Valar Morghulis Card Reviews

Beyond the Sea - Valar Morghulis Staff Review
59% 353 out of 600
Our staff has put together a first blush analysis of the newly released chapter pack Valar Morghulis. 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. Disagree with our assessment? Let us know!

Baratheon garners two out of the top three slots in this chapter packs and packs a potential three to dive power swing in one turn wallop with Stannis. Three River plots arrive and our panel isn't quite sold on them yet. Targaryen burn gets a couple boons as well with two new terminal effects. Martel and Stark, well, for the most part get left out in the cold.

Top 3
Wyllas Tyrell 29 out of 30
Aeron Damphair 27 out of 30
The Bastard of Nightsong 28 out of 30

Worst 3
Playing the Part 7 out of 30
Turncloak 9 out of 30
Ward 9 out of 30

[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_the-kindly-man-vm.jpg']The Kindly Man 17 out of 30

clu 3 out of 5
Honestly, this is the kind of character all houses want; cheap, tricon, with a good keyword. The crest is a throw away in Stark but it’s interesting. The ally trait pains me as does the one strength. We need to consider that Stark has several beefy non-uniques with literal killer effects in Northern Cavalry and Berserkers. You can kill him off with Wildfire, Valar, and City of Soldiers fairly easily. I’ve already proxied up this deck and it is fun as heck! I can’t give him a higher rating because he doesn’t play nice with other agendas.

Darksbane 2 out of 5
Two cost for a deadly tricon is very nice, but his ability is something you are likely going to build a deck around. If you do that is some powerful game text but it is hard to justify giving up Siege to do it.

doulos2k 3 out of 5
I’m not sold yet on these characters that convert to agendas, so I’m already biased against it.. He’s so vulnerable, but it looks like you’d only want to play him for the agenda portion. The tri-con is nice, but a 1 STR deadly ally... too easy to kill. The agenda could be pretty amazing if you can justify running agenda-less until he arrives.

FireFox 3 out of 5
The icon spread is interesting, but irrelevant since you want him to die anyway. However once converted to an agenda this guy has serious game-changing potential. Both on the actual game but also on deckbuilding which alone makes him a very interesting card. He suffers a bit from the competition from others agendas though.

jimpanda - 3 out of 5
I like this guy. Triple icon and Deadly is not too shabby, and I feel like his Agenda ability could be a game-changer, depending on how the BtNS cycle shakes out. Unfortunately, he does have to compete with Knights of the Realm and Siege of Winterfell for play time.

rave 3 out of 5
Soild, and setup friendly. Not sure it’s worth tossing Stark Siege for this guy though. At least Stark can search for this guy pretty easily if necessary.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_turncloak-vm.jpg']Turncloak 9 out of 30

clu 1 out of 5
I was sold on this card as solid removal for two gold until I read the response. If I could pop this in the dominance phase this card really works for me, but during challenges? Not so much. It becomes slightly playable because Greyjoy has so few shadows cards that it may sneak into a couple decks.

Darksbane 1 out of 5
2 gold for an attachment which does something that Greyjoy and Stark have no trouble doing. It telegraphs the discard (not even kill) and it has to come out of shadows during the challenge phase which makes it super vulnerable to alot of attachment control. No thanks..

doulos2k 2 out of 5
This could be a great card if it weren’t limited to the Challenges phase for its response action. If this were a Targ attachment, it would be awesome coupled with Daario, but I don’t know any Greyjoy or Stark cards that specifically target the Traitor trait for easy removal. It could work really well if you have solid board position and are pretty certain you’ll gain dominance (or have a card that guarantees you dominance). Could be easy removal for a troublesome card under certain conditions.

FireFox 1 out of 5
This is ruined by the fact it’s response is limited to the Challenge phase. As is it’s a weaker version of Condemned that you can place during setup.

jimpanda - 2 out of 5
Man, I really, really want this card to be good....sadly it just isn’t. The effect, as Darksbane said, is just not efficient in these Houses, and the cost is prohibitive. I will be surprised if this sees any serious play.

rave 2 out of 5
Too conditional. Its saving grace is that it is setup friendly.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_ward-vm.jpg']Ward 9 out of 30

clu 1 out of 5
If this was available in other houses besides Stark and Targ I would be more excited. The two strength characters are more than likely dying off to claim already. I prefer my removal to be final and for all strength characters.

