Let's discuss Towers block strategy !!

[chompers]

Problem 1 ... I lose because my Ringbearer is corrupted ... what can I do about this ....

Brace of Coneys (This is about as straight forward as it can get)
Frodo's Cloak (Universal use for all decks, and a bonus effect)

Frodo Tired Traveller (with Ringbound Rangers)

Cliffs of Emyn Muil (not a great option)

Good Work (How do I get my Hobbits to win?)
Impatient and Angry (How about this? And a bonus ....)
Sam Samwise the Brave

No Help For It (For those Smeagol decks)
Not Listening (More Smeagol stuff)

OR

Any version of Sam (get Frodo killed before he is corrupted)

OR

Any version of Gandalf with Grown Suddenly Tall or any other event destruction often solves the problems you face most Shadow deck strategies.

Some of these cards only work in certain deck types, but some are exclusively used by Frodo. If your Ring Bearer is getting corrupted you might need to include some protection.

I am sure there are many other solutions as well .....

So what are the the solutions to the next problem ....

[chompers]

IMO ... after all of one game ... the most overpowered cards in Towers Block are ...

Merry Learned Guide
Pippin Woolly-footed Rascal

and the support cards that keep returning them to play.

Solution:

Warg-riders mounts cancel skirmish abilities ...
Ambush?


are there any others?

[MuadDib85]

Yes. Uruk Trackers!

Uruk Hunter
Uruk Follower

[chompers]

Uruk Trackers are good - they mess up unbound hobbits and rohan and allies. their assignment abilities are good too - i might give them a go - everyone look out

[Gil-Estel]

Grown Suddenly Tall pownage!!!

[Smeagollum]

Wargriders with swarm

[Witchkingx5]

Berserkers with Kill!

[Smeagollum]

Berserkers with Kill!

Not really:) Beserker are expensive and those 2 hobbits don't mind wounds, because they get discarded.

[Witchkingx5]

But they slow down really effectively! Just run with your freeps when you play Berserks!

[Smeagollum]

But they slow down really effectively! Just run with your freeps when you play Berserks!

That depends on what your opponent plays

[Pumasiw]

Any ideas on how best to counter a southron wounding strategy?
Which cultures offer the best healing options in TT?
Would keeping twilight to a minimum be effective against this?

[Smeagollum]

Hobbits definitely and Smeagol, slinker.

[Cw0rk]

Any ideas on how best to counter a southron wounding strategy?
Which cultures offer the best healing options in TT?
Would keeping twilight to a minimum be effective against this?

Rohan with their allies can provide some nice healing. Gandalf and Have Patience is good as well.

Keeping twilight to a minimum is hard in TT block, you cannot really do that.

[chompers]

My Smeagol, Sam, Frodo deck I posted in Towers adds very little twilight as all cards are either free or are used outside of fellowship. With three companions moving it is just site cost you have to worry about. Problem is, while it is good at a bit of choke ... I doubt it is capable of surviving with what little twilight enters the pool as their is no easy way to protect Frodo if four minions hit the table.

[Witchkingx5]

My Smeagol, Sam, Frodo deck I posted in Towers adds very little twilight as all cards are either free or are used outside of fellowship. With three companions moving it is just site cost you have to worry about. Problem is, while it is good at a bit of choke ... I doubt it is capable of surviving with what little twilight enters the pool as their is no easy way to protect Frodo if four minions hit the table.

Yeah, it's like when you move at Deep of Helm, 11 Twilight and first Uruk -3, so whether Choke or not, you just die playing against any good Uruk Deck. But there's no real Crwod Control like Shotgun Enquea and Greed in FotR Block, so that's why I run big fellowships mostly.

[Ringbearer]

There is the southron commander

[MuadDib85]

Southron Veterans. Nearly as good as Enquea, not unique, 2 Southron veterans = eight exerts.

[chompers]

Southron Veterans. Nearly as good as Enquea, not unique, 2 Southron veterans = eight exerts.

Use this at site 7 with Hornburg Causeway and if opponent does not have Ringbound Rangers then There Will Be Blood!

[chompers]

There is the southron commander

There is probably a simple answer but i couldn't find it in the rulebook ....

Southron Commander assigns himself to Ringbearer. Free peoples player prevents by discarding an unbound companion. What stops the shadow player using the assignment ability again until there are no more unbound companions to discard?

All I can think of is that the keyword 'prevent' negates the assignment ability for remainder of assignment phase (rather than the current action). However, 'prevent' is not in the rulebook?

Der - i am an idiot - discarding companion will mean they no longer have 6 companions in play .... 

[MR. Lurtzy]

You need to spot 6 companions.

[Smeagollum]

It's funny to see more and more people start playing Isengard Men. Allthough I think they play it not like I do. I never would use this shadow unless I play twillightdenial. Besides that I think desertion and wounded functional conditions; the rest are not imo. Besides that I'd never play them with saruman and staff, couse it actually stops your hand and this shadow needs lots of minions. I'd combine with cheap other minions and with gollum for cycling.

[Pepi]

Saruman, Black Traitor is playable with his staff imo. Not just, that he's a decent minion to fight alongside isengard men, he also lets u discard a conditions, which comes in handy, while playing against rohan, or even rangers. And basically u can have all your staves discarded when u reconcile, and then play it in shadow from your discard pile. Well, at least that's the way I see it

[Smeagollum]

Saruman, Black Traitor is playable with his staff imo. Not just, that he's a decent minion to fight alongside isengard men, he also lets u discard a conditions, which comes in handy, while playing against rohan, or even rangers. And basically u can have all your staves discarded when u reconcile, and then play it in shadow from your discard pile. Well, at least that's the way I see it

It costs to much and most people won't be frightened if you play him (especially ents and elves). It also takes about 6 to 7 cards and I think it's more worth to have extra minions who can wound: 2x mechanics and 8 regroupdiscard orcs with cost 1, 2 or 3 are more worth it.

