Merne’s decks
An unexpected company gathers at the table

Five Middle-earth-only Bracket 3 field guides

Preview · planned proposals

There and Back Again

Five roads leave the inn. Every card belongs to Middle-earth.

Bring one box and seat the whole company. All five selected decks use only official LTR, LTC, HOB, or HOC printings and are tuned for the same five-player table. Their plans differ, but their visible answer windows overlap enough that no single seat must police the pod.

Choose a seat
5decks ready
5players welcome
3Commander bracket
T7+visible closes
Proposal status. All five companions describe complete selected proposals in planned view. They are public preview brews, not a claim that the paper lists are assembled or owned.

Start with the pilot

Which seat fits tonight?

The five decks share a bracket but ask different questions. Pick by role, pilot fit, and the decisions you want tonight.

01

Army attrition

The Great Goblin

The Great Goblin

Close
Turns 7–9
Complexity
Medium

Pilot fit. Choose this when you enjoy amassing one public threat, making every death count, and sequencing a wipe as a resource.

Checks. Amass counters become commander reach while Goblin and Orc deaths stock the next turn.

Leaves open. Bounce or exile can erase the Army investment, and the list has only one full mass-recursion reset.

Open guide A5 table card A4 field guide
02

Creature-combat clock

Beorn the Fierce

Beorn the Fierce

Close
Turns 7–9
Complexity
Low-medium

Pilot fit. Choose this for the clearest first game: welcome useful Middle-earth creatures, let Beorn turn them into Bears, and guard one great attack.

Checks. Beorn converts a fair creature and landfall board into Bears, cards, and one visible trample turn.

Leaves open. A second wipe—especially exile—can outrun its protection, and it has no dedicated graveyard hate.

Open guide A5 table card A4 field guide
03

Visible hoard burst

Thorin, King of Durin's Folk

Thorin, King of Durin's Folk

Close
Turns 7–9
Complexity
Medium

Pilot fit. Choose this when you like counting public Treasure, forging Axes, layering protection, and announcing one decisive charge.

Checks. A deep natural Dwarf curve turns Thorin into the pod's cleanest Treasure-and-Equipment burst.

Leaves open. Commander removal and artifact pressure can split the engine; the restricted list has no dedicated graveyard hate.

Open guide A5 table card A4 field guide
04

Legendary-Elf control

Thranduil, the Elvenking

Thranduil, the Elvenking

Close
Turns 7–9
Complexity
High

Pilot fit. Choose this for the deepest sequencing puzzle: develop three colors, curate legendary Elf triggers, and decide which ability belongs in the graveyard.

Checks. Scry, landfall, and legendary Elves create the broadest long-game choices while keeping the court visible.

Leaves open. Pressure on the three-color start, the commander, or the graveyard can separate its overlapping engines.

Open guide A5 table card A4 field guide
05

Stack and tempo regulator

Bilbo, Thief in the Night

Bilbo, Thief in the Night

Close
Turns 8–10
Complexity
Medium-high

Pilot fit. Choose this when you prefer patience, precise counters, safe attacks, and deciding which Middle-earth tool must return from the graveyard.

Checks. Counters, tempo, Equipment, and spell burglary give the pod its cleanest emergency brake.

Leaves open. The slowest clock and one-for-one answers can be stretched by several staggered threats.

Open guide A5 table card A4 field guide

Interaction topology

A table of overlapping Middle-earth checks

This is a five-point safety net, not a forced hierarchy: each deck pressures a different public resource while leaving another answer window open.

  1. The Great Goblin punishes creature trades and invested Armies; bounce, exile, and commander removal prevent the death engine from becoming automatic.
  2. Beorn supplies the fairest trampling clock and green permanent interaction, but needs the table's help against graveyards and repeated wipes.
  3. Thorin advertises the sharpest Treasure-and-Axe burst; every seat can interact with the commander, artifact layer, or combat step.
  4. Thranduil has the broadest answer suite and strongest long game; pressure on its three-color mana, graveyard, and visible Elf court keeps it honest.
  5. Bilbo checks the first true closing turn on the stack; its slower clock means the table cannot delegate all policing to blue.

The exact table map

All ten pairings

Select a deck to reveal its four relationships, or keep the complete reference visible.

Showing all ten unique pairings.

