# Game of Thrones 6.06 "Blood of My Blood" 5/29/16 \[Show discussion\]

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [May 30, 2016, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044 "2016-05-30T00:00:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 13

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**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/241 "2016-06-03T16:41:09Z")

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> [@Kobal2](#):
>
> But not the high-powered speakers. I like to imagine that fives rows of riders away from her, the big speech became a Monty Python-style game of telephone. “What’s that she said ? Riding wooden whores on top of great sad stilts ? Sounds precarious.”

“It’s not meant to be taken literally; it refers to any provider of sexual services.”

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/242 "2016-06-03T17:15:14Z")

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> [@Duke\_of\_Rat](#):
>
> What was the speech Roose Bolton gave Ramsay about fighting a well provisioned Lannister army? I thought that their Lannister alliance was borked due to the whole Sansa thing

You’re right of course. And Ramsay has thrown any chance of an alliance with the Freys to the dogs as well (literally).

The Lannisters are in such a weak position that it’s surprising that they are sending troops to help the Freys. They face a possible uprising in King’s Landing if they try to prevent the Sparrows from trying Cersei, plus a brewing war with Dorne. Maybe they’re concerned that if the Tullys take back the Riverlands Casterly Rock would be at risk.

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**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/243 "2016-06-03T17:37:50Z")

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Controlling the Riverlands is useful as a buffer against the North and the Vale. Ostensibly both those areas are allies of the Crown, but in reality both have already betrayed the Lannisters. If they suspect as much it might be worth the risk Although maybe you just secure Kings Landing and deal with whoever hasn’t starved to death after winter is over.

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**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/244 "2016-06-03T17:58:44Z")

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> [@Colibri](#):
>
> You’re right of course. And Ramsay has thrown any chance of an alliance with the Freys to the dogs as well (literally).
> 
> The Lannisters are in such a weak position that it’s surprising that they are sending troops to help the Freys.

The Crown is in a weak position in King’s Landing. It is not at all clear that the Lannisters are militarily in a weak position. It has been, at this point, some time since House Lannister engaged in open warfare, and there is no reason within the show to believe their command over their actual lands - the Westerlands, in Martin’s sensationally unoriginal naming of almost everything in Westeros - has been weakened. By GoT standards a year or two is more than enough time to raise a pretty significant army, and a Lannister army would be well provisioned. This is after all a late Middle Ages military world; if you can whomp up five thousand well armed men, you’re a force to be reckoned with.

Sending their army to fight could potentially strengthen their position; it props up a convenient ally, impresses other allies and would be allies, and _demonstrates the strength of a house that needs a demonstration of strength._

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**Author:** ![Rucksinator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/898d66/32.png) [@Rucksinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rucksinator)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/245 "2016-06-03T18:06:52Z")

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> [@Telperion](#):
>
> Based on this [map](http://awoiaf.westeros.org/images/1/10/WorldofIceandFire.png) it seems about equivalent to getting to Trieste from Ireland. The fleet would have to go south around Westeros and then across the Narrow Sea and around most of the south of Essos. It’s a bit of a journey to be sure, but it seems quite feasible for a medieval cog.

I was thinking about marching her armies to the East and boarding ships to continue further east to Westeros. However, your map indicates that Essos continues to the east forever and we still have no idea how wide the ocean to the west of Westeros is.  
I’m beginning to wonder if this world is even a sphere.

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**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/246 "2016-06-03T18:08:18Z")

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> [@RickJay](#):
>
> The Crown is in a weak position in King’s Landing. It is not at all clear that the Lannisters are militarily in a weak position. It has been, at this point, some time since House Lannister engaged in open warfare, and there is no reason within the show to believe their command over their actual lands - the Westerlands, in Martin’s sensationally unoriginal naming of almost everything in Westeros - has been weakened. By GoT standards a year or two is more than enough time to raise a pretty significant army, and a Lannister army would be well provisioned. This is after all a late Middle Ages military world; if you can whomp up five thousand well armed men, you’re a force to be reckoned with.

