Hi,

let me introduce our first article of Player Card Review series. What's all about? I made a deep analysis of each player card, mention positives and negatives of each card, possible combos and synergies and overall conclusion from my point of view. I set the goal of describing each card in at least 450 words , in 500 words at the best. It's written in " progression mode ", and it's because of 1) new players, who wanna to start this game from Core set in progression style, 2) the progression mode seems to me more challenging than "normal style" with accessible all cards from all expansions and adventure packs. I wanted to create such complex and detailed reviews, because I think it's rare material in LOTR LCG community. And I think that each card, no matter how strong or weak, deserves own attention, not only that cards we usually use in decks.

The first article describes all cards from Leadership sphere .

Link : https://visionofthepalantir.com/2019/01/15/leadership-sphere-core-set/

I hope you enjoy these reviews and find in them something useful and interesting.:)

Silblade

That's some really nice work you've done there... it will take me an age to read through, but it's much appreciated.

I like how you had to add an extra star for some cards, because "out-of-five" just isn't enough

Looking forward to the next 3 spheres, and then your write-up of the Mirkwood cycle (which is basically all the cards I have, until my wife relents and lets me buy more).

I enjoyed all the work that went into it, but also feel that Theodred is thoroughly underrated. Yes, his stat distribution is at odds with his ability. But his ability is incredibly useful, not just with LeAragorn but also in a tri-sphere deck. It's no coincidence that Theodred is one of the heroes in the core-only Killer deck. In the long run, getting an extra resource every round is worth *way* more than not having an extra willpower like a good quester should. I realize that power level is subjective and you're not likely to take advice from someone who likes Dori, but I can say from ringsdb analysis that Theodred is probably the second most popular "utility" leadership hero, behind Denethor.

Perhaps his ability is misunderstood? In your description you said he had to choose *another* hero to give his resource to -- he can also give it to himself.The only other thing that made me say "huh" was in the description of Guard of the Citadel. While I agree that he's a weak ally, I was surprised to read that he was weak because of his stat distribution:

For other activities than chump blocking, for 2 cost I would expect value 2 at any of stat: 0-0-2-1, 2-0-0-2, 1-2-0-1 etc. everything I’m able to respect. At least only 1 point of Defense and I would accept him as an appropriately good ally. But 1-1-0-2 looks illogical, uselessly and moreover a bit expensive.

For a two cost ally, I'd agree that I'd rather have 2-0 or 0-2 in the first stats, but I'd much rather have 1-1-0-2 than 0-0-2-1 or 1-0-1-2. 3 Def + HP is still a chump blocker for all but the very weakest of enemies, and a 1wp, 1 att ally can at least be used for either questing or attacking at need. And getting 2 willpower or 2 attack for 2 resources in leadership is very, very rare. Only the unique Rosie Cotton does so for willpower, and only unique Ceorl and Greenwood Archer does so for attack -- all cards released *long* after the core. What makes Guard of the Citadel unappealing is the lack of any extra ability at all.

Those are my quibbles, which means that overall it is a very good and comprehensive description. Well done!

The Theodred part seem really odd to me too. I think Theodred is the second best hero of the core set, right behing Eowyn and near from Beravor and Legolas. Back on the original days of the game I heard of him among the best decks (the famous TED, for Theodred Eowyn and Denethor or TEB for Beravor). He is actually still in some of my decklist, and really show his valor during the previous solo leagues.

Aragorn is quite useful in the core set, with easy play, where you rely a lot on heroes stats but doesn't shine very long after that. We quickly learn to play many cards, we play allies that does a better job than our heroes. For this plan having resources make a real difference, Aragorn don't.

