The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu puts you and your crew in the position of explorers setting out into dangerous lands to earn your keep. Before an expedition begins, you have a chance to consider what you're taking with you. Weapons are important (Duh of the day), but so are the tools and other items that may get you through whatever is waiting beyond the safety of your ship.
The setup is simple enough. You leave the galleon, accept contracts, escort an ox cart through hostile territory, hunt for food and valuables, and hopefully bring enough back to make the expedition worth it. The farther you venture, however, the more dangerous things become as the game starts mixing actual monsters with a madness system that can screw with what you see and hear.
Speaking of see and hear, let's play:
Pack Like You Plan to Come Back. This is not a joke.
There is something slightly concerning about a game that gives you a selection of weapons, tools, supplies, and a crucifix before sending you out. In this game, one of the crew members is glad he never steps foot onto land because people rarely ever make it back.
That crucifix tells you quite a bit, but you need to have the right teammates too, because teamwork is a weird concept to some.
That's one annoying element in this game, especially when gear is limited and they're nabbing it all. So prepare and squad up the right way. Teamwork makes the... come on, you know the rest. I think!
I like that preparation actually feels like a serious part of the adventure. You aren't simply choosing your favorite weapon and charging forward. What you bring matters because this isn't a normal treasure hunt.
Normal treasure hunts generally require fewer crucifixes, but I'd take some CPU characters over some questionable teammates. As a matter of fact, this will be presented to the team by the time you read this article in hopes that we eventually have the option to play Solo, Online, plus a new CPU Crew option.
On Dry'ish Ground
The basic goal sounds reasonable enough... you head out, gather what you can, and return with enough food and valuables to make the trip worthwhile.
The problem is everything between leaving and returning. [Dun Dunn Dunnnnnnn!]
There are unnatural threats waiting for your crew, and that uncertainty is where The Mound becomes interesting. You can prepare for a fight, but preparation only goes so far when the situation you're walking into doesn't necessarily follow the rules you expect.
Your sanity can mess with you without throwing a big flashing "YOU'RE LOSING IT" meter on the screen. You might hear a horn nobody else hears, see blood raining down that your teammates can't see, or look at one of your own people and see an undead creature standing there instead. That last one can turn friendly fire into a very unfriendly surprise.
That also makes greed an interesting part of the experience. Once you've collected something valuable, there is always the question of whether you should keep searching or get everyone back with what you already have to cover your agreement goal.
That in itself is a challenge because you could wrap it up, but some of us want to see if we can pack in as much as possible. Good luck with that, because one more item might have you calling for help.
I tend to appreciate games that make me think about what I'm carrying and whether another few minutes in dangerous territory are worth the risk. (Tenchu veteran over here!) The Mound gives you plenty of reasons to have that conversation with yourself, but make it quick before something else has it for you.
Know Your Gear... And Know What Is Trying to Get You
This is where I'm going to save some of you a little pain, because there are items in The Mound that can be far more important than another weapon. There are also monsters you shouldn't approach as if they're all interchangeable bags of health. So yeah. Pack accordingly and use our survivor guide:
The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu
Tap a weapon, tool, item, or monster to open its field note. Know what the gear actually does before the jungle teaches you the hard way.
Weapons, Tools & Artifacts
Open an item to see its role, what it pairs well against, and where it can get you into trouble.
Crucifix
What it does: Delays Y'm-bhi aggression. It buys time rather than acting like a universal anti-monster button.
Best match: Y'm-bhi. Hold its attention while a teammate circles behind for a backstab.
SDGT tip: Think crowd control, not holy hand grenade.
Torch
What it does: Provides portable light and can help create an opening against Y'm-bhi in darkness. A lit torch can also be used on forest growth attempting to regenerate a fallen Y'm-bhi.
Best match: Y'm-bhi. Use the light during the encounter, then watch the body. If the forest starts bringing it back, deal with the vines before Round 2 begins.
Oil Lamp
What it does: Provides dependable light and can be thrown to create a burst of fire when the situation becomes less about illumination and more about survival.
Useful against: Threats affected by strong light and situations where fire gives the crew breathing room.
Tradeoff: Once you throw the lamp, you have also thrown your lamp.
Medallion
What it does: Strike it to help reveal the direction of nearby Tulu-metal treasure.
Defeats: Nothing directly. The tradeoff is noise and unwanted attention.
SDGT tip: Do not stand there ringing the dinner bell every ten seconds because something shiny might be nearby.
Jar of Black Ichor
What it does: Can attract and enrage supernatural creatures. Throw it away from the group to redirect trouble, or use it to make another target much more interesting to nearby horrors.
Best match: Encounters involving multiple supernatural creatures where redirecting aggression can save ammunition and lives.
SDGT tip: Sometimes the best weapon is introducing two monsters to each other.
Mask of Nyarlathotep
What it does: Helps you blend in as one of the turned and can reduce the need to fight your way through every hostile presence.
Best match: Avoiding Y'm-bhi and other situations where slipping through is smarter than starting a battle.
Friendly-fire warning: Tell the squad what you are doing before somebody solves the mystery with a musket.
Divining Rod of Yig
What it does: Helps locate buried treasure by giving you directional feedback as you close in.
Defeats: Nothing. It saves time and helps the crew search with a purpose.
Ammonia Salts
What it does: Restores a fallen teammate to the expedition.
