Character Info
character name: Brandon Stark
Fandom: A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones
Timeline: Mid-Storm of Swords, during the night at Queenscrown
character's age: 11ish, going by show canon for ages only because otherwise he'd be like. 4 or something.
powers, skills, pets and equipment:
I'm gonna lay out all the info on wargs here, even if his canon point wouldn't allow for him knowing it all yet. It still counts!
Bran was arguably the first of the Stark children to discover his abilities as a warg, or skinchanger. Ultimately what this means is that he can "jump" into the skin of an animal, using its mind and body as his own, which is a great advantage to him in particular since he's otherwise crippled. Most often he uses his direwolf Summer for this but in canon he's also shown using ravens for flight and even a human (in this case, a dim-witted companion called Hodor; the first experience frightened him and Bran likely wouldn't jump into any other person unless there was really no other option, but it does show that he's capable of possessing people if need be.) (Also if he ever needed to, I would definitely get permission first, don't worry.)
Since he's had a LOT of time to practice and considerably more guidance than his siblings thanks to Jojen the greenseer, Bran has learned to slip in and out of skins at will while awake, instead of just possessing his direwolf in his dreams, and is able to control the animals rather than just going along for the ride. In Summer's case, he and Bran are bonded which makes the skinchanging pretty effortless, but not every skin is easily taken. Canon likens it to riding a tamed horse versus a wild one - an animal never used by a warg will fight back and give him difficulty, and at first there will be some trouble getting used to the new body. Like how he flew a bird into a wall the first time he got to use one, despite birds knowing how not to do that.
While in the body of the possessed animal (or guy) Bran can use all its senses and abilities as if they were his. Rather than entirely taking over, Bran is able to 'inhabit' the body of the animal, allowing it to run on its natural instincts and behave as it normally would until Bran decides to take active control. Whatever the animal feels, he feels, although he himself will see no lasting effects from the possession; if the animal is injured he'll feel pain, but his human body won't be hurt. If it eats he will taste it, but it won't keep him fed. And so on.*
(In canon he also learns to possess the weirwood which allows him to SEE EVERYTHING awaken his abilities as a greenseer, but as of his canon point that hasn't happened yet. I'm noting it anyway because it could be a neat development later on. He does sometimes have strange/prophetic dreams unwillingly, but I won't be relying on that too much at this point.)
Obviously this means he'll be coming in with his massive direwolf, Summer, and for the most part will only be using that for his warging. Not much else though.
In theory Bran knows how to do a number of other things that any lord's son would know - horse riding, archery, reading and writing, sums, etc. He's severely limited by being crippled from a fall that left his legs completely useless, so although he can get around some disadvantages (a special saddle and a carefully trained horse let him ride again, for example) anything involving walking or standing on his own is out of the question.
*An interesting twist to this is that if Bran were to ever die, his mind would then inhabit the body of his bonded animal, namely Summer. I'm... not sure how that would work with Anatole's resurrection policy but that is probably a bridge to be crossed if I ever come to it.
canon history:
Shit sucks, go Winterfell Direwolves!
personality:
Bran was raised as the second son of Winterfell, a Stark through and through. And it shows. Like the rest of his family he understands the importance of duty, honor, and resilience, taking well after his father and older brother Robb (and his half-brother Jon), and during some instances, reminding his much more childish younger brother Rickon what it means to be a Stark. He's generally quiet and observant, and especially dutiful in remembering his lessons, particularly history, which comes as a surprising benefit for the journey north (and makes him feel rather proud when he remembers something otherwise old and boring). For a ten year old (or 7, by book canon, which is ridiculous what the hell) he can even be surprisingly stoic at times. He's young, but old enough to know when to temper himself. A boy at that age is sometimes considered nearly a man grown, and so Bran often thinks of himself. Even when he was younger he dreamt of being a knight - riding down his foes on horseback, steel flashing, guarding the kingdom. Although his dreams of knighthood were... kind of literally dashed, Bran still carries the desire to be able to prove himself more than what he is - just a crippled little boy, to his mind.
