GRRM Officially Confirmed Winds Of Winter Will Tell 1 Major White Walker Story GoT Failed To

Aug 06, 2026 - 01:13

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GRRM Officially Confirmed Winds Of Winter Will Tell 1 Major White Walker Story GoT Failed To

White Walker in Game of Thrones Season 2

Published Aug 5, 2026, 5:00 PM EDT

James Hunt is a writer and editor based in Newcastle, UK. A Sports Journalism graduate from the University of Sunderland, he quickly realized that supporting his local football (or "soccer") team, Sunderland AFC, was painful enough without having to write about it, so decided to write a load of nonsense about movies and TV instead.

Although the wait for The Winds of Winter continues, one exciting White Walker story was already confirmed by author George R.R. Martin. Ever since the opening pages of the A Song of Ice and Fire series, the White Walkers - or the Others, as they're more commonly known in the books - have been the big threat looming large over Westeros. Their appearances have been scant, but we know they're out there, slowly making their move, and as the Starks like to remind everyone, Winter is coming.

This, of course, translated directly to Game of Thrones, which itself began with an ice cold open of the creatures attacking some brothers of the Night's Watch. Unfortunately, their story did not end so well on TV. Game of Thrones Season 8 was set up to focus on the battle between the living and the dead, but The Long Night was actually just one night, and barely lasted enough time to get a solid eight hours in.

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🐺StarkWinter is Coming

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🦌BaratheonOurs is the Fury

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The Lannisters are the wealthiest family in Westeros, ruling from their ancestral seat. What is the name of their castle?

AHighgarden BStorm’s End CCasterly Rock DThe Eyrie

✓ Correct! Casterly Rock sits atop gold mines in the Westerlands and has been the seat of House Lannister for centuries. The gold beneath it is the source of the family’s legendary wealth — though as Tywin once noted, the mines ran dry years ago.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is Casterly Rock. Highgarden belongs to the Tyrells, Storm’s End to the Baratheons, and The Eyrie to the Arryns. Casterly Rock has been the Lannister stronghold since Lann the Clever swindled it from House Casterly.

Jon Snow rises through the ranks of the Night’s Watch to eventually hold what title — the highest position in the order?

AFirst Ranger BLord Commander CMaster of Arms DWarden of the North

✓ Correct! Jon Snow was elected the 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch by his sworn brothers. He was one of the youngest men to ever hold the title, following in the footsteps of legends like Jeor Mormont.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is Lord Commander. While Jon started as a steward, he was elected Lord Commander after the death of Jeor Mormont. Warden of the North is a different title entirely — one held by the Stark family.

Daenerys Targaryen hatches three dragons from petrified eggs. Which of the following is NOT one of her dragons?

ABalerion BDrogon CRhaegal DViserion

✓ Correct! Balerion “the Black Dread” was Aegon the Conqueror’s dragon, who died of old age over a century before the events of the show. Daenerys’ three dragons are Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion — named after Khal Drogo, Rhaegar, and Viserys.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is Balerion. Daenerys’ three dragons are Drogon (black and red), Rhaegal (green and bronze), and Viserion (cream and gold). Balerion the Black Dread was Aegon the Conqueror’s mount, dead long before Daenerys was born.

The Red Wedding is one of the most shocking moments in TV history. At whose castle does this massacre take place?

AHarrenhal BRiverrun CCasterly Rock DThe Twins

✓ Correct! The Red Wedding took place at The Twins, the castle of House Frey. Lord Walder Frey violated the sacred guest right by slaughtering Robb Stark, Catelyn Stark, and their bannermen during the wedding feast of Edmure Tully and Roslin Frey.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is The Twins. Walder Frey’s castle — two towers spanning the Green Fork — was where he broke sacred guest right to massacre the Starks. “The Lannisters send their regards” remains one of the show’s most chilling lines.

Jon Snow wields a Valyrian steel bastard sword given to him by Lord Commander Jeor Mormont. What is the sword’s name?

AIce BLongclaw CHeartsbane DOathkeeper

✓ Correct! Longclaw is a Valyrian steel bastard sword that was the ancestral weapon of House Mormont. Jeor gave it to Jon after he saved the Lord Commander from a wight, replacing the bear pommel with a white wolf for House Stark.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is Longclaw. Ice was the Stark greatsword (melted down by Tywin Lannister), Heartsbane belonged to House Tarly, and Oathkeeper was one of the two swords forged from Ice. Longclaw is the Mormont blade Jon carries throughout the series.

Tyrion Lannister serves as Hand of the King to which ruler, expertly managing the defense of King’s Landing during the Battle of the Blackwater?

ARobert Baratheon BTommen Baratheon CJoffrey Baratheon DDaenerys Targaryen

✓ Correct! Tywin sent Tyrion to serve as Hand in his place during Joffrey’s reign. Tyrion brilliantly orchestrated the defense against Stannis Baratheon’s fleet using wildfire, though he received no credit and was nearly killed in the battle.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is Joffrey Baratheon. Tyrion served as Joffrey’s Hand of the King in Season 2, appointed by his father Tywin. He later served as Hand to Daenerys, but it was under Joffrey that the Battle of the Blackwater took place.

Jon Snow’s true parentage is one of the show’s biggest reveals. What is his real Targaryen name, given by his mother Lyanna Stark?

