I'll admit that there are a couple of cards, like the Axe that I can't remember exactly why we had them in there. I do remember discussing the Axe a lot, and remember the consensus was to keep it, but I probably don't remember all the reasons for doing so. I believe the main reason for the Axe was the extra twilight. Choke was very common in that environment and against a good choke deck, we would often find ourselves one twilight short. I think the Axe and the
Hollowing of Isengard were there primarily to deal with choke.
As to why 33, card count wasn't a big concern. The Fellowship cycled so well that we could easily deck-out if we weren't careful. But in most cases we didn't care. We really thought of this shadow side as a toolbox. i.e. everything we might need was in there, it was just a matter of identifying what we would need and then going to get it. Sometimes things would come together for a site 4 win, but typically we wouldn't be ready until site 6 (can't do it at site 5, though I won't say that didn't occasionally happen by accident. :x). We just cycled like crazy until we had all the necessary shadow cards in hand. It typically would be an all in-hand combo.
Re:
Secret Sentinels: Palantir could be used, but in general if we saw Sentinels, we just waited for
Anduin Confluence or
Gates of Argonath.
Re:
Isengard Worker: He was chosen purely for the extra exertion. Against choke, we'd sometimes be short an exertion. Shaman was in and out of that slot at various times. We just decided we like the Worker a little better.
Re:
Horn of Boromir: The horn itself was not at all a concern.
Isengard Smith took care of that.
Re:
A Promise: Things like
A Promise and
O Elbereth! Gilthoniel! were taken care of by
Saruman's Power.
Most opponents would double move every time, because our shadow side seemed so pathetic. That was normal for us, it was not a concern. It guaranteed us enough twilight to play everything we needed. The deck cycled so well, we would usually deck-out by site 9.