History Characters / HouseOfTheDragonDragons

[[Characters/GameOfThronesWesteros The Seven Kingdoms of Westeros]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonBlacks Blacks]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonGreens Greens]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHousesOfWesteros Houses of Westeros]] ([[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseTargaryen House Targaryen]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseVelaryon House Velaryon]]) | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonRoyalCourtAndKingsguard Royal Court and Kingsguard]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonOthers Others]] | '''Dragons''' ]]]]-]

* AccidentalMurder: A variation occurs [[spoiler:during the skirmish over Shipwrecker's Bay. Aemond spends his time goading Vhagar into intimidating and bullying Arrax and Lucerys, who simply wants to flee and return to Dragonstone. However, things get worse as Arrax becomes more stressed and angry. Against Lucerys' wishes, he flies up and attacks Vaghar with his dragon fire. This ''seriously'' enrages Vhagar, who ignores her master's orders and actively begins to hunt Arrax. She then devours Arrax instantly and tears him in two, with Lucerys still atop him. While her murder of Arrax was 100% intentional, she wasn't targeting Lucerys himself and neither did Aemond (who "just" wanted to [[EyeScream take an eye]] from Lucerys). His death was just a tragic circumstance.]]

[[Characters/GameOfThronesWesteros The Seven Kingdoms of Westeros]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonBlacks Blacks]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonGreens Greens]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHousesOfWesteros Houses of Westeros]] ([[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseTargaryen House Targaryen]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseHightower House Hightower]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseVelaryon House Velaryon]]) | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonRoyalCourtAndKingsguard Royal Court and Kingsguard]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonOthers Others]] | '''Dragons''' ]]]]-]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Take care not to startle Syrax, my lords. She's rather protective of me."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"He does love to burn."'']]

Prince Daemon Targaryen's claimed dragon, nicknamed the "Blood Wyrm" for his ferocity. First ridden by his uncle Aemon Targaryen in the Fourth Dornish War, and later again in the Myrish Bloodbath. Noted for his unique anatomy, having an uncharacteristically long neck and leg accessory wings.

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Beware the beast beneath the boards."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Once they are fully bound to you they will refuse to take instruction from any other."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"None of our dragons have been to war."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"I imagine even dragons get lonely."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Your cause owns a power that has not been seen in this world since the days of Old Valyria."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Balerion was the last living creature to have seen Valyria before the Doom. Its greatness and its flaws."'']]

* UncattyResemblance: Dragon and rider are both {{Blood Knight}}s. Also, Daemon favors the color red in his clothing when he's not on duty in the City Watch, and Caraxes' scales are as red as rubies.

* SpotlightStealingSquad: While promotional materials would have us believe that the dragons that would have most character importance are Syrax and Caraxes (the mounts of ostensible protagonists Rhaenyra and Daemon), Vhagar inadvertently becomes the most important and plot-pivotal dragon from Episode 6 onwards. To be fair, it is understandable considering her age, strength, and firepower is unsurpassed among all the dragons. (She is portrayed as even more of a GameBreaker in the books). Nevertheless, it can be quite jarring to see Syrax and Caraxes reduced to background characters compared to her—even with their resurgence in importance in Episode 10.

* BondCreatures: She has bonded with several riders in her long lifetime and has outlived them all, from Queen Visenya Targaryen during Aegon's conquest all the way to Laena Velaryon. Aemond Targaryen is the latest to successfully claim her.

* FamedInStory: Was ridden by Visenya Targaryen in Aegon's Conquest, and is thus the most famous of her kith and kin still alive. Laena and Aemond, both young dragon enthusiasts, are very eager to claim her when given the opportunity.
* GentleGiant: A terrifying beast of mass destruction, sure, but one who clearly loved her rider Laena, hesistating to burn her as she [[DeathSeeker pleads to die]] and attending her funeral on Driftmark on her own volition. Significantly less so, however, once Aemond claims her.
* GiantFlyer: Outsizes all other the dragons in the hands of Houses Targaryen and Velaryon, and thus also reigns as the strongest. Fittingly, in her appearances in [[Recap/HouseOfTheDragonS1E6ThePrincessAndTheQueen "The Princess and the Queen"]], she absolutely '''dwarfs''' Caraxes, himself a fairly large dragon. [[labelnote:From the books...]]By the time of the Dance of Dragons, it's said that Vhagar had grown as large as Balerion was during Aegon's Conquest, thus implying that Balerion was still larger than her by the time of his death.[[/labelnote]]

