Queen of the Seven Kingdoms

“All men are fools, if truth be told, but the ones in motley are more amusing than ones with crowns.”
   –The Queen of Thorns, A Storm of Swords

The Blackwater Rush is still choked with ashes and corpses and the wrecks of ships, as a new balance of power is established in Westeros. Stannis Baratheon’s siege of King’s Landing has been broken by a newly forged alliance between House Lannister and House Tyrell, but new schemes are hatching in the darkness, even if the largest battles have passed. Even the Lannisters and the Tyrells may not be as united as they appear, especially if the ladies of the court can have their way…

Dive into the twists and turns of the Blood and Gold cycle—All Men Are Fools, the newest Chapter Pack for A Game of Thrones: The Card Game, is now available at your local retailer and online through our webstore! With the new bestow keyword entering the game for the first time, you’ll find new ways to spend your gold and granular control over how powerful your cards become. What’s more, All Men Are Fools introduces the first new economic options of the cycle, integrating gold directly into your strategy for victory. No matter which faction you support, your road to the Iron Throne is paved in blood and gold.

A Rose for Queen Margaery

Over the lifespan of A Game of Thrones: The Card Game, like any Living Card Game®, the meta grows organically. Certain factions and archetypes rise or fall in power, and much like the game of thrones itself, being dominant for a brief moment is no guarantee that your faction won’t fall from favor with the next release.

One faction that has recently achieved significant success is House Tyrell, rising on the tide of powerful cards like Renly Baratheon (For Family Honor, 43), Pleasure Barge (Taking the Black, 6), Brienne of Tarth (Ghosts of Harrenhal, 83) and Renly's Pavilion (Tyrion’s Chain, 104). As you may see just these few cards, House Tyrell has significant differences from other factions. In a nutshell, House Tyrell’s best strategies are constructive, rather than destructive. They build up their own power and strength, rather than trying to destroy their opponents with kill effects, kneeling characters, or stripping challenge icons. Now, House Tyrell receives another iconic character who pushes this theme farther than ever before.

Since the Core Set, Margaery Tyrell (Core Set, 181) has been a staple in Tyrell decks. Her efficient stats, low cost, and perennially useful ability make her an easy card to include. Yet as powerful as she is, she’s about to get some competition from the new version of Margaery Tyrell (All Men Are Fools, 3). To justify a cost of six gold, the new Margaery has to offer a lot, but she certainly delivers. Perfectly capturing Margaery’s tendency to collect new suitors, her card reads, “Reaction: After a unique King or Lord character you control is killed, search your deck for a unique King or Lord character and put it into play. Shuffle your deck. (Limit once per round.)”

The power of this ability cannot be understated. When you have Margaery Tyrell and a Lord in play, your opponent is essentially powerless to make military challenges unless he wants to risk you searching your entire deck for your best King or Lord and putting him into play. The fact the Margaery also boasts renown just makes your deck that much faster as you race to fifteen power.

It’s also noteworthy that the Lords and Kings you use don’t need to belong to House Tyrell. With Alliance (All Men Are Fools, 18) entering the card pool in this same Chapter Pack, you may even be tempted to forge an Alliance with two other Lord-heavy factions, such as House Stark and House Lannister. Although you’re diluting your deck and reducing your chances of finding Margaery within seventy-five cards, you can’t deny the appeal of killing Rickon Stark (Wolves of the North, 16) to bring Ser Gregor Clegane (The King’s Peace, 49) into play for free. And House Tyrell does have plenty of ways to manipulate their deck and find Margaery, including A Gift of Arbor Red (True Steel, 104), "A Rose of Gold" (Lions of Casterly Rock, 38), Ser Hobber Redwyne (The King’s Peace, 43), and Olenna's Cunning (Core Set, 196).

And while an Alliance deck like this can pack in more high-impact characters than any other deck, you’ll still be looking for ways to gain power without warning and snatch victory. In that instance, look no further than All Men Are Fools (All Men Are Fools, 4). This Tyrell event is free to play—after you win a challenge by five or more STR, each of your Lady characters immediately gains power! Even if you only have two Ladies in play, All Men Are Fools is certainly worth playing, and its incredible flexibility makes hard to prevent, even if your opponent knows it’s coming. All you need to do is win a single challenge by five or more STR—any type of challenge, on attack or defense. Your opponent simply won’t be able to prevent every possible opening, and All Men Are Fools just might give you enough power to win the game.  

The Power of Highgarden

House Tyrell may accomplish their goals through secret schemes and strategic marriages, but perhaps you prefer the cold, honorable ways of the Starks, or the brazen raids of House Greyjoy. Every faction finds new cards to enjoy in All Men Are Fools.

Pick up your copy of All Men Are Fools (GT16) at your local retailer today!