Graduate in Necromancy

Overview

You just finished your Bachelor’s studies in Necromancy, and you kind of like this type of magic. You are thinking Yes, I can raise dead, but they only last a couple of hours or so…that is not enough to make a dent in the World. And so, you venture forth to become an even more knowledgeable and skilled necromancer. In this solo print-and-play 10–15 minute card game, you have to complete a Master’s degree in Necromancy in two semesters by completing courses and raising dead study buddies. However, completing courses drains your sanity. Will you succeed? Or will you become an insane fiend haunting the university’s corridors?

Check the game at Board Game Geek (https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/422125/graduate-in-necromancy)

Check also PnP arcade (https://www.pnparcade.com/products/graduate-in-necromancy)

What is the game like?

To graduate in necromancy, you have to a) collect at least 45 credits from the completed courses, b) finish your thesis, and c) avoid insanity in the process of the academic year consisting of two semesters. Each turn you draw a card from the current semester deck. If it is a course card (which is mostly the case) you decide whether you:

1) sign into a new necromancy course but you lose some sanity,

2) tuck the card to raise dead to get a bonus from an already completed course,

3) discard the card to push forward your thesis a bit,

4) put the card on the "Maybe later" pile that gets shuffled later into the second-semester deck.

Graduate in Necromancy is a quick game. However, a lot of strategy is involved since there are several options for what to do with a drawn card, and you need to manage your sanity, credits, and thesis completion.

In terms of categorizing this card game: It is a light-weight engine-building game since your completed courses allow you to sign in to courses with higher requirements but bigger rewards; it is a push-your-luck game since you can strategize but you also don't know what is coming next in the deck; there are deck-building elements involved in the creation of the "Maybe later" pile that gets shuffled into the second-semester deck; finally, Graduate in Necromancy is highly replayable - the two semester decks are different every playthrough.

Components

• 16 course cards (A, B, or C types)
• 1 Sanity tracker card
• 1 Thesis tracker card
• 2 Sanity boost cards
• 2 Tired cards 

(In the PnP files, there are 4 Tired cards but you need only 2. 2 extra Tired cards are just spare and not to be used in play, but you can show them to people in real life to indicate your tiredness; the size of the cards is standard 63.5 x 88 mm)

Digital version

In case you would like to try the game before printing, a digital version made by tomaham.itch.io can be found at https://graduateinnecromancy.streamlit.app/.

Expansion: Warlock's Apprentice

A visiting warlock is teaching a few courses this year at the university. It is a big deal since after two semesters, the famous warlock will choose one student as an apprentice. Do you have what it takes to become the warlock’s apprentice?

The game loop remains the same in Warlock’s Apprentice: you complete courses in two semesters, manage your sanity, and raise study buddies for bonuses. The expansion brings into play 3 new courses and 1 Tired card. These course cards function similarly to the rest of the cards but have some new twists. Newly, the Warlock courses cost you both sanity and thesis progression. The warlock unveils such mysteries that you need to reconsider and rewrite a chapter in your thesis. Furthermore, to get a bonus from a Warlock course, only a Tired card can be tucked under the completed course. Before, feeling tired was a hindrance to your studies but now, the warlock can feast on your despair and restore your sanity or give you an extra credit as a token of gratitude.