The Horn that Wakes Review

The Horn that Wakes Review

Our staff has put together a first blush analysis of the newly released The Horn that Wakes Chapter pack. We've used a one through five scale; five being the best. The cards are listed in numeric order. Our reviewers are listed in alphabetical order. Let us know in the comments how you feel about the cards in this pack!


[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_coldhands-thtw.jpg'] Coldhands 29 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
So this guy can find a home in many a deck and he can fix a lot of problems that you might run into. Character with a ton of power you need to get rid of? Character with an annoying attachment? Another King in play? Need an alternate way to get rid of an attachment on your own character? Want to trigger Dale Seaworth (AToTT)? You should get the idea by now. Coldhands creates scenarios with many interesting outcomes. Question remains on what happens when a unique character is placed into this limbo state. I imagine FFG will need to do a rules clarification to prevent players from putting another copy of the unique into play.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
So... once we got away from one form of easily usable neutral attachment control we get a new one which can do other tricks as well... like, say, control power on characters. There will be tough calls on what to remove from your own side of the board to get rid of certain character or possibly place your important character to a safe place until valar sweeps the board. Now, where this gets completely braindead and easy to play is when you play Coldhands and choose to remove Coldhands himself for the effect. What this does is make Coldhands and opponents (thats 3 opponents if we are talking about Melee) characters go moribund:return_into_play which leads to all attachments/power tokens/gold tokens being discarded on said characters unless a duplicate is used. End result? You just paid 2 gold to remove all tokens/attachments on an opposing character, and got a 3 STR power-icon character in the process, without any kind of drawback.
For the record: We're not big fans of this particular design. Sorry Zeiler, even Arrogant Contender was better.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
Amazing character control that is available with any house. Also a champ card so you should expect a 5 rated card. The only downside is it isn't a permanent control so will hurt rush decks/maesters the most since the easiest choice is picking coldhands himself as the target.
If plan on this being a complete answer to a character though that won't be the case. The cannot be saved and the fact that it is a weak character besides the effect makes the card not broken to me.

Paladin - 5 out of 5
The ability to remove cards that are causing problems is a highly valued ability, and Coldhands opens up so many possibilities. While having to choose one of your own as well may seem like a drawback, it can be considered a minor cost (remove a chump character) or even a benefit (remove a heavy in preparation for Valar). A great card, and at 2 gold, a great price!

scantrell24 – 5 out of 5
These are just a few of the potential outcomes when marshalling Coldhands:
1) He wipes all power and attachments off of your opponent's best character and removes said character from the game for a while. 2) He successfully does 1, and in addition the character that you remove from your side has a sweet come-into-play effect like Dale Seaworth. 3) Coldhand's ability is canceled, or a save gets in the way, in which case you still have a 2 gold for 3 strength character with a power icon 4) You don't even try to trigger his ability, in which case you still have a 2 for 3 power icon. So, Coldhands is usually awesome, and sometimes average, but never bad to see.

Sygmaghost94 - 4 out of 5
This guy is a beast, there's no doubt about that. He can get rid of your opponent's best character and only get rid of your weenie, or he can remove your strongest guy and their weakest in preparation for a Valar. He is extremely useful and can counter many problem cards, such as those with too many attachments or too much power on them. The cannot be saved and the fact that his ability is a response makes him a very balanced card. Honestly the best case scenario I see with this card is you get rid of a lot of power on a character or some good attachments. Remember, if you remove their best character, it's only temporary. I wouldn't say he's an auto-include in every deck, but he will make a nice addition to the ones that run him. Great job Brett, this is one strong champ card!
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_stannis-baratheon-thtw.jpg'] Stannis Baratheon 15 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
The big advantage here is that he's not restricted by other another King in play and will spoil others who require King exclusivity. The winter requirement isn't too terrible and the response is decent depending on the build of deck you use. Cost is in line with characters that have these type of features. In the end though he's oriented for a particular purpose and only suitable for particular types of deck.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
This card is probably too conditional for the effect it offers. When you are playing a winter deck and play a 4 cost character you will want it to have a big impact on the board like the new winter Balon Greyjoy. While the ability is powerful the restrictions on it make it so that you rarely want to pick this Stannis as your King if you can choose from the other great Baratheon kings and the other cards titled “Stannis Baratheon” are a lot more flexible. That said, the effect does have interesting synergies for Shaggas (Highgarden, power-stealing Melissandre)... but again, with cards that are a bit too high on the cost-curve for comfort (especially in a Winter-deck).

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
Biggest problems is that it is Stannis, a character that already has couple pretty good versions already. Winter isn't in my opinion one of Baratheon's best decks and that requirement also hurts. Also, in a non-kothh deck it is rare to have over 15 events in your deck and lets assume you draw 7 of those throughout the game you'd have to have Stannis already in play to already trigger the effect. Also the other restraint of where the power can go is just one to many restraints to really ever play this card. The best way to use it is probably in ways Ire & WWDrakey talked about and using it more as a control card but still you then need other pieces to make giving your opponent power to actually be useful. Would still be a 3 though if wasn't named Stannis.

Paladin - 2 out of 5
Even if other, much better versions of Stannis didn't exist, this would still be a lackluster card. Unless you are building specifically around it, it is way too expensive for not a whole lot of gain.

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5
He's a 4 gold for 3 strength character with the King trait, the two most common Baratheon icons, renown, a noble crest, and a mediocre, situational ability that requires Winter. This Stannis only sees play if you're aiming for a combo that involves power on characters.

