WIZARDS OF MORCAR discussion

[Kurgan]

More comparisons... (the images on Ye Olde Inn are accurate, just make sure you're looking at the originals under the UK flag rather than the NA versions under the USA)...

The image I have of the new "EarthQuake" and "Future Sight" are too low res for me to be able to read.

Wall of Stone is partially obscured but it says "1 Body Point" which is like the original (YeOldeInn's "2 body point" wall is a fan modification for the NA conversion).

Chains of Darkness is partially obscured AND low res, so I can't really make out any possible differences in the new version.

Artificer Spells: Leach Life, Conjure Golem... the third I believe is Conjure Dread Shifter (mostly obscured in image).

New Artifact: Urdyn the Unmaker. Other artifact... not known but probably something to do with the "scroll" Artificer has on her back in the art is my guess.

Storm Master Spell (singular) may be a typo in the images. It's "Storm Master Spells" in the original. He still has 6 of them.

[Kurgan]

Also good points have been raised that the High Mage doesn't get to use lightning bolt, but the card back on his spells shows him surrounded by lightning AND casting a lightning bolt on the bridge on the cover art. I'd point out that this art looks awesome and matches the original. Since in the original the card art actually shows the High Mage casting this spell (but the card is given to the Storm Master) perhaps he was originally intended to have it. Not saying they need to change all the art, maybe they could just pencil in that he can use it too (I probably would home brew that as well). In lore I guess you could say he used the spell up already before the cameras started rolling...

But if he got a 7th spell, you'd probably want to do the same for the other three evil Wizards. Or if you trade Lightning the Stormmaster should get one of his... which one would it be?

[Kurgan]

Then again owners of the Game System already have access to the OTHER "Lightning Bolt" Dread spell and can just give it to whomever they want (and it functions quite differently too). In that case I would give that spell to the High Mage, "Summon Undead" to the Necromancer, "Summon Orcs" to the Warcastor, and for the Storm master "Tempest" would seem the most natural fit. What would the Artificer get... maybe Command?

[LucaRocks]

They could have also given the High Mage a new spell that, when cast, looks like a lightning bolt.
Probably not but there's always hope right? RIGHT???

Nice job with making the cards legible Kurgan! I'm def going to throw a ton of orcs in with the War Caster if AH didn't. I want to see that look of Dread on players' faces when they are attacked by a mob of orcs all rolling 4 attack. Mwuahahahaha!

[wallydubbs]

Bare in mind that the Orc Warcaster surrounds himself with Uruk-hai. All the Orcs that originally surrounded Grawshak had 1 extra attack and defense dice. I imagine the same will apply to Nyshak. All of the skeletons in Crypt of the Necromancer had the same boons.

[HispaZargon]

These last weeks Avalon Hill has officially confirmed on Discord two important topics about this expansiom:

First, Doug Hopkings suggested that from story perspective WoM remake should be played after RotDM, and from difficulty perspective, it should be played right before CoPD:

IMG_1690.png

Second, Michael has confirmed that WoM remake will be available in Spanish too:

Screenshot_20251031_201613_Discord.jpg

P.D.: Since official title of the expansion will not mention Zargon, I finally changed rhe post title accordingly.

[Kurgan]

I think the fact that the Game System Dread Spells already exist, means that I hope they do not simply go through (like with Escape, but maybe that is a sign of things to come) and adjust all of the EU spells that had the same or similar names to be just like the NA versions.

And yet, I think already we can presume that the existence of the Lightning Bolt tile (which is still 1x6 squares) indicates that they are not just formatting all of these spells to be the same as the GS versions.

The ability already exists for Zargon to decide he wants to add to or swap out spells of these sorcerers when the game is played. Regardless of what the cards in this set say, there's also the freedom of the quest booklet to put IN THE NOTES whatever they want, assigning new abilities, just like how past expansions have used a mixture of GS spells and new spells from that expansion's box.

So if you wanted the Necromancer to have both WOM style Summon Mummy and Call Skeleton AND Summon Undead, you could easily do that without having to homebrew your own card(s).

[Kurgan]

Now then, Michael over at Avalon Hill's official discord (remember, he is the one who took over Patrick O'Rourke's former role when Patrick was promoted) which I'm going to quote in full here:

9:10 AM
Hello Avalon Hill Fans!
Happy Halloween!

