Fire and Ice: Éowyn, Shieldmaiden

Éowyn, Shieldmaiden | Art by Craig Elliott

We're heading back to Middle-earth later this year with The Hobbit, so let's take a moment and check in on one of the coolest commanders from the last Lord of the Rings set: Éowyn, Shieldmaiden!

Welcome one and all to Fire and Ice, the data-driven series where I go over cards that are becoming more or less popular for different Commander decks. Today we'll be talking about why some cards may be gaining or losing popularity with Éowyn pilots.

EDHREC, of course, has a ton of data. We'll draw conclusions from that data about how certain commanders' decks have changed over time, give insight into how the format's players are thinking about new cards, and hopefully provide some tech for your favorite commander's list.

For some info on how we arrive at the numbers in this article, feel free to check out this link.

Éowyn is a super cool commander, and even led the Riders of Rohan preconstructed deck a few years back. She may cost a good bit of mana, but she provides some serious value after sticking on the board for a bit. Let's see what this Shieldmaiden can do.

Éowyn, Shieldmaiden

For , Éowyn is a 5/4 Human Knight with first strike. And, at the beginning of combat on our turn, if we've had another Human enter the battlefield this turn we get to make two 2/2 creature tokens with relevant combat abilities. She also lets us draw a card at that time if we've got six or more Humans on the board.

To summarize, Éowyn is a big creature that creates creature tokens and draws us a card each turn pretty consistently. She provides a huge amount of value, and can drive our game plan forward with ease (as long as we're making plenty of Humans).

Among her most popular cards are Shared Animosity (86% of decks), Combat Celebrant (80% of decks), and Frontline Medic (73% of decks). All three of these cards were in the 99 of her precon.

What's Fiery for Éowyn Decks?

Chronicle of Victory - Fire Score of 8.82

Éowyn decks lean pretty hard into the Human typal theme. The average deck has 30+ Humans in it, and even more ways to create Human creature tokens. This artifact may cost a whopping , but it provides a relevant anthem and some extra card advantage as we cast more creature spells in the future.

It's worth noting that Éowyn has first strike already (and the creature tokens that she creates have trample already), but Chronicle of Victory is still a great card. It's also got a super high Fire Score, indicating that many Éowyn pilots are loving this artifact.

Harmonized Crescendo and Collective Inferno - Fire Scores of 8.38 and 5.58, Respectively

Creature combat decks often want both of these effects. Damage amplifiers and creature-count based card advantage are time-tested classics. So, giving these effects convoke was always sure to be a hit!

We can often cast either one of these spells for "free," as we'll be flooding the board with creatures. But even if we choose not to convoke these spells, their mana costs aren't as absurdly high as other convoke spells like Autochthon Wurm.

Winnowing - Fire Score of 6.53

This is a super interesting board wipe, and reminds me a lot of Raise the Palisade. Both spells allow us to selectively wipe opposing boards. Regrettably, Winnowing gives our opponents the choice of which creatures they'd like to preserve. We'll likely still come out ahead, as almost all of our creatures share a type, but our opponents may not be as damaged by this sorcery as we'd hope.

Still, though, the fact that it can be cast for very little mana still merits a spot in tons of Éowyn decks.

Irma, Part-Time Mutant - Fire Score of 5.80

Irma is one of the coolest clones we've seen in a long time. We'll often choose to make her a copy of our commander, which will allow us to create two more 2/2s and draw an additional card each turn. It's also neat that Irma is a Human before she transforms, which ensures that Éowyn's ability will fire at the beginning of combat on her turn.

The +1/+1 counter that she gains isn't super relevant, but it does make her an even more potent combat threat.

Gathering Stone - Fire Score of 3.06

I suspect that this card is being slotted in place of Herald's Horn, which is one of our Icy cards. While Gathering Stone does cost more than Herald's Horn, it also lets us place a card from our library into our graveyard instead of forcing us to pick it up during our draw step. That sort of pseudo-surveil is very powerful, and more card selection is never a bad thing.

Plus, Éowyn's Jeskai () color identity gives us access to some great recursion effects.

Lossarnach Captain - Fire Score of 2.05

This creature was in the Riders of Rohan preconstructed deck, and is still in 85% of Éowyn lists. It appears to be making somewhat of a comeback, hence its Fire Score. This Human Soldier does so much, giving us a 1/1 Human creature token and triggering Éowyn every turn while also tapping down opposing blockers.

Yes, is a lot to spend for this effect. This creature is also just a 3/1. But Lossarnach Captain can hit the field the turn before our commander does, which is a super powerful curve-out.

What's Icy for Éowyn Decks?

Rhystic Study and Smothering Tithe - Ice Scores of -2.12 and -1.66, Respectively

These cards have very different effects, but they're both Game Changers. Their falling inclusion rates, and corresponding Ice Scores, indicate to me that Éowyn pilots may be looking to play in Bracket 2 instead of Bracket 3 or 4. Or, they may just be looking to include other Game Changers like Drannith Magistrate or Cyclonic Rift.

I'm unsure specifically what's happening here. Éowyn deckbuilders, feel free to let me know in the comments!

Roaming Throne and Otawara, Soaring City - Ice Scores of -2.06 and -1.95, Respectively

Roaming Throne is a fantastic card, and one of the strongest creatures that typal decks have access to. It's like using a Clone Legion to copy all of our creatures.

Otawara is one of the best lands that's ever been printed. The ability to remove almost any permanent in a difficult-to-stop way, while also tapping to add if necessary, is unbeatable.

It's possible that these cards are too strong for Éowyn decks. They don't fit well at casual tables, and often outclass almost every other card that sees play in Bracket 2 decks. The fact that both of these cards are Icy makes me think that the aforementioned Game Changers are being removed from decks entirely, not just swapped for other powerful cards.

Prince Imrahil the Fair - Ice Score of -2.00

This Human Noble will let us make an extra 1/1 Human every time that Éowyn's start of combat ability triggers. It's possible that he'll let us make another 1/1 on other players' turns, but that's unlikely given the construction of most Éowyn decks.

Is spending worth it just to get a a single small creature token every turn? My gut tells me no.

Herald's Horn - Ice Score of -1.78

This artifact provides a discount on all our Human creature spells (letting us cast Éowyn on turn four if we cast Herald's Horn on turn three), and will let us draw an extra card during our upkeep about 1/3 of the time (the average Éowyn deck has roughly 30 Human creatures in it).

But Gathering Stone is just a bit more powerful. Most players would happily spend extra for the ability to "surveil" an unwanted card into the graveyard every turn. If I had an Éowyn list I'd likely include both artifacts. The curve-out that Herald's Horn makes possible is sweet, but the power provided by Gathering Stone is too good to pass up.

What's in an Éowyn, Shieldmaiden Deck?

Here's an Éowyn list with all of her hot cards included and all of her cold cards excluded. This list has certainly been influenced heavily by the original Riders of Rohan deck, as I'm sure many Éowyn lists have.

Conclusion

We'll be heading back to Middle-earth in August, with a Universes Beyond Hobbit set. The first set in this environment, The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth, was a huge success. Players loved the set's flavor, and it sold quite well.

I've got high hopes for the next set from this franchise. What characters are you hoping to see depicted on cardstock? Personally, I hope we get another Smaug card. There and Back Again just wasn't enough for me!