After his fall (or as he thinks of it, just after) he began to develop a certain sullen resentment for his condition, even though he had blocked out the painful memory of how it happened to begin with. Before, Bran loved to climb along the walls of Winterfell, and was always very proud of the fact that he did it better than anyone, and never slipped. After he yearns to climb again, or better yet to fly like the crows that carry messages all over Westeros. But since he can't do either of those things, he's forced to sit and watch as everyone else goes about their duties, painfully aware of how many things he'd taken for granted back when he could walk. Suddenly he has to put up with the humiliation of being washed and clothed and carried around like a baby. Eventually, though, he's introduced to ways to avoid some of it - no less than Tyrion Lannister promises him that he could ride a horse again, and they devise a basket for him to ride around in on the back of the stableboy, rather than being carried in his arms. With this Bran regains some hope and cherished freedom, small as it might be.
It's enough to carry him through when his life begins to completely unravel. Bran never stops wishing to be whole again, never quite gets over his frustration at feeling helpless, but his stubbornness keeps him from growing complacent about it. Once he gets an idea in his head it's hard to steer him away from it, to the point of sometimes being annoying. His search for the three-eyed crow is born from his desire to be healed and the promise of learning to fly, taking him and his friends all the way from the ruins of Winterfell to the edge of the Wall and beyond, and forcing him to brave dangers a noble's boy would never normally be prepared for. And while he does get scared, he rarely lets himself show it - he's almost a man grown, after all.
That said, he's still really just a boy, and as much as he wants to be the ice-hard Lord Stark he's still given to fits of sulking, boredom, and brattiness. His approaches to problems are still pretty direct and naive, though luckily he usually has counsel from others to steer him in the right direction. He loves stories about knights and fearsome creatures, but not love stories, because they're for girls. There are times when he wants nothing more but to slip into the skin of his direwolf and run with a pack. Being a warg allows him the freedom of escape from his broken prison, and if given the opportunity he could spend hours just being Summer. It made it tremendously difficult for him to go back to his old self when he was first learning to control his ability, but over time he learned to be more practical about it. On the run, he couldn't afford to lose himself as Summer. He had to be Bran.
It really is kind of impossible to talk about Bran without Summer. Like the rest of the Stark children he raised the direwolf from a cub, but unlike the others, he's come to rely on Summer to find his way in the world in a more literal sense. Summer acts as his eyes, ears, nose and yes, his feet. The wolf is fiercely protective of Bran, saving him from several would-be killers including a Lannister assassin. Accordingly, Bran takes comfort from Summer's presence and worries when the direwolf might be in danger, no matter how strong he might be. Summer is part of the family, and family is important. The pack is important, even if it's splintered and scattered.
why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting?
Come on he's a main character in a GRRM book and he's not dead yet. Okay, yes, Bran is a kid. A crippled kid, at that. But he's also a survivor of the wrath of the Lannisters, the heir to Winterfell, a hostage and an escapee, a prince, and a skinchanger. Bran's life amongst the others Starks was one of the first to lose its charm when he was made a target for accidentally learning of the queen's treason, and it's all just been going downhill from there. From an early age he dreamt of being a knight; now all he wants to do is survive and be whole, and he's come a very long way in that respect in spite of all the physical and emotional challenges he's been forced to face. Having his home and family ripped from him has given him a taste of the horrors of war and life outside of safe stone walls, and even before it all came apart he was no stranger to real dangers, having been nearly killed or assassinated... a few times.
The ultimate goal of his quest won't be in Anatole, but there's a lot he could learn from the place - a life in the city where the name Stark is neither a lifesaver or a death knell will be entirely new to him, and having to learn to survive entirely on his own (okay yes his family is here a little but let's pretend they aren't) will be a hideous new experience that Bran will definitely be stubborn enough to face without blinking. He's not a fighter, no, not even an adult, but he is a Stark of Winterfell so bitches better step off.
Also he has a direwolf. Which will be as much a benefit as it is a hindrance among the natives, I'm sure. At the very least he won't be completely vulnerable.
