It was easy keeping track of Game of Thrones‘ dragons. Daenerys Stormborn took three eggs into the flames and rose unscathed from the ashes with three “children.” That was it! And you didn’t even need to remember their names because each had a distinct color. Khaleesi’s favorite and the biggest, the one she flew on, was the black dragon Drogon. Then there was gold Viserion, whom the Night King turned into an undead ice dragon. And finally, there was green Rhaegal, claimed by Jon Snow. But the skies of Westeros were overrun with “fire made flesh” on House of the Dragon. The prequel series shows us House Targaryen at its strongest, when they had 17 dragons prior to the civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons. But how will you keep track of all of House of the Dragon‘s numerous dragons?
The good news is you don’t have to. We’ve got you covered—with as few spoilers as possible. Here’s a list of all the dragons you’ll see on House of the Dragon, along with their riders. And we’ll keep updating this post every time one of them appears on the prequel series. For now, this list of House of the Dragon‘s dragons is complete through season one.
House of the Dragon’s Dragons; Jump to Rhaenyra Targaryen’s Dragon, Syrax // Daemon Targaryen’s Dragon, Caraxes // Unhatched Dragon Egg // Laenor Velaryon’s Dragon, Seasmoke // Rhaenys Targaryen’s Dragon, Meleys // Jacaerys Velaryon’s Dragon, Vermax // Laena (Velaryon) Targaryen and Aemond Targaryen’s Dragon Vhagar // Dreamfyre // The Unclaimed Dragon, Vermithor // Prince Lucerys Velaryon’s Dragon Arrax // House of the Dragon Season 2 Dragons
How Many Dragons Will Appear During House of the Dragon Season One?
House of the Dragon‘s co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik told Empire that season one would feature nine of House Targaryen’s 17 dragons. While each dragon has its own look, the Game of Thrones alum says the creatures are easier to differentiate by their individual traits, as each dragon has its own personality.
That’s no surprise. We already know Game of Thrones‘ dragons are highly-intelligent creatures with minds of their own. But with so many different personalities flying around, it will be fun to see how they interact with their fellow dragons. And it will be entertaining to see how the dragons’ attitudes either mirror or conflict with their riders. Dragons only accept a single rider—of Valyrian blood—while both still live. For now, here are the dragons we’ve already met on House of the Dragon and all the ones we got to see in season one.
Which Dragons Have Already Appeared on House of the Dragon?
Syrax (Dragon Rider: Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen)
A giant yellow-scaled she-dragon who took young Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen as rider in 104 AC. House of the Dragon opened with the princess riding high over King’s Landing while in a saddle on Syrax’s back. Thanks to her parents, we also now know you can smell like a dragon after taking one for a spin.
Syrax is also still laying dragon eggs—three in episode eight—setting the stage for more dragon riders to come in House Targaryen’s internal battle.
Caraxes (Dragon Rider: Daemon Targaryen)
In 105 AC, Daemon Targaryen became the second member of his family to mount Caraxes, the large red dragon known as the Blood Wyrm. Caraxes’ original dragonrider was Prince Aemon Targaryen, but Daemon took him as his dragon after Aemon’s murder. Caraxes made a big impression in House of the Dragon‘s premiere. That included how it brought out the tender side of Prince Daemon.
Don’t let that fool you, though. Caraxes is a fearsome creature.
Unhatched Dragon Egg
Technically, episode two of House of the Dragon didn’t feature a new dragon. But we’re positive there’s one inside the egg Daemon stole. How can there not be when that egg—originally meant for King Viserys’s son Baelon—already feels like Chekhov’s dragon? For now, all we know is that the egg belongs to the dragon Dreamfyre. But we think it could ultimately hatch and bond with one of Viserys’ offspring. Could this be the egg of Sunfyre? Sunfyre was almost certainly born soon after this episode aired.
(You can read more about that dragon below.)
Seasmoke (Dragon Rider: Laenor Velaryon)
The silver-gray dragon accepted Laenor Velaryon (son of Rhaenys Targaryen, which makes him eligible for dragon-riding) as its rider by the year 101 AC. The duo didn’t make their House of the Dragon debut, though, until the show’s third episode. That’s when Laenor and Seasmoke helped Laenor’s father Lord Corlys Velaryon and Prince Daemon Targaryen defeat the Crabfeeder in the Stepstones. Although, Laenor does not die in season one of the Game of Thrones prequel series, he fakes his own death and goes into hiding. Presently, it seems that Seasmoke resides in Driftmark. Daemon Targaryen hoped to use the dragon to help secure Princess Rhaenyra’s claim to the throne on House of the Dragon, but it is not yet clear what will happen with the dragon since Laenor, his rider, remains alive.
