Cracker of an episode. Kind of a mood-breaker at the end there though, with that track playing over the credits...
Whoever decided to play that song should be shot. I can understand maybe playing one of the covers that actually sounds like it was from the same universe as the books/show, but it sounded modern as hell and really broke the mood.
This would have been an ideal episode to just fade to back and let the gravity of the events wash over the viewer (like was done really effectively in the first season).
yeah, playing that song at the end was weird. It was a cover by a modern band of one of the songs in the books...so, kinda fan service to the fans, I guess, but it was still a pretty poor idea.
I don't really like those "we must give screentime to everyone" episodes. Even though the book is divided into chapters for each characters, cramming a it all into one episode is a bit too much. Scenes jump too quickly from one person to the other and there's just so little time to immerse yourself into what is going on. 2nd episode was better in that regard. Oh and what about that song at the end?!?
There hasn't been an episode this year with all the main characters...
This one was missing Sansa, Bran and Rickon and the Reeds, Joffrey and Margaery and the grandma, or Davos or Shae.
well I sure hope not they cram every character into 1 episode. That's like 2 - 3 minutes per character, or less? I find the back and forth already annoying. There's maybe 1 longer scene of dialog per main character and cut, next. Even in the books the chapters offer more than that. Personally I don't have a problem not seeing certain characters for a whole episode.
okay, okay gotta admit that Martin isn't making it easy for them either. He just juggles a lot of story lines at the same time. It works in a book with 700 pages (even though because of all this he had to split the last volume in 2 ), but the pace of the show just extremely compacts it all. I wonder what they'll do once they run out of story keeping at this pace. Interluding it with the Hedge Knight mini series?
I wonder what they'll do once they run out of story keeping at this pace. Interluding it with the Hedge Knight mini series?
I wouldn't worry too much. Even at this pace, it's going to take them the rest of this season and another after that to get through the content in the third book. They could divide the fourth and fifth book up into another three, possibly four seasons on top of that. It's going to be a minimum of three seasons after this one when they reach the end of the current books. (by which time Martin will hopefully have released the next book)
Season 4 will complete book 3 and probably start book 4 and 5 in parallel. From that point on the breaks in the seasons won't follow the books at all any longer. The producers have talked about this several times in recent interviews...
Feckin' brilliant episode this week. Great dialogue from the crows Wasn't feeling the Sansa/Maj scene but that's a small complaint.
What the hell was the point of breaking Theon out only to bring him back? That wasnt in the books right? Pointless and took 15 mins out of this and last weeks episodes.
Well, there are some mind games being hinted at there, too.
Not sure if it's a spoiler but better to be safe, so I'll use the tags; however I'd still consider it OK to read the following even if you don't know the books.
Theon's completely gone from Books 3 and 4, and we have no idea about what's happened to him after Book 2. But he's back in Book 5, which takes place in parallel to the events of 4. So with a straight adaptation, in the show he should be missing from this season and some part of the next, and then be back.
On the other hand, elements of the Theon storyline we're seeing now have already taken place in Book 2, so they should have been included in the previous season... But that was already dense enough with stories and new characters.
Then there are events that take place during the time of book 3, but are only told later in book 5 as flashbacks.
So, it does make sense to include these events and these new characters in this season.
They also can't really send a lead actor away for a year and then expect him to return, so that's another important reason to deviate from the books.
Season 4 will complete book 3 and probably start book 4 and 5 in parallel. From that point on the breaks in the seasons won't follow the books at all any longer. The producers have talked about this several times in recent interviews...
But they will still follow the books storyline right ? I'm just wondering if the show won't finish the story before the last book can come out.
They probably won't catch up before book 6 is out; after that, the showrunners will get input from Martin to write the last season or two if he can't finish on time. They've already been consulting on unpublished stuff.
They probably won't catch up before book 6 is out; after that, the showrunners will get input from Martin to write the last season or two if he can't finish on time. They've already been consulting on unpublished stuff.
I'm sure they could fill up a season with dunk and egg stuff to give Gurm some more time to write if they really had to
Great season so far. I really hated Jaime in the first season. My literate friends told me that would change, and they were right... I'm totally rooting for him now.