Guys, thank you very much for your responses. It's good to see you have own observations and experiences and I'm glad to hear your opinions! I also appreciate that you liked the article.:)

Let's talk about Théodred, how I see this hero. I admit Théodred gets from me a bit merciless critics and strict evaluation. I appreciate his ability, there is nothing to say bad about giving the resource to the questing hero, I like it and in tri-sphere decks, he shines. However, considering his stats, 1 Willpower for a character who is predestined for questing, is the odd default value. For reasonable questing, he needs to boost his Willpower by some another card - in Core set, we may consider the Celebrían's Stone . After attaching it, sending Théodred for 3 Willpower and additionally add 1 resource is very nice matter. However, I have experienced that in lots of games he was gradually fading away because 1 Willpower doesn't make difference in overall, generation of resources I could assure by other ways ( Steward of Gondor , Glóin , time ), therefore Théodred remains as a bit unutilized fellow, who was just "occupying the place" for some better option (=hero). From my sight, he was the first Leadership hero, which I set aside and I haven't missed him in my games, because I have seen and experienced the negatives I have described above. However, it's good to know that the community is using him quite often in games and without any hesitation.:)

@dalestephenson Guard of the Citadel was very hard for some deep analyzing because he misses any ability. Because of that, I had to aim purely for his stats and their distribution. I think that if Guard of the Citadel control some ability, I would be more benevolent for his stats (look for Gléowine , for example). But he is vanilla, so I had to analyze and judge him only according to his stats values and stat distribution. Because his 1 Willpower and 1 Attack are so tiny value, so rarely I send him to quest or command him to attack, I would appreciate at least some "adequate Defense quality". Yes, he is chump blocker definitely, so against under-average and better enemies he won't commonly survive more than 2 fights (then 1 Defense doesn't matter). Still, there are some 1-Attack enemies, which could be blocked by simple 1 Defense and you even don't need to waste some better allies, heroes or let it undefended. Snowbourn Scout can give you a helping hand in these cases because of his 1 Defense and he costs 1 resource less. Guard of the Citadel is condemned to die in any case if you don't boost him by for example For Gondor! If I have 2 resources and I'm deciding to spend it for Guard of the Citadel or for something else, rather I decide for that "something else" or save it to next round. Because I know, that "2 resources will die for a moment", therefore it is a bit waste of resources, from my sight.
But you are right, that 2-stat ally for 2 cost is something rare in Leadership sphere.

@Rouxxor I see him as an irreplaceable strong hero at least until the moment of Lore Aragorn comes to a scene. I agree that at this moment original Aragorn is fading away, giving his preference to other heroes. Though I think he still can do his job right if you manage that 1 resource for using his ability and so giving the "action advantage". In the Core set environment, he works really well and belongs to very useful heroes.

I see Guard of the Citadel as Favour of the Lady or Dúnedain Quest in ally form: You get one willpower for two resources, it hardly gets better in the Core Set, Henamarth is the only 1 for 1 card and his ability prevents him from questing. It seems intentional that willpower was expensive in the early days: Thalin and Théodred only have one willpower, questing allies have only one as well and are more expensive than their combat counterparts.

The same pattern applies to the rest of the cycle: You always pay one resource more than you get returned in willpower (e.g. Westfold Horsebraker, Rivendell Minstrel, Éomund, Keen-eyed Took, Riddermark's Finest). There are only a few allies with better ratios, but Escort from Edoras gets discarded and West Road Traveller has only one hitpoint.

Edit: Forgot to mention, that you could also describe to use the Son of Arnor to engage enemies in order to Forest Snare them like in Beorn's Path.

Silblade, for me analyzing Guard of the Citadel is easy *because* he lacks an ability. That's what makes him liable to be replaced by later allies that cost the same, but *also* have an ability. Why pack Guard of the Citadel when you could play Naith Guide instead? Unless you're running a Gondor deck there's absolutely no reason to run Guard in the full card pool, and even there you have Pelargir Ship Captain with the same stat-line plus an ability.

However, in the context of the core with its overpriced allies, having someone who can do a little bit of willpower, a little bit of attack, and a little bit of chump blocking isn't bad. Unlike defense and hit points, willpower and attack have marginal value, adding just one has value, and adding just one to *either* each turn, as you choose, isn't bad for 2 resources. He's only useful at the beginning, but I think he's useful there for lack of alternatives.

