Mines of Moria
 The Fellowship of the Ring
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Realms of the Elf-lords 
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| Mines of Moria | |
|---|---|
| ID | 2 |
| Name | Mines of Moria |
| Creator | Decipher |
| Release Date | 2002-03-06 |
| Is Official | Yes |
| Platforms | Paper • LotR-O • GEMP • mLOTRO • Tabletop Simulator • Lackey • gccg |
| Notes | |
Mines of Moria (often abbreviated as MOM) is the the first expansion set in Fellowship Block and the second set overall. It was released on March 6, 2002 in some areas and on March 13, 2002 in others (which ones?). The set contained 122 cards (40 commons, 40 uncommons, 40 rares, and 2 premium cards that only appeared in starter decks), which became the standard size for an expansion set throughout Movie block. All of the cards in the set could appear in foil versions, and three rares had Tengwar versions produced.
Themes and Mechanics[edit]
Picking up where The Fellowship of the Ring left off, Mines of Moria has a greater focus on the 
Dwarven and 
Moria cultures, introducing several unique minions such as Watcher in the Water, Keeper of Westgate (2R73)
and two powerful versions of the Balrog, which was foreshadowed in the first set. Additionally, the game introduced Artifacts in the form of Gandalf's Staff (2R22)
, Mithril-coat (2R105)
, The Balrog's Sword (2R50)
, and the Whip of Many Thongs (2R74)
.
Mines of Moria introduced a number of cards to counter Nazgul, including: Release the Angry Flood (2R19)
, Flaming Brand (2R32)
, Not Feared in Sunlight (2U107)
, and O Elbereth! Gilthoniel! (2R108)
being a few examples. At the same time, Mines of Moria introduced a new Nazgul strategy: Twilight Nazgul such as The Witch-king, Lord of the Nazgul (2R85)
.
Cultures[edit]
All of the cultures from The Fellowship of the Ring returned, although Mines of Moria had a noticeable focus on the Dwarven, Moria, 
Ringwraith, and 
Shire cultures.
Starter Decks[edit]
Mines of Moria is heralded as being one of the best entry points to new players of the game, as the two starter decks are quite balanced against each other and between the two feature every something from every Phase. Gimli, Dwarf of the Mountain-race (2P121)
and Gandalf, The Grey Pilgrim (2P122)
were both welcome additions to Fellowship strategies.
Cycles[edit]
| Free Peoples Cycles | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cycle Name | Dwarven
|
 Elven
|
 Gandalf
|
 Gondor
|
Shire
|
| Preventable events | Tidings of Erebor (2U13)
|
Dismay Our Enemies (2U17)
|
Wielder of the Flame (2U28)
|
Flee in Terror (2U33)
|
Hobbit Sword-play (2U103)
|
| Events whose effect can be prevented if the Shadow player removes 3 twilight. | |||||
| Signet support | N/A | N/A | Gandalf's Wisdom (2C23)
|
No Mere Ranger (2R36)
|
Dear Friends (2U98)
|
| Cards that benefit the three signets available in Fellowship block. Each set in the block had a cycle like this. | |||||
| Shadow Cycles | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cycle Name |  Isengard
|
Moria
|
Ringwraith
|
 Sauron
|
| Puts on the ring events | Too Much Attention (2R45)
|
N/A | Wraith-world (2R86)
|
Southern Spies (2C91)
|
Events that are either played in response to the ring-bearer putting on The One Ring, or can only be played if the ring-bearer is already wearing The One Ring. Arguably, The Twilight World (1R228)
from set 1 fits this cycle better than Wraith-world (2R86)
.
| ||||
| "Spot X burdens" events | Evil Afoot (2U41)
|
Troubled Mountains (2U72)
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They Will Find the Ring (2U81)
|
The Eye of Sauron (2U87)
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| Uncommon events that scale based on the number of burdens you can spot. | ||||
Notable Cards[edit]
- Secret Sentinels (2R20)
- Gandalf's Staff (2R22)
- Flaming Brand (2R32)
- Uruk Captain (2R46)
- The Balrog, Durin's Bane (2C51)
- Tower Assassin (2R93)
- Bill Ferny, Swarthy Sneering Fellow (2R75)
- A Promise (2R112)
.
X-listed Cards[edit]
Mines of Moria features a few cards that were X-Listed in future formats:
Both Filibert and O Elbereth were removed from the X-List when a rule change in The Return of the King prevented all Ring-bearer skirmish cancellations.
Print Runs[edit]
Mines of Moria was one of the most overproduced sets in Lord of the Rings TCG, and, as a result the cards were cheap and easy to come by long after its release (although this has become less true as of 2023).
