The appearance of the first Polish edition of the cult dungeon crawler, the HeroQuest game , is a perfect example that such board games not only have a chance to find an audience, but are even impatiently awaited by them.
Reaching for the title of the Rebel publishing house, players can play the role of heroes straight from classic fantasy stories. Barbarian, dwarf, elf and wizard embark on dangerous quests to fight the sorcerer Zargon and his minions. The character of the evil mage is also controlled by the person taking part in the game. She acts as the Game Master.
A classic in a new, prettier edition
HeroQuest is housed in a massive box. Its cover is decorated with graphics that leave no illusions as to what kind of title we are dealing with here. It shows warriors with a very classic look facing all sorts of monsters. The inside of the box is filled to the brim with absolutely stunning figures. They depict heroes, creatures inhabiting the underground and elements of its equipment. Inside we will also find a large board, boards and blank character sheets, some tokens, several decks of cards and climatically written Books of Rules and Challenges.
A dungeon full of adventures
What exactly awaits the daredevils going underground? The Book of Challenges contains a description of 14 ready-made scenarios. The game takes place on the indicated part of the main board with the use of doors, furniture, accessories and, of course, statuettes of opponents. The tasks that the heroes will face are very different. Sometimes they will have to recover a stolen item or get a lost artifact, sometimes they will have to kill a boss, and sometimes they will have to organize a prisoner’s escape. For those who won’t get tired of wandering through the dark labyrinths of corridors, the game developers have prepared a clean map on the last pages of the Book of Challenges, a bestiary with descriptions of monsters and a list of all symbols. Thanks to them, you can create your own unique adventure scenario set in the world of HeroQuest .
How to start?
Preparing for the game involves several steps and takes only a moment. At the beginning, players must familiarize themselves with the details of the expedition. The Game Master will have knowledge of the smallest details. The other people at the beginning will only learn as much as the text on the parchment from the Book of Challenges tells them. The information contained in it is primarily the purpose of the journey and the type of reward received for completing the mission.
The next step to take is to prepare the arena for the struggle between the heroes and the henchmen of Zargon. On the table there should be a board, character cards, hero sheets filled by players with the data of the chosen daredevil, decks of cards and dice. The next action is taken by the person who will play the sorcerer. She places the Game Master Screen and Book of Challenges in front of her. Then he prepares the components needed for the selected quest (I found it more convenient to keep them in a box) and places those on the board that should go to the starting room. Now all you have to do is place the hero figures in the room with the stairs and you can go on your journey.
Rules? Easy
While playing HeroQuest, players can perform several actions. Teammates start, then it’s Zargon’s turn. On his turn, a character exploring a dungeon in any order may move and perform one of 6 actions. Among the available actions are attacking, casting a spell, searching for treasure, secret doors and traps, or disarming the latter. On his turn, Zargon can move monsters and perform a combat or cast fear spell action with each of them. The game continues until the heroes return to the stairs after completing the mission or die during the expedition. It may also happen that the daredevils fail to complete the task, but leave the underground. As in the case of their death, the adventure must then be repeated with the details changed by the Game Master.
The rules of the game are very simple. When moving around locations, we can’t, for example, go through walls, closed doors or next to monsters. As in any dungeon crawler, the combat is based on the roll of dice, so it is quite random. Of course, cooperation between players is of great importance for the success of the expedition, and in later adventures also whether they managed to find or buy the right equipment. Equipment can be obtained between expeditions. To do this, visit the armory, where you can exchange the collected treasures for a decent shield or a solid weapon that will pave the way for another victory.
Hocus-pocus
As in any title set in a fantasy world, HeroQuest could not lack magic. It is ruled by elf, wizard and sorcerer. The former can use formulas drawing from the elements – fire, air, water and earth. The Game Master has fear spells at his disposal.
Impressions
HeroQuest is a typical dungeon crawler that is very firmly embedded in the traditional fantasy world. The atmosphere of the game is built both by the sometimes lengthy plot cutscenes and the presence of heroes and monsters classic for this genre, such as a sorcerer, orcs and goblins.
Mechanically, the game does not stun (it is worth recalling here that this is a title with an exceptionally “long beard”), but it does not disappoint either. Most adventures take one to two hours to complete. The scenarios are so diverse that going through them gives a sense of satisfaction and encourages further exploration. My favorite was the trip to the Castle of Secrets, where players search for the legendary entrance to the mine, using a multitude of magical portals that take them here and there.
Undoubtedly, the element worth mentioning in the context of this title are the figurines. There are a lot of them in the game box. Regardless of whether we take one of Zargon’s henchmen, a hero, a bookcase or a door, we can admire the high quality of workmanship and the impressive level of detail. Games with the use of such figures will be a lot of fun, especially for those players who remember HeroQuest from the old days.
The game published by Rebel is a title that should interest every fan of adventure on the board. Accessible mechanics, universal themes and high quality workmanship are just some of the advantages of HeroQuest . This board game can be successfully played by both beginners and experienced players, children and adults.
