I am a longtime fan of Tolkien, and play D&D for 25 years. I have followed closely all projects made in the last 3 decades regarding Lord of the rings adaptations for Dungeons & Dragons, and I can say that this one is, by far, the best ever made.
Even tough Lord of the rings inspired a great part of D&D bases, the game has moved further and further from its original concepts and from Tolkien’s works. AD&D was a game about noble adventurers venturing to fight evil, but D&D 5e is more of a “superheroes” game that resemble very little of the adventuring party that we used to know and love; characters were too powerful, magic was made completely mundane (every class has access to it). Recovering from injuries is easier in D&D than in videogames and every character at high levels could take even Morgoth down. On could ask how would be possible to adapt a game like this to the mythology and beauty of Tolkien’s works. But Free League did it, and in a very competent way.
The character classes are interesting and very balanced (something that does not happen in D&D 5e) and represent perfectly the essence of adventuring in Middle-earth. The magic is subtle and hard to get, but powerful in the right way; you won’t be able to build a Gandalf, but can still create a very interesting conjurer and magi user. The classes go only up to level 10, which makes complete sense considering we are adventuring in the lands where Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Frodo and so many more have ventured. Adventurers can be powerful and competent, but they are not superheroes. The “magical recovery through rests” of D&D 5e has no place here. Traveling is something important, and you constantly have to face and resist the influences of the Dark Lord. The word is a beautiful, but dangerous place, and you are a noble adventurer, doing your best to halt the advancing of darkness and fight so others may live in peace.
This book is everything D&D should be. As a D&D old fan and an unconditional admire of Tolkien, I cannot recommend this book enough. This is the best D&D AND Tolkien RPG book that we had in so many years. The book is very well organized, the artwork is fitting and magnificent. If you love D&D (what it was, at least) and Tolkien, buy this book. You won’t regret it.
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