Galadriel, Light of ValinorGaladriel, Light of Valinor|Art by Alexander Mokhov

The Prologue

Hello, and welcome back! This week's Beyond the Multiverse is the first of two articles (the other one will be next week) where you get non-Final Fantasy content while I'm away on vacation.

This week, we're going back in time to 2023, where we witnessed Final Fantasy's predecessor take the crown of highest selling set ever. Yes, we're going back to The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth.

This time, we're going to make a challenge: can we build a deck using only cards from the IP? We sure can, though Cloud and his friends take the cake for best IP to build decks from (this sounds like a couple of future articles in the making). Without further ado, let's see what I have in store for you all.

The Ancient Queen

If you've read the books or seen the movies, then you know who Galadriel is. However, to recap: she's the elven queen of Lothlorien. She's also one of the oldest and most powerful beings in Middle-earth, assisting the Free Peoples of Middle-earth defeat the dark forces that threaten them.

There's several versions of our commander, but the one I'm showcasing is the best of them, and it's not even close. If you're able to get at least three creatures out in one turn, you're going to reap a lot of value.

Especially if you can do it consistently. Token decks are one way to do it, as you'll get all three of Galadriel's abilities. This is especially true with the Universes Beyond card pool, as we'll soon discover.

However, I consider that easy mode, and I'm writing this up expecting a challenge. With that said, I want to take a more flavorful approach, one so infamous that it's on the mind of 60-card formats everywhere, and has perhaps killed a fan-made format.

That's right, those Elves will not be on shelves because we're going Elfball.

Amassing the Galadhrim

Assuming you know about Elfball, and the notoriety it brings, then you know games will end very fast and consistently. However, we're building decks from just the Universes Beyond card pool.

Crucially, this cuts the Elf options by a meteoric amount. In fact, most of the support can be found within the Lord of the Rings IP itself.

We have some pointy-eared all-stars, like Reclamation SageReclamation Sage and Wood ElvesWood Elves. On the other hand, we also have newer cards, like Arwen, Weaver of HopeArwen, Weaver of Hope and Galadhrim BrigadeGaladhrim Brigade.

Moreover, we have access to a few mana dorks, notably Elvish MysticElvish Mystic and Arbor ElfArbor Elf. Unfortunately, we do lose out on a lot of lord effects, and thus a lot of power, something I'll cover in the In-Universe section.

While we have Overwhelming StampedeOverwhelming Stampede, we gain a new finisher in Haldir, Lórien LieutenantHaldir, Lórien Lieutenant. That said, keeping up six mana to activate his ability is asking a lot with what we have, but it's still worth it.

Notably, there's a scrying subtheme with the Lord of the Rings Elves, which is something we can capitalize on. Firstly, Celeborn the WiseCeleborn the Wise has us scry when he attacks, and gets pumped whenever we do so anyway.

Secondly, Elrond, Master of HealingElrond, Master of Healing puts counters on our board, and the "protection" ability gives our opponents less incentive to target our stuff.

Finally, Elvish MarinerElvish Mariner taps down potential blockers to clear the way for a large strike. Just be careful of the potential crackback when you do.

Standing Army

Having lots of nontoken Elf creatures is well and good, but we need to make some tokens to get going. Firstly, Sylvan OfferingSylvan Offering nets us as many Elves as we pump mana into the spell, but an opponent gets the same benefit, so use wisely.

Further, the spell also makes a Treefolk token, which you can populate with Arboreal AllianceArboreal Alliance. Either they're large threats, or Overwhelming StampedeOverwhelming Stampede can make effective use of their statlines.

Next, Rally the GaladhrimRally the Galadhrim gives a token copy of a card we need, and it's easy to make use of the conspire ability.

Secondly, we have Galadhrim AmbushGaladhrim Ambush, which will protect and give us some Elf tokens to use. Thirdly, Windswift SliceWindswift Slice eliminates a creature and drops tokens equal to the excess damage. Unfortunately, our creatures tend to not be very big, but perhaps those Treefolk tokens can come in handy again.

Lastly, we return to Galadhrim BrigadeGaladhrim Brigade, which is perhaps the best card to populate. The Squad cost, if paid enough times, gives lots of tokens of itself, which in turn buffs our board.

