ASOIAF Miniatures/Tactics/Baratheon

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"Robert was the true steel. Stannis is pure iron, black and hard and strong, yes, but brittle, the way iron gets. He'll break before he bends. And Renly, that one, he's copper, bright and shiny, pretty to look at but not worth all that much at the end of the day."

– Donal Noye, steward of the Night's Watch

Why Play Baratheon

"Ours is the Fury"

In the wake of the death of King Robert Baratheon, the king’s house quickly divides between Robert’s two brothers: the stoic, dedicated middle brother Stannis and the charismatic, handsome youngest brother Renly. As the sixth faction to join the roster of the A Song of Ice and Fire Miniatures game, House Baratheon features a slow, heavily armored play style that thrives in multi-turn combats with cards that benefit from being stuck in.

As House Baratheon is divided between those loyal to Stannis and those to Renly, the Baratheon faction in game is similarly divided. The Baratheon core set features units that can be fielded by both commanders, but later releases feature units that have the “Loyalty” keyword, marking them as units available only to Stannis or Renly commanders. These include the fanatical R’hllor Faithful of the Lord of Light, sworn to Stannis, and the regal Rose Knights of Highgarden, sworn to Renly.

Pros

• Most units feature strong armor, especially Wardens
• Two armies for the price of one starter box: Stannis and Renly feature different playstyles
• In a game with high attrition, Baratheon units thrive as many of their basic tactics deck activate upon taking damage or being engaged
• Those helmets have antlers
• Those swords are on fire
• Stannis is the actual rightful king of the Seven Kingdoms

Cons

• Sundering is rare and hard to come by
• High damage potential is limited, can struggle against tough, single model units (Giants, Dragons, etc.)
• Less NCUs available on a whole by virtue of the fact that many of their units are only available to Stannis or Renly
• You are the slowest army in the game
• The zones you want to use during game don't often line up with those you want for card bonuses
• Renly is the best thing in the world since Swiss cheese.
• Stannis burns children

Playstyle

High defense, both on morale and armour. They struggle to get on objectives but are very hard to shift once they do. Their tactics deck features multiple cards to reflect condition tokens, hits, and panic tests yet subsequently relies a lot on being engaged to shine. Where many armies struggle once they get bogged down in multi-turn melee battles, Baratheon units shine.

Renly doubles down on their theme, giving healing and simple melee upgrades (duellist, precision, extra attacks).

Stannis trades survivability for damage, taking Panic tests to throw out tokens, do damage, and inherits a lot of Vicious.

Units and Attachments

Commander

Robert Baratheon got gored by a boar which is why we’re in this mess to begin with. The Baratheon faction has no commanders that can use units with the “Loyalty” keyword for both Stannis and Renly. However, there are a number of units without the “Loyalty” keyword, making them available to both.

Basic Units

The starter box features units available to both commanders.

• Baratheon Wardens (5 pts):

The basic, line troop of the Baratheon faction are the Wardens and are they ever a tough nut to crack. Sporting a 3+ armor and a solid 6+ morale, Wardens are top notch at grabbing and holding objectives and protecting flanks, just don’t expect them to wipe any units. One shining light: defensive save rolls of 1 against Wardens gives that unit a “Weakened” token, and each miss rolled when attacking them hits the attacker back with a hit. With an underwhelming attack profile and a sluggish 4” move, Wardens are a defensive unit through and through. Always bring one, as one of the best 5 point units they can sit and survive to score objectives.

• Baratheon Sentinels (6 pts):

The Baratheons' glass cannon unit, the Sentinels are running around the battlefield dual wielding warhammers. Featuring the rare Sundering ability in the army as well as added mobility in the form of the "Sentinel" Order, yet an average 4+ save and 6+ morale, Sentinels are (an excellent first strike option) a terrible first strike option but designed to be a powerful counterpunch. Getting a Sentinel charge is very rare, but being able to position an extra 5 inch is invaluable. Going first next turn? When the last attack hits your guys, use Sentinel to move towards those pesky archers, even if you've activated. Or move on an objective. Or position in a flank or rear. Don’t expect them to survive many games to the end. Still, at 6 points they more than pay for themselves in many matches if used carefully and in the absence of enemy Disrupt. A competitive choice that used to shine with Commanders attached to them, the new Commander scoring and Sentinel squishiness doesn't pair perfectly. Works wonders with Andrew Estemont to keep their attack dice high and give them Vicious, but what doesn't.

