'Game of Thrones' Battle of Winterfell Spoilers: Who Will Die in Episode 3?

It’s the moment we’ve been waiting for. Game of Thrones is finally set to deliver the long-promised Great Battle of Winterfell, and that means one thing above all else: A lot of characters are going to die. GoT Season 8, Episode 3 is set to pit the Night King’s undead forces against all the remaining heroes, and we’re definitely expecting some major deaths that will have you shrieking in disbelief like Ellaria Sand in Season 4.

But who specifically is going to die in Game of Thrones Season 8, Episode 3? The last two episodes, along with the latest teaser and seven seasons of backstory, may provide all the clues we need. So Inverse’s biggest Game of Thrones fans are putting our heads together to offer our 10 best guesses on who will die at the Great Battle of Winterfell. (These are just guesses, but they might be right, so consider yourself warned about possible spoilers.)

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Jaime Lannister

If anyone is going to die a heroic death at the Great Battle of Winterfell, it’s probably going to be Jaime. His entire Game of Thrones arc has been leading to the moment he can finally right his many wrongs from Season 1 (and before that). Season 8, Episode 3 presents the Kingslayer with that exact opportunity.

Episode 2 already laid most of the groundwork for this emotional death. First, Jaime apologized to Bran for pushing him out the window and sort of got Bran’s forgiveness. Then Jaime reconnected with Brienne, offered to fight for her battalion in the big battle, and even knighted her in one particularly powerful scene.

The only thing left for Jaime to do is fulfill Cersei’s “Valonqar” prophecy and murder his evil sister, but assuming that doesn’t happen (that prophecy isn’t even mentioned on the show, only in the books), we definitely wouldn’t be surprised to see Jaime Lannister draw his last breath at the Great Battle of Winterfell.

— Jake Kleinman

Ser Brienne of Tarth

She may be a skilled fighter, but Brienne could still die in the battle. That would certainly make for a powerful scene just moments after she finally became a knight in Episode 2. However, it would also be a huge bummer for one of the most universally likable people on Game of Thrones.

Hopefully this one doesn’t happen, but be prepared to cry if it does.

— Jake Kleinman

Theon Greyjoy

During the official “Inside the Episode,” series co-creator D.B. Weiss noted that Theon Greyjoy is acting valiantly, even recklessly, in an attempt to redeem himself after years of atrocious actions. “He’s using this battle as an attempt to try to make good to the extent that that’s possible on the horrible mistakes he made,” Weiss said.

The entire plan involves using Bran Stark, aka the Three-Eyed Raven, as bait in the Godswood, luring the Night King to a place where they can ambush and kill him. Theon volunteered to lead his Ironborn soldiers as Bran’s personal guard. Assuming this goes according to plan, then Theon and his comrades will probably wind up roasting in icy undead dragon flames before Jon and Daenerys swoop in on Drogon and Rhaegal to combat the Night King directly.

— Corey Plante

Gendry

Like the aforementioned Grey Worm and Missandei, Gendry and Arya essentially sealed their fates with their night together before the battle begins. While Arya could very well eat it on the battlefield, there’s infinitely less to gain from her death than Gendry’s, at least from a narrative perspective.

Just think about how unfulfilling Arya’s death would be, no matter how beautifully shot and edited. You don’t spend seven seasons with a character as rich and complex as Arya only to kill her off in a pile of bodies just because it’s a big battle and characters are supposed to die in big battles.

So, Gendry. He’s done his primary duty; he’s made Arya her weapon; and he gave her one night of pure bliss. Their little conversation that Gendry also seeks to do some fighting on his own, with far less experience than anyone else around him, only sets him up for a nasty death. Sorry, Arya, but your beau’s about to go.

— Eric Francisco

Sansa Stark

Look, killing Sansa this early in Season 8 would be a huge mistake. She’s one of the best political leaders still around and an obvious candidate for Queen in the North. But that doesn’t mean Game of Thrones won’t break our hearts by killing off the older Stark sister during the Great Battle of Winterfell.

The fact that Sansa is hiding out in the crypts only makes matters worse. What’s supposed to be a safe space will likely turn deadly as soon as the White Walkers decide to bring all the dead Starks buried in the crypts back to life. Once that happens, Sansa is probably as good as dead — unless someone else steps in to save her that is.

— Jake Kleinman

Tyrion Lannister

In the past couple seasons of Game of Thrones, Tyrion has proven himself to be a lot less smart than we once thought. He even fell for Cersei’s lies at the end of Season 7. This might seem like it’s leading to some big redemptive moment for the Hand of the Queen, but maybe it’s not. Maybe Tyrion is doomed to die in the crypts under Winterfell.

We know that’s where he’ll be hiding out during the big battle. We also have a pretty strong suspicion that the first thing the Night King will do is turn all the dead and buried Starks in those crypts into the newest recruits for his undead army. That puts Tyrion (and everyone else in the crypts) in serious danger.

Knowing Tyrion, he’ll probably do the heroic thing and die defending the children and woman hiding in the crypts with him. At least that way he’ll still get some sort of redemption.

— Jake Kleinman

Grey Worm and/or Missandei

I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this one. Just know that any time two characters share a passionate kiss before an epic battle and make promises to meet up afterward, they will not. Because one of them is going to die. And at this point, it might even be both!

— Eric Francisco

Ser Davos Seaworth

Episode 2 reminded us that Ser Davos Seaworth survived both the Battle of the Blackwater and the Battle of the Bastards, as he puts it, “all without a shred of combat ability.” Davos is more skilled at peddling stinky wares and using them to smuggle illegal goods than he is at fighting anybody.

Per the war council meeting, we know that Davos will be on the walls waiting to give the signal to light the trench. The plan, then, is to lure the undead closer to the castle before they light the trench on fire, taking down a bunch of wights. But inevitably, should they breach the castle walls, Ser Davos is more than likely to become a casualty. He’s not one to run from a fight, which only makes his death that much more certain.

— Corey Plante

Varys

Varys is also hiding out in the crypts during the battle, which means he could be an early target if the Night King decides to turn all those dead Stark ancestors into wights. We don’t expect Varys to put up much of a fight either, though maybe he’ll get to deliver one more great one-liner before he dies.

— Jake Kleinman

Ghost (Jon’s Direwolf)

No.

— Jake Kleinman

Last week we predicted Yara, Beric, and Jorah would die. We were wrong on all three counts (Nobody died in Episode 2!), but Yara never showed up onscreen, either, so who knows. Regardless, we’ll check back in next week to see how we did with our Episode 3 predictions.