It's worth noting that, while it's not what we're doing here, you can tune the list to have a stronger token presence to more consistently trigger Galadriel three times. However, there's a reason that I went Elves for this article.

Long Live the Queen

Other Musings

This is a list I had for a while before I took it apart, hence why the Cavern of SoulsCavern of Souls is not in the deck. I didn't have the card at the time, but it's an easy inclusion.

That said, the list plays like a sort of manual Elfball deck, where things don't end up being on autopilot. Because of the card pool, there's some rather unorthodox choices within the deck.

Firstly, Círdan the ShipwrightCírdan the Shipwright is definitely a fun card, but not something you'd expect to see. However, you will get something out of him either way, even if it's drawing a card. Meanwhile, Realm SeekersRealm Seekers is typically a large beater that can find you a land if needed.

Secondly, Elven ChorusElven Chorus does its best impression of draw and ramp and is a strong card in its own right.

On the other hand, both Lórien RevealedLórien Revealed and Plea for PowerPlea for Power straight up draws us cards. Assume Plea is a draw spell; no one will ever give you the extra turn. Galadriel of LothlórienGaladriel of Lothlórien, the other decent iteration of our commander, might seem like an odd inclusion, but she's really there for the second ability.

Finally, we have some other cards that are (or were) all-stars in Elf decks. Door of DestiniesDoor of Destinies will be building up counters in no time while we still have Genesis WaveGenesis Wave, arguably one of the best cards in the archetype.

Raise the PalisadeRaise the Palisade is especially brutal here, making it into a pseudo-Cyclonic RiftCyclonic Rift. However, maybe going "Manual Elfball" isn't to your liking.

Maybe, instead, you want to put the pedal to the metal, turning the dial to 11. Our next section will provide that, and a little more.

Beyond the Horizon

Like I've said earlier in the article, Elfball takes a real hit by going UB-Only, so this section will cover what's missing.

Firstly, a lot of lords. Leaf-Crowned VisionaryLeaf-Crowned Visionary, Imperious PerfectImperious Perfect, and Canopy TacticianCanopy Tactician all pump our board while providing other benefits.

In addition, Elven AmbushElven Ambush and Elvish PromenadeElvish Promenade each are Elf armies in cans, giving you a big board in one card.

Secondly, besides the game changer that is Gaea's CradleGaea's Cradle, Joraga TreespeakerJoraga Treespeaker, Wirewood ChannelerWirewood Channeler, and Growing Rites of ItlimocGrowing Rites of Itlimoc potentially give you more mana than you know what to do with.

Moreover, Dionus, Elvish ArchdruidDionus, Elvish Archdruid lets us reuse a lot of our Elven tap abilities, giving pseudo-vigilance at worst. At best? Well, Nadu, Winged WisdomNadu, Winged Wisdom is banned for a reason.

Finally, going in-universe gives us our traditional finishers, such as Ezuri, Renegade LeaderEzuri, Renegade Leader and the infamous Craterhoof BehemothCraterhoof Behemoth. Kindred SummonsKindred Summons is especially good here if you got a load of Elves already.

Meanwhile, we regain a lot of essential card draw. Beast WhispererBeast Whisperer nets us a card for each creature and is an Elf. Shamanic RevelationShamanic Revelation gives us a card for each creature we have (and some life if we meet the criteria).

In addition, if Galadriel isn't your style, there's a lot of other Elf legends to pick from, something that's also true for a number of the other Universes Beyond commander choices. Lathril, Blade of the ElvesLathril, Blade of the Elves is very popular, and rightly so.

There's also the notorious Voja, Jaws of the ConclaveVoja, Jaws of the Conclave, but you'll need some Wolves to get him to his full potential.

Even within the 99, there's a lot of options to choose from, all of which can be found under Tags, then under Kindred. Elves should be within the top row.

Sailing Into the West

In conclusion, there's quite a stark contrast between a regular version of Elfball Galadriel and one using only Universes Beyond cards. I imagine it's easy to get tired of doing the same deal over and over without much thinking.

Hopefully, my list above will serve as an example of a take that's more controlled, and far less oppressive. This list is for you if you love Elfball but want to enjoy a more relaxed pace.

Next week will be a first for the series, so stay tuned for what I've got planned for us.