All Things Shagga- The Draftening

Welcome back, my stalwart Shaggas, to another daring installment of All Things Shagga! Some time ago, I logged a couple rounds of draft picks and wrote an installment here about the experience as an alternate format for AGoT. It was well recieved, though many players wanted an article that tracked the entire experience from top to bottom. Conveniently, we recently held a draft on Sunday after the MO Regional main event, and with the help of my trusty camera phone, I logged each pack and pick for the entire deck, so lets dive right in!

One important note before delving into the deck, though- I had decided before the draft even started that doggonit, I was going to try to make influence work. Most people would agree that influence in the current draft pool really isn't in a good place at all, but I wanted to try something substantially different from my usual. Plus, the odds of getting a late Westeros Bleeds because no one else wanted it were bound to be pretty high.

The Cards:
Pack 1-1: Syrio Forel, Ser Jaime Lannister, Knights of the Realm, Melisandre, Damphair's Drowned, Scurvy Cuthroat, Orphan of the Greenblood, Fiery Followers, Street of Sisters, Gutter Rat's Cunning
Pick 1: Orphan of the Greenblood
Ok, Martell is one of the main influence houses, so this seems like a good pick. It's soft removal and at a price point low enough that even if my plan goes haywire down the line, I haven't committed myself too heftily to Martell. That Knights of the Realm agenda looks pretty sweet though, but in the end, I pass on it so that I can devote picks to trying to make influence work, rather than trying to get enough knights.

Pack 1-2: Scurvy Cuthroat, Poisoned Wine, Damphair's Drowned, Dornish Hermitage, Cersei's Attendant, Myrish Villa, Power of Faith, Maester Cressen, Court Advisor
Pick 2: Dornish Hermitage
Not more influence yet, but it's the only card that keeps me in Martell. Honestly, it should be a later pick, but I'm trying to keep a certain gameplan here, and none of the other cards really fit that plan at all.

Pack 1-3: Blue Lipped Warlock, Vanguard Lancer, Killer of the Wounded, Damphair's Drowned, Dagmer Cleftjaw, Mad King's Legacy, Refurbished Hulk, Oldtown Scholar
Pick 3: Vanguard Lancer
Aha! An influence source! Part of what makes influence so tricky in draft is the dearth of influence sources in the draft starter. Vanguard Lancer looks to be an essential way to make my resources flow. Sure, he pulls me to another house, but running two in draft is completely feasible with the agenda. Looks like I'm probably committing to Martell and Baratheon in a decidedly different flavor than the standard constructed build.

Pack 1-4: Red Vengeance, Condemned, Scurvy Cuthroat, Bloodrider, House Dayne Knight, Oldtown Scholar, Smuggler's Cove
Pick 4: Red Vengeance
Bingo! Just what I'm talking about! In a format where influence was easily viable, this would be a pick 1 or 2, but here it's already floated past several players. Just what I want to see!

Pack 1-5: Old Red Priest, Naval Escort, Shadowblack Lane, Dagmer Cleftjaw, Court Advisor, Mad King's Legacy
Pick 5: Shadowblack Lane
The Old Red Priest might be a stronger call here most of the time to increase the character base (you can never have too many in draft), but I opted for the 0 cost, non limited reducer to increase my setup even more. I want to be able to get to my influence ASAP.

Pack 1-6: House Messenger, Riverrun Messenger, Guilty!, Stinking Drunk, Knights of the Realm
Pick 6: House Messenger
Bingo! Martell and card advantage in a CA poor environment. This is a slam dunk pick. Though really, seeing that Knights of the Realm again starts me thinking that maybe it's a sign that I really should take it.... but no. I'm going to stick with the original game plan.

Pack 1-7: Street of Sisters, Gutter Rat's Cunning, Fiery Followers, Scurvy Cuthroat
Pick 7: Street of Sisters
Again, increasing that setup so that I can dig into my influence.

Pack 1-8: Maester Cressen, Myrish Villa, Poisoned Wine
Pick 8: Maester Cressen
Just a solid pick for my other chosen house. Plus, with the multitude of Milk of the Poppy generally floating around in draft, this is bound to be some useful utility.

