To continue our series of deductive games we have "made Fury of Dracula". A play written by Christian hands appeared at Fantasy Flight Games.

Dracula does his mischief in all of Europe and his pursuers Professor Van Helsing, Lord Godalming, Dr. Seward and Mina Harker is always one step ahead. Each fighter is equipped with a special ability to snap to Dracula as quickly as possible.

One player assumes the role of Dracula's hatch and the other players together in the roles of the hunter. No matter how many people played the game, all four characters take part in the game, so if several fighters are controlled by a player.

The game will be played in the form of days, each divided into six rounds. The rounds are split into day and night phases. During the day it is easier for the hunters to decide the battle with Dracula for themselves, while the benefits for Dracula in the night are clearly felt.

Train Dracula

First, Dracula begins with his train. For this he draws the daily markers one step further. He then goes face down in a city which he must take the form of a numbered and alphabetical card. In this way, he puts in each round the town in which he finds himself, from his "track" - Bar. This has the effect that he represents a city within the six laps to go only once.

Besides the normal options via road transportation on land, Dracula can also go to water. This cost him not only at least one blood point, but it also appears to hunters that Dracula is at sea.

As a special place for the Dracula Castle of Dracula "can be seen. Entering the castle is displayed to the persecutors, but Dracula can be cured, but there. Meets Dracula on one of his pursuers, there is a conflict which must be ausgewürfelt, whereby both sides can further strengthen by event cards and equipment by hunters.

To protect themselves against the hunters, Dracula can create a hidden marker at the town meeting in which he finds himself. These markers have several negative effects on the hunters to enter the city in later rounds. The seventh city is visited, is the first city in the lane and come back to the hand of cards and the subsequent lying marker can intervene or hike along with the Local Map to the Catacombs, which is added an additional marker to the meeting place, so that the hunters is even more dangerous.

Train the hunter

The hunters can use your journey through the country on the road, by train, where they reached the spot, or make water. When moving with the train must first be a train station in the city and also have the hunters Roll the dice, if you are to catch the train, and yet how far this takes her.

Unless the hunter at the end of his turn not on "high seas" is he now has the means to rest, to thereby improve their own health to equip himself or he may have already acquired equipment to exchange cards with other hunters. When finishing the hunter may, depending on city size move, event tickets and / or equipment cards.

This can facilitate both the search for Dracula, but also bring benefits in combat. For event tickets, the hunter can not have bad luck and, instead of the powerful own cards to draw special abilities of Dracula, this must be passed unnoticed. However, the event cards of the hunters are so powerful that you must give the risk of Dracula tickets to go, should.

If the hunter finally the trail of Dracula was added, as he visited a place in which Dracula has spent the last laps, the corresponding map in Dracula's trail and discovered the hunter has to encounter the Dracula in this city may have left to ask.

The fight

Does the hunter in a city of Dracula, there is a struggle. Each was raised to win the fight with the equipment with which he believes them. This Dracula is expected to weaken during the day than at night. Can the equipment neither side carried away a victory, it goes with new weapons in the next battle. The strength of this it will generate, so the luck factor plays a major role. If you do not have good equipment available, can also try to escape and escaping without major injuries to the fight.

The game ends if the hunters have stolen 15 Dracula's life or if Dracula Vampire points with six wins, defeating runner-up, or survive days has reached.

Actually, Fury of Dracula is a beautifully illustrated unconverted and super board game. The fact that Dracula is stronger at night than during the day was also brilliant implemented. What we badly thrown open, however, was the fact that it has, despite the best cards in his hand a chance to win a fight if the player does not hold the luck of the dice. This is sometimes really frustrating and makes the luck factor to the strategic elements appear clearly too strong.

For casual gamers, is on a playing time of about three hours the game very long-winded. Especially negative effect is noticed while the game manual. Which is not only very complex, it is also marked by mile-long repeats, so that partially shuts down when reading and listening, and thus miss important details. The game manual is thus quite re-examined.

All in all, the game is probably more for Dracula fans, game collector or for people with a lot of time, our experience in game two was also positive. Not only that one is constantly exposed to the hunters upset because a player must use all four fighters, it was boring and for the Dracula player with time, as he often had to wait very long for his train.

Publication Year: 2005
Author: Christian Hand
Graphics: A. Navaro P. Nicely
Publisher: Fantasy Flight / Heidelberger Spiele Verlag
Number of Players: 2-5
Age Group: 12 years
Total time: about 3 hours

Keywords: deductive, Heidelberger Spiele Verlag