While -2 defense on an enemy is in most cases worse than giving your hero +2 attack (unless you are doing some weird stuff with Straight Shot), Rivendell Blade's bonus still often boils down to 2 more damage being dealt more. That exchange is fantastic, with further advantages being that allies such as Galadhon Archer or Marksman of Lórien are also being viable targets as well as many of the most prevalent attackers in the game such as Legolas, Haldir of Lórien or Glorfindel.

Rating: 8/10

Decks of mine using Rivendell Blade

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Just so damn flexible that it is for me still the gold-standard of any attack-boosting weapon. Any hero can take it for at least 1 attack, with it being often 2 attack (especially in archetypes such as Hobbits, Fastred or secrecy). Fantastic card and never a bad include.

Rating: 8/10

Decks of mine using Dagger of Westernesse

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Maybe the master attachment I consider weakest, Strength and Courage is nevertheless still a powerhouse of a cards, transforming any attacker with at least 3 attack into a round 1 killing monster. Inner Strength or Power of Command might be even more impactful and prevalent (and certainly eat into the rating of Strength and Courage a little with said prevalence), a Haldir of Lórien or Grimbeorn the Old with an early Strength and Courage is still something to behold nevertheless. More a victim of the awesomeness of other cards than having any fault of its own when it comes to achieving even higher ratings, Strength and Courage still has incredible upside and can be a lynchpin in any attacking deck.

Rating: 8/10

Decks of mine using Strength and Courage

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While Blade of Gondolin might not provide the strong and reliable boost many other weapons provide, it does have the potential to outright solve quests with its progress-placing potential in high player counts. Any character attacking a lot is transformed into a guaranteed quest advancer with a couple of these, which can be a key strategy to win quests for the whole table. So even though Blade of Gondolin has very limited utility outside of that and is not a card that helps you killing enemies most of the time, it has an incredibly high ceiling if built around that can just fix otherwise very tricky situations or be a crucial part of your gameplan.

Rating: 8/10

Decks of mine using Blade of Gondolin

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I believe Vigilant Guard is one of the most undervalued cards in the game. There is no card quite like it, being lifesaving in so many situations where the encounter deck threatens the player(s) through damage, both in the combat and in the questing phase. With cards like The Necromancer's Reach, Exhaustion or Master's Malice being able to wipe out small allies by the dozens, Vigilant Guard is one of the best ways in the game to protect your board from these kind of treacheries.

Add to that the completely ridiculous combination with Mithril Shirt, which effectively reduces any amount of damage dealt anywhere on the board by 1 (thus just solving archery or many of the worst treacheries in the game for instance), and you have an insanely powerful card that far too many people continue to sleep on in my opinion.

Rating: 8.5/10

Decks of mine using Vigilant Guard

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