Fire in the Night

"The bells were ringing in the dale
And men looked up with faces pale;
The dragon's ire more fierce than fire
Laid low their towers and houses frail."
   –J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

You thought you could rest. After roaming far across Wilderland and slaying two powerful Dragon spawn, you have arrived at the Woodman settlement of Hrogar’s Hill, where you hope to gain some much-needed respite from the dangers that have plagued you throughout your recent days. But it is not meant to be. Shortly after starting a meal, you are roused by the sound of alarm. Outside, a terrifying red-orange glow has cut a swath through the black night. The Dragons’ mother has arrived to exact her revenge. 

Fantasy Flight Games is happy to announce Fire in the Night, the third Adventure Pack in the Ered Mithrin cycle for The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game!

The Dragon's Wrath

This Adventure Pack finds you joining the Woodmen in a spirited defense of their home. Your quest had pointed to Mount Gundabad and a hunt for the Dragon Dagnir the Terrible, but now she has found you. You can only imagine the destruction she will cause if she escapes into the night. This must end now.

Unlike most other adventures you’ve experienced in The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game, Fire in the Night plays out across a single Quest Card. Dagnir (Fire in the Night, 74) is a ferocious beast, and her fury has only been stoked by the death of her children. Rather than attack individual characters, then, she unleashes her wrath on the entire settlement of Hrogar’s Hill. It’s up to you to defeat her before she leaves the Woodmen’s stronghold a smoldering ruin.

This is no easy task. Not only is Dagnir a formidable opponent, she has not come to Hrogar’s Hill alone. A host of Orcs has followed her from Gundabad and many force you to choose between damage to your party or damage to Hrogar’s Hill. If The Dragon's Thrall (Fire in the Night, 75) engages you, for example, it will either deal three damage to Hrogar’s Hill or you will face an immediate attack from the Orc itself. The city’s walls are strong, but who can say how long they will hold out against such persistent—and numerous—foes?

Mount Your Defense

As you begin your defense of Hrogar’s Hill, your attention will immediately be split in many different directions. Your main goal may be to defeat Dagnir, but other tasks may appear out of the set aside side quest deck. The top card of this deck is revealed and added to the staging area at the end of the planning phase and each of the eight cards in it represent different tasks you can perform to aid the Woodmen in protecting Hrogar's Hill. You may be asked to Draw Her Fire (Fire in the Night, 66) to give the people of Hrogar’s Hill more time to regroup before Dagnir's next attack, or Defend the Town (Fire in the Night, 71) from the relentless assault of the Orcs.

No matter what problems arise, these cards are considered both quest cards and encounter cards, and you can only focus your attention on one of them at a time. It is easy to lose hope as the flames spread and Dagnir batters the gate, splitting the mighty oaken gate of Hrogar’s Hill, but not all is lost. While all of the encounter side quests hinder you in some way, defeating them can also give you a lift just when you need it. If you’re able to Hold the Door (Fire in the Night, 70), for example, each player’s threat is reduced by five, granting you a temporary reprieve from the constant onslaught of enemies. 

Aid From Mirkwood

To help you repel Dagnir and her host of Orcs, Fire in the Night provides you with powerful new player cards to strengthen your heroes and fight back against the Dragon. Leading the way is Thranduil (Fire in the Night, 56). No stranger to defending his realm, the ruler of Mirkwood can lend his high defense to fending off Dagnir’s attacks. Even better, Thranduil can quickly summon his allies, playing a Silvan ally in the midst of combat without needing the normal resource match.

As a Noble, Thranduil is also afforded more power than your average hero, and you can make this a reality by naming him or any other Silvan hero The Elvenking (Fire in the Night, 57). As you might expect, this Title grants its bearer a good deal more freedom to contribute throughout the round. Exhausting The Elvenking and returning a Silvan ally to your hand gives the attached hero the opportunity to ready and continue the fight. Every ally is valuable in a battle against a threat like Dagnir, of course, but an ally like Galion (Fire in the Night, 63) is ideally suited to this task. He cannot attack or defend and only has a single willpower for a round, making him perfect for use by The Elvenking.

While the defense provided by a hero like Thranduil is certainly welcome, you’ll also need some warriors you can deal some damage if you hope to bring down a mighty Dragon like Dagnir. A legendary blade such as Orcrist (Fire in the Night, 58) can give any hero a boost, increasing their attack. What’s more, whoever wields Orcrist is also rewarded with a resource for cutting down an enemy, giving them all the motivation they need to face the Orcs head-on.

Slay the Dragon

The longer the battle rages, the higher the flames will grow, threatening to consume the entirety of Hrogar’s Hill. Yet, despite the destruction that surrounds you, this is also an opportunity to destroy the Dragon you have hunted for. Take up your arms and begin your defense!

Look for this Adventure Pack in the fourth quarter of 2018 and pre-order your copy of Fire in the Night (MEC68) at your local retailer or online through the Fantasy Flight Games website here!