Hello all. I'd like to share with you my current Rohan deck that has gone through many, many iterations over the past couple of years, and with all of the current spoiled Rohan characters released, I feel that this is at its best it can be for the time being.


To the King

Main Deck

Hero (3)
Éowyn (Core Set)
Théoden (The Treason of Saruman)
Théodred (Core Set)

Ally (26)
2x Ceorl (Temple of the Deceived)
1x Elfhelm (The Dead Marshes)
3x Éomund (Conflict at the Carrock)
2x Éothain (The Dread Realm)
3x Escort from Edoras (A Journey to Rhosgobel)
1x Gamling (The Land of Shadow)
2x Háma (The Treason of Saruman)
1x Rider of the Mark (Road to Rivendell)
3x Snowbourn Scout (Core Set)
2x Warden of Helm's Deep (The Antlered Crown)
3x West Road Traveller (Return to Mirkwood)
3x Westfold Horse-breeder (The Voice of Isengard)

Attachment (6)
3x Ancient Mathom (A Journey to Rhosgobel)
3x Ranger Provisions (Across the Ettenmoors)

Event (17)
2x A Test of Will (Core Set)
3x Astonishing Speed (Return to Mirkwood)
2x Helm! Helm! (The Treason of Saruman)
2x Rallying Cry (The Wastes of Eriador)
3x Ride to Ruin (The Hills of Emyn Muil)
2x Sneak Attack (Core Set)
3x Valiant Sacrifice (Core Set)

Player Side Quest (1)
1x Send for Aid (The Treachery of Rhudaur)

3 Heroes, 50 Cards
Cards up to Temple of the Deceived

Deck built on RingsDB.

This deck has pretty much everything. The heroes Theoden and Theodred effectively give you 5 resources per turn as long as you are playing allies (and there are quite a lot of them), and Eowyn is still one of the best questers in the game.

One of my favourite parts of this deck is how the card spheres and costs seem to fall into a neat pile. There are allies whose costs range from 1-4 for each sphere and events that cost 1-3, so there should be many different options available, depending on what you can afford at the moment.

Another great aspect is how this deck can shine for multiplayer by helping to support other decks instead of itself.

My favourite though, is all of the synergy it has.



While this deck lacks a bit of attacking power, it is no slouch in that department and can quest with the best of them and even defend well if backed up into a corner (or a Hornburg).



There is plenty of location control with Ride to Ruin, Snowbourn Scout, and West Road Traveller, as well as Ranger Provisions and Ancient Mathom, providing much-appreciated card draw and resource acceleration for yourself or fellow players.

This deck does not care about the recent nerf to Horn of Gondor and still does what Rohan still does best by making Valiant Sacrifices for the greater good of all the Free Peoples.

The Cards:

Along with the aforementioned Ride to Ruin, this deck utilises Helm! Helm! to overcome burdensome enemies and shore up an area where this deck tends to lack. You can also get extra card draw with Valiant Sacrifice when you do so, and Eomund is the star ally here, whose ability readies all Rohan characters in play if he leaves play for any reason. Utilise Theodred's 2 attack, Theoden's great all-around stats, or get an extra use of Hama's defense boost before he leaves play. Or quest with Astonishing Speed and still have defenders/attackers for later in the round.
And speaking of Hama, Sneak Attack works wonders on both Eomund and Hama (and also triggers some more leaves play effects without sacrificing them to the discard).

Warden of Helm's Deep is a decent defender when Hama's sacrifice isn't necessary.

Ceorl was the one addition this deck didn't even know it needed. Instant readying on-demand plus extra support with passing to other players is great. I only use this ability sparingly though, as it can end up costing quite a lot, but when it's necessary to get just a little more attack or questing, and Eomund isn't available, it's a welcome ability. Plus, he's a lost-cost 2-attack ally, which is something Rohan sorely lacks outside of Tactics.

