I haven't played with Glorfindel or Asfaloth in quite some time. Sure, it is really powerful, but what we do instead is quest harder, make use of Northern Trackers, West Road Travellers and/or any other number of things that help manage locations. As with the Light, I do see them as really powerful, and it did take me a very long time to build a spirit deck without Glorfindel/Light and if a Lore player joined the table I'd get them to add Asfaloth to their deck. The only cards I've ever felt I HAD to run, regardless of the scenario, were spirit cancels. Except just recently we've done rather well against quests just powering through them and taking the treachery/shadow cards in the face (Erestor Gondor deck paired with a mono-tactics). To be certain, not bringing cancels has meant a very horrid and untimely death on a number of occasions, but we are each playing decks we want to play and are willing to take that risk.

Anyways, my suggestion is - just try other things anyways, even if you feel you can't do better than Glorfindel/Light/Asfaloth - because you can't really - but I wouldn't say it is necessary.

I also agree with the others. Creating a near equivalently powerful card to help others get away from using Asfaloth would likely just make you run both unless it is solved by being a different version of Asfaloth. I'd like that since I never make use of the current version. I'd like to see a version that puts 1 progress on up to 3 different locations. Likely 3 cost. Maybe dropping the "restricted" keyword and the cost by 1 if attached to Glorfindel.

What's the problem with glorfindel being so powerful? I could understand if say if we were having this discussion about fatty Bolger, but going by the lore of tolkien glorfindel SHOULD be overpowered. I'm more mad that The lore version of glorfindel isn't super powerful. Then you'd make people have to make tough choices.

If I was the designers and I wanted to stop people from playing spirit glorfindel I'd make a neutral ally version of him that was a little less powerful than neutral gandalf. Then make people make the difficult decision of which one to include.

Just a quick idea:

Glorfindel

Neutral: cost 4

3 willpower

3 attack

1 defense

Glorfindel does not exhaust to quest.

When glorfindel enters play chose one of the following: play a card from your discard pile as if it were in your hand, draw one card, lower your threat by 2

At the end of the round discard glorfindel

ANYWAY...,

Personally, Boromirs overpoweredness bothers me more. His hero version is more powerful than glorfindel, treebeard, gandalf or elrond IMO. Which going by the source material makes absolutely no sense.

I'm a 'don't like the card, just don't play it' type of player. I don't like super-powerful cards much. For me, Outlands at the time was just something for other players, no grudge, just not the cards designed for me. (Besides, if you're not removing the encounter deck from the encounter deck on turn 1, you're already limiting yourself!)

Glorfindel is the card I dislike as the exception to the rule. I don't want to run him because on the one hand I find him too powerful and overshadowing my other heroes and deck choices which I don't like. On the other hand I DO want to use Asfaloth because it's imo, such a fundamental card in this game. You can compare Steed of Imladris, but Asfaloth is still one of the very few cards that let's you relyable explore more than 1 location per turn. So my preference not to use Glorfindel also bans me from using Asfaloth which I have always found annoying. There are alternatives of course, I could run Glorfindel without Light, or Asfaloth on another hero, or Lore Glorfindel. But while I don't mind using lesser heroes, I also feel bothered if I'm playing with cards where it's so in-your-face obvious that I'm hamstringing myself by not playing certain other cards. I cannot use Lore Glorfindel without being constantly reminded that the Spirit version is much better, especially if I then lose to something threat related. For that reason I have difficulty adding Asfaloth in a non-Glorfindel deck even though it's possible and would be a reasonable choice. And yes, I am aware how childish that is, but having a card so explicitly tell me I'm playing unnessecarily stupid just bothers me.

Now obviously this is a result of my own crazy self-imposed challenges. And there's a positive side as well, for example I appreciate Idraen much more than somebody who isn't limiting their Glorfindel usage. Different cards for different people. That said, I personally HATE that a card as fundamental as Asfaloth was tied to only two heroes, one of which was really insanely good and the other actually fairly bad.

