Deck Set for beginners (no rares) & Demo Decks

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thorondor
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i have developed a deck for each wizard, that does not contain any rares.
also, each deck has a certatin theme for resources and hazards.
and i took care that for all decks combined you do not need more than 2 copies of each card (except a few sites).
decks are meant to play against each other, and are balanced accordingly.

deck size is:
20 resources
20 hazards
2 minor items
2 copies of the same wizard
around 10 characters
around 10 sites (incl havens)

attached you will find an excel file. also included are 2 extremely down stripped decks (Gandalf vs Saruman), which should be used to explain the game to newbees.

note that this is (and will always be) a work in progress. comments are always welcome.
Attachments
starter&demo decks.xls
Deck Set for beginners (no rares) & Demo Decks
(123.5 KiB) Downloaded 927 times
Last edited by thorondor on Wed Jan 03, 2024 5:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
thorondor
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ALATAR

Name Type Rarity #

Characters
Alatar Wizard F2 TW 2
Beorn Character F1 TW 1
Eomer Character U TW 1
Erkenbrand Character F1 TW 1
Theoden Character F1 TW 1
Eowyn Character U TW 1
Hama Character C1 TW 1
Gamling The Old Character U TW 1
11

starting minor items
Cram Resource Minor Item C TD 1
Shield of Iron-bound Ash Resource Minor Item C TW 1

resources
Beorninger Resource Faction F1 TW 1
The Great Eagles Resource Faction U TW 1
Riders of Rohan Resource Faction F1 TW 1
Treebeard Resource Ally U TW 1
Great-shield of Rohan Resource Item U TW 1
Red Arrow Resource Item U TW 1
Sword of Gondolin Resource Item C TW 1
Dreams of Lore Resource Permanent Event C TW 1
A Chance Meeting Resource Short Event C TW 1
Block Resource Short Event C TW 1
Concealment Resource Short Event C TW 1
Lucky Strike Resource Short Event C TW 1
Kindling of the Spirit Resource Short Event C TW 1
Persuasive Words Resource Short Event C TW 2
Tempering Friendship Resource Short Event C TW 1
The Cock Crows Resource Short Event U TW 1
Vanishment Resource Short Event C TW 1
Many Turns and Doublings Resource Short Event C TD 1
Trickery Resource Short Event C TD 1
20

hazards
Hobgoblins Hazard Creature C TD 1
Orc Guard Hazard Creature C TW 1
Orc Lieutenant Hazard Creature U TW 1
Orc Patrol Hazard Creature C TW 2
Orc Raiders Hazard Creature C TW 2
Orc Warband Hazard Creature C TW 2
Orc Warriors Hazard Creature C TW 2
Orc Watch Hazard Creature C TW 1
Call of the Sea Hazard Short Event U TW 1
Pierced by Many Wounds Hazard Short Event C DM 1
Wolf-riders Hazard Short Event C TD 1
Fell Winter Hazard Long Event C TW 1
Minion´s Stir Hazard Long Event U TW 1
Despair of the Heart Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
Doors of Night Hazard Permanent Event F5 TW 1
The Burden of Time Hazard Permanent Event U TW 1
20

sites
Edhellond Haven Site F5 TW 1
Lorien Haven Site F5 TW 1
Rivendell Haven Site F5 TW 1
Edoras Site F1 TW 1
Glittering Caves Site U TW 1
Beorns House Site F1 TW 1
Eagles Eyrie Site C TW 1
Dimril Dale Site U TW 1
Sarn Goriwing Site C1 TW 1
The Wind Throne Site F5 TW 1
Wellinghall Site F1 TW 1
11

Card Total 62
MP Total 28
thorondor
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GANDALF

