Elder Sign (card game)

Elder Sign is a cooperative game that uses cards and dice, drawing on the Cthulhu Mythos created by horror author H.P. Lovecraft and the *Call of Cthulhu* roleplaying game from Chaosium. Fantasy Flight Games publishes it, alongside other Cthulhu-themed games like *Arkham Horror*, *Call of Cthulhu: The Card Game*, *Mansions of Madness*, and *Eldritch Horror*.

In a game, players pick a monster called an Ancient One to oppose. To win, they must collect enough elder sign tokens to seal that Ancient One. If too many doom tokens pile up, the Ancient One awakens. Other, weaker monsters can also show up during play. Each player chooses an investigator (often at random), and each investigator has unique abilities. Players take turns exploring rooms generated by Adventure and Other World cards. If a player finishes all the tasks in a room, they get a reward; if they fail, they get a penalty. If an investigator is devoured (by losing all stamina or sanity), a doom token is added to the doom track, and the player returns as a different investigator. The game continues until the Ancient One is sealed (a win) or awakens. If it awakens, players must fight it in a battle designed to be very hard, so they try to avoid that.

Giaco Furino of Fearnet called the game a must for Cthulhu fans, and Michael Harrison of Wired.com described it as fun and thrilling. *Rue Morgue* issue #153 reviewed it.

Several expansions have been released. *Unseen Forces* (August 2012) added the Blessed/Cursed mechanic with two new dice: a white die for Blessed players and a black die for Cursed ones. The Blessed die works like a green die to help with tasks, while the Cursed die can remove matching dice from other rolls, making tasks harder. It also added new cards and optional Master Mythos cards to increase difficulty. *Gates of Arkham* (February 2015) introduced the Streets of Arkham mode, where adventure cards start face down, adding uncertainty. Players explore at their own risk, not knowing tasks until committed, and gate openings make the game harder. *Omens of Ice* (March 2016) moves the action to Alaska, where players gather supplies and deal with worsening weather, new monsters, and Ancient Ones, along with new investigators and items.