The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game/Tactics/Mordor

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Why Play Mordor?

Because you always enjoyed pulling the wings off flies as a child and some people just enjoy watching the world burn… Also flying ghosts.

Pros:

  • Sensationally powerful heroes who can be taken in different combinations to fulfil virtually any tactical situation. Will always be a competitive choice.
  • Orcs (and their lives) are cheap.
  • Some of the best offensive magic in the game.
  • Decent variety of monsters at your beck and call, some of which have Might to back up their brawn.

Cons

  • Low courage for the majority of your army means that a broken Mordor force is usually a defeated Mordor force. There are ways to counter this, but they're all point-heavy.
  • Those competitive heroes? Prepare to pay a fortune for them in points.

Army Bonus

Our enemy is ready, his full strength gathered: Whilst you have more models on the board than your opponent, friendly Mordor Warrior models gain +1 Courage and may re-roll 1's To Wound when making Strikes.

  • As this is a conditional bonus that can change every time something dies, this bonus really pushes you in the direction of the horde style of army to make sure you have more models in play. The +1 Courage helps against Terror and a few spells, but won't usually come into play for breaking. The re-roll is great on though, you basically get the constant buff from Feint/Stab with none of the downsides.

Unit Analysis

Heroes

<tabs> <tab name="Nazgûl/Ringwraiths">

One of the most versatile units in the game, there is a Nazgûl for every occasion. Each individual entry is covered here, but they all share common rules and features which will be covered first:

  • All Nazgûl cause terror, but despite their high defence, Ringwraiths are not durable, with only a single wound each, best to avoid contact and stock up on their fate points. All Ringwraiths must spend 1 point of will at the end of every fight phase that they are involved in, and disappear from the battlefield if their will reaches 0. Be very careful of this, as a canny opponent will likely maneuver your guys into protracted fights that will sap their usefulness and eventually kill them.
  • Any model wearing the ring does not become invisible to the Ringwraiths as they do to others, and fighting against the ring bearer does not oblige the Ringwraith to spend will to fight (even if they don't direct their attacks at the Ringbearer).
  • All Ringwraiths can choose a Horse, Armoured Horse, Fell Beast or Armoured Fell Beast for their mount. All are good choices, with the Fell Beast variants really boosting the combat potential of the wraiths. Do be careful though, taking them on Fell Beasts against a list that has a Strength 7 monster is a waste of points. They're going to get charged (or kept so far away from the monster that they'll be inefficient), they will be knocked off the Fell Beast, and it will flee the battlefield immediately, costing you 50 points (and leaving your Nazgûl vulnerable).
  • All Ringwraiths are spellcasters and can seriously mess with an opponents force through incapacitating their enemies or causing direct damage with their Black Dart spell.

Now with all of that covered, the basic Nazgûl are very cheap for Heroes of their caliber, starting at only 55 points. The actual cost you want them starting at is 75 points however, as you'll want to buy them their full stock of Might and Fate before considering anything else. If you want them as a Commander who'll make sure your troops stay while debuffing the enemy with Harbinger of Evil and the occasional Transfix, then you're good to use them as they are immediately. If you want them casting some more however, then consider stocking up a bit more on Will, going up to 10 points at least. Try not to go higher than that however, as once you do, your cost is going to be more comparable to the named Ringwraiths, and not only do the majority of them have better Might, Will and Fate, but they also have unique rules to give you an edge on the Battlefield.

In short, if you want a generic Ringwraith and don't want to invest so heavily in one of the named options, keep them cheap, stick them behind your Orcs as you move them up, and use their abilities sparingly. Try not to ever let them get in combat, as you'll need your will and the named Nazgûl are far better fighters. </tab> <tab name="The Witch-king">

Leader of the Ringwraiths has by far the most number of options. Base cost of 70 points will buy you a potent spellcaster with a reserve of 10 will points, however his actual base cost is 125, since buying him the Crown of Morgul, as well as his Might and Fate points are essential. Afterwards you can buy him some more Will if you want him casting spells more often (aim for 15 Will, making him 150 points if you plan to be casting a bunch). Without Might, Fate and the Crown a single bad dice roll can mess you about horribly, and the Crown of Morgul also boosts his abilities as a spellcaster by allowing him to re-roll one casting or resist tests. The flail is a decent enough upgrade, it's situationally useful but you don't exactly need it. The Morgul Blade is also a good upgrade, but it's not essential. The Witch-king can kill most heroes without it (especially if his mount knocks them prone, giving him 8 attacks on his To Wound rolls against them), however you will find it useful if you know you're up against one of the heavy-hitting heroes like Aragorn or Ents. Make sure you Transfix them first though, you don't want to be losing the Witch-king if you lose the duel and they swing back. A thoroughly solid leader for Mordor, make sure to give him a mount, a good bodyguard unit (ideally Orcs on Wargs so they can keep up with either his horse of Fell Beast) and he'll do well.

  • Considering how expensive the Witch-king is, consider bringing along Kardûsh. In long games the ability to sacrifice Kardûsh to restore Will to the Witch-king will make all the difference in the world.
  • The Witch-king has really good synergy with the Black Númenóreans and Morgul Knights. By using his Drain Courage and significantly higher Will you can prevent enemy Heroes and monsters from charging into them, allowing you to dictate their engagements and how the battle progresses. This will greatly help prevent your Morgul Knights from getting counter charged, especially if the enemy is capable of knocking them off their mounts on the charge.

</tab> <tab name="Khamûl the Easterling">

Second of the Nine, Khamûl is a combat oriented Ringwraith. Causes terror and has to spend 1 will per combat turn as per the others, but recovers one will for every unsaved wound he causes. Can also spend 1 will to increase his fight, strength or attacks for a fight. His spellcasting is actually pretty poor compared to the other wraiths, but he has a comparatively low point cost of 120 points. Khamûl needs to be used aggressively; always have him on a horse (or a Fell Beast) so that you can use his Will to increase his Attacks to two (then three with the charge) and charge him into grouped up enemy infantry so that he can continuously feed (he's a shoe-in against Gondor shield walls). Used right you can keep him topped up to 12 Will for the majority of the game.

  • Incidentally if you're wondering when to increase his Strength over his Attacks, The best time to do that is only if his opponent is Defence 7, and that's it. If you do the math you'll see that he's statistically just as likely to wound a Defence 6 enemy with Strength 4 as he is with Strength 5 (same with Defence 5 against his Strength 4), which covers both Gondor soldiers and Rohan soldiers (the two most common) and if he charges a shield wall he should be knocking them prone, knocking them back down to Defence 6. However he also gets to make more rolls on the duel roll if you boost his Attacks, so it's almost always going to be the better choice compared to boosting his strength. It's a complete waste of Will having him fight anyone higher than Defence 7, so don't do it. You're unlikely to Wound and are just causing Khamûl to leave faster once his Will runs out.
  • Do be aware too that Khamûl becomes a hell of a lot less threatening if his horse/Fell Beast dies since his magic is... subpar to say the least, so make sure to target bows first. They're unlikely to kill his horse, but it's best not to take chances.

