85 replies to this topic

[Ran]

This thread is for viewers new to the series and the setting, who would like help understanding details about the setting that aren't quite apparent or that they're confused about. If you don't understand what the Seven are, or don't get why the Targaryens have white-blond hair, this is the place to ask!

[Xenophon]

Thanks for this thread, Ran!

Ok, why do the Targaryens have white-blond hair?  Is this just a family characteristic, or does it have some significance?

What's the normal level of magic in the setting?  I vaguely remember from reading the books once that magic starts to get stronger over the course of the series, but what's the normal level?  Is it pretty much non-existent at the start?  Also how long has it been that way?

Edited by TerraPrime, 11 April 2011 - 02:58 PM.

[Tywin's bastard]

Xenophon, on 11 April 2011 - 02:27 PM, said:

Ok, why do the Targaryens have white-blond hair?  Is this just a family characteristic, or does it have some significance?

It's just a family characteristic (as is that most of them have purple eyes in the book) and a good reason it's so preserved is that the Targaryens have almost exclusively married within the family.

Xenophon, on 11 April 2011 - 02:27 PM, said:

What's the normal level of magic in the setting?  I vaguely remember from reading the books once that magic starts to get stronger over the course of the series, but what's the normal level?  Is it pretty much non-existent at the start?  Also how long has it been that way?

The normal level is as you say, pretty much non-existent as the series takes off. At least where the story takes place but there are of course rumors about magical things in far away lands. Then again some might call something like surgery magic so it depends a lot on what you understand.

Edited by TerraPrime, 11 April 2011 - 02:58 PM.

[TerraPrime]

[mod hat]

Please be reminded that this thread is meant for material restricted to aired episodes only. If you are reading the book, and you have general questions, you should probably seek out the book-related forums. There are plenty of material that are in the book, but which are not in the aired material.

[/mod hat]

[Xenophon]

TerraPrime, on 11 April 2011 - 03:00 PM, said:

[mod hat]

Please be reminded that this thread is meant for material restricted to aired episodes only. If you are reading the book, and you have general questions, you should probably seek out the book-related forums. There are plenty of material that are in the book, but which are not in the aired material.

[/mod hat]

Got it.  Thanks.

[Kat]

Sorry, I just saw this thread, had posted this elsewhere. I made a PDF reference sheet for the show that has a map and basic family trees (for the Starks, Tullys, Baratheons, Lannisters and Targaryens) on it, along with some very brief background/history that should be revealed in the first few episodes. It does contain mild spoilers for back story, but if you're the sort of person who likes a visual reference while watching it may be helpful. (My parents watch every historical drama about England with this fold-out Monarchs of England guide, so I made this for them to emulate that.)

(Mods- delete this if it's inappropriate for this thread.)

Edited: Updated PDF slightly.

Edited by Kat, 13 April 2011 - 06:09 PM.

[Ran]

Kat, mind if we host this on Westeros.org proper? This'll be a very cool thing to point out to people.

[Kat]

Ran, on 12 April 2011 - 08:24 PM, said:

Kat, mind if we host this on Westeros.org proper? This'll be a very cool thing to point out to people.

No problem. Let me know if you want the .doc version of it in case you want to make any changes, because I basically did it from memory, which is undoubtedly worse than yours.

[Ran]

That'd be handy, actually, thank you!

[TerraPrime]

What, no powerpoint? :-p

[Kat]

TerraPrime, on 13 April 2011 - 10:19 AM, said:

What, no powerpoint? :-p

I actually had this in PP originally, but it didn't convert to PDF very well. I've updated the PDF and PMed Ran some stuff, but the updated version is here. It prints more clearly than the original, I think.

Edited by Kat, 13 April 2011 - 06:09 PM.

[Aoife]

Kat should work for HBO - that's actually very similar to what they were handing out at the screening last night. Your map and backstory notes are better, though.

[ZombieWife]

TerraPrime, on 11 April 2011 - 03:00 PM, said:

[mod hat]

Please be reminded that this thread is meant for material restricted to aired episodes only. If you are reading the book, and you have general questions, you should probably seek out the book-related forums. There are plenty of material that are in the book, but which are not in the aired material.

[/mod hat]

I personally would like to see what the "mod hat" looks like.  Is it like a cowboy hat or more like a beret?  Or is it different for each mod?  I have visions in my head and I want to see how close I am.

[Josiah Rowe]

ZombieWife, on 13 April 2011 - 07:36 PM, said:

I personally would like to see what the "mod hat" looks like.  Is it like a cowboy hat or more like a beret?  Or is it different for each mod?  I have visions in my head and I want to see how close I am.

It's a fez.  Fezzes are cool.  

[Kermit]

Ran, on 03 April 2011 - 01:07 PM, said:

This thread is for viewers new to the series and the setting, who would like help understanding details about the setting that aren't quite apparent or that they're confused about.

That's me. I found lots of information poking around this forum, and the wiki, but have seen way too many spoilers. So, what's the deal with the seasons? It sounds like they're unpredictably long ... is there a reason? And if that's so, what does it mean to say, for instance, that Bran is 10? Is there still a summer solstice every 365.25 days, that people use to mark the passage of time?

Other than the seasons (and dragons?) it seems the world follows the same rules as our own ... is there any magic, or other supernatural phenomena?

[Hyper]

Kermit, on 21 April 2011 - 06:32 PM, said:

So, what's the deal with the seasons? It sounds like they're unpredictably long ... is there a reason? And if that's so, what does it mean to say, for instance, that Bran is 10? Is there still a summer solstice every 365.25 days, that people use to mark the passage of time?

Characters in the books frequently reference their age as "X name-days"... As in there are 365(?) named days, like in Scandinavian calendars. The Maesters also appear to have some ways to tell time - perhaps there are subtle yearly variations that are detectable (perhaps through astronomical observations), but the longer seasonal temperatures are a stronger influence.

GRRM has mentioned that the long seasons are of a yet unknown origin. Probably magical to an extent. But don't bet on it ever being explained fully.

Kermit, on 21 April 2011 - 06:32 PM, said:

Other than the seasons (and dragons?) it seems the world follows the same rules as our own ... is there any magic, or other supernatural phenomena?

Yes.   You'll see it in the later seasons/books.

Edited by Hyper, 21 April 2011 - 06:47 PM.

[ingsve]

Hyper, on 21 April 2011 - 06:44 PM, said:

Characters in the books frequently reference their age as "X name-days"... As in there are 365(?) named days, like in Scandinavian calendars.

I always understood that as a different way of saying birthday as in the day they got their name rather than the day they were born.

[Balefont]

TerraPrime, on 11 April 2011 - 03:00 PM, said:

[mod hat]

Please be reminded that this thread is meant for material restricted to aired episodes only. If you are reading the book, and you have general questions, you should probably seek out the book-related forums. There are plenty of material that are in the book, but which are not in the aired material.

[/mod hat]

I miss the mod knee pads already.  

[Hooded Man]

Hi, I'm in the lucky situation that i can't post spoilers since I haven't read the books. The rules are a little hard to understand, but I presume we can discuss openly the first two episodes. I come here because I don't want spoilers.

As stated, I haven't read A Song of Ice and Fire or anything about the story or the show before watching it last Sunday.

I enjoyed it. There was a lot of what is called Production Value there. The emphasize was on the story, the content, not the form, the superficial. So, it's a rare thing and i hope it will be produced for many years.

[Ran]

Welcome Hooded Man! Basically, for your situation, you'll want to visit only those threads marked NO SPOILERS or TV SPOILERS. Avoid BOOK SPOILERS like the plague . You can see some discussion of Episode 2 here.