The runner-up in our list of Allies with the best Cost Values is the humble Wandering Ent. This Lore ally is found in the Celebrimbor's Secret adventure pack from the Ring Maker cycle expansions. His Cost Value is 225%.
As we have already noted, Lore characters often have average stats in all areas, so you have plenty of options when they are in play. Another thing we have previously noted is that Ents (such as Treebeard and Booming Ent who also had good entries on this list) enter play exhausted to balance their cheap costs.
Wandering Ent is no exception to either of these. When compared to the two Ent cards we have already seen, this one scores even higher possibly because he has no text power at all. Treebeard provided resources and Booming Ent could build up quite a large bonus to their attack, but the Lore Ent is just a plain useful ally.
But to really see how good value he is, we can compare him to a Lore ally released much earlier; Haldir of Lorien. This Ent and Haldir are Lore allies with exactly the same stats, but Haldir costs four resources whereas the Ent only costs half of that! Well, what are we losing when we swap Haldir for the Wandering Ent? The Ent doesn't have the Ranged or Sentinel keywords, but in my opinion the Lore sphere is the best one for solo play anyway. We have the entering exhausted effect, but I'm not convinced that that balances the cheap cost of this tree herder. He is very simple, and very good value. That is why Wandering Ent makes it into second place on this list. So which card is the only card that offers better Cost Value?...
I think it is also important to examine which attachments or abilities impact the Allies as well. None of the below discredits the Ent, but the Silvan trait might be a bit more developed (not to mention if you are playing Multiplayer, having Ranged and Sentinel will come into play, as will the Action Disadvantage of an Ent)
ReplyDeleteHaldir, while a cost of 4, becomes less expensive when combo'd with Elfstone or Vilya (which can be said for any ally really), but those cards specifically have relevance as you might be playing a Noldor/Silvan theme, which would also give you access to The Tree People, which means Haldir can be played for free essentially, or his cost can be reduced with O Lorien.
Haldir can receive a +1 to his Willpower, Attack, and Defense the round he enters play if he utilizes synergy with Celeborn, a staple in Silvan theme decks.
Haldir can quest without exhausting if he belongs to a deck with Hero Galadriel, who is a staple in Noldor/Silvan decks built around the setting of Lothlorien.
Haldir becomes a form of Threat Reduction (reducing threat by 4) when used with Island Amid Perils.
Rivendell Blade can be attached to Haldir.
Rivendell Bow can be attached to Haldir.
Bow of Galadhrim can be attached to Haldir.
Elven Mail can be attached to Haldir.
Cloak of Lorien can be attached to Haldir.