The Kingsguard Review

Our staff has put together a first blush analysis of the newly released chapter pack The Kingsguard. 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!

Ser Jaime Lannister shows why there are no cards like his this month with a perfect rating. The Kingsguard seems to be well recieved with few low rated cards.

Top 3
Ser Jaime Lannister 45 out of 45
Ser Preston Greenfield 44 out of 45
Melisandre, Tywin Lannister tied 41 out of 45

Bottom 3
Palestone Sword Guard 13 out of 45
Umber Champion, Longship Grey Ghost tied 17 out of 45

[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_shadow-killer-tk.jpg'] Shadow Killer 33 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
Nasty nasty character. Non-unique to boot but not too overpowered. The cost and cards at command condition keeps this from being entirely bonkers and is reasonable (as well as Nedly). Cannot be saved direct kills are super rare so this is your ticket for taking out problem characters. While in play it’s still nothing to sneeze at with the bi-icon/stealth/deadly. The reality though is that this is really a one trick pony and outside of its admittedly amazing ability it doesn’t help your presence on the board in the long that much.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Baratheon usually doesn’t have access to direct kill, but it seems their shadowy friends are well capable of such things. What is problematic with this card is that it is competing with every 4 slot character Baratheon has, and an argument could be made that they have the best 4 cost characters in game. The Cards at Command mechanism shouldn’t be too hard to achieve as Baratheon usually does have the least cards at control, but it is a slight drawback to the card as well as the 1 STR. Now, what saves this card is that its kill is unsaveable, no more iron mines or duped übercharacters getting away from a direct kill.

JCWamma - 4 out of 5
This guy(?) is expensive, but boy does he give you bang for your proverbial. With the likes of Cape Wrath (AJE) and Blackwater Bay (TBoBB), there's some serious combo potential - but even beyond that, triggering him once will almost certainly be a strong swing for you. After that, Stealth and Deadly is a very nice keyword combination to have out. That all said, this is a tricky card to work into your deck. Game of Thrones is a game of card advantage (at least right now), and playing a card that's only good value if you're losing that game won't sit well with a lot of people. It's a card that doesn't slot neatly into most Bara builds, but in a deck designed to take advantage of this sort of effect it will be potent.

mnBroncos-3 out of 5
With shadows going to be popular kings law will see play and that hurts a card that costs two to come out of shadows. Also, most bara decks don’t rely on gold for their income and use more seat of powers for economy and so if you want to use this guy in a normal bara deck you will need to build a different gold curve. However, that ability can be game changing. They did balance it out with a lot of downsides and conditional though.

OKTarg-3 out of 5
At first glance, he’s amazing, but let’s look a bit deeper. He’s “pay 4 for a targeted kill and get a crappy chud on the board.” That’s not terrible, but not many Bara decks will be able to afford it. You would get the associated ‘come out of shadows’ benefits like Margaery and Black Cells, but my sense is that this is a bit of a trap card. Still very good, especially for a house that lacks removal, but just a bit too conditional for me to go any higher.

Rave - 4 out of 5
This is an amazing card. Not only do you get to kill any character on the board, but since it’s cannot be saved, it’s a huge advantage against Baratheon Rush and any sort of Greyjoy. With Kingdom of Shadows, unchallenged, this guy can net you 2 challenges by himself, and with stealth and a targeted kill, that is not a difficult task. The negatives are the strength and trait, which are almost as bad as it gets, but this card has amazing potential to shift momentum in your favor in a close game.

Reldan - 4 out of 5
This guy isn’t cheap, but his potential to swing things back into your favor if you’ve fallen behind is immense. The only reason I don’t rate him a 5 is that his Response requires you to be behind on the “cards at your command” and at 1 STR he’s extremely easy to burn down. Very solid card, and certainly something to fear if you see Baratheon put a card in shadows.

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5
Shadow Killer could potentially both kill an important character AND win challenges with that sexy stealth + deadly combination. However, that’s the best case scenario. Sometimes you’ll have to wait until your opponent has more cards in shadows. Other times he’ll burned away by Threat from the North, rendered impotent by Pentoshi Manor, or discarded by Mercenary hate. Shadow Killer deserves a spot in most shadow-heavy Bara decks (which look solid, btw), and its fun to re-use him with Bound by Blood (perhaps dropping in Shadow Stalker?).

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This card is really nice. The fact that you can control when he comes out of shadows means you’ll never have to worry about his effect hitting you. Having less cards at your command is a little harder to control so he may be sitting in the shadows for awhile. Otherwise he is a solid card. Not one that would go in every Bara shadows build, but one that will shake things up when he sees play.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_melisandre-tk.jpg'] Melisandre 41 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
There are lots of good versions of Melisandre already and this makes decisions even harder now. Template wise she’s the same that she’s always been. The passive/response interaction is just incredibly elegant and can totally shake up a game. Baratheon holy looks much more interesting though I think she might have a place in decks that aren’t even that holy focused and might even find a home with Greyjoy Holy decks as well. Fans of Aegon's Hill (TTotH) will have fits against her.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
A card which gives you repeatable card and board advantage each round should always be worth of 5. Now, in addition to her amazing ability there is the usual renown keyword coupled with good traits and a crest. She has tough competition, as all Melisandre cards are great, but she will find her place in holy and asshai themed decks.

JCWamma - 4 out of 5
The biggest problem this Mel has is the increasingly-touted "opportunity cost" - Melisandre (Core), Melisandre (RotO) and Melisandre (RoR) are all fantastic cards you cannot play thanks to this new one. Putting that to one side however, she has two tremendous effects - near-guaranteeing you dominance most of the time, and easy recursion for powerful cards. On top of that she has the standard Melisandre-ness of cost, STR, icons, crest, traits and keyword. The problem with her is somewhat in-built though - you only want to play her in a holy deck; if you're playing a holy deck you're almost certainly running The Power of Faith (KotStorm); that card goes best with the RotO Mel because you tend to be able to make huge power grabs on those Faith turns; ergo, you're slowing your deck down significantly when running this Mel instead. In a vacuum though she's a very good card.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
So I am just going to talk little bit about other things not mentioned. Although it is a five because is an autoinclude in any asshai control deck, however, they don’t really have any other key characters (besides Red Queen’s Faithful) so this will be the target of any hate your opponent is bringing. Sure you can bring it back once with a plot, but you can only do that once. Also only good once people are in died pile. So sure it is still a five out of five because is an auto include in a deck based around the asshai control but isn’t that great outside of that.

OKTarg 5 out of 5
SO GOOD. Just as the others have said, card and board advantage in Bara is to die for. How about getting a Red Queen’s Faithful back? Or, what about the Zealot of the Light into play, allowing it to trigger its own response in the same window? Just amazing.Remember, when building Asshai, resist the rush! Control for the win!

Rave- 4 out of 5
This is a great utility card for the potential character advantage alone. In any sort of dedicated Asshai, she’s really going to shine. In any fast deck (maybe even including Asshai rush builds) you’re going to be hard pressed to run her over the DotN version though.

Reldan - 5 out of 5
This obviously is only a 5 in a Holy deck, but holy crap I think this may be the shot in the arm that Holy has needed! Just about every version of Melisandre is incredible, and this one is no exception. She helps you win dominance, and then recurs a character directly into play, and if she dies herself you can Many Power Long Asleep her back into play for free.

scantrell24 - 4 out of 5
She would earn a 5 if not for the steep opportunity cost. Trait, crest, keyword, ability and even artwork are all top notch.

