The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Trick-Taking Game is a 1 to four player game that takes about 10 to 20 minutes per round. It is published by Office Dog and designed by Bryan Bornmueller. The beautiful art was made by Elaine Ryan and Samuel Shimota and if you told me that I’d be writing about a Lord of the Rings game, I would have laughed. I used to be the person who said "eh, hard no" to anything LotR. But after falling for Duel for Middle-earth (read that saga here), I am officially "one of those people." I’ve seen the movies, read the books, and even went to a Filmharmonic Orchestra performance.
The "Hard Pass"
I’ll be honest: I saw this game at Millennium and gave it a hard pass. But then, a friend of ours had us over for a double date night and, voila! After playing a few chapters, I realized I had made a huge mistake. I didn't just like it; I had to own it. Next day, I went back to my favorite store and purchased me a copy.
The Vibe: A Story in Every Trick
This isn't just a one-off card game; it’s an 18-chapter campaign. You play through chapters that more or less follow the plot of the first book. What’s amazing is the attention to detail. The game is very thematic and characters are replaced as the story evolves.
What’s in the Box?
Stunning Art: The cards have a beautiful stained glass look
- High-Quality Components: Textured cards and even velvet tabs in the box to help you lift the cards out (it’s the little things!)
- Tokens: There are four tokens that are used to depict mandatory characters as well as completed tasks. There's also a ring token that is monochromatic black until a ring card is played
- Secret Envelopes: There are sections labeled Part 1 and Part 2 that you only open once you've progressed. No spoilers here, but the surprise is worth it!
How It Plays
If you’ve played The Crew, you’ll feel at home, but with a Middle-earth twist. It’s a cooperative trick-taking game where the "puzzle" changes every chapter.
The Deal: Each chapter starts with dealing out the entire deck to the players. Since it's a campaign, the number of cards in your hand can vary, but the tension is always the same: you have exactly enough cards to either succeed gloriously or fail miserably
- Character Roles: This is the soul of the game. Each player takes on a member of the Fellowship with a specific goal
- The Suits: Forest, Mountain, Hill, and Shadow (1-8) plus a special Ring suit (1-5)
- The One Ring: The 1 card of the Ring suit is the strongest in the game, but the player can choose not to win the trick with it if the team needs them to lose!
- Communication: Unlike The Crew, communication is very limited. You can’t show your hand or discuss preferences, which makes the one more try factor very high. Additionally, only a few characters allow you to switch cards with others before the start of each game
Scaling: Two-Player vs. Group Play
I’ve played this two ways:
- Double Date Night: We've completed this at four during double date nights including the 16.5 chapter micro expansion, and are currently 4 chapters in with another couple. The husband loves LotR but usually hates trick-taking games, yet he’s hooked!
- Two-Player Mode: I finished the campaign with my wife. In this mode, you use a card pyramid (similar to 7 Wonders Duel or LotR Middle Earth Duel) to act as a third player. It works surprisingly well
The Challenge
Let’s talk about Chapter 12. It took us 19 tries. Yes, 19! We almost lost our minds until we realized we were slightly misinterpreting the rules for face up cards. Once we cleared that up, it was doable, but man, the tension was real. Even when we were frustrated, we immediately wanted to reset and try one more time.
Pros
- Small box. Huge game
- Plays well at every count
- Forces teamwork without quarterbacking
- The campaign has the perfect learning curve
- Beautiful art: I really enjoy the stain glass look of the cards
- Super thematic: each character's goal feels like something they’d actually do
- The one more turn factor: It’s addictive. You’ll say you’re stopping at 10:00 PM and
- find yourself shuffling at midnight
Considerations
Communication barriers: there's no way to signal explicitly a card like in The Crew which is something that would have come handy at times.
- Mini expansion (chapter 16.5) is not easily available as it was a promo
- If you didn't grow up with trick taking games, it takes a few rounds to make sense
- Replayability: Some say once the story is done, it's over. I disagree! Knowing what's coming doesn't make the puzzle of the cards any easier
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re a LotR super-fan or a trick-taking veteran, this is a solid addition to the shelf. It’s compact, beautiful, and the campaign structure keeps things fresh. If you can survive Chapter 12, you can survive anything! For something similar, but theme independent try The Crew. Once you get hooked with this one, you'll want to check out the Two Towers sequel!
