This article has multiple issues. Please helpimprove it or discuss these issues on thetalk page.(Learn how and when to remove these messages) This articlemay contain an excessive amount of intricatedetail that may only interest a particular audience. Please help byspinning off orrelocating any relevant information, and removing excessive detail that may be againstWikipedia's inclusion policy.(October 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This articlemay be written from afan's point of view, rather than aneutral point of view. Pleaseclean it up to conform to ahigher standard of quality, and to make it neutral in tone.(October 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Some of this article'slisted sourcesmay not bereliable. Please help improve this article by looking for better, more reliable sources. Unreliable citations may be challenged and removed.(October 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(May 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This articlepossibly containsoriginal research. Pleaseimprove it byverifying the claims made and addinginline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.(May 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game

Cover ofThe Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game rulebook
Manufacturers	Games Workshop
Publishers	Games Workshop
Years active	2001–present
Genres	Wargaming
Players	2+
Setup time	5–10 minutes (depending on size of game)
Playing time	Approximately 2.5 hours per 500 points of miniatures
Chance	Medium (dice rolling)
Skills	Military strategy,arithmetic
Website	warhammer.com/middle-earth-lp
Game length varies according tobattle size, while rules complexity can vary byarmy.[1]

Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game (previously marketed asThe Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game,The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Strategy Battle Game,The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Strategy Battle Game andThe Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies Strategy Battle Game) is atabletop miniature wargame produced byGames Workshop. It is based onThe Lord of the Rings andThe Hobbit film trilogies directed byPeter Jackson, and the books that inspired them, written byJ. R. R. Tolkien.

The game was initially released in 2001 to coincide in with the filmThe Fellowship of the Ring. New box sets with updated rules were also released forThe Two Towers andThe Return of the King films. Later, beginning with theShadow and Flame supplement, Games Workshop began to add content that was featured in the original book but not in the film adaptations: e.g.Tom Bombadil andGlorfindel. Games Workshop has also expanded its licence with original material on areas such asHarad andKhand, with mixed reactions. Another complete edition of the rules, often calledThe One Rulebook to Rule them All, was released by Games Workshop in September 2005, while a compact edition entitledThe Mines of Moria was also released. This was superseded by a new rule book in 2018, called simplyMiddle-earth Strategy Battle Game Rules Manual. This new rule book combined the original LotR SBG and Hobbit SBG into one cohesive, cross compatible rule set.

In early 2009, Games Workshop also released an expansion to the original game calledWar of the Ring which, according to the company, allows players to emulate the large battles included in J. R. R. Tolkien'sThe Lord of the Rings by streamlining the game system.^[2] This expansion differs from the main game in several ways. Firstly,War of the Ring uses a larger number of models but the models are placed on movement trays with two cavalry models or eight infantry models on each. This allows for much easier and quicker movement of large numbers of models at once. These are called "companies". Larger creatures such asEnts andTrolls are treated as separate models and do not use movement trays. Combat within the game is also treated differently. In the original game players both roll dice to determine who wins the fight and then the victor rolls to see how much damage is done. In War of the Ring only dice to determine damage are rolled. Also, inWar of the Ring, heroes are treated more like upgrades for their company rather than individual models, as they are in the original game.

In addition to gaming,The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game includes other common elements of theminiature wargaming hobby. These include the collecting, painting andconversion ofminiature figures used in play, as well as themodelling of gaming terrain from scratch. These aspects of the hobby are covered in Games Workshop's monthlyWhite Dwarf and on various gaming websites, as well as formerly in the fortnightlyBattle Games in Middle-earth.

In 2015Forge World, a division of Games Workshop focused on specialist resin miniatures and conversion kits as well as theSpecialist Games ranges, assumed production ofThe Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game and all supplements.

In the 1980s, Games Workshop produced a range of miniatures forThe Lord of the Rings, using original character designs based on fantasy art popular of the time. This was the first range ofLord of the Rings miniatures that Citadel created, taking over fromGrenadier Miniatures in 1985, before the licence passed to Mithril Miniatures around 1987.^[3] The earliest releases were semi-solid base, having a small solid base; later releases were slot based.^[3]

The currentLord of the Rings range stems from Games Workshop's rights to produce a skirmish war game based onThe Lord of the Rings andThe Hobbit books and films, in the25mm miniature scale.^[4] (The rights to produce a role playing game version of the films were sold to another firm,Decipher, Inc.) They also have the rights to produceBattle of Five Armies, a game based on the battle of similar name fromThe Hobbit, using smaller miniatures to enact larger battles (more akin to theWarmaster system).^[5] Under this separate licence, the game was done using a 10 mm scale for the normal warriors, and a larger "heroic" scale for the named characters.

