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1!!!This is a listing of members of House Greyjoy who appear in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''.
2!!!For the main character index, see [[AC:[[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFire here]]]]
3!!!For the main Iron Islands entry, see [[AC:[[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFireIronIslandsHouses here]]]]
4
5!House Greyjoy of Pyke
6[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/e45a7860b7bdb804170718f8a82abdf5.png]]
7
8-->"''We Do Not Sow''"
9---> --'''Greyjoy House Words'''
10
11The rulers of the Ironmen, the warlike seafaring culture of the Iron Islands. The Greyjoys used to make their living by raiding mainland Westeros and are actually proud of raping the women of their victims. They do not consider themselves members of the Seven Kingdoms, and will rise up at the first opportunity. The Greyjoys' rose to power over the Iron Islands after being elected by the other houses following Aegon's Conquest. Their seat is the castle Pyke on the island of the same name. Their sigil a golden kraken. As their house words show, they take pride in the fact that they perform no honest labor of their own, preferring stealing to building.
12
13The Greyjoys have had kingship over the Iron Islands before, as there were Greyjoy rulers chosen via Kingsmoot, and have produced numerous rulers behind only the Greyirons and the Goodbrothers in terms of the amount of kings seated in the Seastone Chair. In more recent years, the Ironmen chose the Greyjoys as their leaders after Aegon The Conqueror cooked Harren The Black of [[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFireHouseHoare House Hoare]] in his newly finished castle of Harrenhal. They were stripped of [[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFireRiverlandsHouses The Riverlands]]. As such, the Greyjoys have had to lead the Ironborn with considerably less resources and power, making them specially resentful of the ''Green Landers''[[note]]-The Ironborn term for people of the continent-[[/note]] and they have grown increasingly rebellious under the rule of Balon Greyjoy, the current Lord of Pyke.
14
15----
16
17[[foldercontrol]]
18
19[[folder:Tropes related to House Greyjoy]]
20* AesopAmnesia: Despite the failures of their ancestors to bring back the Old Way and make the Iron Islands independent, their own father's reforms to modernize the Iron Islands and get closer ties with the mainland, their crushing defeat during the first Greyjoy Rebellion and the tragedies that happened to their family as a result (the death of Rodrik and Maron, Theon being sent to the North as a hostage) Balon and his brothers Aeron and Victarion never learned their lessons about the weaknesses of the Iron Islands compared to the other kingdoms, the Old Way's obsolescence and the virtues of diplomacy with other lands and keep trying to make the islands an independent kingdom and bring back the Old Way.
21* AHouseDivided: A free-for-all among Asha, Euron and possibly [[spoiler:[[DragonWithAnAgenda Victarion]]]]. Not to mention that Aeron is also sticking his oar in on behalf of the Drowned God.
22* TheAlcoholic: Several members of the house are prone to alcoholism. Rodrik was a drunkard and so was Aeron until his "conversion" and one distant relation to the main family, Dagon, is such an infamous alcoholic that he's called "Dagon the Drunkard" due to it.
23* AmbitionIsEvil: Their FatalFlaw.
24* AnimalMotifs: Squids.
25* BeautyIsBad: Members of the family tend to be attractive and well-built.
26* TheBerserker: Typically their approach to most problems.
27* BigScrewedUpFamily: They somehow manage to be more screwed up than the Lannisters, as most of the Lannisters at least aren't planning to murder each other. There is not a single relationship among the Greyjoys that is not toxic and manipulative, outright abusive and hateful, or both.
28* BloodKnight: It goes with their culture, believing that life and ''most'' problems can, and should, be done through force. Even distant relations like Dagon the Drunkard love to fight drunk or sober according to Asha.
29* BlueAndOrangeMorality: As with most Ironmen, they believe in pillaging as a sacrament.
30* BrutalHonesty: When Theon returns to the Iron Islands neither his father nor any of his Greyjoy uncles make any effort to hide their disdain of him and belief that he has become weak and "wolfish".
31* ColorMotif: Gold because of their perceived superiority. Black because they are TheDreaded... or would very much like to be.
32* DeathOfAChild: The three eldest sons of Lord Quellon: Harlon, Quenton, and Donel all died as infants, with Harlon falling to greyscale. The last son, Robin, also died as a child.
33* DividedWeFall: Asha and Victarion's attempt to prevent Euron from becoming king and sitting the Seastone Chair are in great part doomed because they are unable to set aside their ambitions and views to make a common cause against Euron. Victarion is unwilling to make any compromise with Asha nor to give up on the war with the North , while Asha offers compromises but still want to share the power with her uncle.
34* DysfunctionalFamily: Worse than the Lannisters and Baratheons combined. ''Think about that for a moment.''
35--> '''Baelor Blacktyde''': "Balon was mad, Aeron is madder, and Euron is maddest of them all."
36* DysfunctionJunction: They're all screwed up in numerous ways. From {{Pride}} to all-purpose [[{{Jerkass}} Jerkassness]] via PTSD, depression, antisocial personalities of varying kinds and BloodKnight fever, it doesn't leave much room for these things called "healthy relationships".
37* ElementalMotifs: Water. Unlike House Tully, whose water motifs are built on the nurturing role of rivers, House Greyjoy is based on the violent and volatile ocean, a cold and unforgiving place with little mercy for the weak. They are the warlike seafaring culture, they are BornUnderTheSail and their sigil is a kraken. Some Ironborn also worship the Drowned God, a sea deity.
38* EveryoneHasStandards: The Greyjoys vary all over the moral spectrum and in their relationships with each other. But all of them can agree on one thing: Euron is a fucking monster.
39* FamilyThemeNaming: Many of them have names ending in -on: Bal'''on''', Eur'''on''', Victari'''on''', Urrig'''on''', Aer'''on''', Mar'''on''', The'''on''', Quent'''on''', Dag'''on'''.
40* FamousAncestor:
41** King Loron Greyjoy, known as the Old Kraken, took Bear Island and Cape Kraken. His conquests didn't survive his death.
42** King Theon III Greyjoy, who was slain by Lord Lymond Hightower, the Sea Lion.
43** King Balon V Greyjoy, dubbed Coldwind, who destroyed the Northern fleets.
44** Lord Alton Greyjoy, the Holy Fool, who tried to find lands to conquer beyond the Lonely Light.
45** Rodrik Greyjoy, half-brother of Toron Greyjoy, who was captured during the retaliation of the Westerlands in the aftermath of the Red Kraken's death, castrated and made the new fool of Casterly Rock by lady Johanna Lannister.
46** Torwyn Greyjoy swore a BloodOath with Bittersteel, but betrayed him to his enemies.
47** Another Loron Greyjoy, known as the Bard, who had a great but tragic friendship with Ser Desmond Mallister.
48* GeneralFailure: Not all of them are entirely bad. Euron's great, Asha's good and at the very least Theon's a good tactician. However, like all Ironborn, they're anti-intellectuals (except for Asha) so they usually fall into this trope. It's rather telling that their [[FourStarBadass Fleet Admiral]] is considered the dumbest Greyjoy. Also Balon's overall plan shows his poor strategic skills.
49* TheGoodTheBadAndTheEvil: The three Greyjoy candidates at the Kingsmoot: Asha is the Good, albeit with AntiHero shades, preaching for stability and reasonable maneuvering of the territories they conquered under Balon. Victarion is the Bad, as a BloodKnight who represents a continuation of the [[RapePillageandBurn warmongering]] tendencies of the Ironborn. Euron is the Evil, as a SorcerousOverlord practitioner of all kinds of BloodMagic, who is not above [[spoiler: raping and killing his own brothers]].
50* HotBlooded: Very much so: almost all of them actively enjoy action when it’s at its hottest. They might express it slightly differently, but the root is the same: it's fun to fight!
51* ImpoverishedPatrician: As mentioned on the descriptions, the Greyjoys had to lead the islands after the loss of the Riverlands to Aegon The Conqueror. Though by no means poor, the Greyjoys and the Ironborn are considerably less powerful than their predecessors on the Seastone Chair, the Hoares.
52* InSeriesNickname: Several members have one.
53** Aeron "Damphair" Greyjoy, due to surviving a ship wreck and becoming a priest to the Drowned God.
54** Dagon "the Drunkard" Greyjoy, due to his excessive drinking.
55** Euron "Crow's Eye" Greyjoy, due to wearing an eye patch.
56* {{Jerkass}}: Oh boy...
57** Raping, reaving, and slaughtering comes as a second nature to them. They are notoriously brutal and isolationist.
58** Other than Theon and Asha, they are markedly humorless, cruel, and confrontational.
59** They have an ingrained habit of belittling all the people they meet, especially their own family members.
60** When Theon finally returns home after ten years he's immediately treated with disdain, being considered to be weak and soft, and is constantly belittled and humiliated by his family without any other form of welcome.
61* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Hardly any of the Greyjoys can be called nice people (with the possible exception of Asha and possibly Theon post torture). But even the worst ones look like angels compared to the psychopathic Euron who rivals monsters like Ramsay Snow and the Mountain in pure evil.
62* MeaningfulName: To be frank, outside battle situations, there appears to be very little joy to be found in being a Greyjoy. They're just not all that good at the whole work-life balance thing. And, the Iron Isles isn't the cheeriest of places with the world's best weather or the pick of natural resources, either. It's all a bit drear, really.
63* NightmareFetishist: Compared to the other Great Houses. In a land where chivalry and honor are held in high esteem, the Greyjoys and the Ironborn would rather subjugate the rest of the Seven Kingdoms to their way of life. Which involves reaving and killing whoever is weaker than them, ridiculing and casting down other more prominent cultures, and being unrestrained tyrants over all.
64* OnlyAFleshWound: Averted in the case of Urrigon Greyjoy. He lost part of his hand doing the [[http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Finger_dance finger dance]] and died from the resulting infection. More precisely, from the maester's ham-fisted attempt to sew the fingers back on which caused infection.
65* PersecutedIntellectuals: The current Greyjoys are '''not''' fond of Maesters due to the death of their brother Urrigon after a Maester tried poorly to reattach his fingers when he lost them to Aeron while playing the Finger Dance. This exacerbated their already conservative ways towards the "Old Way".
66%%* {{Pirates}}:
67* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Their exact ages are never given but it's implied Balon is around 20 years older than Aeron, given that he was around the age of his eldest sons.
68* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: They are the ruling house of [[HornyVikings the Iron Islands]].
69* RapePillageAndBurn: Like the Dothraki from across the sea, the Greyjoys and Ironborn in general see this as a proud way of life.
70* RedBaron: The four Greyjoy brothers each have their own fearsome title. Balon is The Kraken King among many others, Euron is The Crow's Eye, Victarion is The Iron Captain, and Aeron is Damphair or the Damphair priest.
71** Extra points to Aeron for Damphair. While he has the least intimidating name, he's the most intimidating and influential of the brothers. At least until Euron comes along.
72* SiblingYinYang: [[TheUnfettered Euron]] and [[TheFettered Victarion]], all the way.
73* SmugSnake: Greyjoys have a ''very'' serious problem of seeing themselves and the rest of the Ironborn as far bigger, more dangerous and smarter than they actually are, and tend to bite more that they can chew. All Greyjoy attempts to restore the Old Way and make the Iron Islands independent have failed miserably and yet, Balon Greyjoy and his brothers Aeron and Victarion still delude themselves that they can accomplish that as well as conquering the North despite the Ironborn's limits and them having no allies in the rest of Westeros. Balon and Victarion, to an even greater degree, are TooDumbToLive, Theon took Winterfell by surprise but tried to hold and rule the castle despite it being strategically impossible, Rodrik got himself killed attacking the strongly defended Seaguard led by the very skilled Jason Mallister, etc...Only Euron has actually the intelligence and personality to be a real threat, while Asha is smart and level-headed enough to recognize the Iron Islands' limits and to suggest wiser solutions.
74* SpartanSibling: If Aeron and Theon's memories can be trusted, Balon was this, Rodrik and Maron also seem to have been this because Theon can't find any fond memory of his brothers and can only think about their abuse of him when remembering them.
75* TallDarkAndHandsome: Being tall, lean, and dark-haired is a trait that runs through the family.
76* TheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: Strongly downplayed and deconstructed. While some members of the family do care and love each other, the toxic environment they were raised and live in, their pride, jerkassery and inability to swallow their pride prevent them from expressing it the moments when they need it and to work as a true family, and cause their relations to stay or become more distant if outright toxic.
77* ThickerThanWater: Averted. Being a Greyjoy doesn't mean that you will be treated better than others, with most of their abuse and jerkassery being directed directly at their family members. And the reason why they don't kill each other is because of the religious taboo of kinslaying rather than care for their family, which didn't stop Balon from wishing that Theon would get killed so he won't be in Asha's way. [[spoiler: Euron averts this to the extreme, with his family being the victims of some of his most depraved and evil actions, with him having raped his little brothers Urrigon and Aeron, maimed and sacrificed his own sons, and murdered his half-brothers Harlon and Robin and ordered Balon's death so he could become king.]]
78%%* WoodenShipsAndIronMen
79[[/folder]]
80
81!!!Balon's Family
82
83[[folder:Balon Greyjoy]]
84!!King Balon Greyjoy, the Ninth of His Name since the Grey King
85!!!The Kraken King, The Twice Crowned, The Blessed, The Brave, The Widowmaker
86[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/balon_greyjoy_ffg_4897.png]]
87-->''"No man gives me a crown. I pay the iron price. I will'' take ''my crown".''
88
89The head of House Greyjoy at the start of the series, brother of Aeron, Victarion and Euron, father of Asha and Theon. A cold, grimly determined and humorless man who wants to return the Ironmen to the heights of their historical power, before Aegon the Conquerer destroyed their holdings on the mainland. He rebelled once against Robert's regime when it was still new, only to be defeated and have two of his sons killed while Theon, the last, was taken as a hostage for his good behavior. When he hears about the new war breaking out, he knows it is time to strike again.
90----
91* AbusiveParent: Towards Theon only, whom he treats with open disdain and ignores him when Theon tries to give him advice, to the point he completely ignores Theon's crucial knowledge of the North while planning the invasion of the North, and even wishes for him to die so he can't stand in Asha's way. Not Asha, who is his favorite and whom he wants to inherit the Seastone Chair over Theon.
92* AloofBigBrother: To at least Aeron when they were younger, if Aeron's memory is to be believed.
93* AristocratsAreEvil: There is no way he's in the "good" camp.
94* AssholeVictim: He's an AbusiveParent and SoreLoser who recklessly led his people on a pointless rebellion twice. He ends up being murdered [[spoiler:by his own brother Euron]], and almost no one in Westeros mourns his death except for Asha, Victarion and Aeron.
95* AwfulWeddedLife: If Asha's thoughts are to be trusted his relation with his wife Alannys wasn't a good one, at least after his first failed rebellion and the losses of their sons, with Asha noting that Alannys might have wanted to kill him herself upon hearing about her father's death.
96* BaddieFlattery: Theon does stand up to him at one point on his return, which Balon does acknowledge with some respect.
97-->'''Theon:''' Call yourself King of the Iron Islands, no one will care... until the wars are over, and the victor spies the old fool perched off his shore with an iron crown on his head.
98-->'''Balon:''' (''laughs'') Well, at the least you are no craven.
99* BerserkButton: Theon mentioning that Robb Stark views him as a brother causes Balon to loudly lash out at him, telling him that he will not hear that after what Ned did to his other sons (even though Ned had nothing to do with their deaths). Theon or any member of his family not having gotten something by paying the iron price, aka taking it by force, is also this to him.
100* BestServedCold: Spent the last 10 years plotting to get even with Robert and Ned. With them both dead, and despite realizing that their deaths didn't gain him anything, he's still perfectly happy trying to take revenge on the other Starks and the North in general.
101* BigBadWannabe: Twice. Balon longs for the old ways of the Ironborn in which they were all feared conquerors whom the realm took seriously. After suffering a crippling loss at the hands of Robert Baratheon and Ned Stark in his first rebellion, [[spoiler:and falling off a bridge during a storm shortly after starting his second]], this is all Balon Greyjoy turned out to be.
102** He tries to take the Greyjoys to the level of the [[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFireHouseHoare Hoares]], arguably the greatest Ironborn that have ever lived; only, he has no Riverlands and has neither the money nor the influence to reach such heights. Still, this hasn't stopped him from trying.
103* BigBrotherInstinct: He stopped Victarion from murdering Euron for cuckolding him, but still sympathized with Victarion as the injured party and exiled Euron from the Iron Islands for as long as Balon still lived.
104* TheCaptain: Of the ''Great Kraken'' though he's never seen sailing and captaining it in the story.
105* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler:And [[BusCrash off-screen no less]], with the perpetrator almost certainly being a Faceless Man sent by his brother Euron]].
106* DemotedToDragon: How the Starks thought he would be after his failed rebellion. He's more like a DragonWithAnAgenda.
107* {{Determinator}}: You can tell Balon all you want about his past defeats, his dead sons, personal tragedies, or that he can't hold the territory he means to conquer. Balon doesn't care, he's going to do it anyway.
108* DiabolusExMachina: [[spoiler:He outlived Robert and Eddard and got his revenge by ripping the heart out of Stark power, then he fell off a bridge]].
109* DidntThinkThisThrough: Both his rebellions.
110** In the first attempt he counts on Robert's lack of support, only for all the kingdoms to fall in line behind him because no one wants ironborn freely raiding their lands again.
111** He turns down Robb's offer of an alliance and launches a conquest of the North instead. When he later attempts to make a similar deal with House Lannister against House Stark in exchange for keeping the North, Tywin reasonably asks why they should give away half the kingdom for something the ironborn are ''already'' doing?
112* DivideAndConquer: The key to his plans for the North.
113* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler:Falls off a bridge in between ''A Storm of Swords'' and ''A Feast for Crows''. While it quickly becomes clear that he was actually assassinated by Euron, it remains a mundane end to the would-be conquerer of the North]].
114* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: His only likable trait is that he genuinely loves and is proud of his daughter Asha, wanting her to be his heir, and seems to be quite close to his brother Victarion as well. He also seemed to genuinely care for Urrigon, getting revenge on the maester who unwittinly caused Urrigon's death by sewing his fingers back only for them to get infected and kill him, by forcing the same operation on the maester.
115* EvenEvilHasStandards: Well, using Ironborn values at least. He refuses to allow kinslaying in his hall, refusing to allow Victarion to kill Euron as revenge for the rape of his salt wife and banishing Euron instead, and he never does anything to kill Theon though he does wish for him to get killed so he won't stand in Asha's way.
116* EvilIsPetty: His attack on the North is largely motivated by his grudge against House Stark, which is very petty itself since Ned Stark and his family and men didn't play a large role in his defeat and had no role in Rodrik and Malon's deaths. He also ignores and abuses Theon for having become "soft and wolfish" to the point that he's unwilling to hear Theon's crucial knowledge of the North, and gives him the most humiliating role in his invasion plan.
117* GeneralFailure: Balon's delusional belief in the Old Way, ignorance of the Ironborn's limits and flaws and underestimation of the mainlanders, inability to learn from his mistakes and lack of common sense make him a terrible strategist.
118** During his first rebellion, Balon thought that Robert, who was still viewed as an usurper by some, wouldn't have the support of the kingdoms to defeat his rebellion, utterly failing to take in account that by trying to make the Iron Islands independent without any ally and by trying to reestablish the Old Way, he would unite against him the other kingdoms who had been raided by the Ironborn once and had no interest into allowing the Ironborn to reave their lands again.
119** During his second uprising, he tries to make the Iron Islands independent again but backstab and tries to invade the North, despite Robb Stark being the only one willing to ally with him and help him gain independence, thus helping the Lannisters and other kings who certainly won't be willing to grant him independence, and also fails to realise that the Ironborn don't have the manpower or the right strategy and tactics to really conquer the North nor to hold their gains in the long run. He also only sends his forces to attack and occupy Moat Cailin and Deepwood Motte and raid the Stony Shore but doesn't even have a plan to invade the vast interior and other important settlements in the North.
120** Sends Asha, an accomplished reaver, to capture Deepwood Motte, a castle [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin deep in the woods]] far from the sea, while Theon is sent reaving, despite having never captained a ship before and having extensive experience with conventional battle; and as Theon points out, he has ''visited'' Deepwood and is familiar with the castle. Another example of Balon's pettiness getting in the way of good sense and solid strategy.
121* HeterosexualLifePartners: With his brother, Victarion, and Dagmer Cleftjaw.
122* {{Hypocrite}}: In quite a few ways: he beats Theon around the head when it comes to his "shortcomings", yet most of them stem from decisions and actions ''he'' made. Worse, he acts through proxies for the bulk of the story: that's hardly Mr Action Guy behavior, right there. Not only that, but living with his decision to survive by bending the knee? Not happening gracefully by any manner of means. Yet, he chose to do it and taught his daughter it is the best way to fight in the longer term.
123* IHaveManyNames: A lot of Westerosi lords like adding on extra titles, but Balon goes way overboard: Lord of the Iron Islands, the Greyjoy, Lord Reaper of Pyke, King of Salt and Rock, Son of the Sea Wind. He then crowns himself King of the Iron Isles and the North.
124* IHaveNoSon: Disowns Theon because he believes he's been weakened by his time with the Starks.
125* InformedAbility: From Aeron and Maester Yandel's accounts Balon was a very fierce, fearless and skilled captain and reaver in his youth but following his ascension as Lord of the Iron Islands he was never shown sailing or leading his men during both of his rebellions, staying in Pyke and letting his brothers and children do the fighting and leading for him.
126* IrrationalHatred: He has a very strong hatred and grudge toward Ned and House Stark, blaming them for his defeat and the deaths of his sons Rodrick and Maron, even if Ned had nothing to do with their deaths and wasn't even the man responsible for his defeat.
127* {{Irony}}: For all of his affection toward Asha and him having groomed her to be his heir, he failed to realize that Asha doesn't share his views about conquests and the Old Way, and would rather use diplomacy and ally with another kingdom to get independence and better lands for the Ironborn to settle in.
128* {{Jerkass}}: Definitely is this to Theon, but he does spread it around a little more broadly as well.
129* KingBobTheNth: Boasts the largest ordinal in all Westeros.
130* LaserGuidedKarma: [[spoiler: He really should have let Victarion kill Euron. Exiling Euron instead backfired hard on him and his traditionalist cause and brothers, as well as on Asha, as it allowed Euron to scheme and order Balon's assassination and to return to the Iron Islands with an undefeated legendary reputation and with many treasures and mystical items from Essos that allowed him to win over the Ironborn and become the new king of the Iron Isles.]]
131* LeanAndMean: Give him this: he might be into his middle years and a not-very-important King, but he very definitely isn't a [[AdiposeRex Robert]], either.
132-->'''Narration:''' Balon Greyjoy had always been thin, but now he looked as though the gods had put him in a cauldron and boiled every spare ounce of flesh from his bones, until nothing remained but hair and skin.
133* LikeFatherUnlikeSon: While all of Quellon's surviving sons went ways against their father's work, Balon is perhaps the most extreme opposite of his father. While Quellon was a pragmatist and a reformist who understood well the necessity to get closer to the mainland and change Ironborn society, Balon is a narrow-minded traditionalist who still dreams to make the Iron Islands independent and to reestablish the Old Way, refusing to see that this way is long obsolete and that the Iron Islands don't stand a chance alone against the rest of Westeros. Also while Quellon was a FrontlineGeneral who personally led his men in battle even in his old age, Balon is an OrcusOnHisThrone who doesn't leave his castle during either of his rebellions and lets his brothers and children fight and lead the rest of the Ironborn in his stead.
134* MakeItLookLikeAnAccident: [[spoiler:Balon dies when a bridge collapses during a storm. A vision seen by the Ghost of High Heart implies a Faceless Man was responsible, and his brother Euron's return to the Iron Islands immediately afterwards implies that he's behind this. In ''TWOW'', Euron tells Aeron he was responsible]].
135* NonActionBigBad: For all his talk of taking what is his and paying the iron price, he never lifts a finger during the Greyjoy Rebellion nor during the Ironborn occupation of the North.
136* PetTheDog: To Asha Greyjoy. Despite the fact he thinks women are weak he was going to break with tradition completely by naming Asha, a woman, as his heir, to the point of planning to disinherit Theon from the line of succession. This, weirdly enough, makes him one of the most progressive fathers in the series after Prince Doran Martell and Lord Selwyn Tarth. For this reason, and for allowing her to lead and command ships with other Ironmen, Asha loves her father despite his serious, glaring flaws.
137** He waits until he gets word that Theon is coming home before joining the war.
138* {{Pride}}: Of the wounded, brooding, stubborn, touchy and sullen kind. More than half his problem is that having to capitulate the first time never sat well with his massive sense of pride. And, it only made him ''worse''. He is supremely incapable of accepting the "run away and live to fight another day" attitude he taught his daughter and actually letting his grudges go when it's obvious they're a hindrance.
139* RevengeBeforeReason: Passes up a plan proposed by Robb Stark in which he'd get fabulously wealthy by striking Lannisport, in favor of taking revenge on the North.
140* SketchySuccessor: To his father Quellon Greyjoy, whose work of reforming the Iron Islands for the better and developing ties with the mainland was mostly undone by Balon. Lacking his father's pragmatism and wisdom and blinded by his belief in the long-obsolete Old Way, Balon tried to re-establish the Ironborn's old lifestyle of reaving and of making the Iron Islands independent twice, leading a rebellion that failed miserably the first time and launching a doomed to fail invasion of the North (that was the only kingdom willing to ally with him), the second time.
141* SkewedPriorities: By the way he carries himself with Theon, it's clear that he worries more about Theon not being under his power to be used against him than Theon being alive and safe.
142* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[spoiler:Appears in a grand total of two Theon chapters before dying offscreen, but in that time he effectively destroys the chances of the Starks to win the war]].
143* SmugSnake: Balon talks big about strength, taking his crown himself and bringing bringing back the Old Way and conquering the North, but it's clear that he's little more than a bitter, delusional and hypocritical man. Despite being a fanboy of the Old Way he never fights or leads his men to war during both of his rebellions and he's a horrible diplomat and strategist who greatly underestimates the "greenlanders" he looks down upon and can never see the long-term consequences of his actions.
144* SpareToTheThrone: Balon was actually the fourth son of Quellon Greyjoy, and served as a spare to his half-brother Harlon. He wasn't this for terribly long, however, as Harlon succumbed to a childhood case of greyscale ([[spoiler: with Euron's 'help']]).
145* SpellMyNameWithAThe: He also refers to himself as "The Greyjoy", in the manner of the heads of many Ironborn houses and the mountain clans of the North.
146* StatusQuoIsGod: Balon is a very conservative leader, seeking to restore the Ironborn to their former glory and is ardantly against any attempt to reform or to become more like the rest of the Seven Kingdoms. However, he made one big exception in his line of succession, wanting his daughter to succeed him rather than his son or any of his brothers.
147* TooDumbToLive: This pretty much sums up his strategy for the War of the Five Kings. He basically had two options: side with the North and try to keep the realms divided and too weak to stop him from reviving the Old Way, or side with the Lannisters against the Starks and hope for some generous concessions when the Starks have been crushed. He tries to TakeAThirdOption, seceding and taking on the Starks at the same time. So even if he defeats the Starks, it will just allow the Seven Kingdoms to consolidate and crush his rebellion that much faster.
148** In fairness, he did send a letter to the Iron Throne to try and broker an alliance, but Tywin was having none of it; as he pointed out, there was no point giving Balon the lands he wanted in exchange for his aid fighting the Starks, since Balon was already doing it for free. Also it was unwise of Balon to try making terms after he seized the lands, considering it would make the Lannisters look weak and imply the Ironborn could just go conquering.
149** Of course, the Ironborn are the only ones aside from the Lannisters that are still doing well. And even the Lannisters are debatable. [[spoiler:Though this only comes after Balon's death, when his brother Euron decides to undertake the campaign in a very different way, abandoning the North]].
150* UnknownRival: He blames Ned Stark personally for the death of his two sons during his rebellion. One son was killed in a battle that Ned had nothing to do with, the other died in a tower that collapsed when it was hit by a catapult. Needless to say, the Starks had no idea Balon was holding such a personal grudge against them.
151[[/folder]]
152
153[[folder:Alannys Greyjoy]]
154!!Queen Alannys Greyjoy (née Harlaw)
155
156See the [[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFireHarlawHouses Harlaw]] page.
157[[/folder]]
158
159[[folder:Rodrik and Maron Greyjoy]]
160!!Rodrik and Maron Greyjoy
161
162-->''"No. Not here, not in Pyke, not in my hearing, you will not name him brother, this son of the man who put your true brothers to the sword. Or have you forgotten Rodrik and Maron, who were your own blood?"''
163-->--'''Balon Greyjoy'''
164
165Balon's eldest sons who were killed during the Greyjoy rebellion.
166----
167* TheAlcoholic: Rodrik was apparently quite the drunkard according to Theon.
168* BigBrotherBully: All Theon remembers of Rodrik are his "drunken cuffs", and also remembers only cruel japes and compulsive lies when he thinks of Maron. Theon also recalls that the worst beating he got at Winterfell, for having accidentally knocked Old Nan, looked almost sweet compared to the beatings Rodrik and Maron gave to him, and Asha remembers also that as a boy Theon was living in constant fear of them. It's telling that he doesn't have anything against Jason Mallister for killing Rodrik.
169* EvenEvilCanBeLoved: They might have been assholes, but their mother Alannys still loves and mourns for them long after their deaths.
170* LeeroyJenkins: Seemingly taking after his father, Rodrik's attack on Seagard establishes him as one. The bronze bell of the Booming Tower was rang for the first time in three hundred years when his longships attacked, but the Ironborn were quickly beaten back and Rodrik was killed.
171* NearAndDearBabyNaming: Rodrik was probably named after his uncle Rodrik Harlaw.
172* OddNameOut: Rodrik is the only one of Balon's sons whose name doesn't end in "-on."
173* PosthumousCharacter: Both of them are killed during the Greyjoy Rebellion: Rodrik by Ser Jason Mallister and Maron when Pyke's walls were breached.
174* TooDumbToLive: Euron and Victarion successfully manage to burn the entire Lannister fleet at anchor, making more or less the entire western coastline of Westeros open for you to raid. What place does Rodrik hit first? [[MeaningfulName Seagard,]] a fortified castle in the Riverlands led by a [[RankScalesWithAsskicking known badass lord]] which was built ''specifically to repulse Ironborn attacks.'' Guess what happens.
175[[/folder]]
176
177[[folder:Asha Greyjoy*]]
178!!Princess Asha Greyjoy
179!!!The Kraken's Daughter
180
181[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/017e581dd0797900191497049d26153d.jpg]]
182-->*catches an axe* ''"This is my husband-- "'' *pulls out a dagger* ''"-- and this is my suckling babe!"''
183
184Balon's third child and only daughter, she is an accomplished raider. A strong-willed and independent lady, Asha is very ambitious and often enjoys [[{{Troll}} teasing]] her younger brother, Theon. Popular with the crew of the ship she captains but resents the unwillingness of most Ironmen to accept a female leader.
185----
186* AllLoveIsUnrequited: She shuns her ChildhoodFriendRomance Tristifer Botley, even though [[ShesAllGrownUp He's All Grown Up]]--and quite handsome by her own admission--because she's convinced he's too kindhearted for her.
187** She has taken as her lover the more violent Qarl the Maid, making her another case of AllGirlsWantBadBoys
188* ArrangedMarriage: To Erik Ironmaker, one of Euron's cronies, without her consent or ''presence''. A seal was used as a stand-in.
189* AloofBigSister: Her relation with Theon isn't a particularly healthy and warm one. The first thing she does upon reuniting with him after ten years is to pass herself as another girl and acts seductive to make him talk about his intentions and plans and embarass him. Afterward she publicly humiliates him several times, and acts mostly aloof and annoyed to him, and while she shows signs of genuine care for him she isn't particulary good at expressing it.
190* BattleCouple: With Qarl the Maid.
191* BenevolentBoss: After [[spoiler:Stannis takes over Deepwood Motte and takes out most of her crew]], she begs for the lives of the few survivors as well as her own.
192* BloodKnight: While she doesn't seek out senseless bloodshed, she is still a Greyjoy.
193-->'''Asha:''' ''Splash some blood upon the moon with me, and I promise you a kiss for every kill.''
194* BrotherSisterIncest: Subverted. She acts seductive with Theon only to find out what his plans are and embarrass him.
195* TheCaptain: Of a longship called the ''Black Wind''.
196* CasualKink: She and Qarl enjoy roleplaying, including rape scenarios.
197* CharacterCatchphrase: "Here's my husband ''(hefts ax)'' and here's my suckling babe!" ''(produces dirk from her cleavage)'' said [[SurvivalMantra whenever someone questions her role]] as a WarriorPrincess in a [[StayInTheKitchen traditionally patriarchal society]].
198* DaddysGirl: The otherwise staunchly traditional Balon wanted her to be his heir.
199* DaddysLittleVillain: She certainly fits the letter of this trope, if not the name.
200* DeadpanSnarker: Yup, she's Theon's sister, alright -- to the point of trolling him. There's no denying the snarky genes they both have.
201* DidntThinkThisThrough:
202** Her plan to make peace with and ally with the North at the Kingsmoot. While it is far smarter and wiser than any plan her father and traditionalist uncles made, it was never going to work as Balon's backstabbing invasion of the North right after Robb Stark offered an alliance to him, and Theon's taking of Winterfell and murder of "Bran and Rickon Stark" destroyed any chance of the Northmen accepting to make peace with and ally with the Ironborn. Her time with Alysane Mormont makes her realize how despised and hated the Ironborn are in the North for their actions and that it was not going to work. She also fails to take in account the fact that the current rulers of the the North, the Boltons, owe their power to Tywin Lannister and the Iron Throne, and as such wouldn't have any interest in rebelling again for independance, not counting that chasing the Ironborn from the North is a way for the Boltons to legitimize their power.
203** Her only plan after fleeing the Iron Islands to Deepwood Motte, is to try to hold Sea Dragon Point, hoping to build her own mini-kingdom here. Tristifer Botley is quick to point out the impossibility of this plan, since she'll have no subjects to build ships and far too little resources and men to hold against the northmen.
204* TheDragon: To her father.
205* EveryoneHasStandards: Asha is hardly a good person, but Theon [[spoiler:having "Bran and Rickon" killed]], [[spoiler:Stannis' men burning people alive]] and pretty much everything Euron does disgusts her. Then she sees what [[spoiler:Ramsay Bolton]] has done to [[spoiler:her younger brother]] and is horrified. The prequel chapter for ''The Winds of Winter'' shows that she also tries getting [[spoiler:Stannis]] to spare her brother outright instead of being sacrificed, or at least given a quick death.
206* FalseSoulmate: For Tristifer Botley. They experimented sexually as preteens and ever since Tris has been infatuated with her, convincing himself they're soulmates, and that they will marry someday and have babies. He even refused to sleep with anyone else, [[IWillWaitForYou saving himself for Asha]]. When they meet again as adults, it's made abundantly clear Asha doesn't feel the same; she doesn't dislike Tris but she saw him as nothing but a childish fling, she ''definitely'' hasn't been 'saving herself' for him and if she were to marry anyone it would be [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys Qarl the Maid]] (only he's too lowborn for her). When Tris finds out she's slept with other men, he's ''SHOCKED'' and even asks her if she was forced, to which she assures him that nope, she just wanted to get laid and [[YouNeedToGetLaid maybe he should too]].
