Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop, 2021 - Board game review

image © Games Workshop

Article updated: 2022.03.08

Warhammer Quest: Cursed City is a cooperative board game by Games Workshop, set in the world of Warhammer: Age of Sigmar. The Warhammer Quest Cursed City cooperative board game was first produced in 2021. A second print and a third print were produced in 2022.

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Details - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

Board game set: Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game

Product name: Warhammer Quest: Cursed City, French: Warhammer Quest: Cité Maudite, German: Warhammer Quest: Die Verfluchte Stadt, Spanish: Warhammer Quest: Ciudad Maldita, Product code: 60010799011, Set type: Board game base set (Game base set), System: Warhammer Quest / Warhammer: Age of Sigmar Ed2, Setting: Mortal Realms (Warhammer: Age of Sigmar), Series: Warhammer Quest, Range: Warhammer: Age of Sigmar (Fantasy), Company: Games Workshop company, Production: Pr1 pre-order: 2021.04.03, release: 2021.04.10, Pr2 made to order: 2022.03.05-21, Pr3: 2022.10.15-

Style: cooperative (solo), miniatures

Players: 1-4

"Warhammer Quest: Cursed City is a co-operative board game that can be played solo, or with up to 3 friends. Together you will enter Ulfenkarn to take part in one of four journeys – Hunt, Scavenge, Deliverance, and Decapitation, which are combined into a heroic quest to overthrow Radukar and his lieutenants to free the city from its undead curse."

image © Games Workshop

image © Games Workshop

Contents - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

image © Games Workshop

8x Miniatures - Agents of Defiance

1x Brutogg Corpse-Eater (Ogre) (40mm base with two hexagonal slots)

1x Captain Emelda Braskov (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

1x Cleona Zeitengale (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

1x Dagnai Holdenstock (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

1x Glaurio ven Alten III (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

1x Jelsen Darrock (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

1x Octren Glimscry (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

1x Qulathis the Exile (Elf) (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Brutogg Corpse-Eater	1x Cleona Zeitengale	1x Dagnai Holdenstock

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Emelda Braskov	1x Glaurio ven Alten III	1x Jelsen Darrock

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Octren Glimscry	1x Qulathis the Exile

5x Miniatures - Overlords of Ulfenkarn champions

1x Gorslav the Gravekeeper (40mm base with two hexagonal slots)

1x Radukar the Wolf (40mm base with two hexagonal slots)

1x Torgillius the Chamberlain (40mm base with two hexagonal slots)

1x Vargskyr (50mm base with two hexagonal slots)

1x Watch Captain Halgrim (Skeleton) (32mm slottabase)

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Gorslav the Gravekeeper	1x Radukar the Wolf

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Torgillius the Chamberlain	1x Vargskyr	1x Watch Captain Halgrim

37x Miniatures - Overlords of Ulfenkarn minions

6x Bat Swarms (25mm slottabase)

2x Bat Swarm #1 with Dire Bat

2x Bat Swarm #2

2x Bat Swarm #3

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
2x Bat Swarm #1	2x Bat Swarm #2	2x Bat Swarm #3

6x Corpse Rats (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

2x Corpse Rats #1 with Dire Rat

2x Corpse Rats #2

2x Corpse Rats #3

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
2x Corpse Rats #1	2x Corpse Rats #2	2x Corpse Rats #3

10x Deadwalker Zombies (2x Deadwalker Zombies kit) (25mm slottabase)

2x Deadwalker Zombie #1 (3 builds)

2x Deadwalker Zombie #2 (3 builds)

2x Deadwalker Zombie #3 (3 builds)

2x Deadwalker Zombie #4 (2 builds)

2x Deadwalker Zombie #5 (2 builds)

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
Deadwalker Zombie #1.1	Deadwalker Zombie #1.3	Deadwalker Zombie #2.2

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
Deadwalker Zombie #3.1	Deadwalker Zombie #3.3	Deadwalker Zombie #4.1

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
Deadwalker Zombie #4.2	Deadwalker Zombie #5.1	Deadwalker Zombie #5.2

2x Kosargi Nightguards (Ogre zombie) (40mm base with two hexagonal slots)

1x Kosargi Nightguard #1 with keys

1x Kosargi Nightguard #2

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Kosargi Nightguard #1	1x Kosargi Nightguard #2

10x Ulfenwatch (Skeleton) (25mm slottabase) - they are 33-35mm high

2x Ulfenwatch #1 with Spear up

0-2x Ulfenwatch #1 build #1

0-2x Ulfenwatch #1 build #2 in helmet

2x Ulfenwatch #2 with Spear down

0-2x Ulfenwatch #2 build #1

0-2x Ulfenwatch #2 build #2 in helmet

2x Ulfenwatch #3 with Spear in left hand

0-2x Ulfenwatch #3 build #1

0-2x Ulfenwatch #3 build #2

2x Ulfenwatch #4 with Sword

0-2x Ulfenwatch #4 build #1

0-2x Ulfenwatch #4 build #2

2x Ulfenwatch #5

0-2x Ulfenwatch #5 build #1 with Banner and sword

0-2x Ulfenwatch #5 build #1.1 with Banner

0-2x Ulfenwatch #5 build #2 Champion with Sword

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
0-2x Ulfenwatch #1 build #1	0-2x Ulfenwatch #1 build #2	0-2x Ulfenwatch #2 build #1

