Who buried the obsidian cache?

[Mithras]

I think Coldhands did it.

And I also think that when Great Ranging first came to the Fist, there was certainly a presence of White Walker and/or wight there. Half of the chapter is full of hints pointing that out.

The situation up there resembles the battles on Weathertop. Remember there was a stone ring, remnant of a fallen tower. Gandalf fought 9 ringwraiths there. Then he prepared a cache of wood for the hobbits and ran. 3 days later the hobbits came and found the woods, which they burned and used against the ringwraiths that attacked them.

There is some hint that the White Walkers were present with the wight army at the fist. From their fight with Waymar Royce in the prologue, I think they could easily wipe out the NW brothers completely. But I guess they hold back because of the obsidian weapons the men had. Therefore they let the survivors go and tried to hunt them one by one on the road.

[Blutraven]

I still think it was Benjen.

[The Dornishman's Widow]

I think Coldhands did it.

[...]

I still think it was Benjen.

It seems everybody agrees then :-)

[Mithras]

I still think it was Benjen.

That is unlikely, because if he learned something important about the enemy and/or working with the BR/CotF, he could well return to the NW and warn them against the true danger. Much of the NW's folly is due to bad leading and false information. Besides, Ghost can lead Jon to Bejen too, if he was near. Instead, he led him to the cache. His strange behaviour can only be explained by intervention of BR.

[Nite's King]

BR

[Jon of the Dead]

Mance. He took the obsidian arrowheads from Luwin's jar, and then on his way north he left them there.

[Ser Leftwich]

One of the CotF could have done it.

[Arya kiddin']

Mance. He took the obsidian arrowheads from Luwin's jar, and then on his way north he left them there.

:o

Never thought about that. :idea:

[Lord Damian]

It seems everybody agrees then :-)I think benjen and coldhands are seperate and benjen, with the help of coldhands planted it there to help the NW because if they came north they would have went there.

[Mithras]

Mance. He took the obsidian arrowheads from Luwin's jar, and then on his way north he left them there.

How about the daggers and spearheads? And that horn too?

[Mithras]

One of the CotF could have done it.

I dont think they risk one of them while they already have an agent like Coldhands and his swarming ravens.

[Jon of the Dead]

How about the daggers and spearheads? And that horn too?

Maybe Mance found the horn in the crypts and it was the real purpose of his trip to WF.

[Mithras]

I think benjen and coldhands are seperate and benjen, with the help of coldhands planted it there to help the NW because if they came north they would have went there.

They could never know that Mormont will decide on a Great Ranging Party. The idea to plant the cache should come after they left Craster.

[modbelle]

I still think it was Benjen.

I agree it was Benjen. Some of the clues, I am hanging on to believe Benjen is still alive beyond the Wall trying to figure out the secret of stopping the Others. I may be one of the few who thinks it will be Benjen Stark who will act in the place of the ancient Stark who helped end the long winter, not Jon Snow. Also, I believe the original story of the long winter involving a Stark doesn't mention AA or any flaming sword. Please correct me if I am wrong. I am under the impression that AA was a separate story altogether and maybe shouldn't be connected with the Night's Watches fight against Others even though Mel does connect the two together.

[Mithras]

He [Jon] knelt, jammed the torch into the ground beside him. The soil was loose, sandy. Jon pulled it out by the fistful. There were no stones, no roots. Whatever was here had been put here recently. Two feet down, his fingers touched cloth. He had been expecting a corpse, fearing a corpse, but this was something else. He pushed against the fabric and felt small, hard shapes beneath, unyielding. There was no smell, no sign of graveworms. Ghost backed off and sat on his haunches, watching.

It is obvious that the cache is planted recently. If Mance did it, the soil should have frozen hard because long time passed from his return. And you claim that Mance left not long after Robert left Winterfell. Did not Luwin show Bran those arrowheads much after Robert's departure?

[Mithras]

I agree it was Benjen. Some of the clues, I am hanging on to believe Benjen is still alive beyond the Wall trying to figure out the secret of stopping the Others. I may be one of the few who thinks it will be Benjen Stark who will act in the place of the ancient Stark who helped end the long winter, not Jon Snow. Also, I believe the original story of the long winter involving a Stark doesn't mention AA or any flaming sword. Please correct me if I am wrong. I am under the impression that AA was a separate story altogether and maybe shouldn't be connected with the Night's Watches fight against Others even though Mel does connect the two together.

