{7th Edition} Armies of Middlearth SBG: Isengard in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

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Updated May 2026: Isengard is one of the most iconic--and diverse--factions in MESBG, with four fairly developed subsets of troops and heroes: Uruk-Hai scouts (led by Lurtz and Ugluk), their more heavily armored / firepower-boosted siege variants (Shieldwall warriors, berserkers, and siege engines), warg riders and orc warriors (Sharku, Grishnakh, and Snaga), and now the disenfranchised hordes from Dunland (Thrydan, Frida, and Gorulf, plus the not-disenfranchised Wildman Oathmaker). The 7th Edition no longer lets you field everything all at once. But each list offers something slightly different, and plenty of tricks are still available to you if you fancy a turn with evil.

Army Quick(ish) Hits


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• Strength: Strong, durable combat troops. There's a reason why many consider Uruk-Hai the gold-standard when it comes to infantry in the Middle-Earth SBG (not me, I prefer porcupine dwarves, but still...). Fight 4 and Strength 4 give you a solid core for any army: above-average fight and elite strength, on warriors that cost 10 points or less. Uruk-Hai Scouts with Shields (D5) give you just enough Defense to keep other S4 armies honest, while the heavily armed Uruk-Hai Warriors get to D6 base with shields, and are the only evil rank-and-file warriors who can crack D7 thanks to Shieldwall (which they somehow picked up this edition). And that's before you get to the added damage you can pick up from S4 Crossbows, S3 Uruk-Hai bows, a demolition team or ballista, a dense S4 pike block, Fight 5 berserkers with two-handed blades, or a ton of special rules that can boost your damage to absurd levels (like Meat's Back on the Menu, There will be no Dawn for Men, Animosity, and Berserker Blade). Whether it's winning ties in duels or wounding on 5s (or better) instead of 6s, Uruk-Hai can almost always deal out the punishment, and almost always take it, too.
• Strength: Good troop selection and upgrade options. The new edition's focus on "historical moment" armies hurts this somewhat--but even though you can't mix-and-match this edition with the same freedom as prior editions, there are still very few factions in MESBG that have access to the full panoply of troop and weapon upgrade options available to an Isengard faction. The core of this is their two base units, who each have excellent melee, ranged, and support wargear options. Uruk-Hai Scouts have access to banners, Shields (D5), and S3 Uruk-Hai Bows (4+ shoot, 18" range), which means that even if you don't have any other troop options (see Lurtz's Scouts), you can still build a well-rounded force that has plenty of counters to conventional armies. Armies that can't take Scouts can usually take Uruk-Hai Warriors, a heavy-infantry warrior with access to banners, a S4 crossbow (4+ shoot, 24" range), shields, and pikes. And most armies can also pair these elite troops with cheaper supporting warriors (Orc Warriors, Wildmen, wargs) or specialty troops (berserkers, Warg Riders) to help boost your numbers and fill some holes (cheap spears, cheap objective grabbers, torches that somehow grant Dominant (2)). That's a pretty solid foundation for list building.
• Strength: Lots of disruption. Evil Saruman can't be taken in every Isengard list anymore, but the two that feature him prominently have upped his disruptive potential considerably. He still has 18" range on some really annoying spells with great cast values (3+ Transfix/Compel, 4+ Curse, 5+ Sorcerous Blast), although requiring a 5+ for Flameburst seems... well, it still seems silly. Pair that with Grima's "spend more Might than you wanted" shennanigans, plus three really nasty once-per-game special rules in Army of the White Hand, and you still have the ability to lock-down the only big heroes that will pose a serious threat to your elite fighting horde. Isengard also has access to some of the more dangerous and disruptive siege weapons in the game in Assault of Helm's Deep (demo team, siege ballista), and most lists can either field Uruk-Hai Bows or Crossbows in sufficient numbers to tear apart conventional armies that can't close on them quickly. Charge them without a plan, and the charge may be blunted (or blasted) before it ever gets going.
• Strength: Good, cheap heroes. Isengard has almost as many hero profiles as Mordor, which is the gold standard for evil armies. And while Mordor probably still has the edge in hero quality, the gap has closed this edition. Lurtz in particular has gotten a huge glow-up, Ugluk is a real force-multiplier, and even the cheaper heroes (like Sharku or generic Uruk-Hai armored Captains) can be surprisingly threatening thanks to free heroic combats or the ability to Strike or get to D8 with Shieldwall.
