The original Mass Effect crew is reuniting 12 years after they saved the galaxy, but not in a video game. Mass Effect the Board Game—Priority: Hagalaz is a four-player tabletop game set during the events of Mass Effect 3, and it stars most of the Normandy SR-1’s team in a brand-new adventure. Asari scientist Liara T’Soni, Quarian nomad Tali’Zorah vas Normandy, Krogan leader Urdnot Wrex, and Turian vigilante Garrus Vakarian all star alongside protagonist Commander Shepard in a mission set during the height of the Reaper invasion. Rest in peace to all the Ashley Williams and Kaidan Alenko stans (me)—the human squadmates are not part of the board game.
Mass Effect the Board Game is now available for pre-order ahead of its November 7 launch, and we’ve got a nice look at all the figures, boards, and character sheets that will come with the game. When it was announced back in March, it was pitched as a “low maintenance, easy dungeon crawl” so it could be more accessible to folks often intimidated by complex tabletop games. Another big part of the pitch was for it to be cheaper than the $US150+ prestige board games that typically deter people from making the jump into the medium. Mass Effect will only run you $US50. The full synopsis reads as follows:
“Set during the events of Mass Effect 3, the Normandy crew has one more mission. On the remote world Hagalaz, a research cruiser from the terrorist organization Cerberus has crashed directly in the path of a deadly storm. With little time before the storm hits, Shepard must lead their squad through the cruiser to uncover its sinister secrets and keep them out of the hands of the enemy. However, the ship holds more dangers than just its former crew. Deep within the shattered cruiser stir creatures and enemies far worse than the Cerberus forces that guard them.”
Alongside the figures featured in the board game itself, manufacturer Modiphius is also releasing miniature sets of enemy forces, including Reaper-reanimated versions of the Mass Effect aliens and Cerberus troops. The company is also putting out alternate poses for the Normandy crew, all of which are scaled to fit the Mass Effect board game. Click through to see more.
Mass Effect has been gone from gaming a while following the middling reception of Mass Effect: Andromeda, but BioWare has been in full swing promoting the series again after announcing a new game is on the way and releasing the Legendary Edition remaster of the original trilogy on modern hardware. Right now, however, the studio’s main focus is Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which is finally launching after a 10-year wait on October 31.
What’s in the box
The Campaign Map
Character sheets for the crew
Lot of rules and abilities to learn
A look at the board
A look at the miniatures on the board
Art of a downed ship during the board game’s mission
A close-up of the box
The game seems to use both Male and Female Shepard pretty equally
Priority Threats Alpha
Centurion
Phantom
Adept
Cerberus Troops Alpha
Assault Trooper
Another Assault Trooper
Combat Engineer
Another Combat Engineer
Guardian
Another Guardian
The full Cerberus set
Priority Threats Beta
Banshee
Battlemaster
Scion
The Priority Threats Beta set
Reaper Forces Alpha
Cannibal
Another Cannibal
Husk
Another Husk
Marauder
Another Marauder
Reaper Forces Alpha
Heroes of the Normandy Alpha
Garrus
Liara
Female Shepard
Female Shepard with a helmet on
Male Shepard
Male Shepard with a helmet
Tali
Wrex
The full Normandy crew
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