Valar Dohaeris

“The man who fears losing has already lost.”
   –George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones

The battle for the Iron Throne rages on in A Game of Thrones: The Card Game! In this competitive Living Card Game® of battle and betrayal, the noble Houses of Westeros battle for power, using their military strength, manipulative intrigues, and political influence to gain any advantage. Embracing the world of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, each of these Houses feature a unique set of skills and strategies for you to explore, and if you've been waiting for a chance to join the fight, the time is now! 

Today, Fantasy Flight Games is pleased to offer you a closer look at what awaits you in four of the House Intro Decks for A Game of Thrones: The Card Game: the House Tyrell Intro Deck, House Martell Intro Deck, House Targaryen Intro Deck, and the Night’s Watch Intro Deck—each available for pre-order at your local retailer or online through our website!

Each House Intro Deck for A Game of Thrones: The Card Game features a carefully assembled set of cards, ready to play directly out of the box and designed to highlight the faction’s key strategies in battle against other House Intro Decks or custom decks by other players. Even experienced veterans will find value in these decks with extra copies of key neutral cards, House-specific alternate-art versions of Fealty (Core Set, 27), and the chance to draw new players into the game with ready-made decks.

The Roses of Highgarden

The House Tyrell Intro Deck gives you the chance to choose your battleground, manipulating the challenges phase to fit your needs. With cards like Ser Hyle Hunt (Kingsmoot, 43) and Septa Nysterica (The Archmaester’s Key, 4), you can stand your opponent's characters and remove them from challenges to ensure that their strength never exceeds your own. This is particularly helpful when you factor in cards like Beacon of the South (Sands of Dorne, 38), which offer powerful effects when you win a challenge by a significant margin.

This deck also features a variety of cards that let you scour your deck to find whatever you need to face the dangers at hand. Alerie Tyrell (Lions of Casterly Rock, 37) lets you search the top ten cards of your deck for a low-cost member of your House, such as a knight or lady, and bring them to your hand, while Songs like "The Bear and the Maiden Fair" (Core Set, 197) let you stack the top few cards of your deck—or your opponent's! By manipulating the top of your own or your opponent’s deck and bringing whatever cards you need straight to your hand, you are sure to have an edge in any battle.

The Vipers of Sunspear

Similar to the Tyrells, the House Martell Intro Deck features a heavy focus on manipulation. But where the desire of the Tyrells is born of ambition, the Martells are interested solely in revenge. Patient and cunning, this deck features cards like Maester Caleotte (Core Set, 107) and His Viper Eyes (Wolves of the North, 32) that focus on the long game, punishing your opponent for winning challenges. While your opponent may get out a fast start, you can bide your time until your moment to strike, then swing the game in your favor, leaving no time to for your enemy to form a counterstrategy.

This deck also immerses you in the vengeful theme and story of the House by exploring the Sand Snake trait. Oberyn Martell fathered eight daughters before meeting his demise at the hands of the Mountain in King’s Landing and he raised them as deadly warriors. Now, they are prepared to avenge his murder with his same ferocity. Obara Sand (Sands of Dorne, 5) and Tyene Sand (Sands of Dorne, 8) can make the challenges phase a nightmare for your opponent, while Nymeria Sand (Sands of Dorne, 7) punishes your enemy for claiming dominance. By hiding your true intentions from view until your plans have been carefully laid and set in motion, you can claim victory just as your opponent can feel it in their grasp, exacting a revenge that’s both rewarding and cruel.

The Mother of Dragons

In the aftermath of Robert’s rebellion, House Targaryen was pushed to near extinction. Once, no one in the Seven Kingdoms believed that this fallen family would return to power, but throughout A Song of Ice and Fire, this House has made the impossible come to pass, gather armies of loyal followers, now seen in the House Targaryen Intro Deck. This deck moves quickly, rewarding you for discarding cards from your hand with allies such as Missandei (Sands of Dorne, 35), the Dothraki Honor Guard (Watchers on the Wall, 35), and Ser Barristan Selmy (Lions of Casterly Rock, 35).

But ultimately, this House Intro Deck is built around Daenerys Targaryen (Core Set, 160) and her Dragons. While she has her own strengths in battle, when you combine her with Rhaegal (Core Set, 164), Viserion (Core Set, 166), and Drogon (Core Set, 161), she gains a plethora of special abilities that make her a force to be reckoned with in any challenge. If you further pair the mother of dragons with her Companions like Jhiqui (Kingsmoot, 53) and Grey Worm (The Fall of Astapor, 53), you will quickly lay waste to your enemy’s board to claim your victory with fire and blood.

The Brotherhood of the Watch

The Night’s Watch Intro Deck features an emphasis on defensive tactics, using powerful locations like The Wall (Core Set, 137) to accumulate power and fulfill your duty of defending Westeros from the terrors the dwell in the frozen lands beyond. If you can recruit men from a variety of backgrounds, with a wide spread of challenge icons to hold your defenses, the extra two power that you gain each round can lead you victory with an unmatched efficiency.

But you cannot hope to win the game of thrones with defense alone. When the time comes to strike back against the proud lords of Westeros, you can prevent your opponent from recruiting to their ranks with Septon Cellador (Someone Always Tells, 105) and then attack with your Wildling allies like Ygritte (All Men are Fools, 17), using  Jon Snow (Watchers on the Wall, 5) to lead them in multiple attacks and claim victory once your enemy’s defense is weakened. The great families have had their chance to lead the realm to peace and prosperity, and all they have done is feed their own greed and ambition. Your duty is to defend the realm, and if war is how you must accomplish that task, then so be it.

All Men Must Serve

As you become better acquainted with each of the factions that now vie for power, you must choose whom you will pledge your sword to. Will you aid the courtly Tyrells, the patient Martells, or the commanding Targaryens? Or will you decide that none of these families deserve the Iron Throne and commit yourself to the Night’s Watch? You can no longer afford to stand idle—the time for action has come. Join the battle for the Iron Throne!

Pre-order your copy of the House Tyrell Intro Deck (GT41), House Martell Intro Deck (GT42), House Targaryen Intro Deck (GT43), and the Night's Watch Intro Deck (GT44) at your local retailer or on the Fantasy Flight Games website today!