This is a listing of the people of Slaver's Bay in A Song of Ice and Fire.
For the main character index, see here
Slaver's Bay
Situated in the middle southern coast of Essos, Slaver's Bay is the hub of all slave trade in Essos. Built from the remnants of the Ghiscari Empire, each of the three slave cities in Slaver's Bay focus on different kinds of slaves: Astapor produces the warrior Unsullied, Yunkai trains pleasure slaves, while Meereen produces artisans and pit fighters. Each city is ruled by an elite upper class of slave traders and ancient families. open/close all folders
Tropes related to Slaver's Bay
- The Alliance: An evil version made up by the Wise Masters of Yunkai along with the masters of New Ghis as well as the leaders of Elyria, Tolos, Mantarys, and the Triarchs of Volantis—the latter have yet to join on the action. Their goal is to cast down Daenerys and restore the slave trade as it was before her campaign in Slaver's Bay.
- Animal Motifs: The Ghiscari call themselves "The Sons of the Harpy," after the heraldic harpy of old Ghis. The villanous La Résistance/The Remnant formed against Daenerys' government in Meereen is known as the Sons of the Harpy and its rumored leader who may or not be Hizdahr zo Loraq is known as The Harpy.
- The Brazen Beasts of Meereen all wear bronze animal masks. A number of people wonder if they wear the same masks or switch them up. The masks of a group of Brazen Beasts have symbolic significance when Skahaz/Shavepate's men all wear locust masks during their coup to reference the poisoned locusts meant for Daenerys.
- Ape Shall Never Kill Ape: Subverted. The Ghiscari have no problem selling their own people as slaves, as Daenerys notices when she sees several Ghiscari men in the ranks of the Unsullied alongside Dothraki, Lhazarene, Lyseni, Naathi, Qartheen, and Summer Islanders.
- Les Collaborateurs: The shavepates are citizens of Meereen who side with Daenerys' conquering regime. They are considered traitors by the Sons of the Harpy.
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Instead of sigils, the noble families of Meereen are identified by the colors of their pyramids and cloaks: pink and white (House of Pahl), green and black (House of Naqqan), yellow and green (House of Rhazdar), black (House of Yherizan).
- Cruella to Animals: The Ghiscari, from their favorite foods—it is said that the only meat they don't consume is human and dragon—to their fondness for Beastly Bloodsports (although they like the human kind just as much).
- Cultural Posturing: Hold themselves superior to the "savages" of Westeros, despite their decaying society that runs on one thing and one thing only: slaves. That, and the fact that they're constantly fighting each other, and even when relatively united the Yunkai'i that attempt to besiege Meereen turn it into a comedy of errors, their only victory thus far being the sack of Astapor, which had no Unsullied to guard it, was currently being ravaged by the bloody flux, and had descended into anarchy after the assassination of King Cleon (and that victory was mostly won by the sellswords the Yunkish brought with them).
- Also their anthropocentric obsession of Ghiscari culture and traditions would be believable if the Good, Wise, or Great Masters were actually Ghiscari. In truth, the Ghiscari Empire was a thousand years gone before the Doom of Valyria, along with all records of their religion, culture, and tradition, their recreations being mere guesswork, since the language is gone (they all speak Valyrian dialects with only a few surviving Ghiscari words). Also, as The World of Ice & Fire reveals, while Old Ghis did practice slavery, they generally fielded an army of free citizens for their lockstep legions (and not slaves). So, Slaver's Bay is much worse than their ancestors.
- Moreoever, the Masters of the three cities are a minority in their slave cities, they are actually mongrel descendants from the original Ghiscari with the Valyrians and all the races conquered by both empires. Their culture can only be considered authentic if one accepts that culture belongs to the masters alone and not the slaves.
"The gods of Ghis were dead, and so too its people; these Astapori were mongrels, Ser Jorah said. Even the Ghiscari tongue was largely forgotten; the slave cities spoke the High Valyrian of their conquerors, or what they had made of it." - General Failure: Almost every single Good Master we meet is horrifically incompetent at battle or tactics. It is probable that a lifetime of being slave owners has made them complacent to the point where they are unable to act soundly against real threats.
- The Sons of the Harpy are an exception to this, being very well organized and keeping discreet.
- Famous Ancestor/Founder Of The Empire: Grazdan the Great.
- Fantasy Counterpart Culture: They are reminiscent of other ancient Phoenician city-states, particularly Tyre and Sidon at least in architectural style. The step pyramids, priestesses who double as sex workers, and claim to fame as potentially the oldest civilization in historical record are reminsicent of various ancient Mesopotamian cultures.
- Fantasy Conflict Counterpart: Dany's attempts to institute abolition while facing revolt internally within Slaver's Bay is similar to Reconstruction after The American Civil War, complete with a new class of former ruling class who cast off all trappings of their old culture, earning a derisive nickname ("Shavepate" // "Scalywag"), freedmen choosing new names and identities, and terrorist attacks by Old Regime loyalists ("Sons of the Harpy" // "Ku Klux Klan"), while Dany tries her best to mediate and compromise between both sides and rolling back her initial radicalism to appease both groups, falling into a Golden Mean Fallacy.
- Galazza Galare's argument that Daenerys's ancestors are the reason the Ghiscari economy is built around slavery, because they stole or burned all the other useful resources the slaver cities could have exported, echoes similar real-world criticisms made about former colonial powers intervening in countries they previously ruled over.
- From Bad to Worse: Ever since Daenerys's invasion and the war between Yunkai and Meereen and Astapor, things have gotten worse and worse in the region, culminating in plague, mercenaries roaming the land, Dothraki waiting on the sides, and dragons in the skies, without their Mother or Master.
