro text and the investigators' search of Innsmouth.
Investigator Setup
Perform this step before setting up your investigator.
- Agent Dawson has briefed you on your task and prepared you for this mission. Each investigator may now spend the experience recorded under "Unspent Experience" in the Campaign Log.
Scenario Setup
- Gather all cards from the following encounter sets: The Vanishing of Elina Harper, Agents of Dagon, Fog over Innsmouth, The Locals, Chilling Cold, Locked Doors, Nightgaunts, and The Midnight Masks. These sets are indicated by encounter set icons printed on the cards (icon artwork not reproduced).
- When gathering The Midnight Masks encounter set, only gather the five treachery cards (2x False Lead and 3x Hunting Shadow). Do not gather any of the other cards from that encounter set.
- Put the following locations into play: Innsmouth Square, Marsh Refinery, Innsmouth Harbour, Fish Street Bridge, First National Grocery, Gilman House, and The Little Bookshop (see suggested location placement on the next page).
- Each investigator begins play at the Innsmouth Square.
- Prepare the Leads deck. This is done by performing the following steps:
- Put the double-sided Finding Agent Harper reference card into play, next to the scenario reference card.
- Find the six unique enemies with the Suspect trait and the six single-sided locations with the Hideout trait. Split them into two piles: one pile for the Suspect enemies and one pile for the Hideout locations.
- Randomly choose one card from each pile (one Suspect enemy and one Hideout location) and place them facedown beneath the Finding Agent Harper card without looking at them.
- Shuffle the ten remaining cards from the two piles together to form a deck. This deck is called the Leads deck. Place it near the scenario reference card.
- Set agenda 3 and act 2 aside, out of play. (Do not use them when building the agenda deck and act deck.)
- Set each of the following cards aside, out of play: the Thomas Dawson and Elina Harper story assets, both copies of the Hunting Nightgaunt enemy, and the Winged One enemy.
- Shuffle the remainder of the encounter cards to build the encounter deck.
- You are now ready to begin.
Standalone Mode
If you are playing in Standalone Mode and do not wish to refer to any other setups or resolutions, you may use the information below when setting up and playing this scenario:
- Assemble the chaos bag using the following tokens: +1, 0, 0, –1, –1, –1, –2, –2, –3, –4, skull, skull, cultist, cultist, tablet, tablet, elder thing, elder thing, auto-fail, elder sign.
- A decision to stick together is not listed under "Memories Recovered."
Finding Agent Harper
In this scenario, you are tasked with figuring out which Suspect enemy has kidnapped Agent Harper and which Hideout location holds her. This is done by discovering and spending clues to look at and draw cards from the Leads deck.
Each card in the Leads deck represents one of the possible Suspect enemies or one of the possible Hideout locations. Since the correct enemy and location are facedown beneath Finding Agent Harper, none of the cards in the Leads deck can be the correct choice. Therefore, by looking at cards from the Leads deck or by putting them into play, you can narrow down the list of possible enemies and locations by process of elimination. As you eliminate possible enemies and locations, use the list in your Campaign Log to cross off entries and discover the truth.
Once you are confident in your information, use the Objective ability on act 1a to advance. But beware—you only have so much time to find the truth, and you may have to guess…
Suggested location placement diagram omitted (image). Printed beside it: "Note: Locations in this diagram with dotted-line borders represent the six possible Hideout locations. They do not begin in play. They may or may not enter play during the course of the scenario, depending on the actions of the investigators."
Scenario Interlude: The Accusation
Read this interlude only when you are instructed to do so.
Narrative omitted. Using the knowledge you've gathered, you must make an accusation in an attempt to locate who has kidnapped Elina Harper and where she is hidden. In order to make this accusation, the players must choose one Suspect enemy and one Hideout location from among the options listed on the Finding Agent Harper reference card.
Note the Suspect cannot be an enemy who is currently in play or in the victory display, nor can the Hideout be a location that is currently in play. Use this information to narrow down your choices.
Once the accusation has been made, do the following:
- Reveal the Suspect enemy and the Hideout location that are facedown beneath Finding Agent Harper. In your Campaign Log, under "Possible Suspects / Possible Hideouts," circle the names of the correct Suspect enemy and Hideout location.
- If neither card matches your accusation, the investigators are on the wrong track and must immediately resign.
- If only one of the two cards matches your accusation, the investigators are partially correct and may proceed, but they have angered the citizens of Innsmouth during their careless investigation. Flip over the Finding Agent Harper reference card and spawn the enemy on its other side at the Innsmouth Square.
- If both cards match your accusation, the investigators are correct and may proceed.
