Welcome to part two of our coverage of the King’s Landing campaign for A Song of Ice and Fire: Tabletop Miniatures Game. You can find part one here.
WARNING: There will be spoilers for the first season of House of the Dragon and possibly the second season. I will try to avoid major plot points but smaller details to explain who the characters are will be mentioned.
Aegon II Targaryen – Lord of the Seven Kingdoms
Lore – Aegon II Targaryen is the figure head of The Greens and what we know from World of Ice and Fire as well as Fire and Blood is that Aegon doesn’t want to be king, or is not well prepared. It is a charade or a Mummer’s Farce as Westerosi people would call it. Everything is meticulously done to invoke rulership with little substance underneath it. The Conquerer’s crown, ancestrial sword Blackfyre, even his name.
One of the only reasons why the Green children want the war is due to tensions of hatred with the opposig children. They grew up together, but there was always friction with beliefs of them stealing the Greens’ birthright due to them likely being bastards of Harwin Strong. Often the true worth of Aegon is over exaggerated for the political gain, for if his presence was honest no one would follow him. This is something the show is doing well to portray. Who Aegon actually is, vs who he is portrayed to be.
There is still a lot of stories to explore with Aegon, but this would spoil way too much of the Dance of the Dragons, it plays out far differently than what most people would expect, and the books are forced into a position of the official accounts.
Model Design – Why does it look like a prized pony dolled up way too much? Well, that is Aegon. He is a figurehead but one with little control, and influenced by so many other powers. He wields the Blackfyre sword, the Conqueror’s crown, and what looks to be a large tapestry cloaking him. Truly decorated to look like the heir to the Iron Throne and to convince the masses of his right to rule. An incredible model that is way over the top but on purpose to reflect the story of his ascension. My favourite details is that the armour, crown, and cloak, are not a good fit, they all seem too big for him to fill. It is an interesting piece of subcontext to make anote that he himself is not fit for the role of king.
Rules Design – I love the idea that Aegon’s combat stats reflect a very novice swordsman but with Blackfyre it can still pack a punch. Blackfyre has some similarities with Lady Forlorn and Dark Sister which sets up a universal design of Valyrian Steel. There are some other abilities that force a Routed condition or a chunky rule involving Aegon’s dragon. But we cannot see them in full to understand what they do.
Motivation Design – The Motivation is one of the worst I have seen. 1 Gold for one VP is poor in comparison to other Motivations when you target a character and kill them for some VPs. 1VP is way too low and should be increased to at the very least 2, however the other places where you gain VP in this way you need to be engaged whereas this is just when they die, so Aegon can be safe and still score from the Motivation. We do not get to see the rule change for when Aegon is killed. I don’t particularly understand the Motivation either, in the books it is hard to know who Aegon is since the official statements are fake most of the time, the jester Mushroom has some outlandish takes but is the closest we get to knowing who Aegon actualy is, thus what his Motivations are.
In all honesty, Aegon shouldn’t have a Motivation. Similar to how Robb Stark doesn’t have one as there is no personal drive for him outside of the drive of The North. Aegon has little drive and when it does show it is puppeted move from others. The closest we get to a drive is when he messes things up by removing Otto Hightowe and replacing him with Cristan Cole, all to further violence and war. So the Motivation being about killing but not being worthwhile fits perfectly in a lore sense, but is really weak in a game sense.
Alicent Hightower – Dowager Queen
Lore – Alicent Hightower is the childhood friend of Rhaenyra Targaryen and became her step mother when she was betrothed to her father Viserys Targaryen. From World of Ice and Fire we know that Alicent’s closeness to Rhaenyra dwindled over time, and this became a hatred that was passed down to their children. Alicent was noted to incite Aegon to war to protect his family, however she would later try for peaceful resolution.
Whilst she had a lot of power early on with swaying the Greens to uplift Aegon, her power at court dimished over time with her unable to control her children, such as Aemond who began the conflict by killing Lucerys Velaryon over Shipbreaker Bay. However, throughout Viserys’ years of ill health, she was able to govern the realm in relative peace with Otto, which should be a testerment to her skills.
