With the end of another month in sight, we come to the conclusion of this month’s poll on the blog. Since we all started this game at some point, I wanted to know what first introduced all you players to the game. For me, it was stumbling across some of the old progression videos from the Tenth Nazgul (Mitch). But I was curious to how everyone else got into the game, hence the poll of this month. I asked around for a couple of categories, which I hope were fitting enough for your situation. It got pointed out to me later that the solo aspect of the game was a big driving force for many to get into the game, so that option got added later.
In total, I received information on how people got into the game from 122 players. This should serve as a decent representation of the community in general, so a big thank you to everyone who participated. Now on to the results!
As it turns out, the biggest driving factor behind people getting into this game is the prospect of playing it by yourself. No longer do you need friends to schedule game-nights with, you can just grab any deck and quest that you like and play it. I will admit that this was a big selling point for me as well, but I will also stress that playing it with more people is enjoyable as well. Be sure to drag some friends down this rabbit-hole as well, so they can learn the game and join you sometimes.
The next biggest selling point for people was the IP. Many folks in the community were a big fan of the books/movies before they entered the game, making them fall in love with a game set in the same universe. There is a lot to love for a lore fanatic, ranging from art that isn’t inspired by the movies, to having adventures where the books never went. For those that do want to follow the books, there are the Saga adventures, which are a perfect blend of the books and the game. People who like LOTR are going to love this game!
Like myself, many people were first introduced to the game through a playthrough video that they found online. For me, it was the progression series, but with so many excellent channels out there, players can have been introduced through any number of videos that got recommended to them. Players could also have been introduced via the digital card game this way, which saw a surge in Watch-it-played videos over the last year.
Looks like 13 of you got dragged into this game by a friend, which means that the game can be taught well enough by some players, that new ones join in. This makes LOTR LCG act more like a virus, spreading across the boardgaming community. Go out and infest more people!
The rest of the stats speak for themselves, but I will go over a couple of other comments I received on the poll. Some of these were pointing out to me that I missed the solo aspect of the game, which got added to the poll quickly. Another few comments explained that people were drawn to the co-op style of play, which is something I forgot as well. People really like playing this game with their friends, SO, or children, and the co-op gameplay makes the games less toxic. Other people got this game at a discount somewhere or saw it on the gameshelf of friends. I also like that there was some cross-over with Arkham Horror, as somebody got recommended the game through MythosBusters, the Arkham podcast with old COTR hosts. Board Game Geek was also a common access point for players, and others got to know the art first, before figuring out that it was attached to gaming cards. I like how many different ways people have come into this game, and am glad that this poll got some good conclusions.
For the month of May, I have a new poll made, which concerns with your style of decks. I would like to know how you distribute spheres in your decks. As people can have many different decks they enjoy at once, I will give everyone 3 picks from all the possible sphere combinations. If you are playing with Gandalf as well, then select his catagory and the one with the other two spheres. Looking forward to seeing the results of this one in a month! Here is a helpful diagram to show you what sphere setup helps what archetype:
Vision Of The Palantir 
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