Warning: Spoilers ahead for the “House of the Dragon” season three premiere.
As its title suggests, “House of the Dragon” focuses largely on the fabled dragonlords of Westeros.
The HBO series is based on George R. R. Martin’s fictional history book “Fire & Blood.” It tells the story of the Targaryen civil war, known as the Dance of the Dragons, which fractured the family and decimated the dragon population. Flash forward about 170 years, when “Game of Thrones” begins: there are very few Targaryens left alive, and the dragons have already been extinct for generations. (That is, until Daenerys steps into that funeral pyre.)
Legend has it that only members of House Targaryen, directly descended from the Blood of Old Valyria, are able to communicate and bond with dragons. In Martin’s books, the ancient Valyrians believed they were literally related to dragons — and many Targaryens who ruled Westeros believed themselves to be closer to gods than men.
However, in “House of the Dragon” season two, we see that merely a drop of Valyrian blood can do the trick. Bastards known as “dragonseeds” are able to claim dragons just as well as the incestuous royal family.
Three low-born men join the ranks of dragonriders in “House of the Dragon” season two. In the season three premiere, yet another character makes history by claiming a wild dragon, something previously thought to be impossible — or at least exceedingly dangerous.
Here are all the new dragonriders that appear in “House of the Dragon” seasons two and three.
Eammon Jacobs contributed to a previous version of this story.
Addam of Hull bonds with Seasmoke.
“House of the Dragon” season two introduces two important brothers, Addam and Alyn of Hull (played by Clinton Liberty and Abubakar Salim, respectively), who are both shipwrights in the powerful Velaryon fleet.
Addam and Alyn are both bastards, having grown up in the shipyard with only a mother. In “Fire & Blood,” some historians claim their father is Laenor Velaryon (John MacMillan), the late husband of Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy), but the show confirms what many suspect: their father is actually Laenor’s father, Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint), also known as the Sea Snake.
Corlys had long been married to Princess Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best), and he struggles to admit his infidelity. After his wife’s death, he finally begins to accept Addam and Alyn as his sons.
In fact, Addam’s true parentage is impatient to reveal itself. He spontaneously bonds with Seasmoke, previously claimed by Laenor, after the dragon chases him down.
Addam readily bends the knee to Rhaenyra, and he joins her army as the first non-Targaryen dragonrider.
Ulf accidentally claims Silverwing.
Ulf the White (Tom Bennett), nicknamed for his Targaryen-esque hair color, pops up a few times throughout the second season. He witnesses the hanging of the ratcatchers after the murder of Jaehaerys Targaryen, and he’s also in the bar when King Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) takes his new Kingsguard knights out for a drink.
On this boozy night, Ulf confides to his tavernmates that his father was Prince Baelon the Brave — making him the illegitimate half-brother of Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) and the late King Viserys (Paddy Considine). Ulf even refers to King Aegon as his nephew.
In this scene, it’s unclear if Ulf is just drunk and inventing stories to make himself seem impressive. (In the book, he’s also known as Ulf the Sot, on account of his apparent alcoholism.)
In episode seven, however, Ulf’s claim seems to bear weight. When Rhaenyra puts out the call for new dragonriders to join her service — offering honor and knighthood in exchange — he reluctantly heads to Dragonstone after some encouragement from his drinking buddies. When confronted with a real-life dragon, Ulf flees through the caves beneath the island.
During his attempted escape, Ulf comes face to face with Silverwing, the former dragon of Queen Alysanne Targaryen.
It’s unclear why, but Silverwing takes a liking to Ulf. The book says that Silverwing, along with Seasmoke and Vermithor, had grown “accustomed to men and tolerant of their presence.” It also makes clear that these are unpredictable creatures: “Who can know the heart of a dragon?”
Ulf claims Silverwing and takes flight above King’s Landing. At this point, Ulf is sworn to serve Rhaenyra — but it remains to be seen where his boastful, reckless nature will lead him.
Hugh Hammer bonds with Vermithor during the Red Sowing.
Rhaenyra’s attempt to find new dragonriders is known in the book as the Red Sowing; at least a dozen people were killed and many more burned in their attempts to claim a dragon, including the Lord Commander of her own Queensguard.
