Sandbox / Game of Thrones - Eddard Stark

Lord Eddard Stark

"The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword."

^{Click here}  to see the Rebellion-era Ned Stark.

Played By: Sean Bean, Sebastian Croft (Child), Robert Aramayo (Young Adult)

Voiced By: Humberto Vélez (Latin American Spanish), Luis Navarro (Latin American Spanish/Young), Hideaki Tezuka (Japanese), Yūichi Nakamura (Japanese/Young)

"I grew up with soldiers. I learned how to die a long time ago."

Eddard "Ned" Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North, becomes the Hand of the King after Lord Jon Arryn's death. He is known for his sense of honor and justice. He took part in Robert's Rebellion after his sister Lyanna was kidnapped by Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. When Ned's father and brother went south to reclaim her, the "Mad King" Aerys Targaryen burned both of them alive. Ned and Robert Baratheon led the rebellion to unseat him from the throne. As the show opens, Ned has been content to remain in the north, but after the death of Lord Jon Arryn, he is convinced that it is his duty to accept the position of Hand of the King. Ned is not interested in politics, and prefers to rule with honor and follow the law.

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A-J

• Action Dad: Being the father of six children hasn't slowed his sword swing or dampened his willingness to use his sword when needed. As his own father Rickard told Little Ned, he doesn't seek to fight anyone but if a fight happens, he wants to win.
• Adaptational Attractiveness: Eddard Stark is described in the books as being long-faced and plain, in contrast to his late brother Brandon, who was more dashing. On the show, he's played by Sean Bean◊, and described as "an even more impressive specimen" than his late brother.
• Adaptational Badass: To an extent. In the books, he is a great general and capable warrior, but his skill with a sword is never mentioned as being exceptional. In the series, Barristan notes his fearsome reputation as a fighter. When Ned engages Memetic Badass Jaime Lannister, he proves his equal in skill until a Lannister guard puts a spear through Ned's leg from behind. ^{From the books...} Ned barely puts up a fight when he's outnumbered by Jaime and the Lannister men. He also recollects a fight against far superior fighters during the rebellion and admits that he survived only by luck and the intervention of a friend.
• Agent Scully: Shown to be skeptical of Will's claims about White Walkers.
• Always Someone Better: Ser Arthur Dayne is this, as even Bran admits on seeing the Tower of Joy vision, Ned fought hard against him, despite the former using two swords and was inches from dying before Howland Reed saved his life. In the History and Lore video of the young Ned ruminating on House Dayne's history, he even admits "as a boy, even [he] dreamed to be a Dayne of Starfall".
• Authority Equals Asskicking: A Lord Paramount who evenly matches the much younger Jaime Lannister (in his youth, Ned defeated Gerold Hightower who was Jaime's superior as a warrior), a renowned master swordsman. Ser Barristan calls Lord Stark a fearsome fighter. Ned being the awesome guy he is, chooses to be modest about it.
• Anyone Can Die: If there is a character that can illustrate this trope, it's Ned. He's set up to be the main protagonist of the show, only to be killed off in the first season of the show.
• Badass Boast: "I don't fight in tournaments, because when I fight a man for real, I don't want him to know what I can do".
• Badass Bureaucrat: After becoming Hand.
• Badass Family: Fathered one.
• Bash Brothers: With Robert during the war against the Targaryens. And later the Greyjoy Rebellion, where he and Robert fought side by side when they laid siege on the castle of Pyke.
• Berserk Button: Ned is calm, cool, and composed. Until you compare his wife to a whore. Then he'll slam you against a wall and choke you.
• Best Friend: To Robert. However Ned is a sense a Deconstruction because while Ned might be Robert's best friend, he isn't necessary a good friend. Ned is not afraid to speak honestly to Robert, but he watched Robert fall into a drunken despair over Lyanna, let himself go and more-or-less pass the buck of ruling the kingdom to his advisors while spending his time indulging in hedonistic pleasures, and did nothing to save Robert from himself. It isn't until Ned arrives at King's Landing that he realizes simply how unfit Robert is to be king, but by now it's too late.
