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The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship
#80BGG8.3RATINGHOT #10
Consulted 12 times·Updated Jun 12
1–5
PLAYERS
60–150
MINUTES
3
BEST WITH
3.1
HEAVY
DESIGNER CLARIFICATIONS1
Gwaihir Brings News allows troops from multiple adjacent source locationsdesigner
- CONTEXT
- The BGA digital implementation forces players to select a single source location before choosing the destination. A player raised this as a discrepancy with the card text, which says "Select a location adjacent to friendly troops. Move 1 or more of those troops to that location."
- RULING
- "Looks like a bug!" — The card allows selecting a destination and moving friendly troops there from any adjacent location(s). Troops from multiple adjacent locations may be moved to the selected destination. The BGA implementation requiring a single source first is incorrect.
Q&A22
"Put on the Ring" usable during the final ring-destruction actiondesigner
- QUESTION
- Can Frodo use the "Put on the Ring" ability while performing the final action to destroy the One Ring?
- ANSWER
- "Certainly!" — Yes. "Put on the Ring" can be used during the final destruction action. The hope loss is triggered before the roll, and an extra die is added.
Which shadow card effects trigger battles; which do notdesigner
- QUESTION
- Do shadow troops that appear via Reinforce cards, Skies Darken cards, event cards, objective cards, and Drums of War trigger battles when placed in locations with friendly troops?
- ANSWER
- "1 and 2: yes, because the rules explicitly call for it. 3, 4, and 5: no, because the rules do not explicitly call for it." Reinforce and Skies Darken cards trigger battles when placing troops in locations with friendly troops. Events, objective cards, and Drums of War do not trigger battles unless the card explicitly states otherwise.
Cannot attempt Destroy the One Ring until all other objectives completedesigner
- QUESTION
- Can Frodo begin spending resistance and making the search roll for Destroy the One Ring while other objectives are still incomplete?
- ANSWER
- No. Rulebook p.12: "He may attempt this only if the other objectives have been completed." No part of the Destroy the One Ring objective — including spending resistance or making the search roll — can be attempted until all other objectives are fully complete.
Ent troops placed by Entmoot count as Elven troopsdesignerpublisher
- QUESTION
- Do Ent troops placed by the Entmoot event card count as Elven troops for game mechanics and objectives (e.g., Lay Bare the Pits requiring 3 Elven troops in Dol Guldur)?
- ANSWER
- Yes. The Ents use Elven meeples and are treated as Elven troops for all game mechanics from the moment they are placed, including objective completion.
Enemy strongholds in Mordor can be captureddesignerpublisher
- QUESTION
- Can players capture enemy strongholds located in Mordor?
- ANSWER
- "They can." Mordor strongholds can be captured like any other enemy stronghold. There is even an objective that requires capturing a Mordor stronghold.
Captured strongholds do not receive shadow troop reinforcementsdesigner
- QUESTION
- When a shadow card instructs adding reinforcements, do troops get placed in strongholds that have been captured and are now havens?
- ANSWER
- No. Rulebook p.18: "if the indicated location was captured (and is now a haven), do not add the shadow troop." This applies to all captured strongholds, including those in Mordor.
AUTHOR: mleacock (Matt Leacock, designer), kevnburg (Kevin Ellenburg, designer)SOURCE: boardgamegeek.comDATE: 2025-08-27Capture-action objectives always grant +2 hopedesigner
- QUESTION
- Do objectives that require a capture action at a non-standard location (e.g., Deal with Freca's Heirs in Dunland, Infiltrate Minas Morgul) still grant the standard +2 hope?
- ANSWER
- Yes. "The Deal with Freca's Heirs objective says you can do the Capture action in Dunland, and the Capture action includes gaining 2 hope." Any objective that invokes the Capture action grants +2 hope, regardless of location.
Approximate deck division in setup is intentionaldesignerpublisher
- QUESTION
- Must the player deck be divided exactly equally when inserting Skies Darken cards during setup?
- ANSWER
- Approximate division is fine. "I just eyeball it... the point is to spread the Skies Darken cards out." The rulebook instruction "(If some piles are larger, put those nearest the top)" exists precisely to handle uneven splits naturally.
Characters are not troopscommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Do characters count as "friendly troops" for mechanics such as battle triggers, search rolls, and Gollum's travel restrictions?
- ANSWER
- No. Characters are not troops. Any reference to "friendly troops" ignores characters. Example 1: if shadow troops advance into a location containing only characters, there is no battle. Example 2: Gollum cannot bring along friendly troops with a travel action, but other characters can accompany Gollum during travel.
Nazgul and the Eye are not shadow troopscommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Do Nazgul or the Eye of Sauron count as shadow troops, and do they prevent capturing a stronghold?
- ANSWER
- No. Nazgul and the Eye are not shadow troops. Their presence in a region does not prevent players from capturing a stronghold in that region.
Definition of "present" for characters vs Nazgulcommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- What does "present" mean for abilities that trigger when a character or Nazgul is "present"?
- ANSWER
- For a character to be "present," they must occupy the same space/location as the active character. For Nazgul to be "present," they must occupy the same region as the active character (not necessarily the same location).
Symbol costs for actions and objectives cannot be split across playerscommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Can multiple players combine their cards and tokens to pay a character's action cost or complete an objective's symbol requirement?
- ANSWER
- No. Each player must pay their own character's action and ability costs using only their own tokens and cards. Other players cannot contribute, even if their characters share the location. For objectives, all required symbols must be paid by a single player on their turn — no splitting costs across players.
Search dice count is based on destination location, not origincommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Is the number of search dice determined by the location Frodo & Sam travel from or the location they travel to?
