Fanfic / For Want of a Nail Series

For want of a nail, a horseshoe was lost.

This simple act of Catelyn Stark's horse throwing a horseshoe whilst returning to Winterfell, which ultimately leads to her missing Tyrion Lannister entirely at the Crossroads Inn, is what kicks off the story, and events move in an entirely different direction than seen in canon.

For Want Of A Nail is a quartet of stories by ScottishMongol, in which one simple act can lead to a whole different set of consequences for the players in the game of thrones.

The four fanfics in the series are as follows: (links not working)

• For Want Of A Nail: A Game of Thrones
• For Want Of A Nail: A Land Of Fire
• For Want Of A Nail: A Rain Of Ash
• For Want Of A Nail: A Time For Wolves

Or they can be found in the Alternate History forum [1] (needs an account)

This fanfic series has the following tropes:

• Anyone Can Die: Seven Hells, do they ever!
• Apologetic Attacker: Bran Stark to Euron Greyjoy just before skinchanging into Rhaegal and biting him in half.
  "I'm sorry, but this dragon is mine now."
• Clean Food, Poisoned Fork: Oberyn Martell and Tyrion Lannister lull "Aegon VI" and Jon Connington into a false sense of security by conspicuously sharing wine with them, when the poison is actually smeared inside the fancy goblets they were just presented with as gifts.
• Driven to Suicide:
  • Lysa Arryn, who flings herself out of the Moon Door...after confessing to Catelyn that both her and Baelish murdered her husband.
  • Tywin Lannister kills himself by drinking poisoned wine to avoid being captured by Ned and Stannis.
• Exact Words: Ser Barristan Selmy pledges not to join the Lannisters when he leaves Baratheon service. This does not stop him from joining Daenerys Targaryen.
• For Want Of A Nail:
  • What kicks off the plot. Catelyn's horse threw a horseshoe, forcing her and Rodrik Cassel to stay overnight at a village to get the shoe replaced. Come dawn, both her and Rodrik ride past the Crossroads Inn, where Tyrion is staying.
  • This time around, it's Littlefinger who gets arrested, rather than Ned Stark.
• The Fundamentalist: Melissandre, par the course.
• In Spite of a Nail:
  • Robert Baratheon still dies, but not from the supposed 'hunting accident' orchestrated by Cersei.
  • Renly Baratheon actually dies in battle, rather than being assassinated by Melissandre's shadow baby.
  • Rather than being poisoned at his wedding Joffrey is stabbed to death by the Faith Militant
• It's Personal: Tyrion is not amused when he finds out that Littlefinger tried to set him up for the attempted murder of Bran Stark.
• Kill It with Fire: Cersei, meet Drogon.
• The Kingslayer: Jamie Lannister becomes this twice over when he mortally wounds Robert during the Trial of Seven.
• Know When to Fold 'Em: Addam Marbrand and Lyle Crakehall (the last two surviving men on Jamie's team), surrender, thus ending the Trial of Seven in Robert's favor.
• Last of His Kind: Barristan Selmy, the last of the Kingsguard under Robert after the rest are killed in Jaime's Trial by Seven; disappointed by how far the order has fallen, he proposes its dissolution and leaves.
• Like A Father To Me: As expected, Robert Baratheon takes the news that Littlefinger orchestrated the murder of Jon Arryn very poorly.
• Nasty Party: This time, it's masterminded by none other than Tyrion Lannister and Oberyn Martell by poisoning the false Aegon Targaryen and the senior members of the Golden Company. It would be known afterward as the Gold Dinner.
• Off with His Head!: Petyr Baelish's fate.
• Out-Gambitted: This time, it's Littlefinger who is outsmarted by Ned Stark in the first story. Tyrion doesn't hesitate to point this out when Ned orders his arrest.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
  • Cersei and her children flee Westeros for Braavos following Ned's ultimatum.
  • Once Renly crowns himself King, Tyrion flees the capital for Essos to avoid being executed.
• Shame If Something Happened: Littlefinger invokes this when Ned notifies him that he has Ser Hugh in a Black Cell.
  Baelish "Do you? Down in the Black Cells. It is quite dangerous down there. Be a shame if he had died of neglect."
  Ned: "It would. But I had my own men guarding that cell. My own men were to feed him. Anyone who attempted to enter that cell was to be detained. And perhaps the man who sent someone to silence Ser Hugh was so desperate he spoke to the assassin himself."
• Taking You with Me: Tywin Lannister eventually realizes he has no chance of winning the civil war but continues committing atrocities in the spiteful hope of killing as many as he can.
• This Is Gonna Suck:
  • The reactions of Ned Stark, Davos Seaworth, and Stannis Baratheon when Jaime demands a Trial of Seven.
  • With the death of Jaime, Ned knows that war between the Lannisters and the Crown is inevitable.
• Trial by Combat: A variation of it. Jaime demands a 'Trial of Seven.'
• Uriah Gambit: Daenerys gives her purported nephew the chance to claim Viserion, expecting him to be exposed as an impostor when he's killed by the dragon. His advisors manage to dissuade him at the last minute.
• The Usurper: Once Stannis leaves for the North, Renly Baratheon crowns himself King.