One player takes the role of Mordor, and the opposing two to five players represent the Fellowship. Each player has a hand of cards taken from corresponding Mordor and Fellowship decks. The board shows tracks to record the progress of pieces representing The Army of Mordor, Merry and the Rohirrim, Gandalf and Pippin, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli, and Frodo and Sam. Along the board tracks are seven locations to represent the key conflicts of the movie : Minas Tirith, Osgiliath, Shelob's Lair, etc. Each player takes a turn to roll dice, accumulating movement points which will allow them to draw a Journey card (again from corresponding Mordor and Fellowship decks), this card then instructing them to draw battle cards, or sometimes to force the opposing side to discard cards. Players must manage their hand of cards bearing in mind the different cards that 'trump' in the conflicts to come. As each of the locations is reached by the piece moving there, different rules apply to determine the exact course of combat. The goal of the Fellowship is to survive these encounters long enough until Frodo and Sam reach Mount Doom : Mordor has the opportunity to bring an early victory by defeating the Fellowship before the Ring is cast into the fire. Though this may have a cover similar to The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, this was accepted to the database on the premise that it is an entirely different game.