The Ned Stark Appreciation Thread

[scatterax]

I don't think Ned's THAT naive.

 

[ЯɘvlveR]

If Ned sat on the throne, Viserys Targaryen could have taken the kingdom back easily by talking Ned into betting it on the three cups and a ball game.

Robb:I hear that Viserys is a right royal prick.

 

[Ramsay Snow]

I don't think Ned Stark would even play a game in the first place.

 

[Pink Ranger]

I don't think Ned Stark would even play a game in the first place.

You're right; you could take the kingdom from him with "guess how many fingers I'm holding behind my back."

 

[Iceman]

I think it's more that the others are grandmasters of politics and backstabbing while Ned wasn't trained for that arena and through the normal course of events should have been nowhere near Kings Landing and not even Lord of Winterfell.

 

[scatterax]

I think it's more that the others are grandmasters of politics and backstabbing while Ned wasn't trained for that arena and through the normal course of events should have been nowhere near Kings Landing and not even Lord of Winterfell.

Right, but he's not dumb, just honest.

 

[scatterax]

And he would have advisers that would help him avoid that stuff. Advisers are key. Look at dany, where would she be without her wise council? Dead, most likely.

 

[Ramsay Snow]

You're right; you could take the kingdom from him with "guess how many fingers I'm holding behind my back."

No, I don't think he'd fall for that, either. It would have to be something serious.

 

[Victarion]

Now four seasons into it, I understand why Ned Stark had to die. I don't quite take the cynical viewpoint that the setting was just too evil for a truly good man. I think it's more about what happens to the characters surrounding him when you kick away the moral compass. Not just his children, but also Littlefinger and Varys and others who were indirectly guided or held back by his influence.

It's not that the setting is too evil. Its just that Ned threatened a very protective mother who feared for her children.

 

[Roose Bolton]

If anything, I think A Dance With Dragons showed why Ned's qualities are very worthwhile in that world.

 

[Victarion]

If anything, I think A Dance With Dragons showed why Ned's qualities are very worthwhile in that world.

Are you thinking about the rampant cannibalism, or how most of the Northern lords went along with the Boltons?

 

[Roose Bolton]

Are you thinking about the rampant cannibalism, or how most of the Northern lords went along with the Boltons?

I'm talking about the near fanatical loyalty and reverence that they all display towards Ned's memory. I'm talking about how two thousand men willingly marched through a blizzard with hardly any food or supplies, all in the name of freeing Ned's daughter from a madman. I'm talking about promises made and promises kept, of men willing to suffer the threat of a slow and torturous death in the name of restoring a dead man's son what was owed him. I'm talking about the straight up fear that Ned's memory can instill upon a collection of psychopaths and traitors.

The fact is, the Stark legacy will endure and prosper through its hardships, and not because of them becoming more evil, it's because Ned Stark stood out as a good man and beloved leader of his people. In contrast, Tywin's legacy, which was built on political pragmatism and heartless behaviour, has crumbled already. His dynasty is crippled and likely won't survive another generation. In the short term honour and honesty will get you killed, but in the long run you leave behind something bigger.


The North Remembers, Victarion, and this Mummers Farse is at it's end.

 

[scatterax]

Ned, with varys to advise him on the way kings landing works, would be a good combo IMO. Whether or not little finger would be an ally or an enemy would depend on a lot of things, I think.

 

[ChrisBaleBatman]

I suppose that depends on if whether or not Renly still wanted a crown for himself, and acquired the backing of Highgarden. Stannis' forces are paltry, and the true strength of the StanNed Coalition would be the North. But Highgarden combined with Storm's End was 100,000+ troops, so they're still a huge obstacle. Plus, Renly is always being such a little **** to Stannis.

I wonder if Ned would have been the deciding factor for Renly. I mean, before he hightailed out of King's Landing...I thought Renly was actually sincere about providing Ned with his men to secure control of the throne. Granted, part of it was certainly self preservation since his blood would probably make him marked for death by the Lannisters.

But, atleast through the series, it appeared like part of Renly's problem was that he gave thought to the whispers in his ears about how he ought to be king. I think there was a sex scene with Loras where we saw him being told that he should rule, or something. It always seemed to me that once he bailed King's Landing, those whispers just got alot louder and he believed it.

So, I don't know. If Renly is kept in line by Ned, and Ned throws his full support behind Stannis...then Renly's ill advised attempt at the throne probably wouldn't have happened.

And if all of that had happened, Stannis wouldn't have leaned on Melisandre. Stannis choosing to listen to her is because other than staying at Dragonstone and being forgotten, he didn't really have a choice.

The ripples, and the consequences of Ned's death do seem pretty damn large when you look at how things ultimately played out, and how they could have gone down.