
- BGG rank
- BGG #3,306
- BGG rating
- 7.1
Vienna Connection
- 1–5 players
- 120–180 min
- Complexity 2.2/5
- 2021

Expansion for Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game
Rules assistance for Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson is an expansion for Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game released in 2018 for 1–5 players, 120–180 minutes per game, and ages 16 and up. It was designed by Ignacy Trzewiczek, Przemysław Rymer, and Jakub Łapot and its main mechanics are Storytelling and Cooperative Game.
A two-sided character board – one additional Investigator and one additional Consultant - that was a pre-order bonus and also available at Gen Con 2018. INVESTIGATOR Zahra Arvala is a former forensic scientist, now working for the Antares. Well-educated and fluent in four languages, Zahra always expressed interest in working outside of the laboratory environment. Her ability allows you to spend 1 Authority token from the Token pool to discard 1 Stress token from the Token pool. She adds a Perception skill to the Token pool. CONSULTANT Mei Thompson is a head of R&D department in one of the biggest, private, Richmond laboratory. She rarely focuses on one thing at the time, and loves the human interaction that comes with consulting for Antares. She is great at finding hidden meaning in seemingly uninteresting clues. She adds 2 Perception skills to the Token pool.
Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson supports 1–5 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson is 120–180 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson for ages 16 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson belongs to these categories: Deduction, Murder / Mystery, and Expansion for Base-game. Its main mechanics are Storytelling and Cooperative Game. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson are: Ignacy Trzewiczek, Przemysław Rymer, and Jakub Łapot. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game – Zahra Arvala / Mei Thompson as an expansion for Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game to use it. Check that your edition of Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.