History Characters / GameOfThronesOtherNorthernHouses

* BadassGrandpa: He might be in his older years, but that just means he's got more kills than most.
%%* TheBigGuy: To Robb's [[TheHero Hero]].

%%* BoisterousBruiser

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler: Tormund rips out his throat with his teeth and then stabs his face multiple times with a dirk.]].

[[Characters/GameOfThrones Click here to return to the main character page]]. See also the [[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFireNorthernHouses book character sheet]] for these characters.

* CompositeCharacter: While Lyanna writes the letter to Stannis in the books as well, the show version seems to combine aspects of Wyman Manderly's granddaughter, Wylla, with her wanting to fight in the name of House Stark odds be damned and her capacity for badass speeches. She's also basically a condensation of all four of Maege's younger daughters from the novel into a single character.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Her attitude is harsh but it's not incorrect. An illegitimate son and a twice-married lady arrive requesting she aid them in another war for the Starks, even though neither technically have the Stark name. Loyalty is not reason enough to risk losing everything.

* BloodKnight: They love fighting in the frontlines.

* ModestRoyalty: A nice touch of it in Season 1. After Catelyn Stark reunites with the Northern army and the other nobles are dismissed to give her and Robb a few moments alone, he throws an arm around Ser Rodrik Cassel and leads him away with a "Rodrik, you old dog!", and Rodrik responds in kind. As was said, it's a nice touch to see one of the greatest lords in the North on a first name basis with a lowly knight, making him come across as far less formal and more approachable than, say, Lord Eddard.

* FantasticRacism: His hostile hatred for the Wildlings causes him to betray the house his house has been loyal to for centuries, and causes him to side with the monstrous Boltons. Jon Snow notes to the Wildlings that if the Boltons won the battle, Umber would go after women and children of the Wildlings, too.

* AncestralWeapon: Longclaw, a Valyrian sword. Lord Jeor passes it to his protegee Jon Snow, a bastard from House Stark.

* BrutalHonesty: Lyanna is not one for softening her words or the reality of the situation. The Starks didn't come to reminiscence, they came for her soldiers, no point wasting time chatting. Jon's a bastard and Sansa's been married twice, making neither a legal Stark. And if they want her to send what little men she has into yet another battle for the Starks, then they had best give her a damn good reason. She's honest towards herself, too: when Sansa tries to compliment her by saying that she'll grow up to be a great beauty, Lyanna responds: "I doubt it. My mother wasn't a great beauty or any other kind of beauty."

* DeathGlare: Fixes one on Ramsay during the entire meet between she and the rest of the lords sworn to House Stark, and Bolton's men. It's a miracle the bastard didn't burst into flames.

* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Even before the viewers get to see her, her blunt nature (for her age) is established in her letter to Stannis, refusing to support him or any other king who isn't a Stark of Winterfell. In her first appearance, she brushes off any attempts at smooth talk and flattery by Jon and Sansa and dominates the scene with her presence in spite of being a little girl.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Her attitude is harsh but it's not incorrect. A bastard and a twice married lady arrive requesting she aid them in another war for the Starks, even though neither are technically members of that house. Loyalty is not reason enough to risk losing everything.

* QualityOverQuantity: Although the force she can offer is small, she claims that each of her warriors are worth ten mainlanders (evocative of House Mormont's sigil animal; a [[BearsAreBadNews bear]]). Considering how badass Northern soldiers have generally been portrayed when fighting larger southern forces, this is quite the BadassBoast. This isn't an idle boast, either. As explained in the novels, the Bear Island is off the northwest coast of the North, so they're ''constantly'' fighting off not only wildling raids (in small fishing ships) but heavy raids from the ironborn coming up from the south. Thus they have very strong martial traditions -- look at how tough Jeor was and Jorah still is -- and they also had to train even their daughters to be warriors (to survive while the men are out at sea in fishing ships).

