Editing Gimli, Skilled Defender (5R7)

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{{NavBar|5R7|[[Battle of Helm's Deep Index]]|[[Defending the Keep (5C6)|Defending the Keep (5C6)]]|[[Horn of Helm (5U8)|Horn of Helm (5U8)]]}}
{{CardTabs|Dwarven}}

[[{{ROOTPAGENAME}}]] is a {{C|Dwarven}} [[Companion]] from the [[Battle of Helm's Deep]] set.
{{CardInfobox|5R7}}
{{QueryCardCategories|5R7}}</noinclude>
= Strategy =
Properly supported, Skilled Defender can be the featured character of a strong Free People's build. Taking Gimli's standard damage-bonus into account, the ability to wound a minion assigned to an unbound companion means that Gimli can dish out 3 wounds for many of the skirmishes he wins. This can have all sorts of applications--sparing your other companions from bad matchups, preventing powerful shadow special abilities, or even just setting up minions for a final blow (see {{Card|Bow of the Galadhrim}} for comparison). But whatever way you stack them, 3 wounds from a single companion will really start to add up. Combine this with additional damage bonuses from dwarven events and possessions, and perhaps further targeted-wounding potential from {{Card|Gimli's Battle Axe}}, and Gimli can turn into a one-dwarf wrecking crew. 

However! In order to take advantage of Gimli's ability, you must, of course, win your skirmishes. For this reason, {{Card|Axe of Erebor}} may be a better option for Gimli's primary weapon, particularly when supported by {{Card|Ever My Heart Rises}}. Skilled Defender also teams up well with {{Card|Legolas, Elven Comrade}}, who can be there for Gimli right from the beginning in your starting fellowship. Using Legolas' ability to fuel Gimli's skirmish-phase dominance provides something of a risk-free investment (if Gimli loses, Legolas is still safely out of the line of fire--an upgrade over the gamble of {{Card|Gimli, Son of Gloin}}), but Legolas also has the understated benefit of throwing out yet another wound into the pool--being, as a matter of course, an '''Archer'''. So between the two of them--even keeping Legolas away from fighting minions as much as can be avoided--you're set up with a 4-wound engine before you've even drawn your opening hand.

Beyond that, the sky is the limit for dwarven skirmish-pumping cards. {{Card|Khazad Ai-Menu}}, {{Card|Flurry of Blows}}, {{Card|Best Company}}, {{Card|Hand Axe}}, {{Card|Toss Me}}. As always, make sure to save enough room in your deck to support the rest of your fellowship! But because Skilled Defender can help out your other companions with their skirmishes, he will already being doing some of that support on his own.

= Rulings =
Gimli's ability allows him to wound one of the minions he has just beaten in a skirmish. Per the rules, "A skirmish phase ends after all actions triggered by winning or losing that skirmish have resolved." In Gimli's case, this means that any skirmish he wins is not ended until the Free People's player has chosen whether to wound a minion assigned to skirmish an unbound companion. Therefore, any minion that loses a skirmish to Gimli is still considered to be assigned to him until that wound is placed--and since Gimli is, himself, an unbound companion, this means that Gimli can wound one of the losing minions assigned to him with his ability.

== Gameplay Strategy ==
''In this section, describe:''

* ''General usage''
* ''Unorthodox or subtle usage''
* ''Common pitfalls of using this card''

== Deckbuilding Strategy ==
''In this section, describe:''

* ''Cards and strategies this card works well with''
* ''Cards and strategies this card works particularly well or poorly against''
* ''Alternate cards you might consider picking instead of this one, depending on the situation, including alternate version of characters''

= Strengths and Weaknesses =
== Synergizes With... ==

* ''List friendly cards that work well with this card''

== Strong Versus... ==

* ''List enemy cards this card does well against''

== Weak Versus... ==

* ''List enemy or friendly cards to avoid playing this card with''

= Alternate Personas =
{{AlternateVersionTable|5R7}}

= 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]]