Hello,

during our last game I realized that it's not a bad idea to read the rules again from time to time, since we don't play that often and tend to forget rules:) And I found one sentence in basic rules which makes me curious: "When the number of monsters in the Outskirts exceeds this limit, return all of the monsters in the Outskirts to the monster cup and increase the terror level by 1."

This is how we play it: 3 players, limit is 5. We have 4 monsters there, full Arkham limit and a monster surge with 4 monsters. We would add first monster to the Outskirts, so far so good. We would add second monster to the Outskirts, limit exceeded, return all 6 to cup. We would add the rest 2 to the Outskirts.

But now I wonder, if maybe all the monsters should be added at the same time, thus making it 8 in the Outskirts and then all of them return to the cup? Is our way correct, or the one I think now, or something completely else?

Thanks!

You play it correct.

As per the FAQ:

The Outskirts and Monster Limits
Q: Can you give an example of how the monster limit and
the Outskirts work?
A: The monster limit is equal to the number of players
plus three. If adding a monster to the board would bring
the number of monsters above the monster limit, the
monster is placed in the Outskirts area instead. When the
Outskirts become too full, the terror level is increased by
1 and all the monsters in the Outskirts are returned to the
monster cup. The maximum number of monsters that may
be in the Outskirts without raising the terror level is 8
minus the number of players, as listed in the chart on page
18 of the rulebook.
Example: In a 3-player game, the monster limit is 6 and
the maximum number of monsters in the Outskirts is
5. There are 3 open gates on the board, 6 monsters in
Arkham, and 4 monsters in the Outskirts. During the
Mythos Phase, you draw a location that already has
an open gate, so you have to draw 3 more monsters.
You would first draw 2 monsters and place them in the
Outskirts. The Outskirts limit would be exceeded upon
placing the second monster, so you would then increase
the terror level by 1 and return the six monsters in the
Outskirts to the cup. Finally, you would draw the third
monster and place it in the Outskirts.

FAQ... Thanks Schwaig!

Herald,

You played it exactly right!

Cheers,

Joe

edited: by Schwaig!

I miss these things also quite often, so no problem at all

What happens, if say, you have 5 monsters in the outskirts and the terror track is at 9. Suppose you draw a card that says "Raise the terror track by 1" and then raise the track to 10. What happens to those monsters in the outskirts? Do they go back to the cup?

I like the idea of those monsters making their way into Arkham, but I'm sure that's not what would happen. I just want to make sure I'm correct in thinking they'd go back into the cup.

Yeah, that is also in the FAQ:

When the Terror Track reaches 10, return all monsters in the Outskirts to the monster cup.

Ninjaed by Schwaig!

Excellent, thanks!

that Schwaig is quite the ... nice!

I'll take that as a compliment