I have the game of thrones the board game second edition and I love it thoroughly! Would people suggest this game to me?

I have an eye for tactics and conflict and this game looks appealing but the description doesn't give me an insight to how the game is played!

Prince Capsicum said:

I have both games, and love both. I prefer Battles of Westeros since it's more of a "wargame". It's very different from the board game, but very fun and competitive. The way commanders work in the game is very well thought out and makes it seem more like an actual battle. It neatly takes battles and characters out of the books and puts them at your command, but does not depend on the book for the game (ie it's still a great wargame without the fluf). Every game I've played has been a true test of wits with the outcome usually depending on one or two key decisions. The only downfall I can think of are the rules. My be hard to grasp at first (but they do work well once you understand them), and there are errors in them, but the FAQ has provided most answers to that.

Prince Capsicum said:

If your familiar with the Command & Colors System it plays like that,with slightly more rules & a dice Activation System instead of Cards.We use BoW to resolve battles created in the Game of Thrones.

OD

This has really given me a lot to think about. If I purchase it would I have to paint the models myself?

Smartass reply: no, you could get someone else to paint them for you…

Hopefully more helpful reply: the game plays just fine with unpainted miniatures, painting is not necessary. But, yes, the figures in the box are unpainted.

While I do plan on getting around to it sometime, I've had BattleLore for close to six years and have played unpainted. Once I get around to getting BoW, unpainted they will remain for some time.

My first board game I bought when I re-entered this geek world was Battlelore 4 years ago. Played the hell out of it and loved it, especially with the creatures, spell casting and other "optional" rules from the rulebook. Bought all the expansions I could find and ended up overwhelmed by it's setup time, especially with the Call to Arms expansion. One thing that I realised after many games was that I was stuck to control my units depending on the cards I draw. I had not complete control over my troops. But nontheless, it was a great game with great mechanics. Finally sold my collection.

Last month I bought Battles of Westeros because I remembre the fun I had with Battlelore, love the novels and the series and wanted a great 2-player wargame in a fantasy setting. BoW was the best game out there for me.

This game is extremely well done, highly strategic and tactical and gives you entire control on your troops. You want to activat X troop, you don't have to wait to get the right card. Comanders are awesome! You can activate troops in there Zone of Control (2 hexes around them) and they have special abilities to bolster your armies.

Each armies are different. Different troops and different cards. That is awesome!

LAstly, you don't HAVE to paint the minis, each armies come with it's unique colors (Starks are grey and Lannisters are red). But you could paint them if you have the time and patience and it would look completely awesome on the battlefield!

I highly recommend you get this game if you love AGoT universe, characters and lore. It's that awesome!

Get this game even if you DON'T like AGoT. I don't and I still have a blast each time I play, it's that good.

This is my favorate 2 player game out of all my board games.

Its still a "war" game, so not the best pick if your regular gaming partner has something against them.

The Core set will give you a full game, with endless hours to enjoy, so its not dependant on the expansions (although they are great). With expansions you can look into adding more players soon (Baratheon army expansion will have rules for more then 2 players) and alot more unit variety.

I would rate the game as a medium in complexity, the rules themselves are not that hard to follow (my 8 year old understands the bulk of them) but the choice of decisions you have can be agonizing (and thats where the game is brilliant).

The theme is done really well, so it feels very much like it takes place on the continent of Westeros.

If you are looking for a solid 2 player game, with interesting tactical choices and plenty of variety (scenarios and skirmish rule from just the core set), you simply can not go wrong with this game.

North_Wolf said:

Thanks! I have been debating on buying this and unfortunately didn't get to get in a game at GenCon. From what you and others have said, it seems exactly like the type of game I was hoping it was.

Old Dwarf said:

Oh WoW!…that sounds cool!

SolennelBern said:

It will also seem eerily similar to "C&C:A" or "C&C:N" but don't let that similarity deceive you, it is different, and also significantly better. What the poster above described, where one can't move the units they wish, nor use an effective strategy based on the terrain and troops involved, is essentially why I came to HATE both C&C:A and C&C:N, gave up on them both and sold them all on eBay. In BoW you will virtually always be able to move most, or all, of your troops every round. You also cannot depend on just a few units to win the whole game for you in BoW, the banner system in BoW limits you to activating each unit once per round in most cases…this is also really good as a player has to use all of their units to win.

Painting?…nah…who cares…if you like it, cool, but completely unnecessary.

What the game centers around, and what makes it such an interesting game, are the difficult choices one has to make every round. I know that sounds cliche, but it's true in BoW. "Should I spend that red order token, or save it because it gives me a tactics option on my next Command Card"…"I've got a great Command Card, but to use it to maximum effectiveness I need to spend two command tokens on it, which then means I have no others left"…and many other decisions like this one. What you won't generally face in BoW, unlike the stupid idiocy of C&C:A and C&C:N, is, "all my units on my left are being destroyed, but I can't move any of them…gosh this is SO much fun watching my opponent slaughter me over there while I move my inferior units over here on right, and lose, oh that was fun (NOT!)…let's do it again (oh let's NOT)."

Highball said:

What North_Wolf said, this is a great tactical wargame, even if it had nothing to do with the "Song of Ice & Fire" novels.