What is Arkham Horror?

It is the height of the Roaring Twenties. A fresh enthusiasm for the arts, science, and exploration of the past have opened doors to a wider world, and beyond. And yet, a dark shadow grows over the town of Arkham…

Some of you reading this will likely have been fans of Arkham Horror for years, or even decades. But that isn’t necessarily true for everyone. Some of you may have landed here from an internet search, or perhaps you’ve played Arkham Horror: The Card Game and want to find out more about the world of Arkham Horror. Perhaps you’re a player wanting to get other members of your group on board, or perhaps you are that person, wondering just what it is your gaming buddy loves so much about Arkham Horror.

So, in the spirit of the New Year, we wanted to give everyone a place to start. The answer to the question “What is Arkham Horror?” is, of course, far longer – and more terrifying – than we could possibly tackle in one place, so instead what we offer here is an accessible introduction and guide to where to find out more, here on ArkhamHorror.com and elsewhere.

So, dive in, and begin investigating the world of Arkham Horror…

What is Arkham Horror?

Arkham Horror is a series of tabletop games – and, now, novels, comic books and more – set in the New England of the 1920s – most notably, in and around the fictional town of Arkham, Massachusetts. The Arkham Horror series of games and media are inspired by the rich Cthulhu Mythos of H.P. Lovecraft and others, but in the decades since the publication of the first Arkham Horror board game, the series has developed a tone and style very much its own, layering pulp action and adventure on top of eldritch horror.

The Arkham Horror Series

Arkham Horror is best known as a series of beloved tabletop games, now encompassing the Arkham Horror board game, Arkham Horror: The Card Game, Arkham Horror: The Roleplaying Game, Mansions of Madness, Eldritch Horror and more. Each takes the basic Arkham Horror formula and cleverly applies it to different gaming experiences. Mansions of Madness, for example, brings the action into some of the crumbling, ancient manors of Arkham and elsewhere, while Eldritch Horror takes players around the world in the same desperate fight against the Ancient Ones. Many games in the series are cooperative, meaning players must work together against the ancient nightmares arising. Perhaps the most iconic aspect of the series is that in each of the Arkham Horror games, players take on the role of investigators…

The Investigators of Arkham Horror

The investigators of Arkham Horror are characters from diverse backgrounds, with rich personal backstories, who have each encountered the eldritch and the supernatural by unfortunate chance. Taking on the role of a specific, named investigator adds an immersive layer of storytelling to all of the Arkham Horror games, making for something of a trademark of the series. When you take on the role of an investigator, you’re the private eye who has seen things just a little too strange to ignore, or maybe you’re the trawler nearly dragged beneath the waves by a monstrosity too awful to describe, or the poet plagued by visions of a city drowning beneath the waves… or any one of the dozens of investigators to have appeared in Arkham Horror over the years.

Some investigators have played a role in the setting for decades, while others have joined this disparate cast more recently, through regular expansions and new editions of games. The Lore section of ArkhamHorror.com will introduce you to a host of these investigators. If you’re looking for a place to start, you can check out some of the most famous names, including:

• Jenny Barnes, the Dilettante
• Roland Banks, the Fed
• Trish Scarborough, the Spy
• Silas Marsh, the Sailor
• Carolyn Fern, the Psychologist
• Kōhaku Narukami, the Folklorist

The World of Arkham Horror

Beneath the surface, the world these investigators inhabit is one beset by supernatural threats, as sinister cults seek out forbidden knowledge and enact occult rituals, all in service of many and varied plots to bring about the return of the Ancient Ones But the city of Arkham is also a living, breathing part of old New England. Neighborhoods like French Hill, Southside and Rivertown and famed locations like Miskatonic University, St. Mary’s Hospital and Velma’s Diner are as much characters in the story of Arkham Horror as the investigators themselves. The residents of Arkham know there’s something wrong with their city, but it’s still their city.

Beyond Arkham, across Miskatonic County, lie towns touched by the same strange, arcane mysteries as Arkham, haunted by the same sense of something ancient and terrible, each in their own way:

• Dunwich, the site of a horror of which few will speak, leaving behind a town in blasted ruin;

• Innsmouth, a fishing town withdrawn from the world around it, a fact much preferred by the town’s insular citizenry, and;

• Kingsport, a picturesque coastal resort town set upon the dreaming shores where the Miskatonic river meets the ocean, shrouded in a mist that feels as though it might separate one world from the next.

But take on the role of investigator and visit any of these places, and the real nature of Arkham Horror will doubtless soon become apparent…

Monsters

Graves are ripped open in a cemetery, the work of stray dogs the newspapers say, or the work of hungering ghouls people whisper. Inexplicably, fleeting forms are glimpsed between distant stars, turning sober astronomers and scientists into gibbering madmen. Sailors tell tales of monstrous things emerging from the deep around Innsmouth and Kingsport. The truth of all of these things is waiting to be discovered in Arkham Horror – and the truth is terrible. The monsters are real, and they surround humanity, intent on our destruction, all in the service of nightmares more terrible still…

The Ancient Ones

Eons ago, earth and the cosmos were ruled by the Ancient Ones, primordial deities who vanished so long ago that people now can scarcely imagine them. And yet they remain, slumbering or hungering to return. Most fabled and most feared among them is Cthulhu, the Dreamer, who perhaps even now is on the cusp of bringing destruction to Arkham, and then the world. He is not alone. In the Vault of Earthly Demise, Umôrdhoth sates himself on the souls of the dead, and his followers seek the souls of the living to sustain their master. Off Innsmouth, beneath the Devil’s Reef, an ancient city remains, submerged but not destroyed beneath the waves, and the gods of the deep dwell there still.

These and other Ancient Ones await the appointed moment for their return – and the dread reality of Arkham Horror is that this may soon be upon us. Only the courage and foresight of a few brave souls can possibly prevent it. Their success or failure is the true story of Arkham Horror – and that story is for you to decide…

Investigate Further

Where you might begin is up to you.

• To find out more about the Arkham Horror series of games, visit Games in the main menu at the top of this page.
• To meet the investigators, visit our Lore section. A number of investigators have made appearances in other media, too – Trish Scarborough and Rowland Banks feature in the Shadow of the Drowned City web fiction series, which you can read or listen to for free online, while Jenny Barnes and Joe Diamond star in The Terror at the End of Time from Dark Horse Comics.
• To learn more about the world of Arkham Horror, why not read your way through the Locations, Monsters, Ancient Ones and Other Worlds pages of our Lore section. All of these sections are regularly updated with new entries.
• You can immerse yourself in the atmosphere and experience the pulp action of Arkham Horror through a wide range of fiction, including novels from Aconyte Books, as well as regular web fiction free to read on ArkhamHorror.com – to find out more, you could do a lot worse than to start with our recent fiction round-up.

Arkham’s tale continues to unfold, and terrifying new threats to the world of Arkham Horror emerge daily. It will certainly take time to discover it all, but to make sure you always stay up-to-date, you can also sign up to the Arkham Horror newsletter, and follow Arkham Horror on Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube and Bluesky.