The Night King and his army of “walking dead men” — as Tyrion calls it — is very mysterious on Game of Thrones. The show has not revealed much about how his powers actually work, or how Jon knows that he’s called the Night King (did they introduce themselves at some point?), but one enterprising fan might have cracked the case on his powers.
One Reddit user posts that the Night King is a sort of super warg. Bran Stark can warg into one animal at a time, or even Hodor, but this theory states that the Night King can warg into all of his wights.
This would mean that they aren’t just an army of isolated zombies who band together to follow the Night King. Rather, it means that they all share the same consciousness. They’re puppets under his control.
This actually makes sense and helps explain how he shows up with his army at the Three-Eyed Raven’s cave so quickly in Season 6’s “The Door.”
Previously, Game of Thrones has revealed that the Children of the Forest created the White Walkers, and that they turn Craster’s rejected baby boys into White Walkers, too. But little is known about the Night King himself — especially since his show incarnation is different from how he is in the books.
Of course, even if this is true, it doesn’t mean the Army of the Dead will be defeated if Jon Snow manages to stick the Night King with the pointy end of a Valyrian steel sword or dragonglass.
When Jon Snow killed Orell the wilding in Season 3, his consciousness lived on in his bird. Some fans think that’s the fate that awaits Arya — she’ll die but her mind will live on in Nymeria. So even if the Night King dies, the army of walking dead men could still be a problem.
Still, it’s an intriguing theory that helps flesh out the most mysterious and deadly foe of all.
Game of Thrones Season 7 is currently airing Sunday nights on HBO.
