Well theme is a curious beast to tackle but I still think it can be done if we keep things a bit open ended. LOTR LCG is supposed to be taking place before the actual story of the books, so that there is leeway to deckbuilding and questing. Similarly a First Age expansion could have thematic leeway by being not exclusively recreating the stories, or by presenting them in a different fashion (e.g. being retold as tales). There could even be a seperate First Age box that is individually playable out of the box (like its own little core set) but still plug-and-play with the other expansions. After all whether a player takes the Eagles inside Moria or not is a personal choice, not a weakness of the handling of the IP imo.

Lotr LCG newer expansions sell well in my area still.

The hobbit movies are just plain ****, with Tauriel being the biggest problem. But the Lotr movies provided a way to help spread Lord of the Rings in an accurate fashion.

I promise I'm not intentionally trying to stir things up, but...

Tauriel is one of the better parts of the hobbit films. She is an actual character with an arc and development that she goes through; very rare in that trilogy. Tolkien's The Hobbit she is not, but her scenes are generally better than the pointless effects and spectacle.

And to describe Peter Jackson's films as accurate is itself inaccurate. Almost every scene was rewritten, reordered and restructured. Popular understanding of the books now leans heavily on the films (as this card game demonstrates). Remember when Frodo and Sam leave Bag End together? Remember how Gandalf didn't want to go into Moria to face what he knew lurked there? Theoden's rousing speech about Death at Pelennor fields?

Outside the obvious changes that people are consciously aware of (Elves at Helm's Deep, no Tom Bombadil), how people remember the books has changed significantly due to the films. Frodo, Sam and Pippin left Bag End together. Gandalf was keen to try Moria. Eomer cried Death and it was a cry of grief, the death he sought was his own.

The hobbit movies are just plain ****, with Tauriel being the biggest problem. But the Lotr movies provided a way to help spread Lord of the Rings in an accurate fashion.

I promise I'm not intentionally trying to stir things up, but...

Tauriel is one of the better parts of the hobbit films. She is an actual character with an arc and development that she goes through; very rare in that trilogy. Tolkien's The Hobbit she is not, but her scenes are generally better than the pointless effects and spectacle.

And to describe Peter Jackson's films as accurate is itself inaccurate. Almost every scene was rewritten, reordered and restructured. Popular understanding of the books now leans heavily on the films (as this card game demonstrates). Remember when Frodo and Sam leave Bag End together? Remember how Gandalf didn't want to go into Moria to face what he knew lurked there? Theoden's rousing speech about Death at Pelennor fields?

Outside the obvious changes that people are consciously aware of (Elves at Helm's Deep, no Tom Bombadil), how people remember the books has changed significantly due to the films. Frodo, Sam and Pippin left Bag End together. Gandalf was keen to try Moria. Eomer cried Death and it was a cry of grief, the death he sought was his own.

The hobbit movies are just plain ****, with Tauriel being the biggest problem. But the Lotr movies provided a way to help spread Lord of the Rings in an accurate fashion.

I promise I'm not intentionally trying to stir things up, but...

And to describe Peter Jackson's films as accurate is itself inaccurate. Almost every scene was rewritten, reordered and restructured. Popular understanding of the books now leans heavily on the films (as this card game demonstrates). Remember when Frodo and Sam leave Bag End together? Remember how Gandalf didn't want to go into Moria to face what he knew lurked there? Theoden's rousing speech about Death at Pelennor fields?

Can you point out where in the card game they followed the films rather than the books?

Can you point out where in the card game they followed the films rather than the books?

Quite a bit of the art cribs directly from the movie visuals, especially recently. But that's to be expected when dealing with a wide variety of freelance artists, most of whom will be more familiar with the films.

So you are Peter Jackson then?

Yes. If you liked my films, please send appreciation in the form of a cheque to the following address.

Can you point out where in the card game they followed the films rather than the books?

Quite a bit of the art cribs directly from the movie visuals, especially recently. But that's to be expected when dealing with a wide variety of freelance artists, most of whom will be more familiar with the films.

I agree, but there's an art director and graphic design director to chech that. The back of the encounter cards still haunts me occasionally.

Can you point out where in the card game they followed the films rather than the books?

Quite a bit of the art cribs directly from the movie visuals, especially recently. But that's to be expected when dealing with a wide variety of freelance artists, most of whom will be more familiar with the films.

I agree, but there's an art director and graphic design director to chech that. The back of the encounter cards still haunts me occasionally.

Marksman of "Lorien" should be a fireable offence.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I likely would not have gotten into the card game if not for the Peter Jackson movies, and I likely would not have read the books if not for the card game. I will probably be way more keen on reading the The Silmarillion if the card game ever gets the rights to start using that setting. I'm pretty positive there are plenty of people like me that play this game. Hoarding the IP to The Silmarillion serves only to reduce the number of people that will read it.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I likely would not have gotten into the card game if not for the Peter Jackson movies, and I likely would not have read the books if not for the card game. I will probably be way more keen on reading the The Silmarillion if the card game ever gets the rights to start using that setting. I'm pretty positive there are plenty of people like me that play this game. Hoarding the IP to The Silmarillion serves only to reduce the number of people that will read it.

It also serves to reduce the number of Tuor slot machines being released into the world by disreputable business-types only interested in filling their own pockets.

If the rights are to be given to out, they need to go to the right people. Past experiences with production companies make extreme wariness the right decision unfortunately.

