Strategy:Elder Signs

Thematic Description of an Elder Sign Token.

In Cthulhu Wars, an Elder Sign token represents the destruction of these pesky runes that once held the powers of the Great Old Ones at bay. So 'gaining' a token actually represents an Elder Sign's destruction, but for simplicity, they are simply referred to as Elder Signs.

Every faction in Cthulhu Wars will gain Elder Signs at wildly differing rates. Opener of the Way has no way to gain ES aside from Ritualing with their GOO on the board. While Yellow Sign creates an ES generating train that can acquire quite a few in just one action round, each for a mere 2 power (1 to move the KiY, 1 to desecrate).

The Value of the Elder Sign

In terms of Doom Points, the game starts with 18x ones, 12x twos, and 6x threes. This averages out to around 1 & 2/3rds doom points.

So how much power should you expend seeking these delicious tokens? A typical amount as discussed by a Petersen Games designer is 3 power. This Fandom User doesn't have the mathematical brain to start to break this down, so lets trust the designers for a moment and assume this to be our approx. value for an Elder Sign.

It is usually a good idea to acquire Elder Signs whenever they cost you 3 or less power. Notable examples include:

• Black Goat's Blood Sacrifice Spellbook @ 1 power per ES
• Sleeper's Demand Sacrifice spellbook @ 2 power per ES (controlled by opponent)
• Tcho-Tcho's Tablet of the Gods spellbook @ 3 power per ES
• Yellow Sign's Descecrations w/ Spellbook @ 2 power per ES

Things to Consider

While some Elder Signs come with a large power cost, usually the actions to acquire them have other benefits that are harder to quantify in terms of power. Should send Cthulhu into battle recklessly to gain an Elder Sign when you reawaken him? Surely not, at least not strictly for the Elder Sign. However in the process you can probably do some damage to a leading opponent that would make an exchange more worthwhile.