Sygmaghost94 - 4 out of 5
Another great version of Melisandre. This will only see play in a dedicated holy deck, but man will she hurt when she hits the board. Almost guaranteeing you win dominance and a constant Many Powers Long Asleep make this version a must have in any holy deck. The renown is icing on the cake so that you can get as much bang for your buck on Power of Faith turns.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_greydon-goodbrother-tk.jpg'] Greydon Goodbrother 27 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
I think I would have gone for 4 if he was either non-unique or could be saved. Either way it’s an okay chud character. Fantastic for setup and boosts the Bannerman theme. Otherwise pretty unremarkable. A single copy might be appropriate for a few deck types but I can’t see him being more present than that.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
He is an additional refugee with a much worse downside. What is good about him is that if you dare to place him in setup and he sticks, he is making that first turn Marched to the Wall impossible for your opponent… and that does seem to be quite common if someone just setups one big character. He is also easy to run in House of Dreams decks, where you are getting one guaranteed location before setup and HoD decks really like their setups to be optimized. The traits shouldn’t be overlooked as lord has for long been a positive trait in Greyjoy and the Bannerman surely is helpful. Now, what is strange is that this card at the same time supports the new Bannerman location kneel theme, but also wants you to destroy your opponents locations… which seems like a strange way to try to push the soft location control theme.

JCWamma - 4 out of 5
Refugee stats without the negative trait and with a couple of useful (or at least quasi-useful) ones instead? Very good. Cheap uniques are always nice too. However, being cheap is best of all for playing on setup, and that's one of the few times you can't reliably play this guy, because there's no guaranteeing you'll get more locations than the opponent. He's okay, and will find his way into most Greyjoy decks as a 1x, but he's not amazing.

mnBroncos-3 out of 5
Greyjoy if they want can get five or six card setups with relative ease. However, this guy doesn’t do anything new and is more like a non-unique to me that is just a 1x in a good amount of greyjoy decks.

OKTarg 2 out of 5
Great for setup, crappy otherwise. I’d rather use a boatswain or something, and it’s not like Greyjoy is hurting for chuds. Best in House of Dreams, but also good to reduce Victarion’s Reavers….so it’s not without its uses, but man,sorry to be repetitive, did Greyjoy really need another chud?

Rave - 3 out of 5
I like him. You can lose him on the flop, yes, but even then, since he’s free, you’re only losing the potential to have a card in hand you might not have been able to play anyway (which is annoying but not the end of the world). Mid-game, he’s a free chump block, and you’ll love to have him if a Valar turn goes really wrong for you. An overall solid card, but dead weight against Targ control, which is popular and already an uphill battle.

Reldan - 4 out of 5
He’s basically a new Greyjoy-only refugee that isn’t restricted and has good traits. The “discard” drawback may be less of a concern for GJ than the other refugees dealt with. Solid include for a number of GJ builds, even if only as a 1x.

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
Greydon is made for Choke decks. That 0 cost really comes in handy during Winter, and Newly Made Lord + Support of the Kingdom will keep your opponent’s location count low.

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
It might just be me, but I’m not really seeing it with this guy. He’s a refugee, but much easier to lose. Yeah he’s friendly on setup, but as soon as your opponent plays one more location than you, he’s gone and cannot be saved. His traits are pretty meh. I wouldn’t consider him an auto-include in any deck. To me, he’s either taking up a character slot that could be used for someone better, or he’s just one extra useless card in your deck.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_longship-grey-ghost-tk.jpg'] Longship Grey Ghost 17 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 2 out of 5
Greyjoy has Scouting Vessel (KotS) which is better pretty much in every way. This isn’t horrible but is totally outshined by the previously mentioned non-unique Warship. The only use I could see for this is you really needed the Shadows mechanic to activate other abilities.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
Unfortunately for this dinghy there is already a card which fills the same purpose, and it does it better. Now, in the long run this may become helpful as it is the first in-house shadow card for Greyjoy which can keep on triggering shadow effects. Sadly, there just isn’t any shadow triggers for Greyjoy yet, but hopefully we will get there.

JCWamma - 1 out of 5
Compare and contrast with Scouting Vessel (KotS). The Vessel messes around with opponent's challenge maths, the opponent has to kneel the character before you trigger the Vessel making them knelt for dominance (and for attacking back, for that matter), the Vessel doesn't weaken Distinguished Boatswain (TftRK), the Vessel doesn't force you to use up your shadows framework action for every challenge phase just to use, the Vessel will, short of some soft location control, be guaranteed to give you a chance to trigger it each round whereas with this you have to have used it successfully the round before, and this is a unique so you wouldn't want to run multiple copies of it whereas you can run 3x of the non-unique Scouting Vessel if you so choose. Also this is a Response, which is slightly weaker a trigger. In exchange, this works with Naval Escort (ASitD), and with Ambitious Oarsman (RoR) if it's stuck in play during the Marshalling Phase. What on Essos is the justification for running this card? Who seriously builds a deck with 3x Scouting Vessel and says "my only regret is I can't run a 4th copy that’s all-round worse"?

mnBroncos-1 out of 5
Like JCWamma talked about it is worse than scouting vessel and that doesn’t even see that much play.

OKTarg 2 out of 5
You know what plot rules? Dry Season. And it doesn’t hit this card! But other than that…..meh. (And that’s a pretty meh upside, really)

Rave- 2 out of 5
+1 for the easy Shadows synergy and surprise factor. Otherwise, being unique and kind of awkward to use, it’s not going to make a huge impact.

Reldan - 2 out of 5
More fiddly than Scouting Vessel without actually being better than Scouting Vessel. In comparison, both cost 2 gold, but this card wastes your Challenge-phase shadows action every turn you want to use it, counts as a response which makes it more readily cancelled, forces you to publically pick the affected character before any challenges are declared, and is unique. Bleh.

scantrell24 - 2 out of 5
There’s no reason to ever choose this over Scouting Vessel, unless you’re trying to make Greyjoy shadows a thing. Good luck with that.

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
It seems like it would be fun in a Greyjoy shadows deck, but are those even a thing? In any other deck, this card hurts your Boatswains and is a worse version of Scouting Vessel. Maybe there’s a spot for it in a heavy unopposed build, but other than that, this card will collect dust.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_tywin-lannister-tk.jpg'] Tywin Lannister 41 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
Honestly even outside of a Clansman deck this is good. The trick, of course, is not going crazy on your opponent(s) with intrigue challenges. He’s pure gold for Clansman decks, of course, but of all the other versions I think this will be the version of Tywin we’ll see get tossed into most Lannister decks because the passive has a decent probability of being available during challenges. No noble crest though which is disappointing (and puzzling).

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
While this can work for control decks as a finisher that rarely has its ability active, the real value comes in aggro and rush builds, both of which can be run well out of Lannister. Some old fashioned hyperkneel build might actually get much out of him as they are using their cards most of the rounds to kneel the opposing board. The aggro/rush deck doesn’t have to be Clansmen, but if you are aggressively using your card advantage and not sitting on your cards you will have him activated with a superior board position.

JCWamma - 5 out of 5
Efficient Renown Tricon. Lannister welcomes you with open arms. In certain circumstances (which fast expands to "all the time" if you run a Clansman deck) he becomes a terrifying challenge machine. I always say that when a card goes above the 3-cost range it absolutely has to be "must-answer" to see play, and Tywin definitely fits the definition. The art is amazing too, although his head possibly a tiny bit too shiny for my tastes.

