Back to the Light - Review

[Witchkingx5]

yeah, that would be good, like His Terrible Servants, It Wants to be Found, Resistance Becomes Unbearable, or better, "Twilight Minion" like Dead Ones!

Witchkingx5

[Thranduil]

Yeah fair enough. Like I said, I was only trying it out. I will keep to "twilight minion" in future.

Thranduil

[Thranduil]

Given there seem to be no more forthcoming opinions, I'll make some changes to that lot. Right now, I'm going to finish the set.

We'll start off with some fairly standard sites. All of these cards are supporting tribal strategies to promote multiculture.

•Bree Gate
Shadow: Spot a companion with resistance 5 or less and exert your traitor minion to reveal a player's hand.
B U 117

•Helm's Deep
Battleground.
Valiant companions with resistance 3 or more are strength +2.
B U 118

•Morgul Vale
While you can spot 3 burdens, each twilight card is twilight cost -2.
B U 119

•Slopes of Amon Hen
Battleground.
When the fellowship moves to this site, you may spot your ranger or tracker to foresee 2. (To foresee 2, look at the top 2 cards of your draw deck; place any number of those cards beneath your draw deck in any order and the rest on top of your draw deck in any order).
B U 120

I did that not because I'd finished posting the other cards, but because I wanted to end on more of a high than "woo sites" which is not very interesting. So, the final 3 cards in the set in order of (I think) increasing coolness! 8)

Beast of Terror
Possession • Mount
Str: +1
Vit: +1
To play, discard 2 cards (or 1 card) from hand
Bearer must be a Nazgûl.
Bearer is fierce.
Bearer cannot take wounds (except during skirmish phases).
B R 108

I wasn't sure about this beast. Essentially I wanted a replacement Fell Beast (because I love that card and Winged Mount always felt very disappointing to me) and I wanted it to take a rare slot. So I went back to what it means to be on a flying horribly beastie and thought about not being able to be hit by archery and such things. Hence the card which is uninspiring, so if you guys can think of a different direction to take this guy's flavour, I would love to hear it!

•Úlairë Attëa, Khamûl
Minion • Nazgûl
Str: 12
Vit: 3
Sit: 4
Fierce. Traitor.
At the start of each skirmish involving Úlairë Attëa, you may remove to add a burden.
B U 65

So this guy is the only named Nazgûl apart from The Witch-King and Khamûl was assigned to Attëa in the Mines of Moria with The Easterling. So this card is a blurring between and .

•The Witch-King, General of Mordor
Minion • Nazgûl
Str: 14
Vit: 4
Sit: 5
Aggressor. Besieger. Fierce. (For each aggressor minion assigned to a skirmish, each Shadow card is twilight cost -1).
Each other besieger minion is fierce.
While The Witch-King is in your discard pile, your minions are strength -1.
B U 89

I've had a Witch-King in the proverbial pipe-works for a very long time. In fact one of my first dream card projects was a set called Alliances which featured every major character shifted into different cultures, but I liked hardly any of them. This set allowed me to revisit this dream and reimagine. So this guy I love in general. You may recognise it from my VDC contest (I borrowed it from this set for the contest, not the other way around) but it is slightly different. So it looks like a besieger and I also wanted to tie into the minor discard pile theme I've been sprinkling in this set, hence the second line which I also think makes a lot of flavour sense. Originally it prevented your minions from being fierce which had very nice symmetry, but I was unsure if that was just bad or how to allow you to play a new version of this guy and get the bonus again, and decided it was too complicated. Though do tell me what you think about that.

Enough rambling - now reviews!

[ket_the_jet]

•Bree Gate
Shadow: Spot a companion with resistance 5 or less and exert your traitor minion to reveal a player's hand.
B U 117

Neat. I like this one.

•Helm's Deep
Battleground.
Valiant companions with resistance 3 or more are strength +2.
B U 118

Also a nice card. Especially since Valiant is no longer limited to Rohan.

•Morgul Vale
While you can spot 3 burdens, each twilight card is twilight cost -2.
B U 119

Okay...would "twilight" be capitalized?