</tab> <tab name="The Dark Marshall">

A disjointed profile with a lot of notable abilities, but all of which are scattered in their uses and ultimately competing with each other for function. Fight 6 is nice, but Will of Evil means he's wasted killing troops and no Heroic Strike means he'll lose to most named/notable heroes. His special rule allows him to spend a Will point to make Warriors within 6" count as if they're in range of a banner, so now you're burning Will even faster. Great model and neat idea, but you're far better off with a generic Ringwraith and a banner or two that everyone benefits from and that don't hamper the wraith's other functions. </tab> <tab name="The Shadow lord">

Two more will points than a standard wraith and the ability to make shooting within 6" of him hit only on a 6. Makes the Shadow Lord another solid but unremarkable choice. If you don't want a Ringwraith on a mount for whatever reason, you're going to want the Shadow Lord, as he's by far the best unit buffer in the Mordor army, and he works much better at protecting your infantry troops and targeting the enemy with his magic than he does by getting into combat. He's a solid choice all things considered, and you'll almost never find a game where you won't benefit from his ability, just keep his cost in mind. It's wasted if you're just trying to protect regular Orcs, so if you're not using him to keep Uruk-hai, Morannon Orcs or Black Guard alive, then consider giving him a pass, since 120 points can also buy you 24 regular Orcs. </tab> <tab name="The Undying">

No fate, but 18 Will points make up for it quite nicely. Can spend those same points as Fate points and can spend a Will point to regain one Will point for every magical power cast within 6". The Undying is another good choice, he can be very effective but would be best used as accompanying another spellcaster or a few Orc Shamans so that he can regain more will than he uses. Don't invest too heavily in magic however, you still need bodies on the table and the only Shaman in your army who can cast more than three spells in a game is Kardûsh, so consider taking him as well as he and the Undying combo together very nicely. Kardûsh can keep feeding off Orcs to continue casting, while The Undying can keep feeding off his spells (and eventually Kardûsh himself once he runs out of Orcs). </tab> <tab name="The Knight of Umbar">

One of the more powerful combat oriented Ringwraiths, three Might points and the ability to ignore the fight phase loss of Will for every fight that he wins. He can also elect to use the base Fights, strength or attack values (or any combination) of his opponent instead of his own. Add in two more Will points than standard and a decent array of spells and The Knight is a superb choice and a steal at 120 points. Make sure to put him on a horse to give him an extra Attack (he'll still get it even if he copies his opponent's Attacks, giving him a leg up on the fight) and don't be afraid to attempt to Transfix the tougher targets. There's no reason to fight fair, and fighting an opponent who can't strike you back is ideal. </tab> <tab name="The Betrayer">

Harad's Ringwraith comes with 2 extra will than a fully upgraded 'vanilla' wraith, can re-roll wounds in close combat and allows models with the 'poisoned' special rule to re-roll all failed To Wound rolls if they are within 6" of him. Unfortunately The Betrayer has terrible synergy in a Mordor army. You won't be able to effectively use his ability, and despite having Bane of Kings (re-rolling all failed To Wound rolls) he doesn't have a method to keep or restore his Will like The Knight of Umbar or Khamûl do, while also costing the same as them, so give him a hard pass in this list. </tab> <tab name="The Tainted">

If The Shadow Lord was the best unit buffer in the Mordor roster, the Tainted is the best unit debuffer. The Tainted's two gimmicks are first to cause non-Spirit models (friendly and enemy) in base contact to suffer a wound on a D6 roll of 6, which isn't very good, however his other ability is great, spending a will point to deny Stand Fast! and Heroic Actions to all Warrior models within 12" of him. This combines with his Harbinger of Evil rule to brutal effect, making it so that most Warriors have even odds (or worse) of fleeing. Like The Shadow Lord, The Tainted is one of those Ringwraiths to consider if you want one going on foot, since his ability is a late-game one and in the meantime you can use him to support fights since he's got good a good casting roll for Transfix (needing only 3+ where some Ringwraiths need 4+).

  • Do be aware that his ability to cancel out Stand Fast! does affect every Warrior model around him, including your own. It's something to keep in mind because you do not want your regular Orcs suffering a panic attack in the late game... normally anyway. If you're already ahead on Victory Points and you want to bring the game to an end immediately, you absolutely can use his ability around a bunch of Orcs, causing enough Orcs to flee that you pass the 25% threshold for ending the game.

</tab> <tab name="The Dwimmerlaik">

Another debuff Ringwraith, and the Ringwraith most hated in Rohan, The Dwimmerlaik comes with no might points to assist him in difficult situations but has a powerful ability to double the cost of every Might, Will and Fate point spent within 12" on the roll of a 4+. You don't have to stop with just one however, if you're feeling lucky and your opponent spends another point of Might/Will/Fate, you can then spend another Will point and do the same roll (and keep spending Will to keep trying to neutralize his opponent). This allows his side to successfully end Heroes who survived by passing Fate rolls, win fights by stopping Heroes from using Might to win, and prevent Heroes from staying on the table with Will when they're broken and roll badly. He's the second best debuffer next to The Tainted, but try to save his ability for when it really matters, or you'll notice his Will points vanishing quickly (despite starting with 16).

  • Like some of the other Ringwraiths before him, consider taking Kardûsh alongside the Dwimmerlaik. You'll be spending a lot of Will, and the ability to sacrifice Kardûsh to gain some back is invaluable for him, especially when your enemy is broken and they're relying on Will to keep their Heroes on the field.

