Ares Games War of The Ring: The Card Game – 60+ Minutes of Gameplay for 2-4 Players – Card Games for Teens and Adults Ages 13+ - English Version

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The Path mechanics are particularly clever. Being able to play certain characters and cards only at certain times greatly adds to their power to invoke the central story. After Rivendell, the Ringwraiths can’t be played on paths until later on in the game. There are few things better when Gandalf gets to head the Balrog off at Khazad-Dùm. An occurrence made all the sweeter by the fact it won’t happen in every game. There is also another clever mechanic concerning Gandalf and Aragorn. They start the game as Gandalf the Grey and Strider. You do have access to cards for Gandalf the White and Aragorn, but once they are played, the original incarnations are completely removed from the game. Path combat works a little differently, though for the Free Peoples it is ostensibly the same. Free Peoples are always the defenders on path cards. Cards that can be played to path have slightly different shaped shields on them to the cards that are played to Battlegrounds. Many cards have only one type of shield, but some have both. Choose how you deploy them wisely! So, all 4 players are trying their hardest to temporarily pass to see what their opponents do, then reacting to that on their next turn. But to get your hand size low enough, you may have to play cards in reserve that you can’t move at all this round, so make sure they’re worth playing there!

The last rulebook-ish con is why they decided to use the word ‘activate’ for TWO things, paths and battlegrounds. That’s pretty confusing, because activating does drastically different things here. Namely activating paths replaces them, and activating battlegrounds DO NOT replace, rather add another battleground. Not sure why they didn’t just use different names here. Players can enter the world of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and imagine their own version of the epic battle between the Dark Lord, Sauron, and the Free Peoples of Middle-earth in War of the Ring - The Card Game, which was inspired by the best-selling and award-winning War of the Ring board game.

Step 5 – Draw Step

For the Free People, how about Gandalf who says you shall not freaking pass on a path to get a new one! Then he can die there, no problem, because Gandalf 2.0 can ride Shadowfax to rush to defend Minis Tirith for insane stats! My Comments: I have played War of the Rings a couple of times, but I have never acquired it because I know it is not a game my wife would enjoy. However, this hits a lot of the same high notes but transitions the game from dudes on a map to tense card play and that connects a lot better with both of us. War of the Ring is widely considered to be one of - if not the - greatest adaptations of JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings to a tabletop experience. Recreating the entirety of Tolkien’s book trilogy as a Risk-style board game, War of the Ring is soaked through with the dense lore and worldbuilding of the novels, combining a faithful commitment to the story of Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring with the sprawling battle between good and evil that spans the whole of Middle-earth. Like its board game cousin, War of the Ring: The Card Game is highly faithful to Tolkien’s original novels.

Cards are played to one of the two locations, or into your reserve for use in future rounds, and this is done through cycling another card from your hand. I really like the simplicity here in not having to worry about the cost of cards in my hand but also knowing the agonising decision that I have to get rid of something I might want to play another card.While there are two and three-player variations, this game plays best as a 4 player game: 2v2 – with players teaming up to represent the Free Peoples and Shadow forces. The Free Peoples desperately try to complete their quest to destroy the One Ring, while at the same time defending their homelands from the encroaching hordes of Sauron and from his evil allies. Move a card from the reserve to a path or battleground. Note: Cards that have been played to the reserve in the current round may not be moved during the same round (though there are some card effects that can override this). Card Action Two battleground piles are prepared. There is one pile for the Free People players and one for the Shadow players.