The Art of Playing Mythos

"The Art of Playing Mythos," subtitled "A Tome of Arcane Knowledge," is a 160-page book published by Chaosium in 1996 to support their collectible card game (CCG) *Mythos*, which was released the same year. The book serves as a supplementary guide, expanding on the rules provided in each Mythos starter set and clarifying ambiguities in the original rules. It also includes errata, advice on deck construction with an emphasis on storytelling, and a comprehensive list of all cards published at that time, complete with extensive background information on some of them. Additionally, the book features tips and tactics for gameplay, a Frequently Asked Questions section, and promotional content.

Chaosium released *The Art of Playing Mythos* in response to the growing popularity of CCGs like Magic: The Gathering, which surged in success starting in 1993. The book was written by Scott David, Aniolowski, Charlie Crank, Eric Rowe, and Lynn Willis.

Reception to the book was mixed. Rick Swan of *Dragon* magazine (Issue #237, July 1997) recommended it for serious players, suggesting that it could be a valuable investment. However, Paul Pettingale in *Arcane* Issue 10 criticized the inclusion of rules that were already present in every starter deck and argued that too much space was devoted to card descriptions (60 pages) while tactics and strategies received only 20 pages. He concluded with a poor rating of 5 out of 10, suggesting that the balance between content could have been improved.