• Big Brother Instinct: He is ready to go through Kingsguards, one being known as the best swordsman of his time, to save his sister Lyanna. He would even drop the Honor Before Reason and have his men gang up on his opponent though he is a bit shocked by Reed stabbing Dayne in the back but he gets over it quickly. Eventually, out of love for his sister, he lies to the whole world that he fathered a bastard child solely to protect his nephew Jon, and honour her dying wish.
• Big Good: To the North as a whole. Indeed, he's somehow referenced in almost every episode since his death.
• Book Ends: His death mirrors the same way he decapitated a deserter from the Night's Watch; somewhat inverted in that he sticks to his own mantra of the one speaking justice doing the executing, while Joffrey uses the Royal Executioner. He's even killed with his own ancestral sword, Ice, the same one he used to kill the deserter.
• Boring, but Practical: When it comes to combat, Ned used common swords instead of the impractically large and unwieldly ice.
• Broken Pedestal: Bran is disappointed to learn that his defeat of Ser Arthur Dayne was much less honourable then he expected. He is even more stunned to learn that his father lied to his own wife and children about Jon Snow's parentage.
• Character Death: He's beheaded on Joffrey's orders after confessing to a false charge of treason in an attempt to save his daughters.
• Cincinnatus: When Jon Arryn dies, Robert seeks out Ned and asks him to be his new Hand of the King, thinking he is best suited to rule Westeros, despite Ned having no wish to take the job.
  • Also, this was Ned's role during the rebellion. He basically won the rebellion for Robert, but never took advantage of this in any form and as soon as Robert sat on the throne, he missed the early stages of Robert's reign and went straight to Winterfell bringing his sister's remains and his infant nephew Jon Snow, whom he passes off as his own child. He never left the North since that, save for the Greyjoy rebellion. Arguably, his hurry of coming back to the North and reluctance to leave it may have something to do with hiding and raising Jon.
• Combat Pragmatist: Usually not, but he made an exception for his sister Lyanna. His plan to save her consisted of bringing a group of men to overwhelm her two guards instead of challenging them to duels. Although he was momentarily surprised by Howland stabbing Arthur Dayne in the back, he still took the chance to cut him down when he was reeling from his wounds.
• Confess to a Lesser Crime: At the end of Robert's Rebellion, Ned returns home with an infant boy. He confesses to his wife that he has broken his wedding vows and fathered a bastard son. This dishonorable act causes considerable strain upon his marriage. In truth, the stain on his honor was a lie designed to hide the fact Jon was not his child, but his nephew via Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen. In protecting Jon from Robert Baratheon, accomplished by hiding him in plain sight as his illegitimate son, Ned's true crime was actually treason against the Iron Throne.
• Cool Big Bro: To little Benjen and Lyanna as Season 6's flashback reveals.
• Cool Sword: Ice was made of Valyrian Steel, which made it impossibly sharp. Ned used it for execution and ceremonial purposes, and in general battle, used normal swords.
• Cynicism Catalyst: Ned's opinion of Robert was permanently soured by Robert's satisfaction at the deaths of Rhaegar Targaryen's wife and children. It's probably one of the reasons, aside from his promise to Lyanna, why he hid Jon Snow's identity.
• Dark Secret: Ned goes to the grave with one that is perhaps the irony of the century. His bastard son Jon Snow is really the trueborn son of Ned's sister Lyanna and Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen, making Jon the true heir to House Targaryen and their claim to The Iron Throne.
• Dead Star Walking: Sean Bean gets top billing and is used for promotion. His character dies in the Season 1 penultimate.
• Deadpan Snarker: He has his moments.
  Ned: War is easier than daughters.
• Death by Irony: Twice, he has a chance to come out on top of the Gambit Pileup but doesn't make the obvious move, because he doesn't want to see the history repeat itself — he hates the idea of killing children. In the end, he is killed by one of the very children he spared.
• Decapitation Presentation: His severed head was put on a spike by Joffrey.
• Deconstructed Character Archetype: Like several honorable classic heroes, he refuses to make moral compromises and tries to save everybody. This ends up backfiring, chiefly warning Cersei to save her children. Not only does this lead to his own death, but leads to the crowning of a deranged psychopath, the very child he was trying to save.
• Decoy Protagonist: For the first season as he's not only played by the biggest name in the cast, he's the character the audience spends the most time with and the story follows his journey to discover the secrets hidden by the Lannisters. Until he's executed.