Also, I don't know why this is, but I really have found all the scenes with Khaleesi pretty boring. This season has been a bit better, but I'm still uninterested. Everyone else seems to really love those parts though. I dunno, maybe it's just because her story seems so disconnected from everything else going on at the moment.
Also, I don't know why this is, but I really have found all the scenes with Khaleesi pretty boring. This season has been a bit better, but I'm still uninterested. Everyone else seems to really love those parts though. I dunno, maybe it's just because her story seems so disconnected from everything else going on at the moment.
Yeah i could see that. In the books they really slow burn the events in the last episode as well as in that area of the world for longer so you kind of appreciate that moment, i thought they did a good job though.
Also, I don't know why this is, but I really have found all the scenes with Khaleesi pretty boring. This season has been a bit better, but I'm still uninterested. Everyone else seems to really love those parts though. I dunno, maybe it's just because her story seems so disconnected from everything else going on at the moment.
Weird, its the complete opposite for me; whenever shes on screen Im all off a sudden on the edge of my seat. The final 10 minutes of the last episode made it for me. Shes the underdog of sorts, and everyone roots for an underdog.
Oh don't even mention this On one hand I really love the TV show, but on the other I fear that it takes even more time away from working on his books. I really need some new reads. I even went through all the short stories and other novels, except for the Wildcards series...
Great season so far. I really hated Jaime in the first season. My literate friends told me that would change, and they were right... I'm totally rooting for him now.
Also, I don't know why this is, but I really have found all the scenes with Khaleesi pretty boring. This season has been a bit better, but I'm still uninterested. Everyone else seems to really love those parts though. I dunno, maybe it's just because her story seems so disconnected from everything else going on at the moment.
The problem is that unlike many of the other characters, Danerys has plot invulnerability. She has to survive long enough to have an effect on the other characters otherwise her story arc will have been entirely pointless.
Thankfully it looks like they might finally get onto the mainland after which we should have a bit more of an element of danger that will make her less of a Mary Sue and her scenes more exciting. I don't expect her to die any time soon, but at least the possibility will be there.
The problem is that unlike many of the other characters, Danerys has plot invulnerability. She has to survive long enough to have an effect on the other characters otherwise her story arc will have been entirely pointless.
You do recall Martin killed off his lead at the end of the first book right?
Yeah, but there were other characters to take his place and his death served as a catalyst for a lot of what followed. If Danerys suddenly died for one reason or another, what would happen? There's no real way for that arc to continue without her as she's the soul driving force.
right now Danerys' plot has not connected with any other main character. I would say the majority of the other main characters are completely unaware of her existence, and those that do know haven't talked about it since the first season, and even then those were just rumors. Her plot is completely detached.
I agree with the point on plot invulnerability, too. If she were to die now - well then, that would just feel like a lot of wasted time. We just watched someone toil around in the desert for about half of every episode only for them to disappear, and no one else in the cast of characters would either know or care. That's not going to happen. That would be completely unlike the death of Eddard Stark, because that death served a purpose and had a big effect on almost every other main character (except maybe Danerys, again because she is so far removed).
Even if there are 'others' as almighty_gir suggests, that really hasn't been hinted at in the story thus far (unless I've really missed something) so that wouldn't change my perception of the character and that story given I have no way of knowing about any of that.
Yeah, but there were other characters to take his place and his death served as a catalyst for a lot of what followed. If Danerys suddenly died for one reason or another, what would happen? There's no real way for that arc to continue without her as she's the soul driving force.
I take it you're not caught up on the books. I'll just leave it at that.
The fact is shes Targaryen and that family have close relevance to both King Robert and Ned Stark. What went down is still fresh in the mind of Westeros.
The fact is shes Targaryen and that family have close relevance to both King Robert and Ned Stark. What went down is still fresh in the mind of Westeros.
