Good Stuff Glorfindel 1.0

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• 1.0

This is a questing deck I built progression style, meaning it uses the first two cycles and the Hobbit Sagas to beat all the quests those expansions contain, plus Massing At Osgiliath, i.e. the definitive testing quest. This is partnered with a Boromir Eagles deck (see fellowship link) and is designed to handle Boromir's threat issues. It plays good cards with a couple of tweaks based on personal preference.

Attachments: Song of Earendil is the interesting card here, which is used to keep the other deck's threat low even when it spams Boromir. The fact that it's a cantrip makes drawing the second one still feel pretty good. Miruvor is the card I've waffled the most on, it goes on Aragorn in case he needs to do multiple things in a round. Sometimes I think it's unnecessary, but every once in a while there's a sticky situation where I'm glad I had it, usually in Massing at Osgiliath. Its resource smoothing can be super helpful, but the thing I find most important is that its presence alone lets me quest with Aragorn when I normally wouldn't. There are often times where I feel like I might run into some combat trouble so I don't want to quest with Aragorn, but Miruvor lets me do both without fear. I mention this because this card alone (I truly believe) lets me complete quests a round or two earlier than I would otherwise, which matters when I'm worrying about threat. It's the kind of effect that's hard to notice because, like Legolas's ability, it's cumulative, and so its total effect is never really quantifiable by the end of a quest without any bookkeeping (which I've never done and probably never will do). 2-3 extra willpower per round adds up, and if it wasn't in the deck there are so many rounds where I would've kept Aragorn back from questing only for nothing to show up during combat. The other cards are self-explanatory.

Events:

It's necessary. Desperate Alliance is there just to send Aragorn over to reduce Boromir and Friends' threat.

Allies: There's not a ton of good cheap Lore allies in these cycles alone so the choices are pretty easy. Erebor Hammersmith is crazy efficient cost-wise, and being able to recover Mathoms, Miruvors, and attachments discarded from shadow effects is super good. Escort from Edoras is probably overkill, I'd cut one for Arwen. Hey, I should do that! Oh well. I hate running multiple uniques so I try not to, but she's so good, man. She could easily be in here three times, and honestly she probably should. Giving Boromir sentinel and an extra defense makes sure this deck will never have to defend. But Escorts help with quest pushes (particularly in Return to Mirkwood, Emyn Muil, and Into the Pit) and getting out of location lock (though with Asfaloth that shouldn't happen too often). Gleowine is just solid draw, why not run one, and Bofur is amazing for 1 resource. Miner of the Iron Hills is pretty much just chump but there are some pesky conditions you'd rather not deal with. Northern Tracker handles locations and West Road Traveller is classic Spirit 2-for-2 with a sometimes life-saving response (hello, Dreadful Gap). Gandalf is the Hobbit one, and since this deck can mostly handle the threat cost why not run him? Three might be one too many but once you get him out you can just race through most quests and handle combat with ease. One issue is that it makes Core Gandalf in the other deck unusable, but often you've gotten enough use out of OHaUH Gandalf that you can discard him safely so the other deck can Sneak Core Gandalf in for a round.

Gameplan is nothing complicated. Eventually the other deck will play Sword that was Broken onto Aragorn which means questing will be a breeze. Eowyn could maybe be Eleanor in certain quests but I try to avoid playing with her because I think learning how to handle treacheries without cancelling them makes you better at the game. I'm running Test of Will so I'm a hypocrite, but having Eleanor always available makes it so easy to just cancel everything, and I don't want to get addicted to that feeling.

One notable absence is Warden of Healing, which really helps out Boromir and the beefier allies on that side, but I don't find him necessary until Heirs where the enemies get beefier and archery is introduced. In fact, there's no healing to speak of! I don't think the first two cycles of quests are dangerous enough to require healing, and I usually try to get lucky in Rhosgobel. Sideboarding in 3 Lore of Imladris and 3 Healing Herbs is easy enough.

Overall I think these two decks are set to handle pretty much anything pre-Heirs. The only card I'm dying to sub in from that set is Blood of Numenor, and even then I think the cuts will be easy. Eowyn might have to go if she becomes as useless as I imagine her being with battle and siege, in which case I'd probably bring in Elrond and rewire the ally package and maybe cut Galadhrim's Greeting. But then threat, starting and otherwise, becomes an issue all over again. We will see.