Campaign Guide - Night of the Zealot

Campaign Guide

NIGHT OF THE ZEALOT

The Ghouls Hunger…

Friday, September 18, 1925. Arkham, Massachuses. It is

the end of a long and abnormally hot summer. e rst hints

of autumn beckon, but a heavy heat persists, relentless. A

silent, unspoken anger grips the town. Tempers are short, and

in the last week alone there have been numerous reports of

townspeople coming to heated, violent blows with one another

over simple misunderstandings.

And now, a call om James Hankerson. He claims to have

found a dismembered body in his barn.

Blaming the weather would be too easy. ere is something

wrong with this town, and not a whole lot this old soothsayer

can do to stop the slide. My auguries indicate a small group of

investigators will soon take note of these strange happenings

and set forth to make things right. I’ll be watching their

progress…but I won’t be holding my breath.

Night of the Zealot is a campaign for Arkham Horror: e Card

Game for 1–4 players. It consists of the following scenarios: “e

Gathering,” “e Midnight Masks,” and “e Devourer Below.”

e cards for each of these scenarios can be found in the Arkham

Horror: e Card Game core set.

While playing a campaign, the players advance from one

scenario to the next in sequential order, with the results of their

performance and their decisions in each scenario carrying over to

inuence the next. Additionally, as the players advance through the

story, they earn experience, which they can use to purchase new

cards or upgrade existing cards for their deck.

Campaign Setup

To set up the Night of the Zealot campaign, perform the following

steps in order.

1. Choose investigator(s). Each player chooses a dierent

investigator to play and records his or her choice in the

CampaignLog.

2. Each player assembles his or her investigator deck. e full

rules for deck customization can be found on page 8 of the

RulesReference.

3. Choose diculty level. ere are four levels of diculty

in Arkham Horror: e Card Game: Easy, Standard, Hard,

andExpert. e players decide which diculty best suits

their group, and they keep this diculty for the duration of

thecampaign.

4. Assemble the campaign chaos bag. Place the chaos tokens

indicated below into the chaos bag, and return the other chaos

tokens to the game box.

= Easy (I want to experience the story):

+1, +1, 0, 0, 0, –1, –1, –1, –2, –2, 󲅻, 󲅻, 󲅼, 󲆀, 󲅽, 󲅿.

= Standard (I want a challenge):

+1, 0, 0, –1, –1, –1, –2, –2, –3, –4, 󲅻, 󲅻, 󲅼, 󲆀, 󲅽, 󲅿.

= Hard (I want a true nightmare):

0, 0, 0, –1, –1, –2, –2, –3, –3, –4, –5, 󲅻, 󲅻, 󲅼, 󲆀, 󲅽, 󲅿.

= Expert (I want Arkham Horror):

0, –1, –1, –2, –2, –3, –3, –4, –4, –5, –6, –8, 󲅻, 󲅻, 󲅼, 󲆀, 󲅽, 󲅿.

Players are now ready to set up Part I: e Gathering.

DO NOT READ

until the end of the scenario

If no resolution was reached (each investigator

resigned or was defeated): You barely manage to escape

your house with your lives. e woman om your parlor

follows you out the ont door, slamming it behind her. “You

fools! See what you have done?” She pushes a chair in ont of

the door, lodging it beneath the doorknob. “We must get out

of here. Come with me, and I will tell you what I know. We

are the only ones who can stop the threat that lurks beneath

om being unleashed throughout the city.” You’re in no state

to argue. Nodding, you follow the woman as she runs om

your ont porch out into the rainy street, toward Rivertown.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that your house is

stillstanding.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that the Ghoul Priest is

still alive.

Æ e lead investigator earns the Lita Chantler card and

may include it in his or her deck. is card does not

count toward that investigator’s deck size.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory

X value of each card in the victory display (remember

to add eligible locations to the victory display). Each

investigator earns 2 bonus experience as he or she

gains insight into the hidden world of the Mythos.

Resolution 1: You nod and allow the red-haired woman to

set the walls and oor of your house ablaze. e re spreads

quickly, and you run out the ont door to avoid being caught

in the inferno. From the sidewalk, you watch as everything

you own is consumed by the ames. “Come with me,” the

woman says. “You must be told of the threat that lurks below.

