While Lightless Grotto is in the staging area, non-unique enemies in the staging area cannot take damage.

Travel: The first player chooses an enemy in the staging area and engages it.

Cannot be optionally engaged.

While Elder Nameless Thing is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: After players have committed characters to the quest, Elder Nameless Thing makes an attack against the first player.

While Silent Caverns is in the staging area, each player's threat cannot be reduced by more than 1 each round.

Travel: Raise each player's threat by 2.

While Dreadful Gap is in the staging area, progress cannot be placed on other locations in the staging area.

Travel: The opposing team chooses a card in the encounter discard pile and shuffles it into the encounter deck.

While The Great Bridge is in the staging area, no more than 1 character can be declared as an attacker against each enemy.

Forced: When The Great Bridge is explored, reveal 1 encounter card per player.

While Forked Passage is in the staging area, raise each player's threat by 1 additional point during the refresh phase.

Travel: Raise each player's threat by 1.

Boarding 2. Cannot have attachments.

While Black Sails is in the staging area, it gains Archery 3.

Shadow: If attacking enemy is a Ship return it to the staging area after this attack.

Boarding 3. Cannot have attachments.

While Corsair Warship is in the staging area, it cannot be damaged and gains Archery 4.

...ships of great draught with many oars, and with black sails bellying in the breeze.
–The Return of the King

While Mouths of Anduin is in the staging area, is gains:"Forced: After a 'when revealed' effect is canceled, reveal the top card of the encounter deck."

Shadow: If this attack is undefended, reveal the top card of the encounter deck.

While Tofalas Landing is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: After a player draws any number of cards from a player card effect, that player raises their threat by that number."

Shadow: Raise your threat by 1 (3 instead if you have 5 or more cards in hand).

Progress cannot be placed on Dark Pools while it is in the staging area.

Forced: After Dark Pools becomes the active location, each player must discard an ally with the highest printed cost among the allies he controls.

'And there in the dark pools amid the Gladden Fields,'he said, 'the Ring passed out of knowledge and legend...'
–The Fellowship of the Ring

While Troll Lair is in the staging area, players cannot reduce their threat.

Shadow: If attacking enemy is a Troll remove 4 damage tokens from it.

While Labyrinthine Woods is in the staging area, Creature enemies get +1 and +1

Shadow: After this attack, attacking enemy engages the next player and makes an immediate attack.

Progress cannot be placed on Deceptive Path while it is in the staging area.

Forced: After Deceptive Path becomes the active location, shuffle the encounter discard pile into the encounter deck and discard cards from the top of the encounter deck until a location is discarded. Reveal that location and make it the active location. Then, discard Deceptive Path.

While Snow-Giant is in the staging area, it attacks the first player during the combat phase, as if it were engaged.

Forced: After Snow-Giant engages you, discard the ally you control with the highest

While Frozen Silverlode is in the staging area, characters cannot gain from player card effects.

Shadow: Defending character gets -1 Deal the attacking enemy 1 additional shadow card.

"...and there the River Silverlode rises in its icy springs."
–Gandalf, The Fellowship of the Ring

While The Watcher is in the staging area, it cannot be damaged by player card effects.

If The Watcher is in the staging area at the end of the combat phase, each player must deal 3 damage to 1 character he controls.

While Banks of Sirannon is in the staging area, each Tentacle enemy gets +2

Shadow: For each point of damage dealt by this attack, the defending player must discard a random card from his hand.

While Nest of Horrors is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: When one or more cards are attached to a Nameless enemy from the top of a player's deck, attach an additional card from the top of that player's deck."

Travel: Each player at this stage discards the top card of the encounter deck to travel here. Reveal each Nameless enemy discarded by this effect.

While Shivering River is in the staging area, it contributes its to the total in each other player's staging area.

Shadow: Attacking enemy gets +1 (+3 instead if there is more than one player at this staging area.)

Progress cannot be placed on Fiery Depths while it is in the staging area.

Travel: Each player must move 1 damage from Durin's Bane to a hero to travel here.

Out of it a fierce red light came, and now and again flames licked at the brink and curled about the bases of the columns. –The Fellowship of the Ring

While Crumbling Stairs is in the staging area, event cards cost 1 additional matching resource to play from hand.

Shadow: If this attack destroys a character, the defending player must discard all event cards in his hand.

While Dockside Street is in the staging area, enemies in the staging area cannot be damaged or optionally engaged.

Travel: Exhaust the hero with Alcaron's Scroll attached to travel here.

While Dense Thickets is in the staging area, each Forest location in play gets +1

Shadow: Excess damage dealt by this attack (damage that is dealt beyond the remaining hit points of the character damaged by this attack) must be assigned to a Ranger objective in play.

While Rath Celerdain is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: At the beginning of the encounter phase, reveal the top card of the underworld deck. If it is an objective, discard it."

