Game of Thrones begins....

[Viking]

What's a PvPer and what's a nerf?

PvP = Player vs Player

Nerf = a reduction in difficulty or strength, derived from the toy "Nerf Football".

[Alcibiades]

Yeah I forgot about the leeches.  And it does appear that the red religion is the only real religion at this point, or one capable of.....doing things.

[Viking]

Yeah I forgot about the leeches.  And it does appear that the red religion is the only real religion at this point, or one capable of.....doing things.

The Old Gods have done stuff, peeping tom stuff, but stuff still. Now with Dragons born magic returns. The Alchemists comment on this as well as Melisandre when she has a pov with her preparing her powders.

Magic is connected to the Wall and Dragons. The faith of the seven has hid behind the wall for thousands of years and dragon free for thousands of years until the arrival of the targaryens. So I don't expect that they are very magic friendly. The Maesters do study it, but have given up on it for the most part (probably due to the lack of dragons and others).

[MadImmortalMan]

Aren't the Red Priests more powerful now also since the magic has been returning? I'd say it's all part of the same thing.

[Eddie Teach]

Its always the PvPers crying for nerfs that screw up a good game.

US soldiers vs. Afghan rebels is imba.

[Valmy]

actually, it's very British.

Interesting.  If the Seven Kingdoms were done French-style how would it be different?

[Alcibiades]

At the end of the 5th book, what was going on exactly?  I realized I was supposed to be drawing connections and stuff, but I don't  think I quite got it.

[Martinus]

So, Melissandre came out to Stannis with 3 leeches full of Cedric Storm's blood, royal blood, and Stannis took them one by one threw then into the fire, naming an "usurper" at a time. One for Joff, one for Greyjoy, and one our beloved Robb Stark. They all died.

What was the meaning of this? That Melissandre have the "real" religion? That the red priests have the True Religion (tm) and all others are wrong?
I think GRRM fucked this one up. Melissandre is way overpowered if she can kill people just by dropping leeches in the fire. Thoros is way overpowered if he can revive people at his wimp.

[Martinus]

actually, it's very British.

Interesting.  If the Seven Kingdoms were done French-style how would it be different?

I think the Seven Kingdoms work better with European analogies but with some notable "War of Roses" tinge to it.

Only the North has a distinct British analogy (Scotland) that works better than anything else. Casterly Rock, King's Landing, Storm's End and Dragon Stone (is that the name?) are pretty generic feudal places that could work in England as much as anywhere else in Western Europe.

Dorne is definitely non-British and is reminiscent of Spain or perhaps Southern Italy. The Reach is most like Southern France and again does not have any close similarities to any part of Britain. The Iron Isles are like Norway or the like.

[Martinus]

However, what I think Raz was alluding to in his post is that the British (especially, English) nobility around the time in history that the books imitate (some early 14th century) did indeed mainly speak French. So if you consider the fact that pretty much every Westeros Kingdom (except perhaps Dorne) could be placed in Britain or France of that period, and the fact that the series concentrates on noble families, saying that it imitates "French speakers" is perhaps the closest you can get to reality with a short answer .

[Tamas]

However, what I think Raz was alluding to in his post is that the British (especially, English) nobility around the time in history that the books imitate (some early 14th century) did indeed mainly speak French. So if you consider the fact that pretty much every Westeros Kingdom (except perhaps Dorne) could be placed in Britain or France of that period, and the fact that the series concentrates on noble families, saying that it imitates "French speakers" is perhaps the closest you can get to reality with a short answer .

What's the POINT of all this?

[viper37]

What was the meaning of this? That Melissandre have the "real" religion? That the red priests have the True Religion (tm) and all others are wrong?

it's up to you to decide if it's Faith or if it's a coincidence.  I vote for the latter.

[viper37]

Interesting.  If the Seven Kingdoms were done French-style how would it be different?

only the geography would change
Medieval French and England were quite similar.  I was responding non sensical stuff to Raz.

It's just that when I read the books, I figure England in mind.  Hadrian's Wall, the frozen north (Scotland), the way Westeros is formed looks to me like a reverse image of England, the constant infighting for the throne reminscent of England's civil wars (War of the Roses, John Lackland and Richard Lionheart, Cromwell, etc), the invasion by the Andals=The Normans invading England, and many other references.

Dorne, with its mountain pass might be like Spain and the Pyrénés, or Italy with the Alps, places to difficult to access by land yet not really impossible.  But culturally, it reminds me of Wale: a distinct kingdom within a kingdom.  Really, when we think of the Seven Kingdoms, we don't see them as totally different from one another, aside Dorne.  Well, maybe also the Viking pirates and their Drown God are different.  Probably a mix between Barabry Pirates and the Viking invasions taking place in medieval england.

[Razgovory]

I think the Andals= the Anglo-Saxons while the Targarians=the Normans and the First men= the Britons.  But you are right.  England and France were very similar during the period.

[The Larch]

http://winteriscoming.net/2012/03/six-clips-from-ep-11-the-north-remembers/

Six preview clips from the first episode of the 2nd season have been made available. Enjoy!