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
Amazing! Sure it isn’t a red viper but he can gain as much power as him in a turn in the right circumstances. The big thing though to me not talked about much is this game isn’t like Star Wars or Netrunner where you know the opponent will be using a different house than you. You will go up against other Lannister decks or even some Martell decks, or heck even in winter decks if everyone discards down and you play more the next turn there will be plenty of times that he gets turned on and it will be scary.

OKTarg 4 out of 5
Great great great. Probably should be a 5, but the fact that his text box will functionally be blank most of the time makes me tip it down...

Rave - 5 out of 5
An absolute steamroller, and gives Lannister something it desperately needed up to this point: A solid closer. Tywin is going to be able to win most challenges by himself as well as help secure dominance for you. His utility and cost-effectiveness are going to make him a difficult card to keep in your binder.

Reldan - 5 out of 5
I’ve heard that when you mix tri-cons with Renown and non-kneeling you get awesome-sauce. This Tywin probably ought to cost 5, but at 4 he’s a steal. Also, he doesn’t really have much competition from other Tywin cards to deal with.

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
Tywin’s not for every Lanni deck, and in fact goes against of Lanni’s biggest strengths, but 4 strength is a breath of fresh air; Targ has to actually make an effort to burn this guy!

Sygmaghost94 - 4 out of 5
Simply an amazing card. He’s a 4-for-4 tricon with renown. With Lannister’s massive draw and card advantage, I can’t his ability being used much, but who cares? This guy is a beast, plain and simple.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_the-hound-tk.jpg'] The Hound 34 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
Kingsguard time! Possibly the best version yet of the Hound. Most importantly, he essentially has no downside unlike his other versions. 2 cost for a 4 STR mono-icon isn’t a bad deal especially since he has a boosting mechanic that neatly dovetails with the shadow theme in this pack and that he’ll benefit from opponents shadow cards as well.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
the Hound has yet again lost his House Clegane trait. Well, this is quite a strong military beatstick. For some reason, he is the only new member of kingsguard that is allowed to wield a weapon attachment. This will fit in several Lannister decks to help with shadows and military presence, but at times he will have to compete for the spot with PotS Hound.

JCWamma - 4 out of 5
2 cost for a monocon that doesn't get you card advantage is generally a bad deal. Here however, you're looking at a tremendously strong card. Note that it's not "each card you have in shadows", it's a combined total across all players. Given the shadows-heavy meta this pack is encouraging, he will consistently be stronger than his-already reasonable 4 STR. Plus he's a Kingsguard, the trait this pack makes cool. He's not for every deck, but he'll be a handy way of almost always winning military challenges for those decks he does fit into.

mnBroncos- 3 out of 5
I don’t think Lannister players will complain about a solid cost strength ratio military character. However, don’t rely on your opponent playing shadow cards if wanting to use him because for two cost, one icon, four strength and no keywords you probably can find better options.

OKTarg 3 out of 5
He’s a pretty boring beatstick in MIL, but effective at that use. I suppose Lannister could use extra MIL now and again, so sure, go for it.

Rave - 4 out of 5
Nice cost-effective chump block at the most. Good easy shadows synergy. Ironically, he’s a great character to have when you come up against Targ.

Reldan - 4 out of 5
He’s extremely buff for being 2 gold, and this buffness is in the icon that Lannister usually struggles with. I could see Lannister play him even without a strong Shadows presence, but with the rest of the KG shadows characters he just gets better and better. What’s more, like Tywin there’s not much competition in “The Hound” slots for decks as this is much better than any previous version.

scantrell24 - 4 out of 5
Any shadows-heavy Lanni deck will love this guy. Combined with Pentoshi Manor, he nearly ensures that you won’t lose a military challenge.

Sygmaghost94 - 4 out of 5
The best Hound to date. If he is the only shadows card in your deck, he’s still a 2-for-4 character with the icon Lannister is desperately needing. I can see him in any Lannister deck and still be useful. By himself, complimenting a shadows sub-theme, or in a super heavy shadow deck, this monster will “bugger” your opponent’s plans all day long.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_arianne-martell-tk.jpg'] Arianne Martell 33 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
I really do like her but the other version of Arianne is so good you need to have a good reason why you won’t want the claim raising effect. A well time plot change can totally win you the game so she can definitely be a major asset. My thought remains though that unless you intend to build a plot deck out to be quickly rotated (City plots for example) I wouldn’t use this Arianne Martell. Big thing here is that she’s slightly cheaper and I wouldn’t be too surprised to see her cameo in other House decks via City of Shadows (CoS). Art on this card is fantastic as well.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Probably the most interesting thing about this Arianne is that it can be used OOH in City of Shadows builds. She goes fairly well with every city and river plot there is. Her most common uses will be with valar and To the Spears! which is probably a good indication that she will see more play in melee where the surprise To the Spears can easily win you the whole game. In Joust her older version will often be chosen over this one since, she is one of the best 4 cost characters ever printed in the LCG.

JCWamma - 4 out of 5
Like Melisandre before, there's a fair amount of opportunity cost here. Arianne Martell (PotS) has consistently been one of the best cards in the game since her release. However, do not underestimate the amazing effect this Arianne has, and given the surprising nature of it the fact that the other Arianne is so good almost makes it even better. From the basic stuff like turning into The Art of Seduction (LotR) or Forgotten Plans (KotStorm) once your opponent has revealed a one-dimensional plot card, to turning into Manning the City Walls (CD) after marshalling to drop in a surprise beefy Army and get 2 claim after you've spent your gold, to turning into Valar Dohaeris (TWH) at the start of the Dominance phase, the number of evil tricks Arianne can bring to the table are numerous. It's just so much to give up to use them, however... Oh, also, it looks like the Arys Oakheart she's seducing is a cardboard cutout. ...Anyone know where I could buy one?

mnBroncos- 3 out of 5
Very good card and plot manipulation can be good, however, I only see about 10% (if that) of Martell decks picking this card over Martell’s second best character (noble version).

OKTarg 4 out of 5
Man, plot manipulation is awesome. Giving up the other Arianne is tough, but in a shadow deck or something more tricky/controlly then she could for sure be useful. I just wish she had stealth so I felt a bit better about leaving the other version at home. I say they rotate out the Princes of the Sun box and then our problems are solved, amirite?

Rave - 4 out of 5
It is tough to beat the old Arianne, that’s for sure. But this Arriane is going to shine in the CoS builds that are probably going to be popping up after this pack. She’ll be a fun surprise in tandem with decks that already run Valar Dohaeris and the Black Cells. Also a good way to accelerate City plots.

Reldan - 4 out of 5
The only bad thing about this card is that the old Arianne is so good, so there’s an opportunity cost lost in using this version. But that’s really the only downside. With almost any name other than Arienne Martell this would be a 5 easy. Plot manipulation is extremely powerful, especially when you can easily do it outside of the Plot phase, and even more if you opponent doesn’t see it coming. This is the kind of effect that you can build a deck around, and it’s extremely efficient. Just find a way to get her back into shadows and you’re set (maybe Cape Wrath?)

