Inside Crypt: An Heiress’s Attempt to Get the Treasure
Descend into the tomb of the fallen king to retrieve treasures and trinkets desired by the top collectors in Crypt.
Admittedly, the premise of Crypt seems a little odd at first glance. However, I enjoy treating it as a lighthearted and comical setting! The challenge to collect different treasures with a dice bidding mechanic offers up plenty of fun, all in a few minutes. I set out to relearn the rules and then head off into the hidden tomb with a fantastic heiress…
Game Overview
Game Name: Crypt
Publication Year: 2018
Designers: Jeff Chin and Andrew Nerger
Artist: Jeff Chin
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Naturally, it’s not the people who want the treasures that do any of the actual work! The dice represent servants who can be pushed a little too far to become exhausted. Every round offers up a trio of treasures, yet it’s important not to spread the dice too thinly. Too many exhausted servants certainly won’t be successful for long!
First Play
April 25, 2019
Complexity
2
Latest Play
August 25, 2024
Expansions
0
Setup Time
Almost None
Lifetime Plays
38
Play Time
5 Minutes
High Score
55
Game Area
16" x 16"
Low Score
25
An Appropriate Lady
This game always makes me think of a wonderful member of the 1 Player Guild, Monica. She sent me a package of awesomeness recently, including this lovely meeple!
So I picked the heiress who most resembled her… Or maybe this was her governess. In any event, perfect. Ha!
That’s the interesting part about choosing a character to use. None are particularly likable, although I get a good laugh out of their poses. Like the yelling child with a dog.
Thank you again for everything! This meeple will always be near my table, making certain I’m not playing alone.
Even More Perfection
Before I even sat down to play, I had the best StoryWorld card in mind! How is this not the best companion?!
Funny thing is that after looking at this card for ages, I just realized some important details today. There’s a lot going on here with many possible storylines.
But in the case of the game, it’s all about a greedy heir or heiress trying to cash in on family heirlooms. Terribly rude! Yet the realm’s collectors are hardly discerning.
Hoping that this truly was a forgotten crypt, devoid of any sort of ghosts, the servants entered. The heiress waited.
Treasured Collections
The first few attempts were embarrassing. Hardly any treasures were carted away, and I realized how much more challenging gameplay could be. Time for a reset!
Although there aren’t a lot of cards, the choices are plentiful. Often, only 1-2 cards can be chosen each round. And then the king’s ghost sometimes gets them all…
It’s easy to focus on a specific path, yet that can also lead to being backed into a corner in terms of victory points.
Being able to set the exertion level with dice is quite strategic, but far from easy! It takes planning and luck.
Meeting Expectations
Perhaps the most influential aspect comes from the selection of collectors. These 6 experts are double-sided with unique requirements and bonuses.
Not all of them must be utilized to score well, though it’s vital to figure out where synergies might exist.
This was my first time using the B-side of the pottery collector, who had a pretty awesome power! Flipping 2 pottery cards could lead to an immediate extra bonus.
With a lot of options, I started again to see what kind of treasures this heiress might be able to sell off…
Session Overview
Play Number: 25-28
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Required Play Space: 16″ x 16″
Setup Time: Almost None
Play Time: 5 Minutes per Play
Outcome: 35, 29, 44, and 54 (2 Wins and 2 Losses)
Well, then! After a miserable start, the heiress shifted her pose just a little bit to show how proud she was. The final attempt was just shy of my personal best score. Very nice! This one doesn’t make it to my table a lot, yet it has a lot of unique mechanics and delivers a fun experience.
%
30 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
8
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
8
Quality
Components & Rules
6
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
7
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
4
+ Pros (Positives)
- Bidding on treasures with the dice offers a very different kind of mechanic that introduces a lot of strategies.
- The combination of collectors drives certain decisions so that the A- and B-side offer different opportunities.
- Each treasure illustration is beautiful, unique, and almost seems to jump off the card with quality artwork.
- All of the components fit inside the compact box with no unnecessary space, and even the box has a small role.
- Just a few minutes are needed per play, and although the experience is very light, it’s still fun and enjoyable.
- A face-down treasure card each round adds to the intrigue and makes bidding even more interesting.
– Cons (Negatives)
- The card quality is underwhelming, as cards tend to permanently warp or bend into different positions.
- Despite being a quick game, the rules are laid out in a very confusing manner and require time to understand.
- Each collector may be double-sided, but the overall variety in the available collectors feels a little too light.
- It makes sense that more cards are needed to play multiplayer, yet the solo mode uses a fraction of the cards.
Victory Conditions
Score 40+ Points
- Overall Goal Progress 67%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 40 points.
Score at least 50 points.
Score at least 60 points.
Continue the Conversation
How do you feel about Crypt? Are there other small games that deliver interesting gameplay? Good thing for October and my search for vaguely scary games! This ended up languishing on my shelf for far too long, almost becoming a tomb itself. I’m glad I got it back to my table so I could enjoy the different elements… And laugh at the heiress. Ha ha!
Presumably you could re-theme this into a generic dungeon bash, but I like it when designers try to spin things a little differently.
Have you tried Maiden’s Quest? I put it on my 10×10 for this year but haven’t started yet…
This theme does stand out! I appreciate the uniqueness of it, too, particularly when seen with the unlikeable heirs. They’re just so entitled… And I sometimes feel happy when the king’s ghost wins. Ha!
I haven’t tried out Maiden’s Quest, although I’ve heard a lot of great things about it! What about it reminds you of this one, if there are any similarities? Thanks!
All right so I went away and played MQ (it was after all on my 10×10 anyway) before I could answer this…
I think it’s the idea of having a woman who’s central to the narrative, but not in a conventional “she’s the imprisoned prize that you have to steal” sort of way; and a certain feeling that you’re going through a single large location rather than travelling from place to place.
Thanks for following up! Sounds very interesting with the central heroine and location. I hope you had a great time playing!