Darksbane 2 out of 5
I can think of a couple good uses for it out of each house. Stark could use it to take back their own Reek unexpectedly, and I guess most of the save Maesters are STR <=2. Still it isn’t like Targ or Stark is hurting for events so I can’t imagine what I’d take out of a deck to put this in.

doulos2k 1 out of 5
Not really feeling the benefit of this card. Taking control of a 2 STR character doesn’t really justify an event slot. There are so many other ways to kill 2 STR characters already that this card just feels redundant.

FireFox 2 out of 5
Both house are better off killing characters than taking control of them so this feels a bit like a useless event. Maybe a possible counter to annoying characters with attachments, but even so this sounds a bit lackluster to me.

jimpanda- 1 out of 5
Yuck. Again, this is a cool concept, but the effect is not nearly powerful enough in these Houses. The limitations on the card are pretty harsh and will prevent it from seeing any real action.

rave 2 out of 5
Better in Targ than in Stark. Targ has a better chance to keep the attachment around, and on a
Threat from the North turn, this can hit a lot of characters. But yeah, probably better to burn them anyway.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_ser-kevan-lannister-vm.jpg']Ser Kevan Lannister 19 out of 30

clu 4 out of 5
His numbers please the Jaime in me. His traits make him tutorable with muster to become an agenda or to fuel Knights of the Realm. He may become the new gold and crimson
standard in kneel decks.

Darksbane 3 out of 5
It is just hard to justify running any of these agenda characters instead of some of the more powerful agendas. He has OK stats but and I’d run him in an agenda less lannister deck without a thought but I guess I’m still flavor of the monthing on The Power Behind the Throne because I really don’t feel like it would be worth it to give up the agenda for something like this.

doulos2k 3 out of 5
I don’t play Lannister, but I’ve played against a few and they were all running an agenda. Would they give up their agenda for a kneel effect dependent on an intrigue win? I don’t know, but it doesn’t seem a good trade to me. Kneel ONE card of choice AFTER winning an intrigue challenge. Now, he’s a 3/3 MIL/Power and a Knight with stealth, so he’s a solid card on his own.

FireFox 2 out of 5
I feel this is the weakest of the Agenda characters. Yes he has good stats and traits, but since I want him to die for his ability to kick in that’s not so important. And once his ability is there it’s quite weak and conditional. Lannister already has many other kneeling effect that don’t require you to win the challenge. This is kind of like the tourney grounds, but worse.

jimpanda- 4 out of 5
At his most basic level he is a 3 str, 2 icon character with Stealth, the Knight trait, and a marginally useful Agenda ability. On stats alone he is very playable. The reason he is not a 5/5 is that the Agenda ability is so-so. Having to win an Intrigue challenge in order to kneel a character is rough, especially since Lannister Kneel frequently wants to go second. It’s the same reason King’s Landing Jaime is average and not a superstar..

rave 3 out of 5
If his effect didn’t only trigger off of intrigue won as the attacker, he would be better. He’s kind of awkward in Lanni kneel, because you are rarely going to want to go first.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_hugor-hill-vm.jpg']Hugor Hill 14 out of 30

clu 1 out of 5
Four cost characters must completely change the landscape of the game once they hit the table. His strength is less than his cost, he has a negative trait, you can’t play Tyrion in the same deck, you forfeit the claim effect, and his ability is too conditional. I really like the idea the ability, but not his practicality for the four slot.

Darksbane 2 out of 5
Could be useful if you can get the Joust keyword on him. It is nice that the character you grab is permanently out there but it is just too random to rely on. If you don’t get lucky with discards there is likely to just not be anything to grab. Could be interesting in Melee for the later game.

FireFox 4 out of 5
I actually like this guy. Yes the stats are a bit rubbish as he is quite expensive. However I feel there are possibilities for this both with the Lannister agenda and plots like Schemes of the Scholar and Game of Thrones. Yes the ability is quite conditional but in the end-game this could prove quite useful. Additionally there are many in-house option to increase his Str and make him harder to block, like I’m you writ small. Finally it’s one of the few cards that take control permanently.

doulos2k 2 out of 5
FOUR gold!? For this ability? No thank you. Unless he’s greatly buffed, you’re not going to be gaining much by using his ability. Stealth is a helpful add, but whenever a character has to attack alone to trigger his ability, he needs to be cheap to play or really strong - this card is neither of those things.

jimpanda- 2 out of 5
He’s so cool and very flavorful. Unfortunately, he is not nearly good enough to merit his 4 cost and not being able to play Shadows Tyrion. There’s a slim chance he is decent in a Power Behind the Throne deck that can afford him if Greyjoy Choke simmers down a little.

rave 3 out of 5
The stealth is nice. Winning an unopposed challenge could potentially get you a number of come into play effects (ie. Jorah, Arys), but his usefulness is dependant on your opponent, which hurts his value. It helps that no Tyrion currently available is an auto-include outside of in shadows and clansman decks, but still in the 4 slot, you probably have better options.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_futile-gestures-vm.jpg']Futile Gestures 10 out of 30

clu 1 out of 5
I love the idea of protecting discard Jaime. I hate the idea of subbing in this card over all of the other nuts Lanni events.