• Stag Knights (8 pts):

Reworked for the latest edition of the game, retaining their previous basic profile on attacks per rank, movement, save and morale (which is better now that the offensive power and morale of units in general has been toned down), they now gain abilities as the game progresses and get "Order: Resilience" to cut the enemies hits IN HALF, they are much more valuable now. Consider them as an anvil that powers up as turns go on; they'll eventually win the flank they're put on but are a lot weaker if attacked twice a turn (due to 4+ armour and Resilience being an order) so can fold quickly in the middle. Forget attachments, except maybe Commanders, and tie up whatever you want.

• Champions of the Stag (10 pts):

Here come the biggest, beefiest boys. Riding in at a 8 points, the Champions of the Stag are the heaviest cavalry in Westeros. With a 2+ armor save and a 6+ morale, good luck shifting this tray. These monsters are designed to get stuck in and shrug off most attacks, throwing out Weakened in case their armour wasn't already strong enough. They struggle to kill most average armour units unsupported with only Critical Blow, but their 3+ to hit works wonders with Ours is the Fury if you throw a Sundering or Vicious on there. Another anvil type unit, use their extra movement to get on further out objectives early before bunkering down. At speed 4, don't expect them to be flanking before clearing out their side of the board though.

Non-Combat Units

• Shyra Errol - Lady of Haystack Hall (4 pts): The Lady of Haystack Hall is a bizarre choice to include as a universal NCU as the character in the books, only briefly seen, is sworn to Renly, but she’s a solid choice in game. One of those proactive NCUs, her ability basically means you get a small added bonus akin to a mini Bags spot when claiming the Crowns or Letters and added value when claiming the Bags and removing a condition token with them

• Alester Florent - Lord of Brightwater (4 pts): Before being sacrificed to the Lord of Light, Alester is another strong option available to both commanders. His thrice per game ability to shove someone off an already claimed zone on the Tactics Board to take for himself is a nightmare for many armies, most notably Lannisters, as well as folks who like to rely on Walder Frey.

Attachments

• Master Warden (1 pt): An absolute steal at a single point, Master Wardens are what turn a strong defensive unit like Wardens into a nigh impenetrable bunker.As long as the unit he is attached to is engaged with only only 1 other unit, enemies don't gain charge, flank or rear bonuses

• Stag Knight Noble (2 pts): The Stag Knight Noble is the epitome of the Non-loyalty Baratheon range, they give both resilience and the ability to bite back when you get hit, if you have 2 points laying around and a unit without an attachment, you'd probably not go wrong getting one of these guys.

Loyalty: Stannis Baratheon

The rightful king.

The rightful king of the Seven Kingdoms leans heavily on the play style of sacrificing models to punish the enemy team, primarily via panic/morale. To that end, Stannis enjoys the patronage of R’hllor, the Lord of Light. With R’hllor Faithful, you receive flaming sword wielding zealots that can punish enemies with morale tests multiple times a round. With the upcoming R’hllor Lightbringers, the panic tests can spread from one unit to another. You can expect to lose many of your trays by the end of the battle, but that’s what Stannis Commanders are designed to do, as their units and NCU’s abilities rely on sacrifice to pull off their strongest effects.

Commander

• Stannis Baratheon - The Rightful Heir: The version of Stannis included in the Baratheon Starter Box, the Rightful Heir is a perfect attachment for Baratheon Sentinels, and a strong choice if you decide to run Stag Knights, as he deals out condition tokens like they're cheap candy and can replace them with other ones (both on your units and the enemies), he goes all in on utility and control, .

