Game of Thrones: Why the crypt won’t be safe during the Battle of Winterfell

The Battle of Winterfell is nearly upon us on Game of Thrones, and that means that strategic planning is in full effect. But just how strategic is the use of the crypt?

The final season of Game of Thrones is in full swing and that means preparing for epic battles, revealing long-lost secrets, and determining who will ultimately sit upon the Iron Throne. However, it is the strategic planning for the upcoming Battle of Winterfell that has us wondering just how well things are being thought out.

One thing we have heard a lot about in both the first and second episodes of this season of Game of Thrones is that people are going to the crypt. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot. The ancient tomb of the Stark family is starting to feel like New York’s Grand Central Station. And that may not be a good thing.

From meetings in the crypt, to deciding that this could be a good place for the citizens not part of the battle to remain, the Stark crypt is getting a lot of action. But, as Nerdist points out, this could be one of the worst ideas possible.

At the moment, the crypt is considered one of the safest places in Winterfell. And that makes sense, because it is large and technically secure. Sure, there are secret tunnels that would allow a form of escape (and of course entry), but who really knows about those tunnels, except maybe the Stark family themselves?

Now you have all of these defenseless people, sitting in an ancient crypt with only one known way out. Maybe it is me, but this sounds like a recipe for disaster. And do you know why? It is because the Night King will have an entire pool of soldiers waiting for them to become wight soldiers.

We’ve seen the promotional material that was released before the final season began, where we saw White Walkers’ ice consuming the crypt. In that promo, Arya, Sansa, and Jon were in the tomb. So, we already knew that there was something to be worried about. (Okay, there was already a lot to be worried about, but this was even more troublesome than most images.)

But now, with the current plan for the people of Winterfell who won’t be on the battlefield, we are talking about shoving a whole lot of people in a tomb and waiting to see what happens. And if Winterfell falls to the White Walkers and the Night King, all of those people will essentially be sitting ducks. Talk about easy recruiting for the Night King.

There could likely be thousands of people hiding out in the ancient tomb of the Stark family, and if things go south during the battle, there is no easy way for them to escape to relative safety. With how simple it seems to be for the Night King to turn the dead into his soldiers, we would be terrified to sit around waiting in the crypt — and to potentially be the newest wights roaming around would certainly add to that fear.

And while we certainly don’t want to see the Night King being victorious or gaining more soldiers, that doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be one of the more brilliant plans he came up with. Turning all of those people in the crypt into his soldiers would give him a chance to do more than fight from the outside. These wights could potentially find a way to break through the ground and do as much damage as possible.

With how often it seems that the Night King knows more than he should, it would not surprise us in the least to learn that he already knows all about the crypt, the secret tunnels, and of course, the plan to have all of the more defenseless citizens waiting in the tombs. Maybe this really is strategic battle planning — but for the wrong side of the battle.

Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.