[MEQ] - Middle-Earth Quest #2 - Game Over - The Dark Lord Wins

stever777

The game has officially begun!

Sauron's Turn -

1. Hero Rally
N/E on Turn 1.

2. Story
Skip on Turn 1.

3. Plot
Skip on Turn 1.

4. Event
Neither side is dominant (and during the first game turn), draw one card and resolve it.

THE COURAGE OF ERKENBRAND -
Heroes may remove up to 3 Influence/Monster Tokens in Rohan OR place 1 favor in Helm's Deep.
1 Favor placed in Dunland and Theoden placed in Plains of Rohan.

Heroes to decide which option to choose, remove Influence or Place Favor.
Influence in Rohan -
1x Amon Hen
1x Plains of Rohan

Favor & Theoden placed.

E - Discuss.

Iron Weasel

So do we vote on which option we like? Can anyone reach Rohan quickly to scoop up the favour?

jakobagger

I guess since there's only two influence to remove we're not getting our money's worth with that option?

caliber

You're pretty close to Rohan weasel, but it's almost exactly the opposite direction of your quest. Plus, your special ability is to spit out favor for doing all kinds of things. I think we should just drop the influence there; seems like it'd be a bigger setback to Sauron than putting out a favor that would be difficult for anyone to reach early on. Unless you want to volunteer to go grab it weasel.

Iron Weasel

Honestly, my plan was to go get my ass kicked by the Black Serpent, so unless we desperately need that Favor, I'm fine with removing the Influence/Monster tokens.

caliber

Nah, we can make it up later. Drop the influence.

Iron Weasel

You heard the man, stever!

stever777

Sauron's Turn -

Beravor of Eriador - (caliber)

Location: Fornost (Eriador)
Hand Size: 0
Life Pool: 25
Rest Pool: 0
Damage Pool: 0
Items:
Quests: Guarding the Dimrill Stair - Task: Explore The Redhorn Gate. - Result: Gain 2 favor and receive training. Then place Gandalf in Bree and reveal Beravor's Advanced Quest.
Advancements:
Corruption:
Special: Survivalist - When you rest in a non-Haven location, you may heal or recieve training.

Eleanor of Gondor - (Iron Weasel)

Location: Minas Tirith (Gondor)
Hand Size: 0
Life Pool: 25
Rest Pool: 0
Damage Pool: 0
Items:
Quests: Where the Stars are Strange - Setup: Place Boromir in Near Harad. - Task: Explore Near Harad or combat the Black Serpent. - Result: Gain 1 level of strength and receive training. Then place Denethor in Minas Tirith and reveal Eleanor's Advanced Quest.
Advancements:
Corruption:
Special: Noble Bloodline - Once per turn, gain 1 Favor when you complete a Quest or consult a Character.

Argalad of Mirkwood - (jakobagger)

Location: Woodland Realm (Mirkwood)
Hand Size: 0
Life Pool: 25
Rest Pool: 0
Damage Pool: 0
Items:
Quests: The Forest Must Provide No Refuge - Setup: Place Aragorn in The South Eaves. When you would draw Encounter cards in The South Eaves, combat an Orc instead. - Task: Defeat the Orc. - Result: Receive training. Then reveal Argalad's Advanced Quest.
Advancements:
Corruption:
Special: Scout - Once per turn, you may look at the faces of all monster tokens in an adjacent location.

There are now 3 characters on the board, offering Hero's choice of Favor or something else.
Aragorn in South Eaves. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Agility.)
Boromir is in Near Harad. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Strength.)
Theoden is in Plains of Rohan. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Horse.)

Location Reference

@NotoriusBEN

5. Action
Sauron may take 3 actions (in a 4 player game), one at a time, by placing action tokens on the leftmost empty spaces of the appropriate Action Tracks, then resolving the action.

