Drogon raised his head, blood dripping from his teeth. The hero leapt onto his back and drove the iron spearpoint down at the base of the dragon’s long scaled neck.

Dany and Drogon screamed as one.

The hero leaned into his spear, using his weight to twist the point in deeper. Drogon arched upward with a hiss of pain. His tail lashed sideways. She watched his head crane around at the end of that long serpentine neck, saw his black wings unfold. The dragonslayer lost his footing and went tumbling to the sand. He was trying to struggle back to his feet when the dragon’s teeth closed hard around his forearm. “No” was all the man had time to shout. Drogon wrenched his arm from his shoulder and tossed it aside as a dog might toss a rodent in a rat pit.

Our staff has put together a first blush analysis of the newly released “In Daznak’s Pit” 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!

Bear Island Scout (3.8 Average)



scantrell24 – 3.5 out of 5

These guys are relatively efficient little chuds, but worse than Tumblestone Knights on setup. Also, one strength is lackluster for Crossing decks during that first challenge. Dacey is the only Mormont character worth grabbing (besides another Scout, and that trick only works twice). Wyman completely replaced Maege in the meta, and I don’t think this Scout is enough to bring her back.

Von Wibble – 3.5 out of 5

I’m between 3.5 and 4 to be honest. This is a chud that grabs you another copy of itself or Dacey, meaning you can very easily have 2 uses of Breaking Ties in a turn even if Summer or Flea Bottom haven’t appeared. Aside from that its a solid enough body that can hold things like Ice and direwolves. It’s a shame that Bear Island isn’t House Mormont, you could have a deck going there. The other thing going against it is that you can’t really be including popular neutral characters like Littlefinger in your deck, but these are much rarer in Stark anyway these days.

OKTarg – 4 out of 5

This is a good card! Even better if the new “Restricted Post-It” (not really much of a lengthy list, get it?) hadn’t been designed as it was. You can get this card itself, getting it out of your deck and into your hand at a minimum. Or, you can get Dacey or some as-yet-unknown Mormont character. That seems just pretty nice to me. If you want to run Breaking Ties and not Flea Bottom/Summer as your restricted, this one works pretty well in that.

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

I really like this card. A 2-cost bicon chud with a semi-relevant trait is nothing special on its own, but the text here is the kicker. Being able to search your deck for Maege, Dacey or more Bear Island Scouts upon marshalling one is very handy. Even if the board is too small for Dacey or you can’t afford Maege, searching for more Bear Island Scouts to flood out characters when you need to replenish your board is extremely useful. The loyalty for Breaking Ties is just gravy. And these Scouts work as great sacrifice fodder for Wyman too.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

Chaining them with Passing the Black Gate is pretty damn good. Beyond that, Dacey is one of Stark’s better characters and a specific tutor for her is good. But if you already see her, the payoff is lacking somewhat, and with the new restricted list being a loyal chud isn’t all it was cracked up to be.

hagarrr – 3.5 out of 5

The Scout looks more suited to the swamps of Moat Cailin than Bear Island, but then I suppose there aren’t that many House Reed characters to find. So, House Mormont then, with some good targets like Dacey and Maege in the card pool, and some not so good ones like the bestow Army dudes that nobody has ever sleeved. If a Mormont deck ever becomes a thing this will be 3x without a doubt, and even if not, the fact that it’s loyal, cheap, and replaces itself in your hand is good.



Skagos (3.7 Average)

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

Skagos is a great utility card. It can clear negative attachments on your cards by “blinking” them ala Mace Tyrell. It can move your own negative attachments from one target to a more optimal one. For example, you can setup FroSo on your own location, then move it with Skagos to an opponent’s location. It can also swap version A of a card for version B. For example, change character Shaggydog into attachment Shaggydog after defenders are declared. And all of that is on top of satisfying the sacrifice trigger for Core Robb, Fat Cat, etc. Solid card for many Stark decks.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

Scantrell has already mentioned all of the applications I can think of, and there is nothing wrong with any of these – linked to moving FroSo, moving Ward could be a very strong play. Not sure it needs to be a shadows card really though…

OKTarg – 3 out of 5

I think I like this less than everyone else seems to….Ramsey is a cool idea, blinking off attachments seems okay, and …. Why don’t I just run Wyman? Redundancy is good and all, but I don’t know that the power is consistently high enough here. I guess for the low, low cost of two gold I can make you worry that I have Meera for a half a phase…

Hybrid92 – 3 out of 5

Surely its best use is not for attachment removal (though that is handy) but to press the advantage with tempo and that is best done with the Ward play. After you attack or defend with a Warded character, just sacrifice the Ward on the knelt character to bring a new Ward into play and Ward an opponent’s standing character. Another cute application for this card is sacrificing Core Cat for Fat Cat. I think this card will see some play and has good utility value, but it’s a step down in the power level of Stark cards of recent packs.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

