Ensemble Dark Horse / A Song of Ice and Fire

• George R. R. Martin has stated that he is surprised by the popularity of Sandor Clegane. Apparently Martin didn't get the memo that badass antiheroes with cool scars and tragic pasts are in. Especially when his interaction with a pretty young POV character of a Fallen Princess just oozes Bodyguard Crush and Beast and Beauty vibes. Despite being the biggest definition of a Jerkass Woobie (with emphasis on the Jerkass part) Sandor's sympathetic backstory and moments of kindness definitely help him, as well as being a prime badass.

• The North:
  • Wyman Manderly, the Lord of White Harbor, was essentially a background character whenever he appeared in the first four books. However, in the fifth book he reveals himself to be plotting revenge for the crimes against the North and house Stark and looking to restore a Stark to power in the North. He has three members of the treacherous House Frey baked into pies and served to their kinsmen at a wedding. This action undoubtedly elevated him to Darkhorse status.
    • Wylla, his green-haired granddaughter. Passionately and vocally loyal to the Starks, and opposed to the Frey-Bolton regime, unlike seemingly everyone in her family.
  • Hodor Hodor Hodor. Gentle Giant - possibly the nicest in the series - and also very powerful, what's not to love?
  • Dacey Mormont, who, despite having relatively little screentime and a paragraph's worth of dialogue in A Storm of Swords, gets a lot of fan love for her Action Girl status as a Mormont and for her Undying Loyalty to Robb Stark. Possibly also in sympathy for her being rejected for a dance and her subsequent brutal death at the hands of Freys in the Red Wedding, though a Frey she wounds died during the battle.
    • Her younger sister Alysanne, for being The Squadette, Mama Bear, and striking an unlikely friendship of sorts with fellow EDH Asha Greyjoy.
    • Lyanna, the youngest Mormont sister, is this as well, despite not yet making an actual appearance. Famous hardass Stannis Baratheon writes to her requesting Bear Island's aid, what's her response? Simply write back "Bear Island knows no king but the King in the North, who's name is STARK!" She's 11. This may have led to her getting an expanded role in the TV series.
  • Roose and Ramsay Bolton are beloved by a part of the fandom for their Faux Affably Evil antics and general subterfuge, in addition to the conflict between their two styles of villainy, Roose being the ultimate example of Pragmatic Villainy and an extremely high-functioning Sociopath and Ramsay being Ax-Crazy Stupid Evil. House Bolton even has its own subreddit.
  • Big Bucket Wull, for being a badass Northern clan chief. His "Last Winter" speech to Corliss Penny and Robin Peasebury is quoted often.
  • Howland Reed, who has yet to appear, is pretty popular in fandom for being the liege lord of Unpopular Popular People that are actually deadly experts of guerrilla warfare who are making life an hell to the Ironborn invaders, and most of all for being allegedly the last living person who knows Jon Snow's parentage.
  • Lyanna Stark, Ned's late sister, is almost universally adored for being a spirited, rebellious tomboy, and due to the rumors she willingly ran away from an arranged marriage and is Jon Snow's mother.
  • Lord Cregan Stark is probably the most popular of the many mentioned Stark ancestors for being a manly lord who became involved at the end of the Dance of Dragons and stabilized the realm largely through intimidation and patented Northern pragmatism, before going on to become a swordsman so good that one of the greatest knights of all time thought he was one of the best.
  • Alys Karstark, for being a bold and clever heiress escaping to avoid an arranged marriage and demonstrating enough respect and reverence to House Stark, despite her father's death at Robb's hand, to go to Jon for help.
  • Mors Umber only has one short scene so far and takes until the fifth book to get a major (albeit offscreen) role, but he has a strong fanbase for being a one-eyed, bearskin-clad Colonel Badass and Combat Pragmatist.
  • Cley Cerwyn only physically appears a couple of times, but has many fans due to his competent A Child Shall Lead Them moments and being one of Bran's closest friends among the Northern nobility.
  • Robett Glover has built up a fanbase as The Determinator and eventual Number Two of Wyman Manderly. His Adaptational Villainy in the show has driven many fans who prefer the books to cling more to his literary counterpart as part of their way of demonstrating their preference.
  • Zei, a Mole's Town prostitute who takes refuge at Castle Black in the third book and helps fight off the attackers with a crossbow, has a decent fandom for a character who is only in a couple of chapters.