207* FishOutOfWater: Her exile in the North shows how truly out of place she is there. She thinks many times about trees in the woods and how she dislikes them, hating their smell, sound when moving in the wind and viewing them as alien and hostile to her. Upon her first experience of the North's snow storms, while captive of Stannis, she realizes that cold in Pyke is nothing compared to the North's, and she prays she doesn't know true winter after hearing that it isn't even winter yet for northerners.
208* TheGadfly: See her treatment of Theon, her uncles and the ceremonial aspects of the Kingsmoot. However, she's not in it ''just'' for amusement value: she either uses it to test others, confirm suspicions, and/or to try showing others the nature of the beast she faces. And, certainly in comparison to her uncle Euron, her trolls are ''very'' light-hearted. Mind you, that's not much of a benchmark.
209* HadToBeSharp: As a rule this applies to all Ironmen, but Asha in particular has to be tough as nails to survive as a PirateGirl on the unforgiving, male-dominated Iron Islands. No soft green-land princess could ever hope to command the ''Black Wind'' the way she does, much less finger dance with a pair of axes, down enough ale to out-drink her fellow raiders, or [[spoiler:declare herself queen at the first Kingsmoot in thousands of years]].
210* HotBlooded: If given options, she'll go for the action-packed, hands-on one by preference. Even though she never actually leaves her brain at the door by just going with that desire. She's no 2D BloodKnight, since she will choose to [[CombatPragmatist avoid, win or get out alive by whatever means necessary]] over choosing a guaranteed and/or good fight. Losing most of your men? Not fun.
211* KnowWhenToFoldEm:
212** When she is captured by [[spoiler:Stannis]] in ''A Dance With Dragons,'' she wasted no time in submitting to him, without a hint of defiance. Apparently, this was taught by her father: as long as you bend the knee, you can rise up again, sword in hand. If you're dead, well, you have no choice but to stay down.
213** [[spoiler:She doesn't try to beg Stannis to spare Theon's life, knowing the Northmen would abandon him if he did so. Instead, she asks the king to give him a quick, clean death by beheading in front of a weirwood instead of burning him alive as a sacrifice to R'hllor.]]
214* TheLadette: Fights hard, drinks hard, swears hard, and plays hard. She's very much one.
215* LadySwearsALot: OK, she's not quite in the same league as characters like The Hound or Shitmouth. However, her language is tinted towards the color blue far more than is normal for women in the series as a whole.
216* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Among the Ironborn reavers, she treats her captives with dignity and would prefer to ally with the North against the Iron Throne. Unfortunately for her, the rest of her family and people aren't so sensible.
217* MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: With Theon.
218* MenUseViolenceWomenUseCommunication: Although Asha uses plenty of violence too, she is one of the few Ironborn to suggest making peace with the North in exchange of keeping the western shore. Considering winter is coming it's quite a clever move.
219* AMotherToHerMen: Her crew aboard the ''Black Wind'' would die for her, and she doesn't hesitate to say that she would do the same for them.
220* NotSoAboveItAll: Despite being generally smarter and more pragmatic than Balon, Theon and most of her uncles, Asha is still quite prideful and prone to IdiotBall from time to time. Her plan to make peace and then ally with the North in exchange of keeping the Stony Shore and Sea Dragon Point fails to take in account that the northmen aren't going to ally or cede lands to the Ironborn after Balon's attack in their back and Theon's taking of Winterfell and murder of "Bran and Rickon Stark". Also, after fleeing the Iron Islands, she chose to remain at Deepwood Motte and hope to build her own small kingdom at Sea Dragon Point and rejects Tristifer Botley's wiser plan of sailing away from the North and become traders because she finds it too peaceful, even as Tristifer Botley points out to her that her plan is impossible as she has very little resources and that the northmen are inevitably going to take their lands back.
221* OddFriendship: She and Alysane Mormont seem to be, if not exactly becoming friends, then certainly forming some bond. And, it's decidedly odd for Krakens and Bears to mix well, even though these two both have a distaste for burning people alive and MamaBear tendencies when it comes to family members they care about. [[spoiler: Yet, when it comes to Asha's plan to try convincing Stannis to move to execute Theon under a weirwood tree, if he won't spare him outright, well... there's definitely evidence of the hand of ''somebody'' who knows far more about Northern traditions than Asha would have known before getting caught. Even with her tendency to value knowledge more than most Ironborn do. She and Alysane could seem to be getting a bit closer than guard and prisoner should, perhaps, be.]]
222* OnlySaneMan: Among House Greyjoy, and the candidates at the Kingsmoot in general, she's the only one who isn't crazy, foolish or malicious. Although she's an ActionGirl, Asha can see that this uprising is as doomed as the last one and that there's no way the Ironborn can hold the North or gain anything from their conquests. Furthermore she attempts to talk Theon out of trying to rule Winterfell, and in ADWD she becomes one of the few POV characters to think about just how much damage the war has done to the realm.
223* OnlySaneByComparison: While she's nicer, smarter and wiser than her father and uncles and most Ironborn, Asha still has her pride and shortcomings as a Greyjoy and Ironborn. Her plan to ally with the North in exchange for the northmen ceding some territories to the Ironborn is unfeasible, especially after Balon attacked the North right after Robb Stark offered him an alliance and that Theon took Winterfell and apparently killed Bran and Rickon Stark. In spite of having called Theon out for his decision to stay in Winterfell despite it being untenable she has a similar plan in "A Dance With Dragons" of trying to hold Sea Dragon Point and to create her own kingdom here despite not having the men and means to do so or to hold it against the Northmen, and she rejects Tristifer Botley's much more pratical and modest plan of them abandonning the North and making a fortune as sailors and traders, because it's too soft of a life for her.
224* PragmaticVillainy: During the Ironborn's Kingsmoot, Asha's platform was a promise to [[KnowWhenToFoldEm bring an end to Ironborn's involvement in the war]]. She made the point that quitting would let them consolidate their gains and allow them to live on the prosperous western shore. On the other hand, keeping up the war, would bring down the wrath of King's Landing and Stannis, which was almost certain to cost them everything they gained; and the North was simply too much land to conquer with too little to gain for their trouble. She almost convinces a number of them, until Euron plays his trump card.
225* PirateGirl: She is a Greyjoy with her own fleet of ships at times. What do you expect?
226* ProperlyParanoid: She's very quick to believe that her uncle Euron has a hand in her father's death, even openly confronting him about it. And after the Kingsmoot she doesn't waste time fleeing the Iron Islands to get out of his reach. [[spoiler: She's proven to be right as Euron eventually reveal to Aeron that he ordered Balon's death, and wasted no time neutralizing the opposition to him by capturing Aeron and having the other Drowned Men hunted down.]]
227* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Oh, so very much. But, she's also a deconstruction of the trope. If she weren't a raider, she'd never get a say in anything important in her life at all. And, as it is, it's pretty dicey: see that unwanted, absentee wedding of hers, for starters. No matter how much she piles on, in the Iron Isles, she's still just a girl.
228* RefugeInAudacity: Her behavior at the Kingsmoot. All the other claimants to the throne buy votes by handing out valuable treasure. Asha arrives with chests full of pebbles, pine-cones, and turnips. It's her way of pointing out how pointless raiding the North is for the Ironborn, since those lands aren't exactly wealthy. She also has the brass to do this as a girl, when no woman has ever sat the Seastone Chair.
229* ReplacementGoldfish: Has taken over Theon's position as Balon's war chief and heir, due to Theon's absence and suspected loyalties to the Starks.
230* SheIsAllGrownUp: Theon, not recognizing her after first coming home in ten years, immediately tries to seduce her. ''Victarion'' has a moment of this too, when he thinks Asha is suggesting that she be his queen.
231* SexualKarma: Asha is still very much a Reaver, but she's by far the most likable and reasonable member of the Greyjoy family. Her lover Qarl the Maid seems to be more or less a standard thrall, and is never described as doing anything particularly objectionable. Their sex scenes make clear the love and passion between them is completely genuine.
232* TheSmartGirl: Very appreciative of her uncle, Rodrik Harlaw, who is one of the few Ironmen who puts value in anything resembling "culture". This proves to be bad for her, as a lot of the Ironborn do not appreciate any type of thinking that doesn't involve pillaging.
233* StayInTheKitchen: Played with. As long as she's a capable warrior, her fellow Ironborn are content to let her be. [[spoiler:She feels that losing both the Kingsmoot and Deepwood Motte will put an end to this.]] However as soon as the question of her inheriting the throne is brought up, their patriarchal views resurface and they either dismiss her or tell her to go back to her dolls, with even her uncles Aeron and Victarion refusing to see her as a serious candidate despite Balon's intention to make her his successor.
234* StepfordSmiler: She is implied to be this, in order to fit in as a female leader in the violent, male-dominated Iron Islands society. The first time we see her use the quote about the ax and the dagger, it's awesome. When she starts repeating it, it comes across as a rehearsed defense mechanism.
235* SurroundedByIdiots: Feels this way a lot among her fellow Ironborn.
236* TheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: [[spoiler:She and Theon are shown to be this after a great deal of [[EarnYourHappyEnding entirely avoidable and, in Theon's case, REALLY horrific]] [[CharacterDevelopment character development.]]]]
237* TokenGoodTeammate: Relative to most other Ironborn she falls here. She expresses disgust at the idea of harming children and doesn't believe restoring the Old Way is plausible.
238* UnequalPairing: With Qarl the Maid, who is the grandson of a thrall. Her narration makes it clear that she genuinely loves him and would be happy to marry him, but at that time she's still trying to be crowned queen and his low social status would completely kill that effort.
239* UnexpectedSuccessor: After her older brothers Rodrik and Maron died in war, and little Theon was sent away to become a ward of the Starks, Balon shocked the Ironborn by making Asha his heir, and stood by his decision even after Theon returned home all grown up.
240* UniversallyBelovedLeader: Asha has the UndyingLoyalty of every member of her crew aboard the ''Black Wind.'' Half of them love her like a daughter while the other half want to sleep with her, but either sort would die for her, [[AMotherToHerMen and she for them.]]
241* VictoriasSecretCompartment: Keeps a "suckling babe" (dagger) sheathed between her breasts.
242* WarriorPrincess: She is a princess of the Ironborn, who are a culture very much into pillaging. She personally leads multiple crews of raiders but others are less willing to accept the idea of this trope.
243* WouldntHurtAChild: She will not harm children, and treats her young noble captives extremely well and ensures they receive proper care while held at Ten Towers. This is one of her biggest differences from Theon, who had very little problem with [[spoiler:executing, burning, and decapitating two children to pass off as Bran and Rickon just to keep his pride intact]]. When Asha learns of this, she is absolutely disgusted by his actions.
244* YesMan: For all of her progressive views for an Ironborn and preferring diplomacy and pragmatism over her father and conservative uncle's methods and love of the Old Way, she didn't show openly her views while her father was alive nor opposed his plans to attack the North and try to make the Iron Islands independent without any ally and while trying to restore the reaving, instead going along with them, though it's possible that she did so to keep her chances of being his heir and get the Seastone Chair. [[spoiler: Which came to naught because Balon's preferences aren't enough to override the male-dominated culture]]
245* YouCantGoHomeAgain: After the Kingsmoot she has to flee the Iron Islands, as Euron had her married to Erik Ironmaker, who certainely didn't forget or forgive how she humiliated him at the Kingsmoot, and as Euron would most surely try to kill her.
246[[/folder]]
247
248[[folder:Theon Greyjoy*]]
249!!Prince Theon Greyjoy
250!!!Theon Turncloak, Theon Kinslayer, The Prince of Winterfell, [[spoiler:Reek]]
251[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/theon_greyjoy_ffg_7134.png]]
252[[caption-width-right:300:click[[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0357703e72eeacb3ee57ce9db6d12a08.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see [[spoiler:Theon as Reek]].]]
253-->''"Only a fool humbles himself when the world is so full of men eager to do that job for him."''
254
255Last surviving son of Balon Greyjoy, after both his elder brothers were killed in an ill-fated rebellion, and heir to the Iron Islands. Eddard Stark took him hostage in order to prevent another uprising by Balon, and Theon is a reluctant member of the Stark household when the story begins. Skilled fighter, ladies' man, and a schemer, his desire to prove himself to his father sets him up as the main antagonist of the second book. By the fifth book he's been driven through insanity and out the other end by Ramsay Bolton's tortures, and now has a few fewer fingers, toes and teeth. His mind shifts from his new identity of Reek, Ramsay's slave, to his memories of who he once was and back again.
256----
257* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: When he seizes Winterfell, Theon destroys any kind of affection or respect the Northmen had for him. His subsequent actions pretty much results in every single Northerner wanting to kill him. In ''A Dance with Dragons'', all the Northmen and even the wildlings openly treat him with contempt, and the only reason they don't kill him after he's out of his usefulness is because they know Theon is Ramsay's pet.
258* TwoPlusTortureMakesFive: After having broken him completely, Ramsay brutally beats him into accepting "Reek" as his new name and identity.
259* AlasPoorVillain: A lech, an oathbreaker, and a murderer of children, but damn if Ramsay Snow's torture doesn't make you pity Theon.
260* AndZoidberg: Bran prays for the safety of his brothers and friends "and Theon too, I suppose."
261%%zce* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: To Asha.
262* AscendedExtra: Theon is a secondary character in the first book, ''A Game of Thrones'', being limited to being Robb Stark's best friend and following him everywhere. From the second book onwards, ''A Clash of Kings'', Theon becomes a POV character, with his own storyline.
263* AssholeVictim: ZigZagged. Though Ramsay is a MUCH worse person, and what Theon went through at his hands is so horrific that it's more terrifying and heartbreaking than anything close to satisfying, Theon himself is [[SmugSnake no]] [[JerkJock innocent]]. To explain [[spoiler:the deeds that put him into AssholeVictim territory. He betrayed Robb Stark for his own House, and he lets Ramsay [[WouldHurtAChild kill two innocent farmer's children to pass them off as Bran and Rickon]]]].
264* BadBoss: Theon would like to see himself as a BenevolentBoss, but fails to measure up. Shortly after receiving command of an Ironborn raiding party, he fatally wounds one of his own men with an arrow on accident. [[spoiler: He later murders a few of his men to conceal the fact that he failed to locate Bran and Rickon and was forced to kill two peasant boys in their place, then frames an innocent man for their deaths.]] And despite aspiring to be as just a leader as Ned Stark during his occupation of Winterfell, he abuses and executes some of the castle's loyal retainers and forces Kyra to sleep with him, abusing her horribly in the process. [[PetTheDog Even when he later gives his men the chance to escape the besieged castle,]] [[spoiler: his lust for power results in Ramsay capturing him and slaying the remaining Ironborn.]]
265* BecomingTheMask: [[spoiler: All right, not so much becoming as being viciously tortured until your mind snaps.]]
266* BeingEvilSucks: Finds out the hard way in book 2, as he tries to live up to his family and people's standards, and acts increasingly ruthless as his desires to earn his family's respect and to rule Winterfell become more and morey desperate, but it only worsens his guilt and mental state and makes him even more miserable. By the time of A Dance With Dragons he deeply regrets his choices [[spoiler: and wishes that he had stayed with and died with the Starks instead of betraying them.]]
267* BelatedLoveEpiphany: [[spoiler:Of the familial type. He eventually comes to realize that the Starks were his true family, long after he betrays them and sets the events in motion that led to Robb and Catelyn's deaths.]]
268* BeneathSuspicion: [[spoiler:While searching for the Winterfell killer, many suspect Theon due to his past actions but immediately abandon the thought as soon as they see how broken he's become at Ramsay's hands.]]
269* BlackSheep: To House Greyjoy, as despite his initial excitement to go back home and his desire to earn his family's respect, his own father and uncles view him as soft and weak and believe him to have become a "greenlander" or "wolf" and treat him with open disdain, his own sister ridicules and humiliates him, and despite his efforts he cannot bring himself to enjoy their lifestyle of reaving nor to fully abandon the lessons Ned Stark taught him.
270* BreakTheHaughty: To the extreme, and in the absolute most sadistic way possible. [[spoiler:It begins when he returns to the Iron Islands and finds that no one, not even his own family, has any respect for him and they openly mock him. In his efforts to earn their approval he ends up committing more and more morally questionable and reprehensible acts which cost him the few friends he has and turns him into a paranoid mess. He's eventually captured and tortured into insanity by Ramsey Snow in ways that are specifically designed to break him: with his good looks, sexual prowess, and skill with a bow (the three things Theon was extremely proud of) being taken from him. Compare his chapters in Clash of Kings to his chapters in ''A Dance with Dragons'' and you'll find there is scarcely anything left of the [[SmugSnake arrogant snake]] we once knew. The ultimate irony is that we later find out that he did have a solid base of support on the Islands.]]
271* ButtMonkey: He becomes this to his family upon his return home.
272* CallingTheOldManOut: Tried, and got a small moment of admiration from Balon for it, but no lasting respect.
273* TheCaptain: Of the ''Sea Bitch''.
274* TheCasanova: Not quite up to a case of ReallyGetsAround, but definitely has a prodigious sexual appetite.
275* CharacterDevelopment: The smug, arrogant, womanizing archer [[spoiler:goes through a bout of truly horrific torture, leaving his mind fractured and his identity in shambles, before gradually reclaiming it piece by piece. He emerges still snarky, but with remorse for what he's done, a more noble streak, and a greatly humbled/self-deprecating attitude.]]
276* ChildOfTwoWorlds: As mentioned below, he is too much Greyjoy to be a Stark and too much Stark to be a Greyjoy. [[spoiler: He is caught between trying to live up to the Greyjoy name and wanting to be a respected and loved (rather than a feared) ruler like Ned Stark.]]
277* TheConfidant: [[spoiler:Everyone believes him to be a broken coward, so Roose Bolton and other Northern nobles have no issue with discussing sensitive information around him and use him to vent their problems and frustrations. This might come back to bite them after he manages to break through Ramsay's conditioning and gets captured by Stannis Baratheon.]]
278* CoolCrown: Averted when he has one made upon taking Winterfell. Everyone agrees it looks ugly.