I don't think anybody is denying that. It's not fresh in my mind, though.
but from the perspective of someone who is just watching the TV show, she (and her now dead brother) are the only Targaryens we've seen, I have no attachment to any of those characters and even if it wasn't all that long ago in the lore, it barely seems relevant to the other primary characters. Having SEEN some of the terrible things that have happened to the Starks, I can relate better to characters like Robb, for instance. However, with Danerys' story, I haven't seen anything in regards to her connection with the rest of the world and her original motivations. Those things have all been mentioned, but without seeing any of it, I have much less empathy for the character, and care about her less than almost any other character on the show. I'm sure that will change later on.
The show should be able to stand alone completely so it doesn't really matter whether or not someone is caught up in the books. Most people who haven't read the books really enjoy the parts with Danerys in the show, so it's probably mostly just my weird opinion, but I think there are some valid reasons as to why I care less about her plot.
Yeah I can see how someone who hasn't read the books could feel a disconnect. In fact for the length of time Dany ponces around the eastern land, even the book suffers from that sometimes.
I do recommend reading the books, at least the first one. The rest of the books have their moments but are not as strong IMO.
Yeah I can see how someone who hasn't read the books could feel a disconnect. In fact for the length of time Dany ponces around the eastern land, even the book suffers from that sometimes.
I hear you. when I re-read the books I skipped the dany parts and then read them all at once when I was finished with the more interesting happenings in Westeros.
I haven't read the books and only watch the show, but I like the two stories being separate for now as it feels like an intersection is looming over the horizon. There's already enough going on in Westeros that right now that adding in another major player would make things even harder to follow. Yeah, if we go another 2 seasons and she's still not over there in some way I might stop caring about her story, but right now it's interesting to me and exciting.
Not sure I agree with this supposed disconnect actually. Most of the Jorah/Danny dialogue has to do with Westeros, and Baristan Selmy has joined them now...
Westeros seem unconcerned with her cause Robert failed to send a memo before he copped it. But her story is still very focussed on Westeros.
If anything that disconnect is going to get much much worse.
So she's not just going to pile her army into ships and get in on the battle for the throne then? I do hope that's not too far off.
I think the disconnect between Danerys and the rest of the parties isn't as problematic as it was in earlier seasons. The rest of the characters are becoming progressively more scattered and so its less jarring to jump away from what feels like the main action to something that's only tenuously linked to it, at least from the perspective of the TV series watcher.
As I mentioned earlier, my beef with Danerys has been that she's the only one driving her story arc forward at the moment so from a narrative perspective she can't die. Contrast this particularly to the characters in Kings Landing at the moment where it'd be quite plausible for any of them to be killed off - There are so many intertangled story arcs going on there that the death of one major character could easily be used as a device to spur on the stories of others, as we saw with Edard's death.
Again, I think this issue isn't as pronounced as it was earlier, as more characters head off in their own directions, but I'm still inclined to think that until Danerys actually has a chance to have some impact on the mains story, she's going to continue to feel like a bit of a Mary Sue.
it was something more along the lines of 8000 + all the untrained ones.
On another forum there was also some people discussing the sizes of all the army's, so this estimation isn't mine.
So yes, unless some houses would ally to her, or untill the dragons are adult and/or she actually gets a larger army she probably won't be taking over king's landing anytime soon.
maybe if you say that unsullied are better then just 1 normal person in any of these armies, or she takes use of the war going on right now, but even then I don't see her doing anything anytime soon.
maybe something changes soon, because if it continues on much longer then this it might get boring, but killing her now would just be silly, it would be like killing off Ned Stark in the 1st season before he even got to king's landing, she just hasn't done anything yet.
"-Robb's has about 20,000 troops
-There are another 12,000-15,000 troops allied with Robb from Riverrun
-The Lannisters have roughly 45,000 troops with about another 25,000 from the Tyrells
-Stannis has around 10,000-20,000 left after the Battle of Blackwater.
-There are over 100,000 wildlings seperated into many different tribes, but all allied under the leadership of Mance Raynor. Yet, only about 1/3-1/2 of them are warriors. The rest are the old, the sick, and children.
-There are about 1,500-2,500 Night's watch members guarding the entirety of the Wall, about 500 located at Castle Black. Only about 1/3 of those numbers are Rangers however, the rest either being Builders or Stewards.
-The Greyjoys control the largest navy at approx 250-350 ships."
