Lord of the Rings Board Games: strategy board game
The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring: How a Turn Works
The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring is a strategy board game for 2 to 4 players, based on Tolkien's novel. One side guides the Ring-bearers toward Mount Doom; the other hunts them and marches armies across Middle-earth.
- 2011
- 2-4 players
- 120+ minutes
- Ages 14+
- strategy board game
- Ares Games
Designers: Roberto Di Meglio, Marco Maggi, Francesco Nepitello
Get your dice ready, set the armies marching, and keep an eye on that small hobbit. Here’s how a turn Works.
Each War of the Ring turn has six phases, but most decisions happen during one of them: action dice. This short guide covers the flow of a two-player game. For a broader look, the Lord of the Rings board games page compares it with lighter options.
The Free Peoples start with 4 dice, and the Shadow with 7.
War of the Ring: A Quick Guide to One Turn
A turn has six phases. During phase five, the Free Peoples and Shadow players alternate actions, so that’s where most of the game happens.
A 6 on a Hunt die succeeds; Free Peoples dice in the Hunt Box add 1.
- Step 1:
Phase 1, recover dice and draw: each player retrieves the action dice used last turn, then draws one card from each of their two event decks.
- Step 2:
Phase 2, Fellowship: the Free Peoples player may reveal the Fellowship’s location. If it’s in a Free Peoples city or stronghold, that nation becomes active and the Ring-bearers can heal. The Guide may also change.
- Step 3:
Phase 3, Hunt allocation: the Shadow player puts action dice in the Hunt Box, up to the number of Companions remaining in the Fellowship. They must put in at least one if a Free Peoples die was there last turn.
- Step 4:
Phase 4, action roll: both players roll their remaining action dice. The Shadow player moves every Eye result to the Hunt Box.
- Step 5:
Phase 5, action resolution: the Free Peoples player goes first, then players alternate using one die at a time to move armies, recruit, play event cards, advance diplomacy or move the Fellowship.
- Step 6:
Each step the Fellowship moves triggers a Hunt. The Shadow player rolls dice equal to the number of Shadow dice in the Hunt Box; each 6 is a hit.
- 7Step 7:
Battles play out in rounds. Each side rolls one die per army unit, up to five, and scores a hit on a 5 or 6. Leaders let you reroll misses.
- 8Step 8:
Phase 6, victory check: if neither side controls enough settlements for a military victory, a new turn begins. Ring-based wins end the game immediately.
The turn summary skips setup, the Hunt and battle resolution, all crucial parts of the game. The next section explains both routes to victory, the Hunt for the Ring and combat. If you’d rather play a cooperative game than face off, you may prefer Journeys in Middle-earth.
How to Play War of the Ring Second Edition: A Detailed Guide
Setup
Set out the board and place the Ring-bearers figure in Rivendell. Set the Fellowship Progress counter to step 0 on the Fellowship Track, hidden side up, and the Corruption counter to step 0.
Put the three Elven Ring counters in their box and the Companion figures in the Fellowship box, with Gandalf the Grey as Guide. Set aside the Gollum, Aragorn, Gandalf the White and Shadow Minion cards for later.
Set each nation’s Political counter to its starting step. All Free Peoples nations except the Elves begin passive.
Place each nation’s starting army units and leaders as shown in the Army Setup diagram. Keep the remaining units as reinforcements.
Sort each side’s event cards into character and strategy decks, then shuffle and place them. Put the standard Hunt tiles in a cup to make the Hunt Pool.
Give the Shadow player seven action dice and the Free Peoples player four. Keep the five combat dice nearby.
Turn by turn
Action dice
Each die face shows an action: Character, Army, Muster, Event or a combined Muster/Army face. The Free Peoples also have a Will of the West face; the Shadow has an Eye. You can skip an action and discard a die instead.
Armies and movement
An Army die lets you move up to two different armies one region each, or attack. A Character die moves one army with a leader, or moves Companions or Nazgul. Armies can split, but they cannot cross black impassable borders.
Muster and politics
A Muster die either moves a nation one step toward At War on the Political Track or recruits reinforcements. A Free Peoples nation must be active before it can reach At War. Attacking a nation’s army also advances it.
Moving the Fellowship
The Free Peoples spend a die to move the Fellowship Progress counter one step, then put that die in the Hunt Box. The Shadow player makes a Hunt roll each time, so moving the Fellowship more than once per turn makes the Hunt easier.
Event cards
An Event die lets you draw a card or play any event card. Muster, Army and Character dice can each play an event card of their own type. At the start of a battle round, players can play combat cards from the same hand.
End of the game and scoring
There are four ways to win. The Shadow wins at once if the Ring-bearers reach 12 or more Corruption. The Free Peoples win at once if they reach the Crack of Doom with fewer than 12. At the victory check, the Shadow wins with 10 victory points of Free Peoples settlements; the Free Peoples win with 4 points of Shadow settlements. A city is worth 1 point and a stronghold 2.
Key rules
The Hunt
The Hunt Level equals the number of Shadow dice in the Hunt Box. The Shadow player rolls that many combat dice, up to five; each 6 is a success. Each Free Peoples die in the box adds 1 to every roll.
Hunt damage
On a success, the Shadow player draws a Hunt tile from the pool. Its number shows the damage; an Eye tile counts the successes rolled, and a Reveal icon exposes the Fellowship. The Free Peoples can absorb damage by losing a Companion or taking Corruption.
Battles
Each round, players may play a combat card, roll one die per army unit up to five, re-roll misses equal to Leadership, then remove casualties. A 1 always misses, and a 6 always hits. The attacker can then stop fighting or retreat.
