New to the game. I'm looking to build a spirit themed 1,000 point force that will be expanded to 1,500 later on. Can you good folks offer any tidbits of wisdom/suggestions/tactics for building an Angmar army?

Maybe even a few sample lists for ideas?

Mainly I want to make a spirt themed army, but I also want it to be fun to play and still remain competitive.

This was my thought so far for 1,000 pts.

Ghostly Legion (3 companies, 1 captain, 1 standard bearer)
Ghostly Riders (2 companies, 1 captain)
Morannon Orcs (2 companies)
Orc Trackers (1 company)
Spectral Host (1 company)
Court of the Fallen Kings (1 company)
Shade
The Tainted
Wormtongue

Some of my thoughts: Ghostly units seem to be way too expensive for what they do? It seems like I need more infantry companies, I don't know how I would hold up against armies fielding formations of 4-6 companies. I'll probably be outnumbered by most? Any tips on how to deal with this in terms of army construction or battlefield tactics, but keeping in with the spirit theme?

Also seems like I'm weak defensively, and might have trouble dealing with enemy Heroes.

Not a fan of adding the orcs but it seems like I almost need them for shooting (Orc Trackers) and to fill out the ranks (Morannon Orcs). Alternatively I can trade the 2 companies of Morannons for 3 companies of Angmar Orcs (but they have a weaker statline). Or trade them for wargs.

I'm also considering Dark Numenorians (high defense, seems like good shocktroops, have Terror), werewolves, wargs, or spider broodling swarms. These seem to be more closer to the spirit theme than Orcs. Perhaps some of these elements can be used in 1,500.

Also heard that spirit armies are weak against elves. Any tips on how to deal with elves?

I realize Wormtongue is expensive, but I think he is an integral part because spirits attack courage instead of defense. Wormtongue can reduce enemies courage by 2, frightening the troops and weakening their resolve with stories of ghosts.

I'm curious to see how the Spectral Host in conjuction with the Shade will play out. I'm planning to use the Spectral Host against units with high STR values to nullify it to 1.

If any experienced players are willing to comment I'm open to any advice!

First off, when the game first came out I decided on Angmar as well, so welcome to the very small group of people who play it. Second, its not a great choice for an army to start WotR with due to the extremely high learning curve of the list, so beware.

I like everything except the ghostly legion and to a lesser extent ghostly riders.

Spectral host have shown that while they are more expensive, they are far superior to ghostly legion. They can have an epic hero attached to it. This is one of many reasons why spectral host should be considered over ghostly legion.

Ghostly legion are nasty expensive, but if youre going with the spirit theme, you may as well just spend the extra 20 points per company and just take spectral hosts.

Plus, if you have no ghostly legion, then all of those sweet plastic ghosties can now be used as spectral host instead of using the three poses offered by the much more expensive metals.

I would take morgul knights over the ghostly riders simply because they are better in every way and look just as evil if not more so. They are also slightly cheaper monetarily.

Wormtongue can be fun to use on occasion, but he ultimately suffers from being too expensive in general against most opponents. While he is an epic hero,it is debatable if he can hop around other enemy units or simply has to stay in one formation. It also uses valuable points that could otherwise be used on allies that will help make the rather subpar angmar list more competitive.

To deal with elves:
Its a very hard matchup, especially when they take heroes such as gil galad. To combat this, take a epic hero assassin such as gulavhar or outflank them with druzhag the beast caller abilities (spiders and wargs do indeed come in mighty handy). A Dragon with spellcaster upgrade should also be considered when playing a 2k point game. Dragons fit very well with the angmar theme, even though they arent part of the main list.