Fandom: A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones
Timeline: Mid-Storm of Swords, during the night at Queenscrown
character's age: 11ish, going by show canon for ages only because otherwise he'd be like. 4 or something.
powers, skills, pets and equipment:
I'm gonna lay out all the info on wargs here, even if his canon point wouldn't allow for him knowing it all yet. It still counts!
Bran was arguably the first of the Stark children to discover his abilities as a warg, or skinchanger. Ultimately what this means is that he can "jump" into the skin of an animal, using its mind and body as his own, which is a great advantage to him in particular since he's otherwise crippled. Most often he uses his direwolf Summer for this but in canon he's also shown using ravens for flight and even a human (in this case, a dim-witted companion called Hodor; the first experience frightened him and Bran likely wouldn't jump into any other person unless there was really no other option, but it does show that he's capable of possessing people if need be.) (Also if he ever needed to, I would definitely get permission first, don't worry.)
Since he's had a LOT of time to practice and considerably more guidance than his siblings thanks to Jojen the greenseer, Bran has learned to slip in and out of skins at will while awake, instead of just possessing his direwolf in his dreams, and is able to control the animals rather than just going along for the ride. In Summer's case, he and Bran are bonded which makes the skinchanging pretty effortless, but not every skin is easily taken. Canon likens it to riding a tamed horse versus a wild one - an animal never used by a warg will fight back and give him difficulty, and at first there will be some trouble getting used to the new body. Like how he flew a bird into a wall the first time he got to use one, despite birds knowing how not to do that.
While in the body of the possessed animal (or guy) Bran can use all its senses and abilities as if they were his. Rather than entirely taking over, Bran is able to 'inhabit' the body of the animal, allowing it to run on its natural instincts and behave as it normally would until Bran decides to take active control. Whatever the animal feels, he feels, although he himself will see no lasting effects from the possession; if the animal is injured he'll feel pain, but his human body won't be hurt. If it eats he will taste it, but it won't keep him fed. And so on.*
(In canon he also learns to possess the weirwood which allows him to SEE EVERYTHING awaken his abilities as a greenseer, but as of his canon point that hasn't happened yet. I'm noting it anyway because it could be a neat development later on. He does sometimes have strange/prophetic dreams unwillingly, but I won't be relying on that too much at this point.)
Obviously this means he'll be coming in with his massive direwolf, Summer, and for the most part will only be using that for his warging. Not much else though.
In theory Bran knows how to do a number of other things that any lord's son would know - horse riding, archery, reading and writing, sums, etc. He's severely limited by being crippled from a fall that left his legs completely useless, so although he can get around some disadvantages (a special saddle and a carefully trained horse let him ride again, for example) anything involving walking or standing on his own is out of the question.
*An interesting twist to this is that if Bran were to ever die, his mind would then inhabit the body of his bonded animal, namely Summer. I'm... not sure how that would work with Anatole's resurrection policy but that is probably a bridge to be crossed if I ever come to it.
canon history:
Shit sucks, go Winterfell Direwolves!
personality:
Bran was raised as the second son of Winterfell, a Stark through and through. And it shows. Like the rest of his family he understands the importance of duty, honor, and resilience, taking well after his father and older brother Robb (and his half-brother Jon), and during some instances, reminding his much more childish younger brother Rickon what it means to be a Stark. He's generally quiet and observant, and especially dutiful in remembering his lessons, particularly history, which comes as a surprising benefit for the journey north (and makes him feel rather proud when he remembers something otherwise old and boring). For a ten year old (or 7, by book canon, which is ridiculous what the hell) he can even be surprisingly stoic at times. He's young, but old enough to know when to temper himself. A boy at that age is sometimes considered nearly a man grown, and so Bran often thinks of himself. Even when he was younger he dreamt of being a knight - riding down his foes on horseback, steel flashing, guarding the kingdom. Although his dreams of knighthood were... kind of literally dashed, Bran still carries the desire to be able to prove himself more than what he is - just a crippled little boy, to his mind.