• The Everyman: He might be a Lord, but he's a hard-working man who is unfamiliar with the twisted inner workings of King's Landing.
• Exact Words: He tells Jon Snow, "You are a Stark. You might not have my name, but you have my blood," when Jon asks about his mother. That's because he's not Jon's biological father, but his uncle. Lyanna Stark, Ned's deceased sister, is Jon's mother. So Ned's blood does run through Jon's veins, just not in the way he would expect.
• Face Death with Dignity: Once he sees that Arya's out of sight, the look in his eyes shows him accepting his fate peacefully.
• Famed In-Story: Lord Eddard Stark is renowned across Westeros as one of the leaders of Robert's Rebellion who deposed a psychotic king.
• Family Relationship Switcheroo: He passed himself off as Jon Snow's father but is his uncle, with Jon being his late sister's son. A wise move, since Jon's biological family on his father's side was mostly slaughtered or exiled.
• Fantasy-Forbidding Father: While he loves his daughter Arya, and even appoints a tutor to teach her basic swordsmanship, Ned never sees it as more than a hobby and doesn't quite understand why Arya takes it as seriously as she does. He still expects that when she grows up she would become a Lady, have an Arranged Marriage and mother children for her husband. Arya bluntly tells him, "That's not me!" and it's the only point on which she disagrees with her father.
• Fatal Flaw: His unbending pride and honour leads to all kinds of problems, and eventually his death. That said, he is aware of this. And refuses to change anyway.
• A Father to His Men: Don't fuck with his bannermen; when confronted by Jaime at the end of "The Wolf and the Lion", Ned tries to talk his way out of the situation. It was only when his guards were killed did he bring out his sword.
  Robb: He once told me that being a lord is like being a father, except you have thousands of children and you worry about all of them. The farmers plowing the fields are yours to protect. The charwomen scrubbing the floors, yours to protect. The soldiers you order into battle. ^note This is a major alteration from Book Ned. Jon Snow in A Dance with Dragons remembers Ned telling him and Robb that a Lord shouldn't be too close or fraternize too well otherwise that would complicate The Chains of Commanding, namely that they are the ones commanding those beneath them to fight and die for House Stark and that being a Lord or a leader meant responsibilities, loneliness, distances and no true equals
• Fish out of Water: He is out of his element in the cutthroat, dishonourable and slimy environment of King's Landing.
• Foil: Like Stannis, Ned chose family over fealty to his king. Stannis followed his brother Robert into rebellion while Ned lied to his future King Robert as a last request from his sister Lyanna.
• Four-Star Badass: He was a commander during Robert's Rebellion.
• A Friend in Need: Despite the opposition of his wife, Ned accepts the petition of his old friend Robert to be Hand of the King and goes South, especially after reading a letter sent by Lysa Arryn that accuses the Lannisters of killing Jon Arryn and plotting to kill Robert Baratheon. This letter was sent to him by Lysa, on Littlefinger's behest, to specifically invoke this trope.
• Genius Bruiser: Crosses over with him being an adaptational badass. Ned is not only a tactical genius, he's also skilled enough with a sword to go toe-to-toe with Jaime Lannister, the best swordsman in Westeros.
• The Good Chancellor: We don't see many instances of him performing the duties of the Hand of the King, but when we do he's trying to reduce the kingdom's debt, dissuade Robert from putting himself in unnecessary danger, and actually attempt to give justice to the commoners, by taking down a band of psychotic marauding knights led by Ser Gregor Clegane who are in service to the richest, most powerful House in the kingdoms.
• Good Is Not Dumb: Ned Stark's advice is often dismissed as just being Honor Before Reason, but there are often very good reasons for his choices and ultimately, in the long run, it proves to have more positive consequences:
  • He doesn't back Renly's bid for the throne, but Renly's a diplomat with no combat experience in a situation that WILL require winning a war. Sure enough, Renly does nothing but divide the forces against the Lannisters. He also does not have a right to be king at the time, and you can't kick Joffrey off the throne because he's not the rightful king and replace him with someone else who isn't the rightful king.
