The time is not yet come for Dorne to openly defy the Iron Throne, so we must needs return Myrcella to her mother, but I will not be accompanying her. That task will be yours, Nymeria. The Lannisters will not like it, no more than they liked it when I sent them Oberyn, but they dare not refuse. We need a voice in council, an ear at court. Be careful, though. King’s Landing is a pit of snakes.

Our staff has put together a first blush analysis of the newly released “Pit of Snakes” chapter pack. Answers to frequently asked rules questions can be found on the individual card pages on thronesdb.com. Cards are listed in number order and scored on a scale ranging from one through five, with five being the best possible score.

Let us know in the comments how you feel about the cards in this pack!

Eddard Stark (2.6 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

At 7 gold, Eddard feels too expensive for attrition (he’s better than King Joffrey but that’s a low bar). Fast Eddie is better in most other decks, if you even want an Eddard at all. Maybe there’s a mid-range deck that values the flexibility to either win a challenge with renown or murder an opponent’s character depending on the situation.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

Not particularly impressed by this guy. He’s like a worse Ilyn Payne — with a military icon instead of an intrigue icon and fires in the dominance phase rather than the marshalling. So if you keep this guy standing until the dominance phase, you’ve done no challenges with him, accrued no power, and you get to kill a 4 cost or lower character. Oh, and you can’t have any neutral characters out either. Which 4 cost character is causing you that much trouble to go through that many hoops? Yeah I get that Stark has stand, but this guy is too expensive to be worth the inclusion. Truth be told, ‘Execution Eddy’ is too slow and often you just want the (equal) beef and rapid power gain of Fast Eddy for 1 less gold.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

Solid stats for sure, though no better than Fast Eddy in that regard. The requirement of all Stark characters isn’t tough at all, Alysane and Gates already provide incentive for Stark. There are plenty of good if not top tier targets for Eddard to hit, and the dominance action provides good options for an aggro deck. Without stand you lose a lot to be able to trigger this action, but Stark have plenty of options for this so you should be able to get a challenge through together with the renown. However, aggro decks may struggle to afford Eddard and maintain board pressure, and I’m not sure that he does enough over Fast Eddy in any other Stark deck.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

Eddard’s ability seems scary, and probably will be scary when your opponent marshals him. Unfortunately, he’s expensive, and he requires commitment of further resources to standing him again if that beefy body is to be used in challenges. That said, playing Ward to then get military claim, into Bolton Flayer and then Eddard, followed by Marched to the Wall or Ramsey sounds delicious, even if that scenario has a whiff of ‘when the stars align’ about it. He could possibly improve with the upcoming spoiled Tower of the Hand from CP4 though.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons (down one Istaril and worse for it) – 2 out of 5

We tried to give Eddard the benefit of the doubt, but the more we look at him the more disappointed we are. Ilyn is a rough comparison here, as while he can’t kill as expensive a character, he does so earlier in the round, without a limit on the effect, with no extra stipulations, and for one gold less. And this is competing with other Eddards to boot. Stark does have the stand to use for both beatstick purposes and the dominance trigger, but we’d rather use the stand on the good Eddard instead.



Malleon’s Tome (2.1 Average)

scantrell24 – 2.5 out of 5

You’re not getting value unless Malleon’s Tome is attached to Eddarrd, so Qohor seems like the only logical home for it. Core Eddard with this could actually participate in five challenges in a single phase (attack intrigue, stand, attack either power or military, then stand during each defending challenge). The hand knowledge is potentially valuable in deciding whether to use No Surprises or not, when to trigger Winterfell, etc., but you have to win the intrigue first. The ability is super Nedly from top to bottom, so props for that.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

A bonus point for the interesting text and Nedliness, but honestly this won’t see play in a faction jam-packed with utterly amazing and efficient cards. It might get a look-in for Conclave decks.

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

I like that Maesters get a bit of support here, and this goes nicely on Eddy the Executioner, allowing a challenge and his dominance action. However, it also goes nicely on either of the other Eddards (OK, Fast Eddy is the only one that really sees play). In terms of putting it on a Maester, you’d want that Maester to have a decent keyword and multiple icons – only really achievable with Gulltown – so the stand provides little for you there. Hand information is decent for sure, but with this generally only having one good character to hold, I can’t see it making play except maybe in Qohor.

hagarrr – 2 out of 5

This is only decent on Eddard or on a good maester. So, only Eddard then. That’s very narrow in scope for a 2 cost attachment unless you are running Trading with Qohor. This is a shame as it’s quite interesting; hand knowledge combined with stand and an intrigue icon is certainly worthwhile on Eddard, particularly an Eddard that you’d like to stand for the dominance phase. Sadly though, I think it’ll be too niche to see any competitive play.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

The hand information is nice and all, but ultimately we’re viewing this as “love child of Seal of the Hand and Little Bird with whipped cream on top but for only a select few characters”. Which is…fine, but niche. We also suspect this pack’s Eddard was deliberately made overcosted with the idea of this balancing him – FFG do know there are other Eddards to run instead, right?



Maester Gormon (3.0 Average)

scantrell24 – 3.5 out of 5

Gormon feels like a 3x or you don’t run him. He needs the full suite of complementary abilities — Oldtown, Hightower Spy, Mark Mullenmore, Mace Tyrell (SAT), maybe Bear and the Maiden Fair. It’s nice to know at least one of the cards that you’re going to draw before selecting your next plot. The “draw” of marshalling from the top of your deck works for locations (Roseroad, Flea Bottom, Hollow Hill to name a few) and attachments (Milk, Bodyguard, Knighted) as well as characters, so in a Tyrell False Banner X or even Tyrell without a Banner it could be good pretty often.