</tab> </tabs>

  • Gothmog, Lieutenant of Sauron: The Orc equivalent of Aragorn, Gothmog lead the armies of Mordor after the Witch-Kings defeat. No idea why he has some good combat stats (he's heavily crippled to the point where he can only hobble, so naturally moves 6" like regular Heroes, has 3 attacks, Fight 5 and Heroic Strike, really?). A damn good choice to lead any Mordor faction, mounting him on a Warg and giving him a shield (lol doesn't he have a crippled arm?) will allow him to be even more effective. He's so good in game that he even gets his own legendary legion and, by the way, if your force is comprised entirely of Men (infantry especially) and you face Gothmog's legion just pray to get sixes.
    • His ability "The Time of Orc has come" is absolutely game winning if used correctly. Every single Orc within 12" of him gets to re-roll To Wound rolls when making Strikes, which if used when your force is engaged in combat can swing the game on it's own.
    • Note too that Gothmog has access to Heroic March... and you'll probably want another Orc Captain nearby to call Heroic Marches for him anyway. Gothmog's going to get focused hard by your opponent once he reaches the front, especially if you want to put his great stats to use, and so Heroic Defence and Heroic Strike are going to be far better for him in those regards.
    • This is going to sound weird, but... try not to make Gothmog your Warlord. Yes he's supposed to be one of Sauron's best generals and a leader of Orcs rather than a frontline fighter, however he's really meant more to be in the forefront on the tabletop thanks to his statline, his rules, and especially Master of Battle, which gives him the ability to call the same Heroic Actions as enemy Heroes without spending Might (even if he does not normally have access to them). He'll be great at fighting enemy Heroes, but that also means he'll be exposed more to potential harm, especially when it comes to enemy two-handed weapons if he loses a Duel roll against a different Hero. He's very durable, but like Aragorn he's also very costly and losing him will deal a horrible blow against your force, even if he isn't your Warlord. Because of this the enemy is going to be gunning for his death, and you don't want to hand out more Victory Points if they manage it. To choose somebody else as your Warlord, you'll need to go with either a named Nazgûl or the Mouth of Sauron, which really means you'll only be able to get them and use them effectively in larger point games.
  • The Mouth of Sauron: A pretty 'meh' lieutenant character with a Captain stat line, low Might and Fate, and a small collection of support magic spells. Can take an Armoured Horse, and fully upgraded comes in at 85pts. Good for a relatively cheap leader, but don't expect him to move mountains. Do note that being a Hero of Valour and having a good profile for his cost makes ideal to be the Warlord so you can choose a beatstick to send into combat. As an example, Shagrat or Gothmog can be the killing machine support and they do not make you lose Victory Points if they die because they're not the Warlord.
    • Interestingly the Mouth of Sauron is one of the few named Heroes who has access to Heroic March, further cementing his use as a support character. Because of this you won't need another Orc Captain to get your army moving which is nice, so he's effectively 30 points for improved Fight, Will, Terror and Magic.
    • The Mouth of Sauron can back up your frontline if there's Black Númenóreans in it quite well through Drain Courage. After only a few casts, and ideally with a Ringwraith nearby, he'll have prevented the real beatsticks from being able to fight by causing them to continuously fail their Terror tests. This stacks with the Ringwraiths to cause most Heroes and Monsters to be unable to fight in only two turns (you can drain over the course of three if you want to be 100% sure) especially if you channel it. Transfix isn't nearly as important since you can bog them down with plenty of cheap Orcs until they're drained, and Instill Fear is far too high a roll (needing 5+) to attempt.
  • Guritz, Master of Reserves: Finally, skully has a model and a statline, and he ain't half bad. He has the exact same statline as a Morannon Orc Captain but comes with a two-handed pick and sword. He's the guy you want to bring if you have a reserve force. While on the field all your warbands in reserve can modify their reinforcement roll by +1 or -1. If Guritz and his warband is put in reserve then this bonus only affects his warband. In a Scenario to see where your warbands are deployed you can again modify the dice roll by +1 or -1.
    • Note that Guritz is the last of the named characters to get access to Heroic March, although thankfully he can use it and other Heroic Actions more than an Orc Captain can thanks to additional Might. Comparing his cost, this basically means he's only 5 points more expensive than an identically armed Morannon Orc Captain, which quite frankly is great. Even if you have no intention of using his Master of Reserves rule you're still going to find a use for the extra point of Might, and you're still going to be glad you brought him along.
    • Note too that Guritz is not forced to use his two-handed pick in a fight, since he does come with a sword. This won't usually come up, but if he's in a Duel against another Captain and you don't want him to lose, maybe consider using his sword over the pick. It'll prevent him from taking the -1 modifier on the roll.
  • Gothmog’s Enforcer: He's an Orc Captain with Heavy Armour, and he swapped one Might Point for two Will. Oh yeah, he also costs 20 points more and can't buy a shield, which puts him in a tricky spot. His only real advantage is Gothmog's Right Hand rule. While this guy is within 3" of his boss, Gothmog can use his Enforcer's Will Points to declare a Heroic Move instead of his own Might Points. How useful this is going to be really depends. You might use it a fair bit in a game with plenty of objectives, or you might find you were better off with a regular Orc Captain, since Gothmog's Enforcer doesn't have access to Heroic March and Gothmog's own Might Points are kind of wasted spent on Heroic Marches instead of combats. To this end, bringing Gothmog's Enforcer doesn't stop the need to bring another Captain along with Gothmog's squad, and then that's a high concentration of points only in one spot of the battlefield and with less benefit than if the points were spread around, for example, spending the points you'd normally spend on the Enforcer on a different Captain entirely. Even economically it isn't too helpful since you could get Guritz instead who could also call three Heroic Moves of his own, the same amount the enforcer gives Gothmog, and could use Heroic March instead of the Heroic Moves depending on which fits the situation better. Guritz also costs the same and while he lacks the ability to use Heroic Defence for a turn (since the Enforcer only has one Might Point) it's not like that was going to save the Enforcer after it's spent either. Give him a pass unless you want him for a fun game or you're going for a theme; as far as competitive plays go, there's better choices.
    • You might think his Will could be useful for keeping your troops on the field, however at his cost this isn't efficient; Captains of the Black Guard have way better stats and only cost 5 points more (while having better base Courage as well) and even if you just wanted someone to hold things down with Will, the cheapest Ringwraiths are only 10 points more with much better Courage and far better Will. In short, he's garbage on his own, and as mentioned above isn't even that great alongside Gothmog.
  • Zagdûsh: Absolute dogshit. Zagdûsh is an Orc Captain with one extra attack, one extra Courage, one extra Might Point, and Heroic Strike/Strength instead of March. Unfortunately he costs 20 points more and has no access to a shield or a Warg, and that's what really hurts him. He special rule doesn't even help, it makes him seem like he should be a good missile, launch him into combat and watch him rip, but he's then stuck at Defence 4, and you could just have taken a Morannon Orc Captain instead who is already Strength 5 base, has access to Two-handed weapons, and is Defence 6 base. You could've also gone for an Uruk-hai Captain who has the same stats except he has an additional Fight point, access to two-handed weapons, and and costs exactly the same (when you buy him the Two-handed weapon) to boot. Even regular Orc Captains on Wargs will outperform him since they knock prone Infantry enemies, gaining an extra attack in the process and therefore slaughtering those they've charged and won their Duels against. The only real advantage Zagdûsh has over either of those is Heroic Strike and Heroic Strength, and if you're still going to use him anyway, save his Might Points for Heroic Strike. It's better to win the fight and not get killed than it is to gamble on wounding your enemy, and then get slaughtered if you roll poorly.
