Reviews for N00bs - A Clash of Arms: Ancient Enemies

Ancient Enemies

Overall Theme: 7.5; Efficiency: 6

This chapter pack adds very exceptional plot cards to each house and further develops each house theme. This pack is worth it just for these plot cards, they are that good.

Fury Plots – Overall Theme: 10; Efficiency: 9

• 5/7/1 plots for each house. Even without the effect, 5-income plots are rare in this game, as are high-initiative plots.
• Each has an effect that synergizes with the house themes. Each has either “Military Battle, Intrigue Gambit, or Power Struggle traits which have some synergy with other in-house cards such as the “To Be…” events from Sacred Bonds.
• The effects have varying levels of strength, and only effect houses that are “enemies” to your house.

House Stark – Overall Theme: 10; Efficiency: 9

Fury of the Wolf (AE) – Theme: 10; Efficiency: 10

• This is arguably the best of the Fury plots as it allows you to choose and kill a character.

Bear Island (AE) – Theme: 10; Efficiency: 8

• If you have all Stark deck, this is pretty easy point-click-kill. This will not be as effective against upcoming Maester decks (or Stark opponents, of course).
• Having all Stark characters to use it is a drawback, as well as its cost.

House Lannister – Overall Theme: 7; Efficiency: 7

Fury of the Lion (AE) – Theme: 6; Efficiency: 8

• The ability is decent, especially for the attachment control which is pretty lacking in Lannister.

Turncloak Mercenaries (AE) – Theme: 4; Efficiency: 3

• Mercenary trait could synergize with Gold Cloaks (AToT).
• Except the Fury plots these traited plots are not used that much, so this ability would go to waste, and this card’s efficiency goes down.

Toll Gate (AE) – Theme: 10; Efficiency: 9

• This card is excellent, and a must to have for Lannister.
• While it doesn’t help with unique characters, manipulating non-unique characters is usually enough to cause your opponent lots of headaches.

House Baratheon – Overall Theme: 8; Efficiency: 7.5

Fury of the Stag (AE) – Theme: 9; Efficiency: 10

• This is another great ability because you can take an opponent’s character and use it for claim soak if you are first.

King's Champion (AE) – Theme: 7; Efficiency: 5

• Obviously running multiple copies of this card in your deck actually decreases its efficiency, so having 3 copies is redundant and inane.
• Running one gives you a decent knight with good immunities. There may be better cards that do similar things at that cost, but it’s decent
• Run one copy in your Baratheon deck with the Knights agenda.

House Targaryen – Overall Theme: 8.5; Efficiency: 7.5

Fury of the Dragon (AE) – Theme: 9; Efficiency: 8

• This could be good in combination with some terminal burn effects such as Flame-Kissed (Core) or Dragon Skull (CoS).

Dragon Thief (AE) – Theme: 10; Efficiency: 9

• Looking at this card without its ability will show a decent 2-cost character with the flexibility to hop into a challenge with Ambush.
• With the ability to discard an attachment at any time via Marshalling or Ambush makes this card very nice, and easily playable in almost any Targaryen deck.
• The Ally and Mercenary traits are a negative, but you’re pretty much running this card for the ability and the added bonus of a cheap character.

Dragon Bite (AE) – Theme: 7; Efficiency: 5

• Very interesting idea for control. Unfortunately, dragon decks aren’t good enough rightnow to warrant putting these in, but I could easily imagine creating a weenie deck withhatchlings and three of these for cheap easy challenge control.
• The meta will dictate this card more. Upcoming Targaryen box and Maester cycle may change the usability of this card.

House Martell – Overall Theme: 5.5; Efficiency: 3.5

Fury of the Sun (AE) – Theme: 5; Efficiency: 7

• The worst of the Fury plots unless you get lucky enough to return an over-priced army.

Areo Hotah (AE) – Theme: 6; Efficiency: 2

• Don’t be misled: an extra claim can be good, but you need to survive losing 3 challenges, still have influence, and enough characters to retaliate. There are a lot better ways to spend influence in a Martell deck.
• I could see the viability of this card more in melee, where more opponents could attack you, having Hotah out could discourage multiple attacks.
• Captain trait is defunct.

Field Spikes (AE) – Theme: 5; Efficiency: 2

• There are better locations than this, and much better options for weenie-control within Martell (such as Venomous Blade (TBoBB)).

House Greyjoy – Overall Theme: 7; Efficiency: 4.5

Fury of the Kraken (AE) – Theme: 8; Efficiency: 9

• Almost as good as Stark’s Fury plot, except you only discard, not kill.

Ten Towers (AE) – Theme: 5; Efficiency: 1

• The most expensive location in the game. No location is ever worth 5 gold. Period. Looking at just the ability, you could marshall characters into play or play opponent events, which could sometimes be good, but opponents’ decks are tooled for their house, not for yours. The likelihood that you will get a card beneficial to you at the time you need it are slim.

Drowned Prophet (AE) – Theme: 6; Efficiency: 2

• At first glance, the benefit is apparent. Rack up a bunch of unopposed challenges and then deprive your opponents of the ability to retaliate.
• Eight influence is just way too impractical for a Greyjoy deck. Maybe in melee with Hand of the King Title, with the Knights of the Hollow Hill (MotM) agenda, The Red Keep (TftRK), and some other influence locations, but it’s still hard to pull off.

Salt Wife (AE) – Theme: 8; Efficiency: 6

• This could be useful in the right deck running sufficient influence and a lot of Ironborn characters. Since Greyjoy lacks outstanding 1-cost characters, this may be helpful to throw in for set-up.
• A melee deck may find more use for her since influence is always readily available with the Title.

Neutral – Overall Efficiency: 5

Die for Your King! (AE) – Efficiency: 5

• Character recursion is hard to come by, often coming with a cost. This has limited usefulness because you can only get back a king or queen. If the King is your linchpin in your deck, you might want this, but you may also consider Narrow Escape (KotStorm) or Retreat (Core)).
• Other than getting back a Rhaegar Targaryen (BoRF)

Questioned Claim (AE) – Efficiency: 4

• Small Council trait. I could see a deck built around the idea of recursive Small Council events using Small Council Chamber (SaS) with Joffrey Baratheon (PotS) and Baratheon nobles, probably Robert Baratheon (KotS) to allow you to play the events in your discard pile. Some Small Council events are very powerful (Condemned by the Council (AToT), You've Killed the Wrong Dwarf! (Core)) This deck might be fun, but it will never be competitive.
• This is an interesting idea. A house that dabbles in all three challenges would find this very difficult to get around. This would find limited usefulness against a Stark Siege of Winterfell deck, or a Baratheon rush deck with the Heir to the Iron Throne agenda.
• Something to consider when playing it is that an opponent now can focus all their strength into one challenge instead of trying to maximize on all challenges, so you’re probably going to lose whatever challenge they declare.
• You also have to have a King or Queen out, otherwise you’re effected.

Bringers of Law (AE) – Efficiency: 6

• Effectively gives you an additional 3 strength defending on all challenges. This can be helpful in the right deck, such as with a House Tully defensive deck, but it also won’t win you any challenges when it matters on the offense.
• Ally trait makes it vulnerable for discard.

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