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
Compared to the other Stannis cards, this one is a little lack-luster. He could potentially be a 4-for-4 with renown, but only when it's winter. Bara winter decks are not bad by any means, but I'm not sure his effect makes it worth it to run winter. I also don't see this guy as the Stannis you would want to run in a winter build. I mean, how many events will you honestly be running in a Bara-winter deck?
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_melisandres-favor-thtw.jpg'] Melisandre's Favor 25 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
It's good that this is “House Baratheon only” because some decks would find the way to manage to pay the 5 gold for this to make it work out of house. It should be self-evident the power of this card. The only restriction is that the character must be able to take an attachment. Stealing characters like The Red Viper (PotS) and Robert Baratheon (Core) even for a round is enough to take you to victory. It might not be an auto-include for every Baratheon deck but I wouldn't be surprised to see one copy in many decks.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
When you play melee your deck needs to have a way to gain surprise power. The more you can get, and the harder it is to interrupt, the better. This fits there perfectly, since if you manage to hit 15 power by playing Melisandre's Favor there is nothing your opponents can do as the effect itself is not triggered and it doesn't use the word “choose” either. Literally, there is nothing your opponents can do to counter it. In joust it will more rarely be used for this purpose, but it will give you good amount of breathing room as a Baratheon player, since you most likely got rid of your opponents biggest threat for a round and it is highly unlikely that they will want to Military you. There is also some nice synergy with this card and Seat of Power which can be used to reduce the cost of any Baratheon card by 3. Being recurrable via Dale doesn't hurt either. The only real negative is that it can be a bit useless against Targ (especially Jumper) decks, and decks tending to run a large number of No Attachments characters (like Armies).

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
This is a VERY good four though. The problem is it is still an attachment and there will be many turns especially early in the game you are not going to want to play this card, because it doesn't have a permanent effect on your board presence. It is great late game though by taking a character maybe with enough power to win the game with, also will most likely prevent your opponent from doing a military challenge against you which I love. especially in a rush deck that wants to protect their characters more than most decks. So only real problems is that it is an attachment and three cost. Do love seeing Bara get more control options though.

Paladin - 5 out of 5
I can see myself throwing at least one of these into almost every Baratheon build from now on. It's a powerful effect, and it works well both when you're losing (steal their best guy, then sacrifice him when you lose a military) and when you're winning (steal their character who has renown and power on him to push you over 15). Pair it with Shadow Assassin and even if you have more cards at command you can still kill someone your opponent really wants to keep alive...

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5
I like high-risk, high-reward cards like Melisandre's Favor, but as a non-unique attachment it's going to be almost useless against Targ, and that's the first matchup I consider when rating a card. Sure, you'll occasionally steal something awesome that will either directly or indirectly win the game, but it's temporary, it's going to hurt your setups, and you'll want to marshall second in order to borrow the best possible character. So it's balanced.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Wait, wait, wait. Are you telling me this card can steal any character that allows for attachments? This baby can end games in a flash. Steal opponent's characters with a ton of power on them and win instantly! Ba-Bam! This is a cool card and at the very least may prevent your opponent from doing a military challenge for the round. The problem with this card is that it is an attachment. It won't help you on setup and it is a whopping 3 gold! That's crazy expensive for a card that you are discarding at the end of the dominance phase. If played right, this card can have a huge impact on the game, although you can say that about a lot of cards. Drawing this card early game means you'll either have to sit on the card and wait for the right opportunity to play it, or you can use it immediately and not get your money's worth. Bottom line, it's an expensive card that could be easily replaced.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_gormond-goodbrother-thtw.jpg'] Gormond Goodbrother 24 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
Another Bannerman to support the cycle theme, but that doesn't matter so much. The response is what is interesting here. Location saving is a rare thing. Only uniques got some save ability by the virtue of duplicates. Non-uniques essentially had nothing. This changes that and affords House of Dreams decks a bit of insurance. Given location dominance becoming a more and more important requirement for Greyjoy this card is a timely addition especially with Favorable Ground (QoD) being popular at the moment. Probably not an auto-include for any Greyjoy deck, but he's cheap enough to perhaps make a trip out-of-house for other decks.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
Greyjoy house crest and intrigue? Oh, it also has a good ability! Definitely something which most Greyjoy players will put 1 copy into their decks. He does have some interesting synergies since he is a Lord and Bannerman, and so could be used for an all out location control deck with the other Goodbrother and Balon's Rebellion. HoD decks will also happily slot him in as he is a good character that can protect your key location from City Besieged. Still, his best asset is having that green icon while being a Greyjoy character.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
2 cost character with intrigue for Greyjoy with a conditional effect but can really help out sometimes. He isn't the best card but I would find it very common to see one of these guys in almost every Greyjoy deck.

Paladin - 4 out of 5
Even without reading his ability he is a well costed, useful bi-con character. The text is nice as well, as Greyjoy loves locations.

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5
As a cheap intrigue icon, he's going to replace Kingsmoot Hopeful (which is limited) in some Greyjoy builds. Also, the ability couldn't have come at a better time. City Besieged, Price of War, Condemned by the Council, and Favorable Grounds are all popular. The Bannerman trait makes Gorold almost playable now.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Solid Greyjoy card. Intrigue is always welcome in that house and he's got a nifty effect to boot. With no negative traits, he could easily make it into many Greyjoy decks.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_hammerhorn-raiders-thtw.jpg'] Hammerhorn Raiders 27 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
I can't think of a reason why a Greyjoy deck wouldn't have at least one of this card in every deck. In tandem they can devastate your opponents board. Additionally your opponent can't simply oppose the challenge with a 1 STR character to terminate the effect; they need to commit to the challenge sufficiently in order to not get pummeled. Fantastic for Greyjoy decks more focused on winning by aggression. Cost is inline with the effect and lack of any other keywords keep the character from being too punishing.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
There was recently a vote going on the boards for the best unique characters. Claim raising characters ranked really high in this poll and now Greyjoy gets non-unique character with the ability to raise claim. This character creates a win-win situation for you where you will be able to either raise your claim or your opponent has to defend for more than he would have wanted to. With the usual Greyjoy Warship arsenal such as Scouting Vessel, Longship Iron Victory and Naval Escort it will be quite easy to force the Hammerhorn Raiders to nearly always work like you want them to. One good thing going for these guys is that Greyjoy doesn't have much competition in its 4 cost slot so this is bound to see quite a bit of play.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
After just facing this card once you can see how devastating this card is. Three claim military challenges if not more is often completely destroy some decks (many decks). I wish this card only had the military icon it would still be amazing but with ability to clear boards and then hit you with a 3 or more claim power challenge is game winning. Scary scary non-unique card.

