I'm probably not alone in thinking that the support for Talisman 4th edition revised has exceeded my expectations over the years since release in an outstanding fashion; the mind boggling thing is that it still has so much more to come. At least I hope it does!

So to John Goodenough and all the other talent who has made my fave game what it is currently, a hearty thanks and keep it coming!

The future prospects of Talisman got me wondering what forms the expansion would take. With the release of the excellent Nether Realm a new type of expansion has arrived; I call it the "mini POD pack expansion" and with it a whole host of potential for the future of Talisman.

The Talisman framework takes the following form by my perception:

The Base Set: Talisman 101. Nuff said, gotta have it.

The Small Box Sets: ( The Reaper, Sacred Pool, Frostmarch, Blood Moon, The Firelands.)

These add approx 100 new Adventure cards each and a new gameplay mechanic that could alter the general theme of the game in a significant way. (Bloodmoon, lookin at you) These expansions generally require great consideration in card variety and balance due to the large input of adventure cards lest the overall game balance be affected. Personally I don't think we will be seeing many if any more of these after Firelands is released. The current Adventure card total stands at about 400+ and will probably exceed 500 on release of Firelands. Constantly adding masses of new adventure cards in the future is not the way ahead in my opinion.

Board Expansion Box Set: ( The Dungeon, Highlands, City,)

These are the expansions people bring to mind more than the others. Traditionally the expansions have been of this ilk and Talisman 4th edition is following in the footsteps of it's predecessors in true fashion. Having a Themed extra board to explore is great and enhances the idea of Talisman as a game of adventure and exploration. Basically it's a pseudo RPG. Having it's own deck of themed adventure cards is great as it doesn't intrude on the adventure deck and risk upsetting it's balance dynamics.

It is common knowledge that we will get another corner expansion in the future ( I believe it will be the next one after Firelands) late 2014 at very best and more likely 1st quarter 2015) It will also likely be a forest sylvan themed expansion. Beyond that it is totally new territory. It is feasible we will see an Ocean/Island area board expansion as we have very little in the way of Nautical themed cards and characters ( No Pirate, Yaaarrrr!). I think one is in the works down the line, at least i hope it will be. The latest sneek peak from Talisman Island nicely shows off a Marid Sultana, which hints at the Ocean/Sea. The mighty Storm river goes somewhere right? I don't think we will get a Timescape themed board expansion in this category though, but see below in Epic Level Expansions.

Oh and, maybe we will see a desert board expansion, this area has ever been neglected as a barren wasteland devoid of adventure potential and most deserving of it's own deck, However see Mini POD pack below. (In a game on talisman Digital recently I drew blizzard on the Oasis. Snowing heavily in the desert! Woahh mind blowing).

So to summarize I think we will see 2 or 3 more board expansions at most.

The Epic Level Themed Box Expansion: ( The Dragon )

I really like this style of expansion. It is majorly intrusive on the theme and play of the game but cleverly designed so that it is optional. There are no adventure cards in the box and the decks are unique to the expansion preventing it from taking over the general game of Talisman. So basically you choose to use this expansion or not. Talisman is extremely fantasy generic, yes there are dragons in the main adventure deck but maybe you want a huge dragon themed adventure. Enter, "The Dragon Expansion". The inclusion of the alternative endings allow you to use elements of the expansion in a less intrusive way dependent on your taste. "Dude, How much dragon shall we go tonight"

It was no surprise we had the dragon expansion. 2nd edition had Talisman dragons (which basically took over your adventure deck with too many dragons), and 3rd edition introduced the Dragons Tower. Both of these heavily influenced the design of the the current Dragon expansion. The way it has been designed is outstanding and begs for future themed epic expansions in a similar way.

I would love to see an Undead lords themed epic level expansion, (and when i say i would love to see it I mean I would sell me Granny to get it). Beyond Ghosts / wraiths and other spectral types in the base game, we have a massive lack of Zombies, Ghouls ( character excepted) Vampire's etc. They exist, as we have the ghoul character, vampires Tower and Vampiress and Necromancer character, but it begs further potential and I feel an undead uprising in the same design manner as the dragon would be outstanding. They could call it "Lords of Undeath"

Now when we think of classic fantasy it often goes hand in hand with experiences playing Dungeons and Dragons which was major part of my early gaming life and probably many others who play Talisman. An iconic part of DnD was the other planes and worlds you could explore with it's demons and Devils and angels etc. Similarly in Talisman they exist as well. Alignment is a core game mechanic and the gods are prevalent bestowing blessings or curses through their agents and places of worship. How about an epic level expansion featuring travel to otherworlds and planes dealing with Angels, devils and demons and Gods lurking in the background influencing events in a cosmic struggle. Talisman Timescape from 2nd edition was amazingly popular if somewhat out of place with the scifi, but the concept would make for an outstanding expansion if done right and i have faith that the crew who work and develop 4th edition would make it great. "Talisman The Otherworlds."

