The Hobbit: There & Back Again
Draft dice, draw a route through Middle-earth and score eight distinct adventures in a reusable book.
The Hobbit: There & Back Again is Office Dog Games’ 2025 competitive dice-drafting and drawing game designed by Reiner Knizia. Each player writes on a dry-erase adventure guide: the left page tracks actions and score, while the right page is the map. In most adventures, five white dice circulate around the table. Three show path shapes; two provide bread, swords or wizard hats. The shape you pick and the route you draw determine what you can reach before someone ends the adventure.
The eight adventures follow Bilbo’s journey from Bag End to Lake-town. They can be played independently. The publisher describes a 30-minute game, while Asmodee Canada gives 30–45 minutes; those figures are most useful for an individual adventure. Playing all eight in sequence takes multiple sessions. The box includes official solo, hard and two-part epic options.
The central decision
Three path dice and two resource dice share one draft. Taking a useful path now can surrender the bread needed for a later obstacle; taking a sword can delay your route while another player approaches the chapter’s end condition. The best pick depends on your own map and the dice that will remain before your next turn. Each adventure changes what progress and resources are worth.
What is in the box?
Four reusable adventure books and dry-erase markers let everyone mark the same chapter on their own map. There are five white six-sided journey dice, one black twelve-sided die, and tokens for bread, swords, pinecones and solo play. The black die is used only in certain adventures. This is the 2025 Office Dog title, not the earlier board game simply called The Hobbit; check the full title and Office Dog branding when comparing listings.
The first adventure, An Unexpected Party, is a sensible teaching chapter: it introduces paths, guests, bread and swords without the black die. Later chapters add hazards, shape-filling, Wargs, spiders and Smaug. The chapter reference explains the major scoring and end conditions so you can choose an adventure for your table.
The game at a glance
Roll five white dice; players draft one at a time and use it immediately. The next player in line rerolls when all are taken.
Path dice extend a drawn network. Resources can unlock obstacles or bonus actions depending on the chapter.
Each adventure has its own immediate end condition and score rows. Reaching the end first need not produce the best score.
Official solo uses three chosen dice per round and a clock; hard mode changes setup; epic mode links Parts 7 and 8.
How does a round work?
After the first player rolls the five white dice, players take one die clockwise and mark their own guide immediately. With four players, the first player takes the fifth die too; with two, the split is three dice to the first player and two to the second. The next player due a turn rolls all five to start the following round. Path sections can be rotated or mirrored; bread and swords are gained or spent as that chapter directs. A completed wizard-hat or burglar action is used immediately. Read the rules walkthrough before teaching a later chapter, because Parts 4 and 6 replace the normal white-dice draft with a shared black-die shape puzzle.
Who is it for?
The format suits players who like a small shared draft but want their own route puzzle. There is direct competition for dice and first-completion glory, yet players do not erase each other’s maps. A group can repeat one chapter or explore the next; the chapters are independent rather than a required legacy campaign. For solo players, the included mode changes the dice choice and adds a round limit, so it is more than simply playing a multiplayer map alone.
If you want an eight-adventure cooperative campaign, be aware that this is a competitive score game, even though its pages tell a familiar story. The official epic option links only the last two adventures and carries resources forward. See the mode guide for the exact distinction.
Explore the full guide
- How to play: dice, paths, resources and turn order
- Strategy: draft timing, map routes and chapter pace
- All eight adventures: goals and scoring emphasis
- Official solo, hard and epic modes
Related Tolkien games: Fate of the Fellowship is a cooperative map adventure, while The Two Towers: Trick-Taking Game is Office Dog’s standalone cooperative card game.
Publisher sources and scope
- Office Dog: title, designer, players and components
- Official English rulebook (PDF)
- Asmodee: product duration and contents
Rules and product details checked October 3, 2026. Tactical advice is editorial reasoning from the rules; this page does not claim firsthand playtesting or current stock availability.