• The Wall and Beyond:
  • Dolorous Edd, Night's Watch steward and a tertiary character who counts with a facebook fan page. Always droll and dour, his frequent sarcasm and constant belief that he (and everyone else) are going to die at any moment provides some much-needed Gallows Humor. It helps that he's a decent bloke under it all.
  • Wun-Wun, the unusually sociable giant who grows fond of beer as he stays at Castle Black.
  • Iron Emmet, a skilled Night's Watch swordsman who instantly gets on well with Jon Snow, and goes from Lovable Jock to Cool Teacher to Commanding Coolness.
  • Leathers, a wildling warrior who joins the Night's Watch, quickly becoming a Sergeant Rock and one of Jon Snow's loyal followers.
  • Tormund Giantsbane, for being a hillariously bombastic wilding leader with a penchance for tall tales, who happens to be a pretty nice guy underneath it all.
  • Fifth book Mauve Shirt Rowan the spearwife has a decent fanbase for being an Action Girl who Epileptic Trees think may be the long-lost daughter of Mors Umber.
  • Deadpan Snarker climbing master Stonesnake and Dalbridge (a Master Archer and former squire to a Targaryen king), two of the men who travel with Jon and Qhorin beyond the Wall, are other highly popular rangers.
  • We Hardly Knew Ye Bruiser with a Soft Center Small Paul has a good fanbase for saving Sam after the Fight at the Fist.
  • Scarily Competent Tracker, Nice Guy, and Old Soldier Dywen is a big fan favorite among the veteran Rangers.

• The Riverlands:
  • Despite (or perhaps because of) his constant screw-ups and the Humiliation Conga he's forced to go through, Edmure is liked for both being just about the only lord paramount in the series to actually care about his peasants, and putting up with constant verbal put-downs from his uncle, sister, and nephew.
  • Septon Meribald, a peasant soldier turned preacher, is well liked for explaining the effects of war on the peasantry, especially his "Broken Men" speech where he tells Brienne and Podrick how peasant soldiers end up as outlaws after being taken from their homes by their lords to fight in their wars and resorting to banditry to survive after they're abandoned with no hope of getting back home.
  • House Blackwood has a few fans due to being one of the few Houses in the south to worship the Old Gods, having quite a few historical members of note and its present lord being the last Stark holdout in the Riverlands to surrender after the Red Wedding.
  • Even many people who passionately hate House Frey make exceptions for Perwyn and Olyvar (due to them being competent fighters who weren't onboard with the Red Wedding) and the pragmatic but sincerely courteous and dutiful Stevron.
  • The Mad Huntsman is one of the least prominent members of the Brotherhood without Banners, but he has his fans for being a Terror Hero Fluffy Tamer who briefly protects an important village from the Lannisters on his own after the death of its knight.
  • Raymun Darry doesn't make it to the second book, but gets a bit of love for being the last notable Targaryen loyalist in the Riverlands while still caring about protecting his smallfolk.
  • Lady Ravella Smallwood needed less than one chapter to charm the fans more thoroughly than many of the main Riverlands nobles due to her kindness to Arya and Silk Hiding Steel moments while aiding the Brotherhood Without Banners.

• The Iron Islands:
  • Asha Greyjoy, partially due to her Action Girl appeal, partially due to utterly Trolling the then-disliked Theon, and partially due to being one of the few ironmen that isn't Stupid Evil.
  • Rodrik Harlaw, for being a bookworm among a society which disdains literacy, for being one of the most intelligent characters in the series who sees the true cost of war, and speaking back to Euron Greyjoy despite knowing how dangerous they are, and helping his niece Asha escape Euron. Especially prominent as the Ironborn are in general quite disliked among the fandom, though Rodrik knows how impractical their culture is in trying to base itself on piracy.
  • Euron Greyjoy, The Crow's Eye, is one of the most popular antagonists due to his ethereal appearance, terrifying crew that consists of deformed mutes, cunning intellect and charisma, ambitious plan to take over Westeros and for his unapologetic cruelty that either rivals or surpasses the likes of Ramsay. The mystery around the character himself has been one of the hottest debates around the fandom for a while and his possible relation to the Others and the Long Night certainly doesn't hurt.
  • Harras Harlaw only has a few chapters of background appearances but has his fandom for being a Seven-believer who beats seven consecutive enemy champions and treats his enemies fairly well.
  • Hagen's daughter may not even get a name, but is easily the best-liked of Asha's reavers for being an Ethical Slut Action Girl who flirts with Asha's unwanted suitor Tristifer (providing shippers Pair the Spares fodder).
  • Lord Gylbert Farwynd only appears during the kingsmoot scene, but is a big fan favorite among the Ironborn lords due to how many fans suspect his Cloudcuckoolander Screw This, I'm Outta Here plan may be Crazy Sane or Metaphorically True in a way that the Ironborn should really pay attention to.