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
Another excellent card that will see very little play. I’m trying her out in a Quentyn deck with City plots and having good results. Plus, boobs.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Definitely not a bad card. Her ability is crazy cool and she is cost efficient. The problem is that she has to compete with the claim-raising Arianne and I don’t think she will win that battle. I’m sure she will see play in a Martell shadows build or a plot cycling deck, but that’s about it. I can see her maybe making a splash in a rush deck when you want to switch into To the Spears. While not amazing, this card is cool, and she’s not bad to look at either .
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_palestone-sword-guard-tk.jpg'] Palestone Sword Guard 13 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 2 out of 5
This might be something worth paying attention to if the cost wasn’t a 2. At one gold I think the balance would have been better. I suppose FFG has in mind that if you are heavy on influence you might make this guy a tri-con monster. I’m sure that would happen on occasion but I don’t think it would bear out to the reality of the game. Darkstar (PotS) can only be discarded so many times and Martell has so many other think that it can use influence for.

Ire & WWDrakey - 1 out of 5
...next!

JCWamma - 1 out of 5
This might be a harsh rating because I think that ability could be used to good effect. I just...I don't know why you'd bother, there are so many better options.

mnBroncos- 2 out of 5
Just little too good to be a 1. The ability for a character to get to a 3 strength tricon (technically more) is better than a one I feel. Also, this is a good cheap character for any non-kothh deck that wants to splash influence for the likes of Red Vengeance and will sometimes left over influence that can have a use.

OKTarg 1 out of 5
If you need to reach for these traits, sure. But why are you reaching so far? You’re going to fall off of your stool.

Rave- 2 out of 5
Expensive burn bait. The trick with Darkstar probably isn’t worth it, and there’s no guarantee you’re going to have influence to make him useful.

Reldan - 1 out of 5
Bleh. 1 STR for 2 gold is not what Martell wants. Hell, this guy could be 1 gold and I’d be surprised to see him played over any of the other staple 1-gold Martell characters.

scantrell24 - 1 out of 5
Maybe if he had 2 strength. Nah, even then I’d pass.

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
Ok, let’s be honest, this guy is pretty bad. But, if you kneel 2 different influence this guy can be a 2-for-3 tricon. Yeah, he’s not looking so bad now, is he? No? He’s still looking bad? Ok, well have a 2 out of 5 for the maniacs that want to make this guy a crazy strong tricon.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_umber-champion-tk.jpg'] Umber Champion 17 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 1 out of 5
The Bannermen in this pack just seem like crap overall. This is literally available only during one player action window (hint, it’s after defenders are declared). The wording is also a bit unclear because it would only apply while a challenge is in progress so FFG should have included “During a challenge” at the beginning of the text ability for the purpose of clarity. The scope isn’t specific so I suppose you could always discard him to stand your opponent’s defenders; though I’m having a hard time figuring out why you’d do that as a Stark player.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
Same cost and strength, bicon, good trait and ability - seems like your average card. The ability is somewhat situational, but defensive decks will love it as well as several Melee decks. Getting to use your renown characters to win a challenge and then possibly stand them all with this guy might be enough to make your opponent consider about not attacking in the first place.

JCWamma - 1 out of 5
Solid statline and nice trait, but ultimately this guy lives and dies on his ability. And it's a fairly bad ability. A telegraphed giving-up of a card and 2 gold in order to stand people who are already defending just isn't very good. Especially given that if you cancel it then it was for nothing. Most Stark decks would rather just run Frozen Outpost (LoW), which in most cases will accomplish more. Also note that you can't defend with this guy AND use his ability, because that will remove him from the challenge. Even dedicated defense decks probably have better options.

mnBroncos-1 out of 5
I don’t even know if a dedicated defense deck will run this character, having to lose board presence to stand characters once doesn’t seem worth it enough times to be included in your deck.

OKTarg - 2 out of 5
Not great. Here’s the uses: fuel Bannermen. Mors isn’t worth fueling, sadly. Here’s the other, better use: Popping Meera back to shadows. And for 2 cost? ……. ?

Rave - 3 out of 5
Barely sitting on the cusp of 3, and that’s because you can combo him with Ice Catapult. Pretty boring stats.. Honestly though, Stark’s 2 slot is pretty good, so you won't see much of this guy.

Reldan - 2 out of 5
His most useful quality is being another Stark Bannerman, and so his use will depend upon how much more support they give Bannerman cards in the next few packs. His ability is extremely situational and is an obvious trick, and since it requires him to discard himself you can’t get the effect and also choose him for military claim. I feel like this could have been a passive that triggered off of him leaving play paired with an ability that let him discard himself at will and it would have maybe been playable as is.

scantrell24 - 2 out of 5
That’s a big sword for such a little effect.

Sygmaghost94 - 2 out of 5
I feel like this guy has been misnamed. He is far from a champion. Looking at all of the other awesome 2-cost characters for Stark, this guy has a lot of competition and I don’t think he has what it takes to stand up to them. A champion could; a champion would beat out all the other 2-cost characters and laugh in their faces as you sleeve this piece of cardboard. But sadly, mister Umber will not see play with his ability or his trait. If this guy had stalwart, I think he might actually be good. Oh well, maybe next time champ.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_moat-cailin-tk.jpg'] Moat Cailin 26 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 2 out of 5
Conceptually really nice though the reality will not bear out so nicely. You’ll need a lot of Shadows cards to make this interesting. The big benefit is that the bonus is applied to total strength and not an individual character. So it gets you around abilities that tamper with the presence of character strength (intimidate/scouting vessel/grand melee). Again, the problem remains in order for the card to have a real impact there needs to be a significant number of cards in the shadows. I’m thinking this would be marginally better in Melee.

Ire & WWDrakey - 2 out of 5
As you rarely can trust your opponents to run shadows, this is only for shadow builds which Stark often doesn’t go too heavy on. With the other new cards... maybe. But the bonus isn’t too great as it will often end up being +1 STR. Frozen Outpost does everything better than this one.

JCWamma - 2 out of 5
Unless you're in a particularly Shadows-heavy meta, this isn't going to accomplish much unless you have a VERY dedicated shadows deck. Think about how often you're going to have this card in shadows, AND have another card in shadows, AND have the opponent make a key challenge where a surprise pump of 1 STR will win it for you. It'll happen sometimes, but not very often, and certainly not enough to run this card in most decks - and in decks dedicated to this sort of thing, you might squeeze in room for one. It's also worth pointing out that this is much worse than Tunnels of the Red Keep (CoS), because it adds that much to your overall side rather than to each character.

mnBroncos- 3 out of 5
Solid card in the right build. With the kingsguard out I could see some weird Stark deck that is built properly use this card, very powerful in a Stark Defense deck.

OKTarg 4 out of 5
At first I laughed at this card, then it beat the crap out of me in a Stark defense deck. 2-4 STR in every challenge on defense? That can’t be stealthed? Pretty solid….in the right build. But I don’t like scoring cards down for only being suited to one build--that’s what they were made for! Embrace your niche! #hedgehogprinciple

Rave - 3 out of 5
Shadows-heavy Stark has been a thing in the past, and that’s probably the only place you’re going to find this card. Even with 2 cards in shadows, this will have good effect.

Reldan - 4 out of 5
Stark has over the years amassed a pretty solid repertoire of shadows cards, enough that Stark Shadows is waiting in the wings of being a competitive archetype. This card fits right in. However, what’s more useful is its application in City of Shadows decks, since the response ability gets around the gold penalty, making this yet another “free” shadows card for City of Shadows to use (in a similar vein to Meera Reed and Guardian Wolf). The actual ability itself is pretty solid, letting you successfully defend with chuds and giving a benefit for having a lot of shadows cards on the table.

