It’s totally fine in a solo review, but I actually don’t like it in this forum-style format. It’s distracting, not everyone will view a particular point as a negative or a positive, and kind of undermines the differing opinions and perspectives that this style is supposed to convey.
We prefer cooperative games and bought this along with base Arnak solely for the cooperative campaign play. So, we're first-time Arnak players and diving into this mode. For us, you don't have to have intricate mechanics tied to cooperation to make cooperative play fun. If there's a strong us vs. them vibe, and a lot of opportunity for collaborating and dividing-and-conquering, then it's solid cooperative play. And this has both of those. We're also big on legacy and campaign games, and klunkyness of setup is just par for the course with those. So, I can definitely say that if you prefer cooperative games and like campaign games, this is a huge winner. But, that's from the perspective of someone who didn't come up through standard Arnak competitively and instead prefers cooperative play over competitive.
When we played the first scenario we went read that when you visit the broken plane you fix it and get the two compasses…. That makes it fairly manageable. I found a BGG forum which discussed this.
I just introduced a friend to The Lost Ruins of Arnak the other day and I included the Expedition Leaders Expansion. She loved it! It is a great game and I look forward to new content.
The best thing about this expansion is the fact that after all the content only 1 card and 1 assistant was balanced. I also love that they implemented the campaign cards on to the new level 1 and 2 locations.
I’ve played 4 of 6 chapters so far - I had zero negative experience getting into the campaign. I don’t relate at all, and I’m not that great of a player. The goal was obvious and it was a great story! Really loving this expansion!
I have to put a correction here. Those tokens that Camilla said she wil nit talk about because it is only campaign is NOT true. They have to do with the new research track and can be used with the base game. People can even incorporate them in the base game before doing tge campaign so just talk about them
Still need to get the base game but will definitely get all the expansions I can! Also, I may have missed it and I didn't see you guys on the exhibitor list, but are you guys going to PAXU this year? ❤
I just ordered the 2 expansions for arnak within the last couple of weeks (I know, I know I'm slow). The 1st expansion gives you a heads up on which leaders are easiest/hardest to grasp. Does the 2nd expansion tell you where the 2 new leaders fall in the leveling category? Thanks for any replies!
was thinking of getting this for characters but we don't care for coops or campaigns so the full package probably wont be worth it for me. glad people who like coops got on option
I love this expansion but one thing that was a slight negative for me was that the campaign setup takes quite a while since it’s different for each scenario. They are a great fun challenge though and I like the new items and characters it adds
A bit weird that there are only 2 new characters. If I buy this expansion and the base game without expedition leaders, can I include these characters in a regular competitive game with more than 2 players?
I know it has been half a year since the comment, but I am seeing it now and hopefully you will see my response. If not, then it maybe useful for other people with the same question. The answer to your question is YES! The two characters that they offer in this expansion are very good, but there is a specific section in the rules that explains to you how to make new characters yourself with base game components, Prospector and Traveler. So even if you don't have a previous expansion, you will still have 4 unique characters. And also, following their design logic, you can do some basic math yourself and create your own unique characters from all the components. Simply because certain resources and icons have a certain base evaluation in the game, so if you see how Prospector and Traveler are made, you can go and make your own. Obviously they will not have their custom board and custom rules, but it will be an asymmetric start. And I felt they didn't spend enough time on the components that are not characters or campaign. Because those two new temples are a great addition, and they also have a custom rewards track as well, so you basically get 6 temples, not 2. And since it is on two different components, that means that you can also change the base game temples, so with this expansion and base game, you'd have 12 temples actually, and with all expansions, 18! Huge replayability, you can combine components from any and all expansions for a unique experience. But, to just circle back to your basic question, yes, you can definitely buy just the Lost Expedition and still have 4 unique characters... its just that 2 of them will be using default player boards, but their starting cards and therefore focus will be different. Prospector will be swimming in coins early on, making it possible for them to get to those expensive cards easier, or to just exchange coins for traveling (something he lacks a bit), while the Traveler will not have as many cheap resources from the cards themselves but they will be able to get to places much easier than others - especially in 3-4 player game, you are NOT going to be blocking the Traveler from any of the base locations. Honestly, I would not be surprised if someone (or CGE themselves) make custom artwork for those two characters. And, unlike others that have a bit complex mechanics that you need to pay attention to, Prospector and Traveler are extremely easy to use for anyone who played the base game (great for new players) because they don't have any new mechanics, just special starting cards. If you MUST choose between two expansions, I'd say take this one. But I would get both, they are SO worth it for this game.
Started setting up the campaign. The rulebook for me wasn’t clear enough about campaign setup immediately. Couldn’t be bothered. Shuffling it all in. 😂 sorry campaign people.
dear friends, can you give free present to me this wonderful addition to the amazing game about Arnak in Russia? I will be incredibly happy. I live in Yekaterinburg. I really want such an addition. But because of all the big politics, we don’t have this addition. Neither in Russian, nor in any other language. Thank you, friends!
Don't like the bar. It's a repetition of what's being said and it's annoying and distracting. If I'm in the minority, please at least make it a lot smaller.
I'm not a fan of the summary of the points at the bottom of the screen. They're visually distracting and redundant. Yes, we know they like the variability. That's what they're saying, in words.
I like this new Negative-Positive bar on the bottom!
The closeups at the game overview are also great
Theyre NEARLY as good as Zee's review system which I LOVE.
It’s totally fine in a solo review, but I actually don’t like it in this forum-style format. It’s distracting, not everyone will view a particular point as a negative or a positive, and kind of undermines the differing opinions and perspectives that this style is supposed to convey.
Oh, absolutely not. Not for a second.