Paladin - 5 out of 5
If this scale went up to 6, they would get a 6. Not being unique is what makes them ridiculous. Even with one in play, when combined with Greyjoy's capacity for being unopposed or winning big (intimidate, the ships) you will find that they can trigger their effect quite often. Four gold for a 4 cost bi-con isn't terrible, but 4 gold to raise your claim AND have a 4str bi-con is killer.

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5
Combined with the Greyjoy agenda The Old Way (spoiled from Forgotten Fellowship), your opponent is damned if they oppose and damned if they don't. Raising claim is awesome. The “No attachments” keyword is awesome. Being non-unique is awesome. Barney Stinson approves this card.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This army packs a big punch. He will either make your opponent over-commit on defense or raise your claim on a challenge. The fact that he is non-unique makes him that much better. The problem I see with this guy is his cost. Four gold is a lot to pay for Greyjoy and he has no crest to help out the decks that would normally run him. The type of decks that would use this guy are typically aggro decks. These decks are not the strongest options for Greyjoy and can easily be defeated by any deck with decent draw. Such is the fatal flaw of these aggressive Greyjoy decks. You can play your aggro claim raisers and saves early on with the hopes to shut out the game quickly, but against any sort of control, these decks cannot withstand the long game. With no keywords besides no attachments, he is just a pretty average card.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_plunder-thtw.jpg'] Plunder 14 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
This isn't bad, but it isn't great either. The problem resides in that it's usefulness is narrow. Most of the best Greyjoy characters are not that expensive these days so the extra income is not particularly critical. The extra income only lasts for a turn and Greyjoy isn't Lannister and isn't able to capitalize on the increased income with additional events like the Lannisters.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
In the current location-filled meta this might even deserve a higher rating, but not quite. Greyjoy has had some resource problems (mainly because they like Winter so much) at times and if you want to splash some OOH things this event is great. Where this event falls short is that you will barely ever want to top deck this… let's face it, unless you're running those OOH Golden Tooth Mines, GJ is the number one House for having to top deck these days.

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
Although getting about 4-6 gold can be amazing for a turn, especially in a winter deck, the fact you're using an econ card for your event spot is something I'd probably never consider. Greyjoy also seems to have one of the lowest gold curves, in a non army version, and usually won't need that much gold. Picking between this or a cancel event, die by sword, nightmares, many others, if you have whole card pool don't see anyone running this. (maybe in a greyjoy alliance to lanni deck that wants to trigger gold effects not sure how many of those cards are house lannister only)

Paladin - 2 out of 5
Not a terrible card, but I just don't think it will make the cut in most Greyjoy decks. You should be destroying their lands, not leaving them around to plunder from!

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5
I can imagine it being useful in Melee when you need to rush, but in joust I can't think of a Greyjoy deck that needs extra income to spew stuff onto the board. Event slots are super competitive with the card pool as large as it is, and I don't see money pushing out cancel, saves, location destruction, or anything else. Maybe if you have no other way to pay for Storm the Gate?

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
Although Greyjoy is one of those houses that struggle with income, this card is still not that good. The boost in gold can help for a turn, but it takes up an event slot that could be filled with something much better. It's also an event, so it's not hard to cancel and it hurts you on setup. And besides, Greyjoy is the best house for destroying locations. So if you can get a lot of gold from this card, you're doing something wrong.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_janos-slynt-thtw.jpg'] Janos Slynt 28 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
The only thing wrong with him is the Ally trait. He's worth it in out of house Night's Watch decks. He maybe even worth it out of house in any other deck. The potential should be self-evident. A very elegant draw engine with the ability for him to participate in multiple events. Good on his own, but his standing ability gives him the capacity to act as hooks for events and effects in a similar manner that one could use Ser Jaime Lannister (LotR) for.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
This is probably one of the best 2 cost character that we have in the game, even with that ally trait. Repeatable draw and stand in the same card is just pretty bonkers at the 2 gold slot. He combines well with the PBtT agenda by being another non-kneeler for the intrigue and can be quite devastating with Longclaw, since as a Night's Watch he can even take the Longclaw from someone who had it before. Just like King's Landing Robert Baratheon there are some possible Shagga uses with cards that want you to kneel a character as a cost.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
Maybe the best two cost character Lannister has, and they have some good ones. This card is amazing even with the Ally trait (2 cost allies are not a problem to me). Draw and stand is great and it is especially great for an agenda that has died almost completely in popularity, power behind the throne. However, if I am understanding the wording correctly you can't stand him if already draw capped which could be a problem for some lanni decks. I maybe wrong on that ruling though.

