"Support System activated. Welcome to Ice and Fire: Battle Royale. Hello, Mr. Zack. I am your AI assistant, Annie."
"Uh, hi."
"First, we will begin character creation. You have a total of three hours for this phase. Please, take your time."
"Three hours?" Zack felt that the timeframe itself carried a heavy implication. For creating a game avatar, three hours was an eternity. But for preparing to risk your actual life? It was nowhere near enough.
Annie didn't respond to his mutterings. Zack's expression turned serious as he focused on the text appearing on the screen.
> SELECT YOUR BLOODLINE
> Andal: Strength +1. Unlocks Class: 'Hedge Knight'.
> First Men: Strength +1.
> Rhoynar: Agility +1.
> Ironborn: Strength +2. Unlocks Class: 'Shipwrecked Pirate'. Gained Trait: 'Seafaring Adaptation'.
> Braavosi: Agility +2, Trade Skill +1. Unlocks Class: 'Wandering Assassin'.
> Valyrian (Free Cities Descendant): Trade Skill +1.
> Dothraki: Agility +2, Riding Skill +1.
> Yi Tish: Spirit +3.
> Ibbenese: Strength +3.
>
>
> Notes:
> 1. You may select one Primary Bloodline and one Secondary Bloodline. Your character's physical appearance will be determined by the Primary choice. The Secondary choice only provides stat bonuses.
> 2. Bloodlines will influence various aspects of your gameplay throughout the match.
> 3. You will gain fluency in the spoken language associated with your Primary Bloodline's region.
>
>
"Ugh..." Zack fell into deep thought staring at the panel.
"Tip: All choices can be modified before final confirmation," Annie chimed in helpfully. "You can review all options before locking in your decision."
Zack nodded and clicked to the next page.
> YOUR FATHER WAS...
> A returning veteran
> A farmer
> A...
>
>
> YOUR MOTHER WAS...
> YOU WERE BORN IN... (Location/Time)
> DURING YOUR CHILDHOOD, YOU...
> DURING YOUR ADOLESCENCE, YOU...
> LATER, YOU BECAME A...
> FINALLY, YOU ARRIVED AT...
After skimming the questions, Zack started locking in random options to see how the logic worked.
He quickly found a pattern: locking an answer for one question automatically restricted the options available for others.
For example, selecting Ironborn as a race removed "Farmer" from the profession list—because We Do Not Sow (the Greyjoy words, meaning they take what is yours rather than farming).
If he chose "Craftsman" as his final profession, his childhood or adolescence history forced him to select "Apprentice."
It was a standard RPG setup designed to ensure the character's backstory was logically consistent.
He spent nearly an hour reading through the options and only got through a third of them. The system's depth was overwhelming.
Take the parents' status, for instance. Except for "High Lord/Noble," almost every conceivable role in a medieval society was listed—even eunuchs and silent sisters.
Realizing he was wasting time, Zack changed his strategy. He decided to work backward. He would lock in his Current Profession first, as that would have the biggest impact on his three key survival factors: Stats, Starting Funds, and Equipment.
He quickly identified the five most competitive professions: Hedge Knight, Sellsword, Shipwrecked Pirate, Brotherhood Hunter, and Traveling Merchant.
Among these, the Hedge Knight and Traveling Merchant were the clear winners.
The Hedge Knight had slightly lower base stats than the other three combat classes (Zack assumed this was for balance), but the gear was unbeatable: a trained warhorse and a full set of armor (nasal helm, gorget, old chainmail hauberk, mail gauntlets, and greaves).
Zack knew that in the early game, a full set of armor was worth far more than a few stat points.
After all, Syrio Forel—the "First Sword of Braavos"—was killed by Meryn Trant, a mediocre Kingsguard that "any boy whore with a sword could beat three of." Why? Because Trant had "armor on, and a big fucking sword" (as the Hound would say).
The Traveling Merchant, on the other hand, was the ultimate "sugar daddy" build. It started with a massive purse of 100 Gold Dragons, plus 4 servants (useless in a fight), 4 old pack horses, 2 carts, and 7 mules.
This was the perfect setup for a mastermind/manipulator playstyle. If the merchant's average stats weren't abysmal (under 5), Zack might have picked it instantly.
These two were Tier 0.
Next was the Sellsword. Their gear was basic (short sword + leather armor), but their base stats were the highest. Pure combat power.
The Shipwrecked Pirate had decent stats and 10 Gold Dragons, making it a balanced choice. The only downside was the "Ironborn" requirement. Given the Ironborn's terrible reputation in Westeros, if a player picked this, they'd better set Ironborn as their Secondary Bloodline. Otherwise, looking like an Ironborn would make them a pariah everywhere they went.
The Brotherhood Hunter was average all-around but was the only ranged class. It would definitely attract the archery enthusiasts, and sniping people from the shadows fit the "Battle Royale" vibe perfectly.
These three were Tier 1.
Tier 2 included things like Ascetic Monk, Wandering Red Priest, Wandering Assassin, and Rhoynar River Pirate. Not great, but playable.
As for the rest—Displaced Peasant, Pickpocket, Escaped Slave, Flea Bottom Beggar, or Bankrupt Inn Hooker—Zack suspected the devs were insulting the players' intelligence.
You're going to another world to risk your actual life! Who in their right mind would pick a joke character now?
Having analyzed the classes, Zack started testing combinations backwards. He found some strong builds.
Build A: Andal + Dothraki Bloodline. Father: Mercenary. Mother: Castle Maid. Childhood: Sparring partner for the young lord. Adolescence: Squire. Adult: Knighted for valor in battle. Final Class: Hedge Knight.
Result: Excellent mounted combatant with great gear and stats right out of the gate.
Build B: Ironborn + Ibbenese Bloodline. Father: Pirate. Mother: Salt Wife (stolen from Ibben). Childhood: Cabin boy. Adolescence: Raiding. Adult: Full Pirate. Final: Shipwrecked.
Result: A berserker with Strength over 30.
Correction: Zack wondered how an Ibbenese (basically a Neanderthal) and a human could reproduce without sterility issues, but apparently, the system allowed it.
After weighing his options, Zack decided to balance early-game survival with late-game potential.
He needed the Andal bloodline to unlock the Hedge Knight class (for the armor and horse). For his second bloodline, he chose First Men.
Why? The note said, "Bloodlines will influence various aspects of your gameplay." Zack suspected this included eligibility to learn magic.
As a veteran game designer, he knew that in a world with magic, players would eventually get access to it.
So, what magic exists in Game of Thrones?
The most famous is the Lord of Light's resurrection, but that's too overpowered for a player to just have (more likely, you'd need to recruit an NPC like Thoros or Melisandre). The rest of R'hllor's magic is either useless (reading flames takes forever) or requires terrible sacrifices (burning people alive).
Aside from that, the big one is the Old Gods/Greensight of the First Men. Ignoring the "Three-Eyed Raven" level omniscience, the basic abilities—Warging (possessing animals) and Green Dreams (prophecy)—are incredibly practical.
Combat, scouting, and danger sense all in one package. Plus, the side effects are way milder than blood magic.
Crucially, while R'hllor's magic might be open to anyone, Greensight is almost certainly tied to the blood of the First Men.
He briefly considered Valyrian for dragon riding, but realized the "Free Cities Descendant" option was likely diluted blood. You need pure Dragonlord blood for dragons. The "descendants" were just bragging. So, he skipped it.
In the end, Zack locked it in: Andal (Primary) + First Men (Secondary). This guaranteed him the best starting gear while keeping the door open for magic later on.