In summary i would love to see 2 more Epic level expansions.

The Mini POD expansion: ( The Nether Realm )

I feel the Nether Realm is the first of many and this is where the future of Talisman will go after all the other expansion types potential are spent. the packs are completely non intrusive and tend to be available only in specific conditions allowing for great variety and use. The Nether realm for example is only used if certain Alternative endings are in play and add a lovely element of variety to a standardized gameplay element. The deck can even be incorporated into a game in a non standard way pending agreement between all the players. I have seen it discussed in the forums that the Nether Realm deck be utilized when you land on certain spaces or at night.

The potential for this is immense and a mini deck expansion can be developed around any of Talismans elements. For example, How about a POD mini expansion centered around the Reaper where you draw from the deck whenever you land on a space occupied by the Reaper. The deck would represent his otherworldly sinister influence that would seep from his presence in an area. Throw in a a few Alternative endings (Including the one from the support section) and hey presto an expansion that would be very popular in my opinion.

Earlier I mentioned the desert. Maybe a whole new board may not be necessary. how about a POD Desert of Doom expansion featuring a specialized Desert themed deck that you would draw from when you land on a desert or oasis space. No more Blizzards in the desert again (Hello sandstorms). Possibilities are immense. However as I live in the UK I hope that they would be made available commercially in the UK so as to avoid heavy shipping costs.

Other Expansion Types : ?

Talismans potential need not stop at the above discussed types. Expansion ideas from other games can add much more depth to elements of Talisman.

Those familiar with Arkham Horror will no doubt be aware of the Miskatonic Horror expansion. Basically this is an Expansion Expansion. A similar expansion for Talisman would be a big box full of new cards for all of Talismans expansions to date. Extra Dungeon, highland and City cards, updated characters, A new dragon for the dragon expansion. The list goes on, everyone loves variety and new dungeon cards to freshen the deck after going through it several hundred times would add immense longevity to talisman as a game.

Now finally (Phew i hear you say) is an idea for an expansion centered around the characters. this would appeal to those RPGers who grew up on DnD amongst other fantasy games involving heavy character development. Again Arkham Horror added new character elements as the game matured, such could be done for Talisman and add another layer to the big adventure. Skill cards and personal quest cards, learned new Abilities and even relationship cards. For example a skill card could be " Barfly" gain +1 to rolls at the Tavern. A personal quest example could be for say the Minstrel "rescue the maiden from an evil character. Rewards from this could be to get 3 advances that you could use to add to stats or learn skills.

Right, that's that. had my say. Basically Talisman has masses of Potential left and the fact that it is also going Digital adds massive longevity to my talisman hobby. Some of my best social experiences have been playing drunken talisman long into a Sunday morning. May it prosper for years to come.

Cheers

Tony C (Alias: Blackwych on Digital)

Nice post.

Love the idea of an expansion expansion. More highland cards? More dungeon cards? (...did someone say Master Level Characters?) Yes please!

I would particularly like to see a sea-themed expansion at some point. We certainly have a void there right now that could be easily filled and would undoubtedly be most welcome

Your thoughts on a potential Reaper deck are interesting and could easily be custom made should someone want to do it.

As far as a large adventure deck goes, I always feel that the bigger the better. You could have 1000+ cards and i would not complain and the reason is this: you will never get through the whole deck in one game and therefore every game will be completely different with completely different cards and combination of cards. (make sure you shuffle well!) I have to say, that is one of the most exciting things for me and what keeps Talisman so unique game after game, year after year. My current group has been playing for four years now and last year we still came across two or three cards we had never experienced before and boy is that fun.

l love just the thought of speculation of the future. Your thoughts are cool, similar to mine, better thought out though!

