I have an opportunity to buy a complete used set of the Arkham Horror game (2005 base edition and all eight expansions).

I have some questions before I take the plunge:

1. I already own the 2005 edition of the base set, so I guess I'll have two of those. Is there going to be any problem playing with that edition (as opposed to the revised edition that came out later)?

2. Will I be able to easily distinguish which cards, monsters, investigators, etc came from which set? I want to be able to experience the game in the order that it was originally released, one expansion at a time. I have no doubt that this set I'm considering purchasing will have the cards all mixed together.

Thanks for any help.

I'm excited to get back into the game. I really haven't played since the old Chaosium version, which I still have. I've been enjoying Eldritch Horror quite a bit, and look forward to jumping back into Arkham.

With fiendish delight,

Spooky Mizu

As far as I know, there is no real difference between the FFG editions of the base set. On the revised Arkham board, water locations are printed on the board whereas the original board needs a couple of tokens placed on those locations instead. I suppose the rules for water locations are printed in the revised rulebook as well while missing from the original. You will find the rules for these in the other expansions anyway.

All the expansion cards will sport a little symbol that reveals which expansion it comes from, although weirdly (and slightly annoyingly), that symbol will be in different places depending on the expansion. I think the investigator sheets might also bear this symbol somewhere. To tell which monsters come from which expansion, you need to consult the Arkham Horror wiki . Here, you can actually find out which investigators belong to which expansion as well, as well as which items, skills, allies, etc.

So go ahead and spend that sanity!

As a quick note: there are some components that many people leave in the game once they have all expansions regardless of whether or not they are playing with all the expansion components or even just specific ones. They do not really provide a barrier to entry and are just fun.

Some of the components that really do nothing but enhance the game (you may want to consider using them in all games) are:

Injuries/Madness: cards (these, although optional, merely provide a choice that will save you waiting around having stale turns while trying to heal up your defeated investigators)
Relationships: These do nothing but provide a buff for you characters, but often enhance the thematic feeling of the game.

Item/Spell/Unique Item/Common Item/Skill/Ally decks: The only issue you may have here is the dillution of "Elder Sign" unique items (which are quite powerful artifacts that can potentially win you the game). Obviously the larger the deck, the harder they are to acquire.

Location/Otherworld cards do not need to be separated out unless you really want a non-dilluted flavor to your game. For example, feel like really witnessing a story heavily themed on the effects of the notorious King in Yellow play? Only include the base set and the King in Yellow cards.

Mythos cards are the only deck you for sure do not want to dillute with extra cards. The biggest problem with doing this is that you will be instructed to place clues and gates in locations that are not in play.

And as far as monsters go, you can include them all (most people do). Sorting them doesn't really provide any added experience as the monsters that come with each expansion aren't particularly themed for the expansion.

Finally, just a warning, the game is very very fun, quite long, and has rules that are quite different from Eldrtich Horror. Do not make assumptions based on EH. For example, in AH, you cannot trade clues between investigators even though you can in EH. Read the rulebook thoroughly, and when it doubt, refer to the turn's phase order.

I hope you buy it. The came is virtually limitless in replayability and remains one of my all-time favortie boardgames.

Actually there are a couple of differences between the very first edition of the game and further ones:

- the board is slightly darker

- some cards had minor corrections (Lantern, Healing Stone, Flesh Ward come to mind); these cards were made available through the Dunwich Horror expansion, so that if you buy the whole stock, you're sure you have replacements in the mix

Welcome!

Wow! Thanks for the detailed suggestions and advice.

I went ahead and took the plunge, made the bid on eBay, and won it this morning. It also comes with four of the novels and one special ally card that must have been a promo from one of the novels. It was $175 with shipping. Not bad. Looks to be in pretty good shape.

Once I start playing, I'll be back with lots of questions, I'm sure. Questions like " should I read the original rulebook that comes with the 2005 version or read the 2007 revised rulebook?"

Yep. Those sorts of questions.

Thanks again, y'all.

Congrats for winning the auction You're right, 175 is a killer price! Enjoy the game

(no idea of whether the rulebook was revised too, but in case you can find the pdf of the rules on this very site)

Now all you need are the pre-painted monsters and investigators!