  • He tries to broker a compromise with Cersei Lannister: she needs to go into exile before he tells Robert that she's been cheating on him with her brother and none of the children are Robert's. But as the daughter of the richest, most powerful man in the realm and the sister/lover of an infamous warrior who already killed one king, letting Robert bludgeon her to death in a fit of rage really isn't a wise move either. Cersei chooses to spit on Ned's mercy and never fails to mock him for giving him this "head start". As it turns out, accepting Ned's offer to go into exile would have been the best thing Cersei could have done - by the end of the series, Cersei, Jaime, and all their children are dead as a result of her staying in King's Landing and backing Joffrey's claim to the throne, with their last avenue for escape being a boat to Pentos arranged by Tyrion and Davos, the very offer that Ned had given to her in Season 1, but this time lost forever by a cave-in, inches away from safety.
  • Ned Stark in his rage at Ser Gregor Clegane's rampage in the Riverlands, appoints Lord Beric Dondarrion to put together a band of lords and soldiers to bring him to justice. Littlefinger mocks Ned for pissing off Tywin Lannister and taking a stand against him. This command by Ned, leads Beric to form the Brotherhood Without Banners and they play a far more important role in saving Westeros from the Long Night, defending the North in particular, and saving Ned's daughter Arya as well. Ultimately their final recruit, Sandor, kills Gregor Clegane, bringing him to justice which is what Ned commanded them to do to start with. In short the Brotherhood end up outlasting the legacies of Littlefinger, Tywin Lannister, and indeed most of King's Landing.
• Good Is Not Soft: Ned's probably one of — if not — the most just and righteous characters in the entire world of Westeros, particularly amongst the nobility. He also happens to be hard, stoic and difficult to connect with for outsiders, who subsequently view him as cold and (at times) terrifying. However, he clearly does love his wife, children, family, and bannermen, and as noted above refuses to be involved in plots that would endanger the lives of children (up to and including Daenerys Targaryen, who's in her mid teens). While all the while being one of the fiercest warriors in Westeros.
• The Good King: Ned excels at two things: battle and administration. He is so loved by his bannermen and the smallfolk that his death at the hands of Southern rulers motivates them to never again submit to the Iron Throne and wage a civil war to avenge him.
• Good Parents: If there's anyone who can illustrate this trope, it's Ned. In fact, he's probably the only father in this setting along with Davos Seaworth (and maybe Mace Tyrell who is more Bumbling Dad than anything), who is not either aloof or a complete asshole.
• The Greatest Story Never Told: Straight and honest Ned Stark kept the greatest secret in Westeros: Jon is actually the secret son of the deceased Lyanna Stark and Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. Ned died convincing the whole world that he fathered a bastard son, Jon, and had broken his vows when, in actuality, this was a cover story Ned told to save his nephew, the only child of his beloved sister, from the wrath of the Baratheon regime. Ned spent the rest of his life protecting Jon, raising him as his own son and as part of his family — all out of love. Ned's wife Catelyn, and most everyone else, never knew the truth behind Ned’s actions and died believing Ned’s cover story that he had broken his marital vows. Now that his son Bran has seen this in a vision, Bran has the ability to reveal the true story.
• Grim Up North: Despite being from there he's still the only unambiguously good guy in the setting. Played straight however in that he's still hard, cold and stoic.
• Happily Married: To Catelyn, from a Perfectly Arranged Marriage, even. He never broke his vows to her and was faithful to her all along.
• The Hero: For Season 1, indisputably. He casts a long shadow after his death, with nary an episode gone by that his memory isn't invoked or referred to.
• The Hero Dies: As above, the main character of Season 1, only to be killed-off an episode before the first Season Finale.
• Heroes Prefer Swords: He sports Ice a lot in his promos.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: Seemed to be this with Robert Baratheon during their younger days.
• History Repeats: Ned promising to take care of the dying Robert's children. He did the same for his sister Lyanna.
• Honest Advisor: To Robert. "You're too fat for your armour" isn't a comment the king would accept from many people and least of all laugh about. This is also the reason why Robert asks him to join up as Hand of the King.
• Honor Before Reason:
  • There is his desire to ensure that Stannis becomes the King as Robert's rightful heir and at the same time ensure that Cersei and her children are spared which is incredibly naive to say the least. The dark side of this honor comes when Littlefinger advises him to Take a Third Option (blackmail Cersei and make Joffrey a Puppet King and rule as Regent) which Ned refuses to consider citing the Lannister's treatment of his children. Littlefinger points out that this would lead to open war between the Starks and the Lannisters and bring the Seven Kingdoms into war again which Ned fully accepts as a consequence of pursuing his current course.
