Black Goat of the Woods
The Black Goat of the Woods expansion is the fifth to be released for the Arkham Horror board game. Designed by Kevin Wilson, the cards-only supplement debuted in August 2008 at Gen Con. Many of the elements of previous expansions are present here, including new skills, spells, and weapons. The game also offers up some new bells and whistles for players, including a way to adjust the difficulty of play, as well as a sinister new element called Corruption.
Set in the always-dangerous city of Arkham, the Black Goat of the Woods begins as the population is gripped in panic. Over the last three months, a trio of girls has disappeared near the woods of Arkham, with the latest being a 14-year-old. Police seem to have few leads, and people are being urged to stay inside after dark and avoid wild or undeveloped regions.
In truth, a sinister cult has become active in Arkham, and they intend to sacrifice enough people to raise one of the dread Ancient Ones from their slumber. Can the investigators infiltrate the group and stop their plot in time, or will the planet become a plaything for a dark, alien intellect?
Expansion Rules for Black Goat of the Woods
Most
of the rules for the Black Goat of the Woods expansion are the same
as Arkham Horror, although there are a few differences. Keep these
rules changes
in mind.
Corruption Cards - When a player is instructed to draw a Corruption card, take the top card from the Corruption deck. These cards contain an effect that is triggered when its specific dimension symbol appears during the mythos phase and the black or white background matches. Effects of Corruption cards are resolved immediately after the monster movement phase, although passive effects may have a continual influence. In order to get rid of Corruption cards, you’ll need to close a gate with the matching dimension symbol. If a player is required to draw a Corruption card but none are available, the Ancient One for the session immediately wakes up and the Final Battle sequence commences.
Cult Membership - During game-play, players may have the opportunity to join the “One of the Thousand” cult devoted to Shub-Niggurath. If they accept, their encounters will subsequently differ from other investigators.
Encounters with Cults - If a player has a cult membership, they must draw a Cult Encounter card during an encounter at the Woods, Black Cave, or Unvisited Isle.
Gate Bursts - Certain mythos cards will result in a gate burst. If the indicated gate location has an Elder Sign on it, the symbol is removed and the gate bursts open. A monster appears at the location, and all flying monsters move (regardless of their symbol).
Black Goat of the Woods Components
While a game board isn’t included, the Black Goat of the Woods expansion does have a number of components. Here’s a brief rundown of some of the more interesting items:
11 Unique Items - New unique items include the Ancient Spear, Astral Mirror, Naacal Key, Milk of Shub-Niggurath, Ritual Blade, and Soul Gem.
11 Common Items - My favorite common item is the .357 Magnum. Other new items include the crowbar, magnifying glass, lucky rabbit’s foot, military motorcycle, student newspaper, and a copy of Gray’s Anatomy.
24 Cult Encounter Cards - These are cards that detail your investigator’s interactions with the cult of the Black Goat. My favorite is “Baptized in Blood.” This card allows the investigator to be blessed, but they must also draw a Corruption card and lose 2 sanity. If the investigator refuses to be blessed, they will be cursed instead.
23 Mythos Cards - This set of cards depicts major occurrences in Arkham. Some of the most interesting new mythos cards included in The Black Goat of the Woods expansion include: Endlessly Breeding, Funnel Clouds, Horns of the Black Goat, Lightning Strikes Twice, One-Thousand Young, Pets and Wildlife Mutilated, and Vivisection Victim.
9 Monster Markers - New monsters introduced in the game include Child of the Goat, Dark Druid, Dark Young, and Goat Spawn.
4 Spell Cards - New spells include Summon Monster, Steal Life, and Call Ancient One.
32 Corruption Cards (16 green and 16 red) - The green Corruption cards provide your investigator with advantages, while the red cards work in the opposite fashion. One example is Uncontrollable Rage, which causes the investigator to be arrested if they are in town. They must also lose one sanity and one ally. If they are in the Other World, they must lose one sanity and be delayed.
Additional Styles of Play for Arkham Horror
Gaming groups can choose to play Arkham Horror the traditional way, or they can choose to add the variants sprinkled throughout the expansions. In the Black Goat of the Woods, players have two such options. One, both, or neither of these variants can be chosen.
The Herald Variant
The first is the Herald variant. the Black Goat of the Woods herald sheet will be added to the mix, paving the way for the Ancient One and making life as difficult as possible for the investigators. While most of the standard rules are used, the following differences occur:
A doom token is added to the doom track each time a monster surge occurs.
When a hexagon gate is closed, hexagon monsters are not removed from the board.
When gates open, draw both a standard monster and a hexagon monster and place them on the gate.
The Dark Young move around the board like normal monsters.
A monster surge results in half the monsters from the hexagon cup being drawn (rounding down).
An investigator must draw a Corruption card each time they defeat a hexagon monster.
When the hexagon cup runs out of monsters, continue to draw creatures from the regular monster cup.
Adjusting the Difficulty Level - Another Variant
The second variant allows for the level of difficulty to be adjusted. There are five difficulty cards in all, with two making the game harder, two making it easier, and one keeping it at a normal level. Before starting the game, draw one of these cards and apply any indicated modifications.
The Black Goat of the Woods Reviews
The Black Goat of the Woods expansion for the Arkham Horror board game received a number of positive reviews when it was released. While it doesn’t add a new board like Dunwich Horror or Kingsport Horror, it does manage to introduce enough new wrinkles to keep weekly gaming sessions from getting repetitive. The MSRP is $27.99, but I was able to find a copy of it on Amazon for less than $20 when I looked. They change their prices all the time, but you should still hope for a discount when buying online. At around $20, it's an excellent value.
If you’re a fan of previous releases for Arkham Horror, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be satisfied. And even if you’ve never played before, you may find this tale of lonesome woods and mad cultists to be the perfect remedy for an otherwise mundane existence.