  • Goroth, Captain of the Morannon : Your hard hitting Captain equipped with a two handed mace. Being strength 5 and having the Burly special rule he should make short work of even heavily armoured infantry, but what makes Goroth really worth taking is his special rule "Come here Maggot!" This allows him to use a friendly Mordor Orc as shield on a +2 as long as they are within 1" from him. Note however that you cannot save your Fate for using when he's alone if he was initially within range of an Orc since it only works if he's spent his Fate point. This makes him pretty survivable and justifies his much higher points cost (compared to generic Captains anyway), just make sure to bring meat shields with spears for him to use. Do try to keep some Morannon Orcs around him as well. While the Wound inflicted against him bypasses their higher Defence, if you only have regular Orcs around then your opponent will kill them all before attempting to inflict the final wound on Goroth, especially if they have bows on the field. If you don't want him for this special rule however, then give Goroth a very hard pass for Shagrat.
    • Note too that Goroth has access to Heroic Strike, and you should really save your points for it. Not only does winning fights allow him to wreck shop, but it also prevents him from taking damage and when combined with his special rule, he's one of the hardest to kill models in your force. This is also helped by his Courage 4 which, while not great, is still much higher than regular Morannon Orc Captains.
  • Shagrat, Captain of Cirith Ungol: The champion of Mordor (who ran from Sam's shadow like a coward in the movie). A Mordor Uruk-hai with attitude, Shagrat is the premier Orc combatant for your force. 3 Attacks, Wounds, Might, Will and Fate combined with a Strength and Defence of 5 (Defence of 8 when you buy his shield and heavy armour) and Wargear which knocks opponents to the ground (when he charges) make him a formidable opponent for any Good army. Shagrat is well worth the points if you want to have somebody to rip apart Good Heroes and continually regain Might points thanks to Heroic Challenge and Blood and Glory. In addition to this, Shagrat will smash apart Shieldwalls, making him the perfect leader for your assaults on Good battlelines. His only weakness are Heroes that are higher than Heroes of Fortitude, since he should have no problem stomping nearly all good Heroes of Fortitude.
    • If you can, don't make Shagrat your Warlord. While he's great in a fight and his Defence is fantastic, he's going to be drawing the attention of the toughest Good Heroes in the opponent's army, and even with his stats you can't always guarantee he'll survive, especially if the good army can pile attacks onto him with pikes and spears, or if they have Ents/Eagles who can bypass his Defence with Rend (or throw him away with Hurl) which will kill him very quickly.
    • Note that while Shagrat can knock models over as if he were a cavalry model, he himself most definitely is not cavalry, and he should not be used against them. Cavalry will knock him over, and then he'll count as being trapped against their attacks, which can cause him to be shredded if a combat Hero does that to him. To this end, if you do have to charge cavalry, and especially if you want to declare a Heroic Combat against a mounted Hero, make sure to kill their steed, either right after Shagrat charges, or even before he charges by shooting their horse with your Orc Stalkers. If you don't, then every time they charge Shagrat he'll be knocked over and be unable to strike blows even if he wins the fight, and at his cost, you do not want him lying on his back doing nothing. Because of this Shagrat is more of a bully, one who loves picking on Infantry weaker than himself (also shown in the movie).
  • Gorbag, Orc Captain: For fifteen points more than an orc captain you get three Might, +1 Courage, as well as +1 Fight and attack when outnumbered in a fight. Gorbag is well worth considering, especially with Heroic Strike/Strength since they allow him to stand up to enemy Heroes of Fortitude (aka generic Captains), but don't expect to use his Orcish Brawler rule in every game. If you don't have priority then your opponent can choose to pair fights off in ways that prevent him from getting outnumbered in a fight, and that's if they allow him to get in that position in the first place. That being said you can still manage to make him count as being outnumbered by being smarter about who charges what, and don't forget to support him with spears since they don't count as being in the fight for working out if he's outnumbered or not. Also don't forget to get him his shield, you'll be glad for the extra Defence point if he ever loses a fight where he's outnumbered.
    • Between Heroic Strike and Heroic Strength, save Gorbag's points for Heroic Strike. Winning Duels is more important than risking your Duel to wound your opponent better, and with a spear supporting him, Gorbag is more likely than not to wound his opponents anyway.
  • Grishnákh, Orc captain: The Orc Treebeard steps on in his introduction. Grishnákh offers only a single point of might and backstabber as an advantage over a standard Orc Captain. 10 points more than a regular Orc Captain, but you might still consider it worth it if you're planning on bringing Orcs with maces, as they can Bash an enemy Warrior to the ground, allowing Grishnákh to easily finish them off (and if you're up against Minas Tirith Defence 6 you might find yourself appreciating this). Even if you don't plan on doing that, he still has one more point of Might and Heroic Strike, which on their own could be worth the 10 points. Make sure to get him a shield and field him behind some other Orcs, the last thing you want is to be losing a more expensive Captain because he was shot by a few lucky bows.
    • Grishnákh might be one of the best Orcs to support (or be supported by) a model on a Warg. They can knock over an enemy model, then Grishnákh can run in to finish the job, first by winning the Duel thanks to Heroic Strike and then finishing them off with his Backstabbers bonus since Prone models count as being trapped. Think of him more as an assassin in this role. This is important as Grishnákh doesn't really have much use aside from his own killing power, since he lacks Heroic March or any other decent way to synergize with the Orcs around him.
  • Kardûsh the Firecaller: A 60pt Orc shaman that can fire a Strength 6 fireball instead of transfixing an enemy. Frankly speaking this is really good, though keep in mind it only has a range of 6". This means he's not always going to have the best targets in range, however it's still not a bad idea to snipe out weaker links in the enemy's frontline. Not only can he snipe out the weaker points in Shieldwalls, but he can also snipe out Banners, or supporting spears to make it easier to win Duels, or War Horns, or finish off weakened Heroes, etc. His ability to sling fireballs is further helped by sacrificing an Orc near him at the start of any Priority Phase to regain D3 Will Points he already spent (he can't use this to go above his starting total) so make sure that he has a few regular Orcs within 6" at all times. For the sacrificial pawns you might not only want to keep them bare-bones, but also keep them behind Morannon Orcs. A clever opponent will realize what you're doing and shoot them with bows so that Kardûsh is forced to go after the more expensive Orcs in your army to regain will, and if the Morannon Orc takes the hit thanks to them being In the Way, your Orcs are far more likely to live until Kardûsh can kill them. Finally Kardûsh himself can be sacrificed to restore D6 Will to a Ringwraith within 6", which makes him a great companion to most of the Ringwraiths, especially those like the Dwimmerlaik and Witch-king which spend a lot of will and don't have the ability to regenerate the points in some way. He's also a natural accomplice to The Undying since Kardûsh can continuously sacrifice Orcs to regain will, cast spells to cause The Undying to regain will (so long as there's also another caster getting spells off), and then be sacrificed himself to give the Undying more will if you really need to. He's one of the best casters in the force because of this, and possibly one of the best damage dealers, especially for his sniping potential.
    • If you're not sure if you want to channel his Flameburst or Fury, channel Fury. Flameburst is far less likely to finish off a Hero you're using it on, whereas you can usually save a few Orcs over the course of the game with channelled Fury. Just be aware that if you cast Fury at all, you won't be able to cast as many spells before sacrificing Orcs since if you run out of Will, Fury gets turned off.