Pack 1-9: Refurbished Hulk, Mad King's Legacy
Pick 9: Mad King's Legacy
Ok, so it's not looking good here. Might as well grab one at random. In restrospect as I write this up, though, I realize that I should have taken the Refurbished Hulk as a minor hate draft to keep someone else from splashing powerful OOH locations.

Pack & Pick 1-10: Bloodrider
Well, the last card isn't going to be any use.

Pack 2-1: Acolyte of the Flame, Killer of the Wounded, Fanatical Follower, Bodyguard, Edmure's Host, Scurvy Cuthroat, Melisandre, Lannisport Brothel, Citadel of Oldtown, Melisandre's Scheme
Pick 1: Melisandre's Scheme
This was a really tough one, as Melisandre and her Scheme are both bombs. Most of the time, I'd say that Melisandre herself is the smarter play in order to get another body on the board, but I'm really expecting to pick up a Westeros Bleeds at some point. If I can pull that off, Mel's Scheme becomes a HUGE bit of card advantage to take over a game afterward.

Pack 2-2: Advisor to the Crown, Starfall Cavalry, Ser Bryndyn's Guile, Vanguard Lancer, Poisoned Knife, Direct Assualt, Stinking Drunk, Ride Them Down, Dance with Dragons
Pick 2: Vanguard Lancer
More influence to smooth things out. Great!

Pack 2-3: Darkstar, Fishing Net, Guilty!, Old Red Priest, Dragon Theif, Pyromancer's Apprentice, Hired Swords, Westeros Bleeds
Pick 3: Westeros Bleeds
YES!!! Just what I've been waiting for! If I can ever actually play it, my opponents are so screwed!

Pack 2-4: Lannisport Moneylender, Knight of the Rainwood, Jack of All Trades, Blue Lipped Warlock, Eddard Stark, Game of Cyvasse, House Dayne Reserves
Pick 4: Game of Cyvasse
Solid Martell control. I'm probably getting a little greedy though. I haven't taken many characters at this point, and Knight of the Rainwood would slot right in. Still, the surprise factor gets me.

Pack 2-5: Heart of the Stag, Riverrun Messenger, Oldtown Scholar, Vanguard Lancer, Advisor to the Crown, Maester Myles
Pick 5: Maester Myles
Well, he's honestly probably not removing very main characters in this format (huge bummer) but he's in house control, which I feel like I want a bit more of. I'm hoping that Vanguard Lancer will come back around.

Pack 2-6: Ser Bryndyn's Guile, Hellholt Engineer, House Tully Recruiter, Bloodrider, Guard at Riverrun
Pick 6: Hellholt Engineer
Ooook.... So his ability is almost entirely useless in draft, but he's at least an in house body. At this point, I really need to make sure I'm rounding out my character slots, so I take him.

Pack 2-7: Acolyte of the Flame, Scurvy Cuthroat, The Citadel of Oldtown, Killer of the Wounded
Pick 7: Acolyte of the Flame
Needing more bodies, and I know the odds of seeing another Power of Faith go by are pretty good. If I can pick up a handful of holies and that plot, it will be a very nice sub theme.

Pack 2-8: Ser Bryndyn's Guile, Dance with Dragons, Ride Them Down
Pick 8: Dance with Dragons
At this point, I might as well make a minor hate draft again. If you've heard me talk about this draft pool before, you know how strong I think the dragons are. Taking out a possible way my opponents might search one out of their deck when there's not really anything I might want in the pack seems reasonable.

Pack 2-9: Guilty, Old Red Priest
Pick 9: Old Red Priest
Wow! I really didn't expect such a solid way to fill in my character curve to come around so late. Maybe no one else is really looking into Baratheon.

Pack & Pick 10: Blue Lipped Warlock
Well, it's a card.

Pack 3-1: Jack of All Trades, Fanatical Follower, Wars Are Won With Quills, Street of Sisters, Lord Tyrion's Host, Drowned Disciple, Rhaegal, Knights of the Realm, Flaming Pitch Tower, Ill Tidings
Pick 1: Flaming Pitch Tower
Here's another Knights of the Realm staring me in the face, and what do I do? Pick 1, I hate draft! Probably a bad move on my part, but I can also see the dragon sitting in the same pack. I really don't want anyone grabbing both of those together, as I know just how insane the combination is. There's a slight chance that I can splash it into my deck for some more control, however, especially if I can get the Power of Faith.

