The Last Homely House
Middle-Earth => Lothlórien => Topic started by: TheHumanHydra on June 27, 2017, 10:08:27 PM
-
Hello!
I'm dipping my toes into this game again, having played very casually back in the day. I've realized I have little idea how to build an effective deck. A comment from ket_the_jet, which I appreciated very much, was particularly telling:
'I would say that the deck, overall, looks like a starter deck but with better cards. Companions, possessions, and pumps will help you survive, but you'll be playing site to site based on the value of the cards in your hand.'
Indeed, boosting the strength of companions by any means available is the only way I have known how to play the game, based on my limited experience. I would like to understand strategy and deckbuilding better, especially before jumping into Gemp play, but I need information. I am wondering if there are any deckbuilding resources extant on the Internet. I have looked through the Cobra Cards article series hosted here but didn't find anything on general deckbuilding.
Alternatively, or additionally, is there a solid deck someone would recommend to me to take into Gemp play to learn the ropes? It doesn't need to be simple; I don't mind learning, I just need to know what to learn, if that makes sense. I would prefer to stick to pre-Shadows cards.
Thank you!
THH
-
Here's my two cents:
- Fellowship and Towers are the easiest formats to get into in my opinion. You can bring your own decks, and even if you lose a lot, it's not necessarily an unrewarding experience. Also, the whole "Starter deck" analogy matters less in these formats than it does in Movie, and significantly less than it does in Expanded (Post-shadows).
- On the other hand, if you want to borrow some decks (There are plenty of good ones on here), then you can probably do that for any format, since you don't need to have any prior knowledge of which counter-cards are necessary.
- Watching games on Gemp can familiarise you with what people will likely use in each format.
- I don't know exactly how people identify strong decks to use, but I know Durin's Heir's Dwarf deck for Fellowship Block is solid. You can find that here: http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,9055.0.html. The thread for that has a tonne of discussion, so you can get a lot of background for things too if you're unsure how to use it.
-
Luckily for you, this question has been asked a great many times.
It depends on the format you are looking to play. Here are a few:
Fellowship Block:
Felipe Musco's Fellowship Block Breakdown (http://lotrtcgwiki.com/community/viewtopic.php?t=2242) <-- Probably the best composite breakdown for beginners.
Top 16 Decks from Worlds 2002 (http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,8581.msg84308.html#msg84308)
Towers Standard:
Top 2 Decks from Worlds 2003 (http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,5766.0.html)
Movie:
Top 16 Decks from Worlds 2004 (http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,6620.0.html)
hsaile's Breakdown of Common Movie Strategies (http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,8063.msg78616.html#msg78616)
sgtdraino's Incomplete Movie Meta Strategy Discussion (http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,8863.0.html)
Of course. the best way to learn what works and what doesn't is to play. Practice with different strategies and play against different strategies. Learn the meta of your playgroup(s) and understand that there is not one perfect deck (though some are much closer than others). I would recommend spending some time on Gemp to play online. If you see a card you think might be interesting, run a search on these boards (limiting to the Lothlorien sections to just see decks that include them). See how other players use them.
There are many players on these boards who have posted decks with the sole purpose of winning the most games. There are others that have posted decks that are a bit more laissez-faire--play to have fun or to perfect a strategy (looking at you, Lost to the Goblins). There is no reason you cannot do both!
Welcome to the boards, and thank you for the shout-out. I am glad to know that after many years and posts, it is not a complete waste of time for me to continue checking in. I believe it was John Lennon who quipped, "Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted."
-wtk
-
Thanks, guys. Dictionary, thanks for that characterization of the formats. The earlier formats start to sound more appealing for a beginner. I did start watching some games last night. And thanks for the deck recommendation. Ket_the_jet, thanks for those great resources. Really excellent. I'm going to bookmark this thread so I can refer to them again.
-
Thanks, ket. I think I'm going to send new Gemp players a link to your post, as I get that question almost once a day now.
P.S. Come play King Standard regularly. It's your baby. ;)