279* CultureClash: He is the anthropomorphic personification of being neither one nor the other -- and all the good it doesn't do you.
280* TheDandy: Loves silk and velvet, and it's not appreciated when he returns to the Iron Islands (albeit only because he paid with gold rather than iron, i.e. taking it with force).
281** After being told that [[spoiler: Bran and Rickon have escaped]] one of the first things he does is complain he doesn't have enough time to comb his hair. When Maester Luwin suggested that he take the black, the first thing he did was take a mental inventory of his wardrobe to see if he had enough nice black clothes. SkewedPriorities, thy name is Theon.
282* DeadpanSnarker: He's often got some clever remark, even in dire situations. Has undertones of ServileSnarker [[spoiler: after he distances from his Reek persona and starts reclaiming his identity.]]
283* DealWithTheDevil: In his panicked desperation to hold Winterfell, prove himself to his family, and abate his barely submerged feelings of inadequacy, Theon finds himself relying upon [[DevilInPlainSight Reek's]] advice and assistance. Whenever Theon is at the crossroads, Reek always appears and tempts him with a solution that will best serve his immediate interests, but that will also impose a steep cost on his soul. [[spoiler: Notably, Reek lends his poisonous aid to Theon on three occasions. First, he provides a way to save face when it becomes clear that Theon will not find Bran and Rickon, which leads to the murder of the miller's sons. Second, at Theon's behest, he silences the Ironborn who know that Bran and Rickon were never captured. Finally, he returns after being sent to find reinforcements to defeat Ser Rodrik's forces and lift the siege on Winterfell, apparently saving Theon from his fate at the last moment. After this last service, though, Reek reveals himself to be Ramsay and collects his due, punishing Theon in a form of hell and ultimately transforming him into Reek.]]
284* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler: In ''A Dance with Dragons'', he prays to the weirwood tree in Winterfell to [[DyingAsYourself "Let me die as Theon, not as Reek."]]]]
285* DeterminedDefeatist: [[spoiler:When the spearwives recruit him to rescue "Arya", Theon has more than his share of doubts. Throughout the entire mission, he's full of fear and ''absolutely certainty'' that they'll fail and be killed, [[FateWorseThanDeath or worse]]. Yet, he still joins it, and when it inevitably goes south, stays committed to rescuing Jeyne [[GreatEscape however he can]] instead of giving up or selling her and the spearwives out.]]
286* DiseaseBleach: [[spoiler: The stress of Ramsay's tortures ends up turning his hair white.]]
287* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Kicking around the head of the Night's Watch deserter who was beheaded by Ned Stark.
288* EvenEvilHasStandards:
289** Even Theon recoils in disgust when he realizes he's been flirting with his sister, incest apparently being one of the lines he won't cross.
290** Despite trying to emulate and please his father, he cannot bring himself to really practice and enjoy the "Old Way" as he contemplates taking two bodies of their belongings but the thought gives him a bitter taste in his mouth and he renounces doing it, nor he can bring himself to kill himself one of his northern acquaintances Benfrend Tallhart.
291* FateWorseThanDeath: Ramsay Bolton [[spoiler: held Theon prisoner in the Dreadfort, torturing him into insanity by [[FlayingAlive peeling off his skin]] inch by inch and apparently castrating him. The result of this is that Ramsay now has another slave called Reek (most of the time)]].
292* {{Foil}}: To Jon Snow. Both feel like outsiders, both are raised at Winterfell, and both experience identity issues that have left them bitter and with the desire to prove themselves. While Jon Snow faces societal prejudice for being an illegitimate child who does not even know the identity of his mother, he is loved by his father, siblings, and uncle, and is raised alongside his siblings by his father Ned Stark. Theon -- though he is the new heir to the Iron Islands -- is sent away to another family as a hostage at age ten, raised away from his family, was bullied by his brothers before he was sent to the Starks, and his birth father treats him poorly. Jon is a blood Stark in all but name and raised as part of his family as Ned Stark's son. Theon has his family's name, Greyjoy, but is a Greyjoy raised as a ward among all of Ned Stark's children to keep his father Balon from rebelling again. Both Jon and Theon shared very close relationships with Robb, who was Jon's half-brother and whom Theon regarded as a surrogate brother. Theon loves and is loved by his sister and Jon loves and is loved by his siblings. However, while Jon decides to join the Night's Watch for the sake of honor and duty, has risen to Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, and [[spoiler:might possibly be the heir to the Iron Throne]], Theon becomes a traitor to his foster family for the sake of winning his father's approval. He fails at keeping Winterfell after he captured it in an effort to gain affection from said father (a vain attempt, anyway, as Balon's [[TheUnfavorite Unfavorite]]), [[spoiler:and is later tortured into thinking of himself as Ramsay Bolton's servant named Reek]]. And despite both being companions to Robb, Theon and Jon have little love lost between them, with Theon resenting how Jon, a bastard, is (supposedly) afforded more respect than he, while Jon doesn't share Robb's trust and liking for Theon.
293** To Ramsay Snow, as well. They're both arrogant [[BigBadWannabe Big Bad Wannabes]] with macabre senses of humor and violently unstable identity issues. Both enjoy hunting and wearing fine clothes. Like Theon, Ramsay spent his childhood apart from his cold-hearted father's heritage, living a simple life with simple people, only to later seek out his father himself and strive to earn his acceptance. And like Theon, Ramsay's method of going about this involves taking his family's already cruel reputation up a notch, which only serves to disappoint their respective fathers even more. Though their differences are just as glaring. Theon is a ButtMonkey who is then reduced to a CosmicPlaything, while Ramsay is a KarmaHoudini thanks to his knack for DiabolusExMachina. Theon is TallDarkAndHandsome, [[spoiler: until [[EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette Ramsay]] subjected him to a year of torture, taking away his looks and giving him a DiseaseBleach.]] And Theon's {{Jerkass}} behavior is kid's stuff compared to Ramsay's ceaseless ForTheEvulz lifestyle.
294* FreudianExcuse: He had a pretty miserable time at the hands of [[BigBrotherBully his brothers]] as a kid. Then, at age ten, he was sent away from his family, home, and culture as a hostage to prevent his father from rebelling again and expected to live by a [[ValuesDissonance completely different set of values]]. Not to mention that the stranger he was expected to love as a father would have beheaded him with the sword that he, Theon, carried for him and handed him for executions, the moment word came of another rebellion by Balon.
295* AFriendInNeed: [[spoiler: He takes enormous risks in helping Jeyne Poole escape from the Boltons.]]
296* TheFriendNobodyLikes: In the North, due to both being a Greyjoy and his smug personality. Bran and Jon both find him annoying, Catelyn doesn't trust him, and even his best friend Rob expresses annoyance at him sometimes.
297* GoingNative: Accused of this by his father when he eventually comes back to Pyke. It's actually somewhat true, but Theon is not to blame for this.
298* GroinAttack: [[spoiler:It is heavily implied that Ramsay Bolton either castrated Theon or at best mutilated his genitals.]]
299* HatesBeingTouched: [[spoiler:After his torture from Ramsay, Theon seems to have an aversion to touch, yanking his arm away from Jeyne and generally flinching at the notion of physical contact. He's able to overcome this a little by the end, enough for ''him'' to initiate contact with Jeyne when fleeing Winterfell, but who knows how permanent that is.]]
300* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler: In his final chapter in ''A Dance with Dragons'', he breaks free of Ramsay's psychological domination over him long enough to rescue Jeyne Poole and escape from Winterfell. His final words in ADWD suggest that he might have broken free for good, as he now positively identifies himself as Theon, despite being so mutilated that his sister doesn't recognize him anymore.]]
301** [[spoiler: Not to mention that the chapter is simply titled 'Theon', whereas his chapter titles before it vary depending on his current state and have names like "Reek" or "The Ghost of Winterfell".]]
302* HesBack: [[spoiler: His last chapter in ADWD is titled "Theon", proving that, at least for the moment, he has broken free of Ramsay's conditioning.]]
303* HeyYou: [[spoiler:Hated and despised by the northmen for his betrayal of the Starks and supposed slaying of Bran and Rickon. When they have to refer to him at all, they call him "turncloak".]]
304* HiddenBackupPrince: An accidental version; his sister was defeated at the Kingsmoot, but it's pointed out that Theon (who was a prisoner elsewhere at the time) can argue that the decision to elect Crow's Eye was invalid because Theon wasn't present to argue his claim to the throne.
305* HumiliationConga: When he gets back to the Iron Islands he is disrespected and humiliated. Although it's mostly limited to family.
306** The humiliation conga ends when the [[spoiler: TraumaCongaLine begins, (see below).]]
307* IdentityBreakdown: [[spoiler:The torture he experiences at the hands of Ramsay Bolton and the forcing of the Reek identity on to him causes Theon to have a '''very''' reasonable mental break in which he actively disidentifies with his identity as Theon Greyjoy. This is even lampshaded in the book by his chapter titles, no longer being "Theon" but [[BecomingTheMask "Reek" or "The Ghost of Winterfell"]]. Escaping the Ramsey's, his character development is about him redisovering who Theon is and the person he wants to become.]]
308* IgnoredExpert: Despite being the only Ironborn who knows the North, and his precious knowledge of northern castles such as Deepwood Motte and Winterfell, he's totally ignored by his father and the rest of the Ironborn when planning their invasion much to his frustration. Only Dagmer Cleftjaw is willing to listen to him.
309* TheIgor: [[spoiler: As Reek.]]
310* IHaveYourWife: When the northerners return to retake Winterfell, [[spoiler: Theon uses Rodrik Cassel's daughter as a hostage, threatening to kill her unless the northerners stand down]].
311** He becomes the "wife" after [[spoiler: his capture by Ramsay Bolton. Roose suggests to Robb and Catelyn that, in the wake of Balon Greyjoy's death, whoever succeeds him to the Seastone Chair will want Theon dead as a rival claimant, and suggests they can demand concessions from the Ironborn as the price of executing Theon]].
312* INeedAFreakingDrink: [[spoiler:After getting the Ironmen at Moat Cailin to surrender to Ramsay, he gets a skin of wine and drinks until he throws up.]]
313* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: Most of his boasting and arrogance is clearly a way to deny his deep insecurity over not having a home and not being a true Stark, among other things.
314* InnocentlyInsensitive: Although he's often quite deliberately insensitive, thank you very much, he's additionally hamstrung by being this ''when he isn't actively trying to be a douche'', as well. [[spoiler: After he helps Jeyne escape, he tries to reassure her and give her advice for staying alive -- namely pretending to be Arya forever. Naturally, this makes her cry, which makes ''him'' [[DiggingYourselfDeeper dig himself deeper]] trying to calm her.]] The whole time he thinks about how he "meant not to hurt her".
315* ItsAllAboutMe: Oh, boy, does he have this attitude at the start or what? One of the least signs of it is how he treats the women he sleeps with as throwaway, strings-free relationships without worrying about any impact on their lives at all. Like, should they get pregnant or get thrown out by husbands or fathers [[spoiler:or if he decides to murder two of their kids. He gets quite a bit better. In the hardest way imaginable.]]
316* {{Jerkass}}: Like father, like son. Treats everyone as if they are beneath him. [[spoiler: It takes him being tortured horrifically someone WAY worse than he ever was for him to start shedding this.]]
317* JerkassHasAPoint: Sure, he undermined it by acting like a total prick, but Theon is not wrong in attempting to point out to most of Winterfell that his use of Beth was close to how he was used for years, regardless of how well they thought they'd treated him. Slapping "ward" on him rather than "hostage" didn't make him feel any safer, let alone securer.
318* JerkJock: Theon is definitely this, especially with his treatment of women.
319* JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope: [[spoiler:When he publicly executes two peasant children in order to pass them off as Bran and Rickon, he has all but permanently burned his bridges with the Starks and Winterfell.]]
320* KinSlayingIsASpecialKindOfEvil: After supposedly killing Bran and Rickon, he is denounced by some characters as a kinslayer, although they weren't related by blood, since he was their father's ward and thus they were effectively foster brothers. Ironically, it's implied that they are RightForTheWrongReasons -- the narration and Theon's own conscience indicate that one of the boys he killed might've been Theon's own bastard.
321* LaserGuidedKarma: [[spoiler:Even after being freed from Ramsay, Theon gets captured by Stannis who plans to kill him for his early transgression of killing "Bran and Rickon" -- a crime he is only innocent of because the two children he ''did'' kill weren't Bran and Rickon.]]
322* LickedByTheDog: [[spoiler: Ramasay's]] hounds are all fond of him, despite being either vicious or subserviently cowed to most humans. [[spoiler: This is less to show that he's a good person, and more to emphasize that he's been so dehumanized that the hounds think he's one of them]].
323* LineInTheSand: ''Winterfell'': he took it, he sincerely meant to keep it against all odds, or die trying.
324* LiquidCourage: Before the plot to [[spoiler:rescue Jeyne Poole from Winterfell (which, should it fail, will leave everyone involved at the mercy of Ramsay and his flaying knives)]], he breaks his fast with a tankard of dark ale, thinking to himself that downing a few more tankards will make the plan seem less mad.
325* LonelyTogether: All romantic love he could possibly have after his horrible ordeal lies with [[spoiler:Jeyne Poole]].
326* LossOfIdentity: [[spoiler:Ramsay's brutal torture systematically strips away everything by which Theon once defined himself, including his archery skills, his smiles, his sexual prowess, and even his name, leaving nothing behind, except Reek. His internal journey to reclaim something of his lost identity despite the destruction of his ego as well as his ongoing abuse is at the heart of his ADWD arc.]]
327* MadnessMantra: [[spoiler:"Reek, Reek, it rhymes with leek/sneak/weak/peek..." and "You have to know your ''name''!"]]
328* MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: With Asha.
329* MeaningfulName: He's named Theon probably after King Theon Stark, a WorthyOpponent of the Ironborns. This foreshadows the tragedy of his life: being torn apart by his Ironborn origin and his northern upbringing.
330* MindRape: Theon is a SmugSnake {{Jerkass}}, but [[spoiler: he's so broken by Ramsay Bolton's physical, mental, and sexual abuse that]] it's impossible not to pity him.
331* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: One of the most in-depth examples of the series given his POV status. [[spoiler: When the Boltons bring him back to Winterfell, he ruminates on his past actions whenever left alone. He feels especially guilty at betraying Robb, wishing he died alongside him at the Red Wedding.]]
332* NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: Like many Ironborn, Theon is probably named after their greatest WorthyOpponent, King Theon Stark.
333* NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed: Theon is a DecompositeCharacter of [[UsefulNotes/RichardIII Richard III]], alongside Ned Stark, Tyrion and Stannis.
334** Theon is more heavily inspired by the darker interpretation of Richard III. Most notably, [[spoiler:Theon imprisoning Bran and Rickon and proclaiming himself Prince of Winterfell, only for Bran and Rickon to disappear, closely mirrors Richard III and the Princes in the Tower. Unlike Theon, though, Richard did not personally ruin his reputation by claiming to have murdered the princes that vanished under his watch; [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade history did that for him]].]]
335** Theon initially fights on behalf of the Starks and the North (his first kill was a wildling he shot to rescue Bran), which is similar to the Duke of Gloucester, who was well-known for his efforts to defend Northern England from Scottish raiders. However, the whole time he's fighting for King Robb Stark, Theon secretly resents his status as a Stark ward and dreams of imminently gaining his own glory as future King of the Iron Islands; this echoes the popular depiction of Richard as an opportunistic villain scheming for his brother's crown.
336** Theon's fate, being tortured into an ugly, limping cripple is also a meta-joke on the manner in which Richard III was made into a caricature of a scheming hunchback by Creator/WilliamShakespeare. Theon's nickname Reek[[note]]Which sounds similar to Rick, short-form for Richard[[/note]] also alludes to it.
337* NotAfraidToDie: While he's not suicidal, he doesn't fear death as it means would mean an end to his pain and suffering.
338* NothingButSkinAndBones: Theon was a tall, good-looking youth. After [[LockedInTheDungeon spending a little]] [[FlayingAlive vacation time in]] [[IDontLikeTheSoundOfThatPlace the Dreadfort]], he comes out some three stone lighter both due to muscle atrophy and starvation. That's forty-two pounds or nineteen kilograms for someone who wasn't even least bit overweight to begin with.
339* OffWithHisHead: Asha requests this of [[spoiler: Stannis]] for him in ''The Winds of Winter"''. [[spoiler: At this point, Stannis has made clear Theon will be executed no matter what to appease the northern lords in his army demanding justice for Bran and Rickon, and Asha, knowing that Stannis's followers are demanding another sacrifice to R'hllor, believes it kinder for Theon's death to be a quick, clean beheading than the agony of being burned alive]].
340* OnlySaneMan: Before the Greyjoys entered the war he proposed an alliance with the North and tells Balon that they're doomed to fail if they don't. Asha later agrees with him.
341* PetTheDog: Gives his men a chance to escape before Rodrik Cassel gets back to Winterfell and forbids rapes while he was there. He also spares Osha's life and lets the Starks keep their Direwolves.
342* PropheticName: In-universe, he was named after a Stark king respected by the Greyjoys, Theon "The Hungry Wolf" Stark, long before he was ever sent to live with the Starks.
343* PsychicDreamsForEveryone: In ''Literature/AClashOfKings'' he has a hideously prophetic dream that features the feast in Winterfell for King Robert turning into a bloody butchery, with all the dead people he knows joining it [[spoiler: and Robb is among them.]]
344* RaisedByNatives: The first 10 years with the Greyjoys and the later 9 with the Starks. The result? He is too much of a Stark to be a Greyjoy, and too much of a Greyjoy to be a Stark.
345** [[spoiler: In ''A Dance with Dragons'', he comes to the realization that he wanted to be a Stark. He wanted a family.]]
346* RaisedByRival: He was a child of ten when he became a ward of House Stark, held as a hostage to deter a second rebellion by his father, Balon.
