Monopoly: The Lord of The Rings Edition Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• What's Different About Monopoly: The Lord of the Rings Edition?
  • The Ring of Power
  • The Eye of Sauron
  • The Path to Mount Doom
• Set It Up
• Who Goes First?
• How to Win
• On Your Turn
• The Ring
  • Taking Control of the Ring
  • Giving Away the Ring
  • Moving Without the Ring
  • Battling for the Ring
  • Finding the Ring
  • While You Have the Ring
  • Rolling the Eye of Sauron
  • The Ring Tracker
• The Board Spaces
  • Properties
  • Action Spaces
• Buildings
  • Building Outposts
  • Building Fortresses
  • Not Enough Buildings?
  • No Buildings Left?
  • Selling Buildings
  • Mortgaging Property
• Deals and Trades
  • Do You Owe Another Player?
  • Do You Owe the Bank?
• The End of the Game
• Top Tips

Contents

Gameboard, 9 Fellowship Character Tokens, 1 Ring of Power, 1 Cardboard Ring Tracker, 28 Title Deed Cards, 32 Quest Cards, 32 Plastic Outposts, 12 Plastic Fortresses, 90 Cardboard Coins (50 Silver Coins, 40 Gold Coins), 2 Dice.

Money amounts in this rulebook are printed in the game's stylised currency sign, shown here as M (for example, M5 is five units).

What's Different About Monopoly: The Lord of the Rings Edition?

The Ring of Power

Whenever you have the Ring, you will place it on your character token, and the Ring will move with your token around the board. While you have the Ring, you are invisible—so you likely won't pay rent or go to Jail! And the longer you keep the Ring, the more your power grows. For example, you might be able to charge more rent and collect extra money when passing GO!

The Eye of Sauron

The Ring grants special powers to its bearer. But the longer you keep hold of the Ring, the more dangerous it becomes. If you roll the Eye of Sauron on either die while you are the Ring-bearer, you will lose the Ring—and if you were getting close to Mount Doom, you will pay a heavy price!

The Path to Mount Doom

The journey of the Ring to Mount Doom is represented by a line of circles in the center of the board. The Ring Tracker begins on the Start circle, and the longer you keep the Ring, the further along that line of circles the Tracker will move.

If you give away or lose the Ring, the Tracker moves back to Start. But if you keep the Ring for long enough, you will reach Mount Doom and collect a reward. Then the game ends, and the player with the most money wins!

Set It Up

1. Choose someone to be the Banker. The Banker is in charge of:

   • The Bank's money
   • Outposts
   • Fortresses
   • Title Deed cards
   • Auctions

   The Banker can play too but must keep their money separate from the Bank.

2. The Banker gives each player:

   • 5x M1 (worth M1 each)
   • 5x M5 (worth M5 each)

   (Total = M30.) Keep the rest of the money in the box as the Bank.

3. Place the Ring Tracker on the START circle.

4. Shuffle the Quest cards, and place them facedown here.

5. Each player chooses a token and places it on GO.

6. Put the dice and the Ring of Power by the gameboard.

Who Goes First?

Each player rolls both dice. (The Eye of Sauron counts as a zero.) The highest roller takes the Ring and places it on their token. That player is the first Ring-bearer, and the Ring will move with their token around the board. The Ring-bearer also starts the game, and play moves to the left.

How to Win

Move around the board buying as many properties as you can, and take control of the Ring of Power if you dare! The more properties you own, the more rent you'll be able to collect from other players. If you're the player with the most money at the end of the game, you win!

On Your Turn

1. If you have the Ring, move the Ring Tracker one circle closer to Mount Doom. Then roll both dice.

   If you do not have the Ring, simply roll both dice.

   Note: The Eye of Sauron always counts as a zero.

2. Move your token (and the Ring if you have it) clockwise that number of spaces.

   Did you pass or land on another member of the Fellowship?

   If you have the Ring, you may offer it to them. If you do so, they must take it!

   If they have the Ring, you may battle them for control of it! See THE RING.

3. Which board space did you land on? Carry out the rules of that space. See THE BOARD SPACES.

   Did you roll the Eye of Sauron?

   If you have the Ring, drop it where you landed and pay the Bank the amount shown on the current Ring Tracker circle. Then move the Tracker back to the Start circle.

   If you do not have the Ring, nothing happens.

   Did you roll doubles? Roll the dice again, and take another turn.

   Note: Rolling two Eyes of Sauron counts as doubles, too.

   Watch out! If you roll doubles 3 times in a row, you must immediately go to Jail! Do not complete your third turn. (If you have the Ring, you're safe and can take your third turn.)

4. Your turn ends. Pass the dice to your left.

The Ring

Taking Control of the Ring

Whenever you take the Ring, place it on your character token, then move the Ring Tracker back to the Start circle if it is not already there. The Ring will move with your token around the board.