Darksbane 3 out of 5
Sure it costs a power but it cancels and draws you another card. It is at the very least worth trying out as another way to protect Cersei in a Power Behind the Throne deck. I find she has a hard time staying alive long, especially in Melee games.

FireFox 2 out of 5
It’s important to have cards such as these in the card pool, that make Voltron decks possible. However this will probably never see play. Maybe this is in prevision to more Infamy cards down the line?

doulos2k 1 out of 5
Maybe I just don’t understand this card. You have to have a character that has power on it, it has to be the sole target of a triggered effect, then you play this to discard one power to save that card and draw a card? I don’t get it.

jimpanda - 1 out of 5
Again, I want to like this card so much. And, sure, with the new Cersei it might be ok, but just run through the list of good Lannister events in your head and tell me this one can make the cut. It’s EXTREMELY situational for Lannister as well. If it were Baratheon, it would be solid.

rave 2 out of 5
Weird card. If you have a Lanni deck that wants to pretend it’s Baratheon it might not be so bad. But still, it will be hard to find room in your event slot for this.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_stannis-baratheon-vm.jpg']Stannis Baratheon 21 out of 30

clu 2 out of 5
Earlier I mentioned if you play a four cost anything it has better bring the heat. Stannis can provide a three to five power swing in one turn. One turn, by himself. The key word is can. From a Jaime perspective you never spend big resources on maybes, only sure deals.

Darksbane 4 out of 5
If Baratheon had more reliable character control (or trait control) I could easily see this being a 5 out of 5, but without it I have to knock him some as Kings aren’t exactly rare and trait manipulation could really hose him. Of course opposing trait manipulation hoses pretty much all the Stannis versions and I think this one has alot of potential. I’d never run him in Melee though, too much of a chance of multiple kings running around.

doulos2k 2 out of 5
Pretty awesome if he’s the only king, but if he isn’t... he’s expensive. Immunity is always nice, so he can’t be affected by locations like Scouting Vessel, but having all of his other abilities completely dependent upon his trait seems like it would be difficult, especially with the popularity of trait manipulation in the game.

FireFox 5 out of 5
The only drawback this guy has is the presence of other in-house kings. But apart from that he is pretty awesome. Vigilant Stealth and Renown is a very powerful mix, making for a very efficient character. He will only need a single turn to pll his weight. As an added bonus he is immune to pesky locations such as Frozen Moat, Ghaston Grey and Black Cells.

jimpanda - 4 out of 5
This guy is a monster....sometimes. If Baratheon had any character kill at all I would say that the new Stannis would be an auto-include. As it stands, he will have a hard time replacing the Roberts of the world, who are far more reliable monsters for the moment. I can’t discount him because of his future potential though. And Being Bear Island and Ghaston Gray-proof is a big bonus.

rave 5 out of 5
Never ever underestimate Vigilant and Renown. Especially Vigilant Renown and Stealth. Toss Court Advisor on this guy and you are good to go. Don’t forget he’s immune to Ghaston Grey.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_the-bastard-of-nightsong-vm.jpg']The Bastard of Nightsong 28 out of 30

clu 5 out of 5
Efficiency once again rules the day. A three cost three strength knight with an intrigue icon is tasty enough on his own but stack on pseudo renown and you have yourself an auto include. Having renown would make this guy a four, but notice you take it from your opponent. A two power swing is a bigger swing.

Darksbane 5 out of 5
The intrigue icon and knight trait really sets him apart. Auto include in Bara Knights deck, the power stealing is just more goodness. Love this card.

doulos2k 3 out of 5
Add Vigilant and you have another power grabber for Baratheon. He only has to participate in the challenge to steal power from you. This could be a really annoying card.

