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DáinIronfoot
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 12:01 pm
Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 4594 Location: Beltsville, MD, USA
I tested this deck the other day against AP’s vicious multi-culture Shadow monstrosities (or as he aptly called it, the "Multicultural “Stomp-the-Blood-Out-of-Your-Veins” Beatdown"...sure felt that way Crying or Very sad). It held up about as well as any deck probably could against that punishment, but I’m curious what I can do to make it better.

So naturally, I thought I’d turn it over to players who have been at this MUCH longer than I have, and see what ideas ya’ll might have. Smile

My deck is a Gondor knight deck, right down to the Isildur RB. But it’s not really centered around them...it’s centered around Gandalf.

Let me explain:

Free Peoples (39 cards):

Isildur, Bearer of Heirlooms (w/ The One Ring, The Ring of Rings)

Companions (9 cards):

Gandalf, Leader of Men (starting)
Knight of Dol Amroth (starting)
Aragorn, Captain of Gondor x2
Boromir, Hero of Osgiliath
Elendil, High-king of Gondor
Imrahil, Prince of Dol Amroth
Garrison of Gondor
Faramir, Wizard’s Pupil

Artifacts/Possessions (13 cards):

Anduril, Sword That Was Broken
Narsil, Blade of the Faithful
Glamdring, Foe-hammer
Gondorian Blade x3
Gondor Bow x2
Knight’s Mount x3
Gondorian Steed
Scroll of Isildur

Conditions (7 cards):

King’s Legacy
Fourth Level x3
Sixth Level
Watch and Wait x2

Events (10 cards):

Sharpen Your Swords x4
On Your Doorstep
Citadel to Gate
Duty of Two x2
Stout Resistance x2


Now, this deck HAS seen some changes since I played it last time. My old deck featured Grimbeorn and his Axe, which allowed me to potentially fetch back Sharpen Your Swords as needed. It also had a Saved From The Fire, which would let me burn a knight and grab some Gondor cards if needed (which turned out to be the only thing that gave me a fighting chance). But my big problem was healing, which I had practically none of. So I took out Grimmy in favor of some healing cards (Duty of Two, Citadel to Gate, and even King’s Legacy in a pinch) and then also cut Saved From The Fire, since the threats I’m adding for some healing could now hurt me if I burn a companion afterwards. I also threw in Faramir, who can turn an exertion of Gandalf into negating wounds for himself in a skirmish.

Grimbeorn, I thought, would be perfect in this deck, since it’s paired with besiegers (and several big ones like Siege Troop, Troll of Gorgoroth, and even Sauron). But he took a long time to show up, and did me little good once he finally DID hit the table.

Here’s the Shadow side I have:

Minions (25 cards):

Gothmog, Lieutenant of Morgul x4
Siege Troop x3
Troll of Gorgoroth, Abomination of Sauron x2
Mordor Pillager x2
Gorgoroth Troop x2
Gorgoroth Berserker x3
Gorgoroth Agitator x2
Gorgoroth Engineer x2
Gorgoroth Keeper x2
Gorgoroth Swarm
White Hand Marshall
Sauron, The Lord of the Rings

Artifacts/Possessions (6 cards):

Grond, Hammer of the Underworld x2
Ithil Stone x2
Gothmog’s Warg x2

Conditions (5 cards):

Troop Tower x3
Tower Walkway
Their Marching Companies

Events (3 cards):

Din of Arms x2
Sauron’s Might


As you can see, the big minions worked well with Grimbeorn...do you think taking him out was a mistake?

I am worried I may be overreacting, since Gandalf got killed early in the game I played and Grimbeorn just didn’t come until it was too late. Should I try it again and just chalk up my failure to bad draws?

I am convinced that the knights/Gandalf/Sharpen Your Swords combo could be KILLER if I can just fine-tune it, and this is my first besieger deck, so I could really use some advice there as well. Help Uncle Dáin salvage this disaster!
Last edited by DáinIronfoot on Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:15 pm; edited 1 time in totalBest regards, Dáin, Vice Aftokrator of the Chosen Ones

Check out Lasting Alliances, The Road Ahead, and Ages of Middle-earth, three of my five dream card sets that make up Wars of the Ring. Oh, and I have a trade list now!

