Well, hello all! New to the forums and recently reintroduced to the game.

Yep I still have my original copy from 1987, which was the last time I played, but I'm back and playing this excellent version. Well, wanting to play. I've slowly been introducing the kids (ranging from age 21 to age 14, so not really kids, but newbs as far as boardgames are concerned) to boardgaming outside the the mundane boardgame world. The goal was to get them up to speed to finally play some Arkham Horror.

My question is, is there a simple set of rules that I can use to introduce the game to them, and then move up to the complete rules after a few games?

also, any suggestions for mood music?

Thanks !

Can't really help you with simplified rules, but as for mood music, if you (and/or the kids) aren't into heavy metal, I'd suggest orchestral horror or thriller soundtracks. The four I use most often are the soundtracks for Hellraisers 1-3 and Gothica.

I'd potentially recommend Kronos Quartet or Giorgi Ligeti as well, although I have only heard a small sample of works from both.

If it is heavy metal you want, I'd recommend some of the following:

My Dying Bride - Turn Loose the Swans (slow and beautiful orchestral doom)

Celestial Season - Solar Lovers or Forever Scarlet Passion (similar to, but heavier than My Dying Bride)

Trinacria - Travel Now Journey Infinitely (moody, laidback experimental stuff)

Mourning Beloveth - A Disease for the Ages (slow, very doomy, like Celestial Season but lacking violin)

There is a flowchart available on boardgamegeek that may help.

It gives you a decision flow for what you should be doing each phase.

You do still need to have a basic understanding of the rules though.

I play with my wife and some games our 4 year old plays too.

It is quite embarrassing when she corrects me on the rules frequently.

RAZ

I suggest you some good dark ambient music, like

- Raison d'etre "enthralled by the wind of loneliness" (and in general all his music)

- Endura "liber leviathan" (and maybe "the dark is light enough")

- Desiderii marginis "seven sorrows" or "the evergreen tree"

- Ulf Soederberg "Tidvatten" (and his other project, called Sephiroth)

- Lustmord "The place where the black stars hang"

minimalistic psycoacoustic / rythmic landscapes that create the mood perfectly

mylantus said:

No suggestions on mood music, but considering the ages you are talking about, you should have no problem with the full rule set. I started my sons, age 10 and 14 right off with the basic set. I learned it first, then we learned as we played together. Mistakes were made as we realized the things we were doing wrong, but a good time was had by all, and after about 3 or four games, we have it down pat (as pat as you can with AH, anyway) including DH and KH.

I gave them Descent for Christmas, and just left it with them for a couple of weeks. They taught me how to play when I saw them next, so it is infinitely doable with FF branded games. Compared with the complexity of Magic Realm or Advanced Squad Leader, which I started when I was 12, these games are really pretty easy for the young uns to grasp quickly.

Grab the Silent Hill soundtrack. It's weird enough not to be corny, and abstract enough not to specifically be associated with a modern era.

I agree on the Silent Hill Soundtrack. That's what we normally use. Ok...that's what we ALWAYS use, except for some songs like "End Of The World" very rarely for the ending.

If you're introducing newbies, use:

Nyarlathotep as the AO (he's fast, easy, and has a simple ability and worshiper effect)

For Investigators it's okay if they choose or are dealt random, but use only:

• Michael McGlen
• Carolyn Fern
• Vincent Lee
• Jenny Barnes
• Kate Withrop

If you have to use another one, use Joe Diamond or Amanda Sharpe before any of the ones not listed.

These investigators have abilities that are easy to use or are automatic, and that do not alter core game rules (like Mary's Blessing and LiTaS). Their abilities don't make the players choose between multiple drawn items—new players won't have much basis of comparison for the true worth of Tomes or other crazy items. These investigators also don't start with too many spells—items that are difficult to get the hang of for newbs.

Don't shout me down for not knowing what Silent Hill is. Film or Video game?

oldthrashbarg said:

Technically? Both. But the so-so film was based on the video games for PS and PS2. I've played the first 3 and they were all quite good.

At the Troy campus of my alma-mater, you can hear air raid sirens in the far distance at night. That coupled with the frequent light rain made me have SH flashbacks and I would nearly freak the hell out. It was awesome.

Ah, you youngsters and your new-fangled toys. I got the soundtrack; it sounds pretty decent.

Wow, thanks for all the good ideas. I have to admit, I was playing this stuff by the time I hit 13, so they shouldn't have problems. My 21 year old won't have a problem, but the others have a terrible attention span. These kids today...sigh...Too complex and they'll scatter. I'm gonna start the 2 yr old (bonus baby) off real soon. We're already playing candyland, and I'm just thinking about the future fun we'll have slaying cultists. I'll let her get through childhood without nightmares though. But....Hmmm.....Cthulhu in Candyland....has possibilities...

I'll try the suggestions, use Nyarlothotep, use the investigators suggested. We'll see how it goes. That's why I figured on the music to help set the mood.

I loved the music suggestions. Not a metal fan, but thanks for all the others. Some I've never even heard of but I'm gonna check Amazon. Silent Hill Eh? I remember playing one of the PC versions, I forget which one, and the music creeped the heck out of me, good call....Thanks!

Also, found the flowchart on boardgamegeek, Thanks!

Thanks again to everybody, keep the suggestions coming if you got them!

Once you start playing the game should flow pretty smoothly. Just keep the rules near by and take it a step at a time and make sure everyone is keeping up.

Any suggestions for mood music along more classical lines? Or perhaps something from the 1920s/30s?

oldthrashbarg said:

Some of the songs are more...disturbing, than others. Also, they have a strong effect on me and my group since most of us finished 5 of the 6 games. I just finished 4 (SH1, SH2, SH3 and The Room), but I know enough to mark Silent Hill 2 as the MOST disturbing and terrifiyng game in video game history, and this is coming from a horror fan who falls asleep at movies with too mutch gore because i'm bored rather then frightened.

Well, gore itself isn't really that frightening. Lovecraft has hardly any explicit violence. In any case whether or not one is scared by any given thing is to a great extent a question of willing suspension of disbelief. Silent Hill is a pretty good soundtrack, though; not too musical.

oldthrashbarg said:

I checked Amazon for Silent Hill soundtracks, and there's a lot of them. I have to admit, Silent Hill 2 has the coolest cover, AND it's downloadable for 10 bucks, so gonna give that one a shot. I'm trying to remember if the original "Alone in the Dark" PC games had good soundtracks, I seem to remember the music from the 1st and the 4th was pretty good.

Update: Well the only "Alone in the Dark" soundtrack was for the movie. It's mostly metal, but I think I like it. Not really mood inspiring though. I wasn't too impressed with the movie, despite the fact that I like Christian Slater.

Updated Update: I did find a soundtrack from the "Alone in the Dark" game, performed by "The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices", so speaking of classical music, from what I've heard so far this sounds right up that alley. And it is downloadable too. Gotta listen to more before I decide though.

Thanks again everyone. Gonna play for the first time in 18 years this weekend, if anyone is interested I'll post how it went.

Do you use the iTunes store? That's where I got the Silent Hill soundtrack, and the albums there are obviously at a standardised price.