A different 'candidate' for the giant in armor made of stone

[Hos the Hostage]

Bran's prophetic dreams from AGOT (the quote that probably adds fuel to the Cleganebowl hype):
There were shadows all around them. One shadow was as dark as ash, with the terrible face of a hound. Another was armored like the sun, golden and beautiful. Over them both loomed a giant in armor made of stone, but when he opened his visor, there was nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood.

Most obvious identity of the giant is Robert Strong aka the Mountain, due to many factors associated with the giant (1) The Hound (2) Someone armored like the sun - could be Oberyn, could be Jaime, and both have/can come Gregor's way. (3) Empty visor - There are a lot of speculations about what's inside Robert Strong's helmet. For all we know from the books, he has no head -  Mountain's head is supposed to be in Dorne  (4) thick black blood - thick black oil Oberyn used to poison the spear. (5) The giant is armored in stone - a direct connection to the Mountain?

Regarding the 'armor', Cersei's chapters mention that Gregor wears armor that a normal man can't even lift, let alone fight in. But the armor is not stone. If the giant is Robert Strong, then the 'armored in stone' part, like I said before, just calls him out as a 'mountain'. (Stone is the mountain's daughter, says Mya to Sansa).

If the first shadow was the Hound and the second was Oberyn, it makes sense that the third shadow is the Mountain, as most of the fans believe. There is a chance that the second shadow is Jaime, because of the words 'golden and beautiful' is more often used to describe Jaime. So a part of this prophecy is unfulfilled - Jaime facing Robert Strong (not necessarily in battle). Let me tread on a slippery slope to suggest that if one of the shadows is Jaime, the other one could be Brienne instead of the Hound. Brienne's face is also looking terrible due to Biter eating half her cheek, and Brienne is working for BwB who has possession of the Hound's signature helm. I've seen it proposed that Brienne will wear that helm to disguise herself and fight Jaime or the Mountain or some other Lannisters to defend Sansa (or Jaime). By the helm logic, the first shadow could well be Lem Lemoncloak who is currently in position of the Hound helm, but Brienne being the first shadow will fit with my proposition for the giant.

What else armors itself in stone, other than a mountain? A castle, or a fortress. And there was a castle looming over Jaime and Brienne - Harrenhal. The largest castle in Westeros (barring perhaps Casterly Rock). Raised by Harren the Black, and inhabited by Roose's men at the time of Jaime & Brienne's arrival, Harrenhal also fits the description "nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood." in a figurative way (darkness and black blood for the Bloody Mummers and maybe Roose himself who was planning betrayal). Harren and his sons perished in dragonfire, and the Hoare were said be "black of eyes, black of hair, and black of blood".

 

[Makk]

I don't think we should read too much into those visions. I think they are just the direct physical threats to Ned, Sansa and Arya at the time of Brans dream and are the Hound, Jaime, and the Mountain. I think whatever that prophesied has already come and gone. 

[Lost Melnibonean]

15 minutes ago, Hos the Hostage said:

Bran's prophetic dreams from AGOT (the quote that probably adds fuel to the Cleganebowl hype):
There were shadows all around them. One shadow was as dark as ash, with the terrible face of a hound. Another was armored like the sun, golden and beautiful. Over them both loomed a giant in armor made of stone, but when he opened his visor, there was nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood.

Most obvious identity of the giant is Robert Strong aka the Mountain, due to many factors associated with the giant (1) The Hound (2) Someone armored like the sun - could be Oberyn, could be Jaime, and both have/can come Gregor's way. (3) Empty visor - There are a lot of speculations about what's inside Robert Strong's helmet. For all we know from the books, he has no head -  Mountain's head is supposed to be in Dorne  (4) thick black blood - thick black oil Oberyn used to poison the spear. (5) The giant is armored in stone - a direct connection to the Mountain?

Regarding the 'armor', Cersei's chapters mention that Gregor wears armor that a normal man can't even lift, let alone fight in. But the armor is not stone. If the giant is Robert Strong, then the 'armored in stone' part, like I said before, just calls him out as a 'mountain'. (Stone is the mountain's daughter, says Mya to Sansa).

If the first shadow was the Hound and the second was Oberyn, it makes sense that the third shadow is the Mountain, as most of the fans believe. There is a chance that the second shadow is Jaime, because of the words 'golden and beautiful' is more often used to describe Jaime. So a part of this prophecy is unfulfilled - Jaime facing Robert Strong (not necessarily in battle). Let me tread on a slippery slope to suggest that if one of the shadows is Jaime, the other one could be Brienne instead of the Hound. Brienne's face is also looking terrible due to Biter eating half her cheek, and Brienne is working for BwB who has possession of the Hound's signature helm. I've seen it proposed that Brienne will wear that helm to disguise herself and fight Jaime or the Mountain or some other Lannisters to defend Sansa (or Jaime). By the helm logic, the first shadow could well be Lem Lemoncloak who is currently in position of the Hound helm, but Brienne being the first shadow will fit with my proposition for the giant.

