While Side Street is in the staging area, progress cannot be placed on other locations in the staging area.
Travel: Shuffle the encounter discard pile into the encounter deck and discard cards until a location is discarded. Add that location to the staging area.
While Catacombs is in the staging area, enemies in the staging area cannot take damage.
Travel: Each player discards the top card of the encounter deck. If a player discards an enemy this way, he puts it into play engaged with him.
When Revealed: Resolve the Travel effect on the active location. If there is no active location, discard cards from the encounter deck until a location is discarded. Add that location to the staging area.
Shadow: If this attack destroys a character, resolve the Travel effect on the active location.
The longer you wander the streets, the more unwanted attention you attract.
Each location in the staging area gets +1
Forced: After Unwelcome Travelers becomes the current quest, the first player discards cards from the top of the encounter deck until an enemy is discarded and puts it into play engaged with him.
4
1
5
While Thane of Ulchor is engaged with a player, Ulchor's Guard engages that player.
Shadow: Attacking enemy gets +2 until the end of the phase.
When Revealed: Thane Ulchor makes an immediate attack against the first player. If no attack is made this way, Ulchor's Rage gains surge.
Shadow: Deal 1 damage to the defening character.
While attached to an enemy, counts as a Condition attachment with the text: "Attached enemy gets +1 +1 +1 and is immune to player card effects."
When Revealed: Attach to the Easterling enemy with the lowest without a copy of Fanaticism. Otherwise, Fanaticism gains surge.
6
4
9
Immune to player card effects.
Kham–l the Easterling engages the first player.
Only the engaged player can declare attackers or defenders against Kham–l the Easterling.
Immune to player card effects.
The player cannot travel here.
Each player's threat elimination level is reduced by 5.
...wall upon wall, battlement upon battlement, black, immeasurably strong, mountain of iron, gate of steel, tower of adamant, he saw it: Barad–d–r, Fortress of Sauron. All hope left him.
–The Fellowship of the Ring
When Revealed: Each player with more than 5 cards in his hand discards cards from his hand until he has only 5.
Forced: After a player draws any number of cards, he raises his threat by 1.
"Nothing can hide from them."
–Gollum, The Two Towers
Forced: After a non-unique enemy engages a player, that enemy cannot take damage until the end of the round.
...here the Dark Power, moving its armies like pieces on the board, was gathering them together.
–The Return of the King
Each player's threat cannot be reduced by more than 1 each round by player card effects.
Darkness lay there under the Sun. Fire glowed amid the smoke. Mount Doom was burning, and a great reek rising.
–The Fellowship of the Ring
6
4
12
Immune to player card effects.
X is 1 more than the number of Castle side quests in the victory display.
Forced: After Thane Ulchor attacks, reveal the top card of the encounter deck.
3
1
4
Forced: After Soldier of Nurn attacks, place 1 card from your hand facedown under a Castle side quest.
Shadow: Attacking enemy gets +1 If this attack destroys a character, place 1 card from your hand facedown under a Castle side quest.
4
2
3
When Revealed: Either reveal an additional encounter card, or no progress can be placed on the current quest this phase.
Shadow: Attacking enemy gets +1 for each Castle side quest in the victory display.
6
3
9
Cannot have attachments.
Forced: After Mordor Olog-hai attacks and destroys a character you control, exhaust a character you control.
Shadow: Attacking enemy gets +2
2
1
2
Forced: After Guard Dogs engages you, deal 1 damage to a character you control.
Shadow: Put Guard Dogs into play engaged with you.
While Fortress Walls is in the staging area, the cost to play each ally is increased by 1.
Travel: Each player places 1 card from his hand under a Castle side quest.
While Guard Tower is in the staging area, players cannot draw cards or gain resources from player card effects.
Travel: Each player exhausts a character he controls.
X is 1 more than the number of Castle side quests in the victory display.
Travel: Each player assigns X damage characters he controls.
...nothing could waft away the glooms and the sad mists that clung about...