Sauron's Action Section of the Board (bottom right) -
6 - 5 - 4
Place Influence - Gain X Influence. You may place up to 2 of these in the Shadow Pool and the rest in extension of Shadow Strongholds.
2 - 2 - 1
Draw Shadow and Plot Cards - Draw X Shadow Cards and X Plot Cards. Keep all Shadow Cards & 1 Plot Card.
3 - 2 - 1
Receive Commands - Command up to X Minions/Monster tokens. You may not place more than 1 Monster token.

stever777

STARTING CORRUPTION PLOT (BLACK) - Sarumon Hungry For Power - Inf*/Fav3/Adv1 - Loc: Isengard - Req: None - Effects: None - Set Up: 3 Infl in each Shadow Stronghold, 3 in extension & 2 in Shadow Pool. Draw 3 Shadow Cards; Keep 2, discard other. Draw 4 Plot Cards; Keep 2, discard others.

Just to explain this card -
CORRUPTION PLOT (BLACK) - Inf*/Fav3/Adv1 - Loc: Isengard - Req: None - Effects: None

No Influence in the Shadow Pool was required to play it, (Inf*).
It will move Sauron's Black Story marker 1 space per turn, (Adv1).
3 Favor spent in Isengard are required to shut it down, (Fav3, Loc: Isengard).
There were no other requirements to activate the Plot, (Req: None).
There are no other effects while the Plot is active, (Effects: None).

A red "1" marker is in Isengard to show where the Plot may be shut down.

Also, the numbers next to every non-Haven location are the number of Sauron's Influence counters there.
Watch out for those!

Notice the Favor token in Dunland, on the left side of the board.

Oh, those small red squares on the board not really next to any locations are just Monster tokens waiting to be activated.
No worries...

NotoriusBEN

How quaint... Dont you know I am the master of spin?

Action 1, Gather 6 influence
Action 2, Gather 5 influence
Action 3, Draw 2 Shadow Cards, Draw 2 Plot Cards (Place all but 1 Plot Card on bottom of plot deck)

Influence placed in...
2x The Northern Wastes
3x The High Pass
1x Amon Hen
1x Plains of Rohan
1x Fangorn
1x Isengard
1x Gap of Rohan
1x Dunland

Cards Drawn and discarded.

stever777

Perfectly legal moves.

@caliber
@Iron Weasel
@jakobagger

6. Hero Draw
Heroes draw number of cards equal to their Fortitude, i.e. six, six, & five.

caliber

Drawn!

stever777

Beravor of Eriador - @caliber - Beginning of turn

Location: Fornost (Eriador)
Hand Size: 6
Life Pool: 19
Rest Pool: 0
Damage Pool: 0
Items:
Quests: Guarding the Dimrill Stair - Task: Explore The Redhorn Gate. - Result: Gain 2 favor and receive training. Then place Gandalf in Bree and reveal Beravor's Advanced Quest.
Advancements:
Corruption:
Special: Survivalist - When you rest in a non-Haven location, you may heal or recieve training.

There are now 3 characters on the board, offering Hero's choice of Favor or something else.
Aragorn in South Eaves. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Agility.)
Boromir is in Near Harad. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Strength.)
Theoden is in Plains of Rohan. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Horse.)

Location Reference

Will Sauron play a Shadow card on Beravor at the start of the turn?

Iron Weasel

Six Hero Cards drawn.

Current Hand: 8 cards (6 Hero, 1 Quest, 1 Mission)

stever777

Thanks, guys, but you don't have to post when you draw, unless you want to.
I can see it.

NotoriusBEN

I will see what these pathetic heroes do first before I make my move.
No I will not play a shadow card at this time

caliber

stever777 wrote: »

Thanks, guys, but you don't have to post when you draw, unless you want to.
I can see it.

Oh, I know. I'm just excited about this game.

caliber

No card from Sauron means it's my turn to go, yes?

Any card to get to Bree.
Hill to get to Tharbad.
Desert to get to Eregion.
Mountain to reach the Redhorn Gate.

I'll stop there to Guard the Dimrill Stair and take an encouter.

jakobagger

I guess that answers the question I had of whether you can move more than one space per turn.

caliber

Lol, yeah I suppose so. It's kind of a fine line you want to walk; you move using the same cards you fight with, so the more you move the less prepred you are if you get into a fight. Also, Sauron's story counter advances when you rest, so running around all the time will boost his story opportunities more than taking our time to get places. In this case I thought completing my quest turn 1 was worth it but I dunno if it's normally best to move so far.

stever777

Beravor accomplishes her Starting Quest, which she should discard from her hand.
Result: Gain 2 favor and receive training.
A hero who receives training draws the top 2 cards of the Skill deck, chooses one to place into her hand, and discards the other faceup.
(Link discarded card to here.)

