Heroic Heroes: Top 10 Heroes for Heroic Strength

Good morning gamers,

Two more specialized heroic actions left in this series and today we're tackling the not-as-glamorous of the two: Heroic Strength. If you've been with us for a while, you know that Rythbryt came to the defense of Heroic Strength when the new rules dropped, doing a long series on Heroic Strength and how awesome it is (check out the list of posts here). Heroic Strength doesn't appear to be that useful, but it turns out some heroes can get REALLY good use out of it.

What Does the Heroic Action Do?

Heroic Strength looks pretty simple: a hero can call Heroic Strength at the start of the Fight phase and increases his Strength by D3. In its most direct use, this can be used to increase your wounding potential by +1 (or sometimes +2), making it easier to wound a high Defense model you're fighting (or REALLY smash through a low Defense model you're fighting). However, the actual implications of increasing your Strength can have other uses too. Let's look at a few.

Heroic Strength: The Fellowship of the Red-Headed Step Children (Or, Why Heroic Strength isn’t Always a Total Waste of your Might Point)

In Tiberius's write-up on the new heroic actions, he took a detailed look at what each of them do and when you might call them based on their utility. All but two were found at least some utility. The unfortunate misfits? Heroic Shoot and Heroic Strength.

Following Thumper's maxim, I shan't say anything about Heroic Shoot. But I read Tiberius's post shortly after a TMAT Tournament where I made frequent (albeit unexpected) use of Heroic Strength in all three of my matches. While it's not the sort of heroic action you would automatically call every turn, I believe there are situations--and several of them--where it adds clear value. 

Tiberius was kind enough to give me a chance to explain. So here's the first of three write-ups examining the case for Heroic Strength. 

(Also, there be some maths ahead...)

Heroic Strength: The Return of the (Numenorean) King (Or, How Heroic Strength helps Elendil... and your hero, too! ... if they actually win the fight)

So far, we’ve looked at Heroic Strength solely in terms of the benefits it can confer if our hero loses the fight. In part 1, we looked at how Heroic Strength can protect heroes who are swarmed by cavalry models or find a Mordor troll up in their grill, by shrugging off knock-downs, offering us cheeky ways to blunt what monsters usually do well, making us too heavy to hurl and harder to rend, and keeping our all-important mount under our hero’s heroic tushy. And in part 2, we examined how, depending on the opponents we’re facing, Heroic Strength may even provide comparable (or better) protection than Heroic Defense.

All of this should give us some confidence that if we expend Might to call Heroic Strength, there are at least some scenarios (which also happen to be particularly dangerous scenarios) where we’re probably going to see at least some return on our investment even if we lose the duel. Now let’s consider how Heroic Strength can help our hero if he wins the fight.

More maths! More charts! To war!

Back to Basics: Heroic Actions in MESBG

Good morning gamers,

Today, we're talking about what heroic actions are available to heroes in MESBG. When I first got started playing SBG back in 2010, there were only three heroics: Heroic Move, Heroic Shoot, and Heroic Combat. These heroics are the only ones available to all heroes, but other heroics have crept up through the intervening years (and when the MESBG rules revamp happened in 2018, the other heroics became specialized and were listed under each profile . . . which was good, because Captains of Rohan being able to out-fight Cave Trolls for two rounds was just silly).

But what heroic actions are out there? And are there traps to any of them that should be avoided? We're going to deep-dive into all of this today as we explore one of the best aspects of the MESBG system. I'll be dropping links throughout the discussion to our previous Heroic Heroes series where I talked about how these heroic actions work and some of the best heroes that could use them back in 2020 - the articles are old, but the lists have held up pretty well over time - and other articles that we've done on heroic actions so you can learn more if you want to. Let's take a look!

Common Heroic Actions: Move, Shoot, and Combat

As has just been stated, every hero in MESBG has access to Heroic Move, Heroic Shoot, and Heroic Combat. At least two of these are incredibly useful heroic actions (whether there's value to calling Heroic Shoot is very much a debatable question) but all three share one thing in common: they all change the cadence of the phase that they're called in. Let's see how they work.