Paladin - 5 out of 5
One of the most efficient cards in the game. At 2 gold, he should be able to slot in to almost any deck, and with that ability he can provide a real big boost to you. Stand or draw alone would be a useful effect, but both? And keep in mind he triggers even when he's not involved in the discarding!

scantrell24 – 5 out of 5
The Ally trait is a token attempt at keeping Janos balanced, but he's a cheap investment, and Lannister runs so many Allies that they don't even care. Stand and card draw together are stellar. Power the Behind the Throne and Night's Watch love Janos of course, but he deserves to make the cut in almost any Lanni deck.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Yes, he does have the ally trait which is a downside. But to be honest, Lannister has tons of allies! This card will slot in nicely in almost any Lannister deck. He's card draw and another character that potentially won't kneel during intrigue challenges. With that being said, he's a pretty average card. Will he see play in many Lannister decks? Yes, but popularity is not what makes a card powerful. The draw part of his effect is nice, but keep in mind you have to be able to draw in order to stand him. This might sound like a silly problem, but Lannister has the largest amount of draw out of any house. To me, I don't see this guy winning you any games. In a PBtT deck where you may not have as much draw, I can see his effect boosting him up to a 4. But otherwise, he's just a solid, average card.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_janoss-conspirator-thtw.jpg'] Janos's COnspirator 20 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
Decent cheap character with a good icon, STR balance. The threshold for the response is reasonable but requires that you have at least one other character in play in order to activate. Because of this the utility is a bit diminished. Not sure if this guy is worth it out of house in other Night's Watch decks. Probably a must have in a purpose built Lannister Night's Watch deck.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
Cheap kneel Response: and a good trait instead of the usual Lannister Ally. It is a complete auto-include in Lannister The North agenda decks, but uses go far beyond that. Lannister has easy ways to give traits in the form of Lion's Gate and Campfire Mime which turns into a Night's Watch character just in time before this Response kicks in. Not to mention that we have some good Wildling and Night's Watch characters that easily slot into any deck like: Gilly, Craster, Ygritte, Janos Slynt, Aemon…

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
I want to rate this card higher because it is a better enemy informer, but with it being basically restricted to two different deck types it makes it a much more limited card. In those builds though this could maybe even be a 5.

Paladin - 3 out of 5
A good effect but the limitation keeps them from being rated higher. You could play 3 of them and have the latter two play off the first one and Janos, but what if you don't draw into the subsequent copies? Not bad as a 2cost bi-con, and in the right decks easily a 4 or even a 5.

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5
Does getting Enemy Informer for 2 gold instead of 3 push Night's Watch and/or Wildling decks into tier 1 territory? The answer is probably no, but I'm working on both builds right now to see what happens. Janos's Conspirator will be tough to justify in any other decks because you'll need include trait manipulation or sub-par characters to meet the requirement for his response.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
He obviously will only see play in a Night's Watch or Wildling deck, but boy will he shine in those. A cheaper, more efficient form of Enemy Informer, this guy will quickly rack up the kneel. Military is a great icon for Lannister and the 2-gold slot is pretty open in that house.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_secret-orders-thtw.jpg'] Secret Orders 26 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
We need to thank FFG for having the foresight to make this Lannister only otherwise it would have appeared in nearly every Targ deck. The Any Phase trigger opens up lots of possibilities for this card. It allows for some shenanigans during phases when players generally don’t have gold. Naturally, it’s a perfect companion for other events like The Only Game That Matters which can swing the balance during a challenge. Could be another Lannister event where one or two copies make it into almost all decks.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
This card is easily as powerful as The Only Game that Matters, possibly even more as the uses you have with Secret Orders are far more flexible and possibly even more effective. The effect is until the end of phase so you can make sure that the annoying no-kneeler on the other side of the table is doing nothing. So with this you are guaranteed to win 1 challenge, or if you don’t want to place defenders, there also is a possibility to just use this like a Burning on the Sands. Now it also combines really well with some of the kill effects we have in this game. Like, say, City of Soldiers before your opponent has counted gold? Check. Threat from the North to make Targ regret playing it? Check. Ser Ilyn Payne? Check. Gregor Clegane? You are probably getting the idea at this point… Now when the Lannister player combines this with their usual event House Divided you have to begin keeping track of both the traits you play and the gold you have in your gold pile.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
I maybe rating this card to high but I personally love it and is my favorite card in the pack, not what I think is best just personal favorite. The obvious best thing this card can do is make a 8 strength character go all the way down to 0. That is a big swing. I also have made a deck that is really fun using this card, the manor, and threat from the north with some success. It is just a fun card that can make a big swing in challenge phase.

Paladin - 5 out of 5
Ok, this pack is really giving the last one a run for its money in terms of how many good cards are included. This is another fantastic card that provides so many opportunities for changing the board state. Use it against your opponent to Lanni-burn their characters, or use it on one of your own to buy yourself a challenge victory. I would run at least one copy in my my Lanni decks, and heck, I could even see running 3 copies in most Lanni decks.

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5
I’m not confident with this rating. Secret Orders could become a Lannister staple, or I could see it falling out of favor and only appearing in a combo deck that really wants to use City of Soldiers and Threat from the North. The biggest problem is that you can’t control whether or not your opponent spends all of his gold. If he keeps even 1 gold dragon, the effectiveness of this event plummets.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This card can cause a lot of headaches for the person who has to face it. A surprise challenge winner or challenge negator, it will definitely catch your opponent off guard. There are some fun plays you can use with this card like: City of Soldiers on turn 1, Ser Ilyn Payne, Ser Gregor Clegane, and even Threat from the North for all you Lannister burn players. But let’s be honest, most of those plays are pretty gimmicky. Compared to all of the other great events for Lannister, I would find hard to justify running this over A House Divided or You’ve Killed the Wrong Dwarf or the like.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_vipers-paramour-thtw.jpg'] Viper's Paramour 4 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 1 out of 5
I like the idea of this character and think it’s interesting. The problem is that I will probably never play it. If it wasn’t trait specific (or allowed for choosing a trait) then it would have much more potential. As it stands it’s way to combo dependent. You’d need to add traits to opponents characters and if you really want to punish them you’d need to add icons to the paramour. Way too clunky in order to work.

