Light & Shadow - Complete Card List

[sickofpalantirs]

yeah I'd knock him down to 2.  whats traitor do?
I think frontal assault can be non-unique like orc bowmen, it just needs to cost more.

[Thranduil]

yeah I'd knock him down to 2.  whats traitor do?

It's unloaded. What do you mean "knock him down"?

Thranduil

[sickofpalantirs]

2 vitality, I was referencing Lem0n's comment.

[DáinIronfoot]

I agree with both of my esteemed colleagues.

[Thranduil]

Okay, this will be the last of the culture for this set, and we're going to stick with the Cirith Ungol theme a little. As I keep saying, named characters are so much more exciting than anonymous ones, and so I definitely wanted at least 1 famous Uruk that had not had many versions at common, and so I decided to have Shagrat.

Warrior of Cirith Ungol
Minion • Uruk-hai
Str: 6
Vit: 2
Sit: 6
Damage +1. Traitor.
This minion is strength +1 for each culture you can spot.
L C 178

•Shagrat, Quarrelsome Captain
Minion • Uruk-hai
Str: 13
Vit: 3
Sit: 6
Damage +1. Traitor. Aggressor (for each aggressor assigned to a skirmish, each Shadow card's twilight cost is -1).
Each time you play a minion during a skirmish phase, you may make Shagrat strength +3 until the end of that skirmish.
L C 177

And now a random utility card that embodies one of the culture's strengths.

Hunting in Secret
Condition • Support Area
Search. Stealth.
Response: If an minion is about to take a wound, discard this condition to prevent that and foresee 2 (look at the top 2 cards of your draw deck; place any number of those cards on top of or beneath your draw deck).
L U 169

[sickofpalantirs]

all fine by me!

[DáinIronfoot]

Okay, this will be the last of the culture for this set, and we're going to stick with the Cirith Ungol theme a little.

Eeeeexcellent.

Warrior of Cirith Ungol
Minion • Uruk-hai
Str: 6
Vit: 2
Sit: 6
Damage +1. Traitor.
This minion is strength +1 for each culture you can spot.
L C 178

So he's at least 7 strength, and can get huge. Hmmm. I guess it's okay at . Certainly encourages a rainbow Shadow side, which is something I definitely endorse.

•Shagrat, Quarrelsome Captain
Minion • Uruk-hai
Str: 13
Vit: 3
Sit: 6
Damage +1. Traitor. Aggressor (for each aggressor assigned to a skirmish, each Shadow card's twilight cost is -1).
Each time you play a minion during a skirmish phase, you may make Shagrat strength +3 until the end of that skirmish.
L C 177

I know I don't do much with rarities, but shouldn't this be at least uncommon?

Hunting in Secret
Condition • Support Area
Search. Stealth.
Response: If an minion is about to take a wound, discard this condition to prevent that and foresee 2 (look at the top 2 cards of your draw deck; place any number of those cards on top of or beneath your draw deck).
L U 169

Shadow stealth? I'm intrigued....

This card is neat. I like.

[Thranduil]

Certainly encourages a rainbow Shadow side, which is something I definitely endorse.

There are a cycle of these guys, that get stronger with Shadow cultures.

I know I don't do much with rarities, but shouldn't this be at least uncommon?

Possibly the ability is a bit more uncommon, but I wanted an awesome named Uruk at common. I will give some thought to this.

Shadow stealth? I'm intrigued....

Well, like I said, I'm not planning on making a big deal out of these, it's just that I'm putting keywords wherever the flavour makes sense. Uruks have to be at least a little stealthy to be trackers!

I would still appreciate any more comments on those above cards, and it seems that I have now decided to get the boring stuff out of the way first. There are 8 sites, and I will post them all at once (they don't require an awful lot of comment, I hope).

I had some trouble with names. Basically, I made the texts first, then went through pre-Shadows sites to see if I could find titles to fit my texts, and if not make up my own. Obviously any suggestions you have will be greatly appreciated.

•Amon Hen
Battleground.
Corrupted companions cannot be assigned to a skirmish by the Free Peoples player (companions with resistance 0 are corrupted).
L U 203

•Anduin Shores
River.
When the fellowship moves to this site, each player may foresee 2 (look at the top 2 cards of their draw deck; place any number of them on top of or beneath their draw deck).
L U 204

•Frodo's Chambers
Dwelling.
Each companion (except the Ring-bearer) is resistance +2.
L U 205

•Galadriel's Glade
Forest.
Each player must keep the top card of their draw deck face up.
L U 206

•The Golden Wood
Forest.
Companions with resistance 7 or more cannot take wounds during skirmish phases.
L U 207

•Isen Banks
Battleground. River.
Skirmish: Exert your minion (except an enduring minion) to add .
L U 208

•The Redhorn Gate
Underground.
When the fellowship moves to this site, each player must place 1 card from their hand on top of their draw deck.
L U 209

•Pelennor Battlefield
Battleground. Plains.
Each card is twilight cost -1 during the skirmish phase.
L U 210

[sickofpalantirs]

•Anduin Shores
River.
When the fellowship moves to this site, each player may foresee 2 (look at the top 2 cards of their draw deck; place any number of them on top of or beneath their draw deck).
L U 204
should cost 2.


