I know that the characters from the expansion sets can be used in the base game, but I was wondering if other elements from the expansion sets may also be used in the base game? Isle of Dread specifically states that its market cards can be used in the base game. Is that also the case with the other big box expansions? How about the various challenges? Has anyone tried to incorporate the challenges with the base game?

Thanks for your advice!

I think the market cards from each big box can be mixed together with too much issue.

Challenge cards, generally not. First of all every big box's challenge decks have their own backs, so they can't really be shuffled together. Secondly, many of the big boxes use special rules not used in the base game or other big boxes. Sands, for example, has rules for traveling (and therefore fighting) in either the daytime or the nighttime, and the encounter cards have stats for both. Using encounter cards from any other box with Sands would require figuring something out for the day/night stats of all non-Sands encounters. Isle of Dread reserves the Blue deck for seafaring encounters, which make no sense in any other box as there are no navigable water spaces on other maps (besides rivers, I suppose.)

The big boxes really aren't meant to be mixed together. Personally, I kind of like it that way. We can play a different one each time and it keeps the game fresher longer.

Thanks for your comments. It makes sense not to mix challenges from the big box, as it does take away from the uniqueness of each big box expansion. And as you point out some of the challenges aren't compatible at all. I will keep each big box separate except for the characters and maybe the market cards.

Michael Scorefan said:

In addition to Steve's words, I suggest you to not mix the Market cards of the Frozen Wastes expansion along with the normal Market cards. Despite having the same back and a similar layout, they're Legend cards specific to that expansion. Surely you canignore the Difficulty Level gem and treat them as normal Market cards, but with plenty of Items & Allies (incl. small expansions) you actually don't need them.

Heroes can be generally shuffled together, but most of them have Skills that are best used with certain big box expansions and are useless in other contests (i.e. Endure for some Sands of Al-Kalim Heroes).

Thanks for the notes from Warlock and Steve. We're in our first round of IoD, and some of the Market cards there in made me pause at mixing them. Prehaps for that big box it's not as much concern, but having now peeked at some from MoZ and FW, I can see what you mean. Forewarned for when it comes time to try those (and at least I was able to pry Barb away from SoAK for one game).

JCHendee said:

As Steve said, you can freely mix IoD Market cards into the base Market deck. The only drawback is that you will forget that the Sunplate comes from IoD, since it has no expansion marker on it.

A sad thing about IoD is that there are significant misprints that have never been corrected, which is strange considering the multiple reprints of this expansion. Once I've asked Customer Service whether FFG will ever issue a set of amended cards, but I've got a negative answer.

This is OT but worth mentioning. That answer did not keep me away from Runebound. I think this is a solid game and, while I prefer other games from this company for various reasons, I welcomed every RB expansion and enjoy a game here and there. I was surprised that there was almost no discussion about Mists of Zanaga here or at BGG; I think MoZ was an innovative expansion with great ideas, significantly more challenging than Frozen Wastes, and with a cool atmosphere and storyline. Nothing of it made it into other Terrinoth products and excellent heroes such as Maliki the Claw, Saka and Kuto, Spiritspeaker Tara ASO will never have a Descent incarnation. I don't think 2nd edition will ever include those exotic characters, not even in the Conversion Kit. What a waste of good ideas and shiny artwork.