The Way Into Mordor - Moria (8/15: "Far, far below the deepest delving....")

[DáinIronfoot]

•The Balrog, Quenched
Minion • Balrog
Strength: 14
Vitality: 5
Site: 4
Fierce.
At the start of the maneuver phase, you may discard all other minions to choose an unbound companion with strength 7 or higher. Until the regroup phase, only that companion can be assigned to skirmishes.
Response: If a player reconciles while the fellowship is at an underground site, return this minion to its owner's hand.
"‘...but now he was a thing of slime, stronger than a strangling snake.'"

As you may or may not remember, this was the winning entry to the first round of my original DC Contest over at CC, submitted by WeyounsLastClone. You can suggest tweaks as you see fit, but for now this is just a placeholder for a thread I'll be posting a few more cards in this week. I figured now was a good time to do it as a nice contrast to the current theme of the thread.

There won't be much to in this set, obviously, but what IS here will be powerful.

[lem0nhead]

He IS unusual, but kinda cool.

[sickofpalantirs]

coolio.
now I see why it won

[DáinIronfoot]

A couple fun cards for our new Balrog to play with, starting with an idea inspired directly by the DC Contest where WLC's Balrog emerged the victor. None of them may have won, but there were a number of cards that tied The Balrog in with...site control?! Thing is, they actually made sense, and I LOVED the idea, so here's a card inspired by them. Enjoy!

Secret Ways
Event • Regroup
While the fellowship is at a mountain or underground site, this event's twilight cost is -2.
Exert The Balrog and discard each other minion to make the Free Peoples player choose to move again (if the move limit allows). You may play the fellowship's next site (replacing opponent's site if necessary).
"‘...too well he knew them all. Ever up now we went, until we came to the Endless Stair.'"

And now, just a fun support card to help Ol' Balgy more viable in a set otherwise lacking in stuff. This is like Durin's Tower on steroids.

•Battle of the Peak
Condition • Support Area
Each unique minion skirmishing a companion with strength 7 or higher is damage +1.
Shadow: Discard this condition to play The Balrog from your draw deck or discard pile.
"‘But what would they say in song? Those that looked up from afar thought that the mountain was crowned with storm.'"

[lem0nhead]

Out He Sprang
Event • Regroup
While the fellowship is at a mountain or underground site, this event's twilight cost is -2.
Exert The Balrog and discard each other minion to make the Free Peoples player choose to move again (if the move limit allows). You may play the fellowship's next site (replacing opponent's site if necessary).
"‘Thus he brought me back at last to the secret ways of Khazad-dûm: too well he knew them all. Ever up now we went, until we came to the Endless Stair.'"

Cool.

•Battle of the Peak
Condition • Support Area
Each minion skirmishing a unique companion with strength 7 or higher is damage +1.
Shadow: Discard this condition to play The Balrog from your draw deck or discard pile; its twilight cost is -1 for each wounded companion you can spot.
"‘But what would they say in song? Those that looked up from afar thought that the mountain was crowned with storm.'"

Wow that first line is both random and crazy, how about each unique moria minion.

[DáinIronfoot]

•Battle of the Peak
Condition • Support Area
Each unique minion skirmishing a companion with strength 7 or higher is damage +1.
Shadow: Discard this condition to play The Balrog from your draw deck or discard pile; its twilight cost is -1 for each wounded companion you can spot.
"‘But what would they say in song? Those that looked up from afar thought that the mountain was crowned with storm.'"

Wow that first line is both random and crazy, how about each unique moria minion.

Doh! I think that's what I meant to do and ended up putting the "unique" in the wrong place. Fixed now.

[Anvar]

Out He Sprang
Event • Regroup
While the fellowship is at a mountain or underground site, this event's twilight cost is -2.
Exert The Balrog and discard each other minion to make the Free Peoples player choose to move again (if the move limit allows). You may play the fellowship's next site (replacing opponent's site if necessary).
"‘Thus he brought me back at last to the secret ways of Khazad-dûm: too well he knew them all. Ever up now we went, until we came to the Endless Stair.'"

Love the card, but I don't get the title. He isn't springing up, he is already there - in fact he is sticking around for another site.

•Battle of the Peak
Condition • Support Area
Each unique minion skirmishing a companion with strength 7 or higher is damage +1.
Shadow: Discard this condition to play The Balrog from your draw deck or discard pile; its twilight cost is -1 for each wounded companion you can spot.
"‘But what would they say in song? Those that looked up from afar thought that the mountain was crowned with storm.'"

Not sure I'm in favour of such a card for the Balrog. Seems a bit too easy to play the Balrog every site. How about returning the Balrog to your hand in the Regroup phase instead?

Love the ideas here - very creative.

Anvar

[DáinIronfoot]

Out He Sprang
Event • Regroup
While the fellowship is at a mountain or underground site, this event's twilight cost is -2.
Exert The Balrog and discard each other minion to make the Free Peoples player choose to move again (if the move limit allows). You may play the fellowship's next site (replacing opponent's site if necessary).
"‘Thus he brought me back at last to the secret ways of Khazad-dûm: too well he knew them all. Ever up now we went, until we came to the Endless Stair.'"

