Hi,

I'm new here, and to the game. There doesn't seem to be an 'introductions' thread (or, if there is, I haven't managed to find it - apologies if I'm just being stupid!), so I thought I'd start one.

My name is Phil, and I am a long-standing Tolkien fan. I first read the hobbit more than 40 years ago, as a small boy, and read the Lord of the Rings at the suggestion of my English teacher, during my first year of secondary school - I think the idea was to keep me occupied for a while! A voracious reader, I've read it more or less annually ever since - so I must have read it about forty times, though I long ago lost count. It is my favourite fiction book. I also enjoy the Hobbit, the Silmarillion and the Unfinished Tales, but I don't enjoy the Book of Lost Tales (and other 'scribblings') - too incomplete for my taste - somehow that 'incompleteness' seems unsatisfying, and spoils my enjoyment of the more polished pieces - perhaps it's harder to 'suspend disbelief', when you're seeing more of the bones of the creation process.

I have watched the Peter Jackson films, and whilst I enjoy the visual aspects, and attention to detail (for example, Aragorn depicted wearing the Ring of Barahir), I am less than enamoured with the things they did to the story, and the way they had to twist some of the characters, and their motivations, to fit what they'd done.

I have been gaming (wargaming and roleplaying) since the early 1970s, beginning my roleplaying career with 'white box' D&D. In the '80s and '90s my wife and I started a group (mostly of folk associated with the University) here in Lancaster which played mainly ICE's MERP. Good fun, but (apart from the lovely maps!) not very 'Tolkienesque' in 'feel'. In more recent times we've branched out, spending a few years playing Harnmaster, and most recently WFRP (2nd Edition) and Dark Heresy. But I miss Tolkien's beautifully crafted world... In particular I find the dystopian vision espoused by WFRP and DH profoundly depressing - there's no hope, it seems. Tolkien's work, by contrast, despite its sadness, has at its heart a hope of ultimate triumph.

So the publication of TOR was very exciting, and I eagerly bought a copy. It's taken a year to get to the stage of being almost ready to play. For one thing, we were deeply embroiled in parallel (but more-or-less unconnected!!) WFRP and DH campaigns, which we wanted to finish. The WFRP campaign drew to a close at the beginning of what has passed for summer, and we have almost reached the end of the current DH scenario - there is probably more to do, but we fancy a change (I suspect that we may play alternating scenarios of TOR and DH for a while - my fellow GM is keen to keep it going for a bit).

I've read the rules twice - once last year, when I first got the rules, and again over the past couple of weeks. I think I understand most of it - though I may have a few questions! I coudn't resist buying a few sets of dice - not strictly necessary I know, but they look so lovely, and seem quite 'atmospheric' - and they'll probably help us, as new players, to remember how the mechanics work, more than 'plain vanilla' D6s and D12s would! And then today my copy of 'Tales from Wilderland' arrived... Gorgeous book! That should keep us in adventure material for a good while!

A star shines on the hour of our meeting,
Phil

Welcome philhendry! Welcome to the Hope of Middle-earth out of the 40k universe!

I don't know how to welcome such a wise Tolkien reader and experienced player like you. Please accept my humble respects.

When critics said "The One Ring is very close to a Middle-earth feel like never before in a RPG" I believed it (and prove it myself later when I played the game). But when I read your enthusiasm about this RPG, I know those critics are absolutely true.

Welcome Philhendry, feel free to ask questions about anything to do with the rules or any Tolkien type stuff. The people here are friendly and helpful.

Hello, Phil, and welcome.

I don't know whether we originally had an 'introductions' topic, but we recently did various takes on our various gaming bio's on this topic:' Being a Nosey Parker' when one of us came out with it and admitted his curiosity about the rest of us.

I think you'll see we're a crowd you can immediately fit right in with.

Suilad mellon, as I believe they say in the Woodland Realm.

Cheers,
--Os.

Hello, and welcome!

Welcome and greetings.

Thank you everyone!

Gidday Phil, I'm confident that you'll find our community of like minds & adventurous souls to be welcoming, supportive and informative.

Aye, that was me - mea culpa!

Anyway, welcome Phil - hope you enjoy your time here and nice to meet you!

Hi Phil,

You wouldn't by any chance be THE Dr Phil Hendry, all round wargaming celebrity and figure painter extraordinaire?

If so I doff my cap at your splendid Middle Imperial Romans and Sassanid Persians, sir!

Of course if not I have probably just created a very embarrassing situation, which would traditionally require there to follow a very uncomfortable silence with some metaphorical shuffling of feet...

In any event welcome!

Guilty as charged. Not sure about the celebrity bit though - notorious would perhaps be more apt?

So who, in more normal company, is Elessar - anyone I know?

Oh, and why isn't there a :redface: emoticon on this board?

Cheers,
Phil

Phew, that could have been awkward.

For anyone interested here is a link to Phil's blog so you can see what I'm blathering on about:

http://www.philhendry.me.uk/Phil_Wargaming...es/08-2012.html

Anyway that's enough of me embarrassing you...

And in answer to your question as to who I am, as The Man in Black said in the Princess Bride,"No one of consequence..." Just a fellow wargamer and figure painter who shares a childhood love of Tolkien and a later appreciation of The One Ring.

As a young man I abused the odd latex sword (ooer missus) with the illustrious Mr Jon Hodgson, before he was famous .

This was at a LARP "cycle" called The Dumnoni Chronicles which I was privileged to be able to attend during the early 90s. It was a Celtic myth setting based in Devon which to this day gave me some of the best roleplaying experiences of my life. And some of the worst too... ah memories of wondering if the rain would ever stop or my tent would get washed away!

And then there was Conan in the Shining Kingdoms of the Lake District, but that is another story...

Sadly, the closest I get to high adventure these days is choosing a chicken Madras over a Korma, but sic transit gloria mundi...