Hybrid92 – 2.5 out of 5

A nice card for Conclave or Banner Rose decks. If Conclave ever gets there, competitively speaking, I daresay he’ll be an important piece. He’s probably a little overcosted but, to be honest, it’s also lovely to have a maester that doesn’t immediately get wrecked by First Snow.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

Another great option for a Maester deck, allowing the option for you to move events with Conclave and then play them, and providing useful information for the Hightower Spy. Alternatively, he could play well with Oldtown, though I think you have better options in a main Tyrell deck given you will have fewer options to marshall or play the revealed cards. What I really like is that unlike most other Maesters, Gormon doesn’t kneel for his ability, so you get to do a challenge as well. Unfortunately the high cost together with the weakness of Conclave as an agenda in general means he still sees little play except as a banner card.

hagarrr – 2 out of 5

This decrepit old codger seems perfect for The Conclave, although why the sudden Conclave support has appeared I’m not too sure. The ability to see the top of your deck is interesting I guess, and using Conclave to put a particular event on top of your deck and play it immediately also seems okay. With Tyrell’s deck manipulation cards, Gorm could be quite a flexible tool in your arsenal, even though his stats are unnecessarily subpar. I rate him as a 2 because even though he’s interesting, the deck he goes in will still be rubbish.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

Assuming you build your deck in a way where you will consistently see non-Tyrell cards on top of your deck, he’s pretty much “draw one a round”, which is great. Failing that he’s at least “look at the top card of your deck so you know what’s coming and can plan ahead”, which is fine, but not enough to justify the weak body. What pushes him up for us are the synergies on display with the likes of Oldtown and Hightower Spy, as well as a bevy of banner options – Wily Smuggler and Gormon are good friends, for instance.



Unexpected Guile (2.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

Unexpected Guile is similar to Clever Feint, but the timing is more difficult because the character has to participate in a challenge to return to shadows. Also it’s loyal, so you’re stuck with Tyrells, neutrals, or non-loyals. On the other hand, Unexpected Guile is itself a shadows card, so it can be setup, and it goes back to shadows too for repeated triggers of Oldtown Undercity.

Hybrid92 – 3 out of 5

I like it. It’s a surprise +2 STR with insight and a nifty ability that sends itself and the character it is attached to back to shadows. I think it will see play in Shadows decks that need cards coming in and out of shadows for repeated triggers.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

I like this. At first its a potential strength pump to win a challenge. Then it becomes a card guaranteeing additional shadows triggers, whether it be Ser Robert Strong or (Icon) Stripper Arianne. Yes, the original investment of 3 gold is high compared to Clever Feint, but the reusability gives this so much potential, and it’s only 1 gold a pop thereafter. Insight is a nice kicker too.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

This card is interesting, being a pseudo 3 cost Clever Feint with shadows trigger kicker, with potential to win a challenge unexpectedly and drawing a card too. This will be nice with Oldtown Undercity, and non-loyal shadows cards like Ser Robert Strong and Ser Mandon Moore appear to be good with this. I expect this to get more popular when the Kingdom of Shadows agenda arrives with its wider pool of characters to use it on, but until then, you’d probably rather banner Lion and just use Clever Feint, right? It’s important to note that this triggers after the challenge ends (after keywords) and not at the reactions stage; so no cheap repeat use of Mandon or Bobby Strong with QoT or Starfall Spies sadly.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

In mono-Tyrell, your options for what to recur with this are limited – basically Shrewd Diplomat, Old Bill Bone and (at a push) Shadows Varys. In banner decks, or when we get Kingdom of Shadows, the utility increases, but until then we’re looking at this as “pay 2 gold to gain 2 cards” (by putting on a shadow (1) character each round with Oldtown Undercity out). Now that’s a good deal; but Tyrell already has quite plentiful draw, and it’s just a bit fiddly to set up the engine, so for now we’ll pass but with an eye on future releases.



Maester Mullin (4.0 Average)

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

Mullin spits in Drogon’s face and lives to laugh about it. For a measly two gold, this effect fits like a black moleskin glove in Night’s Watch defense. It’s not quite as strong as Mole Town Brothel which disallows the character from attacking completely, but Maester Mullin comes with a body, can be setup, and can repeat every round. He’s even a unique Maester, giving Night’s Watch another option for Here to Serve and Outwit.

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

A great little chud that can totally shut down important characters in particular challenges (eg Cersei for intrigue, Drogon for military, etc). He’ll see play, especially in defence decks and Conclave decks.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

So, Maester Myles removes a single icon, from a very limited set of targets for most of the game. Mullin looks at Myles with disdain (as most of us do to be fair) by being able to target any character, and get around icon granting tricks such as Off to Gulltown. In a 2 coster, this is a great ability, with the flexibility of 2 icons on top. A good Maester character, we only need about 10 more for Conclave to be a thing!

hagarrr – 4 out of 5

Maester Mullin looks like he doesn’t give a shit for your Drogon or your Ser Gregor, and so he shouldn’t. He can single-handedly shut down a very important trigger, and renders your monocons useless in the challenge phase (unless you play Direwolves of course!). He’s super useful against the ‘win by 5’ agendas, and if your opponent doesn’t have anything worth stopping, he can even attack with a choice of two challenges. All this for 2 gold. Bargain. Also, #lolConclave.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

We like this quite a lot, weirdly for attrition more than defence as the effect will do its best work on smaller boards. You can potentially keep an entire challenge type shut off with this effect, and at the very least it’s great for annoying monocons, non-kneelers and/or characters that trigger off winning a specific challenge type. Couple this with the prevalence of agendas that push one challenge type over another like Sea of Blood and The Prince that was Promised, and Mullin is very well placed in the current meta. A fantastic negotiation card in Melee, too. The fragile body and kneel requirement keep him off of a 5.

