Hello and good day to you all! Today we are hosting our first Play-Through Party. My guest for the day is my wife, Megan. We are sitting around our gaming table, candles lit, pud(cat) nearby curled up in an orange ball.
For quick reference, here are the decks that we are using in this Play-Through:
Today we are going to be going through the Passage Through Mirkwood quest from the core set of the Lord of the Rings: Living Card Game.
Setup
You are traveling through Mirkwood forest, carrying an urgent message from King Thanduil to the Lady Galadriel of Lorien. As you move along the dark trail, the spiders gather around you…
Setup: Search the encounter deck for 1 copy of the Forest Spider and 1 copy of the Old Forest Road, and add them to the staging area. Then, shuffle the encounter deck.
The nastiest things they saw were the cobwebs; dark dense cobwebs, with threads extradionairly thick, often stretched from tree to tree, or tangled in the lower branches on either side of them. There were none stretched across the path, but whether because some magic kept it clear, or for what other reasons they could not guess. – The Hobbit
My wife’s first hand is Fresh Tracks, Sneak Attack, Dunedain Warning x 2, Snowborn Scout, and Celebrian’s Stone. She decides to keep it. My starting hand is Gondorian Spearman, Gandalf, Arwen Undomiel, The Galadhrim’s Greeting, Unexpected Courage, and Blade Mastery. Although I am missing Light of Valinor for Glorfindel, I will stick with this hand and ride it out.
Starting Threats
- Me: 24
- Megan: 28
Turn 1
I am starting off as first player. Dealing out resources, I draw Ring mail, this will help bolster our little Hobbit Frodo, and Megan draws Hobbit cloak.
To start I spend two spirit resources for Arwen Undomiel, for questing power and making Frodo an even better defender.
Megan spends a resource from Sam and Aragorn to place Celebrian’s Stone on Sam, giving him a total willpower of 5. She also spends her resource with Theodred to attack Hobbit Cloak to Frodo. This gives him 2 extra defense when engaging someone whose engagement cost is higher than my threat.
Questing
I send Arwen and use her ability on Frodo to give him +1 defense and sentinel until the end of the round. Megan sends all of her heroes, takes the resource from Theodred’s ability and gives it to Aragorn so he can spend it to ready.
Willpower: 10
Dol Guldur Orcs enters the Staging Area and deals 2 damage to Arwen, killing her. Our Willpower is now at 8. King Spider comes out next and makes us exhaust Glorfindel and Aragorn.
Total Threat in the staging area is 7 so we still get 1 progress token on the quest.
I choose to travel to Old Forest Road to ready Glorfindel.
Engagement and Combat
I optionally engage the Forest Spider, The Dol Guldur Orcs goes to Megan, and King Spider goes to me as well. Deal out shadow cards.
Forest Spider attacks, because of his ability he has 3 attack this round, I will block with Frodo, who has 5 defense (2 natural, 2 from hobbit cloak, 1 from Arwen’s ability). No Shadow effect (Great Forest Web), Frodo takes no damage. Next the Dol Guldur Orcs attacks Megan. I Use Beorn to block for her. No shadow effect (Dol Guldur Beastmaster), so Beorn takes 1 damage, is still ready to defend the last attack. The King spider attacks Beorn, Dol Guldur Orcs shadow card King Spider’s attack becomes 4 dealing Beorn 3 more damage.
Now our turn to attack. Born mauls the Forest Spider in one attack. I spend his one resource for Blade Mastery to up Glorfindel’s Attack to 4, just enough to kill the King Spider.
Ready cards, and raise Threats by 1.
Turn 2- Quest 1B Progress 1
- Me: 25
- Megan: 29
Megan is first player now, we get resources and draw a card each. She draws Faramir, and I draw Light of Valinor. She spends Theodred’s resource to play a Snowborn Scout to place a progress token on Old Forest Road. She then spends Sam’s resource to place a Dunedain Warning on Aragorn. I spend Glorfindel’s resource to put Light of Valinor on him. Glorfindel is a great hero. He has 3 Willpower, 3 attack, 1 defense, and 5 hp. His starting threat is 5, however, to balance this out his ability says you must raise your threat by 1 every time he exhausts to commit to a quest. Light of Valinor allows him to not exhaust when he commits to a quest.
