HeroQuest: The "Pac-Man Quest" Set-Up

 One of the improvised HeroQuest games I played with my 7yo son was particularly interesting so I thought why not share it on the blog? You can see it in the picture. I shared this very pic on facebook and one user said it looked like Pac-Man, which is quite accurate, so here's my "Pac-Man Quest" set-up.

 

The board: I used the hedge maze from the Immersive Battle Maps book.

The set-up: The hero started at one side of the board. I placed three chests at three different locations in the maze, the gargoyle ("just a statue") in the central dais, and a dozen undead scattered around the maze.

The objective: Finding the desired object (can't remember what the story was, sorry) inside one of the three chests.

Special Rules: All the monsters are already on the board, and they all move during Zargon's turn. They can go towards the hero, or set up ambushes or try to defend the chests. I had no idea which was the right chest: when the hero opened one, I rolled a die to see if it was the right one (5 or 6 on a red die for the first chest opened; 4, 5 or 6 for the second; and automatic for the last). The chests that don't contain the mcguffin contain a random treasure card. If/when all the chests are opened, the gargoyle statue animates, and it can fly over the maze walls to assault the hero.

Setting your own "PacMan" quest

This type of quest set-up can be duplicated with other boards or even with standard HeroQuest components. All you need is a maze-like environment with long, meandering passages.

With the regular HeroQuest board you can achieve the same effect by putting all the open doors on the board from the beginning, carefully placing them (and the wall blocker markers) to create a maze.

What Monsters? How Many?

The best monsters for this se-up are slow. Zombies and mummies create a good crescendo of threat, and allow players to evaluate the fights they'll have to face when they choose a path, including maneuvering to outflank large groups. As a rule of thumb, 10 monsters +3 per player should make a decent challenge.

What Story?

The chest inside the maze can hold anything really: the map or key to the next quest, or the enchanted item needed to defeat the Big Bad Evil Guy or to foil their plans.

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Into HeroQuest? Check out my other HeroQuest Posts!