In Dracula 1897 the heroes work together to try and thwart Dracula's move to London. To do this, they must find and destroy all of Dracula's resting places and then catch up to him to permanently destroy him. This may be complicated by a character or two actively underming the other heroes by helping Dracula. During their turn players have a variety of things they can do as they try to collect resources, gather information, destroy crates, and manage threats. After each player has gone, Dracula gets his turn to wreak havoc. As Dracula's influence grows, the players' options will become more limited. even as Dracula spreads himself thin and the heroes gain strength. In the end, can the heroes do everything that needs to be done before it's too late?

To defeat Dracula, the Heroes must accomplish three things:

• They must destroy all of Dracula's crates of dirt. Initially they are all in a hidden crypt in London whose location must be ascertained. Visiting Renfield at the asylum in London will eliminate half the possibilities. Venturing to Castle Dracula and the Nunnery in Transylvania will help further narrow it down to a single location. Then the heroes must delve into the depths of that building to destroy anything they find there as well as any other hideouts where Dracula might have moved a crate.
• The Heroes must also catch up to Dracula on the Chase track. Dracula has a head start and advances whenever he spreads dread. The Heroes advance whenever they destroy a box or make a discovery about Dracula's nature. If the heroes can't catch Dracula, or if he makes it back to his castle in the end, the Heroes lose.
• At least one Hero must acquire True Conviction as Van Helsing says a vampire can not be destroyed without it. But acquiring it will mean sacrifice on someone's part.

Turns are typically fairly quick, but there are several things you can potentially do on each one.

• MOVE- The first thing you must do on each turn is move. There are ten locations in London you can go to, or you might venture down to Translyvania to unlock the secrets of Castle Dracula and The Nunnery. However, where you go might be limited by where Dracula has spread his dread as well as where you think he might go next.
• USE LOCATION POWER- Each location has a unique ability that you can utilize while visiting.
• INVESTIGATE LOCATION- Instead of using a location's power, you can try to investigate it if you have worked up enough courage. This is how you find clues to the Hidden Crypt and destroy crates.
• LAY A CARD- The Resolve cards give courage to (or take courage from) the Heroes. To make sure you have sufficient courage to investigate a location, you may need to lay additional cards on that location first.
• FREE ACTION- Each character has a unique free action or ongoing ability. If your character has an action, you may use it once per turn.
• ACT OF COURAGE- Each character also has a second unique action that costs them some courage to use, but can be very powerful.
• PRIVILEGE- Being well connected members of society, the heroes may sometimes acquire a Privilege card that confers a one time special benefit. One may be used per turn.
• TRADE- If you share a space with another character, you may choose to trade with them. The trades don't even need to be equitable. You might just give something to another character for the good of the team.
• ACCUSE- If there are five or more players, one is definitely on Dracula's side. If you have a suspicion of who it is (or want to cast suspicion on someone else) you can accuse them of being corrupted. If a majority agrees, that player will either be sidelined for a number of turns, or will have to admit who their true master is and abandon any pretense of being useful to the party.

• Plays 2 to 7 players
• At 2 players, the game is completely cooperative
• At 3 to 4 players there is a known Influenced player who is still a Hero, but is also bound to help Dracula to a degree
• At 5 or more players there is a hidden Corrupted player who is entirely on Dracula's side
• Recommended for ages 14 and up due to complexity and theme
• Playtime is typically 2 to 3 hours
• Game is about evenly weighted between Hero win and Hero loss

You may have a shorter game if things go downhill fast. The Resolve deck looks big, but it can depelte faster than you think, and if the Heroes run out of resolve, Dracula wins. It's also possible that the city fills with so much dread, and Dracula's plans become so entrenched, that they must simply pack up and move to Edinburgh.

But if the Heroes believe they have destroyed all of the crates in the Hidden Crypt and any that have moved to other hideouts, and they think they can catch up to Dracula, and at least one has acquired True Conviction, then they can declare it to be the Final Chapter.

At this point, if the Influenced player has paid their due to Dracula, they win immediately while the Corrupted player takes a stance to defend Dracula. The Heroes check to make sure they genuinely found the Hidden Crypt and destroyed all the crates. If so, they gather their remaining resources and flip their cards to move up the Chase track in pursuit of Dracula. If they catch up to him, his ally may play cards to advance him further, going back and forth until one side can no longer move. Will Dracula escape in the end, or face permanent death? That's up to you!

Dracula isn't about to go down without a fight. You will feel his influence in many ways.

• There are various triggers in the game that allow Dracula to place a Dread token representing his growing influence over London. These will block locations from the characters, advance him along the Chase track, and ensure he is stronger on his turn.
• On Dracula's turn he may send minions ranging from insects to other vampires to attack you. Failing to fend them off spreads even more dread.
• On his turn he may also give you an unexpected twist, forcing you to spend precious resources to try and avoid calamity.
• Dracula will move about London in a way that is only semi-predictable. If he moves to where you are, he will spread more dread about the city.
• If Dracula completes his plans (gets to the end of the Chase Track), the Heroes immediately lose. They will also immediately lose if the Resolve deck runs out of cards.