- Full-Circle Revolution: Due to Daenerys's mistakes:
- In Astapor, while she wipes out the Good Masters, she doesn't leave military support to the council she leaves behind to rule. This allows a grasping former slave to cast them down and install himself as a tyrant that enslaves the noble children to create a new army of eunuch slave soldiers. The dismal rule of the new king and his successors causes the city to quickly fall into anarchy, plague, and famine the minute it falls under siege of the slavery-restoration alliance led by Yunkai.
- In Yunkai, by leaving the Wise Masters and their wealth intact, she gives them the chance—which they quickly grasp—to not only to resume slavery, but also to fund a restorationist expedition to undo her work. The deal she makes with the Wise Masters, allowing freed slaves to take only what they can carry from their former masters, ends up creating a humanitarian problem in the form of a mass of impoverished freedmen without the means to support themselves.
- In Meereen, though she exacts punishment on the Great Masters, it is mostly symbolic and only fuels the hatred of the aristocracy against her. Allowing them to keep their property—lands, pyramids, ships—leaves them with the means to fund the Sons of the Harpy; while allowing them to keep wearing their traditional symbols of power—such as the tokar or their hairstyles—provides the Sons with the means to identify the targets of their "shadow war"—as the masters have no racial distinctiveness.
- Good Republic, Evil Empire: Completely averted. The cities of Slaver's Bay are ruled by the ancient slaving families without any real monarch or king. The vast majority of citizens within Slaver's Bay are slaves, property for these citizens. They come as "raw" slaves and made into "finished" products as "skilled" slaves, either as prostitutes/soldiers/scribes/gladiators. Daenerys, as the abolitionist Queen of Meereen, is serving as both conqueror and revolutionary.
- Impractically Fancy Outfit: Ghiscari are quite fond of the trope. They wear elaborate hairstyles sculpted into bizarre shapes such as wings and claws, requiring their soldiers to wear giant helmets to avoid ruining their hair. Nobles wear toga-like outfits that are designed so that you have to hold it together with one hand to keep it from falling off. In this case, the clothing is impractical by design, as it shows the wearer doesn't have to work or do much of anything for himself. The slave soldier companies of the region have gotten so used to fighting mock-battles against each other that they wear utterly ridiculous battlegear even into real fights—one company wears stilts, another fights chained together wrist-to-wrist and ankle-to-ankle.
- One Grazdan Limit: Averted. Many among the aristocratic families of Slaver's Bay are called Grazdan in honor of Grazdan the Great.
- People of Hair Color: Ghiscari have bristly red-black hair.
- Sex as Rite-of-Passage: In Meereen, girls of noble birth are apparently expected to serve in the pleasure gardens for a certain amount of time when they come of age.
- Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil: Daenerys believes this of Ghiscari culture, especially after seeing the Training from Hell undergone by the Unsullied. However, Galazza Galare points out that slavery is the only source of revenue and income for a region whose natural resources were destroyed by Valyrian conquerors (who also took to slavery in a big way). Daenerys has a hard time trying to change the society from within.
- A Tankard of Moose Urine: Wine from Slaver's Bay, made from small yellow grapes, is thin and pale with a metallic taste.
- Trademark Favorite Food: The Ghiscari have a fondness for exotic meats, especially dog meat. It is said that the Ghiscari have sampled every kind of meat but human and dragon.
- Theme Naming:
- The ruling elites of Astapor, Yunkai, and Meereen are known as, respectively, the Good Masters, the Wise Masters, and the Great Masters.
- Every person of Ghiscari descent seems to have a "z" somewhere in their name. Kraznys mo Nakloz, Qezza, Hizdahr, Hazzea, Skahaz mo Kandaq, Grazhar, Khrazz...Gerris Drinkwater derisively comments, "I call them all Harzoo."
- Vestigial Empire: The Ghiscari Empire, most of which was destroyed by Valyria 5000 years ago. New Ghis and the city-states of Slaver's Bay consider themselves descended from the old empire. While New Ghis is trying to rebuild the empire under them—like Volantis once did with the Freehold.
- Virgin in a White Dress: The White Graces, Meereenese girls of noble birth too young to serve in the pleasure gardens.
Astapor
- "Bricks and blood built Astapor, and bricks and blood her people."—Ser Barristan Selmy, reciting a rhyme about Astapor
The Good Masters
Kraznys mo Nakloz
Kraznys mo Nakloz
- "Tell her to look at the soldiers. Even the dim purple eyes of a sunset savage can see how magnificent my creatures are surely."
- Aristocrats Are Evil: Good Masters are evil slavemasters, despite the "Good" in their name.
- Ambition Is Evil: His and the other Good Masters' desire for a dragon overrides their common sense, which makes them agree to give Daenerys all of the Unsullied.
- Beard of Evil: A rather elaborately dressed one, yes.
- Fat Bastard: He is very large, and Daenerys notes that his breasts are bigger than hers.
- Hate Sink: Kraznys' role is to be a dick and demonstrate how bad Astapor is by way of representation.
- Jerkass: It's just as well he has slaves to do his customer service and sales pitch for him, because he'd never get anywhere doing it all by himself...
- Man on Fire: Gets incinerated by Drogon on Daenerys' command.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Besides being a slave-trader, he's also a misogynist and xenophobe. He constantly insults Daenerys, both for her gender and for being a "Westerner".
- Smug Snake: He is extremely condescending towards Daenerys, acting superior to her because she is female and from Westeros. He also does little to actually sell the Unsullied, with his translator Missandei being the one who comes up with most of the selling points to tell Daenerys.
- Too Dumb to Live: Selling a woman who's told you she's intent on conquest a huge army of unquestioningly obedient elite soldiers who are already armed and inside your city's walls? Not such a bright idea.
- Underestimating Badassery: He's arguably the biggest example of doing this in the entire series. Sure, other Good Masters joined him in his folly, but he was at the head of the queue.
