Hi guys,

I have redesigned the Toad King originally designed by Mr Brogger. My version is completely different from the original. The Toad King now moves exactly like the Reaper. If a player rolls a "1" for his move, he takes his turn as normal and then at the end of his turn he may move either the Reaper or Toad King (or you can move both for a more difficult game). All other rules governing the Reaper apply to the Toad King as well. The Toad King starts in the Cursed Glade just like he originally did.

dl.dropbox.com/u/9409455/Toad%20King.pdf

Regards,

Ell.

We also use Jon New's Ice Queen in the same manner. (All 3 NPC's moving on a roll of "1" is really dangerous if you decide to move all three of them!)

Ell.

We're playing with yet another slight modification:

I'm working on painting the mini that goes with this image as we speak. I'm trying to think of a good way to play with all three NPCs - Toad King, Ice Queen, and Reaper. It's starting to feel fiddly, though, and I'm wondering what people do to compensate for that. Any ideas? I'm the sort of person who, when playing Arkham Horror, CONSTANTLY forgets to update or adjust things as we play. Everyone moving on a '1' is a good way to streamline; has anyone got any other ideas?

I used the Toad King before and had him move on Turns where one or more spells were cast. Was kind of interesting.

A cool update and another example of why Talisman is so great. Whatever works for your playing group is okay!!

I kind of like the fact that the three NPCs use different trigger methods. The "Oops" rule for the Ice Queen means that if you forget to move her then it is not the end of the world. It makes you more aware for next time.

I just think using 1 as a trigger for all might make for a bit of downtime while you decide all of your options. Nice options though!

Another possibility might be that when you roll 1 you must move the one closest to you by count of spaces, even across the river. If two are equidistant, you get to pick. Then again, don't know how this would all really work since we only play with the Toad King, and not always that. The Reaper is unanimously disliked around here, though some like the Ice Queen because its actions actually seem to be purpose driven.

We also play that on the 1 you must move it toward yourself, since a low roll is most often interpreted as ill-fortune. The NPC is thereby more of a threat acting with its own purpose and less of a godly cannon that players manipulate. With 3 NPCs active at once, there would be little chance of staying out of reach of all o them when you roll that fatal 1. Would make for a nice, tense game, and keep characters on the move!

I really like the original mechanics for the Toad King, triggered on acquiring magical objects or casting spells. It has made players really cautious about using magic around him, and there might be some really tempting loot on the ground but players are hesitant to pick it up, just wonderful. I've once dropped a trail of excess Talismans on the board to trigger him to follow me, so I could pick up some juicy loot he was close to. Players would risk picking stuff up if they had enough fate, but wouldn't if they were down to 1 or none. I found he has a subtle yet great impact on the game, like the hidden immunity idol in Survivor.

I like the idea of Ice Queen being triggered by a one, having her chase you around too, but maybe have a Frostmarch card trigger her, and then roll a die for her movement. She can then land on anyone in range, like the Reaper.

Hey, I like that modification to the Ice Queen movement. Nice combination of mechanics! I think it would work nicely. To add to them, what if she was considered to "live" in the Frostmarch locations, so that if a Place card from the Frostmarch expansion is drawn (as opposed to an Object or whatever), she shows up immediately?

inkblob said:

Now that's a cool trick I gotta remember if I get in the right position. Would love to be able to lead into the face of the Prophetess that my wife loves to play.

Nice, and appropriate! There's places like her Palace, which would make a lot of sense, and keeps the spirit of the original NPC rules.

dl.dropbox.com/u/9409455/Toad%20King.pdf

Toad King now optimized to reduce file size!

Elliott.

(Pasted from Facebook )

Haha... just a small difference

Not sure about option 2 still. I dunno if taking a life fits the theme and might have preferred toading as the alternative.

Black Knight?

Here's my (finally) painted mini to go with my version of the Toad King NPC! I've got my eye on a mini for the Ice Queen too; once I acquire and paint her, I'll post her too.