BERAVOR's Advanced Quest -
Bones of a Darkness Past - Task: Explore the Ruins of Angmar. - Result: Gain 2 favor and 1 level of agility.

stever777

jakobagger wrote: »

I guess that answers the question I had of whether you can move more than one space per turn.

Yup.
You can move as far as you have cards in hand for, depending on terrain.

caliber

Ok, drew two cards and discarded Concussive Shot - Ranged - Att2/Def1/Str3 - Next round, if your opponent plays a card with printed defense of 2 or more, his card is canceled - Swamp

I just played it to discard it, hope that's correct. I assume you'll track our accumulated favor somehow? Or should I keep a running total?

NotoriusBEN

i will not play shadow cards on the next hero's turn either

Iron Weasel

Clarification, please: if I spend my last Hero Card moving to a location, does my turn end immediately, or can I still take actions in that location (though obviously fighting would be a bad idea)?

Daemonis

Even if you empty you hand you still take other steps of your turn

caliber

Daemonis wrote: »

Even if you empty you hand you still take other steps of your turn

Right, plus when you get into a fight you can draw a number of cards equal to your Agility, so even if you've moved all over the place you should be able to put up SOME measure of fight when you get there.

Iron Weasel

Ok, so I've been thinking: the Black Serpent has a huge sword, a mean-looking horse, and a suit of armour wrought in the Blood Forges of Bara-Dur.
Eleanor seems to possess a dagger, a fancy circlet and a winning personality. If I get into a fight with him, I'd have 4 or 5 cards to his nine. Not loving those odds.

On the other hand, with my current hand of cards, I can get to Theoden, pick up 2+1 Favor, and then move to put an end to Sauron's Plot in Isengard.

What do you guys think is the better move?

caliber

Shutting down Sauron's plot this early would be a nice feather in our collective cap, and you don't actually have to fight the Black Serpent for your quest, so it's not a horrible plan. Sauron may very well send the Serpent after you though; we've all started almost maximally distant from one another, so it'll be tough to help each other out. Especially since our quests aren't exactly converging at this point, either.

Iron Weasel

Well, my quest says I have to "Explore Near Harad or fight the Black Serpent". The Black Serpent is currently hosting a barbecue at Near Harad.

I am told that he does not tolerate party crashers.

Plus, if Sauron does send the Serpent after me, then he must necessarily leave Near Harad, which opens the possibility that I could skirt around the Big Bastard and ninja my quest out from under him.

So I'm assuming that if I were to go to Near Harad, I would have to fight the Serpent before I could complete my quest. Is that not right?

caliber

Yeah, you'd fight first. Although with the wording of your quest, I'm guessing having the Serpent sent after you would still qualify as you completing it, which is kinda interesting.

If you're nervous about taking the Serpent on so early, go knock the plot out instead.

Iron Weasel

Yeah, imma do that as soon as stever updates the game state.

stever777

caliber wrote: »

I just played it to discard it, hope that's correct. I assume you'll track our accumulated favor somehow? Or should I keep a running total?

Playing is discarding, so, yes, that is correct.
I track Favor in your character's spoiler.

E - Update later tonight when I get home.
Can't run Vassal at work.
Beravor's Encounter coming up.

Iron Weasel

No worries, I can't post my turn until 9PM EST anywat

stever777

4. Encounter

Lowest numbered card that could affect your location -
Quest: A Shadow Connection - Explore the South Eaves. Reward: Gain 2 favor and shuffle your rest pool into your life pool.

stever777

Beravor of Eriador - caliber - End of Turn

Location: The Redhorn Gate (Misty Mountains)
Hand Size: 2 +1 Skill Card
Life Pool: 19
Rest Pool: 4
Damage Pool: 0
Favor: 2
Items:
Quests:
Bones of a Darkness Past - Task: Explore the Ruins of Angmar. - Result: Gain 2 favor and 1 level of agility.
A Shadow Connection - Explore the South Eaves. Reward: Gain 2 favor and shuffle your rest pool into your life pool.
Advancements: 1 Skill Card
Corruption:
Special: Survivalist - When you rest in a non-Haven location, you may heal or recieve training.