• Strength: Excellent mobility (most of the time). As a full faction, Isengard has exceptional mobility options. In addition to Warg Riders and Wild Wargs, plus Heroic March on almost every hero, both Lurtz's Scouts and Ugulk's Scouts make your standard Uruk Scouts base 8" movement, with options for a free Heroic March each turn from the Uruk-Hai Drummer. You can't stack a drum on a Heroic March anymore (no more 14" movement), but because you choose when the Drum goes off, you can actually have models both charge and march in the same turn now (which is really powerful). There are some models that miss out--Isengard Orcs don't get that extra 2" of movement, and you can't take the drummer in every list. But even with just a basic March option (which you can take in spades), this army can move surprisingly fast, even if you build it as a heavily-armored siege force.
• Strength: Flexible archery. If you need to punch through something in a hurry, there's little that can stand up to sustained fire from massed crossbows (in which case, you hit it with a siege ballista). As a result, crossbows are relatively rare (the Corsairs and Iron Hills / Erebor Reclaimed are the only other forces that have access to them), and while they pack a punch, you trade that firepower for almost no mobility (as you can't move and shoot with a crossbow, unless you have a specialized hero in Battle Companies). If you need that mobility, Isengard has an excellent fall-back option: not only do you get access to Strength 3 Uruk-Hai bows (something no other crossbow force has access to), but you can put them on 8" move uruks in both Lurtz's Scouts and Ugluk's Scouts, which means you can move 4"-5.5" (depending on the presence or absence of drummers/heroic March) and then unload a S3 weapon that fires up to 18" away. You could even take a mix of both in Muster of Isengard f you wanted, to open up some intriguing cover-fire scenarios while your crossbows and marauders take turns moving into better positions.
• Weakness: Surprisingly little Heroic Strike... For an army that has lots of hard-hitting Strength 5 heroes with multiple attacks, Isengard doesn't have any true "alpha-threat" hero. Lurtz is probably the most threatening, thanks to a bump to F6, getting Shield Throw added to his base profile, and the addition of General Hunter and a free heroic combat each turn in his legion (Lurtz's Scouts). But at just F6, he only tops out at F9 now if he strikes, while Ugluk (and sometimes Uruk-Hai Captains, in the Muster of Isengard list) is your only other model that can Strike. That's not necessarily a problem--there are plenty of ways you can still neutralize much bigger heroes. But you have to fight them asymetrically most of the time (Transfix them with Saruman, drain their heroic resources with Grima, dissuade them from charging with your bombs, or pin them in place by shooting into their combats and killing your own troops that they're fighting against).
• Weakness: Magic Defense (beyond Saruman). As good as Isengard is at disrupting enemy plans, it has limited tools for dealing with enemy disruption through magic. Saruman is great at fighting one wizard to a stand-still, but against 2 or more casters (something Mordor and Angmar tend to leverage, and even some elven factions can take advantage of) he can run out of Will (or at least run out of enough Will that he can't take advantage of his offensive spells). Lurtz in particular is very vulnerable to magic, which will largely shut him--and his free Heroic Combats--down if you can't get to and neutralize enemy casters. And while some low-Will armies like the Serpent Horde have access to Heroic Resolve (trading Might points for magic resistance in a pinch), Isengard doesn't have a single hero with that heroic action. It's your Will, and maybe Saruman... and that's it.
• Strength: Courage (usually). This edition, it's gotten increasingly hard to build Isengard lists that struggle with Courage. Three of the lists (Lurtz's Scouts, Muster of Isengard, Assault on Helm's Deep) break at 66% instead of the normal 50%, and virtually every list can take Ugluk (Lurtz's Scouts, Ugluk's Scouts), an Uruk-Hai Shaman (Army of the White Hand, Muster of Isengard, Assault upon Helm's Deep) or an Orc Shaman (Army of the White Hand, Ugulk's Scouts, Wolves of Isengard). And that's before you get to the Courage 3+ Berserkers, Courage 5+ Ferals, and Fearless Wildmen with the Wildman Oathmaker. So while it's possible your list could struggle with Courage, you really have to work hard to make that happen.
• Strength: Cheap and available (Uruk-Hai) models. Uruk-Hai warriors, siege troops, and warg riders are available in plastic which definitely helps, there are just about as many sculpts of Saruman as there are of any other character, and even Uruk Hai scouts are making a comeback. You get slightly fewer Uruk-Hai siege warriors in a standard box than you do other evil warriors (20 vs. 24 Mordor / Morannon orcs), but it's better than only having the option of metal blisters (like you do with the Uruk-Hai Crossbowmen). And, of course, Isengard's long run in the game means it is one of the more popular factions available for purchase on second-hand markets. The Isengard Battlehost box in particular is exceptional value, plus you can get both Lurtz and Ugluk in the same hero pack (which saves some dough).