An interesting card, allowing you to use sacrifice tech without costing tempo (past having to play Skagos in the first place), but requiring a specific deck construction. Letting you chain enters play effects (Summer springs to mind), change between different versions of a card (or even cardtype with the Direwolves), and make temporary characters brought in by Flea Bottom rather more permanent, are all good tricks. Shadows is pointless here but that’s kind of par for the course.

hagarrr – 4 out of 5

Skagos looks like great fun. Any Stark card with an effect upon entering play is fair game here, with the likes of Arya, Summer, Riverrun Minstrel, Ramsey Snow, Umber Loyalist etc. are all good targets for this. There are opportunities also to ‘upgrade’ your character from lower cost version to higher, or to swap out Direwolf characters for attachments and vice versa. They cherry on top is that the sacrifice triggers your Robb/Wyman for on demand board advantage, especially if you’ve Flea Bottom’d someone in. In the lore, it is rumoured that Rickon and Shaggydog spend time on Skagos, so it’s only fair that Rickon gets the banter ability to cancel this effect too!







Brightwater Host (1.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5

Brightwater Host is the type of card that’s either mediocre or game-winning, with no middle ground. Tier 1 decks want more consistency. This is also a 6 gold, non-unique, non-loyal character, with a situational ability; it basically checks every box you don’t want to check. If the meta becomes saturated with shadows cards, Brightwater Host could be a great Rookery card.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

This one is very specialised for now. If your opponent is placing lots of cards in shadows, and is unable to play them out, and you win a challenge with the Host (OK, that bit isn’t so hard), then you get 2 power out of the deal. You could alternatively just take a renown character, on average they probably trigger more times in a game and win you more challenges to begin with. When shadows becomes more common (I’m still keeping faith there) this improves, I’m adding 1 to the score to account for that.

OKTarg – 1 out of 5 / 4 out of 5

This card gets two ratings: one in a world where we see shadow cards, and one for the world we currently live in where we see cards with the shadow keyword but only marshalled into play 🙁

If the second cycle sees more decks looking to keep cards in shadows or bounce them in and out a bit more, this can be good (and 2 power is a hefty payoff!), but as of now I don’t think this sees play.

Hybrid92 – 1 out of 5

Don’t really see the hype for this card that many people are showing on Facebook. It is far too expensive for what is essentially a vanilla beatstick with a highly situational ability. If the opponent has a card or two in shadows and sees this character hit the table, he or she will probably get his cards out shadows sooner rather than later, and then you’re dealing with more characters or strong come-into-play abilities. If neither player has a card in shadows, this character has a blank text box. If you’re triggering this character with your own cards in shadows, then you’re basically spending 2 gold and a tempo loss in shadows for 2 power if, and only if, this character wins a challenge. There’s just too many things that weigh the Brightwater Host down and so the score reflects that. Where are my Blackcrown Knights instead of these clowns?

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

Amazing if your opponent is running shadows (although even then they can bring the card out of shadows before the trigger), OK if you’re running shadows but your opponent isn’t, and bad if neither of you are. How high you rate this depends on how much you think Shadows is a thing, ultimately.

hagarrr – 2 out of 5

Oh look, a big Tyrell body that can gain you 2 power every time they win a challenge. Grumble grumble. But wait, they cost 6? They’re non-unique? There must be a card in shadows? Brightwater Host must be participating too? Only on offense? And you put the power on a unique character instead of your faction card? Pass. It gets marked up a little because someone will inevitably tutor them up with Aegon Targaryen and annoy everyone.









The Might of the Reach (1.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5

I’d rather have Renly’s Ride in most cases. Might of the Reach needs a deck tailored specifically for it — something with big Brienne, Sea of Blood, and/or Frey Hospitality.

Von Wibble – 2.5 out of 5

In the decks this is good in its really good. Aside from win by X/count X strength triggers, Roose Bolton really likes this card, and on a character with printed intimidate this does a lot of work. The fact it is only in challenges prevents trickery with To the Rose Banner at least. The question in general is whether +10 strength is really needed when you can have any number of cheaper effects such as Lord Renly’s Ride or Growing Strong that will often win you just as many challenges. For specific decks only, but decent in those, hence the middling rating.

OKTarg – 2 out of 5

This card is fun. Maaaaybe not horrible in Sea of Blood. It will be fun until it becomes unfun in a Exodia Brienne 2.0 type monstrosity.

Hybrid92 – 1 out of 5

This card was custom designed for the 6-cost Brienne. For all your other strength pump uses, see: Growing Strong and Lord Renly’s Ride.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

Just barely not a 1, mostly for the amusement factor. There are usually cheaper, easier ways to make sure you win a challenge you need to, meaning this will mostly be relegated to combo fuel.

hagarrr – 1.5 out of 5

Another chapter pack, another crap Tyrell event. Those designers at FFG are doing great work. The only reason I would pay 3 gold for this effect is to go banner Wolf and boost Roose to murder the entire opponents board. But in a world where Begging Brother, Meera Reed, Vince, and Treachery will be heavily played to combat Drogon/Hizdahr/Aegon etc, I wouldn’t even bother.