Glorfindel is, in a way, actually indirectly responsable for me waiting to actually start collecting and really playing this game. I discovered the game just when he was released and it soon became clear that at that moment you where playing Dain, Glorfindel or Elrond or another similar power deck or you'd get hammered. Deckbuilding felt limited to me. Especially when Glorfindel just invalidated using most other heroes. But it's much easier now to build more off-the-beaten-track type of decks or make less super-powered heroes work than it was then. You can now make other heroes work in ways you couldn't then. Back then, I was afraid that with the release of cards like Glorfindel, most heroes before him would be wasted cardboard. For me seeing new options for synergies and the ability to 'use lesser heroes' succesfully was nessecary before I dared collecting this game.

What's the problem with glorfindel being so powerful? I could understand if say if we were having this discussion about fatty Bolger, but going by the lore of tolkien glorfindel SHOULD be overpowered. I'm more mad that The lore version of glorfindel isn't super powerful. Then you'd make people have to make tough choices.

If I was the designers and I wanted to stop people from playing spirit glorfindel I'd make a neutral ally version of him that was a little less powerful than neutral gandalf. Then make people make the difficult decision of which one to include.

Just a quick idea:

Glorfindel

Neutral: cost 4

3 willpower

3 attack

1 defense

Glorfindel does not exhaust to quest.

When glorfindel enters play chose one of the following: play a card from your discard pile as if it were in your hand, draw one card, lower your threat by 2

At the end of the round discard glorfindel

ANYWAY...,

Personally, Boromirs overpoweredness bothers me more. His hero version is more powerful than glorfindel, treebeard, gandalf or elrond IMO. Which going by the source material makes absolutely no sense.

I never really understood why the new Glorfindel Ally was Spirit. Considering his place in the lore I would have thought we would get a combat-focused Tactics ally in a similar mold to the Leadership-Galadriel and Lore-Elrond allies (and the Neutral Glorfindel you're suggesting). Glorfindel bounces in @ a cost of 3 (to match Elrond and Galadriel), triggers a cool combat effect, attacks or defends and then bounces out.

A really awesome tactics Glorfindel would be cool too, and also make the decision to play spirit glorfindel tough as well.

One thing that has bothered me about spirit glorfindel is that thematically, his threat being low doesn't make a whole lot of sense. If Glorfindel rode out towards Mordor, the enemy would definitely take notice.

Another solution would be some very low threat spirit heroes, or at the very least other powerful spirit heroes that would make that spirit hero slot very hard to settle on just one.

What's the problem with glorfindel being so powerful? I could understand if say if we were having this discussion about fatty Bolger, but going by the lore of tolkien glorfindel SHOULD be overpowered. I'm more mad that The lore version of glorfindel isn't super powerful. Then you'd make people have to make tough choices.

If I was the designers and I wanted to stop people from playing spirit glorfindel I'd make a neutral ally version of him that was a little less powerful than neutral gandalf. Then make people make the difficult decision of which one to include.

Just a quick idea:

Glorfindel

Neutral: cost 4

3 willpower

3 attack

1 defense

Glorfindel does not exhaust to quest.

When glorfindel enters play chose one of the following: play a card from your discard pile as if it were in your hand, draw one card, lower your threat by 2

At the end of the round discard glorfindel

ANYWAY...,

Personally, Boromirs overpoweredness bothers me more. His hero version is more powerful than glorfindel, treebeard, gandalf or elrond IMO. Which going by the source material makes absolutely no sense.

I never really understood why the new Glorfindel Ally was Spirit. Considering his place in the lore I would have thought we would get a combat-focused Tactics ally in a similar mold to the Leadership-Galadriel and Lore-Elrond allies (and the Neutral Glorfindel you're suggesting). Glorfindel bounces in @ a cost of 3 (to match Elrond and Galadriel), triggers a cool combat effect, attacks or defends and then bounces out.

