The Bare Necessities, Part VIII: Rivendell

Good morning gamers,

So far, we’ve looked at ways you can build an army for Minas Tirith or Isengard that maximizes on the victory points you can score in a game. Today, we turn our attention to Rivendell and see a particular kind of list that gives you good access to fast units, decent numbers, a banner, ways to protect your heroes, and ways to neutralize enemy heroes. While we'll cover just about everything in Rivendell here, you can get a compact summary in Rythbryt's review of Rivendell.

Rivendell: How Many Heroes (and Which Ones)?

While Minas Tirith and Isengard have a great selection of both heroes and warriors, Rivendell does not. While its hero selection is one of the best selections in the game (only beaten as a group, in my opinion, by Erebor Reclaimed – though there are several Rivendell hero choices that are better than what you’ll find in Erebor Reclaimed), Rivendell only has two warrior choices (three if you take Gildor Inglorion). With no Legendary Legions to use (though I’m hoping for a Last Alliance Legion at some point – I predict it will follow a similar army construction rule as the Ugluk’s Scouts LL), Rivendell is what it is, though it does have a good elite infantry profile and one of the best cavalry profiles in the game.

The main question then becomes which heroes do you include?

• The three Lords of the West (Gil-Galad, Elrond, and Glorfindel) are very tough heroes to take down - I played all three recently against my good mate Red Jacket - only managed to gronk Gil-Galad with the Balrog while Elrond and Glorfindel wrecked havoc on me everywhere else;
• The Twins and Erestor are great combat heroes for their cost and easily afforded in small point games if you need lots of power;
• Arwen, Gildor, Cirdan, and High Elf Stormcallers are good casters for being under 100 points;
• Lindir can provide additional auric buffs and make Elrond more effective as a caster; and
• High Elf Captains are the only heroes who can call Heroic March twice (Gildor can call it once).

So who do you take? Here’s my take (see what I did there?):

The List

• Elrond with heavy armor [Army Leader]
• 2 High Elf Warriors with shield
• 2 High Elf Warriors with shields and spears
• 5 High Elf Warriors with Elf bows
• 4 High Elf Warriors with Elf bows and spears
• 4 Rivendell Knights with shields
• Arwen Evenstar
• 3 High Elf Warriors with shields
• 2 High Elf Warriors with shields and spears
• 1 High Elf Warrior with shield, spear, and banner
• Cirdan
• 3 High Elf Warriors
• 3 High Elf Warriors with shields and spears

32 models, 13 Elf bows hitting on a 3+ (rerollable if you stand still and are still near Elrond), 17 D6+ models, 4 cavalry, 5 Might points

I will note that when I initially sat down to write this post, I had this list using Gildor Inglorion + 5 Noldorin Exiles with throwing daggers + 2 High Elves with Elf bows (1 with spear) instead of Arwen and the Knights. The primary reason I’m recommending the Knights instead of the Noldorin Exiles is because Gildor can only call 1 Heroic March, which means the Knights without March will move further than the Noldorin Exiles with 1 March after two turns. Any game that requires more than two turns to get somewhere (which is a fair bit of them) favor the Knights for getting there faster (and in a game like Reconnoitre or Storm the Camp, that could mean a turn earlier than their infantry counterparts). That being said, I think Noldoirn Exiles are great models and I’m more inclined to run them in a game than Knights right now (have other purchases crowding the funds required to get Rivendell Knights).

It’s also important to note that this list is very low on Might – Elrond will be wanting his for Strikes/Combats (in some situations, you might need a Channel/Defense) and Cirdan will want to use his Might to channel Blinding Light against shooting lists, and Arwen will probably want hers to boost a Wrath of Bruinen roll, so you’ll feel the Might crunch in this list more than any of the previous lists we've viewed (and more than most of the other armies we'll be viewing in this series).

Let’s look at each warband and what it’s bringing to the table.

Warband #1: The Lord of Rivendell

The Lord of Rivendell: 412pts (no Knights shown here, of course), all the bows.