I have thought about something that integrates or ties-in to the idea of all expansions and your ideas suit the bill. Master level characters indeed!

Being a big fan of the undead myself, I do like what Blood Moon has brought, but don't see a separate new expansion to which some undead themes have been explored. Yes, there is a Vampire's Tower, which can be brutal, the character of Vampiress and a Vamp prince in the dungeon and 1 in the adventure deck. I think 1 other card gives a vamp prince a chance to appear depending on the die roll. So I think a Queen of Vampires would be nice for say, the Forest board.

What about NPCs having interactions? What if a new type, GodZ, or Lords of order and chaos as NPCs and there is a way to have them compete with Dragon Lords or other bosses. Maybe an alt ending where the characters have to stop their warring or join sides one way or the other.

back to the undead, what if the old wizard returns... as a Master Lich?

Very nice post. Looks like you like clean neat posts, so just a small error I found in writing, you said: Small Box sets (plural) but also said Board Expansion Box set (singular) but in both you list more than one.

I think you are in the minority when liking the Dragon expansion and liking Timescape, I disagree with Dragon, but agree with Timescape! Making me a minority there.

I also agree with adjogi and disagree with you, that more Adventure cards are better. But I think players are 50/50 on that. Maybe a slight more wanting less.

As far as gods or deities, it has been mentioned before and I have also commented on it. And since then saw some Adventure cards that dealt with "religion/worship" on the dark side and noted that they were very strong in making the feel of it a generic dark faith rather than a specific evil deity.

You will also note that the Harpy from 2nd edition to 4th edition is more family friendly. I am completely convinced they will keep Talisman family friendly and not do deities. Trying to remain as inoffensive as possible to reach a larger customer base.

In this same vein of thought, this means more than likely I will not see Timescape because it has a small fan base.

We gotta remember its about $ and the more fans and customers they have the more $ they will get. Thus something's won't get made.

Of coarse companies make mistakes, and Dragon was one here. Sometimes they throw caution to the wind and experiment. But if one looks at what has been put in Talisman it is very family friendly and evil is toned down and generic rather than specific.

I also love the idea of an expansion expansion!

I think they may be more willing to experiment and take chances on smaller expansions tho. As they cost less to make.

As for Master characters, this is why I think 2nd Edition City expansion is my all time favorite expansions, or one of the big reasons. I would love to see something similar in 4th Edition.

I would happily see more and more small box expansions.

I only play with one small box expansion at a time for flavour - for example, just mixing in the Frostmarch cards with the regular card pool. You can really start to believe that the land of Talisman has been frozen over as Ice monsters prowl the realm and Ice-themed items and spells crop up.

All I have to say that the Timescape was the best expansion ever and I really hope to see it added to the Talisman 4th RE!

So I'm third here who wants to see it .

I liked the old Timescape. I would like to see a new idea or twist on it, before giving it my approval. So far, things have been coming along nicely.

I also like the Dragon set, but not exclusively. We do some tweaky things to mostly delay the deployment of scales, but we're in, for the most part.

The role for POD sets may lie more in embellishments or tweaks to the main flow of the game. So maybe a more Angelic or "High Temple" vibe or theme, to counter the power of the Nether? Perhaps the PODs could introduce a secondary 'cast' of nobles, A Queen, Dukes or Counts who may have ways to tweak the game. A Baron or Count might have fees for landing on his space, or the right to 'challenge' you or even take certain things from you. Perhaps certain nobles need safe passage between various regions or points on the board. etc.

When I look at the board, it seems the Dungeon is a mirror to the Highlands. They layout and play in the same manner, one is more difficult than the other, one's rewards are easier than the other.

When I look at the City and wonder if the final board might be a mirror too, I think there will be 2 or 3 spaces adjacent to the Village of the Main board with possible corollary aspects. As the Storm river seems to flow into the City (but is only 'manifested' by the Wharf, for travel back to the middle and Outer regions), perhaps the Storm river will be a part of the final board. I would like to see another form of water craft, more durable than the Raft, but originating in the Woodlands or whatever it's called. Characters can buy this craft and travel the river as it flows through the 4th corner, but may only be able to dock at the Tavern or Temple on the main board, and the Wharf in the City. Fees to park boats (and possible "boat-thiefs" as new enemy cards?)

Since in the City many things are available just by buying, perhaps things need to be earned in the new Forest-y board, and there are many more unique magical opportunities too.