Named Hero Profiles


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• Saruman. If you've followed... well, really, anything Tiberius has written about Saruman/Isengard over the years, this will be old-hat to you. Let's just say for a decent price for a wizard, you're getting a master spell-caster who can reroll a single die when casting and resisting spells (Lord of the Istari) which, when combined with a free Will per turn, a 6 Will store, and some shrewd spell selection (go with the 4+ Sorcerous Blast over the 5+ Flameburst virtually every time), means you can always have a good go at shutting down the enemy's most dangerous piece (a 2+ Immobilise or 3+ Command at 18" range with a reroll to cast? yes, please). Add a 12" Stand Fast! that reaches other Hero models, in an army that may not start testing until you're reduced to 33% on a Hero of Legend who auto-passes his first test (and is Courage 7 the rest of the way), and you can keep your already pretty-good-to-amazingly-good courage models on the board for a while. Last is the Palantir--a one-time use "give me that all-important priority" that your opponent can't do anything about (and you don't have an opportunity to botch, since there's no X+ roll for it). If there is a weak stat in his profile, he really doesn't like being in combat, with just 1 Attack, Fight 5, and no Heroic Strike (although you can take a horse to give him some added oomph and/or keep him mobile while casting). The Witch-King of Angmar he is not (although not all of us here at TMAT agree), but he's still a top-tier caster for evil, even if he is also one of the squishier ones.
• Grima Wormtongue. He's Saruman's stooge, literally. An Independent Hero, Grima has to go somewhere, and that somewhere is usually in the middle of Saruman's warband, unless you choose to attach him to an enemy warband instead. This isn't a bad idea provided he can keep up with them (the option to take a horse helps), since any enemy Hero within 6" of Grima must spend 2 Might points to declare a Heroic Action instead of just one (although other dice-boosting shenanigans are unaffected--no comboing Grima with a Shade, for example, to mind-numbingly frustrating effect). Magic can target him, so if your opponent has a mage with some sort of damage-dealing spell (Gandalf, the Witch-King, Elrond/Thranduil/Arwen, Kardush, or a rival Saruman), probably best to keep him with the rest of your force where you can try to keep him safe from enemy archer fire. (Or not.)
• The Wild Man Oathmaker. The last new hero (for Dunland) introduced in War in Rohan, and the one with the most screen-time. His statline is fine (Fight/Strength/Defense 4, 2 Attacks/Wounds, Courage 4, and 3/1/1 heroic stats), and Hatred (Rohan) is a nice touch, but the central feature is Fearless and his special rule, which makes all friendly Wildmen in your force gain the Isengard keyword (they test for break at 66% instead of 50%) and that makes all friendly Wildmen within 6" Fearless. Courage 7 berserkers are great but expensive. Orc warriors with spears are cheap, but have trouble charging models with Terror. Fearless wildmen are dirt cheap and expendable: perfect for throwing at the Dead of Dunharrow or Aura of Dismay elves, while your other troops bring their spears or pikes to bear behind them.
• Lurtz. He's a pretty good combat model (Fight 5, Strength 5, Defense 6, 3 Attacks / Wounds, Courage 5, and 3/1/1 heroic stats) who comes with a shield (though it doesn't boost his defense stats) and a Strength 3 bow. He's got a good collection of heroic actions as well (March, Strike, Strength, and Challenge), and as a Hero of Valor, he can lead 15 troops. The extra warband slots are nice, given that any models he leads can arrive whenever and wherever he wants them to in scenarios where you typically roll for reinforcements or deployment (Find the Halflings). At just Defense 6 with 1 Fate and 3 Wounds he will eventually fall if he's trapped or if he finds himself engaged with a hero who's out of his league (*cough* Aragorn *cough*), but most heroes in his points-range will find him incredibly challenging, if not dangerous.
• Ugluk. Quite a bit cheaper than Lurtz, with some reduction in killing power (still Fight 5 and Strength 5, but his Defense, Attacks, Wounds, and Courage have all dropped by 1). He has Strike and 3 Might (plus Heroic March and Strength), and his Head Taker special rule is very nice (kill one friendly Warrior within 2" to cause Ugluk to auto-pass his Stand Fast! that now has a range of 12" and affects friendly Heroes), if a bit finnicky (the rule only takes effect "should Ugluk's force be broken," which can become tricky if you have any non-Isengard models in your force). He drops to a Hero of Fortitude, so only 12 models in his warband.
• Mauhur. Mauhur has two things going for him: he can beat up on mid-tier human / orc / goblin captains with a beefy stat profile (Fight 5, Strength 5, 3 Attacks), and he moves 8" with the option to upgrade up to 12 Uruk-Hai Scouts to Marauders with 8" movement. Unfortunately he has a 3+ shoot but no option for shooting weapons, only 2 Might (instead of the stock-standard 3), and no option to Heroic Strike, which means he's handicapped as a combat model and as a supporting model. He's best on the flanks munching on troops with his faster minions; you don't really want him anywhere near your enemy's primary beatstick. Is he good? Yes. Is he as good as he could be? Not really, no.
• Vrasku. Unlike Mauhur, Vrasku actually makes use of most of his stat profile: a 3+ shoot pairs nicely with a Crossbow and Expert Shot (provided you can get around the no-move-and-shoot limitations inherent to crossbows), and while he doesn't have Heroic Strike either, having 3 Might is always better than having 2 Might. He's also a hero of fortitude, so you can bring 12 models along with him. And as far as master archers go, he has one of their better combat profiles (Fight 5, Strength 5, Defense 5, 2 Attacks, 2 Wounds).
• Sharku. An orc (but an Isengard orc, at least) with orc captain stats: Fight 4, Strength 4, Defense 5, 2 Attacks, 2 Wounds, Courage 3, and 3/1/1 heroic stats. He comes with Heroic March (which is good) but no Strike (less good), and would only ever take him above an Uruk-Hai hero for the mounted warg option (he can also take a shield to get to Defense 6). His Riding Dagger is a fun bit of war-gear: if an enemy Hero fails to wound Sharku in combat, Sharku gets to resolve 1 Strength 4 strike against that model, which is kind of cool. He also features prominently in one of War in Rohan's new Legendary Legions.
• Snaga. Fight 4, Strength 4, Defense 5, 2 Attacks, 2 Wounds, Courage 3, 3/1/1 heroic stats. Heroic Challenge, hero of fortitude, only include Orc models, choose not to take part in a friendly Hero model's heroic action without any penalty, and doesn't need to stay in range of any heroic action he participates in.