Elrond has gotten coverage on this blog since we first got started in the game. Elrond’s got plenty of killing power, but we’ve chosen not to put him on a horse because we’re nearing the Rule of 30 limit (could drop one High Elf Warrior in order to take him). Supporting him are all of the shooting units in this list (using my preferred Rivendell wargear MO of having half of your infantry bowmen having spears, coupled with 4 Knights - who I don't have yet).

Elrond’s warband can advance until they’re within shooting range and start opening fire. While rerolling failed To Hits doesn’t seem like a lot, it basically guarantees for 3+ shoot models that whoever shoots will be hitting their target. This, in addition to their already good range and Strength 3, makes these archers particular lethal. It’s also a great counter to anti-archery bubbles (Blinding Light or similar special rules that make you hit on a 6), since a reroll on these will see ~30% of your archers hitting (which is much better than 17%). I recently faced Zorro's High Elves with my Lorien Elves and let me say from experience that the reroll helped him do a LOT more than he otherwise would have. It's still painful to remember...

I’ve gone with Elrond over Gil-Galad and Glorfindel primarily because of his Foresight points: while I can never seem to get more than 2 of these things, they make getting priority on an important turn easier OR help you lose priority on a turn when you don’t want it. However you choose to use them, neither Gil-Galad nor Glorfindel gives you this level of control from a strategic perspective. That being said, you’ll find both Gil-Galad on horse and Glorfindel on Asfaloth with the Armor of Gondolin to be on-par/cheaper than Elrond, so I could see someone wanting someone else as their army leader. Neither of these heroes help you with the Might crunch problem (though Elrond’s Foresight points can).

Warband #2: The Heavy Anvil

The Heavy Anvil: 148pts, nice mini-combat line that does best when near one of the other two formations.

While there were several changes to the errata recently, the most recent battery of changes saw both Arwen and Cirdan drop in heroic tiers to Minor Heroes. This made a huge difference for me because originally, I had Cirdan leading 12 troops - now that he only holds 6, I needed another hero who could bring 6 warriors. Arwen was a nice shoe-in choice, as I had 60 points available to use (and she happens to be 60 points without any extra gear).

If you have 60pts, which is the better deal?

Prior to this change, I actually didn't have Arwen in my army - I had Bilbo Baggins with Sting and the Mithril Coat. Since Bilbo with Sting and the Mithril Coat costs the same as Arwen on foot, one might wonder how they compare – so here’s that comparison for you:

• Arwen is F6 with an Elven-made sword, but Bilbo is F3 with an Elven-made dagger thanks to Sting – which means that Arwen only has a better Fight Value if Bilbo doesn’t have the Ring on;
• Arwen is S3 and Bilbo is S2 – but Bilbo resolves Strikes at S3 with Stinganks to Sting , so their damage output is the same;
• Arwen is D3 but Bilbo with the Mithril Coat is D5 (so Bilbo will be harder to Wound by anything that’s below S7);
• Both Arwen and Bilbo have 1 Attack, 2 Wounds, Courage 6, and 1 Might point with Heroic Resolve – though Arwen could call a Heroic Channelling or Heroic Defense instead;
• Bilbo has 3 Will points with Resistant to Magic while Arwen has 4 Will points and can use them to cast magic (so it’s fair to say that Bilbo will be better at resisting Magical powers/passing Courage tests, while Arwen will be better at casting magic);
• Arwen has 1 Fate point and Bilbo has 3 Fate points - so Bilbo will sustain damage for longer than Arwen will; and
• Arwen is Move 6” with Woodland Creature while Bilbo is Move 4” without Woodland Creature, so Arwen will be faster than Bilbo (and much faster when moving through woods).

