Balin

* Portrait
* Unarmoured
* Armoured

"Instead there was a very old-looking dwarf on the step with a white beard and a scarlet hood; and he too hopped inside as soon as the door was open, just as if he had been invited.
'I see they have begun to arrive already,' he said when he caught sight of Dwalin's green hood hanging up. He hung his red one next to it, and 'Balin at your service!' he said with his hand on his breast."
—An Unexpected Party, The Hobbit

Balin, Son of Fundin, was one of the oldest Dwarves of Thorin's Company and one of the wisest. He was a close friend of Thorin and acted as his advisor. During the Quest for Erebor, he acted as a look-out on many stages of the journey. When the dwarves had reclaimed the Mountain, Balin worried the most about Thorin's state of mind out of all the dwarves. Many years later, he led an expedition to reclaim Moria and was initially successful before he and the rest of the expedition were wiped out by goblins.

Balin is a recruitable hero for the Reign of Oakenshield Erebor faction in standard play. He is also recruitable in the Adventure: Battle of the Five Armies subfaction, as well as the Adventure: Durin's Folk subfaction for both the Oakenshield and Ironfoot eras. He is identical across all these versions except for the Ironfoot-era Adventure: Durin's Folk subfaction, in which his skillset has been slightly adjusted.

In all cases, he is recruitable from the Erebor Fortress.

## Abilities (All Except Ironfoot-era Adventure: Durin's Folk)

**Pathfinder** **(W)** - Modifier Type: Leadership. Allies near Balin gain +25% vision range. Stacks with buffs and spells. Passive ability. At level 10, teleports target units to the targeted location. Does not work on siege units. Left click icon, then left click on target units, then left click on pathable location.

**Level 3: Balin's Expedition (T)** - Balin plants a banner of Durin. Nearby troops gain +50% experience gain, +25% armour, +33% damage and are partially healed. At level 10, affected units are immune to knockback and are healed by a larger amount.

**Level 5:** **Dwarven Wisdom (R)** - Target structure's resource output is temporarily raised to 175%. Left click icon then left click on target resource structure.

**Level 9: Counselor of Kings (C)** - Modifier Type: Spell. Balin empowers a friendly hero, granting them +50% armour, 50% faster experience gain and 75% faster power recharge times for 30 seconds. Stacks with leaderships and spells. Left click then left click on target hero.

## Abilities (Ironfoot-era Adventure: Durin's Folk only)

**Company's Lookout** - Modifier Type: Leadership. Allies near Balin gain +25% vision range. Passive ability.

**Level 3: Balin's Expedition (R)** - Balin plants a banner of Durin. Nearby troops gain +50% experience gain, +25% armour, +33% damage and are partially healed. At level 7, affected units are immune to knockback and are healed by a larger amount. At level 10, summons a battalion of Moria Reclaimers. Left click to activate.

**Level 5: Dwarven Wisdom (T)** - Selected structure's resource output is temporarily raised to 175%. Left click icon then left click on target resource structure.

**Level 9: Counselor of Kings (C)** - Modifier Type: Spell. Balin empowers a friendly hero, granting them +50% armour, 50% faster experience gain and 75% faster power recharge times for 30 seconds. Stacks with leaderships and spells. Left click then left click on target hero.

## Strategy

Balin acts as a versatile supportive hero for Erebor. Balin is useful for mobility and scouting, being able to increase an army's vision range to scout enemy troops and being able to transport hordes of allies into battle or to safety. **Dwarven Wisdom** is an effective ability to cause a target structure to earn much more resources for a time. **Balin's Expedition** is a strong support power that grants large bonuses to units in the surrounding area. It is best used when in a chokepoint to prevent the enemy from escaping its effect. Once it has been upgraded at level 10, the banner can be used to counter enemy cavalry and monsters. His most powerful ability is **Counsellor of Kings** which can heavily boost the skills of a target hero. It is a powerful when used with any hero, but especially powerful when combined with Thorin thanks to his Driven By Prophecy power which can heal and replenish cooldowns of allies.

Although Balin's skillset remains the same in most of his incarnations, it has been altered slightly in the Ironfoot-era Adventure: Durin's Folk subfaction. This particular incarnation of Balin can no longer teleport units, with **Company's Lookout** replacing **Pathfinder** and only providing a vision range boost to allies. To make up for this, **Balin's Expedition** has been made stronger. It now provides knockback immunity and improved healing at level 7 instead of level 10, and can instead summon a battalion of Khazad-dûm Veterans at level 10 for 75 seconds. These veterans are durable elite Swordsmen who are can lower armour of enemies around them, putting them at even more of a disadvantage alongside the buffs that the banner from **Balin's Expedition** provides. Otherwise, his remaining skills and stats remain the same.