I loved the Timescape and still do! We have even added it on to our Revised 4th games on occasion and it can work easily. However, i think it needs to be improved upon if FFG were going to revisit it (which somehow i doubt).

I always thought it would be brilliant having it on some kind of stand or platform so it exists above all the other boards on the table which would help give it that other-worldy/dimension/space feel.

I never owned or played the 3rd Edition (I think...) but it had some part of a board - Tower, that was lifted up over the board.

So two things come to mind... Yes, a timescape could sit over/beyond the game in this fashion... and/or

.... a new inlay board to transform either the Inner, or the 'lifted ' up thingee, into AN OCEAN!

my feeling is that I don't really want anything that lays flat, next to the board, etc. Because in all likelyhood, I will need a bigger table or wider. So building UP, could be an answer.

I would hate for an official Ocean, Timescape or whatever, that would either need to go at one end or side of the table, that is barely wide enough now.

As far as a large adventure deck goes, I always feel that the bigger the better. You could have 1000+ cards and i would not complain and the reason is this: you will never get through the whole deck in one game and therefore every game will be completely different with completely different cards and combination of cards. (make sure you shuffle well!)

1000 Cards! Man that deck would be an impressive sight. I would have to book a weeks work absence just to shuffle the deck. I agree that variety is fun and keeps he game interesting but i think constant adding of adventure cards would sully that intention and "dilute" the xperience. You would be buying expansions and never ever seeing cards due to the chance of encountering a card would diminish. Each card has an impact on the game in it's own way and you would eventually just end up with repetition of a same encounter type but with different names and artwork.

A fair while ago I did a study of the adventure deck composition (up to bloodmoon) from the basic deck to all the adventure cards together. I discovered that the balance had been quite consistent overall except for gold. but with the input of the city and it's gold making opportunities the balance works out. Check it out:

http://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/74529-adventure-deck-composition-comparison-base-game-vs-current/?hl=%2Badventure+%2Bdeck+%2Bcomposition

Scottindeed prefers the opposite concept of a focused flavor of adventure deck:

I only play with one small box expansion at a time for flavour - for example, just mixing in the Frostmarch cards with the regular card pool. You can really start to believe that the land of Talisman has been frozen over as Ice monsters prowl the realm and Ice-themed items and spells crop up

This will really give you a feel for the theme of a small box expansion and with the advent of Talisman digital I think we will be seeing a lot of this as players create tables with certain specific expansion mixes to get a particular "flavor" The problem with trying to do this with the actual board game is that it is extremely time consuming having to dredge the adventure card deck to extract certain expansions. 1 easy click in digital.

back to the undead, what if the old wizard returns... as a Master Lich?

If my memory serves me well there was a lich in the Tower deck back in 3rd edition that was this very thing, but it's that very idea that would be awesome for an undead themed epic level dragon style expansion. Instead of 3 powerful dragons you would have the returning wizard as a lich lord, A Necromancer lord and a Vampire lord each battling to control the land of Talisman for themselves.

I think you are in the minority when liking the Dragon expansion and liking Timescape, I disagree with Dragon, but agree with Timescape! Making me a minority there.

I would say it was 50/50 with regards to to the dragon expansion, but I think that's down to a general misunderstanding of how to use the expansion as intended. A lot of people don't get it as it's so different to the standard Talisman fare we are used to. The thing to remember with "The Dragon" is that it is an optional alternative to the usual Talisman modus operandi.

The genius of it's design is that they took a very iconic element of standard fantasy fare (Dragons) and said " Hey how can we enable dragons to be a really big deal for people who really like dragons in their Talisman game instead of being casually encountered in the adventure deck" they even went a lil further and included the alternative endings that enables players to tailor their dragon experience to a lessor degree without the drastic mechanics that using the full expansion entails. The fact that they made the expansion a optional alternative is the clever factor of the design and opens up many other themed epic expansion opportunities that need not intrude on one another.

Of coarse companies make mistakes, and Dragon was one here

I am curious what it is you dislike about the expansion? Talisman is Fantasy and what would fantasy be without dragons. They are so iconic that they begged for special treatment.

As far as gods or deities, it has been mentioned before and I have also commented on it. And since then saw some Adventure cards that dealt with "religion/worship" on the dark side and noted that they were very strong in making the feel of it a generic dark faith rather than a specific evil deity.

