What’s The META With Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game [MESBG]? – A List-building Guide

Some common questions that pop up from time to time are ‘What Armies are good?’, or ‘What Lists do well?’. These questions are becoming increasingly common as the community grows, and as newer players join the scene. An oddity about the current state of MESBG is that there is no Faction or List that can commonly be agreed as defining the current meta; or to look at it in another way, attempting to provide a definitive answer to that question is more complicated than it would seem. Often, players seeking such advice can be left with little knowledge learned, and may continue to have a lack of real understanding as to what makes a good List, and what doesn’t. Whilst player-skill will account for the biggest factor in terms of winning, arguably it’s not the only thing you will need to have sustained success. So is there a meta in SBG? Well yes…kind of - it just doesn’t work like it does in other Systems. We Like To Mix It Up The reason why it is harder to define the meta in MESBG (in comparison to other Systems like Warhammer 40000 or Warhammer Age Of Sigmar) is partly to do with Points value of events; these other Systems have a defined Points level that the Game is played at for the majority of competitive events. On the other hand, MESBG has a wide variety of Points values across our competitive events. I have been to Great British Hobbit League [GBHL] events from as low as 350 Points, all the way up to 1250 Points. While some events prefer traditional Points values, other events will change each year in order to create variety. Different Points Levels, Different Armies Some Armies are better at high Points levels, some are better at low.

Sometimes this can be down to List restrictions, e.g. the Depths of Moria Legendary Legion [LL] is unlikely to be as strong at 400 Points as it could be at 800 Points, due to 350 Points having to be immediately invested in The Balrog (leaving just 50 Points for additional units).

Armies that are generally not considered competitive due to their limited options at higher Points levels (e.g. Wildmen of Druadan), can become valid options as a competitive Army at lower Points levels. You only need to look at Into the West 2021 Runner-up Jasmine Tetley’s Army to see how the Wild(wo)men of Druadan provided a competitive option at 450 Points. This can factor can also be illustrated in a more subtle way. The comparison between Army of Laketown and Survivors of Lake-town is an apt example.

Whilst Survivors of Lake-town (if utilised well) is arguably one of the strongest Lists in the Game, Army of Lake-town will arguably perform better at lower Points levels. The reason for this is that most of the powerful benefits that Survivors of Lake-town get compared to Army of Lake-town (e.g. access to Bilbo & Gandalf) are priced out at lower Points levels. Conversely, the relatively cheap Master of Lake-town (and his abilities) become more useful and cost-efficient for Army of Lake-town at lower Points levels.

Elite Armies like Dwarves and Elves can also find it tougher at lower Points levels due to their main resource being expensive Heroes and troops; this means that getting good numbers in your Army can be hard to do. In contrast to that, cheap horde Armies like Goblin Town and The Shire can bring large numbers to bear at these lower Points levels – access to numerous bodies (to help achieve Objectives) and weight of dice can put you in quite a strong position. Trends

At the moment, the closest we get to pinpointing a meta is by determining the trends in what players are taking. For example, early in the current Edition of the Game, Terror-wielding Armies were common; this then led to my Lists containing some sort of element that would boost my Courage. Nevertheless, such trends are constantly in a state of flux and are hard to pin down, especially as events get bigger; it even varies a lot from region to region (both internationally, and within the different regions of the GBHL). International communities are often baffled by what is deemed good from one place to the next. An example of such differing perceptions can be seen in David Farmer’s winning List at the Scouring of Cheshire Event; it raised many eyebrows for some, but made complete sense to others in his local area.

For those who are interested in trying to identify these trends, we have an archive of top Lists from GBHL events here. Arguably though, the best way to pick up on these trends is by attending events regularly. You can also make judgement calls by studying Rules Packs, and by ascertaining what Scenarios or extra Rules are in use; are the Scenarios’ victory conditions weighted in favour of capturing Objectives, or Killing enemy units? What is the time limit for the games, and will it allow me to win the game in time if my Army is more reliant on grinding? In Good vs Evil events, the smaller variety of possible opponents means you can make some further observations on trends. Good Armies tend to have less Strength 4 troops, making Defence 4-6 troops more valuable for Evil. Alternatively, Evil Armies often rely on Magic and Spirits, making Good models with Fortify Spirit, Resistance To Magic, or Banishment more worthwhile (compared to non-Good vs Evil events). Golden Rules Of List-building So, what do I do when building a List? In short, I have a few things that I like to ensure are present in each List. - At least 1 model for every 20 Points: This rule, or variations on it, is one of the most common you will see mentioned in online forums when the subject of List-building comes up. The general view is that if you follow this rule, you will almost never be vastly outnumbered by your opponent, and will have a reasonable chance of winning any Scenario. There are slight variations on this, depending on your style of Army. Horde Armies will often want to alter this and have at least 1.5 models per 20 Points. In contrast, you have your cavalry Armies; these would possibly be looking at 0.5 models per 20 Points.