Alone, we are surely doomed…but together, we can stop it.”

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that your house has

burned to the ground.

Æ e lead investigator earns the Lita Chantler card and

may include it in his or her deck. is card does not

count toward that investigator’s deck size.

The Campaign Log

e Campaign Log (on the back cover of this book) is used to

track the progress and development of the campaign. At the

end of each scenario, the players must record their results by

entering all of the relevant information in the Campaign Log.

is includes any experience earned by an investigator, each

investigator’s trauma level, story assets or weaknesses earned by

each investigator, and any killed or insane investigators.

During the resolution of a scenario, the players are oen

instructed to record an important note or story element in the

Campaign Log, under “Campaign Notes.” ese notes will

oen be referenced in later scenarios, allowing decisions om

one scenario to carry over into later scenarios. If the players are

instructed to cross out one of these notes, the crossed-o note is

ignored for the remainder of the campaign.

Part I: The Gathering

You and your partners have been investigating strange events taking

place in your home city of Arkham, Massachuses. Over the past few

weeks, several townspeople have mysteriously gone missing. Recently,

their corpses turned up in the woods, savaged and half-eaten. e police

and newspapers have stated that wild animals are responsible, but you

believe there is something else going on. You are gathered together at the

lead investigator’s home to discuss these bizarre events.

Setup

Æ Gather all cards from the following encounter sets: e

Gathering, Rats, Ghouls, Striking Fear, Ancient Evils, and

ChillingCold. ese sets are indicated by the following icons:

Æ Put the Study location into play. Set each other location aside,

out of play. Each investigator begins play in the Study.

Æ Set the Ghoul Priest and Lita Chantler cards aside, out of play.

Æ Shue the remainder of the encounter cards (from the

previously gathered encounter sets) to form the encounter deck.

Æ e lead investigator suers 1 mental trauma from

watching his or her home become a smoldering ruin.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory

X value of each card in the victory display (remember

to add eligible locations to the victory display). Each

investigator earns 2 bonus experience as he or she

gains insight into the hidden world of the Mythos.

Resolution 2: You refuse to follow the overzealous woman’s

order and kick her out of your home for fear that she will set

it ablaze without your permission. “Fools! You are making

a grave mistake!” she warns. “You do not understand the

threat that lurks below…the grave danger we are all in!”

Still shaken by the night’s events, you decide to hear the

woman out. Perhaps she can shed some light on these bizarre

events…but she doesn’t seem to trust you very much.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that your house is

stillstanding.

Æ e lead investigator earns 1 experience, as he or she

refuses to let the night’s events destroy his or her life.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the Victory

X value of each card in the victory display (remember

to add eligible locations to the victory display). Each

investigator earns 2 bonus experience as he or she

gains insight into the hidden world of the Mythos.

Resolution 3: You run to the hallway to try to nd a way to

escape the house, but the burning-hot barrier still blocks your

path. Trapped, the horde of feral creatures that have invaded

your home close in, and you have nowhere to run.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that Lita was forced to

nd others to help her cause.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that your house is

stillstanding.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that the Ghoul Priest is

still alive.

Æ Each investigator who has not resigned is killed. If

there are not enough investigators to continue the

campaign, the campaign is over and the players lose.

Otherwise, advance to the next scenario. (Each player

whose investigator has been killed must choose a new

investigator from the pool of available investigators.

Refer to page 13 of the Rules Reference for the full

rules on killed investigators.)

Æ If the lead investigator was killed, choose an

investigator to earn the Lita Chantler card. at

investigator may include this card in his or her deck. It

does not count toward that investigator’s deck size.

Expanded Campaign Rules

Earning and Spending Experience

As an investigator delves deeper into the Mythos, he or she gains

insight into the hidden truths of the world—the Ancient Ones,

monsters that dwell in the shadows, and secrets that humanity

was never meant to know. is insight manifests in the form of

experience. During the resolution of a scenario, investigators may

earn 1 or more experience. Each investigator earns experience

separately, and experience may not be transferred from one

investigator to another. Experience can oen be obtained by

placing encounter cards worth victory points in the victory

display, or through story decisions. Refer to page 5 of the Rules

Reference for the full rules on earning experience points.