Snowbourn Scout and Westfold Horse-breeder are both low-cost allies with minor bonuses (one progress or one willpower for questing) and great targets for Ride to Ruin or Helm! Helm! if Eomund isn't available (or necessary)
Snowbourn Scout also benefits from Astonishing Speed when it is available. It's expensive but very often turns the tide of questing in your favour. Even with only +6 from your heroes, this event can often mean the difference between keeping the momentum or slowly falling behind as you try to catch up to a runaway quest. Typically though, Astonishing Speed will offer an extra 10-16 questing power.

And to further complement that goal, West Road Traveller and Escort from Edoras are fragile but great questers for their cost.

Eothain is a wonderful glue to all of the sacrificial Rohirrim, readying every time it happens due to a card effect and having great stats for whatever you'd need him for. He is a bit expensive but a very welcome presence to the party.

Gamling and Elfhelm are nice to have but not completely necessary, so there are only 1 of each. With all of the Rohirrim leaving play, Gamling will get quite a lot of use out of his ability, bouncing back many Escorts from Edoras or a sacrificial Eomund, but Rallying Cry helps to complement Gamling well, and is a big reason why there is only one.

Send for Aid also works to search for just the right ally you need (and it's a great way to bring out that expensive Elfhelm). It also offers some great support for your fellow players/decks without meaning you don't also benefit.

Adding Your Own Customisations and Some Card Rationale:

A Test of Will is a no-brainer for any Spirit deck, but Hasty Stroke is noticeably absent. I was running just one for a while and eventually decided to drop it altogether in favour if a Rider of the Mark.

One, shadow effects typically discard attachments (which this deck doesn't run except for the location attachments) or results in a destroyed defender (which this deck doesn't typically have a problem with).

Second, Rider of the Mark is another decent quester who can also change hands with Ceorl and offer some pseudo-shadow cancelling.

This is one of the easiest cuts from the deck if you don't find him that useful though, but I'm actually currently bouncing between the 1x Rider of the Mark 3x Westfold Horse-Breeder I have now and going 2x of each. He's a bit more durable than the other main questing allies, and one large benefit he has over many other Rohirrim allies is his 1 attack that can help a bit after everything has readied from Eomund, but he is a bit overcosted at times.

I didn't feel the need for Westfold Horse-breaker with all of the readying effects I already had and no real boosts for my heroes in the form of Herugrim, Snowmane, etc.
Riddermark's Finest would be an auto-include in this deck if it didn't need to exhaust as part of its effect, but that could be a stand-in for Westfold Horse-Breeder (since there are no mounts) and/or Rider of the Mark.

With support from your fellow players, Helm! Helm! may be a bit unnecessary, and I occasionally feel that 2x Rallying Cry is too many (but also feel that 1x Rallying Cry is too few), so these are other possible cuts.

Back to Herugrim and Snowmane, this deck did originally run Celebrian's Stone, Miruvor, Snowmane, and Herugrim for a powered-up Theoden, but after many, many games, I found that quests were often over by the time I assembled enough of the pieces and often didn't end up using it anyway.

I don't have Flame of the West, but this could be converted to a trisphere Leadership / Tactics / Spirit deck with Tactics Eowyn. I tried a trisphere Rohan deck quite a while ago with Eowyn, Eomer, and Theodred, but someone in my playgroup was using Theodred and refused to change (one of many reasons I no longer play with him, but I'm going on a tangent). Anyway, it struggled with resources, even with Theodred, and Spirit Theoden was a welcome addition, but that meant that my questing power dropped significantly. Tactics Eowyn fills that gap nicely.

This would be quite a different deck, however, so it may not be an easy swap over, but there are many decent Tactics tools. In addition to all of the Rohan allies, events, and attachments, Born Aloft is a nice include for bouncing Eomund

I feel that this would be an entirely different deck, however, so if I ever do that, it'll be a completely separate entry.

Surprised to see Theodred without Heir of Mardil.

Your deck is pretty cool, I really am a fan of Rohan and you're doing it in a completely different way than I am, which is neat to see. You're 1-core (which I love) and you've avoided a ton of the cards that people fight over in multiplayer (like Steward of Gondor) and I love that too.