•Galadriel's Glade
Forest.
Each player must keep the top card of their draw deck face up.
L U 206
that could be 1 probably...could go either way.

•Isen Banks
Battleground. River.
Skirmish: Exert your minion to add .
L U 208
except an enduring minion.

[Anvar]

I like these. I find sites hard to comment on but these seem fun and relevant.

[DáinIronfoot]

Like Anvar said, I find sites can be difficult to review (and design, for that matter), but I'll give it a shot....

•Amon Hen
Battleground.
Corrupted companions cannot be assigned to a skirmish by the Free Peoples player (companions with resistance 0 are corrupted).
L U 203

You're redefining corrupted a bit, which seems more likely to cause potential trouble than it may be worth. Why not just say "Companions with resistance 0 cannot be assigned to a skirmish by the Free Peoples player"?

•Anduin Shores
River.
When the fellowship moves to this site, each player may foresee 2 (look at the top 2 cards of their draw deck; place any number of them on top of or beneath their draw deck).
L U 204

Nifty. But SoP may have a point with the Shadow number.

•Frodo's Bedroom
Dwelling.
Each companion (except the Ring-bearer) is resistance +2.
L U 205

"Frodo's Chambers" or something like that sounds better, but that's a very small thing. Seems fine to me, though might be better.

•Galadriel's Glade
Forest.
Each player must keep the top card of their draw deck face up.
L U 206

Iiiiiiinteresting. Hard to judge the Shadow number on this one, but middle of the road ( or ) is a good rule of thumb for ground-breaking sites like this. Depends on who this hurts more, I guess.

•The Golden Wood
Forest.
Companions with resistance 7 or more cannot take wounds during skirmish phases.
L U 207

Ironically helps Hobbits more than anyone else (Elves included!), but that's not really your fault. Probably good at .

•Isen Banks
Battleground. River.
Skirmish: Exert your minion to add .
L U 208

Yeah, much as I would love the evilness of this plus, say, Shelob (Sting of Shelob AND a +14 strength boost...yes, please! ), I agree with SoP...no enduring guys here.

•The Redhorn Gate
Underground.
When the fellowship moves to this site, each player must place 1 card from their hand on top of their draw deck.
L U 209

Again, iiiiinteresting. Sadly I can't think of much else to say.

•Pelennor Battlefield
Battleground. Plains.
Each card is twilight cost -1 during the skirmish phase.
L U 210

Nice! Maybe , though.

[Thranduil]

Okay, fantastic. Thanks guys! That wraps up the sites, and so now we can move into something more inspiring and significantly more evil!

First, let's have some Shadow cycle components: a 6-companion hate and a resistance reducer.

Unearthly Senses
Condition • Support Area
Spell.
When you play this condition, you may foresee 1.
While you can spot 6 companions and a Nazgûl, each companion (except the Ring-bearer) is resistance -1.
"From inside the hood came a noise as of someone sniffing to catch an elusive scent…"
L C 200

Terror
Condition • Unbound Companion
Res: -3
Spell.
To play, spot a minion. Limit 1 per bearer.
Skirmish: Play this condition from your hand.
"As soon as he saw the dark shapes creep from the garden, he knew that he must run for it, or perish."
L C 189

And now we might as well have some Witch-Kings to really bring us into the realm of twilight. I thought long and hard whether I wanted to use the twilight keyword on the Nazgûl. As you will see, I didn't, and later you'll also see why. But this is an example of how important I think it is to have awesome named characters at common, and so there is a rare and common Wikkie.

@ Dáin: I know you raised something about my use of "corrupted" on Amon Hen. I think it's a clean way to refer to this, is very simple to extend from just Ring-bearers, and it represents something flavourful, and so I'm quite keen on it. There isn't that much in this set that uses it, but if I were to make a follow-up set, it would be called "The Twilight World" and would use corruption as a trigger in a big way. For now, it's just a bit of a splash on cards.

•The Witch-king, Drawn to Its Power
Minion • Nazgûl
Str: 14
Vit: 4
Sit: 3
Fierce.
While the Ring-bearer wears The One Ring, Nazgûl cannot take wounds.
Assignment: Exert The Witch-king twice to assign him to a companion (except the Ring-bearer). Unless that companion is corrupted, he or she may exert to prevent this.
"He sprang forward and bore down on Frodo."
L R 201

[DáinIronfoot]

Okay, fantastic. Thanks guys! That wraps up the sites, and so now we can move into something more inspiring and significantly more evil!

Oh dear. Well, someone was just lurking over the computer and waiting for a review so he could pounce at a set of cards he's obviously excited about. Not that I have ANY idea what that feels like....