One defense, unless you're siege questing, isn't terribly useful. I'd much rather have 0 defense and 2 hp than 1 defense and 1 hp. There are only 43 1 attack enemies in existence, and a good portion of them have defense restrictions, attack boosts, or high engagement costs and are difficult to engage. Meanwhile, between archery and treacheries there's a lot more things that can make that extra hit point useful.

I agree that 1 willpower is an odd value for someone who you can reasonably expect to quest. The same is true of Thalin, Spirit Legolas, Leadership Eomer and Tactics Bilbo. But that makes those heroes odd, not bad. The fact is that if Theodred had 2 willpower and 1 attack he would be a *marginally* better hero, not a dramatically better hero. He's giving you an extra resource every turn, like half of Steward of Gondor without having to find it, and with considerably more flexibility. With those extra resources, you can pay for a lot of willpower -- Theodred himself, as the only leadership hero, can put down Faramir on turn three and have a resource left over. I find that as a quest continues, the relative value of 1 resource to 1 willpower goes *up*, not down, at least in decks with card draw.

Theodred's a good target for Stone of Celebrian simply because he's not likely to need the restricted slot -- but it would go as well on any questing hero who doesn't double in combat, 2 extra willpower usually has the same exact marginal value on Eowyn as it does on Theodred. Theodred doesn't need to get attachments to be good -- Theodred is good because he can help you pay for attachments.

Nice work, Silblade. I look forward to reading your evaluations of the other spheres.

I haven't been playing that long, so I read this with interest to try and see if I was undervaluing certain cards. Looks like we think a lot alike though, or have come to much the same conclusions. I do like Theodred better than you though, just because of his synergy with Aragorn , and if you can slap a Celebrian's Stone on him to boost his will he becomes much more useful (as you yourself noted). Because you're pretty much always going to questing him anyway, for the most part.

While we're talking about the Core Set, for what it's worth:

I find that when playing the monosphere decks, Leadership is most effective against Passage Through Mirkwood.

But Spirit is most effective against Journey Down the Anduin.

No monosphere deck from the Core Set is going to work against Escape from Dol Guldor.

@dalestephenson I meant hard to analyze from the view of sufficient long text (that means my personal aim at least 450 words). Because I had to purely describe only his stats and can't rely on any ability. Just traits could be desribed more deeply and offer to readers some options.:) Yea, that's what I thought as well, Guard of the Citadel was appearing in our decks (in Core set environment) just because lack of any other possibilities. He and Snowbourn Scout are only Leadership allies from dawn of the LOTR LCG, which are cheap and prepared to come in play without saving greater amount of resources. The next cheap Leadership ally is I think Keen-Eyed Took . Unfortunately, with even worse stat than Guard of the Citadel, but at least with some ability. If I consider it as a useful ability, wait for review of cards from The Hills of Emyn Muil.;)
Definitely our sight at Théodred is quite different. Maybe mine is a bit uncommon :D, but it's good to see the variability of opinions at some cards. I think it's mainly because of variable playing styles and what each player expects from own decks. I gladly read your observations, they are very beneficial and useful notes.:)

@Vince79 Thank you for your praise, Vince79! Glad you enjoy that review.
Combo Aragorn-Théodred works well in Core set, I admit.

I think that 1st scenario can be finished with any monosphere deck with cards only from Core set (probably exlcluding Tactic sphere, that'd be very hard and loooong walkthrough :)).

Journey Along the Anduin is for Spirit monosphere deck very hostile - you need to beat that Hill Troll , unfortunately Spirit allies don't belong to some heavy weight. However, Spirit sphere comes handy in second part of this scenario.

I haven't tried it yet, I guess it's be great challenge. Maybe monosphere Leadership sphere could beat Escape from Dol Guldur.

On Boardgamegeek someone has defeated Escape from Dol Guldur with a Mono Spirit starter deck, though he gave each uncaptured hero an additional resource in the beginning. https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2077068/escape-dol-goldur-core-mono-spirit .