Three-Finger Hobb (4.2 Average)





scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

Night’s Watch Dragon with Lord Commander Jon Snow, Hizdar, and Queensguard is going to become a thing, if it wasn’t already. Three-Finger Hobb does so much work in that deck. His card draw helps dig for combo pieces and fuel the Targ discard effects. I guess he’s pretty good in regular, boring decks too. Breaking Ties, etc, etc.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

The way he is worded the draw actually gets around the reserve cap for that turn, and as long as you play out 3-4 cards per turn he will keep on cooking for you. Obviously being a loyal 2 coster has its advantages too. Given he doesn’t kneel for his ability that intrigue icon might even do something as well. Solid card, and should see play.

OKTarg – 4 out of 5

The main thing I’m wondering is what Hobb is putting in that soup. I think it’s very likely….wait for it….A Pinch of Powder! #boom #NetflixSpecialUpcoming

But yeah a 2 cost loyal that draws reserve-free cards is sweet.

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

A great character for Night’s Watch. Cheap, loyal, with a welcome ability that, as previously mentioned, draws you cards after the reserve check in the taxation phase. Night’s Watch haven’t seen all that much efficient draw since the days of the Messenger Raven either. It should slot into most Night’s Watch decks.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 5 out of 5

Exceptionally good draw. Ire even wanted to go above 5! About the only negative we can throw at it is that there’s anti-synergy with Messenger Ravens.

hagarrr – 4 out of 5

Ahhhh look at Hobb, contentedly sprinkling your opponent’s salt into that homely looking stew for the lads. Get in. The thought of that lovely meal gives me the same warm satisfied feeling as this card does, because drawing cards is good, but drawing cards when you don’t have as many cards as you could have, is even better. His usefulness is balanced somewhat by the fact he is unique, so he’ll likely be just a 1x in NW decks; but that’s a 1x in most NW decks until he rotates out.







Hardhome (2.1 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

The obvious synergy is to Craven a character, then stealth by it or don’t attack so it’s still standing in dominance. Hardhome could also work in a Martell deck with icon control, dominance Nymeria, Archibald, etc., but I’m not sure if that’s enough to banner Watch. Maybe with Mutiny and Coldhands? Overall, Hardhome reminds me of a poor man’s Ghaston Grey.

Von Wibble – 2.5 out of 5

So, Bay of Seals to stand their best character once they kneel out their board? I can see a lot of possibilities with this card as it is a massive threat of activation – maybe you can use it in Baratheon banner watch and go for a dominance module. Kneel their chuds to give them a choice – have a big stood to win dominance, and lose that character to Hardhome, or lose dom and face all the triggers. This card needs building around though, it isn’t as strong as Mutiny for example.

OKTarg – 1 out of 5

This one probably makes you think that I don’t like the card. That’s actually not true–this card is hilarious. The problem is that it isn’t that good. I can see something New Wall-y with Bays of Seals and Cravens and what not and this in there too. You know, the sort of deck that makes people quit your Iron Throne games due to “my boss walked by” or whatever. Still, that deck isn’t amazing 🙂

Hybrid92 – 2.5 out of 5

I like it. The threat of activation is real, and there’s cute synergy with Bay of Seals. But you definitely have to include it in a specific deck, or build for it. That specific deck might also include King’s Landing.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 1 out of 5

Expensive, situational, and basically reads like a worse Mutiny at Craster’s Keep all-round. The combo with Bay of Seals is cute, at least?

hagarrr – 2.5 out of 5

Hardhome has a really cool effect which I like, but it seems quite tough to get the optimal plays. In an ideal world, you’ll pop it out of shadows in the dominance phase to trigger and discard a big dude. Against multi-stand Targaryen and Starks this may even happen. Ordinarily though, you may have to settle for no targets, or letting the opponent chose the best option for themselves amongst their standing characters. Not only that, paying 4 gold to do so is a lot. I don’t expect this to be meta-shaking, sadly, when Mutiny does a similar thing but so much easier.







Storm’s End Maester (X Average)





scantrell24 – 3.5 out of 5

Storm’s End Maester is worse than Hobb (who draws 2, doesn’t kneel, and has an easier trigger), presumably because he’s non-unique, but he’s still quite good. I like the “more power” theme for Bara and I hope it continues.

Von Wibble – 2.5 out of 5

It’s draw, but on a fragile body, and in a faction that isn’t lacking for it right now, with Blackwater Bay and Red Keep to help them out. The more important thing for Baratheon is probably the fact he is a cheap loyal character. I think this guy will usually be a case of paying 2 gold and a card for claim soak and a card. Not bad, but not great.

OKTarg – 3 out of 5

Bara needed some more flexible draw, but this is a tough cost/STR/icon slot for them to see it in. Still, draw is draw! I like that they have not forgotten that Conclave is an agenda, but this guy doesn’t seem like he’ll be the gas to make it go.