Unnamed Hero Profiles

• Uruk-Hai Captain. Isengard's equivalent of your standard heavy-armor captain, complete with Uruk-Hai stat boosts (Fight 5, Strength 5 to go with Defense 6, 2 Attacks / Wounds, Courage 4, and 2/1/1 heroic stats). As with Captains of Minas Tirith, they lose some of their lustre due to the number of named Isengard captains who have Heroic March, but if you can survive without Heroic Strike they're pretty cheap heroes of fortitude who can beat up on mid-tier heroes if left unchecked. If you're looking to run multiple of these, consider the Siege of Helm's Deep Legendary Legion in War in Rohan, as the leader gets an attack and wound stat boost (3 Attacks/Wounds), and they can lead up to 18 troops instead of the standard 12.
• Uruk-Hai Scout Captain. An identical stat profile to the Uruk-Hai Captain, apart from the drop from Defense 6/7 to 5/6 (depending on whether you take a shield). You can take an Uruk-Hai bow as well, if you want some Might attached to your ranged attacks (in case you need to go for an enemy mount, for example). If you keep your army bonus active, they gain Woodland Creature as well.
• Orc Captain.Another stat drop, to Fight 4, Strength 4, Defense 5/6, and Courage 3. There's not a lot of reasons to take these apart from building a more thematic force. If you are looking at this option, you may just want to fully commit to an allied contingent which will allow you to bring more powerful orcs (Morannons from Mordor, for example), as your army bonus won't affect them. Their low courage may be an issue, too, as they don't share the necessary keywords with any of the shamans in your army list. Speaking of which...
• Uruk-Hai Shaman. Your standard Shaman profile (F4, Strength 4, Defense 4, 1 Attack, 2 Wounds, Courage 4, and 1/3/1 heroic stats), with a 12" range Transfix (5+) that you probably won't use, and a 2+ Fury that affects all Isengard Uruk-Hai. If you're running a pure Uruk-Hai force, it's a good spell to get up in general (auto-pass all courage tests within 6"), and if you're fighting anything that causes Terror you may rely on it heavily. You also have the option for armor to get up to Defense 5, but no option for a Warg. They're also only minor heroes, so only six warriors can accompany them into combat. They don't have the right keywords for Dunland warriors or orc warriors, so if you're going to be bringing a lot of those, consider the Wildman Oathmaker or an Orc Shaman (which you'll have to ally in, unfortunately) if you need the courage boost.
• Uruk-Hai Drummer. A fairly cheap independent hero with a warrior's stat line (Fight 4, Strength 4, Defense 5, 1 Attack, 1 Wound, Courage 4, and 1 point of Fate). You really want him for the war drum that boosts the movement of all Isengard Uruk-Hai without burning Might. If you want to get your infantry moving fast, he's your man (er, Uruk), and if you want to get them moving really fast (up to 14" with marching Marauders), he's essential.
• Isengard Orc Shaman.

Isengard Warrior Profiles

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• Uruk-Hai Scout. Remarkably cheap for a very good combat stat line. The obvious eyesore is Defense 4 (Defense 5 with a shield), but Fight 4, Strength 4, and Courage 3 are all fine-to-very-good on just an 8 point model. They have an option for banners (which is good) and shields if you need them, but their biggest boost in the newest edition is the ability to take 18" Strength 3 Uruk-Hai bows instead of regular bows. Keep your army bonus, and they gain Woodland Creature. Upgrade up to 12 of them to 8" move Marauders (if you take Mauhur), and suddenly you've got very fast shock troops (or skirmishers if you take the bows) for a pretty cheap cost.
• Uruk-Hai Warrior. One additional point over their Scout versions picks up an armor boost (Defense 5/6 with shield), and an incredibly well-rounded combat profile. In addition to shields, they can pick up pikes, crossbows, and banners to round out Isengard's infantry profile. At Strength 4 / Defense 6, they're the most dangerous and resilient pike formation in the game, so protecting their flanks will be critical. 
