Cleave and Cleave Alike

byJames Kight

Before we get too deep into this deck, let me clarify that this deck is built without rares. It's a very simple deck, and is intended for beginners to help them get the hang of the game without getting too complicated. As you learn the game and become more comfortable with a style of play, please feel free to replace some of these cards with other ones that you like better. I've inlcuded a few tradeout suggestions at the end.

To begin with, it's a Dwarven deck, and is not the strongest deck by any means. The lack of a decent number of Dwarven companions will make it tough to go all the way consistently with this deck, but it showcases combat and discarding to a decent extent.

The sites are super straightforward. East Road tries to punish early Fellowships, Midgewater Moors continues the discard theme, and Rivendell Terrace is simply the least useable Sanctuary for an opponent. Moria Lake forces your opponent to exert, and could probably be exchanged with Dwarrowdelf Chamber since you have Gimli. The Bridge is common to all decks, Dimrill Dale is another simple haven, but depending on what your opponent is playing, might be exchanged with Lothlorien Woods, or Galadriel's Glade. The Anduin Confluence attempts to stop Hobbit ally decks, but considering the lack of archery in this deck, might be exchanged with Anduin Wilderland. The Shores of Nen Hithoel is very dangerous, but remains one of my favorite sites with its Shadow number. Finally, the Slopes of Amon Hen cater specifically to your Uruk-hai.

The starting party should be Gimli and Farin. As you play the fellowship cards with these two, each should get their own axe. Actually, now that I think about it, why not go ahead and add 2 more Dwarven Axes to this deck, and add another Uruk-hai Sword and another Uruk-hai Raiding Party to even things up. Everything else is fairly self-explanatory on the Fellowship side. Nothing but combat here, and a few ways to discard cards from your opponent's deck. Nothing fancy.

As far as the Minion side, this deck takes advantage of the Damage +1 Uruk-hai to discard more cards from your opponent's deck with cards like Soldier, Rager & Sword. Saruman's Snows will halt the play of any skirmish cards or actions, and will shut Hobbit Decks down flat. Conversely, a card like this will stop your Dwarf cards too. Somthing to keep in mind. The Saruman's Powers will keep your opponent from building up too many Fellowship conditions, and the 2 Worry cards will start the pain building for the Ring-bearer as your Uruk-hai start to win skirmishes. Everything else is self-explanatory.

As you get comfortable with these cards, try replacing a few. You might try Savagery to Match Their Numbers, a nice rare that gives an Uruk-hai +2 Str, or +3 Str and Fierce if there are 5 companions. Lurtzes are always welcome, as are Uruk Lieutenants. Finally, if you want to take advantage of the Archery keyword, throw in an Orthanc Assassin or two.

With the Dwarven cards, as I said before, go ahead and add a few more Axes. Gimli, Son of Gloin is a good addition since he can exert to get bigger, and he can use help from Gimli's Axe and Gimli's Helm. I've had limited success with Nobody Tosses a Dwarf combined with the Axes and Halls of My Home. Dwarves are good at burning through decks. Finally, to be better protected, you probably need to splash another culture and throw in some condition destruction (Elves/The Seen and the Unseen, Gandalf/Sleep Caradhras). Also, no matter what deck you're building, Elrond is always good.

Good luck!

Ring-bearer
    Frodo, Son of Drogo
    The One Ring, The Ruling Ring

Adventure Deck
    [1] East Road
    [2] Midgewater Moors
    [3] Rivendell Terrace
    [4] Moria Lake
    [5] The Bridge of Khazad-Dum
    [6] Dimrill Dale
    [7] Anduin Confluence
    [8] Shores of Nen Hithoel
    [9] Slopes of Amon Hen

Free Peoples
    Axe Strike x 4
    Battle Fury x 4
    Cleaving Blow x 4
    Delving x 2
    Dwarf Guard x 4
    Dwarven Armor x 2
    Dwarven Axe x 2
    Farin, Dwarven Emissary x 2
    Gimli, Dwarf of Erebor x 2
    Grimir, Dwarven Elder
    Halls of My Home x 2
    Lord of Moria
    Their Halls of Stone x 3
    Thrarin, Dwarven Smith

Shadow
    Bred for Battle x 4
    Saruman's Ambition x 4
    Saruman's Power x 2
    Saruman's Snows x 2
    Uruk Rager x 2
    Uruk Savage x 2
    Uruk Shaman x 2
    Uruk Slayer x 3
    Uruk Soldier x 4
    Uruk-Hai Armory x 2
    Uruk-Hai Raiding Party x 2
    Uruk-Hai Sword x 3
    Worry x 2