Also, if you're into DCs or RPGs (or even if you're not!), check out Realms of Middle-earth, the sequel to CG's "DC Adventure", Realms of the North!
Anonymous Prodigy
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 12:15 pm
Joined: 10 Jan 2006 Posts: 4197 Location: United States
I’d cut a Grond and a Warg and add a couple of Encirclement. Thumbs Up
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macheteman
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 3:35 pm
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 1200 Location: The Jungle
lol, AP knows the the full terror of encirclement...

he also knows however, that packing 4x namarie in his deck is the bane of encirclement...

ok, first things first, with besiegers they can swarm/beat-down/wound all in one well built deck. they are also extremely effective in both standard and expanded formats. i would suggest to make this deck most effective, switch the fellowship to Dwarven cycling, and cut the size to 36 cards. with besiegers you don’t really want to be discarding those big minions, so grimmy isn’t really a good thing.

with the shadow i have to take a better look later, the style of besiegers you are playing seems quite a bit different then mine. encirclement is a MUST HAVE. i would also suggest one more siege troop, and cut the marshall and souron. and you need one more gorgoroth swarm. i’d cut the gronds as well.
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Anonymous Prodigy
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:09 pm
Joined: 10 Jan 2006 Posts: 4197 Location: United States
macheteman wrote:
lol, AP knows the the full terror of encirclement...

he also knows however, that packing 4x namarie in his deck is the bane of encirclement...

Actually, I have no more than 3 copies of Namarie in my deck. I just usually manage to draw at least one early in the game. Thumbs Up
I had to put something here.
macheteman
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:29 pm
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 1200 Location: The Jungle
Anonymous Prodigy wrote:
macheteman wrote:
lol, AP knows the the full terror of encirclement...

he also knows however, that packing 4x namarie in his deck is the bane of encirclement...

Actually, I have no more than 3 copies of Namarie in my deck. I just usually manage to draw at least one early in the game. Thumbs Up


ok, i think i recall one time where you played all three at one site! but i could be wrong...

"namarie is altogether evil!"
"I would seek to use namarie for good, but through me, it would wield a power too great and terrible to imagine!"
Check out my best article The Utterly Corrupt Corruption,
If at first you don't succeed...Sky-diving isn't for you.
"Combat is dangerous. It tends to interupt your breathing process."
ROLF!!!
NBarden
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:53 pm
Joined: 28 Dec 2006 Posts: 5468 Location: I don't know...
Namarie + IB = Bwahaha.

That is how a hunter’s block deck is supposed to work, if you don’t mind me saying.

Ah, Gandalf. What a fun toy. For sure run some more wounding, a couple more Gondor bow, Aragorn’s Bow, Fourth Level, etc, and you’ll have a blast.

No Citadel of the Stars?
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DáinIronfoot
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:09 pm
Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 4594 Location: Beltsville, MD, USA
Thanks for the tips on the besiegers, AP and mm. Thumbs Up

NBarden wrote:
Ah, Gandalf. What a fun toy. For sure run some more wounding, a couple more Gondor bow, Aragorn’s Bow, Fourth Level, etc, and you’ll have a blast.

No Citadel of the Stars?

More Gondor Bow is a good idea, as that plus Fourth Level is lethal. I think I simply forgot to use the text of the Bows when playing AP...might have gone a long way towards helping. d'oh!

Not sure I see the need for Aragorn’s Bow. I mean, it’s NEVER a bad idea, but I fear A.) it potentially clogging my hand, since there are only two Gorns in the rather large deck, and B.) I’d have trouble finding room for it! Razz

I would LOVE to have Citadel of the Stars, but I was trying to keep this deck Standard-legal. I’ll have to put together an Expanded version, though...I have a feeling it would be MUCH more powerful.

Any other wounding ideas (preferrably in-skirmish and/or Standard-legal)?
Best regards, Dáin, Vice Aftokrator of the Chosen Ones

Check out Lasting Alliances, The Road Ahead, and Ages of Middle-earth, three of my five dream card sets that make up Wars of the Ring. Oh, and I have a trade list now!

