"The auxiliary system has been successfully activated. Welcome to Ice and Fire: Escape Game. Hello, Mr. Jon Snow. Your AI assistant, Annie, is at your service."
"Uh, hello."
"First, we'll begin by creating your game character. You have a total of three hours for this stage. Please take your time and review everything carefully."
"Three hours?" Jon felt the time limit added a certain seriousness to the process. It seemed too long for simply creating a character, yet far too short when considering the life-or-death stakes.
Annie didn't respond. All Jon could do was focus on the text that had appeared on the screen in front of him.
[What is your ancestry?]
Andals: +1 Strength, unlocks the profession Hedge Knight
First Men: +1 Strength
Rhoynar: +1 Agility
Ironborn: +2 Strength, unlocks the profession Pirate in Distress, gains the trait Navigation Adaptation
Braavos: +2 Agility, +1 Trade Skill, unlocks the profession Wandering Assassin
Valyrian Freehold Descendants: +1 Trade Skill
Dothraki: +2 Agility, +1 Riding Skill
Yeti: +3 Mental Power
Ibbenese: +3 Strength
Note:
Players may choose a primary and secondary bloodline. The character's appearance will reflect the primary bloodline; the secondary provides only attribute bonuses.
Bloodline will influence the character in all aspects of gameplay.
Players will gain language skills appropriate to the homeland of their primary ancestry.
"Hmm…" Jon studied the page thoughtfully.
"Tip: All choices can be changed until the character creation is finalized," Annie reminded him. "You can review all options first before deciding."
Jon nodded and moved on to the next screen.
[Who is your father?]
A veteran returning home
A farmer
(Other options…)
[Who is your mother?]
[Where were you born? (Place/Time)]
[What did you do in your childhood?]
[What did you do as a teenager?]
[What did you eventually become?]
[Where did you end up?]
After skimming through the options, Jon began narrowing down combinations to find the most effective setup.
He quickly noticed a pattern: when he selected one option, it would limit the choices available in other sections.
For example, if he chose Ironborn as his ancestry, options like "farmer" would disappear from later questions. After all, "We Do Not Sow"—the Ironborn don't farm.
Likewise, if he wanted to become a craftsman in his final profession, he had to select "craftsman apprentice" during both childhood and youth stages.
This kind of progression was a common design, meant to keep the character's background consistent and logical.
It took Jon nearly an hour to get through less than a third of the choices—the options were just that detailed.
For example, when choosing the identity of the parents, it included nearly every social class imaginable, except nobility. Even eunuchs and silent sisters were listed.
So Jon decided to reverse his approach. Instead of working from the beginning, he started at the end—examining the final professions first. These would affect major factors like starting resources, equipment, and influence.
Eventually, Jon narrowed it down to five promising professions: Mercenary Knight, Wandering Mercenary, Pirate in Distress, Brotherhood Hunter, and Traveling Merchant.
Among them, Mercenary Knight and Traveling Merchant stood out the most.
While the Mercenary Knight had slightly less influence compared to other combat professions (Jon wasn't sure why that was—maybe for balance?), it offered a distinct advantage: a trained warhorse and a full set of armor. That included a nasal helm, gorget, worn chainmail, mail gloves, and a pair of greaves.
Compared to small differences in starting resources, Jon Snow believed that having a full set of armor would give players a much bigger advantage early in the game.
After all, even Syrio Forel—the so-called "greatest swordsman in the world"—was killed by a blunt weapon in the hands of Kingsguard Meryn Trant. A man known more for beating prostitutes than fighting soldiers, yet he survived simply because, as Sandor Clegane once put it, "He had bloody armor."
The Traveling Merchant class, on the other hand, starts with 100 gold dragons in capital, four nearly useless servants, four old draft horses, two carts, and seven mules.
This setup clearly made it the top choice for players who preferred a behind-the-scenes strategy. If not for its average starting attributes being only 5, Jon might have picked it on the spot.
These two—Mercenary Knight and Traveling Merchant—were clearly Tier 0 professions.
Next came the Wandering Mercenary. Though they start with only basic equipment—a short sword and leather armor—their layout stats are top-tier, and their combat power is quite decent.
Pirate in Distress starts with 10 gold dragons and has a balanced skill set. However, it's limited to Ironborn lineage. Considering how the rest of Westeros views the Ironborn, players who make it their primary ancestry might as well prepare to be treated like rats in a kitchen. At best, you could use Ironborn as a secondary bloodline to avoid instant hostility.
Brotherhood Hunter didn't stand out as much, but it had its unique value. As the only class focused on ranged combat, it would definitely appeal to players who preferred stealth and sniping from the shadows. Hidden attacks, ambushes—this style matched certain playstyles well.
These three were Tier 1 professions.
Tier 2 included roles like Ascetic Priest, Wandering Red Priest, Wandering Assassin, Rogue of the Rhoyne, and others. These didn't offer any clear advantages but were still playable.
And at the bottom? Classes like Landless Farmer, Pickpocket, Escaped Slave, Flea Bottom Beggar, or Tavern Duck in a bankrupt inn. Jon couldn't help but think these options existed purely to test a player's patience—or their intelligence.
You're entering a deadly game in a brutal world. Who in their right mind would choose a character doomed from the start?
After finishing his analysis of the available professions, Jon began building from the back to the front, trying out different combinations.
For example: he could pick Andal as his main bloodline and Dothraki as secondary. His father would be a mercenary, his mother a maid at a knight's manor. He would serve as a sparring partner during childhood, become a knight's squire in adolescence, earn his knighthood through battlefield merit, and finally begin the game as a Hedge Knight.
That path gave him solid stats, great equipment, and strong combat ability right from the start.
Another interesting path: Ironborn and Ibbenese bloodlines. His father—a pirate; his mother—a salt wife taken from Ibben. Raised at sea, joining the crew as a teen, and eventually becoming a full pirate before shipwrecking and washing ashore.
That start gave him a literal berserker with over 30 Strength.
Still, one thing puzzled Jon—wasn't there supposed to be reproductive isolation between the Ibbenese and other races? How was this character even born?
After weighing all the pros and cons, Jon decided to pick a path that balanced early game survival and long-term growth.
He chose Andal as his primary bloodline to unlock the Hedge Knight profession. For his secondary bloodline, he selected First Men (referred to in the menu as Ancestors).
There was a note under the bloodline selection: "Bloodline will affect players in all aspects of the entire game." That made Jon suspect it might also determine who could learn magic.
As someone with years of experience in game design, he knew that in any fantasy game, it was only a matter of time before players gained access to magic.
So, what kinds of magic exist in the world of Ice and Fire?
The most well-known was the resurrection spell of R'hllor, the Lord of Light. But such a god-tier ability would never be available to players from the start. (It was more likely players could recruit characters like Thoros of Myr or Melisandre.)
Other spells of R'hllor were either too slow to cast or had absurd drawbacks—too impractical for players to use themselves.
The other major type of magic came from the First Men: green magic. This included powers like warging (possessing animals), greensight (dreams of the future), and even the legendary abilities of the Three-Eyed Raven to see the past and future.
These were practical, versatile, and—most importantly—less risky than other types of magic.
And while magic from the Lord of Light might not depend on bloodline, green magic almost certainly did. Only those with the blood of the First Men could inherit such gifts.
As for dragon riding, the dream of every player? It required pure Valyrian blood. Those so-called "Remnants of Valyria" from the Free Cities didn't qualify—they just liked to exaggerate their heritage.
So, Jon didn't even consider the Valyrian bloodline as an option.
In the end, he selected First Men as his secondary bloodline—just in case. He wasn't going to miss his chance to unlock green magic later on.