The stars are right! The Great Old One awakens! Can you avoid his Horrors, or will you help him rise?
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The stars are right! The Great Old One awakens! Can you avoid his Horrors, or will you help him rise?
About this project
CTHULHU: THE GREAT OLD ONE is a Lovecraft-themed quick-paced card game by Dann Kriss Games, a loving tribute to the works and legacy of H.P. Lovecraft, with hand-painted artwork by Ian Daniels.
Each deck contains 80 masterfully-crafted cards printed on high-quality gaming cardstock (black-core), to reverently evoke the themes of the Mythos into this soon-to-be-classic card game. With fun elements like Horror cards you can play on each other while matching up characters and elements from the works of Lovecraft, there are lots of fun games in store for you and your friends, family, and fellow cultists.
We at Dann Kriss Games hope you will treasure your decks for years to come, which is why we have painstakingly endeavoured to craft each deck with the highest available quality and durability, approaching each card layout with lovingly meticulous attention to detail, helping to bring each card to life with some of the most amazing Lovecraftian images we have ever seen.
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn…
"What I like about this game is the simplicity." - Eric Bryan Seuthe II (Full Review on Sleuth of a Seuthe)
"The real draw for the set is the exceptional artwork from Ian Daniels" - Andy Green (Full Review on FamousMonsters.com)
Each deck is printed on 300gsm black-core smooth stock, and contains 80 Tarot-sized cards (70 Story cards, 1 ‘Great Old One’ card, 1 ‘Cultist’ card, and 8 Horror cards, all 3”x5”), and one full-colour rules sheet which has a mini-poster on the reverse side. Each deck is shrink-wrapped in its own two-piece box with beautifully illustrated art adorning the box. Decks purchased at ‘Retailer levels’ will come with plastic hanger tags for easy merchandising and display.
Note: The Limited Edition deck has two additional cards as part of the deck. These two cards are available as the Promo Pack Add-On for people just wanting the Unlimited Edition deck.
For each deck you order, you will also receive one copy of the EXCLUSIVE Kickstarter promo card, "The Silver Key", which will only ever be available through this Kickstarter campaign.
The artwork for this deck is lovingly hand-painted by Ian Daniels, based on descriptions given in Lovecraft's individual tales.
Artwork for the Story cards (Green border) and the Cultist (Purple border) is presented in full colour, and the images for both cards in a linked pair come from the same painting. Artwork for the Horror cards (Red border) is presented in haunting red-sepia tones to add to the eeriness of the individual Horror.
Below are images of a selection of cards. You can click on each card to bring up a larger picture of that card.
Card Back
Story Cards
Horror Cards
The Cultist
To begin, deal the deck among the players, dealing one card at a time to each player face-down until all cards are dealt. It doesn’t matter if some players have more cards than others. Next, each player looks at the cards they hold and makes any pairs as they see fit.
Each green-bordered card (Story Card) has matching card in the game (except for The Great Old One), and has another card named at the bottom which the first card can ‘link’ to. Pairs are made by playing two cards of the same name (Matched Pair), or by playing two cards which link to one another (Linked Pair). In scoring, each Matched Pair is worth two points at the end of the game, while each Linked Pair is worth one point. After all players are done playing their pairs, the player with the least number of pairs takes their turn first. If there is a tie, the younger tied player plays first.
During a player’s turn, they take one card at random from any other player. If they make a pair with the card they took, they may play the pair. If playing with the ‘Deluxe Rules’, a player may also play any one Horror card or The Cultist from the cards they hold at the end of their turn. If a Horror card is played, then the effect described on the card takes place immediately. Once a player has taken an action during their turn, that turn is over, and the player to their left now takes a turn. Play continues until only one player is left holding a card, The Great Old One. That player loses the game, unless that player has The Cultist in their play area, in which case that player is the winner!
Once the game ends, each player tallies up their total score. Each Matched Pair is worth 2 points, each Linked Pair is worth 1 point, as is each Horror card. The Cultist is worth -1 point in scoring. If the player with The Great Old One lost, then the player with the highest score wins! In the case of a tie, the younger player wins!
Still not sure if you'll have enough fun with this amazing, beautiful game? Well give it a test drive! Here is a Print-And-Play PDF just for you! Now you can print out the deck, cut out the cards, and wow your friends! Mind you, this P-n-P is still the prototype version, but you'll be able to see just how much fun this game can be!
Remember, all pledge levels include FREE SHIPPING to any address in the US. International backers, please take note of your pledge level and add-ons, and add the appropriate listed amount to your pledge for international shipping.
As new Add-Ons are unlocked with Stretch Goals, new Pledge Levels will become available. Once a new Pledge Level becomes unlocked, you may easily switch your pledge to the new Pledge Level through the ‘Manage Your Pledge’ button near the top-right of this page.
Note: All images are mock-ups of the finished products, some variation will occur.
Certain pledge levels are designed for gaming retailers. These pledge levels are still available to anyone who wishes to select them, they are simply more geared towards getting multiple copies of the Unlimited Edition deck at a quantity discount. The highest levels also include a few extras that game shops can put on their shelves, while staying away from the more personal and diverse prizes that the other high-end pledges offer.
