The Lord of the Rings – part I: from Bag End to Rivendell

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Shapeshifter
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This is my first shot on a solitaire scenario. It is not very well play tested, yet. Any comments are welcome.

Rules

"If you want my advice, make for Rivendell. That journey should not prove too perilous, though the Road is less easy than it was, and it will grow worse as the year fails."
-The Lord of the Rings
 
Whilst Gandalf didn’t return, Frodo and his two companions finally decide to leave Bag End and make their way towards Buckland.
In this scenario your goal is to safely guide the Ringbearer to Rivendell.
 
Unless stated otherwise below the normal MECCG rules apply.

Card Layout
Outlay the following twelve site and region cards in a row, in the order listed: Bag End, The Shire (i.e. “Green Hill Country”), Cardolan (i.e. “Crickhollow”), Old Forest, Barrow-downs, Bree, Arthedain (i.e. “Midgewater Marshes”), Weathertop, Rhudaur (i.e. “Somewhere in the wild east of Weathertop”), Rhudaur (i.e. “Last Bridge”), Rhudaur (i.e. “Trollshaws”) and Rivendell. Place each of the twelve corresponding hazard piles (see chapter Deck Construction) above those sites.
The region cards are considered sites and are called encampment sites. An encampment site usually has no site symbol, but hazard creatures that are playable keyed to the site’s region by name or symbol may also be keyed to such a site.
Some characters are placed under a site card which means that they may be played there during the organization phase if the company is there: Gildor Inglorion is placed with “Green Hill Country”, Merry is placed with “Crickhollow”, Strider and Barliman Butterbur are placed with Bree, Glorfindel II is placed with “Trollshaws”.
Movement for this scenario will be handled by moving a counter (a die or some convenient token) around on the above described array of site/region cards. The location of the counter represents the location of the company. At the beginning of this scenario place the counter on Bag End - this represents the Hobbits departing from this site.

Deck Construction
Construct two decks: one resource deck consisting of 32 cards and one hazard deck consisting of twelve deck portions of ten cards each. Each site in the game is assigned a separate hazard deck portion with thematically preselected hazards. For thematic reasons it is highly recommended to use the deck lists below but you are free to exchange cards as you see fit.

Starting Company
Your starting company consists of Frodo, Sam Gamgee and Pippin. You do not start with up to two non-unique minor items. Instead Frodo must control The One Ring, while any character may control Sting. Additionally you start with Saw Further and Deeper in play. You have one and only one company for this scenario. The company starts the game in Bag End.

Turn Sequence
To begin, draw a hand of five cards from your resource deck. Each turn, use the following turn sequence phase by phase. If an aspect of the turn sequence is not addressed below, then it is to be interpreted as written in the rule books.
1. Untap Phase.
2. Organization Phase: If there are character cards placed under the company’s current site you may play one of those characters with the company if you have enough free influence. The company may either decide to move to the next (or previous) site in the row of sites (move counter) or opt to not move (i.e. movement to other sites in the row of sites is not allowed).
3. Long-event Phase.
4. Movement/Hazard Phase: Movement is considered region movement without the opportunity to decide how many regions to move, you always have to use the shortest connection between sites (e.g. movement from Green Hill Country to Crickhollow will be through The Shire and Cardolan only). Other ways of movement according to normal MECCG rules do not apply (i.e. there is no starter movement allowed in this scenario)! If you move, the player draws cards as usual. The hazard limit is determined by the company’s normal hazard limit plus the number of cards the hazard player would normally draw as written on the site card. The number of cards drawn while moving to an encampment site is usually 1/1. Reveal a card from the specific hazard deck of the company’s new site (or current site if the company did not move) and resolve that hazard. Continue revealing and resolving hazard cards that way until the hazard limit is reached.
Sites are not discarded during this scenario. The company can feel free to backup to the last site in the row of sites.
5. Site Phase.
6. End-of-Turn Phase: You my discard one card from your hand and then discard/ draw cards until your hand size of five is reached.