Heroic Move

I mentioned very briefly in the Move Phase post of our how-to-play section of this series that a hero who declares a Heroic Move can either move before the normal priority-player's movement or can call "With Me!" to allow the declaring hero and all friendly models within 6" of the hero to move before the normal priority movement, though the declaring hero has to move first, the friendly models within range have to end their movement within 6" of the declaring hero's final movement, and anyone who can't end within 6" of the declaring hero's final position OR that doesn't want to move within 6" of the declaring hero can't move at all. Heroic Moves are incredibly useful because they can allow you to move first.

Because Heroic Moves alter the cadence of the Move Phase, if both players have heroes who declare Heroic Moves, a roll is made to see which player gets to move first - one player is assigned the values 1-3, while the other is assigned the values 4-6 and a single die is rolled (the Evil player is 1-3 and the Good player is 4-6, but in Matched Play, you'll need to decide which player is which if it's a Good-vs.-Good or Evil-vs.-Evil match). Each player then takes a turn resolving one of their Heroic Moves. You can cancel a Heroic Move declared by an enemy hero by charging them.

For most factions in the game, moving first is really good - cavalry models can get their charge bonuses by moving first, heroes get to pick their matchups instead of having their opponents decided for them, and models that are trying to escape from enemy models with an object that's worth victory points have the opportunity to get in a better position (and even out of reach of an enemy model). Yes, Heroic Moves are awesome.

They're also costly - you'll hear veteran players talk about "Heroic Move-Offs," which is the colloquial term for when both players declare Heroic Moves to see who goes first. In most cases, the side that loses the 50/50 roll is going to have their Heroic Move cancelled, which results in a wasted Might point (hence my caution about counter-calling Heroic Moves with actual Might points back in 2019). For most players, this is just seen as part of doing business, but as the game drags on, wasted Might is felt acutely and this can have a psychological impact on your game play. Blaming dice is all fine and good - and losing priority a ton of turns in a row and NOT winning any of the Heroic Move-Offs can be a real pain - but the choice to counter-call a Heroic Move is a choice that we make, and so before you counter-call a Heroic Move (or even declare the first one), one should always examine the board and see what the ACTUAL risk is of moving second. Sometimes it's fine to move second.

Heroic Actions: What's Worth the Cost?

Good morning gamers,

Today we’re talking about Heroic Actions – we got a boat load of them since the LOTR SBG first began and a handful more than we had in the Hobbit SBG. Today we’ll be talking about what they are, which ones are worth calling, which ones are SITUATIONALLY worth calling, and which ones are basically never worth calling.

If Tiberius Were King For A Day: Top 5 Heroic Action Changes I'd Make

Good morning gamers,

This is the last post in this mini-series where I talk about small changes I'd make to MESBG that I think would have good impacts. It's also our eight-hundredth post ever . . . wow, we've been busy. :-) One of the distinctives of the MESBG system (and part of what I think makes it the best tabletop game in town) is the heroic resources you get for your heroes - specifically Might points. Will and Fate are great and all, but Might points allow your heroes to be more heroic when you need them, and nowhere is this more visible than in the specialized Heroic Actions that heroes can have. 

Unfortunately, not all heroic actions are equal - some are viewed as incredibly niche and others border on completely unusable (and that's from a generous point of view - some players definitely DO see some of the heroic actions as pointless or a waste of time). Today I've taken five heroic actions that I think need a little help and offer a simple fix to each that I think would make them go from eh-to-ooh - let's see what they are!

Heroic #1: Heroic Accuracy

This is probably my least controversial heroic action to change, since some players already see this is a great heroic action. I've heard critique on my post where I talk about Heroic Accuracy being a waste of Might, claiming that the opportunity to hit a priority target past multiple in-the-ways makes the heroic action incredibly good. While many competitive players are in agreement that Heroic Accuracy can help you immensely, I can't get past the fact that in order for it to take effect, you need to a) hit with a shooting attack first, b) have in-the-ways between you and your priority target, c) have to fail in-the-way rolls that then turn into successes, and d) have to wound that target after you pass the rerollable in-the-ways. If any of these conditions aren't met, the Might point spent on Accuracy is wasted (for more on this, read the post linked above).

Armies of Middle Earth SBG: Rohan in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

---Updated April 2024---

So I tried to think of something clever or inventive or thematic to say when introducing our faction for this week, but in the end, I couldn’t find anything better than this iconic tune (although this one is a very close second).