Hybrid92 – 2.5 out of 5

It’s a spooky coincidence that the moment Baratheon gets their first non-unique loyal chud, Breaking Ties is restricted. *X-Files theme music plays*

No but seriously, this card is effectively pay 2 for a card and a claim soak, and I’m OK with that. I wish he had another icon or 1 more STR but beggars can’t be choosers, and Baratheon players certainly are beggars right now.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

It’s not incredible as draw goes (see Hobb above), but it’s a solid character for Baratheon to have, and with Cressen being an important Maester the faction could run Here to Serve to actually make it somewhat reliable. We feel bad for the faction that they finally get a non-unique loyal chud for the Flea Bottom/Breaking Ties train and now they can’t exploit it.

hagarrr – 2.5 out of 5

NW get Three Finger Hobb and Baratheon get… a non-unique Cressen lookalike who conditionally draws you 1 card per round, and you kneel him to do so. In terms of regular draw, this is pretty crap. He literally exists to get marshalled, draw a card, and then die. Why doesn’t he synergise at all with Storm’s End?! Hmph. If its draw you want, you’re almost certainly sticking with Blackwater Bay or Red Keep.







Glamor (1.3 Average)

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5

Meh. Spears of the Merling King is already available to protect important characters, and Glamor doesn’t help against Valar Morghulis unless you already have it on a character that survived.

Von Wibble – 1.5 out of 5

I think this is overpriced, and this is partly because it tries to do too many things. A shadows strength pump is OK, a pseudo save is OK, and I like the look of this card on core Shireen Baratheon as it then effectively becomes a kneel of an opponent’s character to put in what should be a big character of yours, standing – that’s a big tempo swing. But is it going to happen often enough? If targeted kill becomes more of a thing then this improves in value, for now its a bit niche.

OKTarg – 1 out of 5

You guys, I have figured this out! Why do Baratheon cards cost more than their counterparts in other houses….you know, the so-called Bara tax? It’s because they owe the interest to the Iron Bank! But yeah this card is worse than Spears of the Merling King by a long way.

Hybrid92 – 1 out of 5

What the actual fuck is this card? 3 gold, 4 if it came out of shadows, is hugely expensive for an attachment. Must be a powerful and meta-defining card like Queensguard, right? Nah, just some more stinking trash shovelled down the throat of Baratheon players. It beggars belief that Queensguard and this card were designed in the same cycle and that both have the same cost — they may as well be from different games. The other reviewers spoke about the meagre applications for this attachment, an attachment that is just one in the long line of terrible Baratheon attachments (Ruby of R’hllor and Visited By Shadows, anyone?), so I don’t need to repeat them here. There’s too much happening on this card, and none of it is good. This will never leave the binder for decks that consider themselves even remotely good or competitive. The Bara tax continues. I’d rate this card a 0 if I could.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 1 out of 5

The flavour is top-drawer. The effect doesn’t even go in your bottom drawer, it gets left undusted on the side until someone donates it to a charity shop. Way too expensive for what it does.

hagarrr – 1 out of 5

I don’t particularly care for Baratheon or their permanently withering player-base, but even I realise when they’re getting a raw deal. Glamor is pretty bad, despite the effect being quite potent. When I see Targaryen with their discard mechanic, they have cards they WANT to discard like Second Sons, Freedmen, and Missandei, but which cards do Baratheon want to kill? Shireen? Davos maybe? If, in the next pack, Baratheon get a non-unique chud that gives [INSERT BRILLIANT EFFECT HERE] upon death, then this might be redeemable. But until then, BIN.







Painted Dogs (2.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

Lanni’s cycle so far is just shadows cards and economy until this random Clansman character. I had to re-read the current pool of Clansman effects because it’s been a while since they were even slightly relevant. Anyways, the ambush keyword synergizes nicely with Tyrion, and Timmit is a solid stand target, so Painted Dogs have a role in Clansmen decks. But I don’t see them pushing that deck into the tournament scene without more help.

Von Wibble – 3 out of 5

I like this card. It works really well with Harrenhal, and note that they can return to hand to stand themselves (so you don’t have to have other clansmen in play to use them). Whilst they are obviously good with Tyrion, it should be noted that there is some asynergy with clansman Tyrion’s ability. Generally you will want to stand Timmet or Chella with these guys. However I agree with scantrell, they are currently fitting into a less developed deck, and therefore lose a point for now.

OKTarg – 2 out of 5

This is sort of fine. It’s like Lannister cards cost more because their theme is income, but they don’t actually have better income than the other houses. It’s a C card even in a Clansman deck and man I can’t wait until the Lanni cards get a bit better. #FreePreston

Hybrid92 – 3 out of 5

A solid body for a deck that isn’t really there competitively (was it ever?), but I can’t so no to some clansmen love. The synergy with Harrenhal has already been mentioned, but this guy is just all around excellent for the clansmen deck. Good cost slot, good icons, ambush, and a nifty ability that could give you critical tempo advantage.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

Slots in a clansman deck, does clansman-y things. Doesn’t inspire you to return to that deck, bring you any particular pleasure to draw it, or slot in easily.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

The Painty Dawgs are a nice little pick-me-up for the Clansmen deck. Lovely to jump in with Ulf son of Umar on the board, and then return to hand to stand him again, and decent as you might expect with Harrenhal and Hear Me Roar, allowing extra challenges without losing cards. I’ll play these.