• Stannis Baratheon - The One True King: The version of Stannis included in the Baratheon Heroes I box, this version has converted to the faith of the Lord of Light. Providing the “R’hllor” keyword to the unit he’s embedded in, this version of Stannis also wants to be in Sentinels, but King's men are probably best. Trading his condition token shenanigans for boosted morale for his unit, the One True King version of Stannis synergizes directly with his own cards, going all in on the R'hllor side of the army of sacrifice and panic test your own units for additional Oomph, he is decidedly more offensive than Rightful Heir and benefits a more balls to the wall purge the heretics approach to list building.

• Andrew Estermont - First of the King's Men: Andrew has changed a lot from his previous iteration, before he was a control focused commander hell bent on enying you opponent his deck and cards, now he is a Wrecking ball kinda commander, with abilities and cards that favor aggression and focusing on his unit as the centrepiece (Not unlike Harma or Victarion Commanders). You always count as holding the Crwon and Letters for tactics cards that target him, and his unit ignores the side effects of his tactics cards, with cards like "Rush of Agression" and the always excellent "Assault Orders" hes should probably go inot a unit of Stag Knights and just plow through the enemies formation wreacking absolute havoc fuelled by being the sole recipient of every offensive tactics card you have in hand.

• Davos Seaworth - Hero of Blackwater: Davos is an exciting and explosive commander for Stannis players as he can mitigate the army’s biggest weakness: its speed. Attaching Davos to a unit allows them to ignore the penalties of “Dangerous”, “Hindering”, and “Rough” in terrain as well as granting them Outflank. Positioning Davos’ units with these abilities in mind can force enemy players into some tough decisions when it comes to positioning and charging. Further, Davos features a maneuverability and sustain focused deck, with "flea Bottom Tricks" allowing a unit to make a free maneuver or march(!!!) after a unit gets attacked, and "Fealty to the Crown" and "Everything" allowing you to heal up wounds on your front line units. Further, Davos’ “Parlay” card can seriously disrupt an enemy’s plan by shutting down a unit for a turn. The coolest guy in the books AND the show also rules in the game. Nice.

• Axell Florent - First of the Queen's Men: Axell Florent features a strong deck designed entirely around the “R’hllor” keyword. He grants that same keyword to any unit he joins, his deck is very utility focused, granting panic insulation with "Fiery Resolve" (he can really screw over a Lannister panic bomb) and can give you reliable charges and some additional panic damage with his other two cards, he is simple really, kill people, win, use your deck to accomplish that better. He doesn't have the spike damage of Stannis TOTK or the Wrecking ball of Alester, he's meant to be the more flexible choice.

Units

• R'hllor Faithful (6 pts): Zealots wielding flaming swords sounds pretty cool right? The R’hllor Faithful are the first combat unit available only to Stannis players and, at first glance, seem a bit expensive at 6 pts. You’ll find no shortage of players claiming they’re not worth the cost, but when they’re struck they can spend a “faith token”, earned by passing morale tests, to clap back at the attacker with a solid 3 hits for every missing rank *before* the enemy resolves their attack, they can also gain Vicious and Precision (6s to hit deal wounds not hits) on their attacks by spending a token. When they are destroyed, a faith token can be expended to give a R’hllor unit within long range a free attack (Lightbringers are probably your best option for this). These guys are built entirely around forcing panic tests and passing morale tests, so thankfully they’re sporting a 4+ morale. But are they worth it? If you’re building a dedicated “R’hllor” army or are looking to exploit an opposing enemy’s poor morale, these units can be terrifying, with a hard attacks and some additional defense. Against armies with the ability to mitigate morale losses or have good armor, notably Lannisters and Night’s Watch, they can struggle though. Until the lightbringers are out, or other NCUs, if you do decide to bring them bring two and build your list around their strengths.

