So, I was thinking about the announcement of LCG rotation back in 2014. Some people were mad about the LCG idea being "destroyed, " which I didn't agree with. I was actually concerned about the health of LotR when it they announced it would not have rotation. But something I realized is that all LCGs that were scheduled for rotation are gone.

Warhammer Invasion was discontinued

W40KC was discontinued

Star Wars was discontinued (just before rotation was scheduled, no less!)

Android Netrunner got a second edition (granted, just after the first scheduled rotation)

Game of Thrones got a second edition on rotation announcement

Arkham Horror and L5R were released post-rotation

So was it actually good that LotR never got rotation? Any thoughts? Is this crazy?

Call of Cthulhu never got rotation BTW.

A:NR isn't a second edition. None of the rules changed, just a different Core Set.

AGoT 2 has rotation, it just hasn't happened yet.

The reason LOTR doesn't have rotation is because of it's Player vs System arrangement. Arkham doesn't have rotation either.

36 minutes ago, Kakita Shiro said:

A:NR isn't a second edition. None of the rules changed, just a different Core Set.

Also, Core 2.0 essentially represents a somewhat modified rotation, where they saved a certain set of cards from rotating out, and conversely force-rotated out some cards that were in Core 1.0. It made a lot of sense for a game that was not initially designed with rotation in mind. But overall, yes, the game has undergone rotation (to its benefit, I think most of its competitive community would agree).

All of those things are true, but I just thought it was interesting.

LOTR rotation is..... possible? That's more like a self-imposed deck-building challenge. "Use only cards from cycles X, Y, and Z, to beat quest W." You have to consider that most, if not all, quests, at least non-Saga, were designed with the full player cardpool in mind. So if you artificially restrict yourself, the encounter deck is built with the expectation that you have access to certain tools, and if you don't have them, you're going to be in for a more difficult experience.

Plus imagine the uproar if they try to limit which cycles are allowed at Fellowship events. That would fly like an eagle in Moria. The best we could hope for is something like the Ultimatum idea from Arkham.

10 hours ago, Network57 said:

LOTR rotation is..... possible? That's more like a self-imposed deck-building challenge. "Use only cards from cycles X, Y, and Z, to beat quest W." You have to consider that most, if not all, quests, at least non-Saga, were designed with the full player cardpool in mind. So if you artificially restrict yourself, the encounter deck is built with the expectation that you have access to certain tools, and if you don't have them, you're going to be in for a more difficult experience.

Plus imagine the uproar if they try to limit which cycles are allowed at Fellowship events. That would fly like an eagle in Moria. The best we could hope for is something like the Ultimatum idea from Arkham.

In that Sense the Path less traveled blog and Seastan's minimal purchase mode are kind of rotations of a single cycle.

Most of all I agree that in a co-operative game rotation is not needed. Just agree among your player group if you want to restrict deck building or not. Many players enjoy thematic plays which is a strong restriction as well.

Again, I agree with you (now at least) that LotR is better without rotation. No big deal, but I find it interesting that the other LCGs that got rotation either died for various reasons, got rebooted (or got a new core), or have yet to start rotating. Sorry if my op made it sound like I wanted rotation.

Cooperating LCGs do not rotate.

I think a rotation is pretty critical for long-term viability of competitive games: the initial buy-in becomes too much without it, and it's too many options for someone to pick up. For the same reason, I think having some 'pre-built' competitive decks for sale is important too. Being able to try a competitive deck for a lowish-fixed cost, gets new players into the game and without having to get their head around every card.

None of that really applies to co-op games though.

They most likely ended Call of Cthulhu (still sad for that one) and Star Wars when they did in order to avoid the hassle that rotation gives for a game that was ending anyway.

Likewise AGOT received its new edition when it did for the same reason.

Rotation for coop games isn’t required as you can restrict yourself to any cards you feel like.

I would not be against having (thematic) restrictions during event play however.