FireFox 5 out of 5
This is a very solid card all around. Good traits, nice icons, Knight trait and in-built power grabbing ability. His ability is arguably stronger than renown as you reduce your opponent’s total at the same time.

jimpanda - 5 out of 5
Wowzers! This guy is a beast (and also a Knight with Intrigue, which I like). I won’t say he’s an auto-include in EVERY Baratheon deck, but he is really, really close.

rave 5 out of 5
Solid! The ability doesn’t replace the claim effect, and Bastard isn’t really a bad trait in the current state of the game.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_willas-tyrell-vm.jpg']Willas Tyrell 29 out of 30

Clu 5 out of 5
Baratheon actually has a drought at the two gold slot after Cressen and Pylos if you aren’t running asshai or knights. He is an auto include besides that beautiful learned crest; two cost, two strength, two icons, an almost always renown, and unopposed win against two thirds of the field. I don’t even blink at the ally trait here, he’s too good not to run.

Darksbane 5 out of 5
Learned, usually renown, hosing 2 of the more powerful houses, sure he is an ally and 2 Strength but what more can you expect from a 2 gold character.

doulos2k 4 out of 5
So many decks run agendas that his ability is almost guaranteed in probably 90% of matches. Against Lanni or Martell, suddenly he’s guaranteeing unopposed challenges. He’s inexpensive to boot. (Now, against Targ - he’s dead, but that’s beside the point.)

FireFox 5 out of 5
A 5 just for being the only in-house Learned character. The fact that he also gains renown most of the time and be unnoposed quite often makes him very good. Also is a cheap Lord which is always handy.

jimpanda - 5 out of 5
This guy will be in every Baratheon deck until the Sun goes out. Not that Baratheon can’t use the help, but shouldn’t this guy cost 3?

Rave 5 out of 5
2 cost renown with an ability that isn’t terribly narrow in its usefulness. The learned crest is one step closer to Outwit being a viable option in Baratheon.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_aeron-damphair-vm.jpg']Aeron Damphair 27 out of 30

clu 4 out of 5
When I talk about efficiency this is what I mean, you get meaningful payout for the gold cost. An important rule of thumb is the strength of the character must be equal or higher to how much you spend. For three gold you get three strength, two icons, a great keyword, relevant in-house crest, useful trait, and a sometime card draw ability. Holy wow. My only issues with Mr. Damphair is the ability doesn’t work if you are aleady agenda’s up, he’s tougher to kill off at three strength meaning you have to run Wildfire, and Greyjoy has reached a glut in the three gold slot for characters with Asha, Baelor, Dagmer, Newly Made Lord, and Wintertime Marauders.

Darksbane 5 out of 5
Turning saves into card advantage is hugely powerful. Any Greyjoy deck that isn’t running an agenda would benefit from this card even with just a few saves. Maester Wendamyr and some influence alone can possibly get you to the draw cap. Once Aeron is out as an agenda I think the Greyjoy player’s biggest problem is going to be getting his opponent to military challenge him, and that isn’t a bad problem to have.

doulos2k 4 out of 5
Character that converts to an agenda... I really need to see how these play out. Greyjoy choke runs Kings of Winter, but other GJ decks I’ve seen don’t run an agenda at all, so this would really be a GREAT agenda for Greyjoy. Getting the add’l draw option in Greyjoy is great as they can really benefit from it.

FireFox 5 out of 5
There is nothing I can say to rate this card lower. Good Str/cost ratio, a good crest, stealth, Ironborn trait and two icons. Just those make him a decent card. The agenda part makes him a monster though. Greyjoy has now access to a card drawing mechanic that bounces off one of their easiest mechanic to set up. Keeping board presence was good before, now saves also keep you hand replenished! This fills up a gap Greyjoy traditionally struggles with.

jimpanda- 4 out of 5
Finally, a possible reason to not play Kings of Winter - whether it’s a good enough reason remains to be seen. I like this guy. I like him alot. Solid stats and a wonderful Agenda ability that Greyjoy can easily build around with Iron Mines, Iron Cliffs, etc. Card advantage is key, and this guy provides it in spades.

rave 5 out of 5
Amazing. I can’t stress how key this is for Greyjoy. Even without repeatable saves, this is still very good, and gives them a reliable and repeatable draw engine.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_maester-kerwin-vm.jpg']Maester Kerwin 21 out of 30

Clu 4 out of 5
I won’t give Kerwin a five for two reasons; you don’t always need a learned crest and Greyjoy is pretty full at the one gold slot after Carrion Bird and Distinguished Boatswain. However, with him joining the master fold with Wendamyr and Murenmere I now feel confident in tossing in a Tin Link or two in every Greyjoy deck. Attachments were the last thing Greyjoy couldn’t handle, now they can.