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
Counting ALL cards in shadows, not just ones you control, makes Moat Cailin playable. The surprise factor is nice, and bring a card out of shadows outside the normal framework can fuel things like the new Ser Arys Oakheart.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This card supports the defensive theme of Stark, but unfortunately, I’d say that Stark is better off with aggro right now. Still this is not a bad card. It fits well with a Stark shadows deck as a defensive Tunnels of the Red Keep. This card scares me a little when I think about it being used in conjunction with Tunnels in a City of Shadows deck. The surprise factor of its ability is probably one of the best features of this card.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-jorah-mormont-tk.jpg'] Ser Jorah Mormont 28 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
This version clearly plays to the themes of this cycle and in my view only to the themes of this cycle. When Jorah is slotted into a deck people generally choose the discard version of him for the utility. On his own 3/3/3 with decent traits is pretty good. The Darkstar style ability is nice if for no other reason that it allows for a free draw. I still think that you’ll see him mostly in Targ King/Queensguard decks mostly and that his other versions will win out for other builds.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Unlike the other versions this Jorah doesn’t have any negative traits. It doesn’t have quite as big an impact on the game as the discard Jorah does, but he has good stats with a good ability and that Queensguard trait might become vital in future themes.

JCWamma - 2 out of 5
As with others in this pack, the opportunity cost hurts hard - Ser Jorah Mormont (WLL) is an incredibly solid unique who finds his way into most Targ decks. This one has the advantage in traits, as Queensguard is definitely better than Ally, and it's interesting to see him having a Darkstar-esque passive effect. But unless you're running lots of self-discard effects, you can't rely on that ever happening, and the rest of the time he's 'just' a 3-3-Tricon. Which is a very solid stat-line, but when you're up against such an amazing Jorah-alternative, you have to do a little better sadly.

mnBroncos- 2 out of 5
The other versions are just better. Sure he is solid but won’t see much play. I’d say this is best in a dragonpit deck and I could still see most of those decks picking the other one over this. So hard to say a card that won’t go in almost everyone of a deck best suited for it could be rated higher than 2.

OKTarg 3 out of 5
The other Jorahs are super good, so this better be really boss. In a KG shadow deck, I’d pick him. He adds redundancy and an INT icon to your knights. I like him with Selmy quite a bit, and you can do some things with Rule by Decree or even Burn Selmy (but why would you run Burn Selmy over the other one if you are building Kingsguard?)

Rave - 4 out of 5
This Jorah is a solid card based on stats alone, though he is a bit overshadowed by his other versions. In a Targ deck based on Shadows, this Jorah can easily swing 2 challenges with Kingdom of Shadows, and he also unlike the other 2, has no bad traits. Targ players looking to try the new shadow offerings, or HoD Dragonpit should check this version out.

Reldan - 3 out of 5
We’ve had two other extremely good versions of Ser Jorah already. I’m just not really sure why you’d play this one over one of those. The discard trick is gimmicky without having some way to force a discard, and while Targ has a few options none of them are overly compelling. Being “Queensguard” instead of “Kingsguard” means he doesn’t help your count with Ser Jaime Lannister’s ability, and he doesn’t have a “comes out of Shadows” ability that would make him useful paired with Ser Preston Greenfield. “s1” is not the same as “3 gold” in terms of efficiency since it removes the ability to take advantage of common reducers.

scantrell24 - 4 out of 5
The intrigue icon and “No Attachments” are both stellar, but tough competition from other versions of Jorah mean he’ll only see play in a few shadows/Kingsguard decks.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This Jorah is good for the same reason Darkstar is good. Sure there are other good Jorahs out there, but this one is better suited for a shadows build, obviously. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in many Dragonpit decks and his ability works well with the new Harpy’s Scourge.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_harpys-scourge-tk.jpg'] Harpy's Scourge 20 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 2 out of 5
Kudos for the Setup keyword but not much else. In narrow cases a 2 (or more) STR swing could be a big deal, but we can’t operate on narrow cases. Plenty of better, more efficient and less costly burn effects. There are also plenty of Targ Weapon cards that are better as well.

Ire & WWDrakey - 2 out of 5
As well as this goes for cards at your command, there is little reason to run it over some other great Targaryen attachments. The discard cost is often too much for Targaryen as their burn tends to be really card-intensive.

JCWamma - 2 out of 5
This gets a 2 rather than a 1 for being a set-uppable Weapon, which carries some stock in Targaryen. The effect is pretty pants - it's an effect best-suited to burn decks, with a cost worst-suited to burn decks. Card advantage is key, and unless you build around this type of effect, a card from your hand probably isn't worth a 2 STR swing. If it was at least available to use in Any Phase it could have some more versatility, for instance with Thundering Calvary (QoD), but as it is, it's pretty dire. Hey, at least it combos with Jorah from before!

mnBroncos-2 out of 5
Setup is nice but in grand scheme I can’t see how often you can afford to discard a card for just minus 1 strength (the plus strength won’t be why usually trigger) since lot of targ cards can reduce by more than 1 in first place. However, someone did point out a combo with Maegi Crone other places with discarding lower strength and maybe just draw a new card anyways, that is an okay combo.

OKTarg 2 out of 5
Man I love me some attachments and some tricky cards. This can combo great with discard recursion, fighting pits, and some stuff, but just not efficient enough to make a tournament deck. Maybe I’ll revisit a Dothraki control style, but why are you even making that deck?

Rave - 3 out of 5
I want to think this will be a great 3 of for HoD Dragonpit, (also nice in tandem with the new Jorah.) The problem is drawing enough cards to burn for effects with Targ is not the easiest thing to do.. anyway, worth looking into for this decktype, I probably wouldn’t run it in any others.

Reldan - 2 out of 5
Attachments during setup are nice, and this one can help burn guys. The cost is rather steep though, especially now with Street Waif restricted. I’d probably rather just run Forever Burning instead, as it’s frustrating that the ability is restricted to Challenges-only.

scantrell24 - 2 out of 5
Harpy’s Scourge is too expensive and fragile to see much play. Once in a while it will be worthwhile to chuck 2 cards and burn a 4 gold character to the ground, and there’s obvious synergy with Ser Jorah.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This is one fun attachment. It’s got setup which is negates the biggest downside of attachments. It works well with burn. It works well with Dothraki as it is a weapon. It’s got a lot of potential with combos like using it with Dragonbone Dagger. Not the best card in the world, but it’s cheap and fun.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-barristan-selmy-tk.jpg'] Ser Barristan Selmy 31 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
Supersolid character but doesn’t get a 5 because he’s built for a pretty narrow use (flipping the other shadow Kingsguard characters). Despite the limited scope of his ability he’s still very strong. No attachments is usually a bigger benefit than detriment and Renown is always welcome. The ability plays mostly to this pack specifically which I find a bit annoying. Tywin and Melisandre from earlier in the review rate so high for many of us because the possibilities with them extend far beyond the pack or cycle. Poor Selmy here is a bit of a one trick pony and won’t find use outside of the shadow jumping Kingsguard/Queensguard.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Stats are as good as you would expect from a 4 cost neutral unique character. 4 strength is always a good thing, since it’s one point over that basic 3. He has some competition with his Core Set version and the Targaryen burn one, but this clearly fills a role in dedicated Queensguard/Kingsguard decks.

