2025 Puesto n.º 3225 en BGG

Cthulhu: Dark Providence

1–5 jugadores 90–120 min A partir de 13 años 3.2/5 de complejidad 6.0/10 de valoración

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Set in the Cthulhu: Death May Die, Dark Providence is a competitive game in which players take on secret roles of Investigators, Cultists Or Dissidents from the most influential cities of the United States during the Great Depression. While the Cultists explore the nation's vulnerability seeking to remake it into a twisted version of itself by consorting with unspeakable beings from nightmarish dimensions, Investigators take the opposite side, standing against this dark providence. Meanwhile Dissidents are no longer part of either side. Dissidents score points for assassinating Agents and for sealing and protecting Gates. As enemies of both sides of the struggle, concealing their identity is paramount. Each player's secret alignment determines how they’ll score points at the end of the game, however, this is not a cooperative game. During the game players use Influence cubes to bid for the right to claim Asset cards, take control of cities, and gather Mythos cards. Each new Asset card acquired improves the players’ deck and therefore the resources and actions they can perform during a turn. At the center of Dark Providence’s deck building mechanics lie the Asset cards. All players start the game with the same 10 initial cards. Regardless of their strategy, acquiring new Asset cards is fundamental to improve their decks. Trying to keep their identity secret and avoid insanity, players perform a multitude of actions, swaying Hired Agents to their side of the battle, assassinating other players’ Agents, gathering additional help from Mythos cards, blocking other players from claiming cards, and sealing or protecting Gates, among others to gain Victory Points. At the end, only the player with the most Victory Points of the dominant side of the battle will win the game! Dark Providence also has a brand new solo version in which a single player comes face-to-face with an Elder One attempting to corrupt the nation. The player takes the side of Investigators and plays against 1 of 6 Elder Ones, each with unique features and goals. —description from the publisher

Qué sensaciones ofrece

Hand Management Variable Set-up Solo / Solitaire Game Area Majority / Influence Open Drafting Deck, Bag, and Pool Building Point to Point Movement Delayed Purchase Hidden Roles Horror Cthulhu Mythos Art style – Art Deco

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Puntuación y victoria

Highest VP total at end game wins. Tie-breaking conditions may be established by END GAME effects on Mythos cards. Fuentes de puntuación: 3VP for Alignment card not revealed during game (all factions), Neutral VP on claimed Cards and Agents (all factions), END GAME effects on Mythos cards (all factions), Investigation track position (Investigators and Dissident Investigators), Gate Value on personally sealed Gates (Investigators only), Investigator VP symbol on Recruited Agents (Investigators only), Ritual track position (Cultists and Dissident Cultists), 1VP per assassinated Agent in Crypt (Cultists and Dissidents), Gate Value on personally protected Gates (Cultists only), Cultist VP symbol on Mythos cards (Cultists only), 1VP per claimed Revenant Agent (Cultists only), 8VP for Deep Ones card if all 8 Deep Ones are in play (Cultists only), -3VP penalty if Alignment card was revealed (Dissidents only), Gate Value on own Gates (sealed or protected) (Dissidents only), In-game scoring: Cities, Lost City, and The Necronomicon scored during play

Fuente: Rulebook

Reglas que debes conocer

Las reglas más útiles para jugar bien la primera partida.

Scoring

Every player scores 3VP if their Alignment card was not revealed during the game.

All players (Investigators, Cultists, and Dissidents) earn 3VP at end game if their Alignment card was never revealed during the course of the game.

Scoring

Every player scores neutral VP from Cards and Agents they have claimed.

All players score the neutral VP (marked with a neutral VP symbol) on any Cards and Agents they have claimed, regardless of faction.

Scoring

Every player scores any END GAME effects on Mythos cards they hold that provide additional VP and/or tie-breaking conditions.

At end game, all players evaluate any END GAME effect text on their Mythos cards. These can provide additional VP and/or establish tie-breaking conditions.

Scoring

Some cards are scored during the game rather than at end game: Cities, Lost City, and The Necronomicon.

Cities, the Lost City, and The Necronomicon are scored during the game as their conditions are met, not at the end game scoring phase.

Scoring

Investigators score VP from their position on the Investigation track.

Investigators score VP based on their position on the Investigation track at end game.

Scoring

Investigators score the Gate Value on each Gate they have personally sealed.

