I'm still uncertain about Fallen Saruman though. VC1 has added two cards that help him:
First of the Order has been made a permanent event, which is okay.
Never Refuse has more application with Fallen Saruman than any other FW because Fallen Saruman has been the only FW that had to worry about Beorning Skin-Changers.
On the other hand, Cup of Farewell has made the Forge-Master's special essentially obsolete. With any female character, you can get any minor item instead of just a Weapon/Armor/Shield/Helmet minor item.
But overall, there are only a few areas in which the Fallen Saruman player would be better off than any other avatar:
1) Fallen Saruman can recycle Gold Ring Items with Saruman's Ring. This is great, but it's not a source of MPs -- it's a defense against Rolled. Fallen Saruman gets full MPs from Ring Items without use of Blind To All Else. However, FW Ring decks are uniquely vulnerable to Blind to the West. Fallen Saruman can recycle Wizard's Test, but on any given turn, you run the risk of the Test getting Blinded and essentially losing the turn. Also, Fallen Gandalf has an even easier time recycling Wizard's Test -- and can tap himself to test a ring if the Wizard's Test gets Blinded, so he's at least as viable as Fallen Saruman for a Rings for Points deck.
2) Fallen Saruman's defense against Rolled makes him the best choice for A New Ringlord. A risky proposition at best.
3) Info. There are one and a half decks based a round Man of Skill. Frodo is intimately familiar with the Worthy Hills squatter (:)), and the other is sticking some Ain't No Secrets for 4 MPs.
But in terms of characters, the other FWs shine because of their superior GI (or, in Alatar's case, easy access to his main company as well as the more versatile 17 GI/10 DI).
In terms of allies, Radagast and Alatar beat Fallen Saruman -- Alatar through Full MPs on prowess allies, Radagast through allies playable at tapped sites from the discard pile and no movement restrictions on allies. Alatar through Untimely Brood also beats Saruman, and Pallando equals him.
In terms of factions, Gandalf, Alatar, and Pallando all can get 3-MP or 4-MP factions. Pallando also outdoes Saruman in terms of Half-Orc factions, which are all worth 2 MPs for him. Even Radagast equals Saruman in faction play.
In terms of items, Saruman's item MP ability is completely beaten by Legacy of Smiths, a generic FW card. Fallen Alatar doesn't even need that to get Full MPs from Orcrist/Wormsbane/Whatever. Fallen Saruman will also need to use Legacy of Smiths to get full points from weapons/armor/shields.
As far as Miscellaneous MPs go, any other "Big" FW card actually plays to that FWs strengths. Girdle and Await give only 1 less MP, but Gandalf will have 3 MP Free-Hold factions and Radagast will have allies up the wazoo. Pallando gets 3 less MPs but will have played 3 MP factions. Alatar's Great Hunt goes without saying. White Hand doesn't play to Saruman's strengths because Saruman doesn't actually have any other than the Black Hills deck.
With that in mind, I think Fallen Saruman could use a little buffing or a lot, and have a couple of ideas (surprise!
) depending on which camp you fall in.The Forge-Master:
Little Buff: Reduce the stage points to 1. With Forge-Master being exceeded by Virtual Cup of Farewell, this card needs to be more of a bargain.
Big Buff:
Unique. Playable on any Orc or Dwarf. This character only requires two points of influence to control and may only be controlled by General Influence or Saruman. Tap target character to retrieve any technology item from the discard pile to your hand.
Rationale:
Saruman has to go through a lot of annoyance to play Saruman's Machinery -- it can only be played at a protected White Towers or Isengard. You can't afford to clog your deck with technology items based on Saruman's Machinery. Since all technology items are worth 1 MP, this won't be too strong -- just a little boost. It can also work to add a little more to a Great Ruse deck. Thematically, Saruman was a servant of Aule, so should have a better relationship with dwarves than he currently does. Alternatively, he went in for the orcs -- I never thought that any Man character was thematic.
Many-Coloured Robes:
Little Buff: If on Saruman, tap Many-Coloured Robes during your end-of-turn phase to take First of the Order, All Thought Bent On It, or Some Secret Art Of Flame from your discard pile to your hand.
Big Buff: If on Saruman, tap Many-Coloured Robes during your end-of-turn phase to take First of the Order, Focus Palantir, or The Tormented Earth from your discard pile to your hand.
Rationale:
The problem with the original is that nobody cares about getting Lordly Presence, Ringlore, or a non-virtual First Of The Order back. The reason nobody cares about Lordly Presence is that factions are only worth 2 MPs for Fallen Saruman, tops. The reason nobody cares about Ringlore is that it costs a turn and a site in order to be Rolled anyway. That and the original text forces you to tap Saruman. With the Little Buff version, Fallen Saruman gets a chance to search for a key item without too much deck clog and recycle a reasonable prowess booster which will help him out in being active (combined with Never Refuse). The Big Buff allows for good Palantiri action (Minion Palantiri so that one has to choose between big MP hero palantiri and minion palantiri utility), and a canceler to keep him alive so he dares move out of the Gap of Isen.
Saruman:
Little Buff: Ignore all movement restrictions on Palantiri borne by any of your characters. May tap during your end of turn phase to bring one spell or sorcery card from your discard pile to your hand.
Big Buff: If you have more than 14 Stage Points, your Unique Minion Resources normally worth 3 or more Marshalling Points are worth 3 Marshalling Points and your Unique Minion resources normally worth 2 Marshalling Points or less are each worth 2 Marshalling Points. Saruman may tap during your end-of-turn phase to bring one spell or sorcery card from your discard pile to your hand.
Rationale:
Since Fallen Saruman's Full Item MPs for non-battle gear is exceeded and surpassed by Legacy of Smiths (or Blind if you're going for Rings), get rid of it entirely. With the little buff, he can do some interesting things with normally immobile or unwieldy Palantiri. I think, though, I prefer the big buff. It's obviously inspired by Grey Embassy/Give Welcome, but with key differences:
1) A rather stiff Stage Point requirement. Thematically speaking, Saruman should have to fall farther than any other Fallen Wizard;
2) A focus on minion resources. Most FWs don't really have this other than Wolf-Squatters and Ettenmoors. Since Saruman is described in the books as having intently studied the arts of the Enemy, it seems to me that his focus should be far more on minion resources than the current set allows.
Overall, I just think Fallen Saruman could use a bit more flexibility and interesting cards/abilities. His Palantiri focus is more advantageously done by Pallando, his item MP ability is duplicated and surpassed by generic stage cards, and Man of Skill only leads to about one and a half decks.
Anyway, I feel the topic is worthy of discussion, and I've played Fallen Saruman enough that I don't think I'm inaccurate in anything I've said. Feel free to point out the stuff I've inevitably missed.
).
.So but in the end it would just mean a plus 2 or 3 mp's on factions then, and maybe +1 for a minion ally or weapon. And it would mean you don't have to play Gatherer of loyalties, but have you ever done a SP breakdown, can he get to 14 SP without the White Hand actually, reasonably?