Which Expansion

Cthulhu: Death May Die expansions

Base game: 1–5 players90–120 minCMON / Asmodee11 expansions checked
  1. #1 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Fear of the Unknown

    Buy this first

    In a March 2025 BGG thread most posters named it the best first addition for its investigators, Elder Ones and episodes. One dislikes its Relic and Unknown Monster modules. BGG 8.68 (1,894 ratings).

    Needs: Complete game on its own (called Season 3); it also mixes with Season 1 and later boxes, and Season 4 expands it.

    Adds: Six Episodes, two Elder One boxes, ten Investigators and new monsters, plus optional Relic and Unknown Monster modules, in a standalone box.

    Standalone (mixes in)1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadFine for any groupPrice: $100+
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeekBuy:Asmodee USA store
  2. #2 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Season 4

    Worth it

    Posters rank it above Season 2: an extra Elder One and the best episode ratings in the play-log sheet, with few plays. One ranks Season 3 > 1 >>> 4 >>> 2. BGG 8.93 (490 ratings).

    Needs: Needs a core box: Season 1, Season 3 (Fear of the Unknown) or Season 5. It shares tiles with Season 3.

    Adds: Six Episodes, new tiles, Investigators and monsters. BGG posters add one new Elder One and six Investigators.

    Expansion1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadFine for any groupPrice: $60–$100
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeek
  3. #3 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Ithaqua the Wind-Walker

    Worth it

    A Dec 2025 BGG poster ranks it first among the Elder boxes (Ithaqua > Black Goat >>> Yog). Early reports in Dec 2024 called it the easiest Elder One yet. BGG 8.63 (326 ratings).

    Needs: Just the base game

    Adds: A new Elder One with an Ithaqua figure, two Shantak figures, eight Mythos cards and five Elder One cards. A Blizzard token maxes out stress and blocks healing for investigators who enter it.

    Mini expansion1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadFine for any groupPrice: $20–$40
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeekBuy:Asmodee USA store
  4. #4 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Black Goat of the Woods

    Depends on your group

    Posters call it the hardest Elder One but mechanically simple, mostly spamming minions. A 2023 poster says it is worth 25 euro, not collector prices. BGG 8.52 (1,270 ratings).

    Needs: Just the base game

    Adds: A new Elder One: one Black Goat figure, six Dark Young figures, eight Mythos cards, four Elder One cards and a Monsters card.

    Mini expansion1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadBest for experienced groupsPrice: $20–$40
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeek
  5. #5 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Unknowable Box

    Depends on your group

    A Jan 2025 poster found no reviews of its episodes. An owner likes the investigators; Nug and Yeb are called on the difficult side. BGG 8.92 (247 ratings).

    Needs: Just the base game

    Adds: Kickstarter stretch goals for Fear of the Unknown: 28 Investigators, seven monsters, Nug and Yeb, two Relic cards and Lost Episodes 4 to 7.

    Big box1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadBest for experienced groupsPrice: $100+
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeek
  6. #5 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Unspeakable Box

    Depends on your group

    Posters like its investigators and the Dagon, Mi-Go and Yith minis, but rate the Lost Episodes mixed and call it costly. BGG 8.67 (653 ratings).

    Needs: Just the base game

    Adds: All first-campaign Kickstarter stretch goals: 18 Investigators, Dagon and Yog-Sothoth, three Lost Episodes and five plastic dashboard trays.

    Big box1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadBest for experienced groupsPrice: $100+
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeek
  7. #6 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – R'lyeh Rising

    Depends on your group

    A Dec 2024 BGG poster saw no exceptional reviews; a May 2025 buyer found it worth it. A playthrough ran about 3.5 hours and the statue needs space. BGG 8.64 (188 ratings).

    Needs: Needs a core box. The 2024 edition has no monster cards and needs Unknown Monsters from Fear of the Unknown or another box.

    Adds: One finale Episode where a pre-assembled 44 x 44 cm Cthulhu statue is the board, with its own tokens and Discovery, Monster and Mythos cards.

    Scenario pack1–5 playersAdds more rulesBest for experienced groups
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeek
  8. #7 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Season 2

    Most groups can skip

    2025-26 BGG posters rank it last of the seasons: no Elder One, least content, two lower-rated episodes. Some owners like its investigators and monsters. BGG 8.67 (1,906 ratings).

    Needs: Just the base game

    Adds: Six Episode boxes, ten Investigators with dashboards, 17 Monster figures and eight game tiles. It has no Elder One.

    Expansion1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadFine for any groupPrice: $60–$100
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeekBuy:Asmodee USA store
  9. #8 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Animal Allies

    Most groups can skip

    Only rules questions appear in BGG threads, no reviews. It adds to the optional Relic module, which some posters dislike. BGG 8.24 (158 ratings), below other Season 3-era boxes.

    Needs: Needs Fear of the Unknown (Season 3) or another core box using the Unknown Relic rules; Kickstarter exclusive.

    Adds: Ten Animal Ally figures and five Relic cards that follow investigators, attack, take wounds and let players reroll; they join the Unknown Relic pool.

    Mini expansion1–5 playersAdds more rulesBest for experienced groupsPrice: $20–$40
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeek
  10. #8 overall

    Cthulhu: Death May Die – Yog-Sothoth

    Most groups can skip

    BGG posters call Yog-Sothoth the easiest Elder One and rank it last of the single boxes. Skip it if you like a challenge. It is also in the Unspeakable Box. BGG 8.44 (1,186 ratings).

    Needs: Just the base game

    Adds: A new Elder One with Yog-Sothoth and Wilbur Whateley figures, Elder One, Mythos and Monsters cards. Extra gates mirror normal gates and strengthen the next summons.

    Mini expansion1–5 playersAbout the same rules loadBest for casual groupsPrice: $20–$40
    DetailsReference:View on BoardGameGeekBuy:Asmodee USA store

Check before you buy

  • Most boxes here need a core box (Season 1, or Season 3 – Fear of the Unknown). Fear of the Unknown is also a complete game on its own.

Stuck between two?

Not yet ranked · 1

We don’t have enough solid reviews to rank these, so we aren’t recommending them yet. Here is what we know.

  • Cthulhu: Death May Die – Forbidden Reaches — New Investigators, Episodes, Elder Ones and Monsters, plus a Campaigns mode for any Episode and Elder One across a three-act structure (BGG publisher text).Standalone (mixes in) · 1–5 players

Cthulhu: Death May Die expansions: quick answers

Which Cthulhu: Death May Die expansion should I buy first?

Cthulhu: Death May Die – Fear of the Unknown. In a March 2025 BGG thread most posters named it the best first addition because it adds investigators, Elder Ones and episodes in one box; one poster dislikes its Relic and Unknown Monster modules. BGG average 8.68 from 1,894 ratings.

Is Cthulhu: Death May Die – Fear of the Unknown worth it?

Our verdict: buy this first. It adds: Six new Episodes, two Elder One boxes, ten new Investigators and new monsters, plus two optional modules (Relics and Unknown Monsters) and 46 plastic figures, in a standalone box (Asmodee store text).

Cthulhu: Death May Die – Fear of the Unknown or Cthulhu: Death May Die – Season 4: which first?

We’d buy Cthulhu: Death May Die – Fear of the Unknown first. See the side-by-side comparison for what each adds and needs.

Other games’ expansion guides

Rankings are our editorial picks, built from the reviews linked on each expansion page. Last checked 2026-10-15.