That's a good point. There is a bunch of continuity and compatibility stuff to manage with this expansion. Aragorn fellowship hero? What happens if I already had Aragorn as my hero for the Black Riders campaign? That said, in a video posted by Team Covenant in which they interview Caleb and Matt they say that this expansion fits "quite naturally", so I am very curious to see how they handle these separate storylines.

They did arrive when Isengard was already sacked, but Pippin and Merry also gave quite a hell of a discription about the Last March of the Ents. And they did talk to Saruman, so maybe you'll have to escape his spell, his voice?

So FFG is now saying it will be over a year from Black Riders to Road Darkens.

A year. You are f-ing kidding me.

I got into this game to play the LOTR storyline and feel like FFG is dripping out the attendant saga expansions so that people like me will buy all of the non-storyline expansion they pump out in between. In response I have decided to boycott the Ring-Maker cycle and encourage others to join me while using the message board to encourage FFG to finish the saga expansions and only then return to Lost Realm and the like. (FYI two of my friends have held off purchasing Ring-Maker as well).

That said, with the unveiling of Treason of Saruman I am hopeful, perhaps naively so, that FFG will actually get them out at a merely dawdling rate (2/year) rather than that of a snail-bogged-down-in-January-molasses. If that miraculously turns out to be the case I may end my boycott.

Did I mention a year?

pff...we can handle our trolls. Something lotr lcg taught us already in Core Set Quest #2! Go ahead and boycott whatever you like, certainly no one in this forum or game community is going to miss you

Well, one cannot help but chuckle about the silly boycott thing... but guys, let us not be too mean to that dude. I guess at the bottom of his frustration there is a craving for LotR LCG. It has just been channeled in a weird and ridiculous way.

ALSO, I am now fully expecting the Cardboard of the Rings crew to stream a game featuring all three different Aragorns controlled by one player.

Oh, and I just need to whine at least a little bit how disappointed I am that we need to wait longer for the big boxes. Logistics, delays, etc. well, it is what it is, obviously FFG would have it other way if they could. But maaan, it is just as I was a child and mom told me Christmas was being postponed for a month. Geez, mom!

There was a delay that affected the production cycle of all LCGs, am I correct? Of course noone should hold it against FFG, though I am curious on why it happened.

Looking forward to the expansions.

Yep, this Saga box looks great! I think I will enjoy these ones better than the ones involving Frodo and Sam but we'll see.. The three quests are what I would have expected and I had a hunch Aragorn may be made into a Fellowship Sphere Hero but I want to use his other hero versions in these quests.. oh well. And also I really hope we get 4 heroes in this box, not just one or two- we should easily be able to get another Legolas and Gimli, another Theoden and finally Erkenbrand!! but all of those heroes in one box seems way too amazing! They do have to compete with the crazy Gandalf hero though..

Oh and I'm also quite curious as to how the siege on Isengard will play out.. since obviously Aragorn wasn't there but he is our Fellowship hero so maybe the quest will just not involve a Fellowship hero and almost play as a separate quest?

I hope they use this box to expand on Rohan and Ents, as well. I can't wait to have Merry and Pippin lead the Lore/Tactics herd of Ents into battle at Isengard!

I found on Deviantart picture of "The Warden of Helms Deep" made by Reau. He did this for FFG's to LOTR LCG. Maybe it's ally, which we can see in "Treason Of Saruman"?

He looks... Doomed.

This artwork is amazing! I love the out of focus background, it really adds a lot a realism and texture to the picture and that armor is really detailed!

Wow!

And the horn in the background. Sweet work.

Good find! Maybe this is the much speculated about Erkenbrand hero?

Wow, now I'm glad that I already made my 100 meaningful posts here! *shudders*

Well, I really like the first two paragraphs, but that third paragraph is waaaay over the top and making me sad:

So FFG is now saying it will be over a year from Black Riders to Road Darkens.

A year. You are f-ing kidding me.

I got into this game to play the LOTR storyline and feel like FFG is dripping out the attendant saga expansions so that people like me will buy all of the non-storyline expansion they pump out in between. In response I have decided to boycott the Ring-Maker cycle and encourage others to join me while using the message board to encourage FFG to finish the saga expansions and only then return to Lost Realm and the like. (FYI two of my friends have held off purchasing Ring-Maker as well).

That said, with the unveiling of Treason of Saruman I am hopeful, perhaps naively so, that FFG will actually get them out at a merely dawdling rate (2/year) rather than that of a snail-bogged-down-in-January-molasses. If that miraculously turns out to be the case I may end my boycott.