Experience may be spent to learn new abilities or spells, or to

acquire new items and weapons, in the form of additional cards.

Adding a new card to a deck costs experience equal to that card’s

level, denoted by 1 or more white pips near the top le corner of

the card. Adding a new card to your deck always costs at least

1 experience, and it requires that you maintain your deck size

(usually by removing a card).

Some cards represent a higher-level version of a card with the same

title. ese cards have the same title as their other versions but may

have additional eects, additional skill icons, or dierent costs. If a

player has a lower-level version of a card and wishes to purchase the

higher-level version, he or she may upgrade that card by spending

experience equal to the dierence in level between the two. e

new version is added to the deck, and the older version is removed.

Refer to page 5 of the Rules Reference for the full rules for

spending experience points.

Part II: The Midnight Masks

Check Campaign Log. If Lita was forced to find others to help her cause:

Read Intro 1.

Otherwise, skip to Intro 2.

Intro 1: The woman came to you in a panic, raving about monsters emerging

from the ground in a home near Rivertown. “I managed to trap them,” she

explains, “but there are others. Other pits. Other domains.” Only last week,

you would have thought she was a lunatic. Recent events, however, have

challenged your preconceptions of normality. You decide to hear her out.

She introduces herself as Lita Chantler and lays out a tale that strains

the limits of your belief. “The creatures I speak of ,” she claims, “are called

ghouls—cruel beings who plague the crypts, caverns, and tunnels beneath the

city of Arkham…”

Continue to Intro 3.

Intro 2: In the wake of the disaster at your home, Lita Chantler, the

red-haired woman from your parlor, lays out a tale that—even in light of

what you have just witnessed—strains the limits of your belief. “The creatures

in your home,” she claims, “are called ghouls—cruel beings who plague the

crypts, caverns, and tunnels beneath the city of Arkham…”

Continue to Intro 3.

Intro 3: “These creatures feed on the corpses of humans, and they are served

by a dark cult within Arkham whose members have inexplicably come to

worship the ancient master of the ghouls. This cult has been killing innocent

people and feeding them to the ghouls, satiating a monstrous hunger. A dark

balance was maintained. Until now. Recently,” Lita continues, “one of their

lairs, where the corpses were stored, was destroyed. Since then, the ghouls have

been more active than usual. I have tracked their movements and tried my

best to stop them from running amok throughout the city. But I think there

is something worse going on. The cult has been planning something darker,

and more ominous, than anything I have yet observed. Indications are that

this plan shall come to fruition tonight, shortly after midnight. Beyond that, I

cannot fathom what to expect.

“Many of the cultists,” Lita continues, “will seem like everyday people, despite

their foul intentions. Whenever the cult meets, its members don masks shaped

like the skulls of various animals to protect their identities from one another.

These masks are our mark. Symbols of death and decay. We must unmask the

cultists to expose and derail their plans. We have but a few hours. The more

cultists we find before midnight, the better.”

Continue to Setup.

Setup

Æ Gather all cards from the following encounter sets: e

Midnight Masks, Chilling Cold, Nightgaunts, Dark Cult, and

Locked Doors. ese sets are indicated by the following icons:

Æ Set the Cult of Umrdhoth encounter set aside as

a separate “Cultist deck,” and shue it. is set is

indicated by the following icon:

Æ Choose one of the two Downtown locations and one of the two

Southside locations at random and put them into play. Remove

the other versions of Downtown and Southside from the game.

en, put the Northside, Easown, Rivertown, St. Mary’s

Hospital, Graveyard, Miskatonic University, and Your House

locations into play. (See next page for suggested placement.)

Æ Based on the number of players in the game:

= If there is exactly 1 player in the game, no changes are made.

= If there are exactly 2 players in the game, search the gathered

encounter sets for 1 copy of Acolyte and spawn it at Southside.

= If there are exactly 3 players in the game, search the gathered

encounter sets for 2 copies of Acolyte. Spawn 1 at Southside

and 1 atDowntown.