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
0-2x Ulfenwatch #2 build #2	0-2x Ulfenwatch #3 build #1	0-2x Ulfenwatch #3 build #2

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
0-2x Ulfenwatch #4 build #1	0-2x Ulfenwatch #4 build #2	0-2x Ulfenwatch #5 build #1

image © Games Workshop

0-2x Ulfenwatch #5 build #2

3x Vyrkos Blood-born (32mm base with hexagonal slot)

1x Vyrkos Blood-born #1 hanging from column

1x Vyrkos Blood-born #2 squatting on column

1x Vyrkos Blood-born #3 running

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Vyrkos Blood-born #1	1x Vyrkos Blood-born #2	1x Vyrkos Blood-born #3

Bases

36x 25mm round plastic slottabase (black)

1x 32mm round plastic slottabase (black)

16x 32mm round plastic base with one hexagonal hole (black)

6x 40mm round plastic base with two hexagonal holes (black)

1x 50mm round plastic base with two hexagonal holes (black)

Sprues

1x Cursed City heroes sprue #1(beige): Cleona Zeitengale, Emelda Braskov, Glaurio ven Alten III, Jelsen Darrock, Octren Glimscry, Qulathis the Exile

1x Cursed City heroes sprue #2 (beige): Brutogg Corpse-Eater, Dagnai Holdenstock

1x Radukar the Wolf sprue (gray): Radukar the Wolf

1x Cursed City hostiles sprue #1 (gray): Gorslav the Gravekeeper, Kosargi Nightguards, Torgillius the Chamberlain, Vargskyr, Vyrkos Blood-born, Watch Captain Halgrim

2x Cursed City hostiles sprue #2 (gray): Bat Swarms, Corpse Rats, Deadwalker Zombies, Mysterious Objects, Ulfenwatch

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Cursed City heroes sprue #1	1x Cursed City heroes sprue #2

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
1x Radukar the Wolf sprue	1x Cursed City hostiles sprue #1	2x Cursed City hostiles sprue #2

Scenery

10x Mysterious Objects

2x Gnawbone Stray (zombie cat) (25mm slottabase)

2x Diregoyle (25mm slottabase)

2x Gravestone (25mm slottabase)

2x Crow with key (25mm slottabase)

2x Gibbet kit (25mm slottabase)

0-2x Gibbet build #1 with skeleton pointing left

0-2x Gibbet build #2 with skeleton pointing right

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
2x Crow with key	2x Gravestone	2x Diregoyle

image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop	image © Games Workshop
0-2x Gibbet build #1	0-2x Gibbet build #2	2x Gnawbone Stray

Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board tiles: thick cardboard, two-sided

20x Ulfenkarn tiles

1x Drop Zone tile

1x Extraction Zone tile (with torches in the corners)

18x Gateway (side A: open, side B: closed)

6x Lychgates

System

1x Warhammer Quest: Cursed City Rulebook (40 pages)

1x Warhammer Quest: Cursed City Quest Book: Ulfenkarn in Peril (56 pages)

1x Warhammer: Age of Sigmar Warscrolls Book (16 pages)(PDF downloads (on Archive.org))

180 counters & tokens

1x Skyvessel Board

1x leader token

1x combat track

1x Suffocating Gravetide token (60mm x 30mm oval)

138 cards (with recommended sleeve sizes)

1 quest card: Ulfenkarn in Peril

8 initiative cards (4 hero, 4 hostile) (41mm x 62.5-63 mm / 44mm x 67mm - Mini American)

8 trait cards (65mm x 100mm - Extra Large)

8 mortis cards (66mm x 91mm / 63mm x 88mm ? - Standard Card Game)

8 hero cards (two-sided) (110 x 150 mm, clear protector)

11 hostile reference cards (two-sided) (110 x 150 mm, clear protector)

16 encounter cards (66mm x 91mm / 63mm x 88mm ? - Standard Card Game)

19 exploration cards (for random map generation) (66mm x 91mm / 63mm x 88mm ? - Standard Card Game)

24 empowerment cards (66mm x 91mm / 63mm x 88mm ? - Standard Card Game)

35 discovery cards (56-57mm x 87-89mm / 59mm x 91mm - Standard American)

Accessories

28x dice

16x d6 dice (white) - activation dice

5x d6 (black) - destiny dice

1x d12 dice (black) - quest dice

2x d6 action dice (beige), with blank, 1 dot, 2 dot sides

2x d8 action dice (blue), with blank, 1 dot, 2 dot sides

2x d12 action dice (red), with blank, 1 dot, 2 dot sides

Secret envelope

self-sealing plastic bags

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Review - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

Based on previews, it seems that the game rules are similar to Warhammer 40K: Blackstone Fortress, thus it will allow cooperative and solo game modes.

