Duration of ‘Hidden’?

By jonamok, in The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-earth

Probably a dumb question, but if I get a Hidden boon and don’t use it that turn, what happens to it?

Can I just keep it in my prepared area until I use it at any later point in the adventure?

The rules say nothing about it expiring, so I just have it and use it to become spontaneously hidden at some future juncture?

I can't remember the exact wording on the card but I understand that it remains with you until used for its ability. However you have to discard it when attacked to negate damage. There is no inclusion of the word "may" within the first part of text, which means it must be discarded.

1 hour ago, jonamok said:

Probably a dumb question, but if I get a Hidden boon and don’t use it that turn, what happens to it?

Can I just keep it in my prepared area until I use it at any later point in the adventure?

The rules say nothing about it expiring, so I just have it and use it to become spontaneously hidden at some future juncture?

kept until it is used. Just imagine your character hiding in a bush and not getting caught yet.

Hiding in a bush, doing skill checks, riding barrels, climbing trees, talking to characters...

55 minutes ago, steveisbig said:

Hiding in a bush, doing skill checks, riding barrels, climbing trees, talking to characters...

... sounds like a story I've read before... 🤔

Remember, you MUST use hidden when be attacked

Yep. Beravor got it first turn and never fought for about another 6 turns or so. Felt odd her running around, climbing trees and wading through bogs all while “hidden”.

On 4/27/2019 at 1:55 PM, jonamok said:

Yep. Beravor got it first turn and never fought for about another 6 turns or so. Felt odd her running around, climbing trees and wading through bogs all while “hidden”.

Gollum did a pretty good job *shrug*

On 4/27/2019 at 4:55 PM, jonamok said:

Yep. Beravor got it first turn and never fought for about another 6 turns or so. Felt odd her running around, climbing trees and wading through bogs all while “hidden”.

That actually sounds incredibly thematic with how Rangers are known to move around in the wilderness. Fits very well.

So what do you think about the second part of the card? It says: "When you attack, you may discard this boon to add 1 success". I think it means that I have the option of not staying hidden and adding 1 success, or I can stay hidden but with no additional success to my attack?

By the way, this is the first time I've posted here. Love the game.

6 hours ago, The Dude Abides said:

So what do you think about the second part of the card? It says: "When you attack, you may discard this boon to add 1 success". I think it means that I have the option of not staying hidden and adding 1 success, or I can stay hidden but with no additional success to my attack?

Yes, that's it exactly. Plus if you have "Quiet" (burglar) prepared you could even discard Quiet instead of hidden when you attack in order to get the extra success without discarding hidden. There's lots of card combos with the burglar cards!

6 hours ago, The Dude Abides said:

By the way, this is the first time I've posted here. Love the game.

Welcome! Me too.

Thank you Elfik. Additionally, and maybe I'm stating the obvious here, but it took awhile for me to understand that even though I was in a 'Hidden' state, I could still be attacked (activating the top portion of the card) - which sounds to me like a contradiction. And that I could move while hidden, because typically when I hide, I don't usually want to move and give away my position. There are abstract concepts about this game that sometimes make it confusing to grasp, which I'm ok with to a point - and as long as the game designers are consistent with it.

1 hour ago, The Dude Abides said:

Thank you Elfik. Additionally, and maybe I'm stating the obvious here, but it took awhile for me to understand that even though I was in a 'Hidden' state, I could still be attacked (activating the top portion of the card) - which sounds to me like a contradiction. And that I could move while hidden, because typically when I hide, I don't usually want to move and give away my position. There are abstract concepts about this game that sometimes make it confusing to grasp, which I'm ok with to a point - and as long as the game designers are consistent with it.

It's true, there's a lot of abstraction involved in this game, although strategy games in general tend to have this aspect. Hidden does have to be discarded when attacked, so I prefer to avoid being attacked by lone goblins when hidden since they rarely do much damage anyway. Once you get used to it, it's quite fun to play around with.