I am very happy with the two decks I (and co.) have constructed. They play well together = are yet to lose a scenario. As I said elsewhere I include every card thrice. I know some I won't be able to use more than once but I like the chance of getting each card as high as possible. I would be interested in any kind opinion/advice from other players. The latest change I am considering for the Deck 2 is to include Will of the West, what is your experience with it and if I shall include it, what card shall be replaced? Thanks!

Deck 1 (Glorfindel, Beravor, Legolas)

Ally: Henamarth Riversong, Erebor Hammersmith, Gondorian Spearman, Daughter of the Nimrodel, Gandalf

Attachment: Blade of Gondolin, Horn of Gondor, Protector of Lorien, Self Preservence, Forest Snare

Event: Secret Paths, Blade Mastery, Feint, Quick Strike, Swift Strike, Lore of Imladris Lorien's Wealth

Deck 2 (Dunhere, Aragorn, Theodred)

Ally: Snowbourn Scout, Son of Arnor, Northern Tracker, Faramir, Gandalf, Beorn

Attachment: The Favour of the Lady, Celebrian's Stone, Unexpected Courage, Steward of Gondor

Event: Sneak Attack, Ever Vigilant, A Test of Will, Hasty Stroke, Dwarven Tomb, The Galadhrim's Greeting, Stand and Fight

I assume in Deck 2 you are putting the Steward on Dunhere? Otherwise, it would seem to be very difficult to get Beorn out with Stand and Fight unless you also get a Stone on Aragorn. How are you discarding Beorn? I'm not seeing a way in that decklist. So my suggestion would be to cut Beorn and go 3x Will of the West.

My Deck 1 is similar to yours, but I did make a few different card choices:

Deck 1

Denethor / Beravor / Legolas

Veteran Axehand x3 --------- instead of Gondorian Spearman.

Gandalf's Search x3 --------- instead of Lorien's Wealth

Miner of the Iron Hills x3 and Gleowine x2 --------- instead of Self-Preservation and Swift Strike

Reasons for differences: Veteran Axehand is a better ally; not much more to say about that. I use Gandalf's Search because I prefer pay 1 resource to draw 1 card over paying 3 resources to draw 3 cards. Plus, Gandalf's Search gives you the option of setting up your deck (options are good). Miner of the Iron Hills is in because he is an ok Ally for the cost, plus he can bring back an attachment. Self-Preservation is out because it is redundant when using Daughter of the Nimrodel (and especially when using Glorfindel). Gleowine and Swift Strike could go either way. I was just trying not to put too many Tactics cards in the deck.

Your Deck 2 is a bit of a mess. There's a lot different that I would do with that.

Mestrahd said:

I play Beorn via Sneak Attack. You get a very nice attack of 8. It is all the better now since you cannot trap the Nazgul. Of course sneaking Gandalf is even more powerful but Beorn is cool. And with Ever Vigilant he can defend against pretty much anything as well and then get his attack.

The second option how to get him in play is (as you guessed) through Stand and Fight. Aragorn is the first obvious choice for Protector of Lorien so this way you get cards into the discard pile. But of course I prefer Sneak Attack.

I put Steward on Dunhere, yes, unless Aragorn does not own the Stone (or it is in my hand yet).

Doh. I should have seen the Sneak Attack! I was focused on the Stand and Fight portion. Sorry about that. So in that case, I'm not sure what you should cut. I don't know if WotW is even necessary unless you find yourselves going into longer games...

sWhiteboy said:

sWhiteboy said:

Thanks for the analysis. I'll try to justify my choices.

I like the Gondorian Spearman Swift Strike combo and have used it to pretty powerful effect - killing up to 3 hp enemies (which is most of them) with it. But I still think these may be some of the first cards to go when better cards arrive. I have played Veteran and never used it to any effect basically. But that is due to a different playstyle I guess. I like allies with special abilities.

Interesting about Gandalf's Search. You are the first person (I know) to talk positive about it. I thought it is utter useless whilst Lorien's Wealth is considered one of the more poweful ones. Your logic of drawing 1 card for the cost of 1 kinda makes sense though. And yes, options are good.

And you may be right about Preservation, Daughter probably is better. You may lose it more easilly than the attachment (I guess) but you can often wait with the healing till after the Combat phase.

I have considered Gleowine but he simply looks awful to the extent that I could not have it in the deck (call me silly).

Calling my deck 2 a mess is an insult. Hehe, kidding. I actually thought it is tighter than the deck 1. It certainly is good enough for all the current scenarios but there is always space for improvement - which I indeed am seeking. In the moment, out of the blue and purple, there is really only Will of the West that I could consider including, and yet I cannot find a card in there that seems less important.

Mestrahd said:

Thanks for the input. I think you may be right, the Will may not be necessary at all. Have you played it a lot in your games? Cause I never.

I used it to great effect in my mono-Spirit deck when I played Nightmare, but other than that I don't see the need in a normal multiplayer game to recur your discards as the game is likely over in under 10 rounds.

Mestrahd said:

I see your point. I have been thinking of the Nightmare as well (which I still do not fully understand). And then there is one card that I usually want to get again, only I can't, Sneak Attack. Cards like A Test of Will or Hasty Stroke (which are useful to have almost any time) I can bring back with Dwarven Tomb but not this Leadership jewel.

I have never seen a real use to Will of the West except for the nightmare scenario, in which it is a must. The only exception I can imagine is if your deck is so fast, that you draw and play almost every card in your deck on a regular basis, in most games. My own deck is pretty fast, I can easily draw half or more of it in a regular game, almost all of it in a longer one, but at that point, I already know whether I'm going to win or lose and shuffling my discard back in won't make any tangible difference.

Titan said:

Thanks. Makes sense. Thought as much at first and thus never inserted it in my deck. And I won't now. I guess the game may evolve in such a direction that the card will be more useful even in a non-nightmare mode. Perhaps either by making my deck much quicker (even though we tend to draw quite a bit, we still almost never reach halfway through now) or the scenarios run lot longer.

I really long for a card that could let me use Sneak Attack more often - I can't see any other than WotW right now.

I once had a VERY long scenario 2 game with a pure spirit deck... I emptied it and used will of the west... also, when gandi is 3x in the discard pile... you just might want to use will of the west to put him back in the "game" provided that you've used stand and fight, too... but then again, you should be able to win the game after using gandi SIX times

Vyron said:

Thanks.

With a Sneak and Steward, it is not that hard to use each Gandalf twice. And if playing coop, the other player may use it once also and then you already get him out three times which should be a Valinor of a help.

But I see the Will can help in certain cases. Looking forward to other cards of the kind in the future. Really wish to retrieve the Sneak Attack (and Ever Vigilant) once I get and play it.