Although the release date was 2021.04.10, WHQ Cursed City was out of stock an hour after pre-order opened. They will probably reprint the game later.

The system

I like the role-playing aspects of the game, it's similar to how I've made a game involving a campaign against a vampire overlord, so it's a huge plus for me. The players are free to choose what mission will they take, and there are consequences for their choices. For these consequences, I still prefer the way Descent handles it, but the more abstract Influence and Fear mechanic of Cursed City is probably a better way to handle these in a cooperative game. And, unlike Descent, this game provides a decent cooperative game that doesn't need a game master.

When you start your games, you'll need some time to understand your characters and how strong are they against specific types of enemies. I recommend you to push your heroes into dangerous situations for a faster learning curve, even if it means that you lose your first campaign. After you know how the system works, you'll appreciate the game better.

Playing the game takes up a lot of space, you'll need a large table for it to hold the playing area, the card decks, the tokens and all the character sheets. If you play a Deliverance mission, you have to prepare for the eventuality of running out of space on your table if the tide goes in the wrong direction, although the tide also frees up some space by destroying the last tile every turn. You'll need some time to set up each mission, except for Deliverance missions that are generated randomly. You'll need to record your game after each mission, so you can continue the campaign in your next game. As a single mission can go for hours, and you'll need to complete many missions before you finish the campaign, Cursed City can provide lots of hours of gametime. There's a minimum of 12 games before you reach a level to even access the lair of Radukar (but probably 17 to reach other requirements), and each game lasts for at least about an hour.

The unit information cards have all the data on one side, so you don't need to flip them (unlike in Blackstone Fortress).

The timer mechanic is interesting. When night falls, it doesn't end your game abruptly, but it will certainly make it harder for the heroes to complete the mission.

I'm a little bit undecided about the crisis events, but they are not bad, and at least the concept seems interesting. However, once the players have seen all of the crisis events, and they've tried a couple of ways to solve them, they'll get familiar with them. It would be nice to see some tweaks to this mechanic to keep the game fresh.

The models in a group do the same action together, compared to Blackstone Fortress, where you had to roll individually. I find this a good change, it makes the game faster, and it makes sense.

For single missions, the game seems to be a bit too easy for an experienced gamer. Completing the overall campaign might prove more of a challenge, as more and more heroes die. The heroes are fully healed between mission, I'd probably prefer a slower healing rate. There are Cursed City events that give boosts to the team, that doesn't make sense. In the game, almost all of the hostiles (except for Torgillius) have only melee attacks. This means that they swarm towards the heroes, at a predictable speed, while the heroes can shoot them from the distance, or just get out of their way. There's also no cover in the game, so the heroes can shoot at them whenever they want. In the procedurally generated maps the spawning hostiles don't have much room for tactics, even if they would have the abilities for that (but they don't). At starting level, if your team stays together, you can easily finish off one or even two groups of hostiles in one round.

The secret envelope mechanic seems like something from a "Legacy style" game. Once you've completed the quest that adds the secret envelope, you'll need to adjust the game, according to the instructions in the envelope. Until you complete the Cursed City game, avoid reviews that reveal the secret contents of the box, to maximise the surprise factor.

The models

The miniatures are push-fit, easy to build models. They probably stay together even without glue. Most of the models have pegs on their legs to attach to their base. Some of them (Watch Captain Halgrim, Deadwalkers, Ulfenguard, Bat Swarms, Objects) have slottabase pegs.

You have multiple builds for the Deadwalkers and Ulfenwatch, and that's great. Although you only get one of every piece on one sprue, they can go on multiple bodies, so you can build a variety of models out of them. With the use of two sprues, you'll have plenty of options. The only exception for the extra parts is the Gibbet model, as two of the skeleton bodies will remain unused, and the Ulfenwatch Standard / Champion, as two torsos and for each Champion with sword, a sword with scabbard will remain.

Many people reported that they couldn't push the pegs on the models into their holes. Some recommend to push it harder, until it clicks. This creates such a strong grip that you won't need glue. Others recommend to trim the peg, and widen the hole.

The models look great, and some of the hero miniatures are a great fit even for Warhammer 40K. All of the models are high, so they seem to be easy to pick up, making them easier to use even in 3D dungeon environments. The models have very delicate parts that might get broken if you don't take great care of them. I'm not sure these were a good choice for a board game that could be played by non-modellers who might not be that careful. If you haul the box to play the game in a club, you'll need to create some protection for your miniatures. For board games, I'd prefer more solid, stocky models, or maybe less rigid soft polystyrene or soft PVC. I've heard some cases where the models arrived with pieces already broken off, and that's before actual play started. Luckily, most of the models are easily substituted by D&D, Zombicide or Massive Darkness models that are more suitable for board games.

