Middle-Earth Role Playing, Iron Crown Enterprises
2 hours ago
(edited)
2026-7-22 5:50:04 PM UTC
2026-7-22 5:50:04 PM UTC
In the mid-eighties, a few friends and I got seriously into a role playing game based in Middle Earth, called Middle Earth Role Playing (or MERP, for short) published by Iron Crown Enterprises (ICE). It's along the same lines as Dungeons and Dragons and uses a rules system based on an older (and somewhat complicated) game called Rolemaster.
For those not familiar with role playing games, a group of players create characters with their characteristics informed by dice rolls, the race of the character (hobbit, elf, dwarf, etc.) and their profession (warrior, scout, mage, etc.). Another player, the games master, has responsibility for controlling all non-player characters and the general flow of the game, informed by rule books and adventure modules. Actions, and their success or failure, whether they involve firing an arrow at an orc or attempting to climb a tree, are determined by rolling dice and referring to a table in the rule book.
This is the first rule book that was released in 1984. It is not the first book in the series to be released though (more on that later). It's a really neat product, which I lapped up when I was a kid... packed full of "lore" based on Tolkien's work and perhaps unfortunately has a bit of a David Day shadow on it.
Those familiar with the history of fantasy role playing games will be aware that TSR, the publishers of Dungeons and Dragons, were sued by the Tolkien Estate for using Hobbits, Balrogs and Ents in their earliest edition. ICE dodged this by acquiring licensing from Tolkien Enterprises, the entity formed by The Saul Zaentz Company when they acquired the rights for film, stage and merchandising rights for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. It's safe to say that ICE stretched this licensing somewhat during their relationship, which ran from 1982 to 2001.
The cover art is by Chris White.
For those not familiar with role playing games, a group of players create characters with their characteristics informed by dice rolls, the race of the character (hobbit, elf, dwarf, etc.) and their profession (warrior, scout, mage, etc.). Another player, the games master, has responsibility for controlling all non-player characters and the general flow of the game, informed by rule books and adventure modules. Actions, and their success or failure, whether they involve firing an arrow at an orc or attempting to climb a tree, are determined by rolling dice and referring to a table in the rule book.
This is the first rule book that was released in 1984. It is not the first book in the series to be released though (more on that later). It's a really neat product, which I lapped up when I was a kid... packed full of "lore" based on Tolkien's work and perhaps unfortunately has a bit of a David Day shadow on it.
Those familiar with the history of fantasy role playing games will be aware that TSR, the publishers of Dungeons and Dragons, were sued by the Tolkien Estate for using Hobbits, Balrogs and Ents in their earliest edition. ICE dodged this by acquiring licensing from Tolkien Enterprises, the entity formed by The Saul Zaentz Company when they acquired the rights for film, stage and merchandising rights for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. It's safe to say that ICE stretched this licensing somewhat during their relationship, which ran from 1982 to 2001.
The cover art is by Chris White.
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