This makes no sense. If Benjen is alive, he should be way deep into the Lands of Always Winter. Other than that, If he were close, why did not he return and warn his brothers about the real danger out there? Do you think that he just sits and watches as the Wights/White Walkers kill his brothers in great numbers? Why didnot he return to CB, tell what he learned, replenish his supplies and carry on his mission to learn more if he needs to?

[Jon of the Dead]

He [Jon] knelt, jammed the torch into the ground beside him. The soil was loose, sandy. Jon pulled it out by the fistful. There were no stones, no roots. Whatever was here had been put here recently. Two feet down, his fingers touched cloth. He had been expecting a corpse, fearing a corpse, but this was something else. He pushed against the fabric and felt small, hard shapes beneath, unyielding. There was no smell, no sign of graveworms. Ghost backed off and sat on his haunches, watching.

It is obvious that the cache is planted recently. If Mance did it, the soil should have frozen hard because long time passed from his return. And you claim that Mance left not long after Robert left Winterfell. Did not Luwin show Bran those arrowheads much after Robert's departure?

Yeah, I think Mance could have stayed hidden in the crypts for a while after Robert left. But I'm nowhere near as sure, it's just a wild thought that Mance left the cache.

[modbelle]

This makes no sense. If Benjen is alive, he should be way deep into the Lands of Always Winter. Other than that, If he were close, why did not he return and warn his brothers about the real danger out there? Do you think that he just sits and watches as the Wights/White Walkers kill his brothers in great numbers? Why didnot he return to CB, tell what he learned, replenish his supplies and carry on his mission to learn more if he needs to?

If Benjen is alive why did not go back to the Wall at all to warn his brothers about the Others? I assume Benjen has gone a bit on his own accord in order to do what he feels he must to serve the Wall's ultimate purpose, to protect the realm. As long as he doesn't receive a new order, Benjen can still fulfill he last one which was to figure out what was happening beyond the Wall. If Benjen were to show his face then they could have him join everyone else and give orders regarding how to proceed. If Benjen indeed left the arrowheads, then he gave his brothers the opportunity to protect themselves against what was coming.

[Mithras]

If Benjen is alive why did not go back to the Wall at all to warn his brothers about the Others? I assume Benjen has gone a bit on his own accord in order to do what he feels he must to serve the Wall's ultimate purpose, to protect the realm. As long as he doesn't receive a new order, Benjen can still fulfill he last one which was to figure out what was happening beyond the Wall. If Benjen were to show his face then they could have him join everyone else and give orders regarding how to proceed. If Benjen indeed left the arrowheads, then he gave his brothers the opportunity to protect themselves against what was coming.

Until Sam stabbed the Other with the obsidian dagger, they had no idea that it would work. So he should also left an manual with the obsidian weapons.

And protecting the realms requires men at the wall. We already know that how little is the manpower of the NW. Benjen should have known more than enough to let his brothers die in vast numbers if he was nearby.

[Ahura Mazda]

He [Jon] knelt, jammed the torch into the ground beside him. The soil was loose, sandy. Jon pulled it out by the fistful. There were no stones, no roots. Whatever was here had been put here recently. Two feet down, his fingers touched cloth. He had been expecting a corpse, fearing a corpse, but this was something else. He pushed against the fabric and felt small, hard shapes beneath, unyielding. There was no smell, no sign of graveworms. Ghost backed off and sat on his haunches, watching.

It is obvious that the cache is planted recently. If Mance did it, the soil should have frozen hard because long time passed from his return. And you claim that Mance left not long after Robert left Winterfell. Did not Luwin show Bran those arrowheads much after Robert's departure?

A further point that agrees with your own theory is that if it has been Benjen that buried that stuff then this gives a better explanation onto the reason why Ghost found its scent so easily, or even cared to grab Jon to it.

Obviously Ghost doesn't know the relative importance of obsiddian for humans, and there must be hundred of thousands of dead corpses / personal effects once belonging both to NightWatch rangers and Wildlings buried or forgotten around the forest.

Though I would appreciate Benjen to be alive, it isn't one of the crackpot theories I most believed in up until now. What I lack are hints - not of his survival but - of Benjen utility if he ever survives and comes back.

Edit: ops, my apologies Lamprey. I thought you were pro Benjen.. mistook it. :dunno: