Announcing the Fifth Adventure Pack in The Ring-maker Cycle

“In the day that Sauron first put on the One, Celebrimbor, maker of the Three, was aware of him […] and so his evil purposes were revealed.”
    –J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

Fantasy Flight Games is proud to announce the upcoming release of Celebrimbor’s Secret, the fifth Adventure Pack in The Ring-maker cycle for The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game!

Of the Rings of Power, only the Three crafted by Celebrimbor were never touched nor sullied by the Dark Lord of Mordor. Having suspected Sauron’s evil purposes, Celembrimbor gave them to three Elf-lords who hid them through the ages and used them to resist the Dark Lord’s influence.

Should he recover the One, Sauron will command all the Rings of Power, even the Three, and he will be able to undo all the good that the Elves had created with the Three. Fortunately, though, Sauron does not have the One, and he does not yet have the means to undo the works created from the Three.

In Celebrimbor’s Secret, you will, at last, lead several of Middle-earth’s heroes toward the end of the quest that was given to them by Saruman the White. Amid the ruins of Ost-in-Edhil lies the forge where Celebrimbor crafted the Three. For ages, its location and all within it were kept secret, but as the power of Mordor grows, Saruman desperately seeks any means to fight against the Shadow, including whatever secrets the heroes may discover in Celebrimbor’s forge.

The sixty new cards in Celebrimbor’s Secret introduce a new scenario, in which Middle-earth’s heroes must search through the ruins of Ost-in-Edhil, even as they are beset by a host of Mordor Orcs that have somehow made it to the ruins ahead of the heroes. But even as you stand against the Orcs, you’ll gain new strength from the Adventure Pack’s player cards, which lend greater strength to the Silvan and Noble traits, as well as the Doomed X mechanic. You’ll also be able to call upon a new hero, one who has closely guarded Celebrimbor’s secret for hundreds of years.

The Lady of the Wood

“It is in the land of Lórien upon the finger of Galadriel that one of the Three remains. This is Nenya, the Ring of Adamant, and I am its keeper.”
    –Galadriel, The Fellowship of the Ring

Celebrimbor’s Secret heralds the long-awaited arrival of both Galadriel and Nenya to The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game.

Though Galadriel (Celebrimbor’s Secret, 112), herself, is Noldor, she’s also the wife of Celeborn (The Dunland Trap, 1), the Silvan-traited Elf and Lord of Lothlórien who appears earlier in The Ring-maker cycle. Accordingly, her unique abilities perfectly complement and enhance those of Celeborn and a new Silvan strategy.

First of all, Galadriel’s abilities make her unique among all of the game’s heroes. She cannot quest, attack, or defend. Still, Galadriel serves magnificently in a supporting role. After all, she has made Lothlórien one of the greatest points of light amid all of Middle-earth. In the game, Galadriel serves as a tremendous inspiration to others, allowing allies to pull double duty whenever they enter play. She allows them to commit their Willpower to the quest, without exhausting, which means they can later exhaust to defend or attack, or even to help bring in more allies with A Very Good Tale (The Hobbit: Over Hill and Under Hill, 11). Of course, Galadriel’s ability scales in power according to the power of the ally you bring into play, and when the ally in question is Gandalf (Core Set, 73) or Saruman (The Voice of Isengard, 3), Galadriel can help you quickly win early ground against the Shadow.

Meanwhile, a strategy built around the new Silvan Elves will likely not only want allies to bring into play, but events like The Tree People (The Dunland Trap, 9) to pull them back out of play. This is where Galadriel’s second ability comes in handy:

“Action: Exhaust Galadriel to choose a player. That player reduces his threat by 1 and draws 1 card. (Limit one per round.)”

Card draw is always useful, but when you rely upon a steady stream of events to power your deck, card draw is absolutely vital. In an event-based deck, Galadriel not only provides you early and consistent access to card draw, she provides you with consistent threat reduction, as well. Accordingly, Galadriel is certain to find a place not only in a number of Silvan decks, but also in a good number of Secrecy decks, especially given that her Noldor trait allows her owner to play Elrond’s Counsel (The Watcher in the Water, 59), which is arguably the most effective threat-reduction event in the game.

Despite her tremendous abilities, if Galadriel were unable to contribute her four Willpower to quests, in one fashion or another, one might wonder if the Lady of Lothlórien were really devoted to the struggle against the Dark Lord. Fortunately, Celebrimbor’s Secret provides access not only to the Lady, but also to her Ring, Nenya. After all, it was not Galadriel’s power, alone, that ensured Lothlórien remained a safe realm, even amid the growing evils of Middle-earth. Many of its defenses owed directly to the strength and influence of her Ring of Power.

In The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game, Nenya (Celebrimbor’s Secret, 121) allows Galadriel to exhaust to add her Willpower to another character’s Willpower until the end of the phase.

Accordingly, with Nenya, Galadriel’s four Willpower are quite considerable. In fact, with Nenya, her four Willpower are worth more than just about any other source of four Willpower. This is because of timing. So long as you have even a single character committed to the quest, Galadriel can respond to the challenges confronting your party at action speed. Will she add her Willpower to the quest; will she participate in another test of Willpower, like the Hide and Escape tests triggered by other scenarios; or will she allow a player to draw a card and lower his threat? Along with Nenya, Galadriel provides you the flexibility to make your decision at the last possible moment, displaying all the foresight and wisdom appropriate to an Elf-lord of her stature.

Secrets of Power… for Good or for Ill?

Will Galadriel be able to help Middle-earth’s heroes recover the secrets of Celebrimbor’s forge? Or will the Dark Lord’s servants discover them first?

You’ll have your chance to stave off impending doom when Celebrimbor’s Secret arrives at retailers everywhere in the third quarter of 2014!

…