JCWamma - 4 out of 5
Onto the eponymous part of the pack. Firstly I just want to get this out of the way here and not mention it each time - it's beyond stupid that the only characters allowed to be armed in the presence of the King cannot hold attachments, even Weapon ones, and I really don't know why it's the case. Now, Selmy. a 4/4/Bicon with Renown is very solid, potentially good enough to see play outside of just Kingsguard decks. The ability is the main thing bringing him to the dance though. Honestly...it's not too amazing. I mean, it's very good, don't get me wrong, but for a 4-cost character it isn't game-changing. It also requires you to either run influence or have gold spare, and is phase-limited. Now, all that said he's still a very good card, but he doesn't amaze me in quite the same way as some of these other 'guards.

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
Now begins where I may debate with some people because I am not all over the bandwagon that seems to be the kingsguards. For 4 gold you get a character that is below average for its cost on its own. It needs other pieces and that can get costly if you want to pull off the ability even more than once in a turn. If was any phase it would be great since you could avoid the king’s law with your characters but overall nothing special on its own.

OKTarg - 4 out of 5
Very good card. I love it in a KG deck, but I think it’s just a 1-of. Not being able to recur him hurts a bit.
Here’s a cool trick though: Use Guided by Quaithe on one of the Targ non-shadow Kingsguard like Jhogo of Belwas. Hey, not too shabby! Perhaps that event wasn’t as terrible as we thought.

Rave - 3 out of 5
A fairly limited ability for 4 gold. Otherwise, 4 str renown on a 4 cost feels pretty ordinary. We already have a Selmy that does that, and he doesn’t get played all that often..

Reldan - 3 out of 5
My biggest gripe is that he should have been 5 STR like the other legendary figures, especially with costing 4. He obviously only really works in a very specialized deck, but man does he ever pair up well with the rest of the shadow Kingsguard crew. However, not having the Shadow crest himself he can’t be revived with On My Oath, which knocks him down a point in my book. Maybe he’s not 5 STR because he’s washed up, and it really is time for new blood to replace old. And speaking of new blood let’s look down one card…

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
4 for 4 bicons with renown are solid right off the bat, and that ability is great for bluffing even if you’re not going to use it, but I’ll have to see Barristan perform an awesome combo or something before I become a believer.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Barristan the bold! And how bold he is. This 4-for-4 bicon with renown is a beast with the other kingsguard. Being able to use influence and a base of 1 gold can help mitigate the low gold curve of many shadows decks. His surprise ability works perfectly with many of the other kingsguard.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-jaime-lannister-tk.jpg'] Ser Jaime Lannister 45 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
Unlike Selmy this Jaime will be able to find life outside of this specific Kingsguard shadow jumping mechanic, hence the 5. Kingsguard is not super uncommon of a trait so alternate deck builds might be able to realistically include him. The big boon is the fact that the response is not limited to just him coming out of the shadows; it’s any card coming of the shadows. If shadows picks up (which it looks like the case so far) you have an amazing draw engine in place with a single card and no future cost. I think the 4 total gold cost is entirely justified.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
This card single handedly helps several burn decks. For some it is bringing in more speed with renown + Kingdom of Shadows, for others it is an easily repeatable source of draw all by himself. He is also resilient to burn with the No Attachments keyword. All in all, there is nothing bad in this card and it makes the other good Jaimes feel bad.

JCWamma - 5 out of 5
Allow me to be trite for a moment and compare him with the Gold Cloaks (AToT). Those guys are pretty underplayed in my opinion, and only the fact that Lannister already has an amazing array of draw options stops them being seen more. Now Jaime is admittedly 1 STR lower and unique, but he trades two awful traits for two great ones, gains Renown, more pertinently is neutral and thus will provide draw to houses that have struggled for it, and most importantly of all, he doesn't only trigger off himself entering play from shadows but also off ANYTHING entering play from Shadows - other cards of yours, your opponents' cards, anything. The parenthesised part is somewhat of a trap for me, a lot of the time you'll be capping yourself with or without the extra 'guards. He is, in short, an amazing card that will go into a LOT of decks. My one criticism? For a man who is supposed to be one of the most attractive in the land, he looks like a weird cross between Forrest Gump and Frodo Baggins. Which is disappointing, because the art is amazing aside from his face (and still having a right-hand, but what can you do).

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
The funny thing about this guy being an auto include in pretty much every deck is when everyone is just triggering Jaime at the same time much like a Sam can just trigger off at same time. Now I do think he is great but he isn’t broken and if song of ice is popular much of the card advantage since will usually happen after marshalling phase won’t be as impactful.

OKTarg 5 out of 5
He’s too good. Let’s move along.

Oh wait, he can draw when your OPPONENT’S characters come out of shadows? Yep, too good.

Rave - 5 out of 5
Good God, this Jaime is really good, maybe the best! He draws cards, he has renown, he’s a good closer because he has great synergy with Kingdom of Shadows. He’s going to be a huge anti-shadows card as well, since Alchemist’s Guild hall can’t touch him, and they will be drawing into your deck for you.

Reldan - 5 out of 5
I think this card is the best card of the pack, without reservation. And this is a pack where I think my average score has been around 4. He has all positive traits, the best two icons, Renown, and draws you at least one card. Realistically in any deck running him he probably draws you 3-6 cards before he gets taken out. And if he gets taken out he comes back since he’s a legal target for that new plot down below. You could probably justify running him even without other Kingsguard cards, just for the stats a couple extra draws. But pair him with his brethren and we have the makings of the first new neutral card draw engine in a long while.

scantrell24 - 5 out of 5
He’s repeatable card advantage. Instant 5. Two awesome keywords are just icing on the cake.

Sygmaghost94 - 5 out of 5
Magnificent! Arguably the best Jaime out there. This guy works in every deck. You heard me! Every single deck, ever! I don’t care if he’s the only shadow card in your deck, this guy replaces himself when he comes out of the shadows. He’s got renown. He’s got a military and an intrigue icon which helps decks like Lannister and Martell which are weak in military, as well as Stark and Greyjoy which are weak in intrigue. Boom, no attachments! Fishing net, I don’t think so. Flame kissed, try again. And all of that is just Jaime by himself. Forget about it if you have other shadows cards or two more kingsguard! If this pack has an MVP, it would be Ser Jaime Lannister.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-meryn-trant-tk.jpg'] Ser Meryn Trant 26 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
Obviously plays well with the broader Kingsguard theme occurring in the cycle. The character ability is just tepid though. In Melee it’s perhaps a bit more potent since all opponents have to comply but in Joust it’s a big yawn. Stealth keyword is appropriate because most of the other Kingsguard aren’t nearly as well known as Selmy and Jaime.

Ire & WWDrakey - 3 out of 5
If you are playing this, most of the time you are not looking at his ability, but the fact that he is a card with the shadow crest and stealth.

JCWamma - 3 out of 5
OKTarg sums him up perfectly below. If you ignore the response then he's still very good though, and particularly in a 'guard deck of course.

mnBroncos -2 out of 5
So lets think for a moment and pretend this guy isn’t a kingsguard, how many cards would see play if it was just a 3 cost 3 strength mil and power icon with stealth. Not very often if at all and that will almost always be the case since most of the time the opponent will have a location that they can afford to kneel. Maybe in a heavy location control deck he will be better but besides that clearly a bleh character. Almost a 1 to me.

OKTarg 2 out of 5
Kneeling a Goldroad isn’t really my thing.