  • Another point made by Jaime Lannister and Jorah Mormont is that he tends to be highly judgmental and self-righteous, condemning people who made dubious actions without listening to their side of the story. Jaime Lannister tells Brienne that when Ned Stark saw him standing over Aerys' body he didn't try to explain his side because he felt that Ned would never listen to him. Even when Jaime expresses genuine commiseration on the deaths of his father and brother, Ned refuses to accept it because to him Jaime is a selfish Lannister who stabbed his King and stood by while his father sacked the city and murdered the Princess and her children. Jorah Mormont also tells Daenerys when she gets her bout of self-righteousness that Ned Stark had the same attitude and if he had his way, he would be dead and denied his opportunity to redeem his honor in her service. What makes this tragic is that Ned admits to Cersei that he made mistakes in his past and is known across the realm to have fathered a bastard child.
  • In retrospect, one wonders whether Ned's Honor Before Reason is a personal trapping, his simple human decency manifesting itself, or something that was also developed/intensified by his being a ward of Jon Arryn, whose house's penchant for honor (bordering on Head-in-the-Sand Management, according to Littlefinger) is well-known. Considering both he and Robert continue to revere Jon Arryn even into their last days, it must have made a serious mark on both of them (even if, indeed, Robert never lived up to it).
• Horrible Judge of Character: "Of course I'll trust the man who hates me for marrying his childhood crush ^note  and that's not even going to the whole duel with his eldest brother which humiliated him and has told me repeatedly that I shouldn't trust him. What Could Possibly Go Wrong?" Though, to be fair, he doesn't trust Littlefinger at first, but Catelyn tells him that he can trust Littlefinger so part of the blame also goes to his wife as well.
• I Gave My Word: He kept his promise of protecting his sister's son until his death.
• Ignored Expert: A flashback in Season 6 shows that he actually saw a potential for Hodor (then known as Wylis) to become a warrior due to his size and allows him to train with Benjen. Old Nan, who was Wylis' guardian, politely brushes off her then little Lord's suggestion, citing social status.
• Inspirational Martyr: His life, example and the manner of his death, a good man undone by corrupt schemers simply because he sought justice, has made him this across Westeros for the likes of his family, but also for Stannis Baratheon (who despite his irritation with his son Robb for seceding from the Iron Throne) who wants to bring the Lannisters to justice, Varys, Thoros of Myr and Beric Dondarrion.
• Irony: He absolutely wouldn't let a child be killed and that's the reason he tells Cersei of his plan to expose Joffrey's parentage, so she would leave with her children before he does. He ends up with his head chopped off by the very child he was trying to save.
  • He fought a war with Robert to get his sister back, avenge his father and brother, and help overturn the Targaryen reign. However, by the time Ned found his sister Lyanna, she was dying after recently giving birth, but before her death, Lyanna begs Ned to save her child (Jon Snow)^note Lyanna named her son 'Aegon Targaryen' but as this name would lead to the discovery of who her child really is, Ned names him 'Jon' to protect him — Ned’s nephew — who also happens to be the last son of the crown prince Rhaegar Targaryen, making Ned’s own nephew the heir to the dynasty Ned helped abolish. Ned honors his sister’s Dying Wish and protects his nephew, who he raises and loves as his own, guarding one of the greatest kept secrets in Westeros by presenting him as his own illegitimate son to protect him from Robert’s wrath, the man he originally fought alongside.
• Judge, Jury, and Executioner: "The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword". A completely honorable version of the trope, it's meant as a safeguard against tyranny because a ruler who hides behind paid executioners soon forgets what death is. For Jorah Mormont, its more literal, since Ned Stark outright wanted to execute him for selling poachers into slavery forcing to him flee to Essos.

K-Z

• Killed Mid-Sentence: It's not an audible sentence, mind you, but he's clearly in the middle of the some sort of prayer when Ser Ilyn beheads him and is unable to finish it before the stroke falls.
• Kingmaker Scenario: He's placed into one, but doesn't take advantage of it like he probably should have. This was also not the first time, since Cersei pointed out that he could have taken the throne for himself at the end of Robert's Rebellion, which she states is his "biggest" mistake. Ned disagrees:
  Ned: I've made many mistakes in my life. But that wasn't one of them.
