Aha - if anyone would have known, I thought it would be you sir!

thanks though im probably wrong.

looking at it more (and sorry to sideline for a moment) boromir leaves minas tirith on july 4 and sauron attacks osgilliath june 20th so gondor must have had the city on that date...so my guess is before that date

however the gondorian attack on osgiliath could be the actual one in the appendices several years before 3018 and the war of the ring...(cant find a date and i dont have the books handy, but its referenced on the site i got the other dates from) so im not sure

rich

thanks though im probably wrong.

looking at it more (and sorry to sideline for a moment) boromir leaves minas tirith on july 4 and sauron attacks osgilliath june 20th so gondor must have had the city on that date...so my guess is before that date

however the gondorian attack on osgiliath could be the actual one in the appendices several years before 3018 and the war of the ring...(cant find a date and i dont have the books handy, but its referenced on the site i got the other dates from) so im not sure

rich

'Yet we won it back in the days of the youth of Denethor; not to dwell in, but to hold as an outpost, and to rebuild the rbridge for the passage of our arms. And then came the Fell Riders out of Minas Morgul.' - Beregond, Minas Tirith.

This seems like the most logcial place for AtS Cycle to take place, although I'm not sure if Boromir or Faramir was present for the retaking of Osgiliath.

Sorry Gizlivadi, I was indeed lazy to look up and spell-check your nick (especially funny as we both credit ourselves by spelling the Tolkien names right), and if I'm guessing right you being Italian, I could have known, having learnt a bit of the language in my youth.

I repeat, for me to "buy" it that there's new quests with Sauron around although he was defeated in the last saga expansion, it would have to be kept completely separate, cycles and saga, which is probably the intention. Because otherwise, there is a strong emphasis on the overall narrative of the game (spelled out over numerous preview articles), which would of course become absurd if there were more quests with Sauron after him being defeated. If there are quests whilst he's defeated then the question of the name of the game is a bit dubious, but I will probably buy that too (in every sense of the word).

So you can count me among those who want more stuff of this game after the saga is finished, but I wouldn't mind if they took things slowly with the saga (even one per year) and have the cycles rolling round within the time period.

Sorry Gizlivadi, I was indeed lazy to look up and spell-check your nick (especially funny as we both credit ourselves by spelling the Tolkien names right), and if I'm guessing right you being Italian, I could have known, having learnt a bit of the language in my youth.

I repeat, for me to "buy" it that there's new quests with Sauron around although he was defeated in the last saga expansion, it would have to be kept completely separate, cycles and saga, which is probably the intention. Because otherwise, there is a strong emphasis on the overall narrative of the game (spelled out over numerous preview articles), which would of course become absurd if there were more quests with Sauron after him being defeated. If there are quests whilst he's defeated then the question of the name of the game is a bit dubious, but I will probably buy that too (in every sense of the word).

So you can count me among those who want more stuff of this game after the saga is finished, but I wouldn't mind if they took things slowly with the saga (even one per year) and have the cycles rolling round within the time period.

No worries friend

I must correct you, however, on your guess of my nationality, as I'm Chilean. And my nickname was inspired by an old Turkish website I used to visit a lot, lol.

Now back on topic, I believe the intention is to keep the narrative aspect of the game within each cycle on its own, and not to have a over-arching story of the game as a whole. That's why I think we will keep getting new cycles after the saga expansions. They'll just keep the "Third Age" storylines parallel to the saga expansions, and keep them up after those are finished.

The stuff from one of the History of Middle-earth (cannot remember the volume now) that Tolkien began writing, taking place in the days of Aragorn's son's rule (I believe), is very intriguing. I wish Tolkien had continued in that. As he himself claimed, he would have been able to create a (great) thriller, but that wasn't enough for him, apparently.

I am more sceptical if something within the game itself can be recreated so satisfactorily.

You are talking about The New Shadow. However, having read that (unfinished) story, I think the "equivalent" for it in the game would be The Steward's Fear, since both stories are quite similar and both deal with a conspiracy in Gondor and all that.

yes- stewards fear is very similar to the new shadow. personally im pleased tolkien left middle earth where he did.