Model Design – I am not too sure on the model for Alicent since she comes off quite young and unadorned. This is the Queen, the power of the Red Keep, and whilst she is young when marrying Viserys she should match the look in terms of age with Rhaenyra. I like the Hightower iconography of Alicent, which does reflect that she did not become Targaryen even though she married in like other non-Targaryen spouses who blended into the family rather than holding onto the one they were born into. For Alicent, holding onto the green heritage was a symbol that defined the faction’s name.
Rules Design – Ways of the Court is an auto-fail for any Morale test which is incredibly powerful and should always be considered as such. There has never been anything in the main game or Tactics that allows someone to auto-fail, likely because it is such a powerful asset to utilise. Further to this, Alicent has another rule to prevent the loss of resources when spending them, another powerful effect. To finish it off she can provide an aura of preventing models from taking tests. She is a great boost to the overall force and is looking like an auto-include to every Green force out there.
Motivation Design – Wow, a Motivation that is strong and also works to amplify Aegon’s Motivation. You bring both and when you score Aegon’s you then score Alicent’s; the only problem is that it is now 2 Gold for 2VPs which is again, very low. It is probably better to use Alicent’s Motivation instead of Aegon’s due to how less limiting it is, but it can only be used in line with another Motivation, and its far better to do so with Otto Hightower.
Otto Hightower – Hand of the King
Lore – According to World of Ice and Fire, Otto Hightower has served three different kings as Hand of the King, and due to this he is well suited to govern over a realm. Many people have described him as being a mix of Tywin Lannister and Petyr Baelish for his political abilties and plotting. He does have a rivalry with Daemon Targaryen which is due to friction for the rules and defying them, even though Otto has done many things against honour or law in swaying the realm to his favour.
Otto is an important figure for the Greens bringing a lot of experience for ruling over a kingdom, but also spends a lot of time securing alliances through negotiations. Because of the acts of Otto, the Greens stood a chance politically and economically against the forces of the Blacks.
Model Design – As Hand of the King and someone who has manipulated so many from behind the scenes for so long, this model needed to portray this. I don’t know if the model is a good one for Otto; it reminds me of older NCUs CMON have made which are static and have very little going on. A good example is Petyr Baelish in Neutral Heroes 1 in comparison to the new Petyr in this campaign. Whilst the pose is not giving much for this character, the detailing is quite good but doesn’t scream anything specific to Otto, this could be anyone.
Rules Design – We can’t see much of Otto’s rules to discover what he can do in the game, but he does have an okay combat statistic, and it looks like he has a way of meddling conditions and actions.
Motivation Design – Otto’s Motivation is incredible and truly sets up the difference in power between himself and Aegon’s Motivation for the same cost of 1 Gold, but buying Otto is cheaper than Aegon. 1 Gold for 1VP with Aegon or 1 Gold for 4VP with Otto, it is an obvious choice. However, Otto’s pick must be a Hero which should make it harder to deal with but not impossible and is a better choice than Aegon. However, there are so many hurdles to jump through, you must crush their morale then capture them to gain the points. Worth the effort though.
Aemond Targaryen – Aemond One-Eye
Lore – Aemond Targaryen is the more capable of the Green children with him honing his combat efficiency and has bonded with the biggest dragon of the time. We learn a lot about Aemond from Fire and Blood as well as World of Ice and Fire since he becomes such a prominent figure for the war. His nickname of One-Eye is from a conflict in his youth with Lucerys Velaryon, where Aemond lost his eye over him bonding with Vaghaar after Laena’s death.
During the preliminary moments of the Dance of the Dragons, Aemond initiated the war by killing Lucerys Velaryon and his dragon over Shipbreaker Bay. This sprialed into a ruthless cutthroat siezing opportunities throughout the civil war and soaking themselves in fire and blood. Aemond was a menace and there is so much more of his story to come in the show.