I think Renly's army (before his death) had 100k to 200k, right? I'm thinking that's why Dany isn't gonna just go ahead and attack quite yet.
Yeah but these are Unsullied, they aren't mead-sodden Westerotians... I really recommend reading the books, you miss out on all the depth of these characters.
Plus Dany has been led to believe that the whole of Westeros will drop on one knee as soon as she drops anchor, with only the Lannisters and Baratheons (currently occupying the throne) raising any opposition.
As far as the books are concerned, the third book (A Storm of Swords) is my favorite. There are a LOT of really important events that happen in this book, as well as a huge number of great moments for some of my favorite characters. My only real complaint about A Storm of Swords is that Tyrion doesn't get as much power and influence as he had in A Clash of Kings.
Coming in at second place is the second book in the series. (A Clash of Kings) This book introduces some appealing and complicated new characters like Stannis, Davos, Melisandre, and Ygritte. It also gives Tyrion a real chance to shine as the interim Hand of the King. (more Tyrion, always more Tyrion!) It has a lot of momentous events as well, and nicely handled pacing. (decent ebbs and swells of action and interest)
Third place goes to the fifth book. (A Dance of Dragons) Things in several locales pick up pace considerably, and the book incorporates a lengthy "journey" for one of the characters in particular. This portion of the book gives Martin a chance to really explore some of his world that had only been hinted at before. Once again, a lot happens, and a lot of appealing characters get plenty of face time.
The very first book of the series lands at fourth place on my list. (A Game of Thrones) While a decent introduction to the series, the book is primarily concerned with introducing and setting up the world. While it does a fine job at this, the need for all this setup and exposition makes for a much slower pace. For someone like me who appreciates character development and intrigue, it was a real page-turner. But in terms of excitement and significant events, it just doesn't measure up to the three previous entries on my list.
The fourth book (A Feast for Crows) is my least favorite. It's not a bad book, and has a lot of great development for characters that weren't quite as prominent in previous books. But it mainly deals with the aftermath of the tumultuous events of the first three books. It is also much more focused on a particular geographic region, and the characters that occupy it. It doesn't jump around nearly as much, which serves to slow the pacing down quite a bit.
Yeah but these are Unsullied, they aren't mead-sodden Westerotians... I really recommend reading the books, you miss out on all the depth of these characters.
Plus Dany has been led to believe that the whole of Westeros will drop on one knee as soon as she drops anchor, with only the Lannisters and Baratheons (currently occupying the throne) raising any opposition.
Doesn't matter who they are 6000 soldiers can't beat 100,000. And they certainly can't lay siege to well defended castles.
But can 8,000 (Yes, it's 8,000, not 6,000) soldiers with 3 mother fucking dragons beat 100,000 soldiers. They wiped out Astapor pretty easily.
Not really a good comparison. The Unsullied WERE the military of Astapor. All they had to wipe out was a relatively small ruling class. That sort of strategy could only work once, and under very specific conditions.
If the Unsullied were actually brought to Westeros, they would be of limited use against mounted and armored knights. The Unsullied are unmounted ground troops, and would probably be less effective against full cavalry. While certainly capable troops, they would still be hard pressed by an overwhelming force of Westerosi.
If they were combined with 3 full-grown dragons, that would be a different story. The Unsullied could focus purely on defense and mop-up while the dragons wreak havoc from the air. A force like that could be constantly giving ground, and still win.
8000 unsullied would be massacred in westeros, dragons or no dragons. their primary strengths lie in the inability to interpret pain, to follow orders to the letter without regard to their own lives, and in their regimented training.
i would consider the unsullied to be in the same line as say... spartan phalanx. amazing in particularly strategic situations where everything can be used to their advantage, close quarters fighting and the like. but on an open field, against an actual army of cavalry... fuck no. not a chance in hell.
they do describe in the books an event where the dothraki charged a city and were turned back by a very small number of unsullied, but that happened at the gates of the city, so i can only assume they "funneled" the dothraki in a way that made their horses useless, not to mention dothraki don't use lances either.
that said... i'm actually getting really pissed off with people who've only watched the show speculating on future events. read the fucking books already, you can plow through them all in just under 6 weeks, and it'll save everyone some heartache when people "spoil" stuff by accident.
i would consider the unsullied to be in the same line as say... spartan phalanx. amazing in particularly strategic situations where everything can be used to their advantage, close quarters fighting and the like. but on an open field, against an actual army of cavalry... fuck no. not a chance in hell.