Giving Away the Ring

If you pass or land on another player, you may keep the Ring or offer it to them. If you offer them the Ring, they must take it and place it on their token. Only move the Ring Tracker back to the Start circle if the Ring changes hands. Continue moving clockwise if you had any moves left.

Moving Without the Ring

If you pass or land on the Ring-bearer, you may ignore them or battle them for control of the Ring. If you would pass the Ring-bearer and you want to battle, end your move on their space. If you do not want to battle, continue moving clockwise if you had any moves left.

Battling for the Ring

To do battle, you and the Ring-bearer each roll one die. The higher roller takes (or keeps) the Ring. Only move the Ring Tracker back to the Start circle if the Ring changes hands. If the Ring-bearer passes or lands on your space, you do not battle them.

Finding the Ring

If the Ring is ever alone on a space and you would pass or land on that space, you must take the Ring with you! Place it on your token, and continue moving clockwise if you had any moves left.

While You Have the Ring

• You won't have to pay rent if you land on another player's property.
• You won't have to pay the Bank if you land on the Ringwraith or Gollum spaces.
• You won't have to go to Jail if you land on the Go to Jail space.
• You will still have to do what it says on Quest cards—even if that means going to Jail!

Rolling the Eye of Sauron

If you roll the Eye of Sauron on either die while you have the Ring, you must drop the Ring where your token landed and pay the Bank the amount shown on the current Ring Tracker circle. Then move the Tracker back to Start.

The Ring Tracker

Every turn you start with the Ring, before you roll, move the Ring Tracker one circle closer to Mount Doom.

If you ever give away or lose the Ring, move the Tracker back to Start.

When you have the Ring and you roll the Eye of Sauron, pay the amount shown on the Tracker's current circle.

If the Tracker reaches any of these circles while you have the Ring, and you pass or land on GO, collect M4 instead of M2!

If you reach the M16 circle, you can also charge double rent—that's 4x the rent for color sets!

If the Tracker reaches Mount Doom while you have the Ring, collect M15! Then the game ends.

Editor's note: the printed text refers to "these circles" and to "the Tracker's current circle" without listing the circle values; the circles are marked on the printed Ring Tracker and gameboard, not in the text.

The Board Spaces

Properties

There are three types of properties: Locations, which come in color sets, Weapons, and the Shards of Narsil.

Unowned Properties

When you land on an unowned Location, Weapon, or Shard of Narsil, you must buy it or auction it.

Want to buy it? Pay the price on the board space, and take the Title Deed card from the Bank.

Don't want to buy it? The Banker must auction it. Bidding starts at M1, and anyone can increase the bid by as little as M1. You don't need to follow turn order, and the Banker ends the auction when no player is willing to increase the bid. The highest bidder pays the Bank. If no one wants to bid on the property, that's fine. No one pays anything, and the Title Deed stays with the Bank.

Collect Color Sets!

When you own each Location in a color set:

• You can double the rent for those Locations!
• You may build Outposts and Fortresses and charge even more rent! See BUILDINGS.

Owned Properties

Rent table for Locations (as printed on each Title Deed card):

Status	Rent
Rent	M1
Rent with color set	M2
Rent with 1 Outpost	M3
Rent with 2 Outposts	M4
Rent with 3 Outposts	M5
Rent with 4 Outposts	M6
Rent with Fortress	M10
Outposts cost	M1 each
Fortresses cost	M1 each (plus 4 Outposts)

When you land on a property that someone else owns, the owner must ask you for rent. If they do, you must pay. If they don't ask before the next player rolls the dice, you don't have to pay!

If you have the Ring, pay nothing!

Locations: Pay the rent shown on the Location's Title Deed card.

Weapons: Pay rent based on the number of Weapons the owner has.

• If 2 Weapons are owned: M2
• If 3 Weapons are owned: M4
• If 4 Weapons are owned: M8

Editor's note: the printed table gives no rent for a single Weapon. Each Weapon card prints its own rent (the Sting card shows RENT M1).

The Shards of Narsil:

• If the owner has 1 Shard of Narsil, roll one die to determine rent.
• If the owner has 2 Shards of Narsil, they have forged Anduril the Flame of the West, and you must roll both dice to determine rent.

Action Spaces

GO

When you pass or land on the GO space, collect M2 from the Bank.

If you have the Ring, you might collect more! See THE RING TRACKER.

Quest

Take the top card from the deck, and immediately do what it says unless the card tells you otherwise. Return it to the bottom of the deck when done.

Even if you have the Ring, Quest cards will affect you. For example, if a card tells you to pay money or go to Jail, you must do so. If you have to go to Jail, drop the Ring on the Quest space, move the Ring Tracker back to the Start circle, and move your token to the In Jail space.