- At least 1 Might Point per 100 Points: The more Might you have, the more resources you have to impact the game. Some Armies can easily fit in an abundance of Might, whereas others can’t. I have always found that if I make sure to follow this formula, I always have enough to compete.

Model that can call free heriocs can give you a might advantage

It is also worth bearing in mind that Armies relying on the ability to Charge, such as a mounted Rohan force, will often require more Might to ensure this. Equally, if you have something in your List that bequeaths free Heroic Actions (such as Aragorn’s access to a free Might Point a turn), you may not need to worry as much if you don’t meet this minimum advised amount of Might.

With +1 Strength and Fight Value on the Charge Rohan armies need to move first

- At least 1 model with Heroic Strike per 400 Points: The ability to Heroic Strike is often the easiest way to deal with enemy Monsters and Heroes. As Points levels go up, it is more likely that you will face threats that require access to Heroic Strike in order to deal with them.

Magic, Bat Swarms, and other Special Rules that can neuter the impact of big Heroes and Monsters will often be equally as effective as Heroic Strike, and thus can balance out the need for models with it.

Goblin Armies often negate their low Fight Value with bats

In a similar vein, an Army with low Fight Value will often need more Heroic Strike or other tools to deal with these threats, as their Heroes can’t go toe to toe with other threats in other Factions. - 1 model with Heroic March, or Cavalry: Having access to fast movement can be a necessity in some Scenarios. Being able to manoeuvre your Army at speed can provide you with the tactical flexibility you may need in order to claim Objectives, or avoid taking extra damage from traipsing through additional rounds of shooting.

Captains are often an unsung hero in my lists

- A Leader with two of the following, Defence 7+, 3+ Wounds, or 3 Fate Points: Victory Points obtained by Wounding/Killing a Leader are some of the most common ways for opponents to score points in Scenarios. With this is mind, it is good practice to minimize the risk of injury to your Leader; arguably the best way of doing this is by utilising at least two of the aforementioned attributes.

This may be one of the harder rules for some Armies to abide by; this is particularly true for Evil Armies, who tend to have Heroes with lower Fate and Defence. At lower Points levels, you can get away with only one of these attributes, but once you get to 700+ Points, I would certainly recommend including at least two.

- 40 models: This part of the Code is more what you’d call a ‘guideline’ than an actual rule, but is something I believe will give you a good chance in any Scenario, regardless of the Points levels. It may be a little confusing when you consider the 1 model to 20 Points ratios I’ve already described. Whilst that is a base guideline across all Points levels, 40 models is the goal, but obviously won’t be achievable all the time. Why 40 models? For me, 40 models means you should have enough models to achieve the victory conditions in any given Scenario. The rationale for this is that the number of Objectives does not change, irrespective of the Points levels. Destroy The Supplies will always have 6 points of interest; Domination will always have 5 Objectives. 40 models means you have enough board-presence to be able to defend and attack Objectives. Armies with under 40 models cannot do this as well, and will therefore struggle in these Scenarios if they’re at a numerical disadvantage.

This is part of the reason why horde Armies often tend to do well at all common Points levels, as they attain this number more easily; elite Armies like Dwarves will only get stronger once they can reach this number.

There Will Always Be Exceptions Not every List that is successful will tick all these boxes; nevertheless, most will tick more than they miss. Frequently, those that do miss many will overwhelmingly exceed the minimum requirements in another area. In my view, these Lists tend towards either a unique attribute/s, or Rules that favour this approach; additionally, these Lists may be successful depending on the format of the event, or take advantage of a little luck in the Draw. Many ‘skew Lists’ fall into this category. However, if you do follow all these minimum requirements, I believe you are almost guaranteed to stand a chance in any Scenario, and against almost any opponent.