Best match: The person who just went down while carrying something your crew really needs.
Slave Finder
What it does: Helps detect nearby human or human-like presences, including Y'm-bhi.
Best match: Y'm-bhi detection. Information is nicer than walking blindly into a human-shaped surprise.
Crossbow
What it does: Gives you ranged damage without announcing the fight to the entire forest, and remains useful when wet weather makes gunpowder less dependable.
Good for: Y'm-bhi and other standard killable threats where quiet ranged pressure is preferable to a loud firearm.
Bow / Longbow
What it does: Keeps combat quieter than gunpowder weapons, remains useful in poor weather, and rewards accurate shots.
Good for: Patrols, Y'm-bhi and ordinary threats when you would rather not turn one fight into three.
Machete
What it does: Gives dependable close-range damage without ammunition or gunpowder concerns.
Best match: Y'm-bhi backstabs. Pair it with a teammate using the Crucifix.
Risk: Quiet does not mean safe. You still have to stand next to the nightmare.
Francesca Axe
What it does: Gives the crew a physical option that does not depend on ammunition or dry gunpowder and can also be thrown.
Good for: Standard killable threats. No universal monster-specific hard counter is being claimed here.
Flintlock Weapons
What it does: Gives you hard-hitting ranged damage when something needs to stop being close to you.
Best use: Immediate killable threats after stealth has already failed. Loud shots, limited resources and weather mean this should not be the crew's only plan.
Translation: You may win the gunfight and still lose the argument with the forest.
Matchlock / Arquebus
What it does: Delivers heavy single-shot damage when stopping power matters more than keeping quiet.
Best use: Tough killable threats and emergencies. Slow reloads, noise and wet conditions make backup weapons important.
Monster Counter Guide
Open a threat to see the safer current response. If there is no dependable monster-specific weakness, the guide says so instead of making one up.
Y'm-bhi
A fallen Y'm-bhi may not stay fallen if the forest starts working on the body.
Counter kit: Crucifix + backstab + Torch. Use the Crucifix to delay aggression while another explorer gets behind it. After the kill, watch for forest growth attempting to regenerate the body and use the Torch when needed.
Crawling Canopy
A spider-like tangle of vegetation that can blend into the surroundings until the surroundings decide to grab you.
Counter: Stay together, identify it early and create distance. No dependable item-specific hard counter is being claimed here.
Prowler
A root-and-bark humanoid predator that fits into the jungle a little too well.
Counter: Awareness, spacing and quiet ranged damage. Bow or Crossbow pressure lets you fight without automatically inviting everything nearby.
Deep One
An aquatic Lovecraftian threat that gives firearm-only crews another reason to reconsider their life choices around wet terrain.
Counter: Coordinated damage with a rain-safe Bow, Crossbow or melee backup. No universal artifact weakness is being claimed here.
Mi-Go
A fungal, winged, crustacean-like problem that becomes worse when the crew stops communicating.
Counter: Regroup and focus damage. Do not let one explorer become the entire encounter.
Doppelgänger
It can imitate a member of the crew, which is particularly useful when everybody is already questioning what they see and hear.
Counter: Voice check first. Weapon second. If a four-person group suddenly looks like a five-person group, ask a question before unloading.
Haunter of the Dark
Big wings, an unsettling central eye, and absolutely no concern for whatever plans your crew had five seconds ago.
Primary counter: Avoidance is a legitimate strategy. The eye is an important target when you are forced into the situation, but treating the encounter like an ordinary firefight is asking a lot.
SDGT decision tree: See eye. Understand what the game is suggesting. Also locate the nearest exit.
Hound of Tindalos
A threat that can make greed considerably more expensive than the treasure looked a few seconds earlier.
Counter: Be ready before the crew commits to the loot. Keep a ranged response prepared and decide who is carrying treasure versus who is covering them.
Tue Tue Undead
A bird-like undead threat that can make poor visibility and bad positioning even worse.
Counter: Identify it quickly and use controlled ranged fire. Avoid turning low visibility into friendly-fire roulette.
Flesh Shambler
A grotesque mass that deserves considerably more respect than the average thing wandering through the jungle.
Counter: Evade unless the objective or situation gives you a reason to commit. No trustworthy universal quick-kill item is being claimed here.
Shoggoth Worm
A giant many-legged nightmare that can turn a normal expedition into a resource check very quickly.
Counter: Coordinated team firepower or disengage. Long, loud fights can make the rest of the jungle part of the encounter.
SDGT rule: “We can probably take it” is not the same sentence as “We should.”
I won't completely crap on multiplayer, because I've been saved. It's scary, the environment looks great, it makes me feel paranoid with the various sounds, but it's fun too (if horror is your thing).
Playing with a crew adds another layer because everyone going out needs to be useful. Someone having a weapon is nice. Someone remembering that the expedition needs more than weapons is better. The loadout before the trip becomes part of the group strategy rather than a screen to rush through.
The multiplayer experience, when firing on all cylinders, makes this so much better and tempts you to venture farther, if you dare.
Going back to the audio, I used the Immerse Gaming Hive software + Audeze Maxwell 2 ANC headphones. I don't know what you're working with, but that combo has me on edge. (Shout out to the audio team.)
The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu is available now on the Epic Games Store, Steam, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5. So squad up, pack smarter than the person trying to carry every weapon by himself, and... game on!
+ Sophi
