Hey everyone. Brand new to the game. Been playing X-wing and a little Star Wars LCG, but I was very intrigued by the solo play option of LOTR. I will likely only be playing it solo. So my questions are 1) Is an Ent deck viable for solo play? Or does it need to be questing with a second player/hand? and 2) What do I buy next to have a solid Ent deck? I have the Core Set and Treason of Saruman saga expansion. Loved getting Treebeard hero! I loved the Ents in the books and movies, so thematically it sounds like fun.

I haven't played a full Ent deck yet, but the products that include Ent cards are: Celebrimbor's Secret, The Antlered Crown, The Treason of Saruman, Escape from Mount Gram, Across the Ettenmoors and The Land of Shadow. Currently the Ents are featured in only 2 spheres, Lore and Tactics, so you'll want to play those. As I said, I have never played the deck but I imagine it's really good for solo, as Ents became a really powerful trait very fast.

Now, regarding Treebeard hero, I personally wouldn't recommend him as the optimal choice for an Ent deck, as he doesn't have any synergy with the other Ents. I much prefer ally Treebeard, since he collects resources to play Ents and can ready Ent allies, which is a very poweful effect. Still, I have used Treebeard hero to great effect in a deck I posted a while back in the deck section. It's not an Ent deck with all the bells and whistles (although it features a few Ent allies), but it's a Treebeard focused deck nonetheless.

This is my ally Ent deck, which I have found to be pretty solid in solo.

You could also go for a hero Treebeard deck, although they typically have a lot more healing cards rather than Ent allies.

You could also check out the New Player Buying Guide from Tales from the Cards

It has extensive information on all the adventure packs/expansions and shows you which are good to buy when looking for certain traits etc.

I've had a lot of fun using Merry and Pippin heroes from The Black Riders and the Treebeard hero in my lineup. There are certainly more optimum decks, but I really enjoy centering Treebeard on the board and having Merry and pippin to the left and right "on his shoulders".

Here is a deck that makes use of the Treebeard hero, along with Merry and Pippin. While Treebeard hero does not have any synergy with Ent allies, the deck is quite thematic and still manages to be effective against many scenarios.

https://hallofbeorn.wordpress.com/2015/07/08/deck-a-walk-with-fangorn/

The foundation of this deck uses the following sets:

The Black Riders

The Long Dark

Shadow and Flame
Celebrimbor's Secret

The Wastes of Eriador

Across the Ettenmoors

Feel free to swap out other cards for anything you don't have. Good luck!

Don't forget Treason of Sauruman!

Don't forget Treason of Sauruman!

Yes, I omitted that since he mentioned that he already had the Core Set and Treason of Saruman.

I too built a Merry, Pippen and Treebeard deck. I could never decide which I liked better, hero or ally Treebeard. The former is more consistent, but the latter can be awesome with a great opening hand.