Special Rules for Resources and Characters
Each minor item is worth 1 MP.
A character that carries The One Ring is called the Ringbearer.
The following cards have an altered text/effect:
Athelas: Additionally playable at Weathertop and at every encampment site in a wilderness region. May be used by Strider.
Bill the Pony: Does not allow special movement to the next haven but to the next or last site in the array of sites.
Elf-path: May not be played if the company declares movement to Rivendell this turn.
Praise to Elbereth: Cancels one and only one Nazgûl attack.
Refuge: In order to play this card discard an Elf character at your current site (i.e. which is in your company or placed with this site) instead. This card is used as a separate site card that geographically lies between your site of origin and the next site card in the row of laid out site cards. It is considered to be in the same region as your site of origin. While moving to this site hazards are drawn from the hazard deck of your site of origin.
Reluctant Final Parting: Replace card text with: “Make a roll. Discard an ally from the company (player’s choice) if the result plus the controlling characters direct influence is less than 7.”
Wizard’s River-horses: Replace card text with: “Discard an Elf from the company to cancel a Nazgûl attack and the next Nazgûl attack the company faces this turn.”

Special Rules for Hazards
To determine which character will take a strike under circumstances when an opponent would normally choose, the Ringbearer (i.e. usually Frodo) is selected first. Then select the character with the highest mind stat. If there is a tie, randomly select the character. If possible, the first strike of any attack must always be assigned to the Ringbearer. Any hazard event must be played on the Ringbearer first, if possible.
Any creature that is playable in a deep-wilderness (i.e. two wilderness symbols) may be played keyed to any encampment site in a wilderness region.
When any hazard deck is exhausted, shuffle the hazard discard pile; it becomes your new hazard deck.
The following cards have an altered text/effect:
Barrow-wight: May be played keyed to Barrow-downs.
Bill Ferny: Is considered a hazard creature for all purposes except that his prowess is modified by a dice roll of 2D6.
Morgûl-knife: When revealed this card effects the next Nazgûl attack this turn.
Nazgûl: Are always played as creatures and are always playable regardless of the company’s or the site’s site path. Nazgûl attacks aren’t keyed to anything.
Spells of the Barrow-wights: When revealed this card effects the next Undead attack this turn.
The Pale Sword: When revealed this card effects the next Nazgûl attack this turn.

Specials for encampment sites
Crickhollow reads 'Free-hold. Bill the Pony is playable - cards drawn 1/1'.
Last Bridge says 'no site symbol - cards drawn 1/2'.
Trollshaws has 'Ruins and Lairs. Minor items are playable - cards drawn 1/2'
all others read 'no site symbol - cards drawn 1/1'.

Victory Conditions
You immediately lose if The One Ring is in your discard pile.
You win if The One Ring is at Rivendell during the end-of-turn phase and the Ringbearer successfully passes a final corruption check.
Your mission was a decent success if at the end of the game The One Ring is at Rivendell and you have up to 18 MP.
Your mission was a big success if at the end of the game The One Ring is at Rivendell and you have 19-24 MP.
Your mission was a legendary success if at the end of the game The One Ring is at Rivendell and you have 25 or more MP.
If Frodo is eliminated you additionally receive -5 MP.
If all four hobbits are in play at the end of the game you additionally receive 2 MP.
For every turn played above twelve you additionally receive -1 MP. This means that you have to keep track of your number of turns (e.g. by using a MP-counter or likewise).

Optional Rule: The Nazgûl are Abroad!
All nine different Nazgûl creature cards are placed off to the side in a separate pile. At the end of each turn one of them is randomly chosen and placed in a row somewhere on the table. During each movement/hazard phase, after all other hazards have been revealed, make a roll for each Nazgûl laid out. If the result is 10 or more the Nazgûl attacks immediately.


edit 2020-06-02: added 'Specials for encampment sites'
Last edited by Shapeshifter on Thu Jun 04, 2020 7:19 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Shapeshifter
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This is the 32 card ressource deck I recommend to use. Otherwise the scenario could either become to easy or less thematic.

Athelas
Barrow-blade
Bill, the Pony
Concealment
Concealment
Dagger of Westernesse
Dagger of Westernesse
Dark Quarrels
Dodge
Elf-path
Fair Travels in Wilderness
Ford
Glamour of Surpassing Excellance
Halfling Stealth
Halfling Stealth
Halfling Strength
Halfling Strength
Here, There, or Yonder
Hey! Come Merry Dol!
Many Turns and Doublings
Many Turns and Doublings
More Sense Than You
New Friendship
New Friendship
Praise to Elbereth
Refuge
Tom Bombadil
Tookish Blood
Trickery
Trickery
Vanish in Sunlight
Wizard's River-horses
Last edited by Shapeshifter on Tue Feb 25, 2020 10:37 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Shapeshifter
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I reccommend to use the following 12 hazard decks. These are specially designed for this scenario.