• Feral Uruk-Hai. The slightly cheaper elite infantry option for Isengard: Fight 4, Strength 4, Defense 4, 2 Attacks, 1 Wound, Courage 5, and a 6+ save whenever they take a wound (though unfortunately it's not cumulative with a channeled Fury save). Unfortunately they don't gain Woodland Creature from the army bonus (which would be awesome), but they're pretty good at protecting the flanks of a pike block (and particularly dangerous as the front-rank of a pike block). They can also cop a Fight 3 cavalry charge pretty well, too, especially if you give them banner support.
• Uruk-Hai Berserker. For two points more than Feral, you pick up an extra Defense (Defense 5), two extra Defense against shooting attacks (Impervious to Bow-Fire), 2 Courage (a whopping Courage 7), and the Berserker Blade--a hand-and-a-half sword which, if you win a duel while using it as a 2-handed weapon, gives you the option of either striking normally or doing one Strength 4 hit at +1 to-wound on every model engaged in the fight (or supporting) that is in base-contact with the berserker (so it can take out your own guys). Against most enemy infantry (Defense 6) that's a 4+ to wound when you add the +1 to-wound bonus, which is lethal. Against Defense 4 enemy cavalry, that's a 3+ to wound, which is downright scary.
• Orc Warrior. The tried-and-true grunt orc. Fight 3, Strength 3, and Defense 5 are nothing to write home about, but they’re very cheap to field, even if you kit out with shield, spear, and hand-weapon. Speaking of which, they have a ton of wargear options so you can customize them to taste: sword (stab/feint) or pick (piercing strike) for free, spears, shields, bows (on a 5+ shoot), and banners (definitely take one of these on someone). Nothing screams “evil” like hordes of orcs (although since you have access to wildmen, they're not your only horde option in this list). The only caveat is that these will start courage-testing for breaking before your Isengard models do if your army bonus is active, so plan accordingly.
• Isengard Troll. The best statline troll warrior in The Armies of the Lord of the Rings, pairing your stock-standard Fight 7, Strength 7, and 3 Attacks / Wounds with Defense 8 and the ability to shield (its Courage 4 is also not bad). You can also take an Isengard war drum if you want more than just your Uruk-Hai to get movement boosts (it'll affect Isengard Orcs like Sharku and Snaga, as well as Dunland Wildmen if you have the Wildman Oathmaker in your force), though that will cost you the shield. Like all non-hero trolls they really don't like to be Transfixed, so some magical support (probably Saruman) is encouraged if you plan to bring one along.
• Wild Man of Dunland. I'll be honest--unless you're taking the Wildman Oathmaker, these seem a little overcosted: Fight 3, Strength 3, Defense 3, 1 Attack / Wound, and Courage 3 for the same cost as a goblin warrior with no upgrades is... probably fair, but not fantastic. Add the Oathmaker (who makes them all Fearless within 6", plus gives them the Isengard keyword) and they're substantially better--basically a cheap hard-counter to any army that likes to throw up Terror front lines, provided you have something with higher fight / strength / more dice to back them up. The two-handed axe upgrade for 1 point is intriguing, especially if you're fighting Rohan--a Strength 4 Piercing Strike with +2 to-wound (effectively Strength 8) in combination with Hatred (Rohan) will kill a lot of things, and even without the extra +1 to-wound from Hatred, effective Strength 6 is fantastic value on a 6 point model, especially if the model is also Fearless. They may not look like much, but don't let these guys catch you napping; you may not live to recover.
• Crebain. These are kind of strange models, in that they're really not built for combat (Fight 2, Strength 2, Defense 3, 2 Attacks, 4 Wounds, Courage 2) and don't really do anything to help you win combats (models within 12" lose the Stalk Unseen special rule, but that's more of a protection against shooting attacks than combat). What they are good at, at a minimum, is holding far-flung objectives: Fly (12" move) gives them the mobility, 4 Wounds gives them survivability, and their special rule (they're only hit by shooting attacks on a natural 6) helps them evade arrow fire. If you have a roving band of marauders, warg riders, or even a lone Berserker anywhere nearby to clear objectives, these guys will hold them for you (or at least contest them for you) for a while.

