[General — Lore]
After the execution of Rickard Karstark , half of Robb's army at Riverrun abandons him. In order to replace his losses, Robb tries to regain the support of Walder Frey, who withdrew his support for the North 's cause when Robb reneged on his promise to marry one of Walder's daughters. As compensation for violating the agreement, Lord Frey demands that Edmure Tully wed one of his daughters. Edmure selflessly agrees to the terms, and the wedding is held at the Twins. A number of lords from the North and the Riverlands attend the wedding with their bannermen.
Robb is lulled into a false sense of security by Lord Frey, who vows to assure his guests' safety in accordance with the guest right . While Robb and his mother are aware of their host's nature, neither imagined that even such a despicable man as he would sink so low as to break such a sacred pact.
The door of the great hall was closed by Black Walder . Meanwhile, Roose Bolton and his men were to position themselves around the hall, secretly armed and armored. Very carefully, they all sat behind Stark bannermen and refrained from consuming any alcohol, so as to keep their inhibitions intact. The signal for massacre to begin was an instrumental version of " The Rains of Castamere ."
Walder Frey eventually holds a hand up to cue the musicians to cease playing, addressing Robb and claiming that he has been negligent in his duties as a host by failing to present his king with a proper wedding gift. At this moment, Roose Bolton gives Catelyn a knowing look and glances towards his left arm. Her eyes follow his gaze and she sees a bit of chain mail peeking out from his sleeve. She then lifts up his sleeve which reveals the chain mail he is wearing underneath. Roose smiles ominously and Catelyn realizes that they have been led into a trap: she slaps Roose across the face and then shouts to warn Robb, but it is too late.
At Walder Frey's signal, Lothar Frey approaches Talisa from behind and repeatedly stabs her in the abdomen with a dagger, killing her unborn child instantly and causing her to quickly succumb to her wounds. The musicians hired for the wedding reveal themselves to be assassins , brandishing crossbows and firing at Robb and the Northern guests gathered in the main hall. After the first volley, the Northern guests are attacked in the main hall by armed Frey and Bolton men, while the crossbowmen continue to pick off survivors.
Outside the keep, Frey and Bolton men turn on the other Northern soldiers in the camps, who had been heavily drinking during the celebrations, taking them completely by surprise. Four Frey crossbowmen approach Grey Wind , who has been forbidden from entering the castle to prevent him from defending Robb during the massacre, and fatally shoot him with crossbows as he is trapped inside a pen. Arya , who has snuck into the courtyard in the hopes of reuniting with her mother and brother, witnesses the direwolf's killing while hiding behind some nearby barrels.
Robb, wounded with several crossbow bolts, crawls towards Talisa and embraces her, devastated over the loss of his beloved wife and unborn child. Lord Walder, seeing that Robb has survived the initial onslaught, raises a hand to halt the carnage and watches Robb's suffering with cruel amusement. Catelyn, who had taken refuge under her table, notices that Walder Frey's eighth wife, Joyeuse Frey , is hiding beneath Walder's table and rushes forward, dragging her out and putting a table knife to her throat. She beseeches Walder to end the slaughter and allow Robb to leave. She offers herself as a hostage in exchange for Robb's life, desperately screaming at Robb to walk out while he can but he is too shocked over Talisa's death and instead poignantly looks at her corpse.
When Robb fails to respond, she turns back to Walder and promises that they will not retaliate if he is allowed to live, swearing an oath. Walder fires back that she already swore an oath to him that Robb would marry his daughter. In a last plea of desperation, she swears on her honor as a Tully and a Stark that if Robb is not allowed to leave the chamber, she will slit his wife's throat. Walder weighs the options in his head before glibly responding "I'll find another ."
Robb then somehow finds the strength to drag himself back onto his feet, and weakly calls out "Mother!" to her in a daze. As Catelyn looks into Robb's eyes, Roose Bolton steps in front of Robb and tells him "the Lannisters send their regards", stabbing him through the heart. Robb is killed instantly and shares a final, lifeless look to his mother before he dies next to his wife.