347* RapeByProxy: [[spoiler: Ramsay Bolton forces "Reek" to "assist" him in the bedding of his new wife "Arya " on the wedding night.]]
348* RapeAsDrama: Theon has a complicated arc when it comes to rape, since he really doesn't twig that he actually ''is'' a full-on rapist (mostly through intimidation and coercion of "voluntary" bedmates) who has caused trauma and lasting harm to a number of his "conquests". [[CultureClash He's Ironborn -- he's supposed to have fun at the expense of those who can't fight back or who aren't important enough to have any backing worth noting, yes? Even Greenlander lords do this kind of thing to their smallfolk, right? It's really no biggie to use coercive means, and it's not like it's kidnapping somebody for years.]] Then Ramsay gives him an extended tutorial in how RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil for everybody involved in whichever role. It's certainly... dramatic if not incredibly tragic.
349* ReallyGetsAround: Even though he is only 19, Theon has had numerous sexual encounters with different lowborn women, and is generally shown to have a lustful character.
350* SanitySlippage: Theon's mental state rapidly deteriorates during his short tenure as the Prince of Winterfell. [[spoiler: After he murders the miller's boys and passes them off as Bran and Rickon to save face, all of his dreams turn into horrifying nightmares in which he is haunted by his guilt. Awake, his nerves are shot and he desperately stumbles from posture to posture in a vain attempt to escape the trap his life has become.]]
351** [[spoiler: By the time he resurfaces as Reek in ''A Dance with Dragons'', he is consumed by fear of Ramsay and his mind is almost completely shattered.]]
352* SkepticNoLonger: [[spoiler:He believes in the Old Gods after hearing the weirwood trees whisper his name.]]
353* SlaveToPR: Desperately wants the approval of his family, and bitterly resents it that even his efforts to PetTheDog after taking Winterfell are met with contempt.
354* SmugSnake: Painfully so. As self-centered as a gyroscope, and oozing smugness from every pore. [[spoiler: It costs him. Boy, how it costs him.]]
355* SmugSmiler: {{Lampshaded}} quite a bit, his tendency to keep up a smile in even the most inappropriate situations is his most memorable feature and its usually the first thing they bring up when talking about him. Other characters describe it as if the situation is some kind of joke that only he's clever enough to understand. It's one of the main reasons why several characters can't bring themselves to like him.
356** [[spoiler:Ramsay Bolton took note of this, too. And didn't like it. Which is why, as of ''A Dance with Dragons'', Theon is missing teeth and never smiles anymore.]]
357** It's implied that he picked this up from his father figure Dagmer.
358** [[spoiler: And, again, it's a testament to Martin's writing that when he finally ''does'' break into an obnoxious smirk after realizing that no matter how much he pisses off the spearwives, they can't kill him without endangering their plan, you actually want to cheer for him.]]
359* StepfordSmiler: Inside, Theon was never as self-assured as he made out, which is why he shoved that [[SmugSmiler Smug Smile]] on and went overboard in the "superior to you" attitude when around others.
360* StepfordSnarker: His sense of humor is dry and rather strongly tinted by the above tropes. Robb, at least, found him to be occasionally funny (well, they're both teen boys). Not everybody else can tolerate his mouth thanks to his snark being so smug. And, rather cruel to the wrong targets by punching in all directions, not just up. Theon is not as good a judge of character as he likes to think he is, too, so tends to needle the wrong people when trying to make his points. [[spoiler: Sometimes, the ''dangerously'' wrong people: trying to crack a joke at Roose's expense? Yeouch.]]
361* TheStoolPigeon: As of TWOW, Theon is [[spoiler: Stannis Baratheon's prisoner. As such, he is now in a prime position to use his knowledge to help him get the upper hand on his former captors, The Boltons.]]
362* SuicideByCop: His attitude with Ser Rodrik when the knight returns to take back Winterfell reeks of it, with him acting arrogant and provocating and unrepentant about his actions despite his desperate situation and guilt, surely trying to goad Ser Rodrik into killing him in battle rather than imprisonning him and to escape his torment. This fails as Ramsay Snow "saves" him only to give him something far worse than death.
363* SurvivorsGuilt: [[spoiler:In ADWD, when Theon thinks about Robb, it's how he should have been at the Red Wedding with him. May also be a bit of a MyGodWhatHaveIDone, considering the part his betrayal played in the events leading to it.]]
364* TheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: [[spoiler: Theon and Asha. Note when the two of them meet up again in Stannis' camp after Theon and Jeyne escape Ramsay's torments.]]
365* ThePigPen: As the new Reek, Theon was forced to live in the kennels amidst the dogs' filth and then forbidden to wash off.
366* TooDumbToLive: The taking of Winterfell was tactically brilliant, but a strategic failure. If only he'd burned Winterfell upon seizing it and carried off the Stark and Frey boys plus Howard Reed's kin to Pyke as hostages, everything would have turned out all right. Theon would have earned the respect of all the Ironborn, gained six valuable hostages from three enemy Houses, and proved to his father that his loyalties were to the Ironborn, not the Starks. Theon however wants to be a ruler ''now'', not upon his father's death (ironically that's closer than he thinks).
367** It's implied that he doesn't do this because he wants to be both a Stark and a Greyjoy. By taking Winterfell he proved that he was a Greyjoy. By ruling Winterfell, he'd prove that he was a Stark. His inability to firmly pick a side led to his downfall and the end he was left nothing, but [[BreakTheHaughty Reek]].
368* TookALevelInJerkass: When he invades the North to conform to Ironborn standards. Sure, he wasn't sweet innocence and light before this, but he attained a new level of jerk-/jackass at this point.
369* TheToothHurts: [[spoiler:Ramsay breaks a number of Theon's teeth and many more have become loose from his abuse, meaning that Theon cannot even eat without severe pain.]]
370* TraumaCongaLine: [[spoiler:Everything that happened to him while Ramsay Bolton's prisoner.]]
371* {{Turncoat}}: Theon is named a turn cloak by the North for attacking the Starks.
372* UngratefulBastard: How many Northerners view him. Ned Stark raised him like a ward instead of a hostage, Robb considered him his best friend and Theon repaid them by taking Winterfell and killing "Bran and Rickon." Theon believed otherwise, remarking that everyone at Winterfell was cold and distant towards him growing up and claims that this means he has no reason to be loyal to House Stark.
373** [[spoiler:Theon now views himself as this after Ramsay's torture, realizing that Robb was more his brother than any of Balon's other sons and that he should have fought and died alongside him at the Red Wedding.]]
374* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler:His betrayal indirectly caused the most damage to House Stark than he or anyone else could have imagined. Upon hearing his younger brothers were apparently killed by Theon, Robb slept with Jeyne Westerling out of grief. Robb married Jeyne on the spot in order to preserve her honor, which caused him to break his vows to House Frey. Hearing about her sons' deaths also caused Catelyn to release Jaime Lannister and send Brienne to trade him with Arya and Sansa, desperate to retrieve her remaining children and weakening Robb's position in the process. This was also the alarm signal that Roose Bolton was waiting to fully betray the Starks. All of these eventually kickstarted the Red Wedding.]]
375* UsedToBeASweetKid: He was shy as a child and a true brother to Robb.
376* WasOnceAMan: Played with. [[spoiler: In his transformation into Reek, Theon was disfigured beyond recognition and is regarded by all as wholly less than human. Ramsay in particular is especially insistent that Reek is not a man, but rather a creature. It's clear from his chapters that Theon also feels this way about himself - in his internal monologue, he refers to his old identity as a man and thinks of his current one as "Lord Ramsay's creature, lower than a dog, a worm in human skin."]]
377* WellDoneSonGuy: His whole motivation is to get Balon's approval. [[spoiler: It's implied that he had some of this for Ned Stark.]]
378* WhatYouAreInTheDark: He hasn't knowingly revealed to anyone that [[spoiler:Rickon and Bran are alive]] or that [[spoiler:"Arya Stark" is actually Jeyne Poole]] [[spoiler:(unknowingly... well, it's likely, if anybody has been able to parse any of the high-speed, mumbled jumble of crazy he spilled to Asha that they've overheard)]]; the former would bring no one any benefit, as he is not in any position of proving that [[spoiler:they survived]]; the latter, because revealing it would only serve to harm [[spoiler:Jeyne]]. Being in the position where he is in TWOW, anything he says will be used against him, [[spoiler:Jeyne]] or Asha regardless.
379* TheWhitestBlackGuy: When he's returned home, many Ironborn, first and foremost [[WellDoneSonGuy his father]], question whether the Starks have turned him into "a soft green-lander."
380* YouKilledMyFather: {{Averted|Trope}} - when Theon meets Lord Jason Mallister, he tells the man point-blank that he does not fault him for killing his brother Rodrik Greyjoy, on account of the latter being a BigBrotherBully.
381[[/folder]]
382
383!!!Balon's Brothers
384
385[[folder:Euron Greyjoy]]
386!!King Euron Greyjoy, the Third of His Name Since the Grey King
387!!!The Crow's Eye
388[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/euron_3.jpg]]
389[[caption-width-right:350:''"Perhaps we can fly. All of us. How will we ever know unless we leap from some tall tower? No man ever truly knows what he can do unless he dares to leap."'']]
390-->''"Godless? Why, Aeron, I am the godliest man ever to raise sail! You serve one god, Damphair, but I have served ten thousand. From Ib to Asshai, when men see my sails, they pray."''
391
392Lord Quellon Greyjoy's second son by his second wife, a Sunderly. Also known as "Crow's Eye", Euron is a cunning pirate who was banished from his home by his family after he seduced Victarion's wife, forbidden to return for as long as his brother Balon lived. The day after Balon died, Euron returned. He wears an eye patch and is feared by those around him for his reputation for cruelty and mind games. His personal coat-of-arms is a red eye with a black pupil beneath a black iron crown supported by two crows.
393----
394* AbusiveParents: Euron views his current sons as "baseborn mongrels, born of whores and weepers", declaring them unfit to sit on the Seastone Chair (let alone the Iron Throne) and goes as far so as to compare them to his excrement. Euron claims only a child of himself and Daenerys Targaryen would be fit to rule all of Westeros.
395* ActuallyPrettyFunny: Euron bursts out laughing when Asha shuts down the elderly and obese Erik Ironmaker's attempt to get himself crowned at the kingsmoot by telling Erik to stand up if he wants to claim a crown (which between his age and girth, Erik is incapable of).
396* AnimalMotifs: Besides the family's kraken motif, Euron is associated with crows as a symbol of death. His nickname is "Crow's Eye," his personal sigil includes a pair of crows, he makes his first appearance in ''A Feast for Crows,'' and the Ghost of High Heart sees him in a vision as a drowned crow with seaweed hanging from his wings, perched on the shoulder of a man with no face.
397* AntagonistTitle: It's no coincidence that Euron Crow's Eye makes his first in-person appearance in ''A Feast for Crows'', openly calling on his followers to join him in feasting on the remains of a dying Westeros.
398* AGodAmI: Declares himself to be such in ''The Winds of Winter''.
399-->'''Euron''': I am your king, I am your god. Worship me, and I will raise you up to be my priest.
400* AristocratsAreEvil: Creepily, psychotically evil in this particular case. Even by Ironborn standards.
401* ArmorOfInvincibility: [[spoiler:A preview chapter of Aeron Damphair reveals he has Valyrian Steel armor with magical runes and scales embossed on it]].
402* AwesomeMomentOfCrowning: Becomes Euron Greyjoy, the Third of His Name Since the Grey King, King of the Iron Islands and the North in ''A Feast For Crows''.
403* AxCrazy: Rivals Gregor Clegane and Ramsay Snow, but unlike them, Euron has some actual ''control'' over himself and is capable of utilizing his madness for calculated purposes which makes him incredibly dangerous.
404* BadBoss / BenevolentBoss: Euron is good at making men think he'll be good to work for. After all, he's a wickedly fun sort of guy (from a backwards-ass Ironborn perspective) who promises power and glory, and who always gives his followers the lion's share of whatever plunder they reap. [[spoiler: However, he truly has no respect or concern for their lives, merely using them to accomplish his long-term goals. These gifts he bestows on those aligned with him are just meant to keep them loyal enough and distract from the fact that he's setting them up to fail in the short-term while he continues advancing himself.]]
405* BatmanGambit: He relies this form of ThePlan but sometimes he misjudges people and their values, which leads to the plan's failure.
406* BeardOfEvil: Has a small slight beard, neatly trimmed to preserve his handsome appearance.
407* BeautyIsBad: He is as good looking as he is evil and cruel. As poor Falia Flowers found out.
408* BigBad: [[spoiler: After he kills Balon and takes control of the Iron Islands, he becomes yet another contender for the role. He is also far more competent and dangerous than his brother, and if he is to be believed, and he really does wield dark magic and can control dragons, he could potentially be this for the remainder of the series.]]
409* BigBrotherBully: Somehow manages to be a worse older sibling than Gregor Clegane is. [[spoiler:Even Gregor never raped Sandor as a child, and that's exactly what Euron did to both Aeron and Urrigon. He also murdered his youngest brother, Robin, and even his elder brother Harlon, who was already dying.]] He certainly hasn't gotten better as an adult, emotionally abusing his remaining siblings, possibly raping Victarion's beloved wife to [[HonorBeforeReason force Victarion to kill her]], and later [[spoiler:giving Aeron [[ColdBloodedTorture the full Bolton experience]] aboard the ''Silence''.]]
410* BlackComedy: Most of his evil deeds involve this. He does like his {{Irony}} and BlackComedy. And, [[DeadpanSnarker wordplay]].
411* BlackSheep: And in ''this'' family that means something. Indeed, Euron actually has contempt for the Ironborn and their traditions. As he tells [[spoiler:Aeron, while all Gods are lies, the Drowned God is the dumbest idea of a God to actually worship. Eventually Euron discards the Driftwood Crown in favor of something more fancy, a crown of Iron with Shark Teeth at its points]].
412* BlasphemousBoast:
413** When Aeron declares no godless man can sit on the Seastone chair:
414--->'''Euron:''' I am the godliest man ever to raise sail! You serve one god, Damphair, but I have served ten thousand. From Ib to Asshai, when men see my sails, they pray.
415** He delivers another one to [[spoiler: a captive Aeron]] in ''The Winds of Winter'', with a heavy dose of AGodAmI.
416--->'''Euron''': The bleeding star bespoke the end...These are the last days, when the world shall be broken and remade. A new god shall be born from the graves and charnel pits...Kneel, [[spoiler: brother]]. I am your king, I am your god. Worship me, and I will raise you up to be my priest.
417* BlingOfWar: Forget Jaime, Tywin, or Renly's flashy suits of armor, Euron has them all beat. He has a suit of scale armor made of [[spoiler:Valyrian steel. According to Aeron, such a thing would have "cost a kingdom" ''before'' the Doom of Valyria. These days there probably isn't enough gold in the world worth one, and absolutely no one has ever been mentioned as owning one, not even the likes of Aegon the Conqueror]].
418* BreakTheBeliever: As part of psychological torture, he tries to do this to his captives who are especially religious and looks forward to [[EvilStoleMyFaith stealing their faith]]. [[spoiler:A preview chapter from ''[=TWOW=]'' has his capturing and torturing priests from the Faith of the Seven, a Red Priest, Warlocks of Qarth, and his own brother Aeron, who believes in the Drowned God. Aeron does his best to maintain his faith, but the torture and abuse slowly takes its toll]].
419* BunnyEarsLawyer: He uses his outrageous and outright ''weird'' actions to strengthen his standing rather well. Also note how well he undermines real threats: Aeron doesn't need much spinning on his end to seem bonkers and pathetic, but turning the very competent Asha into a standing joke shows that using his hilariously dark trolling to effect is no accident.
420* CainAndAbel: [[spoiler:He has murdered three of his brothers, two of them when he was a young boy, the first one he murdered was already dying when Euron murdered him. It is widely believed by many, such as Asha, that he had murdered Balon, possibly using a Faceless Man. In a chapter GRRM read for Balticon, Euron confirms that he indeed ordered Balon's death and seems regretful that he didn't do it personally. He also rapes, abuses, and tortures Urrigon and Aeron, along with tormenting Victarion (and is maybe even manipulating Victarion into getting killed), and seems to be planning to offer up Aeron in a blood sacrifice ritual]].
421* TheCaptain: Of the ''Silence'', because all its crew members have had their tongues ripped out.
422* CaptainNemoCopy: Euron is a dark and twisted deconstruction of Captain Nemo because there is nothing noble or sympathetic about him. Euron is a complete sociopath who is capable of gruesome things like [[spoiler:raping and killing his own siblings, raping the wife of his own brother, forcefully feeding hostages to the other hostages, or tying his own pregnant lover to the prow of his ship.]] He owns a galley named the ''Silence'' because all its crew members have their tongues ripped out, and its floor is painted with red to cover all the blood spilled on a daily basis. Ever since his banishment from the Iron Islands, his ship pillaged, and raped all over the known world. He is also an infamous WickedCultured {{Ubermensch}} with rare knowledge about Valyrian blood magic and dragons. He plans to conquer all of Westeros with Daenerys and her dragons at his side and to become some sort of GodEmperor figure.
423* ChekhovMIA: Throughout ''A Clash of Kings'', where his absence was brought up every so often by Theon. His return a book later proved to have significant consequences for the Seven Kingdoms.
424* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Has his moments; his recollection of a dream in which he could fly (see below) has him mention that when he woke up he was told by everyone that it was just a dream and that (obviously) he can't really fly. He then says something to the effect of: "But how can I know for certain that I can't fly unless I try by jumping out of the window?", and he implies that he would be willing to risk almost certain death to find out. When he claims to have tossed a dragon-egg-shaped king's ransom into the waves simply just because and for no real reason, most listeners seem to think it's the kind of thing he would actually do, so don't really ask questions about how metaphorically he might be talking.