Name Type Rarity #

Characters
Gandalf Wizard F2 TW 2
Aragorn II Character F1 TW 1
Robin Smallburrow Character F2 TW 1
Sam Gamgee Character U TW 1
Pippin Character U TW 1
Faramir Character F1 TW 1
Merry Character U TW 1
Boromir Character F2 TW 1
Ioreth Character U TD 1
12

starting minor items
Athelas Resource Minor Item U TW 1
Healing Herbs Resource Minor Item C TW 1

resources
Men of Anorien Resource Faction F1 TW 1
Rangers of Ithilien Resource Faction F1 TW 1
Gollum Resource Ally U TW 1
Beautiful Gold Ring Resource Item C TW 2
Lesser Ring Resource Item U TW 1
Magic Ring of Nature Resource Item U TW 1
Magic Ring Of Stealth Resource Item U TW 1
Orcrist Resource Item U TW 1
Glamdring Resource Item U TW 1
A Chance Meeting Resource Short Event C TW 1
A Friend or Three Resource Short Event C TW 1
Dodge Resource Short Event C TW 1
Dark Quarrels Resource Short Event C TW 1
Escape Resource Short Event C TW 1
Halfling Stealth Resource Short Event C TW 1
Halfling Strength Resource Short Event C TW 1
Wizards Test Resource Short Event C TW 1
Kindling of the Spirit Resource Short Event C TW 1
Stealth Resource Short Event C TW 1
20

hazards
Dire Wolves Hazard Creature C TD 1
Giant Hazard Creature C TW 1
Giant Spiders Hazard Creature C TW 2
Lesser Spiders Hazard Creature C TD 1
Marsh Drake Hazard Creature C TD 1
Wargs Hazard Creature C TW 2
Watcher in the Water Hazard Creature U TW 1
Wolves Hazard Creature C TW 2
Call of Home Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Gloom Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Greed Hazard Short Event C TW 1
River Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Wolf-riders Hazard Short Event C TD 1
Wake of War Hazard Long Event U TW 1
Doors of Night Hazard Permanent Event F5 TW 1
Lure of Expedience Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
Lure of Nature Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
20

sites
Lorien Haven Site F5 TW 1
Rivendell Haven Site F5 TW 1
Bandit Lair Site F2 TW 1
Henneth Annun Site F1 TW 1
Gladden Fields Site C TW 1
Goblin Town Site F3 TW 1
Minas Tirith Site F2 TW 1
Dead Marshes Site U TW 1
8

Cards Total 60
MP Total 26-30
Last edited by thorondor on Wed Jan 03, 2024 5:13 pm, edited 2 times in total.
thorondor
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PALLANDO

Name Type Rarity #

Characters
Pallando Wizard F2 TW 2
Balin Character U TW 1
Gimli Character F1 TW 1
Gloin Character U TW 1
Oin Character U TW 1
Ori Character C TW 1
Dwalin Character C TW 1
Bifur Character C TW 1
Bofur Character C TW 1
Kili Character F2 TW 1
13

starting minor items
Dagger of Westernesse Resource Minor Item U TW 1
Shield of Iron-bound Ash Resource Minor Item C TW 1

resources
Lossoth Resource Faction C1 TW 1
Blue Mountain Dwarves Resource Faction U TW 1
Bill the Pony Resource Ally U TW 1
Durins Axe Resource Item U TW 1
Book of Marzabul Resource Item U TW 1
Dwarven Ring of Thelor´s Tribe Resource Item U TW 1
Dwarven Ring of Thrarr´s Tribe Resource Item U TW 1
Precious Gold Ring Resource Item C TW 2
Scroll of Isildur Resource Item U TW 1
A Friend or Three Resource Short Event C TW 1
And Forth He Hastened Resource Short Event C TD 1
Block Resource Short Event C TW 1
Ford Resource Short Event C TW 1
Lucky Strike Resource Short Event C TW 1
Marvels Told Resource Short Event C TD 1
Ringlore Resource Short Event U TW 1
Secret Passage Resource Short Event C TW 1
Test of Form Resource Short Event C TW 1
Wizard´s Test Resource Short Event C TW 1
20

hazards
Barrow-wight Hazard Creature U TW 1
Cave Drake Hazard Creature C TW 1
Corpse-candle Hazard Creature C TW 2
Ghosts Hazard Creature C TW 1
Ghouls Hazard Creature C TW 1
Old Man Willow Hazard Creature U TW 1
Rain Drake Hazard Creature C TD 1
Slayer Hazard Creature C TW 1
Stirring Bones Hazard Creature C DM 2
Incite Denizens Hazard Short Event C TD 1
New Moon Hazard Short Event U TW 1
River Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Weariness of the Heart Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Plague of Wights Hazard Long Event U TW 1
Doors of Night Hazard Permanent Event F5 TW 1
Icy Touch Hazard Permanent Event C TD 1
Lure of Nature Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
Lure of the Senses Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
20

