There are certain things that fans of Game of Thrones just have to accept by now: specifically, that if you make the mistake of becoming deeply attached to a character, they're going to bite the dust in the most brutal way possible. Season 6 saw its fair share of deaths, both deserved and undeserved, and it's practically a guarantee that Season 7 will be the same. Valar Morghulis, after all. All men must die. But who will survive Game of Thrones Season 7?

Without the A Song of Ice and Fire book series to act as a guide now that the show has progressed past George R.R. Martin's novels, it can get a little tricky to predict. However, process of elimination is always helpful. Once you start to figure out who has the highest chance of crossing the river Styx, you can start to figure out just who will be left behind to fight another day in Season 8.

There are definitely some disposable characters left behind on Game of Thrones. Despite their popularity amongst book fans before they appeared on the show, the Sand Snakes of Dorne have never taken off with TV audiences. They're currently plotting with Olenna Tyrell to take revenge for all of Cersei's misdeeds, but they might be easily taken care of.

Speaking of Cersei, her death is in the cards, having been prophesied by Maggy the Frog back when Cersei was a child. But she's possibly the biggest villain still remaining on Game of Thrones, so I would imagine the show would hold off on her death for as long as possible. Cersei is sure to die on the series, but it probably won't be in Season 7. And Jaime will almost certainly meet his end when Cersei does (they take that "born together, die together" thing seriously), so my guess is that they'll both make it to Season 8.

And villains need heroes to fight against, or what's the point? Daenerys' journey to reclaim her birthright has been ongoing since the first episode, so there's no way she's not seeing this through to the end. She'll make it to the next season whether she finally conquers the Iron Throne or not. There are other characters who also seem like they might be safe for the year, like Jon Snow and Tyrion Lannister. Jon has already died and been brought back to life, so it seems unlikely he'd die again so soon. Tyrion's development into an unlikely hero also makes it seem like he'll make it to the end; if he didn't, his death would likely devastate fans.

With two seasons left to go, Game of Thrones is beginning to hurtle towards its conclusion. Many major players might be safe so that they can play a big part in the action in Season 8, but this is a show that has gone out of its way to prove that no one is ever truly safe. Fans can make predictions, but there are no guarantees.