I agree that we will not see specific deities and more likely that if an extra-planar expansion is created that the powers will be Demon Lords, Angels and maybe powerful mortals. Generic the faiths may be but I cant help but see a strong resemblance to medieval Catholicism when you consider the chapel, holy Grail, Cross, Monk and Priest.

I think they may be more willing to experiment and take chances on smaller expansions tho. As they cost less to make.

Indeed, and that's why i think the POD expansions will be the way ahead.

All I have to say that the Timescape was the best expansion ever and I really hope to see it added to the Talisman 4th RE!

So I'm third here who wants to see it .

Talisman Timescape was way fun at the time. (The terminator was proper boss, he even looked like big Arnie) but the sci fi element would ruin the overall theme and experience. We have Relic now for that. But the concept of otherworldly travel and extra planar adventure is just too awesome an opportunity to pass up.

Why I don't like the Dragon expansion? 1st off I agree the art and cards are wonderful! I love Dragons just as I like werewolves.

But the expansion takes over the game (Dragons). And makes the game way to hard. It also is gimmicky, similar to Bloodmoon in this regard.

When debating my response here, I came to the conclusion that I would prefer a dragon side board, where you can encounter this stuff. Which immediate reminded me of a zone in EverQuest filled with dragons.

If there was 1 area that was taken over by dragons and extremely powerful that would be ok, even if they took over the CoC it would be ok, but not everywhere!

One big mistake with talisman 4th revised is the board is too big!!!

So many people can't handle side board expansions. They just don't have room.

By the way I like the concept of a board over another and even did this in RoboRally. But the problem is the the bottom board becomes too dark and you then need special lighting.

I solved this problem by playing 4th edition using the 2nd edition main board, with a paper on the side noting the board differences.

But still with this "fix" I do not have enough table space on both sides for expasnions, I can only expand 1 side and have playability.

So I think the best Variant for the Dragon expansion would be someone to create a board, which can use all the cards! I think that would be the best idea yet! I have no table room for it, and also decided not to do any fan made boards for 4th edition, however if someone did this, I would be tempted as we would only be using a board with cards officially made! I also plan on buying folding tables this spring for the basement for gaming.

So someone with talent run with this idea!

Oh man, oh man, oh man, I just had a great idea. what if you played 4th edition normally and attached a 2nd edition board or another 4th edition board, and used the dragon cards only there! Connecting the 2 boards where that land you only draw Dragon cards and not Adventure cards. I love it!

So I just called my friend the Talisman completest, and told him my idea, he loved it too. But he had a better idea. Use the Highlands, and draw a random Dragon token and allow drawing a Highlands card or a Dragon card. Then he came up with a better idea, buy a 2nd Highlands board. one for Highlands normally, the other for dragons! works great until the 4th board comes out!

But the expansion takes over the game (Dragons). And makes the game way to hard. It also is gimmicky, similar to Bloodmoon in this regard.

I personally think it just drags the game out and is just plain boring. We don't mind a longer game, but not in this way, and the game loses it 'Talisman' feel.

As far as expansions - keep it to small box expansions and boards for me. An Expansion expansion would be good too. Nether Realms is a good novelty set but I doubt we will play it more than once or incorporate it inside the Cursed Glade or something like that. I probably won't buy an "alternate ending only" set in the future, it would be scraping the bottom of the barrel as an offering going forward.

It does lose its Talisman feel. I think the day/night feature of Bloodmoon loses it the most, followed by Dragon.

I do not feel this way at all. As long as you need to go to the CoC, how could it be un-Talisman like? While we may not like the scales all over the place (which... is intended to force you up to the CoC), what part of Dragons are not involved in fantasy D and D type games?

Likewise Blood Moon. I only played actual D and D a few times back in the late '70s, but I always remember the DM throwing Vampires and Werewolves, etc. at us. So to me, this is fantasy d/d style too.

Now if you were talking about Timescape, you might have me, but alas, I am one of the few who liked it back in the day.

Which reminds me... so if the Nether Realm only exists as cards/scenarios drawn, that come to the land of Talisman (ie; you cannot venture to a board that is "The Nether Realm") - - ** wouldn't this work for Timescape in the 4th edition?

Timescape could be realized as a POD, whereby 'rifts' or portals open up and deposit THINGS from the Timescape's many dimensions, onto the realm.