Bag End
Fear! Fire! Foes!
Fear! Fire! Foes!
Lure of the Senses
Lure of the Senses
Pick-pocket
Rank upon Rank
So You´ve Come Back
The Moon is Dead
Weariness of the Heart
Weariness of the Heart

Green Hill Country
Ambusher
Despair of the Heart
Durin's Folk
Ent in Search of the Ent-wives
Khamûl the Easterling
Lost in Free-domains
Lure of the Senses
Lure of the Senses
Wandering Eldar
Wearniness of the Heart

Crickhollow
Ambusher
Bandits
Fear! Fire! Foes!
Huorn
Lawless Men
Rank upon Rank
River
So You´ve Come Back
The Moon is Dead
The Reach of Ulmo

Old Forest
Bandits
Dunlending Raiders
Enchanted Stream
Enchanted Stream
Huorn
Huorn
Huorn
Huorn
Old Man Willow
River

Barrow-downs
Awaken Denizens
Barrow-wight
Barrow-wight
Choking Shadows
Icy Touch
Pale Dream-maker
Spells of the Barrow-wights
Stirring Bones
Stirring Bones
The Moon is Dead

Bree
Abductor
Assassin
Bandits
Bill Ferny
Dwarven Travelers
Pick-pocket
Reluctant Final Parting
Sellswords Between Charters
Slayer
Thief

Midgewater Marshes
Lawless Men
Neeker-breekers
Neeker-breekers
Orc-patrol
Orc-raiders
The Ring's Betrayal
Tookish Blood
Wargs
Wolves
Worn and Famished

Weathertop
Enchanted Stream
Incite Denizens
Orc-patrol
Orc-raiders
River
River
The Pale Sword
Witch-king of Angmar
Wolves
Wolves

Somewhere in the wild east of Weathertop
Despair of the Heart
Dire Wolves
Dire Wolves
Wake of War
Wargs
Weariness of the Heart
Wolves
Wolves
Wolves
Worn and Famished

Last Bridge
Dunlending Raiders
Hobgoblins
Lawless Men
Minions Stir
Orc-warband
Orc-warriors
The Precious
Wild Trolls
Wild Trolls
Wolf-riders

Trollshaws
Carrion Birds
Cave-drake
Dire Wolves
Galadhrim
Orc-lieutenant
Orc-warband
Orc-warriors
Weariness of the Heart
Wild Trolls
Wolf-riders

Rivendell
Akhôrahil
Dwar of Waw
In Great Wrath
Indûr Dawndeath
Khamûl the Easterling
Morgul-knife
Ren the Unclean
Wargs
Wound of Long Burden
Wound of Long Burden
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Shapeshifter
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I am also toying around with a variant for 2 - 4 players. This might be worth a try:

With two or four players Merry joins the starting company. Each player controls one (3-4 players) or two (2 players) characters from the starting company.
All players draw from the same resource deck. Your hand size is reduced to normally two (3-4 players) or three (2 players) cards. Resource cards that are only playable on a specific character or resource card may not be played on characters or resources controlled by another player.
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Shapeshifter
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Here are some images as examples for a game setup.
Attachments
encampment_site_01.jpg
encampment_site_01.jpg (1.54 MiB) Viewed 9026 times
game_01.jpg
game_01.jpg (1.41 MiB) Viewed 9026 times
setup_03.jpg
setup_03.jpg (764.91 KiB) Viewed 9026 times
setup_02.jpg
setup_02.jpg (1.26 MiB) Viewed 9026 times
setup_01.jpg
setup_01.jpg (1.32 MiB) Viewed 9026 times
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Yegor
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Karsten, will you consider bringing it to Lure to play test? Either as solo scenario, or 2-player?
I'm interested, if time allows.
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Shapeshifter
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Sure, I will bring it to Lure, Yegor.

