Revisiting Constructing a Kingdom Death: Monster Campaign: Part 2 Nemeses (Patreon)

This wonderful image really sells the entire theme and memes of the Manhunter. Zeen Chin's work really IS the heart of Kingdom Deaths's aesthetics.

Nemesis Monsters

Nemesis Monsters are fundamentally different from Quarry Monsters in that if you add them to a campaign they are going to interact with you. They choose when and where the fight is, all you can do is decide who is going to face them and how much of a fight they are going to put up. To this end; Nemesis Monsters mechanically exist to provide checkpoints that gate later stages of the campaign by asking if you've developed well enough to be able to handle the increasing difficutly. Succeed and you get to carry on with the survivors you sent in. Fail and they will not just stick those survivors' faces onto their lanterns, but they will also often punish the settlement during the defeat condition.

They are a vital part of the games' mechanical ethos; guiding you towards the correct choices by demanding that you have them. Unfortunately; due to the “HAHA SURPRISE!” method in which the game is designed; these requirements and choices are buried away from advance knowledge. You do not get any form of hints or training showdowns where these guys are concerned. You didn't know how important Bandages are because the White Lion & Antelope don't inflict much bleed? Well the Butcher isn't going to wait for you to convert a little hide; it's got no time to waste, if you bleed it can kill you. Likewise you're not taught in any narrative sense that the King's Man wants you to have crafted shields by the time you fight it.

Instead you are expected to learn by failing; a play style that's core to 'git gud' video games like FromSoft's titles or the very game Kingdom Death skimmed most of its mechanical inspration from - Monster Hunter. In these video games you're not expected to succeed every time you face a boss, the bosses are there to test your understanding of the core mechanic of the game Attack Signal → Reaction → Punish. Or in other words; see the signal that the boss is going to attack, avoid it with a dodge/block/position play; and then hit the monster during its recovery window.

This fundamentally works for those games because of how they are designed; you do not lose your entire progress when you die, you may have to repeat the fight (and the journey to the fight); but time is essentially “frozen” until you progress past this point.

Kingdom Death: Monster borrows this philosophy hard; but it has failed to understand fully the design behind this – it's OK for a Bull Nonsense Boss to spank you into the dirt when you're sent back to a point that's only a short time before and you can get back there relatively quickly (or repeat the hunt in the case of Monster Hunter); it's an entirely different matter when you're talking about a board game; especially one which requires playtime over weeks and months. The intention with Kingdom Death's design is that you should learn through failure; but the penalty for failing is so absolute and complete that it's very concerning when you consider how long just one showdown may take.

So Nemesis Monsters often expect you to prepare for them in advance, but you do not really know what it is you are supposed to be doing. Fortunately the usual solutions of Evasion, Block, Armor Points, Bleed protection and Survival actions are all so generically powerful that they provide a common protection for the settlement's champions along with quarry monsters. The downside of that is however, we get a lot of homogeneity from one settlement to the next. When you need to put together evasive armor sets quickly, paying 5 resources for one that has +1 evasion (and that headband) is the solution; not 9 resources for something that lets you cosplay as a kitty (as cool as that actually is).

Anyway enough discussion about the mechanical goals and limitations of Kingdom Death's design ethos; let us look at what each Nemesis monster does to the campaign and what (if any) expansions it has synergy with.

Also before we begin, generic note about People of the Sun, because of how the Game Over mechanics interact with Nemesis monsters; adding any of them (including the Lonely Tree in the previous section) is a high risk manoeuvrer. But at least the Lonely Tree can be included without being encountered as anything other than an inert terrain piece.

The Butcher

Such solemnity as the Butcher undertakes its grim task of making new scary lanterns for travel. One has to wonder what the monster The Butcher is impersonating with these face lanterns looks like. It must be fearsome.

Campaign Essentiality: Vital

Expansion Synergies: White Lion, Screaming Antelope, Phoenix

Expansion Clashes: None

Difficulty Modifier: Increases Difficulty

I've held up the Gorm and the Sunstalker as examples of what a Quarry Monster should be to the game's ethos and the Butcher is the very paragon of a nemesis monsters. This vicious brute of a foe is always threatening to a settlement, so much so that this nemesis monster is why I have a practice of running a “Nemesis Team” of survivors separately from my premium hunting survivors. This a team of capable, but disposable heroes who will tangle with any non-campaign (“Final”) nemesis monster that comes along.

The Butcher should be in every campaign, it should be your default choice for nemesis monster (outside of People of the Stars, but more on that in The Hand's entry) and despite it providing a challenge and making a campaign harder to win, it is almost entirely fair in how it does that.

