I have been mulling over this for a while and value any feedback. Looking forward to discussion on this topic!
Game Theory in LOTR TCG Sealed Formats: The Three Tenets of a Strong Starter Deck
Sealed Formats have been a staple of GEMP since its inception. They provide a re-creation of the nostalgic feeling that players had when they used to play with physical cards in the early 2000s. While this started with using, exclusively, copies of the original product that Decipher sold as Starter Decks, individuals have pushed further, developing new digital Starter Decks within GEMP, and applying them to a wider variety of playable Formats within the game. The first, and still one of the most, if not the most, popular, is Movie Block Sealed. Towers Standard Sealed followed.
Here we will discuss some of the key tenets of a Starter Deck, and subsequently of Sealed formats, which were observed by those who developed these formats. It should certainly be noted that not all of these tenets were properly (if at all) executed within the range of Decipher Starter Decks, from Fellowship to Rise of Saruman. However, the developers of the custom Starter Decks drew from the best qualities of the source material and built upon that foundation.
We can break down the necessity for a competitive Starter Deck into three key tenets, each sequentially important.
Primary Tenet: Support for the Ring-bearer
The most primary function of a Starter Deck is to provide support for the Ring-bearer. This can be present in a variety of ways. Possessions or events to boost strength are most common. Additionally, in instances when Frodo is the Ring-bearer, including a copy of Sam that can take over in response serves as a major form of support.
I would argue that the most frustrating encounter for a player is one where their Ring-bearer is at peril, and they were simply not provided any tools to have the chance at drawing to mitigate the loss.
Without reliable Ring-bearer support, even the strongest Shadow strategy can fall apart when your Free Peoples side fails to survive key skirmishes. A well-designed Starter Deck should ensure the Ring-bearer has at least a baseline of protection or recovery options.
Secondary Tenet: Crowd Control
The secondary function of a Starter Deck is to provide "crowd control" on the Shadow side. This is commonly understood as giving the Shadow player an answer to the Free Peoples player flooding the board with six or more companions and running away with the game.
Shotgun Enquea is the most common addition to a starter to provide a threat that prevents the opponent from playing too many companions, but there are many other cards, including events and conditions, that have been used in custom Starter Decks to keep the companion count in check.
This function is considered secondary because control of companion overrun can also be mitigated by a general minion “beatdown” or other creative strategies. Still, dedicated crowd control tools give Shadow a reliable way to punish greedy Free Peoples builds without requiring perfect draws or execution.
Tertiary Tenet: Synergy and Thematic Cohesion
The tertiary function of a Starter Deck is to provide synergy and theme to one or both of the Free Peoples and Shadow sides. Being able to run your deck at a pace that satisfies both the technical execution of its strategy and the thematic, Tolkien lore-based flavor is considered very much in good taste within the GEMP community, and is widely celebrated.
And simply from a practical standpoint, it is much easier to steer a deck that has an inherent purpose behind it, rather than a smattering of random cards.
A deck with clear thematic and mechanical synergy plays more intuitively. Players understand the intended plan, the cards support one another naturally, and the overall experience feels more satisfying and true to the spirit of the Lord of the Rings TCG.