Octren's sculpt is nice, but the pieces are a little unfortunate, as two pieces make up its back, and the join quite visible. It will take some time and effort to make it blend in. Another possibility is to use the lines as a guide to paint some decoration on the cloak, or to use it as a divider, and paint the upper part in one colour, and the lower part in another.

As there are lots of models in the set, you'll need some hours of cutting and assembling before you can start your first game. Even if you decide you'll only use the minimum number of models, that means four heroes, but you'll need to assemble all the enemy models, as they'll appear randomly in the game. Painting them will also take up a considerable amount of time.

The Suffocating Gravetide marker (60x30 mm) is about the third the size of the previously published Suffocating Gravetide endless spell model (165x85 mm).

Scenery

The board tiles have 39x39mm grids. As there are models in the game with 40 or even 50mm base, I find this a strange choice, as they won't fit in one grid. The tile grids are slightly larger than the previous Warhammer Quest grids, so the board tiles are not compatible with those.

The board tiles look thick, they seem to be sturdy enough to survive playing on them. The tiles are shiny.

I feel that the Mysterious Objects models are more distracting than useful, but then, you can easily replace them with a token if you wish.

Miniatures for Warhammer: Age of Sigmar

You can use the included models in your Warhammer: Age of Sigmar Ed2 games, as you get the right numbers for a unit, and the right sized miniature base. There's also a booklet included in the Cursed City boxed set with their rules for WH: AoS wnd edition. The rules for the units were also available as PDF downloads (on Archive.org) on the Games Workshop website, but the Pitched Battle information that is on the back cover of the booklet is missing from the downloads.

• Rules for Radukar
• Rules for Radukar's Court

The heroes, except Dagnai and Qulathis get the Cities of Sigmar faction keyword. They also get the Ulfenkarn city keyword, but there's no rule for it, so they can't get any benefit from that. Dagnai gets Kharadron Overlords faction, and Bharak-Mhornar skyport keywords. Qulathis gets Sylvaneth faction, and the Enga'la Weald glade keywords. The heroes can be chosen individually to be included in AoS games, for around 100 points.

None of the Overlord units have the Soulblight Gravelords keyword in their warscrolls. The Vyrkos Blood-born and the Kosargi Nightguards can be used in any numbers according to the warscroll, but according to the Pitched Battle rules in the booklet, you need to take all of the models in the box, as part of the Radukar’s Court warband. The characters and monsters of the Overlord can only be used in one big group, for 680 points, you can't include them individually. The warband is Unique, so you can't take it more than once. There are no rules for the Bat Swarms, Corpse Rats, Diregoyles, and Gnawbone Strays.

You can't use the Ulfenwatch models in Age of Sigmar games straight out of the box, if you'd like to have models with proper weapons. You have to take either 10 Skeleton Warriors with Ancient Spear or 10 with Ancient Blades. From this set, you can build 6 models with spears, 2 models with swords, and another 2 with either just spear, or just sword, or sword and spear. Unless your opponent won't mind you mixing units, this is not a useful selection. The Skeleton Warrior Standard is great, as it has both a spear and a sword, but the Skeleton Warrior Champion is only armed with a sword. There's no Skeleton Warrior Hornblowers in the set, although you can add an instrument to any of them. However, to make a Skeleton Warrior unit really useful, it's better to have at least a group of 20 to make use of their special rules.

Edit 2021.05.17: The new rules for Deathrattle Skeletons allow you to field them with mixed weapons, as the swords and spears get the same rules. There's no special rules that would make them better in large groups. They get the Soulblight Gravelords keyword. They get 5+ saves instead of 6+. There attacks are range 1" even with the spear, but they hit with 3+ instead of the previous 4+ or 5+. The champions previously got +1 Attacks, but now they only get that +1 if they use mace or halberd, and every Ulfenwatch in Cursed City is armed with swords or spears.

From the Deadwalker models, you can create a group of 10 Zombies. There are no indication of Standards or Noise Makers, but I'd paint one of the large gravestones with a distinct colour to call it a Standard, and use one of the Deadwalkers with the crows or bells as Noise Makers. Just like the Skeleton Warriors, it's better to have at least 20 Zombies in a unit, to make them really useful.

Edit 2021.05.17: The new rules for Deathwalker Zombies don't mention musicians or standard bearers, so you don't have to worry about them. There's no special rules that would make them better in large groups. They get the Soulblight Gravelords keyword.

Improving your game

Ulfenkarn in Peril quest card: Cut the places where you would put the markers. Glue the card with the holes on a cardboard that's slightly thinner than the cardboard markers,and cut those holes into the cardboard. You might cut a small dent somewhere around the hole, so it will be easier to remove the markers. Glue another card below the cardboard, and glue the marker places into their places. This way you'll be easier able to save the current state of the campaign.

Final thoughts

I'm still not sure who the target audience is. The models are too fiddly for board gamers to assemble, and too fragile to handle as a board game piece. This would point to wargamers, but the system seems to be too easy for experienced gamers. The game could provide a challenge for younger gamers, but the models are not ideal for them.