Trauma, Death, and Insanity

Trauma represents permanent damage that has been done to an

investigator’s health and/or psyche. If an investigator is defeated

during a scenario, that investigator still advances to the next

scenario with the rest of the party, unless the scenario resolution

states that the investigator is killed or driven insane. However,

an investigator who is defeated through damage or horror may

suer permanent trauma, which stays with that investigator for

the remainder of the campaign. Refer to page 5 of the Rules

Reference for the full rules on suering trauma.

Note: If you are worried about taking trauma, resigning from a

scenario is almost always beer than defeat.

Players are now ready to begin the next scenario in the campaign.

DO NOT READ

until the end of the scenario

If no resolution was reached (each investigator resigned

or was defeated): Read Resolution 1.

Resolution 1: You’ve managed to obtain some useful

information about the cult and its plans. You can only hope

it’senough.

Æ In your Campaign Log, under “Cultists We

Interrogated,” record the names of each unique

Cultist enemy in the victory display.

Æ In your Campaign Log, under “Cultists Who Got

Away,” record the name of each unique enemy

still remaining in the Cultist deck or in play. If it is

Agenda1, record “e Masked Hunter” here as well.

Æ If the Ghoul Priest is in the victory display, cross out

“the Ghoul Priest is still alive” in your Campaign Log.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the

Victory X value of each card in the victory display.

Resolution 2: Twelve bells ring out, signaling midnight. You’re

out of time; the cult’s ritual will begin shortly. You’ve managed

to obtain some useful information about the cult and its plans.

You can only hope it’s enough.

Æ In your Campaign Log, under “Cultists We

Interrogated,” record the names of each unique

Cultist enemy in the victory display.

Æ In your Campaign Log, under “Cultists Who Got

Away,” record the name of each unique enemy still

remaining in the Cultist deck or in play.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that it is past midnight.

Æ If the Ghoul Priest is in the victory display, cross out

“the Ghoul Priest is still alive” in your Campaign Log.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the

Victory X value of each card in the victory display.

Illus.

Mark Molnar

LOCATION

Arkham.

Northside is a commercial district that contains many oces

and factories, as well as the train station.

Northside

Illus.

Jose Vega

LOCATION

e Downtown area of Arkham is lled with government

buildings, including City Hall. e First Bank of Arkham,

Independence Square, and Arkham Asylum can also be

found in this area. It is the busiest district in the city.

Downtown

Arkham.

Illus.

Cristi Balanescu

LOCATION

e Easown neighborhood, situated on the northern

banks of the Miskatonic River, contains lower-class housing,

the Arkham Police Station, and popular eateries like

Velma’sDiner.

Easttown

Arkham.

Illus.

Andreas Rocha

LOCATION

Miskatonic University is one of the most prestigious colleges

in the Northeast. e university library is famous for its

collection of occult books maintained by the esteemed Dr.

Henry Armitage.

Miskatonic University

Arkham.

Illus.

Ed Mainian

LOCATION

e banks of the Miskatonic River are lined with docks,

warehouses, and small shops in a district aptly named

Rivertown.

Arkham. Central.

Rivertown

Illus.

Michael Komarck

LOCATION

Arkham.

e graveyard lies at the foot of French Hill. Some of the

headstones date back to the seventeenth century, when

the earliest colonists came to Arkham. Considering what

happened in your house, you’re not completely keen on

heading there.

Graveyard

Illus.

Andreas Rocha

LOCATION

Arkham’s only hospital, St. Mary’s has a twenty-four-hour

receiving room and is busy at all hours of the night. Doctor

Mortimore and Nurse Sharon have been particularly stressed

lately, thanks in part to recent events.

Arkham.

St. Mary’s Hospital

Illus.

Andreas Rocha

LOCATION

Middle-class houses with gambrel roofs crowd together

between the streets of Southside. e neighborhood is known

for its cultural and social landmarks, such as South Church,

Ma’s Boarding House, and the Historical Society.

Arkham.

Southside

Illus.

Jose Vega

LOCATION

Despite what happened, you just couldn’t bring yourself to

destroy your home.

Arkham.

Your House

= If there are exactly 4 players in the game, search the gathered

encounter sets for 3 copies of Acolyte. Spawn 1 at Southside,

1 at Downtown, and 1 at the Graveyard.