Model Design – The model is a fantastic design that perfectly represents the reckless overextending duellist that he becomes throughout the Dance of the Dragons. It almost gives Euron Greyjoy vibes as well which works well since they have the similar nature of a twisted villain. The dragon iconography layered onto his armour and cloak is the best I have seen from the Targaryen models so far. The sword looks brilliant and like no sword we have had either, almost giving cutlass vibes. I like the difference between this model and Daemon where they are both dueling but in very different styles. A great model for a fan favourite character of this era.
Rules Design – Aemond is designed around being a fantastic combatant and a sort of opposite or match for Daemon Targaryen. He is likely to come out on top when fighitng most combatants, but he might not be able to defend himself as he is not rocking a fantastic defence. Hit and run tactics will benefit you a lot with Aemond and fits perfectly with how Vaghaar’s mere presence would have people flee so a direct confrontation is rare. Shame there is no rule for Vaghaar’s presence like other dragonriders, but this could be in a future model. Or it would just be too strong.
Orwyle – Archmaester
Lore – Orwyle is an Archmaester of the Citadel who became Grand Maester during Viserys’ rule and then continued the position into Aegon’s. Maesters are an incredible opportunity for conflict of the heart due to their profession. They leave behind their names and families and must serve the ruling house of a keep they are asigned to, no matter how they feel about the house. Whilst this plays more of a role in the main books, in Fire and Blood the Maesters don’t have a lot of impact on the Dance.
There are several moments throughout the history of Westeros where Maesters have never been unbiased and for sure have some plans and desires of their own as popularised by the theories of plots involving the Maesters. Orwyle represents a prime example of the Maesters manipulating in the working of the kingdoms. Think of him not as Orwyle, but as a representation of the Citadel.
Model Design – Most Maester models have been quite bland but there isn’t much you can do with modestly clothed individuals. Despite this I do believe the designers have done very well with Orwyle despite little room for creativity.
Rules Design – Orwyle can remove debuffing conditions tokens, heal a character of all their wounds, and allow friendly characters to re-roll their tests. He is a great support piece that can keep your force at the top of their game for longer throughout the fight. This represents the advice, medical expertise, and reliability that all Maesters have to their holds. With a lot of the models not being that great defensively, the alliance wiht the Grand Maester will be important. A perfect set of rules that could potentially be very powerful in the game.
Criston Cole – Kingsquard
Lore – Criston Cole is mentioned a few times in the ASOIAF books for the legacy he left behind. In them people remember Cristan Cole as Kingmaker, someone through ambition or scorn pushed to make a king and plunge the realm into civil war. He is referenced as one of the most disgraced Kingsguard which is important to Jaime’s story of what he wishes to become. Consumed by hatred, and plunging to disgracefulness, this is Cristan Cole
Cristan is no pushover however. He is skilled enough to have bested Daemon in melee’s before becoming a Kingsguard, furthermore he has seen some combat experience before the war. During the conflict he rose to a commander position and led forces into battle. He is worthy enough in combat, but falls short massively in politics.
Model Design – This is how you do a Kingsguard model. When you are restricted with a base design shared across multiple characters, equipment and pose is the most important aspect to make them stand out and have the most character. In this instance, Criston sports his morningstar with great momentum. I love this design for the Kingmaker and would love a future one for his role in the Dance going forward.
Rules Design – Probably the most covered up character rules wise, which is a shame. I hope to see a decent combat statistic and we can see there is a unique Aftermath ability here which could be important to how he plays. But we have little to go off of. The Aftermath could play into his weapon, which would link around a shield in use. Perhaps it opens up the opponent after they have attacked.
Arryk Cargyll – Kingsguard
Lore – Arryk Cargyll represents the Kingsguard but also other familes torn in two, with his twin brother taking the other side in the war. In Fire and Blood, we learn that Arryk was apart of Viserys’ Kingsguard the pledges himself to Aegon. Arryk has an important role in the early stages of the Dance of the Dragons that forms into legend. Keep an eye out for this moment in the show.