That said, maybe his ability will hit, which will be nice, and he’s the only Kingsguard with stealth. He for sure pales a bit by comparison with the others, though.

Rave - 4 out of 5
Just sitting on the cusp, but Meryn actually isn’t that bad this go around.. In dedicated Shadows, with some finesse he’ll net you 2 challenges. Stealth and no bad traits is nice too. And even though the potential is there to kneel some useless location, that’s not necessarily the case, and when it’s not, this is a huge advantage. Very good anti-shadows as well.

Reldan - 3 out of 5
Since this triggers off of every time a card comes out of shadows his response can certainly add up over time. He does have stealth which is always nice, but he’s probably the weakest of the new KG, but even the worst of them is still at least average.

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
Sometimes you’ll force your opponent into a tough choice, but sometimes they’ll simply kneel a gold location. Tunnels decks love stealth and two icons for defending challenges.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Although this may be the worst of the shadows kingsguard, this guy is still really good. If nothing else, he is a 3-for-3 bicon with stealth and no attachments with some awesome traits. If you can get creative with him and find a way to kneel out your opponent’s locations, this guy could be a beast.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-mandon-moore-tk.jpg'] Ser Mandon Moore 29 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
Could be fantastic assuming you meet the condition. If he had a power icon it’d be more compelling because, ironically, deadly is the least useful in military challenges. Player behavior usually has someone oppose with a chud and then the chud takes the claim so deadly isn’t dealt with. That said, it’s on all the time so it’d be brilliant during a Valar but that’s for one turn only. Doesn’t strike me as that powerful during other turns.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Things that first come to mind are Valar and Greyjoy. Now, when you go further with the cannot be saved the picture gets bigger. Ghaston Grey? check, Coldhands? check. Kill might be the most common way to use him, but he can be combined to some other nasty effects as well, so that even duplicates will be useless.

JCWamma - 3 out of 5
That passive text is interesting - terrifying for Greyjoy players, completely inconsequential for some other players. Having Deadly is nice too. I've rated him the same as Meryn, but Mandon is better - Mandon's closer to a 4, Meryn to a 2. If Mandon had a second icon, or had Deadly on a different icon to military, he'd be a 4.

mnBroncos- 2 out of 5
Outside of a Greyjoy matchup how often does a character even have a chance to save, not very often. So we are looking at a 3 cost character for only one icon and 3 strength but hey at least get deadly on mil. So conditional ability since most times won’t be that impactful. And although makes a Valar more safe still doesn’t affect things like power of blood and again not many saves occur outside of one house in the first place. Although since I hate greyjoy maybe should give him a 3, but I just cant.

OKTarg 4 out of 5
He’s sly, but deadly. People just die when he’s out. I love him, usually for the Valar bomb, but also to make your MIL challenge count.

Rave - 3 out of 5
Expensive for what he does. Mandon is decent, but pretty lackluster as far as challenge potential goes. He’s a slow card in an already slow decktype which can hurt coming against many situations where denying the save would be useful (like decks based around rush).

Reldan - 4 out of 5
What a wrecking ball. His entire purpose in life is to jump out of shadows at the end of a turn and enable a completely unsavable Valar against your opponent immediately thereafter. And his ability is entirely passive, so no Greyjoy Alannys/Kraken nonsense. Unsavable Valar is extremely powerful, and with Mandy here it’s surprisingly easy to set up.

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
A huge part of the reason Greyjoy is down on their luck right now. Mil icon + deadly + no saves = dead characters.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
This guy makes me cringe at the thought of not being able to save anyone during a Valar. But his utility goes far beyond that. In a Stark deck with shadows cards and kill events, this guy is like another Brienne. His keyword pretty much means that someone gonna die when this dude comes out of the shadows.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-preston-greenfield-tk.jpg'] Ser Preston Greenfield 44 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 5 out of 5
I’m giving him the top rating for utility. He’s better than Syrio Forel (TftRK) in pretty much every way. So if you need a reliable way to jump a character in and out of the shadows for The Black Cells (TftRK) or something else, here’s your guy. No attachments on a 2/2/2 is respectable, but that ability opens up so much. He also isn’t tied to the theme of the pack which is why he’s getting the high rating.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
This is what every Knights of the Realm deck has been looking for ever since the agenda was printed. It can guarantee that you always have a knight during draw phase and if you feel like you need extra security you can jump him back to safety of shadows after the draw. Now of course it goes well with all of the new kingsguard things while giving Jaime, or any other shadow-responses, a source of easy triggers. So... something for shadows, something for knights and something for kingsguard. This card will be seeing a lot of play.

JCWamma - 5 out of 5
Absolutely amazing, even better than Jaime. He can go in any deck. A 2/2/Bicon/Knight who dodges Valar and can avoid marshalling phase kneel will pretty much always be useful. In a 'guard deck, he's absolutely phenomenal. I don't know why Preston Greenfield of all people is the money card in this pack full of famous uniques, but it is what it is!

mnBroncos - 5 out of 5
I can get behind this guy though. I have started to think that I should put Syrio into almost every deck and this guy maybe even better, can almost guarantee he will go back into shadows, and no negative trait. Doesn’t have a keyword though which makes it not much better but still a great character and if going all kingsguard if there happens to be a guy rather keep in shadows you can do that.

OKTarg 5 out of 5
s0 is good anyway. Repeatable s0 is awesome. Saving a KG of your choice from Valar or just getting to trigger Jaime or Arys again is pretty stellar. SO GOOD. So good that they updated the FAQ to ensure he’s working as designed, because unlimited triggers will be too much.

Rave - 5 out of 5
Tons of utility here. Dodging valar, securing dominance, re-using abilities, double challenges with Kingdom of Shadows. He’s like a better Syrio for repeatable effects like Alchemist’s Guildhall too, and unlike Syrio, he’s not one Flame-Kissed away from hitting the dead pile. All for the low price of 2 gold. He looks pretty cool too.

Reldan - 5 out of 5
OH YEAH! I’m going to start calling him the Kool Aid Man because his artwork makes me think he just busted through a wall. I’ve been playing around with this guy it never ceases to amaze me how effective an s0 that can jump in and out of Shadows at will can be. He can participate in challenges and then count for dominance. He can pop out at start of marshalling and leave your challenge shadows action free. He can trigger Ser Jaime’s ability multiple times a turn. He can dodge Valar for himself and others. He can at-will boost your Shadows count for cards that trigger off of number of cards in Shadows. 3x Ser Jaime and 3x Ser Preston form an honest-to-goodness card draw engine that’s almost on par with Sam/Ravens but has the benefit of being more resilient due to the On My Oath plot below.

scantrell24 - 5 out of 5
Just nuts. I don’t even know what to say.

Sygmaghost94 - 4 out of 5
He really shines in a shadows deck, but he could see good play in almost any build. Outside of a shadows deck, he is very similar to Syrio. You’ll almost always have a character after Valar and this guy doesn’t have any negative traits. Now in a deck committed to shadows shenanigans, this guy is your lynchpin. His ability to jump in to shadows at any time is awesome, but the fact that he is an s0 makes him playable at any shadows window. He can trigger your Guild Hall, Blackcells, and Jaime all day long!
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-arys-oakheart-tk.jpg'] Ser Arys Oakheart 34 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
The lack of a keyword outside of No attachments is disappointed. Had he had Renown (like his other version) then he’d most certainly be a five. On his own he works pretty well potentially having two characters standing for dominance. No surprises regarding traits, cost, STR, and icons. If you are going all the way with making a shadows Kingsguard deck then he’s a must have. He might have some life in other deck types.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
Anything with the word “stand” in it is usually good. Now, Martell and Lannister will rarely choose this over their old one, which has far better stats. Where this one will shine is in a maester build, so that you can use your maester during marshalling phase for a gold link or valyrian link and then get him back up for the challenge shenanigans.

