So, we want to recreate Tolkien's world in RPG form. Let me start out by saying I do not want to recreate LotR. Middle-Earth at the time of the War of the Ring is a terrible place to run a campaign unless you throw out the whole of the story, and then...why are we doing this exactly?
There are, fortunately, two vast stretches of time that are ripe with adventuring possibility: the First Age (starting with the Exile of the Noldor) and the Second Age.
The First Age: Mythic Heroes
The heroes of the first age were larger-than-life. They accomplished truly epic deeds: Fingolfin duels with a god; Beren stole a jewel from a god, got his hand bitten off and didn't slow down, broke into a magically warded forest and won the most beautiful Elf-maiden of all time as his bride, and came back from the dead. The Eldar were young and vigorous, Balrogs and other Maiar bestrode the land, and wild, crazy things were accomplished. This is very much a "high fantasy" setting, where the heroes of the day perform superhuman feats of prowess - things that are beyond the wildest stretches of real human possibility.
The Second Age: Big Damn Heroes
The second age began with the final defeat of Morgoth and the heroes and villains of the era are correspondingly lessened. Sauron, Morgoth's lieutenant, picks up the Sceptre of Evilness, but he isn't the world-cracking deity Morgoth was: at one point he is defeated and captured by Men. Elendil the Tall is perhaps the greatest mortal hero alive, but he doesn't hold a candle to the likes of Turin or Hurin or Tuor. The Valar do not leave Valinor, and there are far fewer Maiar about. Most of the Eldar lords are either dead or returned to Valinor. The deeds of the day are mighty and impressive, but closer to the "realistic." Elendil and Gil-galad besiege Barad-Dur for seven years before they can force Sauron to come out and fight, and then he kills them both. Elendil survives the wreck of Numenor, but fails to save it. The scope is smaller, the deeds are lesser.
For reference, here is Frank's game design flowsheet, which I will be drawing from.
Step 1: Name the Party
It's heroic fantasy, and the Noldor are at near-constant war with Morgoth in the First Age. I'll start with "band" (short for "warband") and go from there.
Step 2: Write Up a Six-Person Party.
Okay, drawing from my knowledge of Tolkienian lore, we have:
- The Captain. He kills things with his sword; some use spears or axes. He has a lot of tricks and options with a single weapon. He's also charismatic and can do a good job as the party face. (Fingolfin, Tuor, Earendil, Theoden)
- The Warrior. He kills things with his sword, spear or axe. He's more broadly skilled than the Captain, but not as good a faceman. He's a decent fill-the-gap character, as he can be decent at a lot of things. Fairly sneaky. (Aragorn, Gimli, Turin)
- The Scout. He's sneaky and he kills things with a bow, or from ambush. Knows a lot about the wilderness and the Dark Things that dwell therein. (Beleg, Legolas)
- The Loremaster. He's the information guy, and can use magical effects (although not as flashy as a D&D wizard). He knows stuff and uses this knowledge to help his buddies fight better. (Gandalf, Melian, Galadriel)
- The Craftmaster. He makes stuff. He can craft awesome equipment given time and materials. He's also good in combat and knows a little magic. (Telchar, Celebrimbor, Feanor)
- The Singer. He sings magic songs and can communicate with trees and stuff. He can also use magic and can make stuff, though not as well as the Craftmaster. (Maglor, Daeron, Luthien)
Our first band, taking every other archetype, consists of the Captain, the Scout, and the Craftmaster. This party has social skills (Captain) and all three members can hang in combat. The Scout can sneak and knows stuff; the Craftmaster knows other stuff and can use some magic.
Overall, this party does well in combat but is somewhat hampered in information-gathering and magic.
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Our second party consists of a Warrior, Loremaster and Singer. The party is combat-light - only the Warrior is a dedicated weaponsmaster - but magic-heavy, as both the Loremaster and the Singer can throw spells around. The Singer is the faceman of this group, both Singer and Loremaster can find stuff out, and the Warrior is sneaky and broadly skilled.
