The Hunt for Gollum: a hero vs minon scenario

[Zangtumb]

The idea of writing a scenario concerning the hunt for Gollum, carried out by Aragorn and some minions first flashed in my mind when a I saw the indipendent movie by chris Bouchard. I was amazed by how beautiful it was, and how deeply it grasped Tolkien's atmosphere. Discovering that it costed less than 4000 euros does not only me make more enthusiast about it; it strikes me as a sort of political fact (but here I digress...).

This is my first attempt at writing a scenario: it received a good feedback in the Italian forum, so I translated (very hastily, so I apologize for unavoidable errors). It needs to be playtested, and I'd be eager to do so! (on GCCG I'm lorenzo)
If someone likes it, and is willing to bring it to Lure, that would be great. I won't be there phisically, (with my deepest regrets), but I would in the spirit.

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This is the Year 3001 of the Third Era. The Shadow of Mordor is rising again, and dark events approach. There is however one hidden quest that will eventually influence greatly the outcome of the War of the Ring, and the fate of Middle Earth: the Hunt for Gollum.

The research of the former bearer of the Ring is carried out in secret, by a few chosen heroes and minions, but its importance is huge. Sauron wants to know how the Ring was stolen, and where is it now; whereas Gandalf desperately struggles to avoid that the names “Baggins” and “The Shire” reach the ears of The Dark Lord.
Who will be the first to find Gollum?

THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM:
A Minion vs Hero Middle-Earth Scenario

Starting Sites: Rivendell and Dol Guldur.
Starting General influence: Both players may start with characters whose total mind is up to 16. The play of Saw further and Deeper and Bade to Rule is allowed, but a player cannot reveal his Wizard/Ringwraith.

A Deck is composed by 25 resources and 25 hazards minimum (at least 10 creatures).
A company composed only by a ranger or scout charachter has a hazard limit of one.
A playdeck may not include Call of Home (Each character has accepted this mission directly from the Wizard or sauron himself), nor Muster Disperses (In this scenario factions are not called to arms; their help is just requested to patrol their homesite and region).
A playdeck must include a copy of Gollum or Stinker. Each player may reveal Gollum or Stinker during the organization Phase, and put the card back in his deck (shuffle afterwards). Gollum or Stinker may not be played normally: they can be played only after an attack by My Precious fails but is not defeated.
No other agents may be included in the deck, nor resources influencing them. Hazards targeting agents may instead be played.
Only region movement is allowed.

Preparation:
One of the Players plays My Precious, face up at Goblin Gate. Both player roll for who goes first, and the second to go may tap My Precious for up to two agent moving actions. Sites used to move My Precious are always played face down, even if My Precious is a face-up agent.

My Precious special rules:
My Precious untaps on every untap phase, but cannot be moved normally during movement/hazard phase: each player may move him instead during his End-of- turn phase. When he does so, he also checks the legality of his former movement, and gives the expected sites back to his opponent. The first site played on my Precious must be the last site played with him, or a site in an adjacent region.. My Precious must attack a company who enters his current site.
In this scenario, My Precious effective constitution is considered to be 11. If a player eliminates My Precious during combat, the game immediately ends with a draw : nor Sauron nor the Free Peoples have access to the vital information kept by the former owner of the Ring (and he will not be able to eventually show up at a certain Mount Doom..).

The First Player who successfully moves Gollum or Stinker in a Haven/Darkhaven wins the game during his End-of-turn phase.

Gollum’s Tracks
Each character may make a roll during organization phase:
with 8+ he discovers if My Precious is at a site in the same region.
with 9+ he discovers if My Precious is at a site in an adjacent region.
with 10+ he discovers if in My Precious’s site path there is a site located in his region or an adjacent region.

Modify the result by +2 se if the character is a ranger, by +1 if he is a scout, by +1 if he is a sage (max modificator is +2).
The roll is also modified by +2 if a character controls a Noble Hound, and by +1 for every Wolf ally he controls. A player may reveal and discard a Far Sight or Catch an Elusive Scent from is hand to modify the roll by +1 for all the characters in a company. Movement may be declared after the rolls’ results.

Factions and Unique allies.
A character who successfully plays a faction or an Unique ally may decide not to put the Ally with him, or the faction in the MP pile. Instead, they remain in play at the same site. The site is never discarder or returned to the play deck, and never untaps for that player.
The site is no more available for My Precious’ movement (even for the player who stills has it in his site deck). Factions and Allies played in this way may roll during the organization phase in order to find tracks of Gollum. Their rolls are modified by the number of MPs they would normally award, and their abilities bonus in case of allies.

Trophies:
In this scenario, no hazard creature awards MP if defeated, but minions and heroes too can take them as trophies. For heroes, the bonuses are meant to represent their increasing determination in finding Gollum. (This idea has been discussed about in the italian forum; if anyone feels another option would be preferable, I'd really appreciate his opinion.)

