How To Play: Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients – Setup, rule summary and strategy

To master 'How To Play Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients,' focus on class optimization, judicious resource management, and strategic combat tactics. Careful character selection, balancing your team, and prioritising threats during gameplay are key. Grab your six-shooter and dynamite; it's time to brave the dark depths!

Overview

Welcome, bold adventurers, to the strategic vault for Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients! In this guide, we’ll delve into not only the foundational game rules but also advanced tactics that will sharpen your path to victory. Get ready to decode the essential playthrough strategies, anticipate your enemy’s moves, and claim triumph amidst the perilous depths of otherworldly mines!

What’s in the box

  • 1 Rulebook
  • 1 Adventure Book
  • 16 Plastic Hero Miniatures
  • 12 Plastic Tentacle Minions
  • 6 Plastic Tentacle Monsters
  • 9 Plastic Stranglers
  • 9 Plastic Slashers
  • 15 Plastic Void Spiders
  • 15 Plastic Gargoyles
  • 6 Plastic Harbingers
  • 34 Map Tiles
  • 1 CD Soundtrack
  • 1 Depth Track Finder
  • 8 Hero Sheets
  • 4 Mine Map Cards
  • 4 Depth Cards
  • 1 Rule Summary Sheet
  • 1 Initiative Card
  • 1 Depth Track Sheet
  • Over 450 cards
  • 1 Six-sided Dice Set (7 Dice)
  • 1 Eight-sided Die
  • 10 Dark Stone Counters
  • 23 Map Counters
  • 60 Loot Counters
  • 1 XP Track
  • 40 Wound Counters
  • 40 Sanity Damage Counters
  • 40 Corruption Counters
  • 3 ‘Mine’ Artifact Tokens
  • 24 ‘Map’ Ghost Stone Counters
  • 6 Scavenge Tokens
  • 36 Gear Counters
  • 1 ‘Darkness’ Threat Deck

How To Play Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients: Rules Summary

Setting Up Your Adventure

  1. Choose a character class and receive your respective starting gear.
  2. Lay out the town board, attaching building locations as outlined.
  3. Construct the mine map using map tiles, indicating where portals may emerge.
  4. Shuffle the encounter, loot, and gear decks separately and place them within easy reach.
  5. Distribute character tokens, placing figures at the mine entrance to begin.

Embarking on Gameplay

  1. Progressively explore the mine by drawing map tiles after each successful movement, triggering events and encounters.
  2. Combat ensues by rolling dice; compare results against your targets to determine hits and damage.
  3. Allocate experience points to enhance attributes and acquire new abilities.
  4. Manage resources judiciously between party members for maximum efficiency in exploration and combat.
  5. Encountered enemies will engage players based on specific AI rules guiding their actions.

Victory Conditions

To win the game and master How To Play Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients, complete the scenario’s objectives, which often involve defeating bosses and sealing portals to prevent the spawning of enemies.

Understanding Special Rules & Conditions

  1. Evaluate status effects or events that might impede your progression, and adjust plans accordingly.
  2. Recognize the potency of dynamite for tough encounters but be warned of its scarcity.
  3. Remember joined hero bands can separate to tackle different objectives simultaneously.
  4. Be wary of mutation cards that can permanently affect your hero’s abilities negatively or positively.

Best Shadows Of Brimstone City Of The Ancients Strategies

Ace Your Role: Mastering Character Classes

Choosing the right character class in Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients dramatically influences your chance of surviving the swarming darkness. Initially, you might be tempted to go with whatever feels ‘cool’. But strategic class selection is pivotal. Both your play style and party composition are key factors.

Assess Party Dynamics

Always start by considering the strengths and weaknesses of your team. Balance is crucial for ensuring you can handle diverse threats together.

Know Your Class

Invest time to understand each class’s unique abilities. Knowing the ins and outs will enable you to maximize their potential in every scenario.

Tailor to the Mission

  1. Analyze the mission objective—Choose a class best suited to tackle those specific challenges.
  2. Factor in enemy types—Some classes excel against certain adversaries. Align your choice with the expected foes.
  3. Optimize gear and skills—As you progress, fine-tune your character’s loadout to align with their optimized role.

Mastering Resource Allocation in Shadows of Brimstone

Optimizing resource management is crucial in winning Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients. With strategic planning, you can stretch out your supplies, bolstering your chances to survive the game’s perils. Here’s how I’ve conquered resource management throughout countless expeditions:

  1. Evaluate and Prioritize Resources

    Begin by evaluating your available resources—gold, gear, and grit are all vital. Always prioritize necessities over luxuries. For instance, amassing healing items can often turn the tides when in a tough spot.

  2. Manage Gear with Intent

    Equip your characters judiciously; heavy gear should go to those who can bear the weight. Meanwhile, distribute utility items, like ropes and lanterns, to ensure access when needed.

  3. Dynamic Resource Scavenging

    Don’t forget to rummage! Cleverly looting during missions uncovers precious items and boosts overall team wealth for future use. Always weigh the risks, though—greed can lead to an untimely end.

Mastering Skirmishes: Enemies and Tactics in Shadows of Brimstone

Understanding how to tackle the varied adversaries in Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients can tip the scales in your favor. Draw on my lengthy campaigns and let’s dissect this crucial aspect.

Identify Threat Levels

  1. Assess enemy capabilities quickly—prioritizing high-threat targets like spellcasters or large mobs is crucial.
  2. Consider proximity and potential damage outputs—closer isn’t always the biggest threat.
  3. Use your character’s unique skills to adapt your approach, sometimes the battlefield changes and you need to pivot.

Create Synergies

  1. Coordinate attacks with allies to maximize damage and conserve resources.
  2. Employ status effects efficiently; sometimes, slowing an enemy is better than an immediate takedown.

Utilize Terrain

  1. Positioning can be an unspoken hero in combat; use chokepoints when overrun or high ground for ranged attacks.
  2. Remember, some enemies have terrain advantages—force a change in their positioning when possible.

Cherish these insights; they’re hard-earned nuggets of wisdom from nights battling through cursed mines and alien ruins alike. I’ve watched many overlook these aspects, only to meet their demise around the next dark corner.

Mastering the Darkness

By now, you’ve armed yourself with core principles to tackle ‘Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients’. Remember, selecting the right character class and optimizing their abilities will significantly influence your adventures. Wisely managing your resources and utilizing items at key moments can mean the difference between success and succumbing to the darkness. Efficient prioritization of enemies and judicious use of combat tactics will ensure your survival against perilous foes. Journey forth with confidence, camaraderie, and strategy—may your quest through the mines be both rewarding and triumphant!

Want to know what we think of Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients? Read our detailed review of Shadows of Brimstone: City of the Ancients here

Jamie in his proper element: With all of his board games
Jamie Hopkins

With years of dice-rolling, card-flipping, and strategic planning under my belt, I've transformed my passion into expertise. I thrive on dissecting the mechanics and social dynamics of board games, sharing insights from countless game nights with friends. I dive deep into gameplay mechanics, while emphasizing the social joys of gaming. While I appreciate themes and visuals, it's the strategy and camaraderie that truly capture my heart.