How effective do you think the wildlings are as a fighting force? Much is made of their lack of disclipline, which I assume in the context to mean their lack of battlefield formations and advanced tactics. Are they truly ineffective, and if so, how far do their great numbers go towards compensating for that?

Keep in mind, only about a third of their entire force are fighters. And while Mance is clearly trying to teach them how to form shield walls and fight on horseback, they’re clearly not fully trained or well-equipped.

To me, the analogy here is Boudicca. Her Iceni and Trinovanti forces were capable of wiping out significant detachments of Romans (as at the Battle of Camulodunum) when those forces were isolated, outnumbered, poorly led, and caught off-guard. But give the Romans time to get into formation and let them choose the terrain, as at the Battle of Watling Street, and the Iceni/Trinovanti’s lack of ability to use their numbers in an effective fashion turned them into so much wheat for the reaper man.