Elendil, The Tall (9R+32)
 Boromir, Bearer of Council (9R+31)
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Isildur, Bearer of Heirlooms (9R+33) 
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Elendil, The Tall (9R+32) is a 
Gondor Companion from the Reflections set.
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Strategy[edit]
Elendil, the Tall is an absolute slab of beef, just a man-mountain. In formats where Reflections is allowed like Movie Block and Expanded, he's a reliable staple tank for Gondor-focused decks, there to cheerfully soak skirmishes, archery wounds, or random exertion costs. He works well with Narsil, Blade of the Faithful (9R+34)
and the Gondor Artifact strategy of a support area full of cards like Sapling of the White Tree (9R35)
, Scroll of Isildur (9R36)
, and Seeing Stone of Orthanc (9R38)
. In Expanded, Kings’ Legacy (13U72)
means he can even help another companion get through the skirmish phase. It's just nice to have a big fat dude to tank for you. Worst-case, if he dies, the cards you were using to support him can just apply to the next-best companion still alive.
Except for being a Gondor man, he's generally very disconnected from your main strategy. Few cards spot Elendil in particular, and he doesn't have any strategy-enabling unloaded keywords like Knight, Ring-bound, or Ranger. (Knight decks in Expanded that need a big dumb blocker companion can run Elendil, High-king of Gondor (13R65)
instead.) He's also too expensive to go in your opening Fellowship and thus can't protect from very early skirmishes unless he's in your opening hand. If you're really relying on him to tank for you, the best ways to fish him out of your deck are Denethor, Lord of Minas Tirith (10R28)
and Saved From the Fire (8R20)
, and both of those can grab his sword at the same time.
He can counter Shadow sides that capture sites, like 
Sauron Besieger decks or the occasional 
Dunland deck, but there's no good way to leverage his ability to liberate sites except to prevent your Shadow opponent from reaping the benefits of capturing them.
It takes a lot of effort to get good use out of his move limit +1 ability. The only artifacts you can play on him are the two versions of Narsil, and generally you'll want to get those on him ASAP so he can skirmish more effectively. As a rule, early in the game is the worst time to triple move, as you'll help your opponent set up more quickly and likely miss a sanctuary. Occasionally you'll be able to pull off that clutch triple (possibly with a Saved From the Fire (8R20)
setup), but in general cards like Last Throw (10C34)
and Radagast, The Brown (9R+26)
are much more flexible. Unless you're dedicating your entire deck to setting up a run with Elendil's help, think of it just as a nice bonus.
Narsil, Blade of the Faithful (9R+34)
isn't your only option for a decent weapon for him. You can also use Narsil, Forged by Telchar (17R31)
to stymie Shadow support area possessions, like Web (8C30)
, Hides (4R19)
, Sauron Engines like Grond, Hammer of the Underworld (8R103)
, and Corsair possessions like Black Sails of Umbar (8C50)
and Ships of Great Draught (8R65)
. However, unless you're also using Isildur or The Shards of Narsil (3R44)
, you run the risk of that card clogging up your hand a little bit until you can get Elendil out.
Strengths and Weaknesses[edit]
Synergizes With...[edit]
- Narsil, Blade of the Faithful (9R+34)
and a pile of Gondor Artifacts like Sapling of the White Tree (9R35)
, Scroll of Isildur (9R36)
, and Seeing Stone of Orthanc (9R38)
- Denethor, Lord of Minas Tirith (10R28)
or Saved From the Fire (8R20)
to set him up with Narsil right away
- Any Gondor strategy that needs a character to spend exertions. This includes Fortifications, and too many others to list.
- A Gondor ring-bearer, like Boromir, Bearer of Council (9R+31)
, Isildur, Bearer of Heirlooms (9R+33)
, or Faramir, Bearer of Quality (17R28)
to help make sure there are always two Men to spot.
Strong Versus...[edit]
- Shadow strategies that capture sites, like Sauron Besiegers and Dunland
- Possession removal. With just Blade of the Faithful, he'll usually hover around 10-12 strength, even against Shadow sides that are normally very aggressive about removing weapons.
- High strength and vitality make him a well-balanced tank regardless of what Shadow side he's facing
Weak Versus...[edit]
- If he's down to his last wound, removing Narsil, Blade of the Faithful (9R+34)
with Grond, Hammer of the Underworld (8R103)
will kill him
Alternate Personas[edit]
| Portrait | Name | Game Text |
|---|---|---|
 |
Elendil, High-king of Gondor (13R65)
|
Knight. To play, spot 2 knights or exert 2 Men.
Each of your Maneuver: Remove a |
See Also[edit]
- The only cards that mention Elendil by name are the two versions of Narsil, Crown of Gondor (18R41)
, and Kings’ Legacy (13U72)
.