True to her word, Catelyn slits Joyeuse's throat and lets out a wail of grief, believing all of her sons to be dead. Walder shows little concern over his wife's death or the ongoing massacre, nonchalantly sipping his wine. Catelyn then becomes catatonic, silently staring at Robb's corpse in shock and utter despair, not reacting as her own throat is slit nearly to the bone from behind by Black Walder.
Catelyn's corpse is also desecrated (although we do not see this happen in the TV version): in cruel mockery of traditional House Tully funeral customs, which involve cremating a body on a burning boat set adrift in the Trident River, the Freys unceremoniously fling Lady Catelyn's corpse naked from the battlements of the Twins, throwing it into the river to rot as if it were merely trash. Amidst the chaos, Arya escapes horseback with the Hound.
Nearly all of the Stark bannermen at the wedding were slain. The books mention only four who were taken alive, three from the Riverlands and one from the North: Edmure Tully, Marq Piper, Patrek Mallister, and Greatjon Umber. It is unknown if any of the other guests were taken alive too.
Brynden Tully is not present for the wedding in the books, since Robb had him stay behind at Riverrun to command their rearguard and hold the line of the Red Fork , creating for him the title "Warden of the Southern Marches." Brynden is shown leaving the main hall to relieve himself before the fighting starts in the show; however, in the following episode Roose Bolton confirms that he has escaped, apparently heading back to Riverrun (to bring him back in sync with his book location). It is probable that the TV producers didn't want the audience to suspect that the Freys would betray Robb, which would be unlikely if the entire Stark-Tully family was present. In the books, Robb leaves Brynden and his queen at Riverrun because he is worried that the Freys will exact vengeance for breaking his betrothal, but if this had happened in the TV series it may have made their intentions too obvious. Even so, when Robb actually arrived at the Twins, his fears disappeared when Walder Frey formally extended guest right to him, as no lord ever breaks such a sacred tradition, thus the Freys' betrayal was still a surprise.
Catelyn does not slit the throat of Walder Frey's young wife Joyeuse Erenford in the books. Instead, she takes Walder Frey's lackwit middle-aged grandson Aegon "Jinglebell" Frey hostage. Aegon is the court fool at the Twins, derisively made to wear a jester's hat filled with bells, hence his nickname. The other Freys cruelly enjoy watching the fool caper and prance about. In their confrontation, Catelyn says she'll trade a son for a son, but Walder points out that Jinglebell is only a grandson and has never been of much use. While this does keep the already large number of characters down, it omits the revelation of Walder's hypocrisy: for all of his protestations that he values family above all else, in truth he would casually sacrifice a grandson without regret.
The manner of Catelyn's death is also slightly different: in the books, Catelyn is so consumed by grief at the sight of Robb's death that she claws at her face, raking her fingernails across her cheeks until she has carved out long strips of flesh and is bleeding profusely. She becomes so hysterical out of a mixture of shock and grief that she goes half-mad and starts laughing uncontrollably, as the blood from her devastated face "tickles", mingling with her tears, until ultimately the horrified Freys (who had planned to take her hostage) put her out of her misery by slitting her throat. The TV series's version just has Catelyn stare vacantly in utter, silent despair, not even reacting as Black Walder slits her throat. Another change is that in the books Catelyn is killed by Raymund Frey, a relatively minor character who is the eleventh son of Lord Walder Frey, his sixth son by his third wife. Her body is dumped into the Green Fork ; several days afterwards she is found by the Brotherhood Without Banners and resurrected, becoming the monstrous Lady Stoneheart (also omitted from the show).
The Frey musicians do not stop playing "The Rains of Castamere" during the massacre. It was the signal used to Frey and Bolton men throughout the Twins and in the camps outside to begin the attack, thus the slaughter in the main hall began soon after they started playing. Catelyn and many other Northerners instantly realize something is wrong when they start playing "the Lannister song", as opposed to in the TV series where Catelyn sits worried and confused when the Frey musicians start playing it. The musicians continue to play the song loudly as fighting breaks out in the main hall, in order to signal men further away in the camps. Additionally, in the show Talisa comments on how talented the musicians are: in the books they are noticeably terrible, probably because the musicians are actually crossbowmen in disguise.