425* ColdBloodedTorture: [[spoiler: According to a chapter read out at Bitcon, he has Aeron beaten by his mutes, regularly taunts him about having been raped as a child; forces him to drink Shade of the Evening, giving him terrifying hallucinations that make him question his faith, before finally strapping him to the prow of the ''Silence'', presumably to be sacrificed along with Euron's pregnant mistress, Falia Flowers, and the various priests of other faiths in the oncoming battle with the Redwynes and Hightowers.]]
426* CoolCrown: ''The Winds of Winter'' reveal Euron has dispensed with the traditional driftwood crown of the Iron Islands in favour of an iron circlet studded with shark teeth for points.
427* TheCorrupter: Aeron certainly sees him as this for the whole of the Iron Isles. He's hammy about it, but he's got a point: even Victarion has turned to Fire Magic. Possibly because of Euron's using it, as well as total frustration with the whole situation.
428* [[spoiler: {{Cthulhumanoid}}]]: In ''The Winds of Winter'', [[spoiler: Aeron has a fever dream of Euron as one of these, a half-human, half-kraken monstrosity seated upon the Iron Throne]].
429* CultOfPersonality: Euron's years of exile and travels and his dramatic return to the Iron Islands allowed him time to build a formidable cult among both his followers and among the Ironborn. Asha Greyjoy notes during the run-up to the Kingsmoot that Euron manages to get everyone talking about him and his deeds, and debating his personality. Euron also promotes his own brand, as it were, with a personal sigil (a banner with a red eye under a crown held by crows), a nickname with AnimalMotifs (crow) and with legends such as him visiting Valyria which the likes of Rodrik Harlaw express skepticism about [[spoiler:but which the chapter "The Forsaken" from ''TWOW'' confirms to be true]].
430* DarkMessiah: He sees himself as this, and [[spoiler:the Shade of the Evening drunk by Aeron shows visions of Euron on the Iron Throne with gods of many religions impaled on the swords around it. Euron proclaims himself a new God to replace the old and offers Aeron the chance to be his priest]].
431--> '''Euron''': ''The bleeding star bespoke the end. These are the last days, when the world shall be broken and remade. A new god shall be born from the graves and charnel pits.''
432* DepravedBisexual: He has numerous bastard sons, but also, [[spoiler:according to a chapter read by GRRM, Euron used to rape both Aeron and Urrigon.]]
433* TheDreaded: From Ib to Asshai, the sight of the ''Silence'''s red sails is cause for fear, and the Ironborn talk in hushed tones of his travels and deeds.
434* DreamsOfFlying: He mentions to his brother Victarion that as a boy he once dreamed that he could fly, but when he woke up his maester told him that he couldn’t. Euron wonders if the maester had lied to him, even as an adult.
435* ElectiveMonarchy: Rather unusually. The Ironborn's line of succession would have fallen to Theon, had he not been missing and presumed dead. It would go to Euron next, and Victarion following him, but Balon had intended his daughter to succeed him (a cultural oddity since the Ironborn are strictly patrilineal). Aeron wants Victarion to succeed, but they are younger than Euron and too lawful to try asserting their claim over an older brother. In order to keep the Ironborn from destroying themselves in a three-way civil war (and to keep Euron off the throne), Aeron Damphair calls a Kingsmoot. Euron, whose claim to the throne was the strongest by dint of birthright, ends the Kingsmoot [[OutGambitted by convincing the Ironborn of his worth]] with claims of magic and dragons. Preceded by a demonstration, of course...
436* EmpoweredBadassNormal: Implied, given his dabbling with magic.
437* EnemyEatsYourLunch: After conquering the Shield Islands, he takes delight in feasting on Lord Hewett's wine and offers some to Victarion.
438-->'''Euron''': There’s no wine half so sweet as wine taken from a beaten foe.
439* EnfantTerrible: On a fridge horror scale when you think about his act of [[spoiler: murdering his half-brothers, Robin and particularly Harlon. According to the latest reveal, Harlon was killed as a child by Euron. But, it said that Harlon is Quellon's first son by his first wife and that Euron is few years younger than him as he's born from Quellon's second wife. Also, it does not help that Euron reveals Robin was his ''first'' kill. There's also the fact that he apparently used to rape his brothers Aeron and Urrigon when they were all young.]]
440* EvilerThanThou: The Ironborn are no saints themselves, but Euron manages to take their pillaging culture and desire for power to outright monstrous levels.
441* EvilOverlord: Seriously, he's the closest the series gets to the classical mold, even if he doesn't have enough power to back it up with -- at least not yet (working on it, thanks). Love of using black? Check. Strange magical powers? Check. Cruelty and glaringly evident insanity? Check. A generous and egalitarian approach to murder, slaughter and general carnage? Check. Use of slavery? Check. Ominous appearance? ''Check.'' Oh... and [[spoiler: an [[ApocalypseHow old school]] Evil Guy goal of deliberately using the LeakingCanOfEvil (aka, [[EvilIsNotAToy the Others]] and [[ZombieApocalypse their Long Winter]]) because... reasons? Check.]] It helps that he comes from a culture that values strength over everything else, so that many of Ironborn go along with him without asking too many of the right questions.
442* EvilPowerVacuum: The titular feasting crow in ''A Feast For Crows''. Arrives in ''A Feast For Crows'' at the perfect moment to take advantage of the ruined state of Westeros following the first bloody phase of the War of the Five Kings. Four of the five original Kings are dead, Tywin Lannister was assassinated, a boy puppet rules Westeros in name, the land is really ruled by an increasingly crazed Queen, and the kingdom is in turmoil.
443* EvilUncle: To Asha and Theon. He likely would have killed Asha if she had not fled after the Kingsmoot, and when Theon meets Mors Umber and sees his eye patch, he is more scared of that than Mors due to it reminding him of Euron.
444* TheExile: Balon exiled him from the Iron Islands as a concession to Victarion for Euron sleeping with his wife, forbidding him from ever returning while Balon was still alive.
445* EyepatchOfPower: Adds to his sinister reputation; beneath it lurks a "black eye shining with malice", according to Theon.
446* AFamilyAffair: The root cause of Victarion's hatred of Euron is Euron sleeping with his wife, leading to HonorRelatedAbuse on his part. Worse is that he probably knew that it would happen, [[QuestionableConsent and we only have his word that it was consensual]].
447* FauxAffablyEvil: He may put on a smile and be all hail-fellow-well-met on the surface when he chooses to be. But, it's no secret at all that he has his dark side. And, it is ''very'' dark.
448* ForTheEvulz: He gives the distinct impression of only doing anything because he can. And, wants to.
449* GodhoodSeeker: Revealed to be his goal, which he explains to [[spoiler:Aeron]] while torturing him. Euron commands him to worship him and become his priest, but he refuses to do so.
450* HatedByAll: Victarion would have killed him if not for his rigid adherence to Ironborn law. Aeron also despises him for the monstrous abuse he inflicted on him and Urrigon. Asha and Theon also hate him and Balon hates him for the incident with Victarion's wife. In this family, Euron is the only one that's universally hated. That's saying something.
451* HigherUnderstandingThroughDrugs: His lips are stained blue from his excessive consumption of Shade of the Evening, the supernatural drink popular with the warlocks of Qarth. He claims that drinking it has shown him the truth of the world.
452* InheritanceMurder: He's strongly suspected of murdering Balon to become king. [[spoiler:He admits to ordering the murder as of the released chapter "The Forsaken".]]
453* KillTheGod: In Aeron's preview chapter for ''The Winds of Winter,'' he has a nightmare of Euron sitting on the bloodied Iron Throne with the bodies of the Seven impaled on its spikes, alongside the likes of R'hllor, the Black Goat, the Pale Child, the Lord of Harmony and even the Drowned God.
454* KinslayingIsASpecialKindOfEvil: Euron probably holds the Westerosi world record for "Most Family Members Personally Offed". He murdered his younger brother Robin and his elder brother Harlon, hired a Faceless Man to kill Balon so he could become King of the Iron Islands, [[spoiler:and is about to sacrifice Aeron to the Drowned God in ''The Winds of Winter.'' Oh, and also Falia, who's carrying his unborn child.]]
455-->'''Asha''': Tell the Crow's Eye he's afraid of kinslaying, and he'll murder one of his own sons just to prove you wrong.
456* KlingonPromotion: Implied by his brothers because of his [[SarcasmMode extremely ''coincidental'' arrival]] (one day after Balon's death) back on the Iron Islands after being MIA for years. [[note]]A generally accepted theory is that Euron hired a Faceless Man to off his brother. In a ''TWOW'' chapter read by GRRM, Euron reveals he was responsible for Balon's death.[[/note]]
457* KnightOfCerebus: Euron's entry into the Iron Islands plot makes it far more serious, intense, and genuinely scary than anything before. He's evil by real-world standards, by Westerosi standards, ''and'' by Ironborn standards and is a competent military commander and politician to boot.
458* MagicKnight: Skilled with physical strength (he's an [[{{Pirate}} Ironborn]], remember?) and capable of at least some magical progress in a setting where this is not usual.
459* MajoredInWesternHypocrisy: By Ironborn standards, Euron is very cosmopolitan. Aeron Greyjoy calls him a blasphemer for this very reason, and Euron makes mocking references to Ironborn culture and tradition, while at the same time using Free Cities catchphrases ("Just So") and surrounding himself with cultural artifacts from around the world.
460* ManipulativeBastard: Knows ''exactly'' what buttons to push with his fellow Iron Islanders to get what he wants: it's how he gets the throne. Although, he doesn't ''always'' time ''when'' to press those switches quite right, thanks to his LackOfEmpathy. But, he gets it right more often than not.
461* MeaningfulName: Euron's name is evocative of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anemoi#Eurus Eurus]], the Greek god of the turbulent, stormy east wind, reflecting how Euron enters the story from out of the east after having spent most of his life there, and connecting him to the hated [[SatanicArchetype "Storm God"]] of Ironborn myth.
462* MilesGloriosus: Boasts constantly of having been the first man to return alive from the ruins of Valyria. When the Reader challenges Crow's Eye on this, his [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness coldly furious reaction]] implies otherwise. [[spoiler:This begs the question of where he acquired his dragon egg, the Dragonbinder horn, and his Valyrian steel armor.]]
463* MythicalMotifs: A one-eyed wanderer associated with crows from a viking FantasyCounterpartCulture, who steals a magical drink that grants him supernatural knowledge - like the Three-Eyed Crow, he's a particularly dark take on [[Myth/NorseMythology Odin]].
464* NightmareFetishist: More so than the rest of his family. Everything about Euron is strange and menacing.
465* NobodyCallsMeChicken: Invoked about him by Asha, who remarks that if anyone called Euron afraid of [[KinslayingIsASpecialKindOfEvil kinslaying]], he'd happily [[OffingTheOffspring murder one of his bastards]] to prove them wrong.
466* NoNonsenseNemesis: As cruel and petty he is, Euron doesn't waste time getting rid of his opponents and potential threats to his rule, after becoming king. One of the first things he does is [[spoiler: to have Aeron captured and taken captive in his Silence before he could spread dissent]] and have the Drowned Men hunted down by Erik Ironmaker. He also neutralizes Asha as a political threat, after she ran away immediately after the Kingsmoot, by having her married to Erik Ironmaker with a seal in her stead.
467* ObviouslyEvil: Just look at him and listen to him. To say nothing of his Sauron-like coat of arms. The scary part is how many people are currently underestimating the depths of his depravity and evil.
468* OlderThanHeLooks: He is described as being the most good-looking of the Greyjoy brothers, and most artwork portrays him as looking quite a bit younger than his own younger brothers Victarion and Aeron. Hell, even Balon looks practically ancient compared to him, despite being only a year or so older than Euron. It's hinted that there may be a mystical reason behind this, since it's mentioned several times that Euron doesn't seem to have aged a day since leaving the islands years ago.
469* OutsideContextProblem: Barely anyone outside the Iron Islands really knows who he is aside from his involvement in the Burning of Lannisport. Beyond this, Euron almost feels like a character out of a completely different genre, coming across as a villain from a HighFantasy mixed with a Lovecraftian horror story in an otherwise relatively more LowFantasy setting. Part of what makes him so terrifying for both characters and readers is that no one is exactly sure what he plans to do with this fact, just that he's intelligent enough to potentially pull it off and more than evil enough to not care who gets hurt in the process.
470* ThePeterPrinciple: An odd case. During his rise to power, he's smooth enough of a manipulator and politico to gather up support and weaken his rivals, but when it comes to actually doing the ruling, he's actually not that effective without his megalomaniacal promises to lean on.
471* {{Pirate}}: Euron takes the reaving culture of the Ironmen up a notch. After getting ostracized, he spent his time looting and pillaging his way through distant lands.
472* PirateBooty: Is able to bribe his way to being King through the vast amount of treasure he's brought back from the East. Aeron notes it's one of the reasons he's so popular among the Ironborn; unlike other captains who keep the lion's share of the plunder, Euron is fairly openhanded, showing little interest in the treasure he takes. This is a man so rich he can afford to throw away a priceless dragon egg in a fit of pique. ''The Winds of Winter'' reveals that he owns [[spoiler:a full suit of ''Valyrian steel armor''. According to Aeron, such a thing would have "cost a kingdom" ''before'' the Doom of Valyria. These days there probably isn't enough gold in the world worth one, and absolutely no-one has ever been mentioned as owning one, not even the likes of Aegon the Conqueror.]]
473* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: By Ironborn standards, as he doesn't care about their native religion or taboos against slavery [[spoiler:and kinslaying]].
474* PostRapeTaunt: Euron seduced his brother Victarion's wife, and by Ironborn custom Victarion had to kill her to keep his honor. We only have Euron's word on whether or not it was consensual.
475-->'''Euron:''' She came to me wet and willing. It seems Victarion is big everywhere but where it matters.
476** He also taunts Aeron about his raping of him when they were children years after the fact, saying that he taught Aeron how to pray through fear.
477* PsychicDreamsForEveryone: Maybe: in one scene he describes a dream that sounds similar to Bran's coma visions. Whether it's the same thing or not has [[EpilepticTrees planted some trees]].
478* PsychopathicManchild: Feels the need to not only destroy but ''humiliate'' his enemies, such as his PostRapeTaunt to Victarion, marrying Asha off with a seal as the proxy bride, and his treatment of the Shield Islanders. Euron also has many {{Cloudcuckoolander}} tendencies and is prone to tantrums, such as throwing his ''dragon eggs'' overboard in a fit of pique.
479* ReallyGetsAround: All those huge, dark-skinned men crewing his ship, those are his mixed-race sons.
480* RedBaron: "Crow's Eye" holds special significance to the Ironborn, since they regard crows as animals of the Storm God, who's basically their version of Satan.
481* RedRightHand: His lips are stained blue from drinking shade-of-the-evening.
482* RousingSpeech: He delivers one of these to the Ironborn to get himself chosen King.
483-->'''Euron''': "Crow's Eye," you call me. Well, who has a keener eye than the crow. After every battle the crows come in their hundreds and their thousands to feast upon the fallen. A crow can espy death from afar. And I say that all Westeros is dying. Those who follow me will feast until the end of their days. We are Ironborn, and once we were conquerors. Our writ ran everywhere the sound of waves was heard. My brother would have you be content with the cold and dismal North. My niece, with even less. But I shall give you Lannisport, Highgarden, The Arbor, Oldtown, the Riverlands and the Reach, the Kingswood and the Rainwood, Dorne and the Marches, the Mountains of the Moon and the Vale of Arryn, Tarth, and The Stepstones. I say we take it all. I say we take Westeros!
484* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Unlike his NonActionBigBad brother, Balon, Euron directly leads the raids on the Shield Islands.
485* RulesLawyer: Uses the rules, even if he doesn't really care about them. And, is very good at pointing out which "rules" aren't actually written down as strongly as others -- so, they're more like guidelines, right? Also uses ExactWords, as well as top trumps.
486* {{Sadist}}: Takes pleasure in random acts of rape and violence, including against members of his own family.
487* SanityHasAdvantages: Euron is just as vicious as Ramsay Snow-Bolton or Gregor Clegane. However, instead of being just another ferociously strong but sadistically impulsive brute who only lives for torture, rape and slaughter, he is a cunning manipulator with enough charisma to rally the whole of the Iron Islands to his banners...which makes him way more dangerous than either of them in the long run.
488* SchmuckBait: [[spoiler:He is supremely generous, almost always giving most of his plunder to his followers while keeping little to nothing for himself. This, however, is just a means to bribe people's loyalty to him and he will screw you over down the line. When Aeron points out that Euron cannot hold the Shield Islands, Euron mocks him for thinking he ever planned to hold those islands. Conquering those islands gave him glory and handing out land to some of his captains distracted those fools away from Victarion; when they lose the Islands, it will be their failure and not his]].
489* ShroudedInMyth: He's a living legend among the other Ironmen.
490-->'''Asha:''' (to Victarion) Walk amongst the campfires if you dare, and listen. They are not telling tales of your strength, nor of my famous beauty. They talk only of the Crow's Eye; the far places he has seen, the women he has raped and the men he's killed, the cities he has sacked, the way he burnt Lord Tywin's fleet at Lannisport...
491** Euron has claimed to have walked the [[EldritchLocation ruins of old Valyria]], where nobody has ever returned from, and he apparently found some magic artifacts there.
492* SmugSnake: Euron fancies himself a ChessMaster when he returns to the Iron Islands and wins the throne, but he's not all that good at manipulating the Ironmen. When they start to resist his grand ambitions, he has no answer but to walk away in a huff. He also seems to be completely oblivious to the depths of the hatred that Victarion has for him. (Or if he's not oblivious, then he ''just doesn't care''.) In other words, he's a good enough schemer to ''gain'' power, but too much of a psychopath to be an effective ''leader''.
493* TheSociopath: Yup. No doubt about it: he's got selfishly intelligent vampire bats in the belfry. But, good luck shoehorning him into being either a "typical" sociopath or a psychopath: he likes to take a little from columns A and B -- probably while looting possible C and D columns on the side. A couple of things dominate: he's a {{Narcissist}}. [[LackOfEmpathy And, he really doesn't care about anybody for themselves.]]
