Hello,

Recently found out about this game and since I enjoyed the books (and the boardgame) I'm quite intrested in picking up this LCG.

I've played quite a few ccg before (and still play L5R) and the concept of LCG looks promising.

I'm gonna pick up a Core set but i'm looking to pick up 2/4 packs so I can change the decks a bit.

But it seems their are certain themes within the series, so I don't really know which packs are advisable for a starting player (combined with an intrest for Baratheon and Lannister(and greyjoy and martell but they aren't an option just yet)

So I could use some advice which packs would make for a "good" start.

(one of my prefered parts of the hoby is deckbuilding, so i'll want to start customizing decks after my first game.)

ps: If anyone has some links to usefull websites like Tzumain/agot I would appreciate it.

Welcome aboard fellow newcomer!

welcome to the game.

as for your question, well you picked two houses that benifit from almost every chapter pack. I'll try to highlight some of the major ones to start.

Lannister: The War of the Five Kings CP - Two really good charcaters {note pyromancer's cache is banned in LCG only); Ancient Enimies - Lannister probably doesn't need thier Fury plot, but its still good as is toll gate (note if you pick this cp up, then you should also pick up Sacred Bonds); Battle of Ruby Ford - Best Lanni charcater in the game right now and i useful attachment; Calling the Banners - Attahcment control and a solid charcater. You avoid most of the time for ravens CPs to start (they are still good for lanni, but they expand on Lannister control and Scattered Armies is a CP that while you should pick up eventually, you'll want to learn the game a litle more first).

Baratheon is pretty diverse so i'm going to split them into basic baratheon stuff, summer, and winter.

Basic Baratheon: Calling the Banners - Compelled by the Crown is ok, but the real gem here is banner for the storm; The War of Five Kings - provides 2 non-unigue staple charcaters and an army that if you can afford him is well worth it (if you heart is set on getting him out pick up The Raven's Song for King Renly); Ancient Enemies - Bara has the best fury plot, and king's champ is ok: Epic Battles - Claw Isle and Saan are good additions to power rush

Summer Bara: War of the Five Kings - see above; Ancient Enemies - see above; A Song of Summer - too make it summer and for Summer's Champ and Summer Port; Sacred Bonds - Fiery follwers become a lot more afordable in a summer deck

Winter Bara: Ancient Enemies- see above; The Winds of WInter - maintly to make it winter; A change of season - Shadow Stalker is a beast; Refugees of War - Your going to want the undercosted charcaters; The Raven's Song - King Renly's cost really shines through here.

Welcome!

I started the game last fall, so I'm in a similar situation. Here are some thoughts to consider:

1) First, you should be aware that the decks in the core set are not full-size (60 cards). They're probably about 45 cards each. They play fine, no worries there, so you won't feel shortchanged. But I found that I needed three chapter packs just to bring them up to full size. So if you want to build full-size decks, you'll need more than 2-4 chapter packs to have any interesting choices to make.

2) Nearly all the cards in the core set are singletons, so if you want to have predictibility in your decks using those cards, you'll probably want two core sets. That will also instantly solve problem #1.

3) I'm not experienced with the Time of Ravens cycle, but I will mention that I was pleased with the first three chapter packs in the Clash of Arms cycle. These chapter packs fixed some problems with the core set for me: a) they included replacement Plot cards for some plots in the core set that don't work well in 1v1 matches; b) they added some search cards, so I could get key cards in play faster; c) they included several units with conditional abilities to bypass defenders, which made the challenges phase go faster, with less analysis paralysis.

Those are some general thoughts that I hope are helpful. There are others here who are better able to recommend specific chapter packs to fit your themes.

Have fun!

Thanks for the assistance.

I think i'll order the core set, War of the 5 kings, ancient enemies, Sacred bonds and battle at ruby ford.

I've read somewhere else that the core set has "alot" of mutliplayer plots. (I'm hoping i'll play alot of mp games but it'll be a series of 1on1's first to get people to know the game)

So are there any plots that can't(or shouldn't) be played in 1on1?

Condemned by the realm is the only non playable plot in a joust (1v1). others like mutual suport are okay in joust even though there text box would not activate. And a third set like summoning season and counting favors are not ideal for joust (i hate giving my opponet search or draw).

Finally got some games under my belt, one joust and a melee with three. Made a 50 card deck for every house. (swapped the mp plot for the fury of ... and added some of the chars I got with the chapter packs)

Both times I had the powerhungry baratheons(and won both games) Melee was won by me claiming 7 power in 1 turn. (Robert, Melisandre, martial law and the fox's teeth) Especially the last one is a very powerful card if your the first one to act, combined with my scouts or other renown I managed to get alot of power early on.

Love the system, it's very flexible with many options and therefore choice and the mp game was a blast. The manual is a bit lacking though, there is nothing about what happens if all plots have been used up, reshuffle or no more plots? (both games were finished around turn 5 so we didn't have to resolve this issue.)

Already orderd another core set(+ Epic battles and Calling the banners) so I can design some "real" decks.

After you play/reveal your 7th plot, you then take the six used plots and return them to your plot deck. Then, for round 8 you get six plots to chose from, and the 7th plot you played has to wait until after the 13th turn before it cycles back into your plot deck (usually).

I would recommend picking up the Time for Ravens chapter packs before too long. The Winter/Summer mechanic really adds a tactical twist to the game, and there are some incredibly nice cards in the game. The first two packs (Song of Summer/Winds of Winter) each focus on one of the two seasons (including the cards that allow you to change into the season you wish to run). Each Chapter Pack adds a few more cards to complement the theme, and some helpful tools to the game. Every time I want to single out a specific CP from the set, I can come up with good reason why I should be chosing a different CP first.

Welcome to the game, and have fun!

I think i'm gonna wait a bit with buying any A time of Raven packs. I've got the feeling i'll have to buy a couple of each if I want to upgrade all my decks with the summer/winter mechanic. I'll have 2 core sets and 1 pack of all Clash of Arms block chapters soon. Gonna see how much decks i can build out of those (A 60 card deck for every house and hopefully one or 2 other)

Had the opportunity to play another 3games today. First 2 were 4 player melee's, a great experience(and the game at it's best imho). It was alot of fun and i'm rather glad my friends really enjoy the game. For one of them it was his first card game(like this) since he stopped playing 5 years ago and he was the first to ask for another game. The combination of tough decision making and the fact that you don't have to "win" a challenge to get ahead can cause very sudden shifts in the game. While their are lots of very powerful cards in the game that cause great shifts their effects can be "deluted" because they change patterns of decision making and will be affected by other plots/restrictions/board position. Especially in a 4 player game. In comparising with other games where the end of the game often can be traced back to a single card entering the field makes this game a blast to play.

I've got a question about the 3 player game though. Most times the Master of Laws and Coins were picked first which resulted in 1 player unable to attack another. (which often results in the other player receiving quite a beating. afterwards the same would happen because Whispers and the Hand where almost always left)

I realise it's another benefit to have the chance to being immune to challenge of half the opponents but we might try it without the board next time.

I have to add though I only noticed later on that you can also defend the one you support and the hand can be usefull if you're have to pick last and your opponents took Coin and Law.