• R'hllor Lightbringers (7 pts): Good god, these guys, designed to fully exploit the strengths of R’hllor based army lists their bows fire at long range with a strong 7/6/4 profile and “Vicious” for good measure. Panic tests failed against their attack cause another enemy within short range to also take a panic test. While their armor is *real* solid for a ranged unit and their morale and mobility is above and average for Baratheons they are certainly a strong choice in any list you have.

• Dragonstone Noble (4 pts): Included in Baratheon Attachments 1 box, the Dragonstone Noble is a stand-alone cavalry model adding some activation assistance and flank harassment. Sporting a 2+ armor and 3+ morale, the Noble is well suited for hitting flanks and rear facings on enemy trays. Furthermore, he gets a free maneuver/charge order when a friendly enemy within long range is attacked, giving surprising speed despite movement 4. With 3 attacks hitting on 3s and an additional 2 hits on each wound he's taken (with 3 total), the Noble looks fairly powerful. Consider using him in a Davos list, where he can maneuver into Short easily to trigger Parlay, trading your 4 point activation for a 7+ one of your opponent.

• King's Men (6 pts): Stannis' presonal agents within his army, they have an average profile when it comes to movement, morale and armor, but their offense is solid with +3 to hit and sundering standard, their real benefit is in their orders, allowing them to give you an "Ours is the Fury" card from you discard pile or deck after they get attacked fuelling your counter-offensive playstyle, while their other order "To the Last" lets them remain at d3 wounds panicked and vulnerable after getting wiped if they pass a morale test. They are a evry well balanced choice for your army giving you both offense and utility.

• R'hllor's Queen's Men (6 pts): The defensive counterpart to the King's men, trading Sundering and a point of movement for a 3+ armour save and R'hllor Keyword, they have the same "To the Last" order but they instead give you your choice of "Baratheon Conviction" or "Baratheon Justice" (which are more endurance/defensive/morale focused) from you deck or discard pile when they or another R'hllor unit within short gets attacked, they obviously synergize better with R'hllor focused lists so they go better with Stannis TOTK or Axell.

Non-Combat Units

• Axell Florent - Hand of the Queen (4 pts): A control kinda guy, his influence ability slaps an enemy unit with +1 wounds on panic tests and "Can't be targeted by friendly Tactics Cards" depending on wether you hold the Crown and/or Letters respectively. He's not bad at all but he probably has more value as an Attachment.

• Davos Seaworth - Hand of the True King (4 pts): The NCU version of Davos is quite versatile, 3 times per game he can give rerolls to charges (After rolling the dice, sweet) or giving an enemy "Cant use Orders or be targeted by friendly Tactics cards", so he allows you to more reliably get stuck in on your own terms and/or nerf a unit so you can fuck them up without tactics cards intervening, a solid choice if you don't necesarily have a plan in mind.

• Selyse & Shireen - Queen and Princess (5 pts): Stannis’ wife and child bring some more resilience to the table, by having their influence ability give +1 to morale and dealing a wound to enemies when the unit passes a morale test (not just panic tests, which means this can proc a bunch of times), and also the ability to destroy this NCU to prevent a combat unit from getting wiped, leaving it with d3 wounds a making it R'hllor, use it to save a unit of stag knights or stag champions to absolutely infuriate your enemy since now he's no longer playing a game, he's eating glass, and he's got no drink.

• Melisandre - The Red Woman (6 pts): Weep, you filthy scoundrels, for the wrath of the Red Woman is terrible to behold. Melisandre is a terror, both for you and your enemy. Gives a unit both the R'hollor Keyword and Vicious for their melee attacks, the interesting part is you may have the unit take 2 wounds and a panic test, you then get to pick an enemy and have them take a panic test on -2 morale and +2 wounds. Have a Dragonstone Noble take the wounds and panic test (with +3 morale hes set to pass) on the turn you want him to charge something and have him THRASH the poor sod who has to face 4-7 hits with both sundering and vicious, noble's wrath indeed.

