Hey guys

I'm such a noob at this game still, but I'm having a lot of fun. I bought the game a while ago, but only just now got some expansions and started deck building.

I've got a few questions about deck building, as I'm still pushing through a few deck ideas.

Do you run a lot of allies in your deck?

What I'm finding is that I rarely have many allies, abilities fill up my decks instead. I wonder if I should focus a bit more on allies.

Example: My current deck I'm trying to put together is Galadrial, and Hama. I have Sneak Attack + Gandalf, with Curious Brandybuck and Ranger of Cardolan all to pop out cheaply when needed, and then they go away leaving my heroes to keep trudging on alone. The most persistent ally I have (and only other ally in the deck) is Ranger of the North via Ranger Call.

The purpose of my deck is to have someone quest with Galadrial's ring bonus, while Hama brings recursive quick stikes / feints, using Galadrial's deck diving (mirror / harp) to fit him out with Stuward of Gondor and Gondorian Fire. It's kinda complex, I'm hoping I can stall enough to set him up.

I think my worry is that even set up, I don't have enough willpower to quest through locations... Ranger of the North can add 2 willpower to questing, and 2 progress to a location when he arrives, but obviously he's not so simple to bring out. Northern Ranger is in the ally deck my friend plays, which often solves location problems handily, but I also play solo. Galadrial's Handmaiden is an effective questing tool, giving 2 willpower for only 2 cost, with threat reduction to boot... but only 1 hp makes her vulnerable to when revealed cards.

Thx for any feedback.

Oh - 1 other thing - what quests do you think are good to test out decks against?

Who's your Leadership Hero? Or do you just use Song of Kings?

I would say that most people run quite a lot of allies. They are very strong, even without an ability the boost purely from an ally's stats are more or less needed. I'm not sure I'm sold on Ranger of Caradan (I think that's his name), perhaps he might be good in an emergency but I would rather fill my deck up with cards that help me to not get to an emergency situation. What are you using Ranger of Caradan for exactly? Attacker? You're running tactics, you could have plenty of other choices. Same with defender, and since you have spirit, same with quester. Choices that will stick around and continue to help you.

I assume you are trying to take advantage of the Horn of Gondor, which seems like the only reason to run a deck like this. It's an interesting concept, but more permanent allies are probably a stronger option.

Yes handmaiden is vulnerable to the Necromancer's reach and such, but sometimes you just have to admit that she is going to meet her end that way. You can help to avoid this by simply paying attention to the encounter deck. If all copies of a card like Necromancer's Reach are in the discard, she's safe. Pretty safe if most of them are. If you really want to save her though, A Test of Will can cancel it, and Honor Guard can save her as well.

I usually test decks out against A Journey Along the Anduin. I use NM mode quest because I've been playing for a while and have a large card pool. Normal mode probably will suffice just fine for you. The deck throws a variety of threats at you that come up frequently in most quests. Chances are that if you do well against JAtA, you'll do well most of the time elsewhere.