What else armors itself in stone, other than a mountain? A castle, or a fortress. And there was a castle looming over Jaime and Brienne - Harrenhal. The largest castle in Westeros (barring perhaps Casterly Rock). Raised by Harren the Black, and inhabited by Roose's men at the time of Jaime & Brienne's arrival, Harrenhal also fits the description "nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood." in a figurative way (darkness and black blood for the Bloody Mummers and maybe Roose himself who was planning betrayal). Harren and his sons perished in dragonfire, and the Hoare were said be "black of eyes, black of hair, and black of blood".

 

How was Harrenhal a threat to House Stark at the outset of the War of the Five Kings? I think it's Petyr. Not only was he revealed to be the big bad in the first part of the saga an thus the biggest threat to House Stark, he loomed over both Sandor and Jaime, wagering on the outcome of their tilt at the Hand's Tourney. 

[Kienn]

Hound

Jaime/Brienne

Tyrion

All connected with Sansa & Arya (assumption that Arya will interact with Tyrion significantly in the future)

[Count Winter]

6 hours ago, Hos the Hostage said:

Bran's prophetic dreams from AGOT (the quote that probably adds fuel to the Cleganebowl hype):
There were shadows all around them. One shadow was as dark as ash, with the terrible face of a hound. Another was armored like the sun, golden and beautiful. Over them both loomed a giant in armor made of stone, but when he opened his visor, there was nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood.

 

Don't forget it's written a long time ago... The first must be the Hound obviously. Face of a hound, dark as ash (as in burned). Second: Jamie. Sun, golden and beautiful. The last one must be the Mountain (or what is left of him). There is just nobody else you think of at first sight then Gregor... 

[The Weirwoods Eyes]

I'm in the it's Petyr Baelish camp. 

[Ferocious Veldt Roarer]

As I subscribe to the interpretation where Bran's vision was no prophecy, no foreseeing, no fore-anything, but a real-time vision, it wasn't Petyr or Ser Gregor or anybody else not present at Robert's camp during the Lady incident.

So, probably, Ser Ilyn. Big, scary, not much inside.

[Seams]

9 hours ago, Hos the Hostage said:

Bran's prophetic dreams from AGOT (the quote that probably adds fuel to the Cleganebowl hype):
There were shadows all around them. One shadow was as dark as ash, with the terrible face of a hound. Another was armored like the sun, golden and beautiful. Over them both loomed a giant in armor made of stone, but when he opened his visor, there was nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood.

...

What else armors itself in stone, other than a mountain? A castle, or a fortress. And there was a castle looming over Jaime and Brienne - Harrenhal. The largest castle in Westeros (barring perhaps Casterly Rock). Raised by Harren the Black, and inhabited by Roose's men at the time of Jaime & Brienne's arrival, Harrenhal also fits the description "nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood." in a figurative way (darkness and black blood for the Bloody Mummers and maybe Roose himself who was planning betrayal). Harren and his sons perished in dragonfire, and the Hoare were said be "black of eyes, black of hair, and black of blood".

I like this approach of places and things personified. There is a lot of talk of people as stones - Tyrion as a gargoyle, the stone men who suffer from grey scale, "stark" mountaintops, stone statues in crypts or tombs, Mya and Alayne Stone, Lady Stoneheart and, as you point out, Gregor Clegane as The Mountain that Rides. So why wouldn't there be stones that have a living presence in a dream or prophecy?

If we are at all open to the possibility that GRRM chooses words and phrases with more than one meaning, or that a chapter can tell a story on more than one level, I think this vision can be BOTH a prediction of the trial-by-combat champions Gregor Clegane and Oberyn Martell AND a foreshadowing of something involving Jaime and whoever wears the Hound's helmet.

Harrenhal is a logical choice for the stone giant. There is something looming and ominous about this place. People talk of its ghost and Arya compares its melted stone towers to "some old man's gnarled, knuckly fingers groping after a passing cloud" (Clash, Arya VI). So we already have a sense of personification with reference to the castle. Given the melting of the towers by dragonfire, this could be an allusion to Sandor's fire-scarred face or Jon Snow's burned hand (although that doesn't mean that the castle represents Sandor or Jon).

