House Blackfyre

**House Blackfyre** is a noble house from the Crownlands. It is a cadet branch of House Targaryen, and founded by Daemon Blackfyre, a legitmised Great Bastard of King Aegon IV Targaryen 'the Unworthy'. House Blackfyre is named for the Valyrian Steel sword of the same name, granted to Daemon by King Aegon IV Targaryen.

Their sigil is a black three-headed dragon, breathed black fire on red, the Targaryen sigil with colours reversed. Their motto is 'The Only Dragon' in defiance against House Targaryen. Among the traits passed on to House Blackfyre by House Targaryen is the platinum blonde hair, violet eyes, and the premonition-like dragon dream ability.

Now, House Blackfyre resides as exiles in Essos after Daemon I Blackfyre began the First Blackfyre Rebellion, though many sympathisers remain in the Seven Kingdoms and ready to join their cause. There have been six previous Blackfyre Rebellions.

## History

### Origin

Daemon Waters was a bastard son of King Aegon IV Targaryen. When Daemon won a squires' tourney at the age of twelve, Aegon granted him knighthood and surprisingly gave him Blackfyre, one of the ancestral Valyrian steel swords of House Targaryen. According to Ser Eustace Osgrey, Blackfyre had been wielded by every king from House Targaryen since the Conquest. Daemon subsequently took the name Blackfyre for himself.

When Aegon IV was on his deathbed, the king legitimized his bastard children, including Daemon Blackfyre. The young knight wed Rohanne of Tyrosh when he was fourteen, and Daemon was granted a tract of land along the Blackwater Rush and the right to build a keep there by his half-brother, King Daeron II Targaryen.

### First Blackfyre Rebellion

In 196 AC Daemon and his friends and allies revolted against Daeron II Targaryen, his half-brother, using the old rumor that Daeron was the son of Aemon the Dragonknight instead of King Aegon IV Targaryen and that the gift of the ancestral weapon Blackfyre proved that Aegon wanted Daemon to succeed him. Since many bastards reversed their family's colors, the banners of Daemon's rebels depicted a black three-headed dragon on a red field instead of House Targaryen's red dragon on a black field. Daemon also struck his own coinage during the war.

Ultimately the Blackfyre Rebellion failed in the Battle of the Redgrass Field. Daemon broke Lord Arryn's van in the battle, slaying Wyl Waynwood and the Knight of Ninestars and severely injuring Ser Gwayne Corbray of the Kingsguard. While protecting his fallen foes, however, Daemon and his two eldest sons, Aemon and Aegon Blackfyre, were slain by his Great Bastard half-brother, Brynden Rivers, known as Bloodraven, and the Raven's Teeth.

Daemon's remaining sons fled to the Free Cities of Essos with his principal supporter, Aegor Rivers, known as Bittersteel, another Great Bastard of King Aegon IV. When Aegor saw all the exiled lords and knights signing on with other sellsword companies, and saw the support of House Blackfyre ebbing away, he created his own sellsword company, the Golden Company.

### Second Blackfyre Rebellion

Daemon II Blackfyre, who had dragon dreams, defeated Ser Franklyn Frey and Ser Galtry the Green in the wedding tourney at Whitewalls, which was where the Second Blackfyre Rebellion began in 211 AC. However, the rebellion was snuffed out quickly by Bloodraven before it could spread beyond Whitewalls, and several key Blackfyre supporters were killed. The remaining sons and their descendants attacked the Seven Kingdoms three more times.

### Third Blackfyre Rebellion

In 219 AC, Bittersteel launched a new invasion after crowning Haegon I Blackfyre. It was late in the reign of King Aerys I Targaryen, who was not very involved in ruling. The leadership of his younger brother, Prince Maekar Targaryen, during the conflict was commendable, as was the courage of Maekar's youngest son, Prince Aegon Targaryen. Prince Aerion Targaryen was also active in its events.

The war featured the second duel between Bittersteel and Bloodraven. At the end of the final battle, Haegon was dishonorably killed after he surrendered and had given up his sword. Bittersteel was taken captive and in chains to the Red Keep. While Aerion Brightflame and Bloodraven both urged that Bittersteel be executed, King Aerys offered Aegor mercy, sending him north to join the Night's Watch. The Golden Company learned of this through their informants, however, and attacked the prisoner transport as it sailed to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. Before the year was over, Bittersteel returned to Tyrosh and crowned Haegon's eldest son as Daemon III Blackfyre.

### Great Council of 233 AC

After the death of King Maekar I Targaryen in 233 AC, there was no definitive heir to ascend the throne, so the Hand of the King, Lord Bloodraven, called a Great Council. Aenys Blackfyre, writing from exile, put forth his claim to the Iron Throne. Lord Brynden offered him safe conduct to King's Landing so Aenys could present his claim in person. As soon as Aenys entered King's Landing, however, he was seized by the gold cloaks and dragged to the Red Keep where he was executed. His head was presented to the lords of the Great Council as a warning to any who might still have Blackfyre sympathies.