Ire & WWDrakey - 1 out of 5
Martell keeps on going with its tradition of 1 cost, 1 strength, 1 icon Ally characters. One would think Doran and his scheming would create some better allies for the Martell cause. The only place we can even envision this being used would be with Copper Link in Martell Maesters.

mnBroncos - 0 out of 5
I hate to say it but this maybe the worst Martell character ever. You will never run this card. You would need a LOT of trait manipulation to make this card worth running.

Paladin - 1 out of 5
A terrible character that prevents other terrible characters from defending against you. Why?

scantrell24 - 1 out of 5
Are we allowed to give zeroes? Viper’s Paramour might just deserve it. I’d really like to know what the thought process was on the design. A mono-con, one strength Ally with an extremely situational effect simply won’t see play.

Sygmaghost94 - 0 out of 5
This is the first card I’ve ever rated a 0 out of 5. I just don’t see why you would ever run this card. I don’t care if you’re able to make all of your opponent’s characters allies for the rest of the game, this card is still terrible. Martell has a plethora of better 1-cost characters to choose from.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_dayne-spearman-thtw.jpg'] Dayne Spearman 18 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
It’s a repeatable Orphan of the Greenblood which is good. It’s a bit pricey though. Had I designed this card I would have made it 1 STR with a 0 shadow cost; perhaps that would have been too good, but I don’t think so. The catch is of course is that you have to lose a challenge in order to get the icon removal which unfortunately doesn’t allow to you be preemptive. The upshot is you can activate this by losing on the attack which might be useful depending on how you want to win your successive challenges or blunt the counter attack of your opponent.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
This character is very solid, but it might get expensive in your average Martell influence running deck. Repeatable icon manipulation is always good, however unless you are going first, your opponent still gets to use the character he wants, since you have to lose a challenge for the effect. Now it is good that we are finally seeing more icon manipulation out of Martell after a long Dry Season.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
I love this card. One of my favorite things some Martell cards do is Icon control and with 2 of their best options being restricted it is nice to get another one. It can end up being a relative expensive character but the fact that you can trigger this from losing as the attacker makes it that much better. Also anything that may make your opponent declare challenges in an order that they may rather not do is always a good thing to me.

Paladin - 3 out of 5
I want to rate this higher but the cost is just a tad high. With a slight tweak to cost (and I suppose to the ability) this would be a 4 or 5. As it is, I think it’s an appealing card but Martell players will have to carefully consider how will he fits into their decks.

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5
I approve of the icon manipulation resurgence. Dayne Spearman will unfortunately clog up your challenges phase shadow action, but for 1 gold every turn you blank the icons on what is probably your opponent’s second-best character (because you have to lose a challenge first), and you get a 2 strength bi-con to attack or defend with. He’s decent.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
I’m glad to see Martell getting more support with icon removal after the restriction of Orphan and The Scourge. The fact that he is reusable is probably his strongest attribute. Sure you start off paying 3 gold for a card that does basically the same thing as a 0-cost Orphan, but in the long run, he is well worth the 1 gold every turn afterwards. Icon removal is a long-term game plan to be sure and this guy fits in perfectly with those decks.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_dornish-hermitage-thtw.jpg'] Dornish Hermitage 9 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 1 out of 5
Yes you can use this as an alternate method to get Darkstar (PotS) into play. Do not make that the metric by which you measure this card or other Martell cards where you discard a card to activate something. A single icon for a single phase is usually not worth the card discard. Might be slightly more useful if it was add or remove. Until Martell gets more of a recursion mechanic from the discard pile working I don’t see this location being worth it.

Ire & WWDrakey - 1 out of 5
1 card for a 1 icon is a pretty bad bargain. There are times when it may be “ok”, but usually in those cases you are just better off using Rusted Sword (in case it is Arianne), Rumours of War or just Greenblood Vessel which is also a 1 cost location. Think of it this way, if you only use this once, you’ve spent 1 gold and 2 cards for *one icon*. Eugh.

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
Although Martell has a reputation of having a good card advantage house it isn’t that good that you will want to discard cards to trigger this often. It can be very good in a rush Quentyn deck though. Giving those renown knights all three icons during a too the spears turn, or giving Arianne a military icon. Although can be a costly effect it can be good at times. I don’t like any card though that you are discarding a card to trigger though.

Paladin - 2 out of 5
There are some fun things you can do with this card, but it’s just not really worth it in tier 1 decks given how inefficient it is.

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5
Dornish Hermitage requires a huge outlay in card advantage for the benefit of a single icon on a single character for a single phase. Most of the time I’d rather use Greenblood Vessel, but maybe there’s a build out there that can get enough non-kneeling renown characters to win the game before running out of cards in hand.

