I was very excited to have a break in my gaming schedule where I wasn't running Star Wars Saga and could finally try out the One Ring game. I ran it at the Buffalo Gaming Society with three experienced players, one who is almost always a GM and was hoping to get back at his normal players by going wild.

I altered the opening to reflect this:
You met at the Gathering of the Five Armies, where a number of young idealistic individuals congregated in the hopes of contributing to the resurgence of the Free Peoples. Adventure soon followed when you were tasked with investigating rumours of a shadowy figure seen visiting the vicinity of Dol Guldur. You bonded during the arduous trek to the fallen fortress, and during the long vigil that followed. Finally observing the figure you sought, you disrupted its attempts to enter the keep, but did not get close enough to uncover the being’s identity.

The next thing you know… four months have gone by. You were found by the Woodsmen near Rhosgobel, wandering through a snow storm, completely delirious. No sooner than you were taken in, but a plague spread throughout the village. As you slowly recovered your wits, you observed the Great Hall fill with horribly ill people of all ages. Body after body was carried away, and soon you were left alone in the Hall, hearing the sobbing from outside.

The Woodmen, with the assurances of Radagast the Brown, gave them shelter over the winter.
Radagast spoke with you on the nature of your quest and experiences and retired to consider the matter.

Who do you get to know during the winter? Amalric & Evoric, 20 year old twins, still overly enthusiastic and competitive, Heva, a warrior enthusiastic about the future in the wake of the Necromancer being driven from Dol Guldur… or Thorismund, a local healer and community leader whose wife died in the plague?

Amalric & Evoric spend the winter in the great hall drinking like fish and wrestling like bears. They easily take to someone who lives as fully as they do.

Heva keeps a constant vigil from a watchtower. She communicates with the rabbits about the situation in Mirkwood.

Thorismund keeps to his own hut in silence during the day. In the evening he gets drunk and tries to storm out of the gate, screaming that he’ll take on all those bastards in Dol Goldur.

As the weather begins to break, the Woodmen ask for your help to gather some food on one of the many hunting expeditions setting out.
And so the game begins.

So, the players chose who to hang out with. The Hobbit and Dwarf made the widower open his doors and listen to their songs of grief and healing, eventually convincing him to give up the nightly binges. The Barding practiced combat with Heva... and learned to respect her prowess.

As a result, the people the players developed relationships with became temporary fellowship foci.

The hunt happened. Many deer died. The orc fight began, and the Elf and Barding successfully snuck around the clearing to flank the archers, so Thorismund never took that doomed arrow.

The best happened at the Elven King's fortress. The dwarf was none too happy about being kept waiting and spent his time chugging the wine provided to the party. This led to bawdy singing. The hobbit and elf joined in, with the hobbit blowing his roll, and the dwarf hitting him in the head with his goblet. When the king showed up, the elf blew his courtesy roll. Tensions high, the guards who had been watching the party whispered to the king, and the king replied, "I hear you are a band of comedic minstrels. Please sing for me."
The dwarf rolled an eye and began singing a song about roasting elves alive. The elf and hobbit made their rolls, and the hobbit hit the dwarf in the head with his goblet. The king took this as cutting edge comedy and listened.

For the planning of the battle, I let the group choose to be scouts, inspire the woodsmen to fight or to train. The Elf managed to track down an orc scout and ambush him, gaining information about the enemy's attack. For each main success in these tasks, I rewarded a bonus combat die.

Battle starts. Heroes in a watchtower. The orcs break through. The dwarf asked the elf and Barding to toss him out of the tower and onto the nearest orc. Athletic checks to toss followed by an open attack... sign of Gandalf and extraordinary success. One hit kill. Combat went fairly easily, though the dwarf, caught alone in open position while the others took the ladders, almost ran out of endurance.

I made npc stats for the hunting companions:
Thorsimund
Att 5
End 12
Skills:Awe 3 Inspire 4 Persuade 4, Awareness2, Insight 4, Healing 4, Explore 3, Hunting 2, Song 3, Courtesy 2, Riddle 2, Lore 4
Sword: dam 5, edge 10, injury 16




Amalric & Evoric
Att: 4
End: 12
Skills: Athletics 4, Explore 2, Song 2, Inspire 2, Battle 2, Stealth 3, Hunting 3, Lore 2
Weapons: Bow 2 Spear 3
Bow: Dam 5, Edge 10, Injury 14
Spear: Dam 5, Edge 9, Injury 14



Heva
Att 4
End 12
Skills: Awe 2 Athletics 2 Travel 2 Stealth 2 Awareness 2 Healing 2 Hunting 3 Craft 2 Battle 3 Lore 2
Longsword: 4: damage 5, edge 10, injury 16
Leather Corslet 2d protection
Shield Parry +2

I also added bonuses to the combat based on how well the encounter with the king went:
0-1: Extra orc per PC, 2-4: when get extraordinary success on attack, Elven archer takes shot at opponent 5-7: on great success, elven archer takes shot, 8+ can spend point of hope for elven soldier to be defending you this round.

Here's my elf friend stats:
Elven Archer:
Att: 4
End: 12 Bow 3 (favored)
Bow: Dam 7/Edge 10/Injury 16/

Elven Swordsman:
Att: 5:
End: 12 Sword: 3
Armor mail shirt 12/3d
Helm 6/+4
Sword: Dam 5/Edge 10/Injury 16/Enc 2

Game ended with the dwarf singing again. Great night of gaming. It only took four hours with all the adds.

Garrett

That was an interesting write-up. Thanks for sharing. Glad to hear that you enjoyed yourself playing the game.