Wednesday, April 22, 2015

#28: Lord of the Rings (Mark's 100 - 2014)


Lord of the Rings

Mark's Ranking
  • 2014: 28th
  • 2012: 17th
  • 2010: 15th
  • 2005: 33rd
  • appeared in all four lists
  • rank: 480
  • rating: 6.83
Print Status
  • in print (but only in a newer/stripped-down edition)
Why It's On The List
  • There had been cooperative games before this one... but Knizia broke the mold and created a sprawling (and gorgeous) cooperative masterpiece that reflects the tensions & storylines of the books in a highly abstracted way. And my wife likes it.
Tips & Tricks:
  • There are three expansions to the already meat-y base game...
    • Friends & Foes (which added Foes as well as two new "locations" - boards - to work through) - yes, it did make the game longer by almost half.
    • Sauron (which added several different ways to play the game, including a "one player - Sauron - versus everyone else" variant that works like a charm)
    • Battlefields (which added another board for each location... is highly abstract... and, to be completely honest, I've never actually played.)
  • Suggestion: don't combine the Friends & Foes and Sauron expansions - it's just too darn long.
  • I've played 50+ games of this... and will happily play it again if someone asks.
Extras

    3 comments:

    MichaelD said...

    Is this a game where you are better off tracking down the original edition than the currently in print one? It sounds like the expansions don't work with the current edition.

    Mark (aka pastor guy) said...

    It is, Michael... I should have mentioned that.

    MichaelD said...

    Thank you.