Hundreds of miles from home. Stranded in enemy territory. Outnumbered. Short on supplies… It's time to be a hero!

Fantasy Flight Games is proud to announce the upcoming release of The Black Serpent, the fourth Adventure Pack in the Haradrim cycle for The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game. Its sixty cards (which include a new hero and three copies of each new player card) lead several of Middle-earth's greatest heroes along a detour from their homeward path. Even in the arid wastes of Harad's deserts, even after traveling league upon grueling league, and even after just barely surviving their encounters with Orcs, Wargs, and giant spiders—the heroes remain true to themselves and committed to their fight against the Dark Lord.

Accordingly, when your heroes come across an opportunity to strike against a caravan of Haradrim carrying tributes to the Dark Lord of Mordor, they hesitate only long enough to devise a plan. When the caravan camps inside the walls of a dilapidated desert fortress, the heroes and their allies will launch their ambush. But will their tactics prove sound enough to account for the caravan's greater numbers? You'll join these heroes and fight alongside them in the new scenario from The Black Serpent.

Burst into Song and Rally the West

In addition to its scenario, The Black Serpent introduces a new Spirit hero with the Rohan trait, as well as a handful of other Rohan-themed cards. One of these cards features art and flavor text that beautifully capture the spirit of the host of Rohan as it charged into battle outside the walls of Minas Tirith. The card also reinforces how important Songs are to the people of Middle-earth, to The Lord of the Rings, and to the characters in the game to whom you attach them.

Songs change people. A song can change your mood, the change in mood may change your outlook, and you may find yourself heartened in the midst of troubles, emboldened despite the numbers arrayed against you. And just as the host of Rohan burst into song and sang as it slew the soldiers of Mordor, Burst into Song (The Black Serpent, 83) can inspire and rally your characters, raising their spirits, and carry them through their exhaustion so that they are ready, once more, to join the fight.

Like Old Toby (The Black Serpent, 89), which also appears in The Black Serpent, Burst into Song is a powerful "capstone" card in the right decks. Certainly, it doesn't fit into decks that don't use Songs, but if you're already using these attachments—and including enough of them in your deck to pass them to your friends' heroes, as well—you can potentially ready twelve heroes in a four-player game for a mere two resources. Yes, you have to play the Songs before then, but that can be a profitable endeavor of its own if you outfit them with zero-cost Songs like Song of Hope (The Black Serpent, 82), or if you have two or more copies of Love of Tales (The Long Dark, 85) in play.

Meanwhile, as the Haradrim cycle lends new focus to the game's side quests, The Black Serpent allows your heroes to—if they choose—stray from their main objective long enough to Rally the West (The Black Serpent, 87). Like the other side quests from the Haradrim cycle, Rally the West doesn't introduce any effect that triggers when it's completed. Instead, it introduces a persistent effect that benefits your heroes so long as it remains in the victory display. While it's in the victory display, Rally the West grants an additional point of Willpower to every hero in the game, and even if your heroes don't have the strength of their nations' armies at their back, this side quest ensures that they can still quest effectively when they rally together.

Take Heart

Your heroes are far from home, they are outnumbered, and they are weary from their journey—but they are still heroes. So when the chance arises to strike at the enemy, you can expect they'll dig into their reserves of energy, rally their strength, and strike.

Will it be an adventure worthy of song? Make sure your tactics are sound. You'll have your chance to join the attack against The Black Serpent when this fourth Adventure Pack in the Haradrim cycle arrives at retailers in the first quarter of 2017!