[Faelach]

Berserkers with Kill!

Not really:) Beserker are expensive and those 2 hobbits don't mind wounds, because they get discarded.

Hey.  Don't diss the Berserks.  I use them in my TTT deck and they win quite a bit.  They can be a little pricey though, I must admit.  They win more often than not, though, if you play them right.

[Smeagollum]

Berserkers with Kill!

Not really:) Beserker are expensive and those 2 hobbits don't mind wounds, because they get discarded.

Hey.  Don't diss the Berserks.  I use them in my TTT deck and they win quite a bit.  They can be a little pricey though, I must admit.  They win more often than not, though, if you play them right.

I don't diss anything, but what will it do? Beserkers need conditions. If people play these hobbits it's most often with DH. And they most often don't give more then about 10 twillight. Untill site 5 you're lucky to play one and maybe you will have a few tokens but not enough to do serious harm then from site 5 they start to assign it to their hobbits and they gonna discard. Don't see a big problem there.

[Cw0rk]

As anyone ever made Southron Assassin work?

[Smeagollum]

As anyone ever made Southron Assassin work?

Only option I see is Southron with mumaks and ambush, but rather in movie with seasoned leaders then in TT. But that's what I think. It's a difficult card. One way he deserves the cost and on the other to expensive to be really functional.

[hrcho]

Southron Assasin. A card I've been trying very hard to build a deck around. I don't think it's functional that much. If there was just 1 more Southron with a text like his, it would make a great RB wound deck. However, making your shadow revolve around 1 card is... not effective in the least.

In movie I'd go with Wikky, Lord of the Nazgul for RB kill (and I do )

In my attempts, the goal was to play a few powerful and fierce minions (which means mumaks) and to add a lot of twilight. This can be done with the help of Trample or Southron Wanderer and the like of him. Win the skirmishes and wound RB (he is usually the only one ringbound in movie) with Southron Assasin and Howl of Harad. Eastern Emyn Muil is also a must have in such a deck. (In movie, Gollum, DAD).

If his text said, each time southron wins a skirmish instead of each time a companion loses a skirmish, then Southron swarm would make #$&*@!. However, that is not the case. This way, a lot of luck is needed with both the draw and the matchup.

[Smeagollum]

well I just no build something around the SA. Thing is I like to try it, but cartainly the first week out of the TTT-league competition (so the result not counting for it).

[Kralik]

High strength and fierce Southrons make Southron Assassin very nice. Actually, he would be rather handy to mess with the aforementioned discarding hobbits, since he could stop Merry (or ... ahem... Frodo) dead in his tracks.

[inzilzor]

i like easterlings burdening

[chompers]

i like easterlings burdening

I tried this ... Ringbound Rangers carve it up (but they do that to most if not all minion decks in TTT .... at teast the minion decks i have built).

[MuadDib85]

Easterlings own Ring-bound Rangers in my experience.

[putridbreath]

These are my People FTW!!!!

[Cw0rk]

These are my People FTW!!!!

What is the point of TAMP with Easterlings vs RB Rangers?

[putridbreath]

http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,2368.0.html

just referencing this deck I vividly remembered...

[Cw0rk]

http://lotrtcgwiki.com/forums/index.php/topic,2368.0.html

just referencing this deck I vividly remembered...

Yeah, it's my idea. Have you tried it?

[chompers]

Easterlings own Ring-bound Rangers in my experience.

I thought they would too, but the deck i encountered had Frodo Tired Traveller ... so whatever burdens i added were promtly removed. It also maybe becuse my deck design was poor .... more likely

[legolas3333]

Easterlings own Ring-bound Rangers in my experience.

I thought they would too, but the deck i encountered had Frodo Tired Traveller ... so whatever burdens i added were promtly removed. It also maybe becuse my deck design was poor .... more likely

add Southron Commander and a couple pumps....

[chompers]

Easterlings own Ring-bound Rangers in my experience.

I thought they would too, but the deck i encountered had Frodo Tired Traveller ... so whatever burdens i added were promtly removed. It also maybe becuse my deck design was poor .... more likely

add Southron Commander and a couple pumps....

Ooh - i like that! Didn't pick up on that one

No more losses to RingBound Rangers for me.

[MuadDib85]

Southron Veterans I like more than Southron Commander. As a splash minion Southron Veterans should be in every towers deck, he is the most effective crowd control available. 2x Veterans = 8 exerts for fellowship. Nearly as good as Enquea LOM.

[chompers]

But Southron Commander is an instant win vs RingBound rangers if they put 6 or more companions in play. And every player i have faced does.

Unless they get rid of him before the assignment phase.

I do agree with you that I should start putting Southron Veterans in all my decks.

[Cw0rk]

But Southron Commander is an instant win vs RingBound rangers if they put 6 or more companions in play. And every player i have faced does.

Unless they get rid of him before the assignment phase.

I do agree with you that I should start putting Southron Veterans in all my decks.

You'll need pumps because Ring-Bound Rangers will have Sting, BH x2 and ATAR.

[Witchkingx5]

Cavern Entrance*

The reason why so many RB rangers run Smeagol: follow smeagol.

[MuadDib85]

But Southron Commander is an instant win vs RingBound rangers if they put 6 or more companions in play. And every player i have faced does.

Unless they get rid of him before the assignment phase.

I do agree with you that I should start putting Southron Veterans in all my decks.

You'll need pumps because Ring-Bound Rangers will have Sting, BH x2 and ATAR.

They'll also more than likely have a Sam. By the time six companions are in play, Frodo should be pretty well protected. Southron Veterans should be able to exhaust nearly everyone making Ranger's Bow useless.