In response to the question of why Melisandre would try to seduce Jon Snow: might it be that she wanted to kill Roose Bolton via shadow baby?

Thanks for the tip! I have played a good amount of the Crusader Kings II GOT mod. It is great in the sense that you can play out direct alternate-histories of the book events. My favorite is marrying Robb Stark to Arianne Martell at the start of the war. It tends to go better for him that way.

Totally agreed. I think when I decided to focus exclusively on the character's investment in the circumstances, and suspend my knowledge that the outcome is somewhat fixed, that was my turning point in really enjoying the game.

Well said. I ultimately came around to liking the game, but I expected and would prefer a game where actions have more far-reaching consequences (though maybe they will in the subsequent chapters). The Epictetus quote is apt for the game, given that it seems the major events are fated, and the drama is in choosing…

I enjoyed the high stakes feel of this but it quickly became clear that the results are the same no matter what you choose, which took the punch out of it for me. I can't feel invested in the decision points if they are purely cosmetic.