Hi all,

I've recently bought the core set, played through and beaten Mirkwood with all core desks a few times. When moving on to the both of the other two scenarios I am having a VERY tough time. Not once in about 20 games have I won.

I've tried various decks... the core provided decks and some custom decks. I'm new to the game, however there's not a lot of options in the core cards and as such I don't think I have much scope for poor deck building with them. Am I suffering from the restrictions of the core set, should I be able to win more easily than I am or is it expected that solo play requires fortunate draws to win?

I really want to enjoy this game solo (bought with that purpose specifically in mind) however before sinking money in to expansions sets I want to know what I can expect.

TIA,

Himack

hello

i played this game since its release solo, i now play mainly two handed (a great alternative)

this is what i have to say on the subject of solo play. firstly you are not alone in thinking it is tough with just the core set. every solo player had a tough time when the game was released- several left the game with frustration. fear not though, as you suggested it is merely that you have not got the card pool to make decent solo decks.

dol guldur (quest 3) is also very hard solo with any deck. anduin is a nice balanced quest once you get the hang of it.

the first cycle offers a mixed amount of solo player cards, but the real solo power cards are in the 2nd cycle

rich

Thanks for the response. I played some two handed tonight... I lost but it was much better and a lot of fun. I'm back in!

Deck building is tough when you only use the core set. Tactics is very weak for solo play, so I'd advise to use spirit and combo it with either lore or leadership. Leasership is very beginner friendly, as it gives you some of the best cards in the game - Steward of Gondor, Sneak Attack and Faramir. Snowbourn Scouts are also neat and cheap. Spirit has probably the best hero in the core set: Eowyn aka 4WP quest monster!. A Test of Will, Northern Tracker and The Galadrim's Greetings are cards that are still considered to be amongst the strongest.

Have fun playing!

I also have just the core set and had had some success with the leadership Sphere when playing Journey down the Anduin.

When I play passage Through Mirkwood I use the Spirit or Leadership Sphere, when I use the other I lose every time.

Thanks for all the responses!

Yes, this game is great solo... I would highly recommend picking it up...

I got this game to tide me over until I get together with the guys for our regular gaming sessions... It's my favorite game by far... solo or with others it is so much fun..

The reason I got this game (and plan to get the adventure packs) was for the solo play...being a new player... would you all advise on mixing the factions or sticking with one?

The reason I got this game (and plan to get the adventure packs) was for the solo play...being a new player... would you all advise on mixing the factions or sticking with one?

if you only have a few packs you should mix everything (spheres and factions) to get the best decks. single factions (by factions i mean 'race') decks only really become feasible after the dwarrowdelf cycle, and single sphere decks are only just becoming feasible now

rich

I had a very rough time playing this game solo until I got some later expansions. A dwarves-only solo deck is powerful and can tackle most scenarios, but you'll still find a good deal of challenge.

However, if you just want to facestomp everything in your path and play on easy mode, I suggest the Outlands characters. Their deck type was specifically made for people who are new to the game or who are having a hard time playing solo. If you just get The Steward's Fear adventure pack then you've basically got everything you need to start making a very powerful solo deck, because it comes with the Outlands hero and 12 outlands characters. Add in the Heirs of Numenor, The Druadan Forest, Assault on Osgiliath and you then have all the Outlands cards. The first of your three heroes *must* be Hirluin the Fair from The Steward's Fear.

I would recommend Shadow and Flame to get Elrond and Vilya, which is a brutally good combo. His ability works perfectly with the Outlands characters, as well, since he can help pay for all of them. Plus he helps you heal guys. PLUS he has huge stats. Outlands also relies on card draw, and Vilya helps you do just that. Elrond + Vilya is almost essential, but not entirely.

For your third hero, I would recommend Glorfindel from Foundations of Stone. He has very low starting threat, good stats, gives you access to spirit cards, and if you put Light of Valinor on him then he doesn't exhaust to quest, and so he can quest + attack in one turn (and this does NOT trigger his "increase your threat" ability, meaning you can quest forever without him raising your threat). Pair up Asfaloth from Foundations of Stone and he now also wipes out locations that are in your way, without even needing to quest.

