I have a question

mepbmlist
#1

RD: Good point Kev. To the best of my knowledge, Tolkien doesn't mention
assassins or kidnappers once. Tolkien does however mention agents and I
don't think he would have a problem with the idea that the DS might send
assassins after FP enemies.

Don't normally post on this list but thought this was worth a mention.

What is kidnapping?

Didn't Saurman kidnap Gandalf?
Kidnapping could also be seen as "taking someone off line for a while"
It doesn't have to mean that they care the person off over their back, maybe they distract them for a while.

Just a thought. I agree that agents are too powerful in this game to be pure Tolkien but there are many things "wrong" with the game as far as Tolkien is concerned. This is still the nearest you will get. I fondly remember one game when against all odds we went for a ring victory. We failed one turn short of Mt Doom but it was close and I was hooked on the game. When we were desperate we went for the ring and then we spent 5 turns with a crumbling FP team getting kicked every where but with a faint hope. I could say that we failed because a nation went bankrupt isn't Tolkien. Would Frodo have given up if he knew Hobbiton was in financial difficulty?

So lets take the game as it is. If you can make it more "Tolkienesk" without upsetting the balance then fine. If not use lateral thinking to explain the actions.

Cheers
John S

···

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#2

--- In mepbmlist@yahoogroups.com, "John Simpson" <jdsimpson1@h...>
wrote:

What is kidnapping?

"to hold or carry a person away by unlawful force or by fraud and
against one's will" according to Merriam-Webster.

While an argument that Saruman couldn't do much "unlawful" in his own
fortifications, I'll buy this example. (Works better for me than the
Nazgul as assassins in force.)

Kevin

Didn't Saurman kidnap Gandalf?
Kidnapping could also be seen as "taking someone off line for a

while"

It doesn't have to mean that they care the person off over their

back, maybe

···

they distract them for a while.

#3

>RD: Good point Kev. To the best of my knowledge, Tolkien doesn't mention
>assassins or kidnappers once. Tolkien does however mention agents and I
>don't think he would have a problem with the idea that the DS might send
>assassins after FP enemies.

Don't normally post on this list but thought this was worth a mention.

What is kidnapping?

Didn't Saurman kidnap Gandalf?
Kidnapping could also be seen as "taking someone off line for a while"
It doesn't have to mean that they care the person off over their back,

maybe

they distract them for a while.

Just a thought. I agree that agents are too powerful in this game to be

pure

Tolkien but there are many things "wrong" with the game as far as Tolkien

is

concerned. This is still the nearest you will get. I fondly remember one
game when against all odds we went for a ring victory. We failed one turn
short of Mt Doom but it was close and I was hooked on the game. When we

were

desperate we went for the ring and then we spent 5 turns with a crumbling

FP

team getting kicked every where but with a faint hope. I could say that we
failed because a nation went bankrupt isn't Tolkien. Would Frodo have

given

up if he knew Hobbiton was in financial difficulty?

So lets take the game as it is. If you can make it more "Tolkienesk"

without

upsetting the balance then fine. If not use lateral thinking to explain

the

actions.

Cheers
John S

RD: No, Saruman didn't kidnap Gandalf, he captured him when Gandalf visited
Saruman's fortress. Saruman was a mage, not an agent, and he didn't carry
Gandalf off to Barad-dur or wherever and imprison him there.

You could say that Saruman challenged Gandalf. Now there's a thought -
instead of the loser of a challenge dying, the winner has the option of
taking him prisoner! This should of course be more difficult.

Which reminds me, when a character has been captured, WHY does the captor,
if he does not possess agent skill, have to transfer the prisoner to an
agent to be executed, imprisoned, or interrogated? A commander should be
able to do any of those things.

Richard.

···

----- Original Message -----
From: "John Simpson" <jdsimpson1@hotmail.com>
To: <mepbmlist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2004 11:12 PM
Subject: Re: [mepbmlist] I have a question

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