  • Shelob: A cheap monstrous creature for the armies of Mordor, Shelob is a very situational creature. Charging as a monstrous mount, she can knock down cavalry models and gains an extra attack when charging, she also causes terror and can move her full distance whatever is in her way. However, her paltry 1 attack with no might and a chance to run away after every wound renders her a mediocre choice at best. Yes she gets a lot more attacks on the charge (2 after Monstrous Charge, 4 if attacking a prone model) but if your opponent is smart and charges her (despite her terror) this advantage is wasted. If your opponent isn't bringing cavalry or Strength 6 monsters for her to run down, if you can't keep your opponent from charging her, or if you know the board won't be filled with terrain, then give her a pass.
    • Incidentally if your opponent is playing another evil army, then do be aware that with her Strength of 7, she can Knock to the Ground most enemy models, with very few exceptions. She can even charge Ringwraiths on Fell Beasts, which will knock both models to the ground, and cause the Fell Beast to immediately run away, netting you an instant 50 points and possibly killing the Ringwraith (either in the fall or when she attacks). She can also Knock to the Ground Cave Trolls (although not Mordor Trolls), and possibly finish them off in the process.
    • Do note that Shelob greatly benefits from an allied Angmar Orc Shaman. Wither can allow her to Knock to the Ground monsters that would normally be immune to her charge, and that allows her to sink her fangs into Mordor and Isengard Trolls. You do lose your Army Bonus if you go this route, so maybe consider it for lower point games than higher ones where your Army Bonus is more useful across the numbers you can bring.
  • Orc Captain: Standard captain stat line but with low Courage of 3, and is only going to be chosen if you're on a budget and/or you want a generic character on a Warg. Try not to get them in combat against enemy characters. There are a lot of Good heroes they lose to, and if you have to choose, Orc Captains will serve you better as a Stand Fast! bubble or cheap source of Heroic March than as a duelist (especially with your army bonus and combined with a War Horn).
    • As mentioned above, Orc Captains are a cheap source of Heroic March, which is something the majority of your named Heroes lack. Because of this, even if you take a named Hero or two then you're probably going to want an Orc Captain anyway, even if it's just to get those models into position for future engagements. You might also think of combining them with a Drummer, but just make sure you're not spending so much on movement that you don't have enough points put into your fighting core.
    • Because of their higher Fight and Strength, as well as their Might and lower cost, you could use these guys as linebreakers if you really wanted to. They have the ability to break down Shieldwalls better than regular Orcs and Uruk-hai do, not to mention the Might to boost their score, so if you're not investing in Black Guard or Uruk-hai for some reason then you can use them to as mediocre beatsticks. You could also consider taking them on Wargs to help in this role, since your other generic Captains don't have access to mounts, which leaves them vulnerable to cavalry and Orc Captains on Wargs will actually outperform your other captains if they're allowed to pick on Infantry, or if they need to take cavalry engagements.
  • Orc Shaman: A 50pt wizard that seems tailor made to sort out the main weakness of the Mordor armies – low Courage. Cast their signature 'Fury' spell and all Orcs within 6" pass Courage tests automatically and ignore wounds on a 6+ if channeled. His spear also allows him to support Orcs from the middle of a phalanx. An extremely useful character, just make sure not to expend all his will unless you absolutely must try to use Transfix, as keeping your Orcs around is far more important for your force (and it'll let you keep your army bonus).
    • Never leave Orc Shamans exposed, always keep at least regular Orcs or Morannon Orcs around them because if you don't, they'll be shot off the board faster than you can blink. Elf and Dwarf bows both wound them on 5+, as do throwing Spears, and your opponent might even consider it worth it even if the In the Way rolls cause them to kill the Orcs and Morannon Orcs first. To this end you'll also want to support them with Orc Trackers, or Warg Riders so that you can hunt down the bows before they shoot off the Shamans and leave your Orcs high and dry with no Fury and no Stand Fast! Buying a Warg can also help in this manner, since they'll need to randomize between the Shaman and Warg even if the Shaman is in the open.
  • Mordor Orc Taskmaster: Same stats as an ordinary Orc captain (minus one Might point), but comes equipped with a 2" range throwing weapon, his strength comes with his ability to grant free heroic actions to allied heroes within 6" on a 4+. Thankfully he's now only 10 points more than a regular Orc Captain, so if you were just going to take a normal Infantry Orc Captain for their Heroic Marches, consider taking this guy instead as his special rule will occasionally come in handy especially if he's marched alongside another Captain.
    • If you use him, remember to play this at full volume.
    • Note that Orc Taskmasters have the same problem that Orc Shamans do, in that they're prime targets for ranged attacks. Elf and Dwarf bows both wound them on 5+, as do throwing Spears, and even for regular bows your opponent might consider it worth it to keep shooting at them to remove the Stand Fast! bubble they provide.
    • Incidentally it's perfectly acceptable to not get your Taskmasters in combat at all, and instead to keep using their whip as a throwing weapon while your Orcs and spears do the bulk of the fighting. Taskmasters are not known for their durability and in the late game you'll be happier you kept them around for their Stand Fast! bubble than you'd be if you threw them into combat and they got impaled on Strength 3 spears/pikes.
  • Orc Drummer: With most of your troops being Infantry he's one of the few ways to boost your movement. Sure you can't charge afterwards, but there's always going to be times in which you have to run around the board, either for objectives or just to close the distance, so if you bring one or two you'll usually find yourself using the extra movement they can give you, just save them for higher point games. An extra 30 points in a lower point game is still quite a few Orc bodies you can use to keep your army bonus a while longer.
    • Make sure to keep him behind other Orcs so he benefits from In the Way rolls. If you don't, a cavalry-heavy armour can use throwing spears to snipe him out while keeping well out of range of your Infantry, and it will be much harder to corner them at the end or to get on the objectives they're trying to keep you away from.
    • Note that because he is a Hero, an Orc Drummer can provide Stand Fast! to the models around it. While their Courage is poor and this is unlikely, it's always worth trying it anyway because if it works it means your Orcs around them will stick around, and possibly let you keep your Army Bonus. To this end you should keep your Orc Drummers out of combat, as they're very easy to kill.
  • Back Númenórean Marshal: A captain of Minas Tirith (stat wise) that causes terror. He's okay, but there are better choices in the Mordor army. Seriously, if you want a Model with terror just use a Nazgûl. This isn't to say you can't make him work, since he's one of the only models in your army with access to a Lance (and so he hits pretty fucking hard on the charge) but you can't just get him on his own, you pretty much have to buy him his horse and lance to make him worth it, and then you have to invest in other Cavalry to act as support (ideally Morgul Knights to act as a Shock Cav force), and then you're basically playing Evil Rohan. If that's what you like though, then go for it.
    • Black Númenórean Marshals have pretty good synergy with Ringwraiths and the Mouth of Sauron due to Drain Courage. After only a few casts, enemy Heroes and monsters will be failing their Terror tests to charge Black Númenórean Marshals, giving them free reign on the battlefield to charge who they wish without much fear of repercussions.
    • Watch out for enemies with Monstrous Charge. If a Black Númenórean Marshal is knocked off their horse, they become far less deadly and you'll be wishing you had any type of Orc Captain instead of them.
  • Morannon Orc Captain: For 45 points you get a Captain with Defence 6 and Strength 5, which is a worthwhile investment. Morannon Orc Captains have fewer options than ordinary Orc Captains, but they still make a great combat choice. A shield is practically mandatory, and don't get him a Two-handed weapon. If you want a combat character just get Goroth, Shagrat, or an Uruk-hai Captain/Orc Captain on a Warg if you want something cheaper than those two. Morannon Orc Captains can take a hit and they can dish it out, but it's best to play into the Defence than boosting their To Wound rolls. Defence 7 makes a huge difference over Defence 6 since it means even Strength 4 requires 6's to wound you, and it makes them even less vulnerable to ranged fire.