Games Workshop has not acquired the rights toThe Silmarillion, which is still the exclusive property of the Tolkien Estate, but has the right to develop its own derivative intellectual property to fill in the gaps inThe Lord of the Rings universe. This is particularly true of Harad, which has a range of invented places (such as "Kârna", "Badharkân", "Hidâr", "Nâfarat", "Abrakân", and "Dhâran-sar"^[6]) and characters (such as the Hasharin^[6] and "Dalamyr, Fleetmaster of Umbar"^[7]).

Four of the game's designers were in the extendedReturn of the King film as Rohirrim at theBattle of the Pelennor Fields:Alessio Cavatore, Brian Nelson, andAlan and Michael Perry.^[8] They can be seen near theOliphaunt whenPeregrin Took goes searching forMeriadoc Brandybuck among the debris from the battle, and are also on the base of Games Workshop's Mûmak miniature.^[9] Games Workshop created two miniatures ofPeter Jackson, based on his appearance as a Breeland man during theFellowship of the Ring:^[10] one is owned by the director, and the other is kept on display at Warhammer World in England.^[11] Games Workshop has also released a model of Peter Jackson as one of theCorsairs of Umbar fromThe Return of the King.

Similar toWarhammer Fantasy Battle players,Lord of the Rings players commonly collect and paint one army (or more) of their choice and find opponents (with similarly collected armies) to play against.^[12] Armies can be built up from through the purchase of boxed sets (usually having 10 or 12 plastic miniatures in each) or "blister packs" (usually containing no more than four finely detailed metal or resin miniatures) to build up a reasonable-sized fighting force. Others simply collect the miniatures because they like the way they look. One popular way of collecting was throughBattle Games in Middle-earth — aDe Agostini magazine that came with one or more free miniatures (some of which were initially exclusive to the publication) and contained detailed hobby guides.^[13]

As such, there are a wide variety of miniatures in the ever-growing range, including promotional miniatures, such as "Gimli on DeadUruk-hai". Games Workshop began to discontinue some of their metal miniatures, so that they could replace them with plastic miniatures. However, there was much complaint when they retired the popular "Boromir Captain of the White Tower" miniature, and it was later brought back into production.^[14]

There are a large number ofdifferences from Warhammer inThe Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game, which makes it unique and more realistic, accounting for its popularity as Games Workshop's third core system.^{[citation needed]}

Since themodels are hand-painted and assembled by the player, players are often encouraged to design their own paint schemes, such as colouring them differently and so on, as well as using the pre-designed ones displayed in the various books. They are also encouraged to further modify their miniatures using parts from other kits and models (known as "Bitz" to players), modelling putty, or whatever the modeller can scrounge up.^[15] Theseconversions are often entered into contests at sponsored tournaments and similar gaming events, such as theGolden Demon or the One Ring Awards.

Terrain is a very important part of play.^[16] Though Games Workshop makes terrain kits available, many hobbyists prefer to make their own elaborate and unique set pieces. Common household items and hobby materials such asbalsa wood,cardboard, andpolystyrene can be transformed into ruins from the Second Age, woodland terrain, or the rocky wild ofMiddle-earth with the addition of plastic card, putty, and a bit of patience and skill.^[17]

Dioramas, often depicting scenes from the film and books, bring terrain and conversion skills together.^[18] However, due to the licensing agreements betweenNew Line Cinema andGames Workshop, pieces of models for theLord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game are not allowed to be combined with other model lines for official tournaments or conversion awards.^[19] The same is true for pieces from other manufacturers.^[19]

As of September 2005^[update], the rules for theLord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game were in their fourth edition. The first three editions of the rulebooks were released withThe Lord of the Rings films, but Games Workshop used the magazineWhite Dwarf and various supplements to "go beyond what is presented in the films ofThe Lord of the Rings and delve into the rich material of J. R. R. Tolkien's books."^[20] The fourth edition,The One Rulebook to Rule them All, contained the entire set of rules updated and presented in a single large volume, including those of previous supplements. The three older editions were re-released in updated supplements, while the compactMines of Moria edition contains the updated rules only for what was shown in the films. In February 2012, preceding the release ofThe Hobbit movies, all of the characteristic profiles from the old sourcebooks andWhite Dwarf were condensed in 5 sourcebooks:Mordor,The Fallen Realms,Moria & Angmar,Kingdoms of Men, andThe Free Peoples. These also contain minor edits to the rules as written inThe One Rulebook to Rule them All. For around a decade, this remained the core rules system, with only minor changes through various supplements.