When you get down to it, there isn’t a lot of difference between them except this: Bilbo is more resilient (higher Defense, more Fate) while Arwen is more mobile (and the disparity here becomes even greater if Arwen is mounted on Asfaloth for +10 points). I originally chose Bilbo because of the Might issue I mentioned above: Arwen is probably going to use her Might point to boost a Wrath of Bruinen spell OR call a Heroic Defense in a bad fight (maybe even boosting her Attack roll to win a fight), while Bilbo’s Might is “free to use on whatever you want.” In addition, if we take Bilbo (and he has the Ring), then Elrond doesn’t have to Strike as much, so long as Bilbo can get into Elrond’s fight. Elrond, for his part, shouldn’t have any problem killing things without Bilbo’s help, but there are some heroes/monsters you don’t want to risk relying on a Strike-off to beat.

Since Might is an important part of this army, I think Bilbo is the better model in the long run to keep Elrond's Might store higher than it otherwise would be. But now that Cirdan is a Minor Hero, I think Arwen is the better choice if you need to squeeze more models into your force (or just take Gildor - more on him later).

Warband #3: The Light Anvil

The Light Anvil: 140pts, lighter on Defense, heavier on auric buffs - also best used near the other formations.

Cirdan certainly began the new edition as an auto-include for many Rivendell lists: as the cheapest model with Aura of Dismay (granting Terror to all friendly models within 6” of him) and Blinding Light (making friendly models within 6” of him only hit by archery on a 6) AND Aura of Command (friendly models within 6” of him auto-pass Courage tests), Cirdan can make the Elves near him virtually immune to enemy archery and hard to charge by low Courage models (while being able to charge whatever Terrifying models they want). The Isengard list we looked at last week relied on average Courage across its units and might find charging this block very, VERY difficult.

Once all three of the buffs are active (only channel Blinding Light if your opponent has a decent amount of archery, as channeling it costs you your only Might point), Cirdan can give Elrond (or a grunt . . . or Arwen) Enchanted Blades in order to reroll all failed To Wounds. Don’t bother channeling this spell – you will need your Might point for other stuff (Blinding Light or boosting an Aura of Dismay roll). While Elrond already benefits from one reroll thanks to Lord of the West, rerolling any others is nice too (basically gives you the same To Wound rolls as cavalry).

Even though your warband size has dropped, I think Cirdan is still worth including in any Rivendell list: sure, Maelstrom deployments are risky, but Cirdan's army buffs can be a force multiplier (especially against S3/4 ranged weapons and definitely against S3/4 melee attacks from low Courage models). Allying him into other lists has become much more difficult (and he can never be your army leader - maybe that's a good thing?), but I think in a Rivendell list, he's still a good choice. I do eagerly await whatever Last Alliance/Second Age book gets released - I expect we'll see a Legendary Legion for Eregion that sees Cirdan's heroic tier increase to represent him before the War of the Ring. For now, I think the changes made to him are fine.

I should note that Arwen's warband and some of Elrond’s infantry could deploy near this formation to benefit from its auric boosts as well (the archers should probably stay with Elrond to benefit from the army rule and whittle down anyone who’s trying to rush at your Army leader). Cirdan’s front-line of troops don’t have shields, which is primarily because of us hitting the point limit. While we could have chosen to not get shields on 3 of our Knights (or not taken 3 spears on our archers), I’ve found that having a mix of D5 and D6 front-line Elves is fine (since there are a good many armies that run S2/S4 warriors of their own – mostly of the S4 variety – and some armies that don’t wound on your Defense at all). Besides this, you get the aesthetic appeal of this . . .