The books later clarify that the main architects of the massacre were Tywin Lannister, Roose Bolton, and Walder Frey. The plan loosely came about after the Battle of the Blackwater , when it became obvious that the Lannisters were winning the war. Tywin never met Roose and Walder in person, but conducted the negotiations through secret letters sent by messenger raven: quite probably, the letters he was nonchalantly writing earlier in Season 3 of the TV series were implied to be these very messages. In terms of the TV series, this means that Roose was secretly plotting to kill Robb during all of his earlier scenes in Season 3, even those between Roose and Robb himself: he was simply feigning loyalty the entire time. There was also a fourth major architect of the massacre, Lord Walder's son Lame Lothar Frey. Lame Lothar is the steward of the Twins and in charge of managing the castle. While Walder himself made the general decision to betray the Starks, Lame Lothar planned out the practical details of the betrayal, assigning specific tasks to each group of Frey soldiers. The TV series doesn't directly explain this, though it does have Lame Lothar personally kill Robb's wife Talisa.
Just as the music starts playing, Catelyn grabs Edwyn Frey (one of Lord Walder's great-grandsons) by the arm and notices he is wearing chainmail underneath his outer clothing. She realizes this means the Freys are about to attack them, and she slaps him. This was changed to Roose Bolton in the TV version.
Grey Wind is let loose during the massacre by Raynald Westerling, Jeyne Westerling's older brother, who did not take part in the scheme. According to Merrett Frey, the direwolf kills four wolfhounds and rips the kennelmaster's arm off before being brought down by crossbow fire; Raynald's brave attempt to save Grey Wind presumably costs his life, as he is shot by two arrows, jumps into the river, and his body is never found. In the TV version, Grey Wind is mercilessly shot while inside his pen and incapable of fighting back at all, unable to do anything but growl.
The Northern host has severly dwindled since the beginning of A Storm of Swords : about 5,000 soldiers have been killed due to Roose Bolton's treachery (3,000 at Duskendale and 2,000 at the Ruby Ford ), and the Frey and Karstask troops have deserted. Of his remaining troops, Robb brings 3,500 soldiers to the Twins; Roose brings 500 horses and 3,000 foot, most of them are Dreadfort troops and the rest are Karstark soldies (all of whom turn against the Starks during the massacre); Roose leaves 600 soldiers at the Ford, allegedly to prevent the Mountain from crossing the river, but probably to decrease the loyal troops which Robb will have in disposal; the rest are left at Riverrun under the command of the Blackfish.
Ramsay rejects Jon's terms in turn, as he has heard of Jon's reputation as the best swordsman in the North, and he knows his army is more numerous and better equipped than Jon's. Jon retorts by pointing out that Ramsay's army is built on shaky loyalty, whereas his own know that their leader would live and die for them. This angers Ramsay, and prompts him to threaten to kill Rickon if Jon will not surrender. It is at this moment Sansa questions whether Ramsay really has their brother; Smalljon Umber answers by pulling out Shaggydog 's severed head and throwing it at their feet. When Ramsay starts to speak again, Sansa confidently tells him that he is going to die when they meet on the battlefield the next day and to sleep well.
At the Stark camp, plans are drawn up for the coming battle. Knowing that Ramsay's numbers are superior, and Tormund not wanting to be annihilated by mounted soldiers as when Stannis and Davos defeated the wildings , they will instead bait him into a " double envelopment ", using his recklessness and anger against him. After Davos, Tormund, and the rest of the lords are dismissed for the evening, Sansa approaches Jon, rebuking him for not consulting her. She goes on to tell Jon he doesn't know how Ramsay's mind works and that he likes toying with people. The two proceed to argue, with Sansa stating to Jon they need more men and should wait to attack with a larger force. Jon replies that he believes they have already recruited all the men who will fight for them. He goes on to tell Sansa that he vows to protect her. However, Sansa, jaded by years of failures and disappointments, replies that no one can protect her or anyone now.
