Mansions of Madness Second Edition has been a big favorite at the Major Spoilers HQ, both for single player and group play. We’ve run though all the scenarios (multiple times), and have been wondering when a new expansion or update would arrive. We found out the answer this morning – Before the end of the year.
Mansions of Madness: Streets of Arkham sends players out of the mansions, and to key places around town including Miskatonic University, speakeasies, and the storefronts that populate the streets of Arkham.
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.
One thing I like about the Fantasy Flight Games Lovecraft Universe is there are so many characters and elements that recur through the various games that everything feels more cohesive.
The game also introduces Elixers, potions that can help improve skills during encounters.
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.
Finally, what would an Arkham game be with out new investigators?
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.
Again, if you’ve played Arkham games before, many of these names are familiar and it is nice to see them join the team.
While Fantasy Flight Games can’t give a specific date right now, Mansions of Madness: Streets of Arkham will arrive in the fourth quarter of 2017 with a $59.95 price tag.
via Fantasy Flight Games