Did I mention a year?

Okay, I'm waiting for my flight back to the hall, so I finally have time to comment on this ridiculous "boycott". Here's the deal, if you have made all of 15 comments on this forum, I'm taking anything you say with a grain of salt. I understand that you are frustrated about delays. We are ALL frustrated about delays. If you take a deep breath and think about the situation rationally, you immediately realize that there are elements of the logistics which are out of the designers' control. Talking to Caleb, and seeing the look on his face when he explained that the Road Darkens didn't make it to GenCon, you really see how much he cares about this game. You might try to paint FFG as this giant evil company which simply wants to maximize profits with no regard for its customers. Not only is this characterization absurd, it is incredibly disrespectful to Caleb, Matt and everyone else who works so hard to create this wonderful game.

I've spent the last year and a half on the Hall of Beorn. Ian has spent even more time on Tales from the Cards. Derek and Matthew have joined us to form the Grey Company Podcast. Matthew and Mitch spent hours on the Progression series. Cardboard of the Rings, Master of Lore, so many more people have all dedicated time to supporting this game. Together all of these passionate individuals give freely of their time, money, and creative energy. Not only do none of us get paid, but we spend money out of our own pockets for online hosting, contests, listener swag, etc. etc. etc. I say this not to complain, but you need to understand the community that you are addressing. I am so happy to be part of one of the best game communities I've ever seen. I have met lifelong friends thanks to this game, and as someone who loves Tolkien, card games, and strategy, this is the perfect game for me.

So, here's the point. Shut up with your boycott nonsense. It is a giant slap in the face to everyone who designs this game, and the wonderful community dedicated to supporting it. Even though I am vehemently against censorship, I would absolutely not hold it against FFG for removing your worthless comment from this forum. (Really? )Try contributing say 100 meaningful, insightful, constructive comments that are actually worth reading before you come into our community and take a giant smelly dump. As someone who has spent hundreds of hours of my own time here and on other forums, I have no problem asking you to prove yourself worthy of an audience before you raise your voice in such a disrespectful manner. (WUT? We no foreigners here? ) Remember, in the case of Caleb and Matt, and others at FFG, this game is their livelihood. It takes a special kind of Orc to mess with someone else's way of life so flippantly.

"Freedom is always the freedom of the one who thinks differently"

~ Rosa Luxemburg ~

Yes. Saga expansions are high quality, but the real potential here is in stories unwritten by the professor. Must. Support.

Good find! Maybe this is the much speculated about Erkenbrand hero?

Guy looks too old, but maybe. I'd rather Gamling. Is that horn perhaps the Horn of Helm Hammerhand (a lot smaller than the one in PJ's LotR, but I like it)?

If the scene is indeed the Hornburg, than it is the Horn of Helm Hammerhand.

Heck I suppose it could be Old Theoden

Too old to be Erkenbrand? First of all I don't see white hairs, and his face looks mature but not wrinkled. I'd wager he looks like a hardened guy of 45 or so. And finally, where do we have any reference of Erkenbrand's age?

I guess there isn't a reference, I probably just assumed he was around Eomer's age since the characters were combined into Karl Urban by PJ. I guess the hair's that sort of blond/grey (to me in that lighting anyway).

To be honest, I saw the guy and thought "New Theoden?" That's some ornate frickin' armor

Oh I really like the art!

He looks weary, after the battle at helms deep, with all the background in rubble with all the fighting going on there.

My quess is that, with the title of "warden of helm's deep" he is indeed Erkenbrand.

So what's the hero line up going to be? Leadership Theoden, Tactics Erkenbrand, Lore Gimli, Spirit Legolas?

I guess switching spheres for Gimli and Legolas is also an option. Lore Legolas would be really similar to Haldir, but we could call them Loregolas and Spimli, which just works better...

Theoden could also be delayed to the fifth saga box, operning space for Erkenbrand and Gamling.

I'm really curious though how they are going to handle the fourth box. New Sam for sure, but what else? Maybe Faramir and another ranger? Smeagol just has to be an objective ally, so he would be unlikely as a hero. I just don't see a good set of four heroes, but neither is there a single stand-out candidate like Gandalf.

The card that'll turn Gandalf White, I hope it will be an attachment, and not a boon.

For Heroes: Treebeard could become one, Erkenbrand I really hope for, new Gimli and Legolas spheres would be great. Tactics Eowyn will probably be saved for the fifth box, i guess.