CHAINsomnia is live (Break the Dream Chains)
Update: CHAINsomnia has launched on Kickstarter and the campaign will run for 16 days. You may back the standard version of the game (it also has a French edition), or go for the all-in that comes with acrylic standees and sleeves.
Our preview post below was published on March 7.
CHAINsomnia is a 1-4 player cooperative action point and dice rolling game in which sleeping children are trapped inside the nightmare castle of demon Akuma. It will launch on Kickstarter on March 9.
In CHAINsomnia, you will first select your character and cover two of the six spaces on their chain track. The highest uncovered number in the track shows how many action points you can spend on your turn in the current round. Character cards also have strength, wisdom and luck values which will determine success or failure in skill checks.
You will form a stack of room tiles, with the 'wake up' tile placed at the bottom. On each turn, you will spend your character's action points to:
- Place a new room tile, draw and resolve an event card, and place a 'bad dream' on the card.
- Move to an adjacent tile.
- Search a secret spot on a tile by performing a wisdom test.
- Use an item card, or exchange an item with another character if they are in the same or an adjacent tile.
- Give chains to or take chains from another character on the same or adjacent tile as you.
- Use a character's special ability.
If a character's chain track is ever completely covered, that character is immobilized and cannot act any more. If a 'bad dream' is placed in a room, then characters cannot enter it, but they may be able to remove it. If a character is ever trapped inside a room with a bad dream, they cannot exit it and another character has to try to take them out.
On the demon's turn, Akuma draws event cards: only one at first but he gets more in later turns. If all the bad dreams are removed, and a character enters the 'wake up' tile, then the game is won. If all characters have their chain tracks filled up, or haven't been able to wake up in time, they are eternally lost in the realms of nightmare.