sites
Rivendell Haven Site F5 TW 1
Lorien Haven Site F5 TW 1
Grey Havens Haven Site F5 TW 1
Bag End Site F2 TW 1
Ost in Edhil Site U TW 1
Lossadan Camp Site C1 TW 1
Blue Mountain Dwarf-hold Site C1 TW 1
Himring Site U TW 1
Moria Site F3 TW 1
Mount Gundabad Site U TW 1
Fgoblin Gate Site F3 TW 1
Weathertop Site F4 TW 1
12

Cards Total 65
MP Total 25-37
Last edited by thorondor on Wed Jan 03, 2024 5:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
thorondor
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RADAGAST

Name Type Rarity #

Characters
Radagast Wizard F2 TW 2
Haldir Character U TW 1
Orophin Character C TW 1
Legolas Character U TW 1
Thranduil Character F1 TW 1
Gildor Inglorion Character F1 TW 1
Brand Character U TD 1
Bard Character F2 TW 1
Galdor Character U TD 1
12

starting minor items
Elf-stone Resource Minor Item C TW 1
Elven Cloak Resource Minor Item C TW 1

resources
Men of Northern Rhovanion Resource Faction U TW 1
Men of Dale Resource Faction U TD 1
Wood-elves Resource Faction F1 TW 1
Noble Hound Resource Ally C DM 1
Sword of Gondolin Resource Item C TW 1
Narsil Resource Item U TW 1
Hauberk of Bright Mail Resource Item U TW 1
Torque of Hues Resource Item U TW 1
Gates of Morning Resource Permanent Event F5 TD 1
Concealment Resource Short Event C TW 1
Ford Resource Short Event C TW 1
Lordly Presence Resource Short Event C TW 1
New Friendship Resource Short Event C TW 1
Risky Blow Resource Short Event C TW 1
Secret Passage Resource Short Event C TW 1
The Old Thrush Resource Short Event U TW 1
Vanishment Resource Short Event C TW 1
Marvels Told Resource Short Event C TD 1
Not at Home Resource Short Event C TD 1
Trickery Resource Short Event C TD 1
20

hazards
Abductor Hazard Creature C TW 1
Ambusher Hazard Creature C TW 2
Brigands Hazard Creature C TW 2
Corsairs of Umbar Hazard Creature U TW 1
Dunlending Raiders Hazard Creature C TD 1
Giant Hazard Creature C TW 1
Huorn Hazard Creature C TW 1
Pick-pocket Hazard Creature U TW 1
Sellswords Hazard Creature C LE 1
True Fire Drake Hazard Creature C TD 1
Arouse Minions Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Call of Home Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Greed Hazard Short Event C TW 1
The Ring´s Betrayal Hazard Short Event U TW 1
Foolish Words Hazard Permanent Event C TD 1
Lure of Creation Hazard Permanent Event U TW 1
Lure of Expedience Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
Rank upon Rank Hazard Permanent Event C DM 1
20

sites
Lorien Haven Site F5 TW 1
Rivendell Haven Site F5 TW 1
Dead Marshes Site U TW 1
Dale Site U TD 1
Lake-town Site C TW 1
Sarn Goriwing Site C TW 1
Schrel-kain Site C TW 1
The Lonely Mountain Site F2 TW 1
The Wind Throne Site F5 TW 1
Thranduil´s Halls Site F1 TW 1
10

Cards Total 62
MP Total 27
Last edited by thorondor on Wed Jan 03, 2024 5:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
thorondor
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SARUMAN