* MutuallyAssuredDestruction: By virtue of being the largest and strongest dragon, Vhagar is rightfully seen as the most prized of them all, which deters any attack on her owner. It was such that the deceased Laena Velaryon's daughters, Baela and Rhaena, were hoping to keep her for themselves. Unfortunately for these plans, however, it was Aemond, in his daring, who mounts Vhagar and successfully claims her -- in exchange for an eye he loses when the Velaryon heirs confront him over it. Otto Hightower, the prince's grandfather, is suitably impressed and grateful for it, for this now gives the Hightower-Targaryens their biggest deterrent. Rhaenyra's faction doesn't have dragons large enough to confront Vhagar when the Blacks-Greens war erupts, so Daemon Targaryen steps in to ensure the second biggest dragon, Vermithor, will be claimed by someone from the Dragonstone Targaryen side to even the odds.

* OldRetainer: A nearly 200 year old dragon that has been ridden by several generations of Targaryens.

* RentAZilla: Is absolutely immense in size, dwarfing every other dragon. When Aemond approaches her while she is sleeping, she is taller than Season 8 Drogon, ''and she's lying down''. The "How to Claim Your Dragon" featurette on the making of this sequence has the series' visual effects producer offhandedly estimate she's ''150 metres long'' at this point.

* CreepyHighPitchedVoice: A non-human example. Compared to other seen dragons, the sounds he makes are much higher and shriller, almost like a shriek, rather than a roar due to his extended epiglottis.

** And of course, the human ''rider'' on top of the dragon isn't invincible, so an enemy with ample archers can attempt to pull a medieval fantasy version of SnipingTheCockpit. Best illustrated when Daemon Targaryen, while on the back of Caraxes, is targeted by the forces of the Crabfeeder using a rain of ArrowsOnFire (Caraxes is then quick to [[WingShield protect his master with his wings]]).

* BadassBeard: Has a set of bony mutton chop protrusions under his jaw very reminiscent of similar features on the reptile family Pogona. These bearded dragons are also known to sometimes be born with physical abnormalities, much like Caraxes is with his longer spine and fused hind legs to vestigial wings.

* EvilIsNotAToy: Well, they’re not evil but as Viserys warns Rhaenyra, the Targaryen control of dragons is an illusion, and one they should have never tried. Ultimately, they are extremely powerful wild animals that will only listen to their riders if they ''want to''. If they don't want to listen, or are too distracted by their instincts, disaster ensues. [[spoiler:Aemond learns this the hard way.]]

* NoManShouldHaveThisPower: Viserys defines them as uncontrollable power that man should never have trifled with. [[spoiler: He's proven right in the Season 1 finale when Arrax and Vhagar follow their own will beyond the commands of their riders and Vhagar kills Arrax]].

* EvilIsNotAToy: As Viserys warns Rhaenyra, the Targaryen control of dragons is an illusion, and one they should have never tried. Ultimately, they are powerful wild animals that will only listen to their riders if they ''want to''. If they don't want to listen, or are too distracted by their instincts, disaster ensues. [[spoiler:Aemond learns this the hard way.]]

* GiantFlyer: The largest dragon to have ever existed, second to none. The only dragon that comes close was Vhagar (who helped him conquer Westeros), and she only reached his size 130 years after Aegon's Conquest and 35 years after Balerion's death. And that was only Vhagar being as big as Balerion was ''during the Conquest'', and since dragons never stop growing until they die, Balerion was even larger at his death than Vhagar is now.

[[folder:Balerion]]
!!Balerion the Black Dread
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/f59a4805f2.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"Balerion was the last living creature to have seen Valyria before the Doom. Its greatness and its flaws."'']]

The deceased dragon of Aegon the Conqueror. Born while the Valyrian Freehold still reigned at its height and perhaps the single longest-lived being in the world save the Earthsingers. Balerion assisted in the forging of the Iron Throne by melting the very swords that make it up under its fiery breath. King Viserys I claimed him shortly before his death.
----
* TheDreaded: By deed and epithet, Balerion was a daunting sight to behold.
* GiantFlyer: The largest dragon to have ever existed, second to none. The only dragon that comes close was Vhagar (who helped him conquer Westeros), and she only reached his size 130 years after Aegon's Conquest and 35 years after Balerion's death. And that was only Vhagar being as big as Balerion was ''during the Conquest'', and since dragons never stop growing until they die, Balerion was even larger at his death than Vhagar is now.
* PosthumousCharacter: He passed away during the reign of King Jaehaerys. Balerion's skull is laid out in the Red Keep as a reminder of the power of Old Valyria, especially since Balerion was the last creature to ever see Old Valyria before its destruction in the Doom. As his last rider, his death weighs heavily on King Viserys; he has never bonded with another dragon again.
* RuleOfSymbolism: Having died and leaving Viserys dragonless represents the latter's diminished power as a king and authority figure.
[[/folder]]

