Gildor, ranger travel buddy 1.0

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• 1.0

I've experimented with various Dunedain permutations including tri-sphere, and I've had the most success with Gildor as the third hero. He povides 3 willpower and repeatable card draw in a matching sphere, and access to Revealed in Wrath is also not to be underestimated. In many ways it's a pretty standard Dunedain deck, but Gildor helps a lot to smooth out some common weaknesses. Since Gildor travels around the Dunedain stomping grounds of Eriador, it even makes sense thematically.

This goes best as the fighter with another more support-oriented deck. That said, it's can do well in solo but it's swingy...you need to draw well enough to get set up with your key attachments and a few allies fast and the encounter deck not to screw you too bad while you're doing it. That's certainly possible but does require some luck and depends on the scenario. I do need to experiment more with solo tweaks though - another Sword that was Broken, Faramir, and maybe some extra resource accel could help.

Ranger Swag

Getting Amarthiul voltroned out is the biggest early game priority. You have Dunedain Warning, Hauberk, and Captain of Gondor to boost def, 6 attachments in all plus a Watchman to help fetch (Captain can also go on Aragorn later for attack if Amarthiul is already well decked out). And of course the Destriers are for shadow cancellation and action advantage - and since none of the +def attachments are restricted you can stack two! I'm certainly not the first person to notice this but blocking a weak attack with Destrier, discarding a shadow effect from a strong enemy, then readying and blocking that one is kinda good with Amarthiul's bonuses.

Aragorn ideally gets a Warrior Sword and a Steed of the North, though two of either is also ok. Note that he can either quest + attack or attack twice with Steed of the North thanks to his engage ability. Warrior Sword can also go on allies, and the second Steed can be an option for a more offensive Amarthiul. And of course Sword that Was Broken is self-explanatory...between that and Gildor this deck can do pretty well with questing.

Celebrian's Stone goes on Gildor by the way - Aragorn needs the restricted slots open.

Dunedain Remedy could probably be slotted for something else if you want...but I like having it as a safety valve and another Watchman target, especially since Amarthiul only has 3 HP. Even if someone else has Lore healing it takes a little pressure off them.

Don't forget about transferring the Dunedain attachments when someone needs it! Especially from Amarthiul with his resource gen.

Roheryn on Tactagorn is cool on paper but I find it frustratingly inconsistent...so often 4 effective attack is just short of enough for the kill, and this deck only has a few +attack cards. I'd consider it for swarm scenarios like Seventh Level but generally prefer Quick Strike's lower cost and versatility.

The travel squad

For the most part this is a basic lineup of Dunedain allies, which helps maximize utility on Heir of Valandil and Descendants of Kings. Questing big with Sword that was Broken, walling multiple enemies with Amarthiul and Guardian, and finally doing a big counterattack with Descendants of Kings all in one turn is really fun. Don't play Hunter willy-nilly in the early game...make sure you have an answer ready in case he pulls something nasty (Feint, Andrath Guardsman, beefy Amarthiul, etc).

Legolas provides extra card draw, Gandalf will most often be used for threat reduction but he's good for more cards early and of course the damage is always nice in a pinch. Subbing him for Secret Vigil, Thorongil-Loragorn, and/or card draw like Valiant Sacrifice is possible, but his flexibility and the Sneak combo is hard to pass up on.

Sideboard stuff: Honour Guard is good for scenarios where you need to tank up Amarthiul and the Guardians even more. If you need location control you can use Meneldor (great sneak attacker), Arod, and/or Snowbourn (who can quest with STWB). Deorwine and Rammas are other defensive supplements, Marksman and Azain for extra offensive punch.

Resources and events

This deck can get a little squeezed for Leadership resources early, but it's generally manageable even without Steward, at least non-solo. You generally don't want to use Gildor's card draw much early except if you really need to topdeck (you need his resources to set up), but he's really useful to keep you flowing mid-late game where you'll often be flush with cash. Legolas and Gandalf also supplement for draw.

Between Amarthiul, Heir of Valandil, Steward, and Knowledge of the Enemy(and the extra icon from STWB) this deck does very well with resources for the long term. You can go without Steward by the way and probably should if another deck has leadership, just sub some combination of Heir, Knowledge, and Proud Hunters. The reason Proud Hunters is in the sideboard is that the cost ratio skews Leadership and setting up a kill for Amarthiul early game can be a little tricksy.

I leave Revealed in Wrath as a sideboard to sub for Feint/Quick Strike by scenario, but it's certainly viable for maindeck if you want.