We’re talking, of course, about the second of the three heroic factions of men that fought at the Battle of Pelennor Fields (and other places, too, as it turns out): the Horse Lords themselves, Rohan. If you picked up the Battle of the Pelennor Fields box set when the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game was re-branded in 2018 (and didn’t sell off the model sprues for parts), odds are you have at least 12 of these guys, plus their fearless leader Theoden (more on him shortly—he’s kind of important to the army nowadays). 

The troop options in Rohan aren’t quite as diverse as what we have in Minas Tirith, but Rohan still features a plethora of iconic, powerful, and in many cases stupidly-cheap (in points, not necessarily cash) heroes to lead your riders into battle. Cavalry charges can be tricky in this game, and in some respects, Rohan is missing some core elements we’d expect to see if we want to recreate those smashing moments from Return of the King (high fight, lances, armored horses, etc.). Underestimate them at your peril…

As with Minas Tirith, I think it’s worth highlighting some of the fantastic community resources on Rohan that are especially worth checking out. James Clark from the GBHL was on Rohan early after the new edition came out, with a video on how Rohan’s changed in the new edition, and what their new rules could mean for their future. And I’d also be remiss if I didn’t direct you to Mik’s Fog of War entry on Rohan (which also features Mr. Clark) for some fantastic sample lists to get your creative juices flowing.

Now for wrath! Now for ruin! (And our thoughts, I guess?)

Photo Credit: The Fandamentals

Heroic Strength: The Two Choices (Or, Why would I ever choose Heroic Strength over Heroic Defense?)

If you're just joining us, this is part 2 of a three-part homily on Heroic Strength. (No really, it's a proper homily, complete with alliterative points, inside references, and illustrations.) You can find part 1 here, which discussed the major defensive bonuses that we can give to heroes against cavalry and monster/monstrous mount units by calling Heroic Strength.

Of course, our prior discussion has begged the question: are these defensive benefits from Heroic Strength as good as what you’d get if Elendil spent that same Might point on Heroic Defense? The answer... in many cases... is “probably.”

(More maths incoming... and charts!)

In Defense Of: Orophin

Good morning gamers,

With a new sourcebook in hand, we delve into a profile that generated a lot of excitement when his model was first seen in the Defence of the North supplement . . . and by almost all reviewers (Sharbie excluded), we see heavy critique for the ONLY Lorien model released in Defense of the North: Orophin. The long-lost brother of Haldir and Rumil (both of whom have been in the range for ages), Orophin was a welcome inclusion in a book that features Lothlorien as one of the three campaigns (that can be linked into one big campaign) in the Defence of the North supplement. But what is it that holds this guy back? Why is it that people don't seem to like him? Well, let's dive in and see what the critics have to say . . . and why I think this guy has a welcome place in Lothlorien lists.

Why NOT To Take Orophin

Photo Credit: Centaur's copy of Defence of the North - photos of this guy are sparse!

On behalf of all Lothlorien fans, let me begin by saying that the first critique of this guy is that he doesn't have a mount option. This isn't new for named Lothlorien heroes - apparently none of them get horses. If you're used to playing with the Halls of Thranduil (two of the three named heroes can take mounts) or Rivendell (five named combat-heavy heroes can take mounts), you probably know that high-Fight heroes who are capped at S3-4 REALLY get more mileage out of having a mount (not only for speed, but also in killing power). It's a known problem for Lorien players that named Lothlorien heroes don't get mounts - and I tell you what, it would have been nice to have Orophin be "the mounted named hero guy" - it just would have been nice.

I'm also going to note in passing that Orophin as printed in the book doesn't have Woodland Creature - but I fully expect that to be erratad in the upcoming August FAQ. I'm writing it up - you should write them too. Moving on . . .

Heroic Heroes: Top 10 Heroes for Heroic Defense

Good morning gamers,

Today we visit yet another clutch and beloved heroic action: Heroic Defense. For many people, this is a great heroic action - anytime you can keep a Troll from Rending you, Azog from smashing your face in, or ignore the benefits of that burly two-handed hammer, you're a happy man. But is Heroic Defense all that it's cracked up to be? And how do you know when to punt on offense and throw your heroic action into defending yourself? Well, that's what we're going to look at today!

