A Song Of Ice And Fire TMG Spring 2024 New Releases

Swords slice through frozen air as hot blood hisses red on fresh snow, so you know what that means! We're heading up to the frozen North as we take a close look at two brand new units for A Song of Ice and Fire TMG. With new releases for both the Free Folk army and the Winterfell army, we’re traveling up to the wall (and beyond)!

I’ve been consistently impressed with previous releases, which you can check out in my review of the Bolton Starter Set, and my review of some late 2023 Song of Ice and Fire TMG releases, but let's see how these two new units stack up!

A Song of Ice and Fire TMG: Harma's Vanguard

First up, let's take a look at Harma's Vanguard, a new unit for the Free Folk army! The head of Mance Rayder's vanguard, Harma Dogshead led the approach South down the Milkwater - for non-ASOIAF readers all this is to say, she was a Freefolk raider who, notably, hated dogs!

And though she's not included in this set (she was already released as part of Free Folk Heroes I years ago), her Vanguard represents a new, highly mobile bright spot in the army. With the only other Cavalry in the entire Free Folk range being the Frozen Shore Bear Riders (extremely cool, check them out in our Spring 2022 roundup), Harma's Vanguard can give some much needed ground cover to this army.

As with all Calvary, they get to make a free Maneuver action at the start of their turn. And while their weapons are a bit lacking (their "Crude Weapons" hit on a 4+, and they're rolling 6/4 based on damage), and they don't have great defense (6+), their ability to close the gap on the battlefield is crucial.

Add to that their special Order ability "Planned Approach," which at the Start of Any Turn reads: Target 1 friendly unit in Long Range. Until the end of the Turn, that unit may not be targeted by enemy effects or abilities. When selecting their Action for the Turn, that unit may only declare Charge Actions.

I really like this ability, as it feels very thematic to a Vanguard. Their job is to scope out the battlefield, discovering weaknesses and then alerting the army as to the when and where of the attack! That's just what they're doing with this ability. With a cost of 5 points (and no upgrades available), they open up new potentials for a... gasp! faster Free Folk army list!

A Song of Ice and Fire TMG: Winterfell Guards

Next, let's take a look at the Winterfell Guards. These Guards are described on their play card as "Veterans in their prime," who have staunchly defended the castle walls of Winterfell but now find themselves called to the battlefield in this time of war. One of the ways that I really like this flavor coming to life is in their "Adaptive" special ability, which just says to "Reduce the cost of 1 Attachment in this unit by 1."

What this means is that if I wanted to attach a neutral or Winterfell hero, a special captain, or some other cool "upgrade" to this unit I could do so for 1 less cost. That's a fun little ability, but from a storytelling perspective? Perfection. I think it makes so much sense that a unit comprised of veterans would be able to seamlessly welcome in a leader or specialist within their ranks.

With Longswords hitting on a 3+ (with 7/6/4 dice rolled as their ranks determine), and a decent 4+ defense, these are indeed sturdy warriors. Their two special abilities also seem fairly potent to me. For one, there's the Winterfell Supplies ability, which grants them Precision ("For each Attack Die roll of 6, the Defender does not roll a Defense Die, but instead suffers 1 Wound.") and says that while you control the Combat Zone, your melee attacks will always roll the highest value (7).

There's also the "Improved Defenses" Ability, which says that while you control the Maneuver zone, this unit gains a +1 to Defense Dice Rolls.

So here's the question, are these abilities -- which rely on you controlling specific zones -- actually all that helpful? In my opinion, you never want to be caught in a situation where you're controlling zones just for these benefits - they're not quite big enough I don't think - but if you have other ways to make use of these zones, then you've suddenly created a very threatening force here!

Also included in this unit release is an Upgrade, the Winterfell Champion. He costs 1 (therefore is free for this unit, thanks to the above-mentioned Adaptive trait) and adds Critical Blow ("For each Attack Die roll of 6, the Defender suffers +1 Hit.") and "Enemies Successfully Charged become Weakened." I don't hate this Champ as a free upgrade to this unit, since you're already enjoying free damage from their Precision! So a roll of a 6 will deal 2 automatic damage that your opponent can't even roll to defend against - Nasty!

How Do They Look?

As you can see from the above photographs, these A Song of Ice and Fire Tabletop Miniatures Game miniatures - like just about everything else in this line - look absolutely stunning. And though there's no hobby element to ASOIAF:TMG (all models come pre-built and based, much to this busy reviewer's delight) the tradeoff in detail is really impressive. From tufted fur cloaks to a diversity of stances, these units both look incredible.

A Song of Ice and Fire TMG Review: Harma's Vanguard and Winterfell Guards - Final Thoughts

Both of these units represent solid additions to their respective armies, but I think that Harma's Vanguard is much more transformative to the Free Folk than the Winterfell Guards are to Winterfell. Sure, it's great to see new Winterfell units, but there's nothing going on with that set that's really breaking the mold. But adding another Calvary unit to the Free Folk? Now that's interesting.

Should I Buy Harma's Vanguard and/or Winterfell Guards?

For Harma's Vanguard, if you're looking to add mobility to your Free Folk army, this is an absolute must-buy. For Winterfell Guards, if you like the thought of auto-dealing out multiple hits on good dice rolls, consider it! But know that these Veterans won't completely change your game.

The products used in the creation of this review were provided to us by Asmodee USA. All photographs courtesy of the author.