Darksbane 2 out of 5
He is OK, but it is a once per game (barring any tricks to get him out of the dead pile) cancel restricted to Ironborn. Your opponent will see the cancel coming since he has to be in play so it should be fairly easy to play around it.

doulos2k 1 out of 5
Um... yeah. Unique, but has to die to cancel an effect that solely targets an Ironborn character. Learned crest is nice as there aren’t that many (any?) in Greyjoy (so Outwit becomes an option), but 1 gold, 1 icon, and death for a cancel. I don’t see the value here.

FireFox 5 out of 5
This is a fantastic card. An character with an in-built cancel is great versatility. This is complemented by a nice crest and an icon that is sometimes lacking in Greyjoy. Also the wording means that he can cancel pretty much anything short of agendas.

jimpanda - 4 out of 5
The only reason he isn’t 5/5 is his competition for the one drop slot (Distinguished Boatswain, Ice Fisherman, Carrion Birds, etc.). A one drop Maester with the Learned icon is a good deal though, especially when combined with the other cheap, efficient Masters at Greyjoy’s disposal. Solid ability to boot. Definitely a value card. Shame he’s unique.

rave 5 out 5
This is an amazing 1 drop. As he says any ‘effect’, and not just ‘triggered effect’ I’d assume this includes card effects also, that is any effect that chooses a target, much like Cat of the Canals. This would include effects like Search and Detain and Stealth.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_thirst-for-vengeance-vm.jpg']Thirst for Vengeance 10 out of 30

Clu 1 out of 5
A one cost attachment with the condition trait that provides a keyword that is better done with Venomous Blade and Alchemist Shop isn’t playable, even if it can garner you one to three power every turn. It’s either opposed, or it isn’t. If only you could play this in a Path of the Maester Bara power rush deck…

Darksbane 2 out of 5
I could see this being a possible include in Melee perhaps comboed with True Queens Loyalist to really make those power challenges tough decisions.

doulos2k 4 out of 5
This is a great card. While giving a character Deadly is always nice, the fact that the character gains power ANY time someone dies for deadly claim is just too good to pass up!

FireFox 1 out of 5
This card is pretty much useless. It suffer from the comparison with any other Martell attachment and its trigger will likely never happen. So all you will gain is deadly for one gold. The only use I see for it is in Melee in a combo deck with Black Wind and Hellholt engineer. But even so it’s fun, but very inneficient.

jimpanda- 1 out of 5
When you make a Martell Event or Condition card, it had better be amazing to merit inclusion over the superb ones that already exist. This one isn’t.

rave 1 out of 5
This really isn’t very good. Even if it was free, it would be pretty limited.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_playing-the-part-vm.jpg']Playing the Part 7 out of 30

Clu 1 out of 5
This card isn’t better then the bounty of other Martell events. I think it’s neat, but neat doesn’t win games.

Darksbane 1 out of 5
I just don’t have the slots for this in a Martell deck.

doulos2k 2 out of 5
Adding stealth and immunity is always good. But using a precious Event slot just to do that for a phase seems like a waste to me.

FireFox 1 out of 5
Martell has so many good events that this one will hardly ever make the cut. That said it could be played in certain circumstances when you have to keep your character alive or make sure he wins his challenge. Again a card whose existence is good but difficult to find a slot for.

jimpanda - 1 out of 5
See above.

rave 1 out of 5
Martell’s event options are so good, at this point I feel that any event that doesn’t set the table on fire upon being played wont add anything new. It doesn’t really do anything besides give surprise stealth, which might be nice, but is a little too aggressive (without really doing all that much) for usual Martell play.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_harried-by-dragons-vm.jpg']Harried by Dragons 16 out of 30

Clu 2 out of 5
Any card that replaces itself takes a step in the right direction towards thinning your deck. Combined with Lady Daeny’s Chamber I feel Harried by Dragons is interchangeable with Forever Burning. The difference is Burning doesn’t cost resources to use and hits no attachment folks.

Darksbane 3 out of 5
It is a deck thinning Forever Burning, if you are already running LDC I think this is going to be a better choice than Forever Burning.

doulos2k 3 out of 5
A nice addition to the Burn arsenal. It only deals a -1 and I’m not sure I’d use a slot in place of other burn cards. But it immediately replaces itself (assuming you’re running multiples). If you’re running Lady Daenery’s Chambers, this one is easy to recurse, plus it doesn’t have any limitations. It could be a great death blow card to someone already reduced by Flame-Kissed or Dragon Skull. Not sure I’d use it, but if you have the slots - it’s a nice add.

FireFox 3 out of 5
I have mixed impressions of this card. One the one hand it’s a weak burn effect. On the other hand it’s a burn effect that’s cheap and thins your deck a little. We will have to wait and see if it replaces Forever Burning.

jimpanda - 3 out of 5
This one is thoroughly ok. It replaces itself, isn’t influence-heavy, and provides an ok effect. May see play. Has some stiff competition in the burn department though.

rave 2 out of 5
Decent enough, but Forever Burning does the same thing but better, probably wont be able to find space for it.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_incinerate-vm.jpg']Incinerate 23 out of 30

clu 3 out of 5
I want to give this cardboard a much higher rating but I just can’t. First you have to have two to three characters in play. Now they have to have the same trait. The event only triggers during challenges. This phenomenon doesn’t happen as often as you think. Plus, I like my burn decks on the charlite side. That being said Targ gets another terminal kill effect to its arsenal which is never bad. Incinerate looks pretty good in a Dragon, Dothraki, Army, and Maester deck.

Darksbane 4 out of 5
I don’t know that this is a great card for a dedicated burn deck, but I do think it is a great card in a Dothraki or even Dragon themed deck. It Burns and gives the kill condition. I find with my Dothraki deck surprise is extremely important and this gives a potentially large burn surprise for my opponent to deal with.

doulos2k 5 out of 5
WOW! This one is almost an auto-include! At first blush I thought it would only work in a themed deck, but Dothraki are so prevalent in all of my burn decks, it’s a great way to immediately nuke a powerful character causing you difficulty in themed decks. It costs influence, so it can’t be Paper Shielded. Just amazing... Targ burn may become pretty ludicrous during this cycle - time will tell.

FireFox 3 out of 5
On first impression this looks amazing. However the trait count makes it not so good in my opinion. Decks that will have a good amount of similar traited characters, like dothraki decks will not necessarily need or have space for this. In a dedicated burn deck, this will usually end up being a -2 Str burn that is cheaper than flame-kissed but non recyclable.

jimpanda - 3 out of 5
Oh my God.....more burn for Targaryen.....This one is fine, but we are suffering from a burn glass ceiling at this point. Hatchlings Feast and Flame-kissed still reign supreme.

rave 5 out of 5
This is amazing. A burn staple if I ever saw one. Don’t forget about the ally trait. Chances are your Targ deck has a decent amount of those at least.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_magister-illyrio-vm.jpg']Magister Illyrio 24 out of 30

clu 3 out of 5
In an ambush burn deck this guy is a twelve. Outside of that he’s pretty meh. Efficient cost to strength/icon ratio, lord trait, and noble crest make him playable outside of burn. It’s that ally trait that is going to force you to run cancel to protect him.

Darksbane 3 out of 5
I think coupled with the recent Dragon Knight he could help to fuel more ambush focused character choices in a burn deck. His main strength is giving another avenue of applying the kill if strength is 0 effect which some burn cards lack.

doulos2k 4 out of 5
Alone, he makes ambush characters all the more deadly. Dragon Knight becomes a kill card with him in play. Any ambush card (for which Targ has plenty) gets the potential of killing characters. Plus, he doesn’t kneel to apply this effect, this means he’s repeatable and his 3 strength intrigue/power is still in play. Add him to a Dragonpit deck and he suddenly makes all 4 STR characters vulnerable to terminal effect. Great card.

FireFox 5 out of 5
Yes, I’m giving an ally a rating of 5. The reason is that this guy only needs one challenge phase to turn over the game. Every ambusher or character coming out of shadows can now trigger a terminal burn effect. It even bypasses the usual attachment restriction. This will leave the opponents unique characters feeling very lonely when facing your other burn effects and military claim. Furthermore, he has a Noble crest and goos STR and icons for his cost. I shudder just thinking of him and Narrow escape together...

jimpanda - 4 out of 5
The Ally trait and low potential for non-burn keep him from a 5/5 but it’s close. This guy is a machine in the right deck. If anything, he actually seems undercosted.

rave 5 out of 5
This is the reason you run ally hate. Not an auto-include, but every deck that runs this will run it to great effect. Obvious synergy with ambush. Targ has a ton of jumpers to take advantage of this also. Rhaenys Hill anyone? Dothraki with jumpers, ambush and Narrow Escape could be fun.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_volantis-vm.jpg']Volantis 12 out of 30

clu 3 out of 5
The new series of Free Cities brings flexibility to builds that we haven’t previously seen. A good Jaime rarely takes into account house until filling in the gold slots and now we get ask questions like are Wintertime Marauders worth four gold in a winter deck? Targ gets the first obvious boost with ten in-house mercenaries and Targ always likes cheap influence. Mercenaries from Pyke and Pirates of Orkmont out-of-house for cost isn’t worth three slots for this card.

