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| {{NavBar|2R22|[[Mines of Moria Index]]|[[Erland, Advisor to Brand (2C21)|Erland, Advisor to Brand (2C21)]]|[[Gandalf's Wisdom (2C23)|Gandalf's Wisdom (2C23)]]}} | | {{NavBar|2R22|[[Mines of Moria Index]]|[[Erland, Advisor to Brand (2C21)|Erland, Advisor to Brand (2C21)]]|[[Gandalf's Wisdom (2C23)|Gandalf's Wisdom (2C23)]]}} |
| {{CardTabs|Gandalf}} | | {{CardTabs|Gandalf}} |
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| [[{{ROOTPAGENAME}}]] is a {{C|Gandalf}} [[Artifact]] from the [[Mines of Moria]] set. It is the only way in the game to [[Skirmish Cancellation|cancel a skirmish]] on a character other than a Hobbit or Smeagol without prerequisites or prevention text built in for the Shadow player. | | [[{{ROOTPAGENAME}}]] is a {{C|Gandalf}} [[Artifact]] from the [[Mines of Moria]] set. |
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| {{CardInfobox|2R22}} | | {{CardInfobox|2R22}} |
| {{QueryCardCategories|2R22}}</noinclude> | | |
| | {{QueryCardCategories|2R22}} |
| = Strategy = | | = Strategy = |
| == Gameplay Strategy == | | == Gameplay Strategy == |
| Gandalf's Staff is as straightforward as it is ubiquitous. Vitality on a key companion, less twilight for opponents, and a way out of ''any'' skirmish make it as versatile as Gandalf himself. There are very few ways for a Shadow player to get rid of it once it is in play, too -- only {{Card|Grond, Hammer of the Underworld}} and {{Card|Ravage the Defeated}} can discard a Free Peoples artifact directly (although a handful of other cards, such as {{Card|Reclaim the Precious}}, uniquely penalize artifacts).
| | ''In this section, describe:'' |
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| With a [[Defender|defender]] bonus, Gandalf can handle many minions at once without concern for how much strength they have. {{Card|Wielder of the Flame}} in particular is a great fit, as the twilight reduction ensures that the event itself doesn't give the Shadow player enough twilight to avoid the effect. On the [[Fellowship Block]] site path, a fellowship of only Hobbits and Gandalf can use Gandalf's Staff with {{Card|Depart Silently}} to funnel all minions onto Gandalf and then simply cancel the skirmish. Remember, however, that the restriction it imposes is for both players -- if Gandalf doesn't have enough vitality to cancel the fierce skirmish too, using it against Nazgul or {{Card|Saruman, Keeper of Isengard}} will get him killed.
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| Even if Gandalf would survive a skirmish, cancelling it can avoid some nasty Shadow effects. Cancelling a skirmish against {{Card|Ulaire Cantea, Lieutenant of Dol Guldur}} can protect {{Card|Glamdring}} (and by extension, any weapons on other companions who might have been assigned) and may be worth doing even if Gandalf could ultimately win the skirmish.
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| While reducing the cost of spells is rarely the center of attention, there are instances in which it makes a big difference. Using {{Card|Servant of the Secret Fire}} to win a skirmish without adding any twilight leaves the door wide open for double moves, especially if it allow the Free Peoples player to wipe the last minion off the board. {{Card|Sleep, Caradhras}} is among the most expensive non-characters that can be played in Fellowship block, and when there are just a few nonessential conditions around the twilight reduction will go a long way in making sure the Free Peoples player is the primary beneficiary. It is essential for {{Card|Risk a Little Light}} and {{Card|Questions that Need Answering}}, where it not only keeps twilight out of the Shadow phase but allows these events to be played more times in a single turn than would be otherwise allowed.
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| However, some {{C|Gandalf}} effects such as {{Card|Deep in Thought}} must spot a certain number of twilight tokens in order to be used. When relying on spells to add twilight, this staff will hinder the Free Peoples' ability to use those effects at all. {{Card|Gandalf, The White Wizard}} will sometimes depend on a well timed spell in the skirmish phase to bump him up to fighting form -- making the skirmish cancelling ability of Gandalf's Staff available as a backup could instead force the Free Peoples to depend on it, unable to add enough twilight when needed.
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| While {{Card|Gandalf, Bearer of Obligation}} can bear this artifact, keep in mind that Ring-bearer skirmishes cannot be canceled. Unless you specifically need the twilight reduction, the text of a different version of Gandalf's Staff will be of greater value for him.