Name Type Rarity #

Characters
Saruman Wizard F2 TW 2
Beretar Character F1 TW 1
Imrahil Character U TW 1
Beregond Character F1 TW 1
Adrazar Character F1 TW 1
Peath Character F1 TW 1
Ghan-buri-Ghan Character U TW 1
Anborn Character U TW 1
Arinmir Character U TW 1
Bergil Character U TW 1
Forlong Character C1 TW 1
14

starting minor items
Horn of Anor Resource Minor Item C TW 1
Star-glass Resource Minor Item U TW 1

resources
Dunlendings Resource Faction U TW 1
Woses of Druadan Forest Resource Faction U TW 1
Men of Lebennin Resource Faction U TW 1
Goldberry Resource Ally U TW 1
Sapling of the White Tree Resource Item C TW 1
Palantir of Minas Tirith Resource Item U TW 1
Palantir of Orthanc Resource Item U TW 1
Sword of Gondolin Resource Item C TW 1
Align Palantir Resource Permanent Event U TW 1
When I Know Anything Resource Permanent Event C DM 1
And Forth He Hastened Resource Short Event C TD 1
Dark Quarrels Resource Short Event C TW 1
Dodge Resource Short Event C TW 1
Escape Resource Short Event C TW 1
Lordly Presence Resource Short Event C TW 1
Many Turns and Doublings Resource Short Event C TD 1
New Friendship Resource Short Event C TW 1
Risky Blow Resource Short Event C TW 1
Stealth Resource Short Event C TW 1
Tempering Friendship Resource Short Event C TW 1
20

hazards
Bert Hazard Creature U TW 1
Cave Drake Hazard Creature C TW 1
Cave Worm Hazard Creature C TD 1
Half-trolls of Far Harad Hazard Creature C TW 2
Olog-hai Hazard Creature U TW 1
Slayer Hazard Creature C TW 1
Tom Hazard Creature U TW 1
True Cold Drake Hazard Creature C TD 1
Wild Trolls Hazard Creature C LE 1
William Hazard Creature U TW 1
Arouse Denizens Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Cruel Caradhras Hazard Short Event U TD 1
Dragon´s Desolation Hazard Short Event U TW 1
Dragon-sickness Hazard Short Event C TD 1
Incite Minions Hazard Short Event C TD 1
Muster Disperses Hazard Short Event C TW 1
Fell Winter Hazard Long Event C TW 1
Despair of the Heart Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
Lure of the Senses Hazard Permanent Event C TW 1
20

sites
Edhellond Haven Site F5 TW 1
Lorien Haven Site F5 TW 1
Rivendell Haven Site F5 TW 1
Ruined Signal Tower Site F2 TW 1
Druadan Forest Site C1 TW 1
Dunnish Clan-hold Site F1 TW 1
Barrow-downs Site F1 TW 1
Pelargir Site C1 TW 1
Isengart Site F2 TW 1
Minas Tirith Site F2 TW 1
Old Forest Site C1 TW 1
Amon Hen Site C1 TW 1
12

Cards Total 66
MP Total 28
Last edited by thorondor on Wed Jan 03, 2024 5:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
thorondor
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GANDALF vs SARUMAN: Demo Decks

characters
gandalf Wizard
gimli Character
legolas Character
haldir Character
boromir Character
barliman butterbur Character

starting minor items
dagger of westernesse Resource Minor Item
horn of anor Resource Minor Item

resources
glamdring Resource Item
durins axe Resource Item
blue mountain dwarves Resource Faction
bill the pony Resource Ally
new friendship Resource Event
persuasive words Resource Event
wizards flame Resource Event
block Resource Event
vanishment Resource Event
dark quarrels Resource Event
lucky strike Resource Event

hazards
bert Hazard Creature
corsairs of umbar Hazard Creature
orc-warriors Hazard Creature
orc-raiders Hazard Creature
orc-lieutenant Hazard Creature
orc-patrol Hazard Creature
minions stir Hazard Event
lure of nature Hazard Event
lure of expedience Hazard Event
weariness of the heart Hazard Event
arouse denizens Hazard Event

sites
rivendell Haven Site
grey havens Haven Site
barrow-downs Site
blue mountain dwarf-hold Site
ruined signal tower Site
bree Site

--------------------- VERSUS -----------------

characters
saruman Wizard
aragorn Character
theoden Character
eomer Character
eowyn Character

starting minor items
shield of iron-bound ash Resource Minor Item
healing herbs Resource Minor Item

resources
palantir of orthanc Resource Item
red arrow Resource Item
riders of rohan Resource Faction
goldberry Resource Ally
tempering friendship Resource Event
a friend or three Resource Event
risky blow Resource Event
escape Resource Event
kindling of the spirit Resource Event
dodge Resource Event
concealment Resource Event

hazards
old man willow Hazard Creature
ambusher Hazard Creature
giant spiders Hazard Creature
wargs Hazard Creature
wolves Hazard Creature
lesser spiders Hazard Creature
wake of war Hazard Event
lure of the senses Hazard Event
fell winter Hazard Event
greed Hazard Event
awaken denizens Hazard Event

sites
rivendell Haven Site
lorien Haven Site
isengart Site
glittering caves Site
edoras Site
old forest Site
Nknma
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Thanks for posting these!
yukonik
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Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2011 11:03 pm

Good evening guys?

