The Rise of Erebor 1.0

• Versions
• 1.0

This is a fun dwarf deck that I have been playing solo for a bit now because I wanted to try using core Gimli again. It makes me think of the aftermath of the Battle of Five Armies, and the rebuilding of Dale and Erebor after the events of The Hobbit. Dwarves are returning to the Lonely Mountain and elves have come from Mirkwood and from farther away to visit Dain and his people. Even Gandalf also pops in now and then, and Erebor is fast becoming a sustainable kingdom again.

This is a dwarf deck but not quite a swarm deck, it is much closer to the tempo style of play. It gets most of its from dwarf allies, but other cards can give temporary questing contributions such as Gandalf, Elrond, or Durin's Song. Dáin Ironfoot is here to stay ready and boost the dwarves most of the time until he defends. Gimli should eat some early damage so he can hit back hard with 5-6 attack. Bifur quests every round and his ability will be used to pay for those 2-cost dwarf allies as soon as they are drawn most of the time.

The plan for the early game is to play some dwarf allies to ramp up the and plan Dain and Gimli's purchases based on what cards are drawn. Henamarth Riversong, Orophin, and Legolas are the silvan allies included for the sake of Unlikely Friendship and they have useful abilities with the exception of Orophin typically. We Are Not Idle also gives free card draw and maybe a resource if necessary.

Be sure to get Gimli damaged early on, and Ring Mail can go on him or on Dáin Ironfoot depending on whether you may need more defense or more attack from Gimli's ability. Cram typically goes on Dain in case he is exhausted before questing or needs to defend twice, but can be great of Gimli too. Close Call is a handy card for stopping excessive damage when dealing with a hero such as Gimli who wants to risk some damage. Quick Strike is fantastically useful when Gimli can slay the enemy before Dain has to exhaust to defend, and he often will.

Ranger Spikes is another helpful card for managing enemies while aiding questing as well. Like the Sneak Attack Gandalf combo, Durin's Song is flexible and can give a temporary boost to whichever stat is most important at the time. Strider's Path can be a useful card for snatching a location with a bad travel cost, and if there is no active location when it is used it will often mean that the location will be explored that very quest phase.

This deck uses old heroes in a new deck that is a bit different from many of the standard ways of playing dwarves. With Gimli as the main offensive hitter, that much more room in the deck is open for cards that are not focused on combat specifically. I enjoy the deck's flexibility and it has had some favorable wins against Escape from Umbar, Beneath the Sands, and Foundations of Stone among other quests.