Sygmaghost94 - 1 out of 5
I guess I don’t really see the point of this card. Maybe you could do something gimmicky like giving all of your renown knight characters a third icon on a To the Spears! turn, but that still doesn’t seem worth it for the price. Martell has a lot of card advantage, but I’m not sure you want waste those cards on giving an extra icon for the phase.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_jon-snow-thtw.jpg'] Jon Snow 25 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
Could this be the rival of Night’s Watch and Wilding? I’m not sure if can answer that question, but for sure he will find a home in any Night’s Watch deck and possibly many Stark decks. I don’t think he deserves five stars though. The printed 2 STR immediately makes me think of Venomous Blade (TBoBB) as an obvious counter. On top of that the “Immune to events” will include your own but presumably you’ll build your deck around that limitation. He’s good but I’m not convinced right now that he’s 5/5 good.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
Ah finally the Bastard trait is back on Jon Snow!
Jon Snow is probably easily compared to Damon Dance-For-Me by them both being 3 STR, bicon, immune to events characters. He will also have Deadly no matter if your opponent is playing an agenda or not. He will slot into most Stark builds as a 1-off just for those amazing stats. Now, when you get some North agendas to support him, it gets really ugly. Having each of your wildlings with +2 str might be just enough for him to see play OOH. He might even create an interesting deck type centered around Westeros Bleeds and other Night’s Watch characters - something that also fits quite nicely with bouncing characters into play via The Wall.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
This will make every wildling deck because with the agenda this character is clearly worth four gold, 2 gold in a stark deck just isn’t even fair. This card in my opinion should go in every Stark deck even non wildling or night’s watch. 3 gold for 3 strength two icons deadly and immune to events is a great card. When he starts helping out even more cards it is an amazing card. I am looking forward to see someone pull off the Bleeds night's watch deck.

Paladin - 4 out of 5
Though I’m glad to see Jon Snow finally get a great card, I actually think this would have been better had it been neutral, as its potential for boosting Wildling and Night’s Watch decks would have been much more pronounced with such flexibility. As it is, he’s probably a 1x in most Stark decks, and a nice strong card to build theme decks around.

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5
Finally, a playable Jon Snow exists! He’s a boon to NW and Wildling decks, but I’m curious to see if Jon makes the cut in normal Stark decks. A 3 gold for 3 strength bicon with deadly and immune to events looks solid on paper, similar to Garlan Tyrell for Bara, but aside from great stats he doesn’t bring much to the table.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This is probably the best Jon Snow to date. He’s technically a 3-for-3 bicon with deadly and immune to events. Those are some good stats for a character. In a dedicated Night’s Watch or Wildling deck, I think he will add a ton of support. Giving all Wildlings another +1 strength is huge and guarding your Night’s Watch from events allows for some hard to deal with tricons. Unfortunately his printed strength is 2, which is a problem if your opponent happens to be running Venomous Blade. But other than that little downside, he’s an all around solid card.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_yoren-thtw.jpg'] Yoren 17 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
For one cost I think he deserves a copy in most Stark decks. He’s not going to win many challenges for you but he’ll always be there to stop unopposed intrigue challenges. I think it’s worth it for 1 gold even if he can be stealthed. If you’re going light on The North agendas he may even be worth it as an out of house Night’s Watch addition.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
Solid character which will finds its way as a 1-off in many Stark decks just as a way to stop intrigue from being unopposed. The Ally trait will hurt more in Stark as they don’t usually have to run many of them, but in this case your opponent is only removing a 1-cost character, which is still manageable.

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
For one gold he is very good being able to defend while knelt is always nice and when it is the icon your usually weakest at is just a bonus. Their isn’t anything wrong with this card and will make it into probably 70 percent of Stark decks I’d imagine unless has a good enough cheap characters already in the deck.

Paladin - 3 out of 5
One gold for 2str and the ability to defend intrigue even while knelt? Pretty good. Kind of a more limited Hodor, where he’ll go in a lot of Stark decks just for being so cheap and useful.

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5
Yoren is great on setup, survives Threat from the North, and can participate in two challenges on occasion. The Ally trait is a bummer, but I hear Stark has this bonkers kill event that requires a unique character and winning a military challenge...

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Another solid card for Stark. At 1-cost, this guy will find his way into many Stark decks. The intrigue icon on defense is nice, but the fact that he can defend while knelt is even better. Sure he’s an ally, but his cost is so low that you won’t be hurting too much if he get’s discarded.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_aegons-favor-thtw.jpg'] Aegon's Favor 20 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
I immediately think of playing this out of house for a Baratheon Hollow Hill recursion deck. The self milling is very desirable there and the bonus during a challenge certainly isn’t a bad thing. I find that in a Targ deck it’s probably not that desirable. Though it might work alright if you are running all your copies of Ambush from the Plains (QoD). I’m giving it a 4 since it’s a 0 cost attachment with Setup; that’s a pretty big deal.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
We have said it in earlier reviews and we will say it again. Self-mill is not a bad thing. Self-mill will only have a negative effect if your opponent has Baelor Blacktyde on the board and that is the only time. So, the cost can be ignored. Now that being said getting +1 STR whenever you want up to +5 is huge. Your opponent has to always take it into account if he wants to win a challenge and it can also be used as anti-burn if you fear there is some challenge burn incoming. Since it is end of phase it will go well on cards which don’t kneel to attack. It’s extremely friendly with setup - unlike other attachments. It can also work as a Shagga discard engine for several types of recursion, like say, a HoD/Daenerys’ Chambers deck.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
I’m not sure where I stand on this card. You're not discarding cards from your hand so that is great, setup is great, and plus strength is great. Zero cost is nice as well I think this is a great card for Dothraki decks I am not sure what other decks though will really run this card. Maybe if Targ gets more recursion cards this will become an amazing card.

Paladin - 3 out of 5
I actually thought of Baratheon recursion when I saw this card, and even there at 2 gold it would be a nice addition. At 0 gold, with Setup, it’s great for, well, setup, and gives a nice potential to boost your character when you need to. If Targ gets some strong recursion stuff, expect the rating to be higher.

