I am new to the GoT LCG. I bought several of the AGoT CCG decks more as a fan of GRR Martin and never really learned how to play. The LCG seems like a good idea in that I won't go bankrupt trying to get complete sets. However, when the LCG launched many people seemed to be disappointed. Has the game improved with the release of several chapter packs? Also, is the LCG compatible with the CCG? From reading the forums seems to be but I've read nothing concrete.

Lastly, if I buy the Core set, what are the best chapter packs (in the forums opinion) to look for? Is the Sea expansion a good buy?

Thanks for your input.

I think that some CCG-era players were rather annoyed when FFG withdrew official support for CCG cards, feeling that the pool of cards in the LCG was too small to support interesting deck construction. This was especially problematic when the first cycle of chapter packs (A Clash of Arms - the only black-bordered chapter packs in LCG format) had been designed to interact with those CCG-era themes, which were not legal in sanctioned standard (i.e. LCG only) play. However, the newer chapter packs and the deluxe expanions (Kings of the Sea and the new Princes of the Sun) have put those missing links (King and Kingdom traited characters and locations, for example) back in LCG format. So, it is not so much that the early chapter packs of the LCG era were bad... rather, they made for an odd and less interesting pool of cards. They have been retrospectively improved by the release of staple cards that they relied on being available to players.

As lots of people here note, competitive decks can be made without 3 copies of each chapter pack. You can browse the contents on Tzumainn's site (http://tzumainn.com/agot/) to find stuff for the houses you are building decks for. If you are creating decks to play with friends as a board game, then you can acquire stuff on a roughly equal basis to make the decks fun. If you want to play in tournaments you can specialize in the two or three decks you are prioritizing. I'm intending to prioritize these, for the following reasons:

Ancient Enemies (http://tzumainn.com/agot/cards/set.php?set=AE) - Interesting set of new plots

Refugees of War (http://tzumainn.com/agot/cards/set.php?set=RW) - Useful refugee characers for each house

The Tower of the Hand (http://tzumainn.com/agot/cards/set.php?set=Hand) - Interesting new characters for lots of houses and a cancelling event

PS: The Kings of the Sea expansion has new plots and King/Queen characters for each house. So it is a helpful early addition for casual or competitive play. But it is also quite expensive-per-card compared to the Princes of the Sun expansion, which has two copies of each card (where Kings of the Sea has just one). Of course, if you want to build a Greyjoy deck then the Kings of the Sea expansion is particularly invaluable.

Thanks a ton for the info. I really appreciate it. I'm going to splurge on the core and a few expansions and actually learn to play the game. It's sounds like a lot of fun.

thanks again

Winter said:

This is really only part of the story. Most of the dedicated, competitive CCG players left the game because they felt the transition from CCG to LCG was mishandled by FFG, killed the organized play program and failed to take many of their reasons for playing the game into account. The size of the cardpool is often cited as a concrete reason for setting the game aside, but now that the card pool has grown, it's those feelings about customer service and organized play that are keeping them away.

KTom - Fair comment. I almost added some account of that, but as a newbie didn't want to speak for others. I am sure you are right that even with the card pool expanded, people do not return when they have fallen out of regular play or feel negative towards FFG. The company's excellent response to complaints about Kings of the Sea, which resulted in a changed distribution for Princes of the Sun, bodes well. Most of all, though, I wanted to touch on why the early CPs might have *seemed* more disappointing than they are now (because of the lack of synergy in the LCG at that point).

Winter said:

I'd add in to your observations about the Clash of Arms CP cycle feeling a bit more disappointing that there was nothing really pulling them together or acting as a theme. CoA was less successful with its "Allegiance and Enemies" and "Epic Battle" themes in creating cohesion between the packs than Ravens was with Summer/Winter and KL with Shadows. Because of that, I'm not sure it would have "felt" less disappointing as a CCG expansion set, either.

Just my two cents on that.

Yes, the banner and epic battles themes still don't seem very interesting.

I would also suggest at least one Season pack - eihter Song of summer or Winds of winter for the Carrion Birds. And you'll also get an agenda, eihter a high gold or a high Claim plot and some decent utiltity characters.

Funny - the game is exactly where I wish it had been from the get go. i got into the collectible aspect of AGoT very reluctantly, though i ended up tkaing the full plunge. My orginal play group and I always wanted a slower pace fo new tech and the time to fully explore block's themes - soemthing that didn't seem to occur too often in the CCG days.

Though i agree they rotated out the CCG blocks way too early last fall - I love where the card pool is now and i expect to be ahppy wiht the state of thinsg for a long tiem to come.

i just wish we got a few mroe melee useful cards in the Chapter Packs....

Others have recommended some good chapter packs. I'd recommend the Princes of the Sun expansion if you like House Martell. It's a good deal in terms of the amount of cards you get for its cost. Also, buying it gives you more value on all the chapter packs you buy. It's extremely difficult to build a decent Martell deck using only the chapter packs. So without the expansion your Martell cards from your chapter packs will probably just be shuffled to the side, but with it you could build a deck for an extra house. I feel similarly about Kings of the Sea and House Greyjoy, but that expansion is not quite as nice of a deal as the Martell one.

I agree... Princes of the Sun has a very nice array of new plots and multi-house characters for use in all houses, and throws up a variety of fun Martell designs.

Well I splurged and bought the following at Coolstuffinc.com as they had good prices and I've had great service from them. My local store doesn't carry AGoT at all. I just need the Core box. I can find it I just don't want to pay ridiculous shipping prices!

1 - A Game of Thrones LCG: A Change of Seasons Chapter Pack (New, Board Games, Fantasy Flight Games) at $6.99 each
1 - A Game of Thrones LCG: A Song of Summer Chapter Pack (New, Board Games, Fantasy Flight Games) at $6.99 each
1 - A Game of Thrones LCG: A Time of Trials Chapter Pack (New, Board Games, Fantasy Flight Games) at $6.99 each
1 - A Game of Thrones LCG: Ancient Enemies Chapter Pack (New, Board Games, Fantasy Flight Games) at $6.99 each
1 - A Game of Thrones LCG: Kings of the Sea Expansion (New, Board Games, Fantasy Flight Games) at $19.99 each
1 - A Game of Thrones LCG: Princes of the Sun Expansion (New, Board Games, Fantasy Flight Games) at $16.49 each
1 - A Game of Thrones LCG: Sacred Bonds Chapter Pack (New, Board Games, Fantasy Flight Games) at $6.99 each

Thanks for all of the replies and advice.

You got enough for some decent decks at least with that. And can download the rulebook for the time being.

So in tournament play (1 on 1), are any cards from the CCG era playable? Are any of the chapter packs reprints of older cards? Are any of the rules different?

There are a number of CCG reprints in the Core Set and the Kings of the Sea and Princes of the Suns expansions. Some of the reprints are slightly modified from the CCG versions and thus the CCG versions are not legal in LCG play (though if the people you play with don't care maybe you could use them any way). There is a detailed list of the reprints from the Core Set and Kings of the Sea at www.agotny.net (click on "LCG reprints" on the side). That list will probably be updated for Princes of the Sun soon. Until then, bloodcelt started a thread earlier this week with the Princes reprints.

Are all the newer cards white boardered?

-thanks!

Every set in the LCG except for the Clash of Arms cycle is white bordered.