All Things Shagga - Raise the Claim

Here we go again, dear readers. Let’s take another turn on the Shagga Tilt-A-Whirl. This time around, we’ll be investigating a new slant on an old Shagga concept. Shagga players like big things, and while we’ve already taken a look at big characters, there are certainly other aspects of the game that we can turn to our favor by cranking out the biggest numbers we can. In particular, I’m thinking of claim. There’s nothing quite like that rush of pumping out high claim challenges. Now that we have a focus, let’s look at a way to abuse those claim numbers!

Key Cards:

Arianne Martell (PotS) - She’s the simplest, no frills claim raising that we have available to us. Aside from playing her out of house, we don’t have to do any fancy footwork to activate her claim raising. Just attack with her and watch those numbers grow.

The Burned Men (MotM)/ Ill-Begotten Spoils (ASoSilence) - They take a bit more work and are a bit more unreliable than the others, but as long as you can keep your hand small, they can be effective.

The Red Viper (APS) - I’ve been quite impressed with this Viper in games lately, and the cool thing is that there isn’t actually any upper limit to how high you can raise your claim with his second ability. Sure, it’s going to be a bit of a gamble to leave much gold on him, but the ability to hammer home challenges regardless makes him interesting for this deck even out of house.

Victarion Greyjoy (RotK)/ Naval Superiority (TGF) - Sure, they do require naval enhancements, which Lannister doesn’t have a ton of right now, but they’re a great way to raise claim and Naval Superiority becoming a 3 claim plot is pretty impressive as far as plots go.

Lonely Hills (MotA)/ The Power Behind the Throne (LotR)- The Lonely Hills read like such an awesome Shagga location, but then when you look at the rest of the Stark cardpool, you quickly realize that it just doesn’t support the multiple challenges of the same type that it would need. Cue the Lannisters to step in with their very own agenda, Power Behind the Throne, which lets them step up to fill those mini-combo shoes by doubling up on the extra intrigue challenges each and every turn.

Thoughts on Play:
Blow things up! CUT OFF HIS MANHOOD AND FEED IT TO THE GOATS!

Ok, ok, so maybe that’s a pretty narrow look at what you should be doing with the deck. Still, the point stands that this is all about the aggressive Shagga beatdown. Sure, you’ll probably need just a bit of time to set things up, but a smattering of Lannister’s control and draw effects should help buy a little time to get things rolling, with the capability to leverage their gold and/or the Alliance plot to get some of the choice out of house cards into play.

Make sure you punish your opponent with that high claim. In the early game, focus on those intrigue challenges to clear out their hand of options. Cersei Lannister (LotR)can really keep hammering home those extra intrigue challenges, but the stealth and claim raising capabilities on Arianne Martell and The Red Viper means that they’ll do a great job at punching through as well. Once you’ve emptied their hand, however, a deck like this can run into some difficulties on how to leverage those extra intrigue challenges. This is where Double Bluff (LotR) comes in. Just when your opponent thinks that it’s safe to let that second 3 claim intrigue challenge through because their hand is already empty, switch it up to a brutal military challenge to force a one sided reset! Between Double Bluff and some of the other military claim raising, however, be aware that you’ll likely be forcing the opponent into a reset plot. This is where the early game high claim intrigue challenges really weigh in. If you’ve already blown up their hand and board, they’ll surely be in a worse position after the reset. Still, that’s not a license to overextend, so be careful about what you play out with all that gold.

Once you’ve cut off their manhood, you might as well close out the game, so be aware of the power gaining capabilities of Cersei and The Red Viper. With claim raising, even characters like Arianne and Victarion can make your power total move quite quickly. Here again, Double Bluff plays double duty by trading in worthless intrigue or risky military claim in for game ending power claim.

Should the game run a little longer than you’ve planned for, Lie for Your King! (BoRF) gives the capability to recycle those Double Bluffs and keep the opponent on their toes. When they’re already trying to defend against 4 challenges a turn and possible claim raising in any of them, not knowing which claim they’ll have to face from which challenge can be a nightmare. If things get really sticky for you, Wildfire Assault gives rest options for you as well, but in a manner that should leave your beefier characters on the board. If you can leave yourself with a Fleet from The Arbor (RotK), a Burned Men, and The Red Viper or some similar combination, your characters likely to be pound for pound bigger and more effective when it counts

There you have it, ladies and gents, a new look at another exciting facet of the Shagga mindset.

The Deck:

Raise the Claim

House (1)
House Lannister (Core) x1

Agenda (1)
The Power Behind the Throne (LotR) x1

Plot (7)
Breaking and Entering (LotR) x1
Naval Superiority (TGF) x1
Alliance (PotS) x1
Frey Hospitality (LotR) x1
Fury of the Lion (AE) x1
Wildfire Assault (Core) x1
Twist of Fate (APS) x1

Character (30)
Arianne Martell (PotS) x2
Cersei Lannister (LotR) x2
The Burned Men (MotM) x2
The Red Viper (APS) x2
Victarion Greyjoy (RotK) x2
Blackwater Bay Veteran (RotK) x3
Fleet from The Arbor (RotK) x3
Paxter Redwyne (TGF) x2
Summer Sea Corsair (RotK) x3
Lannisport Councilor (RotO) x2
Lannisport Moneylender (LotR) x2
Lannisport Weaponsmith (Core) x2
Tommen Baratheon (SA) x1
Brothel Guard (LotR) x2

Location (21)
Lonely Hills (MotA) x3
Lannisport Brothel (Core) x1
Lannisport Treasury (LotR) x3
Bay of Ice (KotS) x3
Ocean Road (WLL) x1
River Row (QoD) x1
Shadowblack Lane (Core) x1
Street of Sisters (Core) x1
Street of Steel (Core) x1
Toll Gate (AE) x2
Volantis Inn (AHM) x1
Sunset Sea (Core) x3

Event (8)
Lie for Your King! (BoRF) x3
Shadow Politics (CoS) x2
Double Bluff (LotR) x3

Attachment (2)
Ill-Begotten Spoils (ASoSilence) x2