The battle begins with the Stark army deployed near a treeline to prevent themselves from being attacked unaware from behind. Across the field is the much larger Bolton army, which has placed archery distance markers with burning, flayed corpses attached to them to demoralize the Stark troops. Ramsay trots out on his horse to the front of the formation, bringing a prisoner: Rickon Stark himself. Ramsay acts at first as if he will slit Rickon's throat, but instead cuts his bonds and sadistically insists that they play a game. He points at Jon and tells Rickon, "Run to your brother." Rickon starts running straight toward Jon, while Ramsay shoots and purposely misses with a war bow. Just when Rickon is about to reach Jon, however, Ramsay's final deliberate shot hits Rickon through the heart, killing him almost instantly.
Enraged and maddened with grief, Jon charges full tilt at the Bolton army, whom Ramsay immediately orders to loose their arrows on him. Alarmed, Davos orders in the Stark cavalry to charge after their commander, with the Stark and wildling infantry closely following behind. The first Bolton volley down Jon's horse, forcing him to the ground. Jon quickly recovers and prepares for his last stand by drawing Longclaw as he seemingly faces down the Bolton cavalry alone. He is saved by the timely arrival of the Stark cavalry as they collide with their Bolton counterparts, and the battle becomes a bloody storm of swords. Countless men on both sides fall in battle so quickly that they begin to form small hills of the dead.
Ramsay orders his archers to shoot at the Stark forces and their own cavalry, while Davos refrains from doing the same and leads his archers to join Jon and the rest of their forces in battle. The arrow volley kills scores of both Stark and Bolton men, and soon, the small hills become a wall of the fallen. Although Ramsay loses many of his men to friendly fire, it becomes clear that they are intentionally being sacrificed as part of a sadistic plan to prevent his enemy from retreating. Seeing the Stark infantry and archers, alongside Wun Wun and wildling warriors, engaging in combat with the Bolton forces, Ramsay sends forward his remaining forces, led by Smalljon Umber, into battle. The Bolton infantry succeeds in encircling the remaining Stark army, boxing them in with a shield phalanx.
At the parley one day before the battle, Ramsay states that he has 6,000 men (including his allies, the Karstark and Umber troops). He is rumored to command some 5,000 Bolton men, although possibly weakened after the battle in the ice against Stannis; the numbers of the Karstark and Umber troops are unknown.
Most of Ramsay's horsemen are killed after the charge and ensuing melee against Jon's cavalry, also suffering losses as Ramsay's own archers begin to rain arrows on friend and foe alike. Ramsay's infantry were mostly comprised of pikemen, shield-bearers, and mixed infantry - these men were annihilated by the Arryn cavalry late in the battle, when they are hit from behind.
Due to the altitude in the Vale, the Arryn troops are trained to fight in winter conditions, a huge advantage in the North. According to Sansa, the expeditionary force (cavalry, as seen in the episode) consists of 2,000 men, still leaving the pro-Stark forces at a numerical disadvantage. However, by the time they arrive, the Northern armies have nearly wiped each other out, with the Bolton forces having clearly suffered much higher casualties than the Stark forces. The all-cavalry Arryn force also has a clear qualitative advantage, and is able to wipe out the remaining Boltons and rescue what remains of the Stark force with ease.
Skinchanging seems to be limited to people who are blood of the First Men , i.e. the Free Folk , the Northmen and possibly the Crannogmen . This may have some connection with the fact that the First Men lived in Westeros for centuries alongside the magical Children of the Forest , and even adopted their religion of the old gods , but the later Andals killed or drove away the last of the Children of the Forest during the coming of the Andals six thousand years ago.
The members of House Farwynd of the Lonely Light - the smallest and remotest of the Iron Islands - are also said to be skinchangers. Ironborn are also descendants of the First Men despite their belief that they were created by the Drowned God .
At a Great Council in the Dragonpit , Bran was chosen as the new Lord of the Six Kingdoms , with the king being elected by the lords of Westeros rather than inheriting the crown through a royal bloodline. The North has been granted independence with Sansa being declared the Queen in the North as a hereditary monarch.
The average Stark soldier wears a brown or dark blue coat with green or grey sleeves, with chainmail worn under it and a suit of studded leather armor worn over it; he also wears a pair of grey or brown leather boots. The soldiers are often equipped with helmets and round shields of steel or iron, both grey in color and the shields emblazoned with the Stark direwolf. Warriors in the Northern heavy cavalry or heavy infantry wear relatively cheap brigandine armor, with many choosing to wear mail underneath as well, rather than the expensive plate armor of the well-equipped Lannister troops.
