Once upon a time, there was an immensely popular card-drafting game named 7 Wonders. Drafting, the process of selecting a card to keep while passing the rest to your opponent, can become quite dull with only two players, as you’ll end up knowing exactly what card your opponent passes back to you. To address this, the designers eventually came up with a spin-off for just two players called 7 Wonders Duel. This game cleverly recreated the excitement of card drafting by combining face-up and face-down cards for players to choose from. This game, too, became a hit—so much so that it now boasts a dazzling new Tolkien-inspired makeover called Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-Earth (check it out on Amazon).
As you might expect from a card game, the main items you’ll find in the box are the cards themselves. Fortunately, these are fantastic cards, filled with mesmerizing Middle-earth artwork that truly captures the imagination. Some pieces create panoramic art when combined, but assembling a full set during a game might prove elusive. Each card is marked with a color-coded top bar to signify its type, alongside various symbols showcasing its abilities and the requirements to acquire it.
For players exploring this version for the first time, the other components in the box are likely to catch their eye. These are used to keep track of the game’s progress. There’s a mini-map of Middle-earth to place charmingly small wooden army and castle tokens. Another intriguing element is the ring track, featuring a sliding mechanism with hobbits on one end and a moveable plastic ringwraith on the other. This challenges the hobbits to creep towards their goal at Mount Doom while the wraith draws closer, unable to turn back the hobbits.
The rest of the components are made of punchable cardboard. These include several shield stacks, one for each neutral faction in Middle-earth that players aim to ally with, and a set of icons indicating rewards on the reverse. You’ll also find plenty of gold coins. Each board region features a tile that details the fortress you can build, its cost, and the benefits it brings.
In 7 Wonders: Duel, drafting for a pair is simulated through a pattern of cards spread out over the course of three rounds, with face-up cards overlapping face-down ones. This setup is meticulously reproduced here, except the competition is between the dark lord Sauron and the free peoples of Middle-earth. A card can’t be picked—or flipped if face-down—until the pyramid cards beneath it have been collected. This mechanic introduces a deliciously tight tension in deciding which card to take each turn. Your aim will be to limit your opponent’s choices while maximising future options for yourself.
Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-Earth retains several features from its predecessor, preserving a flow that will feel familiar to seasoned players. Early on, most cards are free, making it easy to add them to your growing tableau. But as the game unfolds, more fierce cards demand certain skills or prerequisites evident on your current card collection. When something elusive appears on your wishlist, you can either pay gold to compensate for missing symbols or opt to discard cards for financial aid.
With a two-player setup, you’re often torn between focusing on specific skills to attract similar cards or adopting a more general approach. There’s no definite answer to this challenge; it all depends on which cards appear and their order—a tactical lesson learned from experience. Each flip of a face-down card can be heart-pounding if it proves to be your next crucial specialist link. The nightmare scenario arises when a necessary card for your strategy inadvertently falls into your opponent’s hands, simply due to the way the game unfolds.
Aside from enhancing your tableau’s economy, some cards also propel you toward various victory conditions. This is where Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth differentiates itself. Ring symbols allow progress on a specific track, bestowing an instant win if completed, along with helpful bonuses along the journey. Green cards signify alliances with factions like Elves or Ents: collecting all six symbols clinches victory, while repeated symbols reward particular faction-specific bonuses. Red cards enable army placements on the Middle-earth map, allowing players to dislodge rivals. The player who captures all seven regions wins, or else having control when the card stack is depleted results in victory.
Each of the possible victory routes is engineered to climax around the third round’s conclusion. By this point, players are usually on the verge of achieving at least one victory condition, shifting focus to both securing your own win and preventing your opponent from doing the same. This system ensures that each game culminates in an exhilarating finish, making the experience epic despite its straightforward nature and quick playtime of around thirty minutes.
Yet, after a few games, one might question whether skill or fortune plays a more significant role. As mentioned, revealing a pivotal card—whether for yourself or your nemesis—can determine the game’s outcome, and it’s largely outside your control. While your strategic choices carry weight, the game is designed to be suspenseful precisely because whatever you lack, your rival might seize. While such tension leads to exciting moments, it can leave doubts about whether your tactics truly impacted the end result. That being said, creating dramatic games without an element of chance is notoriously difficult, and this game manages to blend it adeptly.
Fortresses, the game’s other ingenious addition, function as its secret weapon in mitigating randomness. At any moment, three out of the seven fortress tiles corresponding to map locations are available. These fortresses are intensive on skill symbols and gold yet offer substantial rewards. Their benefits align with central game mechanics, such as providing free ring track spaces when acquiring Minas Tirith in Gondor. Additionally, securing a fortress piece solidifies its spot with an unbeatable army. Alternatively, buying a fortress tile allows you to defer picking a card, potentially maneuvering your opponent into revealing those critical unrevealed cards.
Despite the exquisite card art and nods to Tolkien’s characters and locales, the game doesn’t fully capture the quintessence of the epic saga. Collecting ring cards doesn’t mimic the narrative’s intense journey, and alliances don’t reflect thematic cohesion regarding rewards. In fact, the gameplay often runs counter to the lore: Sauron teaming up with the Elves or the free peoples seizing control of Mordor are routine occurrences! These frequent yet uncharacteristic outcomes might diminish the profound mythology Tolkien meticulously crafted.
For those eager to dive into this Tolkien-themed realm, you’ll find Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-Earth in stores and online. Whether or not it evokes Tolkien’s world is subjective, but its gameplay charms with clever mechanics and quick yet gripping scenarios.
