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The title says it all really. I am interested in starting up the LoTR game but have noticed SBG and WoTR.

What is the difference and is the MoM boxset the best starting point?

Cheers

Both are really good fun, though I do prefer SBG despite being unbeaten in 20 something games of WotR, mainly because its the 'better' system rules wise, much less open to abuse than WotR.

Models do cross between though, I know plenty of people started with the SBG and when WoTR came out, simply bought the rules and the movement trays and suddenly you could play both.

Its no where near as popular as the other two main GW games, but if you can find a couple of mates to play with, it does lend itself to different ways of playing - narrative scenario's or competitive 'regular' battles

mines of moria is a rather good way to get started.
You have the rules, some scenarios, and some great miniatures.

it's also the cheapest way to really get started playng SBgames

Cool I found the set £45 including delivery so will place my order now

You might want to wait until February. There is talk about an updated version of SBG (or something, the rumours are very vague). Of course there are also rumours that the price of the miniatures will go up then ...

Link to the rumour thread:
http://www.one-ring.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=22194

I know I have seen the rumors on about 3 separate sites at the moment

The difference is in the scale and rules.

the SBG is a skirmish game. Each model acts individually. It is extremely tactical.

WotR is more like Fantesy, you maneuver units of soldiers. Still tactical, but less so then SBG. You also need more models.


The SBG is interesting because you can use real life military formations like the Phalanx and Shield wall. It is very realistic in this sense.

The only flaw with the SBG itself is that at very high point levels(say 1000+) it can become a little overwhelming to keep track of all the individual models, especially if things like Spells or stat drains come into play. You might forget if you used this or that guy yet etc... This is unfortunate because I think the overall feel of the game scales really well, and having a battle that approaches the scale of the movies is really cool.