
- BGG rating
- 6.6
Hemloch: The Long Shadow
- 2 players
- Complexity 2.0/5
- 2013

2011
Rules assistance for Hemloch
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 2 players

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Hemloch is a board game released in 2011 for 2 players and 30 minutes per game. It was designed by John Clowdus and its main mechanics are Hand Management and Area Majority / Influence.
Twilight has loomed for decades. Rumors of the coming sun run across the city's dark alleys and corrupted courtyards. Impromptu festivals catch like wildfire as the denizens of the dark city usher in the season of the sun. You have precious few nights of perpetual moonlight remaining to tighten your grip on the city's great districts before the moon sets – and once the sun rises, all of your deeds will come to light, and a new age will dawn on Hemloch. In Hemloch, each player has access to his own deck of minions belonging to five different factions: The Courtesans, The Darkened, The Ghouls, The Alchemists, and The Geared. Each turn, players place these minions into one of four locations in the city. Minions grant the players special abilities on their own, but playing Minions of certain factions into certain cities grants the player additional abilities. Players score points by acquiring Potions and Trinkets (which may also be used for additional abilities at the cost of points) and by placing Influence markers in the various Locations.
Hemloch supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Hemloch is 30 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.
Hemloch has a complexity rating of 2.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Hemloch belongs to these categories: Card Game, Fantasy, and Print & Play. Its main mechanics are Hand Management and Area Majority / Influence. 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 Hemloch are: John Clowdus. 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 Hemloch as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.