Unit Attachments

• Andrew Estermont - True Loyalist (1 pts): With "Incite" order and True Conviction he will keep a unit fighting at top efficiency to their final moments, as the First of the King's men, he obviously pair very well with them.

• Davos Seaworth - Onion Knight (1 pts): Like his Commander version, this Davos offers something that the army struggles with: healing potential. Being able to add wounds to a unit near death can be good, but at the expense of wounds to another unit is a tough decision to justify, but then you see the Stromcrows and their "Adaptive" ability letting you add a cheap unit that can heal your more expensive units in tip top shape.

• Devan Seaworth - King’s Squire (1 pts): Davos’ senior surviving son is designed to help a unit alleviate some of the army’s movement problems with his order of “Reckless Heroism”. After declaring a charge, that unit can take d3 wounds to automatically assume a roll of a 6. In an army that is already self-sacrifice heavy, this can be costly but if you’re finding yourself up against an opponent who excels at cat and mouse tactics, Devan can come in handy.

• Red Priestess (1 pt): Oh, you. Coming in the R’hllor Faithful unit box, the Red Priestess is an auto-include on your high morale units. When attacking, her unit may make a wound and a panic test, the enemy becomes vulnerable and panicked. Extremely strong and pairs well with the R’hllor Faithful looking to pass morale tests to gain Faith Tokens and Lightbringers wanting to proc Panic tests on ultiple units. Never leave home without her.

• Dragonstone Noble(1 pt): Bizarrely, the attachment for the Champions of the Stag is a Stannis only option. The Lord allows your cavalry to make a free charge or maneuver when a friendly unit within Long Range is attacked. If you choose to charge, it must be the enemy that attacked the friendly unit. Helpful with the slow movement of the Champions, the only question is do you really want to spend even more points on the Champions?, for added mobility? their BIGGEST weakness? for A SINGLE POINT??, I would.

Loyalty: Renly Baratheon

Commander

Fancy lad.

• Renly Baratheon - The Charismatic Heir: The Baratheon Starter Box version of Renly is a very strong offensive/buff commander. Renly himself lends his unit +1 attack dice at full ranks or being treated as one higher rank in terms of attack dice than your actual ranks. Further, units within Short Range of Renly’s unit get a +1 to morale, very strong for Baratheon units. Where Charismatic Heir really shines, however, is his set of tactics cards. Each features a way to heal wounds for both his and other units, sometimes simultaneously. With the release of Rose Knights, bunkering Renly in their unit is all but guaranteed to make your opponent tear their hair out trying to wipe the tray. This is particularly vital as this version of Renly’s cards, unlike many other commanders, requires him to be alive to get their full effect. Very strong choice.

• Renly Baratheon - Lord Paramount of the Stormlands: The version of Renly included in the Baratheon Heroes II box forgoes the healing and buffing role for a more defensive/control set of abilities and cards. Placing the Lord Paramount in a unit prevents it from being targets by tactics cards, orders and influences. His cards, on the other hand, are geared around a counter-offensive focused playstyle. Like the basic tactics deck, these abilities tend to require a triggering action by the enemy to come into effect. This can make it much harder to pull off some of the tricks these cards afford, though they are strong. You should usually bring the free Brienne attachment when playing Renly in general, but for this version she should be an auto-include.

• Loras Tyrell - The Knight of Flowers: The knight beloved by the smallfolk is a monster. Loras is a full on defensive choice with strong healing options and some additional punch in combat. Loras’ unit benefits from either dealing an additional wound every attack or, on a 3+ roll, killing the enemy unit’s attachment and getting a wound back each time they pass a morale test. All three of his tactics cards contribute to an defensive playstyle with two getting extra benefits from keeping close to Loras’ unit. Of all of the commanders available to Renly, Loras is the most straightforward, you can be aggressive or defensive with him and he'll allow you to weather the storm each time.