–The Return of the King
When Revealed: Until the end of the phase, add 2 to the staging area. Add 2 additional for each Castle side quest in the victory display.
Shadow: Exhaust a character you control.
When Revealed: Deal 1 damage to each exhausted character. Discard an attachment from each character damaged by this effect.
Shadow: Discard an attachment you control.
"His arm has grown long."
–Gandalf, The Fellowship of the Ring
The dungeons of Dol Rhugar are full of prisoners with no hope of escape.
No more than 4 progress can be placed on the current quest each round.
Response: When this stage is defeated, the first player chooses a Castle side quest. Each player looks at his facedown cards under that quest and adds 1 to his hand.
Your quest to defeat Thane Ulchor has brought you to his stronghold in Mordor.
Setup: Player decks cannot exceed 50 cards. Create the Power of Mordor deck (see insert) and set it next to the quest deck. Each player puts 1 copy of Ulchor's Guard into play engaged with him. Add Thane Ulchor and all 4 copies of the Storm the Castle side quest to the staging area. Place the top card of the Power of Mordor deck faceup under each side quest in play. Each player places 8 cards from top of his deck under the quest deck and each side quest in play.
You lead an army of rescued slaves in a surprise attack on Ulchor's fortress.
Thane Ulchor cannot leave the staging area.
While there are at least 3 progress tokens on this stage, it cannot be chosen as the current quest stage during the quest phase.
This stage cannot be defeated unless it is the end of the round and there are 3 Castle side quests in the victory display.
You have reached the great hall inside Dol Rhugar. There you find Ulchor, Thane of Nurn, waiting for you. "You arrogant fools!" he says, rising to his full height. "You have pursued me all this way only to die here where my power is at its strongest!"
When Revealed: Reveal the top card of The Power of Mordor deck. Shuffle the encounter discard pile into the encounter deck. Thane Ulchor makes an immediate attack against each player in turn order.
Ulchor strikes at you with undeniable power, but you hold your ground. You will either see him finally brought low, or die valiantly in the attempt.
Encounter card effects cannot be canceled.
The number of damage tokens on Than Ulchor cannot exceed the number of progress tokens here.
When Thane Ulchor is defeated, the players win the game.
You charge into the castle, not knowing what you will find within...
The faceup encounter card underneath this quest is not in play.
Forced: When this quest becomes the current quest, reveal the faceup encounter card under it. Then, flip this card ovewr and make it the current quest until the end of the phase.
When Revealed: Discard cards from the top of the encounter deck until X enemies are discarded, where X is the number of players. Add each enemy discarded this way to the staging area.
When this stage is defeated, shuffle each player card underneath it into its owner's deck. Then, each player draws 1 card.
You charge into the castle, not knowing what you will find within...
The faceup encounter card underneath this quest is not in play.
Forced: When this quest becomes the current quest, reveal the faceup encounter card under it. Then, flip this card ovewr and make it the current quest until the end of the phase.
When Revealed: Deal 1 damage to each character in play.
When this stage is defeated, shuffle each player card underneath it into its owner's deck. Then, each player draws 1 card.
You charge into the castle, not knowing what you will find within...
The faceup encounter card underneath this quest is not in play.
Forced: When this quest becomes the current quest, reveal the faceup encounter card under it. Then, flip this card ovewr and make it the current quest until the end of the phase.
When Revealed: Each player randomly discards 4 of his cards from under this quest. Then, each player discards each card he controls, or holds in his hand, that share a title with one of the cards he just discarded.
When this stage is defeated, shuffle each player card underneath it into its owner's deck. Then, each player draws 1 card.
You charge into the castle, not knowing what you will find within...
The faceup encounter card underneath this quest is not in play.
Forced: When this quest becomes the current quest, reveal the faceup encounter card under it. Then, flip this card ovewr and make it the current quest until the end of the phase.
When Revealed: Discard cards from the top of the encounter deck until X locations are discarded, where X is the number of players. Added each location discarded this way to the staging area.
When this stage is defeated, shuffle each player card underneath it into its owner's deck. Then, each player draws 1 card.