Guard Duty (2.3 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

Shame it’s not a Weapon. The new beefstick Protectors of the Realm can’t take it, but Jon Snow voltron decks might want a copy or two. Otherwise I don’t see the use unless you Swear a Non-NW character to the Watch and assign them Guard Duty, or put it on a stolen character in a New Wall deck.

Hybrid92 – 1.5 out of 5

It’s like Castle Black except not as good. It gives up the +2 STR boost for the ability to trigger the stand repeatedly. Also not having the Weapon trait means half the bloody Watch can’t equip it.

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

Given most decent targets for this are “no attachments except weapon”, this is for voltron decks, or for janky Sworn to the Watch decks. Whilst I have nothing against these, I’m not sold on this seeing that much play overall.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

Guard Duty looks good to me- a 1 cost attachment that lets a character participate in two challenges on defence each round is very efficient. That does peg the card into a niche though; defence deck, character with two icons and worth standing, and character without the ‘no attachment except Weapon’ keyword. Clearly suited for a Voltron, and this combined with Lord Commander will be a pain in the arse. But I’ve not seen many defence decks lately, and certainly not with expensive characters…

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

Great in a vacuum. The problem is that it only goes on NW characters and a lot of them have the text No Attachments except Weapon. Go through the list of NW characters and check – in the Venn Diagram of “Characters you want to put Guard Duty on” and “Characters who can actually have Guard Duty attached to them”, Lord Commander Jon Snow is just about the ONLY choice. For people who are meant to be the shield guarding the realm of men, they sure are slack about doing their Guard Duty. Now that said, this is a card we’ll keep an eye on for the future as it can only get better as more targets are released.



Ser Eldon Estermont (3.1 Average)

scantrell24 – 3.5 out of 5

Estermont fits in the Bara Shadows deck with Black Cells and the upcoming Blackwater Rush. He can also stand Northern Encampment, for what that’s worth, but that’s about it, so he really only fits in the shadows deck where he’s a reasonable 1x.

Hybrid92 – 3 out of 5

He will be very good, and rightfully played, in a shadows deck that wants to get multiple uses out of Black Cells. Other than that though, there’s no real place for Eldon in more standard Bara decks given the numerous 4- and 5-cost characters in Bara that are simply better than him.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

So, looking at the list of Baratheon locations that kneel for effects, we have 2 clear directions; Warships and Shadows. A Baratheon banner of the Dragon deck could live the dream of using Khorane twice per round – if you find all the pieces for this combo! He feels like a clear 1-of choice in some very specific decks, and not worth bothering in general good stuff decks.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

Despite the middling rating, I like Ser Eldon. His action is very good and has a range of uses for all types of decks. The Shadows deck is likely the most obvious, with Black Cells and Blackwater Rush (CP5) to stand, but there are other uses too. Getting another use from your economy isn’t trivial on some low gold turns, and standing The Stormlands before you win the second power challenge with Robert is nice too. If he was in a lower cost slot, I think he’d be more popular, but I don’t expect to see him as more than a 1x, given that there isn’t an obvious Bara theme that ever wants him 3x.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

Shame he’s not a reprint from 1.0, with Stormlands Fiefdom and the like that could’ve been delightfully silly. As for this version… well, he’s expensive, but if you have a single Dragonstone Port on the table then he’s basically a 4-for-4 bicon who gains you a gold every subsequent round. In the unlikely event you have a Northern Encampment, make that a 3-for-4 who gains you 2 gold every subsequent round. Of course, the real value is going to come from standing ‘spicier’ locations – most notably The Black Cells, although other options like The Stormlands or Black Betha also offer serious potential. Eldon can also synergise with Robert Baratheon (FotS), letting you keep everyone’s locations knelt then still standing a key one of your own. The question will be whether he’s good enough to earn a 1x slot over Baratheon’s copious amount of other efficient mid-coster characters – your Masseys, Seaworths, Pensrose and the like. Time will tell – although, for the third card already this pack, it’s also one to keep an eye on going forward.



Shadow of the Throne (4.6 Average)

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

All of a sudden Bara has access to formidable location control. The timing (any phase action) and targeting (able to kneel limited economy) are both surprisingly flexible. Between both players, the odds of having a Kingdom plot revealed are solid, so you might recur it more often than not. You could even trigger Shadow of the Throne in marshaling, recur it, put it back into shadows, and bring it out again.

Hybrid92 – 5 out of 5

Incredible card for Bara. To be quite honest, Bara needed this about four cycles ago when the main thing stopping kneel from being a force in the meta was the prevalence of stand effects that came from locations (eg. Plaza of Pride). Putting kneel decks aside now that they’re competitively dead, this card is a stellar card that boosts Bara goodstuff and Bara shadows. It allows Bara to completely dominate location-heavy decks such as Martell and Greyjoy, hopefully in conjunction with new Bob. This card is fairly easy to recur and is not overcosted (is the reign of terror of the Bara tax finally over?) Easily the best of the new “Shadow of the…” events. Amazing.