•Slopes of Amon Hen
Battleground.
When the fellowship moves to this site, you may spot your ranger or tracker to foresee 2. (To foresee 2, look at the top 2 cards of your draw deck; place any number of those cards beneath your draw deck in any order and the rest on top of your draw deck in any order).
B U 120

I'm not sure if that all fits onto a card, but makes sense without the explanation of what "foresee" is.

Beast of Terror
Possession • Mount
Str: +1
Vit: +1
To play, discard 2 cards (or 1 card) from hand
Bearer must be a Nazgûl.
Bearer is fierce.
Bearer cannot take wounds (except during skirmish phases).
B R 108

Wow, this kicks the #$&*@! out of every other Fell Beast. I think it has to cost at least for what you are getting...

•Úlairë Attëa, Khamûl
Minion • Nazgûl
Str: 12
Vit: 3
Sit: 4
Fierce. Traitor.
At the start of each skirmish involving Úlairë Attëa, you may remove to add a burden.
B U 65

Thanks for giving me credit for the subtitle! Hey, didn't you use Khamul as a subtitle in another set?

•The Witch-King, General of Mordor
Minion • Nazgûl
Str: 14
Vit: 4
Sit: 5
Aggressor. Besieger. Fierce. (For each aggressor minion assigned to a skirmish, each Shadow card is twilight cost -1).
Each other besieger minion is fierce.
While The Witch-King is in your discard pile, your minions are strength -1.
B U 89

Seems familiar! I liked it then and I like it now.
-wtk

[legolas3333]

I like all of them!

[Thranduil]

Okay so the set (and consequently the whole DC block) is now finished.

What I will do now is post each culture in its entirety with a day or two in between for any final comments.

DWARVEN - 8 (3/3/2)
•Brand, Ally of Erebor
Companion • Man
Str: 6
Vit: 3
Res: 6
Archer. Valiant.
Skirmish: If Brand has resistance 6 or more, exert him to take a or skirmish event into hand from your discard pile.
B R 1

Craft of Erebor
Condition • Support Area
Fellowship: Exert a companion and either an companion or a companion to add a token here.
Regroup: Remove a token here to play a possession from your discard pile.
B C 2

Forgotten Secrets
Condition • Support Area
Tale.
When you play this condition, you may spot a companion to foresee 2. (To foresee 2, look at the top 2 cards of your draw deck; place any number of those cards beneath your draw deck in any order and the rest on top of your draw deck in any order).
Maneuver: Discard this condition to reveal the top card of your draw deck. Remove X Shadow cards in an opponent's discard pile from the game, where X is the twilight cost of the card revealed.
B U 3

•Gimli's Battleaxe, Axe of Moria
Possession • Hand Weapon
Str: +2
Bearer must be a companion.
Regroup: If bearer is Gimli and he is damage +X, exert him twice to make an opponent discard X Shadow cards from play.
B R 4

Hand Axe (reprint)
Possession • Hand Weapon
Bearer must be a Dwarf.
This weapon may be borne in addition to 1 other hand weapon.
Archery: Discard this possession to make the fellowship archery total +1.
B U 5

•Legolas, Dwarf-friend
Companion • Elf
Str: 6
Vit: 3
Res: 6
Archer.
Each time Legolas wins a skirmish, you may heal a or companion.
B U 6

Nimble Shot
Event • Archery
Toil 2.
Spot an companion with resistance 7 or more to wound a minion.
"'That one counts as mine!'"
B C 7

•Thrarin, Emissary of Erebor
Companion • Dwarf
Str: 7
Vit: 3
Res: 6
Damage +1.
While Thrarin has resistance 4 or more, each and event is twilight cost -1.
B C 8

[legolas3333]

legolas should be resistance 7 like his other versions i think

[Thranduil]

I know what you mean, but there is a precedence for resistance 6 in Of the Grey Company, Of the Woodland Realm and some others. At the moment I'd prefer 6 to better mirror Gimli who always has resistance 6, but definitely worth thinking about.

Thranduil

[Thranduil]

I felt like was fairly straightforward. So now! Some changes since last time, particularly the Rings (I'd love suggestions for better subtitles!).