AAegon Targaryen BAemon Targaryen CRhaegar Targaryen DJaehaerys Targaryen

✓ Correct! Lyanna Stark named her son Aegon Targaryen. He is the legitimate son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna, who were secretly married. This made Jon the true heir to the Iron Throne — a fact that changed the course of the final season.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is Aegon Targaryen. Lyanna whispered the name to Ned Stark in the Tower of Joy. Jon is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen (not named after him), making him Aegon — a name carried by many Targaryen kings, including the Conqueror himself.

In the series finale, who is chosen by the lords and ladies of Westeros to rule the Six Kingdoms as king?

AJon Snow BSansa Stark CTyrion Lannister DBran Stark

✓ Correct! Bran Stark — now Bran the Broken — was chosen as king of the Six Kingdoms at the Dragonpit council. Tyrion argued that Bran’s story was the most compelling reason to rule. Sansa became Queen in the North, and Jon was sent back to the Wall.

✗ Dracarys! The answer is Bran Stark. Tyrion nominated Bran at the great council, arguing “who has a better story than Bran the Broken?” Sansa was crowned Queen in the independent North, Jon returned to the Wall, and Tyrion served as Bran’s Hand of the King.

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The Night King was killed by Arya Stark, which in turn destroyed all the other White Walkers and wights, ending the fight in the span of just three episodes. That's one of several reasons for the negative response to the show's eighth and final season, but will Martin's next two books, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring, be able to handle it any better? Based on one story that he has planned, the answer is yes.

The Winds Of Winter Will Go To The White Walkers' Homeland

White Walkers and Night King in Game of Thrones

Very little is known about the Others in the books, other than they emerged thousands of years ago, and were defeated by the alliance between the Children of the Forest and the First Men. Game of Thrones revealed that the Night King was created by the Children, but that twist has not made it into A Song of Ice and Fire (the Night King does not exist in the books, but there's not yet been a reveal of the White Walkers' origins anyway).

One thing that is speculated about them, though, is where they live: The Land of Always Winter. This is the Northernmost part of Westeros, way beyond the Wall, and, as the name suggests, it is forever frozen. Given that, it would make sense for it to be where the White Walkers "live" (or at least, exist) and from where they have awoken and emerged. Thankfully, we're going to learn a lot more about it. In an interview with Smarter Travel back in 2012, Martin confirmed his novels would be heading there, saying:

"What lies really north [The Land of Always Winter] … We haven't explored that yet, but we will in the last two books."

The Winds Of Winter's White Walker Story Has A Major Advantage Over Game Of Thrones

The Night King staring at someone in season 5 of Game of Thrones

Heading to what is ostensibly the home of the White Walkers should work very well for The Winds of Winter's story, and it's something that has already been set up in the narrative. Back in A Game of Thrones, Bran Stark had a dream that seemingly revealed the location, and teased the terrifying presence of the Others there:

"And he looked past the Wall, past endless forests cloaked in snow, past the frozen shore and the great blue-white rivers of ice and the dead plains where nothing grew or lived, to the curtain of light at the end of the world, and then beyond that curtain. He looked deep into the heart of winter, and then he cried out, afraid, and the heat of his tears burned on his cheeks."

It might be the case that we once again see it via Bran's visions, especially now he is training with the Three-Eyed Crow (changed in the show to be the Three-Eyed Raven), which is perhaps more plausible than characters being able to physically travel there given the long distance and perilous conditions. However we get there, though, this could be huge for readers learning so much more about the Others, both in terms of where they come from, but also how they operate, and importantly, how many of them there really are.

It'll be particularly interesting to see how Martin balances this with his usual depiction of the White Walkers as a supernatural force of nature. They are presented as more ethereal in the books, whereas there was a more human element to them in the TV show because of the Night King, who was not only once a human, but also gave them a clear leader and something of a purpose (beyond just broadly wanting death) with targeting the Three-Eyed Raven.

I prefer Martin's version, and think the Night King ultimately ended up doing more harm than good to Game of Thrones because he raises so many more questions that the show wasn't too interested in answering. Indeed, going to The Land of Always Winter would've benefited the show massively, because it created a need to explain more about them than the books have, which gives A Song of Ice and Fire an advantage. That said, some level of explanation, and deeper understanding of them, without too fundamentally changing what they are, would be great for The Winds of Winter.

The Others May Be Partly Why GRRM Is Struggling With The Winds Of Winter

White Walker in Game of Thrones Season 2 Episode 10

As much as Martin's use of the Others differs from that of Game of Thrones, and they have always been planned as the overarching threat, part of me has long wondered if they're causing a problem for him finishing the books (though that is obviously a very multi-faceted problem). After all, A Song of Ice and Fire is (in part) a response to so much of the post-Tolkien fantasy literature landscape that was so derivative of his works, with Martin aiming to subvert many of the common tropes (something he has clearly succeeded with).

At the same time, however, there is a looming good vs. evil showdown coming: even if the Others are more supernatural, they are presented as the unstoppable force to wipe out humanity, which requires people coming together to defeat them. To a degree, that's the real point: it's about whether, and to what degree, the people of Westeros can set aside their differences and squabbles in the face of such an existential threat. That works in terms of thematics, but the plot function is still potentially that more binary good and bad dichotomy he's long strived to avoid.

Still, there are ways to make that work. Martin's work is rooted in William Faulkner's phrase "The human heart in conflict with itself," and the White Walkers are a good tool to further explore that with the likes of Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Jaime Lannister, and all the other major characters. Whenever The Winds of Winter does arrive, and The Long Night comes with it, it'd be fair to expect it to have much more depth, last a lot longer, carry far greater consequences, and simply be much better executed than in Game of Thrones.

Publisher(s) Bantam Spectra

Author(s) George R. R. Martin

Genre(s) Fantasy