* WiseBeyondTheirYears: The young Lady Lyanna is quick to point out the many flaws with a Stark/Mormont alliance without even bothering to consult her advisers. Jon isn't actually a Stark but a Snow and Sansa is a Lannister or a Bolton (depending on the source). She then rather bluntly asks why should she risk Mormont soldiers for a Stark, especially after the losses they suffered last time around. It's only when Ser Davos gives a rather sobering account of the real threat, the undead hordes, she agrees to help.

* FantasticRacism: He refuses to aid Jon and Sansa's campaign to retake the North, partly because the majority of their fighting force is made up of wildlings. He also refers to Queen Talisa as a "foreign whore".

* DemotedToExtra: In the books he's an architect of a vast conspiracy in the North to undermine the Boltons and Freys and restore the Starks to power. In here he sits out the battle of the bastards and only ever appears after Jon and Sansa have reclaimed Winterfell.

* GenderFlip: House Cerwyn was actually headed by a ''woman'' at this point in the novels, Jonelle Cerwyn, after the Boltons killed her father and brother. The TV version omitted Jonelle and kept her brother alive - actually part of a pattern of gender-swapping minor background vassals from female to male.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: When Ramsay proudly recounts how he flayed Lord Cerwyn alive in Season 5, Roose berates him for his stupidity, pointing out that while it ensured their submission for the moment, in the long term he just gained the Cerwyn's lasting enmity and they will jump at the next chance to rebel against the Boltons. Then when the actual uprising against Ramsay occurred in Season 6, the Cerwyns were nowhere to be seen - ''even when'' Jon Snow pointed out that Ramsay's men only follow him out of fear and will turn on him when he is weak.

* WrongGenreSavvy: Cley believes with the Bolton dead the threat is passed, now they just have to survive winter. Jon Snow reminds him that the White Walkers are on their way.

A Northern house directly surbordinate to Glover. They are famous for their trademark Ironwood; lumber that is hard to burn, and burns ''blue'' when it does.

%%* LargeHam

* FrontlineGeneral: She accompanies her men to Jon Snow's camp, putting herself at considerable risk.

* CompositeCharacter: Possibly a composite of several book characters -- the Greatjon's son Smalljon in name, and his uncles "Crowfood" and "Whoresbane", the former for his hatred of Wildlings, and the latter for allying with the Boltons.

* AmbiguousSituation: [[spoiler: House Umber's current state is unknown after allying with the Boltons, and loosing, even betraying Rickon Stark. Their lord was killed, though Lady Tarly had mentioned Lord Umber (likely Gretjon) having daughters.]]

* BusCrash: Smalljon observes he died at some unspecified time before season 6.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: In Season 2 we at least know he's waging war in the Riverlands, but there's been no word on his fate following the Red Wedding. By season 6 it appears he died somehow. Clive Mantle apparently had serious difficulties meeting the show's schedule, until they finally just killed him offscreen.

* AdaptationalVillainy: He dies in the Red Wedding in the books, trying to save Robb's life. In the show, he's an ally of Ramsay Bolton (although he doesn't like him as a person, but allies with him for pragmatic reasons), hated his late father, and [[spoiler:hands Rickon Stark over to the Boltons, which ultimately lead to Rickon's death]].

* CompositeCharacter: Possibly a composite of several book characters - the Greatjon's son Smalljon in name, and his uncles "Crowfood" and "Whoresbane", the former for his hatred of Wildlings, and the latter for allying with the Boltons.

* FantasticRacism: His hostile hatred for the wildlings causes him to betray the house his house has been loyal to for centuries, and causes him to side with monstrous Boltons. Jon Snow notes to the wildlings that if the Boltons won the battle, Umber would go after women and children of the wildlings too.

* GenerationXerox: Inherits his father's boastful nature, the size, the massive beard, the temper and the brutal honesty. He just seems a tad more villainous.

* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler: Smalljon hates Wildlings and joins the Boltons so they can help them kills the Wildlings, ends up being killed by Tormund, a wildling. Even more karmic is that Tormund's nickname is Giantsbane, making fit that he would off a [[TheBrute brute]] like Smalljon. Not to mention, Smalljon's House was loyal to the Starks before he betrayed them which resulted in Rickon's death, and he ended up getting killed by someone who used to be Jon's enemy and became his friend.]]

