As longtime Game of Thrones fans know, the penultimate episode of any season can usually be counted on to deliver in the dramatic fireworks department, and Sunday night's installment promises to be no different.
In fact, after two weeks of what often felt like place-setting episodes, the alliances are set, the sides have been chose, and "Battle of the Bastards" is poised to hit us with what sure to be one of the show's most epic and game-changing clashes to date.
As usual, supposed spoilers abound in all corners of the Internet, but no one really knows what will happen when Jon Snow attempts to take back Winterfell from the demented Ramsay Bolton.
So here's a quick rundown of what we can expect based on the books, the information released by HBO thus far, and the personal histories of two very different motherless warriors.
(As always, you can watch Game of Thrones online at TV Fanatic if you need to get caught up.)
We'll start with the chief combatants:
1. Jon Snow
The Bastard of Winterfell, the former Lord Commandor of the Night's Watch, the Dashing Undead. His ex used to tell him he knew nothing, but after surviving battles like the ones we saw in "The Watchers on the Wall" and Hardhome" this revenant knows everything about waging war ... especially on his home turf.
2. Ramsay Bolton
The Bastard of Bolton, the Flayer of Men, the Eater of Suggestive Sausages. Ramsay may not know Winterfell as well as Jon and Sansa (who grew up there), but he's a proven military leader, and he certainly has the edge in the sadism department.
3. What Are the Odds?
There's no way both bastards are getting out of this thing alive. Vegas bookmakers are giving 1/3 odds that Ramsay will bite the dust. Jon, the clear favorite, is at 9/1. After all, this season started off with Jon as a corpse. They're not gonna kill him off again THAT quickly.
4. How Big Are the Armies?
Ramsay has over 5,000 men, while Jon (with help from Sansa and Ser Davos) managed to round up a rag-tag bunch of just 2,000. But hey, we hear those 62 from Bear Island can fight like ten men!
5. What Happens if the Starks Win?
They recapture Winterfell, unseat Ramsay as Warden of the North and probably kill him. They free Rickon Stark and set set up shop in the castle Jon and Sansa grew up in as their new base of operations. We learned last week that Arya is also headed home to Winterfell, and you can that would be one tearjerker of a family reunion.
6. What's at Stake?
Winterfeeeeeell! The Stark family home where Robert Baratheon asked Ned Stark to be the Hand of the King, and Jaime Lannister pushed Bran from a window so many years ago. Add to that the fact that Ramsay raped and tormented Sansa during their brief marriage and the fact that the Boltons are partially responsible for the Red Wedding, and you can see what sort of emotions are involved. In a way, the show has building to the Starks' return to Winterfell ever since, so there's definitely more than just a castle in play here.
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