She appeared suddenly upon a dune, mounted on a golden sand steed with a mane like fine white silk. Even ahorse, the Lady Nym looked graceful, dressed all in shimmering lilac robes and a great silk cape of cream and copper that lifted at every gust of wind, and made her look as if she might take flight. Nymeria Sand was five-and-twenty, and slender as a willow.

–George R.R. Martin, A Feast for Crows

Robert Baratheon has traveled north along the kingsroad to Winterfell, in hopes of convincing his old friend Eddard Stark to return with him to King’s Landing. Even as the king’s party feasts and hunts at Winterfell, the first seeds of tension are laid between the Great Houses of Stark and Lannister—seeds that may grow to engulf Westeros in open war. Choose your side now and pick your alliances: The Road to Winterfell is now available at your local retailer and online through our webstore!

Continue the saga of A Song of Ice and Fire with the second Chapter Pack of the Westeros cycle! Like the other expansions in this cycle for A Game of Thrones: The Card Game, The Road to Winterfell broadly follows the events of A Game of Thrones, the first book in George R.R. Martin’s epic narrative. Here, you’ll find recognizable new characters and locations for every faction, including Winterfell Castle, Syrio Forel, and Rakharo. Together with three new plots—one loyal to House Lannister and two neutral—The Road to Winterfell expands your options for any deck.

Snakes in the Sand

As the king travels through summer snows to the stronghold of House Stark, other Houses lay their own schemes and plot revenge for past wrongs. With The Road to Winterfell, you can create a weakness in your opponent’s defenses and catch them unawares with Nymeria Sand (The Road to Winterfell, 35). Nymeria Sand has long resented the death of her aunt, Elia, at the hands of the Lannister conquerers during Robert’s Rebellion. Now, you can take advantage of her powerful abilities and her thirst for vengeance to tip the balance of challenges in your favor.

The Lady Nym may seem unimpressive at a cursory glance. Although she has a respectable four STR, she has no challenge icons. Nymeria is known for keeping her knives well-hidden, however, and her Challenges Action makes her well worth including in your deck. As an Action, Nymeria can choose any opponent’s character and force that character to lose a challenge icon of your choice. What’s more, all of your Sand Snake characters gain that challenge icon until the end of the phase!

The possible applications for Nymeria’s ability are nearly limitless. You may remove a character’s intrigue icon to open the door for a well-placed Tears of Lys (Core Set, 44). If you’re facing House Stark, you may remove a character’s military icon after your opponent has equipped that character with Ice (Core Set, 153). You may even bring Nymeria Sand and the aid of House Martell to support another House. For instance, House Greyjoy prefers to make unopposed challenges, but can be easily stymied by a character with stealth, such as Tyrion Lannister (Core Set, 89). With Nymeria Sand, you could remove one of Tyrion’s challenge icons, leaving the way open for Greyjoy raiders to swoop in and crush the Lannisters.

For now, Nymeria Sand works against the enemies of House Martell without the strength of her uncle’s armies behind her—Doran Martell is unwilling to call his banners and bring open war to Dorne. If he ever does declare war, however, you can be sure that his vassal lords would answer with their full strength. You can make that idea become a reality with In Doran's Name (The Road to Winterfell, 36).

In Doran’s Name is free to play, and it allows you to kneel your faction card in order to immediately gain gold equal to the number of plots in your used pile. At its most potent, In Doran’s Name can give you five gold—enough to play Nymeria Sand or Arianne Martell (Core Set, 104) immediately. There are even more insidious ways to play In Doran’s Name than to set up an explosive turn, however. You may keep it safely in hand, allowing your opponent to believe you have no way to play events, then suddenly play it and gain the gold required for a game-changing event like Tears of Lys or Put to the Sword (Core Set, 41). No matter how you use it, you can be sure that In Doran’s Name opens the gates for endless trickery, and it only becomes more powerful as you play the long game.

No Use for Grief

You may ride across the dunes of Dorne, plotting your vengeance for crimes from years past. You may journey south with Robert Baratheon to take your place as the Hand in King’s Landing. You may collect the gold of Casterly Rock and use it to wage war against your foes. No matter which side you choose, the cards in The Road to Winterfell are a pathway that invites you into the world of A Song of Ice and Fire.

Pick up your copy of The Road to Winterfell at your local retailer today!