Dwarves Don't Fear The Long DarkPreview the fourth Dwarrowdelf Adventure Pack for The Lord of the Rings
“Going straight, without mishap or losing our way, we shall take three or four marches, I expect. It cannot be less than forty miles from West-door to East-gate in a direct line, and the road may wind much.”
–Gandalf, The Fellowship of the Ring
Having entered Moria through the Doors of Durin, Middle-earth’s heroes have an intimidating, new challenge before them. Tasked by Elrond to identify whether or not the source of the increased Orc activity in the Misty Mountains resided within the ancient, expansive Dwarven realm, they must explore its passageways.
Many dangers lie before them. The tunnels themselves are dangerous, lined with sudden pitfalls and crumbling stairwells. Should the heroes succeed in locating Orcish activity, they’ll need to deal with the Orc scouts. Additionally, they need to maintain both their spirits and bearings along The Long Dark journey they’ve undertaken.
Last week, we looked at the new challenge posed by the Locate Tests that your heroes will have to complete in order to maintain their bearings. Today, as we prepare to follow the Dwarrowdelf cycle underground with its fourth Adventure Pack, into The Long Dark, it may be good to look to a Dwarf for leadership or, at the least, courage. Proud miners, metalworkers, and craftsmen, the Dwarves are no strangers to subterranean passages and the darkness that fills them.
Dwarven Courage
“This is the great realm and city of the Dwarrowdelf. And of old it was not darksome, but full of light and splendour, as is still remembered in our songs.”
–Gimli, The Fellowship of the Ring
Dwarves are different than Elves, Men, and Hobbits. While other races might better appreciate the beauty of a bright sun sparkling through the leaves of a towering forest, or the grassy slopes of gently rolling hills, the Dwarves find beauty in the mountains and the potential they hold. They find cheer in good rock. Rock is sturdy. Rock is tough.
Like mountain rock, Dwarves are also a stout, sturdy, tough folk. J.R.R. Tolkien wrote in The Hobbit that Dwarves are exceedingly strong for their height. They can also be fiercely stubborn and loyal. When Daín led his five-hundred Dwarven warriors to the Lonely Mountain prior to the Battle of Five Armies, they were clad all in hauberks of steel mail that hung to their knees, they were armed with two-handed mattocks and swords, and they wore their forked and braided beards tucked into their belts.
The Long Dark brings Dwarven mail to The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game, along with a ferocious Dwarven ally, and a new Spirit condition that attaches to a Dwarf character and reduces your threat by one each time you travel to a Mountain or Underground location. After all, there are few people in Middle-earth better suited to battling goblins in a subterranean realm than the Dwarves. And with all the Underground locations your fellowship will likely explore as they travel through The Long Dark, you can expect they’ll be happy for some Dwarven assistance!
In the end, courage may be largely a matter of perspective. Where Elves and Men may find uncertainty and threat lurking down Moria’s every dark passage, the Dwarves find great rock. Veins of mithril flow through the rock of Moria, and any Dwarf visiting the ancient realm hears the echoes of faded glories. They are not afraid within the passages of the Dwarrowdelf; they used to call them home.
Get your hands on Ring Mail (The Long Dark, 80), the Erebor Battle Master (The Long Dark, 79), and Ever My Heart Rises (The Long Dark, 82), as well as the new hero and other exciting player cards when The Long Dark arrives at retailers everywhere next week!
Keep checking our website for the on-sale announcement, as well as a spoiler of the Adventure Pack’s superb new Tactics hero!
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Dwarves Don't Fear The Long Dark
