A Crown for a King
Called to Arms Will Be Available Next Week
"Viserys sold my mother's crown, and men called him a beggar. I shall keep this one, so men will call me a queen." And so she did, though the weight of it made her neck ache.
–George R.R. Martin, A Clash of Kings
Five kings are crowned in Westeros: Joffrey Baratheon, Stannis Baratheon, Renly Baratheon, Robb Stark, and Balon Greyjoy. Even as these kings lead their armies, the last scion of House Targaryen raises support for her cause in the jeweled city of Qarth across the Narrow Sea. Blood will be spilled in every corner of Westeros, and as these would-be royals press their claims, it’s time for you to choose a side. You can do just that with Called to Arms, a new Chapter Pack for A Game of Thrones: The Card Game that becomes available on August 18th!
As the second Chapter Pack of the War of Five Kings cycle, Called to Arms makes a massive impact in the wider game by introducing two new Season-based agendas: Kings of Summer (Called to Arms, 37) and Kings of Winter (Called to Arms, 38). Whether you support your faction with the biting gales of winter or the gentle summer breeze, these agendas immediately change the ways every player needs to approach the game of thrones.
Still, the decade-long seasons of Westeros aren’t the only important cards in Called to Arms. Your Kings are having a greater impact than ever before, and within this expansion, you’ll find two new ways to crown your characters.
Lord of the Seven Kingdoms
As you’ve already glimpsed in Across the Seven Kingdoms, your Kings become incredibly important in the War of Five Kings cycle. Not only are these characters among the most powerful in the game, they become even more dangerous if your opponent doesn't have his own King to oppose your claim to the Iron Throne. Although six of the eight factions receive a King character in this cycle, you’ll want more ways to crown your characters. Fortunately, two new attachment cards in this Chapter Pack give you the tools to make new Kings.
The first Title attachment is The Boy King (Called to Arms, 30). Belonging to House Lannister, The Boy King rewards you for playing to Joffrey Baratheon’s sadistic tendencies and crushing those too weak to oppose you. While you have The Boy King attached to one of your Lord characters, he gains the King trait and he gains a power after any character with printed cost three or lower is killed! Because these cheaper characters are commonly killed for military claim, you can look at The Boy King as a way to quickly increase your power, especially if your deck is more focused on military challenges than power challenges. Powerful Lords like Ser Jaime Lannister (Core Set, 87) or Ser Gregor Clegane (The King’s Peace, 49) could be ideal targets for this attachment.
If The Boy King rewards you for slaying your opponent’s weakest characters, you’ll find a very different sort of King leading House Targaryen. In Called to Arms, the Targaryens also gain a new Title attachment, and this card is Beggar King (Called to Arms, 34). Beggar King gives the King trait to one of your Targaryen characters, but more importantly, this attachment is a valuable way to increase your economy. Whenever your opponent reveals a plot with a higher printed gold value, you can kneel Beggar King to gain a gold—or two gold if no opponent controls a King character!
Obviously, increasing your economy in this way can be a boon to your forces as you prepare to set sail from Essos to claim the Iron Throne. It can also free you to start moving towards plots with more powerful effects. After all, Beggar King only triggers if your opponent has a higher gold value on his revealed plot, making this the perfect card to boost the income of plots like Blood of the Dragon (No Middle Ground, 75), Counting Coppers (Core Set, 10), or Naval Superiority (Core Set, 17). Because Beggar King only cares about the printed gold value, you may even use it to supplement an existing economy plot, Calling the Banners (Core Set, 7).
Protector of the Realm
Whichever king you follow, now’s the time to make your allegiances clear. Crown your king, and look for the Called to Arms Chapter Pack at your local retailer on August 18th!