I hope everyone is enjoying the new announcements from Essen - the team has been busy getting it ready for retailers and watching the comments come through! We're very proud of both Market Fresh and Wizards of Morcar (we heard people asking for more HeroQuest??) And we hope you’ll take a moment to check out the new expansion for Talisman 5th Edition: Nemesis – Call of the Hunt!

A couple of quick updates for you all:

When will PDFs of Quest Books be available in my local language?
This is something I'm working on - Quest Books are essentially the meat of our games. Minis and components are certainly important props and provide immersion into the stories we and our community tell. However, we're in conversations on how to make the game more accessible in localized languages without giving away a core component of the product's offering. You're absolutely heard here and I'll continue seeking a solution for more accessible HeroQuest in the language you prefer. You shouldn't have to learn a new language, or hunt for community translated material to enjoy HeroQuest.

When will convention exclusives promos (like the COPD game screen) become more widely available?
Convention exclusive promos will be more readily available to the community through officially sponsered "Game Nights" in the near future. This is rolling out through our partnership with the WPN/Wizards team in the NA region. Our first game/test of this program is with Cosmolancer and store sign ups were sold out by the end of the day! Very exciting for us as it shows the excitement that LGS's have for promo-back game nights. 2026 will be loaded with game nights and I'm hoping to share a roadmap to those game nights with you all when the marketing team is locked with their plans. If you're outside the NA region - I'm working directly with the EU+APAC regions on how they can source and deploy these promos ASAP. More details around that the regions develop their programs but they're very excited to get programs of their own rolling.

9:11 AM Friday, October 31, 2025 9:11 AM
Where can I pre-order Wizards of Morcar if it's not on Hasbro Pulse?
We highly encourage everyone to support their local game stores for Wizards of Morcar pre-orders. If your retailer doesn’t currently have Wizards of Morcar available for pre-order, let them know that distributors that carry Avalon Hill have this title open for pre-order/solicitation and is ready for the retailers to ask for them! Support for local game stores is critical to keeping our industry running as they are the backbone of the gaming industry and we’re doing everything we can to make sure they are enabled to support our community.
There have been rumors of retailer exclusives circulating, is retailer exclusives back on the product roadmap?
Allow me to be perfectly clear: the word “exclusive” makes all the HeroQuest minis in the Avalon Hill office shudder. There are no planned retailer exclusive product by the HeroQuest global brand team. Individual regions may choose to focus the allocation and flow of product through specific channels (e.g. the distributors who sell to LGSs). The language of what “exclusive” means is getting mixed here is what it looks like to me.
Note: Retailers/Distributors always have the option to carry or not carry product from the Avalon Hill line – this may inadvertently less or more retailers caring a game system based on the supply & demand of any given product
Forward
More
9:11 AM Friday, October 31, 2025 9:11 AM
What's up with the Discord? Can we PLEASE get some movement there?
Heard.
I don’t have any clear movement here yet. We’re neck deep in product launches, and I’ve been trying to drive this but it keeps getting stuck with other stakeholders. Once things lighten up on the dev side (likely more in December) I plan on building us a new home. (with GIFs for the love of Dread.) I think the recovery + ownership of this server may be outside of my reach/influence.
If we take this route, I hope I have your support in helping me point the community to our new home once it’s been built!

Ok! That’s what I got for you guys today!
Please keep showing your support and love for the HeroQuest dev team who poured their heart and soul into the game. If you get a chance to catch Doug or Lindsay at the next convention, please share your love and support. It never ceases to amaze me the creativity and awesomeness they pack into a box.

Posted this morning. Read them in context here. Don't have an invite to AH discord (that sounded like a promo but it's not, I don't work there!)? Go here.

[Parzival]

Well, those Discord links did nothing for me except take me to my own Discord servers.

[wallydubbs]

What does Doug Hopkins (Wandering Monster) mean "from a difficulty standpoint, my suggestion is right before Crypt?" Crypt of Perpetual Darkness isn't really that difficult... Jungles of Delthrak is currently played between RotDM & CoPD. So maybe it doesn't matter if it's before or after JoD?
I could understand in storyline order it comes after Rise of the Dread Moon, the reemergence of Sir Ragnar suggests that Ragnar's story doesn't end in Elthorn.
Is there a different order we should be playing it in terms of difficulty? I found JoD more difficult than CoPD...