• Master Swordsman: He can match Jaime Lannister blow for blow. Also, Barristan is impressed by his skill. In Bran's vision of the Tower of Joy, Ned personally killed Ser Gerold Hightower, Lord Commander of Aerys II's Kingsguard, and fights a long duel with Ser Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the Morning.
• Modest Royalty: Definitely one of the most humble noblemen in all of Westeros. Case in point: when the servant who receives Ned in King's Landing asks if he'd like to change into something more appropriate for the King's Council meeting, Ned just takes his riding gloves off and goes as he is.
• My Master, Right or Wrong: Ned's sense of duty and honour means he will not refuse a direct order from his King. When Cersei demands the execution of Lady in lieu of the direwolf that bit Joffrey, Ned looks about ready to tell her where she and the other Lannisters can shove it. He only eventually acquiesces when Robert gives him a "get it done" look before storming out. However, as shown by his initial refusal to partake in the conspiracy to assassinate Daenerys Targaryen, his loyalty to Robert does have it's limits.
• Naïve Newcomer: To the Court. Poor Ned never fully grasps the subtle intricacies of King's Landing.
• Nerves of Steel: Seems awfully calm when surrounded by Lannister soldiers, with Jaime Lannister in front of him.
• Nephewism: Raised his sister's son as his own.
• Nice Guy: Although distant, Ned is amiable enough, A Father to His Men and loves his family unconditionally, especially so when compared to the likes of other lords such as Roose Bolton or Tywin Lannister. He was so kindhearted that he even tried to protect Cersei's children, despite them being incest born and their family being enemies to the Starks. Ned is easily one of the most honorable characters in the series.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Warning Cersei? Really? Varys calls him out on this the following episode telling him that his mercy towards Cersei's illegitimate children led to Robert's death, the very reason he became Hand in the first place. This ends up having serious repercussions. Not only does it lead to his own death, but the death of several of his family members and the destruction of his entire House. To top it all off, this action leads to Joffrey being crowned king and we all know how that went.
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: His warning of Cersei to save her children and his refusal to take Joffrey hostage get him arrested.
• No Historical Figures Were Harmed:
  • To Richard, 3rd Duke of York, who as regent to Plantagenet King Henry VI tried to seize the throne away from Margaret d'Anjou (for whom Cersei serves as an inspiration), only to fall in battle driving his sons to seek revenge.
  • He's also one for Richard III, the son of the Duke of York, named Lord Protector by the dying King Edward IV (Robert Baratheon), and who in the early part of his reign was loved by the people of Northern England for his fair sense of justice and being a man of high honor.
• Not So Stoic: That said, when he's around friends and family, he's a lot more relaxed and cheerful.
• Number Two: To King Robert as Hand of the King.
• Odd Friendship: The two are best friends, despite Ned being the exact opposite of Robert in nearly every way.
• Odd Name Out: He's the only one of his siblings whose name starts with a vowel (barring nicknames aside of course).
• Off with His Head!: Poor Ned's ultimate fate, when Joffrey instructs Ilyn Payne to 'bring me his head'.
• Old Friend: To King Robert, stemming from the two of them growing up as foster brothers.
• Oop North: Sean Bean supplies his Sheffield accent to the character.
• Out-of-Character Alert: The generally accepted story at the beginning of the series is that Jon Snow is the son of Ned Stark and an unknown woman he knocked up during Robert's Rebellion. However, Stannis, referencing Ned's honor, remarks on this story, "Perhaps, but that wasn’t Ned Stark’s way," which casts doubt on Jon's true parentage. Season 6 reveals that Jon is actually the son of Ned's sister Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen. Ned promised Lyanna on her deathbed that he would take care of Jon and not reveal his true parentage to anyone, including Robert Baratheon, who would have probably killed him. Ned keeps his word and raises Jon as his own.
• Papa Wolf: Not only a pun.
  • A clear example is his anger when his daughter isn't brought before him first after Joffrey ends up mauled. It even makes him forget he's speaking to his King. Not that the King minds.
  • He's also willing to tarnish his honourable reputation by proclaiming Joffrey as the true heir and be banished to the Night's Watch if it will save Sansa. Unfortunately, Joffrey had him killed, anyways.
