So, for each scenario, you are looking at the following card totals.

Passage Through Mirkwood 36 cards(17 enemies,13 locations, 6 Treachery)

Journey Down the Anduin 47 cards (21 enemies, 13 locations, 13 Treachery)

Escape from Dol Guldur 39 Cards (16 enemies, 13 locations, 9 treachery, 3 objectives)

The odds of you getting two or three specific cards in sequence for a 47 card deck are not high.  That being said, you do want to clear locations ASAP.  Make friends with someone who likes to play Spirit.

Yeah, I think Eowyn is probably required in solo-play.  That 4 quest (can be 5-6) is killer all by herself. 

Gandalf is seeming more and more required as well.  Hmmm...

Thanks sky for the info....i cannot wait to get my copy....patience

MarioelKamui said:

You are welcome.

The more time I spend with the game the more I like it . Forth attempt was quick and full of blows coming and going both ways. No, this time I did not succeed either. Yet I managed to look into the eyes of the Spawn of Ungolianth. She would be mine, did not Uthak, yes again the villain that from now on will stalk me in my dreams, enter the very second i chose the path in the third part of the quest. On this fight shadow was not on my side. Neither could second Gandalf help me. Yet dying in the final fight of the game has had its own merits. 

This game is not for cheaters. U play it alone, and if You do stray from the rules, noone will notice it. And it was so tempting. I could win it - all i needed to do was to tamper with 2 shadow effects, which killed one of my heroes, and then did not allow me to counterstrike.

I like the fact, that in my 4th game each round takes 1-2 minutes. Apart from brainbashing moments in the quest phase and the shadow phase. Apart from that moments the game is like physics - You know what U do and why You do. And then the storm comes - the Quest moment is nicer of the two (if You do not draw Uthak :) )  You take some risk into account, you know there will be some lithning. And then in the Shadow phase it is like standing in the night in the wood when suddenly You hear the DANGER behind You. You turn once - nothing, You turn the second time - nothing, and than You know U have to turn round just one more time, and You hear scream of beast already in midair jumping at You. 

Now i will switch my way of playing it. Spirit time :)

You may need some luck playing solo with a mono-spirit deck.  You should be able to quest well, but does spirit have any way to deal with enemies?

I already suspected it would be very difficult (and probably require quite a bit of luck as well) to win a solo game using only a single mono-sphere deck.

It makes sense to me to use the pre-built decks for your first couple of games, though. You have to get a feeling for what the spheres are all about first, before you can build a deck that has exactly what you're going to need.

Thanks for the playtest reports and info - it makes for an exciting read. I can't wait till my copy arrives

I want to offer my thanks as well.  Sky has me even more exited for this game.

Yay! That was a Night to Remember.

Spirit deck is completely a different story. So far it seems more balanced with each Hero well prepared for their part - Eowin Quests, Dunhern fights, and Eleanora takes some defensive position.

It did not start to well. First two spiders, hit, and hit hard, from the second round two of my Heroes were at 1HP. Then I had to throw away 2 cards (including Gandalf :(( ). From that on the synergies between cards started to seamlessly function. I was able to throw back enemies from engagement so Dunhern hit them with +1 Str,. as i attached to him Unexpected Bravery he did it twice a round.

I darted through first two stages and the 3rd one was the one with 10 Quest Point, I continued fight with spider, and I choose who??? Yes Chieftain Ufthak. Should I fight him, i coud not scratch him a bit. But than the justice woke up at last and I was able to serch my discard pile for Gandalf. I put everyone for Quest (had about 13 points of Will against Ufthak and new Treachery). Of course I did not forget to apply Entrance 4 damage which Gandalf provides to this bloody bastard. And the TA DA!!!! Quest was won.

The spirit deck lacks healing ability. I sucked some damage like i did in the Lore deck and then some longsome thought came through my mind - Sebastian ... did you notice any healing ability when you looked at the cards in the deck? No? So how You are going to heal them now? :)

If I had the chance to play this game with a Lore player I think we woudl find some fields of synergy :).

Let the ring be with You in Your pocket :)

Thanks for reports, Sky!

Could we get some pics? (here or on Board Game Geek)

Sky said:

Good job, Sky. I like your reports. And I have learned a lot from them.

Most of all I have learned that playing a single sphere deck early on is less about winning and more about the path of knowledge. I won't be frusterated if I cannot win when using a single sphere deck in solo play, it's all about getting a feel for what the sphere provides in relation to my personal needs/wants/play style.

Can't wait.

My copy arrived today and can't wait to get home and give it a try. Have a friend coming over so I'll get to try both solo and double play.

So excited.  

Gandalf? Gandalf! Gandalf…He was gone. The sounds of galloping horse was quickly fading. Though he left us we were more or less the shape in which we entered this damned forest.
What was more important than our message for Lady Galadriel we could never know. What we knew was that at the bank of the Anduin we did left small raft and we hoped to use it soon.
“Why don’t we use shortcut to the river? One day through the Gladden Fields and we can bath in the warm current of Andiun” Eowina said in her impatient manner.
Eleanora would find this proposal charming, was it not the middle of April. And the winter has been harsh this year…
“Ladies first.” Said plainly Dunhern and turned his horse south – east.
The Gladden Fields were named after trolls. One said they gladden when they stab You. If You are reckless enough to run through shallow valleys and mild slopes of their homeland, the last thing one’ll see is their calm face turns cheery when they club their victim for the last time...
Once they dived in those shallow gorges they heard the sound of incoming Troll. For now they were safe but they knew once he would find them he will send them to Illuvatar. Two Lorien Guides showed them the way through the thicket.
They were pushing through the obstacles so hard they did not see the EYE, lidless EYE focusing on them. Was it not for Eleanora who in the very last second with all her strength moved them from the road they would be all harmed. But the EYE did not leave them and found them all one by one. All wriggled in excruciating pain…
And then they were on spiral of doom. First Allies then Eowin. I managed to resurrect her but only to see like I draw the third EYE. If it was not enough I got Necromancer’s Pass on the very next round, and then Beast Timer. I lost control of threat which lead to failing engagement checks, and suddenly everything was on me. I lost Eleonora, avenged her with Gandalf, but it was already fighting a loosing battle. Next round I was engaged with Troll and Tamer and I got only Eowina.

Could I play better? (I hate this question already) Of course. Once again I have to get used to each of the card abilities. I had a few moments I could avoid harmful effects but I did not cause I did not notice some of the abilities. Had I had a bad draw – I do not know. This game is about negotiating obstacles. And lets assume this obstacle was just a tiny little to high. I Hope to beat this quest next time.
The main thing on my mind is how to kill Troll which has 9HP and 3DEF. Jabbing him with Gandalf in the staging area? Pointless – only 1 damage will be done this way. Dunhern with 3ATT in the staging area does not hit him at all. And when he engages You all excess damage goes directly into Threat….- that’s why I have lost threat control. And I could not heal. Resources were not a problem, but I needed more Allies and drew mainly Events...

I don't think you're using Gandalf right. When he comes into play, I think he should deal 4 direct damage to an enemy without any reduction from defense value. So, you could get 4 damage on the hill troll if he was in the staging area (or engaged with you for that matter).