In order to set up the final act and agenda, do the following:
- Advance the act directly to the set-aside act 2a.
- Advance the agenda directly to the set-aside agenda 3a.
- Put the Hideout location that was beneath Finding Agent Harper into play. Add 1 [per-investigator symbol] additional clues to that location. Place the set-aside Elina Harper story asset beneath this location to indicate that this is where Elina Harper has been captured.
- The symbol after "Add 1" is the per-investigator symbol, rendered here as words; it was identified from the page image.
- Spawn the Suspect enemy that was beneath Finding Agent Harper at Elina Harper's location, ignoring their Revelation ability. For the remainder of the scenario, this enemy is referred to as "the kidnapper."
- Remove the Leads deck from the game.
- You are now ready to proceed with the final act and agenda.
DO NOT READ (until the end of the scenario)
Narrative omitted. If no resolution was reached (each investigator resigned or was defeated):
- Proceed to Resolution 1.
The guide prints no separate trigger for Resolutions 2 through 7 in this scenario's text. They are transcribed as printed; each resolution's narrative names the character concerned.
Resolution 1
Narrative omitted.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- In your Campaign Log, record the mission failed.
- Proceed to Interlude II: The Syzygy.
Resolution 2
Narrative omitted. The narrative concerns Brian Burnham.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- In your Campaign Log, record the mission was successful.
- Proceed to Interlude II: The Syzygy.
Resolution 3
Narrative omitted. The narrative concerns Othera Gilman.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- In your Campaign Log, record the mission was successful.
- Proceed to Interlude II: The Syzygy.
Resolution 4
Narrative omitted. The narrative concerns Joyce Little.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- In your Campaign Log, record the mission was successful.
- Proceed to Interlude II: The Syzygy.
Resolution 5
Narrative omitted. The narrative concerns Barnabas Marsh.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- In your Campaign Log, record the mission was successful.
- Proceed to Interlude II: The Syzygy.
Resolution 6
Narrative omitted. The narrative concerns Zadok Allen.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- In your Campaign Log, record the mission was successful.
- Proceed to Interlude II: The Syzygy.
Resolution 7
Narrative omitted. The narrative concerns Robert Friendly.
- Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory X value of each card in the victory display. Record this experience under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log, but do not spend any of it yet. You will be instructed to spend this experience at a later time.
- In your Campaign Log, record the mission was successful.
- Proceed to Interlude II: The Syzygy.
Interlude II: The Syzygy
Narrative omitted throughout this interlude.
The Syzygy 1
Narrative omitted.
- Check Campaign Log.
- If the mission failed, proceed to The Syzygy 2.
- If the mission was successful, skip to The Syzygy 3.
The Syzygy 2
Narrative omitted.
- Skip to The Syzygy 4.
The Syzygy 3
Narrative omitted.
- Any one investigator may choose to add the Elina Harper story asset to their deck. This card does not count toward their deck size.
- Proceed to The Syzygy 4.
The Syzygy 4
Narrative omitted.
- Each investigator may now spend the experience recorded under "Unspent Experience" in your Campaign Log.
- Proceed to Scenario III: In Too Deep.
Encounter Set Icons
The encounter set icons printed on the cards of this expansion are as follows (icon artwork not reproduced): Agents of Dagon, Agents of Hydra, Creatures of the Deep, Flooded Caverns, Fog over Innsmouth, Malfunction, Rising Tide, Shattered Memories, Syzygy, The Locals, The Pit of Despair, and The Vanishing of Elina Harper.
What's Next?
While each of the scenarios in The Innsmouth Conspiracy cycle can be played in Standalone Mode, they can be combined to form a full eight-part campaign. The next scenario in The Innsmouth Conspiracy campaign can be found in the In Too Deep Mythos Pack, and the story continues through the six packs of this cycle.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do bless and curse tokens have a modifier or value if they are revealed outside of a skill test?
No. Bless and curse tokens revealed outside of a skill test have no modifier or value.
If adding a certain number of bless or curse tokens to the chaos bag is part of an ability's effect, and there are not enough bless or curse tokens remaining to fulfill that effect, what happens?
You perform as much of the ability as you can, adding bless or curse tokens until there are none left to add.
If adding a certain number of bless or curse tokens to the chaos bag is part of a card/ability's cost, and there are not enough bless or curse tokens remaining to fulfill that cost, what happens?
If the cost cannot be paid, the card/ability therefore cannot be played/triggered.
What happens if the card beneath Amanda Sharpe would enter a different play area while it is committed to a skill test?
It still enters that play area—it only remains beneath Amanda if it would otherwise be discarded (such as at the end of the skill test).