# War of the Ring: Lords of Middle-earth

War of the Ring: Lords of Middle-earth is a board game for 2–4 players. It plays in 180 minutes and is meant for ages 13 and up. Ludoya players call it best with 2. It is rated 7.8 out of 10 by 11 Ludoya reviewers. The cheapest copy in stock is $31.90 (United States).

- **Players:** 2–4 (best with 2)
- **Playing time:** 180 minutes
- **Minimum age:** 13+
- **Complexity:** 3.8 out of 5
- **Year published:** 2012
- **Categories:** Fantasy, Expansion for Base-game, Novel-based, Miniatures, Dice, Wargame, Adventure, Territory Building
- **Mechanics:** Hand Management, Campaign / Battle Card Driven, Dice Rolling, Variable Phase Order, Area Movement, Area Majority / Influence
- **Ludoya rating:** 7.8 out of 10, from 11 reviews
- **Owned by:** 97 Ludoya players
- **Plays logged on Ludoya:** 8
- **Unique players:** 7

**Designers:** Francesco Nepitello, Roberto Di Meglio, Marco Maggi

**Artists:** Francesco Nepitello, Jon Hodgson, John Howe, Matteo Macchi

## Where to buy in United States

| Shop | Price | Link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cardhaus Games | 31.9 $ | https://www.cardhaus.com/war-of-the-ring-lords-of-middle-earth/ |
| Miniature Market | 31.99 $ | https://www.miniaturemarket.com/agswotr005.html |
| Mathom | 31.5 € | https://mathom.es/es/guerra-del-anillo/21979-guerra-del-anillo-senores-de-la-tierra-media-8436017221022.html |
| eFantasy | 39.99 € | https://www.efantasy.gr/en/products/board-games/152864-expansion-war-of-the-ring-lords-of-middle-earth |
| TLAMA games | 679 Kč | https://www.tlamagames.com/deskove-hry/valka-o-prsten--pani-stredozeme-promo/ |
| Svet deskovych her | 699 Kč | https://www.svet-deskovych-her.cz/produkty/12189/valka-o-prsten-pani-stredozeme |
| Ludifolie | 34.9 € | https://www.ludifolie.com/15201-la-guerre-de-l-anneau-les-seigneurs-de-la-terre-du-milieu.html |
| Get Your Fun | 34.99 € | https://www.getyourfun.it/036298-la-guerra-dell-anello-i-signori-della-terra-di-mezzo-giochi-di-guerra.html |
| Jugar x Jugar | 35 € | https://www.jugarxjugar.com/shop/estrategia/438-guerra-del-anillo-senores-de-la-tierra-media-8436017221022.html |
| Alphaspel | 399 kr | https://alphaspel.se/491-bradspel/27026-war-of-the-ring-lords-of-middle-earth |
| Philibert | 35.9 € | https://philibertnet.com/fr/nuts-publishing/114812-la-guerre-de-l-anneau-les-seigneurs-de-la-terre-du-milieu-3770009354783.html |
| Zatu Games | 34.99 £ | https://zatu.com/products/lords-middle-earth-war-ring |
| Spielezar | 44.9 Fr. | https://www.spielezar.ch/brettspiele/war-of-the-ring-lords-of-middle-earth-en |

## Expansions

- [War of the Ring: Lords of Middle-earth – Treebeard Mini-Expansion](https://www.ludoya.com/games/war-of-the-ring-lords-of-middle-earth-treebeard-mini-expansion)

## Rules questions

### Can I use an Elven Ring to change a Keeper Die or Lesser Minion Die?

No. Elven Rings cannot change the result of a Keeper Die or Lesser Minion Die; they can only modify standard Action Dice. Each Ring can still be used once per turn for its normal effect, and a Keeper’s special Ring ability is an additional, separate use. (p. 14)

### What happens if I roll more than one Special Action Die?

You must choose only one of the rolled Special Die results and discard the others until the next turn. If any rolled Special Die shows an Eye, you must choose an Eye result; that die goes to the Hunt Box. (pp. 7–8)

### When do Keeper and Lesser Minion Dice get added to the Action Dice Pool?

A Keeper Die is added at the start of the turn after Elrond or Galadriel enters play, or when Gandalf the Grey is the Fellowship’s Guide during the recovery phase. A Lesser Minion Die is added at the start of the turn after the Balrog or Gothmog enters play. (pp. 9–11)

### Does drawing the Sméagol Tile cause Hunt damage?

No. When the Sméagol Tile is drawn, Hunt Damage is 0, Sméagol enters play as the Guide, and the tile is removed from the game. Sméagol is not Gollum, so effects referring to Gollum are not affected. (pp. 21–22)

### Can the Balrog leave Moria as soon as it enters play?

No. The Balrog initially has Level 0 and cannot leave Moria. It must first be activated by choosing its Use Balrog result or by playing “A Balrog is Come!”; while active, it has Level 2 and moves as a non-flying Minion. (p. 24)

### Can I use the Balrog or Gothmog’s special die even if the Witch-king is in play?

Yes, but choosing a result marked with the Remove symbol causes that Lesser Minion Die to be removed during the next Recover Action Dice phase if the Witch-king is in play. The same applies to the Balrog or Gothmog’s die if its associated character has been removed from play. (pp. 11, 24, 26)

## Links

- [This page](https://www.ludoya.com/games/war-of-the-ring-lords-of-middle-earth)
- [War of the Ring: Lords of Middle-earth in the Ludoya app](https://app.ludoya.com/g/war-of-the-ring-lords-of-middle-earth)
- [BoardGameGeek entry](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/122328)

_Data from Ludoya, updated 2026-09-24. Ratings, ownership and play counts are Ludoya's own._