I must have taken a wrong turning in this scenario, and I need some help finding my way out again!

You navigate through this quest by traveling to each of the four objective locations, with each one moving you through the quest in a different way.

The route I followed was: 1a -> 2a -> 2c -> 3c -> 4a.

2a makes you shuffle the Spiders of Mirkwood cards into the encounter deck. 2c makes you shuffle the Dol Guldur Orcs cards into the deck.

However, 4a tells you to add the enemy with the most hit points from the remaining set aside cards, which becomes the nemesis. But there aren't any set aside cards!?

I must be missing something. What did I do wrong?

EDIT: Is this connected to the "if able" in "travel to the next A stage, if able."? Do I travel to the next C stage (4c) instead!?

If you're on stage 2A, the next stage C should be 3C, not 2C.

Ugh! That's what I get for playing through blind! 🙄

2C is literally the next C stage after 2A. But reading through all the quest cards, it is now obvious that the intention is to progress numerically, and then select either A or C. (And the final objective location is therefore superfluous.)

EDIT: Seems I'm not the only one to make this mistake. And the annoying thing is that I had read the start of that thread, because of the confusion over the objective ally, but didn't read on... 🙄

2C could be seen as literally the next C stage after 2A, except that the next stage after stage2 is always stage 3 -- the letters don't change that. But I agree it might be clearer to say something like "C version of the next stage", which would make the intent more clear.