Horn of Gondor

Oh, how the mighty have fallen!

Background

Vorondil the Hunter created the horn from a wild ox of Rhun. Vorondil was the father of Mardil, the first ruling steward of Gondor. The horn passed down to the eldest son until borne by Boromir. Legend had it that the horn’s call would not go answered if sounded within Gondor. In the Lord of the Rings, Boromir sounded the horn to call for aid in fighting off the Uruk-hai at Amon-hen. While the Fellowship heeded its call, they were too late to help Boromir.

Card Theme

The resource acceleration mechanism for a character being destroyed fits with Boromir’s sort of. The one resource can help put an ally into play which would fit with the horn’s legend of always being answered. That it gives resources for multiple characters falling to Sauron’s forces is quite a mismatch. A more thematic mechanism would have been a mustering effect like Elf-stone or Timely Aid.

Card Synergies and Interactions

Leaves Play

Cards that have effects when a character or itself leaves play can increase the value of a destroyed character. These are generally better since they work with Sneak Attack like effects. Horn of Gondor will only trigger when damage on a card is equal or greater than its hit points. Still stacking effects to get more value out of a chump block or losing a character to Archery can make the resources better spent. There are many useful effects this can trigger. Tactics Eomer can get his attack to 5 without any attachments and Leadership Prince Imrahil can ready. Allies like Descendent of Throndor, Meneldor, Squire of the Citadel, or Eomund can deal damage, place progress, get more resources, or ready characters if they are the chump blocker with Horn of Gondor essentially defraying the cost a bit. Valiant Sacrifice, Rallying Cry, or Horn of the Mark help with the card disadvantage created by a character being destroyed.

Burglar’s Turn

Cheap Allies

Quest Specific

Basically any scenario where a player is better off using a chump blocking strategy. The Against the Shadow cycle particularly any scenario with the Mordor Elite and the Orc Vanguard with 8 attack. The cycle’s propensity for multiple shadow effects makes chump blocking generally safer.

Ring Rating

Card Talk uses the highly scientific yet arbitrary scale of 1 ring for the card to rule them all to 10 to be cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came.

I rate Horn of Gondor at 8 rings. I’m really tempted to go even to 9 rings. It does have some use with a chump blocking strategy and multiplayer since it is not limited to characters the owner controls. The pre-errata version I would probably would have rated 2 or 3 rings. It had many more uses synergizing really well with Rohan, Eagles, Sneak Attack, To Me! O my kinsfolk and many other effects that put an ally into play temporarily. It would have been overpowered with Silvans of course. I understand why it received errata, but the nerf hammer hit it into near irrelevance. That is because the trigger is less under the player’s control. It also has the Brok Ironfist ability problem, its an effect that a player typically would rather not trigger. The player loses an ally that had to be drawn and paid for to get a single resource.

• Dave – 7
• Grant – 7
• Ted – TBR
• Matt – 8
• Average – 7.33

External Links

• Tolkien Gateway
• Hall of Beorn
• Ringsdb

Sample Decks