01-01 MESBG: Rules Manual 2022

Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game: Rules Manual

The Middle-earthª Strategy Battle Game is the tabletop game for two or more
players where you play through the events from The Lord of the Ringsª and The
Hobbitª with your collection of Citadel miniatures. Take control of your
favourite heroes, villains, and armies, recreate scenes from the movies and
books, and gather your forces together to do battle with your opponent in a test
of wits and prowess.

This 224-page hardback rules manual is a comprehensive guide to the hobby of
building, painting, and playing games with your modelsÊÐ whether you choose
the forces of Good orÊEvil.

Introduction

This section features an overview of the wider hobby of collecting, painting,
and playing with your miniatures, from the very basics of choosing your army and
the items you need in order to run games, to setting up your battlefield and
understanding the rules and profiles youÕll use in-game.

Rules

Here, youÕll be taken through the core of the Middle-earth Strategy Battle
GameÊÐ the actual rules that youÕll use toÊplay:

Basic Principles: a primer on the fundamental concepts and
terms used in the book, this section briefly explains a few things that the
newcomer may find daunting.

Turn Sequence: each turn is divided into five phasesÊÐ
Priority, which determines who acts first, Movement, which covers moving your
models on the tabletop, interacting with terrain and using control zones, Shoot,
which covers ranged attacks, Fight, which covers close combat, and Courage, in
which your models are tested to see if they stand their ground or flee in
terror.

Monsters: while their basic rules are typically the same as
those for other models in the game, Monster models are particularly
powerfulÊÐ this section covers their special rules. This includes War Beasts,
huge creatures ridden into battle, crushing the foe as they marchÊon.

Weapons and Wargear: split into four subsectionsÊÐ close
combat, missile, equipment and armourÊÐ this section explains the variety of
weapons and wargear available to your models, and the impact your choices will
have on your tactical decisions.

Magical Powers: some models have the ability to cast
magical powers, and this section explains targeting, casting and resisting those
powers during the Move phase, with a list of every Magical Power available
toÊcast.

Special Rules: this section collects together all of the
Special Rules which can appear on model profiles, compiled for easy
reference.

Advanced Rules: found in certain scenarios, these
rulesÊÐ covering water features, sentries, passengers and carrying
objectsÊÐ come in handy when recreating scenes from the history of
Middle-earth.

Siege Engines: rules for fielding these immense threats,
covering their movement, firing, upgrades and crew (and their ability to launch
severed heads as ammunitionÉ).

Sieges: throughout the history of Middle-earth, many sieges
have taken placeÊÐ here are the basic rules for creating your own sieges with
your models.

*Narrative Play**

Narrative Play games allow you to recreate your favourite battles and scenes
from both the books and the films, using your collection of Citadel and Forge
World models. Each scenarioÊÐ found in The Armies of The Lord of the Ringsª
and The Armies of The HobbitªÊÐ has a selection of special rules that
balance them, providing an experience closely matching the scenes from the books
andÊfilms.

Open Play

With no restrictions whatsoever, Open Play games have unlimited creative
potential, and are perfect for beginners and veterans alike. Simply get your
collections together and dream up your own scenariosÊÐ any combination of
army fighting any other combination of army, on a playing field of your own
devising with objectives unique to your gameÊÐ the possibilities are
literally endless.

Matched Play

In Matched Play games, you and your opponent gather your forces of heroes and
warriors from your collection, up to an agreed points limit, before unleashing
your armies for the fate of Middle-earth. This section includes advice on
building an army to a points limit, determining the size of the games you want
to play, Alliances, wargear limits, initial priority, objectives, and Heroic
TiersÊÐ the respect and loyalty that Heroes command.

This section includes six Matched Play Scenarios, each providing a different
tactical challenge.

The Armies of Middle-earth

This section is an inspiring showcase of beautifully painted miniatures from
across the Middle-earth range, showing you just what is possible when painting
yourÊown.

Example Armies

Four example armies showing you how the army was built, the points values it
represents and the rules it can leverage.