RECRUITING TROOPS

RECRUITING NEW UNITS AND LEADERS

Additional Army units and Leaders are brought into the game during the Action Resolution phase by using a Muster Action die result (a Helmet icon) as an action, or by playing an Event card that recruits new units.

To bring reinforcements onto the board when using a Muster Action die result, the new figures must belong to a Nation “At War”.

Using a single Muster Action die result, a player can bring the following figures into play:

— two Regular units, or

— two Leaders/Nazgûl, or

— one Regular unit and one Leader/Nazgûl, or

— one Elite unit.

All newly recruited figures are taken from the player’s available reinforcements and can only be placed in a free City, Town, or Stronghold of the Nation to which they belong.

When two regular units or Leaders, or a combination of the two, are brought into play using a Muster Action die result, they can belong to different Nations, as long as both Nations concerned are “At War” and each figure is placed in a City, Town, or Stronghold of the Nation to which the unit belongs.

Nazgûl are always recruited in the Strongholds of the Sauron Nation.

RECRUITING RESTRICTIONS

— When mustering two figures (units and/or Leaders) using a Muster Action die result, the two figures must always be placed in separate Settlements.

— You cannot muster or recruit troops in a Settlement controlled by the enemy.

— You cannot muster troops in a Stronghold besieged by the enemy.

— Reinforcements are limited to the available figures. Thus, if all figures of a type are in play, no additional figures of that type can be recruited. Shadow units and Nazgûl removed as casualties are placed back among the available reinforcements (thus allowing for an almost limitless mustering). All Characters (including Shadow Minions), Free Peoples units and Free Peoples Leaders, are permanently out of the game if eliminated; they should be placed in an area designated for casualties (such as back in the box) and are no longer eligible for recruitment.

USING AN EVENT CARD TO RECRUIT TROOPS

When a player uses Event cards whose effects is to recruit troops in a certain region (or regions), he is allowed to recruit in that region even if:

— the troops belong to a Nation which hasn’t reached the “At War” step yet;

— the region includes a Stronghold under siege.

Other restrictions still apply, including:

— the figures must be available to be recruited;

— the recruitment cannot be made if the region is not free (with the notable exception of a Stronghold under siege previously indicated).

Example: The “Riders of Théoden” Event card lets a player recruit troops in a Rohan region containing a Companion. If there is a Companion in Eastemnet, but that region also contains enemy troops, it is not possible to recruit there. However, if the Companion is with a Free Peoples Army besieged in Helm's Deep, recruitment is possible.