Pack 3-2: Warrior's Sons, I'm You Writ Small, Fanatical Follower, Starfall Cavalry, Damphair's Drowned, Schemes of the Scholar, Seat of Power, Hear Me Roar, Enslaved
Pick 2: Enslaved
Who cares if it's not in either of my houses? This is the kind of spot control 2-for-1 that can blow people out in draft. I'll pay 4 for it if I have to, no questions asked.

Pack 3-3: Smuggler's Cove, Blue Lipped Warlock, Lannisport Moneylender, Hired Swords, Qartheen Fanatic, Enemy Informer, The Power of Blood, Darkstar
Pick 3: Darkstar
Perfect. A solid, in house unique with useful abilities. Very happy to see this.

Pack 3-4: Viserys Targaryen, Court Advisor, Dornish Hermitage, Northern Steel, Lannisport Moneylender, Guilty!, Misinformation
Pick 4: Court Advisor
There's nothing in house here except for the Hermitage, and I really don't need a second copy of it. I suppose in the mean time, I'll take the mediocre cantrip. Drawing to replace yourself is better than nothing, right?

Pack 3-5: House Tully Recruiter, Tribeless Vagabond, Ser Bryndyn's Guile, Die by the Sword, Khal Drogo, Pyromancer's Apprentice
Pick 5: Pyromancer's Apprentice
Ok, here we go- another character where I'm still lacking, and spot control for locations, which I don't have at all yet. Surprised to see something line up so nicely halfway through the pack.

Pack 3-6: Watcher of the Nightfire, Poisoned Knife, Maester of Lemonwood, Stinking Drunk, Tyrion's Enforcers
Pick 6: Watcher of the Nightfire
So, he's a little expensive, but he's the only repeatable draw that I could easily play that I've seen. Looks like a solid pick.

Pack 3-7: Knights of the Realm, Rhaegal, Lord Tyrion's Host, Wars Are Won With Quills
Pick 7: Rhaegal
Huh, would you believe that? Knights of the Realm and Rhaegal came back around? That's quite a surprise. It's probably a little late to try to dive into the Knight route at this point, and the fact that Rhaegal is back means that other people probably aren't looking much at Targaryen, but hate drafting it out of the way still seems like a good idea.

Pack 3-8: Hear Me Roar, Seat of Power, Schemes of the Scholar
Pick 8: Seat of Power
A nice resource accelerator, in house, and coming around this late? Perfect.

Pack 3-9: Hired Swords, Qartheen Fanatic
Pick 9: Hired Swords
The slightly better character option, if I really need to scramble while deckbuilding.

Pack & Pick 10: Guilty!
Well, it can use influence.... too bad I'm really not going to be in Stark.

Pack 4:1- Blockade, Dayne Spearman, The Power of Faith, Melisandre, Fiery Followers, Ancient Mariner, Knight of the Tumblestone, Killer of the Wounded, House Dayne Knight, Acolyte of the Flame, Chella, Daughter of Cheyk
Pick 1: House Dayne Knight
I look back at the photo of this pic and wonder, why the hell did I do that? Sure, a character pick was the right call here, but not Melisandre or the Fiery Followers? I can only assume that I was quite worried about my curve at the time? That or I didn't sleep enough after the bar the night before.

Pack 4-2: Victarion Greyjoy, Direct Assualt, The Power of Faith, Oldtown Scholar, Acolyte of the Flame, Wars are Won With Quills, Gutter Rat's Cunning, Damphair's Drowned, Much and More
Pick 2: Acolyte of the Flame
Ok, I'm seeing a couple Power of Faith already, which probably means one will come back to me. Time to grab that holy crest so that I'll be set to use it.

Pack 4-3: Acolyte of the Flame, Guilty!, I'm You Writ Small, Condemned, Killer of the Wounded, Guard at Riverrun, Brienne of Tarth, Lashing Out
Pick 3: Brienne of Tarth
Oh man, another Acolyte looks so tempting! But, smarter heads prevail. Brienne's the much better ability, especially with some of the challenge pump events floating around.