Casualties
Each hit removes one Regular unit or turns one Elite unit into a Regular. Free Peoples casualties leave the game; Shadow casualties return to reinforcements.
Shadow Minions
Nazgul can move anywhere on the map with one Character die, but cannot enter a region with a Free Peoples stronghold unless it is besieged. The Witch-king, Saruman and the Mouth of Sauron each add one die to the Shadow pool when they enter play.
Tips for your first game
- The Free Peoples have fewer dice than the Shadow, so make each action count.
- Keep an eye on the Political Track early: a passive nation cannot reach At War until it has been activated.
- Check victory points every turn. A military win can end the game before the Ring does anything.
- Save some Shadow dice for army orders instead of spending them all on the Hunt.
- Read the combat card text before you choose one. Requirements are printed in bold.
In battle, 5 or 6 hits. A 1 always misses, and a 6 always hits.
The rules are only half the story. The game draws its tension from Tolkien’s book, with a small party slipping through a world at war. Read on for details about the designers, this edition and its ties to Tolkien’s work rather than the films.
Game background and the story behind it
At 12 Corruption, the Shadow wins immediately.
The game
Design and release
Roberto Di Meglio, Marco Maggi and Francesco Nepitello designed War of the Ring. Nexus Editrice first published it in Italy, and Fantasy Flight Games released the English edition in 2004. Ares Games published the Second Edition in 2011.
Editions and reprints
The Collector's Edition, with hand-painted miniatures, arrived in 2010 with corrected rules and cards. Battles of the Third Age followed in 2006. Under Ares Games, the line expanded with Lords of Middle-earth, Warriors of Middle-earth and Kings of Middle-earth (2023).
The film or series it covers
J.R.R. Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings, not the films. The rulebook opens with a quote from the book.
The board covers Middle-earth and its nations: the Free Peoples include Dwarves, Elves, Gondor, the North and Rohan; the Shadow includes Sauron, Isengard, the Southrons and Easterlings. The Fellowship, its Companions, Gollum and the Nazgul are all in play.
Scenes and story beats in the game
- 1
As in the book, the Fellowship starts in Rivendell.
- 2
Helm's Deep and the Fords of Isen are Rohan regions.
- 3
Saruman, the Witch-king and the Mouth of Sauron join the game as Shadow Minions.
- 4
Aragorn, Heir to Isildur, and Gandalf the White enter play with their own cards.
What’s in the War of the Ring box
- A rulebook and 2 player aids
- A game board in two fold-out sections
- 6 Free Peoples action dice and 10 Shadow action dice
- 5 six-sided combat dice
- 10 Companion cards, 1 Gollum card and 3 Minion cards
- 96 event cards in 4 decks of 24
- 205 plastic figures: 90 red Shadow units, 75 blue Free Peoples units, 20 gray leaders, 8 Nazgul, 8 Ring-bearers and Companions, 3 Minions and Gollum
- 76 cardboard counters and markers, including 24 Hunt tiles, 6 Army counters, 3 Elven Rings and 8 Nation Political counters
The base box has been reprinted and expanded for years, so it helps to know which add-ons are optional. Each entry below says what it brings. For the full line of games in this universe, see the fantasy board games hub.
The Free Peoples start with 4 dice, and the Shadow with 7.
War of the Ring expansions and editions
Collector's Edition 2010
Added hand-painted miniatures and a leather-bound rulebook, and corrected rules and cards.
Second Edition 2011
The Ares Games edition this page explains, with the rewritten Hunt sequence and combat card rules.
Lords of Middle-earth 2012
An Ares Games expansion for the Second Edition.
Warriors of Middle-earth 2016
An Ares Games expansion for the Second Edition.
Kings of Middle-earth 2023
An Ares Games expansion. Some listings give 2022.
War of the Ring: Questions and Answers
How do you play The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring?
Both players roll action dice each turn, then take turns spending one die at a time to move armies, recruit, play cards or move the Fellowship. The Free Peoples aim to destroy the Ring; the Shadow tries to corrupt the Ring-bearers or conquer Middle-earth.
How do you win War of the Ring?
There are four ways to win. The Shadow wins if the Ring-bearers reach 12 Corruption or it holds 10 victory points of Free Peoples settlements. The Free Peoples win by reaching the Crack of Doom with fewer than 12 Corruption or holding 4 points of Shadow settlements.
How many players does War of the Ring need?
It plays 2 to 4. In a three-player game, one player controls the Free Peoples while two share the Shadow. With four, two players share each side.
What is the Hunt for the Ring in War of the Ring?
The Hunt lets the Shadow player track the Ring-bearers. Whenever the Fellowship moves, the Shadow rolls dice equal to the Shadow dice in the Hunt Box. Each 6 succeeds and draws a damaging Hunt tile.
What changes in the War of the Ring Second Edition?
The Second Edition from 2011 revised the Hunt sequence, the use of combat cards and many event cards. The Shadow must also place at least one die in the Hunt Box if the Free Peoples retrieved one.
Is War of the Ring based on the films?
No. The rulebook opens with a quote from Tolkien's book, and the game is based on the novel, not the films.
A 6 on a Hunt die succeeds; Free Peoples dice in the Hunt Box add 1.
In battle, 5 or 6 hits. A 1 always misses, and a 6 always hits.
Sources
- Ares Games: War of the Ring Second Edition aresgames.eu
- Wikipedia: War of the Ring (board game) en.wikipedia.org