Love the card, but I don't get the title. He isn't springing up, he is already there - in fact he is sticking around for another site.

Grabbed the title from the text of The Two Towers. If you have a better suggestion, I'm all ears. PLEASE give me a better one, because I'm not a big fan of the current title either.

•Battle of the Peak
Condition • Support Area
Each unique minion skirmishing a companion with strength 7 or higher is damage +1.
Shadow: Discard this condition to play The Balrog from your draw deck or discard pile; its twilight cost is -1 for each wounded companion you can spot.
"‘But what would they say in song? Those that looked up from afar thought that the mountain was crowned with storm.'"

Not sure I'm in favour of such a card for the Balrog. Seems a bit too easy to play the Balrog every site. How about returning the Balrog to your hand in the Regroup phase instead?

Well, The Balrog from this set has an ability like you're suggesting already, if you check him out. I'd rather cut the draw deck part than the discard pile part, since the whole "theme" of the card is Ol' Balgy coming back when he was supposedly already vanquished.

Any other suggestions on how to improve it?

[sickofpalantirs]

A couple fun cards for our new Balrog to play with, starting with an idea inspired directly by the DC Contest where WLC's Balrog emerged the victor. None of them may have won, but there were a number of cards that tied The Balrog in with...site control?! Thing is, they actually made sense, and I LOVED the idea, so here's a card inspired by them. Enjoy!

Out He Sprang
Event • Regroup
While the fellowship is at a mountain or underground site, this event's twilight cost is -2.
Exert The Balrog and discard each other minion to make the Free Peoples player choose to move again (if the move limit allows). You may play the fellowship's next site (replacing opponent's site if necessary).
"‘Thus he brought me back at last to the secret ways of Khazad-dûm: too well he knew them all. Ever up now we went, until we came to the Endless Stair.'"
cut cost to 3 IMSO

•Battle of the Peak
Condition • Support Area
Each unique minion skirmishing a companion with strength 7 or higher is damage +1.
Shadow: Discard this condition to play The Balrog from your draw deck or discard pile; its twilight cost is -1 for each wounded companion you can spot.
"‘But what would they say in song? Those that looked up from afar thought that the mountain was crowned with storm.'"

limit -4 maybe?

[Thranduil]

If you're going to make a strategy based on the Balrog as Out He Sprang does and presumably others you'll be making, he needs to come out more or less every site. That said, I think I'd just prefer a card costing or for Battle of the Peak playing The Balrog with no reduction. I think reductions should be on different cards, not the same ones that play him.

Thranduil

[Elf_Lvr]

Out He Sprang
Event • Regroup
While the fellowship is at a mountain or underground site, this event's twilight cost is -2.
Exert The Balrog and discard each other minion to make the Free Peoples player choose to move again (if the move limit allows). You may play the fellowship's next site (replacing opponent's site if necessary).
"‘Thus he brought me back at last to the secret ways of Khazad-dûm: too well he knew them all. Ever up now we went, until we came to the Endless Stair.'"

Mean. Nice card.

•Battle of the Peak
Condition • Support Area
Each unique minion skirmishing a companion with strength 7 or higher is damage +1.
Shadow: Discard this condition to play The Balrog from your draw deck or discard pile; its twilight cost is -1 for each wounded companion you can spot.
"‘But what would they say in song? Those that looked up from afar thought that the mountain was crowned with storm.'"

I think I'd agree with Thran, here.

[DáinIronfoot]

Okay, I reduced the cost of Battle of the Peak to and dropped the cost reduction for Ol' Balgy.

Anyone have a better title suggestion for Out He Sprang, or do most of you fine folks think it's alright as is?

[Thranduil]

Just from your lore: Secret Ways?

Thranduil

[lem0nhead]

Sounds very that does 

[DáinIronfoot]

Just from your lore: Secret Ways?

Done. Trimmed down the lore a bit, too...I'm funny about having the title come from the lore of the same card.

Okay, in direct response to the revised Battle of the Peak:

Through Fire and Water
Event • Response
If The Balrog is played, make its twilight cost -1 for each mountain and underground site on the adventure path.
"‘From the lowest dungeon to the highest peak I fought him, the Balrog of Morgoth.'"

If you think that's a little too good, I could give it a low twilight cost, cap the reduction, and/or change it to a simple Shadow event that simply plays Ol' Balgy at the reduced cost (rather than pairing with any other cards that plays him). Your call, reviewers!

Burst Into New Flame
Event • Skirmish
Make a unique minion strength +1 for each twilight token you can spot (limit +5).
"‘A great smoke rose about us, vapour and steam.'"

Originally had this as a Balrog-only event, but opted to include other unique minions if the Shadow player is so inclined. Since using as much twilight as possible it key to most strategies (and especially the typically-expensive Balrog), this goes against the culture's very foundation...hence the potentially big payoff.