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5
Targ doesn’t mind discarding targets for Recruitment and Ambushed from the Plains. I’m not sure if a non-unique, strength pumping attachment deserves deck space, but being free and playable on setup tips the scales in the favor of Aegon’s Favor.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
I think this card is super fun. The fact that it is 0 gold and able to be played on setup takes away almost all of the downsides of it being an attachment. The weird thing about this card though is that I don’t think Targ benefits the most from it. Targ decks don’t need strength boost and they lost some of their recursion with the restriction of Street Waif. I see this card really shining in a Bara recursion deck. Being able to mill a possible 15 cards per turn from your own deck is exactly what a recursion player wants to do.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_loyal-to-the-last-thtw.jpg'] Loyal to the Last 16 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
This is templated almost directly from Lethal Counterattack (Core). The main difference being the limit of them that can be used per challenge. I think this might see some use depending on the type of deck but given that most popular Targ builds at the moment have lots of characters jumping in and out the opportunity to activate the event may be too limited. Additionally, people usually don’t defend power challenges in early or mid game. As it stands it’s not optimal but definitely a card that might it’s presence known if the Targ meta shifts.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
This card will probably see fairly little play in Joust considering how unimportant power challenges can be in certain match-ups. Now, in the Melee format where power is the most important challenge, this thing becomes a complete beast and can easily destroy one opponents board position completely even if they are not attacking you. Watch out for event cancels, since you will always have to pay the cost and in this case that is kneeling two of your Targaryen characters. Interestingly this event doesn’t have a house restriction so it could be used with OOH Targaryen characters or with dual house affiliation ones.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
Lethal counter attack is a great card and yet that doesn’t see too much play, and people for most part seem to commit much less to power challenges which makes this worth than lethal counter attack. Targ also has a lot of good events that can directly kill characters that you want to kill that are less conditional. It is still a strong event though.

Paladin - 3 out of 5
I like Lethal Counterattack and I like this card. Even when they are not played they make your opponents really think about how/if they are going to attack, and people should be thinking carefully about power challenging Targ.

scantrell24 - 2 out of 5
How often do you see an overcommitment to a power challenge? Maybe in Melee? It’s another high-risk, high-reward card that will backfire if canceled, but every now and then will pay off spectacularly.

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
This card is obviously very similar to Lethal Counterattack. With that being said, it is not a very good card, much like Lethal Counterattack. If your opponent is using a rush deck and decides to go all in on a power challenge, I can see this card maybe being worth it. But otherwise, Targ has a lot of great events that have a much wider range of use. I think this card will see more play in Melee, but otherwise, this card is not that good.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_eastwatch-envoy-thtw.jpg'] Eastwatch Envoy 21 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
If you are running The North agendas for Night’s Watch then this guy will be beast and you’ll want all three. With new Jon Snow this envoy will be a force to be reckoned with. Otherwise I can’t see him getting deck space. Oddly enough he could get some life in a Martell deck with more flexible icon manipulation but I can’t see that happening.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
All around great stats for a 2 cost neutral character. With these stats alone you might see him make a splash in some houses that just want a little bit more power presence on the board. Now, this is a mandatory inclusion to every Night’s Watch deck - a 2 cost tricon stealth guy with naval on every icon is something that can completely mess challenge math for your opponent.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
Now I will confess I am very disappointed in the lack of Night’s Watch support in the Wildlings/Night’s Watch pack. This card however is a very nice boost. A 2 cost non-unique with 3 strength that will make declaring challenges a lot of math for the opponent in a Night’s Watch deck and this guy has navel on every icon.

Paladin - 3 out of 5
I want to rate him higher but with only 1 icon built in you really have to build around how to get him more icons. And if you go Night’s Watch, where he will shine, you are also adding agendas that make it harder to win the game. Solid, not great.

scantrell24 - 4 out of 5
Niche cards are hard to rate. In a NW deck he’s a stud. In anything else, probably a 2 or 3. The next card (Ygritte) puts a damper on Eastwatch Envoy’s arrival, sadly.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This is a great addition for Night’s Watch decks. A very cost-efficient tricon with stealth that is non-unique and has naval enhancements on every icon is a huge boost for these decks. The fact that he is neutral means he might see play in some decks that are lacking power icons or even some Black Sails decks.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ygritte-thtw.jpg'] Ygritte 28 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
This is one of those characters you will have to start planning around from this day on. As a neutral she can show up in any deck and she’ll ruin your day. Upshot is that Venomous Blade and cheap burn can take care of her, but if you don’t have those options available to you then you’ll need to find a creative solution to get around her ability. At least it only targets a narrow set of a characters but a single Copper Link or Old Nan can fix that; so watch out if you see either of those cards on the table first.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
Steal effects are always powerful. Against Targaryen and Stark this character will probably not stick to the board for long, however the other houses will have some problems in dealing with her. We were about to give her a 4 for the stats and the ability, but the fact that she is another unique Wildling character really pushes this over to 5. There haven’t been too many cards that can justify the addition of Blood of the First Men to a Wildling deck, but as we get more new titled uniques it just gets better.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
I hate trait manipulation to me it is very anti-thematic and this card is going to really push that deck strategy so for that reason not a real fan of the card, however, it is a pretty good card. The Night’s Watch effect although thematic probably wasn’t necessary since that deck type didn’t need another weakness. But, with the new king’s guards running around this card will probably have a couple good targets along with couple other commonly played neutral characters.

Paladin - 5 out of 5
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a pack with so many cards I consider 5s, and Ygritte ties with Coldhands and Hammerhorn Raiders as among the best cards in the pack. At worst, she’s a slightly overcosted character with no effect, but at best, she can totally turn the game around. Just her being present is going to make the inclusion of neutral characters a careful consideration. Poor Brotherhood though: between her and Melisandre’s Favor, the classic Brotherhood decks are going to be shut down, hard.

scantrell24 - 5 out of 5
I went back and forth between a 4 and a 5. If Ygritte has staying power as a 1x in almost every deck, as widely expected, she’ll impact the meta in a big way. Varys, Jaime, and Preston are all less attractive now. Even if you steal something mediocre like Carrion Bird, it’s still free military claim soak. The downside is that, barring trait manipulation, you have to depend on your opponent to supply a valid target, and Ygritt’s stats are sub-par if she’s not stealing anything.

