Ruins of the North (RotN) is another fine product from Cubicle 7's One Ring series. It has a set of six well detailed adventures for, well, probably experienced players. Each of the six adventures is organised into a series of chapters for a group to work through. This of course helps to offer a good point for a GM (Loremaster) to end a session of gaming. The series is very thought out for the group to progress through this part of Middle Earth. There are several different authors who have worked on different adventures - but the collection has a strong sense of coherence while also offering slightly different styles and scenarios to adventure through. This helps me because it means that it will be just varied enough to keep the players from falling into a routine (None of the "oh yeah, we do a meeting, get the basic plot, spot the clues and then run into increasing opposition until we stuff the Boss at the end of the level"). Instead the players will have to use a variety of approaches to make progress from scenario to scenario: you aren't going to get a stale deja-vu feeling - they won't succeed by trying & repeating what you did before.

Like all the products in this series the feel is right: the respect is right and the writing is right. Even on its own its a good read and food for the imagination.

If you want a different rpg experience you have to try The One Ring game. It isn't about exterminating the rest of the multiverse: the opposition is too much for that. You have to measure your own success by your survival, then the survival of those around you. Finally, has your part of Tolkien's world been helped to survive? If so, then you have realised the aim of the game. In this game true hero status is achieved by making and taking the right decisions and actions. Best advice: be true to yourself and keep on struggling against the odds.

One of the main differences in the system is the limited role of direct magic; another is the enhanced role of interacting with the general population. after all, who are you trying to help? if just yourself, then that's not very Tolkien-hero is it?

I like this system because so much control will stay with the players as they narrate the action. If you are the Loremaster (read:DM) in this, then you are much more of a referee than I remember of the D 'n' D guys who would spring another trap on my unwary half-elf.. The down side for some people is that you are stuck with being on the side of Light, so if you are secretly an Uruk berserker - it's best to think a bit before joining this party.

The additional supplements are all real bonus material. This Core book is great - but the other stuff will delight you and stretch your experiences. Good luck!