Darksbane 2 out of 5
Only 2 playable Greyjoy Mercs to use with this so I wouldn’t exactly be jumping to use it to grab some out of house Greyjoy characters. For other in house options Targ might be able to get some use out of it but generally I think there are better choices for locations slots in most houses.

doulos2k 2 out of 5
Greyjoy out of house cards specifically... hmmm. This is a good card if you want to play Iron Mines out of house. It doesn’t kneel to reduce and it puts influence on the board for you. Mercenary trait isn’t used that often, so not sure how much of a boon that one is.

FireFox 1 out of 5
How many Mercenary cards see play? Greyjoy Mercenaries? There are better sources of influence out there and this card is not worth three slots just for Wintertime Marauders.

jimpanda - 2 out of 5
I have no idea on these. They could fit well into the meta once the cycle gets rolling, but for now I’m not sure what’s up with them. The final analysis will have to wait.

rave 2 out of 5
Weird. But kind of fun. You still have to draw into it, and it doesn’t change the face of the game when you play it, so it doesn’t seem worth building around. Could be interesting with the Neutral house.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_above-the-sorrows-vm.jpg']Above the Sorrows 21 out of 30

clu 4 out of 5
Netting a two claim plot with high initiative and zero drawback? Priceless. Throw in the river kicker and we may be looking at a new must play in aggro decks. Only the two gold knocks it off from being perfect.

Darksbane 4 out of 5
As far as 2 claim plots go only Dry Season and Retaliation! have initiative as high or higher so stats wise it is a solid choice, the ability is lackluster though. Even in a dedicated Mill deck I’m not sure that devoting a plot slot to milling 1 card is worth it. The River mechanic is what brings it up from a 3 to 4 star card in my mind. Getting a second more useful bonus out of it such as drawing a card increases its utility enough to make it a solid choice when using other River plots.

doulos2k 3 out of 5
2 gold, milling 1 card, dependent on other River cards for add’l effect? Depending on the deck, this could be good if you’re working on a theme that uses the River plots, but on its own it seems lackluster to me. In Greyjoy Discard, this could be a nice little boon for Corpse Lake to potentially grab a power during the Plot phase in Melee, but still not sure I’d want to use a slot for it.

FireFox 4 out of 5
The stats alone on this plot are decent and it will become stronger as more River plots are released. The ability to play a “once revealed...” effect once again could prove devastating. The milling ability is just an extra little bonus that could prove useful sometimes. All in all a strong aggressive plot.

jimpanda - 3 out of 5
As with a few others, the totality of the cycle will determine how good these are. This one is certainly solid enough, and it’s the only real “mill” themed plot out there, so bonus flavor points for that.

rave 3 out of 5
Based solely on the 3 plots I have seen, this is OK. If you play it smart, you can catch a Search and Detain with this (based on your power totals) More river effects could make it more useful. The ability is kind of a throwaway ability, but this would be kind of cool with Shores of Ny Sar in tow I guess.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_shores-of-ny-sar-vm.jpg']Shores of Ny Sar 17 out of 30

clu 2 out of 5
I always harp about card draw being important to decks. Notice I said it doesn’t win you games, it just helps. For pedestrian stats there isn’t enough game change in the reveal to make this good. It will see plenty of play because it’s a River.

Darksbane 3 out of 5
It is always hard to evaluate new mechanics when so few cards exist to take advantage of them. Under the assumption that someone who runs this card will run multiple River plots it will give you two extra cards over two turns and doesn’t count against your draw cap. For some houses who struggle with getting cards into their hand I’d say this is a must if you are willing to focus your plots on river plots, otherwise the 0 initiative and average gold likely make it skippable.

doulos2k 3 out of 5
If the River plots all get the “trigger” effect for the top River plot, a couple of these could be used like the City plots are sometimes used. Alone, this card is nice to add draw that isn’t limited by the draw cap, but still not sure I want to use a slot for this unless, again, I were trying to take advantage of copy effect.