So you want to have someone really analyse the original set. What would really work and what would not.

Anti grav platforms? Maybe not. But a Space Vampire (or was it an Astral Vampire) , oh hell, yes!

going further, perhaps certain objects could appear in the land, but either, they only work once, and must be discarded, or perhaps you have to roll on whether they work/how long/unintended consequences - there is an Artefact card, I believe that could blow up on you - or work. So that kind of idea.

I played Talisman since the 80's without day/nite and drawing Adventure cards on the main board. This is why it doesn't feel like Talisman to me.

I have a big game tomorrow, finally getting my brother-in-law to play with my group. Unfortunately only 1 of my friends can come, but I now have 2 nephews that play, 1 for sure tomorrow, and he played his 1st Talisman 2 weeks ago, has been wanting to since seeing it on Big Bang Theory. He loves it and wants to own it now. My youngest son will also be playing.

Last nite I pulled out 95% of the Day/Nite cards, leaving a handful and will still use, by rolling a die on those cards. So we will play everything except Dragon (I don't own it yet), Sacred Pool (don't own it yet but want to!), and only a part of Bloodmoon (no Werewolf, and almost no Day/Night as I already shared.) Hopefuly my friend who is coming will be bringing the new expansion, and we can try it for the 1st time.

It is fair, what you say, that the old set did not have day/night mechanics.

I played the old 2nd quite a bit, but hadn't for some years actually, and then we got the 4th edition. I had no idea there was even a 3rd.

I had "dropped out" from gaming. Well, maybe I never really belonged, because after the mid '80s or so, I only had 1 player and still do till this day, my wife. Most of my friends do not care to play these games/kind of games, at all.

Ironically they really dig Big Bang Theory... a show that actually leaves me pretty cold and unenthused. But that is another story.

You are lucky to have so many players to share with, no matter what version. I've tried talking my now 31 year old son to play with his mother and I, but no luck. It's not hand held and he can't totally focus on it to the exclusion of everything else, so it's a non-starter for he.

So for me, without the stimulation of other players and many games to remember, I have only, pretty much, the new expansions and the possibilities they hold.

Unfortunately its seldom when me and my gaming buddies get together, there are 3 others. But lately I been blessed to have new gamers, including my 11 year old son, who likes about half my games, and 2 nephews (23 and 21?), and one of my gaming buddies fairly frequently. My brother-in-law is a gamer but we have never gamed together and this is our 1st time.

My son and my nephew both disliked the day/night thing and were happy I am taking it out. About 6 months ago when my son played Talisman with my friend and his set, we played everything. He loved it and wanted to duplicate that experience but that hasn't happened, as I don't own everything. And only recently obtained Highlands. But last week when I implemented Day/nite at his request he didn't like it. Now he understands.

We played a game of 2nd edition 1st then a game of 4th edition. My nephew also said he didn't like the day/night feature but liked 4th edition better. So my completest friend is gonna be out voted tomorrow.

But once we get our new Dragon expansion idea rolling, we probably will play it frequently if it works out like we think. I am very excited to try it, but it won't happen tomorrow unless he brings it and an extra Highlands expansion.

After going thru Bloodmoon, I am planning a Halloween Talisman game next year. With everything from Bloodmoon. Gonna take out Frostmarch and probably the Reaper Adventure cards that aren't themed, to thin out the deck for the proper theme. Will also take out Sacred Pool, because I will be adding it in a couple months. I think playing with Bloodmoon on such occasions will be fun. Just not regularly.

I am not a big fan of the horror theme, but I liked Blood Moon. Overall there are some good ideas placed in the adventure cards . I actually don't mind the Day/Night mechanics, it can tip the balance when you are going for the LoD etc but the Werewolf (as with the Reaper) isn't popular with our players and we never play with it.

I find that most players in my circles have different opinions on the expansions they like or dislike (City, Highlands, Bloodmoon etc), but they all dislike Dragons the most.

So, in some ways I 'm lucky having only 1 player, because... less people to agree with! But I guess we are both compleatists , our selves, since we want to own and play it all. By the way we are 58 and 56 years old.

We only play about once a month on average, though if don't play in a month, we may double down and play longer/more on an occasion.

Because Dragons is *not* perfect, we do some house rules which I've mentioned many times; mostly to delay the scales - to get more of other things going on in the game.