What Does the Heroic Action Do?

Heroic Defense is pretty straight-forward in its rules: the hero who calls Heroic Defense in the Fight phase is only wounded on a "natural 6" (that is, a die that "gets a 6" and isn't boosted to a 6 with Might, two-handed-weapon bonuses, special rules, etc.) during that Fight phase. Brutal Power attacks and modifiers don't come into play at all. If the hero would be wounded on a 6/4+ or worse, then you need to get a natural "6/6+" (which is, needless to say, quite difficult). Simple, right?

Heroic Heroes: Top 10 Heroes for Heroic Strike

Good morning gamers,

Well, we're closing out the year with the specialized heroic action you've been waiting for: Heroic Strike! Ah, Heroic Strike - the specialized heroic action that seemed so stupidly powerful when my mates and I looked at the Hobbit SBG rules that we said, "No thanks - we'll stick with the Legions rules and the big blue rulebook." In the new edition, Strike isn't available to all heroes and so becomes an interesting part of list building theory and meta-gaming. But how useful is it anyway? For more on this topic, you should check out Rythbryt's series on Heroic Strike, where he delved into how useful this heroic action really is (and covers a lot of other things too - things that can make your Heroic Strikes more powerful AND things that can make countering Heroic Strike easier without having to call a Strike in return).

What Does the Heroic Action Do?

Heroic Strike, like Heroic Defense and Heroic Strength, is pretty straight-forward: the hero who calls Heroic Strike in the Fight phase increases his Fight Value by D6. Like all heroic actions, Heroic Strike is called at the start of the Fight phase, but your increase in Fight Value isn't determined until the fight involving that hero is selected to be resolved. This is important because if a F3 Meriadoc, Captain of the Shire calls a Heroic Strike against someone like the Witch-King of Angmar, the Witch-King will need to decide whether to counter-call a Heroic Strike BEFORE knowing if Merry got a 1-2 and retained a lower/tying Fight Value to the Witch-King's original Fight Value of 5. Counter-calling a Strike might be the "safe" way to go, but it would also mean foregoing a Heroic Combat (something the Witch-King is likely to succeed in pulling off if he's on the charge with the Crown of Morgul - and certainly possible if he's riding a Fell Beast).

This increase in Fight Value is also determined before the players choose whether or not they are using any special strikes - so a model armed with a sword or dagger (most models with Heroic Strike have these kinds of weapons) can Strike up to a high Fight Value and then choose to Feint to lower their Fight Value if they're fighting warriors (or low-Fight heroes) in order to not only get a higher Fight Value, but also reroll 1s on their To Wound rolls. Neat, huh?

Armies of Middle-Earth SBG: The Survivors of Lake-Town in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

In stark contrast to the last army list we covered, this one is far more humble in its outlook and bearer. And a humble force deserves a humble intro:

In the lands of Lake-Town, the people of Esgaroth are led by two separate yet equally important groups of heroes: the family of Bard who stick together through thick and thin, and the militia captains of Lake-Town who buff their numbers.

 

These are their stories.

*dun-dun*

I think they're onto us, son...
Photo Credit: denofgeek.com

{7th Edition} Armies of Middle Earth: Iron Hills and Erebor Reclaimed in the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game

Du Bekar!!! (Or something like that)

Updated: Seventh Edition (October 2025)

In the lore of Middle Earth, there are dwarves, and then there are the dwarves of the Iron Hills. Founded by Gror, the brother of Thror, the arrival of the Iron Hills have tipped the balance of many fateful battles: at Azanulbizar, routing the orcs when a young Dain Ironfoot slew Azog before the gates of Moria; at Erebor, when they stood against the forces of Bolg in the Battle of the Five Armies; and in the North, when they resisted Sauron in the War of the Ring.

In the Seventh Edition of the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game, the Iron Hills dwarves remain the pinnacle of dwarven military power and ingenuity. Their heroes have undergone some significant revisions (some improvements, some lateral, and some head-scratching), but their warriors remain both resilient and deadly fighters in close-combat; and their cavalry, crossbows and war machines still pose a threat to enemies who doubt the reach of their “stubby little legs.” In stubbornness and staying power, they are second to none.

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

Photo Credit: Artstation.com

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.