Yeah I really would have preferred this too, especially as someone who loves Noldor and Silvan decks and characters but is not a big fan of the Erestor and discard mechanic.... (love the twins, elrond, glorfindel, galadriel etc)

I really worry that the majority of noldor characters we see from this point on will be directly aimed at improving the erestor/discard theme and will not be very good in Noldor decks that do not utilize Erestor or discarding half your deck...

Arwen + Elven Light slightly remedies this however as you can implement a minor discard theme with just a few cards but not go the whole way with it. So long as new Noldor cards work well with her or Erestor it should be sweet.

A really awesome tactics Glorfindel would be cool too, and also make the decision to play spirit glorfindel tough as well.

One thing that has bothered me about spirit glorfindel is that thematically, his threat being low doesn't make a whole lot of sense. If Glorfindel rode out towards Mordor, the enemy would definitely take notice.

Another solution would be some very low threat spirit heroes, or at the very least other powerful spirit heroes that would make that spirit hero slot very hard to settle on just one.

It would have run counter to Glorfindel's "secrecy"-enabling origins but I think the character would have been way more interesting if his ability was something like "Glorfindel does not exhaust to commit to the quest. Forced: When Glorfindel commits to the quest, increase your threat by 2. Then you may lower another players threat buy 1."

Thematically it would make sense as others are less threatened as the enemy focuses on Glorfindel. Plus, as Spirit he would have had in-sphere access to effects like Elrond's Council for threat reduction so he would still be powerful.

Jumping in... to leave my opinion here.

I do think it would have been better, and I would not mind if it ever was errata'd, for Glorfindel to read that your threat goes up by one when he commits to the quest (regardless of exhaust). And leave Lights of Valinor alone.

I actually think Spirit Glorfindel and his repertoire is a perfect representation of the character. If anything he should have ranger and the tactics sphere as well. Solo the nine on the river bruinen? Check. Soloed a balrog in the first age? Check. Finds a wounded hobbit in the vast wilderness? Check. I think it was good that they gave him the warrior trait, but I really think he deserves the ranger trait as well. Now... the healer trait didn't exist until recently but we all know that Glorfindel is a healer as well and if he hadn't of showed up when he did we'd all be eating under the presence of the all-seeing eye right now...Glorfindel is a heroes hero. Sorry folks I know some people hate to hear it.

He's no more powerful than Dain though. In fact Dain's power curve will overtake him in the later game I have no problem with Dain mechanic-wise. He is flat out one of the best defenders in the game, he has a passive that buffs wp and attack on ALL dwarves, he doesn't have a threat bump for the passive, his only weakness is choosing between having an awesome defender or having blanket attack buff. He's great. He's an enabler. But he doesn't fit his lore. He needs noble for a start. I'd actually be pleased if they errata'd him for the trait, because it seems to me they're dissing Dain when they call him an un-noble king. Lore-wise I think Thorin should have been this card though.

Personally if I hear people complain about Glorfindel being overpowered but don't mention Dain being op I immediately dismiss them. Really the whole thing is laughable. The amount of people who spend time complaining about Glorfindel is weird and perhaps a little befuddled.

Personally if I hear people complain about Glorfindel being overpowered but don't mention Dain being op I immediately dismiss them. Really the whole thing is laughable. The amount of people who spend time complaining about Glorfindel is weird and perhaps a little befuddled.

Mentioning that one card is OP does not require one to mention every card that is OP. And the thing with Glorfindel is not just his power level, but also his ubiquitous nature. Dedicated Dwarf decks are nothing like as common as they used to be, but Glorfindel is still all over the place.

As far as your points about traits go, yes Dain should have the Noble trait, and so should Brand, since he's also a king. And Elrond should have the healer trait - the fact he doesn't kind of boggles my mind. I'm pretty sure they've never given a character more than three traits, but if they wanted to throw more traits at Glorfindel the way you suggest, they could've done with him what they did with Aragorn and varied the traits between different versions.