Seige Profiles

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• Uruk-Hai Demoliton Team. One of the more curious area-denial profiles in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game. On paper, it seems fairly innocuous: yes, it does D6 wounds (or 2D6 wounds on occasion) but its range is only 2" on a 48" x 48" (or larger board), and detonating it relies on a series of rolls (courage test to detonate, then detonation, then the d6 wound calculation roll) any of which could derail it. Underestimate it at your peril, though--especially if your opponent has a war drum tucked away in his force.
• Isengard Assault Ballista. This is Centaur's baby, so there's not much I could say that he hasn't already said better. All I will add is (1) these things are dirt cheap, (2) if your enemy has some, be sure to keep some of your own troops near your heroes / priority models to take advantage of its 3" scatter, and (3) they are downright (and unnecessarily) lethal in the Assault on Helms Deep Legendary Legion. If you plan to spam them in a competitive event, I would strongly consider the legion over a regular Isengard force. Speaking of which...

About those Legendary Legions

War in Rohan introduced four new legendary legions that incorporate various models from Isengard. All four take advantage of the fact that Isengard is really four factions rolled into one (orcs on wargs, Uruk-Hai scouts, Uruk-Hai siege troops, and Dunland warriors), so they offer boosts to players who limit their profile choices to just one subset of the list (whilst also rewarding thematic choices). If you like to cherry-pick from all the things that make Isengard diverse, these probably aren't for you, but if you're heavily invested in just one subset they tend to offer more boosts to those subsets than you'll find in just the Isengard army bonus.