"...go down to the lowest circle and ask for the Old Guesthouse in the Rath Celerdain, the Lampwrights' Street." –Beregond, The Return of the King

Immune to player card effects.

While Devil's Mirk is in the staging area, characters cannot be healed.

While Devil's Mirk is the active location, each Wose enemy gets +2

While Stonewain Valley is in the staging area, resources discarded or spent by the first player for any reason are placed on Stonewain Valley.

Stonewain Valley gets +1 for each resource on it.

"Way is wide for four horses in Stonewain Valley yonder," he waved his hand southwards: "but narrow at beginning and at end." –Ghân–buri–Ghân, The Return of the King

Villagers 2.

While Overrun Village is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: After an enemy engages a player, discard 1 villager token from Overrun Village."

Travel: Place 1 damage token on Dead Villagers.

Immune to player card effects. Palace Remains gets +1 for each resource token on it.

The players cannot travel here unless there are at least 5 resource tokens on Palace Remains.

While Palace Remains is in the staging area, it gains"Forced: After a player takes control of a location, place 1 resource token here."

While Ephel Dúath is in the staging area, each Captain enemy gets +2

Shadow: Defending player must either place 1 progress token on To the Tower or treat this attack as undefended.

Dunland Assassin cannot be optionally engaged by a player with 3 or more cards in his hand.

While Dunland Assassin is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: After the first player draws any number of cards, Dunland Assassin makes an immediate attack against him."

X is the number of cards in the first player's hand.

While Western Shore is in the staging area, each enemy gets -X engagement cost.

Shadow: If you have 5 or more cards in your hand, this attack is considered undefended.

While Eastern Shore is in the staging area, each player cannot play more than 1 event each round.

Shadow: Attacking enemy gets +1 If this attack destroys a character, remove 1 time counter from the current quest.

While Isen River is in the staging area, each player cannot discard cards from his hand.

Forced: After Isen River becomes the active location, each player draws a card

Now further, and now nearer Isen flowed in its stony bed.
–The Two Towers

While Methedras Lookout is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: At the end of the refresh phase, remove 1 time counter from the current quest."

Shadow: Either exhaust a character you control, or return attacking enemy to the staging area.

While Tangled Forest is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: After any amount of progress is removed from the current quest, assign X damage amoung characters in play. X is the number of progress just removed. This ability does not stack with other copies of Tangled Forest."

While Entwood is in the staging area, each Huorn enemy in the staging area gains: "Immune to player card effects."

Travel: The first player engages the highest engagement cost Huorn enemy in the staging area.

While Dark Corner of Fangorn is in the staging area, each Huorn enemy loses the hinder keyword.

Forced: After Dark Corner of Fangorn becomes the active location, each engaged Huorn enemy makes an immediate attack.

"...it is perilous to touch the trees of that wood, it is said."
–Aragorn, The Two Towers

While Munuv D–v River is in the staging area, it gainst:"Forced: After a player draws any number of cards, he deals 1 shadow card to an enemy engaged with him."

Shadow: Raise your threat by 1 for each enemy engaged with you.

While Hithaeglir Woods is in the staging area, each Dunland enemy in the staging area cannot take damage.

Travel: Deal each Dunland enemy a shadow card to travel here.

While Sacred Forest is in the staging area, each Guardian enemy gains:"Forced: After any number of time counters are removed from this enemy, heal 2 damage on it for each time counter removed."

Travel: Remove each time counter from an enemy in play to travel here.

While City of Spies is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: When you commit a character to the quest, raise your threat by 1. This effect does not stack with other copies of City of Spies."

While Desolate Meadow is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: After any number of time counters are removed from the current quest, heal 2 damage on each Creature enemy in play."

Shadow: If this attack destroys a character, remove all progress from the current quest.

While Peat Bog is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: After the players advance to a quest stage, each player discards 1 random card from his hand."

Dead grasses and rotting reeds loomed up in the mists like ragged shadows of long–forgotten summers.
–The Two Towers

Progress cannot be placed on Weather-torn Valley while it is in the staging area.

While Weather-torn valley is active location, Weather cards cannot be canceled.

...suddenly a light came in the sky, and there was a noise of thunder.
–The Fellowship of the Ring

While Ruined Watch-tower is in the staging area, it gains:"Forced: When an Orc enemy is revealed, each player must deal 1 damage to a character he controls.

While Ruined Watch-tower is the active location, each enemy gets +3

While Fornost Street is in the staging area, each other Fornost location gets +1

Travel: Return the topmost enemy in the encounter discard pile to the staging area.

Shadow: Each Undead enemy engaged with you gets +1 and +1 until the end of the phase.

While Snowy Badlands is in the staging area, each enemy in the staging area cannot take damage.

Travel: Each player deals 1 damage to an exhausted character he controls to travel here (2 damage instead if it is Night).

You cannot travel to a safe location while Scavenging Stone-troll has no damage on it.

While Scavenging Stone-troll is in the staging area, cards in each player's discard pule cannot leave that discard pile.