War of the Ring: 2nd Edition (2011)

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About the Game

In War of the Ring, one player takes control of the Free Peoples (FP), the other player controls Shadow Armies (SA). Initially, the Free People Nations are reluctant to take arms against Sauron. So they must be attacked by Sauron or persuaded by Gandalf or other Companions, before they start to fight properly. This is represented by the Political Track, which shows if a Nation is ready to fight or not.

Players can win the game by a military victory if Sauron conquers a certain number of Free People cities and strongholds or vice versa. But the true hope of the Free Peoples lies with the quest of the Ringbearer. While the armies clash across Middle Earth, the Fellowship of the Ring is trying to get secretly to Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring.

Sauron is not aware of the real intention of his enemies but is looking across Middle Earth for the Ring. The Fellowship is going to face numerous dangers, represented by the rules of The Hunt for the Ring. But the Companions can spur the Free Peoples to fight against Sauron. So the Free People player must balance the need to protect the Ringbearer from harm, against the attempt to raise a proper defense against the armies of the Shadow. If not, the SA will overrun Middle Earth before the Ringbearer completes his quest.

War of the Ring: 2nd Edition board game | Source: aresgames.eu

How to Play War of the Ring: 2nd Edition

Each game turn revolves around the roll of Action Dice. Each die corresponds to an action that a player can do during a turn. Depending on the face rolled on each die, different actions are possible (moving armies, characters, recruiting troops…).

You can use Action Dice to draw or play Event Cards. Event Cards are played to represent specific events from the story (or events that could possibly have happened) that cannot be portrayed through normal game-play. Each Event Card can also create an unexpected turn in the game, allowing special actions or altering the course of a battle.

Each round has six phases.

Recover the action dice and draw two new event cards.
Fellowship Phase: The FP can choose to declare the location of the fellowship. This allows them to potentially activate a nation, heal corruption damage, or change out their guide.
Hunt Allocation: The SA can dedicate a number of action dice to hunting the fellowship.
Action Roll: Players roll their action dice. Any “eye” result rolled by the SA is added to the hunt box.
Action Resolution: This is the meat of the game. Players take turns activating dice to do the action listed on that die face.
Victory Check: If either player has done enough to meet the military victory condition, the game is over. If not, rinse and repeat.

How to Play War of the Ring: 2nd Edition | Source: meeplemountain.com

How to Win War of the Ring

Either side can win via a military victory. At the end of a round, the Shadow Armies must control enough of their opponents’ settlements (cities or strongholds) to total 10 points, while the Free Peoples need only hold 4 points worth.

The second victory condition involves the more canonical element of the “one ring.” If at any time Frodo reaches the final space of Mt. Doom, casting the ring into the fire. Or if he becomes too corrupted by said ring, the game is instantly over, with either the FP or SA respectively emerging triumphant.

War of the Ring Review

“Overall, War of the Ring is quite simply a masterpiece. The choices are deliciously agonizing, the battles memorable, and the card play clever. It is equally gratifying playing as the Shadow Player or the Free Peoples. This is a fantastically designed game that is as rich as Smaug in theme.

Every card and character ability make sense thematically. Gandalf can lead the Fellowship through the mines of Moria, Strider can leave the Fellowship to go level up and become Aragorn, Boromir can be heroically sacrificed to save the hobbits from taking damage. Everything that you would want to do in a Lord of the Rings game, short of finding out what was in that pipeweed, you can do.”

Jesse Fletcher, meeplemountain.com

“War of the Ring certainly isn’t for everyone — it requires a significant time investment to learn the rules and set everything up properly, let alone play it. However, the best things often don’t come easy. If you crave an epic board gaming experience, War of the Ring does it about as well as any game I’ve ever played. I’m happy to have tried it and made a new friend in the process.”

thetopofthetable.com

“Ultimately War of the Ring is a two player strategic war game driven by action dice and event cards, which despite the asymmetrical nature, is extremely well balanced. The 96 event cards ensure every play of War of the Ring is going to be different. The game is fairly complex because there is a lot going on, and there are a lot of rules although each rule is simple and the two sided player aid card helps a great deal.”

Ashley Perryman, board-game.co.uk

The content is original from Board Game Geek and meeplemountain.com. For more information and a better understanding of the game, you can watch the videos below.

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