Next, toss in some threat reduction, a bit of healing (I'd recommend Warden of Healing from The Long Dark as he pairs perfectly with Elrond's ability to increase healing done), Gandalf from the core set, anything that helps with card draw or helps you burn through your deck and pull out allies. I'd also suggest Arwen from The Watcher in the Water. I would *strongly* recommend Stand and Fight, Northern Tracker, Steward of Gondor, and Ambush from the Core Set.

Ultimately, however, you can ignore everything I said and just take all the cards that say "Outlands" on them, smash them together in a deck, add in anything else that floats your boat, and you'll likely curbstomp half the quests in the game.

And no matter WHAT YOU DO, keep your deck at 50 cards. This is because your strategy, no matter how you make this deck, is quite simple: Get out a ton of Outlands characters. Then win. It's really that simple, and having your deck at the minimum deck size is essential to getting out those Outlands characters. Elrond and Glorfindel just shore up the weaknesses of the strategy and add in numerous benefits, but ultimately you can build this deck around any group of heroes as long as you keep in mind that your goal is to burn through your deck ASAP and get every Outlands card into play.

BE WARNED: This deck style is easy mode. I made mine and rarely use it because it takes a lot of the fun out of much of the game, though I haven't put it up against Nightmare Mode decks. I intentionally quest more with my Hobbit and Dwarf decks because they can win games but it is still challenging and takes some strategy and thought. Plus, I lose. You will win *a lot* with this deck style. Most people consider it overpowered, and it is. But that's the point of it, to show you that this game is not impossible. Don't feel bad about using it, it's a great intro to the game and will help you overcome your frustrations at losing. You'll start to get a better idea of the game's mechanics and ultimately you'll become a better player. But I would recommend branching out once you start to feel you're consistently winning with this deck type. I only pull mine out to remind myself that some quests *are* possible, despite how many times I lose with other decks.

I play this game solely as a one-handed solo player, and it's been an amazing time. Until you build up your collection, some scenarios will definitely be harder than others, and some (Dol Guldur among them) are brutal on a limited card pool. It can be helpful to recognize these and decide quickly if you want to skip them, bend the rules for yourself (using 30-card instead of 50-card decks, for example), or keep bashing your head against that wall.

17th Knight's advice is spot on: there are definitely some expansions that enable solo play more than others, and the Outlands deck is a great quick route to victory. I'd second his recommendations of Glorfindel (Foundations of Stone) and Elrond (Shadow and Flame), and I'd toss in Dain Ironfoot (Return to Mirkwood), who enables a lot of otherwise marginal Dwarf decks.

I'd also suggest the Hobbit Saga expansions, which contain a lot of above-average Dwarf allies and some very nice events, along with some very creatively (and occasionally frustratingly!) designed quests to test yourself against.

Either way, I hope you have a ton of fun!

What can i say? all quests in this game is possible to beat in solo mode.

Maybe only NM Dol-Guldor is still impossible for now.

Using only the core set, this is what I would suggest:

Heroes - Eowyn, Denethor, Dunhere (starting threat 25)

Allies

Daughter of the Nimrodel x2

Faramir x2

Gandalf x3

Gleowine x2

Henamarth Riversong x1

Miner of the Iron Hills x2

Northern Tracker x2

Veteran Axehand x3

Lorien Guide x3

Attachments

Unexpected Courage x1

Protector of Lorien x2

Forest Snare x2

Favor of the Lady x2

Events

Galdrhrim's Greeting x2

A Test of Will x2

Hasty Stroke x2

Radagast's Cunning x2

Secret Paths x2

Stand and Fight x3

Dwarven Tomb x1

Will of the West x2

Strength of Will x2

Anything you can't - or don't want - to play, pitch it to Eowyn or the Protector. Then use Stand and Fight to put allies like Faramir and Veteran Axehand into play.