Tapped Sites
When a company leaves a tapped site, it is not discarded; it is put, face-up, in a pile of tapped sites. The Sites untap when that player exhausts his deck, but are not returned to the site deck. Companies may come back at a tapped site, but cannot play anything in it. That player may no longer use that site for My Precious’ movement. This represents the fact that My Precious is unwilling to hide in a site that has obviously just been visited. (It also adds some strategic depth to the scenario: some regios have a very few sites in it; if a minion player uses goblin-gate for the Great Goblin, he has not any site left to move My Precious through Higpass...)

Company vs. Company Combat
No company can start CvCC before Gollum or Stinker are played: both minion and hero players heavily rely on stealth, and Gollum would be alerted by any fight in the surroundings. When Gollum or Stinker is in play, a company may start CvCC against his company. If the character bearing Gollum or Stinker is discarded or eliminated, discard Gollum or Stinker, and put My Precious in play at the same site. The player who started CvCC may move him normally during his End-of-turn phase.

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[zirilan]

That idea sounds brilliant to me. Are there allready challenge decks available for this scenario?

[Zangtumb]

Thank you.
I did not think of any CD yet, it really needs to be playtested before! If there is a way to make some challenge deck available on gccg, I can do it; but assembling a 25/25 should not be that hard. I think an average game with this scenario would last less than a normal one. But maybe I'm mistaking...

[marcos]

Thank you.
I did not think of any CD yet, it really needs to be playtested before! If there is a way to make some challenge deck available on gccg, I can do it; but assembling a 25/25 should not be that hard. I think an average game with this scenario would last less than a normal one. But maybe I'm mistaking...

of course there is, build decks and commit them to svn

[Darksatin]

I did not think of any CD yet, it really needs to be playtested before! If there is a way to make some challenge deck available on gccg, I can do it; but assembling a 25/25 should not be that hard.

Hello ! Any news ?
I have seen these lists (characters and resources only) on the italian forum (but I don't understand italian...).
Have you playtested these decks ?

MINION DECK :

Starting characters :
Elerina + Open to the summons
Odoacer
Mionid + Strange rations
Eradan
Other characters :
Carambor
Gisulf
Juoma
Calendal
The Mouth

x2 Spying out the land
x2 Words of menace and deceit
x2 Deeper Shadow
x2 Crept along cleverly
x2 Poison of His voice
x2 Weigh all things to a nicety
x2 Bade to rule
BlackBole
x2 War Wolf
x2 War Warg
The Warg King
Hillmen
Beornings
x2 Catch an Elusive Scent
Stinker


HERO DECK :

Starting characters :
Beorn + Elven stone
Peath + Elven cloak
Elrohir
Ioreth
Other characters :
Aragorn
Elladan
Fram Framson
Faramir

x3 Many turns and doublings
x2 Marvels told
x2 Smoke rings
x2 Saw further and deeper
x2 The Old Thrush
x2 Gates of morning
Glamdring
x2 Noble hound
Gwahir
Tom Bombadil
Treebeard
Wood Elves
Beornings
x2 Far Sight
Riders of Rohan
Gollum

[Thorsten the Traveller]

I really liked the idea for this scenario. Now that I have the time to build 2 decks for it, a couple of questions (and suggestions) come to mind.
I haven't played the scenario yet. I could assume if it's not mentioned, things just works as normal, but better to ask:

- your starting mind is 16, but after that your GI is still 20, right?
- why shuffle Gollum/Stinker back in deck only during organization phase, why not at any time? (why would you shuffle him back actually if the only way to win is by playing him?)
- is MP still considered a regular hazard agent? If not, can he also take other agent actions instead of moving (most notably heal, turn face down)?
- if so, can he take actions during m/h phase as a normal agent, thus counting against hazard limit, or only during end-of-turn phase?
- if so, I assume he may not just return to his home site? cause that would make the game rather tricky.
- can MP move to (Dark)havens for this scenario?

- the search roll 10+, what does the site path refer to? the nearest (Dark)haven of MP's current site, or just the movement from his previous location? I'm assuming the former, but the site path isn't always clear for a site.
- you might want to explain these rolls a bit more clearly. For example, only opponent knows MP's current location, so basically he must tell you whether MP is at a site in the same region, adjacent region, or if the site path matches your region. It might be obvious, still it is good to state that.
Also, are these effects cumulative. If I roll 10+, do I also get the info of 8+, or do I have to choose, or does opponent choose, or what? Suppose MP is at a site in the same region, that tells me a lot more than at a site in a region in my site path. But if he is not, I'd want it the other way around rather. So who decides this?

- it might be fun to let the winner of the toss decide wether he wants to go first or second. Moving MP first can be a tactical advantage (perhaps with your resources you can corner him). Otherwise, perhaps let the minion start, cause it seems to me minions might have the advantage, since they can shut High Pass and Gundabad off by playing faction/ally there. Minions also have Foul-smelling Paste, which must be a huge advantage here (hence in dc games we made Healing Herbs similar). But perhaps those who have played the scenario can shed more light on this.

otherwise great job, looking foreward to play this scenario.