Sygmaghost94 - 4 out of 5
What can I say about Ygritte? Well for starters her flavor text is probably the most Nedly flavor text out there. Now in a Wildling deck, she will be a 3 strength bicon with stealth that may only be 2 gold, depending on what agendas you like to run. But let’s broaden our horizons with this card. The fact that she is neutral means she can see play in any deck, and her amazing ability means she just might show up in every deck. With those pesky new Kingsguard running around, Ygritte makes a perfect counter to any Jaime or Preston. With a little bit of trait manipulation, she can even be used to steal your opponent’s strongest character. The biggest upside to her effect is pure card advantage. Not only are you gaining an extra character when you play her, but your opponent is losing one as well. That’s a 3 character swing! Outside of a Wildling deck, she will be rather easy to burn and her effect can be canceled, which makes her very balanced. In the current meta, I can see Ygritte showing up in many decks. She is a very good card.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_betrayal-at-the-wall-thtw.jpg'] Betrayal at the Wall 22 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
A clear must have for Night’s Watch or Wildling decks and the benefits should be obvious. Take note of the Damon commentary; if you play this you really want to be the first player in order to control the order of when reveals. In theory with 11 initiative it shouldn’t be a problem. Outside of Night’s Watch and Wildling decks I’m not sure if you’d really want to run this. The 11 initiative might be great for spoiling people that you know like to run Take Them By Surprise. I see no advantage of having this plot in your plot deck unless you are certain you can activate the when revealed. A larger plot deck means it takes you longer to recycle key plots that you need again quickly.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
A great mind-game plot, which your opponent has to consider if s/he knows that you have 8 plots in your plot deck. Now, this will most likely be used to see if your opponent is revealing a Valar or for the complete opposite to see if he is revealing a Power of Blood or Outwit to counter your Valar. Forgotten Plans and Art of Seduction get even better with this, as you are sure to get the effect which you want. There might even be some Melee decks that want to slot one of these in just to win initiative and not use a normal plot slot for it.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
I am a person that is against the idea of including this in every deck, meaning even once where won’t be able to change the plot. In Wilding and Night’s Watch decks this card is great probably winning initiative and then deciding the best plot to counter what your opponent picked is great. The thought it is best just to use to win initiative isn’t that strong to me though, unless a rush deck.

Paladin - 4 out of 5
If you’re running a number of Wildlings or Night’s Watch, this is an auto-include. An almost-guarantee to win initiative, combined with some great flexibility, what’s not to love?

scantrell24 - 4 out of 5
So… versatile… It only belongs in two deck types, but so many plots become better when you have either won initiative (Cersei’s Scheme, To the Spears, etc.) or know what your opponent has revealed (Outwit, Forgotten Plans, etc.).

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
As a joke, my friends and I start out every game by asking, “how many plots do you have?” Now obviously you will probably be able to guess if your opponent is running this card or not based on their agendas. The fact that this card expands your plot deck by one is amazing because you don’t have to waste a slot running this card. This plot is extremely versatile and can be used as an offensive or defensive plot, depending on what your opponent reveals. Nearly guaranteeing you win initiative, you can make yourself go first and reveal To the Spears! or a heavy 2-claim plot. If you need to Valar but suspect your opponent may run Outwit or Power of Blood, this is a great plot to play in order to call their bluff. The uses of this card go on and on.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_befouled-river-thtw.jpg'] Befouled River 15 out of 30

emptyrepublic - 2 out of 5
This is a River plot that you need to probably run without many of the other River plots in order to prevent the “activate the when revealed of the next River plot” mechanic from unintentionally backfiring which will happen most often than not despite meticulous planning. Additionally, my sense is that the cards at command mechanic hasn’t become that intuitive of a game mechanic for many players; not quite enough cards using it yet so miscalculations are bound to happen. Also the discard is too broad. The targeted player can choose to discard a dead card in the hand and a dead Shadows card. I don’t think it’ll hurt as much as it sound like it should.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
2 claim plots are always welcome addition to this game. Now, unfortunately this can’t be utilized well without the help of Knights of the Hollow Hill. Baratheon/Greyjoy might also give this a go since they are the houses that are most likely behind cards at command.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
Well to close out the pack I have another 3 seems like I was giving that a lot this pack. This card to me is strong opening for kothh decks. It isn’t as strong as hitting an opponent with rule by decree but this is guaranteed, unless facing another kothh deck. 2 claim is also nice since there doesn’t seem to be that many two claim plots that aren’t restricted. Being able to trigger this multiple times with River plots can also be a constant pain to your opponent every turn. But the downside to that is your running river plots then instead of good plots. But I can see some players making a good river plot deck with this card.

Paladin - 2 out of 5
I could see this being useful in a KoTHH deck. Beyond that, at least it has 2 claim…?

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
Your opponent will almost always chuck two cards from his hand, or maybe a chud, an economy location, or a duplicate on a location. Is that enough to justify a 2/0/2 plot? Probably not, but every now and then you’ll be able to time it right where he’s caught between a rock and a hard place. Of course, every now and then you’ll be forced to reveal it while ahead and shoot yourself in the foot.

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
I toyed around with this card in a Greyjoy KotHH deck using other river plots and the event Flood Waters. Even after having a deck centered around this plot, I can tell you it’s not very good. Consistently having less cards at your command is not a good thing. The 2-claim is nice, but it does not outweigh the downside of this card coming back to bite you.
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