I do find that the flavor of Dragons is intense and doesn't seem to go well if an alt ending seems contrary; ie; after foraging through the Dragon Realm/Inner region, you finally reach the CoC and find... the Demon Lord... or the Eagle Kind, or...

But we mostly don't mind, because in our two player games it is not unusual for us to call it because one of us just dies completely before either of us reach the Crown.

It is more about the tapestry or "story" of the particular game, rather than the competition. I think we're not as goal oriented in the playing, as most players may be.

Someone else indicated that the immense Adventure deck, of all expansions, limits a player's ability to encounter every card. Some cards may never be encountered if one uses the entire Adventure deck from all sets.

I guess I think that is a concern, but I would think that the more players in a single game means more cards will be ultimately played, encountered. In our 2 player games I don't feel that we lack the potential experience. One doesn't get to encounter every possible happening in real life either.

Decks that are tailored for a game, or to exclude cards / themes can also mean that the flavor of the game may be too specific. The world is very Icy. Or the world is very Haunted.

So for me, I like the world to have a bit of everything.

I have an odd taste for horror. I like a good Halloween game, but don't want it all year round. I like monster movies, but don't like gory movies. Classic horror is my taste.

Everyone and their brother seems to like and promote Arkham Horror. I think I played it once, and like the general play style, but I dislike Lovecraft. I am glad my friends don't have it, it was thru a friend of a friend when I played it. He also introduced Tomb the board game to us, and we loved that! 2 of us have copies.

Today's game went well, and some of the Bloodmoon cards came out. Some seemed to Halloweenish for me, but not when that season comes. Gonna pull more out.

I also like a well flavored Adventure deck in 95% of my sittings, so love a great mixture!

Well I'm more about the mixture, as you say. I've heard of Tomb. I probably would play most horror themed games (if I had time, etc.) as I do like horror a lot. But more old school. Not enthused with Lovecraft either; it's ok.

We used to have a game called Chill, or maybe Chiller. There were tiles that laid out an estate and a number lovecraft type horror/monsters, as I recall. But for years we didn't game at all and these games sat in our basement and go a little moldy or bad smelling at any rate, so we had to dump them.

For *some* reason the Talisman 2nd edition was spared this fate, however I cannot locate it in the house. Someone did some rearrangements and it's missing from where I last saw it, a year or so ago.

** I do feel card integration is one of the areas needing special attention in the game. I've gone to great lengths to find ways to shuffle the cards because I have found that with each new set offering cards to the main Adventure deck, they tend to stick closer to each other with regular shuffling; so you encounter the Vampire Prince, All Hallow's Eve and the Gypsy Caravan all in a row, for example.

I may go to the big box/bag paradigm; throw ALL cards in some bag or box with space and have players draw from there (without looking of course).

This would seem to be a good way to be random. Only bad luck (heheheheh) would make you draw 'like' cards in a clump, or we hope!

But what I actually do, (here comes the OCD part of me) is after some general shuffling I create a grid, 6 by 6, 8 by 8, whatever and just deal cards out into these mini-packs. I watch the symbols denoting which sets, or mostly know which cards are in which sets and I'll re-deal on the spot, so that 2 or more of any set does not fall on top of each other in the packlets. Obviously any pack is going to have a number of same-set cards but it does seem to help 'separate' the cards.

Even after several years, I note that previous sets; Frost March, etc. the cards are still sorta falling into their native sets.

... Deal with it! (we do)

I am very interested in an expansion with unique quests for each character that allows you to learn new abilities (and perhaps upgrade current ones). However, it would be very difficult to balance the quests and special abilities when comparing to other characters.

I am very interested in an expansion with unique quests for each character that allows you to learn new abilities (and perhaps upgrade current ones). However, it would be very difficult to balance the quests and special abilities when comparing to other characters.

Yes, this. Another way to expand the game is to give opportunities to grow skills or nuance or whatever. A few years ago I speculated that maybe characters could "own" homes, property and these could store all the other items, or gold that you may not have enough mules, etc. to carry. Owning property in Talisman could allow other things, having a family. Who doesn't want Jr or Great Aunt Haggatha to come and save the day {The Cavalry has arrived!}

But a way of earning other skills does have promise. This would be an extension of Quest REwards which do offer extra life, fate, spells, etc.