The Lord of The Rings Card Game - Revised Core Set

The main mechanics are very similar to those of Magic: The Gathering, from the pre-game process of building your own decks to the gameplay of combat and using card abilities. However, this is a multiplayer co-op game that is also different from MTG in combat and other mechanics. (And, of course, it's Lord of the Rings!) You win by committing cards to make progress on the main Quest at the start of each round, but you also need to plan and leave cards uncommitted so you can survive combat once the enemies attack you later in each round. It's a great mix of strategy and chance risk-taking.I recommend looking online for videos that teach the game to get a feel for it. It can take a while to explain to new players, but once you get the hang of it goes pretty ... MoreThe main mechanics are very similar to those of Magic: The Gathering, from the pre-game process of building your own decks to the gameplay of combat and using card abilities. However, this is a multiplayer co-op game that is also different from MTG in combat and other mechanics. (And, of course, it's Lord of the Rings!) You win by committing cards to make progress on the main Quest at the start of each round, but you also need to plan and leave cards uncommitted so you can survive combat once the enemies attack you later in each round. It's a great mix of strategy and chance risk-taking.I recommend looking online for videos that teach the game to get a feel for it. It can take a while to explain to new players, but once you get the hang of it goes pretty smoothly.It feels similar to D&D in how gameplay scales with the number of players. That is, with more players you have more flexibility to choose who takes damage, plus each player can specialize in particular abilities that contribute to the whole group. You can have your tank, your healer, your resource collector, and so on. This tends to make it easier to win with more players, even though the scale of challenge also increases with the number of players.The art is fantastic, and does a good imitation of John Howe, though it is not.Similar to MTG, you might want to think twice if you don't like the more involved or complex games, but otherwise, you should definitely give it a try!

I love anything with the Lord of the Rings theme. I really enjoyed this card game, in spite of the fact that my brother-in-law and I lost the first 3 times we played it … 😊 … but won the 4th time! We’ve only tried the first set of quests; can’t wait to try out some of the expansions.So far I feel it has a “Magic the Gathering” type of sense to it, but as a cooperative game, instead of pitting one player against another.

This is, hands down, one of the best solo games I own, maybe the best. I love the difficulty, the depth of rules, and the replayability and variety it has.You would want this game if you're looking for a great solo and co-op game that is fun, complex, challenging, and highly replayable. Or if you like Magic: The Gathering but hate how you have to constantly chase the latest and greatest, or maybe just don't like the competitiveness of it, or you don't know anyone to play against. This scratches a similar itch for me, even though I also occasionally play Magic.If you like a game that offers difficult choices, personalization, and depth in strategy and design then you probably want this game.If you like deckbuilding, you can do that, although if you hate ... MoreThis is, hands down, one of the best solo games I own, maybe the best. I love the difficulty, the depth of rules, and the replayability and variety it has.You would want this game if you're looking for a great solo and co-op game that is fun, complex, challenging, and highly replayable. Or if you like Magic: The Gathering but hate how you have to constantly chase the latest and greatest, or maybe just don't like the competitiveness of it, or you don't know anyone to play against. This scratches a similar itch for me, even though I also occasionally play Magic.If you like a game that offers difficult choices, personalization, and depth in strategy and design then you probably want this game.If you like deckbuilding, you can do that, although if you hate deckbuilding you don't have to do it either. The rule books will give you decklists, and ringsdb has tons of great decks. In my opinion, your first and best try at deckbuilding should just be taking one of the starter decks and removing cards that you never want or get a chance to use until you're down to about 30-40 cards. It is the quickest and easiest way to make your deck more effective. Not tournament legal, but you'll win more often.On the other hand, you might not like how difficult it is to grasp the rules. You can get up and playing rather quickly if you watch a tutorial or spend about 20 minutes reading the rulebook AND have prior card game experience in things like Magic, but you will quickly realize you are either getting a few rules wrong or as you buy cards you will realize there are just some nuances you didn't even notice. No big deal, just fix your understanding, reshuffle the cards, and play again - you're only in for about 30 minutes so no harm no foul. But I can see how some people could be put off by the depth of the rules. For comparison, I find it simpler than Magic: The Gathering so if you've played a game like that then you'll be fine after a few tries.The game is also very difficult. If you have thin skin, not much time, or little patience then this game may not be for you. However, there are "easy" modes you can play which I hear are just as fun. If you think you might like this game, then I wouldn't worry about the difficulty too much.There is also inherent randomness because it's a card game. If that sounds bad, then this may be trouble for you.Overall I highly recommend this one. It is my favorite card game in my collection, and definitely in the top 5 of all games I own. Don't be afraid to try before you buy, however, as there are websites that will let you play the game for free to see if it is something you might like.