Have I mentioned just how much I like and appreciate The Butcher's mechanical design? I also really like its thematic one; where it just lumbers out of the darkness and starts killing like it is in a slasher movie. But behind all that menace and danger lurks a big old angry bully who's fueled by as much fear as rage. Chef's Kiss.

Manhunter

He's called you out. Now you HAVE to go in the ring and face him.

Campaign Essentiality: Low

Expansion Synergies: Flower Knight, Sunstalker

Expansion Clashes: None

Difficulty Modifier: Reduces Difficulty

The Manhunter is an additional nemesis monster who exists via Special Showdowns, therefore this nemesis doesn't remove opportunities to hunt. Nor does it replace existing Nemesis monsters. It does however provide an entertaining and challenging showdown fight that takes place in and around this Holy Lands slaver's quote unquote wrestling ring of Pillars. This monster's challenge however is diminished a bit by it having the same 'weaknesses' as The Butcher; Evasion, Bandages, Armor Points, Block. So it doesn't make the campaign harder overall; it just adds more of the same.

When you get to the L3+ versions of the Manhunter it is a little different because of extra mechanics that are introduced (ones which are better designed than The Butcher's Invincible I might add); but on the whole because of the similar challenge level and very powerful gear the Manhunter makes campaigns easier.

Despite making the campaign easier through gear and more opportunities to gain weapon proficiency; I do personally consider the Manhunter to be something I include in many campaigns. I like the glimpse into what the denizens of the Holy Land; and this monster along with the Lion Knight #2 sheds light on two different aspects of the far off kingdom's eugenics programs and wretched philosophy.

Also it's time to pull this classic out, it's firmly NSFW (CW: Crude humour involving sex toys) so I will leave the image in a link rather than directly posting it here. Enjoy!

The Manhunter's Other Stakes. 

The King's Man

I really love the King's Man timeline events like Armored Strangers; they do a great job of making the settlement look like its being set up for something. Which it is.

Campaign Essentiality: None

Expansion Synergies: None

Expansion Clashes: None

Difficulty Modifier: Increases Difficulty a large amount

The Poster Child for 'what not to design' the King's Man is a thematic success wrapped in a stale tortilla of mechanical failures. This monster remains my lowest ranked one due to a whole host of different issues that boil down to 'too much stick, very little carrot'. Thematically this should be something I love, because cursed individuals doomed to a terrible fate, but seek to achieve goodness before they succumb is a trope that I adore. However in practice; between a frustrating showdown that is turned into 'Adventures in Bookkeeping' at the L2+ version. A Trap card that is either going flat out at 100 or doing nothing at all at 0 and a curse that just encourages you to go get Crystal Skin as soon as possible. 

While the thematics of this monster are on point, and it is a fascinating look into the world that is going to be further delved into when the Gambler's Chest arrives. There really isn't a lot to recommend here, my final verdict is until the King's Man is heavily revised by APG you should purchase and always use the...

The Slender Man

Hollywood might own the IP for the Slender Man now; which has essentially killed the meme. But our plant based antagonists with their vague Phoenix connections just keep coming.

Campaign Essentiality: Medium

Expansion Synergies: White Lion, Screaming Antelope, Phoenix, Dung Beetle Knight (via promotional gear)

Expansion Clashes: Direct replacement for The King's Man

Difficulty Modifier: Increases Difficulty a large amount

In sharp contrast to the King's Man; the Slender Man is so effortlessly superior that it's basically dumpstered that monster into the meat grinder like Pedro Pascal and served it up as burger pates.  The Slender Man is the very definition of what a difficult nemesis monster should be; it is powerful, challenging to tackle and at times overwhelming. But the rewards for including and facing it are equivalent in value. The stick here absolutely fits the carrot; you are going to be very, very challenged when fighting this monster, but learning how to battle it successfully is something that is very much worth the effort and time.

It is also always a delight to experience expansions that cross synergise with other monsters; this can refresh the texture of your games by giving previously under-utilised resources their day in the light; or even increase pressure on popular resources by creating other powerful choices. The Slender Man does that in spades and I greatly appreciate its design giving more texture to the core trio's encounters. 

I am of the opinion this one is a must include in every campaign apart from People of the Stars; the clash in People of the Stars is because one of the routes to unlocking constellations requires +1 Accuracy and The Hand is the route to gaining that. The Slender Man replaces all 'Choose a nemesis monster' options in the campaign, so when it is included The Hand cannot be chosen and Okuyasu is let down.

The Lion Knight

Such richness of character; this expansion is one of the few which always presents a set of fixed personalities. When will the "Lion" learn what it means to be mortal? Watch out for their cameo in another expansion's hunt text!

