The Uncountable Hoard

[SomeRandomDude]

Methinks the barren mechanic is good, but I am wondering, does a site with no keywords to begin with default as barren?

Cuz that would be AWESOME!

[FM]

I believe Thranduil said so, yes.

[Thranduil]

I believe Thranduil said so, yes.

I did indeed.

Like I said, I will think on Smaug stuff and probably post a revised version of him at the end of this strategy. I will change Barren Lands according to DI's suggestion, and we'll have more cards later methinks. Thanks guys! to DI.

Thranduil

[Thranduil]

I was talking about tokens before. Well, this post explains what I meant by that!

Shadow of the Mountain
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site you have on the adventure path.
Maneuver: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here to Lock a companion with twilight cost X until the regroup phase.
The Mountain lay dark and silent  below them and ever higher above them.
H2 C 162

Perilous Waste
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, spot Smaug to add a token here for each barren site on the adventure path. (A barren site has no terrain keywords.)
While you can spot 6 tokens here, wounds cannot be healed.
The land about them grew bleak and barren...
H2 U 160

Dragon-Hoard
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site in your adventure deck.
Shadow: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here (minimum 1) to place a event or condition with twilight cost X or less from your discard pile on top of your draw deck.
... he gazed motionless... at the gold beyond prize and count.
H2 R 150

[lem0nhead]

Shadow of the Mountain
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site you have on the adventure path.
Maneuver: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here to Lock a companion with twilight cost X until the regroup phase.
The Mountain lay dark and silent  below them and ever higher above them.
H2 C 162

Fair enough but i think it could cost 1 easily.

Perilous Waste
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each barren site on the adventure path. (A barren site has no terrain keywords.)
While you can spot Smaug and 6 tokens here, wounds cannot be healed.
The land about them grew bleak and barren...
H2 U 160

Ok but how many times is smaug gonna be out while youre healing? Not many at all.

Dragon-Hoard
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site in your adventure deck.
Shadow: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here (minimum 1) to place a event or condition with twilight cost X from your discard pile on top of your draw deck.
... he gazed motionless... at the gold beyond prize and count.
H2 R 150

So you cant get 0 cost cards back? Im sure ive suggested a rewording to a similar card to this...

[DáinIronfoot]

Shadow of the Mountain
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site you have on the adventure path.
Maneuver: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here to Lock a companion with twilight cost X until the regroup phase.
The Mountain lay dark and silent  below them and ever higher above them.
H2 C 162

Niftiness. Seems like a better card idea for Smaug's "dragon spell" (paralyzing with fear), but this is certainly fine as is.

Perilous Waste
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, spot Smaug to add a token here for each barren site on the adventure path. (A barren site has no terrain keywords.)
While you can spot 6 tokens here, wounds cannot be healed.
The land about them grew bleak and barren...
H2 U 160

Ouch! Perhaps allow spotting Smaug or a certain number of conditions with tokens or something as an alternative.

Dragon-Hoard
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site in your adventure deck.
Shadow: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here (minimum 1) to place a event or condition with twilight cost X or less from your discard pile on top of your draw deck.
... he gazed motionless... at the gold beyond prize and count.
H2 R 150

Perhaps shuffle it into the deck instead. And I think this one really should be unique.

[sickofpalantirs]

I was talking about tokens before. Well, this post explains what I meant by that!

Shadow of the Mountain
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site you have on the adventure path.
Maneuver: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here to Lock a companion with twilight cost X until the regroup phase.
The Mountain lay dark and silent  below them and ever higher above them.
H2 C 162
fine

Perilous Waste
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, spot Smaug to add a token here for each barren site on the adventure path. (A barren site has no terrain keywords.)
While you can spot 6 tokens here, wounds cannot be healed.
The land about them grew bleak and barren...
H2 U 160
painful...how much token reinforcing where you have? 