Meleys (Rider: Rhaenys Targaryen)
Rhaenys, “The Queen Who Never Was,” became the second Targaryen to sit upon the swift red and pink she-dragon Meleys when they bonded in 87 AC. The first Targaryen to ride Meleys was Princess Alyssa Targaryen. But unfortunately, Meleys lost her dragonrider when the Targaryen princess died while giving birth. In her prime, Meleys was known as one of the fastest of dragons. With time she slowed, but she remained no less cunning.
We finally saw Rhaenys flying Meleys in House of the Dragon‘s fifth episode. As House of the Dragon revealed, this rosy-hued dragon has a “crown” of thorns around her head, hence Meleys’ nickname the “Red Queen.” But after the show’s ninth episode we can also call her the “Beast Beneath the Boards,” as Rhaenys rode Meleys up into the arena of the Dragonpit during Aegon II’s coronation, killing quite a few citizen and causing general mayhem.
Vermax (Rider: Jacaerys Velaryon)
Prince Jacaerys, Rhaenyra Targaryen’s son, bonded with the young green dragon after it hatched in his crib. In Game of Thrones’ book, Fire & Blood, it is noted that Vermax especially disliked ice, snow, and cold. This probably means the dragon won’t love the trip North he set out on with “Jace” in House of the Dragon‘s season one finale.
Vhagar (Rider: Laena (Velaryon) Targaryen / Rider: Aemond Targaryen)
Vhagar was one of the three dragons that helped Aegon, and his sisters conquer Westeros. He was first claimed by Queen Visenya. Later, the bronze she-dragon with green-blue coloring and green eyes took Laena Velaryon as its rider. But the dragon didn’t establish its importance on House of the Dragon until the show’s sixth episode
Instead of facing death during childbirth, Laena took matters into her own hands. She told Vhagar “dracarys” until the dragon engulfed her in flame.
After Laena’s funeral on Driftmark young Aemond Targaryen claimed the massive Vhagar as his own, though not without a cost. An ensuing fight with his cousins led to Aemond losing an eye. The young prince was happy to pay that “rpice,” though. He had long desired a dragon of his own.
Vhagar helped set the coming Targaryen civil war in motion when he killed Prince Lucerys and his dragon Arrax in House of the Dragon‘s season one finale. Seeing this instense violence between dragons on House of the Dragon was shocking, but more is surely to come.
Dreamfyre
Aemond Targaryen came across the slim, blue she-dragon with silver wings, Dreamfyre, in the Dragonpit around 120 AC. While we know Dreamfyre’s rider at this time, the show has yet to establish which member of House Targaryen rides her.
Dreamfyre might also connect House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones together. Some theorize that Dreamfyre laid the eggs that became Daenerys Targaryen’s dragons, Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion.
Vermithor (Rider: King Jaeherys I (Deceased) / Unclaimed)
One of the largest dragons to ever fly over Westeros, the bronze beast belonged to House Targaryen’s longest-reigning ruler in the Realm, The Old King Jaeherys I. Vermithor outlived the King and remained unclaimed at the start of the Dance of the Dragons. The beast finally appeared on House of the Dragon during the show’s season one finale, when Daemon sang a song in High Valyrian to lure the dragon from its rest. Rhaenyra’s forced to hope they will find a rider for Vermithor. One dragon could make all the difference in the upcoming fight on House of the Dragon.
Arrax (Rider: Prince Lucerys Velaryon)
The small, young dragon Arrax appeared on House of the Dragon with blue scales. Though quick and agile, the dragon was unable to outrun or outfight Vhagar high above Storm’s End. Vhagar bit Arrax in half, killing Prince Lucerys and killing the dragon.
ADDITIONAL READING
Aegon’s Conquest, When Dragons Came to Westeros
Dragonstone, Birthplace of a Dynasty and Home of Dragonglass
Rhaenyra Targaryen, the First Woman to Sit on the Iron Throne
The Dragonpit and the Demise of Dragons
The Chilling Legend of Ice Dragons
What Other Dragons Exist During the Dance of the Dragons?
In addition to the dragons mentioned above, House Targaryen also had eight other dragons before civil war pitted the beasts against one another in 129 AC. That included the full-sized dragons Silverwing, Tessarion, Sunfyre, Tyraxes, and Moondancer, as well as three hatchlings too small to ride: Stormcloud, Morghul, and Shrykos.
However, during that time three wild, unbonded dragons also lived on Dragonstone: Grey Ghost, Sheepstealer, and the Cannibal.
In a war pitting dragon-against-dragon, both in the air and on the ground, you can imagine the possibilities a wild dragon presents. But there’s a reason those three had no riders by the time war broke out.
What did that mean for anyone who tried to sit on their back? And what about the dragons we didn’t see in season one? Who flew them high above the Seven Kingdoms? We’ll let you learn all of that on your own when House of the Dragon brings those many magical creatures to life in season two.
Don’t worry, though, we’ll make sure to update this post to help you can keep track of all of them. It was a lot easier when Daenerys only had three of them.
This post originally published on August 17.
Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on Twitter at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.
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