• Eldon Estermont: Lord of Greenstone A very interesting, if bizarre, set of cards and abilities sets Eldon apart from the other commanders. With a strong deck available to Baratheon players, Eldon’s ability to dump a card to place a condition token on an enemy in short range can be powerful but it requires Eldon to keep close to an enemy. Unfortunately, his “Battle Endurance” tactics card wants to keep you out of combat until at least turn 3. His “Hefty Ransom” is a fun card that will very, very rarely be worth it, but if you can pull it out for a last round victory, that’s a story to tell for months. Your weakest option, overall.

• Cortnay Penrose: Castellan of Storm’s End Bonkers. Mental. Insane. Bananas. Cortnay Penrose, pre-shadow murder, is a terror. As the sole NCU commander available to Renly players, Penrose fills out the three NCU builds popular across the factions nicely, but it only gets better from there. When activated, Penrose may influence an enemy unit. Whenever the influenced unit is targeted on the tactics board by either player, a friendly unit within long range may heal d3 wounds. Penrose should be played as soon as possible every round to maximize the healing potential and you can force your opponent to seriously reconsider their own moves on the tactics board with that amount of healing going off. His tactics cards are equally brutal. Not only does he feature more healing potential, he also has the chance to turn off enemy abilities when they attack, and he’s holding two “Counterplots” in the deck. If you like manipulation and control of the table through abilities, Penrose is a fantastic commander. Top tier.

Units

• Rose Knights (7pt): The first unit available exclusive to Renly players, the Rose Knights of House Tyrell are, quite possibly, the best combat unit in the game. With a 4” move and a 3+ save, Rose Knights hold to the slow and sturdy play style that defines both Baratheon commanders, but the Rose Knights feature robust abilities to keep themselves healed up and dealing regular additional wounds. Each time this unit attacks in melee or passes a moral test, they restore 1 wound. Every time the unit restores wounds, a unit its engaged with takes 1 wound. You can see where this is going. Rose Knights are a “death by a thousand cuts” style unit, capable of whittling down even the toughest units through their own healing.

Non-Combat Units

• Eldon Estermont - Venerable Knight (3 pts): Extremely strong at 3 points, this version of Eldon allows you to replace a tactics zone’s effect with the ability to draw three cards from the top of your deck, placing one on the bottom of the deck and keeping the other two. Eldon is an auto-include unless he’s your commander, which he really shouldn't be.

• Margaery Tyrell - Little Rose (4 pts): Not enough heals? Bring along the queen-to-be. Margaery synchronizes especially well with Rose Knights as her ability to heal whenever claiming a tactics board zone gives the Rose Knights’ ability to proc yet again. Also useful to scare up one final wound on a stubborn enemy tray. A bit steep, but works very well with the Renly playstyle.

• Olenna Tyrell - Queen of Thorns (5 pts): The matriarch of House Tyrell is tired of your bullshit. Dealing with nonsense from Walder Frey? Mance Rayder? Cersei? Whatever NCU is vexing you gets to take a seat with Olenna in play as her ability shuts down an NCU’s ability when she claims a tactics zone. Make sure you play her early enough to not get shut out as she is five points. Very expensive, very powerful, very annoying for opponents.

Attachment

• Cortnay Penrose - Reliable Castellan (2 pts): When attached, Penrose increases your hand size by 1. Simple and effective, but it’s really up to you. Do you find yourself often short on cards? Mixing this attachment with Eldon Estermont as an NCU can solve that problem. As Rose Knights can excel even without a dedicated attachment, that’s a good place for him to go if you have the points.

• Loras Tyrell - King’s Squire (2 pts): Attachment Loras provides “Precision”, allowing no saves on attack rolls of a 6. Unless you find yourself going up against a heavily armored opponent, this is a bit expensive. Go for broke with the Crit Blow / Precision combo by putting him in Stag Knights for a whopping 10 points, but maybe have Renly Charismatic Heir commander nearby to make sure they're on a 4+ morale and are sticking around.