* NotSoDifferent: He's been fighting wildlings so much he knows their national anthem.

* RightForTheWrongReasons: He is correct that Jon allied with the wildlings and allowed them past the wall. He is wrong in believing he's going to lead them against the North. Though his assumption that Jon is very likely to move against the Boltons is much more probable.

* VillainBall: He knows what an unknown warhorn blowing in the middle of battle means [[spoiler: Tormund being a Wildling doesn't and bite his throat out while Smalljon is trying to see who is entering the fray.]]

* ActionGirl: While not a full AmazonBrigade, the Mormonts do train their female members (like Maege and her daughter Lyanna) to be just as much warriors as their men. It comes from living on a remote island where the men are out at sea most of the day on fishing boats to get basic sustenance; the women left behind on land had to be capable of defending themselves from attacks by the ironborn longships and wildling boats.

* AncestralWeapon: Longclaw, a Valyrian sword. Lord Jeor's passes it to his protegee Jon Snow, a bastard from House Stark.

* HadToBeSharp: Bear Island is the ass end of nowhere to the Seven Kingdoms, located almost north of ''The North'' on a remote off-shore island, vulnerable to raids from both the ironborn and the wildlings. It's the northwestern corner of the known world, away from any sea lanes. On top of this they lead a hardscrabble existence on their resource-poor island: it is heavily forested, largely untamed (albeit beautiful) wilderness filled with ''bears'', to the point that their main food source is from fishing instead of farming or hunting.

* BrutalHonesty: Lyanna is not one for softening her words or the reality of the situation. The Starks didn't come to reminiscence, they came for her soldiers, no point wasting time chatting. Jon's a bastard and Sansa's been married twice, making neither a legal Stark. And if they want her to send what little men she has into yet another battle for the Starks, then they had best give her a damn good reason. She's honest towards herself too: when Sansa tries to compliment her by saying that she'll grow up to be a great beauty, Lyanna responds: "I doubt it. My mother wasn't a great beauty or any other kind of beauty."

* ExactWords: Lyanna pledges loyalty to the Starks but not to Sansa who is technically both a Lannister and a Bolton nor to Jon who is illegitimate. This changes after the battle, as she is the first to name Jon, King in the North.
* {{Foil}}: Take a minute to compare this girl with Tommen Baratheon and Robin Arryn. Tommen and Robin have access to far more soldiers and hold far more power, furthermore they are male and expected to be badass, yet both are weak-willed puppets lacking any form of autonomy or guts. Lyanna is a girl with very few men and younger than both, but determined, wise beyond her years, clearly in charge and tough as nails. She is also a lot like Bran when he ruled Winterfell but unlike Bran who had vassals to protect she only has to protect her own.
** Best of all, compare her to [[TheCaligula Joffrey]]. Where Joffrey was vain, she is despises flattery. Where Joffrey hid at the sight of danger, she rides to meet her foes eye-to-eye. Where Joffrey made petty threats, she fulfills her promises. Where Joffrey was mad, cruel, and feared, she is responsible, thoughtful, and respected.

* IceQueen: She's a no-nonsense character and her frank nature are intimidating. Appropriately enough, her House's eat is called the Bay of Ice.

* IronLady: She's a [[TheStoic stoic]], determined, brave and no-nonsense leader despite her very young age.

* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Lyanna Mormont is literally the ''only'' head of a major Northern House shown to be female, even during their war council in the Season 6 finale. In the books, at least four Houses are headed by women at this point (due to all the men dying in the war). Notably, in that same war council scene, "Lord Cerwyn" appears - in the books, House Cerwyn is headed by a ''woman'' at this point, because Ramsay killed her father and brother. The TV series actively gender-swapped female leaders into male ones - possibly to showcase Lyanna as "exceptional" (when in the books, female rulers are fairly commonplace).
** Lyanna Mormont is literally the ''only'' female head of a major vassal House (not one of the Great Houses like the Tyrells or Lannisters) who has appeared in the first six TV seasons that is both a recurring role and has speaking lines. She's also only the ''second'' female head of a major noble House to have speaking lines - the first was Anya Waynwood in Season 4, who only appeared in one episode. Even though Lyanna's mother Maege did appear on-screen in Season 1, she didn't have any speaking lines nor was she identified in dialogue (it was really just a cameo).
* SpannerInTheWorks: [[spoiler:Unknowingly throws Littlefinger's plan to make Sansa his puppet out of wack by choosing Jon Snow as king.]]