Von Wibble – 5 out of 5

It’s a choke card so I dislike it intensely. Kneeling out someones set of Great Halls or Kingsroads could be game winning, and I think running Ocean Roads is now a very bad idea. Gates of the Moon on the other hand just became a lot more popular. Alternatively, if you don’t mind your opponent having money, you can kneel out Plaza of Pride and Astapor together, or a Northern Armoury plus Last Hearth? And there is a chance to do this multiple times? Yuck. Well worth the 3 cost, and since pretty much every deck needs economy, the only deck it might be bad against would be a location light Tyrell deck, as their economy generally does fine even knelt. At least its loyal, so no White Tree shenanigans on top.

hagarrr – 5 out of 5

Wow. This card can help Baratheon out in its worst matchups, kneeling out Skagos, Northern Armory, and Plaza of Pride to name but a few. The utility isn’t limited either, with the option to kneel out economy locations aplenty, and the recurring trigger is an easier one to meet too. A City Besieged has risen in popularity due to its disruptive ability and the need to deal with opponents locations, and this really gives Baratheon a leg up in this respect. Coupled with box Bob, you can have the ability to keep a lot of the opponents’ board controlled, which will feel very oppressive. If Robert didn’t already do so, I believe Shadow of the Throne will force players to adapt their decks, economy locations specifically, to account for the existence of this card.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

We are naturally mournful and teary-eyed to see a “Shadow of X” card in this cycle that isn’t terrible – talk about breaking a theme! JC is eager to plug the Listener Questions episode that spoiled it, where the various uses of the card are extensively talked about in far greater detail than we could get into here…



Chiswyck (3.9 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

He’s good at a couple things but not great at anything, so Chyswick may struggle to find a home. In Lanni Pillage decks there’s already plenty of draw / filter with Gold Mine, Lannisport Guard, Dragon’s Tail, etc.

Hybrid92 – 4.5 out of 5

He’s functionally as good as Pycelle, and we all know how important Pycelle is to Lanni decks. Chiswyck will draw you a card, and then reduce your own deck size by 1, therefore thinning your deck (which is almost always advantageous to you). I think he’s a fantastic chud, and a nice move away from the traditional Lanni draw-but-not-really-draw filter effects.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

Whilst scantrell may have a point for pillage decks, in general decks Lannister are still behind on draw and Chyswick provides some. Pycelle is at minimum a 1 of in any Lannister deck I build because I need the cards, Chyswick has the added bonus of fueling Flea Bottom if that’s your restricted of choice – and in a non Wars non pillage deck it’s hard to think of a better one.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

Chiswyck is a more convoluted version of Grand Maester Pycelle, but Lannister are so desperate for card draw they’d probably run him. He’s clearly designed for the pillage deck, where he works well with the best Tywin, to essentially choose which of the two cards to draw, with the secondary application of seeding the discard pile too. He’s okay, but not exciting.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 5 out of 5

Chiswyck! Fresh horses! We don’t think this is a 5 by the standards of the overall game (he’d be a 4 there); but in a faction that still has to run Pycelle 1x in every deck, “basically the same as Pycelle but with a different icon spread” gets a 5 from us. While there are downsides (such as being cancellable), triggered draw is in most cases straight-up better than Insight since he can potentially draw you an effect you can immediately play. Yes you have to discard a card for your deck, but unless you’re playing against mill or recruitment that really isn’t a cost. If anything, seeding your discard pile can be useful for your own effects sometimes. Lastly it’s worth highlighting the interaction with 5g Tywin, who lets you look at the top two cards of your deck, discard one and draw one (and he has Pillage so you’re definitely including him in a deck with that Tywin).



“Hands of Gold” (2.6 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

I’ve run a decent Lanni Kraken deck recently with Raider + Pinch. “Hands of Gold” means that deck could revert to Crossing, Fealty, Rains or Wars instead of the Kraken Banner. It’s kinda win more though — if you have 2 gold to spare and can push through a 5+ intrigue, then you’ve probably got big Cersei rolling. Is this any better than Tears, which doesn’t see much play anymore?

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

It’s a strong effect that could catch your opponent off-guard in the right deck, but I don’t think that deck has room for any more events, especially not one constrained by the “win by 5” caveat and at 2-cost.

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

As a reaction to winning intrigue by 5 to place a character in your opponents hand, the obvious point of comparison is Pinch of Powder. Pinch costs more, but works on power challenges too. Pinch is also reusable, whilst Hands is not, unless you use the Maester at the Rock to help. There is also less tech in general to deal with shadows cards compared to events. I’d say Pinch edges this, and I’m not sure that decks in general have room for both.

hagarrr – 2 out of 5

A Lannister version of Put to the Sword, but with the intrigue ‘win by 5’ stipulation. The fact this returns to hand instead of killing the character is strictly worse against anything except Greyjoy or banner of the Kraken. This is slightly cheaper than A Pinch of Powder, but with less flexibility on the challenge type (and no shadows trigger), and it’s harder to activate than Tears of Lys, but with more available targets. I think a deck that runs “Hands of Gold” probably wants to double down on these pressures; most likely a classic Lannister hand-stripping deck that then likes to reset the board, so they can use this on the remaining threats. Y’know, those decks that don’t exist anymore.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

Somewhere in the Put to the Sword/Pinch of Powder realm. Now it isn’t repeatable like Pinch is, and it isn’t able to be reduced by Sea of Blood (and doesn’t kill) like Put is, but those cards remain consistently good removal for aggro decks. Lannister also like paying the cost in the challenge phase more than paying the bulk of it in the marshalling phase like Pinch requires. Plus of course there’s the oh-so-viable “Rains into your restricted Littlefinger’s Meddling to make it free” play. It’s not for every deck, but we think it’ll see play and be strong when it does.