494* {{Troll}}: When he puts you down, he finds a way to make it a [[BlackComedy little funny]] in some way. For him; not you. Cruel? [[ForTheEvulz You betcha!]] What's a bit worse is that he'll find a way to play to the gallery while doing so, and make it laugh in nervous relief this didn't happen to any of them as well as at [[ActuallyPrettyFunny the humor]]. Still, Walder Frey beats him hands down on the petty and pointless count, as Euron uses this to outright ''terrify'' people and gain a useful reputation (in the Iron Isles, at least). He's about on a par with Ramsay Bolton, though. Charming.
495* TheUnfettered: Even among the Ironborn, he spurns their traditions and introduces a lot of customs and ideas from Essos as well as a strategic approach and ambition that goes beyond their usual rape and pillage naval doctrine and has absolutely no problem selling captives as slaves instead of making them thralls or "salt wives".
496* VilerNewVillain: Balon was a horrible person, being an [[AbusiveParents abusive father]] to Theon, and wishing to bring back the RapePillageAndBurn lifestyle of the Ironborn, though he at least cared for his daughter Asha and some of his brothers and had a few morals, while being too delusional and stupid to pose a true threat. Euron is not only far more dangerous and smarter than Balon, but he's also far more evil and despicable than his brother and the rest of the Ironborn, caring only for himself while having nothing but contempt for his own people, being incredibly sadistic, and treats his family in the most abominable way possible [[spoiler: having ordered Balon's death and personally murdered several of his half-brothers, and raped Aeron and Urrigon during their youth.]]
497* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Euron may be sinister, but he was propelled fairly to the Seastone Chair, through his rallying of the Ironmen and compelling speeches.
498* VillainousIncest: He's [[spoiler: an incestuous rapist]] and one of the most evil people in the whole series.
499* WhereIsYourXNow: He is rather anti-religious and takes pleasure in the fact that none of the gods his victims prayed to protected them from him. He takes special delight in taunting his brother Aeron, who is a priest of the Drowned God.
500* WickedCultured: One of the qualities that makes him stand out from the Ironborn and the majority of the other villains in the series. Euron has traveled the entire world, visited places and seen and experienced things almost no other living (or dead) man has, giving him a wealth of personal knowledge on countless subjects. He is also extremely well-read and mixes his natural charisma with being a very elegant and sophisticated speaker.
501[[/folder]]
502
503[[folder:Victarion Greyjoy*]]
504!!Victarion Greyjoy, Lord Captain of the Iron Fleet
505!!!The Iron Captain
506[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/victarion_greyjoy_ffg_3096.png]]
507-->''"Wizards may be well and good, but blood and steel win wars. Bring me wine."''
508
509Younger brother of Balon and Euron and Euron's heir-apparent to the Seastone Chair, Victarion is everything a Greyjoy should be: strong, duty-bound and honorable ([[BlueAndOrangeMorality by Ironborn standards]]). He is a powerful fighter, but has no great ambition beyond engaging in great battles. Though he prefers reaving and war to the complex world of politics, having only Asha (a woman) and Euron (a psychopath) as the alternatives to the throne forces him to throw his lot in at the Kingsmoot.
510----
511* AlwaysSecondBest: He has a huge inferiority complex with Euron, namely his suspicion that his wife consensually slept with Euron, [[UnreliableNarrator as the latter claims]]. Likewise, he bristles when Asha Greyjoy brings up that Victarion's attack on Lannisport was mostly planned by Euron while Victarion in turn lost at Fair Isle to Stannis.
512* AnimalMotifs: The kraken of his house is displayed prominently on his armor.
513* AristocratsAreEvil: Very painfully honorable and aware not only of his rights, but his duties as well. All while having an ''incredibly'' skewed morality.
514* ArmorIsUseless: Averted; he's able to defeat superior numbers because they are reluctant to wear armor for fear of drowning. He's also always wearing his armor at Moat Cailin, even when sleeping, to avoid being poisoned by Crannogmen's arrows.
515* BadassBoast: Prone to making boasts which tread the line between 'Badass' and 'ridiculous'.
516* BadBoss: Very quick to deal out heavy-handed or brutal punishment for minor infractions. At one point a subordinate captain expresses reasonable concerns about the mission Euron has assigned them (which Victarion wholeheartedly agrees with in his thoughts), only for Victarion to slap him around and threaten to take his tongue. Later he has an oarsman viciously whipped for expressing fear of Victarion's sinister "pet wizard".
517* BigBadWannabe: [[spoiler: He decides to hijack Euron's evil plan to enthrall Daenerys and her dragons and use them to dominate everyone shortly after learning about it, though he may not have the panache to actually pull it off as Euron seems to. His thoughts about the dragonhorn in his sample chapter from ''The Winds of Winter'' seems to confirm this:]]
518-->'''Victarion:''' Euron was a fool to give me this. It is a precious thing, and powerful. With this I'll win the Seastone Chair, and then the Iron Throne. With this I'll win the world.
519* BerserkButton: Laughing at Victarion to his face or calling him out on his stupidity are a good way to get a brutal death, as a yunkish fisherman who laughed and called him a fool for believing the Dothraki Sea to be made of water found out the hard way.
520* BigLittleBrother: He has two older brothers, but still is larger and more powerful than both of them.
521* BlasphemousBoast: After he begins serving the Lord of Light as well as the Drowned God.
522-->'''Victarion:''' Two gods are with me now. No foe can stand before two gods.
523* BloodKnight: He likes battle, especially when the enemy puts up a good fight.
524* TheBerserker: ''"Come!"'' he roared, ''"Come and kill me if you can."''
525* BookDumb: He doesn't know that the Dothraki sea isn't actually a sea, and is a wide plain of grass. Granted, most Ironmen aren't that well educated to begin with and don't see the value in books.
526* TheBrute: Although he acted in the role of TheDragon for Balon and later for Euron after the Kingsmoot, he really prefers acting as TheBrute; he doesn't want to have to bother dealing with the complicated worlds of politics and religion, he just wants to be set loose on the battlefield.
527* BrutishCharacterBrutishWeapon: Victarion, the leader of the pseudo-Viking fleets of the Iron Isles and often noted for his intimidating size, great strength and limited intelligence, favors a huge battle axe.
528* TheCaptain: Of the flagship of the Iron Fleet, the ''Iron Victory''.
529* TheChampion: Aeron sees him as the last best hope to bring the Old Way back to the Ironborn.
530* CurbStompBattle: Most of the fights he seems to get into are this in his favor. His duel with Talbert Serry in particular. Poor guy never stood a chance.
531** Was once on the receiving end, at the hands of Stannis Baratheon during the Greyjoy Rebellion.
532* CoolHelmet: Forged in the visage of a kraken.
533* DividedWeFall: Asha warns him that they have to work together to keep Euron from being selected King. He laughs it off, refusing to make her his NumberTwo because it goes against tradition. Too bad, because the support of Asha and her followers might have been enough to win the throne.
534* DoubleStandardRapeMaleOnMale: He doesn't quite have this attitude, but certainly does not see it as a big deal. When a maester on his ship comes to him to tell him that three men dragged him into the hold and "used him as a woman", Victarion treats it as a tiresome complaint, and simply tells him to man up and gives him a dagger to stop it happening again (despite being well aware the man will probably not be able to use it). Later, when his arm is hurt, he tells the same maester "I'll make the crew a gift of your arse" if he can't heal him.
535** Gains an extra layer of awful when you consider the Euron factor. Is there a reason Victarion has convinced himself that male rape is really nothing to complain about? Like, say, being told that somebody "was just playing" with their younger brothers, so it's not such big deal, really?
536** Though to be fair to Victarion, he's most likely unaware of what Euron did to Aeron and Urrigon, given his lack of brightness and literal-minded personality, and it's unlikely that Urrigon or Aeron told him or anyone else about it.
537* TheDragon: To Balon.
538* DragonWithAnAgenda: [[spoiler: To Euron.]]
539* DrunkOnTheDarkSide: Whatever Moqorro did to heal his hand seems to have had some impact on his personality, making him even more violent and brutal.
540* DumbMuscle: Acknowledged as a "dullard" by [[WordOfGod his creator]]. Innuendos and insinuations regularly fly over his head, he rarely stops to look beyond the surface of such things as being offered a free healing[[spoiler: and upgrade (stopping to wonder about the actual price of this BloodMagic or whether it would really work at all as advertised might have been a good idea)]], not to mention his belief that [[spoiler:his plan to kill Daenerys' husband, steal her dragons and force her to marry him will end in anything other than disaster.]] Yeah. He occasionally gets to hold the SmartBall, but it is only ''very'' occasionally.[[invoked]]
541-->'''Theon:''' He has neither the wits nor the ambition to plot betrayal.
542* DumbassHasAPoint: Despite not being very bright, Victarion isn't wrong to not believe in and reject Asha's plan of making peace and then allying with the North in exchange of several northern lands. He also sees through Euron's gesture of giving the Shield Islands to several of his men, in order to get their loyalty and even correctly points out that they can't hold them in the long run. He also refuses to help Aeron trying to remove Euron from power, pointing out to Aeron that, despite how they feel about their brother, Euron is legally their king as he won the Kingsmoot that Aeron called.
543* EmpoweredBadassNormal: After Moqorro heals his arm with magic, it appears burned while also massively increasing his already prodigious strength.
544* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He's shown to be quite fond of his niece Asha. After the Kingsmoot where Euron is crowned and [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere Asha disappears]], Victarion, while angry at her for not backing him against Euron, also hopes that she'll find a good and powerful man to marry and settle down with, hopefully somewhere far beyond [[EvilUncle Euron's]] reach.
545* EvenEvilHasStandards: He does a lot of bad things ([[ObliviouslyEvil believing all the while that what he's doing is right, of course]]), but the cruelty and excesses of Euron disgust him. Victarion is a hard-ass Ironborn raider, but even he's kind of horrified when Euron has the Hewett women serve the Ironborn raiders naked for Falia's amusement.
546* EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor: Infamously despises jokes and merryment and has supposedly never laughed, which is largely due to insecurity over not being clever enough to get most jokes and sarcasm.
547* EvilLaugh: Much like Tywin Lannister, Victarion does not like laughter; he was the butt of too many cruel japes from Balon, Euron and Aeron as a boy. But then [[spoiler: Moqorro heals his rotting hand...]]
548* FearlessFool: He sails in full plate armor because he has no fear of drowning. Well, drowning is considered a good death for an ironman, as it means he'll find his way down to the Drowned God's watery halls to feast and drink for all eternity.
549* TheFettered: Victarion is rigidly loyal to Ironmen traditions, even when it forces him to do things he doesn't want to do. [[spoiler: His chains might be coming off, though, because when Euron, now his rightful king after the kingsmoot, sends him east to bring back Daenerys Targaryen so that Euron can wed her, he decides to take her for himself instead.]]
550* FourStarBadass: As Lord Captain of the Iron Fleet.
551* GeneralFailure: Zig-Zagged. Victarion is a FrontlineGeneral who can successfully lead his fleet and men into battle, which he did at Lannisport, Moat Cailin and the Shield Islands; and he does have surprisingly good tactical skills as shown with his plan to attack the Volantene Fleet in his preview chapter of "The Winds of Winter". However much like Balon and Aeron, he's a poor strategist who genuinely believes that the Ironborn can conquer the North, and doesn't listen to Asha's warnings that they can't hope to hold their gains in the long run unless peace is made, and most of the times he was successful were when Euron did the planning for him.
552* GenreBlindness: Moqorro, a priest of a fire-god, tells him that ''"Every night in my fires I glimpse the glory that awaits you."'' Victarion, of course, takes this at face value.
553* TheGwenStacy: Victarion loved his wife; this was good. Euron seduced (or possibly raped) his wife; that was not. Victarion was angry; that's understandable. Victarion ''beat his wife to death'', because [[BlueAndOrangeMorality that's what a real Ironborn has to do when his wife cheats on him]].
554* HiddenDepths: Before getting his own POV, Victarion is seen as your typical GiantMook, no different from The Mountain but his inner thoughts reveal him to be quite emotional as he still feels guilty over killing his wife to restore his honor even though she is a rape victim. His nephew and niece both think he lacks wits and ambition. [[spoiler: Now he has someone on his side that has ''both'' perhaps he is one step closer to getting even with Euron and claiming the Seastone Chair.]]
555** Subverted in that he is distraught over his third wife's death but also she was a "salt wife" aka a woman Victarion kidnapped.
556* HornyVikings: Arguably, he's one of the few who truly has this trope among the Ironborn. Great warrior and BloodKnight? Check. Axe armed? Check. Sea-born adventuring? Check. The only thing he's missing is a beard. And his description in the book is bare-bones, so that hasn't stopped more than a few fan artists from giving him one.
557* HumanSacrifice: Not only does he gives Kerwin to the sea to gain favorable winds, [[spoiler: he also burns alive a group of beautiful bed slaves on a boat as a sacrifice to both R'hllor and the Drowned God]].
558* {{Hypocrite}}: When some ships flee from him down the Mander, Victarion thinks when a man runs from battle he ceases to be a man, even though Victarion was forced to flee from Stannis at Fair Isle.
559* LiteralMinded: Due to the fact that he's not very good at deciphering things like symbolic metaphors, innuendo, or even sarcasm. Leads to moments such as the time he hears about the Dothraki Sea and immediately assumes its a body of water he can sail his fleet across, when the Dothraki are known far and wide as horselords who stay well away from the actual ocean. Or thinking his niece, Asha, is making a marriage proposal to him when she suggests they share the ruling of the Iron Islands.
560* KickTheDog: In his ''Winds of Winter'' preview chapter, Victarion forces three thralls on his crew to blow the Valyrian dragon horn, lies to them about their chances of survival and offers them false promises of land and ships if they survive (Victarion is fully aware blowing the horn is guaranteed death), and [[LackOfEmpathy doesn't even bother to learn their names while sending them off to die because "they're only baseborn thralls."]]
561* KnowWhenToFoldEm: Despite his usual fearlessness, Victarion soon learns to be afraid of Crannogmen's poisonned arrows, and starts sleeping in mail and leather even at night to avoid being poisonned. He also frowns when Asha becomes confrontationnal toward Euron and accuse him of being responsible for Balon's death, knowing that Euron is very dangerous even when smiling, and put an end to any chance of fight.
562* NeverMyFault: Victarion blames Euron for making him kill his third wife, rather than himself. He says that as an Ironborn male he had to follow the law, but since he later starts [[spoiler:worshiping a second God and plans to betray Euron by seeking Daenerys, which are violations of his laws, the idea that he could have broken the law and spared his wife never occurred to him]].
563* NotHelpingYourCase: His pitch at the Kingsmoot is really bad:
564--> '''Victarion''': All you’ll get from me is more of what you got from Balon. That’s all I have to say
565* ObliviouslyEvil: Victarion does many monstrously evil actions, but doesn't see them that way mainly because he's so devoted to Ironborn morals and traditions to be consciously evil. He's just ''really'' blinkered. That, and he's not that all that bright or introspective, besides. So, even when he does occasionally break Ironborn tenants, he... doesn't even comprehend ''how'' badly he has.
566* OldShame: His defeat at Fair Isle, which he evidently doesn't like to be reminded of, even if he claims to have learned from his defeat to Asha.
567* OutlivingOnesOffspring: Victarion's only known child was a stillborn daughter.
568* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: A downplayed example, but like so many other characters in the books he's sexist and misogynist, and has some decidedly racist thoughts when seeing black people as members of Euron's crew.
569* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Given that the Ironborn are basically Vikings, this was to be expected.
570* RealMenLoveJesus: Victarion is a very, very religious man by the standards of the Iron Islands. So much so that he has no fear of drowning and wears extremely heavy (and protective) armor even while sailing. In the Ironborn's faith, if a man dies by drowning the Drowned God takes his soul to his watery halls (think Valhalla with a slight underwater theme) to drink and fight and feast and fuck mermaids (don't think too hard about the last part) for eternity. [[spoiler:After Moqorro heals his arm, he starts worshiping R'hllor a bit on the side, too.]] Though he's also, by his own admission, not very learned in the subtleties of his moral teachings, wishing he had a priest there to show him what the right path would be. It's a pretty safe bet his compromise solution of [[spoiler: putting people in a boat and setting it on fire, so the ones who drown are sacrifices to the Drowned God and the ones who burn to death are sacrifices to R'hllor]] would be considered blasphemous, particularly as [[spoiler: both religions follow monolatry (other gods exist, but you're only supposed to worship the one)]].
571* ReligiousBruiser: The man can kick ass, and worships both the Drowned God, and R'hllor.
572* RightHandOfDoom: The "volcanic arm" he gets after being healed by Moqorro in ADWD.
573* SanitySlippage: During ''A Dance With Dragons'', not that he was ever all that sane to start with.
574* SergeantRock: Made of granite, this leader of raids.
575* ShockingDefeatLegacy: Regards his defeat at Fair Isle as this. His narration mentions that the memory of the event keeps irking him and he gets annoyed whenever anyone, namely Asha, brings it up.
576* SmartBall: Despite not being very bright, he does see (part of) the scheme behind why Euron is rewarding the followers of other lords and captains with the Shield Islands, and that doing so weakens Euron's potential rivals.
577* SmugSnake: Like his older brothers, Victarion views himself as far bigger and smarter than he really is. Like Balon he sincerely believes that the Ironborn can conquer the North and strongly underestimate the northmen and other "greenlanders", believing that he can easily take on Garlan Tyrell and his forces. He also believes that he can take over Euron in the future, by taking Daenerys for himself, and can only sees positive signs in what Moqorro tells him, but it's clear that he's way over his head.
578* TheStarscream: To Euron.
579* SuperStrength: He's about as strong as a human being can get, and after his infected hand/arm is healed by Moqorro, it's indicated that he becomes significantly stronger than he was before.