Grazdan mo Ullhor
Grazdan mo Ullhor
Another Good Master.- Aristocrats Are Evil: Good Masters are evil slavemasters, despite the "Good" in their name.
- Character Death: As he shouts for the Unsullied to defend Astapor instead of following Daenerys, Aggo puts an arrow through his mouth, and he falls off his litter. He actually manages to crawl a few feet before dying at the feet of the Unsullied.
- Evil Old Folks: He is the oldest and possibly the most powerful slave trader in Astapor.
- Named After Somebody Famous: He is one of several Ghiscari who are named after Grazdan the Great, who founded Old Ghis.
- Oh, Crap!: When he hears Daenerys speaking Valyrian. He is the only one of the Good Masters who notices.
- Villainous Breakdown: He begins screaming at the Unsullied to kill Daenerys, when it is clearly obvious that they are loyal to her now.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Dies soon after being introduced and does not get as much page time as Kraznys.
Post-Sack Astapor
Cleon the Great
King Cleon the Great
The Butcher King
A former slave who rises to power in Astapor after executing the three councilors that Daenerys had installed after overthrowing the Good Masters.- The Butcher: When he was a slave he worked in the kitchens as a butcher, and puts that experience to good use as king.
- El Cid Ploy: An Astapori army is defeated when Cleon comes back to life but is slain again, and it's revealed that he's actually a rotting corpse tied to his horse.
- Full-Circle Revolution: After installing himself as King of Astapor, he recreates the old social pyramid with the former slaves at the top of the new social pyramid and the formerly-highborn Astapori on the bottom, and has all highborn boys arrested, enslaved, and castrated to train new Unsullied.
- General Failure: Defeated in battle against the Yunkish at the Horns of Hazzat.
- The Ghost: He's never seen. All of Daenerys' interactions with him are done via Cleon's messenger Ghael.
- Historical In-Joke: Cleon was one of the leaders of a slave revolt in Roman Sicily.
- The Mutiny: Killed by his own men when he commands them to march out and attack the Yunkai'i.
- The Usurper: He cast down the council left behind by Daenerys formed by a priest, a healer, and a scholar, claiming the three planned on restoring the Good Masters to power.
Ghael
Lord Ghael
A former slave who becomes King Cleon's envoy to Meereen. He's later made a lord.- Mouth of Sauron: For Cleon, relaying his claims to Meereen.
- Nouveau Riche: He demonstrates it by wearing a large amount of jewelry.
- Only One Name: Ghael.
- Red Right Hand: His rotting teeth.
- Spiteful Spit: Spits in Daenerys' face when she refuses to send Unsullied to defend Astapor. Belwas immediately slams him into the ground for his disrespect, smashing his teeth before dragging him out of court by his feet.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: It's unclear if he was in Astapor when it fell, and what happened to him if he wasn't.
Cleon the Second
King Cleon the Second
The successor of the Butcher King. His rule is ended after being assassinated.- Dead Guy Junior: A rare case of someone naming themselves after the dead guy.
- The Ghost: Never seen.
King Cutthroat
King Cutthroat
One of the claimants to the crown of Cleon the Second. He's the man who killed him.- Character Death: Thrown naked to a pit where he's killed by dogs.
- Dangerously Close Shave: He was a barber and cut off the throat of Cleon the Second. It's not hard to imagine under which circumstances.
- The Ghost: Never seen.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: He surrenders to the Yunkish during the Siege of Astapor. It doesn't do him any good.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Cutthroat.
- Only Known By His Nickname: His real name is unknown and he's called "King Cutthroat".
- The Starscream: To Cleon the Second.
Queen Whore
Queen Whore
The other claimant to the crown of Cleon the Second. She was his concubine.- Defiant to the End: Unlike "King Cutthroat", she dies fighting the Yunkish and their sellswords during the Siege of Astapor.
- The Ghost: Never seen.
- The Mistress: To Cleon the Second.
- Only Known By Her Nickname: And it's a damn unflattering nickname; she's known as Queen Whore. Her real name is also unknown.
Meereen
House of Loraq
King Hizdahr zo Loraq
King Hizdahr zo Loraq, Fourteenth of That Noble Name
- "One day all men must die, but it serves no good to dwell on death. I prefer to take each day as it comes."
A noble descended from several famous Ghiscari citizens and a member of the powerful House of Loraq. He pressures Daenerys to reopen the fighting pits, which he has substantial stakes in. Eventually marries Daenerys to secure her hold on the city.
- Ambiguously Evil: May or may not be a member of or directing the Sons of the Harpy.
- Arranged Marriage: To Daenerys. Both admit feeling no real personal attraction or desire for the other, but agree to it for the sake of Meereen in an effort to halt the growing insurgency of the Sons of the Harpy and to appease the leaders of the remaining slave cities.
- Cool Chair: In Daenerys' absence, he replaces her modest ebony bench with a pair of gilded thrones carved into the shapes of dragons.
- Dirty Coward: He is visibly frightened and extremely meek when Bloodbeard presents him with the head of Groleo and the demand that the dragons be killed in exchange for the other hostages Yunkai holds. Ser Barristan Selmy thinks that no other king he had seen would have ever acted so afraid or responded so weakly to such a display (though in his defense, he is the first King that Meereen has seen for centuries and he's not used to these kind of gestures and displays of violence). After Selmy defeats his bodyguard, he finds Hizdahr cowering behind a curtain, pleading for his life.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Seems relieved when the Yunkai'i release his sister and cousins, who were among the hostages.
- Freudian Slip: When Selmy arrives to detain him and mentions the girl he is bedding in Daenerys's place, he dismisses the girl as a bedslave... then quickly backtracks. A very telling slip, and a hint, if one was needed, at his true attitude towards Daenerys's reforms.
