[OT] Lord of the Rings TCG

Sméagol, Gollum, Frodo and Sam posted!

I'm pleased to say that I got the Frodo contest 100% correct, but I wasn't one of the winners.

 

The Sméagol and Gollum images are awesome. Decipher... great job!

R'Bolt

 

Smeagol being able to fight Gollum is brilliant! Really looking forward to it.

Something interesting to note. There are six AI rares included in the starters. If the boxes once again contain 36 boosters, then it is Mathematically possible to complete the set with one box and the starters. (I mean not including foils and assuming it didn't matter which picture the card had). Hey, it's even possible to get the ENTIRE non-foil set with just the starters! My thinking:

120 different cards.
Various commons and uncommons and 40 rares (one per pack) You already have 6 cards (in the starters) 40-6=34, less than the 36 you get in the box. Add that six to your random rares and there you have it.

On the other hand, if they put 30 packs in a box, then out of a possible 46 you will get a possible 42. Still pretty close. Take away the AIs and you get a possible count of 40. The 12 rares (6+3+3) and the packs (30) can net you 42 cards. SO with a bit of luck, you can have all the cards. Not to mention chances of getting rare foils. Hooboy, I have never been this close to a complete limited expansion before.

I had good luck with TTT (all 36 pack rares box were different, but one starter had repeats) so here's hoping for a complete set! (Oh yeah, and hoping the boxes have 36 packs)

 

A 120 card expansion is small compared to the initial release of the Two Towers release. Definately a lot easier on the pocket book, although a good number of the cards will require multiples! We're planning on a minimum of 2 boxes...

R'Bolt

 

Hye, has anyone made some graphic DCs of LotR? I've made a bunch, as well as a bunch of balnks (will post if asked).

 

I'd love to see some of them. Perhaps a link to your site?

R'Bolt

 

Here are the few that I have saved as jpgs. I will convert and post the remaining tonight.

[image=http://www.angelfire.com/theforce/mamow/gollum.txt]

[image=http://www.angelfire.com/theforce/mamow/lurtz.txt]

[image=http://www.angelfire.com/theforce/mamow/isenblank.txt]

[image=http://www.angelfire.com/theforce/mamow/shireblank.txt]

I made Lurtz when I first got into the game, and Gollum before the "official" stuff on Gollum/Sméagol was released.

 

Look neat! I especially like your Gollum card. There are so many really neat pic possibilities with Gollum_Smeagol. I've picked up a 5.1 DVD bootleg of Two Towers and the screen caps possibilities are endless. Decipher is doing a great job with many of the cards they've posted to their site with Helms Deep.

R'Bolt

 

Grr, this last page is loading very slowly for me.

 

Kangas, you're in Vancouver Washington, right? Which BOHD prerelease (if any) are you going to? I'm going to the Albany Oregon one.

 

SO who do you think will be the Ent's iof Fangorn starter premiums. I am thinking Gandalf and someone else. I originally expected Faramir and Eomer (who both have a common and rare version) but I think Gandalf might get it.

Has anyone noticed that (except for Smeagol) the ringbound companions seem to have a version with the Frodo signet, while the unbound comopanions have the Theoden signet. I think that is cool.

I wonder if they wil have a Denethor signet in RotK. I can't imagine what new cultures could be added, maybe the Paths of the Dead soldiers that Aragorn calls.

 

Not another Gandalf starter!

I think Sméagol and Éomer should get starters in EoF.

 

Hey, Bib, where'd you get Vancouver from? I live in Durham, North Carolina. Where closest prerelease is 30 miles away. And me not being able to drive yet.

 

Well, there is this guy in Vancouver named David Kangas and I thought you might be him. Oh well. My bad.

 

I have just read this and I am annoyed at the fact that the 3 alternate image cards will be instead of the usual random rares.

I knew it would be too good to be true

 

Do you really buy enough starters that not getting 3 random rares is even an issue?

 

Well... personally I'm happy Decipher didn't go the Star Wars route by making the alternate image cards "ultra rares". Being able to get them easily is a good idea from a collectors perspective. At best we generally get one of each starter so not getting rares in them isn't a big deal. I'd rather that then having to deal with the "Ebay" route to get the alternates.

R'Bolt

 

Complete Helm's Deep spoiler list posted to Decipher's site today. Link is off the main page.

www.decipher.com

R'Bolt

 

Heh, i guess I was just being greedy, goping to get AI cards and three rares!