Except that we’ve been told that the Lannisters don’t have the fortune they once had, so can they afford to raise and equip an army?

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/247 "2016-06-03T18:13:46Z")

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> [@Dewey\_Finn](#):
>
> Except that we’ve been told that the Lannisters don’t have the fortune they once had, so can they afford to raise and equip an army?

Right. The Lannisters are bankrupt. Their gold mines have stopped producing, and they are up to their eyes in debt to the Iron Bank and the Tyrells. They have no money of their own to pay troops and buy food and supplies. And no one is going to give them any more credit.

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/248 "2016-06-03T18:23:07Z")

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> [@Telperion](#):
>
> Based on this [map](http://awoiaf.westeros.org/images/1/10/WorldofIceandFire.png) it seems about equivalent to getting to Trieste from Ireland. The fleet would have to go south around Westeros and then across the Narrow Sea and around most of the south of Essos. It’s a bit of a journey to be sure, but it seems quite feasible for a medieval cog.

Yara took her ship from the Iron Islands to the Dreadfort to try to rescue Theon, which is almost exactly the same distance as a voyage from the Iron Islands to Mereen.

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**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/249 "2016-06-03T19:22:45Z")

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> [@Rucksinator](#):
>
> I was thinking about marching her armies to the East and boarding ships to continue further east to Westeros. However, your map indicates that Essos continues to the east forever and we still have no idea how wide the ocean to the west of Westeros is.  
> I’m beginning to wonder if this world is even a sphere.

It’s mentioned (I forget when) that some great grandfather Stark sailed west to see what was out that way. Never heard from again. So it seems Westeros had their Columbus already and he failed.

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**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/250 "2016-06-03T19:28:19Z")

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> [@Colibri](#):
>
> Right. The Lannisters are bankrupt. Their gold mines have stopped producing, and they are up to their eyes in debt to the Iron Bank and the Tyrells. They have no money of their own to pay troops and buy food and supplies. And no one is going to give them any more credit.

I don’t think the Lannisters are in debt to the Iron Bank or the Tyrells, the Crown is. The Crown is also massively in debt to the Lannisters as well.

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**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/251 "2016-06-03T19:31:21Z")

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> [@Kobal2](#):
>
> But not the high-powered speakers. I like to imagine that fives rows of riders away from her, the big speech became a Monty Python-style game of telephone. “What’s that she said ? Riding wooden whores on top of great sad stilts ? Sounds precarious.”

Funniest thing I’ve read in a while.

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**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/252 "2016-06-03T19:48:23Z")

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> [@Rucksinator](#):
>
> I was thinking about marching her armies to the East and boarding ships to continue further east to Westeros. However, your map indicates that Essos continues to the east forever and we still have no idea how wide the ocean to the west of Westeros is.  
> I’m beginning to wonder if this world is even a sphere.

So, some time ago I started thinking about wouldn’t it be kinda funny if the White Walkers were the “good” guys and humans were the antagonists…ie., the WW seem evil but we don’t know anything about their perspective, we don’t know anything about where they live or what they do. But they’ve attacked people, but so far those people were on the “wrong” side of the wall. Trespassing, damaging property, stealing resources, possibly, from the perspective of the WW. Continuing on from that, though, Westeros+Essos is essentially something like the UK+Europe. What’s on the rest of the planet? What if it’s an Earth-sized planet but almost all of it is ice, inhabited relatively peacefully by ice-creatures/WW, but there’s this incredibly violent race of Men that they’ve pretty much quarantined to one continent/region. The Men brutally and pointlessly repeatedly destroy each other and themselves while squabbling over control of a few insignificant blobs of dirt that thaw out every few thousand years or so…

Now with the reveal of the WW’s relationship to the Children of the Forest, it affects this a little bit. But I do still wonder about the rest of the planet.

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/253 "2016-06-03T19:53:29Z")

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> [@DigitalC](#):
>
> I don’t think the Lannisters are in debt to the Iron Bank or the Tyrells, the Crown is. The Crown is also massively in debt to the Lannisters as well.

