To say the One Ring RPG's crowdfunding campaign has done well is an understatement. This project – which revamps the current rules while adding a bestiary and new adventure book – is well on its way to $3 million dollars in pledges on Backerit. Actually, it smashed its target by 32 times in less than a day.
"For us, it’s one of those rare occasions when we get to see firsthand just how much love and support there is for the game," The One Ring lead designer Francesco Nepitello tells me. "We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who helped make it happen."
Besides setting a new record for developer Free League, the project has sailed so far beyond expectations that it may as well have taken a ship from the Grey Havens. It also blew past stretch goals so fast that new ones needed to be made as a result. Although the team had some bonus ideas ready, Nepitello says they "had to think on our feet about what to offer next. There was certainly a bit of a scramble behind the scenes, but nothing a good gamemaster can’t handle!"
"The (One) Ring perceived its time had come"
Fan excitement is understandable. The One Ring (and its D&D equivalent, The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying) has more than proven itself since the system launched in 2022 with a beginner-friendly system that doesn't skimp on meaningful depth. It's also one of the most faithful adaptations of Tolkien I've ever seen, from visual design to mechanics that focus on fellowship and roleplay. However, even the best tabletop RPGs need an update every now and then.
"The core system remains very much The One Ring, but we’ve done considerable work on how the rules are organised, explained, and used at the table," says Nepitello. "Combat has received particular attention, alongside refinements throughout the book. After several years of play and feedback, we felt it was the right time to bring those lessons together in a clearer, smoother presentation."
Want to try The One Ring before the new core rules drop? You can pick up the Over Hill and Under Hill starter set for $28.49 at Amazon, or grab the D&D equivalent for $29.51 via Amazon.
From the sounds of it, combat is enjoying the biggest upgrade; the revised sequence gives you a chance to coordinate in a fight and make more meaningful choices. We'll be able to try this for ourselves when we cross swords with monsters from the new bestiary, 'Creatures Strange and Foul.' This tome covers everything from building your own orc warband to Black Númenóreans, and Nepitello was careful to ensure each foe had something new to offer.
"Over the years, we’ve explored many corners of Middle-earth, and it felt time to give its adversaries the same attention. We wanted to bring them together in one volume, while exploring what makes each a distinctive encounter — their behaviour, their powers, and the stories they can inspire."
Following the Fellowship
The latest campaign setting (The White Tower and the Hall of Gold) also turns its gaze, Sauron-like, to new challenges. Revolving around the kingdoms of Gondor and Rohan, this is the furthest south we've been in The One Ring's history.
"It was always the plan to roughly follow the path of the Fellowship – long ago in the elder days, the plan was to do three editions of the game: one set in Wilderland, one in Eriador, and one in Gondor," The White Tower and the Hall of Gold lead writer Gareth Hanrahan explains. "While the game’s changed publisher over the years, and we’ve ended up doing a revised second edition and a Gondor supplement instead of a full-on third edition, we’re still following the game line as foreseen."
The fact that we're only on edition two (which, by the sounds of it, is more like version 1.5 or the Alien RPG Evolved Edition) rather than three shows how strong the foundations are here; The One Ring came out of the gate sprinting.
Our journey through the world of men won't be business as usual, though. Every other location has been sparsely populated with swaths of wilderness between them; Hanrahan says that there isn't much by way of civilization in Eriador once you leave the Shire or Bree behind, while other northern regions are a patchwork of disparate kingdoms with stretches of desolation separating them. This book, though? It tips us headfirst into a bustling realm.
"Gondor and Rohan are well-established, long-settled regions. Gondor, in particular, has been there for thousands of years. You’re not going to be making long arduous journeys in most of Gondor, as it’s full of towns and villages and inns and well-guarded roads. The wild is far away. It’s a different style of play, emphasizing interaction and intrigue more than lonely journeys and natural perils."
The road goes ever on
Of course, players won't be hiding in the safety of civilization for long, and there are wonders – not to mention dangers – aplenty here. One such spot is the country of Umbar, famous for its corsairs and allegiance to the Dark Lord Sauron.
"I became absolutely fascinated by Umbar in the writing of it," says Hanrahan. "It’s got such history – it’s much, much older than Gondor – and it’s this fascinating melting pot of cultures and factions. You could run lots of adventures there, especially a sort of fantasy-intrigue that I really adore. I also really like Cair Andros – it’s sort of a mini version of Minas Tirth, another bastion in the defences of Gondor, but it’s only barely touched on in the books, so you’ve a lot of scope as Loremaster to set all sorts of adventurers there."
Nepitello was at the forefront of another major expansion for The One Ring; its Mines of Moria book. I caught up with him back in 2023 to discuss how to do this super-dungeon justice within the RPG.
In other words, it feels as though we've got a lot to discover when these books launch. While there isn't a hard release date yet, hardcover versions are estimated to ship in October 2027. Judging by how well the crowdfunding campaign has done, a lot of people will be eagerly awaiting launch day – and the creative team is a little overwhelmed by such success. When I asked what they'd like to tell the fans who've backed this project, Nepitello says "Just a heartfelt thank you. Your enthusiasm and support mean a great deal to all of us, and it’s wonderful to share this journey through Middle-earth with you. The response to this campaign tells us we still have a long road to tread together, and many adventures ahead!"
"Thank you doesn’t begin to cover it, but it’s the essential point," Hanrahan agrees. "It’s a joy and a privilege to get to write about Middle-earth like this, and we hope we live up to both the audience’s expectations and Tolkien’s legendarium."
If you want to show your support for the project and access the unlocked stretch goals, you have until 3pm EDT / 12pm PDT / 8pm BST on October 15, 2026 when the campaign ends.
It's a good time to be a tabletop RPG fan; I wasn't excited about D&D Star Wars, but it looking so much like Rogue One gives me hope. This isn't the only cool crowdfunding campaign kicking around, either; a terrifying campaign version of our favorite horror board game got fully funded in just 54 seconds.
- See the current One Ring lineup at Amazon