The deceased dragon of Aegon the Conqueror. Born while the Valyrian Freehold still reigned at its height and perhaps the single longest-lived being in the world save the Earthsingers. King Viserys I claimed him shortly before his death.

* PosthumousCharacter: Balerion's skull is laid out in the Red Keep as a reminder of the power of Old Valyria, especially since Balerion was the last creature to ever see Old Valyria before its destruction in the Doom. As his last rider, his death weighs heavily on King Viserys; he has never bonded with another dragon again.

* TheDreaded: By deed and epithet, Balerion was a daunting sight to behold. Not to mention, his nickname was literally '''Balerion the Black Dread.'''

* GiantFlyer: The largest dragon to have ever existed, second to none. The only dragon that comes close was Vhagar (who helped him conquer Westeros), and she only reached his size 130 years after Aegon's Conquest and 35 years after Balerion's death.

* CreepyHighPitchedVoice: A non-human example. Compared to other seen dragons, the sounds he makes are much higher and shriller, almost like a shriek, rather than a roar due to his extended epiglottis.

* TheDreaded: By deed and epithet, Balerion was a daunting sight to behold.
* GiantFlyer: The largest dragon to have ever existed, second to none.
* PosthumousCharacter: Balerion's skull is laid out in the Red Keep as a reminder of the power of Old Valyria. As his last rider, his death weighs heavily on King Viserys; he has never bonded with another dragon again.

* SwordOfDamocles: They are Westeros' ultimate deterrent.

Prince Daemon Targaryen's claimed dragon, nicknamed the "Blood Wyrm" for his ferocity. First ridden by his uncle, Aemon Targaryen in the Fourth Dornish War and later again in the Myrish Bloodbath. Noted for his unique anatomy, having an uncharacteristically long neck and rear leg wings.

* OldSoldier: Caraxes gives off the impression that he has been in bloodshed just as much as Daemon--and is usually described as a grumpy old warrior like his rider.[[labelnote:From the books...]]This dragon was born in the middle of Old King Jaehaerys's reign, and has seen action in at least two wars before the Dance. He was also actively ridden even during peace.[[/labelnote]]

* GiantFlyer: Outsizes all other the dragons in the hands of Houses Targaryen and Velaryon, and thus also reigns as the strongest. Fittingly, in her appearances in [[Recap/HouseOfTheDragonS1E6ThePrincessAndTheQueen "The Princess and the Queen"]], she absolutely '''dwarfs''' Caraxes, himself a fairly large dragon. [[labelnote:From the books...]]By the time of the Dance of Dragons, it's said that Vhagar had grown as large as Balerion was during Aegon's Conquest.[[/labelnote]]

* AdaptationalBadass: Together with Laenor Velaryon's own, seeing combat action at the Stepstones and successfully ending that war.

[[Characters/GameOfThronesWesteros The Seven Kingdoms of Westeros]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonBlacks Blacks]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonGreens Greens]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHousesOfWesteros Houses of Westeros]] ([[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseTargaryen House Targaryen]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseHightower House Hightower]] | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonHouseVelaryon House Velaryon]]) | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonRoyalCourtAndKingsguard Royal Court and Kingsguard]] | '''Dragons''' | [[Characters/HouseOfTheDragonOthers Others]] ]]]]-]

The deceased dragon of Aegon the Conqueror. Born while the Valyrian Freehold still reigned at its height and perhaps the single longest-lived being in the world save the Earthsingers. Bonded with King Viserys I shortly before his death.

* OurDragonsAreDifferent: Resembles Drogon, Rhaegal and Viserion from ''Game of Thrones'', but is ash-grey with orange wing membranes and has markedly curved horns.
* UncannyFamilyResemblance: Compared to the first two dragons that were introduced in the series before him (Syrax and Caraxes), Seasmoke shares more than passing similarities with the dragons Daenerys Targaryen would command centuries later--including head shape and back fin design. Apparently, they're the same "breed" of dragons, out of the three this show developed so far.