ELVEN - 12 (5/4/3)
•Aragorn, Estel
Companion • Man
Str: 8
Vit: 4
Res: 8
Ranger.
While you can spot Arwen and she has resistance 7 or more, Aragorn's twilight cost is -2.
Each time you play an event during a skirmish involving Aragorn, you may make an or companion strength +2 until the regroup phase.
B U 9

•Blade and Bow
Condition • Support Area
While you can spot 3 valiant companions with resistance 7 or more, each minion is strength -2 for each wound on that minion.
Discard this condition if the fellowship did not move during the regroup phase.
B R 10

Deflection
Event • Response
If a Shadow event is played, spot an companion to foresee 2. Then reveal the top card of your draw deck. If the revealed card is a Free Peoples card, cancel that Shadow event and place it on top of its owner's draw deck.
B U 11

•Elrond, Ring-bearer
Companion • Elf
Str: 8
Vit: 4
Res: 7
Valiant.
At the start of each skirmish involving Elrond, you may exert him to discard the top card of your draw deck. Make a minion strength -X, where X is the twilight cost of the discarded card.
B C 12

Emissaries of the West
Event • Fellowship
Spell. Toil 2.
Spot a companion with resistance 6 or more to discard each condition.
B U 13

•Galadriel, Ring-bearer
Companion • Elf
Str: 3
Vit: 3
Res: 7
While you can spot an companion, Galadriel's twilight cost is -3.
At the start of the maneuver phase, you may place a card from your hand on top of your draw deck.
B C 14

•Gimli, Elf-friend
Companion • Dwarf
Str: 6
Vit: 3
Res: 6
Damage +1.
Each time Gimli wins a skirmish, you may make a or companion strength +2 until the regroup phase.
B U 15

A Mortal Life
Event • Maneuver
Tale. Toil 2.
Spot a companion with resistance 5 or more to heal up to 2 other companions.
B C 16

•Nenya, Secret Defence
Artifact • Ring
Vit: +1
Bearer must be Galadriel.
Shadow events are twilight cost +1.
B R 17

Resist the Shadow
Condition • Support Area
Fellowship: Exert an companion and either a companion or a companion to add an token here.
Maneuver: Remove an token here to make an unbound companion resistance +2 until the regroup phase.
B C 18

Unrelenting
Event • Skirmish
Make a valiant or companion strength +2 (or +3 if skirmishing a wounded minion).
B C 19

•Vilya, Secret Defence
Artifact • Ring
Vit: +1
Bearer must be Elrond.
Response: If a minion uses a special ability, discard 2 cards from hand to cancel its effects.
B R 20

[legolas3333]

aragorn is to powerful for an uncommon, make it only +1,  a mortal life is bad compared to farewell to lorien, either cut the cost to 1 or make it a skirmish event, unrelenting should have more cultural enforcement, i.e. spot an elf to make a valiant or companion...

[chompers]

First time i have looked so it has probably been said before, but interesting concept making Gimli and Aragorn on elven template cards. Makes it a bit easier to play a one culture deck, but still include the characters you want. I like it 

[Thranduil]

First time i have looked so it has probably been said before, but interesting concept making Gimli and Aragorn on elven template cards. Makes it a bit easier to play a one culture deck, but still include the characters you want. I like it 

This is in fact the whole point of the set! You'll notice above there is Brand and Legolas in , and so on.

aragorn is to powerful for an uncommon, make it only +1,  a mortal life is bad compared to farewell to lorien, either cut the cost to 1 or make it a skirmish event,

My issue with the Aragorn is that I want to mirror the Arwen (which obviously we haven't seen yet because she's in ) and for her adding resistance +1 would be a little bit weak I thought. And I don't mind pushing the power level of an Arwen Aragorn deck, because it's really awesome! Though I suspect the easiest power fix would be to remove Aragorn's cost reduction.

Also A Mortal Life is already a maneuver event, where Farewell to Lorien is fellowship. Do you think it would be better skirmish?

