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Why are the Unsullied so specialized? Where do their puppies come from?

Game Of Thrones

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I'm the Party Pooper Landed Knight

I'm the Party Pooper

Posted
Posted

Or we can assume they exist by athor's fiat, you know. That's the power of writing. Ideas that would crash confronted if they had to stand on their own legs can thrive in your imaginary world if you write it so.

Of course, of course.

But if you choose that route, you have to apply that assumption for the rest of your life and on all other theories running wild around here.

It's a bit too easy to cherry pick where GRRM designed things to follow a certain logic from those they don't.

8000 unsullied were there only for the purpose of the story? 32.000 deaths in their training only for the purpose of creating a myth on their valance?

Then what about:

white walkers are invading only for the purpose of the story, not for one of theirs?

littlefinger is messing around and creating chaos only for the purpose of the story, with no true motive on his own?

Renly could raise 80.000 soldiers only for the purpose of the story, not for practical/demographic reasons?

Every event in the story?

GRRM is certainly writing stuff in order to be interesting, but in-universe things should always have a meaning on their own - and they have it.

GRRM provides - in-universe - a set of claims that contextualize the presence of 8000 unsullied in Astapor and justify their existence. Rejecting how he claims things work in a fictional universe because it makes no sense in our own real life experience is cherry picking, especially in a fantasy world dimension filled in with magic, dragons and un-deads.

But I see the way things work here, a lot of people are happier calling others - fictional characters like Astapori - 'dumbs' rather than reverse the self-centred approach with which they read the books.

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Mal Malenkirk Council Member

Mal Malenkirk

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Posted

Then what about:

white walkers are invading only for the purpose of the story, not for one of theirs?

littlefinger is messing around and creating chaos only for the purpose of the story, with no true motive on his own?

Renly could raise 80.000 soldiers only for the purpose of the story, not for practical/demographic reasons?

Every event in the story?

I'm pretty sure the White Walkers have a purpose. We'll judge when we learn what it is.

Littlefinger has a motive: look out for number one. Out of this chaos he has become Lord Protector or the Vale and Lord of Harrenhal. Not bad. The man is kind of a the medieval equivalent of a wall street rogue trader.

Renly could raise 80 000 soldiers because the Reach is the most populous and probably the wealthiest (in term of production, certainly food production with the best climate) of the seven kingdoms so of course they'll raise bigger armies than the rest of Westeros.

All in all, the saga is reasonably coherent. The Unsullied (both their production and acquisition by Dany) really stand out in the amount of suspension of disbelief they require compared to the rest of the story. They are cringeworthy compared to everything else, as far as I'm concerned.

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I'm the Party Pooper Landed Knight

I'm the Party Pooper

Posted
Posted

I'm pretty sure the White Walkers have a purpose. We'll judge when we learn what it is.

Littlefinger has a motive: look out for number one. Out of this chaos he has become Lord Protector or the Vale and Lord of Harrenhal. Not bad. The man is kind of a the medieval equivalent of a wall street rogue trader.

Renly could raise 80 000 soldiers because the Reach is the most populous and probably the wealthiest (in term of production, certainly food production with the best climate) of the seven kingdoms so of course they'll raise bigger armies than the rest of Westeros.

All in all, the saga is reasonably coherent. The Unsullied (both their production and acquisition by Dany) really stand out in the amount of suspension of disbelief they require compared to the rest of the story. They are cringeworthy compared to everything else, as far as I'm concerned.

Those were rhetoric questions, lol.

As you wish, have a nice day Ser.

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The King in Black Council Member

The King in Black

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Posted

Lord of the Ring, some of Dany's chapters in ADWD dragged for me, but there are others set in Slavers Bay that I greatly enjoyed (such as the "Dracarys" chapter, and the Dragontamer.)

Dracarys and dragon tamer are some of the best I agree but overall it makes me want to stop reading

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Sir Lee knot Council Member

Sir Lee knot

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Posted

My homemade Italian ravioli are true deliciousness, the canned ones are a bad imitation..

The maesters own a factory, they mass produce - with a scaling and efficient process - a product that is good enough for the purpose it's sold.

Trying to sell niche products as u suggests it's not profitable right now :

- anything more specialised would require way more expensive equipment, especially knights

- absence of strong concurrents in the free market simply removes the need for specialisation of their own product.. it ain't like they would sell more units, the customers are still limited to Essos

- the failing rate of producing niche soldiers would the higher because their experience in that field is lower, hence less profits and higher production costs

- in general the entire production process would be more expensive

- the benefit of selling them at higher prices is arguable : newer models would represent a newer brand of products that would not yet be proved into battlefield, the customers might not be willingly to adopt new types of soldiers in great numbers. Many customers might still prefer quantity over "specialisation", ten unsullied are still better than a single Knight unsullied.

You claim that their way of mass producing unsullied is stupid, I disagree. We have not the instruments to state whether an unsullied can be shaped as he is in mind and body if the maester don't put them through the experiences they are out through: killing puppies, infants, having their pénis cut down. The latter me get be a fundamental requirement, removing genitals might be compulsory to obtaining a man who never disobeys and feels no desire, rather than accessory. They surely believe this is fundamental, or they wouldn't practice it since it's expensive.

Discarding the 'defective' products might again be the only way to ensure they have a quality product that does what is asked for. It's true that they are wealthy and there is abundance of slaves, but contrary to common beliefs all merchants and entrepreneurs are able to do math very well. They wouldn't give up the prospect of profits if that wasn't a necessary way to go.

So no, they are not morons and they have no reason to change their best product into something else right now.

Pretty much the best answer I've read on this thread.

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Veltigar Council Member

Veltigar

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Posted

No fair!

I demand you tell me what that means.

To quote wikipedia :p

De gustibus non est disputandum is a Latin maxim meaning "In matters of taste, there can be no disputes" (literally "[that] of taste is not to be discussed"). The implication is that everyone's personal preferences are merely subjective opinions that cannot be "right" or "wrong," so they should never be argued about as if they were.

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