... And they sang as they slew (all the enemies in the stagi 1.0

• Versions
• 1.0

This is a solo Fastred deck that I have been playing around with for some time. I am at the point where I feel satisfied with the result. The idea here is to play cheap allies with Theoden that you can potentially recur with Guthwine on Eomer. Fastred can return less dangerous enemies to the staging area and manage your threat if it somehow drops too low. The deck is still not perfect - if a lot of progress is required it can come in a little bit short. But it is functional and fun to play, and solved the challenge of building a solo Fastred deck.

Opening hand: You really want Guthwine even though it will take a few turns to get the engine going. You also either want some allies for questing (Horse-breeder is fantastic for getting Snowmane) and ideally some of Theoden's toys. Allies and Snowmane are ideally what you play within the first two turns. By turn two you should also have Guthwine out on Eomer, so he's ready for some serious staging area attacks.

Questing: Ideally you should commit most of your 2-willpower allies, Eomer (if you have a valid target in the staging area) and Theoden (with Snowmane). I like to leave Fastred, and at least one Horse-Breeder as an emergency chumper. Many of the allies here are disposable and can be returned with Guthwine if they are discarded or killed during an attack.

Location control: Snowborn Scout (me again?) and Ride to ruin are included in case you need the final push to clear a location.

Card draw: Rohan's card draw has always been tricky. This particular build relies on replaying allies with Guthwine, making card draw of slight less concern. Steward of Orthanc is included as 2 will is nice, and the occasional Doomed 1 is of less of a concern due to Fastred. The deck is event-light in the final iteration, so it is not really realiant card draw. Mustering the Rohirrim is included to help you find alllies, and Open the armory + Horse-breeder are included to help you find your weapons and mount.

Combat: Once you have added a Dunedain warning and possibly mithril shirt, Fastred can block smaller enemies and send them back to the staging area. In case you run into trolls or more nasty enemies, block with one of your cheap allies and replay them next turn. Theoden will be ready due to Snowmane most of the time, and with Herugrim, he swings for a lot (especially if Eomer is ready as well). The two of them can take care of most things. If you manage to clear a side quest, the Rider of Rohan is also a good contributor.

I really enjoy this take on the staging area attack build and hope you will give it a shot!