Ringwraith and Gollum

Pay the Bank the amount shown on the space. (The Ringwraith card shows PAY M2; the Gollum card shows PAY M1.)

If you have the Ring, pay nothing!

Free Parking

Nothing happens. You're cowering under a tree while a Ringwraith on wings screeches by above.

Just Visiting

Don't worry—if you land here, you're safe in the house of Elrond. Put your token in the Just Visiting section.

Go to Jail

Move your token to the In Jail space immediately! Do not collect M2 for passing GO. Your turn is then over.

You can still collect rent, bid during auctions, buy Outposts and Fortresses, mortgage, and trade while you are in Jail.

If you have the Ring, stay on the Go to Jail space, and end your turn.

How Do I Get Out of Jail?

You have 3 options:

1. Pay M5 at the start of your next turn, then roll and move as normal.
2. Use a Get Out of Jail Free card at the start of your next turn if you have one (or buy one from another player). Put the card at the bottom of the Quest deck, then roll and move.
3. Roll doubles on your next turn. If you do, you're free! Use the roll to move, and that's the end of your turn.

You can use up to 3 turns to try for doubles. If you don't roll doubles by your third turn in Jail, pay M5, and use your last roll to move.

Buildings

Building Outposts

As soon as you get a color set, you can start buying Outposts (you don't have to wait for your turn). Pay the Bank the cost on the Title Deed card, and place an Outpost on the Location.

You must build evenly. You cannot build a second Outpost on a Location until you've built one on each Location in the set. You can only have 4 Outposts on a Location.

Building Fortresses

Once you have 4 Outposts on all Locations in a color set, you can pay to upgrade to a Fortress. Pay the Fortress cost on the Title Deed card, return all 4 Outposts to the Bank, and put a Fortress on the Location.

You can only have 1 Fortress per Location. You can't add any more Outposts.

You cannot build on a Location if any Location in its color set is mortgaged.

Not Enough Buildings?

If multiple players want to buy the last Outpost or Fortress, the Banker must auction it. Bids start at M1 and anyone can increase the bid by as little as M1. You don't need to follow turn order. Payment goes to the Bank.

No Buildings Left?

You can't buy any until someone sells theirs back.

Selling Buildings

Sell Fortresses to the Bank for half the cost, and exchange them immediately for 4 Outposts.

Sell Outposts to the Bank for half the cost. Outposts must be sold evenly across the color set.

Mortgaging Property

To mortgage a property, you must first sell all buildings in its color set to the Bank at half their cost price.

To mortgage, turn the Title Deed card facedown, and collect the mortgage value on the back from the Bank.

To repay a mortgage, pay the unmortgage cost to the Bank, then turn the card faceup.

Rent cannot be collected on properties that are mortgaged. However, the increased rent level can be collected on the unmortgaged Locations in a color set. The increased rent on unmortgaged Weapons and Shards of Narsil may be collected in the same way.

Deals and Trades

You can buy, sell, or swap property with other players at any time.

You must sell all buildings on a color set to the Bank before you can sell or trade a Location. You cannot sell or trade buildings to another player.

Property can be traded for cash, other property, and/or Get Out of Jail Free cards. The amount is decided by the players making the deal.

Mortgaged property can be traded at any agreed-upon price. The new owner must immediately:

• Repay the mortgage (pay the Bank the unmortgage cost). Or keep the mortgage.

Do You Owe Another Player?

Give them all your mortgaged properties and any Get Out of Jail Free cards. The new owner must immediately:

• Repay the mortgage (pay the Bank the unmortgage cost). Or keep the mortgage.

Do You Owe the Bank?

HELP! I Can't Pay!

1. Try to raise money. If you owe money and can't pay, try to raise money by selling buildings back to the Bank and/or mortgaging properties.
2. If you're still in debt, you are bankrupt and out of the game! Return all your properties to the Bank. Any mortgages are canceled. All your properties must immediately be put up for auction. Return any Get Out of Jail Free cards to the bottom of the Quest deck.

The End of the Game

The game ends immediately when there is only one player left OR when the Ring Tracker reaches Mount Doom.

If there is only one person left, that player is the winner!

If the Ring Tracker reaches Mount Doom, players do the following:

• The player who finished with the Ring collects M15.
• All players collect rent from the Bank for each of their properties:
  • For properties in a color set, collect double rent.
  • For properties with Outposts, collect rent for those Outposts.
  • For properties with a Fortress, collect rent for a Fortress.

Now count up your money. The player with the most wins!

Top Tips

• To keep your game short and sweet, don't use house rules!
• Always auction when someone doesn't want to buy the property they've landed on.
• Never loan money to other players or make deals not to charge each other rent.
• Never put cash in the center of the board; you don't get a bonus for landing on Free Parking!