Arcadia Quest: Pets Releasing to the Wild
Who doesn’t love to have little furry, feathered, or scaly pets around? The people of Arcadia certainly do. But nobody loved them more than the witch-in-training Vexia. She was out to prove the world that pets could be used to power a whole new branch of magic: cuddlymancy. At Arcadia University, she worked tirelessly on her project, just knowing that it would get her into the Wizard Master’s program when she gave her final presentation. However, that final show of cuddlymancy would end up being her downfall. While trying to give a bat sight (yes, we know that bats aren’t actually blind), her spell rebounded back at her, causing her to go blind! Try as they might, the other magic users at the school couldn’t reverse the spell. And since she failed her final project, Vexia wasn’t accepted into the Wizard Master’s program! Now, usually, a student would be able to try again next year. But Vexia was so enraged at not getting in the first time that she vowed revenge not just on the school, but all of Arcadia. She disappeared into the forest outside of Arcadia and hadn’t been heard from for decades. But now, after renovations to the city brought a huge chunk of the forest right into the middle of town, Vexia has seemingly returned. All the regular cute, fuzzy critters of the forest are attacking anyone that comes close. It’s going to take the intervention of the various Guilds to get rid of Vexia and her pet abominations. But the Heroes won’t be alone. They’re going to be getting their own pets to help out. The Pets expansion for Arcadia Quest and Arcadia Quest: Inferno is coming to your FLGS on April 21, and players will have to work together with their cuddly companions to free the Gardens of Arcadia.
In Arcadia Quest: Pets, players will face off against Vexia and her hordes of experimental monsters in an all-new set of scenarios. They’ll have some help though, as throughout the campaign, they will come across creatures that will aid them on their quest. This expansion comes with 12 cute and cuddly critters, each with its own miniature, stat card, and dashboard. These lovable additions might not do a lot of damage on their own, but they will change the dynamic of battles by giving buffs to friends or debuffs to enemies around them. As you adventure on, the Pets will be able to grow and evolve, gaining more powerful abilities as they go. Plus, there’s special Pet treasure you can find, letting you equip your Pet with armor or giving them new powers.
The Pets work in a similar manner to regular Heroes, but there are some distinct differences. First, they don’t activate on their own. When it’s a player’s turn to activate one of their Heroes, they can also choose to activate a Pet. This can be done before or after the Hero’s activation. Pets have 3 movement points, like Heroes, and can do certain things like open/close doors and use Portals. However, they cannot collect tokens or reveal Brimstone, Dragonstone, or Tombstone cards. They also don’t “occupy” spaces on the board. Plus, they don’t block Line of Sight, trigger Guard Reactions, or count for Flanking purposes. So, that’s all the things that they can’t do. But what about what they can do? Well, each Pet is different, bringing something new to the party. For example, Tickles, the ferret, can distract enemies when they try and attack. Sheldon, the turtle, can be used as a shield by his Owners. And Bumble, the panda, is just so darn cute, it actually hurts people to attack his friends.
The Arcadia Quest: Pets expansion doesn’t just have Pets in it, though. There’s also two new Heroes as well as a group of nefarious ne’er-do-wells. The Heroes come in the form of Greenhood and Oak. Greenhood is the cousin of Greensleeves and is looking to follow in her relative’s footsteps to greatness. Meanwhile, Oak has been protector of the forest since anyone can remember. When Vexia started doing her evil deeds, Oak stepped up to confront her. It… just takes him a while to get things done… On the “evil” side of the spectrum, you have the aforementioned witch, Vexia. She’s been busy since she left Arcadia University, using her cuddlymancy on the denizens of the forest. It’s twisted the creatures, creating such new species as the Korilla, Hedgehornet, and Owlbunny. You’ll have to face off against each of these if you want to beat Vexia.
If you’re looking to add some cuddly critters to your other games of Arcadia Quest, the rulebook includes an option for bringing them to any other campaign. There’s maps that let you know where wild Pets can be placed at the start of each scenario, ready to be adopted by any Heroes that happen to be passing by.
Arcadia Quest: Pets brings a whole lot to your tabletop. Loyal, brave, and most importantly, cuddly Pets are ready to aid your Heroes in their adventures. You can adopt these little helpers in your FLGS on April 21.