• Brienne - The Blue (0 pts): Brienne in her Rainbow Guard (good luck painting the cape) attire serves as the bodyguard to King Renly Baratheon. Brienne is a free attachment for any unit not including Renly with a bodyguard ability that activates once Renly’s unit has been attached. The unit Brienne The Blue is attached to gets a free attack or charge against the attacker, and that unit rolls +2 dice. Absent Renly she has no place in a list, but placing both Renly and Brienne in two units of Rose Knights is a deadly combination. Keep her close and dare your opponent to charge.

• Thorn Guard Sentinel (1 pts) (Announced and previewed): There is no mention of the "Thorn Guard" in either the books or the shows, but it is likely that they serve a leadership role within Renly's military apparatus and are likely part of the House Tyrell contingent of his forces. The Sentinel provides "Parry", a solid ability that works well when dealing with heavily armored or heavy duty single units. Rose Knights can often find themselves without an attachment, so that seems like an ideal placement.

• Pikeman Captain (1 pts) (Announced and previewed): The Pikeman Captain brings "Dauntless", the ability Rose Knights have that gives them back a wound when they pass a morale test. I would recommend against taking this on Wardens or Sentinels as they suffer average to poor morale. It's more likely this attachment will synchronize better with later Renly attachments, but that's conjecture for now. It's a shame this is a Renly loyalty, as it would work well with Stannis' forced Morale tests from cards

Tactics Deck

• Baratheon Conviction: Better on high morale units since you need to keep passing panic tests to get the benefit, so Rhllor and Rose knights like it better that Wardens or neutrals. Can really up the power of a unit like Lightbringers, which can take panic test on their own terms with Red Priestess or commander cards.

• Sustained Assault: Keeps your units effective when beating back something. Best used on offensive units like Sentinels, Rose Knights, or Faithful. Try to bait the charge with Wardens, negate their charge bonus with the Master Warden, then beat the snot outta them. This also works with attacks made with the Swords spot, making this card the premiere grinder card in your arsenal.

• Oath of Duty: A Buff that comes up when you lose a unit, but you can just play this card at the start of any turn so just use it as soon as you can, put it on something you expect to take lots of panic tests or intends to get mixed up the grinder Baratheons are so fond of.

• Final Strike: On weaker opponents this is brutal, whenever a chep enemy unit gets lucky you just pop this and make him suffer the consequences, units like Raiders or poor fellows will probably do as much damage to themselves as they did to you.

• Ours is the Fury!: Easy peazy smashing squishys, this is probably the simplest card in the deck and by no means a weak one, rewards control of the tactics board and lets units punch way above their weight class.

• Baratheon Justice: Very powerful as it’s a rare healing option in the main tactics deck, so especially valuable to Stannis players. Requires control of the letters for full effect, but you should be going for the letters early in most rounds.

• Stag's Wit: Bounce those tokens back at the enemy, in an edition with so many tokens being able to use you enemy's own token generation and making it work in your favor is great since it keep you units at peak efficiency and makes your enemies abilities work for you.

Tactics

•Look to take the Letters from Turn 2 onward as many of your cards proc once you’re actually engaged.

•Control of the Crown is also vital as many of your units have average to poor morale. Shrewd opponents will use panic to get around your solid armor saves.

•Wardens are best placed on the flanks of your army where their Master Warden bonus can prevent the full effectiveness of charges from faster armies.

•You will be outmaneuvered by most armies, so choosing to hold a specific side of the board can help mitigate your slow speed. Layering your forces so that units charging put themselves in danger of countercharges is a sound strategy.

•R’hllor lists thrive in situations where enemies suffer from morale penalties, so look to place Corpse Piles during set-up. Renly lists, on the other hand, often enjoy additional bonuses from their tactics cards when they pass morale tests, so look to place Weirwood Trees. Palisades can be helpful to slow the advance of a cavalry heavy enemy, but don't count on it doing a lot of work.

•Prioritise the horse early on. You want to be first on objectives, as you're hard to shift off. Wardens and Rose Knights especially, with their great defense and speed 4.