Defend It and Hope is another tool in the “Three Hunters” Maneuver Phase wounding kit along with Quick as May Be and Baruk Khazad. Notably, Defend It and Hope is far more flexible as there are many different decks in Two Towers but the only companion regularly seen before Reflections is Gimli. It also has a natural synergy with Ithilien Trap, able to kill almost any minion in the maneuver phase once it has been exhausted.

Defend It and Hope is commonly seen in Ring-bound Ranger decks due to the prevalence of Ranger's Bow and other direct wounding, though it may be useful in any deck with at least one companion. Because of the prevalence of Uruk-Hai in The Two Towers, Defend It and Hope is most popular in Towers Block and Towers Standard to cut down the vitality Uruk-Hai rely on to survive Gondor Bowmen, Aragorn's Bow, and other wounding techniques. Still, it is useful against other cultures and can often kill and minions due to the low vitality common among minions in those cultures. Though Goblin Armory and Hides protect these minions, Defend It and Hope being an event which does not cost any twilight may catch a Moria or Dunland player off-guard and force the player decide between future protection and losing a minion.

Defend It and Hope is situationally useful against Uruk-Hai such as Berserk Slayer because of their enduring-like ability to gain strength from wounds. While it may be used to prevent these Uruk-Hai from exerting to use their skirmish abilities, the strengthened Uruk-Hai may overwhelm a companion if it cannot be finished off through direct wounding. Still, exhausting Berserk Slayer is better than allowing him to exert himself to wound each companion, and Defend It and Hope can kill him (and most other Uruk-Hai) outright if the Shadow Player uses Devilry of Orthanc.

Because the Free Peoples takes the first action in each phase, it may be used to keep Berserk Butcher from protecting Uruk-Hai from other pre-skirmish wounds and weaken non-Uruk minions with maneuver actions such as Grima, Wormtongue or Ulaire Enquea, Lieutenant of Morgul. A player who can use Ulaire Enquea, Lieutenant of Morgul's maneuver text will often try to apply all 3 wounds to maximize effectiveness, killing a companion with the last exertion if it means taking the fellowship from 6 companions down to 5. Defend It and Hope can surprise a Shadow player by placing a third wound token on Enquea, preventing him from killing a companion even if that companion had fewer than 3 vitality to begin with. However, as the event trades an exertion for a wound it will be useless if Enquea is targeting your only non-exhausted companion.

Since the maneuver phase is before the archery phase, Defend It and Hope can be used to weaken or kill minions with archery special abilities without allowing the Shadow player to use them in between Free Peoples actions, though the Free Peoples should consider whether the exertion is worthwhile. Elite Crossbowmen, for example, should only be targeted if there are unbound companions in the fellowship, otherwise he has caused 2 wounds rather than 1. Desert Lord may make a good target, using Defend It and Hope to reduce Desert Lord's wounding potential from 2 direct exertions to only 1, though only if there is a nonessential companion to bear the exertion. Defend It and Hope is rarely useful against other archery and other wounding decks such as Sauron Grind, Moria archery, and some Southrons. It may be useful to kill a minion to reduce the archery total, but the Free Peoples needs to keep in mind whether the extra exertion might cause a companion to die prematurely.

• Uruk-Hai
• Minions which exert to use a Maneuver action
• Fellowships with a number of other wounding strategies, such as Gondor Bowmen, Legolas, Greenleaf, or Gimli, Skilled Defender
• Vitality reduction such as Citadel of the Stars

• Broad-bladed Sword and other wound prevention cards
• High vitality minions other than Uruk-Hai
• Archery and other direct wounding Shadow sides

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