King’s Landing Proselyte (3.6 Average)

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5

Old Grey Gull and DGF already give Drowned God decks the on-demand kill they need. I don’t see any compelling reason to add a shadows component.

Hybrid92 – 3.5 out of 5

Good value in Drowned God decks for the extra kill effect, but might also see play in traditional Greyjoy as it’s effectively a 2-for-4 intrigue icon. Killing an Acolyte of the Waves or Vince is not really much of a cost and would be worth it if you need the intrigue icon.

Von Wibble – 3.5 out of 5

It’s a cheap intrigue icon that provides redundancy in kill effects for Drowned God decks – though even when not playing Drowned God you may want to kill Vince with this just for the tempo gain.

hagarrr – 4 out of 5

I am excited for this card! Drowned God decks have moved toward the Sun banner after the introduction of Sea of Blood to the game, but with the latest FAQ and the release of the Proselyte, I believe the mono-faction alternative is viable once again. The Proselyte provides welcome redundancy for the kill effect, triggering a host of reactions and bringing some tempo, along with good STR and two icons too. The redundancy aspect is important now that the aggressive Valar Morghulis is riskier, since Vince has been added to the Restricted List along with Iron Mines. Also it’s nice to have another Drowned God character that doesn’t get absolutely wrecked by the First Snow of Winter.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 5 out of 5

A tremendous add for Drowned God, which remains one of the best decks in the game right now. The combination of seeding your dead pile, providing a pretty sizeable body by DG standards and importantly surviving The First Snow of Winter just offers so much to that deck, solving multiple problems it has near single-handedly. Now, outside of DG, it’s probably the worst of the “cheat from shadows” beefs we’ve seen so far, so like Chiswyck this 5 comes from context rather than raw power/efficiency.



Outfitted for War (1.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 2.5 out of 5

Try one or two if you’re building Greyjoy Sea of Blood or maybe Prince Balon (Core). Otherwise, don’t bother. There are just too many restrictions here — Warship only, kneel the Warship, military challenge only, Greyjoy character only, expires at the end of the challenge.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

0 cost for three strength is good, especially when you chuck it onto a warship that doesn’t traditionally kneel (eg Refurbished Hulk). But it only works on military challenges, and Greyjoy decks have so many good cards that they probably aren’t including this cute little positive attachment.

Von Wibble – 2.5 out of 5

We already know that there are plenty of Greyjoy warships that don’t kneel to provide their benefits, so the cost is not really that high except early game when using Big Vic. 0 cost for 3 strength meanwhile is perfectly respectable, allowing Strong But Silent Euron to become even more intimidating for example, and making win by 5 easier it that is needed. I can see the Greyjoy decks that switch out Iron Mines for Bodyguards liking this as it provides more attachments for redundancy and for Exchange. However, I can also see it narrowly missing the cut in many decks.

hagarrr – 1 out of 5

So, what Greyjoy decks are running Warships, are desperate for a +3 military strength on a Greyjoy character only, and have space for an unimpressive attachment like this? Don’t get me wrong, a free attachment that gives +3 in military isn’t bad, but I don’t even think Sea of Blood decks care much for this. There are just better cards to play in your 60 card deck. Choose one of them instead. You won’t regret it.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 1 out of 5

Outfitted for War but definitely not for seeing play – the only outfitting we’ll be doing with this is fitting it outside of a deck. Why run this when you could just run another boat? Greyjoy have so many great ones that we’ve even seen people cut Iron Fleet Scouts, and the Scout is this only works on all challenges and doesn’t require you to kneel out another boat to do it.



Jon Connington (3.6 Average)

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

Surprise renown is always good. Jon Connington gets even better with the upcoming Kingdom of Shadows agenda. For now, he brings either Aegon or Varys with him for a sudden board swing.

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

The obvious play here is with Aegon, which is appropriately Nedly, but I think there are also plenty of other great options for JonCon to bring out of shadows with him — like the new Varys as mentioned, or anything that you’ve chucked into shadows with the Assault agenda. He’s a beefy mil/int character with renown that can come out as a surprise. Great character.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

It’s almost like they intended him to be played with Aegon, who knew? He has a powerful effect, as there are plenty of good cards to cheat into play from shadows, such as Varys or Mandon Moore. Given he is not loyal, Jon plays well with both Assault and Kingdom of Shadows. Probably the best card Targ have been given in a while.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

Jon Connington provides renown and a huge burst of tempo, especially if you manage to have both him and Aegon in shadows simultaneously. This sounds wonderful and amazing, but I’m willing to bet that this happens less frequently than you’d like. The other in-faction options aren’t really that appealing, so the focus then shifts to Assault from the Shadows and the Kingdom of Shadows agenda. There are plenty more impactful plays to make, and they’ll certainly be fun. It’s a shame that he’s just a one trick pony for that 7 gold outlay, unlike say, Euron Crow’s Eye (KotI) who is in a similar spot on the curve, but has a stronger keyword, plus extra benefits and synergies throughout the game.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

