ONLINE QUEST 1 Forsaken Tunnels Of Xor-Xel

[HispaZargon]

Comments about this new and free official quest?

[ajjohnsen]

I like the idea of the reduced vision; definitely adds something we've not seen "officially" before. Plus it being labeled Online Quest 01 is very promising as far as future free Official content. The interest level in the game and the sales must be very good if they're keeping up like this

[nathanielz]

Fun quest!

First mistake I see, there are 3 1x2 blocking squares, and unless we're mistaken, there are only 2 in the base game...

[Kurgan]

Ah good catch... so you'd have to use singles to make up the difference. Link here: https://hasbropulse.com/blogs/avalon-hill/heroquest-brave-the-forsaken-tunnels-of-xor-xel

Thanks Shadzar for beating me to it!

HeroQuest – Brave the Forsaken Tunnels of Xor-Xel

Happy Holidays, gamers!

Today we have for you a wonderful gift – a free quest map for your adventure-hungry heroes crafted by our very own Doug Hopkins, designer on the HeroQuest Game System. This quest map will allow you to expand the HeroQuest experience while adding a few wrinkles that all you Zargons out there might enjoy.

HeroQuest experience
We asked Doug about his inspiration for this map, and here is what he had to say:

“We wanted to provide an opportunity for experienced heroes (who completed the core system quest book) to connect to our Kellar’s Keep quest pack. Allowing them to tell the story of their journey to the Great Gate seemed like it could be a lot of fun. If our heroes want to pass through the World’s End Mountains they will need to enter the Forsaken Tunnels of Xor-Xel in this dangerous quest. Are you up to the challenge? The quest is calling!”


That means this mission is intended to be played after the core quest book. The heroes have braved Mentor’s various tasks and have been awarded the title of “Champion” by the King, but new dangers have emerged! Mentor has informed the heroes that the King and what remains of his army have been trapped in the ancient dwarven stronghold of Kaba Karn, under siege by Zargon’s forces. Time is of the essence if the heroes hope to save the King, and the only available entrance into Kaba Karn is the Forsaken Tunnels of Xor-Xel.

If the heroes are brave enough to face this challenge and are successful, then the story may naturally progress into the quests provided in the Kellar’s Keep expansion! But keep in mind this is no easy feat, as the dark tunnels hold many Dread secrets…
You can download the Forsaken Tunnels of Xor-Xel by clicking on the link below to continue your HeroQuest adventure.

Download Here!

As Doug said, the quest is calling!
Note, this adventure requires the HeroQuest Game System to play. You can pre-order your copy of HeroQuest on Hasbro Pulse today!

For classic veterans following along: Kaba Karn = Karak Varn; World's End Mountains = World's Edge Mountains; King = Emperor; Dread = Chaos

[HispaZargon]

Fun quest!

First mistake I see, there are 3 1x2 blocking squares, and unless we're mistaken, there are only 2 in the base game...

Yeah... I think remake's Game System box only includes 2x double blocking tiles and 12x single blocking tiles and Kellar's Keep expansion box includes another 12x single blocking tiles. The new quest needs 3x double ones, as you pointed, 9x single ones and potentially another 7x single ones if all falling block traps ar activated. Then, if you replace the missing double tile by 2 single ones and you own the Kellar's Keep expansion box you will have enough tiles but if you only have the Basic Game System box you will probably need some proxy tiles for the extra ones, potentially up to 6 single extra ones.

I see the abomination stats are quite different than regular abominations (or fimirs ), especially its Mind Points number, 1 instead of 3. I don't consider it a misprint but it leads me to think that such abomination is in fact a different monster, stronger than a regular one and also a more stupid creature too.

[Kurgan]

Always happy to see new quests... and combining the words "official" and "free" is nice. The idea that KK comes before ROTWL is fine, although I played them "out of order" back in the day and I personally think ROTWL is the better of the too... the recurring villain, the undead theme and the overall difficulty and variety of tiles and new things makes it somewhat better in my humble opinion, although both are classic, being the first expansions across the board, and the only ones many of us owned back then.

As for the quest itself, I'm just now beginning to look through it...

[FainFlynn]

Also note it says "online quest 01" which leads me to believe there will be more on the way. Total speculation on my part, but I like where this going"

[Kurgan]

The png saves as a webp image now, instead of a PDF... yes for all we know there are more planned, which I'm not opposed to seeing. They could put one between the rest of the packs too if they wanted or as a lead in to the Frozen Horror or whatever comes out next.

I posted up a classic conversion (with the fix applied to the northernmost room). There are 12 single block squares in the Remake box, so you shouldn't run out (and fallen rock tiles if you needed more).

Doesn't look too bad overall. Undead theme, and a special monster. Just a little filler, side quest.

I missed the goofy Twitter blurb

@heroquest
·
Dec 21
In order to appease you mortals during your holiday reprieve, I have concocted a most dangerous dungeon I HOPE YOU LIKE THE DARK

*SPOILERS*

[Edit: Replaced the missing block, thanks HispaZargon! 12-23-21]

[Nlinindoll]

Also note it says "online quest 01" which leads me to believe there will be more on the way. Total speculation on my part, but I like where this going"

I asked Zargon on Twitter if we could expect more since this one is numbered as #1. This was Zargon’s response:

“This IS number one. I only number things when there are many so that I may keep track of them all. Like Goblin Number One, Goblin Number TWO, ET CETERA.”

[Kurgan]

I wonder if this means Doug Hopkins is "ZARGON" on Twitter. Was he the same one who claimed he'd been "locked out" of his Twitter account online by the "evil sorcerer"? If so, I don't remember.

Back to the Forsaken Tunnels of Xor-Xel... (Zorr Zell?)...

Difficulty wise we're looking at 34 monster body points and quite a few traps, so towards the high end of difficult comparable to the Trial, especially when you consider the Wandering Monster is always a pair of Skeletons (but still, they're skeletons). The Heroes should be fresh and read after their run through the campaign, having visited the Armory, and they will have the Spell Ring and any other Artifacts they kept from the previous adventures (any that were lost are, according to the rules, meant to be special treasures early in the next quest, which would be this one).

You could "run out" of skeletons if the Heroes run from room to room, but if you have ROTWL (included in Mythic tier) that would work fine. The undead focus would seem more fitting with ROTWL, but perhaps a taste of things to come.

The "darkness" gimmick would mean having a certain Mythic artifact would be helpful here but if following the strict timeline there may be no time to acquire it before this happens... go with the gimmick!

Other notes: One Treasure Chest is unmarked. There's no epilogue except that Mentor will meet you at the Great Gate, presumably your next stop...