I know! I started clinging to Jon because I thought at several points that everyone else was a goner.

Dara

1. By intercepting LF's raven OR 2. By seeing the huge Vale army massing outside his gates.

Robb broke a treaty and got almost all the leaders of his army murdered as a result. He failed to make compromises with the Karstarks when he needed to. He could have took a stand by exiling old man Karstark instead of killing him. He could pacified Ramsey Bolton about the number of prisoners they were carrying by…

That may be right; I don't remember. I only remember that this season there was a discussion of the dragons not thriving because of captivity, and Tyrion claiming that Targaryen dragons got smaller and smaller with each generation because they were unable to fly freely.

For sure if the knights had arrived before the battle, Ramsey would have retreated into Winterfell.

Tormund's survival was my second greatest joy tonight. After watching that gorgeous dog eat Ramsey.

Or by waiting, Ramsey would have known LF was here and holed up in Winterfell for a siege as a result.

I don't mean loyalty into madness. Robb made such a mess of things, that most Northern houses had good reason not to support the Starks by this point. But it was Ned's style of leadership that gave Robb the great army that he threw away, because he was thinking with his little head and not his big one.

But how long are they going to wait when they don't know whether LF got her raven or whether he's coming. I can easily see Jon going ahead anyway.

The thing is, Dany's dragons are like the atom-bomb in 1945. It's a new (or rather once dead and now revived) military technology that essentially puts the rest of her opponents at an impossible disadvantage. It does make her unbeatable, and it's unclear what GRRM planned in that respect.

Mmmmm. Going to rewatch that bit.

That whole scene was a short thesis on the difference between the Stark and Bolton styles of governance.

I would bet she didn't. Actually when I think about it, any raven LF would send would have decent chance of being intercepted by Ramsey. So I'm guessing he decided not to send any.

No.

Do we know that she knew for sure that there would be reinforcements? We didn't see her get a raven from LF.

So, can we just pause for a moment and enjoy how awesome it was to watch Jon advance on Ramsey, whilst flipping up that shield to catch each arrow as he marched down his prey?

I have to confess: I covered my eyes during chunks of the battle. I was all but rocking back and forth, chanting to myself: Jon Snow has plot armor, Jon Snow has plot armor.

You can't base military strategy on who might show up. You have to plan with the men you know for sure you have. So unless Sansa received a raven back from Littlefinger, I don't think it would have changed their plans.

Fingers crossed!