Did Bloodraven Convert to the Old Gods?

[Arthur Dayne's Honor]

I mean he was born in the Riverlands and lived as a Targ bastard and later as a Legit Targ. I know his mother was a Blackwood but he in KL alot so he must have worshipped the Seven. When he went North do you think he converted to the Old Gods or is he just using the COTF to amplify his power

[Mladen]

I am pretty certain he became Old God... That would convert anyone :)

Now, I am not sure... Something must have happened so he went North and found COTF cave. I believe he had this dual religion beliefs like Robb or Sansa, respecting both old and new Gods. But, I can't be certain...

[Mrs_Darcy]

I do think, that he lived his first years with his mother and was raised believing in the Old Gods, since his mother was a Blackwood

[Dornish Whine]

I think the Blackwoods (his mother's family) are of the first men and worship the old gods. Their sigil is a weirwood tree full of ravens, no? So he likely took tohis mother's gods once he realized that they hold true power. Or should I say 'visceral' power - as the 7 may hold some power, but we have a hard time seeing or grasping it.

ETA - semi-ninja'd by Mrs_Darcy

[Blutraven]

I think he always followed them, but was never really devout. Following the Old Gods could be one of the things that made the smallfolk not like him.

[King of Winters]

I think he's always followed the Old Gods since he was half Blackwood (and they worship the Old Gods) and he is very much like them, the red eyes and white skin and hair.

[juanml82]

And even if he didn't, he sort of became one, so that ought to convert anyone

[Prince of the North]

I do think, that he lived his first years with his mother and was raised believing in the Old Gods, since his mother was a Blackwood

This seems to be the going theory and I see no reason to discount it at this point.

[bloodsteel bitterraven]

The old gods are not real, it was the greenseers that saw through the eyes of the weirwood trees. So I guess Bloodraven himself is the only remaining Old God. And now there is Bran too.

[A Bong of Ice and Fire]

The old gods are not real, it was the greenseers that saw through the eyes of the weirwood trees. So I guess Bloodraven himself is the only remaining Old God. And now there is Bran too.

So the greenseers sent the 6 direwolf pups to the Stark kids? Did Bloodraven do it? Did he warg into the pregnant mother direwolf and take her South to protect the Starks?

I'm not convinced the greenseers and the Old Gods are the same.

[bloodsteel bitterraven]

So the greenseers sent the 6 direwolf pups to the Stark kids? Did Bloodraven do it? Did he warg into the pregnant mother direwolf and take her South to protect the Starks?

I'm not convinced the greenseers and the Old Gods are the same.

Yes I do think Bloodraven sent the direwolf south to protect Bran

[A Bong of Ice and Fire]

Yes I do think Bloodraven sent the direwolf south to protect Bran

I'm not disputing it, but is there any evidence for this? Also, if Bloodraven was warging the mother direwolf, what happened to his soul when the stag killed the wolf? Did it jump into the stag?

Maybe Bloodraven seems out of it in the cave because his soul is running around the North in a stag!

But maybe that stag was killed for food by the Northman that Bran & company meet on their way to the wall, and Bloodraven warged into him so he could help Bran.

The warging rules are confusing.

[bloodsteel bitterraven]

I'm not disputing it, but is there any evidence for this? Also, if Bloodraven was warging the mother direwolf, what happened to his soul when the stag killed the wolf? Did it jump into the stag?

Maybe Bloodraven seems out of it in the cave because his soul is running around the North in a stag!

But maybe that stag was killed for food by the Northman that Bran & company meet on their way to the wall, and Bloodraven warged into him so he could help Bran.

The warging rules are confusing.

I'm not saying that he warged the direwolf. Maybe he did, maybe he didn't, maybe he did initially and then warged the stag. I honestly don't know. I just think that Bloodraven sent the direwolves south. And no there is no proof.

[Consigliere]

I'm not disputing it, but is there any evidence for this? Also, if Bloodraven was warging the mother direwolf, what happened to his soul when the stag killed the wolf? Did it jump into the stag?

Maybe Bloodraven seems out of it in the cave because his soul is running around the North in a stag!

But maybe that stag was killed for food by the Northman that Bran & company meet on their way to the wall, and Bloodraven warged into him so he could help Bran.

The warging rules are confusing.

Maybe the rules for a Greenseer are different to that of a warg/skinchanger. BR may not have the same problem wrt his soul as someone like Varamyr. Greenseers seem to be far more powerful.

[Arya kiddin']

On ASOIAF, we've 5 out of 7 books. Of DnE novellas we have 3 out of maybe 10-12. We still don't have enough information on how BR winds up on the wall, and how he becomes the 3EC or an old god. Future novellas may clear that up, though I do think his blackwood ancestry must've something to do with it.

[Viserys_The Transformed]

Maybe the rules for a Greenseer are different to that of a warg/skinchanger. BR may not have the same problem wrt his soul as someone like Varamyr. Greenseers seem to be far more powerful.

Exactly..... Greenseer is not affected at Soul level. Greenseer is only a WATCHER, A WITNESS, so a Stag dies, then Stag dies, but Greenseer only WATCHES IT .

[mindchap]

The Blackwoods follow the Old Gods, Jaime mentions it in Dance. I think it's kind of neat that the first appearance of Bloodraven in the novellas is camping in the center of a ring of Weirwood stumps, then we first encounter him in the novels and he is a Weirwood. :)

Inside the castle walls, however, a bit of the forest still remained. House Blackwood kept the old

gods, and worshiped as the First Men had in the days before the Andals came to Westeros. Some of the

trees in their godswood were said to be as old as Raventree’s square towers, especially the heart tree, a

weirwood of colossal size whose upper branches could be seen from leagues away, like bony fingers

scratching at the sky.

[Arya kiddin']

The Blackwoods follow the Old Gods, Jaime mentions it in Dance. I think it's kind of neat that the first appearance of Bloodraven in the novellas is camping in the center of a ring of Weirwood stumps, then we first encounter him in the novels and he is a Weirwood. :)

Exactly what I believe as well. His connection to the old Gods would be because of his Blackwood ancestry. Or maybe Shierra just liked trees. :P

[The Weirwoods Eyes]

I think he has always followed the Old Gods, with his mother being a blackwood.

[Rahgh Neqaj]

A more basic question: Are the old Gods actually Gods that can be followed? There is not much in form of theology, no priests, no rituals, no holy texts, just a bunch of spirits with arcane knowledge, the occasional warg and the very rare greenseers. The magic seems to be rooted in bloodmagic and thus fundamentally similar to Valyrian magic despite the obvious ice-fire difference. The three taboos against incest, kinslaying and slavery are not unique to the followers of the old gods either as the followers of the seven have them as well. So again we face the difficulty to distinguish whether that's just a universal value common to many people in Planetos or whether it's something inherently tied to the "Old God" magic.

If you assume that Bloodraven never was a devoted follower of the seven and that his blackwood family taught him how to use his magic talents which are - due to First of Men/Old God backstory - commonly referenced in the OId God setting does that make him a follower of the Old Gods? Or just an atheist who's using his arcane talents? Does talking to greenseer spirits that live in weirwood trees make you a follower of the Old Gods or just someone who's interacting with a "real", arcane phenomenon?