At end game, each Investigator scores VP equal to the Gate Value printed on each Gate that they own and have sealed (marked with the sealed Gate symbol).

Scoring

Investigators score VP from Recruited Agents bearing the Investigator VP symbol.

Investigators score VP from Recruited Agents that display the Investigator VP symbol. The specific VP value is indicated on each such Agent.

Scoring

Cultists score VP from their position on the Ritual track.

Cultists score VP based on their position on the Ritual track at end game.

Informe estratégico

Protecting Your Alignment Card

Keeping your Alignment card hidden is worth 3VP for Investigators and Cultists, but for Dissidents the stakes are even more asymmetric — revelation costs them 3VP (a 3VP swing) while also potentially exposing their double-agent strategy to opponents. Prioritize actions that prevent revelation.

Dissident Gate Flexibility

Dissidents score Gate Values on both sealed and protected Gates, giving them more flexibility than either pure faction. A Dissident can pursue Gates opportunistically without committing to one seal/protect strategy, potentially out-scoring a pure Investigator or Cultist who loses access to gates of the wrong type.

Cultist Deep Ones Combo

The Deep Ones 8VP bonus requires both holding the card AND all 8 Deep Ones being in play simultaneously at end game. Opponents aware of this can deny it by eliminating even a single Deep One piece. Cultists pursuing this combo should protect Deep One pieces aggressively in the late game.

Dissident Faction Symbol Trap

Dissidents cannot score the Investigator VP or Cultist VP symbols on cards or Agents. Spending actions to claim cards or recruit Agents purely for their faction symbol VP is wasted effort for Dissidents. Focus instead on neutral VP, track advancement, Gate values, and assassinated Agents.

Crypt Control for Cultists and Dissidents

Both Cultists and Dissidents score 1VP per assassinated Agent in the Crypt, making assassination a shared scoring axis. Maximising assassinations benefits both factions, but be aware that Dissidents can compete with Cultists on this axis, potentially diluting the value if both are present.

Mythos END GAME Effects for Tiebreaking

END GAME effects on Mythos cards can establish tiebreaking conditions available to all players. In close games, holding Mythos cards with favorable tiebreaker conditions may be the deciding factor, making them valuable beyond their direct VP.

Preguntas frecuentes y casos límite

A Dissident's Alignment card is revealed during the game. Do they lose the 3VP hidden bonus AND also get -3VP, for a total swing of -6VP?

No. Dissidents do not receive the 3VP hidden bonus at all — that bonus is replaced by a -3VP penalty if revealed. If revealed, they lose 3VP. If not revealed, they simply score 0 from this source (no bonus, no penalty). The total swing between revealed and unrevealed is 3VP, not 6VP.

A Dissident Investigator is on a high position on the Investigation track AND holds a card with the Investigator VP symbol. Do they score both?

No. A Dissident Investigator scores VP from the Investigation track position, but does NOT score VP from the Investigator VP symbol on cards or Agents. Only the track VP applies; the faction symbol VP is explicitly excluded for all Dissidents.

A Dissident Cultist is on a high position on the Ritual track AND holds a Mythos card with the Cultist VP symbol. Do they score both?

No. A Dissident Cultist scores VP from the Ritual track position, but does NOT score VP from the Cultist VP symbol on Mythos cards or Agents. Only the track VP applies; the faction symbol VP is explicitly excluded for all Dissidents.

A Dissident owns both a sealed Gate and a protected Gate. Do they score both?

Yes. Dissidents score the Gate Value on ALL their own Gates regardless of whether each is sealed or protected. This is broader than pure Investigators (sealed only) or pure Cultists (protected only).

A Cultist holds the Deep Ones card but only 7 of the 8 Deep Ones are in play at end game. Do they score the 8VP?

No. Both conditions must be met simultaneously at end game: the Cultist must hold the Deep Ones card AND all 8 Deep Ones must be in play. If even one Deep One is missing, the 8VP bonus is not awarded.

A player holds a Cities card. Is it scored at end game along with other cards?

No. Cities, the Lost City, and The Necronomicon are scored during the game when their conditions are triggered, not at the end game scoring phase. These are explicitly called out as in-game scoring cards.

Both a Cultist and a Dissident have assassinated Agents in the Crypt. Do both score 1VP per assassinated Agent?

Yes. Both Cultists and Dissidents independently score 1VP per assassinated Agent in the Crypt. Each player counts all assassinated Agents in the Crypt for their own score.