HEROQUEST - COMPANION APP discussion

[SirRick]

I noticed the companion app is v4.3 now. It seems to include all of First Light now. Still no RotDM Knight, or the Berserker and Explorer. I suppose we will have to release JoD before those two heroes appear.

[Kurgan]

Correct. I can't really tell any differences between 4.0/4.1 and 4.3, other than the version number. Whatever changes (if any) must be very subtle, behind the scenes coding stuff. 4.2 just removed stuff, and 4.3 added it back!

Yeah I'm really missing JoD (with its two new heroes) and Rogar's Hall...!

[HispaZargon]

Good news, a new app version is available finally including Jungles of Delthrak expansion.

[Kurgan]

Good news, a new app version is available finally including Jungles of Delthrak expansion.

Finally! Thanks also to SteveRS2000 and Elsgarad who mentioned it on HeroQuestFans Discord:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/heroquest-companion-app/id1586044591 or
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hasbro.HeroQuest&hl=en-US
v5.0
"Hail champions! The evil of Zargon has again resurfaced. Heroes, you must go to the Jungles of Delthrak, where you will face ravenous beasts and uncertain pitfalls. But also find stalwart allies and untold riches along the way. Good luck to you, brave adventurers!"

Firing up Bluestacks now... we'll see what errata are left! (Android version was 336 mb)

Alas, still no Rogar's Hall, ROTDM Knight, or ATOH Druids... still can't use animal companions in FH/MOTM solo quests, can only hire human mercs in the MOTM group quests, the ROTDM elven mercs still lack the ability to "Use special" (artifacts, equipment, treasure).

Also, the new Raptor animal ally can't open doors (and the icon depicts the blue necked monster version), though he should be able to.

[Kurgan]

The Explorer hero, in quest, has the same stats and starting equipment in his/her profile as the Guardian Knight (unsure if the special abilities don't auto-operate).

Alchemy Button is added under "use special" but only applies to the Spiderstep Elixir.

The long-standing glitch that prevented Cloak of Shadows and Elven Cloak of Passage from passing through Rubble and Blocked square tiles just like Pass Through Rock has been fixed!

[SirRick]

I started the first quest of First Light today. I used a new group of heroes, the female Barbarian and Wizard, along with the new Dwarf and Elf. The quest was much more difficult than I was expecting. I think most people would still find this easier than The Trial. If I had rolled better it might have been easier. The Barbarian missed completely on her first 3 attempts at attacking. All my heroes still survived, but all of them crawled out battered and bruised. I found two healing potions, but I had to use two in one turn because the monsters were rolling so well. My Barbarian could not block a hit for most of the quest. I still have the two I received at the start of the quest at least.

I started using the “Monsters attack weak” setting, but as I expected, it does not function properly. At one point when an alarm went off, the monsters revealed in the new room just stood there. As soon as I turned the setting off, the Orcs immediately started making their way to my location.

Another app issue is that the story for Quest 1 cuts out most of the text. I found this out after looking over the quest after I finished it. You miss out on some character’s interactions. It could be because the voice of Mentor narrating would have to change to accommodate the other character. Not sure.

Overall a good quest that makes use of all of your characters abilities. I can’t wait to play more.

[SirRick]

In the last few days I played quests 2 and 3 from First Light.

Quest 2 was the first adventure using the reverse side of the board. While these quests are designed for a new group, they are higher on the difficulty scale and a group playing foolishly will likely see some deaths. The more frequent narrow passages and small rooms made things a little more dangerous. There was also a mechanic reminiscent of “The Castle of Mystery” from the GS quests.

Quest 3 I also enjoyed. Initially I had some bad luck with treasure draws. Instead of taking the treasure chests, instead I got rewarded with 3 wandering monsters and a hazard. If you take the treasure, you may have to face consequences later. At least in the app bad mojo is not guaranteed. It reminds me of that joke in which a person is offered the choice of great wisdom or great wealth. The person thinking that great wisdom is the best choice in the long run decides to choose wisdom. Immediately after being granted this great wisdom, the person suddenly realizes they should have taken the money.

I feel now it would have been wiser to take the money in this quest, and I believe as long as you don’t approach a particular altar later in the quest you can avoid the bad stuff. I did get a reward for not taking the treasure, but you have to approach the alter to get it. If you had just went through the room without standing next to the altar, you could miss your bonus. That leads me to believe you could equally miss getting punished. Alternatively you might be able to get both rewards. You could not search for treasure at all in the middle room, find the altar, potentially get your “reward” then head back to the center room and take the treasure. I might have to test this later to see what happens.

I feel a real Zargon would call BS and punish anyone how took the treasure, so there is more leeway on how to handle the situation in a normal group.

Both quests were fun, and I can’t wait to proceed. One comment I have is the extra treasure card you draw in rooms with a cupboard is much more of a curse than a blessing. Each time I searched a room with a cupboard, I drew two bad cards, I believe in the 3 separate incidents I got one wander monster and a hazard opening it, though I may have gotten 2 wandering monsters at once at one point. Now when I see the cupboard I get really nervous.

Edit: I can confirm if you avoid searching for treasure in the center room, you can still get your “spiritual” reward, and then head back to the center room and take the treasure with no consequences. So human Zargons, feel free to call shenanigans if your heroes try to do this, or maybe you decide to reward them for their creativity. At least we know in the app you can seemingly get away with it.

[SirRick]

I finished Quest 4: The Fortress of the Fire King from FL. Not much to report regarding the app. The only thing was a particular room in which you shuffle the equipment cards, draw 4, and keep the cheapest item. I was so excited when the app told me this, and eagerly shuffled the cards. The cards I drew were 2 Helmets, Chain Mail, and….a Dagger. I was kind of pissed but amused at the same time. I just gave the new dagger to the Wizard. She threw her dagger at a monster in Quest 1, so she at least found a replacement.

[Kurgan]

Thanks for Dungeon Master (German HQ youtuber) reporting on HeroQuestFans discord that version 5.1 has been released!

The only updates I could detect in my brief testing was that the Raptor ally can open doors (as he should), and the Explorer hero starts (in-quest) with the proper stats, instead of duplicating the Knight's stats and equipment (in profile).

[HispaZargon]

Yeah, I don't see many more differences in this new App v.5.1.