Rather a technicality. The point is that the Lannisters have no money of their own available to finance a war, and the Tyrells will only be willing to provide any as long as Margaery is Queen. As King, Tommen is responsible for the debts, and he is a Lannister (though publicly that’s only on his mother’s side). In the event of Tommen’s death, the Iron Bank will be looking to collect from the Lannisters, or finance someone else to take the Crown as they did with Stannis.

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**Author:** ![Telperion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telperion/32/509_2.png) [@Telperion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperion)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/254 "2016-06-03T21:06:29Z")

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> [@Colibri](#):
>
> Yara took her ship from the Iron Islands to the Dreadfort to try to rescue Theon, which is almost exactly the same distance as a voyage from the Iron Islands to Mereen.

I already said it seems quite feasible. At a speed of five knots it would take about three weeks, give or take.

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**Author:** ![Rucksinator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/898d66/32.png) [@Rucksinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rucksinator)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/255 "2016-06-03T22:04:30Z")

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The people at Cracked had the same idea that I had (you can skip to 6:50 of [What Does Bran's Vision Mean For Game Of Thrones](http://www.cracked.com/video_19856_why-this-weeks-episode-daenerys-villain-origin-story.html)), except that I misunderstood the geography of this universe.

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/256 "2016-06-03T22:05:06Z")

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> [@Telperion](#):
>
> I already said it seems quite feasible. At a speed of five knots it would take about three weeks, give or take.

I was agreeing with you, and giving an example of a voyage of similar length that had already been shown.

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**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\
**Post date:** [June 3, 2016, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/257 "2016-06-03T22:27:20Z")

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> [@Rucksinator](#):
>
> I wondered if she might get her ships from the Iron Islands. I’m having trouble finding a map that shows how close the Iron Islands are to the Easternmost parts of Essos, since the maps seem to all cut that part out.  
> IDK why the new king of the Ironborn would ally with Dany, but he did just order a boatload (heh) of ships to be made.

Well yeah… that was kind of the point of showing us Euron saying “Build me 1000 ships!” then immediately after that Dany saying “How many ships do we need?” and the answer being “1000.” A bit on the nose even. And Euron specifically said he wants to court and ally with Dany, so that’s already his plan.

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**Author:** ![Reepicheep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@Reepicheep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reepicheep)\
**Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/258 "2016-06-04T02:34:56Z")

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> [@Snarky\_Kong](#):
>
> Controlling the Riverlands is useful as a buffer against the North and the Vale. Ostensibly both those areas are allies of the Crown, but in reality both have already betrayed the Lannisters. If they suspect as much it might be worth the risk Although maybe you just secure Kings Landing and deal with whoever hasn’t starved to death after winter is over.

The problem with this is that winter can take a generation. Remember the stories that Bran was told by his nurse.

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**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\
**Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/259 "2016-06-04T07:53:04Z")

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Little Finger definitely made a mistake with Ramsey. His plan was to Marry off Sansa, then come back with the lords of the Vale to clean up after Stanis or possibly clean up Stanis himself. He certainly didn’t think Stanis would lose or that Ramsey was a nutcase. When they met up a couple episodes back she called him either an idiot or her enemy, Throwing his own thoughts back at him on trusting fools.

I am now really curious how he fixes the wrench Ramsey threw into his plans.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\
**Post date:** [June 4, 2016, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-6-06-blood-of-my-blood-5-29-16-show-discussion/756044/260 "2016-06-04T12:14:30Z")

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> [@Critical1](#):
>
> Little Finger definitely made a mistake with Ramsey. His plan was to Marry off Sansa, then come back with the lords of the Vale to clean up after Stanis or possibly clean up Stanis himself. He certainly didn’t think Stanis would lose or that Ramsey was a nutcase. When they met up a couple episodes back she called him either an idiot or her enemy, Throwing his own thoughts back at him on trusting fools.
> 
> I am now really curious how he fixes the wrench Ramsey threw into his plans.

Dude, you’ve been corrected multiple times and you keep misspelling all these names. Are you just doing it on purpose to piss people off?

Littlefinger  
Ramsay  
Stannis

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