- BGG rating
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The Cards of Cthulhu: Beyond the Veil
- 1–4 players
- 30–90 min
- Complexity 2.3/5
- 2016
- BGG rank
- BGG #6,024
- BGG rating
- 6.8
The Cards of Cthulhu
2014
Rules assistance for The Cards of Cthulhu
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 30–90 min
- Complexity 1.8/5
Rules assistant for The Cards of Cthulhu
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
The Cards of Cthulhu is a board game released in 2014 for 1–4 players and 30–90 minutes per game. It was designed by Ian Richard and its main mechanics are Dice Rolling and Cooperative Game.
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About the game
Based on H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, in this Kickstarter card game you select an Investigator, and battle the invading Cthulhu Minions and Horrors while building up a team of Followers to help you. This card/dice game involves combating various monsters from the Cthulhu universe separated into Minor, Major and Unspeakable Horror cards across 4 different Cult boards. Along the way, your character can bring followers with special abilities into play that may or or may not have a cost. Additionally, you can buy special items that help you defeat the monsters. Certain cards have special abilities such as The Gate Card that makes you draw an additional cult card or The Cursed Scroll which forces you to pay XP or draw three more cult cards. To win: If there are more than 5 Minions on any Cult Board at the end of any turn, that Cult summons their Elder God. You lose. No mortal can hope to face these beings and, the world is lost. If, however, you are able to empty the Cult Deck without the world ending, you have foiled the arrival of the Elder Gods, and you win the game.
Editions
- The Cards of CthulhuenDan Verssen Games (DVG)2014
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Dan Verssen Games (DVG)
Questions and answers
The Cards of Cthulhu supports 1–4 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 The Cards of Cthulhu is 30–90 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 Cards of Cthulhu has a complexity rating of 1.8 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a 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.
The Cards of Cthulhu belongs to these categories: Card Game and Horror. Its main mechanics are Dice Rolling 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 The Cards of Cthulhu are: Ian Richard. 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 The Cards of Cthulhu 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.