Walk of Atonement (1.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 2.5 out of 5

Walk of Atonement isn’t worth the cost & deck slot unless you discard 2-3 power. In that case, you just discarded 20% of your win condition. So, the card advantage better translate into board position because you have some ground to make up.

Also, does anyone else find it weird that FFG printed a support card for non-kneeling Cersei when a new shadows Cersei comes in the next pack? Why not support that one?

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

Aside from the obvious synergy with 7 cost Cersei, this can also be used if one of your characters has power but is clearly about to be removed, for example a chud with 3 power from Lady Sansa’s Rose, or an un-duped renown character just before a reset. I don’t think it warrants the deck space though, the final nail being the need to save 2 gold into Dominance, good as Lannister are at getting gold in challenges.

OKTarg – 2 out of 5

Extra point for the Banter. It’s nice to actually have a card advantage tool in Lannister rather than just more filter; it’s not nice to have yet another overcosted, inefficient tool.

Hybrid92 – 1.5 out of 5

This goes in the large pile of Lannister events that seem “cool” but ultimately don’t make the cut in competitive Lannister decks. I wanted to like it so badly, but even with 7-cost Cersei it’s just… meh.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 1 out of 5

Interesting card, shame they made it a 2 gold dominance action. As a 0 gold any phase action it would’ve actually been good.

hagarrr – 2 out of 5

Removing cards en-masse from the opponents hand is a pretty powerful effect which will hit hard. Paying an equivalent number in power tokens and a further 2 gold into the bargain feels like a step too far, and that’s not even mentioning that it’s a dominance action. That said, I can see the benefit of wiping the hand and filling your own by spending that power, particularly if you intend to reset the board….







Iron Victory’s Crew (3.4 Average)

scantrell24 – 3.5 out of 5

Now this makes more sense. Print new Victarion and support for new Victarion. Brilliant!

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

A solid and efficient card, the stats are easily worth 3 gold, and a 1 shot search for 2 gold is decent enough, especially given the option to make this a search for non limited economy or a 0 cost strength pump. They are good now, when the Greyjoy box comes out with hopefully even more warships I think they will be even better.

OKTarg – 3 out of 5

I agree with Q&TR below–the card is good, but fair, which makes it mediocre in this current busted world! It’s a very fun card though to get Victarion turning and keep him burning.

Hybrid92 – 3.5 out of 5

A very good card for the up-and-coming Warship decks, and some fantastic support for new Victarion (even old Victarion doesn’t mind having his Iron Victory out in play). This is a decent body with good traits that nets you +1 card advantage (more than that, it’s a search so it’s better than “draw 1 card when it comes into play”), and if you search for the Iron Victory you’re getting 2 cards and 7 gold worth for the price of one 5-cost card. I don’t think it’ll see too much play in generic Greyjoy decks, and certainly not Drowned God decks, but for the dedicated Warship, the Iron Victory’s Crew are legit. It’s pretty sad to see them on setup though.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

It says you can put Iron Victory into play for free, but we’re reading it as putting an Iron Fleet Scout into play for free instead. The tutor effect is good, but fairly costed – hence the middle rating.

hagarrr – 3.5 out of 5

Being able to tutor for Warships now that Warship Vic exists is pretty sweet. The cost to strength ratio is fine with this effect, and I like that it encourages the Warship and Voltron Vic build. It’s also nice for Greyjoy to have another reasonable target for TIBWHID (aside from Newly Made Lord of course!) for those extra tutor triggers, but a real galaxy brain will have noted that the Crew have an ‘enters play’ effect and an Ironborn trait, and might soon be best friends with Aeron Damphair too.







Refurbished Hulk (4.1 Average)

scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

Refurbished Hulk is on-par with Summer Sea Port — good, but not Stark, Lanni or Targ good. Any deck that wants the Warship trait or the initiative boost will run at least 2 copies.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

Unlike the other non limited economy, you are playing the Hulk for its traits really, as they help out big Vic and King Balon a lot. The pieces are starting to arrive for a warship deck it seems, I hope it will be a good one!

OKTarg – 4 out of 5

It’s good! The initiative is never bad (what about these in melee with Snowed Under, for example) and the trait is by far the most relevant of any of these. It seems like Bara got yet again the bottom of the barrel econ card!

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

I get the comparison with Summer Sea Port because both provide stat boosts and have no triggered effect, but in my opinion this card is better than the Summer Sea Port. Why? The Warship trait. An unassuming +1 gold +1 intiative location can help fuel the new Victarion and only the Drowned God knows what other warship shenanigans will be coming with the Greyjoy box.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

Unlike the other non-limiteds of the cycle, this one pretty much relies on the trait to justify its value. Luckily, Warships are “in” right now.

hagarrr – 4.5 out of 5

These might look similarly plain compared to the Martell iteration, but the Warship trait and initiative boost provides so much more utility. The extra boats are ways to stand Big Victarion, boost strength of loyal characters with King Balon, enable Raiding the Bay of Ice, and help with the Support of Harlaw, all whilst providing extra gold. The initiative will be important too, given that Greyjoy have plenty of tech that revolves around being the first player.