With the release ofThe Hobbit trilogy of films, the game was rebranded, a new rulebook with various changes was released, and supplements tying in to each of the films were released.The Hobbit theme performed less well than expected, reaching nowhere near the peak popularity seen during the originalThe Lord of the Rings trilogy release, when the game had been Games Workshop's most valuable property. The game gradually received less and less attention from Games Workshop as profits and interest dwindled.

After this period of decline, Games Workshop unexpectedly announced a revival of the game. A third rebrand, to no longer focus onThe Hobbit, took place. The rules were reworked and republished in a new edition in 2018 (effectively the 5th edition), and all the profiles of all models were revised and collected in two books:Armies of The Lord of the Rings andArmies of The Hobbit, uniting the older and newer ranges of miniatures into the same system. A new starter box set, based on the climacticBattle of Pelennor Fields fromThe Return of the King, was designed and heavily promoted. This ushered in a new era for the game, with further, scenario-focused supplements following, significantly increased interest in the game, greater coverage of the game by Games Workshop, and cyclical rereleases of out-of-production miniatures. In December 2022 a new starter box centered around theBattle of Osgiliath was released.^[21]

In December 2024 a new edition of the game was released which introduced minor gameplay adjustments as well as new profiles for every character in the game. A new starter box centered aroundThe War of the Rohirrim was released alongside.^[22]

Below is a list of all official editions of rulebooks and supplements released:

For materials done under the previous iteration of the rules, there existerrata andFAQ files, to ensure potential rules conflicts between editions are resolved universally.^[23]

In addition to the official rulesets, Games Workshop has also encouraged the writing of unofficial "house rules" by wargamers.^[24] As such, there have been a number of unofficial fan supplements and other supplementary material on the internet; the most notable of which wasThe Age of the King, made byThe One Ring.^[25] Although some of its subject matter was later covered by official rulesets,^[26] it is still considered "the benchmark against which all others are measured".^[27] In many cases, supplements are written for areas where Games Workshop's licence does not extend, such asThe Silmarillion.^[28]

As of August 2006^[update], Games Workshop released a new expansion entitledLegions of Middle-earth, centering on theming and army building.^[29] It is not a supplement or rulebook, as it contains no rules; instead, it provides army lists for players to theme their forces around, and scenarios which are designed to work in conjunction with them. However, Games Workshop also released supplement summaries online in conjunction withLegions of Middle-earth, so effectively a player only requiresLegions of Middle-earth and the main rulebook in order to use the rules of the supplements.^[30][31] According to one review, the army lists would transform the game "from what has essentially been a scenario-based game that appealed mostly to collectors to a genuine tournament-compatible game system," although in this it "could have been a little bit more restrictive."^[29] Some of the miniatures for the point values listed have not yet been released; in this way, the book was not to become obsolete with future releases for some time.

This articlepossibly containsoriginal research. Pleaseimprove it byverifying the claims made and addinginline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.(October 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

All at Sea is an adaptation of the rules for naval conflicts. The official rules were a modified version of theWarhammer Boat rules, adapted by Nick Davis and first presented in Games Workshop'sWhite Dwarf magazine (US issue 295).^[32] The game's mechanics centred onboarding parties, with options forramming actions andnaval artillery in the form ofballistae and othersiege engines.^[32] Model ships are built by hobbyists, just as normal miniature terrain, such as "great ships" ofPelargir,cogs ofDol Amroth andCorsairgalleys.^[33]

The standard game is played with two or more armies on a board generally 4 feet long and 4 feet wide (16 square feet, or 1.486 square meters), usually deployed within 6 inches of opposite board edges.^[34] Similar toWarhammer Fantasy, the game uses a "points-system" to assign values to each miniature, allowing players to ensure that their armies are evenly matched. The game is primarily a skirmish game, but can be played in varying scale:

• Scenario - These are based on an event in the book or film, and the armies are predetermined and fought using Special Scenario-specific Rules.^[35]
• Points Match - These are played between two forces of equal size, generally of 500 Points each (which is usually no more than 50 miniatures per side).^[36]
• War Party - This is a stricter form of the Points Match, using forces of no more than 250 Points.^[37]
• Battle Company - This is an experience-based system which is played out with no more than 25 miniatures.^[38]

The turn-system game was played using four phases originally, but is now played using five under the current rules:

• Priority Phase - The players rolldice to see who gets to take their Turn first.^[39]
• Move Phase - The players move their miniatures (to a maximum distance that is usually 6 inches).^[39] "Magic" (e.g. "Compel") is also used during this phase.
• Shoot Phase -Missile-armed miniatures can shoot.^[39]
• Fight Phase - Dice are rolled for each group of miniatures in base contact with each other to see which wins the combat.^[39]
• End Phase - Reinforcements arrive, as well as general book-keeping

While the game is designed usually for play by only two players (as the force lists are divided into "Good" and "Evil"),^[36] very large battles (generally with more than 100 models each side) become easier to manage with multiple players working together on teams.