• The Paragon: Ned Stark's memory serves as this to many characters even after his death, lasting well into Season 4. All his children in various ways try to live up to his teachings and example, while the North thoroughly adores him. Even the Lords of the Vale, who knew him as a young man when he fostered with Jon Arryn, know him well. Even Jaime Lannister, who did not get along with him at all, resolves to try and redeem his honor by tasking Brienne with safeguarding Ned Stark's daughter Sansa with "Oathkeeper", a sword Tywin re-purposed from "Ice":
  Jaime: You'll be protecting Ned Stark's daughter with his own sword.
• Parental Substitute: He is Jon Snow's uncle.
• Perfectly Arranged Marriage: His marriage to Catelyn was political, but they're mostly very compatible (but not without a major setback, that Ned wasn't even guilty of).
• Phrase Catcher: Ned is told by several characters about his late father's Cruel and Unusual Death throughout Season 1.
• Plot-Triggering Death: Jon Arryn's death may have set the process in motion, but it's Ned's execution that ultimately plunges Westeros into all-out, bloody war.
• Proud Warrior Race Guy: If the observations of Jaime, Tywin, and Varys are to be believed, the Northmen seem to have a shade of this. And Ned's one of them.
• Real Men Love Jesus: Ned is a devout follower of the Gods of the First Men and Children of the Forest though he is religiously tolerant. His wife Catelyn is a devotee of the Faith of the Seven, and their children were raised in both faiths, with Robb marrying Talisa before a Septon despite being King in the North, and Sansa being, initially, strong in the Faith of the Seven.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Robert's reason for wanting Ned as Hand of the King. In fact, if he had it his way, he'd let Ned rule the Seven Kingdoms with him.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Gives one to Robert.
  Ned: I followed you into war, twice. Without doubts, without second thoughts. But I will not follow you now. The Robert I grew up with didn't tremble at the shadow of an unborn child.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni:
  • The grim, quiet, peace-loving Blue to Robert's boisterous, hedonistic Red.
  • He was also the patient, soft-spoken Blue to his brother Brandon's reckless, Hot-Blooded Red.
• Replacement Goldfish: He himself is one. After his older brother, Brandon, was executed it fell to Ned to become Lord of Winterfell and marry Catelyn Tully.
• Retired Badass: Ned's had enough of fighting in war and clearly intends to spend his remaining years governing the North with his family. That is, until Robert showed up out of the blue, hellbent on making him the next Hand of the King.
• Sacrificial Lion: Conclusive proof that decency, honesty and Westeros don't mix very well.
• Sadistic Choice:
  • How he feels upon learning of the illegitimacy of the Royal Children. He can be loyal to his friend Robert, tell him the truth, and drive him into an insane fury that would most likely cause him to kill not only Cersei and Jaime, but also Joffrey, Tommen and Myrcella, who, upon being declared as abominations, will be murdered as well, or he can listen to Cersei and ignore the issue altogether and allow the Lannisters to install their inbred corrupt dynasty. In the end, he gets killed by the very boy-king, Joffrey, whose life he hoped to spare.
  • When he finds Lyanna on her deathbed with her newborn child (Jon), Ned has the following choices. He can allow the world to know his sister had a child with Prince Rhaegar Targaryen, the man King Robert hated more than anyone, which would put his sister’s son in fatal danger from Robert, or Ned can protect his nephew, honor his sister’s Dying Wish, and put himself in the line of fire out of love for Lyanna and Jon. Ned brings his nephew home with him to Winterfell and claims Jon as his bastard son to protect Jon from their family’s enemies. Ned loves Jon and raises him as his own alongside his trueborn children but Ned's lie tarnishes his reputation, strains his marriage, and Jon experiences a series of issues related to his bastard status and never knowing about his mother because it is too dangerous for Ned to reveal the truth.
• Second Love: Catelyn really loved (and was originally betrothed to) his eldest brother.
• Secret-Keeper: Took the secret of Jon Snow's parentage to the grave.
• Shell-Shocked Veteran: In stark contrast to Robert, who misses war and his glory days. Best shown in "Lord Snow", where Ned watches Arya practicing fencing with Syrio Forel, only to have his amused expression slowly turns grim as he's gradually reminded of the hell of war, apparently hearing the distant sound of swords clashing and men dying.