Recommendation

If you like Warhammer Quest games, and you like to spend some time assembling models, this is a great set, and it will provide lots and lots of play time.

If you play Warhammer: Age of Sigmar, this set can get you a nice set of models for a Death or a Cities of Sigmar army.

If you play any kind of wargames or role-playing games, there's a nice set of medieval city tiles in the box, many great hero models, and also lots of undead you can use for various purposes.

If you like dungeon crawler games, but you don't like to assemble models, you can substitute most them easily with either cardboard models or one-piece models from other games. You can probably sell the models from this set for a good price.

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The rules - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

image © Games Workshop

Up to four players can play the game at once. Each mission they need to appoint a leader, and it will be the leader's task to control the hostiles. It's also the leader who has to roll quest dice to determine random outcomes.

The game uses special dice beyond the usual d6 and d12. These are used for ability tests and weapon damage. There is normal success, and critical success, the latter gives additional effects. When you roll more than one dice, you only use the best result, not the sum of the results.

It seems to me that the game levels with the heroes. By the time your heroes level up, there are more hostiles spawned, and as completing the missions lasts longer, you'll run out of daylight time, so the hostiles will be more powerful.

Heroes

image © Games Workshop

image © Games Workshop

Each hero has a space for four activation dice. This is where you put the activation dice you roll in the beginning of a turn. Each Wound the hero gets takes up one space. If all spaces are taken up by Wound tokens, and receives another Wound, the hero is out of action. There's also a chance of the hero dying.

The heroes have the following abilities:

• Size
• Move: The first is the Move speed, the second number is the Run speed. 3/4 seems to be the average.
• Agility
• Vitality: Wounded heroes can roll for Vitality while doing a Recuperate action, to heal.
• Defence: When hostiles wound them, heroes need to test their Defence. A success negates 1 Wound, a critical success negates 3 Wounds.

The heroes can carry a weapon and an armour. The empowerment cards slide under the character cards, so you only see the relevant modifiers.

The heroes can choose a class, and as they get better, they get more and more traits. You can slide the trait card under the character card, so only the relevant traits can be seen, and as you level up, you can raise the card, so more traits will be seen. This method saves up some playing space.

image © Games Workshop

The heroes gain 1 level for every 3 mission they survive. When a hero reaches a certain levels, decapitation missions get unlocked, allowing them to fight one of the lieutenants. They can't gain any more experience above that level unless they complete the decapitation mission. The mission to decapitate the main boss can only be reached by level 4 heroes.

Beside killing enemies, each hero has a unique way to gain inspiration points. When they gain 3 inspiration, you can turn their cards to their Inspired side, giving them further powers.

The heroes have to spend an action dice to perform an action. The number on the dice must be greater or equal than the target number for the action. If the hero doesn't have any more activation dice, they can't take an action.

Possible actions:

• Move (0), Run (3): The hero can take the movement indicated on its card, as Move/Run speed.
• Attack (number depends on weapon): Melee attack can be used on adjacent spaces. Ranged attack can only be used on non-adjacent spaces. Dual attacks can be used anywhere.
• Search (4): The hero can search a Mysterious Object to draw a discovery card. It can reveal a treasure or a trap.
• Extract (4): The hero can call for a skyship if he is adjacent to a gateway.
• Recuperate: Roll a Vitality dice. A success negates a wound token, or turns a grievous wound into a normal wound. A critical success removes two wound tokens, or negates a grievous wound.

Missions

image © Games Workshop

Each mission is a hit and run assault. They get in with their skyship, the Adamant, complete their objective, then call for the skyship to retrieve them. Four heroes take part of every mission, if there are less than four players, they can decide who controls the extra heroes. You can play the game solo this way. The leader decides what mission will they play next. If you fail a mission, it can cause Fear and Influence to rise.

If the Fear raises to 10, the whole city is lost to evil. If the Influence of the Overlords grows to 10, they are able to destroy the skyship, ending the campaign for the heroes. If the number of living heroes go below 4, they are too few to continue the mission, so the game also ends.

To complete a mission, you need to collect 10 victory points by completing objectives.

There are four kinds of missions in the Cursed City. Hunt, and Scavange plays on fixed maps, and there are many of those, so it will take some time until you memorise all of them.

• Hunt: The heroes have to defeat ten hostile champions to decrease the Influence of the Overlords by 2. However, it raises Fear in the population by 1. There are multiple fixed map layouts. New hostiles spawn at the lychgates furthest away from the heroes. Zombies don't have champions, so it's better to avoid them.
• Scavange: The heroes are looking for treasures to help them in their battles. However, it raises Fear and Influence, as it allows time for the Overlord to advance their plans.
• Deliverance: The heroes have to rescue at least eight people from an endless spell to decrease Fear. The game starts on two tiles, then the map is randomly generated by exploration cards as the spell moves. If you can't reach an exit, the spell hits the heroes.
• Decapitation: The heroes try to kill the main boss, one of his lieutenants, or one of the monsters roaming the city. Each mission has a specific map layout, with special rules, depending on the enemy. The game starts on two tiles, then the map is randomly generated by exploration cards. When you use up 10 exploration cards, you reach the lair of the target. During the lair part of the mission, no crises happen. You can only choose a target if the heroes are at the right level. When you kill the main boss, who is rumoured to be immortal, there's a secret envelope you have to open to reveal what happens. Level 1 opens the first scenario, then level 2 opens another 2, level 3 yet another 2, and finally level 4 let's you fight against Radukar, the main boss.