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| | * ''General usage'' |
| | * ''Unorthodox or subtle usage'' |
| | * ''Common pitfalls of using this card'' |
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| == Deckbuilding Strategy == | | == Deckbuilding Strategy == |
| Gandalf's Staff is both almost never the focus of a deck and almost always high-impact when it is played. Strategies which stress Gandalf's vitality, such as {{Card|Trust Me as You Once Did}} decks, will use Gandalf's Staff and {{Card|Narya}} to maximize their output. They also often hold Gandalf back from skirmishing where possible, which lessens the need to increase his strength anyway and increases the need for a backup plan when the fellowship can't keep up with the skirmishing power of some Shadow sides
| | ''In this section, describe:'' |
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| The competition for this card in [[Fellowship Block]] is {{Card|Wizard Staff}}, the only staff which offers Gandalf reliable strength bonus. It can act as a permanent {{Card|Servant of the Secret Fire}} as well, though the exertions will hit harder without the bonus vitality. Since it is not an artifact it is has less protection from being discarded, particularly in Movie and beyond where possession discarding is more commonplace. Still, it is among the most reliable ways to save any character - including the Ring-bearer - in a pinch, and well worth considering if you're losing games while Gandalf has plenty of vitality and no other outlet for it. If Gandalf is skirmishing regularly, Gandalf's Staff can sometimes offer ''less'' vitality if he winds up tying minions for strength in skirmishes and taking wounds. Many Uruk-hai in Fellowship block are 9 strength, for example, so pushing {{Card|Gandalf, The Grey Pilgrim}} armed with {{Card|Glamdring}} up to 10 strength will tilt things back in his favor.
| | * ''Cards and strategies this card works well with'' |
| | | * ''Cards and strategies this card works particularly well or poorly against'' |
| {{Card|Gandalf's Staff, Walking Stick}} and {{Card|Gandalf's Staff, Focus of Power}} directly aid skirmishes, but only if there is a sufficient amount of twilight in the pool. Since this version of Gandalf's Staff makes it harder to add twilight, there is little competition between them: strategies that flood or have Gandalf as the primary fighter may benefit from a bit of extra skirmishing power, but all others typically get more out of the skirmish cancelling and occasional twilight reduction.
| | * ''Alternate cards you might consider picking instead of this one, depending on the situation, including alternate version of characters'' |
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| {{Card|Gandalf's Staff, Ash-staff}} is closer in application to the original, offering versatility through cycling and some wounding. It can be effective against swarms (which generally play many minions with 1 vitality), while this Gandalf's Staff is most handy against beatdown decks. If you need the vitality and can't decide between them, choose whichever one could come in handy in the hardest matchup for the rest of your deck to handle.
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| = Strengths and Weaknesses = | | = Strengths and Weaknesses = |
| == Synergizes With... == | | == Synergizes With... == |
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| * {{Card|Narya}} and {{Card|Strength of Spirit}}, to maximize Gandalf's available vitality | | * ''List friendly cards that work well with this card'' |
| * Any cards that exert Gandalf, especially non-events such as {{Card|Trust Me As You Once Did}} and {{Card|Glamdring}}
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| * Spells, particularly those that play in the Fellowship phase to keep twilight out of the pool in the Shadow phase
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| * Cards which no longer function with too much twilight in the pool such as {{Card|Risk a Little Light}}, {{Card|Questions That Need Answering}}, and {{Card|Wielder of the Flame}}
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| == Strong Versus... == | | == Strong Versus... == |
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| * [[The Balrog]] and any other predictable dangers where the Free Peoples player is typically better off attempting to mitigate losses in skirmishes than trying to win | | * ''List enemy cards this card does well against'' |
| * Skirmish triggers such as {{Card|The Pale Blade}}, which can otherwise be difficult to avoid
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| * Minions which do their harm within the skirmish phase, such as {{Card|Ulaire Cantea, Lieutenant of Morgul}}
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| == Weak Versus... == | | == Weak Versus... == |
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| * The {{Twilight|2}} it costs may occasionally hurt the Free Peoples more than it helps, especially if it is played towards the end of the adventure path without any particular way to make use of the vitality | | * ''List enemy or friendly cards to avoid playing this card with'' |
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| | = Rulings = |
| | ''In this section'': |
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| | * ''Put quotes from the CRDs and Comprehensive Rules here that reference this card specifically by name'' |
| | * ''Also put quotes if a particular rule commonly affects the outcome of a card in a subtle manner (such as quoting the [[Rule of 4]] for {{Card|8R20}})'' |
| | * ''Link to rules discussions on TLHH'' |
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| = Alternate Versions = | | = Alternate Versions = |
| {{AlternateVersionTable|2R22}} | | {{AlternateVersionTable|2R22}} |
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| | = See Also = |
| | * ''Add links to the wayback machine (or wiki archival links) for official Decipher articles regarding the card'' |
| | * ''Link to decks that use this card'' |
| | [[Category:Cards That Need Work]] |