Dragon-Hoard
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add a token here for each site in your adventure deck.
Shadow: Spot Smaug and remove X tokens from here (minimum 1) to place a event or condition with twilight cost X or less from your discard pile on top of your draw deck.
... he gazed motionless... at the gold beyond prize and count.
H2 R 150

fine though I just realized I don't enjoy smaug being sauron...

[Thranduil]

painful...how much token reinforcing where you have? 

Currently none for Smaug, though spiders can reinforce tokens.

fine though I just realized I don't enjoy smaug being sauron...

I can tell you why I chose . One of the reasons for the Hobbit taking place (or rather, for Gandalf getting involved and making sure that Thorin succeeded) is given in the Unfinished Tales. Basically, Gandalf knew there was war coming and that Sauron would be able to persuade Smaug to join his side. In fact, had the Hobbit not taken place and Smaug been killed, the War of the Ring would have been lost because instead of a huge Dragon in the North, there was a bastion of Dwarves and Men under Brand and Dain Ironfoot.

Thranduil

[Thranduil]

First some more funky adventure deck stuff.

Flickering Fires
Event • Maneuver
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is a mountain, add . If the revealed site is a dwelling, exert a companion. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
Flames unquenchable sprang high into the night.
H2 C 154

Frightful Guardian
Event • Regroup
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is underground, discard a condition. If the revealed site is a battleground, discard a follower. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
He was just about to step out... when he caught a sudden thin and piercing ray of red from under the dropping lid of Smaug's left eye.
H2 R 155

Now, I've had so many ideas for Smaug in the last 15 minutes when I started writing this post it's completely ridiculous. I want to encapsulate in "The Magnificent" the sense of control, dominion and immense wealth that Smaug has at the height of his power. Wealth = tokens. A lot of his tokens come from controlling the site path, hence control. The second ability (entirely different from anything I've ever put on Smaug before) is to represent the fact that he was content to sleep the centuries away until he was disturbed by Bilbo and the Dwarves. So, he gets disturbed and he suddenly comes out of his mountain and burns down a town!

•Smaug, The Magnificent
Minion • Dragon
Str: 19
Vit: 5
Sit: 6
Fierce. Winged.
When you play Smaug, you may reinforce X tokens, where X is the current region number.
Each time Smaug exerts or takes a wound, you may make a site barren until the regroup phase and exert a companion.
... the trees by the shores shone like copper and like blood with leaping shadows...
H2 R 163

Let me know what you think and whether or not I should go back to burritos!

Thranduil

[lem0nhead]

Flickering Fires
Event • Maneuver
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is a mountain, add . If the revealed site is a dwelling, exert a companion. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
Flames unquenchable sprang high into the night.
H2 C 154

I know its really picky but 'do both' sounds weird. Id repeat if barren exert a companion and add 3. O and id make it 4 cos the card costs 1. Or id make it free.

Frightful Guardian
Event • Regroup
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is underground, discard a condition. If the revealed site is a battleground, discard a follower. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
He was just about to step out... when he caught a sudden thin and piercing ray of red from under the dropping lid of Smaug's left eye.
H2 R 155

Again and also to keep this til the regroup its gotta be better than potentially discarding a condition or follower.

•Smaug, The Magnificent
Minion • Dragon
Str: 19
Vit: 5
Sit: 6
Fierce. Winged.
When you play Smaug, you may reinforce X tokens, where X is the current region number.
Each time Smaug exerts or takes a wound, you may make a site barren until the regroup phase and exert a companion.
... the trees by the shores shone like copper and like blood with leaping shadows...
H2 R 163

Yay a non burrito Smaug!

