The Hidden Way

Event. Cost: 2.

Response: At the beginning of the quest phase, search the top 5 cards of the encounter deck for a location and make it the active location, returning any previous active location to the staging area. Then, reveal 1 less encounter card this phase (to a minimum of 0). Shuffle the encounter deck.

Preston Stone

The Withered Heath #5. Lore.

The Hidden Way
Reviews

This card is good especially if there is no active location. I play it in a deck with Bilbo Baggins Gildor's Counsel and Good Meal with great results. There are many quests where there is no starting active locations. Having this out turn one will put you ahead on board. Unlike Gildors council this card works well for solo play as it reduces the number if cards to a minimum if 0. The only question I have is if it whiffs on finding a location I am unsure if the effect still goes off. Thankfully every time I've played it thus far it has found a location. Last night I was playing fate of wilderland and we were pretty far into the game with a bunch of allies. I played this card and found hills of wilderland on top, for that alone this card was worth the include.

JTG81 81
What happens with traveling effects? Make it the active location sounds like an instant effect. But that cards title as well as those rules with engaged/engaging enemies suggest that a travel effect would still trigger. — Flrbb 170
To answer the questions in the review and comments: No, if there are no locations in the top 5 cards, the second part of the effect doesn't resolve since it is preceded by "Then" (see FAQ). And no, you do not resolve any travel effect. Travel effects are a cost to travel to a location in the travel phase. Travelling to a location implies changing the active location, but not the reverse. Otherwise errata'd Thror's Map would be literally useless. Compare the wording of this card along with e.g. West Road Traveller and Distant Stars, vs. Strider's Path and Ghân-buri-ghân. — 3ric 140

I don't understand why this is a "Response: At the beginning of the quest phase" instead of "Quest Action". Unlike Travel phase where an effect like Mariner's Compass must be a response due to lack of an action window before the travel step (I wish they'd instead have just added an action window, but I digress), the quest phase does not have that problem because there are multiple action windows before and after each step.

The Hidden Way is interesting but seems too weak for the cost and the inability to play it during normal action windows. Gildor's Counsel, though costing one more, is likely better because you don't have to take a card into play, which is easily worth the extra buck. The Hidden Way should have cost $1 to make it worthwhile and on par with Strider's Path. Really though, none of these three cards is that great because they're too expensive. For 2 I'd much rather have Quickbeam or Ghân-buri-Ghân or Warden of Healing or Asfaloth or Gléowine or...

DunYoss 54
if it was a questaction and not trigger at beginning of questphase it was to easy combine with gildors council and reduce staging to 0. — doomguard 2121
I mean in solo paying 2 resources to (sort of) ensure that you do not reveal any nasty enemies or treacheries, thus buying yourself some respite is quite worth 2 Lore resources IMHO. Also fun if you have traveled to a beneficial location last round and want to repeat that. — Alonewolf87 2376
i never used it in solo. it is very good for e.g. carn dum in multiplayer to avoid sorcery and surge (with can cascade) — doomguard 2121