That's where pairing them up with full-grown dragons becomes viable. Unsullied do handle spears, which would prevent them from being completely overwhelmed by cavalry. But yes, against a large enough cavalry force, they simply wouldn't be able to hold. That's where the dragons come in.
Dragons would provide any number of advantages in a large engagement. But one of the best is their ability to counter cavalry charges. A flying dragon would have the necessary mobility to strafe any advancing cavalry before it ever managed to reach the front lines. And even the best-trained horses would be spooked by a flying, fire-breathing lizard. (there is actually an example of this in the fifth book) And cavalry are meant for mowing down foot soldiers, they would be less than useless when it came to defending against a dragon.
Have the Unsullied gradually retreat in good order, while the dragons counter any attempted cavalry charges and strafe the enemy lines in-between. On open fields, the dragons could even start brush fires to pin the enemy down.
In the books the original Targaryens managed to conquer all of Westeros with an outnumbered army and three dragons. That's why every character makes such a big deal about Daenarys' dragons.
After the Doom of Valyria the Dothraki first rode out east of the Dothraki Sea, it can be assumed that the fall of Valyria and the chaos that followed it is what prompted (and perhaps allowed) the Dothraki to attack with such power. 50,000 Dothraki, at least half of them warriors, were led by horse lord khal Temmo, sacking and burning every town and city in their path.[1]
Aware of the Khalasar advance, the Qohor strengthened their walls, doubled their garrison, and hired two mercenary companies besides, Bright Banners and the Second Sons. They also sent a man to Astapor purchased three thousand Unsullied.[1]
During the first day of the fighting the Dothraki were unmatched, Qohor forces were shattered, its heavy horse annihilated and the sellsword companies had fled in the face of hopeless odds. The Dothraki had retired to their camps to drink, feast and rest before their final assault at dawn brake. However, during the night, the three thousand Unsullied had finally reached the city and come dawn, were waiting for the Dothraki horde arrayed in battle formation before the city gates.
The Dothraki, could have easily out flank such a small force but in their contempt for infantry, launched a direct frontal assault, in an attempt to simply ride down the heavy infantry. Eighteen times they charged and attacked the Unsullied ranks and Thrice their archers wheeling past raining arrows on the Three Thousand, each time failing to break through.
Finally the Dothraki halted their attacks after the Khal, his bloodriders and sons had been killed. Their losses were staggering: 12.000 dead. Only 600 Unsullied remained, but the victory was theirs nonetheless. Four days later, the new khal led his remaining khalasar past the city gates in a stately procession. Each man cut off his braid and threw it down before the Unsullied.[1][2]
cliffs : 3000 unsullied fended off 50,000 dothraki
Wonder how the Unsullied are gonna handle the Westeros winter if they ever do cross the narrow sea hah. Gonna need some more appropriate clothing/armour!
Replies
Whoever decided to play that song should be shot. I can understand maybe playing one of the covers that actually sounds like it was from the same universe as the books/show, but it sounded modern as hell and really broke the mood.
This would have been an ideal episode to just fade to back and let the gravity of the events wash over the viewer (like was done really effectively in the first season).
This one was missing Sansa, Bran and Rickon and the Reeds, Joffrey and Margaery and the grandma, or Davos or Shae.
okay, okay gotta admit that Martin isn't making it easy for them either. He just juggles a lot of story lines at the same time. It works in a book with 700 pages (even though because of all this he had to split the last volume in 2
I wouldn't worry too much. Even at this pace, it's going to take them the rest of this season and another after that to get through the content in the third book. They could divide the fourth and fifth book up into another three, possibly four seasons on top of that. It's going to be a minimum of three seasons after this one when they reach the end of the current books. (by which time Martin will hopefully have released the next book)
Season 4 will complete book 3 and probably start book 4 and 5 in parallel. From that point on the breaks in the seasons won't follow the books at all any longer. The producers have talked about this several times in recent interviews...