Scenario Overview

Let’s take a look at each of the available scenarios and see some thoughts/considerations for using this list:

• Domination: Domination with High Elves is a tricky scenario because you don’t want your units spread out (with Cirdan on the field, you want your army close together). That being said, you not only have 9 Elf bows that can reroll To Hits if they’re standing with Elrond on the center objective (probably with Cirdan there too) who can shoot at anyone trying to get to other objectives (and it’s in this situation that their army bonus really shines). Your Knights are free to harass, focusing on objectives with just a few models on/near them – hopefully shooting the models as they approach, but they can rely on charging with their lances instead.
• Capture and Control: The Knights are really great here, able to tag an objective and fade away. The center should again be claimed by your bowmen and Elrond (probably with Cirdan backing them up), but you need to watch out for any objectives you pass by with your main contingent. Recall that Elrond’s warband has 4 melee warriors in it that could be left behind to protect an objective (or move towards one that is not in the direction you want your main body to march). As with Domination, you want make sure your archers are contributing to your strategy by targeting models on other objectives, not just shooting at people coming to you.
• Hold Ground: Getting to the center quickly will only be possible in this list with your cavalry. While four Rivendell Knights are quite powerful, they can’t hold back an entire army on their own. This is where your archers come in again. While you can’t March with this army (so your archers will show up late), you only have to be in control of the center objective when the game ends. As such, advance quickly but pause before you engage, using your archers (preferably standing still) to soften up part of the enemy’s bulwark around the center objective. Wherever they weaken it, make sure you have Cirdan and Arwen’s troops nearby to hit it on the next turn. Your cavalry can skirmish for a while, hitting the flank of the enemy (preferably on the same side as Cirdan and Arwen’s squads, unless there is a weak point elsewhere).
• Seize the Prize: If getting to the center was important in Hold Ground, it’s more important in Seize the Prize. Not only is getting the prize first worthwhile, but keeping hold of it is tricky. Your Knights can ride into the center, but won’t be able to pierce through a dedicated group of enemy models if they have a larger bulk of their army arriving before yours does. Use your bowmen to keep any enemy models who secure the prize from getting to your side of the board (or off your board edge).
• To The Death: This is your mission: your team can kill lots of things and you can take your time letting your opponent throw himself at your shieldwall. Have as much fun as you can with it and don’t be a jerk.
• Lords of Battle: While To The Death is pretty good for you, Lords of Battle is right behind it. With lots of ways of dealing damage to your opponent’s force, anything that rewards you for doing damage to things will be great. That said, both Arwen and Cirdan are low-Defense heroes and have the potential to cough up a lot of points quickly if left unprotected.
• Contest of Champions: Elrond is a better fighter than either of the army leaders we’ve looked at so far (Denethor and Saruman). While his Wrath of Bruinen kills won’t count to his kill count, I’d still cast Wrath of Bruinen to soften the enemy up – charging models that you knocked prone is a good way to get kills (and keep you alive). Cirdan’s Enchanted Blades should always be given to Elrond in this mission, just to get him as many kills as possible. Watch out, however, for enemy spellcasters, as you don’t have good resilience to magic (unless you choose to not cast Wrath of Bruinen, which wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world).
• Reconnoitre: You have four mounted models, so make sure they take the safest road to getting off the board. If your opponent tries to cut them off, hang back and skirmish with them for as long as you can. If they’re enemy cavalry, weigh the cost of just charging them, as your higher Fight value and lances will make you deadly towards them. The rest of your army needs to talk itself up, but needs to focus on not letting enemy models get past your lines (which is what your archers are for).
• Storm the Camp: Once again, this is a mission for your Knights: get them into the enemy camp in whatever roundabout way you can manage, giving them as much cover as you can. If your opponent left a skeleton crew, you might be able to tear them apart quickly and force your opponent to send troops back to his camp to reclaim it. If you can’t make a quick rush to your opponent’s camp, skirmish for a while to whittle down your opponent’s force (you might even get lucky and break him, causing the units in his camp to have to pass Courage tests in order to stay and guard the camp).
• Heirlooms of Ages Past: The heirloom needs to be dug up by an infantry model and you don't have March - this mission is going to be a pain. I highly recommend placing all of the objectives you can as close to each other as possible to save yourself some effort. Other than that, advance your warbands towards the center, trying to get the best possible firing lanes for your archers and the most restrictive terrain for your shieldwall.
• Fog of War: Your Knights are good and can skirmish – pick a piece of terrain that’s far away. While you probably need to protect Cirdan in order to win the game, Arwen is another option since your opponent will probably be trying to kill her for VPs (she'll probably be easier to hunt than Cirdan). Anyone who rushes towards Arwen can be shot down (though you'll want to protect Cirdan too). When looking for a hero to kill, think about a hero who can be shot easily by your archers or charged/mauled by Elrond. Go crazy with Elrond – his death doesn’t give your opponent anything.
• Clash By Moonlight: You’re a shooting list – so shoot all the time. As I cautioned with Gandalf the Grey/Gandalf the White (and again in this series)/Galadriel last year in one of my series on magic, be careful what turn you active Blinding Light on, as it will remove the range restriction on enemy models but won’t remove the restriction on your models. Besides that, have a good time with it and try not to die to S3/S4 archery.