Pack 4-4: Dayne Spearman, Eddard Stark, Renly Baratheon, Maester Myles, Acolyte of the Flame, Orphan of the Greenblood, Fiery Followers
Pick 4: Orphan of the Greenblood
Grabbing a second Orphan to help with setup and early game control until I get my influence going seems reasonable, though in retrospect, one of the holies would have been the better choice, especially since I knew there was probably a Power of Faith coming back around.

Pack 4-5: Oldtown Scholar, Fanatical Follower, Lightbringer, Edmure's Host, Naval Escort, Dayne Spearman
Pick 5: Dayne Spearman
Ok, here we go, more in house control and it's a character as well. Also nice that it means my opponent can't quite be sure if I have an Apprentice or a Spearman, which complicates their plays.

Pack 4-6: Guilty!, R'hllor's Blessing, Hellholt Engineer, Blood of the Dragon, Knight of the Tumblestone
Pick 6: Hellholt Engineer
I really almost thought about the cantrip Blessing at this point, but more bodies are a wiser choice.

Pack 4-7: Dayne Spearman, Fiery Followers, Acolyte of the Flame, Ancient Mariner
Pick 7: Dayne Spearman
Ugh, now this is a surprisingly hard seventh pick. And of the first three would have been great for the deck! In the end though, I went with the more control oriented route.

Pack 4-8: The Power of Faith, Direct Assualt, Gutter Rat's Cunning
Pick 8: The Power of Faith
Aha! I knew I'd see you come back around.

Pack 4-9: Guilty!, Lashing Out
Pick 9: Lashing Out
Well, I suppose there's a better chance someone might play Lashing out against me than Guilty!

Pack & Pick 10: Acolyte of the Flame
Hard to argue with such a perfect last card being passed to me.

Pack 5-1: Melisandre, Meraxes, Daenerys Targaryen, Ser Boros Blount, Northern Steel, Heart of the Stag, Poisoned Knife, Orphan of the Greenblood, Wars Are Won With Quills, Tribeless Vagabond
Pick 1: Melisandre
Ah, R'hllor smiles on me! Despite passing on Melisandre earlier, another copy is right here in my first pack! Despite a slight nod to the Orphan, Mel is completely the right choice here. I need a bomb character or two, and so far, this is the first one I've drafted that I'll actually be able to play.

Pack 5-2: Maester Myles, Aegon's Blade, The Power of Arms, Fishing Net, Knight of the Tumblestone, Condemned, Blood of the Dragon, Maester of War, Poisoned Knife
Pick 2: Poisoned Knife
I really don't need another copy of Myles, and I'm not feeling much of a maester theme, so I pass on the Maester of War, but the potential to drop a Poisoned Knife on a holy character during Power of Faith seems too cool.

Pack 5-3: Street of Sisters, Gold Cloaks, Northern Steel, House Messenger, Knight of the Rainwood, Enemy Informer, Dorne, Tarle the Thrice Drowned
Pick 3: House Messenger
More in house card advantage and a body to boot. I'll take this in a heartbeat, even if the Knight of the Rainwood would have been cool with Westeros Bleeds.

Pack 5-4: Flame Kissed, Frozen Solid, Marched to the Wall, Seductive Promise, Vanguard Lancer, Dornish Hermitage, Damphair's Drowned
Pick 4: Marched to the Wall
Oh, more discard based control that will let me abuse my Melisandre's Scheme? Sign me right up! Not using the default five plots is also very strong in the surprise factor against your opponents in draft.

Pack 5-5: House Tully Recruiter, Westeros Bleeds, Knight of the Rainwood, Gutter Rat's Cunning, Advisor to the Crown, Starfall Cavalry
Pick 5: Westeros Bleeds
Another Westeros Bleeds? Yes! The part of my theory that says people would still be passing this to me as a later pick paid right off. Having two of these will just be priceless if I can pull it off!

Pack 5-6: Vanguard Lancer, Smuggler's Cove, Watcher of the Knightfire, Court Advisor, Family, Duty, Honor? (Can't quite make out the plot in my photo)
Pick 6: Vanguard Lancer
A little more influence now that I have two Bleeds seems like an extremely prudent idea.

