Arkham Horror TCG expansion adds six new investigators and an open-world campaign

The latest expansion for Arkham Horror: The Card Game features six brand-new investigators and an open-world style campaign.

The Scarlet Keys is the latest expansion set for the living card game set in the Arkham Horror Files universe. In the expansion set, players will be working together or alone to uncover the mystery behind the Scarlet Keys, a collection of tools that enable the user to travel across different dimensions. However, the player characters aren’t the only ones looking for the Scarlet Keys, with sinister forces also joining the hunt.

As with several previous expansions for Arkham Horror: TCG, The Scarlet Keys will be split into two separate expansions – an Investigator Expansion and a Campaign Expansion. Both require a copy of the Revised Core Set for Arkham Horror: TCG, with each expansion providing players with a unique collection of content.

The Scarlet Keys Investigator Expansion includes a total of six new playable investigators for players to experiment with. One of the playable investigators is Carson Sinclair, a butler who works for the Webb family and specialises in a support role. His abilities – such as allowing fellow investigators to take an extra action and providing a boost to other characters’ skill checks – are intended to help others to succeed. Carson can also spend experience to improve certain cards like the Hunter’s Armour and Runic Axe.

Another new investigator featured in the Scarlet Keys Investigator Expansion is Amina Zidane, a telephone operator who once worked for the Miskatonic Valley Telephone Company. After stumbling across strange communications from beyond, Zidane joined the investigation into the Old Ones. Zidane is a mystic investigator who can sacrifice an increase in doom – a bad thing in the horror card game – to gain benefits such as reducing the cost of an asset or being able to use an asset’s action without any cost.

One of the other investigators found in the expansion is Arkham Horror: The Card Game’s second ever neutral character, Charlie Kane. With a playstyle centered around acquiring and using assets, Kane might have relatively low skill scores but he is able to have up to four allies in his party at once – offering a lot of flexibility.

The Scarlet Key’s Campaign Expansion features a complete adventure that takes place across the entire globe, with players able to travel around the world via a map of potential locations. Rather than the traditional structure of an Arkham Horror: TCG campaign – which has players going from set scenario to set scenario - The Scarlet Keys campaign allows players to choose where they want to go next. As various objects, animals and even people begin to disappear, only the player characters can remember their existence and must discover their whereabouts in their adventures. Their mission, along with the pull of the Scarlet Keys, will drive players to their next location until the grand finale.

Both The Scarlet Keys – Investigator Expansion and Campaign Expansion are published by Fantasy Flight Games, with the studio being responsible for the entire Arkham Horror: The Card Game series as well as other titles in the Arkham Horror Files franchise such as Eldritch Horror and Elder Sign.

Arkham Horror: The Card Game is a living card game – meaning that all releases are pre-determined and not randomised – that has players working together or alone to fight back against cosmic forces threatening their world. Each playable investigator has their own set of abilities and cards, with players able to build their own investigator decks before playing the game itself. During the game, investigators can move between location cards and look for clues to solve their investigations, all whilst trying to stay alive in the face of terrifying creatures.

The Scarlet Keys - Investigator Expansion is set to be released on September 30th for $45 (£37), whilst The Scarlet Keys - Campaign Expansion will come later, November 18th, at a price of $70 (£58).