Thranduil

[Thranduil]

GANDALF - 13 (6/4/3)
Alliance of the Free Peoples
Event • Maneuver
Toil 2.
, , , and companions may exert for this card's toil.
Spot Gandalf to make each unbound companion strength and resistance +5 until the regroup phase.
B R 21

•Dáin Ironfoot, Heir of Durin
Companion • Dwarf
Str: 7
Vit: 3
Res: 6
Damage +1. Valiant.
While you can spot a or companion Dáin Ironfoot's twilight cost is -1.
Each time the fellowship moves, if Dáin Ironfoot has resistance 4 or more, you may reinforce a or token or draw a card.
B R 22

•Gandalf, Olórin
Companion • Wizard
Str: 8
Vit: 4
Res: 7
Valiant.
Gandalf gains the cultures of each other companion with resistance 6 or more.
B U 23

•Gandalf's Cart, Purveyor of Fireworks
Possession
Res: +1
Bearer must be Gandalf.
Fellowship or Regroup: Exert Gandalf to shuffle up to 2 or cards from your discard pile into your draw deck.
B R 24

•Merry, Hasty Hobbit
Companion • Hobbit
Str: 3
Vit: 4
Res: 8
Skirmish: Exert Merry to make another or companion strength +1.
B C 25

Moria! Moria!
Event • Response
Tale. Toil 2.
If a minion is killed in a skirmish involving a companion with resistance 4 or more, that minion's owner must discard the top 8 cards of his or her draw deck.
B U 26

Not the First Halfling (reprint)
Condition • Support Area
Fellowship: Exert Gandalf and either an companion or a companion to add a token here.
Skirmish: Remove a token here to make a minion skirmishing an unbound companion strength -2.
B C 27

•Pippin, Hasty Hobbit
Companion • Hobbit
Str: 3
Vit: 4
Res: 8
Each and companion (except in your starting fellowship) is twilight cost -1.
B C 28

Sound Advice
Event • Maneuver
Stealth. Toil 2.
Make a companion with resistance 8 or more strength +2 until the regroup phase.
B C 29

Stay at Your Posts!
Condition • Support Area
Fortification. Toil 2.
Maneuver: Discard this condition and spot a companion with resistance 5 or more to discard a possession from play.
B C 30

•Théoden, Returned
Companion • Man
Str: 7
Vit: 3
Res: 6
Valiant.
While you can spot a or companion, Théoden's twilight cost is -1.
Each time you play a or event, you may exert Théoden to exert a minion.
B U 31

Treachery Exposed
Event • Maneuver
Spell. Toil 2.
Spot an companion with resistance 7 or more to reveal each Shadow player's hand.
B U 32

Unstoppable Charge
Event • Regroup
Toil 3.
Spot 2 companions with resistance 3 or more to discard each minion.
B C 33

[Thranduil]

GOLLUM - 7 (3/2/2) (4SH/3FP)
•Covert Deeds (FP)
Condition • Support Area
Stealth.
To play, spot Sméagol.
Each Shadow player plays with the top card of their draw deck faceup.
Regroup: Discard this condition to discard a minion with the same twilight cost as the top card of a Shadow player's draw deck.
B R 34

A Difficult Burden (SH)
Event • Maneuver
Toil 2.
Spot a card to make the Free Peoples player choose to add 2 burdens or discard 3 cards from their hand.
B U 35

Secret Plots (SH)
Condition • Support Area
Shadow: Exert Gollum and either a or minion to add a token here.
Regroup: Remove a token here to foresee 2. (To foresee 2, look at the top 2 cards of your draw deck; place any number of those cards on the bottom of your draw deck in any order and the rest on the top of your draw deck in any order).
B C 36

Secret Ways (FP)
Condition • Support Area
Fellowship: Exert Sméagol and either a or companion to add a token here.
Regroup: Remove a token here to play the fellowship's next site.
B C 37

Share the Load (FP)
Event • Regroup
Toil 2.
Spot a companion to remove 2 burdens.
B U 38

Shelob's Web (SH)
Possession • Support Area
Response: If your minion is killed or discarded and you cannot spot 3 cards stacked here, exert a minion to stack that minion here.
Skirmish: Discard a minion stacked here to make a minion strength +2 or play a minion from your discard pile as if from hand.
B C 39

•Treacherous Deeds (SH)
Condition • Support Area
Search.
To play, spot Gollum.
The Free Peoples player plays with the top card of his or her draw deck faceup.
Skirmish: Discard this condition to wound a companion skirmishing Gollum with the same twilight cost as the top card of the Free Peoples player's draw deck.
B R 40

[legolas3333]

I cannot see secret ways being used any more than follow smeagol, heck well-traveled is better, if you make it fellowship or regroup that would even it out a bit, and for Shelob's Web maybe make it so if a minion is killed or discarded stack it here.