What the hell was the point of breaking Theon out only to bring him back? That wasnt in the books right? Pointless and took 15 mins out of this and last weeks episodes.
Not sure if it's a spoiler but better to be safe, so I'll use the tags; however I'd still consider it OK to read the following even if you don't know the books.
Then there are events that take place during the time of book 3, but are only told later in book 5 as flashbacks.
So, it does make sense to include these events and these new characters in this season.
They also can't really send a lead actor away for a year and then expect him to return, so that's another important reason to deviate from the books.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cFZen-XO5II
ROFL, awesome episode, but this grandma is killing me... "question for philosophers"
But they will still follow the books storyline right ? I'm just wondering if the show won't finish the story before the last book can come out.
I'm sure they could fill up a season with dunk and egg stuff to give Gurm some more time to write if they really had to
Also, I don't know why this is, but I really have found all the scenes with Khaleesi pretty boring. This season has been a bit better, but I'm still uninterested. Everyone else seems to really love those parts though. I dunno, maybe it's just because her story seems so disconnected from everything else going on at the moment.
Yeah i could see that. In the books they really slow burn the events in the last episode as well as in that area of the world for longer so you kind of appreciate that moment, i thought they did a good job though.
Weird, its the complete opposite for me; whenever shes on screen Im all off a sudden on the edge of my seat. The final 10 minutes of the last episode made it for me. Shes the underdog of sorts, and everyone roots for an underdog.
Thankfully it looks like they might finally get onto the mainland after which we should have a bit more of an element of danger that will make her less of a Mary Sue and her scenes more exciting. I don't expect her to die any time soon, but at least the possibility will be there.
You do recall Martin killed off his lead at the end of the first book right?
right now Danerys' plot has not connected with any other main character. I would say the majority of the other main characters are completely unaware of her existence, and those that do know haven't talked about it since the first season, and even then those were just rumors. Her plot is completely detached.
I agree with the point on plot invulnerability, too. If she were to die now - well then, that would just feel like a lot of wasted time. We just watched someone toil around in the desert for about half of every episode only for them to disappear, and no one else in the cast of characters would either know or care. That's not going to happen. That would be completely unlike the death of Eddard Stark, because that death served a purpose and had a big effect on almost every other main character (except maybe Danerys, again because she is so far removed).
Even if there are 'others' as almighty_gir suggests, that really hasn't been hinted at in the story thus far (unless I've really missed something) so that wouldn't change my perception of the character and that story given I have no way of knowing about any of that.
I take it you're not caught up on the books. I'll just leave it at that.
The fact is shes Targaryen and that family have close relevance to both King Robert and Ned Stark. What went down is still fresh in the mind of Westeros.
I don't think anybody is denying that. It's not fresh in my mind, though.
but from the perspective of someone who is just watching the TV show, she (and her now dead brother) are the only Targaryens we've seen, I have no attachment to any of those characters and even if it wasn't all that long ago in the lore, it barely seems relevant to the other primary characters. Having SEEN some of the terrible things that have happened to the Starks, I can relate better to characters like Robb, for instance. However, with Danerys' story, I haven't seen anything in regards to her connection with the rest of the world and her original motivations. Those things have all been mentioned, but without seeing any of it, I have much less empathy for the character, and care about her less than almost any other character on the show. I'm sure that will change later on.
The show should be able to stand alone completely so it doesn't really matter whether or not someone is caught up in the books. Most people who haven't read the books really enjoy the parts with Danerys in the show, so it's probably mostly just my weird opinion, but I think there are some valid reasons as to why I care less about her plot.
I do recommend reading the books, at least the first one. The rest of the books have their moments but are not as strong IMO.
I hear you. when I re-read the books I skipped the dany parts and then read them all at once when I was finished with the more interesting happenings in Westeros.
Which book is this?
Westeros seem unconcerned with her cause Robert failed to send a memo before he copped it. But her story is still very focussed on Westeros.
If anything that disconnect is going to get much much worse.