01

The Great GoblinBeorn the Fierce

Reach versus creature size

Watch
Goblin death triggers finish through a stalled den, while Beorn's larger bodies own ordinary combat.
The hinge
Whether Beorn protects the real reset and removes the counter or sacrifice engine before the wipe.
Table read
Count commander reach before assuming the larger board is closer.
02

The Great GoblinThorin, King of Durin's Folk

Attrition versus visible burst

Watch
Thorin threatens the faster single combat; Great Goblin benefits more when creatures trade or a wipe resolves.
The hinge
Whether Rakdos breaks the artifact layer before Boros protects the conversion turn.
Table read
Compare Treasure and Axes with Army counters and death reach—not creature power alone.
03

The Great GoblinThranduil, the Elvenking

Bounce versus death value

Watch
Raise the Palisade can avoid death value; ordinary damage and destruction sweepers still feed the Goblin commander.
The hinge
Whether Rakdos times graveyard exile after the Elf toolbox forms but before Thranduil uses it.
Table read
Say graveyard counts and commander reach aloud; both decks hide resources outside the battlefield.
04

The Great GoblinBilbo, Thief in the Night

Stack tempo versus second wave

Watch
Bilbo can stop the largest amass or recovery spell, while Goblin pressure can force those answers early.
The hinge
The Great Goblin staggers threats and Bilbo saves the counter for Assault on Osgiliath, Living Death, or the lethal Army turn.
Table read
Let Bilbo regulate a genuine close, not every typal value spell.
05

Beorn the FierceThorin, King of Durin's Folk

Long sizing versus sharp burst

Watch
Beorn wins the creature-sizing contest; Thorin converts Treasure and Axes into the quicker single attack.
The hinge
Green breaks the artifact layer before Boros exiles Beorn or protects the company.
Table read
Ask which public board can actually eliminate a player this combat.
06

Beorn the FierceThranduil, the Elvenking

Trample pressure versus flexible control

Watch
Thranduil has broader answers and a stronger long game; Beorn applies the more direct combat clock.
The hinge
Beorn pressures the three-color setup while Thranduil chooses the reset that gets through green protection.
Table read
Beorn lacks dedicated graveyard hate, so another seat must help contest Thranduil's second hand.
07

Beorn the FierceBilbo, Thief in the Night

One great combat versus one emergency brake

Watch
Bilbo can delay a committed attack but cannot spend the whole game answering large creatures one at a time.
The hinge
Beorn removes the safe-passage Equipment and Bilbo keeps tempo for the attack that is actually lethal.
Table read
Do not force Bilbo to reset the fair board while a less visible engine is ready to close.
08

Thorin, King of Durin's FolkThranduil, the Elvenking

Early hoard versus long-game breadth

Watch
Thorin can force action before Thranduil sculpts the court; Thranduil has more answer types when the game stretches.
The hinge
The Dwarf deck layers finite protection while the Elf deck breaks Thorin or the key Equipment before Treasure compounds.
Table read
Inspect the Elf graveyard before pointing every answer at the public hoard.
09

Thorin, King of Durin's FolkBilbo, Thief in the Night

Visible multiplier versus stack check

Watch
Thorin's expensive payoffs are visible enough for Bilbo to check, but Treasure supports staggered threats.
The hinge
Bilbo counters the multiplier or closing conversion rather than an ordinary Dwarf.
Table read
Count the hoard together before deciding whether the blue seat must act alone.
10

Thranduil, the ElvenkingBilbo, Thief in the Night

Two different second hands

Watch
Bilbo reuses spells and artifacts; Thranduil borrows activated Elf abilities while building a visible court.
The hinge
Stack interaction and graveyard exile land after real investment but before the closing payoff.
Table read
Disclose both graveyard plans and invite the whole table to help police the stronger one.

Pilot and seat guide

Five seats, one company

With five pilots, every deck begins at the table. Assign by appetite and randomize first player; move decks between games only when the table wants to sample another role.

Seat the company

Assign by appetite

  1. 01

    Give Beorn to the newest pilot; its board plan is the easiest to read from the table.

  2. 02

    Give Thranduil to the pilot who wants the densest sequencing puzzle.

  3. 03

    Give Bilbo to a patient pilot comfortable saying no only when a close is real.

  4. 04

    Give Great Goblin to the proactive pilot who enjoys attrition and making every death matter.

  5. 05

    Give Thorin to the proactive pilot who prefers visible resources and one decisive burst.

Between games

Change roles, if you like

  1. R1

    At five players, all five decks begin in the game and no deck or pilot waits outside the company.

  2. R2

    Randomize the first player every game; do not use deck choice to award the opening seat.

  3. R3

    If the table wants variety, move every deck one seat clockwise between games and compare how the roles feel.

  4. R4

    At four players, keep the unused deck ready as the next choice and swap only when the table wants to change roles.

Comfort clause. If a pilot strongly dislikes reactive play, swap Bilbo with a willing seat before game one. Comfort matters more than preserving any rotation.

Shared calibration

What this box promises

  • Target: lower-to-middle Bracket 3, not the upper edge.
  • Every card shown in the five companions uses an official LTR, LTC, HOB, or HOC reference printing.
  • Closing windows begin on turn seven; Bilbo is intentionally slower and compensates with stack interaction.
  • No list uses a current Game Changer, deterministic combo, chained extra turn, or mass land denial.
  • Use matchup notes after the game to explain a swing, not to script threat assessment before it.