Questing
Nothing in the staging area at the moment. Current Location is Old Forest Road with 1 progress token on it. She does her same move again, sending all three, readying Aragorn with free resource from Theodred. I will also send Glorfindel for 3, without exhausting.
Willpower: 11.
Forest Spider and Necromancer’s Pass come out with a total of 5. 11 – 5 = 6 progress tokens. 2 go to Old Forest Road to complete it, and 4 go to the quest.
Megan chooses not to go to Necromancer’s Pass.
Engagement and Combat
I optionally engage the Forest Spider that just came out. Megan already has the Dol GulDur Orcs from last round engaged to her. Deal out shadow cards. She blocks Dol Guldur Orcs with the Snowborn Scout, no shadow effect (Black Forest Bats). Snowborn Scout dies. Forest Spider attacks, I block with Frodo, who only has 2 defense this time because Hobbit Cloak only gives extra 2 defense when defending against an enemy whose engagement cost is higher than my threat. We are now at 25, therefore, no bonus. No shadow effect (Eyes of the Forest), so Frodo takes one damage, who then uses his ability to transfer it to my threat instead. So now my threat increases by 1 instead of taking damage.
Megan attacks with Aragorn, killing her target. Beorn mauls another Forest Spider.
No monsters are left engaged to us or in the staging area, only Necromancer’s Pass remains.
Ready and Raise threats by 1.
Turn 3-Quest 1B Progress 5
- Me: 27
- Megan: 30
I am first player again. Dish out resources to all, I draw Hasty Stroke, Megan draws Cram. I spend all of my resources to attach a Ring Mail to Frodo giving +1 to Defense and HP and playing Galadhrim’s Greeting to drop my threat to 21. Megan graciously gives Frodo some Cram for his hobbit breakfast. And she spends a resource from Theodred to place another Dunedain Warning on Aragorn.
Questing
I send Glorfindel. Megan uses her tactic again from the last few turns. For a total of 11. Forest Spider and Dol Guldur Beastmaster comes out making their total threat 7. We put 4 progress tokens on the quest. We move onto the next quest card 2-B.
As you move through Mirkwood, hounded by spiders, the forest path forks before you…
Forced: When you defeat this stage, proceed to one of the 2 “A Chosen Path” ” stages, at random.
Unsure of what lies ahead but spurred by the urgency of your message, you choose a path and proceed…
I travel to Necromancer’s Pass, randomly discard… Hasty Stoke and Gondorian Spearman.
Engagement and Combat
I choose to optionally engage the Forest Spider, who gets a shadow card. Frodo blocks, since my threat is 21 again, I get my bonus 2 defense from Hobbit Cloak, making my defense 5. No shadow effect (Forest Gate), Frodo takes no damage. Beorn mauls, yet another, Forest Spider.
Ready cards, and raise threats by 1.
Turn 4 Quest 2-B
- Me: 22
- Megan: 31
Megan is first player. Resource up. Draw cards. Megan draws another Hobbit Cloak, and I draw Feint. She Spends one resource from Theodred’s pool to put a Hobbit Cloak on Sam. I spend resources from Frodo and Glorfindel to put Unexpected Courage on our Little Hobbit Frodo.
Questing
Megan is using her tried and true tactic of sending them all and readying Aragorn. I will follow up mine, Glorfindel. Total willpower: 11.
Mountains of Mirkwood and The Necormancer’s Reach comes out. It deals 1 damage to Sam and Theodred. 11-4 = 7 progress tokens. 2 go to Necromancer’s Pass and 5 over complete the quest card. Beorns’s Path comes up as the new quest card.
The trail winds into one of the darkest, most tangled parts of the forest… You sense that a foul, dark presences is hunting you, and you move quickly in an attempt to avoid its evil.
