Ok i own the base game and the four small expansions, i thought a good idea to summarise what i frequently use off those packages and the stuff i never use. Also i will value with points from 1 to 10 the utility or added value we think the expansion has.

CURSE OF DARK PHARAOH old version:

I use new allies and the spells.

I dont use the exhibit, the barred cards, benefits and detriments, the dual gate or the surprise rule, nor the mythos or other world cards.

Except sometimes when we play a thematic EGYPTIAN game.

Points: 3 of 10

LURKER AT THE THRESHOLD:

I use always the new gate markers, the spell, common items and unique items. And sometimes the herald.

I dont use the relationship cards, dark pacts, mythos or other world cards except when using the herald (aprox once every 15 or more games.

Points: 5 of 10 primarily for the gate markers.

BLACK GOAT AT THE WOODS:

I use the 9 monsters and sometimes the herald. We have also a house rule for corruption cards, in fact we give those when players are sent to asylum or hospital.

I dont use the one thousand cards, mythos or other world cards except when using the herald once every 15 games.

Points: 4 of 10 monsters are a rare asset!!

KING IN YELLOW

Alway use the yellow tokens and the blight cards, in fact yellow tokens are always added in my games when terror increases with no need of the king in yellow to be present. Also the riot monsters are a must.

We dont use act cards, special magical effects except when using the heral once every 20 or so games.

POINTS: 5 of 10 mainly due to yellow tokens idea.

Summarizing, i guess every expansions has something great to add to games, a few of them simply awesome (like yellow tokens and new gate markers) but thematically we get tired of the heralds and extra stuff that tend to somehow increase playing time with no great add value.

Nonetheless, with only this foru expasiones we were able to build a common item, spells and unique items dech wothout repeating a single card and that alone is added value.

So in general i think i give a 4 of 10 to expansion.

Would be great to know your opinions.

cheers!

Yellow sign tokens are the one component that doesn't do anything. They are literally the least important component. Do you mean that you always use the KiY herald's effects?

Yeap, house rule, every time terror track increases a yellow token is added and a blight card added to game.

Antabires said:

If you mean a token is added to the terror track, you don't need to. The number of blight cards you've revealed count how many times you applied this penalty.

If you mean a token is added to the doom track, you don't need to. Just add a doom token instead. Their functions, according to the herald, are identical.

See? Useless. That's why I use them to mark spots on the doom and terror track where personal stories are failed, and for a rumor's progress, and the number of turns an AO has attacked in battle, etc. So I guess "useless" isn't quite true...

Tibs said:

Interesting point, that way the house rule should be, every time the terror track increases (besides the usual efects) add a doom token or a blight card into the game.

But dont you think that yellow tokens added to the terror track one after another has a visual effect that can generate the so desired horror (somehow) in players?

Well we kind of like it

thanks for your opinion

King in Yellow - high value

Adds the most to the game out of any of the small expansions. Terror level is now a big deal. One of the few heralds who are both hard AND fun!

Beyond the Threshold - medium value

"Herald" makes the game a lot easier for the investigators. Fun, but balance goes right out the window. We use this one as a boost when we're up against tough ancient ones that normally wipe the floor with us (Zhar, Rhan, the gate burst spider thingy).

Personal relationships are fun! At the very least they add incentive to not intentionally let investigators get devoured or retired all the time.

The rest

Eh. They either don't add much besides items or their mechanic is half baked (Black Goat).

Tibs: I tend to use yellow sign tokens to represent reduced max Sanity or Stamina. It used to be that this rarely happened (and when it did, there was some sort of way of keeping track of it, like holding onto the card that caused), but Miskatonic added a whole bunch of cards that reduce your maxes. It doesn't entirely make thematic sense, but it's the only necessary function that isn't represented by another token.

Such a function does not need to be represented. The investigator has the appropriate number of stamina tokens available to him: current stamina is on his sheet; lost stamina is off. If his maximum decreases he merely gives a token back to the supply.

Interesting. I probably wouldn't implement that myself, just because I would be afraid of losing track of which was which (if the sheet was jostled, for instance), but it's more elegant than mine.

If ya like THAT trick, check this crap out!

Lily Chen gets 7 sanity and 7 stamina tokens. After setting her maximums slider, she places a stamina token on all the notches to the left of it and a sanity token on all notches to the right.

When she moves that slider, vacated spaces are occupied by the appropriate token type, taken first from the "off sheet" set. Occupied spaces the slider moves over are vacated, placing the first token into her "on sheet" pool and any else off the sheet (i.e. she can only heal one point per upkeep).