I've got the Core Set and was wondering if anyone had any opinions on which set/pack would be good for me to purchase next, as a new player. Also, I had a couple of other questions:

1) Is there any way to get more copies of the cards from the Core Set without buying it again? I've read that the newer Asylum Packs come with 3 copies of every card, but the Core Set doesn't which is inconvenient.

2) Does every Asylum Pack that was released after the Order of the Silver Twilight expansion contain additional cards for this faction?

3) Are either of the "deluxe expansions" worth getting over any of the APs?

1. No, the core set just comes as you found it - some cards have 3 copies, some have 1.

2. Yes, Silver Twilight characters are in every set released after the box set (except the reprints, of course)

3. I think it is hard to suggest one AP or deluxe box over another - they all have their place depending on the kind of deck you are trying to build, your favorite factions, what themes interest you... I don't think any one is better or worse than the others intrinsically.

Think I'm gonna start suggesting the Shifting Sands to new players.

Having the current story cards plus khopesh and the large man makes it seem like worthy pick up.

So... what if I have NO IDEA what kind of deck I want to build, and just want to expand upon my current set with more, generally easy-to-understand, cards from another set? Are the deluxe expansions the best route, then, since they have more cards?

This is a big question. My short answer:

Buy the Secrets of Arkham deluxe expansion next.

Then pick up a second Core set.

If you aren't interested in buying another Core set (though it gives you the best bang for the buck and has excellent cards), then pick either The Yuggoth Contract or Summons of the Deep cycle. I lean toward The Yuggoth Contract, but both contain very playable cards.

Getting into the nitty-gritty, Ancient Relics is another excellent choice. However, APs from this cycle will contain Order of the Silver Twilight cards which will be useless to you at this time, so perhaps you will want to wait. One exception is the first AP from the Ancient Relics cycle, titled The Shifting Sands. It contains a new set of 12 story cards. This the "official tournament story card set". If you find the story cards from the Core set are adequate, and you're not looking to enter tournaments - and there really aren't many of them for this game - then you can skip it.

Do not purchase the Order of the Silver Twilight boxed set yet. Wait until you have fleshed out your existing factions and purchased the AP cycles I mentioned previously before you decide to introduce an entirely new faction.

For a longer answer, this question has been discussed before here:

www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/768297/help-me-like-this-game-and-enjoy-playing-it

Good luck and happy gaming!

Thanks for the help guys. Is there any word on whether or not the Secrets of Arkham expansion will be reprinted with 3 copies of each card?

No, I haven't heard anything about that and honestly I doubt it would happen. Worst case, you buy two copies of Secrets and sell the 1/2 set to someone else, I don't think it would be hard since everyone else has the same problem.

dboeren said:

This is what the players in my group have done with Secrets of Arkham. It worked out well.

I did the same, secrets of Arkham comes with some major cards and stratigies for each faction particularly Cthulu. Mother Hydra in combination with Deep One Rising is a pretty destructive and pesky combo. Also if you go with a Cthulu deck then i would as well say grab shifting sands as well Khopesh is a phenominal card. Also im not sure if the FF web site has one but if you go online you can type in CoC card lists and get full read outs of all the crads in each set.

MinionOfProvidence said:

Unfortunately, I don't believe using Hydra's ability to bring Deep One Rising back from your discard pile and activating Deep One Rising's forced response to destroy a character is a legal combo.

The wording is subtle, but there is a rules difference between "play" and "put into play". Refer to the FAQ section 2.9 on "play" vs "put into play" vs "enters play". Here's the relevant part:

"Card effects that take place when a card is played do not work if the card entered play through an alternate way."

Hmm, I think Secrets of Arkham will probably be next. Does anyone know of an online game finder thing to look for people who play this game in a given area?

Yipe is correct, there's a distinction between the different ways a card can enter play and not all abilities work with all ways. The FAQ explains it in detail.