Random new mechanic for DC creator

[Cw0rk]

What about being able to bring cards that are out of play, into play? Or maybe just swap companions.

So when you find out your opponent plays Nazgul, you can swap your Legolas, Greenleaf for Prince of Mirkwood.

Of course the cost of this action would have to be high because it can be quite powerful.

I'm not into creating DC, but I think this could be a cool idea.

[ket_the_jet]

Strong...yeah. But I think that kind of takes away from the fun of the game. Taking a guess at what you are going to see is most of the fun.

Anyways, I would probably still run Greenleaf against Nazgul.
-wtk

[Cw0rk]

Anyways, I would probably still run Greenleaf against Nazgul.

Hehe that was only an example.

[Thranduil]

Magic has done this in the past, but that's because in tournaments you play best of 3 and you have 15 cards in your sideboard which you can swap for cards in your deck after game 1. So there have been cards that can taker cards from your sideboard mid-game. There has also been an "un-card" (which is a sort of joke card) that let's you take cards into the game from outside it, or things like the Time Machine that allow cards from previous games to keep cropping up, but these are not tournament lega.

Unfortunately, LotR does not have this system of best of 3 and sideboards (because it takes so much longer to play a game of LotR than Magic) and so I'm not sure it would work usefully in LotR.

Thranduil

[DáinIronfoot]

A card that worked sort of like Borne Far Away for the discard pile might work, something like this:

A Light In His Eyes
Exchange an unbound companion in play with a companion with the same title in your discard pile. Transfer all wounds and cards borne by the companion being discarded to the companion entering play.
"Frodo turned and saw Strider, and yet not Strider; for the weatherworn Ranger was no longer there. In the stern sat Aragorn son of Arathorn, proud and erect...."

So basically, you stack your deck with, say, four different versions of Aragorn, probably starting with, I don't know, Strider? Get a look at the type of deck your opponent is playing, then use a card like the one recommended above to take a different Aragorn from your discard pile (assuming you've discarded him somewhere throughout the game) and basically swap the two. No breaking of dead pile rules or "out of play" manipulation or anything.

Not the greatest of ideas, but I can see where it would definitely have its uses.

[MR. Lurtzy]

IMSO that would take a lot of strategy out of the game.

[DáinIronfoot]

Agreed, which is why I don't think anyone's made anything like it to date.

Still, it IS rather card-intensive and could lead to some clog, so it wouldn't be too terrible in terms of balance...but in general, yeah, it's an idea that probably shouldn't be pursued too far. Some games (like Magic) are well-suited for it, but LOTR TCG just isn't one of them, in my opinion.

[ket_the_jet]

Agreed, which is why I don't think anyone's made anything like it to date.

Still, it IS rather card-intensive and could lead to some clog, so it wouldn't be too terrible in terms of balance...but in general, yeah, it's an idea that probably shouldn't be pursued too far. Some games (like Magic) are well-suited for it, but LOTR TCG just isn't one of them, in my opinion.

Agree. Borne Far Away is about as close to that as I want to get. Otherwise, cards like Aragorn, Strider have no downside.

Also Dain, not to get super-technical, but I think your dream card lacks, "(except the Ring-Bearer)." Don't like Gandalf, Bearer of Obligation? Surprise! Now I have Gandalf, Returned in there and there is no One Ring! I must win by default!
-wtk

[Cw0rk]

A card that worked sort of like Borne Far Away for the discard pile might work, something like this:

A Light In His Eyes
Exchange an unbound companion in play with a companion with the same title in your discard pile. Transfer all wounds and cards borne by the companion being discarded to the companion entering play.
"Frodo turned and saw Strider, and yet not Strider; for the weatherworn Ranger was no longer there. In the stern sat Aragorn son of Arathorn, proud and erect...."

So basically, you stack your deck with, say, four different versions of Aragorn, probably starting with, I don't know, Strider? Get a look at the type of deck your opponent is playing, then use a card like the one recommended above to take a different Aragorn from your discard pile (assuming you've discarded him somewhere throughout the game) and basically swap the two. No breaking of dead pile rules or "out of play" manipulation or anything.

Not the greatest of ideas, but I can see where it would definitely have its uses.

When I'm talking about out of play, I'm talking about taking a card that is not even in your deck or in your discard pile and add it in the middle of the game.

[ket_the_jet]

I am awfully glad that there is no sideboard in Lord of the Rings. Otherwise, I would just pack four copies of Terrible As the Dawn, Such a Little Thing, and similar cards.
-wtk

[Cw0rk]

• Library of Minas Tirith
Artifact • Support area
When you play this artifact, you may spot Gandalf to place a tale from out of play on the top of your draw deck.
Fellowship: Add a burden to reveal the top 5 cards of your draw deck. You may take each rings revealed into hand. Discard this artifact.

This is just an example of cards that could be made. BTW, the library Gandalf goes to to learn about the ring is in Minas Tirith, right?

[TelTura]

in my opinion, if you start taking things in play that are out of play (or "removed from the game"), I think it only begins to escalate and spiral.  Then a new action would be defined that ABSOLUTELY made sure that a card could not return ("If your ring-bearer is about to be corrupted, remove this card from the game (and then shred it) to remove a burden").  I don't think that was the intended mechanic, but it's a side-effect of allowing things in from the outside; it might make those sort of "remove me from the game to do X" cards too powerful.  

and from an in-universe standpoint, it doesn't really make sense.  Most of the mechanics in the LotR-TCG have mechanics that reflect (rather well) the way things actually work in Arda.  What does "take a card from outside the game in" reflect?  The Ainur sending aid from the midst of Valinor?  they've already done that, and they don't really take a direct part in the War.  So simply from a nerdy-fanboy point of view, i'd vote against it.

[Sam, Great Elf Warrior]

A card that worked sort of like Borne Far Away for the discard pile might work, something like this:

A Light In His Eyes
Exchange an unbound companion in play with a companion with the same title in your discard pile. Transfer all wounds and cards borne by the companion being discarded to the companion entering play.
"Frodo turned and saw Strider, and yet not Strider; for the weatherworn Ranger was no longer there. In the stern sat Aragorn son of Arathorn, proud and erect...."

So basically, you stack your deck with, say, four different versions of Aragorn, probably starting with, I don't know, Strider? Get a look at the type of deck your opponent is playing, then use a card like the one recommended above to take a different Aragorn from your discard pile (assuming you've discarded him somewhere throughout the game) and basically swap the two. No breaking of dead pile rules or "out of play" manipulation or anything.

Not the greatest of ideas, but I can see where it would definitely have its uses.

What if the cards played on the old companion can't be played on the new one, e.g., playing several cards on Aragorn,DoR then swapping him for another Aragorn? Or has there already been some ruling on this (e.g., if Armor of the White City is discarded from a companion bearing Gondorian Steed)? Also, would "to play" requirements need to be met, e.g., could you swap Denethor,OtEoM for Denethor,LoMT if you didn't have any other Men? Also, would Denethor be able to spot himself (along with one other Man) for the requirement (since he's technically already in play)?

I suppose such a card would also need to be checked carefully to ensure that it didn't allow any broken combos, since many cards were designed with the assumption that they couldn't be used with other cards.