Note: Decks offered at Retailer Pledge Levels will come with plastic hanger tags for easy merchandising and display.
Our Portrait Level pledges are very special indeed. Have your face (or the face of someone you know, with permission) painted as the face of the character named in your Portrait Level pledge. This will be the official appearance of that character in this and all future printings of CTHULHU: THE GREAT OLD ONE. In addition to being immortalized as a character from Lovecraft’s haunted world, you will get to keep the ORIGINAL PAINTING painted by Ian Daniels himself! Also, it should be noted that each painting actually forms the art for two separate linked cards, for instance if you select the Zadok Allen Portrait, your painting will be “Zadok Allen and the Deep One”. I will list the paired images below, so you have a clear idea on what you will be receiving.
- Asenath Waite and Edward Pickman Derby (from The Thing On The Doorstep)
- Crawford Tillinghast and his Luminous Machine (from From Beyond)
- Henry Wentworth Akeley and the Mi-Go (from The Whisperer In Darkness)
- Keziah Mason and her pet Brown Jenkin (from Dreams In The Witch-House)
- Nahum Gardner and the Colour Out Of Space (from The Colour Out Of Space)
- Nathaniel Wingate Peaslee and a Yithian (from The Shadow Out Of Time)
- William Dyer and a Shoggoth (from At The Mountains Of Madness)
- Zadok Allen and a Deep One (from The Shadow Over Innsmouth)
These aren't the only faces you'll be seeing in this eye-catching game! S.T. Joshi is a renowned writer and scholar, and has devoted much of his life to restoring and preserving both the writings and the history of H.P. Lovecraft, giving generations new insight into this masterful writer and tales. In honour of Mr. Joshi's contributions to the world of Lovecraft, we will be immortalizing him as the famous Abdul Al-Hazred, the author of the dreaded Necronomicon, as surely he is the keeper of lore on all things Lovecraft.
Another familiar face which will be joining us is that of the legendary Dr. Robert M. Price. Dr. Price is responsible for keeping Lovecraft's great Work alive in the hearts and minds of millions of people for the last 5 decades (or more), acting as both editor, publisher and author of many stories which kept Lovecraft's Mythos ever-renewing at the hands of countless fans and enthusiasts like ourselves. For discovering and sharing so many new treasures of the Mythos, finding the clues of inspiration which lead HPL to write his tales, he will be immortalized as the scholarly Professor George Gammel Angell, who pieces together the clues leading to he who sleeps beneath the waves, dead but dreaming.
Also, at my request, for his service to the world of Lovecraft by bringing these beautiful, haunting images to life, Ian will be painting himself as the ghoulish artist, Richard Upton Pickman; and if I'm not mistaken, that Cultist looks awfully familiar...
Note: The gender of each character is listed in the Pledge Level. This does not necessarily mean that you must select a character of your gender, but for example if you are male and select Asenath Waite, understand that she will still be painted as a woman, but with your very manly face. These characters will also be painted to match the descriptions given in Lovecraft’s tales as closely as possible, so if you select Wilbur Whateley for instance, expect to have your face painted with goatish features, etc.
This Kickstarter campaign has lots of wonderful Add-Ons available, and lots more waiting up in the Stretch Goals. You will notice that some Add-Ons have a discount depending on your Pledge Level, while others give a discount for multiple items. On certain categories such as T-Shirts, Dice, Posters, Buttons, Trading Pins, and Commemorative Coins, there may be a variety available by the end of this Kickstarter campaign as more Stretch Goals become unlocked, which will allow you to choose which version you desire, no matter if you added the item as an Add-On, or even if it came as part of your Pledge Level. Some Add-Ons that will come as we break through our Stretch Goals will even be added for free to Pledge Levels above a certain dollar amount.
Dann Kriss Games was founded in 2009, and strives to give you the best in board and card games. We make fantasy a reality! Dann Kriss designs the games himself, play-testing rigorously with his core group of gamers, and gives his stamp of excellence on every game he releases. With over 35 more games prototyped, and countless more ideas in the works, Dann will be working hard to put out new games for you and your friends and family to enjoy for years to come. This game is only the beginning, the first step in a long and wondrous journey. Look for our future titles in the coming months, right here on Kickstarter!
- Cthulhu: The Great Old One Poker Deck (Fall ’13) A companion deck to Cthulhu: The Great Old One, this deck features some of the amazing art on a beautiful poker deck, for use in many different types of gaming!
- Realms Of Destiny (Spring ’14) A fantasy adventure board game for 1 to 8 players, set in the fantasy lands known as the World of Destiny. Co-operative play, team play, head-to-head, or solo play, each player quests, battles, trains, recruits allies and followers, and collects weapons and items to aid them in defeating the terrible monster which is plaguing the land. Build a party, serve a guild, drink some ale, and kill the bad guys! All in a day’s work for a hero… or a villain.
