These three villains each have very unique gameplay, with additional cardboard pieces not seen in any of the other sets. This makes for fun changes, though I do wonder if these new expansions are starting to become so complex and evolved that they are no longer fairly matched with the original characters. As you'll see in the detailed review below, each of the characters have multi-layered objectives (do this, so that you can do this, and then you can win). This is fun for us as experienced players, but it's not a fair match to pair these characters with early villains like Prince John (collect 20 power) or Maleficent (a curse at each location). That said, these expansion characters are great to use against some of the newer characters, and even some of the older challenging ones like Ursula. Details for frequent players: CRUELLA: She is definitely the most challenging of the three. Her objective is to capture puppy tokens, but she only has two allies, and these allies need to be activated in order to capture any of them. The problem is that the two activate spots on the board are on the top row, so they can both be covered by fate cards and really slow you down. Playing her against Hades (which we've found to be the most difficult villain so far) proved to be a fair, and very LONG, matchup. PETE: He's the one that changes up the gameplay more than any villain to date. Instead of completing one objective, he has to complete four mini-objectives that are placed at each location. Some of these are relatively easy; some can be very hard, especially if you're targeted by a fate action. His deck comes with TONS of allies, which is helpful for certain objectives, but it does make his deck full of repeat cards. He might be the most fun to play with of these three though, because he has lots of routes to victory. MOTHER GOTHEL: Her objective is the most straightforward—collect "trust" (represented as power tokens from the supply) by playing cards at strategic times. Rapunzel is a permanent hero in her realm, constantly moving back and forth. If you've blocked your opponent's ability to play fate actions on you every turn, then Mother Gothel is pretty easy to win with. But if your opponent(s) can strike you with a fate action every turn, it's almost impossible to collect and keep the necessary "trust." Be warned. Overall, this game continues to be a favorite! Of the expansions, I'd rank them (1) Wicked to The Core, (2) Perfectly Wretched, (3) Evil Comes Prepared. Enjoy playing!
