Lord of the Rings: The Card Game – Temple of the Deceived

Fantasy Flight Games is proud to announce the upcoming release of Temple of the Deceived, the third Adventure Pack in the Dream-chaser cycle for The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game!

After a treacherous journey at sea, several of Middle-earth’s greatest heroes arrive at a remote island, covered in mountains, jungles, and the ruins of a fallen civilization. Somewhere amid those ruins, a chest has lain locked and half-forgotten for untold ages. Now, with the key to that chest in their possession, your heroes must scour the island to find it, but their every step carries them deeper into the middle of uncharted natural dangers… and closer to the hordes of cursed dead that haunt the isle!

With its sixty cards and innovative mechanics, Temple of the Deceived introduces a new Leadership hero, twenty-seven new player cards (three copies each of nine different cards), and a thrilling new scenario that carries the fantastic explorations of The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game to all new heights!

Journey Through the Jungle

One of the greatest strengths of The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game is that every new scenario permits the seamless exploration and integration of new mechanics and play experiences, and the scenario from Temple of the Deceived pushes this idea to the limit, providing such a unique take on the game’s classic challenges that it is bound to become an instant fan-favorite.

At the beginning of the game, instead of adding the scenario’s locations to the encounter deck, along with its treachery and enemy cards, you pull them out – all fifteen of them – and create a map of your uncharted island. This Island Map then drives the rest of the adventure forward, as your fellowship tracks its progress from site to site, aiming to find its way into the towering temple on the other side.

Because you start with fifteen locations in play and none in the encounter deck, Temple of the Deceived also introduces new rules for how you interact with the Island Map. Notably, you always have an active location, you track your progress along the map with a token, the only locations considered to be “in the staging area” are those orthogonally adjacent to your active location, and all the locations in the Island Map enter place facedown, only to be turned faceup once you travel to them.

As a result of these novel rules, your journey to the Temple of the Deceived is full of potential pitfalls and traps, meaning the concept of exploration is raised to a height unprecedented in The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game, and you will want to take advantage of every opportunity you find to scout your path.

Of course, your journey isn’t some tranquil stroll. You must still deal with all of the encounter deck’s fearsome Undead and treachery cards, adding the drama and tension inherent in your conflicts to the constant excitement of your discoveries.

Scouting Your Way

The theme of exploration takes more than one form in Temple of the Deceived. Even as its scenario pursues this theme with innovative mechanics, its Scout hero and many Scout-related player cards allow players to experiment with new ways to complete their quests. Will you send a Rhovanion Outrider (Temple of the Deceived, 62) or three to ride ahead and find the best path through the jungle? Will you travel swiftly together as a Scouting Party (Temple of the Deceived, 63)? Or will you and your companions find yourselves caught in battle with the island’s Undead and relying upon Ceorl (Temple of the Deceived, 58) to lend his strength to multiple skirmishes?