While I more or less agree that Super-Theoden is probably more trouble than he's worth, I was really surprised not to see a single Mount in your deck, despite being Rohan and running 3x Horse Breeder. Now Horse Breeder is a good card regardless, don't get me wrong (I call her the Blue Feint), but no Snowmane, not even one?

I'm curious why you included Sneak Attack, since you don't seem to be running Gandalf. It doesn't seem like a great bargain of a card without him.

Do you have card draw problems? Before I restructured my Rohan deck I had a lot of card draw problems (and yes, I had included 3x Ancient Mathom. -wasn't enough). I solved it by including A Good Harvest, Gleowine, and Mustering the Rohirrim. A lot of deck space devoted to the idea, I know, but ultimately I think it was worth it. But you're playing a much different style than I am, where you sacrifice your allies and play them out again (w. Rallying Cry or Gamling), so maybe you don't have that issue.

Thanks for sharing, really enjoyed reading this one.

Surprised to see Theodred without Heir of Mardil.

yeah, i meant to mention but forgot to, but Theodred's resources are spent about half and half for extra Spirit or Leadership, and can often be given to fellow players as needed, so Heir of Mardil is pretty inconsistent and is why i didn't end up including it.

Your deck is pretty cool, I really am a fan of Rohan and you're doing it in a completely different way than I am, which is neat to see. You're 1-core (which I love) and you've avoided a ton of the cards that people fight over in multiplayer (like Steward of Gondor) and I love that too.

While I more or less agree that Super-Theoden is probably more trouble than he's worth, I was really surprised not to see a single Mount in your deck, despite being Rohan and running 3x Horse Breeder. Now Horse Breeder is a good card regardless, don't get me wrong (I call her the Blue Feint), but no Snowmane, not even one?

I'm curious why you included Sneak Attack, since you don't seem to be running Gandalf. It doesn't seem like a great bargain of a card without him.

Do you have card draw problems? Before I restructured my Rohan deck I had a lot of card draw problems (and yes, I had included 3x Ancient Mathom. -wasn't enough). I solved it by including A Good Harvest, Gleowine, and Mustering the Rohirrim. A lot of deck space devoted to the idea, I know, but ultimately I think it was worth it. But you're playing a much different style than I am, where you sacrifice your allies and play them out again (w. Rallying Cry or Gamling), so maybe you don't have that issue.

Thanks for sharing, really enjoyed reading this one.

i actually included Steward of Gondor and found that it had too many resources. so for a solo deck, it wasn't necessary, and i agree with you about competing for it. for multiplayer, i hate using Steward in a deck that doesn't also use things like Errand-Rider, Parting Gifts, etc. to share the love, and that's a lot of extra deck slots for a deck that isn't even full Leadership anyway.

the 1 core was actually unintentional haha, but i'm glad it worked out that way as i also feel a sense of dread sometimes seeing deck lists with 2-3 cores (like i'll probably never have a decent Caldara deck with only 2x Fortune or Fate and Dwarven Tomb)

i like your comments about Snowmane. every time i go to put it in, i end up convincing myself that it's not worth it unless i also include Herugrim, and then Celebrian's Stone... but a 1x Snowmane seems like a good replacement for the lone Rider of the Mark, and i don't need to go for OMG SYNERGYYY with every card i put in. plus it still synergises in some way (with having 3 tutors for it)

Sneak Attack is for Eomund and Hama. Sneak Attack Eomund is a great reset for everyone mid-round when you need it and still have an Eomund to play next round for another reset. It's also really great for Hama to use his ability, defend two attacks with 5 defense (or defend for 5 and attack for 2) and then bounce to your hand instead of being discarded. They'll also leave play due to a card effect for Eothain

having Gleowine seems interesting, especially since Send for Aid effectively works as a Mustering + A Good Harvest as well, but i suppose if card draw were a problem, finding A Good Harvest won't be as consistent?

i'll definitely give it a try though. that said, i don't find that i have too much of a problem with card draw, or rather having options available. along with the Ancient Mathoms, there's also Valiant Sacrifice and various return effects with Gamling and Rallying Cry. i feel that the card draw and resource generation is about fine for most quests that don't mess with your hand/resources.

thanks for the comments! glad you liked it

since you're running a sacrifice sort of deck with Spirit Eowyn, you might be better served with Stand and Fight rather than A Good Harvest if you're going the Gleowine route. I've tried both. A Good Harvest is faster and it helps you with resource smoothing if that is a problem (but I doubt it is for you), but Stand and Fight gives you more recycling options for your allies, and is a solid playable card without Gleowine in hand.