It is significant that the Starks do not use their motto to remind of their positive attributes, but rather to remind people to look up at the more impending doom, and a bigger fight up ahead. Their determination to face the odds shows that they are made of different stuff then the Southerners , and are not into their political games of intrigue. Perhaps these are the differences that make the Starks so persecuted, with only three actual Starks (Sansa, Arya, and Bran, or four counting Jon, who is at least half-Stark) alive by the end of the show, as opposed to the six at the beginning of the show (counting Catelyn and Jon). Their differences are even seen in the way they talk, such as when Ned infuriates Robert by calling him: "too fat for his armor" when Lancel was not able to put it on properly.
Tywin has three children: Cersei , Jaime , and Tyrion by his wife Joanna Lannister . Cersei is Queen of Westeros since Tywin arranged for her marriage to King Robert Baratheon , in exchange for his support in Robert's Rebellion . She has a longstanding incestuous relationship with her brother Jaime. The two conspire to conceal their love and have passed their children (Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen) off as being the product of Cersei's marriage.
The day of the trial for Loras and Cersei, the Great Sept explodes from wildfire , by a plot by Cersei and Qyburn , killing all of those inside, including the High Sparrow and the other Sparrows, the Tyrells, Kevan, and Lancel.
However, the military strength of the Westerlands has been badly depleted due to the War of the Five Kings (half of it was destroyed in the Battle of Whispering Wood alone), as well as the Last War. Battles against the armies of the North, the Baratheons, and later Daenerys's forces, have cut their numbers down to size.
Lannister armies seem to be more well-equipped than any other armies that Westeros could muster. This is particularly evidenced by the high quality arms and armor forged directly in the Crownlands and Westerlands, by skilled smithies and armorers. An advanced degree of standardization and role differentiation between cavalry, heavy infantry, archers and sappers is clear.
Lannister soldiers are typically outfitted in excellent quality armor. Sturdy, red-dyed leather coated over augmented steel armor plates, in a striking combination. This smart design, is not only aesthetically impressive - as per Lannister lavishness - but also ergonomically practical, with the segmented armor allowing for ample mobility and flexibility for the wearer.
They also have crested steel and leather helmets, with uniquely designed cheek visors which overlap when locked shut, forming a broad facial plate with small eye slots which still give good visibility. The horizontally arrayed crests on their helmets, are a kind of defensive feature to deflect blade strikes. When the facial visors are opened, the soldier can get a better view of their surrounding vicinity, as well as talk with or to civilians more personally in their patrol duties or guard duties. The closed visors also give a deliberate resemblance to the face of a lion, looking directly forward towards it. Arguably, the design is as much for show, as for practical effectiveness.
The Lannister colors are gold and crimson. Gold is associated with a crown, and money, something the Lannisters have aplenty, and being the best, as in with a medal, just as the Lannister see themselves as superior. It is also an eye-catching color that demands attention. Like their golden hair, gold is a color of sunny false appearances. Crimson indicates nobility and status. Both in the Roman and Elizabethan eras, crimson (and its natural derivative purple) were colors only warn by important people, such as monarchs and military leaders. Yet they are not truly royalty and gain stature by social climbing and being close to royalty: Tywin was Hand of the King , Jaime was in the Kingsguard , and Cersei married the king himself, thus enabling all her children to become kings and queens . Also, it is the color of the Sun, which through its mythological and religious heritage is associated with many positive traits.
According to the TV series official pronunciation guide developed for the cast and crew, "Lannister" is pronounced "LAN-iss-ter". It rhymes with "Lancaster". The conflict between the "Starks and Lannisters" in the series is loosely inspired by the English War of the Roses between the "Yorks and Lancasters".
After a century of isolation, Aegon, disinterested in the eastern lands of his ancestors, which he saw as old and withered, looked west to the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros , which he sought to conquer and unify into one realm , with the aid of his dragons and his sister-wives Rhaenys and Visenya .