Æ Check Campaign Log. If your house has burned to the ground:

Remove Your House from the game. Each investigator begins

play at Rivertown.

Æ Check Campaign Log. If your house is still standing: Each

investigator begins play at Your House.

Æ Shue the remainder of the encounter cards to form the

encounter deck.

Æ Check Campaign Log. If the Ghoul Priest is still alive: Shue it

into the encounter deck.

Note: Some eects rst encountered in this scenario may cause

doom to be placed on enemies. Remember that doom on enemies

counts toward the amount of doom that will advance the agenda.

Suggested Location Placement

for

“

The Midnight Masks

”

DO NOT READ

until the end of the scenario

If no resolution was reached (each investigator resigned

or was defeated): Too ightened to face her fate, Lita ees

into the night. She realizes that she has failed and Umôrdhoth’s

vengeance will pursue her wherever she goes. e creature’s

tendrils spread throughout the city of Arkham, searching for

her. It lurks in the darkness of every corner, tugging at the seams

of reality. But Lita is nowhere to be found, so the creature dwells

in the shadows to this day, searching…killing.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that Arkham succumbed

to Umrdhoth’s terrible vengeance.

Æ Each surviving investigator is killed.

Æ e investigators lose.

Resolution 1: You have managed to prevent the cult om

summoning its master. Although you’re unsure what would

have happened had the cult succeeded, you’re relieved thatat

least for the time beingArkham is safe. You capture as many

cultists as you can nd, but very few townspeople believe your

tale. Perhaps it was all in your head, aer all.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that the ritual to

summon Umrdhoth was broken.

Part III: The Devourer Below

Aer a antic nighime search throughout Arkham, you have tracked

down and questioned several members of the cult. Your ndings are

disturbing: they claim to worship a being known as Umrdhoth, a

monstrous entity om another realm.

You are able to conrm much of Lita’s story: the cult is agitated over

the destruction of a ghoul lair. However, a surprising detail also turns

up: the one who invaded the lair and set this night’s events in motion

was none other than Lita Chantler herself! You are not sure why this

important detail was omied om Lita’s storydid she tell you only

as much as was necessary to draw you into her conict? But in another

light, she seems to be ghting to protect the city of Arkham om a

terrible menace.

e nal piece of the puzzle was found wrien in a journal possessed by

one of the cultists. It describes a dark ritual to be performed deep within

the woods south of Arkham, this very night. According to the journal,

the ritual’s completion will open a gate and bring forth the cult’s dark

master into this world. “If the cult is not stopped,” Lita warns, “there is

a possibility that Umrdhoth’s vengeance will consume all in its path.”

Frightened but determined to stop the ritual, you head into the woods…

Setup

Æ Gather all cards from the following encounter sets: e

Devourer Below, Ancient Evils, Striking Fear, Ghouls, and Dark

Cult. ese sets are indicated by the followingicons:

Æ Put the Main Path location into play. Shue the 6 copies of

Arkham Woods, choose 4 of them at random, and put them into

play without looking at their revealed sides. Remove the other 2

from the game. Each investigator begins play at the Main Path.

Æ Set the Ritual Site and Umôrdhoth cards aside, out of play.

Æ Randomly choose one of following 4 encounter sets: Agents

of Yog-Sothoth, Agents of Shub-Niggurath, Agents of Cthulhu, or

Agents of Hastur. ese sets are indicated by the following icons:

Without looking at the chosen encounter set, shue it and the

remainder of the encounter cards together to form the encounter

deck. Remove the other 3 encounter sets from the game.

Æ Check the number of names recorded under “Cultists Who Got

Away” in your Campaign Log.

= If there are exactly 0 names, no changes are made.

= If there are exactly 1 or 2 names, place 1 doom on Agenda 1a.

= If there are exactly 3 or 4 names, place 2 doom on Agenda 1a.

= If there are exactly 5 or 6 names, place 3 doom on Agenda 1a.

Æ Add 1 󲅾 chaos token to the chaos bag for the remainder of

thecampaign.

Æ Check Campaign Log. If it is past midnight: Each player

discards 2 random cards from his or her starting hand.

