Gandalf and Corruption

[Anautikus]

This is a deck I was working on a while back for kicks. I was in a lotr-y mood so I thought I'd post it.

Frodo, OBH
The One Ring, Isildur's Bane

Freeps (34):

1x Greenleaf
1x Gimli, SoG or Gimli, DoE
2x Aragorn, RotN
2x Gandalf, FotS or Gandalf, TGP
1x Boromir, SoD

1x Bounder
2x Ottar, Man of Laketown
2x Elrond, LoR

2x Sting
1x Ranger's Sword
1x Aragorn's Bow
1x Glamdring

1x Sleep, Caradhras
3x A Wizard Is Never Late
2x Hobbit Stealth

2x Gandalf's Pipe
2x Aragorn's Pipe
1x Gimli's Pipe
1x Frodo's Pipe

4x Old Toby
1x Longbottom Leaf

Shadow (34):

1x The Balrog, Durin's Bane
1x The Balrog, Flame of Udun
3x Goblin Runner
4x Must Do Without Hope

2x Helpless
4x It Wants to be Found
1x Beauty is Fading
1x Not Easily Destroyed
4x Ulaire Enquea, LoM
4x Ulaire Nelya, RiT
2x The Witch King, LotN
2x Ulaire Attea, The Easterling
4x Morgul Skulker

Sitepath:
(1) The Prancing Pony* or Green Dragon Inn*
(2) Weatherhills
(3) Council Courtyard
(4) Moria Stairway*
(5) The Bridge of Khazad-dum*
(6) Galadriel's Glade
(7) Anduin Wilderland*
(8) Pillars of the Kings
(9) Summit of Amon Hen

Shadow is a Balrog/Nazgul corruption-hybrid-deal. Try to get as many Must Do Without Hope in your hand and unleash it all on site 5, and then toss the rest later. Once you have 5 burdens out, start killing people with LoM, and recycle whomever you wish with Morgul Skulker. Abundance of twilight = Not Easily Destroyed for late game. I thought about adding WK, but he seems to expense for the cause.

Still tweaking and trying to get the kinks out! Changed up the fp and added a little pipeweed package. I think Ottar + Elrond can do a bulk of the work (that's already 4 cards each fellowship), and if you want more, switch out Gandalf and Gimli for the drawing ones. I added pipeweed so in case your opponent is running the same (in which case Gandalf's Pipe kills you; yes I added a Beauty is Fading specifically for pipes), you can ditch the burden strategy, try to get some stops with Nazguls, and then go for a fp win!

*credit goes to clockwork, for the Shadow. Thanks!

[FM]

You can probably play a few Twilight Witch-Kings so you can dump Otseas (not doing much aside from being cheap), and Drawn to Its Power could become morgul gates (or you coul play Toldeas to abuse them due to the burdens added).

[NappyKorn]

Do you really use Morgul Skirmisher? or did you mean Morgul Skulker? Only thing I can see being helpful with Morgul Skirmisher is against Sam, SoH if they play him before they actually wanna use his ability and perhaps if you fear Merry, Friend to Sam so I would only assume you meant Skulker.

NK

[Anautikus]

NK, I meant Skulker Sam's np with Helpless.

FM, yea I was thinking of WK, but I wanted to make sure I would have twilight for It Wants To Be Found. And I threw in Drawn to its Power for kicks, but Morgul Gates would probably be better anyway. But Toldea could be really nice to get a kill and add more burdens.

[Anautikus]

So I tossed Drawn to its Power because I don't think I'll be winning any shadow skirmishes, and that's pretty much the point anyway.

The fellowship is bothering me though. I feel like it does not cycle well enough nor does it heal nicely enough, but to add any consistent drawing/healing engine, I'd have to retool everything. The only upside is Elrond+Ottar, which works so very nicely. Does the freeps work as is though, and can I make it a more workable version of what I have right now?

[FM]

Well, you could lose Vilya and reduce the deck by 1 card, if the shadow can take the blow of 1 less card as well. At 32/32, with Elrond and Ottar, I'm not sure what else it can do to cycle, though.

[Anautikus]

Yea. Maybe I can add another Elrond to get him faster? The deck exerts a lot ideally, so my biggest concern is wounding.

[FM]

I think 2 Elronds on a 32/32 is pretty easy to find, but a 3rd wouldn't hurt, really. Narya could probably go as well, making it 31/31.

[Anautikus]

Yea I guess with Sam in there, I don't really need Narya for it's ability. I shall tweak!