- Important Haircut: He shaves down his hair to please Daenerys and show he has left the old Meereen behind.
- Improbable Hairstyle: His Ghiscari hair was originally shaped into wings.
- Insistent Terminology: Whenever Ser Barristan calls him "Your Grace", he insists on being called "Your Magnificence" and other grandiose styles of address. The reasons for that is "Your Grace" is Westerosi where the others are closer to local styles. Also, "Grace" is the title used for Ghiscari priestesses.
- Lack of Empathy: Despite Daenery's command that only consenting freedmen may participate in the fighting pits, he sees no issue in unleashing hungry lions on a pair of unsuspecting dwarf slaves, provided by Yunkai.
- Mole in Charge: A mole of sorts for the Yunkai'i Wise Masters, at least according to the Shavepate.
- New Era Speech: Gives one of these to Daenerys when explaining why he supports her and wants to marry her. Which type of speech it is depends on what side Hizdar is actually on. If he is truly on Daenerys' side, then his desire to reform Meereen could be genuine. If not, he clearly wants to institute his own new set of rules and customs upon the city while wiping away all the inconvenient ones.Hizdar: Before you came Meereen was dying. Our rulers were old men with withered cocks and crones whose puckered cunts were dry as dust. They sat upon their pyramids sipping apricot wine and talking of the glory of the Old Empire while the centuries slipped by and the very bricks of the city crumbled all around them. Custom and caution had an iron grip upon us till you wakened us with fire and blood. A new time has come, and new things are possible.
- Nice to the Waiter: Nope. He's very genial around Daenerys, but once she's out of the city, he's quite harsh with her cupbearers, even threatening to take the switch to one if his glass isn't refilled.
- No-Sell: Tried to place the Unsullied under the command of one of his kinsmen the way he did the Brazen Beasts. Grey Worm flatly refused to comply, informing Hizdahr the Unsullied take their commands from Daenerys only.
- Oh, Crap!: Has a fantastic one when he finally notices Ser Barristan is wearing full armor and has his hand on his sword while asking if Hizdahr is or knows the identity of The Harpy.
- Praetorian Guard: After becoming king, Hizdahr makes several pit fighters, including Khrazz, the Spotted Cat, Camarron of the Count, Goghor the Giant, Belaquo Bonebreaker, Fearless Ithoke, and Steelskin, into his personal guard. Barristan notes that while not professional soldiers, they're the best option Hizdahr has, given he's offended the Unsullied and can't be sure where the loyalties of the Brazen Beasts lie.
- Try to Fit That on a Business Card: In a hilariously transparent attempt to match Daenerys' long list of hard-earned, impressive titles, he tries to pad out his resume with made-up, empty accolades: "King of Meereen, Scion of Ghis, Octarch of the Old Empire, Master of the Skahazadhan, Consort to Dragons, and Blood of the Harpy."
- Would Hurt a Child: Threatens to whip his young cupbearer Miklaz for forgetting to refill his wine cup.Hizdahr: Take Draqaz with you. One flagon of Arbor gold, and one of that sweet red. None of our yellow piss, thank you. And the next time I find my flagon dry, I may have to take a switch to those pretty pink cheeks of yours.
Marghaz zo Loraq
Marghaz zo Loraq
A kinsman of King Hizdahr, he's placed in command of the Brazen Beasts after Daenerys' marries Hizdahr.- The Dragon: To Hizdahr, holding command of the Brazen Beasts, which Hizdahr is counting on to maintain his rule. Practically none of them are loyal to Marghaz and support the coup against Hizdahr.
- Dragon Their Feet: After the coup against Hizdahr, Marghaz is quickly removed from his position before he even had a chance to do anything about it.
- Fat Bastard: He is overweight and a crony of his sleazy cousin.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: Ser Barristan considers him one, noting how much Marghaz reminds him of Janos Slynt.
- Replacement Goldfish: To Skahaz mo Kandaq, as commander of the Brazen Beasts. It doesn't work.
- Smug Snake: Too proud by half.
Khrazz
Khrazz
A celebrated Meereenese pit fighter who becomes one of Hizdahr zo Loraq's bodyguards.- Armor Is Useless: Learns that this is very much not the case in this series. In fact, Barristan's armor is all that allows him to take down the younger, faster, stronger pit fighter.
- The Brute: For Hizdahr acting as his muscle and personal guard.
- Duel to the Death: With Ser Barristan. He loses.
- Evil Redhead: Has red-black hair and is a brutal and violent warrior.
- Gladiator Games: Won fame fighting in the pits.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: His arakh gets caught on the wall during his fight with Barristan, leaving him open for the knight to deal a killing blow.
- Gutted Like a Fish: Barristan slices him across the stomach and his guts come spilling out, before Barristan finishes Khrazz with a thrust to the heart.
- Honour Before Reason: Disdains armour as a tool of cowards. This costs him in his duel with Barristan.
- I'm a Humanitarian: Devours the hearts of the men he kills. He believes it gives him their strength. Barristan kills him with a sword thrust to the heart.
- Lightning Bruiser: As fast and as strong as anyone Ser Barristan has ever fought.
- Older Hero vs. Younger Villain: Khrazz is forty years younger than Barristan.
- Only One Name: Khrazz.
- Praetorian Guard: To Hizdahr after he becomes king.
- Sinister Scythe: Uses a Dothraki arakh. This hurts him during his duel with Barristan, as it is too long for use indoors and isn't meant to pierce armour.
- Villainous Breakdown: Angrily starts screaming at Barristan to remove his armour when Khrazz's arakh can't make a dent in the heavy plate.
- Worthy Opponent: Ser Barristan addresses him as "ser" during their duel even if he isn't a knight because according to him, his courage had earned him that much at the least.
House of Kandaq
Skahaz mo Kandaq
Skahaz mo Kandaq
The Shavepate
- "We will rue your old man’s honor before this game is done."
