Hexplore It Essentials (FoA & VotDK)

Version 1.4.9  | dev log | change log

Hexplore It Reference Guide

TL;DR: You are reading this because you bought a Hexplore It game but you have questions. Just jump to "No thanks, take me to the download".

Explanation of what you just downloaded

The zip contains everything I wished for but was not available. The main product is the full, definitive, consolidated rules reference for volumes 1+2. Both are like brother and sister, and it made sense to combine the two initial individual guides into one.

The guide contains many rulings discussed on private Discord with the creator's editor and several veteran players, and are not available elsewhere (not even on bgg).

Because both games are massive, not to mention the legends and campaign books, this remains a work in progress. As edge cases, exceptions and rulings keep popping up, this product is not meant to be printed, nor is it optimized for printing. 

As you can see from the demo pages, the reference guide is ordered lexicographically with many cross references as hyperlinks. In many cases it refers to a dev log entry where the ruling was made and why.

Format: zip with (pdf, mobi and epub),

Bonus

• Mission-based FoA roguelite scoring save sheet;
• Accalon's maps with IDs;
• All Ally cards;
• All Race cards, Role cards from both volumes;
• Expansion material usable without "Return to" ;
• Topographical names, to print and glue onto Hex tiles;

Why this project

Mariucci & Co never bothered writing out the terms properly, many people have a lot of problems with the rule interpretations. Most people take the rules as written (defeat the boss) and have a suboptimal experience that takes them 10 hours. Hexplore It games obviously never saw a blind beta test phase.

And good luck enjoying RAW outside of the 3-4 player range. With the above roguelite you unlock perks for a better game especially in true solo. All the updated rules from future volumes, discussions with the team and social media fixes consolidated into one. This is the only place to acquire it. 

Download the free sample and watch the videos for an informed decision.

Required material

If you bought The Forests of Adrimon, you should also buy "Hexplore It volume I: The Valley of the Dead King", base game.

If you bought The Valley of the Dead King, refrain from buying The Forests of Adrimon. You already have a lifetime of game inside VotDK with my reference guide.

Either buy the vol.1's first edition which contains suboptimal map with expansion material, OR buy the second edition. The second edition does not contain the expansion material, but you don't need the expansion box.

"Hexplore It volume II: The Forests of Adrimon", base game  - purchasable via the team website or in retail. There are two editions of vol.2, avoid the first edition (from 2019-2021) and make sure to get the second edition (from 2023+) even though neither has an actual printed version number.

Optional purchases

First of all, you should never buy everything at once, or else be faced with a pile of product that at best does nothing but take up shelf space, and at worst overwhelms you. 

The various products continue to be printed and the newer the better, although the team can't be bothered to properly version things. There is no FOMO, but your copy might be different from mine.

Second, although second editions are better in general, refrain from buying vol.2 The Forests of Adrimon at first. It implicitly builds upon The Valley of the Dead King, and several essential rules are omitted in its rule book. Resist the call of the forest - even though the vibe of FoA appeals more - start with 1. FoA builds upon vol.1, and has more classes and races.

After vol.1 you should buy the tuck boxes for vol.1, all of them, and buy the stretch goal pack for Fota, and the d10 dice set which has attribute-colored d10s:

• Encounter pack: contains also hook cards for including allies;
• Living card pack: contains also Perils and Curses, and Menaces;

Disclaimer

Not affiliated with Mariucci Designs, nor with any team member. I really dislike the lack of attention in patching, the lack of versioning, the conscientious decisions to incite everyone to keep buying from them. The total absence of accommodating board gamers.

Enjoy!

Kos

(c)2024-8-23, kosterix@gmail.com (last updated 2025-7-8)