There can be Mysterious Objects on the map, if the heroes search these, they can find treasure or traps, drawing from the discovery cards. These objects are also a spawning point for the minions at the start of the game.

The heroes are able to buy equipment between missions, spending the Realmstones they find during missions. They have to hurry though, as they can't keep Realmstones between missions.

Gameplay

image © Games Workshop

Each turn you roll four d6 activation dice for each hero. They can spend these during the turn.

The heroes can also access destiny dice, that any of them can use as extra activation dice. When they roll the five dice, only distinct results are kept, the rest are discarded.

There is a day/night cycle in the game, tracked on the Skyvessel Board. During the night, the undead are stronger. After 10 turns, it's night, and the hostile unit cards are flipped to their Empowered side. In addition to the stronger enemies, there are also crisis events that only occur during the night-time.

Each turn has five phases:

• Journey phase: The nightfall moves one on the time tracker.
• Destiny phase: Destiny dice is generated. I assume, in Deliverance missions, this is when the movement of the endless spell is determined.
• Initiative phase: Activation dice is generated for each hero. The leader creates an initiative deck by shuffling the hero and hostile cards, and revealing them determines the order of initiative for that turn. By spending an activation dice, a hero can change its place in the initiative order.
• Activation phase: The heroes and hostiles activate in their initiative order. Heroes act as their players command them. Hostiles roll a destiny dice on their behaviour table.
• Event phase: The players check if they have reached the mission objectives. If they have, they need to reach an extraction point to end the mission. Otherwise they have to draw an event card. The event can be beneficial, harmful, or an erupting crisis.

If a crisis event is drawn, the leader has to assign it to a hero, who leaves the game board until the crisis is resolved. The crisis describes some kind event that happens, and offers choices the player of the hero can make, answering questions, and doing skill checks. For example, they see a civilian attacked by a Stormcast Eternal knight - will they intervene, or will they let justice be served? The outcome of the crisis is based on the choices of the player - the right one leads to rewards, the wrong one leads to harmful consequences. There are different crisis events for day-time and night-time.

If a door token is between two spaces, it's a single door. If a door token touches two spaces on one side, it's a double door. This is an interesting mechanic, that only uses a single door token, but it allows for the use of both single and double doors.

Hostiles

image © Games Workshop

Hostiles spawn based on the level of the heroes. The higher the level, the more numerous or dangerous enemies spawn.

As this is a co-operative game, the hostiles are controlled by the behaviour table on their unit card (this is similar to Warhammer Quest: Blackstone Fortress). The higher the roll on the behaviour table, the more dangerous actions they get to do against the heroes.

The hostiles have the following abilities:

• Move
• Wounds
• Size: If a model is Small (with 25mm base), you can put two of them on the same space.

They start the game with their regular abilities. When the game reaches night-time, the cards are flipped to their Empowered side. That side gives additional abilities, and make them more aggressive.

The champions can only be killed permanently in Decapitation scenarios, otherwise they'll come back later, as they get resurrected. The champions can get additional abilities in Decapitate missions.

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Similar games - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

Descent from Fantasy Flight Games: Campaign system, fantasy setting, play area made out of board tiles, similar miniature scale. The gameplay is similar for the players, but it also involves a game master that plays against them. The campaign system is more complicated.

Dungeon & Dragons board games: Cooperative, fantasy setting, play area made out of board tiles, similar miniature scale. The system seems to be similarly complicated as Warhammer Quest Cursed City.

Warhammer Quest games from Games Workshop: Fantasy setting (Warhammer), play area made out of board tiles, similar miniature scale.

Zombicide: Black Plague from CoolMiniOrNot & Guillotine Games: AI controlled (stupid) enemies, campaign system, cooperative, fantasy setting, play area made out of board tiles, similar miniature scale. The enemy AI is more stupid than Cursed City. The gameplay and the concept is very similar to Cursed City, but the Zombicide system is easier to play.

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Uses for the set - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

Plot

• An evil warlord saves the city from a more evil enemy
• A vampire takes over the city
• The heroes have a flying ship that takes them to their target, and extracts them when their mission is over

Models

The models look great, and they are somewhere between realistic and the more chunky heroic scale proportions, so they won't look out of place between either style of models.

Although these are fantasy models, but some of them would look great in space fantasy games, especially with the right paintjob. Cleona Zeitengale, Glaurio ven Alten III, Jelsen Darrock and Octren Glimscry could make nice Warhammer 40K characters, while Dagnai Holdenstock could be a Squat.