Pack 5-7: Tribeless Vagabond, Wars Are Won With Quills, Poisoned Knife, Heart of the Stag
Pick 7: Poisoned Knife
I'm not sure I'll play two in the end, but it seems like a better option than the others for sure.

Pack 5-8: Blood of the Dragon, Condemned, Maester Myles
Pick 8: Maester Myles
Ok, so I guess I'll wind up with two copies of him anyway.

Pack 5-9: Northern Steel, Enemy Informer
Pick 9: Enemy Informer
At least it's control of some kind that I'm denying somebody.

Pack & Pick 10: Dornish Hermitage
Hey, another in house last pick! Too bad I probably won't play it!

The Deck:
Total Cards: (40)

House:
House Martell


Agenda: (1)
Treaty

Plot: (5)
1x Melisandre's Scheme (RotK)
1x The Power of Faith (KotStorm)
1x Marched to the Wall (LoW)
1x Shores of Ny Sar (VM)
1x Wildfire Assault (Core)

Character: (23)
2x Orphan of the Greenblood (PotS)
3x Vanguard Lancer (KotStorm)
2x House Messenger (PotS)
1x Maester Cressen (Core)
1x Maester Myles (AHM)
2x Hellholt Engineer (CbtC)
3x Acolyte of the Flame (TWH)
1x Old Red Priest (Core)
1x Darkstar (PotS)
1x Pyromancer's Apprentice (TBoBB)
1x Watcher of the Nightfire (AHM)
1x House Dayne Knight (PotS)
1x Brienne of Tarth (PotS)
2x Dayne Spearman (THtW)
1x Melisandre (TK)

Attachment: (2)
1x Enslaved (THoBaW)
1x Poisoned Knife (ASoSilence)

Event: (4)
1x Red Vengeance (PotS)
2x Westeros Bleeds (Core)
1x A Game of Cyvasse (ACoS)

Location: (11)
1x Dornish Hermitage (THtW)
1x Shadowblack Lane (Core)
1x Street of Sisters (Core)
1x Seat of Power (WotN)
1x Narrow Sea (Core)
1x Summer Sea (Core)
2x The Searoad (KotStorm)
2x The Roseroad (KotStorm)
1x The Red Keep (TftRK)

Thoughts on Play:
Round 1- Ben from Iowa
Ok, it looks like Ben drafted Baratheon as well. Ok, ok, so his house card was something else that I can't recall, right now. Lannister perhaps? But he setup a Smuggler's Cove and then blew Alliance first turn to slap a Fiery Followers on the table. After they went rampant on offense, I was able to get them knelt on defense and bounce them with Game of Cyvasse. Unfortunately for me, his only play the next turn was to spend all of his gold replaying them and it was totally worth it for him. I could never find an answer to them, and a four strength stealthy tricon with vigilant owns the challenge phase.

Round 2- Kyle from Iowa
Kyle managed to get a pretty straightforward Tully swarm deck out of the draft and supplemented it with Martell through the Treaty agenda so that he could utilize some of their tricks. He must have had 6 guys on the board at the end of the first marshalling phase, but I had a sea, my Red Keep, and Bleeds in hand. Thankfully, he didn't have much in the way of intrigue, so I just double defended on it, then wiped him out with Westeros Bleeds in dominance. I followed up next turn with Mel's Scheme to put my characters back in play, and went from there. I did have the poor luck to pull both a Darkstar and a House Dayne Reserves from his hand on intrigue challenges, but he had so little left after that initial turn that I made quick work of what he did get.

Round 3- Zeiler from Missouri
This was a tough one for me. Obviously Zeiler is a good player, but luck was on his side and though I had the influence, he pulled a Westeros Bleeds from my hand on his first intrigue challenge. He also had a Pyromancer's Cache out first or second turn, and after another turn or two, Meraxes as well. I did what I could with House Dayne Spearmen to muck up his challenges and draw the game out in the hope that I could hit my other Bleeds, but to no avail. Amusingly, the game went seven or eight plots and I never could use my copy of Enslaved. Somehow Zeiler had drafted all of the 3+ cost unique characters and slapped them all on the board.

Well there you go folks, draft from top to bottom!