Good idea with Sneak Attack/ Eomund, I hadnt really thought of that.

Ive always loved Rohan decks, so nice to see completley sifferent builds than I try. My last saga campaign was 2-handed with Eomer, Spirit Theoden and Eowyn, paired with Theodred, Erkenbrand and Gandalf. I was heavy on mounts and ally recursion, generally sacrificing Eomund each round as a chump blocker to ready the rest of my forces. Gandalf worked, but didnt fit the theme, so i'll probably replace him with Elfhelm when i revisit my campaign, and throw in some Destriers.

Love how many build options there are in Rohan.

Why not elven light for Eowyn?

since you're running a sacrifice sort of deck with Spirit Eowyn, you might be better served with Stand and Fight rather than A Good Harvest if you're going the Gleowine route. I've tried both. A Good Harvest is faster and it helps you with resource smoothing if that is a problem (but I doubt it is for you), but Stand and Fight gives you more recycling options for your allies, and is a solid playable card without Gleowine in hand.

Good idea with Sneak Attack/ Eomund, I hadnt really thought of that.

yeah, that's a good call as well. and in general with Eowyn. i had used Stand and Fight for a while and eventually took it out because it didn't work with Theoden's ability, but i suppose on turns where i have already played a Rohan ally, it doesn't matter anyway. also, that ally wasn't in my hand to begin with. but Stand and Fight was mainly for recurring Eomund, and they were replaced with Gamling and Rallying Cry. with regards to Rallying Cry, it's actually more expensive for Eomund, but it's nice late game to get a lot of options back to your hand (plus it can help a fellow player). i'll try them out though. i've already switched to -1 Rider of the Mark for +1 Snowmane

Ive always loved Rohan decks, so nice to see completley sifferent builds than I try. My last saga campaign was 2-handed with Eomer, Spirit Theoden and Eowyn, paired with Theodred, Erkenbrand and Gandalf. I was heavy on mounts and ally recursion, generally sacrificing Eomund each round as a chump blocker to ready the rest of my forces. Gandalf worked, but didnt fit the theme, so i'll probably replace him with Elfhelm when i revisit my campaign, and throw in some Destriers.

Love how many build options there are in Rohan.

yeah, i am definitely keen to try out a set of two decks that would work well together with lots of mounts. my only qualm is knowing that i'd want to include a lot of Snowbourn Scouts, Westfold Horse-breeders, and such, but maybe i should just get over my aversion to proxies and just do it. also, there are a lot more mount options now, so it might not be necessary to try to include Leadership and Spirit in both decks.

Why not elven light for Eowyn?

my response: why elven light?

if i include multiple copies, any i draw after the first become redundant. if i only include one, it's inconsistent (and therefore, why bother?)

but let's say i include 1 or only ever draw 1 in any game (best-case scenario). it's clogging up my hand waiting for a decent time to use it when it could have been a different card. i don't use Eowyn's ability that often because this deck often overquests by quite a lot. i often have to hold back Escorts from Edoras or Astonishing Speeds for the start of the next quest. if i need exactly x or less questing after all is said and done (x being the number of players), then i'll discard, and there will be plenty of options for cards that i simply can't afford for the foreseeable future, duplicates of unique cards, etc., but Eowyn's ability gives an extra use for every card i have in my deck for 1 extra questing power when i need it if it has no other use. Elven-light would only have one use, and if i use it every turn, sure, i get more card draw, but that's pretty expensive compared to the card draw i already have, i have to draw Elven-light to begin, and while it can be discarded right away for extra willpower, a lot of that extra willpower will end up being unnecessary. i have a deck with Elven-light that works really well imo, but i don't think this one would benefit in the same way