Forum

On page 222 we can read "A rumour is the piece of information about the place that the Player-­heroes pick up while adventuring or during the Fellow­ship Phase.". How do you balance those?

I see rumours as "hooks", way that the GM invites the players to do interesting things. In most games GMs hand them to the players on their own or because of player's actions (like asking around, reading notice boards etc.), during what TOR calls Adventuring Phase. This "traditional" approach, when too "generous", seems to make the TOR's mechanics for getting rumours in the Fellowship Phase irrelevant. Why spend time or get the virtue if rumours can be obtained "for free"?

On the other end of the spectrum I can't imagine making the mechanical way of obtaining rumours mandatory Doing nothing or even spending a sizeable chunk of a game session looking for things to do, just because the players didn't make a certain Fellowship Phase undertaking, don't sound fun.

Do you have a problem with that in your games? If yes, how do you deal with it? What's your balance between the AP and FP rumours?

This is an aspect that isn't communicated very well, IMO.

I think the idea is that you essentially communicate the Rumours sections of the Landmark. I would ask the players what they want to learn more about - the upcoming Landmark, a particular villain, a class of Adversary (eg Wargs), an Ally, etc. Then I'd have them find out something about that subject which wouldn't be easy for them to learn just by popping in the local tavern and chatting with the landlord. Perhaps something you'd give on an Extraordinary Success Lore roll. It doesn't have to be amazing - the other Undertakings typicslly aren't exactly overwhelming either - but makes things easier for them.

Broadly, I try to benchmark Gather Rumours so that it feels useful and competitive against other fellowship phase opportunities like Strengthen Fellowship. That one in particular, as it is a relatively easy benchmark to gauge!

Here's an example, just a little sample, as Cypress Hill once rapped:

- Balthor is a son of Chief Cefin of the Wolfshead tribe. He slew his elder brother Afan, leaving the youngest son Dafyyd to inherit. Chief Cefin was forced to expel his son for such a heinous crime. Cefin is a servant of Angmar, and I fear that wicked realm is resurgent, although none have risked the cold and wilds to scout it. Dafyyd’s loyalties are less clear.
- He wields some rudimentary sorceries. I have not seen him in action myself, but from the descriptions given by Elves and Rangers who have faced him during the day, he betrays every sign of having been tutored by a Black Numenorean sorcerer. It would be strange indeed to find such a figure here. His powers should be weaker during the day - it is not a surprise that that given the opportunity to choose the time, he attacked at night. [His Dreadful Spells cost more Hate during the Day]
- He is a fine swordsman and lancer. It is a credit to the immortal skill of the Elves that Falathlinn engaged with him and was unmarked. Most impressive. Calion yet lives, he took up station as the Knight of the White Tower. If you took up his brother Cirion’s shield, you would be better equipped for such an encounter, were you to travel to the White Tower and win Calion’s blessing before visiting his brother’s tomb, far to the North.
- While a noted martinet and cruel disciplinarian, his troops follow him out of fear, rather than from love or esteem. He is closer to the Mount Gundabad orcs, you will know them by the crude White Mountain Device on their shields. Like many of the Enemy’s servants he is as arrogant as he is cruel - Morwen the Raven once defeated a force under his command by feigning weakness and hiding some riders in a wood. She was sore pressed, but Balthor attacked during the day, seeking to crush her rather than waiting until night. Her riders than crushed much of his force. [Distinctive Features: Arrogant, Cruel and Disciplined]