• The Westerlands:
  • Nearly every minor Lannister, but most particularly Ser Daven, Ser Kevan and Lady Genna, is regarded with affection throughout the fandom.
  • One of Ser Jaime Lannister's squires, Josymn "Peck" Peckledon is also fondly regarded by some fans as a darker counterpart to Pod, namely because, whilst Pod is a hidden badass, Peck is just a straight up badass. His best exploit to date was at the Battle of the Blackwater, when, aged fifteen, he killed two knights, crippled a third and captured two more.
  • Podrick Payne, Tyrion's squire, is widely loved in the fandom for his dorkinesss, shyness and the generally stoic way in which he bears the various indignities of being a minor character in this series. His Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass tendencies also help, with his two best moments in the series so far being pushing Ser Mandon Moore into the Blackwater to save Tyrion's life and distracting the Bloody Mummers so Brienne only has to fight one at the time.
  • The amount of attention Harys Swyft has gotten for being a rare character to physically appear in all five books (albeit mostly in minor roles) has led to the consensus that his Butt-Monkey moments and occasional Smarter Than They Look feats make him a fun character.

• The Crownlands:
  • Bronn is virtually an Ascended Extra, starting off as one of a pair of sellswords who join a large crew of Red Shirts to escort Tyrion to the Eyrie. By the time his partner and most of the redshirts have died, Bronn has become Tyrion's badass bodyguard. He is immediately solidified as a badass by killing an armored knight in single combat despite being lightly armored himself. Then there's his continual rise in power; though modest compared to say, Littlefinger, it's very impressive (and amusing when he continues to be a thorn in Cersei's side). When he's not kicking ass, he's usually sharing witty banter with Tyrion, making him prime fodder for fandom.
  • Bloodraven also has a good deal of fan-following, right from his background mentions in "The Sworn Sword" but his appearance in A Dance With Dragons as a Humanoid Abomination who claims he has been manipulating events made him one of the most speculated and interesting figures in the series.

• The Reach:
  • Garlan Tyrell, simply because he's a badass knight and a decent person. He's nice to Tyrion and does a minor case of calling Joffrey out on his behavior.
  • In a series full of characters that will see you killed for talking out of turn, it's little wonder Deadpan Snarker Olenna Tyrell should stand out from the crowd. It doesn't matter if you're king, queen, regent, lord, or priest, it won't take long to see why she's nicknamed the Queen of Thorns. She's also a first-rate Chessmaster. Plotted Joffrey's death with Littlefinger, wanted to help Sansa get to a safe place until she could be sent North to her mother and brother, and gets under Cersei's skin so much.
  • Ambiguously Evil Genius Bruiser Archmaester Marwyn has only physically appeared in one scene so far, but the way he spends that scene being a refreshingly unconventional maester who educates the fandom on a mysterious conspiracy has made him the source of fan fascination for over a decade, with no sign of it slowing down.
  • The fight Ser Talbert Serry puts up against Victorian (plus his Uncertain Doom fate) win him some following despite the brevity of his first (and likely only) scene.

• The Stormlands:
  • For a character designed to be an unlikeable Principles Zealot, Stannis Baratheon has a surprisingly zealous following among the fandom, due to his Comically Serious tendencies, his complete and total unwillingness to give up even against impossibly lopsided odds, and his status as the only contender to the throne who ultimately realizes there's more at stake than his right to rule.
    • In a series where nobody ever seems to make the right decision, Stannis is known for listening to well-liked characters who function as his voice of reason, such as Davos, Jon Snow and Asha Greyjoy, and admitting when he made mistakes, along with being one of the few figures in a position of power who takes the Night's Watch seriously.
    • For that matter, his daughter Shireen is also well-like for being essentially her father without all the bad qualities: a smart, kind Iron Woobie Wide-Eyed Idealist princess that loves her family and manages to melt the base's heart in every single scenes she appeared. Not to mention bringing out the much appreciate human side of her father.
  • Rolland Storm, the Bastard of Nightsong, oddly enough for a character whose most badass feats happen off page. However he helps save Stannis at the Blackwater, is a devout worshiper of the Warrior despite the influence of the Queen's Men, and helps Davos smuggle Edric off Dragonstone. Despite Dragonstone falling while he was its castellan, we hear the Tyrells suffered heavy losses and its still unknown what happened to Rolland. Many fans are hoping he somehow escaped and will eventually claim Nightsong from the guy who killed his brother.
  • Ser Cortnay Penrose, Renly's castellan at Storm's End, and a One-Scene Wonder in ACOK, is often fondly remembered by fans for refusing to surrender the castle to Stannis after hearing of Renly's supposed death, calling out all of Renly's former bannermen who went over to Stannis, challenging Stannis to single combat, and blaspheming Melisandre's god to her face, all in... Memorable fashion.
  Penrose: Is it the justice of your cause you doubt, my lord, or the strength of your arm? Are you afraid I’ll piss on your burning sword and put it out? ... May the Others bugger your lord of light, and wipe his arse with that rag you bear.... Bring on your storm... And recall, if you do, the name of this castle.
  • Lady Mary Mertyns takes until a preview chapter for the sixth book to appear in person, but delighted fans with her Benevolent Boss and Defiant Captive attitude.