Æ Check Campaign Log. If the Ghoul Priest is still alive: Shue it

into the encounter deck.

Æ Each investigator suers 2 mental trauma, as he or she

never fully recovers from his or her ordeal.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the

Victory X value of each card in the victory display.

Each investigator earns 5 bonus experience, as he or

she has saved Arkham from a terrible fate.

Æ e investigators win!

Resolution 2: rough force of arms and strength of will,

you are somehow able to harm Umrdhoth enough to send it

reeling back to the dimension om which it emerged. Warmth

and light return to the woods as the void-like mass is sucked in

upon itself, vanishing in an instant. You aren’t sure if a being

such as this can be killed, but for the time being it seems to have

retreated. As their master vanishes, the ghouls nearby climb

into the open pit below, eeing with terrible cries and shrieks.

You have stopped an evil plot, but the ght has taken its toll on

your body and mind. Worse, you can’t help but feel insignicant

in the face of the world’s mysteries. What other terrors exist in

the deep, dark corners of reality?

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that the investigators

repelled Umrdhoth.

Æ Each investigator suers 2 physical trauma and 2

mental trauma, as the ght against Umôrdhoth has

taken its toll on his or her body and mind.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the

Victory X value of each card in the victory display.

Each investigator earns 10 bonus experience, as he or

she has triumphed in bale against a truly terrible foe.

Æ e investigators win!

Resolution 3: In the face of this horror, you don’t believe there

is anything you can do to stop it. You have but one hope if you

are to survive. You turn on Lita and throw her at the terrible

monstrosity, watching in dread as its swirling void-like mass

consumes her. She cries out in torment as the life is sucked om

her body. “Umrdhoth…Umrdhoth…” the cultists chant.

Lita Chantler vanishes without a trace. For a moment, you

fear that the creature will now turn on you, but you hear one of

the cultists say, “Umrdhoth is a just god who claims only the

guilty and the dead. Go, and you shall be spared.” e swirling

mass vanishes, and warmth and light return to the woods. e

cultists slink away, leaving you alive. Lita’s last moments are

forever etched upon your memory.

Æ In your Campaign Log, record that the investigators

sacriced Lita Chantler to Umrdhoth.

Æ Each investigator suers 2 physical trauma and

2mental trauma, as the mere sight of Umôrdhoth has

taken its toll on his or her body and mind.

Æ e guilt over sacricing Lita forever haunts your

memory. Each investigator must search the collection

for a random Madness weakness and add it to his or

herdeck.

Æ Each investigator earns experience equal to the

Victory X value of each card in the victory display.

Æ e investigators have survived, but their actions

weigh heavily on their consciences.

The End…or Is It?

At the end of a campaign, the experience, trauma, and weaknesses

granted by the nal scenario resolution allow the players to feel

the full consequences of their actions. e investigators’ many

decisions and actions (as recorded in their Campaign Log) form

the outline of their story. Players are encouraged to share the

results of their story and their investigators’ nal decks online at

the fantasyightgames.com forums or on social media.

Now that you have completed the introductory campaign of

Arkham Horror: e Card Game, try playing the campaign again

with new investigators or at a higher diculty level!

Future expansions of Arkham Horror: e Card Game will

introduce new campaigns for the players to embark on. Typically,

a deluxe box expansion forms the foundation for a new campaign,

followed by six Mythos Packs that continue and conclude the

campaign. e standard rules dictate that players start each

campaign with new decks and 0 experience. However, intrepid

players who wish to embrace the chaos may transfer investigators

who have completed one campaign into a dierent campaign by

carrying over each investigator’s deck, trauma, and experience.

he Gathering

Night of the Zealot

ampaign Notes

cenarios

ultists We Interrogated

ultists Who Got Away

he Midnight Masks

he Devourer Below

Campaign Log also available for download at www.fantasyightgames.com

KILLED AND INSANE INVESTIGATORS

Campaign Log:

INVESTIGATORS

PLAYER NAME

INVESTIGATOR

UNSPENT EXPERIENCE

TRAUMA

(Physical)

(Mental)

EARNED STORY ASSETS/WEAKNESSES