    • Do note that Morannon Orc Captains have similar statlines to many of the named characters above, but while they have Heroic March, most of your named characters do not. This means that Morannon Orcs are better at moving your Orcs into position rather than trying to kill the enemy, though they can certainly do that as well.
    • Consider paying the extra points to change their sword into a mace. Even with their Strength, Morannon Orc Captains aren't as likely to Wound Gondor Warriors, and if you bash them to the ground it makes it much easier for your other Orcs to finish them off, especially if this disrupts their Shieldwall.
  • Captain of the Black Guard: Morannon Orcs on steroids and encased in really really good armour. Defence 7 as standard and Courage 6 as long as Sauron or a Ringwraith is alive makes him hard as nails and painful to fight. Not as cheap as other servants however, though the difference between D6 and D7 is huge (as nearly every good model in the game is S3 or S4, so he'll typically only be wounded on 6's) and so long as you have a Nazgûl and a War Horn in your force (which the Black Númenóreans can provide) he'll pass his Courage checks on 3's, and if you still outnumber your opponent, he'll be Courage 8, and so will always pass Courage tests (and basically function as a 6" Fearless bubble for your Orcs). In short, you want him if you are already taking a Nazgûl and want a Hero who will make sure your Orcs stay in the fight, and that's pretty much it (in other words, he's for higher point games). Other Orc Captains have the same Strength and two-handed weapons if you want to kill stuff, and if you want a cheaper and equally tough hero, just get a Morannon Orc Captain with a shield. He's 10 points cheaper and with the same statline (barring one point of Fight and Courage), or get a Mordor Uruk-hai Captain if you want to kill stuff (who's basically a Captain of the Black Guard but with one less Defence point).
    • Like the Morannon Orc Captain, consider paying the extra points to change your sword to a mace. Even with their Strength, Captains of the Black Guard aren't as likely to Wound Gondor Warriors, and if you bash them to the ground it makes it much easier for your other Orcs to finish them off, especially if this disrupts their Shieldwall.
  • Black Guard Drummer: Should really be Defence 6 since every other Orc Hero has a base Defence of 4, and because of this there's practically no reason to take him over the regular Orc Drummer. Yes he has +1 point of Strength and Courage, but you don't rely on your Drummers to kill stuff, you rely on them to get your troops into position. Besides, base Black Guard have nearly the same statline (they actually are Defence 6 with their gear) so if you really want the Strength 5, get them instead, they're much cheaper and tougher.
    • If you intend to use these guys for whatever reason, just pay the points to upgrade their sword to a mace. You'll actually get some use out of them bashing opponents to the ground so that it's easier for your other Orcs to finish them off.
    • If you do use them, do remember that Black Guard Drummers provide a Stand Fast! bubble to the models around them when your force breaks, you'll be grateful for it at the end of the game since they actually have above average Courage and might be the only thing preventing the Orcs around them from running away, especially if the Captain leading them gets killed.
  • Mordor Uruk-Hai Captain: The Yin to Morannon Orcs' Yang, swapping a point of Defence for +1 Fight and Courage. If you want to be ripping apart the enemy with a hero then they're your go-to generic version, just buy them a two-handed weapon, but if you want a hero that'll last a little longer then go for a Morannon Orc Captain instead. Don't give them shields or orc bows (they cannot get Uruk-hai bows for some reason), they're a complete waste. The gap between Defence 5 and Defence 6 is not very wide in how useful it is to you, at that point you should just pay the extra 5 points for a Captain of the Black Guard who's Defence 7 so that nearly every good model in the game is wounding you on 6's at the least. As for the bows, you could pay a little more for an Orc Tracker which also gives you an extra body on the field to help you keep your army bonus.
    • Note that Mordor Uruk-hai Captains do lose to regular Orc Captains on Wargs in terms of killing Infantry, but this doesn't mean the Mordor Uruk-hai are useless. Unlike models on Wargs they can be supported with spears, and they have a higher Fight and Courage values, making them more important in winning larger combats and making sure your Orcs stick around.
  • Mordor troll Chieftains : Very dangerous Terror causing monster with three Strength 7 attacks and a Defence of 8. A steal at 140 points, Mordor Troll Chieftains are one of the best duelists in the game thanks to having a base Fight of 7 and access to Heroic Strike. They can crush most enemy Heroes, so if you want an answer to Aragorn, then pick one up and begin your recruitment drive today. Do be careful if you're up against Ents though, they will slaughter your Chieftains, so keep regular Orcs around your Chieftains to block potential charges.
    • Troll Chieftains are also vulnerable to being trapped, so be very careful with the fights they get engaged in. A bad roll can have them get slaughtered if they've got enemies behind them, or more than one Orc, making them unable to back away.
    • Note that being an unnamed Hero, Mordor Troll Chieftains can pay the 5 points to change their sword to something else. Not only do they already benefit from the bonus of Feint/Stab thanks to their Army Bonus, but if they're armed with something like a Mace, they can bash over nearly every other unnamed model in the game (that can be knocked over anyway) which might do more for finishing off an enemy Hero or Monster with your Orcs than it would to just have them try and finish them off with your Chieftains. They could also be given a pick/axe which will allow them to wound even Ents on 4+ rather than 5+. Clubs aren't nearly as good for them in this manner, and neither are whips since Clubs stun on a fixed value and whips are unlikely to give them higher than 3 Attacks.
    • If you don't care about your army bonus, then you might consider allying in an Angmar Orc Shaman. Wither will allow them to knock over everything and will also take away from the few models who are still capable of wounding them on greater than a 6.
  • Great Beast of Gorgoroth: Also a steal in terms of points when you consider that the Orc warriors and commander are about 100 points by themselves, not to mention the Orcs in the Howdah do not count against your bow limit, you still get to use them when the Great Beast dies, and it serves to keep them alive as you march them around the field. There's practically no reason not to use it, unless you don't own the model. If you use these guys, you might also want to keep Warg Riders around them to dictate who can and cannot charge at them, because every wound they take is another test to see if they Stampede, and if they fail you can be sure your opponent will do their best to make sure they're useless for this turn and the next. Don't keep anything too pricey near them however, since your opponent gets to use them 'exactly as if it were one of their models' they'll use them to Trample your own troops, which will royally screw your gameplan if they happened to Trample something like a Ringwraith.
    • If there's one rule for War Beasts, it's to make sure you keep them away from the edge of the board. If they Stampede and your opponent gets to move them, moving them off the edge of the board will kill them and you'll lose everything. To this end, do watch out for enemy ranged weapons. Your Orc Commander does not have a shield, which leaves him vulnerable to Elf and Dwarf bows, as well as throwing spears, and as soon as he's gone you'll be testing the Great Beast's Stampede test on a Courage of 3, assuming you still outnumber your enemy, or a Courage of 2 if you don't. This gives you either even odds or less of running off the field, which would be a huge waste.
    • Because it causes Terror the Great Beast synergizes well with the Mouth of Sauron or Ringwraiths, in that you can use Drain Courage on the few enemy models capable of hurting them if they charge, and in that way limit the amount of damage they can take. A few casts of Drain Courage and even Ents will balk at the thought of charging a Great Beast, giving them free reign over the battlefield, allowing them to go and Trample whoever they wish.

