So what gets the spotlight today? …a Blood/Fire deck? …an Outlands deck? …how about a Noldor deck?

Or how about a creative blend of all three?

Today, CotR shines a spotlight on…

Old Allies of Lorien

http://ringsdb.com/decklist/view/2060/old-allies-of-lorien-1.0

Hero (3)
Amarthiúl (The Battle of Carn Dûm)
Galadriel (Celebrimbor’s Secret)
Glorfindel (Foundations of Stone)

Ally (19)
2x Anfalas Herdsman (The Steward’s Fear)
1x Arwen Undómiel (The Watcher in the Water)
3x Dúnedain Watcher (The Dead Marshes)
3x Ethir Swordsman (The Steward’s Fear)
2x Galadriel’s Handmaiden (Celebrimbor’s Secret)
3x Knights of the Swan (The Steward’s Fear)
2x Northern Tracker (Core Set)
3x Warrior of Lossarnach (The Steward’s Fear)

Attachment (17)
2x Blood of Númenor (Heirs of Númenor)
1x Gondorian Fire (Assault on Osgiliath)
3x Light of Valinor (Foundations of Stone)
3x Mirror of Galadriel (Celebrimbor’s Secret)
2x Nenya (Celebrimbor’s Secret)
3x Steward of Gondor (Core Set)
3x Unexpected Courage (Core Set)

Event (14)
3x A Test of Will (Core Set)
3x Deep Knowledge (The Voice of Isengard)
3x Fair and Perilous (Across the Ettenmoors)
3x Tale of Tinúviel (The Dread Realm)
2x Timely Aid (The Redhorn Gate)

This deck proves that you can build outside the bounds of a typical “trait deck” and still come out with something viable. Old Allies of Lorien features Outlands without Hirluin, Dunedain without Heir of Valandil, and Timely Aid without secrecy… and it works.

At its core, this is an Outlands deck… sort of. Sure, you could be conventional and run Hirluin/Bifur/spirit, but this particular line-up brings something valuable to the Outlands party: versatility.

While powerful, Outlands is a one-trick pony, susceptible to ally-hate effects and the dreaded “blank character text” treacheries that have been surfacing of late. In Old Allies of Lorien, the Outlands strategy is supplemented with the stat boosting effects provided by Dunedain attachments (Blood/Fire) and Noldor events (Tinuviel/Fair and Perilous).

You are effectively putting your eggs in two baskets: ally-swarm and stat-monster. Better still, the high starting stats of this team ensure that you can survive the early game. If those weren’t reason enough, it’s just a fun deck to play. It doesn’t “feel” like a traditional Outlands deck, and the theme harkens back to the good ol’ days, when the card pool forced us to build true fellowships, rather than decks based solely around one racial trait.

If you’re not put-off by the inclusion of Outlands allies, this deck definitely deserves a second look.

– WanderingTook