I think the disconnect between Danerys and the rest of the parties isn't as problematic as it was in earlier seasons. The rest of the characters are becoming progressively more scattered and so its less jarring to jump away from what feels like the main action to something that's only tenuously linked to it, at least from the perspective of the TV series watcher.
As I mentioned earlier, my beef with Danerys has been that she's the only one driving her story arc forward at the moment so from a narrative perspective she can't die. Contrast this particularly to the characters in Kings Landing at the moment where it'd be quite plausible for any of them to be killed off - There are so many intertangled story arcs going on there that the death of one major character could easily be used as a device to spur on the stories of others, as we saw with Edard's death.
Again, I think this issue isn't as pronounced as it was earlier, as more characters head off in their own directions, but I'm still inclined to think that until Danerys actually has a chance to have some impact on the mains story, she's going to continue to feel like a bit of a Mary Sue.
I think Renly's army (before his death) had 100k to 200k, right? I'm thinking that's why Dany isn't gonna just go ahead and attack quite yet.
On another forum there was also some people discussing the sizes of all the army's, so this estimation isn't mine.
So yes, unless some houses would ally to her, or untill the dragons are adult and/or she actually gets a larger army she probably won't be taking over king's landing anytime soon.
maybe if you say that unsullied are better then just 1 normal person in any of these armies, or she takes use of the war going on right now, but even then I don't see her doing anything anytime soon.
maybe something changes soon, because if it continues on much longer then this it might get boring, but killing her now would just be silly, it would be like killing off Ned Stark in the 1st season before he even got to king's landing, she just hasn't done anything yet.
"-Robb's has about 20,000 troops
-There are another 12,000-15,000 troops allied with Robb from Riverrun
-The Lannisters have roughly 45,000 troops with about another 25,000 from the Tyrells
-Stannis has around 10,000-20,000 left after the Battle of Blackwater.
-There are over 100,000 wildlings seperated into many different tribes, but all allied under the leadership of Mance Raynor. Yet, only about 1/3-1/2 of them are warriors. The rest are the old, the sick, and children.
-There are about 1,500-2,500 Night's watch members guarding the entirety of the Wall, about 500 located at Castle Black. Only about 1/3 of those numbers are Rangers however, the rest either being Builders or Stewards.
-The Greyjoys control the largest navy at approx 250-350 ships."
Yeah but these are Unsullied, they aren't mead-sodden Westerotians... I really recommend reading the books, you miss out on all the depth of these characters.
Plus Dany has been led to believe that the whole of Westeros will drop on one knee as soon as she drops anchor, with only the Lannisters and Baratheons (currently occupying the throne) raising any opposition.
Coming in at second place is the second book in the series. (A Clash of Kings) This book introduces some appealing and complicated new characters like Stannis, Davos, Melisandre, and Ygritte. It also gives Tyrion a real chance to shine as the interim Hand of the King. (more Tyrion, always more Tyrion!) It has a lot of momentous events as well, and nicely handled pacing. (decent ebbs and swells of action and interest)
Third place goes to the fifth book. (A Dance of Dragons) Things in several locales pick up pace considerably, and the book incorporates a lengthy "journey" for one of the characters in particular. This portion of the book gives Martin a chance to really explore some of his world that had only been hinted at before. Once again, a lot happens, and a lot of appealing characters get plenty of face time.
The very first book of the series lands at fourth place on my list. (A Game of Thrones) While a decent introduction to the series, the book is primarily concerned with introducing and setting up the world. While it does a fine job at this, the need for all this setup and exposition makes for a much slower pace. For someone like me who appreciates character development and intrigue, it was a real page-turner. But in terms of excitement and significant events, it just doesn't measure up to the three previous entries on my list.
The fourth book (A Feast for Crows) is my least favorite. It's not a bad book, and has a lot of great development for characters that weren't quite as prominent in previous books. But it mainly deals with the aftermath of the tumultuous events of the first three books. It is also much more focused on a particular geographic region, and the characters that occupy it. It doesn't jump around nearly as much, which serves to slow the pacing down quite a bit.
Doesn't matter who they are 6000 soldiers can't beat 100,000. And they certainly can't lay siege to well defended castles.