After his fall (or as he thinks of it, just after) he began to develop a certain sullen resentment for his condition, even though he had blocked out the painful memory of how it happened to begin with. Before, Bran loved to climb along the walls of Winterfell, and was always very proud of the fact that he did it better than anyone, and never slipped. After he yearns to climb again, or better yet to fly like the crows that carry messages all over Westeros. But since he can't do either of those things, he's forced to sit and watch as everyone else goes about their duties, painfully aware of how many things he'd taken for granted back when he could walk. Suddenly he has to put up with the humiliation of being washed and clothed and carried around like a baby. Eventually, though, he's introduced to ways to avoid some of it - no less than Tyrion Lannister promises him that he could ride a horse again, and they devise a basket for him to ride around in on the back of the stableboy, rather than being carried in his arms. With this Bran regains some hope and cherished freedom, small as it might be.
It's enough to carry him through when his life begins to completely unravel. Bran never stops wishing to be whole again, never quite gets over his frustration at feeling helpless, but his stubbornness keeps him from growing complacent about it. Once he gets an idea in his head it's hard to steer him away from it, to the point of sometimes being annoying. His search for the three-eyed crow is born from his desire to be healed and the promise of learning to fly, taking him and his friends all the way from the ruins of Winterfell to the edge of the Wall and beyond, and forcing him to brave dangers a noble's boy would never normally be prepared for. And while he does get scared, he rarely lets himself show it - he's almost a man grown, after all.
That said, he's still really just a boy, and as much as he wants to be the ice-hard Lord Stark he's still given to fits of sulking, boredom, and brattiness. His approaches to problems are still pretty direct and naive, though luckily he usually has counsel from others to steer him in the right direction. He loves stories about knights and fearsome creatures, but not love stories, because they're for girls. There are times when he wants nothing more but to slip into the skin of his direwolf and run with a pack. Being a warg allows him the freedom of escape from his broken prison, and if given the opportunity he could spend hours just being Summer. It made it tremendously difficult for him to go back to his old self when he was first learning to control his ability, but over time he learned to be more practical about it. On the run, he couldn't afford to lose himself as Summer. He had to be Bran.
It really is kind of impossible to talk about Bran without Summer. Like the rest of the Stark children he raised the direwolf from a cub, but unlike the others, he's come to rely on Summer to find his way in the world in a more literal sense. Summer acts as his eyes, ears, nose and yes, his feet. The wolf is fiercely protective of Bran, saving him from several would-be killers including a Lannister assassin. Accordingly, Bran takes comfort from Summer's presence and worries when the direwolf might be in danger, no matter how strong he might be. Summer is part of the family, and family is important. The pack is important, even if it's splintered and scattered.
why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting?
Come on he's a main character in a GRRM book and he's not dead yet. Okay, yes, Bran is a kid. A crippled kid, at that. But he's also a survivor of the wrath of the Lannisters, the heir to Winterfell, a hostage and an escapee, a prince, and a skinchanger. Bran's life amongst the others Starks was one of the first to lose its charm when he was made a target for accidentally learning of the queen's treason, and it's all just been going downhill from there. From an early age he dreamt of being a knight; now all he wants to do is survive and be whole, and he's come a very long way in that respect in spite of all the physical and emotional challenges he's been forced to face. Having his home and family ripped from him has given him a taste of the horrors of war and life outside of safe stone walls, and even before it all came apart he was no stranger to real dangers, having been nearly killed or assassinated... a few times.
The ultimate goal of his quest won't be in Anatole, but there's a lot he could learn from the place - a life in the city where the name Stark is neither a lifesaver or a death knell will be entirely new to him, and having to learn to survive entirely on his own (okay yes his family is here a little but let's pretend they aren't) will be a hideous new experience that Bran will definitely be stubborn enough to face without blinking. He's not a fighter, no, not even an adult, but he is a Stark of Winterfell so bitches better step off.
Also he has a direwolf. Which will be as much a benefit as it is a hindrance among the natives, I'm sure. At the very least he won't be completely vulnerable.