Going through shadows rather than being marshalled has some pros (pay the cost in installments; explosive plays post-reset; can surprise unsuspecting opponents) and some cons (few effects for reducing the cost; No Surprises and Barring the Gates hose the strategy), so for the following analysis we’ll consider that pretty much a wash and focus on pure gold values. When people imagine cool plays with him, they’re mostly focusing on the other card they bring out (for instance, chaining him into Aegon into Daario), and overlooking the cost Jon adds to that versus just… y’know, playing Aegon. So to clarify, you’re paying 9 gold total (2 into shadows, 5 for shadow cost, 2 for the other card in shadows) to get him plus the other card. His value as a body once the trigger’s happened is maybe 4.5 gold- above the curve at 4 gold compared to the likes of Ranging Party; below it at 5 gold compared to the likes of Brienne of Tarth, The Bastard of Nightsong or The Knight of Flowers. So, for a good deal, you really need the shadow cost of the card he brings out to be 3 or higher. There are some options there that represent good value (Aegon Targaryen, Nighttime Marauders, Ser Mandon Moore, Shadow Priestess), and even some that represent great value (Moqorro, Varys). His value also increases if you have The Queen of Thorns or Starfall Spy. But do you see the problem there? The only in-faction target with good value is Aegon Targaryen. That mostly relegates him to Kingdom of Shadows decks (once they exist), because you aren’t going to include him if he’s only efficient to play when you draw one other specific card in your deck – with that cost, you need him to almost ALWAYS be good for you.



The Dragonpit (4.0 Average)

scantrell24 – 5 out of 5

Well, fuck. Targ Assault decks with Pyro Dany are completely disgusting now. Why does Tunnels change from its 1st edition blanket strength buff ability but Dragonpit is still burn?

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

It was completely oppressive in 1st Edition, straight up hosing decks it came up against. I don’t think it will be anywhere near as bad now with characters having much higher strength and burn effects decidedly weaker and more expensive in 2nd Edition, plus the wording change to this card (as Von Wibble points out).

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

Finally, some more burn for Targaryen! If I remember rightly, in 1st edition you had to have more shadows cards than your opponent to switch the Pit off, now you have to have more to switch it on. This is a very important distinction, as it means you can’t run Dragonpit in any deck that isn’t shadows heavy, making it a shame that this doesn’t have the shadows keyword itself (so that dupes can power it). This means that you won’t have room for all the burn tech together with out of faction shadows tech in general. I can’t see there being enough shadows in Targ for this to be effective in anything but Assault decks as a result. A caveat however, as the game goes on and shadows fades (no pun intended) from the meta, this gets stronger. Meaning, ironically, that opposing characters get weaker…

hagarrr – 4 out of 5

A pure Burn deck no longer appears to exist in the metagame currently, and if it does, it’s not exactly ripping up the game. The Dragonpit arrives at an interesting time for Targaryen, who had no real reason to run a dedicated shadows deck, until now. Those that fear Burn will immediately focus on the -2 STR on a Blood of the Dragon turn, and crazy turns with Pyro Dany. The Targaryen players though will be wondering how on earth they’ll be able to cram shadows cards and Burn cards into the same deck. The middle ground is of course Assault from the Shadows, which is fine, but it’s a shame The Dragonpit could be confined to a single build. In spite of this, I think this card is exciting to try and build around, and will hopefully bring Burn back into the competitive game.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

In an older version of the game, the Pit was a monster. Now though? The STR values in second edition tend to push higher. This isn’t a “flip Blood of the Dragon while it’s out and near-enough wipe the board” card, which its first edition equivalent was – it’s more “now slightly stronger characters can be threatened by the burn events you were already threatening your opponent with”. It’s also worth highlighting Targ’s current crop of shadows cards. Do they have enough to power the ‘pit without adding subpar cards like Brazen Beasts or Hired Assassin to push the numbers up? It’s frankly borderline. Of course, with Assault from the Shadows (or Kingdom of Shadows in a couple of packs) it becomes more reliable, and we still have 3 more packs of shadows cards to boost Targ’s numbers up, but for now we think this is just ok.



Arianne Martell (3.4 Average)

scantrell24 – 5 out of 5

Martell Assault decks can now bring a Dornish Spy out of shadows and bag two icons at once. Add on Desert Raider, Shadow City Bastard, Starfall, maybe even Doran Martell (SoD) or Shadow of the South and you have a lot of options that don’t have to be placed correctly in the marshaling phase like Imprisoned, Attainted and Condemned. Don’t forget about her stealth with the right strength and icons for Pinch of Powder too.

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

I was skeptical about Cersei’s cost, ease of trigger, and strength of effect. Turns out she’s fairly costed, pretty easy to trigger, and pretty damn good too. I put Arianne in the same kind of mould. Martell shadows is only getting better and, yes, while it will be sad to miss out on the other two versions of Arianne, this version should be pretty easy to trigger and will be quite strong too. A centrepiece for shadows deck both within Martell, and outside it under the Kingdom of Shadows.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

Clearly this is for shadows decks, and she looks a great choice for the forthcoming shadows agenda. In an Assault deck she is still good, and should comfortably get 2-3 triggers in the important rounds. Icon removal tends to go from being an annoyance to paralysing with just a few extra instances per round, and I can see this card being very powerful together with Nymeria and Starfall. However, you lose a lot by not having either of the other Ariannes in your deck.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