Scenery

The board tiles look good, and they could be used to depict any kind of medieval city. There are scenery pieces on the tiles (crates, thrones, tombs, wells), that can provide cover in your games, should you choose to use them so. There are also places that show elevated parts on top of stairs, or pits beneath ground level, that you can use to depict multiple levels of the game. There's a garden with a bush that could block or slow movement. The holes could be jumped through if the models have enough movement for that. Before you start your games, decide about the use of them.

The 39x39mm grid is not ideal to fit with other grid based tile sets, but they are fine for distance-based or area-based movement. It's not even compatible with previous Warhammer Quest grids.

Randomly generated city

You can use the Cursed City board tiles and the exploration cards to randomly generate a medieval city. This could be useful for role-playing games or wargames. It's also great for solo play.

System

The system is easy to use, and it lends itself to use it as the basis for your home-made quests.

Scenario ideas - Wargame scenario ideas

• Hit and run missions: One of the sides have the ability to enter the playing area then leave the playing area. They might be able to teleport, or they have a flyer that brings them in and takes them away. There is a limit on their use of this power - they can only use it on high areas, or flat areas, or only in zones with no enemy units.
• Time changes powers: After a number of game rounds have passed, the powers of the units change due to special circumstances. For example, the battle is fought in the snow, and the soldiers are starting to freeze. Or there are mosquitoes that constantly bite them. Or they can't see in the dark. They might even gain additional powers, for example, they see better in the dark than their enemies.
• Escape: There is an unbeatable enemy that pursues the team. When it catches up to one of the targets, it's likely that the target will be overpowered, so running away is the only option. The enemy tries to follow them if they are being seen. If they are not visible, the enemy chooses a direction randomly. When they would reach the edge of the playing area, new terrain is placed at the edge, until they are able to get away. When there is enough distance between a target model and the pursuer, the target escapes. When all of the targets escape, or get caught, the game is over. If more than half of the targets escape, they win. If more than half of them are caught, the pursuer wins. Otherwise it's a draw.
• Rescue: There's an unbeatable enemy that rampages through the playing area. It moves in a random distance in a random direction. The team has to rescue people in the path of the rampage. The game starts with a small playing area, with the menace in the middle. When the players or the menace reaches the edge of the playing area, new terrain is placed there, and roll randomly how many civilian bystanders are there. When one of the team member reaches a civilian, it is considered alerted, and thus rescued. The game ends when a number of civilians are rescued.
  • Instead of one menace, there are multiple combatants who rampage. When a civilian is attacked or when a team member is in contact with them, the civilian will try to reach the closest edge of the playing area. The team has to slow or defeat the rampagers, to cover the escape of the civilians. Only those civilians are considered to be rescued that leave the playing area.
• Unknown challenges: The attackers try to find the lair of the defender. Before they find the lair, the have to go through another set of challenges. When they get through the challenges, they arrive at the lair, and the real battle begins. The attackers either have knowledge about the types of challenges, or generic info about the defences of the lair, but not both. The players roll, and the player who rolled the highest decides which information is given to the attacker.
• When they prepare the attacking force, this means they won't exactly know what kind of units will be ideal. The attackers can give up the scenario if they wish, to try at a later time. If it happens during the challenges, the game just ends. If they want to give up during the lair battle, they have to escape through the entry of the lair.
  • The challenge can be a random terrain feature, a randomly generated enemy squad, a random event that happens, or some skill challenge that have to be overcome by the attacking force. For example, if the enemy is hiding in a swamp, the random terrain can be quicksand, or deep mud; the random enemies can be swamp creatures, or squads of soldiers with specialist training in swamps; random events can be raining, or traps hidden under the water; and skill challenges can be crossing deep water, or getting through vegetation that blocks the way. The number of these may depend on the size of the battle. The information given to the attacker should point out that there's a swamp, so they might need swimming, floating or flying units, or have troops that can cross water or breathe water.
  • The information about the lair should be about the type of the lair (cave, forest, fortress, enclosed building), and about the type of defending troops.
  • When the attacker tries at a later time, choose between attacking again immediately, or waiting to replenish the lost units.
    • If they choose to attack, the units lost during the previous tries reduce the size of the attacking force, but they can prepare the new force to fit the types of challenges. The number of random challenges remain, but the defender also has to reduce the size of the defending force of the lair with their previously lost units.
    • If they choose to wait, they can choose a full sized force again. After the attacking force is chosen, the defender can decide to stay or to move, or to leave it up to chance. If they stay, there will be slightly more challenges, as the defenders are prepared for their attack. If they move, the number of challenges remain, but they will be different, and the attacker has to start the game with their force already chosen. If they leave it up to chance, the number of challenges remain, but when they reach the lair, roll a d6, and on 4-6, the lair is empty, and the remaining attacking force has to go through another set of challenges of the same type to reach the real lair.

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Questions - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

Will there be a second printing of Warhammer Quest: Cursed City?