### Fourth Blackfyre Rebellion

In 238 AC, Daemon III Blackfyre led the Fourth Blackfyre Rebellion, landing at Massey's Hook. The rebellion had found a lot of support as the noblemen flocked to the banners of the Black Dragon. At the Battle of Wendwater Bridge, Daemon III Blackfyre had successfully defeated the Crown forces. Bittersteel had slain Bloodraven, to then be killed by the Raven's Teeth shortly thereafter. Daemon retreated east to avoid the second forces from the Crown, though became defeated by a converged army formed by Prince Aegon Targaryen and Lord Lyonel Baratheon, the Laughing Storm.

Daemon retreated across the Narrow Sea afterwards, succumbing to wounds received in the rebellion a year later in the Velvet Hills.

### Fifth Blackfyre Rebellion

Otherwise referred to as the Marcher Rising of 260 AC, Lord Ronnel Caron had been accused of treason for conspiring with the Blackfyre Pretenders across the Narrow Sea, and a demand for his arrest found itself to the Stormlander Marches. The Marcher Lords, as a result, rose in rebellion and hoisted the banner of the Black Dragon. Prince Aegon had marched to see them surrender beside his sworn sword, Ser Duncan the Tall, and found themselves killed in their efforts. Lord Baratheon does little to put an end to the rebellion yet the Princess of Dorne with levies hurriedly put together after the Princes death, is able to create a southern front. And once the Crown forces put the Marcher Lords to rest, House Caron is all but destroyed as the remaining members are either slain in battle, sent to the Night's Watch, forced to become Silent Sisters. All bar one that fled to Essos.

In response to the inaction on behalf of Lord Baratheon, King Aemon I Targaryen had taken the Marches from the Stormlands and sworn them directly beneath Summerhall, which in turn had been sworn directly to the Crown. The Stormlanders losing a sizeable portion of their territories.

### Slaver's Saviour

In 297 AC, the Great Masters of Slaver's Bay contracted the Golden Company in an attempt to combat the Dothraki Horselords that increased movement in the area surrounding Slaver's Bay, steadily encroaching it. After Aegor and the Great Masters had agreed upon the terms of reward, the Golden Company had marched out to face the Khalasar of Khal Izzo, mounted on elephants. It had been a campaign that lasted the length of the year, culminating in a duel between Khal Izzo and King Aegor I Blackfyre in the Dothraki Sea.

Once Khal Izzo had fallen, the Khalasar fractured and continued to suffer due to constant infighting.

### Sixth Blackfyre Rebellion

Though not a rebellion outright, it is close enough as a betrayal of a vassals' oaths to a king and an attempted rebellion to be named the sixth in the Blackfyre Rebellions. It is also called the Sixth as a way for Blackfyre pretenders to allow their next rising to be the "Holy Seventh" and thereby "prophesized". A group of conspirators, including the Red Keep's Septon Harbert, Ser Ygon Bean, and master of laws Lord Edric Whent, plotted to murder His Grace on his ninetieth name day feast in 288 AC. Though the poisons were hidden in many items, including the Dornish red, a Norvoshi wintercake, and the glaze of a massive trout, the event is famously remembered as the "Pie Plot", for its only successful poisoning, but maesters prefer "the Name Day Plot".

The wondrous pie, which was intended to be served to firstly King Aemon, was eaten by Aemon's eldest son, Maekar, Prince of Dragonstone, Almost immediately, Maekar began coughing, eventually turning purple and collapsing. The Grand Maester almost immediately recognized it as a poison, and King Aemon ordered the doors barred. It did not take a night before Ser Ygon Bean talked, in hope of some clemency, but he found none. Each of the plotters were hanged for treason and murder, extincting the heirless House Whent.

It had been rumoured that this plot involved several other Crownlords that found themselves unnamed in Ser Ygon's confession, yet nothing ever came of said rumours and those that had taken place had been left unnoticed.

## Historical Members

* Daemon I Blackfyre, born as Daemon Waters, founder of House Blackfyre. Started the First Blackfyre Rebellion.
	+ Aegon Blackfyre, his first born son. His father's heir and squire. Twin to Aemon.
	+ Aemon Blackfyre, his second son. A squire to his father and twin to Aegon.
	+ Daemon II Blackfyre, his third son. He led the brief Second Blackfyre Rebellion.
	+ Haegon I Blackfyre, his fourth son. Heir to his older brother Daemon II Blackfyre. He led the Third Blackfyre Rebellion.
		- Daemon III Blackfyre, Haegon's eldest son. He led the Fourth Blackfyre Rebellion.
			* Valarr I Blackfyre, Daemon's eldest son. Lord Caron came to him following the Fifth Blackfyre Rebellion.
				+ Vaegon Blackfyre, Valarr's eldest son. He was poisoned by the Westerosi in 385 AC.
					- Aegor I Blackfyre, Vaegon's eldest son. Strengthened the Golden Company for the Seventh Blackfyre Rebellion.
						* Daemon Blackfyre, Aegor's eldest son. His father's heir and squire.
				+ Aemond Blackfyre, Valarr's second son. He suffered from intense dragon dreams that led him to take his own life.
	+ Aenys Blackfyre, his fifth son. Dishonourably killed by Brynden 'Bloodraven' Rivers in the Great Council of 233 AC.
	+ Calla Blackfyre, his daughter, promised to Aegor 'Bittersteel' Rivers before the First Blackfyre Rebellion.