• Shoot the Dog: His killing of Sansa's direwolf Lady because, in his words: "The wolf is of the North. She deserves better than a butcher." It's worth noting that Ned refuses to ask or even let someone else take responsibility for Shooting The Dog, as shown with both Will the deserter and Lady. He even looks them in the eyes (and hears out their last words, in Will's case).
• Taking the Heat: He falsely claims he ordered Tyrion's arrest to protect Catelyn from the Lannisters.
• The Skeptic: He's openly dismissive of Will's claims the White Walkers killed the rest of his party from the Night's Watch, also telling Bran they've been gone for centuries and blaming wildlings as the likely culprits of the attack to Benjen.
• The Stoic: Grim, cold, and distant, unless around his family.
• Story-Breaker Power: Politically speaking, Ned Stark was an absolute powerhouse. He's head of one of the most respected houses in Westeros, and controls the North which, as we learn later, is actually very difficult to subjugate. And as best friend/Hand of the King, he really doesn't have to say much to Robert to get anything done. The Lannisters coming into power explicitly involves removing Ned from the board. Add to that, the revelations he's sitting on concerning the true parentage of his "bastard" Jon Snow and you have a character whose existence would make most of the events of the story null and void.
• Stupid Sexy Flanders: Littlefinger, who hates Ned, calls him "an even more impressive specimen" than his brother Brandon, who was already noted to be a Hunk in-universe.
• 10-Minute Retirement: As Hand of the King, due to a disagreement with Robert.
• Token Good Teammate: To the Decadent Court of King's Landing.
• Toxic Friend Influence: Robert, who Catelyn even lampshades in the first episode, has a tendency to lead Ned into trouble. If only she knew.
• Tragic Hero:
  • Ned is a straight example in that his very values and character and identity lead him to his death; if he had done otherwise he would not be the same person. He absolutely will not commit or condone the heinous action of killing a child regardless of the political benefit. In the end, he gets killed by the cruel whims of the same child that he had intended to spare from Robert's wrath.
  • Out of love for Lyanna and his nephew Jon, Ned lies to everyone that Jon Snow is his bastard son to protect him from his enemies. This action causes strain in his own marriage, leading to Jon Snow being raised under somewhat difficult circumstances, since Catelyn resented his presence and there was nearly nothing he could do about it.
• Tranquil Fury: Indulges in this when Jaime kills Jory. And it nearly carried him to victory.
• Trauma Conga Line: Ned is arrested, stripped of his lands and titles, forced to falsely confess treason and conspiracy to take the Iron Throne for himself, sentenced to death after being promised he would be spared if he confessed and finally beheaded with his own sword — the same he used himself to kill criminals, no less — in front of the mob and his own daughters, with his head put and left to rot on a pike.
• Turn in Your Badge: He turns in his badge as Hand of the King after a disagreement with Robert. Within hours he finds that this leaves him and his household unprotected against reprisals from the Lannisters.
• Universally Beloved Leader: The North loved him so much that they're willing to throw their lots in with his children to avenge him when Ned is unfairly murdered in King's Landing.
• Warrior Prince: Ned is one of the greatest fighters in Westeros, and also wields a great deal of authority. It's right there in his own creed: He who passes the sentence, should swing the sword.
• Worf Had the Flu: Had Ned not suffered from a severe leg injury prior to Robert's death, he would have fought valiantly when Littlefinger and the Gold Cloaks turned on him when contesting Joffrey's coronation.
• Would Not Hurt A Child:
  • After seeing what happened to the Targaryen children during Robert's Rebellion, Ned does not want to see history repeat itself. While warning Cersei to take the children and run might have been the noble thing to do, it wasn't the smartest thing to do. Ironically, this action alone did not result in his death. Cersei never intended to kill him, merely sent to the Night's Watch. He was finally killed on the whim of a boy-king, the very person he had intended to spare.
  • The reason for Ned holding to this belief is his fear for Jon Snow's safety, who is in actuality Ned's blood nephew and the son of Ned's sister Lyanna Stark and Rheagar Targaryen. Robert Baratheon wanted to kill all of Rhaegar's offspring which, if the truth were revealed, would include Jon as well. Ned internalized this to protect Jon and tried to protect other children in danger from the crown as well, including Daenerys Targaryen and Cersei's children.