Model Design – As mentioned in Erryk’s section, it is difficult to make a character model out of something that is duplicated amongst seven characters. But, posing and weapon choice is one way to solve this. Giving them sword and shield to distinguish them from the other Kingsguard was a smart choice and giving them two different stances was a smart choice to show whilst twins they have different viewpoints. One is in an aggressive stance, the other a defensive stance. Subtle designs that link to their personal story.
Rules Design – Remarkably Arryk is vastly worse in combat than his twin but there is a reason for this. Whereas Erryk boosts Rhaenyra, Arryk can boost other characters not limited to someone specific. When he doesn’t take any Wounds, he can deal out some damage, or if he dies one model engaged gets to do something, which we would know what that is if it wasn’t covered up. I assume this might be an action though.
Arryk’s rules seem very lacklustre in comparison to his twin who is much better for the same cost. If that final action in death is a free action to anyone then it changes things, but his combat prowess is quite low without too much benefit. It is nice however to see an Aftermath rule on Arryck, and having the twins fight each other could result in a lore accurate outcome which is a cherry on top for rules design here.
Gwayne Hightower – City Watch Commander
Lore – Gwayne Hightower is the son of Ser Otto Hightower and brother to Alicent Hightower. A great part of the Dance of Dragons was the fact that nothing was safe from the war, and everything is torn in two which is why it is so memorable in the history of Westeros. Targaryen family in two, the Seven Kingdoms in two, the Kingsguard, and with Gwayne so was the City Watch. According to World of Ice and Fire, he ended up leading the City Watch during the civil war and was not successful in ensuring their loyalties.
Model Design – I am so happy the Gold Cloaks/City Watch are getting so much love in this campaign since they have long been waiting to join the main game. Gwayne is designed differently from other Gold Cloaks where he is more lowkey or reserved in the details, but still shows some of his dedication in the symbol of the faith as an example. But his reserved pose reflects his task at hand which is to be a commander keeping an eye on those that may have questioning loyalties.
Rules Design – Gwayne’s rules being designed around arresting is quite fun seeing as he is the City Watch commander. His combat stats are actually pretty good, but that is only if you have silver to spend to try and arrest characters. Gwayne also gets a boost with a move when a model is captured. I can see this working well with Otto’s Motivation. A great father son duo.
Hightower Guard and Oldtown Peacekeeper
Model Design – The Hightower Guard and Oldtown Peacekeeper have a glaring flaw of the Targaryen symbol emblazoned on their armour. This is dumb; it should be the Hightower symbol since they are Hightower troops and not Targaryen forces. I will be removing this symbol from the chest piece and shield, replacing it with the correct sigil. Aside from this they aren’t too bad but look stunning from a troop option standpoint, I love the look and weapon of the Peacekeeper which is a unique look for the game.
Rules Design – The Hightower Guard is very defensive with a good armour value and an ability to boost this. There haven’t been many tough troops out there but when a bunch of your characters are very frail it is important to have a frontline of the guard to delay the loss of your characters.
The Oldtown Peacekeeper has their rules covered up, but you can get the gist that they provide a short range defence against charge bonuses. This is the only place I have seen this and there is a lot of boosting each other in the Greens Faction. The designers have tried to incorporate the defensive abilities of the Halberd Units in the main game over in the base game when there are less models.
Summary
I hope you have learnt something new about the characters in the box set. When making this article there were some characters, I didn’t even know about such as Steffon Darklyn and Gwayne Hightower, so I am glad that the game is highlighting some unique names to make new moments from. The models have also come a long way from the first campaign for ASOIAF CMON has done and it is a world of difference in the detailing the designers have done.
I can’t wait to see the rules in full to further see how the rules developers have created these awesome characters from the history of Westeros. I will be continuing this series with two boxes from the War of the Five Kings then followed by the Neutral Expansions. We have a year until the game reaches our laps but plenty to discuss until then.
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