• Dorne:
  • House Martell in general is very popular in the fandom, rivaling fan favorites like the Starks and Targaryens in popularity despite being, as of now, relatively uninvolved with the main plot.
    • Prince Oberyn Martell in particular manages this, despite the fact that he dies in the same book he's introduced, due in large part to his colorful backstory and witty banter with Tyrion. His badass duel with the Mountain definitely helped, since even though it got him killed, Gregor died far more painfully.
    • Ellaria Sand, Oberyn Martell's paramour, possibly due to her status as an Ethical Slut as well as being one of the few people to flag the fact that perpetuating the cycle of revenge against the Lannisters is only going to make the crapsack situation in Westeros worse and won't bring Elia, Aegon, Rhaenys, or Oberyn back from the dead.
    • Sarella Sand gained more popularity than her Sand Snakes sisters despite not appearing in the books. Or is she? If you believe the Sarella=Alleras theory which is likely the source of her popularity among fans.
    • Arianne Martell reached this status due to being an embodiment of female empowerment, and a foil to Cersei Lannister for realizing her flaws. Because of her absence and her storyline completely altered to Ellaria’s Revenge Before Reason in the show, many fans and TV critics believe that her presence could have made the Dorne arc much better than what the show presented. It helps that George R.R. Martin released another preview chapter for the upcoming sixth book two weeks after the controversial change in the Dorne arc in Season 6 premiere, from which many find Arianne to be a better character to represent the Dornish POV rather than Ellaria and the Sand Snakes.
  • Ashara Dayne only gets a few mentions but is still very well-liked. A popular fan theory is that she's actually alive and has been living in exile as Septa Lemore.
    • Like his sister, Ser Arthur Dayne is very popular, Ned describing them as the greatest of the Kingsguard and respecting them even though they almost killed him. He's also an in-universe Memetic Badass.
  • The long-dead Lord Toland from The Conquest has his fans for the way he outwitted Aegon and changed his coat-of-arms to mock how he outwitted Aegon and honor the Heroic Sacrifice of the servant who helped him escape.

• The Vale
  • Mya Stone is pretty popular for being a Heroic Bastard of Robert with some neat skills and surrogate Cool Big Sis moments with Sansa.
  • Genius Bruiser Old Soldier "Bronze" Yohn Royce (who is deeply unhappy about being kept from fighting the Lannisters in the War of the Five Kings) probably has twice as big a fandom as any other two Vale lords combined. His Knight in Shining Armor second son, Robar, also has a pretty good fanbase despite dying after just a couple of speaking scenes.
  • Tyrion's main allies from the Mountain Clans (Boisterous Bruiser Shagga, The Dreaded Timett, and ear-collecting Lady of War Chella) haven't been seen since book 2. Still, for many fans, they are among his best-liked allies after Bronn.

• Beyond the Narrow Sea:
  • Strong Belwas is easily the most liked of all the characters in Dany's Meereeness arc, due to proving to be a rather badass fighter, Big Fun all around, and inadvertently saving Dany from being poisoned after he eats a shit ton of locusts, which he manages to survive.
  • Ambiguously Evil Chessmaster Sidekick and potential sincerely Good Is Not Nice Internal Reformist Skahaz is one of the only new additions to the Meereenese plot line in the fifth book that many readers find compelling and fun to read about.
  • Barristan's squire, the Red Lamb, is barely more than a Spear Carrier so far, but has a lot of fans for his training potential and Rage Against the Heavens speech.
  • Golden Company officer Tristan Rivers would be a Bit Character if not for one Rousing Speech, but that speech has won him more acclaim than almost anyone else in his plot thread.
  • Nice Guy sailor Groleo is one of the less important (and unfortunate) players in the Daenerys arc, but some fans still think quite well of him.
  • High Priest Benerro has only made one cameo, but his status as the lead of a religion that is creepy as Hell (possibly even literally) while also opposing the Others and the slave trade wins him a good deal of interest.

• Littlefinger is arguably not a darkhorse given his very active role in engineering much of the series's plot, but he has developed quite a large fanbase who want him to succeed, despite arguably being a villain.
• Syrio Forel and Jaqen H'ghar to the point that some readers insist that they're the same person. Syrio has memorable dialogue with Arya and a fantastic Last Stand where he one-ups Bronn by killing five fully armored knights armed with nothing but a wooden practice sword. Jaqen is an effective assassin that always speaks politely and serves as an incredible Establishing Character Moment for the Faceless Men.
• Hot Pie receives a lot of fan love due to his ridiculous (nick)name and lovable cowardice, and for providing a view of how the War of the Five Kings affects the peasantry.
• Steelshanks Walton also has a few fans, and so does Shitmouth (both are more or less bit characters that serve particularly evil masters but are decent people themselves).