Lord of the Rings 126, 127 - Journey Along the Anduin 11

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Trying the Elrond/Vilya deck again.

Initial hand:

  1. Vilya
  2. Light of Valinor
  3. Self-preservation
  4. Unexpected Courage
  5. Imladris Stargazer
  6. Fili

Encounter: Goblin Sniper and Hill Troll.

Round 1

  1. Resource: 3, draw Northern Tracker
  2. Planning: none, this could be gruesome.
  3. Quest: Eowyn, draw second Hill Troll. Scoop.

Let's try it again with the Rohan deck.

Game 127, Journey Along the Anduin 12

Initial hand:

  1. Path of Need
  2. A Test of Will
  3. Stand and Fight
  4. Snowbourn Scout
  5. Hasty Stroke
  6. The Riddermark's Finest

Encounter: Misty Mountain Goblins.

Round 1

  1. Resource: 3, draw Valiant Sacrifice.
  2. Planning: none.
  3. Quest: Theodred, Eowyn, draw The East Bight, net +2 Progress on quest.
  4. Travel: The East Bight.
  5. Encounter: Misty Mountain Goblins.
  6. Combat: Dunhere defends, shadow Gladden Fields for no effect. Dunhere takes 1 hit.
  7. Refresh: Threat 26.

Not bad. Not dead yet at least.

Round 2

  1. Resource: 7, draw Valiant Sacrifice.
  2. Planning: Snowbourn Scout.
  3. Quest: Eowyn, Theodred, draw Dol Guldur Orcs.
  4. Travel: none.
  5. Encounter: Dol Guldur Orcs.
  6. Combat: Snowbourn defends Misty Mountain Goblins, shadow Necromancer's Reach for no effect, Snowbourn Scout is dead, play Valiant Sacrifice and draw West Road Traveler and Stand and Fight. Dunhere defends Dol Guldur Orcs, shadow Wargs for +1 attack, Dunhere takes 2 hits.
  7. Refresh: Threat 27.

Round 3

  1. Resource: 9, draw Ride to Ruin.
  2. Planning: play The Riddermark's Finest and West Road Traveler.
  3. Quest: Eowyn, draw The Brown Lands which is Threat 5, and that's almost surely the game as I now have Threat 30.
  4. Travel:
  5. Encounter:
  6. Combat:
  7. Refresh: Threat

Scooping again. Bummer.

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What to play next?

Deciding what to play next is always a tough call when faced with a closet full of games, all of which were purchased with intent to play. Here's one I'm dealing with the decision.

  • Something New: this means both something new to me and a game which has been published recently, within the last two or three years.
  • Something Classic: I've acquired a number of games properly considered "classic" which haven't yet been played. The current example would be PanzerGruppe Guderian.
  • Something Again: mastery requires constant practice, which means playing games many, many times to allow nuance to appear.
  • Something Vietnam: as I'm on a Vietnam binge. I don't have all the Vietnam games ever published, but I can say that I have a lot of them, and probably more than most people.
  • Something Obscure: as it's fun to poke around in the dustier corners of game design.
  • Something Different: break away from the same old publishers and try a game from one of the new kids on the block. Or, conversely, dip into legacy with a classic tried and true.
  • Something Light: once in a while it's nice to actually finish a game all the way through in one sitting, in an hour or two.
  • Something Heavy: if possible, it's nice to set up something big and complicated which can be left out for days or weeks or even months, for a leisurely stroll through a very large or long game.

There are surely many more ways to choose, but the above method keeps me busy enough, helps me get both breadth and depth into my play, and provides me with a sense of progress.

The odd man out

When there is an odd man out:

  • Have a solo game ready to play.
  • Keep score or advise on a game in progress.
  • Referee a game in progress.