Editing Saruman

The corrupted White Wizard '''Saruman''' is the chief of the White Council and, secretly, the treacherous servant of Sauron, plotting to betray his former allies and then usurp his master. In this game, he is the only [[Shadow Alignment|Shadow]] [[wizard]], and appears as both a [[minion]] and a [[follower]]. First appearing on his own card in [[Realms of the Elf-Lords]], Saruman leads the {{C|Isengard}} [[culture]], which includes most cards associated with Saruman, including his army of [[Uruk-hai]] and [[orc]]s, as well as corrupt [[Men|men]] like [[Grima]].

Most versions of Saruman, particularly in [[Fellowship Block]] and [[Tower Block]], are minions that can't [[skirmish]] or soak wounds in the [[Archery Phase]], with high [[vitality]] for [[exert]]ion abilities that [[Buff|buff]] other minions or interfere with the opponent. Avoiding archery and skirmishes makes it wickedly difficult for the [[Free Peoples]] player to stop cards like {{Card|Saruman, Keeper of Isengard}} or {{Card|Saruman, Rabble-Rouser}} from turning mundane minions into monsters. Options to do so are rare: the most common is non-archery-phase [[direct wounding]], like {{Card|Betrayal of Isengard}}. However, this protection is a double-edged sword. Saruman's [[Twilight]] cost isn't cheap and he can't do any damage on his own without {{Card|Saruman's Staff, Wizard's Device}}, so he may be [[Hand Clog|stuck in the Shadow player's hand]] until they have enough other Shadow cards to make him worth it. Later versions of Saruman mostly abandon this mechanic and work more like typical minions, however.

Befitting his self-applied title "of Many Colours," Saruman also appears on cards in other cultures besides {{C|Isengard}}, representing his capacity as leader and instigator. He's the first character in the game to appear in a second culture, with {{Card|Saruman, Rabble-rouser}}. Of all [[unique]] [[character]]s, Saruman appears in the most different cultures: {{C|Isengard}}, {{C|Dunland}}, {{C|Men}}, and {{C|Uruk-hai}} cultures. (The next closest is [[Gothmog, Morgul Commander (8R72)|Gothmog]], who appears in three, followed by [[Aragorn]] and many Shadow characters appearing in two.)

Along with [[Grima]], the [[Balrog]], the {{Card|Watcher in the Water, Many-Tentacled Creature}}, and [[Maia|Sauron himself]], Saruman is one of the few characters who continues to appear in his original culture after the Shadow cultures are reorganized in the [[Shadows]] set. Unlike most of those, he appears in both his original culture in the post-Shadows sets as well as in the new post-Shadows cultures, a trait he shares only with his servant [[Grima]]. He is also the only character in the game to appear in multiple different cultures in the same set, having done so in three of the five sets he appears in. He is also the only Shadow [[follower]] in the entire game, as {{Card|Saruman, Servant of Sauron}}.

==Versions of Saruman==

{{PersonaTable|Saruman}}

==Cards that mention Saruman by name==
''to-do''

[[Category:Unique Characters]]