Daenerys suffers several major setbacks: her ironborn fleet is destroyed by Euron Greyjoy ; the Unsullied capture Casterly Rock , but end up stranded at the castle; Jaime leads an army to Highgarden , sacking the castle and knocking the Tyrells out of the war.
By the time Daenerys reached Astapor in Slaver's Bay , her dragons had grown enough to provide limited air support in certain engagements, and she had gained the loyalty of an additional knight, Ser Barristan Selmy . It should be pointed out that although limited, the dragons at this time are capable of providing the only air support in the known world.
Shortly after arriving at Yunkai , Daenerys is able to secure the affection of Daario Naharis , a lieutenant in the Second Sons . During a parley between Daenerys and the captains of the Second Sons, Daario points out that Daenerys's Unsullied are impressive infantry, but she still possesses no cavalry, siege weapons, or ships. Later that night, Daario slays the captains of the Second Sons, makes himself captain, and pledges the company to Daenerys. The Second Sons add 2,000 armored cavalry to the growing Targaryen army.
Upon breaking the Second Siege, Daenerys took possession of the remains of their armada, roughly 200 ships. Shortly after, she was visited by Theon and Yara Greyjoy , who offered their ships – the better part of the formidable Iron Fleet – to her in exchange for supporting Yara's claim to the Salt Throne, to which Daenerys agreed, on the condition that the ironborn change their ways forever.
Jaehaerys had thirteen children in all. For simplicity, only the direct ancestors of future generations are on this family tree and they are not in the exact order of birth. The thirteen children in correct order are: Aegon , Daenerys , Aemon , Baelon , Alyssa , Maegelle , Vaegon , Daella , Saera , Viserra , Gaemon , Valerion , and Gael .
The Targaryens adopted the religion and many of the customs of Westeros, but they clung to two old Valyrian customs in defiance of public disapproval: Targaryen princes and kings were allowed to have multiple wives, and Targaryens were allowed to marry brother to sister, something considered taboo elsewhere in Westeros. The former custom was apparently considered outdated in Valyria itself, but the latter was fairly common.
The generations of Targaryen inbreeding produced a distinctive set of physical features shared by all of their members during the House's three centuries of rule. This includes a generally pale appearance with silver-white (platinum blonde) hair and purple irises. While pale, they are not albinos, although their eyebrows are white. The actors playing Daenerys and Viserys are actually both dark-haired, so they had to wear wigs, although the production team decided not to dye their eyebrows to match. The TV series opted not to portray the Targaryens with purple eyes, partially due to the logistical difficulty of matching purple contact lenses for actors in every shot. The TV series originally filmed Viserys and Daenerys wearing violet contact lenses, but show creators David Benioff and Dan Weiss quickly abandoned their use. As they explained in the Season 1 Blu-ray episode commentaries, "actors act with their eyes, and [the lenses] really hurt the emotion."
Ned deduces that Robert's children with Cersei are actually bastards born of incest between Cersei and Jaime ; he sends a message to Stannis, informing him of this, as he has been revealed to be the rightful heir to the throne.
In the beginning of the War of the Five Kings , Renly assembles troops of both the Stormlands and the Reach, a total of about 100,000 men. After his assassination, many of the Stormlords and at least two houses of the Reach ( House Florent and House Fossoway ) join Stannis. Stannis's forces number at least 10,000 before the Battle of the Blackwater, and there are presumably more troops, left to guard Stannis's castles while most of his troops attack the capital, resulting in the Battle of the Blackwater .
After her father, Ser Otto Hightower , is dismissed from his post as Hand, Alicent recommends that instead of going to Oldtown , he must go to Highgarden to guide the Tyrells, as their bannermen's faith in the Greens is waning.
Margaery is wed to Joffrey, but the king is assassinated at his wedding , secretly by Olenna with Baelish's help. Margaery is then betrothed to Joffrey's younger brother and successor, Tommen , whom Olenna expects to be both gentler and easier to influence for Margaery.
