All of it.

4. Phil Simms 30%


We can only hope...

I actually think Rickon will survive. It would be a Martin-style ending if he winds up the Warden of the North in Winterfell, but is an absolutely terrible lord who damages the Stark name after everything the family did to get their lands back.

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So why did Ned have the drearm over and over that ended with Lyanna saying "promise me!" instead of having a dream that ended with "Father"?

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Well shoot. Good point.

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Am I the only one who thinks Jaime completely BS'd the part about a son?

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Solid observation. Does that still count as evil if you threaten to catapult a FICTITIOUS baby into the city?

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2. The last male Stark able to produce progeny 99.99%

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Is Bran sterile?

What is your Litmus test for if ******* Bowl greatness?

The best battle scene of all time for me was in Excalibur. I still get chills at the sound of "Guards, knights, squires... prepare for battle!" and sight of King Arthur and his knights riding off (greatly undermanned) to battle with Carmina Burana blaring in the background.



D&D need to match that of GTFO!!

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4. Phil Simms 30%


We can only hope...

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That was my takeaway as well.

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2. The last male Stark able to produce progeny 99.99%

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Is Bran sterile?

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If Arya can recover in days from a mortal gut wound irrigated in sewage, then Bran can likely get a fat pink mast with a broken back and no nerve connection below his waist.

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The previews certainly look like a Braveheart style battle. It might be too much to expect that, but at this point that is my expectation.

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I half expect them to be running at each other full speed and then some epic event cause them all to stop. There's a historical event to draw on also which GRRM loves doing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eclipse_of_Thales

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The previews certainly look like a Braveheart style battle. It might be too much to expect that, but at this point that is my expectation.

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I think they spent like 3 weeks filming the battle. I think it's going to be pretty epic.

No. There will be WAR!

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No. There will be WAR!

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It does certainly appear that way. Anything else would be the greatest misdirection in TV history probably. I'm just saying I'm not ruling it out since we all have our hopes on an epic battle.

Do we have some narrative ground rules?

The only thing I (think) know for sure is that Jon Snow can't die again so soon after coming back to life. That would be gloriously pointless. So win or lose, he survives right?

Anything else we think we know?

I agree with you about Jon. I'm still convinced that somehow, against all odds, the Starks manage to pull it off. I think fans are really starting to tire of the them constantly being **** on and just can't see it continuing to happen for much longer

Okay, who is Phil Simms?

I mean, I know Simms the QB, but who is he in reference to GOT?

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I'm definitely envisioning a dramatic Stark victory, Jon and Sansa walking into Winterfell, we all think they're back home and safe and that we finally have a nice Stark moment, that all of the tears for the Starks are finally paying off...

And then Rickon is dead.

There's no real narrative principle behind this but I'm as positive that Rickon is going to die as I am that Snow is going to live.

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This sounds right. Well done.

my prediction

Jon lives
Sansa lives
Rickon dies
Ramsay captured not killed

Starks retake Winterfell and the North with some help from LF and the Vale army. Some of the northern houses also flip either just before or during the battle.

Melisandre also dies - not necessarily in the battle, but in the episode.

and perhaps Davos dies?

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The preview suggests Davos finally finds out what happened to Shireen. He may kill Melisandre.

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How would he find out unless she tells him herself? Isn't everyone else that saw that dead?

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The preview suggests Davos finally finds out what happened to Shireen. He may kill Melisandre.

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yes I suspect that...and then dies tragically somehow saving or protecting Jon or Sansa or Rickon.

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The preview suggests Davos finally finds out what happened to Shireen. He may kill Melisandre.

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How would he find out unless she tells him herself? Isn't everyone else that saw that dead?

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well.....i can think of several....

a. No not everyone is dead. Remember the next morning when the storm cleared they said 1/3 of their army abandoned BEFORE the fight with the Boltons. Thats when Melisandre bailed out.

b. She could tell him, but I doubt it.

c. they are back in much the same area......remember when Davos gave her this????...she had it in her hand walking to the pyre.





Also pure speculation but.......anyone considered we might see a zombie Hodor down the road - not this battle but the next time we see the WW/etc. I mean they do raise the dead who are not burned and there were WW in the area.

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a. No not everyone is dead. Remember the next morning when the storm cleared they said 1/3 of their army abandoned BEFORE the fight with the Boltons. Thats when Melisandre bailed out.

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As soon as I hit post I thought about this, but why would someone who fled that battle join up with the Stark Army? That's obviously the most likely scenario, but it still seems like a longshot.

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c. they are back in much the same area......remember when Davos gave her this????...she had it in her hand walking to the pyre.

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I suppose they could come across the Pyre itself. They did say they're camped at the same spot.

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Also pure speculation but.......anyone considered we might see a zombie Hodor down the road - not this battle but the next time we see the WW/etc. I mean they do raise the dead who are not burned and there were WW in the area.

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I posted about this in the show only thread, seems like a given, as well as a zombie Summer. Someone in that thread pointed out that there are zombie horses, no reason there wouldn't be zombie wolves as well.

Actually, now that I think about it, I think the troops that deserted Stannis after the daughter burning went and joined up with the Boltons. Part of me thinks I remember that being said by someone? Afterall, they were just sell-swords anyways and they don't get paid unless they are on the winning side.

Well there are plenty of wild dire wolves up that far above the wall and no WWs have been out hunting them. Seems like a missed opportunity to add some troops but for one reason or another, they haven't seemed to be interested in wight dire wolves.

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I'm definitely envisioning a dramatic Stark victory, Jon and Sansa walking into Winterfell, we all think they're back home and safe and that we finally have a nice Stark moment, that all of the tears for the Starks are finally paying off...

And then Rickon is dead.

There's no real narrative principle behind this but I'm as positive that Rickon is going to die as I am that Snow is going to live.

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while i think Rickon is as good as dead, i totally see Ramsay displaying him flayed or hanging from the walls of Winterfell as the catalyst that enrages Jon and the northern army.

But yeah, Rickon.....he dead.

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I'll make my call, I don't think Rickon is dead or flayed. I think Ramsey is more calculated with THIS prisoner than his pat ones (as we haven't seen any off screen torture like with Sansa and Re...Theon). He's not afraid of losing the battle, but if things turn south during the battle, he retreats into Winterfell and takes Rickon as his hostage to escape to the Dreadfort.

Seems like it would be pretty hard to hunt them down, but Summer dove right into them to buy time.

Earlier this week, I predicted (in my head) that Davos dies. I also think Rickon is a gonner and that Jon Snow and Sansa are safe.

Everything else (including who LF sides with) is up in the air.