* UndyingLoyalty: To House Stark until Lord Robett's reign. Following the restoration of House Stark after the second battle of Winterfell, Lord Robett reaffirms their loyalty.

* SparedByTheAdaptation: In the books he died trying to reclaim Winterfell with Rodrik. In the show he's still around years after that.

* BadassBoast: Master Luwin tells Bran back in season 1 that their motto is "Righteous In Wrath", which is pretty foreboding.

** Best of all, compare her to [[TheCaligula Joffrey]]. Where Joffrey was vain, she is brutally modest. Where Joffrey was a coward who hid at the sight of danger, she rides to meet danger eye-to-eye. Where Joffrey made petty threats, she fulfills her promises. Where Joffrey was mad, cruel, and feared, she is responsible, thoughtful, and respected.

* DeathGlare: Fixes one on Ramsay during the entire meet between she and the rest of the lords sworn to House Stark, and Bolton's men.

* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler: Smalljon hates Wildlings and joins the Boltons so they can help them kills the Wildlings, ends up being killed by Tormund, a wildling. Even more karmic is that Tormund's nickname is Giantsbane, making fit that he would off a [[TheBrute brute]] like Smalljon.]]

-->'''Robett''': [[spoiler: There will be more fights to come, but House Glover ''will'' stand behind House Stark...and I will stand behind Jon Snow!]]

* JerkassHasAPoint: He has already lost many men, his brother and his castle in service to Robb Stark, who made some terrible strategic mistakes in his war campaign. It's understandable why he refuses to lend more troops. He even brings up that it's the Boltons and not the Starks that gave him back his castle.

** He is also this to Tormund Giantsbane, as they are both large, ferocious warriors with a hot-temper and foul-mouth, but Smalljon serves as TheBrute to Ramsay while Tormund is TheBigGuy to Jon. [[spoiler: Its rather fitting that they face each other in the Battle of the Bastards.]]

* LittleMissBadass: Despite her age, Lady Lyanna Mormont proves to be just as fierce in person as her written words to Stannis indicated. This is a girl who can shame an entire room full of men three times her size and age.

* BrutalHonesty: Lyanna is not one for softening her words or the reality of the situation. The Starks didn't come to reminiscence, they came for her soldiers, no point wasting time chatting. Jon's a bastard and Sansa's been married twice, making neither an actual Stark. And if they want her to send what little men she has into yet another battle for the Starks, then they had best give her a damn good reason. She's honest towards herself too: when Sansa tries to compliment her by saying that she'll grow up to be a great beauty, Lyanna responds: "I doubt it. My mother wasn't a great beauty or any other kind of beauty."

->--'''Jon Snow'''

* CompositeCharacter: Possibly a composite of several book characters - the Greatjon's son Smalljon, and his uncles "Crowfood" and "Whoresbane".

* TheBigGuy: To Robb's [[TheHero Hero]].

* BoisterousBruiser: Oh yeah.

* LargeHam: Oh, yes.

** ArtEvolution: Their heraldry switched from having the bear passant (striding) from Season 1 onwards to having the bear rampant (rearing on its hind legs) in Season 6, without explanation.

* AdaptationalWimp: He's a PayEvilUntoEvil [[TheChessmaster chessmaster]] in the books. On the show, he sits out the battle of Winterfell for fear of loosing Manderly men for nothing.

-->"''The war is over. We should ride home and wait out the coming storms''."

-> '''Greatjon Umber:''' ''"The bloody Wall will melt before an Umber marches behind a Glover!"''

* TokenGoodTeammate: The only "villainous" Northern lord with totally valid concerns for turning against the Starks aside from greed or vengeance.