Unearthly Senses
Condition • Support Area
Spell.
When you play this condition, you may foresee 1.
While you can spot 6 companions and a minion, each companion (except the Ring-bearer) is resistance -1.
"From inside the hood came a noise as of someone sniffing to catch an elusive scent…"
L C 200

I think the first line needs a little cultural enforcement. Perhaps just spot a minion to play this in the first place? Also, this doesn't make tons of sense with Orcs, so perhaps spot a Nazgul or Wraith for the second part?

Terror
Condition • Companion
Res: -3
Spell.
Plays only on a companion skirmishing a minion. Limit 1 per bearer.
Skirmish: Play this condition from your hand.
"As soon as he saw the dark shapes creep from the garden, he knew that he must run for it, or perish."
L C 189

I'd limit it to unbound companions. This is too devastating if played on the Ring-bearer.

@ Dáin: I know you raised something about my use of "corrupted" on Amon Hen. I think it's a clean way to refer to this, is very simple to extend from just Ring-bearers, and it represents something flavourful, and so I'm quite keen on it. There isn't that much in this set that uses it, but if I were to make a follow-up set, it would be called "The Twilight World" and would use corruption as a trigger in a big way. For now, it's just a bit of a splash on cards.

Fair enough. But I now have a new protest: NOT bringing back twilight. Come on, man! I thought we were finally on the same page with keywords.

I'll hold off real protest until I see your further explanation later, though. Just hope it's a good reason.

•The Witch-King, Shadow of Despair
Minion • Nazgûl
Str: 14
Vit: 4
Sit: 3
Fierce.
Each companion skirmishing The Witch-King is resistance -2.
While skirmishing a corrupted companion, The Witch-King is strength +2 and damage +1 (companions with resistance 0 are corrupted).
"… his terror was swallowed up in a sudden temptation to put on the Ring."
L C 202

Minor point first: "king" ain't capitalized. I know, it probably should be, but since it isn't on Big D's cards....

That first part is brutal with the Ring-bearer, but since you've likely got lots of other problems if Wikkie is assigned to the Ring-bearer anyway , I'll leave it be. Overall a fine card, but with the apparent ease in which you can get 0 resistance companions, perhaps make this a rare exception to the fierce rule and leave that off? I'm just worried he's too good as a common otherwise.

•The Witch-King, Drawn to Its Power
Minion • Nazgûl
Str: 14
Vit: 4
Sit: 3
Fierce.
While the Ring-bearer wears The One Ring, Nazgûl cannot take wounds.
Assignment: Exert The Witch-King twice to assign him to a companion (except the Ring-bearer). Unless that companion is corrupted, he or she may exert to prevent this.
"He sprang forward and bore down on Frodo."
L R 201

See, maybe I'm nuts, but I think this actually works better as the common and the other as the rare, unless you have several cards that make the Ring be worn. This is balanced just fine, but with the easy out for the FP player on the assignment ability and the general difficultly of forcing the first line to work, this version seems less powerful to me than the other.

[Thranduil]

I think the first line needs a little cultural enforcement. Perhaps just spot a minion to play this in the first place? Also, this doesn't make tons of sense with Orcs, so perhaps spot a Nazgul or Wraith for the second part?

Yeah, it was Nazgûl to start with, but then I changed it last minute. Will change it back.

Fair enough. But I now have a new protest: NOT bringing back twilight. Come on, man! I thought we were finally on the same page with keywords.

I'll hold off real protest until I see your further explanation later, though. Just hope it's a good reason.

There's a very good reason! It's a card which deals with twilight and means that it doesn't have to go on the Nazgûl. Basically, I didn't want to put straight on Nazgûl because not all Nazgûl have it, and really the flavour suggests that they all should have it. I guess I'll post the card (Call of the Ring) next.

That first part is brutal with the Ring-bearer, but since you've likely got lots of other problems if Wikkie is assigned to the Ring-bearer anyway , I'll leave it be. Overall a fine card, but with the apparent ease in which you can get 0 resistance companions, perhaps make this a rare exception to the fierce rule and leave that off? I'm just worried he's too good as a common otherwise.

See, maybe I'm nuts, but I think this actually works better as the common and the other as the rare, unless you have several cards that make the Ring be worn. This is balanced just fine, but with the easy out for the FP player on the assignment ability and the general difficultly of forcing the first line to work, this version seems less powerful to me than the other.

It's not a question of power level here, it's a question of simplicity. The way I see it, common cards are straightforward and give statement of strategy and culture. Rares, on the other hand, allow you to do something a bit crazy and different and fun. That's why I chose those rarities for them.

However, it may well be that the common WK is just too strong a card and/or the rare one is too weak. But, bear in mind there is a lot of wearing The One Ring in this set (one of the main themes, in fact) including some things like Resistance Becomes Unbearable and the Twilight World, and various others.

Thranduil

[DáinIronfoot]

Very well...Drawn to Its Power is probably okay at rare then. But Shadow of Despair is just too powerful for a common, I think. I'd drop one of the lines or, perhaps even better, drop fierce. But that's me. Don't do anything drastic until you get another review or two.