A noble who sides with Daenerys Targaryen after she conquers Meereen, serving as a councilor to her and commander of the Brazen Beasts.
- A Father to His Men: Even after Hizdahr replaces him as commander of the Brazen Beasts, their loyalty still belongs to Skahaz. After Quentyn Martell's disastrous attempt to steal Rhaegal and Viserion, a furious Skahaz's first act is to demand Barristan execute Quentyn's companions, Archibald Yronwood and Gerris Drinkwater (the only ones they could take prisoner) for their part in killing four of his men during the break-in.
- Cool Helmet: In keeping with the Brazen Beasts' habit of wearing animal head masks to hide their identity, Skahaz has several, including the heads of a serpent, a wolf and a vampire bat.
- Chessmaster Sidekick: Barristan flounders after his Queen disappears, but the Shavepate tracks down the man who tried to poison her, gathers intelligence on the impending attack on Meereen, and organizes The Coup that deposes King Hizdahr.
- Even Evil Has Standards: He is outraged by the Yunkish murder of Admiral Groleo, insisting that the Brazen Beasts would have killed the Yunkish delegation for that in a heartbeat had he been able to give the command.
- Faceless Goons: His Brazen Beasts wear masks as the Sons of the Harpy have sworn to kill the families of those who serve Daenerys.
- Good Is Not Nice: Firmly on Daenerys's side, but he is constantly arguing for Shoot the Dog actions, like killing innocent hostages on the chance their families are plotting against Daenerys.
- Hidden in Plain Sight/Needle in a Stack of Needles: After resigning from his leadership position, he puts on a Brazen Beast mask to hang around at court.
- Important Haircut: In contrast to the elaborate Ghiscari hairstyles, he and his "shavepates" shave their heads to show they've cast aside the values of pre-Daenerys Meereen.
- In-Series Nickname: "The Shavepate", due to being the leader of the shavepates, Meereen citizens who have embraced Daenerys as their Queen and shaved off their traditional Ghiscari hairstyles as a sign of loyalty to the new regime.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Points out to Barristan Selmy that it would be better if Daario were killed by their enemies, as his role as Hot Consort is only causing trouble for Daenerys. Aware of how Love Ruins the Realm, Barristan secretly agrees but his Undying Loyalty means that he won't act on this advice. He also has a point about how silly it is for Daenerys to be taking hostages she is unwilling to execute.Skahaz: What good are hostages if you won't take their heads?
- Perpetual Frowner: Daenerys notes he never learned to smile.
- Psycho Supporter: He's probably loyal to Daenerys, but ruthless tactics have only served to give the Harpy more Sons.
- Pragmatic Hero: By far one of the most "heroic" of Daenerys' Meereen allies, but he is very in favor of shooting the dog to get things done.
- The Quisling: He is viewed as this by many Meereenese nobles. This trope is mostly subverted since Skahaz is a valued and (mostly) trusted member of Daenerys' court.
- Reassignment Backfire: When King Hizdahr tries to have him Kicked Upstairs, the Shavepate resigns instead. It soon becomes obvious that he secretly commands the loyalty of many if not all of the Brazen Beasts.
- The Spymaster: Runs an organization of spies both in Meereen and amongst the forces besieging the city.
- Torture Technician: Oversees the torture of any captured Sons of the Harpy and other prisoners.
- Would Hurt a Child: He insists Daenerys should execute the hostages she took from the noble families in Meereen to send a message to the Sons of the Harpy and is frustrated when she refuses, pointing out repeatedly that her enemies now know her threats are worthless.
House of Reznak
Reznak mo Reznak
Reznak mo Reznak
A noble who serves Daenerys as her seneschal, but is not very trusted by her or Ser Barristan Selmy.- Ambiguously Evil: He's shifty as hell, and Daenerys believes that one of Quaithe's prophecies foretells his betraying her, but so far he hasn't made a move against her.
- Bald of Evil: He has his head shaved in the style of a Shavepate, but his loyalty and moral alignment are both very suspect.
- Department of Redundancy Department: His name.
- Everyone Has Standards: Distrusts and resent Dany's dragons, at least partially due to Drogon eating a child. He also seems unsettled by the murder of Groleo and does request the release of the other hostages afterwards.
- Evil Chancellor: Possibly, but at the very least he is very shifty.
- Foil: To Skahaz.
- Number Two: To Hizdahr, after Daenerys is taken away from Meereen atop Drogon.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: He always speaks flatteringly towards his superiors in an effort to gain favor with them.
- Sissy Villain: He's sissy, and maybe villanous.
- Sleazy Politician: Whether he is good or evil, Reznak is undoubtedly a total slimeball.
House of Galare
In General
House of Galare
A noble house of Meereen that is among those which are more friendly to Daenerys' rule.- Bit Character:
- Grazdan zo Galare, a cousin of Galazza who is among the nobles who try to get recompose from Daenerys for the loss of their slaves.
- Grazdar zo Galare, a young boy who is among the noble children whom Daenerys takes as cupbearers/hostages. Ser Barristan Selmy notes that Grazdar is a dreamer who often thinks about gaining glory.
- Qezza is a young girl who is also among the children Daenerys takes. Barristan notes that she has an angel's voice.
Galazza Galare
Galazza Galare
The Green Grace
- "Peace is the pearl beyond price."
- Alliterative Name: With the addition of her title, The Green Grace Galazza Galare is quite alliterative.
- Brutal Honesty: All the advice she gives to Daenerys and Ser Barristan Selmy is usually very pragmatic and honest, even when it will clearly annoy or upset them.
- Cool Old Lady: She is quite elderly, but is still sound of mind and offers sound advice to Daenerys while doing her best to keep peace in Meereen.
