FFG anuncia nueva expansión para Descent.

FFG, que parece dispuesta a sangrarnos nuestros bolsillos, se suelta hoy con la noticia de una nueva expansión para su dungeon crawler, Descent.
Shadow of Nerekhall, es el nombre de la nueva aventura, que nos ofrecerá nuevas minis, mapas y una nueva opción llamada influencia.
Como siempre, iremos siguiendo los avances.

Decades ago, the forbidden magical study of Nerekhall’s scholars extended beyond the realm’s capacity for tolerance. A noted mage, Gargan Mirklace, was driven mad by his experiments with the Aenlong and the Ynfernael, and unleashed demonic forces that sent much of Terrinoth spiraling into chaos. Nerekhall’s recovery from its troubled past has been remarkable, and officials insist that all is well within its borders. The Daqan Lords are not so trusting, however, keeping a close eye on the city and threatening swift retribution should Nerekhall ever allow such darkness to rise again…

Fantasy Flight Games is proud to announce the upcoming release of Shadow of Nerekhall, a new expansion forDescent: Journeys in the Dark Second Edition! You and your fellow heroes travel to Nerekhall, a thriving town with an evil reputation, where you must determine whether the shadow of the past has truly vanished. There, you’ll find unnatural events occur almost daily, but are outside forces infiltrating the city, or is the city itself rotten to the core?

The Shadow of Nerekhall expansion relates a riveting story, divided into nineteen new quests that you can play individually or string together in a campaign. Along the way, you’ll encounter deadly monsters and traps. Fortunately, four new heroes offer their services, bringing powerful new items and a new class for each hero archetype. With this new expansion, it’s up to you to uncover the truth behind the walls of Nerekhall.

A City Under Darkness

At the beginning of the campaign, your band of heroes is sent to Nerekhall to investigate the reformation of the city and ensure that there is no chance of evil breaking loose once more. The city seems to be clean and refined. Chief Artificer Rylan Olliven has even executed his own brother, Tristayne, for necromancy.

But all is not as it seems. Strange events are afoot in Nerekhall once more. Demons from the Black Realm penetrate the city, and in the underground sewers, rumors spread of the rise of the Rat-Thing King. No one knows for sure how high the corruption has spread within the city’s twisted bureaucracy. As the hour grows late, you must protect the innocent as you determine whether Nerekhall can still be saved, or if it must be purged with clean fire and cold iron.

For the first time in Descent: Journeys in the Dark Second Edition, you are no longer wandering the wilderness, fighting monsters in desolate wastelands, cursed forests, and darkened caves. New map tiles illustrate the streets, taverns, libraries, and sewers of Nerekhall, as well as the torturous labyrinth and eerie aura of the Black Realm – the home of foul demons.

Claws Behind the Cloak

As his schemes spill into a new environment, the overlord has new opportunities to outwit the heroes. Many of the quests in Shadow of Nerekhall introduce a new effect, known as influence. At the beginning of the quest, the overlord chooses between several options that dramatically affect the plot and outcome of the quest. For example, you may have to determine which members of the City Guard are corrupt, and which members are innocent. Before the quest begins, you secretly choose one influence token with a symbol that matches the influence effect he has chosen. Your secret knowledge of your agents’ identities may give you a dangerous advantage, but if the heroes can guess your plan, they may gain the upper hand. If you successfully deceive them, however, their missteps might bring them to a grisly demise.

The Shadow of Nerekhall expansion has more to offer the overlord than the potential to influence the plot. The overlord receives a new class that supports his devious plots within the city of Nerekhall. By using the Shadowmancer Overlord class, you can manipulate the heroes, playing them against each other while sowing the seeds ofMistrust or forcing the heroes to attack each other. If you cleverly bide your time and strike from the shadows, only the mightiest of heroes will be able to resist your corruption.

Even as the overlord pursues his plans within the city, his new monsters lurk in alleyways and dark corners. Changelings and Ynfernael hulks break into Nerekhall from the Black Realm, and other monsters creep through the shadows, waiting for their moment to strike.

While each of these new monsters is a worthy adversary in combat, changelings can prove to be a difficult challenge in more ways than one. Their most potent use, however is in conjunction with the new Corrupt Citizen cards. It’s unclear whether these demonic creatures duplicate and replace innocent civilians, or whether the civilians are transformed into the terrifying changelings. What is certain is that when a group of changelings enters a quest, you have the opportunity as the overlord to allow the master changeling to take on the form of a citizen by playing a Corrupt Citizen card. Whether the citizen is a mage, a guard, or an executioner, the master changeling receives new abilities to make the heroes’ quest a waking nightmare. 

Stand Firm Against Evil

The overlord and his minions aren’t the only ones bolstered by this expansion. The heroes receive new benefits inShadow of Nerekhall as well. Four new heroes join the fight against the darkness, each exemplifying one of four new hero classes: the Bard, the Skirmisher, the Conjurer, and the Shadow Walker.

While some Warriors perform best when given one enormous weapon, the Skirmisher excels with a weapon in each hand. The Skirmisher is light and fast, but still capable of dealing out damage. Even the overlord’s most powerful minions will quickly learn to fear the speed and power of the Skirmisher.

The Shadow Walker, on the other hand, is a Scout who can use a Shadow Soul familiar to undermine the overlord’s plans. A Shadow Soul can only move slowly, but its very presence drains the life from nearby monsters. By moving the Shadow Soul into the heart of conflict, a Shadow Walker can quickly dispatch a group of monsters.

The Bard uses his melody and harmony tokens to trigger a vast array of beneficial effects. Almost all of the Bard’s Class cards have two effects – one taking effect if the melody token is placed on the card, and the other if the harmony token is placed on the card. By changing his song, the Bard can trigger new abilities in the heat of battle, making sure that the heroes always have the inspiration they need to triumph over the overlord.

While the Bard carefully tailors his abilities to the game situation, the Conjurer stands ready to distract the overlord’s monsters with his images. The Conjurer can use his images for any number of tricks, such as redirecting his line of sight, slowing down monsters, or granting himself more dice for attack or defense.

A Journey into Shadow

The dark secret behind Nerekhall must be uncovered. As the servants of evil move in the shadows, the heroes must struggle to stop the machinations of the overlord, or Nerekhall will be plunged into a second darkness, even more grim and terrible than the first. The heroes sharpen their weapons, and horrid creatures skulk through the city by night. Are you prepared for what lurks in the depths of the city? Shadow of Nerekhall will be available in the first quarter of 2014!