Lord of the Rings vs Marvel Champions - Play This, Not That

Exclusive Patreon Videos Every Monday!

LCG's are a big investment, there are a lot of them out there to choose from. I've been loving Marvel Champions for a long time now and Lord of the Rings I was eager to dive into and table...will it challenge a favorite? Which game is better for me, which aspects determine that? Do I have room for both in my collection?

TimeStamps:
0:00:00 - Introduction
0:00:34 - Overviews
0:01:30 - LOTR Overview
0:03:30 - Marvel Overview
0:04:35 - Why They're Worth Comparing
0:06:26 - Price Point
0:06:48 - Learning & Teaching
0:07:55 - Theme
0:09:36 - Art & Components
0:10:20 - Mechanics
0:17:50 - Summary
0:20:53 - Recommendations

5.0 - My absolutely favorite games. You can pry them out of my cold dead hands.
4.5 - Love this game! At the same time missing something that would make it a 5. Could be hard to table, lacking variability, a little light, etc.
4.0 - Really great game, almost always keeping, although has meaningful complaints as to what takes away from the experience.
3.5 - Really enjoyed, don't love it, may lose out to better games but the idea of never playing again is a bit sad.
3.0 - A good game, would play and suggest with the right people, if I never played it again wouldn't lose any sleep.
2.5 - A game I'd play again , but will never suggest it myself
2.0 - A game I don't want to play again
1.5 - A game I can't find any reason to recommend
1.0 - A game that is just bad.

Upgrade Your Game At Top Shelf Gamer (Referral Link)

My Game Table (Non Referral)

[paulbigbee]

Having played multiple session of Marvel, LotR and Arkham Horror, I think theme is critical across all three: heroic, fantasy and (duh) horror respectively and should be highlighted as the game mechanics support the intended atmosphere. Thus, I've found audiences at my table(s) for all three games.

[brandobombchu]

The Marvel cards are all sleeved. The Lord of the Rings are sleeveless. I think he gave away early which game he prefers. lol

[matslarsson]

If you are willing to go beyond the core set and spend a lot of money and time, and if you enjoy crunchy deck construction, and if you like highly challenging and complex solo games, and you love Lord of the Rings, then I highly recommend playing LotR LCG solo, mainly “two handed”, i.e. playing a two player game by yourself. Playing this way, it is by far the best game I know. I love it to bits.

[bushibayushi]

LOTR is much deeper, much more involved and gives you a much better sense of teamwork during battles due to ranged and sentinel keywords (you really do feel that you help other players more). Also, it has locations which allow for some additional mechanisms and provide a thematic background to quests. Marvel is great, it's just more shallow (which is a great thing, it has way broader appeal). LotR is the best cooperative game I've ever played. I've played it close to 600 times now and I'm not even close to getting burnt out on it.

[JoeyJocco]

Wow, great timing—I was just thinking about this topic a couple days ago. Thanks for the rundown!

[DumahAtreides]

Agree with the sentiments, though the hard requirement in LOTR to deck build among many packs in order to face even core box challenges (at least with the previous edition) killed the game for me. It took it down further because once we had two functional decks to play, we weren't able to make other decks for lack of other availabile cards. I'm happy with the Marvel system because I have a huge variety of heroes who feel different, not just thematically, but mechanically due to the design. That makes the variability shoot way up and setup Marvel as one of my all time favorites.

[TheRobuzz]

I like Marvel Champions, but LOTR LCG is way better: the mechanics of the game, awesome deckbuilding, great marriage of gameplay and lore. I've played a lot of it, and I can see myself playing it for years to come. On a side note: Arkham Horror LCG is also pretty cool, especially with thematic integration and different outcomes of scenarios, though I find deckbuilding there much less interesting than in LOTR (and maybe even Marvel Champions).

[jonathanw]

When I saw this title was ... "Them is fighting words" a lot of strong feelings on these games. Personally love LOTR better but own both.

[aSyphodias]

I started with marvel champions, it came out when I started getting into the hobby.
Now with the revised cores I also got AH and Lotr.
All 3 are great and deliver a different experience.
Playing mostly pure solo MC is my favourite because it's quick and punchy.
AH is better for stories and immersion but weakest gameplay wise for me.
LOTR is actually my favorite gameplay and deck building but less casual so not always in the mood.
Overall I'm just really glad about the new release format!

[andrewclifton]

How does Primal compare to these? I remember either you or Jesse from Quackolope made a comparison to Marvel

[pascaltheroux]

Best short presentation of two games that I love! You quickly touched the point of narrative/story telling. A point for Lord of the Rings in my opinion.

[Humphreysfox]

i play all 3 (MC, Ark, LOTR). Arkham is my favorite. MC and LOTR are both super challenging but fun dynamics in play. I really enjoy all 3

[senseiqui]

I have never played Marvel Champions but I have a full collection of Lord of the Rings. But from the little I understand of Marvel Champions, I think it would be a much better game if all you have is the core set and maybe a few expansions. Regardless of what anyone says online, in order for Lord of the Rings to actually be good you absolutely need a large amount of expansions. Yes you can get a few enjoyable games out of the core alone but you cannot get a true feel for what Lord of the Rings has to offer until you have collected at least 3 cycles. Being about $120 per cycle, that's a heavy investment but definitely well worth it.

[pcu]

I own both and Arkham LCG. They are just too unique and offer fundamentally different experiences to make a comparison.

[iznax]

Lotr Lcg is clearly the superior game, it's not an accident that is the lcg that has the greatest longevity, or the fact that after all the competitive ones died, Lotr Lcg not only it didn't but they also started making other games like it

[EfrainRiveraJunior]

The bad taste in my mouth left by the Marvel movies makes me avoid Marvel games.

[BigLowry]

AHLCG is the one you should be playing.

[CptBumFlufff]

Which does he prefer? Checks which game is sleeved.... 😉

[reyrey]

I collect the 3 lcg, this is one of the games that will age well and will be regarded the best solo card games

[tonybowers]

Thanks for sharing. I have and enjoy both, MC:LCG the most.