BQP: The Frozen Horror Remake Main Thread!

[Kurgan]

I know we've seen some pretty exhaustive unboxings but here are a few extra details in case people were curious. Just because I wanted to share them for those who hadn't bought it yet...

Here is my short Unboxing video. Most of the questions were answered already by those lucky enough to get it ahead of me (great job all).

I just went through the 1992 and 2022 quest books pretty thoroughly and the quest map layouts appear to be identical. The only possible error I noticed was that one furniture trap was not completely colored in (the background square was orange but the treasure chest itself was not orange) which didn't change anything in Quest 3.

Stylistically there were very few changes. Dread is replaced by Chaos. The evil Warlock (Vilor) is still called a Warlock. As in the remake game system Zargon is referred to in a generic name (never with male pronouns). The female Barbarian is called an alternate Barbarian (no reference is ever made to her sex). Other gendered pronouns (the generic "he") have been replaced by more modern generic ones. The "Empire" is of referred to as the "Realm." Abominations replace Fimirs and Dread Warriors replace Chaos Warriors.

Stylistically another small change I noticed was that anytime there are multiple monsters triggered by a Wandering Monster event, they put that same number of monster icons at the bottom of the page instead of just a single icon with the number only. This makes it a little easier to see at a glance and I would expect that convenience to repeat in future quest pack adventures that have multiple WMs.

The extra page showing the blank quest map and symbols is added as well as another page showing the new map symbols for the monsters at the start, the page of new artifacts at the end (not meant to be cut out, only referenced). Twelve mercenaries described instead of the 6 with interchangeable weapons. Readers are explicitly given permission to scan the pages and print them to create their own quests not just photocopy as a nod to modern available technology. Many color illustrations throughout of the new art. No other changes noted, so even fewer than the other editions!

I compared this quest book to the Crypt of Perpetual Darkness (which also has 10 quests) and it's as I thought, the paper used in the Mythic books is slightly thicker/heavier than the paper used in this retail Frozen Horror book.

My character sheet pad seems to have 102 sheets. Not sure if I just miscounted (the sheets are thick like the Mythic tier) and it was really 100 or they gave me a couple of extra. Either way that should be plenty, even if you are the type who plays this according to the original rules and writes in pen instead of pencil... since you will be repeating a lot of quests potentially!

The surfaces of a few of the miniatures are a bit "shiny" (here I'm thinking of the warbears and the yetis). The glue work on the miniatures seems superior than the Mythic tier and again the figures are not quite crammed into their trays so hard, which is a plus. The slightly gross "oil" on the combat/movement dice I noticed in the Mythic box were present here as well. Presumably they use it to more easily slide those dice into the plastic trays. Clean that off before you get it all over your board/cards!

Looking more closely at the mercenaries, the Swordsmen have weapons that end in blunt, rounded tips more like giant butter knives than pointy swords (looking closely I can see the faint outline of the "point" of the sword where it would be, but the rounded plastic forms around it). Was this a child safety measure? Because the toys are intended for "14+" (plenty of other pointy bits to warrant it not being age 10 and up like the original I suppose).

Looking at the card artwork we can see once again the more dynamic artwork for the characters vs. the actual figures. The swordsman and the Polar Warbear switch hands (right vs. left) and poses are adjusted. The Yeti pose is different as well. The swordsman's art clearly shows a pointy sword. I'm almost tempted to take a knife or scissors and restore the "point" to these swords.

I checked the cards and the Mercenaries are of course part of the Monster deck (like the 1992 original). The back for the Equipment card is the same "zoomed in" version of the artwork used on the Knight Skill cards (Commander of the Guardian Knights Hero Collection). So you can distinguish expansion from Game system equipment (then again the copyright date is a dead giveaway as well!).

Nice to see that Into the Northlands (prelude to the Frozen Horror) was updated with the corrections (trap colored orange, unclear quest note clarified).

(in the photos below you'll see I'm using low detail resin prints of the '92 version for comparison, sorry, not as lucky as Amalgamash!). Just to give an idea of the relative sizes.

[Kurgan]

More... (yes I repainted the Barbarian using Pool blue acrylic from Americana/Applebarrel) with deocart satin varnish.

The red figure you see is the female Commander of the Guardian Knights.

[Kurgan]

Not bad, overall.

[cornixt]

I never realised that image was under there, that's a nice touch.

[SirRick]

The swordsmen look like they are carrying boat oars instead of swords.

I’m assuming the Ice Gremlins still have 3 bp? The old model was much larger so it seemed more feasible, but those new ones look the same size as Goblins, yet they have as much bp as a Chaos Warrior or Gargoyle.

[Kurgan]

Yeah no stats have changed on any of the characters. Gameplay is 100% identical in the quest book, other than double the number of available mercs. The real mechanical change suggestions all appear in the Prelude quests, but no suggestions of body point changes. Ice Gremlins are their own thing, not just a Goblin reskin.

[wallydubbs]

I just ordered it, so eventually I'll find out.
From your pictures Kurgan, is the Female Barbarian from this Quest pack light blue in color or red?

[Kurgan]

She's red plastic, I just painted her blue to look more like the '92 original. Notice the very similar pose to the female Guardian Knight. This makes them easier to distinguish on camera too for the stream.

[Kurgan]

A helpful video from youtuber Lion's Review detailing some small changes I missed.

[Kurgan]

Thought I could improve on the "butter knife" swords for the Swordsmen mercs, so I trimmed the edges to give them a point...