His hand was black and cold, with fingers hard as stone.
- A Song of Ice and Fire, Volume III: A Storm of Swords

Hello and Welcome Back, Loyal A Game of Thrones Fans!

This week we will continue with our look at the upcoming final pack in the Defenders of the North cycle of expansions, Return of the Others. This week's spoiler spotlight shines on the mysterious stranger known only as Coldhands.

The first of Coldhands' very noticeable abilities is the fact that he cannot be killed. There are other ways to get rid of characters, but killing them is the most common and most effective way. The fact that Coldhands can never be killed (as opposed to being temporarily protected like some noble characters via Power of Blood* or similar) means that if he's across the table from you, you'll be facing him quite a lot from the moment he enters play.

Slightly more interesting than Coldhands' invulnerability is the fact that for the purposes of The North agendas, he is both a Wildling and Night's Watch. Not that anyone would willingly take on the burden of trying to win an additional twelve power by trying to run all of the new The North agendas, just to make Coldhands completely awesome, but if you are already playing a combination Wildlings / Night's Watch deck with a mix of agendas, it would be nice to have an unkillable character benefitting from all of them. Say, for example, you are running The Rangers (Wolves of the North, F19) with The Free Folk (Beyond the Wall, F39) - that gives Coldhands a military icon and Stealth. Granted, A Carrion Bird (A Song of Summer, F16) is already similarly gifted and cheaper, but the fact that Coldhands has strength 4 means that even if your opponent has Stealthy defenders, they will still have a formidable foe to deal with. That's just one combo, but depending on your deck, Coldhands can potentially shapeshift into the just the guy you need.

If Coldhands has a drawback, it is the fact that he must participate in the first challenge he is eligible for in each round. Again, how good or bad this is depends on your deck. If you are playing defensively and prefer to let your opponent kneel herself out before you get to your attacks, then Coldhands stands as a strong defender, assuming you've given him some icons to work with. This can go wrong if you're trying to save him for one challenge and get hit with another, but it can also go wrong if you're playing an attacking deck and your opponent forces Coldhands into a challenge before you're really ready for it.

Coldhands is as particular as he is mysterious, but under the right circumstances, he can be a real asset to your deck's strategy. Hopefully when Return of the Others comes out, you will have ample opportunity to find out what those circumstances are. Until next week, keep your hands warm and keep shuffling!

* Power of Blood (Core, L194): "You may have up to 2 copies of The Power of Blood in your plot deck. Noble characters cannot be killed."