When learning this game, I played through Passage of Mirkwood with every starter deck once and even the Tactics deck worked. In hindsight I probably got lucky with a bunch of enemies. I guess it just depends on your draw. Too many locations will screw you over, enemies and treacheries will be fine.

@Amicus Draconis Hohoo, very nice job from that guy! Respect for doing Escape from Dol Guldur by Core Spirit deck. Sometimes even with non-Core cards is beating Escape from Dol Guldur in normal mode challenging (mainly because of picking one prisoner and limitation of 1 ally per round).

I believe, that even Tactic deck could make it, but it would be very long walkhtrough and you must pray for lucky draw from the encounter deck. Location lock with Tactic sphere means the slow bad end, even Legolas with Blade of Gondolin might not be enough.

5 hours ago, Silblade said:

I think that 1st scenario can be finished with any monosphere deck with cards only from Core set (probably exlcluding Tactic sphere, that'd be very hard and loooong walkthrough :)).

Journey Along the Anduin is for Spirit monosphere deck very hostile - you need to beat that Hill Troll , unfortunately Spirit allies don't belong to some heavy weight. However, Spirit sphere comes handy in second part of this scenario.

When I first started, I played exclusively with the Core monosphere decks, just to get a feel for what each sphere does. I was able to beat the first scenario with all four spheres, but I thought it was easiest using Leadership. I guess because it was most balanced.

Maybe my strategies weren't the best at that time, but I found Spirit to have the best chance at beating Journey Down the Anduin. Keep the threat low, use Gandalf for the trolls, and snipe at the lower level enemies with Dunhere. Odd in a way, because playing a duosphere deck, Lore seems to be the main deck to bring because it has the Forest Snare, and Denethor provides good defense. But Lore doesn't work well in a monosphere deck because it doesn't quest well.

There's a guy on the Grey Company Podcast who says he plays a straight up Tactics monosphere deck. That sounds impressive to me, but he is using all the expansions to draw from, I'm sure it makes a difference. In the Core Set, Tactics seems to be the weakest.

In the full card pool mono-Tactics is completely viable as a solo deck. Not only are there some decent neutral/tactics questers, you can also get a lineup of Tactics heroes that can handle your questing needs out of the gate -- for example, Theoden, Eowyn and Hirgon can quest for *11* while paying 1 less for a tactics ally before combat.

But in the core set the maximum amount of willpower you can get from mono-tactics is *very* limited, so I don't consider it viable. Sure, you can eke out a win in Passage Through Mirkwood if you're lucky enough to get enemies and no locations, but that recipe won't hold up against tougher quests. Let me give you an example.

In the first solo league we did three quests from core/Mirkwood cycle, together with a variant that gives you help with a quest until you beat it -- for each token, you can choose a card or resource at setup. The quests we did were Journey Down the Anduin, Conflict at the Carrock, and Return to Mirkwood -- challenging quests for a single deck if confined to core/Mirkwood cards. All the same, three players piloted Theodred/Eowyn/Beravor core/Mirkwood-only decks that between them took only one token for the nine victories.

After my regular run, to test the token system, I ran a Sterotypical Eagles Deck against the same three quests -- this is almost all core/mirkwood cards, a mono-tactics deck centered around Eagles and using the three core tactics hero. This deck is IMO far *better* than the tactics starter deck, and actually can get to respectable will power with Eagles of the Misty Mountains and the Gwaihir ally. It took me 21 tokens to beat Journey Down the Anduin, 20 tokens to be Conflict at the Carrock, and 33 tokens to get past Return to Mirkwood. Easy mode is the equivalent of using *3* tokens, if you don't remove the gold-circle cards. Basically I needed to draw and play a bunch of my expensive allies turn one in order to win.

While playing the tactics deck against the intro quest can be instructive, I don't think the lesson best learned is how to get lucky and win with the tactics deck. I think the important lesson is that some decks *aren't* solo decks, and really need to be paired with other decks to give you your best chance.