Eleanor of Gondor - @Iron Weasel - Beginning of Turn

Location: Minas Tirith (Gondor)
Hand Size: 6
Life Pool: 19
Rest Pool: 0
Damage Pool: 0
Favor: 0
Items:
Quests: Where the Stars are Strange - Setup: Place Boromir in Near Harad. - Task: Explore Near Harad or combat the Black Serpent. - Result: Gain 1 level of strength and receive training. Then place Denethor in Minas Tirith and reveal Eleanor's Advanced Quest.
Advancements:
Corruption:
Special: Noble Bloodline - Once per turn, gain 1 Favor when you complete a Quest or consult a Character.

There are now 3 characters on the board, offering Hero's choice of Favor or something else.
Aragorn in South Eaves. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Agility.)
Boromir is in Near Harad. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Strength.)
Theoden is in Plains of Rohan. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Horse.)

Location Reference

1. Rest
No need.

2. Ambush
No Baddies in your location.

3. Travel
Hit the road!

Iron Weasel

So I've been following the other game and Farangu just tried to tangle with the Black Serpent as Eleanor and got his ass kicked. So I think I'm gonna go grind some mobs to level up a bit first.

Let's see if I get this right.

Travel!

Hill to reach Dunharrow
Hill to reach Edoras
Any to reach Plains of Rohan

CONSULT with Theoden. Receive 2+1 = 3 Favour

On the Road Again!

Forest to reach Fangorn
Two more cards to reach Isengard

Remind Saruman that the greatest power of all ... is the power of FUNK.
Have a disco party on top of Orthanc.
Spend 3 Favor and DISCARD CORRUPTION PLOT (BLACK): Saruman Hungry For Power.


Is that alright?

stever777

4. Encounter

Lowest numbered card that could affect your location -
Sweet Words, Bitter Dreams - You must shuffle your hand into your life pool. Your hero is then dealt 2 damage for each Corruption card on him.

No cards so no action.
No corruption so no damage.

Eleanor says, "Whatever."

stever777

Eleanor of Gondor - (Iron Weasel) - End of Turn

Location: Isengard (Rohan)
Hand Size: 0
Life Pool: 19
Rest Pool: 6
Damage Pool: 0
Items:
Quests: Where the Stars are Strange - Setup: Place Boromir in Near Harad. - Task: Explore Near Harad or combat the Black Serpent. - Result: Gain 1 level of strength and receive training. Then place Denethor in Minas Tirith and reveal Eleanor's Advanced Quest.
Advancements:
Corruption:
Special: Noble Bloodline - Once per turn, gain 1 Favor when you complete a Quest or consult a Character.

Argalad of Mirkwood - @jakobagger - Beginning of Turn

Location: Woodland Realm (Mirkwood)
Hand Size: 5
Life Pool: 20
Rest Pool: 0
Damage Pool: 0
Items:
Quests: The Forest Must Provide No Refuge - Setup: Place Aragorn in The South Eaves. When you would draw Encounter cards in The South Eaves, combat an Orc instead. - Task: Defeat the Orc. - Result: Receive training. Then reveal Argalad's Advanced Quest.
Advancements:
Corruption:
Special: Scout - Once per turn, you may look at the faces of all monster tokens in an adjacent location.

There are now 2 characters on the board, offering Hero's choice of Favor or something else.
Aragorn in South Eaves. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Agility.)
Boromir is in Near Harad. (2 Favor or Gain 1 Strength.)

Location Reference

1. Rest
No need.

2. Ambush
No Baddies in your location.

3. Travel
Hit the road!

jakobagger

I'm thinking that since I have to fight to complete my quest I shouldn't just rush to the South Eaves using all my cards.

Would just going to the Bight and having a standard encounter make sense? Then I'll have double the cards to take out the orc next turn.