Cthulhu Wars

We’re only three games into this year’s Halloween Spooktacular, and I’m already mixing up the order and reviewing games that were not on the original list! Today, we’re looking at “Cthulhu Wars,” a big-box war game originally released on Kickstarter way back in 2015. It was one of the early Kickstarter success stories for board games. Now, I’m not usually a big fan of “dudes on a map” games, but the reviews and videos intrigued me. Earlier this year, I was thrilled to finally get hold of a copy. Today’s review is all about this game, and tomorrow, we’ll check out its younger sibling, “Cthulhu Wars Duel,” to see how they compare.

I played this game with Jack (9).

The best way to describe “Cthulhu Wars” is that it’s like a much-improved version of Risk—more enjoyable and interesting in every way. Each player chooses a faction based on the Old Gods from the HP Lovecraft universe, such as Cthulhu and the Black Goat. The goal is to gain as much Doom (points) as possible and reach 30 before the other players. You do this by killing other players’ minions, using abilities, and performing Rituals of Annihilation.

At the start of your turn, you calculate how much power each player has. This is determined by factors like how many Acolytes you control, how many summoning gates you own, and other power-boosting elements. The player with the most power goes first, and the game becomes a back-and-forth as players perform abilities. If one player runs out of power, the other player(s) get to keep taking turns consecutively until they also run out of power.

Actions in the game include moving units, summoning new ones, creating portals, using faction-specific abilities, and, of course, attacking your opponents. Combat is incredibly simple: units have a dice value, and you roll all your dice in battle. A 6 is a kill, 4 and 5 inflict “Pain,” forcing opponents to retreat, and 3 and below are misses. Interestingly, the player who loses units chooses which ones to remove, meaning you can’t just swoop in and instantly kill a key unit when it’s surrounded by weaker ones.

Each faction also has six abilities that must be unlocked by completing achievements during the game. These abilities can be incredibly powerful, adding a layer of strategy as you work toward unlocking them.

Other mechanics, like the Ritual of Annihilation, let you gain more Doom, but at the cost of increasing future Ritual costs for everyone. Despite its complexity, “Cthulhu Wars” isn’t difficult to understand. While it’s clearly aimed at the hobbyist market, I think you could easily play it with kids as young as Jack—any single-digit-aged child could grasp what’s going on.

One of the game’s major draws is its massive miniatures. When you summon an Old God and slam down Cthulhu or the King in Yellow, they have a huge table presence. Interestingly, the miniatures are cast in bright colours, which contrasts with the usual greys and blacks in this genre. Should I ever get around to painting them (which I won’t), the bright colours would make for a nice starting palette.

“Cthulhu Wars” has really grown on Jack and me over the past month. We’ve played it several times, and it’s actually a relatively short game—about 45 minutes with two players. It tends to scale up by around 20–25 minutes per extra player.

One of the game’s biggest appeals is that all the factions have abilities that feel completely overpowered—but so does everyone else. The game manages to balance itself out, though a runaway leader can emerge if all the stars align. This is one of those games where you’ll spend a good chunk of time double-checking your opponent’s abilities, frequently asking, “You can do what?! Are you sure that’s what it says?”

Now, there are a few issues worth mentioning. First, “Cthulhu Wars” is expensive—around £150, or £200 if you want newer reprints. Expansions, which unlock additional factions (both neutral and player-controlled), cost around £50 each. Even by modern board game standards, that’s steep—only games like “Kingdom Death: Monster” rival it for price. Another minor issue is that if one player ends up with much more power than another, they can take several actions while the other can’t do much to stop them. This can be mitigated, though, and the issue is addressed in “Cthulhu Wars Duel.”

The production quality is top-notch. The resin miniatures are lovely, though for the price, I would’ve liked a bit more detail. That said, they work well and have a great table presence. The components are high quality, and I really like the world map. The rulebook is excellent, doubling as a guide to the lore and expansions.

That said, I’m always hesitant to recommend very expensive games on Little Board Gamers, as most people here are looking for value games they can play with their children. While I absolutely love “Cthulhu Wars” and am glad to own it, I can’t, in good conscience, say it’s great value at nearly £200 for the base game alone.

The other reason I struggle to recommend “Cthulhu Wars” in 2024 is because “Cthulhu Wars Duel” exists. “Cthulhu Wars Duel” is a much less expensive, two-player version of the game that plays very similarly.

On that note, check back tomorrow for a more detailed look at “Cthulhu Wars Duel” and my thoughts on if you should get that version instead (spoiler: It’s a 5th of the price and plays pretty much identically).