Modifications

While I’ve already addressed some of this, let’s just recap on the modifications I wouldn’t be surprised to see:

• Drop Elrond – As I said above, I could very easily see players dropping Elrond for Glorfindel or Gil-Galad. Those concerned about the Might game could swap Elrond for Elladan and Elrohir (though losing those Foresight points will cost you Might on turns where you need to call Heroic Moves). While this would give you more Might and possibly more models, your resiliency goes down (losing two heroes with 3 Fate – one of whom has the Ring and the other can reroll his Fate saves). While Elrond might always have a place in this list, I don’t see Cirdan leaving the list. I could see players dropping Arwen in order to get someone more powerful (varying from a Captain to the Twins at the expense of numbers). Rivendell can be played as a hero list, so ignoring the Rule of 30 would be fine if your heroes can keep your troops from getting overwhelmed and crushed (though most of your heroes probably need to be mounted).
• Drop Arwen and the Knights – For starters, I think Rivendell Knights are great tactical units: they have bows that don’t count to your bow limit if Elrond is in your list, they're faster than the alternatives in the long-term, they have a solid combat profile, and are pretty resilient. Still, they’re expensive models and pull our model count down. Dropping Arwen and the Knights and running Gildor and 4-6 Noldorin Exiles (all with throwing daggers, giving Elf bows to some of your "vanilla" High Elves) would save you money and while you’d be a little bit slower, you’d have more heavy infantry elsewhere. With 5-7 fast models, you’d have some room for losing a model or two in a Reconnoitre game or a Storm the Camp game before you were running low on scoring models, but their Elven Cloaks ought to make shooting them to death much harder than shooting the Knights. You've also got options for taking the Twins or Erestor if you want to swap heroes (though 1+ of the Knights are probably leaving as well).
• Take Another Lord of the West - I recently played a game against my good mate Red Jacket where he fielded all three of the Lords of the West (Elrond, Gil-Galad, Glorfindel - all of them had all the toys except their horses). If I wasn't playing Heirlooms of Ages Past with the Balrog (a Bat Swarm managed to pick up the Heirloom and flew around with it), the game probably would have gone horribly. While I think running all three of them really cut down on the models that were fielded, running any two of them would be very powerful. Personally, I like Elrond and Glorfindel as a pair (both have 3 Fate, good resiliencies augmenting those Fate points too), but everyone else seems to like Gil-Galad a lot. So there.

There are some great Rivendell lists out there – Jay Clare got second at the most recent Master’s Tournament with a High Elf list not too much unlike this one (though that list was at 800 points and included Lindir). While I’m not the most veteran player of Rivendell here at TMAT, I’ve fought against them enough times to know that this list wouldn’t be much fun to fight (and for that reason, can’t wait to give it a go – though again, I’ll probably be running Gildor and some Noldorin Exiles until I get some Rivendell Knights).

In our next post, we turn our attention to the land of Mordor where the shadows lie as we look and see how you can build an army of Mordor that can maximize its potential victory point score. Curious what units (especially heroes) make the cut? Those who have read my posts on Mordor recently won’t be surprised – looking forward to sharing my thoughts with you. Until next time, happy hobbying!