Hello,

Can you help me pick an army? In my area, 500 pts is common for organised games. My friend who is also getting in to the game is collecting Iron Hills. I'm less competitive, but I still want an army that will stand up.

From the models, I really like:
Trolls
Wargs
Spiders
and, to a lesser degree, I like:
Hobbits
Beorn
Gandalf's Cart

Can I make a list with trolls and critters that would stand up?
Is the Shire a better answer if I want to have fun games?

And also, while I have your attention: Is the rules manual in Battle of Pelennor Fields a hardcover book, just like the rules manual is if bought separately? The product description on website doesn't give details.

Yes, it is hardcover.
Anyways, as for the models you have selected, I have no idea how to play them. Good luck. But consider cavalry with bows. Dwarves present a tough infantry block.

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By all that you hold dear on this good Earth,
I bid you stand, men of the West!

The book in the starter set should be the same one as the one sold separately.

Hobbits used to be a very strong army (very numerous and with excellent shooting), and although they have been brought in line in the new edition, I imagine they're still capable of putting up a good fight.

A list of monstrous critters sounds like amazing fun though, and I would certainly recommend playing whatever you like best. A full-warg army isn't great (their profile is as that of an infantry model, but being on bigger bases means they'll typically fight several enemies at once - a fight they'll lose most of the time). That's just wargs by the way, warg riders would be quite decent. Don't think I've ever seen more than a few spiders in an army, but they can definitely be very deadly, if also very squishy. Trolls should still do well in the new edition, with magic and heroic strikes (the main counters) having been limited. Haven't yet got my hands on the Armies of the Hobbit book though, so not sure what the exact current situation is!

Thanks. I think that needs to be my first stop. Gotta get the new book.

Azog's Legion and Moria have a lot of monsters and both are convenient allies with the Denizens. Dul Guldur and Azog's Hunters are also worth considering if you want to really on the spiders more. I'd suggest having a look a those lists as seeing if you like the models. If so, go with on of them. They will have more going on than a hobbit army and I think you'll get your mileage out of them in game.

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"Draw your sword with a heavy heart, but swing it with a heavy hand"

I think the answer is very relevant.

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เรื่องสยองขวัญ

So no hobbits for this. S2 will go badly for you.
You definitely want trolls. Cave troll spam probably, led by Buhrdur. Rend your way through the dwarves. Maybe a shade if you can fit it in. Definitely get the hand and a half hammer spam going, though. You have burly, so no penalty. You will probably kill the dwarves half the time.

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By all that you hold dear on this good Earth,
I bid you stand, men of the West!

Angmar is worth a look, Burdhur is a great captain, you can be a bit more risky with with Heroic Combats because his Strength will be more likely to kill than other heroes. You can take the Wild Warg chief...not a great hero, but useful. And Gulhavar is very effective, just be sure to keep his wounds up and away from heroes.

Moria is another alternative, if you take Druzhag the beast caller you can include Wargs, Bats, and/or Spiders in his warband and it doesn't count as allying.

Whafrog makes a good point. You could even include warg marauders.

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By all that you hold dear on this good Earth,
I bid you stand, men of the West!

If you like the monsters go with them. I personally love the idea of a Beorn, Shire list a lot. I dunno if it works out with allies now a days though :/

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Cheers,

P

Nope.

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By all that you hold dear on this good Earth,
I bid you stand, men of the West!

What does that mean? It's not like you can't make the alliance if you want. You don't get the army bonus, but you might get other synergies, and honestly, the loss of Standfast between armies for the "worst"alliance is a pretty minor penalty. I mean, taking Eagles with Gondor means no bonus for either, but I'm not sure it ends up being that big a deal and, most importantly, it's fun to do.

I was referring to them being historical allies. And while making any alliance is possible, many army bonuses can be huge... +1 courage, strength, backstabbers special rule... But to each their own.
The Eagles are coming!

_________________
By all that you hold dear on this good Earth,
I bid you stand, men of the West!