Sentinels doesn’t support playing with fewer than three characters, FWIW.
This fell flat with my game group, so flat I am pretty sure the wife of the gentleman who brought the game to play suicided her character so she didn’t have to play anymore which was unfortunate to say the least… anyway, so LOTR CCG is better coop take on a CCG?
You can get decent mileage out of the LOTR LCG by going with the Saga sets, as well. It is an amazing game, and is just as enjoyable solo (single or dual-handed) as it is with others.
I love the LotR LCG and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys coop games and pre constructed deck building.
@Nesrie for what it’s worth LotR LCG is one of my favorite games, and I hate Sentinels of the Multiverse. They are entirely different experiences.
I found Sentinels to have a lot of stuff to keep track of. I’m pretty easy though and will play almost any game but my entire group was lost within twenty minutes. I was not the one teaching though, but even I found it to be pretty complex even if the idea was kind of cool.
Thank you! I’ll have to give it ago.
Well, maybe LotR is a bad choice if they fount Sentinels too complex. I’d say LotR is a deeper experience than Sentinels, but I find it much more engaging.
I just taught someone Race last night! (First time I’d played it in probably 4 or 5 years.) More than most games, it can definitely be a love/hate kind of game. I just tell new players up front: Learning this game is like learning a new language. If that doesn’t sound like fun right now, let’s play something else. You’re also probably not going to win your first game; just concentrate on making a tableau that does one thing very well. I often give them a military or settling-strategy starting world and tell them to try produce/consume on their second game.
My friend last night really enjoyed it. He had played Roll for the Galaxy before, and other role-choosing games, so he wasn’t a total newbie. And he was also a programmer by trade, and I find they just really dig Race.
Deeper means more complex? I mean I played Magic years ago, still do occasionally virtually, but I found the status tracking mechanisms in Sentinels to be lacking, but then again I personally didn’t hate the game. I usually need to play something a few times to make up my mind anyway.
A bit more complex to play, plus since you build your own decks the there is a lot more strategic thought in the game as to how best to construct multiple decks the work well in concert. Since the decks are not built for you LotR requires a greater level of thought and involvement from the players, if that makes sense.
Sure. When I started magic they had the random card decks a not the pre-built ready to go. We also played the LOTR deck building games so I think they’ ll have a general idea on how to put together a deck to start. After that, we’ll learn as we go.
The electronic version of Sentinels keeps track of all the fiddly modifiers, and it is a far better experience
If you have the card-based version of Sentinels, the game is also remarkably improved by using a digital app for tracking the fiddly bits. A phone works just fine, though a tablet might be nicer for a larger number of people to see.
How does that work, Daagar? Isn’t it just as much of a hassle inputting all the information into the app as just calculating the information yourself?
-Tom
Cool. Might be woth it then. LotR has a lot of phases per turn, but there really isn’t much bookkeeping. If the preconstructed deck thing and coop nature of the game appeal, I’d say go for it. I have yet to introduce anyone to LotR he hasn’t enjoyed it and generally people respond by ordering their own cards.
Be warned though, the core set will really only play 1 person (possibly 2 if you stretch) so if it’s on you to provide that card pool it would be pricey. I have enough cards to comfortable support multiple players and decks, but I have the core set, hobbit boxes and the first 3 cycles. That’s probably around $350 in cards at this point.
Yeah I purchased it on steam. It takes care of the tracking of all those PIA modifiers and counters for sure. For board game nights though, I need physical in hand stuff. For my online game when we want something not as constant we do the lighter board games on occasion.
There’s an App? Like one per person’s phone or something I can load on my Surface Pro?
Ouch! I might have to pass then. They’re not going to buy that kind of thing. Sure they’ll do 30-60 for a fun looking game once in awhile but nothing like that. This saddens me.
Yeah, I know from experience you can have a great time with 2 players with a core set and the first cycle, but that’s definitely around 100 bucks online. You don’t need more unless like me you love the game and just want to keep adding new cards and scenarios, but with less it just isn’t really fleshed out. I always be sure to mention this with LotR since it’s not a complete game in the core set, at all.
This is the one I’ve used before, but there are others: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nispesoft.sotmcommander (this one worked well, was free, and fit a phone screen nicely).
Tom - Sure, you still have to increment counters and such, but it beats having tokens and chits and whatever strewn everywhere.
As far a LOTR LCG - if you’d like to demo the game without a steep investment, try playing it via OCTGN. I’d also strongly suggest using the Watch It Played videos to start with - the manual will make tons more sense afterwards. The rules aren’t that bad, but it is very easy to make simple mistakes that can make the game too easy or too hard (well, played right, the game IS hard, but not cause of the rules).
To be honest, and I say this as a fan of the game, the core set of LOTR LCG as a stand-alone…is pretty rough outside of the first “tutorial” quest (Passage through Mirkwood). I say tutorial because the first quest is that easy, and no quest every produced since has been so easy. The second quest will destroy you with the troll, and if not the second phase. The third quest…forget about it. You will not win. But with the current card pool all of those quests are a brisk afternoon jaunt (except Dol Guldur solo still remains dubious). But that is why they introduced Nightmare mode. (Additional cards that make a quest much harder)
If anyone is interested in learning the game. PM me and I can walk you through it on OCTGN.
Mage Knight is one of the best solo games I ever played, but I don’t think I would like it much as a competitive game.
Not if you Snare him!
