Love the art on this one.

Beautiful lady with a beautiful ability.

The art reminds me of an actress from somewhere but I can't figure out who.

So what's the best use for her in the core? It seems dropping Asha at the right time can have the most devastating effect. Maybe Cersei?

So what's the best use for her in the core? It seems dropping Asha at the right time can have the most devastating effect. Maybe Cersei?

Hotah is huge, Wildling Horde is pretty good as well. Tyrion maybe?

Like when any card leaves play, any duplicates (and tokens, etc) on it are discarded, and any attachments on it return to hand.

Let's precise that "any attachments" : any non-terminal attachments. Now you have full response.

She's nice in the Baratheon matchup, since the Bara player will usually look for another target to kneel.

Can she use her ability to bring another Arianne into play? That way, it's like a free standing for her. For example, she did an intrigue challenge, can I use her action to bring another Arianne (of course, the older, knelt Arianne will return to the hand), then I'll do a Power challenge with her?

Can she use her ability to bring another Arianne into play? That way, it's like a free standing for her. For example, she did an intrigue challenge, can I use her action to bring another Arianne (of course, the older, knelt Arianne will return to the hand), then I'll do a Power challenge with her?

Yes, and no. You can bring a copy of her into play, but it automatically becomes a duplicate. Since a character never successfully entered play, the "then" part of her effect doesn't fire, and she stays in play with a duplicate.

If the trend of expensive neutral characters continues, Arianne's importance is going to be raised sky high. It's much easier to reduce her cost than Syrio's or the Horde's for instance.

Yes, and no. You can bring a copy of her into play, but it automatically becomes a duplicate. Since a character never successfully entered play, the "then" part of her effect doesn't fire, and she stays in play with a duplicate.

Wait what?

You can do that?  Just plop Arianne duplicates into play when you need them, such as right before you need to fulfill military claim?

Yes, playing a duplicate is free. I only found out yesterday, I thought you had to pay :-(

Wait what?

 

You can do that?  Just plop Arianne duplicates into play when you need them, such as right before you need to fulfill military claim?

Indeed you can, and I believe (istaril please correct me if I am wrong) that you can actually put in duplicates of any character that you control, not just Arianne. So if, for example, I have Asha and Arianne in play, score an unopposed challenge and draw into an Asha dupe using Great Kraken, and throw that dupe straight into play.

Yup

!!!  This is news to me as well!  Whaaaa?  

Mind. Blow.  

#superdeeDUPEr

Istaril, can you point to the rulebook where such a ruling is established?  I couldn't find anything.

So if, for example, I have Asha and Arianne in play, score an unopposed challenge and draw into an Asha dupe using Great Kraken, and throw that dupe straight into play.

Well, not straight into play in this example. Great Kraken is a Response to winning the unopposed challenge. Draw a dupe when you trigger it and you will not have an opportunity to use Arianne's ability to put it into play until the next Player Action window (which doesn't come until after the challenge is completely resolved, including claim, keywords, etc.) But yeah, the mechanic of using her to dupe uniques with cost 5 or less at any time works just fine - subject to timing rules, of course.

Well it's really just based on the wording. Arianne states "Put a character with printed cost 5 or lower into play from your hand. Then, return Arianne Martell to your hand." In the dupe example, you attempt to put the character into play but as soon as you attempt to do so the character becomes a dupe and attaches to the unique in play, thus not resolving successfully. Because you did not successfully resolve the portion of Arianne's text before the "then" the second part does not initiate. It's basically like if your opponent played treachery on her.

Istaril, can you point to the rulebook where such a ruling is established?  I couldn't find anything.

You need to connect the dots between 3 different rule entries:

- Unique Cards, RRG p. 22: "A player may marshal (or put into play by a card ability) additional copies of each unique card he or she owns and controls, placed as a duplicate on that card, for no cost."

(This establishes that using Arianne's "put into play" ability on a copy of a unique card you already have in play will make that copy enter play as a dupe on the first).

- Duplicates, RRG p. 7: "Marshaling a duplicate is not considered marshaling a card of the duplicate’s printed type. It is only considered 'marshaling a duplicate card.'"

(This established that when a dupe enters play, a card of the dupes printed type is not considered to have entered play; only a dupe.)

- The Word "Then," RRG p. 21: "If the pre-then aspect of an effect does not successfully resolve in full, the post-then aspect does not attempt to resolve."

(This establishes that if "Put a character into play..." part of Arianne's ability does not successfully resolve, the "Then, return..." part of her ability does not even attempt to resolve, leaving her in play).

Taken together, you CAN dupe a character with Arianne's ability, which does not count as a character entering play, so Arianne is never returned to your hand.

So, you can also duplicate OTHER unique characters of cost 5 or less using Arianne, and she wont leave play?

This is madness!