Together, we can help build this dream. Thank you so much for being a part of this, it means more to me than you can know. I give my pledge that I will make you the best games I have to offer, and that our products will be of a quality which you can take pride in, with a level of enjoyment which you can rely on. I stand by my games, and in time, we will stand together.
We have lots of exciting Stretch Goals lined out, all ready to spring to reality. I've listed the first few below, and as we crack those seals, we'll reveal more and more.
At $500k, we have something VERY special: The world-famous Shiflett Brothers will sculpt an 18"-24" inch fine art statue of the Great Old One from the cover, rising from the depths of R'lyeh. We will offer a version of this statue pre-painted, pre-assembled. We will also be offering a version of this statue cast in bronze, for the coolest looking conversation piece or office power decor you may ever own!
There are a few people we’d love to mention here, who have been a big help in this campaign, and who we think you would really enjoy checking out!
- The Littlest Lovecraft - An awesome book series intended to introduce Lovecraft to the next generation of cultists, created by Tro Rex and Eyo Bella! You can tell a lot of love and care went into these!
- BoardGameGeek.com - This is the best site for board game lovers on the internet, hands down! If you love board games (of course you do, you’re here, right?), then you owe it to yourself to check them out! They’ll be running ads for Cthulhu: The Great Old One all through this campaign. Also, check out their online store. Soon they will be listing an EXCLUSIVE promo card for Cthulhu: The Great Old One which is ONLY available on their site, “Haunter Of The Dark”, and those cards are already printed and in their possession. That’s right, if you can’t wait to see how awesome these cards will look in person, order one as soon as they go live! You’ll probably have it in a week or two after you order!
- Nat Iwata - This gentleman deserves looking into for his great art and neat card decks! I'm looking forward to my ordered copies of his Steampunk Cthulhu deck, and his Elves & Orcs deck too!
- Gate Keeper Games - Another new friend on Kickstarter, check out their new Tower Defense-style board game The King's Armory.
- Cthulhu Wars - An awesome looking game by Sandy Petersen, creator of 'Call Of Cthulhu', and his new company Green Eye Games! Check it out, the miniatures look amazing!
- Shadow Of The Eternals - An exciting video game, spiritual successor to Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem by Precursor Games! Check this out, and pledge now!
Risks and challenges
While there are always risks in game production, we have tirelessly worked to ensure that every aspect has been considered and every variable taken into account to make sure that we get these games out to you as expediently as possible. It is our intention to have them reach your door a few weeks before Cthulhumas so you can order some as gifts for all your family, friends, and fellow cultists out there.
Ian will continue to work on the art for the game to enable us to get this game to print as soon as possible. He will send me digital copies of each piece of card art as it is finished, so I can work up the image layouts for each card as they are ready. Don't worry, I'll post card images in the updates as soon as each is done! :)
The rest of the layout design for the game, instructions, and various add-ons will be done and ready to print before this campaign ends. Most of it is already done now, to create the mock-ups you see above.
The printers we are working with do a top-quality job on their printing. We have worked with them before on the promo card already printed for this game, and they have always met their deadlines with great efficiency and produced awesome-looking cards. They have told us that the estimate for printing a print run of 10,000 decks plus various add-ons is roughly 45-55 days, although unofficially he is confident we can cut it down a little further. I have been in contact with the printer about this project since November 2012; they are ready for our order and know our time frames in and out.
As for productions of the other various add-ons, we will be working with a few different companies on these, but we have been in contact with these companies since early this year; we have researched these companies and feel confident that they will deliver well within our time frame to ship out most, if not all, items together by or before the estimated date. I have back-up companies for each add-on (as well as the decks, but that shouldn't be necessary) which I have also been in contact with, to produce any item which is for any reason dropped by one of the primary companies. I believe in always having plans 'A' through '12'.
In planning my Initial Goal and my Stretch Goals, I have allowed for a little 'wiggle room' for each item budgeted, just in case any unexpected fees or charges pop up, or if we have to rush ship them in or out. Don't worry, this HAS NOT affected the price to you one bit; this only affected the Initial Project Goal, and not by much at that. I'm very frugal!
I have also scheduled out the project steps so that we can meet the estimated delivery in December, although if all goes as planned, we should be shipping out hopefully by mid-November. I will have all the boxes sized and labeled, ready for shipping, before the first products ever arrive on my doorstep (this was a GREAT tip from Jason Fordham in his updates for his Deck Of Thieves card game, which looks AWESOME by the way). I also have around 6 to 8 people who have very kindly volunteered to help me pack and ship the prizes once all the items arrive.
How can you help this get to you as fast as possible, you might be wondering? Well, the simple answer is always check your updates from us, be sure to respond to the surveys as soon as they go out once this project ends, and make sure we have correct and current contact and shipping information to get in touch with you, so that we can get your prizes out to you as efficiently as possible. If you can help me out with this, it will ensure I can do everything on my part to get your promised treasures into your hands and onto your gaming tables. Of course, it would also be great if you had all your friends order some decks, too! :)
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Funding period
- (31 days)