Haldir, Sniper Extraordinaire 1.0

• Versions
• 2.0
• 1.0

This deck revolves around Haldir and Gimli to provide excellent ranged and sentinel support that can ramp up by turn 2. It's not intended for solo, but works well in 2-4 player.

The Workhorses:

Haldir of Lórien is the centerpiece of the deck. With 8 weapons available, he should be able to have a weapon on the first turn and hopefully a second weapon by turn 3. Bow of the Galadhrim and Rivendell Blade get him quickly attacking for 7 with the potential to reach 11 attack via Dúnedain Mark and Rivendell Bow. He should be able to one-shot enemies with his combat action or with Hands Upon the Bow.

Gimli is the other key piece of the deck. He gives access to the amazingly versatile Unlikely Friendship and his readying ability allows Haldir to kill two enemies per turn. Steward of Gondor always goes on Gimli so he can pay for his ability and the other leadership cards. Ideally by turn 2 he will have Steward and a Gondorian Shield, allowing him to defend for 4. Dúnedain Warnings get his defense even higher, and Armored Destrier allows for multiple defenses.

The Engine:

The deck is packed with card draw to help find key pieces. Master of the Forge can be played on turn 2 and helps find Steward. Foe-hammer, King Under the Mountain, Daeron's Runes, and Unlikely Friendship provide even more redundancy.

Unlikely Friendship is great for getting a 1st turn Steward or for getting 2 weapons on Haldir turn 1. 1x Rune-master provides some additional resource generation and smoothing.

Éowyn is the perfect third hero because of her high willpower, low threat, and access to tactics resources. If someone else needs her in their deck, Merry is the backup tactics hero.

Strategy and Jankery:

The high priority cards for the first two turns are Steward of Gondor, Bow of the Galadhrim/Rivendell Blade, Gondorian Shield, Unlikely Friendship and Master of the Forge. With these cards, both Haldir and Gimli can come online quickly.

It's possible for Haldir to snipe two enemies in one turn. He can use Hands Upon the Bow during questing to kill one (or Quick Strike after enemies have engaged). Then, after Gimli defends and readies Haldir, he can use his combat action to kill another enemy before it attacks.

This is one of the few decks where Keeping Count works (and it's semi-thematic with Gimli). Haldir should be able to rack up 2 kills per turn, and with the Master of the Forges you can semi-reliably find a second copy. When you find that second copy, you can easily give another hero a huge attack boost, potentially into double digits. Not bad for a 0 cost attachment, eh?

Grappling Hook can give a hefty boost of questing. Ideally it goes on someone after they have been given the 2nd Keeping Count. But it can also go on Haldir to let him quest for 5+ (in case there are no enemies revealed) or on Éowyn if you want to use her one-time ability and quest for 10.

Recommended Pairings:

This deck does best when paired with another deck that likes to engage enemies and quests pretty well. Hobbits (with Sam Gamgee and Pippin) are a great fit, especially because Pippin helps prevent the Haldir player from engaging enemies. Dunedain are also a good fit. Glorfindel is good in the partner deck because he can use his 3 attack and also benefits from some of the weapons. Beregond is also good (as always) because he can defend for the first turn or two until Gimli comes online.

The sideboard cards are generally useful for 3-4 player games and can be swapped in depending on how altruistic you feel like being.

Final Thoughts:

I've been impressed by how this deck performs. It is remarkably consistent and comes online quickly, which is crucial in multiplayer games. Playing this deck reminds me of how useful ranged and sentinel can truly be. It makes the most of Haldir's potential, and it's pretty amazing to see in action. Give it a try and let me know how it goes!