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Expedition: Northwest Passage – HMS Terror Edition

Sail the Franklin expedition into unknown Arctic waters, adding the map as you go.

In 1845, Sir John Franklin led two heavy Royal Navy ships, HMS Terror and HMS Erebus, to find the last stretch of the Northwest Passage, with scientific gear, a thousand books, a crew of 128 and food for three years. They sailed into unknown waters and were never heard from again. Expedition: Northwest Passage – HMS Terror Edition (2013) turns that voyage into a game of exploring and mapping the arctic, with tile placement, set collection and action points. You sail on, add new map pieces, and pass turn order from one player to another. One to four players, about an hour, age fourteen and up.

Franklin's 1845 expedition as themeMap grows as you explore with new tilesPlayable alone or up to four

Who it's for

You like exploration and history with a serious edge, and want a map-building game that also plays solo.

Not for you if…

You want a cheerful treasure hunt. The theme is a doomed polar expedition.

Vibe's take

Quiet and tense. You push into unmapped waters, add tiles and collect what you find, and the history behind it hangs over every move.

#2,307 on BGG

of over 30,000 ranked board games

Published 2013 · 13 years ago

older than 70% of games

In 2,734 collections

collected more than 39% of games

1–4 players · ages 12+

Best with 4 · publisher: 14+

about 60 min

longer than 62% of games · typical 30–90 min

Complexity: demanding

Takes some learning · 2.7 out of 5 · heavier than 74%

Opinions: usual spread

A normal range of ratings

Language: no text

Playable without the language

Play style: competitive · solo too

Theme & categories