But can 8,000 (Yes, it's 8,000, not 6,000) soldiers with 3 mother fucking dragons beat 100,000 soldiers. They wiped out Astapor pretty easily.
Not really a good comparison. The Unsullied WERE the military of Astapor. All they had to wipe out was a relatively small ruling class. That sort of strategy could only work once, and under very specific conditions.
If the Unsullied were actually brought to Westeros, they would be of limited use against mounted and armored knights. The Unsullied are unmounted ground troops, and would probably be less effective against full cavalry. While certainly capable troops, they would still be hard pressed by an overwhelming force of Westerosi.
If they were combined with 3 full-grown dragons, that would be a different story. The Unsullied could focus purely on defense and mop-up while the dragons wreak havoc from the air. A force like that could be constantly giving ground, and still win.
i would consider the unsullied to be in the same line as say... spartan phalanx. amazing in particularly strategic situations where everything can be used to their advantage, close quarters fighting and the like. but on an open field, against an actual army of cavalry... fuck no. not a chance in hell.
they do describe in the books an event where the dothraki charged a city and were turned back by a very small number of unsullied, but that happened at the gates of the city, so i can only assume they "funneled" the dothraki in a way that made their horses useless, not to mention dothraki don't use lances either.
that said... i'm actually getting really pissed off with people who've only watched the show speculating on future events. read the fucking books already, you can plow through them all in just under 6 weeks, and it'll save everyone some heartache when people "spoil" stuff by accident.
That's where pairing them up with full-grown dragons becomes viable. Unsullied do handle spears, which would prevent them from being completely overwhelmed by cavalry. But yes, against a large enough cavalry force, they simply wouldn't be able to hold. That's where the dragons come in.
Dragons would provide any number of advantages in a large engagement. But one of the best is their ability to counter cavalry charges. A flying dragon would have the necessary mobility to strafe any advancing cavalry before it ever managed to reach the front lines. And even the best-trained horses would be spooked by a flying, fire-breathing lizard. (there is actually an example of this in the fifth book) And cavalry are meant for mowing down foot soldiers, they would be less than useless when it came to defending against a dragon.
Have the Unsullied gradually retreat in good order, while the dragons counter any attempted cavalry charges and strafe the enemy lines in-between. On open fields, the dragons could even start brush fires to pin the enemy down.
In the books the original Targaryens managed to conquer all of Westeros with an outnumbered army and three dragons. That's why every character makes such a big deal about Daenarys' dragons.
http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Battle_of_Qohor
After the Doom of Valyria the Dothraki first rode out east of the Dothraki Sea, it can be assumed that the fall of Valyria and the chaos that followed it is what prompted (and perhaps allowed) the Dothraki to attack with such power. 50,000 Dothraki, at least half of them warriors, were led by horse lord khal Temmo, sacking and burning every town and city in their path.[1]
Aware of the Khalasar advance, the Qohor strengthened their walls, doubled their garrison, and hired two mercenary companies besides, Bright Banners and the Second Sons. They also sent a man to Astapor purchased three thousand Unsullied.[1]
During the first day of the fighting the Dothraki were unmatched, Qohor forces were shattered, its heavy horse annihilated and the sellsword companies had fled in the face of hopeless odds. The Dothraki had retired to their camps to drink, feast and rest before their final assault at dawn brake. However, during the night, the three thousand Unsullied had finally reached the city and come dawn, were waiting for the Dothraki horde arrayed in battle formation before the city gates.
The Dothraki, could have easily out flank such a small force but in their contempt for infantry, launched a direct frontal assault, in an attempt to simply ride down the heavy infantry. Eighteen times they charged and attacked the Unsullied ranks and Thrice their archers wheeling past raining arrows on the Three Thousand, each time failing to break through.
Finally the Dothraki halted their attacks after the Khal, his bloodriders and sons had been killed. Their losses were staggering: 12.000 dead. Only 600 Unsullied remained, but the victory was theirs nonetheless. Four days later, the new khal led his remaining khalasar past the city gates in a stately procession. Each man cut off his braid and threw it down before the Unsullied.[1][2]
cliffs : 3000 unsullied fended off 50,000 dothraki