• Ugluk's Scouts. A strong choice if you're already inclined towards lots of uruk scouts and a drummer. You get a decent selection of heroes--Ugluk (must be your leader--obviously), Mauhur, Snaga, Uruk-Hai Scout Captains, and Uruk-Hai Drummers, plus Grishnakh from the Mordor list--along with Uruk-Hai scouts and orc warriors. The most pressing issue is a lack of Heroic Strike to deal with big enemy heroes (only Ugluk and Grishnakh have it). Mobility is pretty good: in addition to all friendly models picking up Woodland Creature (very nice), as long as you include Mauhur, you can upgrade any number of scouts to Marauders (not just the ones in his warband) for free, plus Ugluk, Uruk-Hai Scout Captains, and Uruk-Hai drummers also get a boost to move 8" (also for free). The fact that your drummer only boosts Isengard Uruk-Hai can lead to some interesting shennanigans if you have a lot of Mordor Orcs mixed in, as well. Your damage potential is also increased, as your orcs pick up a free +1 to-wound when involved in the same combat as an Uruk-Hai (and vice-versa), to reflect their rivalry/animosity. If you weren't planning to take siege Uruk troops, warg riders, or Dunland models anyway, and can live without Lurtz, this is a good list.
• Wolves of Isengard. The army composition of this one is pretty straightforward: Sharku (who has to be your leader), warg captains on wargs, warg shamans on wargs, warg riders, and wild wargs. Sharku gets a boost to a Hero of Valor (can lead 15 instead of just 12), which is nice, and also gets to declare a free Heroic Combat every turn without spending Might (which is very nice). You also get some keyword swaps (all friendly models pick up the Isengard keyword, and your shamans swap their Fury (Mordor Orc) to Fury (Isengard Orc) to keep things clean. The legion also gains bonuses in scenarios where you come on with dice rolls: in addition to choosing whether to win or lose priority (huge), they can also charge on the turn they enter the board, which is normally not allowed (also huge). Up to 6 models in the warband can also make a free "move" and "shoot" before the first turn of the game (though they can't charge during that move), which is great in scenarios like Sieze the Prize, where extra movement early could be the difference between playing from in-front and playing from behind. At higher points levels, this legion will struggle to deal with big heroes (you have no Heroic Strike at all), but if you like running Wargs (and Gothmog / Mordor warg riders aren't your cup of tea), these guys are pretty fun.
• Assault upon Helm's Deep. Most of your siege units are found here: Uruk-Hai Captains, Shamans, Warriors, Berserkers, Isengard Trolls, Demo Teams, and the Assault Ballistae. Again, the glaring issue at higher points will be the lack of Heroic Strike (although your leader Captain gains a nice boost to 3 Attacks / Wounds with the option for a shield, so he may be able to tank a bigger hero for a short time with some luck). Otherwise, your best bet of dealing with big heroes is either to swarm them (your heroes gain +6 to their warband sizes), batter them with your siege ballistae (which get to reroll both their hit and scatter rolls in the shoot phase), run an Isengard troll, or some combination of the three. You're also exempt from taking courage tests until you lose more than 66% of your army, and you always have the demo charges to deter enemies (which you get to roll 2 dice when detonating, and choose the highest). Not everyone's cup of tea, but if you're all about Isengard's bread-and-butter warrior choices, and not so much its named heroes, this gives those troops some nice buffs.
• Army of Dunland. At last, Dunland gets its day. You get access to all the Dunland units in Isengard--Thrydan (must be your leader), Gorulf, Frida, Oathmaker, Chieftains, warriors, wildmen, horesmen, huscarls, crebain--which get some buffs. In addition to Thrydan finally getting that bump to Hero of Valor, all your Dunland models pick up Hatred (Rohan), which means any that are using 2-handed axes could get a +2 to-wound if your opponent brought straw-heads. But wait, it gets better: once per game, all friendly models within 12" of Thrydan can pick up another +1 to-wound when making strikes, which means a +3 to-wound (from Strength 4 or Strength 5, if you piercing-strike) is potentially in play. Oh, and they get 6" banners, too. Just because. MURDERERS!!!

Concluding Thoughts

And there we have it. A time-honored faction with some cool new face-lifts. If you've tried out any of the new Isengard legendary legions (or the new heroes / units), do let us know in the comments section, or on facebook. And if Isengard's your jam, don't forget to check out the rest of our recommended resources below.