I’m not really sure how to evaluate this card. Every icon stripping deck I’ve had the misfortune to play against has spent the early turns setting up their economy base and then resetting the board in order to then take control. With that in mind, I don’t know how easy it is to squeeze in an expensive centrepiece character to that strategy. Assault appears to be the most natural agenda for her, with the ability to bring cheap shadows cards out and then trigger. She has stealth which is nice, but as I just prefer the playstyle of the other two, this one feels boring.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

Our rating would be higher if she wasn’t called Arianne Martell, but both the other Ariannes are so amazing for shadows decks that she would have to be seriously exceptional to win out. As it is, she’s expensive and the triggers are cumbersome. If you have all the gold in the world and can bring out the likes of Starfall Spy round after round, pulling icons left, right and centre, she’ll sing. But it’s a best-case scenario that relies on a control deck keeping a 6g character on the table in perpetuity. This is the same problem we had with Doran Martell back in the Sands of Dorne box review. We gave him a 2 out of 5 then, and I’d say we were vindicated – do a ThronesDB search for published decks that include Doran in and you’ll find only 3 of them did well in Joust tournaments in the entire time since he’s been released. These big control characters are just never as scary as they look.



Pit of Snakes (2,2 Average)

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5

Pit of Snakes feels overcosted by 1. Stripping all icons and then getting a delayed kill isn’t worth that much, especially in a faction with so many fantastic events already.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

A delayed kill for a character who was already utterly useless this phase anyway if it had all its icons stripped away. Meh. Martell already has so many stellar events, this one feels a little underwhelming and overcosted in comparison. Though it may replace Poisoned Coin (which was surprisingly seeing play – at least in my local meta) in Martell shadows decks now that new Arianne is out.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

(Icon) Stripper Arianne is providing a big boost to Martell icon removal, which already could consistently stop even tricons from being in challenges, so the requirement of no icons means little – the card simply needs you to do what you were attempting to do anyway. After that its a Tears of Lys that costs 1 more but requires no win in intrigue. That seems decent to me. In less shadows focused decks you probably stick with Tears though.

hagarrr – 2 out of 5

Whilst the triggering condition for this event is relatively easy, the cost is quite high, especially when factoring in the amount of resources you need to commit to reducing a character to zero icons. Why use combinations of Starfall, Arianne, Nymeria, Dornish Spy, Shadow of the South, Attainted, Condemned etc., when you could just combine one of them with Tears of Lys?

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

Removal in an icon-stripping deck is generally used in order to reduce the number of cards you need to take icons from. Removing them after you’ve already taken their icons pretty much misses the point. As Drakey, a master icon manipulator going back to the first edition of the game, puts it: “The whole “gist” of icon manipulation is to create temporal advantages via manipulation, then keep boards even through multiple resets so that every turn your temporal advantages lead to a stronger position. Removal only fits there as a “problem remover” and there Tears of Lys is just plain better than this.” That said, icon-removal aficionados who are saddened by our successive 2 out of 5 ratings here, do not despair, this pack still gave you a great card – Banner Watch for Maester Mullin, anyone?



The Most Devout (2.5 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

Passive power should not be treated lightly. I like the idea of pairing this with First Snow or other return to hand effects. Maybe Bara Faith with the new Davos becomes a thing, while Stormlands Fiefdoms can move the accrued power to your faction card.

Hybrid92 – 2.5 out of 5

Expensive but a potentially powerful ability against factions that like to flood. It’ll probably see play as a 1x in Faith Militant but not outside that.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

Faith decks tend to be quite slow, so having an option like this to put a clock on the game seems decent. They make your opponent have to make more decisions and therefore potentially more mistakes, which is always a good thing. However, they are costly and merely average in challenges for the price.

hagarrr – 1 out of 5

Woah it’s disco time! That’s literally the best thing about The Most Devout. Having a passive power module is great, if you have a way to trigger it, which you don’t. Other The Seven characters like The High Sparrow and Devout Freerider limit the income gain of the opponent, making The Most Devout less likely to gain powers. So the point of this card is to put limitations on the opponent, and punish those decks that want to flood the board. There are indirect ways to encourage this so that you can gain the power, but I just don’t think it’s worth the cost or effort.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

Would’ve been nice to see “limit once per player per phase” to make it a more fun Melee card (although with Duel everywhere it would’ve probably just made it more of a target). Its value is a stall/clock card obviously, and while it could potentially get more or less we can pretty much approximate this as “gain 1 power a round” on average. Compared to its contemporaries in the clock department like Robar Royce, Oldtown, Mace Tyrell, The Iron Throne and The Wall, it’s either too slow, too expensive, or both, and when you throw in the fact that your opponent can deny you the power should they so choose, it looks quite bad – all that said it will still probably go 1x in those decks simply because there’s a lack of depth to pull from.