- High Priestess: The leader of the Meereenese religion.
- In-Series Nickname: "Green Grace", which is the title given to the high priestess in each of the Ghiscari city-states.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: She does her best to keep the peace within Meereen by helping negotiate between hostile factions and to prevent Yunkai from invading.
House of Mereq
In general
A prominent house whose loyalty is viewed with suspicion.
- I Have Your Wife: Daenerys keeps Mezzara, a child of the voice, as a hostage to ensure loyalty. Members of the house and up joining the invading army anyway.
- No Name Given: Mezzara's father, the head of the family.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: They request to leave the city ahead of the siege for their states in the hills. Daenerys agrees but makes them leave behind their possessions for security.
- Shrinking Violet: Mezzara is described as plump and shy.
House of Pahl
In General
House of Pahl
- "A house of women now. Bitter old women with a taste for blood. Women do not forget. Women do not forgive."—Skahaz mo Kandaq
- Children Are Innocent: Kezmya is the only member of the house to receive a non-sinister portrayal.
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Their colors are pink and white.
- Crusading Widow: Most of the House of Pahl who remain in Meereen are widows who lost their husbands when Daenerys attacked the city and now have naught to do but plot revenge.
- I Have Your Wife: Kezyma, a daughter of the house and a Proud Beauty, is kept as as a cupbearer/hostage by Daenerys to try and keep the other survivors of the house from making trouble.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: Oznak's father commanded the City watch, although he abused this position by allowing his son to get away with murder.
- Uncertain Doom: It is likely, although unconfirmed that Oznak's father and his uncle (the richest man in the city) died when Daenerys took the city.
Oznak zo Pahl
Oznak zo Pahl
Regarded as one of the strongest warriors in the city, Oznak challenges Daenerys' army to Combat by Champion and ends up fighting Strong Belwas during the siege of Meereen.- Awesome, but Impractical: His long lance is unwieldy and makes it easy for Belwas to evade his charges. Barristan also notes that instead of repeatedly trying to impale Belwas, Oznak probably should attempt to simply trample Belwas with his horse, but Oznak is fixated on trying to do the more impressive/less pragmatic feat. It backfires.
- Bling of War: Wears armor made of copper and jet scales. He also wears a silk pink-and-whitenote cloak.
- The Champion: Serves as Meereen's champion against Daenerys when she besieges the city.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: He is utterly trounced by Strong Belwas, who toyed with Oznak before killing him in seconds.
- Decapitation Presentation/Off with His Head!: Strong Belwas holds Oznak's head up before the walls of Meereen after defeating him.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Once killed a man for raping a noblewoman... that is, "raping her with his eyes."
- Duel to the Death: With Strong Belwas.
- Excrement Statement: Pisses in the direction of Daenerys tent while challenging her to send a champion to fight him.
- Honor Before Reason: Ser Barristan mentions that Oznak could easily have ridden Belwas down if he wasn't so obsessed with using his lance.
- Humiliation Conga: Or it would be if he lived; he's defeated by an overweight ex-fighting pit slave who easily evades his attacks, cripples his horse, cuts off his head and uses Oznak's cape to wipe his ass.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Appears in one chapter before being killed.
Meereenese Citizens
Harghaz
Harghaz
The Hero, The Dragonslayer
An animal handler at Daznak's Pit that tries to slay Drogon.- An Arm and a Leg: Drogon tears his arm off at the shoulder before killing him.
- The Dragonslayer: Invoked, but while he does injure Drogon, he is actually killed by the dragon.Archibald Yronwood: He was no dragonslayer. All he did was get his arse roasted black and crispy.
- In-Series Nickname: Harghaz the Hero, Harghaz the Dragonslayer.
- Kill It with Fire: Drogon douses him on dragonflame.
- Riddle for the Ages: His reasons for attacking Drogon remain a mystery. Daenerys wonders if he was trying to avenge someone Drogon had killed, or if he just wanted the glory of killing a dragon.
- Too Dumb to Live: Attacks a dragon by himself with only a spear. No point trying to guess what happened to him.
Hazzea
Hazzea
A young Meereenese girl killed by Drogon.- Ambiguous Situation: Skahaz suggests that, instead of Drogon killing her, her father did it, or the Sons of the Harpy did it and made it look like Drogon did. However, Daenerys notes that Hazzea's father waited until the court was empty before he showed the bones to her, instead of displaying them openly where everyone could see to turn them against her.
- Death of a Child: She is burned alive by Drogon's flames and her grieving father brings her scorched bones before Daenerys.
- Due to the Dead: She is put to rest in the Temple of the Graces with a hundred candles burning day and night in her memory.
- Let Us Never Speak of This Again: Daenerys promises to ensure Hazzea's family want for nothing on the proviso her father tell no one the girl was killed by a dragon.
- Stripped to the Bone: Her body was burned so severely by Drogon's fire that only her bones remain.
Meereenese Organizations
The Sons of the Harpy
The Sons of the Harpy
A clandestine resistance group opposing Daenerys' rule of Meereen. They target freedmen, Unsullied, and Shavepates (Meereenese that have accepted Daenerys' government). Suspected of belonging to the noble slaving families and being led by someone known as "The Harpy".- La Résistance: How they see themselves.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Harpies are rarely good.
- No Historical Figures Were Harmed: The Harpy's overall motif and tactics, of back-alley assassinations and terrorist attacks on freedmen and the abolitionist army, and their association with the toppled slaveowning oligarchy and its symbols, makes them similar to the Ku Klux Klan.
- The Remnant: Of the old order.
- Would Hit a Girl: They're more than willing to murder female former slaves; among their crimes include murdering a former slaver harpist after cutting her fingers off and breaking into the home of a group of female freedmen, raping the women and then slitting their throat.