Players cannot defeat this stage while Ungoliant’s Spawn is in play. If players defeat this stage, they have won the game.
You attempt to follow a secret, hidden trail to avoid the enemy…
We travel to Mountinan’s of Mirkwood, Forest Gate comes out of the encounter deck for it’s ability.
Engagement and Combat
I optionally engage The Dol Guldur Beastmaster. He gets two shadow card because of his ability, Frodo blocks with 5 defense vs his 3 attack. Neither card has shadow effect (Caught In a Web and Enchanted Stream). Frodo takes no damage, and Beorn and Glorfindel tag team the beast master to kill him.
Turn 5 Quest 3-B
- Me: 23
- Megan: 32
I am first player. Resource up, Draw cards. I drew Resourceful, Megan draws Ever Vigilant. Megan will spend Theodred’s and Sam’s resources to pay for Faramir. I do nothing.
Questing
I send Glorfindel. Megan sends all of her heroes, uses Faramirs ability to give each one of her heroes +1 willpower. She then plays Ever Vigilant to ready Faramir, then commits him to the quest as well for another 2 willpower. Total Willpower: 16.
East Bight Patrol and King Spider come out. Megan Exhausts Aragorn and I Frodo. I use cram to ready Frodo. They have a total 7. 16 – 7 = 9. 3 goes to Mountain’s of Mirkwood. 6 goes to the Quest Card. Mountain’s of Mirkwood allows us to each look at our top five cards and pick one to add to our hands. Megan gets’s Bill the Pony! I choose Dwarves Tomb. We travel to Forest Gate, I draw 2 cards, Lorein Guide Swift Strike.
Engagement and Combat
I optionally engage the King Spider so it wont go after Megan. Then the East Bight Patrol engages me. Deal out shadow cards. Frodo blocks East Bight Patrol, I then spend 2 resources from Beorn to play Swift Strike to deal it 2 damage before it hits me. Exhaust Unexpected Courage to ready Frodo, who will block the King Spider with 3 defense vs it’s 3 attack. Shadow Card Ungoliant’s Spawn. Raise my mother f’n threat by 4. Frodo takes no damage Beorn and Glorfindel then rip the King Spider to shreds in revenge.
Ready cards, and raise threats by 1.
Turn6 Quest 3-B Progress 6
- Me: 28
- Megan: 33
Resource up, Megan draws Snowborn Scout. I draw Ring Mail. She plays Bill the Pony for free because Sam. She then plays Snowborn Scout, spending Theodred’s resource on it. It puts 1 resource on Forest Gate. I play Dwarven Tomb to get back Galadrhim’s Greeting then play it to lower my threat to 22.
Questing
Megan send Bill and the 3 heroes and uses Faramir’s ability to increase their willpower to 13. I send Glorfindel and Frodo for another 5. I use unexpected courage to ready Frodo.
Willpower total: 18.
Necromancer’s Reach comes out and rapes Megan’s team. Then, yet another Forest Spider (really? 4 of these things?).
18 – 2 = 16 progress tokens. 3 go the Forest Gate, and the remaining 13 go to the quest card.
Wrap-up
We follow the secret path, fending off spiders, until we see a small amount of light shining through the trees. We push ourselves harder, fighting off the last few spiders in our way, and we break into a large opening. The light is almost blinding, we had been in the dark so long. As we regained our bearing, we looked around and realized we were no longer being followed by that vile darkness that has overtaken the forest.
DONE!
Total score: 123
Threats 22 + 33 + 60 (6 turns x 10) + 4 damage on Boern + 2 damage on Theodred + 2 damage on Sam.
This was a pretty good play through. We have done deck combinations where we have come through will lower scores, however, I have never been the attack deck while still having spirit cards. Nor has Megan ever taken Sam as her hero. Numerous times throughout this Play-Through, she mentioned how she really enjoyed the new addition of good ‘ol Samwise Gamgee to her deck.
The Cliched Tavern 