Hoarding the IP to The Silmarillion serves only to reduce the number of people that will read it.

Yes, but it also serves to preserve their experience.

The Lord of the Rings film trilogy was wonderfully done, but my interpretation of the book has been irrevocably altered by having viewed the movies. If a Silmarillion film were to be made, it would undeniably result in more people reading the book. But the book they would be reading would not be The Silmarillion they could read today.

Just giving counterpoint here. I have no strong feelings either way.

Silmarillion would be almost impossible to make Into a movie. Too large a story. Maybe a certain section could be a movie or a tv series. ive read it three times. It's not an easy feat.

My internal vision of Middle-Earth looks like it's painted by Angus McBride. Movies haven't changed that.

I think it is an interesting issue with IP in general. Like do you think Tolkien's works will ever be in the public domain? Would it be better if it is always owned by some entity that determines what is a respectful use of the source material? Would it be better if someone still owned the rights to all of Shakespeare's works to prevent crazy interpretations like that Leonardo DiCaprio version of Romeo + Juliet from 1996? I'm sure there are some Romeo and Juliet slot machines out there as well

To sorta bring it back to the OP, is it a bad thing that Cthulhu mythos stuff is public domain? Has it ruined reading H. P. Lovecraft? It definitely seems like it might have a little bit what with all the indescribable creatures and locations that would drive you mad just to witness that are now illustrated in FFG products.

The mythos has inspired Stephen King and other authors, which is a plus. The downside is that Stephen King and other authors vomit up a lot of mythos-inspired material

Silmarillion would be almost impossible to make Into a movie. Too large a story.

There's a story in the Silmarillion?! *flees from fan outrage*

Silmarillion would be almost impossible to make Into a movie. Too large a story.

There's a story in the Silmarillion?! *flees from fan outrage*

Try reading the book. It is a huge story. Go troll elsewhere.

Silmarillion would be almost impossible to make Into a movie. Too large a story.

There's a story in the Silmarillion?! *flees from fan outrage*

Try reading the book. It is a huge story. Go troll elsewhere.

I finally tracked down a copy, so after I'm done Dune i'm going to read the Silmarillion. Cant wait!

I finally tracked down a copy, so after I'm done Dune i'm going to read the Silmarillion. Cant wait!

Try reading the book. It is a huge story. Go troll elsewhere.

It's worth it. I've read it three times and own two copies. The hardcover I have is great as it has a big foldout map of Beleriand in the back.

I finally tracked down a copy, so after I'm done Dune i'm going to read the Silmarillion. Cant wait!

Try reading the book. It is a huge story. Go troll elsewhere.

It's worth it. I've read it three times and own two copies. The hardcover I have is great as it has a big foldout map of Beleriand in the back.

For my birthday my wife commissioned a watercolor map of Middle-Earth and it was so well done, I'm commissioning a map of Beleriand from the same artist.

The Silmarillion reminds me of the Bible. But with Elves. And giant spiders. And dragons. And sieges of mighty fortresses...

Okay, maybe that wasn't the best comparison.

The Fall of Gondolin is the best part, and the version in The Silmarillion isn't the best one in print (Book of Lost Tales Part 2), so it gets a big thumbs down from me.

Indeed. If you haven't picked up BoLT, definitely give it a read, or at least The Fall of Gondolin. (My username is named after my favorite character from that story.) Silmarillion does also have the tale of Beren and Luthien, which is another of my favorites and gives you some context to Aragorn's song in Fellowship of the Ring.

The Silmarillion reminds me of the Bible. But with Elves. And giant spiders. And dragons. And sieges of mighty fortresses...

Okay, maybe that wasn't the best comparison.

It made me think of the Bible as well, especially since it basically starts with Genesis and consists of tales of early days of creation.

Back to the original topic:

* Even if this is a troll (and not a leak of a mockup), I'm sure FFG employees have noticed the interest and have some cogwheels turning, so it may yet come to pass. (If it is a hoax, I can see employees kicking themselves for not thinking of it. On the other hand, it's a pretty obvious idea given the cancellation of the Call of Cthulhu LCG.)

* The fact that Star Wars was originally designed as a co-op meant that FFG was willing to have 2 coop LCGs at the same time.

* The announcement of a new game doesn't have to correspond 1-1 with the death of an old one. The number can fluctuate if the market grows or shrinks. Old games can die and new games can be created and eventually an equilibrium can create itself. It just happens to be 5 active games right now, with another (L5R) announced for 2017. The number could go up to 7 (or it could shrink again to 5 -- see my next point).

* Star Wars and Conquest are the least well-off of the games. LotR is doing well. Unless they did not have the option of renewing the license, I don't see them discontinuing LotR. At worst, I'd see them slow things down to let people catch up. Personally, I think coops need a slower release cycle than a tournament game. Star Wars and Conquest are the ones that look to be in the most danger.

* The death of CoC left a space for fans of the IP. While a coop is not the same as a versus game, FFG does think heavily in terms of IPs, so it makes sense to have another LCG in the Arkham Horror universe.

* A strong market for LotR could indicate that there is space for 2 coops -- reinforced by the fact that Star Wars was originally going to be a coop.

* In short, I don't think LotR will be cancelled anytime soon, unless FFG fails to have a choice in the matter.

* In short, even if this is a hoax, I think a coop Arkham Horror card game is an excellent idea.