FireFox 3 out of 5
This could be the River equivalent of City of Lies. At worse it’s a plot with medium income that nets you a card. At best we could see some crazy plots combos depending on what other River plots we get. For those reasons I think it will see quite a bit of play.

jimpanda- 3 out of 5
It’s ok, so long as River options are limited, but I have a feeling this one will be surpassed by better options fairly quickly. It’s average for now, though.

rave 3 out of 5
As before, need some more insight into River before this can be rated for real, but those are some horrible stats.
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[CRB='/forums/uploads/got/med_at-the-palace-of-sorrows-vm.jpg']At the Palace of Sorrows 19 out of 30

clu 4 out of 5
The reveal effect is insanely powerful. The question is can you use it to good use or are you going to get stuck ditching a more powerful card. The effect also chokes their draw giving you a known quantity in their hand and if it was an expensive character you are choking their resources. If you plan for it you can send down Jorah, Fleabottom Scavenger, or shadowfolk to trigger again. This is all with reasonable gold and claim with slightly higher initiative. Giving your opponent a choice usually means the card can’t be relied on to gain advantage from them putting the wrong card down, the strength is making your choice better than theirs.

Darksbane 3 out of 5
I could rate this one a 4 in the right deck but in general I think you need to be running a good amount of comes into play type cards to make it worth it. You really can’t count on this hurting your opponent too much so it is more important to make sure it benefits you instead.

doulos2k 1 out of 5
Everyone takes a card of their choice that they control and places it back on top of its owner’s deck. Great if you happen to control someone else’s card, not so great otherwise. I don’t know when I would ever want to do this unless I were playing a lot of cards that allowed me to take control of other people’s cards.

FireFox 4 out of 5
I love this kind of card. An extra playing of cards like Fleabottom Scavenger, Arys, Jorah or any other come into play ability is always nice. But on top of that you have middle range stats and an already playable combo with Shores of Ny Sar. Also this card can save a key character from Valar if needed. In the right deck this is a very versatile card.

jimpanda - 4 out of 5
This plot is very, very good in a combo-rific sort of way. Very versatile and great against certain metagame things. Depending on how Rivers go, this will be one to watch.

rave 3 out of 5
By itself, it’s OK. Could be nice to get a Burn and Pillage off one of your locations or something similar. Until some more River effects come out though, we won’t know for sure.
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Author Bios
clu
Jerod Leupold started playing AGOT during the release of Flight of Dragons and declared his allegiance to Greyjoy at an early age. He cut his teeth playing in the MN, MO, and WI regionals trying to build dominant characterless or recursion decks. He has placed first in one lowly attended regional, second in four others, and top eighted in two out the four GenCons he has attended. For one year he was the number one ranked limited player. He currently resides in Iowa City and is proud to be a part of the Knights of the Corn meta.

During the years of 2005-2011 he was the owner and tournament organizer for Critical Hit Games that ran magic events on a weekly basis including being asked to host the state of Iowa championships twice. He has been a tournament player for several ccgs including 7th Sea, L5R, Spoils, and is the current King of the Hill champion of the 2011 GenCon Invasion tournament.

doulos2k
Larry Gross has only been playing AGoT since December 2011 but fell in love with the game almost immediately. It's his first ever strategy card game and now he's disappointed he's been missing out all these years! When he was introduced to the game, he had only heard of the book series because of the publicity surrounding the HBO show (which he'd never watched) and had no idea which house represented what nor how they fit into the overall story. He chose the Targaryen House as his primary house almost immediately because of, well, Dragons!

He's now read all five books and stuck with Targaryen... because he still loves Dragons! He recently placed Fourth in his first Regional Tournament in Tulsa, but no other glory to speak of yet, but he's a hopeful n00b!

FireFox
FireFox started playing AgoT just as the Winter edition was being translated in French. Not long after he became Night's Watch for his local store in Geneva. From then on he has never given up on the game and has nearly always been a exclusive dornishman. His studies in biology forced him to leave Geneva however and find another Meta in Lyon. This wasn't the last move either as he now lives and works in London, which doesn't house a regular playing group so he has resorted to playing inline. He still keeps regular contact with both his previous metas though and even organise tourneys for them sometimes, as one can never truly leave the Night's Watch.

His acheivements include winning the North of France Regionals in 2011, placing 3rd in the French Nationals in 2008 and 10th in Stahleck in 2010. All of these using controls decks out of his beloved House Martell. While he is mainly a Joust player himself, he enjoys playing Melee every now and then. He has also been heard to play both Lannister and Targaryen decks.

rave
Rave has been playing AGOT since late 2002, and has placed top 8 in multiple regionals since, including a 3rd place finish at the Kublacon regional.
He is a member of the Sactown Mafia, and long time Lannister loyalist.