JCWamma - 4 out of 5
Arys is a very solid card, and a great tool against Lannister, but he's not too amazing - most of the time you won't care too much about his response outside of a 'guard deck that's bringing people out of shadows at weird moments. That limit on his response is weird - presumably to stop anyone from figuring out any infinite combo with him?

mnBroncos - 3 out of 5
So like Moore that hurt Greyjoy this one hurts mainly Lannister, and city plots. I can see him being good in a Stark deck though that is using Meera and even that one wolf that can bounce into challenges makes it easier to trigger the ability when it matters. Other downside is I don’t see any Martell/Lannister playing this guy over the other one.

OKTarg - 4 out of 5
I remember Long Lances’ reign of terror. Can Arys have a similiar one? I say no, but if you have some mid-phase shadows actions, this will be pretty sweet.

Ser Arys must be a Fransiscan monk, since his best friends are the Street Waifs.

Rave - 4 out of 5
Like most of the other Kingsguard, great for Kingdom of Shadows. Good against Lanni, and for any characters with kneel to use effects, like Maesters. Maybe fun to try with Epic Battle events?

Reldan - 4 out of 5
Standing characters is rather nice, and I can see him being the new Long Lances in Targ decks that elect to still play Street Waif - that’s what is earning him the 4. If Maesters ever makes a comeback, he’s a shoe-in for those builds as well. But for almost any Lanni and Martell deck I think the old version is still better.

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
I’ll second what Reldan said. Discard Arys still has his place, but Targ, Stark and Bara could all find ways to abuse this guy. Sadly he’s a great counter to Lanni kneel.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
In a meta where kneel is prevalent, I’m looking at you Lannister Kevin decks, this version of Arys is great. His ability compliments the new Barristan with the shadows cards coming out mid-challenge phase. He may not have renown, but I think the intrigue icon suits him better anyways.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_ser-boros-blount-tk.jpg'] Ser Boros Blount 27 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 3 out of 5
Usual blah blah copied from Oakheart to Blount. STR is down but so is the cost. Response isn’t that remarkable given that it has to be him specifically. Probably would only find life in a Kingsguard deck.

Ire & WWDrakey - 4 out of 5
Another good s0 knight. The ability will often be stronger than it seems. We wouldn’t be surprised if this guy started to see more play as an anti-burn tool, as well as a way to get your challenges through the turn you want to win.

JCWamma - 3 out of 5
Worst response outside of Meryn's and the lowest STR, but the cheapest other than Preston. Boros has his place in a 'guard deck and not outside.

mnBroncos - 2 out of 5
Another guy you should not play outside of a kingsguard deck. Even Tunnels decks had better options. I think he should have made all kingsguards in play plus one strength while he is in play to me that would be much better without being overpowered at all.

OKTarg - 3 out of 5
s0 rules. His response is actually pretty good, but his best use is as filler for your requisite shadow redundancy.

Rave - 3 out of 5
Ugly but arguably useful ability. Maybe the king of boring cards, since he has no flavor text, a boring background, boring haircut, and boring ability. Nice cost for 2 icons and 3 str for at least 1 turn.

Reldan - 3 out of 5
0-cost Shadows characters are awesome, and Boros has a really damn useful ability to boot. He’s almost never useless, and a copy of him should make it’s way into nearly every shadows deck as he manages to be fairly efficient.

scantrell24 - 3 out of 5
Boros kicks burn decks in the nuts and triggers Jaime at the same time.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
His effect is nice, but unfortunately it only works when he himself comes out of shadows as opposed to any card coming out of shadows. When used with Preston Greenfield, you can use this guys effect every turn. Good against burn or just as a quick strength boost during the challenges phase. Solid character.
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[CRB='forums/uploads/got/med_on-my-oath-tk.jpg'] On My Oath 40 out of 45

emptyrepublic - 4 out of 5
Downrating it only because it has a very narrow use in the Kingsguard deck type that most people will develop from this pack. In that type of deck it’s a clear auto-include 5/5 type of card. It might have some possible uses elsewhere as the stats are pretty good and someone might make an alternative deck build that features a few shadow Kingsguard splashed in.

Ire & WWDrakey - 5 out of 5
Good stats - especially now that initiative has started to really matter. This is a mandatory addition to every kingsguard deck and probably to most shadow decks out there. It can bring the card back from both piles, making it more flexible than, say, Many Powers Long Asleep.

JCWamma - 5 out of 5
Obviously it's pretty rubbish outside of 'guard decks, but Naval Reinforcements (RotK) is reasonably poor outside of Black Sails decks and I still gave that a 5 - we obviously assume here that you're running this in a remotely appropriate deck. In such a deck, this is like Many Powers Long Asleep (RoR), only since the 'guard can go in more decks than Holy characters it has a lot more application, and (past Mel and The Red Queen's Faithful (CD)) there are better targets here. Preston is hard enough to kill already - now if your opponent finally finds a way to do it, you can just bring him back? Absurd.

mnBroncos - 4 out of 5
It is good for the Kingsguard decks but you will really ONLY want to get back Jaime or Presten with this card. So you will be holding on to this plot until one of those guys are discarded or killed. The other downside is the hardest part of making a deck right now too many good plots.

OKTarg - 5 out of 5
This plot should read: 3-7-1. Pick whatever devastating Kingsguard that your opponent just worked hard to get rid of (+1 card). Put it into shadows (+2 gold). Remove your opponents’ morale (win)

Rave - 4 out of 5
Worth it solely for the fact that you can make Jaime never go away. The 7 initiative is key for a shadows deck as well, so you can play reactive, or beat your opponent to the Kingdom of Shadows as needed. That said, even though this is a psuedo 5 gold plot, 3 actual gold and 1 claim are pretty average stats. Though solid, the Kingsguard don’t seem game-shifting enough to make this an auto-include for every deck that runs Kingsguard.

Reldan - 5 out of 5
And this is the plot that makes the rest of the KG cycle work. See this FFG? Mark it down if you haven’t already. This is what you do when you want people to take a theme you’re pushing seriously. Pretty much a 5/7/1 plot that draws you a card if the ability finds a target at all, and I can’t imagine playing it if you didn’t have a target to recur. You could run this plot with nothing more than 3x Ser Jaime and 3x Ser Preston in a deck that’s just splashing them for the card advantage, and it would have the further benefit of removing the normal risk of one of them dying and rendering the remaining copies in your deck useless. Cards like this are why I’m finding this pack to be the first one of this cycle to really nail down how to support a theme - I’ve been less than impressed with the Bannermen and Seasons support we’ve seen.

scantrell24 - 5 out of 5
This plot, Jaime, and Preston will be the driving force of at least 1 deck in the top 4 at Worlds. Sure you’re restricted to using it late in the game after a Kingsguard has died, but that’s the ONLY downside. 5 gold and +1 card is hard to beat.

Sygmaghost94 - 3 out of 5
Great support for the theme of this chapter pack. Its stats are amazing and it can revive those crucial characters like Jaime or Preston. That is all.
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