As of 2021.04.17, we have no information about a second printing of Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game. Games Workshop neither confirmed, nor denied the possibility.

When will be Warhammer Quest: Cursed City released? / What is the Warhammer Quest: Cursed City release date? / When is Warhammer Quest Cursed City released?

Warhammer Quest: Cursed City will be available for pre-order from 2021.04.03, with the release date of 2021.04.10.

What is going to be Warhammer Quest: Cursed City's price? / What is the Cursed City's price in UK?

The price of Warhammer Quest: Cursed City is 125 GBP / 160 EUR / 210 USD. Compared to previous Warhammer Quest sets (95 GBP / 125 EUR / 150 USD) it might seem a little high.

What kind of game is Warhammer Quest? Is it cooperative?

Yes, Cursed City for the Warhammer Quest series is a fully cooperative board game.

Can you play Warhammer Cursed City solo?

Yes, in Warhammer Quest Cursed City solo play is possible.

Can I use Warhammer Quest: Cursed City models with Warhammer: Age of Sigmar?

Sure you can! Warhammer: Age of Sigmar Ed2 warscrolls are included in the Warhammer Quest: Cursed City boxed set.

Will the Cursed City warscrolls be available online?

They were online with the release of the Cursed City box, but they were removed from the website. Some of them can still be found here and there.

Can I use Warhammer Quest: Cursed City models with Warcry?

Indeed, you can! The rules to play Warcry with Cursed City miniatures can be found here:

Warcry - A Fool's Trove in Ulfenkarn (PDF) - A campaign for four players.

Is there a new Warhammer Quest game coming out?

Yes, after the Blackstone Fortress board game, there's a new game in the works, Cursed City, set in the Mortal Realms of Age of Sigmar.

Where can I find Warhammer Quest: Cursed City?

After Cursed City for Warhammer Quest will be released, you'll be able to find it in stores that carry Games Workshop products.

Is the game Cursed City the same as Silver Tower?

Not entirely. Cursed City is similar to Silver Tower. Both are dungeon crawler board games, where heroes who try to defeat evil. They are also set in the world of the Mortal Realms of Age of Sigmar.

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Resources - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

Official

Games Workshop: Warhammer Quest: Cursed City (Pr3, UK): Official page of the new print.

Games Workshop: Warhammer Quest: Cursed City (Pr2, UK) (on Archive.org): Official page of the new print. (2022: The article is permanently offline.)

Games Workshop: Warhammer Quest: Cursed City (Pr1, UK) (on Archive.org): Official page. (2021.04.16: The article is permanently offline.)

Games Workshop: Cursed City Collection (UK) (on Archive.org): Official page. (2021.04.16: The article is permanently offline.)

Preview

brennon (for OnTableTop): Warhammer Quest: Cursed City Announced As New Boxed Game: Preview article.

Content overview

Liam "Corrode" Royle (for Goonhammer): Warhammer Quest: Cursed City Unboxing: Content overview article.§

Atom Smasher (for Tabletop Minions): Cursed City: FIRST Impressions: Compensated review video about Cursed City for Warhammer Quest. Includes a brief content overview.

Reviews

Afternoon Stipple / Gutrot Bloom (for The Unrelenting Brush Commission Painter): Warhammer Quest: Cursed City – A (Damned) Great Time: Compensated review article about the board game.

mirrored on Tableop Games UK

Atom Smasher (for Tabletop Minions): Cursed City: FIRST Impressions: Compensated review video about Cursed City for Warhammer Quest. Includes a brief content overview.

Drive Thru Games: Cursed City Disappointed Me, Here's Why (Review) - Drive Thru Mini Vlog #3: Compensated review video about WHQ Cursed City.Ł

Guerrilla Miniature Games: It Came from the Studio - Ep 07 - 5 (6?) Opinions about Cursed City: Compensated playtest review article.

RagnarokAngel and Raf Cordero (for Goonhammer): Warhammer Quest: Cursed City: The Goonhammer Review: Compensated playtest review article.§

Reviews - Warhammer: Age of Sigmar Warscrolls

Matt Crowther (for Sprues & Brews): Warhammer Quest Cursed City – Warscroll Review Part 1: Review article about the Warhammer Quest: Cursed City warscrolls.

Matt Crowther (for Sprues & Brews): Warhammer Quest Cursed City – Warscroll Review Part 2 The Heroes: Review article about the Warhammer Quest: Cursed City warscrolls.

Miniatures

: Showcase article.

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Buying the product - Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game from Games Workshop

Price

Base price (Warhammer Quest: Cursed City board game)(2021): 125 GBP / 160 EUR / 210 USD. Price/figure: 2.1 GBP / 2.7 EUR / 3.5 USD. Price/model: 1.8 GBP / 2.3 EUR / 3 USD

Where can you buy it?

Games Workshop: Warhammer Quest: Cursed City (Pr3, UK): Official page of the new print.

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Do you have the Warhammer Quest - Cursed City board game from Games Workshop? How do you like it? Would you recommend it to others? Tell your opinion in the comments!