“House of the Dragon” season two, episode seven, “The Red Sowing,” depicts this bloody sacrifice as Rhaenyra sends bastards and low-born hopefuls to their death. Most are set aflame by Vermithor, the former dragon of King Jaehaerys I Targaryen.
Hugh Hammer (Kieran Bew) is not one of these unlucky victims. The blacksmith was introduced in the season two premiere, asking King Aegon for advance payment in exchange for his labor. At that time, Hugh’s daughter was suffering from an illness that eventually took her life.
Hugh believes that his mother was Saera Targaryen, the ninth daughter of King Jaehaerys.
Like Ulf, Hugh answers Rhaenyra’s call, believing it’s a chance to improve his family’s life.
“I tried to make my way with my own hands. I could not protect you. I could not keep our girl alive,” Hugh tells his wife before departing for Dragonstone. “We would never want again. If I claimed a dragon, they’d make you a lady.”
Unlike Ulf, Hugh has strength and grit. As others flee from Vermithor’s rampage, Hugh stands his ground and even saves someone else from the bursts of dragonflame.
When the bloodthirsty dragon locks eyes with Hugh, the blacksmith yells defiantly, “Come on!” That seems to do the trick.
Vermithor, nicknamed the “Bronze Fury,” is one of the oldest and biggest dragons in Westeros. He’ll be a deadly weapon under Hugh’s control.
Rhaena Targaryen secretly claims the wild dragon Sheepstealer.
Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell) is the second daughter of Prince Daemon and his late second wife, Lady Laena Velaryon (Nanna Blondell).
Unlike her sister Baela Targayen (Bethany Antonia), who rides Moondancer, Rhaena did not bond with a dragon as a child. Instead, Rhaena’s hatchling was sickly and died young.
Throughout the show, Rhaena struggles with being overlooked and dismissed by her family, especially her father. In season two, she’s sent to the Vale to look after Rhaenyra’s three youngest sons. She’s also meant to escort the boys on their voyage across the narrow sea, to the free city of Pentos — but she decides to run away instead.
In the season two finale, Rhaena finds Sheepstealer, a wild dragon roaming the Vale.
In the book, Sheepstealer is described as “a notably ugly ‘mud brown’ dragon” with a “taste for mutton.” Despite being riderless and isolated from people his entire life, Sheepstealer almost never harms the shepherds.
In the show’s season three premiere, Sheepstealer allows Rhaena to mount his back. The dragon strands Rhaena on a cliffside, where he brings two helpings of mutton to share. They bond — but instead of Sheepstealer bending to his rider’s will, Rhaena seems to become wilder to match the dragon’s nature.
Later in the episode, Rhaena flies Sheepstealer into battle, but she can’t command the dragon as her family members can theirs. Rhaena’s attempt at heroism quickly becomes a disaster when Sheepstealer burns the wrong warships, destroying the fleet commanded by her own grandfather, Corlys, and unintentionally causing the death of her cousin, Prince Jace (Harry Collett).
This is a major change from the book, in which a mysterious young girl called Nettles is the one to claim Sheepstealer. Although it’s unclear if Nettles has Valyrian ancestry, she manages to charm the wild dragon by killing sheep and leaving their carcasses for it to eat.
It seems that “House of the Dragon” is scrapping Nettles in favor of expanding Rhaena’s role — but this change comes with its own complications. Rhaena has now unwittingly made herself an enemy of Rhaenyra, whereas in the book, Nettles is the queen’s ally.
In the book, Alyn of Hull is rejected by Sheepstealer.
In “House of the Dragon,” Alyn of Hull does not attempt to bond with a dragon. Much like his father, Corlys, he’s better suited to salt and sea than to fire and blood.
In the book, however, Alyn does attempt to answer Rhaenyra’s call for more dragonriders. He initially seeks the wild dragon Grey Ghost, a “notably shy dragon who avoided men and their works for years at a time.” When Alyn can’t find Grey Ghost, he tries to claim Sheepstealer, but the dragon rejects and burns him.
“Sheepstealer would have none of him,” the book reads. “When he stumbled from the dragon’s lair with his cloak aflame, only his brother’s swift action saved his life. Seasmoke drove the wild dragon off as Addam used his own cloak to beat out the flames. Alyn Velaryon would carry the scars of the encounter on his back and legs for the rest of his long life.”
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