Boromir

Boromir, eldest son of the Steward Denethor, is Gondor's mightiest captain — the man who held the crossings of Osgiliath and rode north to Rivendell seeking answers for a failing realm. On the board he begins at Minas Tirith, the white city at the foot of Mount Mindolluin, the last great fortress standing between Mordor and the free lands of the West.

That starting post is no accident. Boromir is a frontline warrior, tied heart and sword to the defense of Gondor and its blue army. Where other heroes escort, sneak, or heal, Boromir plants himself between the Free Peoples and the tide of Orcs, Southrons, and Easterlings pouring out of the East. He is at his best with a blade in a contested clearing — proud, brave, and always drawn toward the fight.

There is only one victory in this game and the whole table shares it: complete every Objective card, then let Frodo cast the Ring into Mount Doom last. Boromir wins that shared game by being the team's shield in the south — the hero who keeps Gondor's strongholds from falling while the Ring-bearers make their slow, secret journey.

Your contribution is pressure relief. Every shadow troop you cut down in an Attack, every haven you keep from turning into an enemy fortress, and every capture that stems the spawn of new Orcs is hope the team doesn't have to bleed. When you Attack, you also pull the Eye of Sauron onto your region and off of Frodo — a gift to the Ring-bearers that only a frontline fighter can give. Hold the line long enough and often enough, and the rest of the Fellowship gets the breathing room it needs to finish the objectives.

Boromir lives in the martial half of the six actions. His bread and butter is Attack — moving into a clearing where friendly and shadow troops meet, shifting the Eye onto that region, and rolling the battle dice to clear Orcs off the board. He leans hard on Valor symbols, both to fuel his fighting and to power Capture — spending 3 Valor at a shadow stronghold his troops have cleared of shadow troops to flip it into a haven, shift the Eye, and hand the team 2 hope.

Starting at Minas Tirith in the heart of the Gondor (blue) army, he's a natural at Muster — spending Friendship at a Gondor location to raise fresh blue troops — so he always has bodies to bring into the next fight. Round out his turn with Travel to reach the threatened front and Prepare at a haven to bank the Valor tokens he'll spend later. Remember the turn economy: up to 4 actions with one hero and 1 with the other — often 4 with Boromir, so a common rhythm is Muster, Travel, then Attack or Capture where it hurts the Shadow most. Keep him near friendly troops — his dice only bite when there's an army beside him.