Lord of the Rings Adventure Game
Encyclopedia
Lord of the Rings Adventure Gaming (LOR) is a role-playing game
based on the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien
(specifically The Lord of the Rings
and The Hobbit
) under license from Tolkien Enterprises
. Iron Crown Enterprises
(I.C.E.) published the game until they lost the license on 22 Sep 1999.
. Published campaign sourcebooks are set just before the year 3018 of the Third Age, i.e. just before the War of the Ring
. The Player Characters are able to interact with the main characters of the Lord of the Rings, but do not take direct roles in the outcome of those events.
(MERP) system and game modules.
Players can create characters from the races of Men, Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits and Half-elves.
Characters possess Attributes and Skills rated between -5 and +5. Skills can be modified to a rating above or below these limits (i.e. under -5 or over +5). An attack roll consists of a roll of 2D6, to which the attacker's skill rating and appropriate weapon rating are added and the defender's defense and armor rating are subtracted. The result is looked up on a table to determine success or failure, and if it is a success how much damage is done.
Spell casters can only learn a very limited number of spells. Some feel this is more in tune with the flavor of Tolkien's writings than other systems.
Cold" (ICE #LR2). Two more scenario books in the series were planned but never published.
A subsequent Middle-earth based RPG, the Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game
, was published by Decipher Inc. Except for the original source material, the Decipher game shares no link to ICE's Lord of the Rings Adventure Game and uses an entirely different rules system.
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
based on the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
(specifically The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
and The Hobbit
The Hobbit
The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, better known by its abbreviated title The Hobbit, is a fantasy novel and children's book by J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published on 21 September 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the New York Herald...
) under license from Tolkien Enterprises
Tolkien Enterprises
Middle-earth Enterprises, formerly known as Tolkien Enterprises, is a trading name for a division of the Saul Zaentz Company based in Berkeley, California which owns the worldwide exclusive rights to certain elements of J. R. R. Tolkien's two most famous literary works; The Lord of the Rings and...
. Iron Crown Enterprises
Iron Crown Enterprises
Iron Crown Enterprises was a publisher of role playing, board, miniature battle, and collectible card games.ICE was incorporated in 1980 shortly after the principal founders graduated from the University of Virginia...
(I.C.E.) published the game until they lost the license on 22 Sep 1999.
Setting
The setting for LOR is an expanded version of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earthMiddle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of the majority of author J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings take place entirely in Middle-earth, as does much of The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales....
. Published campaign sourcebooks are set just before the year 3018 of the Third Age, i.e. just before the War of the Ring
War of the Ring
In the fictional high fantasy-world of J. R. R. Tolkien, the War of the Ring was fought between Sauron and the free peoples of Middle-earth for control of the One Ring and dominion over the continent. The War of the Ring took place at the end of the Third Age. Together with the Quest of Mount Doom,...
. The Player Characters are able to interact with the main characters of the Lord of the Rings, but do not take direct roles in the outcome of those events.
System
Originally published by Iron Crown Enterprises (I.C.E.) in 1991-1993, this was a simple, "level-less" roleplaying system designed to help introduce new players (and game masters) to roleplaying in the world of JRR Tolkien’s "The Hobbit" and "Lord of the Rings". It uses only two 6-sided dice to resolve skill checks and combat. It was an expansion of the even simpler rules used by ICE for its Middle-earth Quest books. It was intended as a stepping stone to I.C.E.’s more complex Middle-earth Role PlayingMiddle-earth Role Playing
Middle-earth Role Playing is a 1984 role-playing game based on the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien under license from Tolkien Enterprises. Iron Crown Enterprises published the game until they lost the license on 22 Sep 1999.-Setting:The setting for MERP is an expanded version of J. R. R...
(MERP) system and game modules.
Players can create characters from the races of Men, Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits and Half-elves.
Characters possess Attributes and Skills rated between -5 and +5. Skills can be modified to a rating above or below these limits (i.e. under -5 or over +5). An attack roll consists of a roll of 2D6, to which the attacker's skill rating and appropriate weapon rating are added and the defender's defense and armor rating are subtracted. The result is looked up on a table to determine success or failure, and if it is a success how much damage is done.
Spell casters can only learn a very limited number of spells. Some feel this is more in tune with the flavor of Tolkien's writings than other systems.
History
The system’s first entry was a boxed set (ICE #LR0) containing the scenario "Dawn Comes Early", plus Guidelines, maps, character bios, and cardboard characters with stands. The next was the scenario book "Darker Than the Darkness" (ICE #LR1) and then the scenario book "Over the Misty MountainsMisty Mountains
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world of Middle-earth, the Misty Mountains is a mountain range, running for 795 miles from north to south, between Eriador and the valley of the Great River, Anduin, and...
Cold" (ICE #LR2). Two more scenario books in the series were planned but never published.
A subsequent Middle-earth based RPG, the Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game
Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game
The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game, released by Decipher Inc. in 2002, is a role-playing game set in the Middle-earth of J. R. R. Tolkien's fiction. The game is set in the years between The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring, but may be run at any time from the First to Fourth Age and...
, was published by Decipher Inc. Except for the original source material, the Decipher game shares no link to ICE's Lord of the Rings Adventure Game and uses an entirely different rules system.