After cracking the first two quests in the core set, it was time to face the infamous and downright awkward 'Escape From Dol Guldor. After trying and failing several times with my Core Blimey deck, I realised that to beat this quest, I needed a second deck to play along side, so for solo players using the core set only. I made this second deck using the remaining cards. As you can see, I was looking for an all-out attacking deck, to allow me to concentrate more on questing and card/resource building in my first deck.
Hero:
Denethor is great for two reasons, firstly he can peek at the top encounter card and place that card at the bottom of the deck if it's game threatening, plus he's got a great defence of 3. Glóin and Gimli are my door staff, mess with them at your peril, especially if you get them tooled up with the Dwarven Axe and Citadel Plate attachments. The more you hurt Gimli the harder he hits back, and the more you hurt Glóin the more resources he gets.
Ally:
3x Gondorian Spearman is an absolute must, as he can deal 1 damage to the enemy that's attacking him, which can result in defeating the enemy before a blow has been struck. 3x Veteran Axehand, he's cheap, good cannon fodder but with a good attack of 2. 2x Son of Arnor, a great card to have to get rid of enemies in the staging area as while they're in there they can't fight back. 2x Silverlode Archer and 2x Horseback Archer, being ranged, these can help you out in your first deck if things are looking a bit dicey!! 3x Daughter of the Nimrodel come in handy if Denethor and Glóin have taken a bit of a beating. 1x Gandalf as he's the only one left in the box but is awesome! 1x Brok Ironfist, he's a little expensive, but a good card should you need a discard, but also comes into play straight away if either Glóin or Gimli get killed.
Event:
2x Gandalf's Search if the card you've been waiting for for ages to appear out of the deck still hasn't come up, it could be worth a punt looking at the top 'X' cards to see if you can find it there. 1x Stand Together, a useful card to use for your first hand to keep enemies from dealing fatal blows to lesser defence strength ally cards. 2x Common Cause, handy when you might need a little extra from a hero that's been used on a previous phase. 2x Quick Strike, a must for getting rid of those awkward enemies that have a low defence but seem to stick around longer than you want! 3x Blade Mastery, speaks for itself, giving your character a 1 point attack boost for just 1 resource. 2x Secret Paths, I love this card, especially if you get the Location with 3 or more threat strength. 2x Rain of Arrows, these cards could be the difference between victory or death! 2x Feint, again awesome when you get those nasty high attack strength enemies knocking at your door. 2x Ever Vigilant, gives you the chance to defend and attack with the same ally should they survive that attack. 1x Lore of Imladris , again handy if Denethor should get heavy damage. 1x For Gondor!, a bit specific in it's use, but still very handy to have to boost your attack/defence. 1x Swift Strike, with two damage as soon as you declare that character a defender, you can defeat an enemy without suffering a blow. 2x Lórien's Wealth, a bit expensive at 3, but great if you're low on cards in your hand. Finally, 1x Grim Resolve, very expensive, but if you have the resources, you can cause a major blow to your enemies.
There we go, hopefully together with this and my 'Core Blimey' deck, it's not too long before you too can 'Escape From Dol Guldor.