 

"goping"- geez, I gotta sort my spelling out!

Anywho, I was thinking about the "Dunharrow" part of RotK (For more information, read "the Passing of the Grey Company") and I came up with a few things:

A new Free People's culture: Dunharrow.

New loaded Keyword: oath-breaker
Oath-breaker means: "to play, spot Aragorn. If you cannot spot Aragorn, discard this companion. If this companion is killed, it goes to the discard pile instead of the dead pile.

And these cards:
*Aragorn, King of the Dead
Dunharrow Companion
Twighlight: 4
St: 8
V: 4
Fellowship: Exert Aragorn to play a [Dunharrow] artifact or [Dunharrow] Companion from your draw pile.

*Standard of Arwen
Dunharrow artifact
Twighlight: 1
V: +1
This artifact's twighlight cost is -1 if you can spot Arwen.
The twilight cost of your [Dunharrow] Companions is -1.

*The Dead are Following
Dunharrow Event
Twilight Cost: 2
Response: IF the fellowship just moved in the regroup phase, spot X companions (except oathbreakers) to take X oath-breakersw into hand from discard pile.

Dead Men of Dunharrow
Dunharrow Companion
Twighlight: 3
St: 7
V: 3
Oath-breaker
When you play this companion, you may exert him to play a [Dunharrow] companion from you draw deck.

 

Anyone think the new Grima takes the fun out of building rainbow fellowships? Hard to believe they'd make it spot 4 cultures especially when Frodo accounts for one of them. Having to build decks to try and get around a cheap 2 deploy character is rediculous.

R'Bolt

 

I agree about Grima. According to Kyle Heuer's e-mails, Decipher are trying to get away from the "rainbow" fellowship idea. They believe that it makes the tournament scene less interesting because you see the same cards (for instance "Sleep") in most decks.

They intend to get around this by putting cards in all cultures that do certain things that are strengths in other cultures. For instance, there is a new Rohan card that gets rid of conditions.

Despite this, Decipher still encourages multicultural fellowships. Look at how the Elf and Dwarf cultures combine. What about Ents that need Hobbits?

I guess Grima dealing with four cultures does streamline cultures, but will it really be too much of a problem? I am lookign at making a ring-bound deck usinmg Gollum and Gondor. THat's only three cultures.

Rohan seem to work well by itself and Ents will back up Hobbits. Again, onlt one or two cultures are needed.

I, on the other hand, like the fact that each culture has strengths, and I think that rainbow cultures are fun.

Have you noticed that Rohan cards that deal with possessions always state"Rohan possession". Imagine how tough some of these Rohan guys and girls could get if they could manipulate Flaming Brands as well!

 

Well the major problem I have with Grima is that they shouldn't count Frodo. If I elect to use additional hobbits, that's fine. I would still like to be able to use say Aragorn, Legolas and either Gandolf or Rohan. Just seems to me... streamlining cultures like this forces one to play with companions that weren't the main focus of the movie. It just makes playing the game a lot less fun (IMHO).

R'Bolt

 

I agree strongly with your last point. "The Three Hunters" is now a problem to play.

On the other hand, we are talking one card that returnes cards to hand.
This is signifuicatn. I mean, people over on the Decipher BBS are saying things like "Gandalf FOTS is now only worth 10c" This is crazy. If a rule stopped you from playing more than three cultures, then this would be a legitimate staement and concern. On the other hand, I think Grima will slow you down, but not kill you. After all, from what I have seen, Grima Wormtongue did not have the expected effect.

Back to R'bolts point about non-story fellowships, I agree. This is a real "game-play vs story" issue. As mainly a fun player,I go along with the story side, but I am sure that big stakes players may welcome the streamlined fellowships.

Grima, I think, is an attempt to put things back to the way they're supposed to be. What I mean is that the idea is that cards work in their own culture. SHadow cultures do this well, but the FP have a few loose ends. One example is Gandalf's cart that doesn't mention Gandalf anywhere in the GT. Players used this with any other cultures. It was once a staple in my Rohan decks (Although it is not as useful now because the possession play is a fellowship action)

It is this kind of thing that Decipher is avoiding.

 

Gríma isn't that bad. None of my current decks are vulnerable to him in any way.