Drogon (5.0 Average)

scantrell24 – 5 out of 5

I find it ironic that Targaryen, a faction with a figurehead who is trying to overthrow the establishment, has been so good for so long. Like, dating back to first edition. The busted Targ cards just keep coming.

Von Wibble – 5 out of 5

Dracarys! on a stick is undoubtedly a very scary prospect, especially if you can get Drogo and Drogon out together and somehow stand Drogo. I hear Targ are good at that. That said, we are at this point talking about 12 gold worth of characters so chances are that you will only get to do this for a turn. Some decks will find Drogo very easy to deal with. He is a monocon, so Martell can stop him very easily, even if ambushed in. Even with that concern, he still fits into many Targ decks, and not just burn themed ones. In fact, given his cost doesn’t really fit the curve for a burn deck, I’d argue he is better in a more all rounder deck.

OKTarg – 5 out of 5

Yeah he’s good. The saving grace, perhaps, is that he doesn’t make Targ Crossing better (as currently constituted) and will therefore diversify the decks in the meta. I think he’s very strong but pretty fair in terms of counterplay, especially with the likely rise of more Sea of Blood decks coming soon as you’ll see MIL strength a more important feature of your deck than it is now. So, very good, but not broken good IMO.

Hybrid92 – 5 out of 5

Burn has already been quite good for some time now, albeit it might have taken a slight hit due to the immense speed of the Crossing decks. But Drogon is no joke, and will send burn right back to the top. Dracarys on legs is insane, and the ability to use him multiple times (with Plaza and Drogo) or to just combine him with existing burn effects is stupidly good. If you squint, he’s kind of like Grey Worm, except way better.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 5 out of 5

Yeah, it good, and it obvious why it good. Drakey’s finding this pack very disparate in power level – almost like the card should have a Common or Rare designator, with this obviously being “Rare”.

hagarrr – 5 out of 5

Will see play.







In Daznak’s Pit (4.7 Average)

scantrell24 – 5 out of 5

The old “extra challenges” events from 1st edition were at least plot actions, so both players had the entire round to plan accordingly. This one is a punch-in-the-gut surprise that can wait in shadows until the opportune moment. Disgusting.

Von Wibble – 4.5 out of 5

I think this will see a lot of play, and I think there will be times where it is used badly and provides little benefit for the gold. Any deck wanting to aggro or rush their opponent is going to look at this card though, and any burn deck that scares opponents into making no challenges will get a lot of leverage too. Expensive but worth it.

OKTarg – 5 out of 5

I remember when Tricksy Bird came out and people were like “why is this even printed????? SO OP!!!!” and nobody has seen it since. It’s in the Tricksy Bird Protection Program. Will Daznak’s Pit be the same? Um, I don’t think so. This is wildly good and I look forward to playing it!

Hybrid92 – 4.5 out of 5

Seems like the best use for this card is either in high pressure decks that run Drogo, Marched and burn to get more military challenges out of the challenges phase, or for Crossing decks that want an additional challenges phase to rush to 15 power. For both those uses, In Daznak’s Pit will do the trick. It is certainly powerful, though quite expensive. Hizdahr the wheeler dealer will get you a discount for it though.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 5 out of 5

“Rare” (Drakey). Exceptional in melee. Exceptional in Joust, come to mention. Just exceptional. It’s expensive, but you more than get what you pay for, and Hizdahr makes it a bargain.

hagarrr – 4 out of 5

This card will not win you the game, but it will help you win much quicker if you’re ahead. An extra challenge phase is extremely powerful, and best used when you’re pressuring the opponents’ board to push the advantage. Given that Hizdahr, Aegon, Daario etc exist, and that Targaryen can flood the board very quickly, this card will help them obliterate you fast if you’re unprepared.







Maester Myles (1.3 Average)

scantrell24 – 3 out of 5

Maester Myles is cheap, repeatable, flexible, and it really doesn’t take Martell long to have 4+ used plot cards. In an icon control deck, yeah, he’s worth 1x.

Von Wibble – 1 out of 5

Even when you have 3-4 plots in your used pile, most characters at that cost have multiple icons and can still contribute to the challenges phase. Just run Starfall and take good 2 cost characters instead.

OKTarg – 1 out of 5

This was actually seeming pretty good and then I realized that there is waaaaay more efficient icon control running around out there.

Hybrid92 – 1 out of 5

So on plot 6 I can take 1 icon off a 5-cost character, and I have to kneel this guy to do it? No thanks.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 1 out of 5

“Common”. Compared to Starfall, this is just bad. The Maester trait remains the ‘messiest’ trait in second edition, with no real commonality to what any of the cards do – a real pity. Shame Conclave requires you to win challenges rather than faff about with random triggers, or it might be playable.

hagarrr – 1 out of 5

This is astoundingly poor value. WTF. I cannot fathom why anyone might take this over the plethora of other icon removal tech Martell have. Rubbish.