- ANSWER
- The destination. The number of search dice is determined by the location traveled to, not the location traveled from. If Frodo & Sam travel to a location with no enemy troops and no Nazgul in the region, no search dice are rolled — regardless of what was present at the starting location.
Each Frodo & Sam travel action requires a separate search rollcommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- If Frodo & Sam move multiple spaces in one turn, is there one combined search roll or one per space moved?
- ANSWER
- One per space. Each travel action involving Frodo & Sam requires its own separate search roll. A single stealth payment does not cover multiple searches in one turn — each roll has its own optional stealth payment.
Mordor path stealth cost does not cover search roll avoidancecommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- When Frodo & Sam spend stealth to travel a special path in Mordor, does that stealth also avoid the search roll?
- ANSWER
- No. The stealth spent to enter a special path satisfies only the path cost. A separate additional stealth must be spent to optionally avoid the search roll triggered by that travel action.
Free peoples can travel through enemy-occupied locations without triggering combatcommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Can Free Peoples characters and their troops travel through or into enemy-occupied locations without triggering a battle?
- ANSWER
- Yes. There is no automatically triggered combat when Free Peoples characters or troops enter an enemy-occupied location. A character must actively use an attack action to initiate battle. Only shadow troops automatically trigger battle when they move into a location containing friendly troops.
Éomer's "Rider of Rohan" bonus applies on both 1-action and 4-action turnscommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Can Éomer use his "Rider of Rohan" bonus travel when he is only the 1-action character, and when during his turn can he use it?
- ANSWER
- The bonus travel action is available whether Éomer is the 4-action or 1-action character. It can be taken before, between, or after any of his regular actions.
Aragorn's Andúril and Legolas's Sure Shot do not move the Eyecommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Do character abilities like Aragorn's Andúril or Legolas's Sure Shot that remove enemy troops move the Eye of Sauron?
- ANSWER
- No. The Eye only moves when (a) players take the attack or capture action, or (b) a card explicitly states the Eye moves. Character powers that remove shadow troops do not move the Eye.
Merry & Pippin's Distract attracts Nazgul from any locationcommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Must the Nazgul attracted by Merry & Pippin's "Distract" ability come from an adjacent location?
- ANSWER
- No. The "Distract" ability can attract Nazgul from any location on the board — adjacency is not required.
Faramir's Ambush can be used multiple times per turncommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Can Faramir use his "Ambush" bonus attack more than once per turn?
- ANSWER
- Yes. Faramir's "Ambush" bonus attack triggers once after each travel action, so it can be used multiple times in a turn. If Faramir travels 4 times, he may use Ambush up to 4 times. If Frodo & Sam are present, any search roll is resolved before the Ambush attack.
Gandalf's Shadowfax bonus lost if traveling with anyonecommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Does Gandalf's "Shadowfax" movement bonus still apply if he travels with friendly troops or other characters?
- ANSWER
- No. The "Shadowfax" bonus only triggers when Gandalf moves completely alone. The bonus is lost if he travels with troops or any other characters.
Gollum's Guide ability applies to the final ring-destruction search rollcommunity high-engagement
- QUESTION
- Can Gollum's "Guide" ability (reduce number of search dice) be used during the final search roll to destroy the One Ring?
- ANSWER
- Yes. Gollum's "Guide" can be used to reduce the number of dice for any search roll, including the final roll to destroy the One Ring.
EDGE CASES4
Gollum's -3 dice reduction applied before the 7-die maximum capcommunity high-engagement
- SITUATION
- Frodo & Sam are in a location where more than 10 dice would normally be rolled, and Gollum is present applying his -3 dice modifier.
- RULING
- The -3 dice reduction from Gollum's Guide is applied before the 7-die maximum cap. The effective roll is min(raw dice − 3, 7). A reduction that brings the total below 0 results in no roll.
Havens immediately lost when only shadow troops remaincommunity high-engagement
- SITUATION
- A character leaves a haven taking all friendly troops, while enemy units remain. Or, a battle in a haven eliminates the last friendly troop while enemy units survive.
- RULING
- A haven is immediately lost (reverts to enemy stronghold) whenever the only units present are shadow troops. This can trigger during the action phase or shadow phase. The presence of a character alone does not protect the haven — characters are not troops.
Éomer's Marshal of the Mark ignores first troop loss per roll, not per battlecommunity high-engagement
- SITUATION
- Éomer attacks with a single Rohirrim troop in a Nazgul region and rolls a Nazgul result. Or, a large shadow force attacks a haven where Éomer and 2 Rohirrim are stationed.
- RULING
- "Ignore the loss of 1 friendly troop" means the first troop removal per die roll is ignored — it does not make the troop unkillable. Example 1: Éomer attacks with 1 Rohirrim in a Nazgul region; if a Nazgul result is rolled, the first loss is ignored but the second loss eliminates the troop. Example 2: 5 shadow troops attack Éomer and 2 Rohirrim; 3 exchange results reduce to 2 losses, eliminating both Rohirrim.
Confront the Balrog dice results are cumulative across all 3 dicecommunity high-engagement
- SITUATION
- Players complete the Confront the Balrog objective and roll all 3 dice.
- RULING
- The hope loss from Confront the Balrog is cumulative across all 3 dice — potentially up to 9 hope lost if no results are negated.
Last researched: 2026-06-08
CATEGORIES
Fantasy·Novel-based
MECHANICS
Action PointsCooperative GameDice RollingHand ManagementSet CollectionSolo / Solitaire GameTagsVariable Player Powers
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