This sectiondescribes a work or element of fiction in a primarilyin-universe style. Pleasehelp rewrite it toexplain the fiction more clearly and provide non-fictional perspective.(October 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

There are two types of troops: Warriors and Heroes.^[40] Heroes have characteristics which set them apart from the Warriors they lead, and can be named or unnamed characters:Aragorn,Frodo, Captains, etc. Warriors are the core of the army: Warriors of Harad, Riders of Rohan, Men of Gondor, etc. Each army must be either Good or Evil, and can only include miniatures from that side (each model is named in the rules as being either Good or Evil).

Prior to the closure of Games Workshop's official forum in November 2006, the site had 3000 forum posts per day and well over 300,000 registered users.^[41][42] Since then, theonline community has moved onto a large number of unofficial websites and forums for Lord of the Rings players, many of which were already in existence before the closure of Games Workshop's forums: these include "The Last Alliance", with over 6400 registered members (rebuilt in 2009 due to the host deleting their server for financial reasons), "The One-Ring", with over 5000, and "The Palantir", with over 2400 members.^{[citation needed]} Collectively, the members of these websites have produced high-quality articles for the public, namely on The One-Ring, whose acceptance standards are very high,^[43] in greater quantity than on the official site, and White Dwarf has commented on the community as having a "huge wealth of material".^[44]

On 1 June 2005, Games Workshop launched their annual UK-basedWorldwide Campaign under the name "The War of the Ring Online Campaign", featuring The Lord of the Rings for the first time. The campaign was deemed "a fantastic rollercoaster", with 3007 registered participants.^[45] Games Workshop also introduced the "Wrath ofUmbar Roadshow", with custom-builtCorsair models and gaming boards being brought to various cities in the United Kingdom.^[46] When the campaign formally ended on 8 September, Good emerged the victor.^[45] The combined total of the 14 weeks was 27,239 recorded wargames.^[45] The forum closed shortly after, giving way to a smaller Canada-based campaign with the same name.^[47]

Hobby websites have been key in organising sides in the Worldwide Campaigns, and indeed in creating their own campaigns and competitions,^[48] such as the "Campaign of LoTRs", a collaboration between the two websites "The Dark Council" and "Cheeseweb".^[49][50]

Another notable side of the community is the influence of its reaction to the company's products: manyTolkien purists, for example, reacted against the company's rendition of the Swan Knights ofDol Amroth, with some choosing toconvert their own,^[51] impacting the hobby and the sales of the products.^[52] When Games Workshop subsequently showed the planned release of theMen-at-Arms of Dol Amroth, it was suggested that they had taken the response of the community into account.^[53]

• Envoyer [de] #63^[54]
• Syfy ("The Fellowship of the Ring")^[55]
• Syfy ("The Two Towers")^[56]

• Cavatore, Alessio; Rick Priestley (2002).The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers Strategy Battle Game. Games Workshop.ISBN 1-84154-285-7.
• Cavatore, Alessio (2003).The Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King Strategy Battle Game. Games Workshop.ISBN 1-84154-431-0.
• Cavatore, Alessio; Mathew Ward; Adam Troke (2005).The Lord of The Rings Strategy Battle Game: Rules Manual. Games Workshop.ISBN 1-84154-665-8.
• Cavatore, Alessio; Mathew Ward; Adam Troke (2005).The Lord of The Rings Strategy Battle Game: The Mines of Moria. Games Workshop.ISBN 1-84154-670-4.

• Official website

• Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game
• Alessio Cavatore games
• Rick Priestley games

• Webarchive template wayback links
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Wikipedia articles that are excessively detailed from October 2014
• All articles that are excessively detailed
• Wikipedia articles with style issues from October 2014
• All articles with style issues
• Articles with a promotional tone from October 2014
• All articles with a promotional tone
• Articles lacking reliable references from October 2014
• All articles lacking reliable references
• Articles needing additional references from May 2020
• All articles needing additional references
• Articles that may contain original research from May 2020
• All articles that may contain original research
• Articles with multiple maintenance issues
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from October 2014
• Articles containing potentially dated statements from September 2005
• All articles containing potentially dated statements
• Articles containing potentially dated statements from August 2006
• Articles that may contain original research from October 2014
• Articles that need to differentiate between fact and fiction from October 2014
• All articles that need to differentiate between fact and fiction
• Official website not in Wikidata