- Would Hurt a Child: In an attempt to assassinate Daenerys, they force a confectioner to prepare poisoned honey locusts for her by holding his daughter hostage. When the attempt fails thanks to Strong Belwas, the girl is returned to her father, cut into nine pieces.
- Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: The Sons of the Harpy are back-alley terrorists and goon squad who enjoy support from the ruling classes because they see them as opposing Daenerys.
The Brazen Beasts
The Brazen Beasts
The city watch of Meereen formed and commanded by Skahaz mo Kandaq and composed of shavepates and freedmen. They wear masks shaped like the heads of different animals to protect them and their families from reprisals by the Sons of the Harpy. They wear hoods and cloaks patched together from different colored clothes to represent the many-colored bricks of Meereen.- Animal Motifs: Various animals.
- Les Collaborateurs: A rare heroic example, since they serve an abolitionist regime.
- Faceless Mooks: Deliberately invoked to protect their identities. They even change masks constantly to confuse would-be enemies.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Brazen Beasts.
- Undying Loyalty: Even after Daenerys' disappearance and Skahaz being replaced by a cousin of the King, they remain loyal to Skahaz and Daenerys.
Yunkai
- "Ancient and glorious is Yunkai, the queen of cities. Our walls are strong, our nobles proud and fierce, our common folk without fear. Ours is the blood of ancient Ghis, whose empire was old when Valyria was yet a squalling child."—Grazdan Mo Eraz
House of Eraz
Grazdan mo Eraz
Grazdan mo Eraz
- "Do you think it is so hard to kill a dragon?"
- Aristocrats Are Evil: He is a vicious emissary of a slave city trying to drum up support to stop Daenerys' campaign to end slavery in the region.
- Bring My Brown Pants: Soils himself when Drogon sets his tokar on fire.
- Bullying a Dragon: Makes multiple threats to Daenerys, even after she has set his tokar on fire.
- Buy Them Off: He offers Daenerys money and supplies if she'll ignore Yunkai and sail to the Westeroes, and later spends lavish bribes trying to turn Volantis against her.
- Fantastic Racism: Regards Westeros as a savage land, and even before dropping his polite act with Daenerys he still refers to it as such.Grazdan mo Eraz: I pride myself on my knowledge of the savage senseless west.
- Faux Affably Evil: Acts polite and reasonable when first talking with Daenerys, but quickly drops the act after she has Drogon set his tokar on fire.
- Lean and Mean: He is described as lean and is a very nasty piece of work.
- Malicious Slander: Resorts to it to turn the Volantene against Daenerys. The rumors he spreads include that she feeds babies to her dragons and bathes in maidens' blood to keep her beauty.
- Mouth of Sauron: To the rest of the Wise Masters.
- Named After Somebody Famous: He is one of several Ghiscari who are named after Grazdan the Great, who founded Old Ghis.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Refers to Daenerys as a whore several times and threatens to enslave her as a Sex Slave.
- You're Insane!: Accuses Daenerys of being mad when she rejects his bribe to leave Yunkai and instead gives him three days to have the city surrender and free all their slaves.
Gorzhak zo Eraz
Gorzhak zo Eraz
Pudding Face
A Wise Master mocked as Pudding Face by the Windblown.- Character Death: He is slain by the Tattered Prince when the Windblown switch sides.
- General Failure: Like most of the Wise Masters he's a dim leader whose soldiers don't take him seriously.
- In-Series Nickname: Pudding Face.
- Mouth of Sauron: Along with Bloodbeard and two other Wise Masters he serves as this for the Yunkish commanders demanding Hizdahr to slay the dragons.
House of Qaggaz
Yezzan zo Qaggaz
Yezzan zo Qaggaz
The Yellow Whale, Lord Yellowbelly, The Lord of Suet
A Wise Master who is the richest slave trader in Yunkai, giving him great influence. He is in favor of making peace with Daenerys Targaryen.- Adipose Rex: He is morbidly obese, apparently due to a disease he caught in Sothoryos.
- Character Death: Catches the "pale mare" while the Yunkai army is camped outside Meereen and dies from it.
- Collector of the Strange: His favorite slaves are all "grotesqueries": a hermaphrodite, a boy with goat legs, a two headed girl, dwarfs, etc. He actually treats them very kindly as noted by Tyrion, until he decides to send them to Daznak's Pit and feed them to lions for a "folly".
- Fat Bastard: While he may be a better master than most, he is still a pretty ruthless and shrewd slaver.
- In-Series Nickname: "The Yellow Whale" due to his size and the color of his skin due to his disease. Likewise, he's also mocked as Lord Yellowbelly and "the lord of suet".
- Only Sane Man / Pragmatic Villainy/ Reasonable Authority Figure: Surprisingly, he's actually not that bad, compared to the other Wise Masters from Yunkai. He treats and feeds his slaves relatively well so long as they obey and don't cause trouble, and is possessed of at least moderate common sense (more than can be said for most of the slave-masters). He'd also genuinely prefer peace and negotiating with Daenerys rather than rush into a war they might not win. He didn't get to be the richest slave-master in Yunkai by being a short-sighted, petty idiot.
- Surrounded by Idiots: Like Brown Ben Plumm and the Tattered Prince, Yezzan is dismissive of some of his fellow Wise Masters.
- Trans Chaser: He likes to collect "grotesques," including a hermaphroditic sex slave named Sweets.
- Undignified Death: Like anyone who dies of the pale mare.
- Your Days Are Numbered: He is slowly dying of the disease he contracted on Sothoryos, and rewards any of his slaves who are able to help him forget that fact for even a little while.
Nurse
Nurse
"Count yourselves fortunate, for Yezzan is a kindly and benevolent master."
Yezzan zo Qaggaz's slave overseer.- Beard of Evil: Has a chin beard bound by gold wire.