He Calls It Thinking (4.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 5 out of 5

I hate it already. Compare to the cancel that Bara just got, Privileged Position. Both have an “off switch” but Martell’s is free and can cancel any card type, while Bara’s costs a gold and only cancels events and locations. Yeesh.

Von Wibble – 4 out of 5

A free cancel is a great effect, but with economy being what it is these days people often have 1 gold to spare. Against good players, it will be hard to reliably pull this off, though there will be times where they absolutely need to spend every coin, usually early game, and of course they are less likely to have the gold in the plot or draw phase. Like a lot of Martell cards I like that this will change how people play even if not included in your deck.

OKTarg – 5 out of 5

“His name is Dave. He cancels saves. He likes to make the opposition keep one gold on hand into perpetuity for days”. I’m working on the phrasing to fit the melody, but you get the idea.

Hybrid92 – 5 out of 5

An old favourite from 1st Edition. Cancel is always good, especially when it covers everything (except agendas and plots) and especially when it is free! The 1 gold kickback allows for some necessary protection from the power of this effect. Some of my fondest memories of 1st Edition involved seeing duplicates cancelled by He Calls It Thinking. Alas, we can’t do that anymore, but there are plenty of other great effects in this game worth cancelling!

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 5 out of 5

“Rare”. Any phase 0 gold cancel is really good. Do you keep a gold against Martell in perpetuity now? Or just walk into the rake? Cancelling (non-duplicate) saves in the plot phase might be its most valuable use.

hagarrr – 4.5 out of 5

Ouch, another Martell cancel, but with less inherent need to build around it like Someone Always Tells, and with a much broader scope. This is great when it cannot be cancelled with gold, which is usually taxation phase, plot phase, and draw phase, and I expect Supporting the Faith could see more play to maximise the effects of this. At 0 cost, this will always need to be respected.







Old Bill Bone (2.6 Average)

scantrell24 – 2 out of 5

Old Bill won’t see play outside of decks that react to cards leaving shadows, and in those decks he’s just a filler chud, not anything impactful.

Von Wibble – 2.5 out of 5

There is nothing wrong with a neutral 2 cost bicon. He is a good counter to Free Folk or Rains, and provides a shadows trigger if you want to use Bowels of Casterly Rock. Shadows decks aside, he is a meta card, and one that isn’t terrible to play.

OKTarg – 3 out of 5

There is nothing wrong with this card. It’s just fine. Great anti-Rains tech, I guess, but probably just mostly good filler for decks that want to run Bowels of Casterly Rock or some such.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

I mean, it’s nice to have faction card kneel in the game, but will people actually run this guy? Fealty is extremely rare, Mace is dead, nobody plays the Bara plot, Rains has plummeted in popularity over the past year – at best, this guy might inconvenience a player who wanted to trigger Secret Schemes or the Stark Harrenhal this turn.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 3 out of 5

Fair price to play naturally against decks that don’t care about faction kneel, and a fair price for a pretty good denial effect if you bring him through shadows. Throw in that he’s a cheap neutral shadows card to fill out those decks and there’s a lot to like. The flipside is that being unique his effect is unreliable, and overall he may fall into the “nice idea, won’t see play” category.

hagarrr – 3 out of 5

An interesting effect on a low cost unique neutral chud. Some factions may appreciate the icon pairing on a low cost character, and his cost to strength ratio is fair. When Sea of Blood hits the game, he might well become a useful 1x to block that trigger, and he also hits Rains of Castamere too. I’m not sure Ol’ Billy Bone will see a lot of play otherwise.







The Inn at the Crossroads (1.8 Average)

scantrell24 – 2.5 out of 5

I love the design, and I have a couple decks in mind that want an Inn at the Crossroads. You could Tricksy Bird your opponent into YWoYD, and then let him have the Inn while at 0 reserve.

Also, Martell always has 10+ cards in hand anyways thanks to Dorne, so there’s no downside to giving them 3 more.

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

Drawing 3 cards is great, even if you do give your opponent the option next round. The game may be over by the time they can benefit from it, either because you got to 15 power, or because time was called in the tournament game. This is also a good piece for a mill deck, and provides nice opportunities for deal making in melee – I’d rate it much higher for that format.

OKTarg – 2 out of 5

It’s okay-ish if you think bad things are okay. Do bursty decks want this? You could bring it out of shadows in dominance, kneel it, then plot Nothing Burns to get it away from them. Whoopee.

Hybrid92 – 1 out of 5

I don’t really see the point of this card. Seems like a melee card, I guess? Drawing cards is nice, but you never want to allow your opponent to draw 3 cards, essentially for free. People have theorised using this card and then giving it to your opponent before you hit it with Jade Sea Dromond, but that seems like a waste of gold, cards, and time.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 1 out of 5

“Common”. Better in Melee, but overall it’s more cute than good. It’s too expensive, and dominance is the worst time to draw cards, after the phases that matter but before reserve, and it makes its usage far too narrow, fun though it is in theory.

hagarrr – 1.5 out of 5

Drawing three cards is great. Letting your opponent draw three cards is less great. Especially when you’re the one that has paid for it. I’m not entirely sure what decks want this card, probably one that believes it’s cards are always better than the opponents, and wants to see them quicker? Melee decks? I dunno. Whatever.