Armies of Middle-Earth SBG: The Serpent Horde in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

With the Easterlings and Khand behind us, we're moving down south to the land of the Haradrim. We'll begin with traditional Harad (rebranded the Serpent Horde in the new edition of the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game), before moving on to Far Harad and all their camels (so, so many camels) next time. Like any serpent, these guys move fast and strike fast, with venom dripping from their fangs. There may also be mumakil involved...

Photo Credit: upabovetodownunder.blogspot.com

Armies of Middle-Earth SBG: Far Harad in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

                              

Photo Credit: MattThrelkeld on Imagr

Updated February 2024: We come at last to the final participants in the Battle of Pelennor Fields: the mysterious Mahud from Far Harad. While their fleeting limits of film glory are limited almost exclusively to running down Rohirrim astride their Mumakil, the Mahud in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle game have more up their sleeves than giant elephants.

I try to flag excellent community resources up here whenever I can, and Far Mahud happens to have a great one: DCHL Devin's video on How to Play and Buy Far Harad (Mahud) is a fantastic introduction to the different units, strengths, weaknesses, and playstyles of this faction (updated for the new rules set, too!), so be sure to check that out. If you still want to know what we think, carry on...

Armies of Middle Earth SBG: Barad-Dur in the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game

Someone has to wear the black hat. In the Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game, the blackest of hats (or helms) is worn by Sauron and his fell forces. If you like Sauron's baddies, you have two options. Mordor recreates Sauron's forces during the War of the Ring, but doesn't feature the big bad himself. If you prefer Sauron in bodily form, you're looking at Barad-Dur, which features Sauron and his hordes at the time of the Last Alliance. If you love slaughter and fire, detest all things green and beautiful (at least some of the time), and want Evil to have a face, you’ve come to the right place.

Armies of Middle-Earth SBG: Moria in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

Deep beneath the misty mountains lie the caverns of Moria. In ages past, the greatest kingdom of the dwarves gave way to foul goblin invaders. After the fall of Azog, the land lay quiet for years, until Balin's ill-fated expedition, and the Fellowship's own venture into this forsaken land, awoke an ancient malice...

Few armies in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game have such a diverse list as Moria. From spammable cheap troops to elite, monstrous heroes, there is no such thing as a "standard" Moria force. So grab your torch, brush up on your elvish passcodes, and venture with us into the long dark of Moria.

Photo Credit: YouTube

Armies of Middle Earth SBG: Minas Tirith in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

Warning: You are passing into the realm of Gondor…

After a brief sojourn into the Armies of the Hobbit and a long dalliance with the forces of Evil (plus a returning post from Centaur on the Rangers of the North--check that out, too, if you haven't already), we’re returning to the armies of Good with one of the most iconic armies in all of Middle-Earth: the defenders of Minas Tirith. I’ve always been drawn to heavily-armored troops (no doubt stemming from my fascination with armored knights since childhood), plus Gondor boasts the most powerful profile of my favorite hero from the books/films (Aragorn). So it has a lot aesthetically going for it. Plus, with the new additions in the new rule set, Army book, and Gondor at War supplement, they've received a power boost on the table-top, too!

I’ll preface our thoughts on Minas Tirith by saying that if you want an in-depth discussion of all this faction has to offer, I strongly recommend you check out The Green Dragon Podcast’s recent episode on revamped Minas Tirith, as well as David Clubley’s thoughts over on Blackmist’s Veni Vidi Double blog. Both are excellent (like, really, really excellent). With those ringing endorsements, if you still want to know what we think, read on. ;-)

Photo Credit: Hannibal & Kaemon

Revisiting Magic: Magic in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game

Good morning gamers,

We're taking a brief aside today to do a write-up on an element of the new game that I've been thinking about for a while: the new magic system. For those familiar with the Hobbit Strategy Battle Game magic system, life isn't TOO different. However, my gaming group didn't adopt this system of magic, so there's quite a bit changed (and some of those changes will still apply to Hobbit SBG players). One of the most popular posts on our blog is a post I did back in 2013 on Ringwraiths and magic - you should look at it if you haven't gotten the chance.

Note: this post has been edited to reflect the Armies of the Hobbit errata that gave Curse to the Necromancer again.