Since being elevated to rule of the Reach, during any major Westeros-wide conflict, the Tyrells have frequently judged a conflict and then followed the strategy of pragmatically siding with whoever seems most likely to win, rather than fighting for abstract principles of law or honor. During the Targaryen Conquest, they surrendered to the Targaryens willingly in return for their favor. In Robert's Rebellion, they sided with the Mad King because they owed the Targaryens everything, and didn't think Robert Baratheon could defeat him. During the civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons, however, the Tyrells judged that the faction of Rhaenyra Targaryen and the faction of Aegon II Targaryen were so evenly matched that it was not obvious at the outset which side would win. With neither side having a clear advantage over the other, to the surprise of both, the Tyrells declared neutrality and took no part in the war (though their bannermen were heavily divided between the two sides).
In the books, as in the series, the Lannisters grow increasingly concerned with how much power the Tyrells managed to gain. Ever since the second novel, the Tyrells become the Lannisters' most important allies, and they take full advantage of that to increase their (and their bannermen) political power, slowly but surely.
Following the battle of the Blackwater, the Tyrells are greatly rewarded for reinforcing the Lannister troops: Margaery is betrothed to Joffrey; Loras becomes a member of the Kingsguard; Mace is given a seat at the Small Council as Master of Ships ; Garlan is granted the lands of House Florent. Two of the Tyrells' bannermen, Paxter Rewyne, and Mathis Rowan, are also granted seats in the Small Council.
During the third book, Tywin Lannister decides to restore Pycelle (whom Tyrion had previously sent to the black cells beneath the Red Keep ) to the position of Grand Maester after he received word that the Citadel planned on naming Maester Gormon, born Gormon Tyrell, his replacement.
Following Tywin's death, the Tyrells grow bolder with their demands, among them to wed Margaery to Tommen shortly after his brother's death, much to Cersei's annoyance. Cersei's resentment toward the Tyrells soon turns into mistrust, and then to paranoia, based on several items:
As Margaery's popularity and influence over Tommen grow, Cersei suddenly realizes (correctly) that the Tyrells had a motive to dispose of Joffrey. She becomes convinced that the Tyrells plot to undermine the Lannisters; they conspired with Tyrion to murder Joffrey, maybe to murder Tywin too; they helped Tyrion escape from jail; lastly, Margaery is the queen whom Maggy referred to. Driven by her paranoia, Cersei plots to have Margaery charged with adultery and shamed in public. However, similarly to each and every scheme Cersei comes up with, this one goes wrong too: the witnesses against Margaery prove to be false, and Cersei finds herself in a much worse position than Margaery. Ironically, as a result of the scheme, the Tyrells grow more in power.
Kevan, like his niece, is wary of the Tyrells' power greed; however, he acknowledges that alienating the Tyrells is a much worse option than complying with their demands. He chides Cersei for rejecting Mace's request to become the King's Hand, reasoning that although Mace is hardly suitable for that office - it is even more foolish to make him a foe.
Cersei deeply hates the Dornish in general and the Martells in particular, thinking that all Dornishmen are snakes, and the Martells are the worst of them. Her hatred is fueled by the fact that Oberyn fought for Tyrion at the trial-by-combat, and had come within a hairbreadth of a victory that would have allowed Tyrion to escape the blame for Joffrey’s murder. This is perhaps the reason for her unsuccessful scheme to assassinate Trystane.
Roose Bolton reprimands Ramsay for torturing Theon; as Balon's son and heir, he would have been a valuable hostage for him to trade with Balon in return for securing the withdrawal of Ironborn forces from the North. Yara unsuccessfully attempts to save Theon. Ramsay uses Reek to retake Moat Cailin .
The Bolton soldiers are outfitted with dark-colored leather tunics with chainmail and gorgets carved with the Bolton sigil. The most distinct characteristic of the Bolton army is the conical point-shaped helmets with a distinct groove at the edges which distinguishes them from other northern soldiers. The simplicity of the armor is more on its aesthetic and symbolic measure rather than practicality or effectiveness. Being likely attributed to the Bolton’s faculty of extreme cruelty, therefore, creating a sense of intimidation in the battlefield.
Domeric Bolton died shortly before the beginning of the series, having sought out his bastard half-brother Ramsay (Domeric having always wanted a brother of his own). With no other trueborn heirs, Roose brought Ramsay to the Dreadfort and began to treat him as his heir.