Most relevant for your theory might be this line from the same page in Clash: "She remembered Old Nan's stories of the castle built on fear. Harren the Black had mixed human blood in the mortar, Nan used to say . . . "

[YOVMO]

9 hours ago, Hos the Hostage said:

Bran's prophetic dreams from AGOT (the quote that probably adds fuel to the Cleganebowl hype):
There were shadows all around them. One shadow was as dark as ash, with the terrible face of a hound. Another was armored like the sun, golden and beautiful. Over them both loomed a giant in armor made of stone, but when he opened his visor, there was nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood.

Most obvious identity of the giant is Robert Strong aka the Mountain, due to many factors associated with the giant (1) The Hound (2) Someone armored like the sun - could be Oberyn, could be Jaime, and both have/can come Gregor's way. (3) Empty visor - There are a lot of speculations about what's inside Robert Strong's helmet. For all we know from the books, he has no head -  Mountain's head is supposed to be in Dorne  (4) thick black blood - thick black oil Oberyn used to poison the spear. (5) The giant is armored in stone - a direct connection to the Mountain?

Regarding the 'armor', Cersei's chapters mention that Gregor wears armor that a normal man can't even lift, let alone fight in. But the armor is not stone. If the giant is Robert Strong, then the 'armored in stone' part, like I said before, just calls him out as a 'mountain'. (Stone is the mountain's daughter, says Mya to Sansa).

If the first shadow was the Hound and the second was Oberyn, it makes sense that the third shadow is the Mountain, as most of the fans believe. There is a chance that the second shadow is Jaime, because of the words 'golden and beautiful' is more often used to describe Jaime. So a part of this prophecy is unfulfilled - Jaime facing Robert Strong (not necessarily in battle). Let me tread on a slippery slope to suggest that if one of the shadows is Jaime, the other one could be Brienne instead of the Hound. Brienne's face is also looking terrible due to Biter eating half her cheek, and Brienne is working for BwB who has possession of the Hound's signature helm. I've seen it proposed that Brienne will wear that helm to disguise herself and fight Jaime or the Mountain or some other Lannisters to defend Sansa (or Jaime). By the helm logic, the first shadow could well be Lem Lemoncloak who is currently in position of the Hound helm, but Brienne being the first shadow will fit with my proposition for the giant.

What else armors itself in stone, other than a mountain? A castle, or a fortress. And there was a castle looming over Jaime and Brienne - Harrenhal. The largest castle in Westeros (barring perhaps Casterly Rock). Raised by Harren the Black, and inhabited by Roose's men at the time of Jaime & Brienne's arrival, Harrenhal also fits the description "nothing inside but darkness and thick black blood." in a figurative way (darkness and black blood for the Bloody Mummers and maybe Roose himself who was planning betrayal). Harren and his sons perished in dragonfire, and the Hoare were said be "black of eyes, black of hair, and black of blood".

 

OK. Well. I think all of your ideas are good and I also like the littlefinger one. A lot of evidence. However, I am in a much different camp. I am going to say that the giant in stone armor is none other than the Titan of Braavos.

Please allow me to elaborate.

As big as Robert Strong/ Mountain is, he still doesn't "tower" over one like the titan

There is zero acrobatics needed for the armor made of stone....it is literally made of stone

Under his visor there is nothing. Ok, I know the mountain is the obvious candidate because his visor is down and he head is in Dorne (maybe) but I think the titan fits better because I get a double meaning. First the obvious, statue does not have anything under his visor. He is a statue! But also, I am going to argue that the prophecy has to do with the faceless men and thus having nothing under the visor takes on a double meaning.

But I can hear you now...you are saying "YOVMO that is all well and good, but how the heck do you shoehorn black blood into the Titan of Braavos. WEll, I will tells ya:

For this we need to look to none other than our favorite impish dwarf.

Tyrion, when talking about the doom of Valyria, says "Valyria, it was written that on the day of the doom every hill...lakes boiled or turned to acid, mountains burst, fiery fountains spewed molten rock a thousand feet into the air, red clouds rained down dragonglass and the black blood of demons.

I will argue that the prophecy that bran has about the giant in stone armor is talking specifically about the faceless men. Remember, they are implicated in the doom of Valyria. They are up to some shady business with Jaquen over at the Citadel looking into glass candles. I have almost no doubt that Varys is a faceless man and has been doing some serious prep work. Then there was the mini doom that seemed like some kind of north of the wall practice run. What are they prepping for? Valar Murghulis. All men must die. This isn't a some quint Buddhist philosophy. It is a mission statement. Team Valar Morghulis, the secret servants that Arya scopes out in the house of black and white, are in the process of brining on a doom like catastrophe in Westeros to bring the gift to everyone. Bran sees this threat in his prophecy when he sees the Titan of Braavos (home of faceless men) with nothing under visor (again, faceless) in stone armor (duh) and black blood which Tyrion says rained from the sky during the doom.