Skinchanging (A Song of Ice and Fire)

==Summary==
A skinchanger or beastling is a person with the ability to enter the mind of an animal and control its actions. A skinchanger able to enter the mind of a wolf or dog is known as a warg.
==Powers and abilities==
Possession (Mental possession): Skinchangers's spirits can enter into the minds of animals and humans to control their actions.The World of Ice & Fire, Ancient History: The Dawn Age.A Dance with Dragons, Prologue
Extrasensory Perception: A Skinchanger can always recognize another Skinchanger.A Dance with Dragons, Jon XII
Clairvoyance (Visual Linking): Skinchangers can see through the eyes of those they possess. Orell and Varamyr used an eagle to do recognition and scout the foes.Clash of Kings, Jon VIIIA Storm of Swords, Jon X During her temporary blindness, Arya could still see through a cat's eyesDance with Dragons, The Blind Girl
Immortality (Type 6): Skinchangers can live a "Second Life" through an animal or a human they possessed when they died.A Storm of Swords, Jon II Skinchangers who have a bond with an animal will have their spirits passively entering the animal's mind upon death.
Multiple Selves (Type 1): A Skinchanger who control an animal already possessed by another Skinchanger who leads his "Second Life" will see his mind automatically merged with the latter's. For example, Orell's consciousness was in Varamyr's after the latter controlled Orell's eagle, and he whispered things to him (but he couldn't control him).
Madness Manipulation (Type 2): Mental possession of a skinchanger on a human or some animals drives the latter violently mad
Limited Telepathy, Enhanced Senses and Transformation: A bond can be made between a skinchanger and an animal. In this case, the animal can share the personality traits of the skinchanger with whom it has a strong bond,A Game of Thrones, Sansa IA Game of Thrones, Bran VIA Game of Thrones, Eddard III"Interview with the Dragon" Copyright © 2003 Robert Shaw and conversely the skinchanger can also share the physical traits of the animal with which it has a strong bond (Varamyr described Borroq as having looked so much like his boar, that all he lacked were tusks). Jon Snow was capable of feeling his direwolf's hunger at one point,A Storm of Swords, Jon XII to have a taste of blood in his mouth when his direwolf hunted and ate an prey,A Dance with Dragons, Jon III and to feel the smells that Ghost detected.A Dance with Dragons, Jon VII Jon said Ghost, his direwolf, was a part of him. When Brandon Stark was angry following a conversation with Jojen Reed, his direwolf Summer also got angry, and wanted to attacked Jojen. Jojen said part of Bran is Summer, and part of Summer is Bran, and that the anger of Summer was that of Bran.A Clash of Kings, Bran IV The animal can also know if his master is in danger. According to George R. R. Martin, the loss of her direwolf has left Sansa Stark a little adrift.
==Limitations/Weaknesses==
A skinchanger can only possess an animal (and a human) that is within sight, unless he already has a bond with the animal he wants to control. This also means that a skinchanger who does not have a special bond with an animal, or that his animal is dead or already taken as was the case with Haggon, will not be able to have a "Second Life" if he dies before being able to possess the body of another living being.
The powers of a skinchanger disappear when the latter's body dies, so he cannot take possession of another body when he lives his "Second Life"
It is traumatic if an animal is killed while its mind is inhabited by a skinchanger
A near-death state reduces a skinchanger's mental possession potency, which can prevent a target from being possessed
In the "Second Life", the skinchanger's memory slowly fades until nothing of the man is left and only the beast remains, although the skinchanger's spirit will always be present.A Dance with Dragons, Bran III
The most common skinchangers are wargs, those who control dogs, and wolves, the safest animals to control. Skinchanging on other animals has detrimental effects on most skinchangers in long term. By mentally possessing birds, a skinchanger may soon lose contact to the mundane things of earth and want only to fly, and by possessing Elk and deer, a man will become a coward, because these animals are prey, etc. However there are exceptions, some skinchangers do not experience these adverse effects with certain animals (Like Borroq with his boar, Briar with his shadowcat, Grisella with her goat and Orell with his eagle).
An unwritten code for free folk skinchangers forbids them to seizing the body of another man, is considered the worst abomination. So some skinchangers won't use this ability in match-up with In-Character/Moral-on conditions, except those who have no respect for this rule and are morally horrible (ex: Varamyr) or who are still children and don't know what's wrong or not (ex: Brandon Stark)
=== Greenseers' skinchanging===
All previous abilities plus:
Enhanced Possession: The greenseers could wear the skins of any beast that flies or swims or crawls without any detrimental effects that skinchangers suffersA Storm of Swords, Bran I
Immortality Negation (Type 6): Greenseers can prevent other Skinchangers' from having a "Second Life" by forcing them out of an animal, like when Varamyr's spirit kicked out Haggon's from a wolf.
==Limitations/Weaknesses==
All previous limitations and weaknesses plus:
A greenseer can prevent another skinchanger from having a "Second Life" by ejecting it from an animal or human only if the skinchanger's body is still alive (Varamyr was able to force Haggon out of his wolf because the Haggon's body was still alive, compared to that of Orell when Varamyr took possession of his eagle, so that Orell could not be ejected by Varamyr and integrated the latter's spirit).
==References==
Category:Verse-specific Powers and Abilities
Category:A Song of Ice and Fire