- Forced to Watch: He forces Tyrion, Penny and Jorah to watch Tolosi slingers using captured runaway slaves as target practice as a warning not to try and run.
- Improbable Hairstyle: His red and black Ghiscari hair is shaped into the form of a pair of grasping talons.
- Karmic Death: Catches the "pale mare", then Tyrion hastens the process by feeding him dogtail soup with mushroom slivers on it. You know, the same mushrooms he took from Illyrio's garden and kept hidden in his boot.Tyrion: A Lannister always pays his debts.
- Only Known By His Nickname: His true name is never mentioned and he's called "Nurse".
- Number Two: To Yezzan zo Qaggaz.
- Smug Snake: A smug bastard.
Sweets
Sweets
An intersex slave of Valyrian blood and one of Yezzan's "treasures". Has purple hair and purple eyes.- Ambiguous Gender: Apparently common enough that they can see the confusion on Tyrion's face, and flash their crotch to explain being intersex. They're happy to identify as "both".
- Cunning Linguist: Fluent in four languages, including High Valyrian.
- Curtains Match the Windows: Has both purple eyes and purple hair.
- Happiness in Slavery: Sweets is actually fond of their gargantuan master.
- Hooker with a Heart of Gold: A sex slave instead of a fully voluntary sex worker, but this trope is in play; they are kind and welcoming to "Yollo" and Penny, and definently have a playful streak.
- Meaningful Name: Sweets is... well, a sweet person.
- Uncertain Doom: After Yezzan's death, Sweets' fate is unknown. Tyrion lies to Penny that they died of the pale mare.
Other Wise Masters
Yurkhaz zo Yunzak
Yurkhaz zo Yunzak
A very old Wise Master and the "Supreme Commander of the Armies and Allies of Yunkai".- Aristocrats Are Evil: He aims to restore slavery.
- Character Death: He ends up being trampled to death by his fellow Yunkai'i when Drogon appears at the Great Pit of Daznak.
- Evil Old Folks: He is extremely old, with Daenerys noting he looks as if he could have been alive during Aegon's Conquest.
- General Failure: If not for the Windblown and the rest of the sellsword companies hired by Yunkai his Siege of Astapor would have failed. Indeed his incompetence is so bad that the Windblown contemplate changing sides and decide to hedge their bets.
- Pretext for War: According to Skahaz, his death is being used as a convenient excuse for the Yunkai'i to demand Rhaegal and Viserion be put down (and for Hizdahr to oblige them), before Volantis's fleet arrives to aid in sacking Meereen.
- Too Important to Walk: As a way to show off his status and wealth, he's carried on palanquin by more than forty slaves.
Malazza
Malazza
The Girl General
A female Wise Master mocked by the Windblown as the Girl General.- Aristocrats Are Evil: She is a slave-owner trying to crush Daenerys' crusade to end slavery in the region.
- Awesome, but Impractical: Her soldier-slaves are lean, young, rippling with muscle and naked but for breechclouts, yellow cloaks, and long bronze shields with erotic inlays.
- Bling of War: She wears sculpted black steel breastplate inlaid with gold, showing a harpy rising with chains dangling from her claws.
- Brawn Hilda: She's described as having a thick waist and heavy bosom.
- Captain Ersatz: In-universe. She fancies herself Yunkai's own Daenerys Targaryen.
- In-Series Nickname: The Windblown mock her as "the Girl General" because they find Ghiscari names confusing to pronounce.
- Lady of War: Unlike the rest of the Wise Masters, she averts General Failure and actually has some idea of warfare.
- The Smurfette Principle: The only girl among the Wise Masters.
- Villain Has a Point: In a sample chapter from The Winds of Winter, Malazza continues giving orders to the Yunkish forces under attack from Barristan Selmy and Victarion Greyjoy even after her time as commander in chief expired. The Second Sons note that, given how incompetent some of her fellow Wise Masters are, they can't blame Malazza for refusing to cede command to try and keep control of the battle.Inkpots: Why is the girl still giving orders? Dawn has come and gone. Can she not see the sun? She is behaving as if she were still the supreme commander.Jorah Mormont: If you were her and knew that Pudding Face were about to assume command, you might keep giving orders too.
- White Stallion: She rides a white horse with a red mane.
Paezhar zo Myraq
Paezhar zo Myraq
The Little Pigeon
A five foot tall Wise Master mocked by the Windblown as the Little Pigeon.- Animal Motifs: Birds. He's known as the Little Pigeon and his slave-soldiers are mocked as the "Herons".
- Bling of War: As usual for Masters.
- Character Death: A sample chapter from "The Winds of Winter" reveal Paezhar is killed by the Red Lamb when his Herons panic and run in the face of a cavalry charge by Daenerys's loyalists.
- Compensating for Something: Surrounding himself with tall slaves
on stilts. - General Failure: Like most of the Wise Masters.
- Impractically Fancy Outfit: His slave-soldiers range from seven to almost eight feet tall and also wear stilts built into their ornate armor. Their armor consists of pink-enameled scales on their torsos, and elongated helms with pointed steel beaks and crests of pink feathers.
- In-Series Nickname: The Little Pigeon.
Morghaz zo Zherzyn
Morghaz zo Zherzyn
The Drunken Conqueror
A Wise Master mocked as the Drunken Conqueror by the Windblown.- The Alcoholic: Spends most of his time drunk, hence the nickname bestowed upon him by the sellswords.Tyrion Lannister: It’s a wonder he was able to crawl out of the flagon long enough to give a halfway-sensible command.
- General Failure: Like most of the Wise Masters.
- In-Series Nickname: The Drunken Conqueror.
- You Are in Command Now: Subverted. He tries to seize command of the Yunkish army after his predecessor Gorzhak zo Eraz, is killed when the Windblown decide to defect to Daenerys, but his commands are ignored.
