Deck of the Day #8:
"Whom do you serve?"

by Matthew Clemans (mattclemans@insightbb.com)

Chances are, if you go to a tournament today, you will see Uruk-hai in at least one deck at the top table. Their Damage +1 and propensity for being fierce make them a top choice among competitive players. Even if you don't kill your opponent's fellowship, you can slow him down enough to where a well-made fellowship can pull from behind to run to site nine. In Realms of the Elf-lords – the rare Saruman will bring these decks to a new level with the addition of Saruman, Keeper of Isengard.

The Shadow half of this deck uses the most powerful Uruks with pump cards and the rare Saruman to prevent wounds and make everyone fierce. Troop of Uruk-hai is one of the strongest minions in the game because of the ability to ignore weapon bonuses. When he becomes fierce, your opponent has to use some serious resources not to take a lot of wounds. With some Pump cards, even a Servant of the Secret Fire or two won't help your opponent. Orthanc Assassins and Uruk Captains are each strong minions as well which you can use to punish your opponent. No Business of Ours prevents your opponent from looking at your hand with Sting and also slows down Galadriel's Mirror decks. One drawback to this deck is sometimes you might not have enough twilight to play all that you want to. In such a case, you can play Saruman by himself at a site. Since he is near impossible to kill, your opponent is faced with a terrible dilemma – do they move on and face a possible horde of fierce Damage +1 minions, or stop and say they were foiled by an old man who didn't even fight?

This is a pretty standard Gandalf/Ranger fellowship. It uses Aragorn and Boromir as its main offensive punch with Gandalf and Legolas as backup and support. When armed with their weapons and a Flaming Brand, the sons of Gondor are a fighting force unto themselves. The Shards of Narsil give them a couple extra strategic options. You can save Still Sharp, which keys off the Shards, until you need it. You can stock extra copies of your companions here for when you need to heal. You can save A Ranger's Versatility until sites seven and eight and you can dump cards that you have extras of – like an extra copy of the Shards – down just to get them out of your hand. When you need those cards back, you can remove the added pool with Aragorn's text. Gandalf is in the deck mainly to let you draw cards early and to allow you to play Sleep, Caradhras and Servant of the Secret Fire. Legolas works great to combat swarms and also to pick off minions with directed archery after you have exhausted them with A Ranger's Versatility. With the ability to drop and pick up cards off of Shards of Narsil, you should have no problem running multiple sites at a time.

Ring-bearer
    Frodo, Son of Drogo
    The One Ring, Isildur's Bane

Adventure Deck
    The Prancing Pony
    Breeland Forest
    Rivendell Waterfall
    Hollin
    The Bridge of Khazad-dum
    Caras Galadhon
    Anduin Confluence
    Shores of Nen Hithoel
    Slopes of Amon Hen

Free Peoples (34)
    The Shards of Narsil x3
    Still Sharp x3
    Boromir, Defender of Minas Tirith x3
    Aragorn, Heir to the White City x3
    Ranger Sword
    Flaming Brand x3
    Armor x2
    A Ranger's Versatility x3
    Blade of Gondor
    Gandalf, the Grey Wizard (starting)
    Sleep, Caradhras x2
    Servant of the Secret Fire x3
    Legolas, Greenleaf x2
    Aragorn's Bow
    Sting x2
    Thror's Map

Shadow (34)
    Saruman, Keeper of Isengard x3
    Troop of Uruk-Hai x4
    Uruk Rager x2
    Uruk Warrior x2
    Uruk Ravager x4
    Orthanc Assassin x2
    Uruk Captain x2
    Lurtz, Servant of Isengard
    Savagery to Match Their Numbers x4
    Saruman's Ambition x4
    Bred For Battle x2
    Beyond the Height of Men x2
    No Business of Ours
    Spies of Saruman

If you want to try your luck against any of these decks, find me at Origins this weekend. I'll be happy to play a pickup game or three!

July 3, 2002