Thunder of Hoofs 1.0

• Versions
• 3.0
• 2.0
• 1.0

Introduction

This is a Rohan swarm deck I worked on over this weekend. I really wanted to utilize The Muster of Rohan, as it is such a cool card! Rohan swarms have always seemed good and fun on paper, but the card draw and other aspects made them mediocre at best. I'm not saying this deck isn't mediocre, but it has been a lot of fun to play, and after testing it and making some adjustments, I think this is the best spot for it.

Heroes

I had to begin with Théoden because of the cost reduction for Rohan allies. Also, I didn't want this to be tri-sphere, as it would neuter the cost reduction a bit, and make resources harder to come by. So, Eowyn was my next choice, since she also opens up some card draw avenues with Elven-light. Finally, Erkenbrand made the most sense as my defender. Having a icon was important for my goal of using the discard effects, and Muster of Rohan, since I needed a way to get allies back from the discard pile.

Theoden becomes the primary attacker, with Gúthwinë attached. He can swing for 5 and also quest thanks to Snowmane. Erkenbrand of course just defends, but in some cases, I found I could leave him ready and let some of my allies do the work, to make use of his 2 .

Allies

The allies were the most fun to tinker with, and I settled on a consistent group that performed well in many test games. Of course, for the discard system to work best, you need Gamling. Also, Éothain is nice versatile ally that readies when one of the other allies is discarded; this makes him a good questing ally, and an attacker. Escort from Edoras is a cheap, powerful quester, and is one of the best allies to recur, as he costs 1 resource, and quests for 4, and you can easily grab it again with Gamling, or Gúthwinë. Rohirrim Scout is a nice, newer ally that can allow you to avoid engaging an enemy for a round. This came in handy several times to avoid some huge enemies, since my threat begins rather high. For the last ally that comes with a discard effect, Háma is a great combat ally, and I love using him to defend and attack in one combat, or defend twice with 5 . Again, save him with Gamling or Gúthwinë.

The other allies fill generic roles, such as Ceorl just being a cheap attacker: 2 for 1 is quite nice, also he can ready with spending a resource. Elfhelm is a nice-to-have guy, who can limit some threat increase, and also, is a solid attacker, or a defender in a pinch. Warden of Helm's Deep is a great defender, and helps share the load for Erkenbrand. West Road Traveller is simply a 1-cost 2 quester, but her ability can be pretty handy. Rider of Rohan situationally can quest without exhausting, but, he's a 2-cost 2 or 2 ally. And that's worth it in my book. Finally, Éomund is a solid quester, but also, a solid meat shield. Let him defend an attack, or take some archery to ready your whole army for a big swing!

Attachments

I've mentioned Gúthwinë and Snowmane, but also Hauberk of Mail is great for Erkenbrand and the Wardens of Helm's Deep. One copy of Armored Destrier as a safety valve for Erkenbrand, as well as one copy of Dúnedain Remedy to have some form of healing for the heroes. A couple Unexpected Courage usually for Erkenbrand, as Theoden already as access to Snowmane, and you don't need to ready Eowyn for anything.

The real attachment that makes this deck run is the new Horn of the Mark, which I attach to Eowyn, and gives you card draw from the discard mechanics, or chump blocking. So, with Horn and Elven-light, you at least have 2 ways to draw cards every turn, if you get it set up. Gúthwinë is not so necessary early game, but Horn of the Mark absolutely is needed. I try to get it and/or Elven-light in my opening hand.

Events and Side Quests

So this started as a Muster of Rohan deck and I absolutely love this card. I've gotten such value out of it in testing. An idea I had to really maximize its benefits was to use it when I have A Very Good Tale in-hand. Getting out some expensive allies with Muster, and then later using those allies to get more with A Very Good Tale is a nice combo. These two cards get things moving. Also, Captain's Wisdom can be useful since most turns, you will be spending all resources on allies. Sometimes I will save 1 resource for A Test of Will, or when planning to play a 3-cost (2-cost) ally next turn, or wanting to draw with Elven-light, etc.

Two side quests in the deck, Double Back and Prepare for Battle are just extra, for the threat reduction and extra card draw. They totally are not necessary, but it's a good way to possibly get your Riders of Rohan questing without exhausting, and help your consistency with Prepare for Battle.

Weaknesses

There are some difficulties I ran into along the way. One is threat reduction, as I have none other than Double Back. This became quite a problem in some quests. Also, if you get more than one 5+ enemy with high in play at once, without Gúthwinë, it can be tough to chew through those as quickly as you need to. But, if your allies are showing up as quickly as they need to be, you will have a decent number of 2 guys to help out. Erkenbrand is only going to get up to 4 so that is also a risk. But, you will have plenty of guys to chump block with as well, if needed. Card draw can also be inconsistent, or nonexistent without Horn of the Mark or Elven-light in your opening hand. I mulligan hard for those.

Another potential weakness would be the lack of resources, as you will typically spend all resources every round, unless you get the engine set up and are running smoothly, with one ally leaving play, saved by Gamling, or retrieved by Gúthwinë, and you are no longer needing to play many cards. However, the lack of resource acceleration means you are limited to one ally per round, and with the nature of Rohan-discard, means you are then paying for that ally again next round. You could solve this with Steward of Gondor on Theoden, which you could sub in for the two copies of Captain's Wisdom. You would be able to play it on turn 2, if you have it in your opening hand. I didn't include Steward, simply because I try to avoid using it generally, outside of Gondor decks, since it is so powerful.

I am typically a solo player and this deck definitely can not carry itself alone as a "one deck" in solo. Plenty of quests I tried I just could not handle, especially those with powerful enemies early on, or swarming enemies that are more than just fodder. It'd be great to see what could pair with it in multi-player. A deck that can offer threat reduction, and some combat help for the early game would be a huge help.

Deck-testing

Here are the solo quests I've logged with this deck:

• Fords of Isen
• The Mumakil
• Into the Pit
• Road to Rivendell
• Escape from Umbar
• Intruders in Chetwood
• Lost in Mirkwood
• Passage through Mirkwood

Two-handed quests:

• Voyage across Belegaer
• Fate of Numenor
• Raid on the Grey Havens