I started the thread not complaining about Glorfindel's power, but the fact that he is still EVERYWHERE. You never see Dain outside of a dwarf deck, but Glory is all over the place. Hobbit Secrecy (with Glorfindel). Rohan Riders (with Glorfindel) etc. He is just so easy to slot in and he doesn't require that you build around him. I was looking for a simple way to increase his pain level. That's all.

We had the same problem with Eowyn in the first year and a half, but after the card pool grew (and Glorfindel came out) she dropped off to a reasonable rate. Glorifindel is still one of the most popular three years later.

I use Eowyn over Glorfindel more often than not simply because my spirit deck is typically focusing on fighting and G's extra action is wasted.

This whole thing with eowyn is actually a really valid point. We can sit here and say "band glorfy cause he's OP!" all we want but we don't understand how he affects the rest of the game. Think about it. Without Glorfy what is spirit. Why would we use it except maybe test of will. yes there are good spirit cards, but I would bet the hero in question is used in three fourths of spirit decks. And anyway, you might just end up using slightly less OP eowyn three fourths of a time, and then what should we do, nerf her? again, its the idea I brought up on my last post on this page: There will be different levels of power of cards. Again, if you thinks hes too OP, don't use him.

This whole thing with eowyn is actually a really valid point. We can sit here and say "band glorfy cause he's OP!" all we want but we don't understand how he affects the rest of the game. Think about it. Without Glorfy what is spirit. Why would we use it except maybe test of will. yes there are good spirit cards, but I would bet the hero in question is used in three fourths of spirit decks. And anyway, you might just end up using slightly less OP eowyn three fourths of a time, and then what should we do, nerf her? again, its the idea I brought up on my last post on this page: There will be different levels of power of cards. Again, if you thinks hes too OP, don't use him.

You what? Are you genuinely suggesting that without Glorfindel we wouldn't use the Spirit sphere? Because that's one of the craziest things I can recall ever reading on these forums. As far as the "three fourths" thing, admittedly I have a confessed bias against Glorfindel, but of my OCTGN decks which contain the Spirit sphere (discounting ones which splash it via Narvi's Belt or Celebrian's Stone), 8 contain Glorfindel, and 36 do not. I can't be bothered to count up the numbers for Eowyn right now, but I'm pretty sure without looking that she features in less than 27 of the 36 non-Glorfindel decks.

I entirely agree with you on the point that if you don't like Glorfindel you should just not play him, and I follow this approach myself, but to suggest he's that much a keystone of the entire Spirit sphere is crazy talk.

Don't talk bad things about my fav sphere

He must be joking.

While arguments on both sides have their points, I'll just throw out my opinion that it's not too terrible to see the same heroes appear overly much.

Not everyone is created equal, especially not in Arda.

But as far as a solution goes (for those who demand it), I wouldn't be surprised if they figure out some ways to hold him back, and others besides. For instance, I wouldn't be surprised if some future effect causes your threat to jump up for every character you have with the Noble trait, or for threat to jump for every character of a certain Willpower or higher. Just an idea.

I think everyone's opinion on Glorfindel is influenced by the state of the Meta-game when he was released:

LOL

But it's still true!

looking back on my comment I realize that there was some unintentional exaggeration involved. From videos I've seen and from personal decks almost all spirit decks (powerful ones anyway) include glorfy. But my point is still valid in that every sphere has its perks. Part of the reason this game is so good is that the spheres are mostly balanced. Nerfy the hero in question would be like getting rid of sneak attack or dain for leadership. Yes, it wouldn't kill the sphere totally but it just might upset the balance set up by the designers to keep the spheres balance. Glorfinel was probably put there in the first place for that reason: to make spirit, which hadn't gotten to many good card recently in the dwarrowdelf cycle. So who knows, it just speculation.

I think everyone's opinion on Glorfindel is influenced by the state of the Meta-game when he was released:

This should have won that lotr lcg meme competition!

I didn't play the game back in that day... what's the joke?

I didn't play the game back in that day... what's the joke?

I'm looking forward to get him for Christmas. will be great for solo play