Campaign Essentiality: None

Expansion Synergies: White Lion, Screaming Antelope, Phoenix

Expansion Clashes: None

Campaign Clashes: People of the Stars, People of the Sun

Difficulty Modifier: Neutral

Another expansion that needed more time in the oven; The Lion Knight has some really exceptional pieces of design; elements that surround the settlement portion of this story are both thematically wonderful and mechanically tied in strong ways to the story. This is easily my favourite “Monster Story” in the game and it has multiple excellent themes of melancholy, theater, beauty and the beast and narcissism tied into it while also giving us an insight into one of the rejects from the Holy Lands. Powerful enough to get away from its creator, but so flawed that it is obsessed with something in a similar way to its older brother.

I want to unashamedly love this expansion; it brought us the concept of Hybrid Armors (something that's so popular we just stick them in the game as available armor sets no matter what) and the entire “Theatre Play as a Showdown” schtick is just excellent. However, due to a fatal AI programming design error; the showdown can be completely cheesed to the point of neutering the monster's offense. That's a funny image, as the Lion Knight runs desperately from one end of the 'stage' to the other while two different survivors both pretend to be the “Villain”; but it's not an engaging mechanic.

The same applies to the showdown; where you are 'rewarded' for winning by having a survivor mutilated or decapitated. Thematically this still makes sense; but mechanically it's an awful stick – especially when the settlement isn't properly rewarded for losing – mostly because that would be an insane idea and result in players throwing the showdown by having the villain slain as soon as possible at L1 and L2. This punishment for winning is why the Lion Knight is not a good element to introduce to People of the Stars because you need to invest in your survivors and make them strong, so unless you're willing to throw lambs for slaughter by Lion Knight early on you don't really get to heavily engage with this expansion (but if you do, go ahead, it'll work, just don't do it until you've won a Stars campaign without the Lion Knight in it. Same principle applies to The Slender Man).

The Hand

"I'm not that smart, okay? I just do what my heart tells me to do." 

Campaign Essentiality: Low except for People of the Stars

Expansion Synergies: None

Expansion Clashes: None

Campaign Synergies: People of the Stars

Difficulty Modifier: Greatly reduces difficulty

A cut scene disguised as a boss; the reward for Applause is so absurdly better than the one for actually fighting that you are close to punished for not going along with The Hands charade. Now sure, thematically this is a great set piece. But an absurdly powerful being pretending to get beaten up works better in television media; not in a board game.

I won't dwell much further on this monster; play for Applause, that gives good bonuses and until that changes you can leave the actual victory for when you feel like memeing or want a challenge. 

In People of the Stars you're going to trigger this fight a few times because the reward includes a constellation bingo slot. He exists; he's not exciting, but sometimes it's nice to have a lull and face a fight that has a different winning condition than 'kill'.

It's just been applied in a fashion that can only be called basic. This is not Okuyasu Nijimura we are dealing with here.

The Tyrant

"Weakness is Anathema to strength."

Campaign Essentiality: Vital for Stars, not available in others

Expansion Synergies: The Hand, White Lion, Screaming Antelope, Echoes of Death II

Expansion Clashes: Spidicules, Lion Knight, Slender Man

Difficulty Modifier: Moderately increases difficulty

In sharp contrast to The Hand; The Tyrant is a subtle and multi-layered monster with many layers to its showdown and personality. The Tyrant is just like The Hand a powerful Entity pulling its punches; however because Kingdom Death's Best Boy respects strength and power he demands requires the ability to not just soak punishment but also take it. In fact as you get further into battles against The Tyrant he can draw on such an unbelievable level of power that he can... and spoilers here..

call a freaking Harvester to devour the entire showdown board before walking out of the beast and back to his throne like nothing happened at all.

Spoilers over.

When you really engage with what the Tyrant's showdown is doing you'll see that there's a precarious line you are asked to walk between leaving statues on the board and juggling the Tyrant's various moods. Honestly it is without a doubt my #1 favourite showdown we've had to date with its extreme levels of danger that can be mitigated and rewards for performing things in that way. You can get a constellation during the very first Tyrant showdown if you play correctly, one of the players I gamed with back in the UK managed that and it was impressive as heck to see.

The clashes here all involve either monsters who harm showdown survivors and therefore limit your ability to unlock constellations or in the case of the Slender Man remove The Hand from nemesis options. They're clashes which can be overcome, but you should be aware about them before you include these monsters. There's a similar issue with The Phoenix in People of the Stars and that's why I recommend The Dung Beetle Knight and Sunstalker over the Phoenix as your main hunt quarries.

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In the third part (coming after I review the new shop content next week) we will look at all the overwhelming options that occur in the various shop releases; promotional, strains, patterns, bookmarks the whole nine yards and that will be followed with a bunch of example campaign set ups that I like with specific examples of why I put them together in these forms and what the positives and negatives each configuration offers!