Warriors

  • Orc Warrior: One of the worst Warriors in the game; low Courage, Fight and Defence means that these guys are not going to be around for very long, but that's not why you take them, you take them because they're cheap. One Orc Warrior costs as much as a shield for one of your Leaders, and the sheer number of dice that they can roll make them a dangerous threat. Buy them in blobs for holding positions, providing spear support, meatshields for your more expensive Orcs (march them in front so they soak up the arrows) and don't spend too much on them. Six Orcs are better than five Orcs with shields, so get enough to be reasonably sure you can keep your army bonus by outnumbering the enemy, and then make sure they support your actual fighters like Morannon Orcs, Uruk-hai or Black Guard. They can also be a surprisingly effective speed bump when a blob is paired with an Orc shaman.
  • Orc Tracker: Worse in combat than other Orcs and with an extremely low Defence of 3, the Orc trackers are a slightly better shot with a 4+ value. These are some of the most cost effective shooting evil players have access to, and they also serve to help you buff up your model count so you keep your army bonus. Don't bother with normal Orcs with bows (unless you're using the Great Beast of Gorgoroth), just sit them back and pick off a few things.
    • Putting these guys on Wargs might seem like an odd idea, however there is a case for it. A few Orc Trackers on Wargs will allow you to knock down Infantry that come too close and in this way they'll protect the rest of the Orc Trackers they're with who aren't on Wargs. Don't field squads of them on Wargs of course, just get a few here and there to keep back determined Infantry who might be after an objective the Orc Trackers are sitting on.
  • Warg Rider: The reason why you don't want to take Wargs for squads of Orc trackers are the Warg Riders themselves. Evil cavalry extraordinaire, the Wargs are brutal, hard hitting and versatile. Low courage and rider Defence is bad, but again they are cheaper than their good side equivalents. These are a very good buy with throwing spears and shields, coming to 13 points in total. This paired with the changes to thrown weapons and charges, really makes them quite nasty. Pair them up with Gothmog, a Captain or a Shaman mounted on a Warg and target Infantry.
    • Before you charge Infantry with your Wargs, try to whittle them down first. Your movement and the range of your throwing spears means you can keep heaping attacks onto Infantry without worrying about taking a charge from them, and in this way you can kill spears and the like before you charge into combat. If you get caught in a poor engagement against Infantry with your Warg Riders, it's almost always your own fault.
    • Do not try to use Warg Riders for cavalry engagements, especially if you're up against Gondor Knights or anyone else with lances. Not only are you unlikely to wound them, but their counter-charges will be brutal against your units, and you have your own shock cavalry in the form of Morgul Knights to take those engagements for you.
  • Black Númenórean: Costing 9pts apiece the men of Mordor are very limited in their uses. Their low strength and lack of options is a pretty bad feature; which means that their only real use is being the front of a line while being supported by Morannon Orc spears. This might sound familiar to the use of Mordor Uruk-hai, and indeed the Black Númenóreans are close to them in role, since they're also Fight 4 (except with a Courage of 4) however while the Uruk-hai do more damage the Black Númenóreans can take more damage, be it from bows or in combat. Terror also means you're less likely to be charged by an enemy unit, but this doesn't mean that you should take a lot of them. Generally the more Black Númenóreans you have the less useful they are, so if you're taking them, just use a few of them as a frontline support so that the Orcs behind them benefit from their Fight 4 and Defence 6.
    • Incidentally these guys are one of your only sources for a war horn, and you absolutely should get at least one and hide it somewhere. Courage is a huge issue for your force and anything that buffs it is a good thing. Skip the banner on these guys though, they cost too much and are too expensive with it.
    • If for whatever reason you still plan on using these guys, then you absolutely must back them up with a Ringwraith or the Mouth of Sauron. Use Drain Courage and keep the Black Númenóreans in front to prevent enemies from charging your battlelines, or keep them in the back with this strategy to keep enemies from charging your Orc Trackers or getting on the objectives you're holding. If you don't plan on using this strategy, then give them a hard pass.
  • Morgul Knight: Another Gondor analogue, this time using the Knights of Dol Amroth. Their heavy armour and shields give them a good survivability and 18 points prices them competitively as well. Banners are practically mandatory for them to guarantee they get to use their lances when they charge, but war horns are not. Black Númenóreans can already take those and hide in the back to ensure you get the Courage bonus, and it's harder to kill a hiding Black Númenórean rather than a Morgul Knight charging into combat. On top of this, despite being S3 their Lances, Knock Down and Extra Attack on the charge mean they still hit very hard. Damn good and well worth the points.
    • Like your other Terror causing units, Morgul Knights have good synergy with the Mouth of Sauron and especially Ringwraiths. Not only is it harder for enemy models to charge them, but they can use Drain Courage on enemy models to make this even harder, killing enemy charges before they begin and letting your Morgul Knights make the most of their Lances.
    • Watch out for enemy models with Monstrous Charge or War Beasts. A Morgul Knight knocked off their horse is nowhere near as strong, and Trample will ignore Terror altogether.
  • Morgul Stalker: A 10pt one wound Orc doesn't look good, but Stalk Unseen will keep the guy alive, and two attacks each at Strength 4 is enough to give pause. Situationally they can be good in terrain heavy maps, but don't count on them to win games, just get a few to hold far-off objective markers since they're not going to be shot off of them. They're also pretty good at being bodyguards for your Orc Trackers if you don't want to get a few of them Wargs, and Morgul Stalkers also have good synergy with Morannon Orcs/Uruk-hai/Black Guard who are using maces. Get them involved in a fight against somebody, use the other Orc to Bash their opponent to the ground, and the Morgul Stalkers suddenly have 4 Attacks to use against their opponent, which can make them a very good investment in frontline fights against armies that don't have many bows, or which can't draw a bead on them thanks to Terrain. Do be aware that if you just put them out in the open right away, they will get shot off the table, but otherwise it can be very hard to target them with bows.
    • If you do plan on using them to finish off prone models and you have to use them in the open, make sure to keep at least some variety of Orc in the way of them and ranged units until they can get into combat since In the Way rolls will make it significantly harder to hit them.
  • Morannon Orc: Bigger, better, tougher Orcs. The extra Strength and heavy armour makes a big difference to their effectiveness and when paired with a suitable hero, these guys are the primary choice for a front line troop in your games, as they come in cheaper than Mordor Uruk-hai, and can support each other with spears. For a newcomer, there are plenty of these guys in the starter set, so they make an excellent choice considering money and usage in game (Gothmog I'm looking at you).
    • For those of you trying to get the most bang for your buck, buying a shield is great if you know you're up against majority Strength 3 armies (AKA nearly every Good army) but if you're up against Strength 4, the extra Defence point does not increase the To Wound score, so you can go without if you don't intend to use the Shielding rule.
    • Thanks to the fact that Morannon Orcs can be given a wide variety of gear, consider choosing the mace and axes over the sword (especially the maces). Bash is a better way of dealing with Gondor Shieldwalls than hoping you get a 6, and Piercing Strike will allow them to wound Rohan Warriors on 4+ rather than 5+. You also get the benefit of Feint/Stab thanks to your Army Bonus, and so long as you keep enough bodies on the field your swords will be redundant.
