Return to Castle Ravenloft!

Howdy folks!

A couple of weeks ago, Jerry brought us a real treat.  He had been to a local game store near OKC, and saw something that hearkened back to adventures of old.  Seized by a sudden impulse, he grabbed up a copy of one of Wizards of the Coast new Dungeons & Dragons boardgame, Castle Ravenloft.  It had been his experience (and my own) that boxed games of this ilk tend to be very fun, and remain collectors items for years.  Oh, woe to us, how we didn't keep up with our Heroquest and Warhammer Quest and Dragon Quest and maybe even First Quest.

I'll cut to it...Castle Ravenloft is a blast!  We first tried it out back during Halloween's festivities, and it proved a huge hit right off the bat.  What I found interesting, however, is how close the game seems to be to Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition.

It plays fast and quick, and it's easily taught to new players.  If those players are gamers already, it swiftly becomes second nature to breeze through a turn.  The mechanics are simple yet elegant, but are very similar at the same time to the new edition of it's parent game.  I had sworn never to get 4th Edition, but it was this game that changed my mind about that.

It plays fast, and there are a lot of cool components like Power, Treasure and Monster Cards to tinker with, as well as the miniatures for the heroes and monsters that come in the game.  There is an Adventure Book that presents a series of missions that form sort of a campaign.  We've been playing through the adventures here at the Wargate, and they are far from easy, which makes for great re-playability.  I think we had to try the first group mission four or five times before we succeeded, and the next time we play it will be the third time for the group to try the specific mission we are attempting to finish!

There are Encounter Cards that create nifty effects like traps or magical dangers such as the Icy Corridor.  It has a randomness to it that likens it to Diablo the video game a bit, but it's still a huge hoot.  It even provides gamer nostalgia, because after all, it is Castle Ravenloft!!

It's almost like Speed D&D.  The game can turn deadly very quickly should the heroes become separated, and some of the monsters and other dangers are quite nasty in and of themselves.  The game uses a system for Healing Surges that gives the party a certain number of "resurrections".  You decide how many Surge Tokens your party will take (between 3 and 5 usually), and every time a hero goes down, at the beginning of his next turn he spends one of the party's tokens.  When a hero has fallen and cannot get up (due to there being no more Healing Surges), the game is over and you lose. HAHAHAHAA.

The Dungeon Tiles are another interesting bit.  A lot of those old boxed games came with large dungeon boards or tiles, and Castle Ravenloft does not disappoint.  The squares are the perfect size for a tactical map, if you're into using a grid.  If you're not, they are still well illustrated and can serve alongside your other gaming utensils to provide you with even more RPG or wargame fodder!

After playing the game, I found out it had kin!  Wizards has done another boxed game that is almost identical, except it has different heroes, monsters and a different setting!  It's called Wrath of Ashardalon, and it's all about dragons!  Set at Firestorm Peak, another iconic dungeon, I've heard that the two of these games can be combined into a giant mega dungeon!

I'm considering getting it just for the components, but the games themselves present hours of fun in and of themselves.  So the next time we go vampire hunting, try not to use up all the surges if one of Strahd's goons comes over and lures you into a secret hallway teeming with undead monsters.  Regroup!