Your New-To-Commander Guide to The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth

Ben Doolittle • July 17, 2023

Strategy
(Fiery Inscription
 | Art by John Di Giovanni)

Finding the Magic in Gathering Your Fellowship

Whether you're a long-time The Lord of the Rings (LOTR) fan or a Magic (MtG) player of any skill level, there's a lot to be excited about in Tales of Middle-earth. If you're new to Magic, however, it can be overwhelming to decide where the best place to start is. You've purchased a booster box, maybe gone to a prerelease, or just bought a few cards that looked cool. If you're looking to enjoy this set with friends, there's no better way than the Commander format. Commander is a fun, accessible multiplayer format that makes sure you get to see plenty of new cards without losing the focus on hanging out with your friends.

What's the Best Place to Start with LOTR?

Alongside each set, Wizards of the Coast releases a collection of preconstructed, 100-card Commander decks. Whether you like to play the villains or stand amongst your favorite heroes, these decks offer you the chance to play as powerful Wizards, commanders of Armies, and simple folk forced to defend their homes against ruffians and thieves. Tales of Middle-earth and other Universes Beyond products are particularly great at curating this fan-first experience, especially when paired with the deep worlds and rich characters of The Lord of the Rings. But if The Lord of the Rings isn't your jam, then don't worry: a set of Doctor Who Commander decks are coming later this year, with Assassin's Creed and Final Fantasy products in line for next year.

Choose Your Own LOTR MtG Adventure

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth has four preconstructed Commander decks. Each is ready to play right out of the box (well, hopefully you snagged some card sleeves as well), and designed to be played against each other in a four-player game. They represent different factions within the world of Middle-earth, from the forces of Mordor and Gondor to the Ents of Fangorn and Hobbits of the Shire. Let's take a look at how these decks work thematically, as well as check out some resources you can use to beef them up (if meat's back on the menu for you, that is).

Hosts of Mordor

The Hosts of Mordor features Sauron, Lord of the Rings

at the height of his power. With Saruman, the White Hand
 amassing Armies of Orcs and the Lord of the Nazgûl
 leading the Ringwraiths, this deck seeks to wear its opponents out of resources before overwhelming them with a final decisive combat strike led by Sauron, Lord of the Rings
 himself.

Riders of Rohan

Standing against Sauron are the Riders of Rohan, led by Éowyn, Shieldmaiden

. Recreating the combined forces of Rohan and Gondor at the Battle of Pelennor Fields, this deck is built to withstand any siege. With a heavy focus on the Monarch mechanic to keep your hand full of cards, this deck wants to put a critical mass of tokens into play. As you do, Beregond of the Guard
 and Erkenbrand, Lord of Westfold
 will buff your team for a series of overwhelming combat charges.

Elven Council

Of course, The War of the Ring was not fought only in Gondor. Elven Council showcases the Elves' battle against Sauron. It features many cards which require you to vote, carefully gaining allies with your fellow players throughout the game as you quietly build your forces. When you're finally ready, your Elves can charge in an Overwhelming Stampede

to take your enemies by surprise.

Food and Fellowship

Finally, Food and Fellowship shows Frodo, Adventurous Hobbit

and Sam, Loyal Attendant
 leading the effort to rebuild the Shire. This deck showcases the legendary hardiness of Hobbits as a steady flow of Food and creature tokens ensure you can't be beaten by your larger opponents. Gwaihir, Greatest of the Eagles
 and Mirkwood Bats
 help to threaten your enemies, along with rewards for gaining life such as Gollum, Obsessed Stalker
 and Sanguine Bond
 to outlast any opponent.

These decks are balanced to play against each other, but they can also be customized to better match your playstyle or highlight your favorite characters. The Scrap Trawlers have a series of upgrade guides and primers for each of these decks over on EDHREC. These include cards from previous Magic sets, but there are certainly cards in the main Tales of Middle-earth set that could improve each of the decks if you want to keep them as flavorfully thematic as possible.

Leading Your Own Unexpected Journey

Of course, you aren't limited to the pre-constructed decks. Tales of Middle-earth includes cards for all of the major characters in The Lord of the Rings, and even some you may have forgotten. There are even multiple versions of different characters that represent how they change throughout the story thanks to Magic's signature color pie. Combined with the color identity restriction of Commander, this ensures that Gandalf the Grey

feels different to play strategically than Gandalf the White
. You can also lean into long-established themes within Magic's colors, with blue focusing on flying creatures, white assembling legions of Soldiers, red attacking aggressively and dealing extra damage, green's connection to nature, and black's focus on gaining power at any cost.

Gwaihir the Windlord

, Shadowfax, Lord of Horses
, and Shelob, Child of Ungoliant
 encourage you to build decks around Birds, Horses, and Spiders, respectively. If typal creatures aren't your thing, then Aragorn, the Uniter
 can be taken in any number of directions, and Lord of the Nazgûl
 turns each of your tricky spells into a deadly Wraith. The foresight of the Elves can also guide you, Galadriel of Lothlórien
, and Elrond, Master of Healing
 to victory.

Commander decks don't necessarily need all of their focus to be around a legendary creature, either. Last March of the Ents

and Shadow of the Enemy
 are both powerful spells that could win you the game under the right conditions. The Smaug token created by There and Back Again
 is also a great candidate for shenanigans as a decent creature with a powerful death ability. This is also a great way to make use of cards you open from packs that grab your attention. With nearly 2,000 commanders to choose from, there is near-guarantee to be the perfect deck to support any card you choose. Want even more ideas? EDHREC's toolbox of Commander filters can help you build, bolster, and boost your deck's prowess, whether at the kitchen table or in your local game store.

Gathering Your Fellowship

No matter what deck you build, the best way to experience Tales of Middle-earth is with your friends. To make sure everyone has fun, it's important to discuss how strong you want your decks to be beforehand and if you're going for a more social evening or a real challenge of strategy and skill, and for a truly authentic LOTR experience, you'll need your favorite potato-based snack, the best Elven waybread analogue you can find (donuts or scones, perhaps), and a willingness to work together for the common good. Thanks to Tales of Middle-earth and other upcoming Universes Beyond products, there's never been a better time to get into Magic: the Gathering.

Do you have questions, comments, or suggestions for more new-to-Commander content you'd like to see? Whether you're brand new or a returning player, new ideas and fresh perspectives help Magic grow and evolve into an ever more exciting and interesting adventure.

Categories: Strategy

More From Ben Doolittle

Ben Doolittle

Ben Doolittle

Ben was introduced to Magic during Seventh Edition and has played on and off ever since. A Simic mage at heart, he loves being given a problem to solve. When not shuffling cards, Ben can be found lost in a book or skiing in the mountains of Vermont.