Does anyone have the initial adventure guide fort the starter set Saruman vs gandalf?

Thank you

Raul
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zirilan
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You will find it here.
DM_Eonwe
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I really like these decks! Does anyone has some suggestions for some rares though?
CardGameGeek
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I was exactly looking for something like this...
I recently came across over 50kg of cards and I wanted to put together some basic deck to sell real cheap in the hope to have some new people get into the game.

Do you have any plan for some Ringwraith deck as well ?
I have plenty of common and uncommon from all expansion up to LE and would love to put them to good use for any potential new player out there.

Maybe a couple of fallen wizard deck too, you know to learn the rope of "advanced mechanics".

Really looking forward to it.
You have indeed more experience than I have both in deckbuilding and playing to provide more accurate information on this.

Great work and thank you!
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thorondor
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well, you can easily build some first Ringwraith decks yourself. you can use the Challenge Decks as reference. remove the rares or any cards you dont have (CH decks have 3 copies of many cards). no problem to play with 25/25 cards instead of 30/30. you can also add cards from the sideboard to the deck, if you are still under 25.

have you seen the so called Lost Challenge Decks? these include also some Fallen Wizard decks. so you have that covered as well.

the requirement for the beginner decks i created have been a little bit different: i focused heavily on availability (lots of c cards, mostly from TW) and variety (mostly only 1 copy of each card per deck). of course i also had a theme on my mind, and there is hope the decks are balanced as well.
CardGameGeek
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Thanks for your reply and sorry if it took so long on my side, but I have been swamped with work and other stuff...

I know that Challenge deck themselves are not exactly balanced and not sure it will come out anything good "randomly" removing rares and how balanced they will be in the end.

also
the requirement for the beginner decks i created have been a little bit different: i focused heavily on availability (lots of c cards, mostly from TW) and variety (mostly only 1 copy of each card per deck). of course i also had a theme on my mind, and there is hope the decks are balanced as well.
That's exactly what I was looking for, something with your precise requirement, lots of C/Fixed cards, mostly from LE in 1-2 copies and with a theme and hopefully balanced :)

I do think, while for just the sake of selling I can do as you suggest, for a new player something conceived specifically to get someone started and with a theme, would be much more valuable than a watered down version of challenge deck.
As I said, I don't look at getting much money out of them, I do hope to provide a good starting point to hopefully draw in some new players to this amazing game.

Also I think it could be a very valuable extra resource for anyone willing to start, as an improvement of the Hero decks you already posted.

My 2 cent.

Thanks again for what you did so far, in case you won't end up doing a couple of extra decks :D
You can always find my MECCG Haves and Wants here.
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CDavis7M
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Location: California

Just checking, but these beginner decks would typically be played as 1-deck and called at 20MP? Or even 18?

Some ideas on starting companies:
ALATAR: Beorn controls Hama, Theoden with Shield controls Eomer (uses Many Turns) with Cram, and Eowyn (uses Concealment).
GANDALF: Aragorn with Athelas controls Robin (uses Stealth), Boromir controls Ioreth with Healing Herbs, and Folco (add Folco).
PALLANDO: Gloin controls Oin with Dagger, Balin with Shield (uses Ringlore, Secret Passage, Book, Test) controls Kili, and Bifur/Bofur.
RADAGAST: Thranduil with Elf-stone controls Haldir and Bard Bowman (uses Concealment), Gildor, and Orophin with Elven Cloak.
SARUMAN: Imrahil with Horn, Peath, Adrazar, and Arinmir (uses Align Palantir) controls Beregond.


By the way, I got inspired by these to make an even smaller set of 2 different 15/15 decks (though using rares). More as a demo/showcase.
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