Gale Force Nine: The Adventures of Conan Board Game

Sword, Sand, and Survival

Every session of The Adventures of Conan puts one player in command of the most dangerous barbarian to ever stride across the Hyborian Age — and everyone else scrambling to stop him. The tension is immediate and asymmetric: Conan and his companions push through treacherous temples, desert strongholds, and shadowy taverns while a single opponent orchestrates the dangers from behind a screen, controlling enemies, springing traps, and tipping the odds. It is a back-and-forth that rarely lets up.

Robert E. Howard's World, Brought to the Table

Published by Gale Force Nine, The Adventures of Conan is a cooperative adventure game with a twist — one player takes on the role of the Overlord, guiding the forces of opposition against Conan and up to three companions across a series of scenario-driven missions. The source material runs deep here. This is Howard's Conan: brutal, clever, and relentlessly kinetic. Each scenario tells its own self-contained story, drawn from the pulp legacy that has defined heroic fantasy for nearly a century. The board shifts, the stakes escalate, and no two playthroughs feel quite the same.

Combat is resolved through a push-your-luck dice mechanic that rewards boldness — fitting, given the source material. Conan himself plays differently from the heroes, tougher and more unpredictable, which keeps the experience feeling true to the character rather than just a reskinned adventurer.

Who Belongs at This Table

The Adventures of Conan works best with two to five players and shines brightest when one person is willing to lean into the Overlord role — scheming, plotting, and playing the world against the heroes. The game sits comfortably in the medium weight range, with scenarios that take roughly an hour to ninety minutes to complete once everyone knows the rules. It is a strong pick for groups who enjoy narrative-driven play with meaningful tactical decisions, and for any household where Howard's Conan holds a special place on the shelf.

What's in the Box

Gale Force Nine has built a reputation for quality components, and this release carries that through. The game includes a modular board that reconfigures for each scenario, a distinct set of hero and enemy figures, and scenario booklets that guide players through the Hyborian world with enough variety to sustain a full campaign arc. The artwork throughout leans into the pulp aesthetic — bold, dramatic, and unapologetically heroic. Conan's miniature in particular is a centerpiece worth displaying long after the session ends.