Statue of Baelor (2.2 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

1x in Faith Militant sounds about right. We’ve already seen plenty of character stand in the game, so the location stand is potentially more interesting, but the location has to have power first, and none of the locations that gain power care about standing, so then you’re looking at “Cask of Ale” to move power first as part of a three card combo and that’s asking too much.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

The factions that can trigger this regularly already have enough stand effects of their own, while the factions that want the stand will probably not have much power on characters (if at all) or simply won’t have the gold or deck space to slot this kind of card in their deck. It’s a 1x in Faith Militant at best, and even then…

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

Hurrah, more stand! If the character you target has renown, and their presence in the challenge is the difference between winning and losing, then its a simple decision. It’s also decent for getting multiple uses out of a Lanni character with renown who you expect to be discarded at the end of challenges due to Hear me Roar or Lionstar. It feels like a location that we don’t have room to include though.

hagarrr – 2 out of 5

Will anybody play a stand location that costs 2 gold and a power token, with the restriction that the power token be present upon a character or location they care about standing? No, not unless you’re the poor sod playing The Faith Militant, despite howls of derision from your friends. If you are playing the Faith Militant, it’s actually a good idea to spend that power you stole from your opponent, if you can then use that character to initiate/defend more challenges and derive a further gain from it. That’ll be interesting at least, until you still lose the game anyway.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

That this costs 2 gold and a card as the buy-in price makes us sad. The notion of discarding a power for a stand is an interesting one that will sometimes be worth it and sometimes not, but the expensive offset reduces its value a lot. It basically relegates it to “1x consideration in decks with loads of power on characters AND a need for tempo”, which is… niche, to say the least. The location bit is curious, too – with exactly zero locations in the entire cardpool that both get power on them and kneel for their effect, what exactly is it for?



The Faith’s Decree (4.0 Average)

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

It counters whatever you need to counter most — a single card of any type — making Faith’s Decree almost like a combination of Nightmares, Treachery and Hand’s Judgment. Together with the new non-kneeling plot this could make Faith Militant decks worth a look again.

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

It’ll only see play in Faith Militant decks, but what a boost this card is for that deck. Really strong. This rating I’ve given for this deck is for when it’s in that specific deck though, and most definitely won’t see play elsewhere.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

It’s only worth including in a Faith deck, but it is strong in that deck, acting in a similar matter to a 0 cost Nightmares – less good against passive effects like the Arbor, but it works on attachments.

hagarrr – 4 out of 5

Okay, I quite like this, maybe I was a bit harsh on the Faith Militant earlier. The capability to just block any triggered effect for a phase is akin to Nightmares, and we all know how good that is. The restriction of having a The Seven character obviously limits the decks it’ll go in, which is partially offset by the low cost of the event. Thumbs up.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

Truly outstanding in Melee, where you can shut off all Superior Claims at once (or whatever else is required). Not a bad card for Faith Militant in Joust (or potentially HRD Starry Sept, Fat Cat decks, etc.), but still a tough include because of concerns with slots. But yeah, melee, good there.



Manning the City Walls (1.9 Average)

scantrell24 – 2.5 out of 5

A slightly better version of a plot that never saw much play (more gold than Reinforcements but the character has to come from hand, not discard). Maybe Martell likes it for Starfall Cavalry and Host of the Boneyway, or maybe there are House Florent Knight shenanigans to be had, but I don’t see many tempting non-uniques at the top of the cost curve.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

It’s obviously meant for you to throw out a beefy and expensive non-unique character but not many decks are running such characters these days. I can’t remember the last time I saw a 6-cost non-unique character in play. Maybe Martell likes it for Starfall Cav or Host of the Boneway, or Stark direwolves for the Roaming Wolfpack, but that’s about it. Also the idea of the City Watch recruiting a literal pack of wolves to guard the city walls is hilarious.

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

Is this a young Maester Mullin I see on the art? One without his beard?

You are only putting this in your plot deck if you are running other city plots (OK, OK, it’s very likely you have Gates at least), and if you are running enough non unique characters costing 5 or more. In that specific deck, it’s a good plot. I’m struggling to think of decks running that many non unique characters though – chances are you are better off with an econ plot that isn’t as reliant on specific cards in hand. The “put into play” also works badly if your opponent resets the board and wins initiative, for example playing Valar Morgulis and having Silence out.

hagarrr – 1 out of 5

What a rubbish plot. I would rather play almost any other plot over this, as although they have their downsides, I’m less restricted to how I take advantage of the economy. I also cannot recall many decks that like to run a significant number of non-unique characters, especially those with printed cost 6 or similar. If you’ve already played At the Gates, then you probably aren’t desperate for the economy anyway. The only play I think I like is gaining explosive tempo, as a turn 2 plot in Knight of the Hollow Hill decks perhaps, and throwing 13 gold worth of characters onto the board to negate the loss of tempo from setup and round 1. Even then I think this is crap. Sorry.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

Why call it Manning the City Walls if you’re not going to make it an Army card? Nostalgia only works when the card is evocative of the old one, and using this for Starfall Cavalry round four is hardly on a par with dropping The Viper’s Bannermen in round one. As for whether it’s good? For the best case scenario, let’s assume you’re running enough 5 or 6 gold non-unique characters that you can reliably use this plot effectively at the exact time you want to do so – something that doesn’t really exist in the wider, so you’re basically building this deck specifically to leverage this plot. At that point it’s… a blank 9 or 10 gold plot, that you had to build your deck around leveraging and can’t open with. Solution to your economy woes, this ain’t. We’re still not enjoying the City design on the whole, either – it might as well leave out the 3 gold bit altogether and just say “you cannot play this if you don’t have At the Gates in your used pile”. Bleh.





Total Pack Average: 3.01

Top Cards:

Shadow of the Throne (4.6)

Maester Mullin (4.0)

The Dragonpit (4.0)

The Faith’s Decree (4.0)

Bottom Cards:

Outfitted for War (1.8)

Manning the City Walls (1.9)

Malleon’s Tome (2.1)

If you’re hungry more content, check out the library of podcasts, articles, game video and more in the Community FAQ. Let us know in the comments how you feel about the cards in this box, and we’ll see you again soon to discuss the “Beneath the Red Keep” chapter pack!