Also, if you're into DCs or RPGs (or even if you're not!), check out Realms of Middle-earth, the sequel to CG's "DC Adventure", Realms of the North!
NBarden
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:21 pm
Joined: 28 Dec 2006 Posts: 5468 Location: I don't know...
Ach. I mess up my sets occasionally, since my deck-building software won’t run on this computer.

Definitely add Gondor Bow and Aragorn’s Bow.
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DáinIronfoot
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:23 pm
Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 4594 Location: Beltsville, MD, USA
Okay, made some changes. Here’s what I’ve got now:

Free Peoples (39 cards):

Isildur, Bearer of Heirlooms (w/ The One Ring, The Ring of Rings)

Companions (9 cards):

Gandalf, Leader of Men (starting)
Knight of Dol Amroth (starting)
Aragorn, Captain of Gondor x2
Boromir, Hero of Osgiliath
Elendil, High-king of Gondor
Imrahil, Prince of Dol Amroth
Garrison of Gondor
Faramir, Wizard’s Pupil

Artifacts/Possessions (13 cards):

Anduril, Sword That Was Broken
Narsil, Blade of the Faithful
Glamdring, Foe-hammer
Gondorian Blade x2
Gondor Bow x4
Knight’s Mount x2
Gondorian Steed
Scroll of Isildur

Conditions (8 cards):

King’s Legacy
Fourth Level x4
Sixth Level
Watch and Wait x2

Events (10 cards):

Sharpen Your Swords x4
Citadel to Gate
Duty of Two x2
Stout Resistance x2


I took out On Your Doorstep (SOMETHING had to give) and a couple swords/mounts in favor of more Fourth Level and Gondor Bow. That combination might rack up the exertions, but it will also help knock out any minion assigned to my knights, guaranteed. That might have actually given me a decent shot at the end of my game with AP’s beat-the-blood-out-of-you Shadow side....


Shadow (39 cards):

Minions (24 cards):

Gothmog, Lieutenant of Morgul x4
Siege Troop x3
Troll of Gorgoroth, Abomination of Sauron x2
Mordor Pillager x2
Gorgoroth Troop x2
Gorgoroth Berserker x3
Gorgoroth Agitator x2
Gorgoroth Engineer x2
Gorgoroth Keeper x2
Gorgoroth Swarm x2

Artifacts/Possessions (5 cards):

Grond, Hammer of the Underworld x2
Ithil Stone x2
Gothmog’s Warg

Conditions (7 cards):

Encirclement x2
Troop Tower x3
Tower Walkway
Their Marching Companies

Events (3 cards):

Din of Arms x2
Sauron’s Might


Tweaked the minions as recommended, and that (plus cutting a Warg) opened up room for two copies of Encirclement. Should I try to squeeze in more somehow?
Best regards, Dáin, Vice Aftokrator of the Chosen Ones

Check out Lasting Alliances, The Road Ahead, and Ages of Middle-earth, three of my five dream card sets that make up Wars of the Ring. Oh, and I have a trade list now!

Also, if you're into DCs or RPGs (or even if you're not!), check out Realms of Middle-earth, the sequel to CG's "DC Adventure", Realms of the North!
DáinIronfoot
Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 5:27 pm
Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 4594 Location: Beltsville, MD, USA
NBarden wrote:
Ach. I mess up my sets occasionally, since my deck-building software won’t run on this computer.

Definitely ass Gondor Bow and Aragorn’s Bow.

Well there’s no need to swear. Razz

I assume your keyboard messes up occasionally, too? I think you meant "add"...? Rolling Eyes

Why the push for Gorn’s Bow, though? I understand it can soften minions up a bit, but I’m already adding several threats from my healing cards, and if I don’t draw Gorn early, it just eats up deck space. I know it’s a great card--believe me, I use it whenever I can--but I just don’t think it can fit here.
Best regards, Dáin, Vice Aftokrator of the Chosen Ones

Check out Lasting Alliances, The Road Ahead, and Ages of Middle-earth, three of my five dream card sets that make up Wars of the Ring. Oh, and I have a trade list now!

Also, if you're into DCs or RPGs (or even if you're not!), check out Realms of Middle-earth, the sequel to CG's "DC Adventure", Realms of the North!

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