This band is magically-potent and flexible - between the two spellcasters and the Warrior's skills, they can adjust to handle a lot. They are weaker in straight-up melee than the other party, but not cripplingly so.
Step 4: Outline an Adventure
Let's start by outlining some basic adventure seeds. A First Age party can expect to:
- Lead raids against small forces of Orcs, probably with Werewolf, Vampire, or even Balrog leaders - the Scout shines here, as do the Warrior and Captain once the big battle starts. The Craftmaster can give his buddies an edge by crafting anti-big-boss gear. The Loremaster and the Singer are less useful here.
- Explore lost ruins in search of ancient treasures or knowledge - The Scout and Loremaster rule here; the Warrior is also in his element. The Captain is useful if there's a fight - and there always is. The Craftmaster and Singer may be less useful depending on the specifics.
- Negotiate between Elves, Dwarves and Men in various combinations - The Singer and Captain are tops at negotiations. The Loremaster will be useful with his knowledge of various cultures, and the Warrior and Scout come in handy for any skulduggery. The Craftmaster...not so much.
- Defend a position against endless waves of Orcs - The Captain and Warrior rule. The Craftmaster is in his element, with a solid position and a known foe; he has the stability to make gear and knows the enemy. The Singer can bolster his friends' spirits, and the Scout gathers information and leads assassination raids against enemy leaders. The Loremaster appears to be the least useful.
- Take out a powerful enemy leader, such as a Balrog, Dragon, or other Maia - The Captain is at the top of his game when in melee against a single potent foe. The Loremaster is useful for discerning this speific foe's weaknesses, and the Warrior and Craftmaster can offer solid support. The Scout and Singer are less useful.
So for our sample adventure, let's assume the band's nemesis is Gorfaroth, Werewolf Lord, and his horde of Orcs. The band hears legends of a werewolf-slaying blade lost in an ancient ruin, so they research the legends and find them The ruin is in the lands of a hostile tribe of Silvan Elves, forcing the band to either negotiate with the unhelpful Elves or sneak everybody through - or possibly the Singer could put all the Elves to sleep or something equally odd. One in the ruins, they evade the ancient traps and guardians and weather assaults by werewolves - Gorfaroth has caught up with them! Finding the blade, they must hurry back to the Silvans' camp to fight Gorfaroth and his guard before the werewolves murder all the Elves.
Looks like everyone has something to do, although the Singer and the Craftmaster may lag a bit. We'd better be sure they have enough options to feel useful - the Craftmaster can either craft small magic trinkets very fast, or perhaps be a second-tier soldier - even stronger when decked out in custom-crafted gear. The Singer needs to be throwing magical songs around; we can't let him fall into the Diplomancer trap. We'll think of him more as a singing sorcerer and less as a bard.
Step 6: Write a Campaign Arc
Let's assume our setting is the First Age, during the endless war against Morgoth. Let's also screw with official history and make Gothmog, Lord of Balrogs, the BBEG. Our campaign could look like:
- Band meets when their community is overrun by Orcs. They must protect the survivors and kill as many Orcs as they can.
- Finding a new settlement, they negotiate with the locals and hopefully force an alliance. Quests to prove their worth should be expected.
- As Gothmog consolidates his position, the band looks for ways to hurt him. Raiding parties are fun, as are quests for anti-Balrog gear; also, the Craftmaster can spend some time making just what he needs.
- Now better armed, the band begins making raids to take out Gothmog's lieutenants. This also distracts attention from their home base.
- It's revenge time! The band puts together an army from their old community and their new allies and marches North, crushing all in their path. They besiege Gothmog's fortress and slaughter his minions.
- Finally, the band slips into the Balrog's lair and takes down his bodyguard. The final battle against Gothmog is suitably epic and mythic, and as it ends the band finds themselves the Lords and Ladies of the reclaimed city.