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Yegor
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Thank you. We'll decide on the spot when to try it out.
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Any word on how this fared at Lure? I like solo scenarios and have plenty of solo decks, and I wouldn't mind adding this one to their number once it's been refined.
Middle Earth and other CCG unboxings, booster openings, and guides: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheCCGCollector
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Shapeshifter
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Unfortunately I couldn't make it to Lure. So the scenario is still untested, except by me.

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Darksatin
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Hello Karsten,
So, I tried your solitaire scenario and I can make a few comments.
The design is interesting, with these sites with their own hazard deck. The games are fast and there is some challenge and suspense.
My results : 3 wins (9, 19 and 25 MPs – thanks to Tom Bombadil)
2 losses (Strider does not like the last corruption check)
Some remarks :
- it is not easy to play the minor items
- Tom Bombadil seems too powerful for this scenario ; maybe limit his cancellation power to Cardolan ?
- Fear ! Fire ! Foes ! seems not playable keyed to Crickhollow…

I have made a PDF with all the modified cards + some rare ones. See the attached file.

I suppose you have in mind to make the next scenario, Lord of the Rings Part 2, with the whole Fellowship going from Rivendell to Lorien, passing through Moria. It would be epic!
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Lord of the Rings Part 1.pdf
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Shapeshifter
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Thanks for your feedback, Dominique. Great idea to create that pdf with the new card texts!!!

Do you think the scenario is too easy? Well, 3 wins out of 5 games is not that bad.

Yes, the minor items are not so easy to play but remember that you get MPs as a reward for them. Maybe I will think of a way to make them better playable. But also look at my version of Trollshaws below, please.

Tom is really powerful if you draw him at the right time (or travel backwards just to get him ...?). Probably I should alter his card text as well.

It seems I forgot to mention that some encampment sites have a special card text. Here they are:
Crickhollow reads 'Free-hold. Bill the Pony is playable - cards drawn 1/1'.
Last Bridge says 'no site symbol - cards drawn 1/2'.
Trollshaws has 'Ruins and Lairs. Minor items are playable - cards drawn 1/2'
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Darksatin
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The new text for these 3 sites makes sense. For Last Bridge and Trollshaws, I suppose it is 1 card for the player, and 2 for the hazards…

"For every turn played above twelve you additionally receive -1 MP". But there are 12 sites, and therefore 11 hazard movement phases if the company does not stop. So there is 1 "movement phase" for free (without penalty) ?

The method for playing the hazards is unclear. There are 2 possibilities:
- make a hazards hand, and play them in an optimal way (it can be deadly)
- draw and play the hazards one after one (but in this case some combos do not work)
What is your system ?
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Shapeshifter
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Darksatin wrote: Wed Jun 03, 2020 9:18 am The new text for these 3 sites makes sense. For Last Bridge and Trollshaws, I suppose it is 1 card for the player, and 2 for the hazards…
Yes, indeed.
Darksatin wrote: Wed Jun 03, 2020 9:18 am"For every turn played above twelve you additionally receive -1 MP". But there are 12 sites, and therefore 11 hazard movement phases if the company does not stop. So there is 1 "movement phase" for free (without penalty) ?
Yeah, seems so :) Not sure anymore if this was done on purpose. There shouldn't be time for a second breakfast. I think I should lower the limit of free turns to 11.
Darksatin wrote: Wed Jun 03, 2020 9:18 amThe method for playing the hazards is unclear. There are 2 possibilities:
- make a hazards hand, and play them in an optimal way (it can be deadly)
- draw and play the hazards one after one (but in this case some combos do not work)
What is your system ?
It is in the rules under Turn Sequence --> 4. Movement/Hazard Phase: Reveal a card from the specific hazard deck of the company’s new site (or current site if the company did not move) and resolve that hazard. Continue revealing [should add here: 'and resolving'] hazard cards that way until the hazard limit is reached.
So, it is your second option. This could mean that some combos won't work, or not to a maximum effect. For some hazards there are special rules in order to deal with this. Look for example at Spells of the Barrow-wights: When revealed this card effects the next Undead attack this turn. What I think is good with this way of dealing with the hazards is that you never know what card comes next, so there is more suspense.
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Darksatin
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Hello Shapeshifter,
:D Any chance for a "The Lord of the Rings- part 2"?
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