WINTER is here. It’s actually here!

After six years of mild weather, the snowstorm is bearing down on our beloved, and hated, characters. Facing challenges from within and from those beyond The Wall, there’s no doubt not everyone will survive.

We’ve waited more than a year since the last season finished. Again, that pesky winter setting dictated when the production could film those blistering scenes — there’s only so much a snow machine can simulate.

But now the time for season seven is upon us. No word yet on when George R.R. Martin will release his next book. Our bet is never, or the week after never.

Here’s what you need to know about Game of Thrones season seven.

WHEN

Set your alarm because the first episode will debut on Foxtel at 11am on July 17, the same time as the American east coast broadcast. The episode will be repeated at 8.30pm for those who can’t just sneak out for an hour in the middle of the work day. It will also be available to stream on Foxtel Now at any time after the initial broadcast. Rinse and repeat every Monday for seven weeks.

If you don’t have access to Foxtel, the whole season will be available for purchase through iTunes, Fetch and other digital outlets on August 29, the day after the season finale.

WHO

The DBs — David Benioff and D.B. Weiss — remain showrunners of the show they created, having gleaned from George R.R. Martin the secrets he so stubbornly refuses to share with his fans by finishing the next book. The DBs have known the end game for a while and we’re expecting a faster momentum now that there are only 13 episodes left over two seasons.

Frequent Game of Thrones director Jeremy Podeswa will helm the season opener and the finale while Alan Taylor (who hasn’t directed an episode since season two) will be back for the penultimate chapter.

New cast members this season include Jim Broadbent and Tom Hopper while the regulars and recurring guest stars that made it through the bloodbaths of the last two episodes of season six should be back.

Especially the core cast — Peter Dinklage, Kit Harrington, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke and Nikolaj Coster-Waldeau — whose salaries have been bumped up to a reported $3 million per episode (thanks to those sweet, sweet syndication deals).

OK, now we’re venturing into seasons one to six spoiler territory. And some discussion on what might be in store for season seven — the trailers were very generous in dolling out clues. So if you’d rather go into it as blind as Maester Aemon, we suggest you turn back now, or click here to read about a scarf-wearing cat warming cold hearts in Adelaide. It’s a thing.

WHERE WE LEFT EVERYONE

Since it’s been so long since we last saw the Westeros crew, let’s take stock of where we left everyone:

Starks: Arya is wandering away from the Riverlands after striking Walder Frey off her list. Sansa is in Winterfell being not Queen of the North while Littlefinger whispers sweet somethings in her ear (what could he possibly want?). Jon is King of the North despite only being a Stark through the matrilineal line after the series confirmed the prevailing fan theory in THAT vision. Bran and Meera are slowly making their way to The Wall after their perilous adventures up north.

Lannisters: We last saw Cersei ascending the Iron Throne and Jaime looking on with horror as he realises his sister/lover is now the Mad Queen. What’s a King Slayer to do? Tyrion, wearing the insignia of The Hand, was standing next to Daenerys as her fleet makes way for Westeros.

Targaryens: After six years of meandering from one side of Essos to the other and then back again and back again and back again — you get the point — Dany is FINALLY sailing for Westeros, ready to conquer her ancestral land and take back the power that was snatched from her crazy daddy. Meanwhile, Jon Snow is … wait, is it too soon to include Jon here?

Greyjoys: Theon and Yara have joined up with Dany. The Mother of Dragons gladly took up the renegade Greyjoy siblings’ “wooden horses”. Their homicidal uncle Euron, also known as Grizzly Pacey, is trying to marry himself off for an alliance and has vowed to hunt down his treacherous kin.

Tyrells/Sand Snakes: Well, almost the entire Tyrell line has been killed off thanks to Cersei’s fireworks but Olenna is still around and she’s plotting, this time with Ellaria Sand and Varys at a confab in Dorne with talk of vengeance, fire and blood. Delicious.

Cleganes: The Hound has found himself among the Brotherhood Without Banners in the Riverlands and The Mountain, or the reanimated corpse of The Mountain, is Frankenstein-ing it around the Red Keep with Cersei.

Tarlys: Sam and Gilly made it safely to the Citadel where he’s frothing over the bound tomes that line the walls. So, so many books.

WHAT WE CAN EXPECT AHEAD

Jon/Sansa: Both Sophie Turner and Kit Harrington in interviews have alluded to a showdown or, at the very least, tension between the half-siblings as the jostle for power in Winterfell remain unsettled. Sansa is the one who’s really responsible for Jon’s triumph at the Battle of the Bastards, and she’s the rightful heir to the Winterfell throne, but Jon’s the one proclaimed King of the North. Expect this rivalry to play out in the season ahead, especially with Littlefinger sowing seeds of distrust.

Cersei/Jaime: The womb-sharing incestuous pair’s relationship could be coming to a head this season with Cersei morphing into the Mad Queen, which doesn’t really fit in with Jaime’s redemptive character arc. Plus, we know what Jaime’s done in the past with insane monarchs. Could he really be the one to stop Cersei? Maybe. But not before he defends the Lannister house, as we’ve seen in the trailers with him and Bronn leading the defence in the battle against Dany’s Dothraki warriors.

Daenerys: She’s on the charge, she and her dragons, and the Unsullied, and the Dothraki, and the Greyjoys, Tyrells, the Sand Snakes, and Tyrion and Varys. OK, she’s got almost everybody on her side. The trailers show Daenerys touching her hand on Westerosi soil at what looks to be Dragonstone, the home of the Targaryens. There are also glimpses of another landing party at Dragonstone with suggestions that it could be Jon or Davos looking to strike an accord for the real war — the one against the White Walkers.

White Walkers: Speaking of, the supernatural threat is only escalating and the trailers have shown us of a battle where Jon and what looks to be the Brotherhood Without Banners are vastly outnumbered by the White Walkers and their zombie minions. We’re pretty sure it’s the Brotherhood because you can clearly see Beric Dondarrion and his flaming sword. The human group are backed into a circle as they’re surrounded, not unlike the move Ramsey’s forces pulled on Jon at the Battle of the Bastards — how are they going to get out this one?

Gendry: No clear sighting of the Baratheon bastard, last seen row, row, rowing away in this little boat at the end of season three. He has a strong claim to the Iron Throne and fans have expected him to pop back up before now. But, really, the story has moved on so much since the Baratheon era, and there’s a matter of urgency in dealing with the White Walker menace, any Gendry return seems like an unnecessary complication now. Especially when there are only 13 episodes left to finish the series. Let’s leave him out there.

Game of Thrones season seven starts on Showcase on Foxtel on Monday, July 17 at 11am, and repeated at 8:30pm. News.com.au will publish a recap and a podcast analysing each episode following the second screening.

Continue the conversation on Twitter with @wenleima.