Photo Credit: giphy.com

More from the TMAT Team

• The Stuff of Legends: Lurtz's Scouts (March 2021)
• Overly Pedantic Stats: Improving Isengard (February 2021)
• THRO 2020 Army Preview: Raise the White Hand! (September 2020)
• The Bare Necessities, Part VII: Isengard (February 2020)
• Uruk Heroes: Taxonomy, Revisited (December 2019)
• Workbench Update: Isengard (October 2019)
• Using/Fighting Spellcasters: Unlimited Casters, Revisited (August 2019)
• Dunlendings: Any Good? (May 2019)
• Magic in MESBG, Part III: Isengard (April 2019)
• Revisiting Magic: Magic in the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game (February 2019)
• New Rules - Part V: The Fallen Realms, Part II (November 2018)
• Isengard Strategies: Ballista Crews (August 2015, *Pre-MESBG)
• Isengard Heroes, Warriors, and Tactics (/October 2014, *Pre-MESBG)
• A Newbie's Top 20 Heroes: One Gamer's Perspective (January 2014, *Pre-MESBG)
• Post-Tournament Review: Why I Uruk the way I Uruk (April 2013, *Pre-MESBG)
• April Project: Uruk-Hai Month with a Twist! (April 2013, *Pre-MESBG)
• Picking a Captain - Uruk Style! (January 2013, *Pre-MESBG)
• The A Team (October 2012, *Pre-MESBG)
• Spell-Caster Evaluation: Saruman the Colorful (June 2012, *Pre-MESBG)
• BATTLE REPORT: Fellowship v. Isengard (Hold Ground) (July 2019)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. Rivendell (Domination) (July 2015, *Pre-MESBG)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. Harad (To the Death) (January 2013, *Pre-MESBG)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. The Grey Company (Lord of Battle) (November 2012, *Pre-MESBG)

Support your Hobby

• Isengard Model Range (Games Workshop)
• Dunland Model Range (Forge World)

Recommended Resources

• PODCAST: Episode 85: Isengard (The Green Dragon Podcast)
• IN PRINT: Fog of War, Part 6: Isengard (Veni Vini Double)
• MEDIA: War in Rohan Terrain & Rulebook Detailed Review (ZorpaZorp)
• MEDIA: Top 5 Isengard Heroes, Legendary Legion Review & Tactics Talk (Top Table Gaming)
• MEDIA: Armies of the Lord of the Rings Review: Episode 21, Isengard, War in Rohan Review (STF Wargaming Studio)
• MEDIA: Mustering an Army, Episode 12: Isengard, Making Dunland Work, Know Thine Enemy: Saruman, Know Thine Enemy: Vrasku, and Scenario Spotlight: Scouring of the Westfold (Green Dragon Podcast, *Pre-MESBG)
• MEDIA: How to Play and Buy Isengard (DC Hobbit League, *Pre-MESBG)
• MEDIA: Fallen Realms Week - Heroes of Isengard (GBHL Podcast)
• MEDIA: Tactic Talks: Isengard (Lotr SBG Team, *Pre-MESBG)
• BATTLE COMPANIES: Isengard Uruk-Hai Battle Company Breakdown - Review, Tactics, & Showcase (Ontario SBG League) 
• BATTLE REPORTS: Ugluk's Scouts v. Theodred's Guard, The Wolves of Isengard v. Paths of the Druadan (ZorpaZorp)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. Iron Hills Dwarves (Guerrilla Miniature Games)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. Rohan (MWG Studios)
• BATTLE REPORT: Serpent Horde v. Isengard (Tactical Tortoise)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. Thranduil's Halls (STF Wargaming Studio)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. Ejercito de los Muertos (Bolson Abierto)
• BATTLE REPORT: Isengard v. Mumak War Leader (Der Wurfelorden)
• HOBBYING: How to Paint Saruman, How to Paint an Uruk-Hai Captain (Battle Games in Middle Earth)
• HOBBYING: How to Paint Uruk-Hai (SlokosPaintstation)
• HOBBYING: Middle-Earth Painting Series Episode 1: Uruk-Hai Warriors (Industria Artificis)
• HOBBYING: How to Paint: Uruk-Hai Berserkers, Battle-Ready (The Wargamer Bandit)
• HOBBYING: Let's Paint Uruk-Hai Berserkers (V1989)
• HOBBYING: Painting Guide: Uruk-Hai Scouts, Painting Guide: Uruk-Hai Berserkers (Paintbrush Pirate)
• HOBBYING: Uruk-Hai Scout Painting Tutorial (BuchanDuck)