Battle Games in
Middle-Earth debuted in 2002, but the exact month escapes my research. The
very first issue demonstrated the format that would remain largely unchanged
throughout its ninety-one issue run: five sections covering various subject
matter. The first section is “Guide to Middle-Earth,” which contains general information
about the world and occupants of Middle-Earth. In RPG circles, this would be the
“fluff” chapter—a section that provides colorful details and pertinent
information, but no hard game mechanics or tools. The “Guide to Middle-Earth” in
issue #1 introduces each member of the Fellowship of the Ring via a photo
portrait, provides a map of Middle-Earth, and presents a glimpse at some of the
battles Aragon participated in.
The second section is “Playing the Game.” In every issue,
this chapter introduces the reader to the rules of The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game. Rather than a single,
massive information dump, “Playing the Game” presents the rules piecemeal,
allowing the reader to digest them in small bits and experiment with how they
work in actual play. In this issue, “Playing the Game” lists the materials the
reader will need to play the SBG—tape measure, dice, record sheets, pencils,
figures, a place to play, and so forth. Once those are in hand, the reader can
turn to the next section and immediately start playing.
The third section is “Battle Game.” Every issue of Battle
Games of Middle-Earth features either a scenario to play or a battle report of
an actual game intended to instruct the reader and teach potential strategies.
Not every issue has a scenario, but they far outnumber the battle reports,
descriptions of actual play which tend to extend across two back-to-back
issues.
“Battle Game” in issue #1 not only includes a basic skirmish
scenario, “Goblin Ambush,” but also contains an extremely simplified version of
the SBG rules so that the reader can begin experiencing the game as soon as he
gets the magazine home. The rules are basic and stripped to the bone, but
succeed in teaching the four phases that comprise every turn of the SBG:
Priority, Move, Shoot, and Fight. This knowledge is vital to learning the
complete game and the “Battle Game” chapter demonstrates them clearly and, most
importantly, by getting the reader to actually use them.
“Goblin Ambush” is a basic “fight-or-flight” scenario.
Aragon has stirred up a lair of goblins and must either escape the battlefield
or kill all the goblins. The goblins merely seek to slay the Ranger. To make
things even (theoretically), the Good side controls only Aragon, while the Evil
side has twelve goblins at his command. Luckily, the goblins are broken up into
three groups and Aragon is a mighty hero with three attacks every Fight phase.
He might not be as doomed as he appears!
The fourth section is “Painting Workshop,” a chapter
dedicated to instructing the reader how to paint his miniatures and teaching
various techniques of increasing skill as the magazine series progresses. Issue
#1 is dedicated to getting the 12 Moria Goblins included with the first issue
off their sprues and onto the table as quickly as possible. Issue #1 also came
with a brush and four paint pots to get the would-be wargaming hobbyist off and
running. After reading this section and following its instruction, the reader
would have twelve table-ready goblins prepared to face off against Aragorn. The
Aragorn miniature itself wouldn’t appear for several more issues, but Battle Games of Middle-Earth provides a
stop-gap solution: a cardstock sheet of twelve fold-up figures including the
entire Fellowship, Elrond, Gamling, and Eowyn. These figures would be utilized
in “Battle Games” appearing in later issues.
The magazine closes with my favorite section: “Modeling
Workshop.” This chapter introduces a new terrain project in each issue,
beginning with the simplest of wargame table decorations and ending in complex
projects that are centerpieces for battles. Issue #1 teaches the reader how to create
the most basic of battlefields—a table or floor, one perhaps covered by a
cloth, blanket, or towel, with books piled underneath to form hills and
valleys. The section also features a very brief overview of commercially
available scenery and terrain, as well as a galley of “Dream Battlefields.” These
intricate battlefields will be familiar to anyone reading the SBG rulebook or
who has perused issues of White Dwarf. These
well-constructed and beautifully decorated battlefields are intended to get the
reader’s juices flowing and induce dreams of the elaborate tabletops he will
build once he has mastered the tricks of the “Modeling Workshop.” Or at least
that’s what it did to me.
The back cover of the magazine provides a preview of the next
upcoming issue, advertising what new miniatures the periodical has in store for
the reader, as well as ad copy on the subjects covered in the five sections of
the magazine. In many issues, the next two Battle
Games in Middle-Earth are advertised, showing the reader a full month of
content in advance. Issue #1’s back cover informs us that we’ll be seeing a sprue
of elves and men of Gondor, as well as some additional colored paint pots in issue
#2 and to look for a Frodo miniature and one more paint pot in issue #3. I can
hardly wait for the next fortnightly issue to arrive at my newsagent!
And there we have it, the inaugural issue of Battle Games in Middle-Earth. If only it
had been available in America in 2002, I might have succumbed to the wargaming
bug much sooner. In a forthcoming post I’ll get my hands dirty with issue #1 by
painting some goblins as if I were a first-timer and taking the “Goblin Ambush”
scenario out for a spin. I think things might turn out bad for those goblins…
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