Thranduil

[FM]

I have a general question. I've seen a LOT of stuff requiring you to spot Smaug, but Smaug is so... expensive! Is there anotehr way to get him down cheaper? Otherwise, I'd suggest making a unique condition (could cost like #$&*@!, require discarding, demand card-stacking, you name it) that can be spotted as Smaug, allowing for a TRUE "Smaug control" deck, centered entirely around Smaug-related cards. For instance:

•Reign of Terror
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, reveal the top 3 cards of your draw deck and stack them here.
Shadow: Discard a card stacked here. Until end of turn, Reign of Terror can be spotted as Smaug.
Response: If a card is about to exert Smaug or discard this condition, you may discard a card stacked here or discard this condition to prevent it.

See the beauty of it? You get to spot Smaug, at a cost. You even get to EXERT Smaug not having him around! And then, if the condition is depleted, discard it for a benefit and play another one. It's really raw right now, and it'd require quite a bit of work since it can't be really compared to anything, but I think it'd be AWESOME.

[DáinIronfoot]

Flickering Fires
Event • Maneuver
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is a mountain, add . If the revealed site is a dwelling, exert a companion. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
Flames unquenchable sprang high into the night.
H2 C 154

Instead of "do both", I think it needs to be "add and exert a companion". lem0n makes a good point with the adding of as opposed to , too.

Frightful Guardian
Event • Regroup
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is underground, discard a condition. If the revealed site is a battleground, discard a follower. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
He was just about to step out... when he caught a sudden thin and piercing ray of red from under the dropping lid of Smaug's left eye.
H2 R 155

Same note here, but otherwise okay. Maybe allow some way to play it earlier, like during skirmish?

•Smaug, The Magnificent
Minion • Dragon
Str: 19
Vit: 5
Sit: 6
Fierce. Winged.
When you play Smaug, you may reinforce X tokens, where X is the current region number.
Each time Smaug exerts or takes a wound, you may make a site barren until the regroup phase and exert a companion.
... the trees by the shores shone like copper and like blood with leaping shadows...
H2 R 163

I'd limit that to being exerted by FP cards so you don't have quite as much control over it. But it might be okay as is. Trying to remember how many Smaug-exerting cards you have....

And FM is spot on. In my Hobbit set, I instead created several methods to get Smaug much cheaper, which helped get him in play to use his centric cards. But FM's suggestion is so good that I may go back and incorporate something similiar myself!

[sickofpalantirs]

First some more funky adventure deck stuff.

Flickering Fires
Event • Maneuver
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is a mountain, add . If the revealed site is a dwelling, exert a companion. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
Flames unquenchable sprang high into the night.
H2 C 154
fine.

Frightful Guardian
Event • Regroup
Spot Smaug to reveal a site at random from your adventure deck. If the revealed site is underground, discard a condition. If the revealed site is a battleground, discard a follower. If the revealed site is barren, do both.
He was just about to step out... when he caught a sudden thin and piercing ray of red from under the dropping lid of Smaug's left eye.
H2 R 155
I'd prefer mountain to battleground.

•Smaug, The Magnificent
Minion • Dragon
Str: 19
Vit: 5
Sit: 6
Fierce. Winged.
When you play Smaug, you may reinforce X tokens, where X is the current region number.
Each time Smaug exerts or takes a wound, you may make a site barren until the regroup phase and exert a companion.
... the trees by the shores shone like copper and like blood with leaping shadows...
H2 R 163

I think just making sites barren would be fine...

FM's idea is kewl

[Thranduil]

As FM rightly pointed out, having a Smaug deck would be a bit useless if you couldn't actually play Smaug. This is why this is one of the cards in the set:

Dire Menace
Event • Shadow
Play Smaug from your discard pile or hand. His twilight cost is -4 and he is strength -6 until the end of the turn.
Smaug left his lair in silent stealth, quietly soared into the air, and then floated heavy and slow in the dark like a monstrous crow...
H2 R 149

And why this is in the next set:

• Withered Heath
Dragons are not roaming and cannot be discarded (except during the regroup phase).
H3 U 200

[FM]

NOW we're in business! But... what exactly is the culture? And how do you pay for that cost of , tapping a site in the adventure path with plains in its text? Or do you have to take control of it first?