580* TookALevelInBadass: Not that he particularly needs it, but in ''A Dance with Dragons'', he [[spoiler: gets a super-strong new arm and is poised to claim the dragon horn Euron gave him.]] Gilding the lily, much?
581* UnwittingPawn: To either Euron Crow's Eye or the priests of the Lord of Light.
582-->'''Moqorro:''' I have seen you in the nightfires, Victarion Greyjoy. You come striding through the flames stern and fierce, your great axe dripping blood, blind to the tentacles that grasp you at wrist and neck and ankle, the black strings that make you dance.
583* VillainProtagonist: Less so in ''A Feast for Crows'' where, despite having killed his own wife, Victarion comes across as ALighterShadeOfBlack compared to Euron. However, his chapters in ''A Dance With Dragons'' are basically one long string of ObliviouslyEvil [[KickTheDog dog-kicking]].
584** A specific example: his fleet encounters a large number of slavers. He kills the slavers (good), but he also kills and mistreats a lot of the slaves too (not good). Merely following the Old Way, which is based on piracy, would make him a monster to many people.
585* VillainRespect: Towards Ser Talbert Serry. He even fears that Serry's wife is among those raped and humiliated by Euron and his goons. [[EvenEvilHasStandards He knows it's one thing to defeat a foe, and another to dishonor them.]]
586* WarriorPrince: One of the best examples in the series.
587* WhatTheHellHero: Averted, because to the other Ironmen he was doing what's proper and right when a man's wife strays. The closest anyone comes to calling him on it is Asha's sad reaction when she finally learns the truth:
588-->'''Asha:''' I feel sorry for you... and sorrier for her.
589* WorldsStrongestMan: Now that Robert is dead, Gregor and Sandor Clegane are both seemingly dead, and with his new super-strong arm, he's likely the strongest man period.
590[[/folder]]
591
592[[folder:Aeron Greyjoy*]]
593!!Aeron Greyjoy
594!!!The Damphair
595See the [[Characters/ASongOfIceAndFireDrownedMen Drowned Men]] page.
596[[/folder]]
597
598[[folder:Urrigon Greyjoy]]
599!!Urrigon Greyjoy
600!!!Urri
601
602The late fourth son of Quellon Greyjoy and his wife of House Sunderly. He was the second-to-youngest before Aeron. Urrigon died at age 14 due to an infection caused by a bad reattachment of his fingers by a Maester after an accident during a Finger Dance with his brother Aeron. The death of Urri partly contributed to what the Greyjoy brothers became.
603----
604* AnArmAndALeg: Aeron recalls that after the failed reattachment of his severed fingers, the maester who'd treated Urri amputated his arm in a futile bid to stop the spread of infection from the wound.
605* BigBrotherMentor: He was Aeron's best friend and his dearest family member. His death haunted Aeron for the rest of his life.
606* DeathByOriginStory: He exists mainly to affect Aeron's character, first by sending him on his hedonistic spree of binge-drinking and womanizing, and then by turning him to the faith.
607* {{Fingore}}: Urri lost several fingers playing the finger dance with Aeron, and his stepmother's maester trying to reattach the severed digits ended up killing him from a fatal infection.
608* MoralityChain: ImpliedTrope. He was one to Aeron, and it's heavily implied that Urri's death allowed Euron to molest him unimpeded. Aeron grew into a broken man that sought alcohol and joviality, and later religious fanaticism to cope with the trauma caused by this missing link.
609* NotSoAboveItAll: Urri's death largely shaped his brothers' low opinion of maesters and mainland influence. To this day, Aeron still thinks that he killed Urri, and the guilt led him to become at first a party animal with no boundaries, and later an extremely dour and devout priest. The first thing that Balon did when his father died and he became Lord was to kill the Maester in the same way he killed Urri.
610* OutlivingOnesOffspring: Urri was by no means the first of Lord Quellon's kids that met an early demise, but he was the last one before the Old Kraken died himself. Even so, his youngest son Robin died in his youth too, but he wasn't mourned like Urri.
611* PlotTriggeringDeath: The death of Urri shaped what House Greyjoy would become under the rule of Balon.
612* PosthumousCharacter: Urri died as a child. He is still mourned by his brothers.
613* WorstAid: Urri was better off not having his fingers rather than having them reattached flimsily and die of sepsis as a result. Balon made sure that the maester that botched it suffered the same fate.
614[[/folder]]
615
616[[folder:Harlon, Quenton, Donel and Robin Greyjoy]]
617
618Balon's half-brothers and the older three and the youngest of the sons of Lord Quellon. Harlon, Quenton and Donel were his sons with his first wife, a lady of House Stonetree. Robin was his youngest and last, his son with his third wife, a lady of House Piper. All of them died during their childhood.
619----
620* AnyoneCanDie: Quenton and Donel died as babies. Harlon died of Greyscale presumably when he was a little older. Robin's manner of death is not disclosed until book six, where it's revealed that [[spoiler: Euron murdered him, although we're still not sure exactly ''how'']] . So yeah, good thing that Quellon had spares.
621* BitCharacter: Robin died sickly and simple-minded according to Aeron, though the latter's low opinion of the child is largely stemmed on the fact that his Piper mother basically killed his brother Urrigon. He was not missed.
622* NominalImportance: Their history drives the point of how unfriendly the Iron Islands are to children, as none of them grew past childhood.
623* NoMouth: When [[spoiler: Euron Greyjoy murders Harlon, all he has to do is pinch his nostrils]], as greyscale had formed over his mouth. [[AndIMustScream It prevents him screaming for help.]]
624* OddNameOut: Donel and Robin are the only sons of Lord Quellon whose names don't end with "-on".
625* OutlivingOnesOffspring: Quellon's first three sons died as babies. This presumably ended his marriage with his wife of House Stonetree, leading to the marriage that yielded Balon and his brothers.
626* PosthumousCharacter: The four of them. The current Greyjoys did not interact with their older three brothers. They did interact with Robin, but they didn't like him one bit, thinking of him as an embarrassment.
627* TheReveal: According to a chapter from Winds that GRRM read at Balticon, [[spoiler: Euron killed Harlon and Robin. He merely pinched Harlon's nose and let the greyscale do the rest. It's unknown how he killed Robin, but there are references to him having a 'soft head'. One has to wonder just how much cruelty was involved in these ostensibly [[MercyKill "Mercy" Killings]] and just how much they screwed with Euron's head. Especially since he didn't catch any more fallout from them than he did with his abuse of his younger full-brothers.]]
628* ShoutOut: A character named Harlan with no mouth is almost certainly a reference to ''Literature/IHaveNoMouthAndIMustScream'' and its author Creator/HarlanEllison, who Martin was a big fan of.
629* TheUnfavorite: Balon and his brothers did not particularly care about their half-brother Robin.
630[[/folder]]
631
632!!!Historical Greyjoys
633[[folder:Lord Vickon Greyjoy]]
634!!Lord Vickon Greyjoy
635
636The head of House Greyjoy during the War of Conquest. Chosen by the Ironborn to rule them after the death of Harren the Black.
637----
638* DragonAscendant: Famously so: the Greyjoys wouldn't be where they are now, otherwise.
639* KnowWhenToFoldEm: Vickon confined reaving to distant waters, forbidding his men from raiding the other kingdoms to avoid angering Aegon Targaryen, knowing fully well that the Ironborn would never stand a chance against the Targaryens and their dragons.
640* PosthumousCharacter: For obvious reasons.
641* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: He was a stern but cautious ruler, who allowed the return of the Faith of the Seven in the Iron Islands, confined reaving to seas far away from Westeros to avoid angering the Iron Throne, and ignored the criticisms of the Drowned Men and pious Ironborn lords who were angry about him allowing the return of the Faith.
642* UndyingLoyalty: To Aegon, for the simple reason that no sane man would fight the Targaryen's dragons.
643* YouAreInCommandNow: What happens when your king gets himself torched in the biggest pyre ever seen thanks to the major tactical blunder of staying put.
644[[/folder]]
645
646[[folder:Lord Goren Greyjoy]]
647!!Lord Goren Greyjoy
648
649Vickon Greyjoy's son and successor.
650----
651* AlliterativeName: ''G''oren ''G''reyjoy.
652* DecapitationPresentation: His gift of the head of the fake priest King Lodos to Aenys I Targaryen.
653* TheWisePrince: One of the few wise rulers of the Iron Islands. He puts down a conspiracy to crown the son of Qhorin Volmark as King of the Iron Isles. Later he sends Aenys the head of a man boasting to be the priest King Lodos come again. After Aenys offers Goren any reward within his power, Goren demands the right to expel the Faith of the Seven from the Iron Isles.
654[[/folder]]
655
656[[folder:Lord Dalton Greyjoy]]
657!!Lord Dalton Greyjoy
658!!!The Red Kraken
659-->''"The storm is coming."''
660
661The young Lord Reaper of Pyke during Dance of the Dragons. At the time of the death of Viserys I he was just 16 years old.
662----
663* AChildShallLeadThem: He was only 15 when his father died and he became Lord of Pyke.
664* AbsurdlyYouthfulFather: Died at around twenty years old, and his son Toron was not even six years old at the time, meaning he was fathering children at least since he was 14.
665* AndNowYouMustMarryMe: When he took Faircastle, he claimed four of Lord Farman's daughters as salt wives and gave the fifth to his brother Veron since she was "homely". In fact, he had the tendency to burn through women very quickly since he grew bored of them fast and always found a new salt wife.
666* BloodKnight: He was known for being bloodthirsty. The Blacks were able to exploit this during the Dance of Dragons to get him on their side by giving Dalton free rein to plunder the coast of the Westerlands as he pleased.
667* BloodSplatteredWarrior: The reason behind his nickname the Red Kraken was that he had a tendency to be covered in blood during battle.
668* CoolSword: Nightfall, a Valyrian steel blade he took from a dead corsair.
669* CreateYourOwnVillain: The Blacks gave Dalton free rein to plunder the coast of the Westerlands during the Dance of Dragons to keep him on their side. After the Dance ended, when King Aegon III commanded Dalton to cease his reaving, Dalton ignored him and carried on as before.
670* DecapitationPresentation: [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes In revenge for the death of his favorite uncle]], he sent the heads of Ser Erwin Lannister and Lords Prester and Tarbeck to Casterly Rock after they were killed during a disastrous attempt to liberate Fair Isle from the Ironborn.
671* DirtyKid: He had four salt wives by the time he was 14, which was the same age he has his first son: Toron.
672* DoomedMoralVictor: According to the Ironborn. Despite the fact that his actions ultimately brought more harm than good to the Iron Islands in the long term, he's considered a hero for bringing back (however briefly) the old reaving traditions and living true to the Old Way to his dying breath.
673* DroppedABridgeOnHim: For all the impact he had on the Westerlands, his death was extraordinarily anticlimactic: Killed while he slept by Tess, one of his salt wives, mere days before he and Alyn Oakenfist were preparing to engage in a massive naval battle off of Fair Isle.
674* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: It seems he was quite close to his uncles, brutally avenging both of them when they were killed.
675* EvilLaugh: When word reached the Iron Islands that the Dance of the Dragons had begun, Dalton began laughing.
676* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: See DoomedMoralVictor above. As ''Literature/TheWorldOfIceAndFire'' points out, in any other realm, a lord like Dalton Greyjoy would be remembered as a hotheaded fool whose actions brought about disaster to his house, but the Ironborn hold him in high esteem for his audacity and adherence to their old traditions.
677* InSeriesNickname: The Red Kraken, for the time he took a dozen wounds and emerged from fight covered in blood.
678* KarmicDeath: He was murdered by a girl only known as Tess, whom he had enslaved and forced to marry him and who cut his throat open with his own dagger as he slept in Lord Farman's bedchambers in Faircastle.
679* NoNameGiven: Not him, but none of his uncles, sisters and cousins are named in-page, and of the ''twenty two'' salt-wives he proclaimed to have, only two are named.
680* MassiveNumberedSiblings: He had three sisters and a younger brother. He also had numerous cousins that disputed the claim of his sons after his death.
681* PlotTriggeringDeath: His death kicked off a civil war over who would succeed him, while Johanna Westerling simultaneously launched a retaliatory attack on the Islands that led to a great many Ironborn being killed.
682* RefugeInAudacity: All of his correspondence with the throne ran on this. Highlights include refusing to return the women his Ironborn had kidnapped because: ''"Only the Drowned God may sunder the bond between a man and his salt wives."'' Or considering sending his sisters to the Maiden's Day Cattle Show, while he was openly rebelling against the throne at the same time.
683* {{Revenge}}: After watching his uncle get cut down in the Stepstones, he avenged his death but took a dozen wounds.
684* SlashedThroat: His salt wife Tess cut his throat open with his own dagger.
685* SuccessionCrisis: He never married a rock wife, having only numerous salt wives with many young salt sons, nor did he name any of them his heirs. The oldest of them was only six when Dalton was killed—and since salt wives could not act as regents where a rock wife could, this meant infighting was inevitable.
686* TeensAreMonsters: Dalton began [[RapePillageAndBurn reaving]] at the tender age of ten, and had already claimed ''four'' salt wives by the time he was 14.
687* TooDumbToLive: Never bothering to marrying a rock wife, or at least declaring an heir, threw the Iron Islands into a succession war when he was killed.
688* TheUnfought: For the Iron Throne and Alyn Velaryon who had been sent to deal with him. Right as he was prepared to face Alyn's fleet into a huge naval battle, Dalton was murdered in his sleep by his rock wife, causing the Ironborn to abandon Fair Isle without even a fight and to tear each other apart in a bloody civil war.
689* UniversallyBelovedLeader: His rule is remembered fondly as a great hero in the Iron Islands as a time when the Old Way was revived.
690* WiseBeyondHisYears: Instead of immediately jumping at the Greens' offer like many young lords would have done, Dalton wisely waited for the Blacks' better counteroffer.
691* YoungConqueror: He managed to conquer Fair Isle and repel all of House Lannister's attempts to reclaim it. He only lost the island after he was killed, and all his men returned home.
692[[/folder]]
693
694[[folder:Lord Toron Greyjoy]]
695!!Lord Toron Greyjoy
696
697One of the salt-sons of Dalton Greyjoy who became the new Lord of Pyke in the aftermath of the Red Kraken's death. His claim was disputed by his aunts and several cousins, while others supported his half-brother Rodrik instead. The brutal retaliation of the Westerlanders allowed him to solidify his rule, at only six years old.
698----
699* AChildShallLeadThem: He wasn't even five when his father was killed and he was proclaimed lord.
700* DarkHorseVictory: Two of his aunts and nine of his cousins were killed during the civil war and the retaliation of the Westerlands, while his half-brother Rodrik was castrated, leaving him as probably one of the few Greyjoys capable of inheriting.
701* MissingMom: His mother was killed by his Greyjoy relatives.
702[[/folder]]
703
704[[folder:Lord Dagon Greyjoy]]
705!!Lord Dagon Greyjoy
706!!!The Last Reaver
707
708-->''"In Dagon's day a weak king sat the Iron Throne, his rheumy eyes fixed across the narrow sea where bastards and exiles plotted rebellion. So forth from Pyke Lord Dagon sailed, to make the Sunset Sea his own."''
709-->--'''Victarion Greyjoy'''
710
711Lord Reaper of Pyke around 210 AL, Dagon was the last ruler of the Iron Islands who was able to threaten the entire western shore of Westeros until Euron Greyjoy took the Seastone Chair. His attacks were eventually stopped by House Targaryen.
712----
713* AlwaysABiggerFish: Victarion recalls that even though he proved himself against House Lannister and House Stark, he was no match for the Targaryens.
714* TheGhost: Has yet to appear in the Dunk and Egg stories, but the stories appear to be building towards a clash with him given the number of times he is mentioned.
715* LongDeadBadass: Mentioned several times by Ironborn, who look upon his reign as the golden age for the Ironborn.
716[[/folder]]
717
718[[folder:Lord Quellon Greyjoy]]
719!!Lord Quellon Greyjoy
720
721Lord Reaper during Robert's Rebellion and the father of Balon, Victarion, Euron and Aeron, Lord Quellon is considered to be the wisest Lord to sit the Seastone Chair since Aegon's conquest. Though he was an extremely powerful warrior himself, as a lord he actively pursued peace and enforced new and progressive laws that banned (or strictly regulated) the worst practices of the Ironborn like [[MadeASlave thralldom]], reaving and the keeping of [[SexSlave salt wives]], taxing this latter practice. Died in the last days of Robert's Rebellion fighting the Shield Islanders.
722----
723* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: Unlike other lords who had tried to reform the Iron Islands, no one challenged Quellon simply because he really was that great of a warrior.
724* DiedStandingUp: Died fighting a naval battle. His son Aeron later thanks the Drowned God for granting his father the honor of a death at the sea. Becomes sort of HarsherInHindsight because Quellon's reforms were against Ironborn religion.
725* FourStarBadass: Led a hundred warships in service to the Iron Throne during the War of the Ninepenny Kings and played a crucial role in the fighting.
726* LargeAndInCharge: This Lord of the Iron Isles was six and a half feet tall.
727* LightningBruiser: Described by Maester Yandel as strong as an ox and quick as a cat.
728* LikeFatherUnlikeSon: The reformist Quellon's sons are fervent believers of the Old Way. This led to Balon's failed rebellion.
729* NeutralNoLonger: He kept the Iron Islands out of Robert's Rebellion until he learned of Prince Rhaegar's death, at which point Balon, Euron, and Victarion convinced him to enter the war on Robert's side to prove their loyalty and gain some spoils while they could.
730* NoNameGiven: None of his three wives are named, although their Houses are at least known.
731* PerilousOldFool: Although he was elderly and growing infirm, Quellon insisted he must lead the Ironborn fleet during Robert's Rebellion. This decision cost him his life at the battle off the Shield Islands.
732* TheWisePrince: One of the few Lords of the Iron Islands that took measures to bring his people closer to the rest of the realm.
733[[/folder]]
734

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