A new TOR starter set and LotR RPG starter set are out for The One Ring and The Lord of the Rings RPG. While the original Shire starter set is great for details on the Shire itself, the included adventure doesn’t reflect how the core rules run, especially with the type of Player-heroes usually played. This new set kicks off in the Prancing Pony, which all the cultures of Middle-earth visit. It is a great launching point for a new campaign for a GM wanting to build their own RPG version of Middle-earth.
Player-heroes
The included pregen Player-heroes (player characters) include all the races of Middle-earth: Dwarf, Elf, Halfling, and Man, including a Barding and a Dúnedain. While great for a one shot, pregens may not be the best choice for a long-term campaign. However, these Player-heroes work well as NPCs and could be become a temporary back up Player-hero if a PC falls in battle. GMs new to Middle-earth roleplaying can also reverse engineer these Player-heroes to see how character creation works before aiding players in creating new PCs.
While the pregens include a Hobbit from the Shire, a player creating a Player-hero could instead choose to play a Bree-hobbit (The One Ring page 181). Bree-hobbits are a fascinating blend of Men and Hobbit cultures via the melting pot that is Bree itself. Bree-hobbits have the physical traits of Hobbits but share the same skills and outlook as the Men of Bree. Their family names and Cultural Virtues are a blend of Men and Hobbit cultures.
Prancing Pony in Bree
Of all the locations to choose from in Eriador in the Third Age, the Prancing Pony may be the most cosmopolitan. While this may seem odd for a small inn in a backwater of Middle-earth, the Prancing Pony has many unique characteristics. Bree, home to the Prancing Pony, is a community of both Men and Hobbits living together equally. Nowhere else in Middle-earth of the Third Age does a community like this one exist. Hobbiton is much more insular.
The Prancing Pony also sees many visitors from other cultures: Dwarves, Rangers, and even Wizards. While Elves may be less common in Bree, the other cultures are seen often and are not considered that unusual (although Rangers are ironically regarded with some suspicion).
Gilraen the Fair as Patron
The mother of Aragorn is the recommended Patron for Player-heroes operating out of Bree. While her son is chieftain of the Rangers of the North, he travels extensively and in his absence the captains of the Dúnedain seek out Gilraen, knowing her to a wise and prudent counsellor.
Player-heroes who choose Gilraen the Fair as Patron will find Journeys anywhere in the old realm of Arnor much easier undertakings. They will also never want for rumors from the wider world when they seek her counsel.
Over Hill and Under Hill
The included adventure has everything Middle-earth roleplaying has to offer: roleplaying, travel, combat, discovery, magic, and fell Shadow. Classic foes include both orcs and wargs. The enemies have a mix of melee and ranged attacks with the wargs having Great Leap, allowing them a likely surprising attack on any Player-hero, even one sheltering in a Rearward stance. There is even a handout with a letter to the Player-heroes from Gilraen on one side and Company Journey log on the other complete with a blank hex map.
PCs will travel into the North Downs. They will explore a ruined village as well as a goblin lair. Maps for both are included. The adventure allows the PCs to make many decisions that can change their chances of success and modify the number of foes encountered. A GM will find much useful advice.
The Player-heroes will even have the chance to find unusual treasure. Orcish blasting fire is unique to this adventure and cunning GMs may arm orcs with it in future battles. Also, the Player-heroes may recover Naurnaith, Araf’s Bane an Elven great spear designed for fighting the wolves of Sauron.
While the adventure does not offer future adventure possibilities, the core rules expand on what can be found in the North Downs. The ruined city of Fornost Erain (The One Ring page 196) contains three Landmarks that Player-heroes may well be interested in exploring. There is also a table for random encounters.
Condensed Rules, Map (Combat and Eriador), Standees, and Dice
While not all the rules from the core rulebooks are used, the condensed rules are more than sufficient for running the included adventure. Of interest to any GM is a more fully fleshed out rule for combat stances. Included is a map for tracking combat stances and standees for marking which Player-hero is in which stance and what foes they are engaged with. I was using a hand made version of this map from the first edition, so having a colorful map depicting the wilds of Middle-earth to use along with stand-up cardboard minis is a great addition to the game.
On the other side of the combat map is a map of Eriador. The North Downs are depicted north of Bree. Part of the Lone-lands, the North Downs mark a departure from civilization and stand as a reminder of the dangers of the wild lands farther north. The ruined city of Fornost is south of the North Downs and plenty of adventures can be had there as well.
Both Fornost and the North Downs are Dark Lands and Journey Events there are rolled as Ill-favoured. However, if the Player-heroes have Gilraen as a Patron, these lands are instead considered Border Lands and Journey Events are rolled as Favoured!
A white set of dice is included for the box set made for The One Ring. Unlike the dice I received from the Kickstarter which were made with an error, these dice have a 1 instead of an 11 on both d12s which will cut down on confusion when rolling.
Next Steps
Player-heroes who defeat orcs and wargs and return with an Elvish great spear will have started earning a reputation as worthy heroes. An entire campaign focused on lost Arnor will have kicked off. The core rules contain plenty of support for additional adventures and a book of six adventures set in the Lone-lands is also available to aid in further worldbuilding and adventuring: Tales From the Lone-lands and Tales From Eriador 5E. As always, The One Ring receives my highest recommendation and remains one of my favorite RPGs.
Picture credit: Pixabay
