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Hey guys, 40k player here who is getting pretty psyched by the upcoming reboot of LotR. I have a huge amount of models for this gme lying around from when I was a kid that I've recently dug out and am feeling the urge to get some painted up. The only problem is that absolutely noone in my area plays the game. So, since I have a pretty large number of models for every evil army in the game, I was thinking about getting some small lists written for a few of them and taking them into GW, then seeing if I could get anyone to try it out using those forces.

However, given I've not played the game in possibly a decade, I was looking for some advice here. What sort of points value would be good for an introductory game? Bear in mind that the players are mostly fairly hardened vets, so I'm not looking to do something so small scale it ends up being boring - a bit of variety in the armies would also help here. Of course that has to be balanced against the game not taking too long.

Also, I have absolutely no idea how I should be balancing forces against one another. Obviously standard infantry is reasonably evenly matched against other infantry, but what about cavalry, monsters, spellcasters, and such? Are there any big things to watch out for giving to one side without giving the other a way to counter that?

Any guidance or help much appreicated!

Stick to the army building rules (up to 12 models per Hero, no more than 1/3 of the force can have bows/crossbows) and play maybe 350-500 points and you should be fine. Balance is not really something to worry about, the game is well balanced enough that even two 'random' forces should match up pretty evenly. I'd maybe avoid magic unless both sides have some, and the same for monsters and particularly beefy heroes, other than than you should be fine.

I'd also suggest posting on OneRing.net. I thought there were no local players near me either, and a post on that forum got me several replies in a day. Turns out within an hour drive there is a proper group that regularly plays!

Hey, you never know.

As for new games... We're in the same boat. So far my wife and I have played 300pt games with no hero over 100pts, and it seems splendid.

Might also try some of the scenarios from the Mines of Moria box. Those were my introduction to the LotR sbg and instantly got me hooked.

demo games - 150 points. One hero and up to 12 warriors. Start them a foot apart, go through the rules.

First games - 300 points. You can usually fit 2 warbands in there and you start getting a feel for the dynamic of the system and enough models to start flanking and outmaneuvering.