We prefer cooperative games and bought this along with base Arnak solely for the cooperative campaign play. So, we're first-time Arnak players and diving into this mode. For us, you don't have to have intricate mechanics tied to cooperation to make cooperative play fun. If there's a strong us vs. them vibe, and a lot of opportunity for collaborating and dividing-and-conquering, then it's solid cooperative play. And this has both of those. We're also big on legacy and campaign games, and klunkyness of setup is just par for the course with those. So, I can definitely say that if you prefer cooperative games and like campaign games, this is a huge winner. But, that's from the perspective of someone who didn't come up through standard Arnak competitively and instead prefers cooperative play over competitive.
Yeah Game Boy Geek also does that and I’ve always appreciated it
When we played the first scenario we went read that when you visit the broken plane you fix it and get the two compasses…. That makes it fairly manageable. I found a BGG forum which discussed this.
I just introduced a friend to The Lost Ruins of Arnak the other day and I included the Expedition Leaders Expansion. She loved it! It is a great game and I look forward to new content.
😍 I'm looking forward to playing this expansion. I definitely love The Lost Ruins of Arnak!
Thanks for this! Gonna pick this up! Love playing Arnak solo
The best thing about this expansion is the fact that after all the content only 1 card and 1 assistant was balanced.
I also love that they implemented the campaign cards on to the new level 1 and 2 locations.
I’ve played 4 of 6 chapters so far - I had zero negative experience getting into the campaign. I don’t relate at all, and I’m not that great of a player. The goal was obvious and it was a great story! Really loving this expansion!
Coincidence that this review just went live and my birthday is around the corner? 😊
Nice editing during the discussion here! Hope this is a new trend moving forward
I have to put a correction here. Those tokens that Camilla said she wil nit talk about because it is only campaign is NOT true. They have to do with the new research track and can be used with the base game. People can even incorporate them in the base game before doing tge campaign so just talk about them
Still need to get the base game but will definitely get all the expansions I can! Also, I may have missed it and I didn't see you guys on the exhibitor list, but are you guys going to PAXU this year? ❤
Good job
I just ordered the 2 expansions for arnak within the last couple of weeks (I know, I know I'm slow). The 1st expansion gives you a heads up on which leaders are easiest/hardest to grasp. Does the 2nd expansion tell you where the 2 new leaders fall in the leveling category? Thanks for any replies!
was thinking of getting this for characters but we don't care for coops or campaigns so the full package probably wont be worth it for me. glad people who like coops got on option
the positive and negative bar while discussing those points is great!
I love this expansion but one thing that was a slight negative for me was that the campaign setup takes quite a while since it’s different for each scenario. They are a great fun challenge though and I like the new items and characters it adds
A bit weird that there are only 2 new characters. If I buy this expansion and the base game without expedition leaders, can I include these characters in a regular competitive game with more than 2 players?
I know it has been half a year since the comment, but I am seeing it now and hopefully you will see my response. If not, then it maybe useful for other people with the same question. The answer to your question is YES! The two characters that they offer in this expansion are very good, but there is a specific section in the rules that explains to you how to make new characters yourself with base game components, Prospector and Traveler. So even if you don't have a previous expansion, you will still have 4 unique characters. And also, following their design logic, you can do some basic math yourself and create your own unique characters from all the components.
Simply because certain resources and icons have a certain base evaluation in the game, so if you see how Prospector and Traveler are made, you can go and make your own. Obviously they will not have their custom board and custom rules, but it will be an asymmetric start.
And I felt they didn't spend enough time on the components that are not characters or campaign. Because those two new temples are a great addition, and they also have a custom rewards track as well, so you basically get 6 temples, not 2. And since it is on two different components, that means that you can also change the base game temples, so with this expansion and base game, you'd have 12 temples actually, and with all expansions, 18! Huge replayability, you can combine components from any and all expansions for a unique experience.
But, to just circle back to your basic question, yes, you can definitely buy just the Lost Expedition and still have 4 unique characters... its just that 2 of them will be using default player boards, but their starting cards and therefore focus will be different.
Prospector will be swimming in coins early on, making it possible for them to get to those expensive cards easier, or to just exchange coins for traveling (something he lacks a bit), while the Traveler will not have as many cheap resources from the cards themselves but they will be able to get to places much easier than others - especially in 3-4 player game, you are NOT going to be blocking the Traveler from any of the base locations. Honestly, I would not be surprised if someone (or CGE themselves) make custom artwork for those two characters. And, unlike others that have a bit complex mechanics that you need to pay attention to, Prospector and Traveler are extremely easy to use for anyone who played the base game (great for new players) because they don't have any new mechanics, just special starting cards.
If you MUST choose between two expansions, I'd say take this one. But I would get both, they are SO worth it for this game.
Started setting up the campaign. The rulebook for me wasn’t clear enough about campaign setup immediately. Couldn’t be bothered. Shuffling it all in. 😂 sorry campaign people.
My 9 year old and I won on our first game, come on people. The objects are on the "Objective Cards".
Yep. Agreed
dear friends, can you give free present to me this wonderful addition to the amazing game about Arnak in Russia? I will be incredibly happy. I live in Yekaterinburg. I really want such an addition. But because of all the big politics, we don’t have this addition. Neither in Russian, nor in any other language. Thank you, friends!
Weird perception of the first campaign game. Everyone I spoke to though that was the easiest mission by far.
Our group skipped the campaign and just opened all the stuff.
Don't like the bar. It's a repetition of what's being said and it's annoying and distracting. If I'm in the minority, please at least make it a lot smaller.
I'm not a fan of the summary of the points at the bottom of the screen. They're visually distracting and redundant. Yes, we know they like the variability. That's what they're saying, in words.