Most of you had fun on June 21st and 22nd, attending your local Ents of Fangorn Pre-release. If you did not get the opportunity to do so, let me tell you a little story…

Once upon a time, Middle Earth was created and Shepherds of Trees were born. They are known as the Ents - along with the Elves, the oldest living beings. Soon after came the Orcs who tried to cut down those Ents and suffered their wrath! In the end, the Ents overtook the Orcs and regained control of their land. The end.

The new Ents that we find in the Ents of Fangorn expansion set are like their predecessors - very strong and tough, but also easier to play. They don’t require assignment actions to allow them to skirmish and their strength boosts come in the form of conditions and special abilities. But why am I talking about the greatness of the Ents in a Nazgul article? It’s because you will see them in very large numbers and when they are played, they will create a lot of twilight. Nazgul need twilight to be played and will have a hard time overwhelming and even winning skirmishes against those forest giants.

This is where Not Easily Destroyed comes into play. You are likely to see decks with 9 companions: Frodo, Pippin, Merry and 6 Ents. This means Ulaire Enquea will have a blast in the maneuver phase. But how will 3 wounds hurt all those 4 vitality Ents? Since you will have more twilight then ever before, timing it right will be key. If you play Ulaire Enquea alone, that should leave you enough twilight to heal him with Not Easily Destroyed.

YES! You will play Enquea as a lone Black Rider and use the ability of Not Easily Destroyed to remove 3 in the maneuver phase and heal Enquea. Fire away Commander! If you add everything right, you should be able to exhaust every companion or kill a few.

This was very hard to accomplish in the early days with all those twilight denial decks, but everyone is thinking the Ents are unbeatable and will rule Middle Earth once again. If you can get the Fellowship in trouble, by killing the strongest Ent companions, winning skirmishes will no longer be a concern. Plus, you can pull this off more then once in a game because the combo is not hand clogging.

When you get Not Easily Destroyed in your hand, play it. You don’t need to exert or spot anyone - then all you need is Ulaire Enquea and some twilight. Twilight shouldn’t be a problem at site 5 and above site 6. Using the combo late in the game is actually preferred since the Free Peoples player will not have a sanctuary to heal the wounds inflicted by Enquea. Your first targets should be the condition bearing and high strength Ents. Then go for the smaller, group oriented Ent Avengers. This will leave the Fellowship with 5 companions: Frodo, Merry, Pippin and 2 Ents that you can deal with in your fierce skirmishes.

Pulling this off is now easier then ever before and if you give it a try, you will find the ability to be very fun. Until next time, play well, play smart and play fair!

Pascal Lajoie

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