A Pinch of Powder (4.4 Average)





scantrell24 – 4 out of 5

It’s generally good-ish, but shines in a deck with ways to remove the bounced character from hand: Dominance Mel, Nighttime Marauders, Viper Eyes, Heads on Spikes, etc.

Von Wibble – 5 out of 5

On first glance, comparing it to Put to the Sword (as a win by 5 targeted removal effect), you’d think this is expensive. However, where this shines is that you can trigger it on one of 2 challenges, making it so much more difficult for your opponent to stop when the boards are even – to the point where if they do try to defend both challenges by enough, they probably aren’t getting anything through themselves. Throw in the fact that this is repeatable and I’d say it’s a really strong option, before even considering any other shadows triggers.

OKTarg – 5 out of 5

I’ve lived the days since this was spoiled thinking this was overrated, then I realized you could win on INT or POW! Wut! Yeah it’s pretty nice. I don’t think it’s a tippy-top five, but it slots nicely into shadow decks and the repeatability makes it pretty fun too. Win by 5 triggers, though, are consistently harder to pull off than they seem. So keep an eye on that.

Hybrid92 – 4 out of 5

It’s costly, but the flexibility of the trigger and the power of the effect are nothing to sneeze at. The gold cost will seem worth it once you use this to bounce a high cost character with a bunch of power on it back to your opponent’s hand. Couple that with it being non-terminal and potentially seeing play in factions that aren’t traditionally known for “bounce to hand” control effects, and you have a very strong attachment on your hands.







Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 4 out of 5

“Rare”. 3 gold is a reasonable tempo hit to still be able to get a win-by-5 off after; however, once you get the first one off, being able to trigger it round after round is going to be really strong. Nice to see the card not suck after the first edition one saw no play.

hagarrr – 4.5 out of 5

Given that Pinch can be brought out of shadows at any time, it is very potent. Granted, it costs an investment of 3 gold, but the removal it brings can only be saved by duplicates, providing you’re able to win an intrigue or power by 5. Great in any faction, and might even be better in factions that can then discard that card from hand. I understand that JC Wamma of Q&T Curmudgeons fame already has a deck built around this and Ruby of R’hllor!







Double-Dealing (1.8 Average)





scantrell24 – 2 out of 5

Double-Dealing could have been good in Rains, but that dream was thwarted by the Plot phase only trigger. It’s probably for the best anyways.

Von Wibble – 2 out of 5

The stats are fine, and there are a good number of plots that are worth copying. Unfortunately, many of these are not that commonly played, or are taken in decks built to maximise their effects, such as Fortified Position or Withering Cold. If 1 deck really rules a meta, this could be a great call for gaining the edge in a mirror match. Before Breaking Ties was restricted this was a much stronger card!

OKTarg – 2 out of 5

Like Riddle, it has decent stats if it’s blank with a nice upside. Unlike Riddle, there’s not much you would want to actually copy on a consistent basis.

Hybrid92 – 2 out of 5

Great stats are the only thing keeping this card from a 1. The only reason you’d run this card before is to copy Breaking Ties, and now that Breaking Ties is restricted, this card dropped from a rating of 4 to a rating of 2 for me.

Quill & Tankard Curmudgeons – 2 out of 5

“Common”. Poor thing, the only real reason to run this was Breaking Ties and now it’s restricted. It can’t copy when revealeds, as a plot action it’s bad in Rains, and most other passive effect plots are ones the opponent will have built around – King in the North, Blood of the Dragon, Supporting the Faith, The First Snow of Winter, etc. As new plots are released and old stand-bys like A Clash of Kings get more in vogue though, its value could rise.

hagarrr – 1 out of 5

FFG pls. This is another stinker force fed down our expectant mouths, as we hope for a tasty morsel and instead get this rotten spoonful of crap. The decent stats do not make up for the effect which might fire once or twice over a 5/6 game tournament, and that isn’t enough for a card to see competitive play. You could play it casually if you like, but don’t expect anyone to think you’re big or clever just because you Double Dealed your opponent’s Frozen Expanse to stop their Winterfell Steward from standing, okay?







Total Pack Average: 3.0

Top Cards:

Drogon 5.0

He Calls It Thinking 4.8

In Daznak’s Pit 4.7

A Pinch of Powder 4.4

Three-Finger Hobb 4.2

Refurbished Hulk 4.1

Bottom Cards:

Glamor 1.3

Maester Myles 1.3

Blackwater Host 1.8

Might of the Reach 1.8

Walk of Atonement 1.8

In at the Crossroads 1.8

Double-Dealing 1.8

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 “Daggers in the Dark” chapter pack!