  • Black Guard of Barad Dur: A S5, D6 Uruk-hai with a higher than normal courage. Getting on for the cost of two fully equipped Orc warriors and their options are severely limited. Highly effective and the best bodyguard/escort unit that you have. Well worth the points cost, and if you do plan on getting some of these guys, consider paying the extra point and equipping some with axes, and some with maces. They can reliably bash down most opponents (be they Warriors or Heroes) which makes them significantly easier for your supporting elements to finish off, and if you bash down somebody in a Shieldwall, their allies immediately lose the extra Defence point, allowing a S6 axe-wielding Black Guard to wound Gondor Warriors on a 4+ (not to mention your S4 Morannon Orcs/Uruk-hai now wound them on 5's instead of 6's). Just be aware that if you get too many of these, your army is going to suffer since they'll soon be using up a lot of your points, and you'll find it'll be harder to keep your army bonus. As such try to limit these guys to a handful if you plan on using them, rather than filling out Warbands with them.
    • Note that thanks to the new FAQ, Black Guard have to give up their shields for banners, and this means you shouldn't give them banners, at all. Banners are typically bad in combat, and if you wanted a banner to support your Black Guard, then get a Morannon Orc instead. They have the same Defence while costing less.
  • Mordor Uruk-hai: Versatile and strong, Mordor Uruk Hai are a decent choice for a core force to hammer your enemy or a bodyguard for a hero. Reasonably versatile in their choices, but orc bows are a waste of points on these guys as their higher Fight, Courage and Strength is wasted if they camp out in the back field shooting (and taking bows gets rid of the bonus Defence the shield give you). Unfortunately they have no access to spears so you need to back them up with Morannon or regular orcs if you want support, which is a good idea anyway as while Morannon Orcs are just as strong and tougher, Uruk-hai have a higher Fight value.
    • Note that the two-handed weapon the Mordor Uruk-hai have access to is a mace, which quite frankly is great for them. If they're backed up by another model they're practically guaranteed to Bash their opponent to the ground, giving the other Orcs/Uruk-hai a much better chance of finishing them off. This also gives them a better option for breaking down Gondor Shieldwalls, since otherwise they'll need a lucky 5+ while the model backing them up will need a 6.
    • Try not to give Mordor Uruk-hai banners; they not only cost more than regular Orcs, but the banner will make them worse at fighting, which is where the Uruk-hai really shine. You'll ideally be backing them up with regular Orcs or Morannon Orcs anyway, so let one of them take the banner, especially since Morannon Orcs have a higher Defence value.
  • Mordor Troll: High Strength, high Defence, high Fight and three attacks. Now with a full compliment of different weapon upgrades, all hand-and-a-half weapons as well! You get to choose between a hammer, a club and a sword. The bonus from the sword is greatly diminished with the army bonus, so consider choosing a hammer instead, as knocking the target prone is always good and it might even be easier to finish off a prone 3-wound Hero with your Orcs in the fight than gambling on wounding with every attack. It's worth including at least one in every force, although don't bother with the drum upgrade; it's awful. The amount of points you pay is almost enough for an Orc Drummer, which if nothing else, is an extra body for your army bonus and an extra attack even if you never find a time to use the Drum (which is unlikely). Do be careful if you're up against Ents, they will kill it, so keep regular Orcs around it to block potential charges.
    • Do remember that it's very easy for one of your trolls to get trapped, especially if the enemy has any sort of cavalry that can slip around them, and/or a cavalry Hero. To this end you should keep Orcs around them to dictate how they can be charged, but just make sure you don't have more than one model in the way if you need them to back away from an opponent, otherwise you could be losing a Mordor Troll to one bad roll.
    • If you don't care about your army bonus, then you might consider allying in an Angmar Orc Shaman. Wither will allow them to knock over everything with their hammer (including Troll Chieftans) and will also take away from the few models who are still capable of wounding them on greater than a 6.
  • Mordor Siege Bow: A good source of high strength shots, but with vulnerable crew and less damage output than the catapult, the Siege Bow is not worth it by any stretch of the imagination, especially since one Siege Bow could get you 10 Orc Trackers which will also help you keep your Army Bonus for far longer. The 5+ shoot is what really kills it, as it's conceivable that some unlucky dice means that it could miss every single shot it has in the game and never cause a problem for your enemy, and 50 points before upgrades is a tad pricey for that.
    • If you do intend on using it anyway, don't buy it any upgrades. Two Siege Bows are better than one Siege Bow with Engineer Captains, the Flaming Ammunition is not worth it given how the problem is accuracy, not your To Wound roll, and the additional crew aren't very useful since you should be outranging most ranged threats anyway, and if your opponent gets within range and you can't stop them, then the Siege Bow is already dead.
  • Mordor War Catapult: Everything the siege bow isn't. Very expensive and highly effective against everything on the battlefield. If the troll is in base contact with catapult, you can re-roll to hit and scatter rolls. With 4+ shoot and Strength 10 you'll most likely kill what you point it at. If you intend to use the Catapult then you should combine it with Orc Trackers or Warg Riders, so that you can snipe out the models the rock might scatter onto and make it far more likely that you'll hit the target you actually want to hit. An Orc Engineer Captain might also be a good investment if you know you're going to be up against an Infantry heavy force, since the extra Might will make it easier to crush the powerful Heroes and monsters you really want to crush, instead of having it land on chaff the entire game, just be aware him and the other upgrades can make it cost a lot more very quickly. At least two other extra crew are also a decent enough idea, since you need two crew to operate it at minimum, and if your opponent has their own siege engine then you're going to want targets for their shots to hit instead of the catapult itself.
    • If you don't take regular Trolls then you're probably going to want a Catapult if you know your opponent has monsters of their own. Getting outright kills on them is one of the best ways to minimise the damage they do to your force, and make the catapult its points back at the same time.
    • The severed heads upgrade is a pretty decent enough upgrade, especially when you combine it with a Ringwraith. Not only do they lower the Courage of enemy models, but they can use Drain Courage on enemy Heroes and monsters to make it more likely they'll fail the test, and if the enemy fails the Courage test the impact hits inflict on them, they'll be removed from the game. Just be aware that even though the attack has a splash effect on the models around it, your opponent will normally be able to use the scatter of the weapon to have it land on a model that's further away from the others, minimising the effect of the Courage tests. Because of this, try to snipe out stragglers with Orc Trackers or Warg Riders before using Severed Heads to make it more likely they land somewhere they can do decent damage to.
    • Flaming Ammunition is also a worthwhile upgrade, since there's nothing that sucks harder than nailing an Ent or Eagle with the catapult, then having it roll a 1 on its To Wound roll.

Allies

Mordor Has some decent ally choices to fill up a few gaps in the army. As of ME:SBG, Alliances are based off history and the chronological order of things, rather than the sides they could have fought on. This is why Mordor and Barad-Dûr are impossible allies. The Siege of Barad-Dûr took place during the Last Alliance whilst the Mordor list presented in Armies of The Lord of the Rings represents Mordor as it was during the War of the Ring, about 3000 years apart.

Historical Allies

·The Easterlings – Some of the toughest cavalry in the game. At D7 thanks to shield wall, these are very hard to move if they maintain their formations.

·The Serpent Horde – ELEPHANTS

Convenient Allies

·Corsairs of Umbar –

·Dark Denizens of Mirkwood –

·Far Harad –

·Isengard –

·Moria –

·Variags of Khand –

Impossible Allies

·Angmar –

·Azog's Hunter –

·Azog's Legion –

·Barad-Dûr –

·Dark Powers of Dol Guldor –

·Desolator of the North –

·Goblin Town –

·Sharkey's Rogues –

·The Trolls –

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