Recaps

Sawane Botley learned that his heir Harren had been killed by Green Lands fighters and rejected the survivor’s account that they fought like Ironborn. He ordered the survivor executed and resolved to avenge Harren and House Botley’s humiliation.

• Sawane Botley learned from the wounded Amek that Harren and the men with him had died at Vicon Gorge.
• Amek described the farmers as skilled, fearless fighters who had ambushed the Ironborn and mutilated their dead.
• Sawane dismissed Amek’s story as a coward’s excuse and blamed Harren’s death on carelessness.
• Sawane ordered Amek hanged beneath a longship for cowardice.
• Sawane vowed to avenge Harren and restore House Botley’s standing by spilling the farmers’ blood.

At Oldstones, Euron Greyjoy clashed with Dagmer over the siege and his defiance of King Balon’s plans. After sensing someone approaching, Euron abandoned the camp with the crew of the Silence, leaving Dagmer furious and confused.

• Dagmer learned that Tytos Blackwood had refused to surrender Oldstones again.
• Euron mocked Dagmer’s siege and urged the Ironborn to storm the castle, offering a hundred Gold Dragons to the first man over the walls.
• Dagmer accused Euron of killing Jason Mallister and ruining Balon’s plans, while Euron dismissed Balon’s ambition to rule the Riverlands.
• Euron froze in a strange pose, then announced that someone was coming and that a more interesting game was about to begin.
• Euron and his mute sailors packed their belongings and left for the longships despite Dagmer’s objections.
• Dagmer watched them depart and shouted for Euron never to return.

Tytos Blackwood and Raymun Darry prepared to defend Oldstones against the Ironborn despite their dwindling supplies and outnumbered forces. Patrick Mallister and his mother inspired the defenders to resist, and the Ironborn assault began as the chapter ended with the castle overwhelmed.

• Tytos Blackwood asked Raymun Darry why he had returned to fight, and Raymun said he was fighting for the Riverlands.
• Tytos and Raymun vowed to fight side by side, while Tytos urged the soldiers to resist rather than surrender.
• Patrick Mallister asked Tytos for a sword, and Patrick’s mother insisted that he be allowed to fight like his father.
• The defenders rallied behind the cry “For the Riverlands!” and refugees helped strengthen Oldstones’ walls.
• Cleftjaw Dagmer ordered the Ironborn to attack, and they stormed the ruined castle as Tytos, Raymun, and Patrick held the breach.

Tytos Blackwood’s defenders faced defeat at Oldstones until an unknown army burned the Ironborn ships and attacked them. After the battle, a young man rode forward and greeted Raymun Darry, who recognized him with disbelief.

• Tytos Blackwood refused Dagmer Cleftjaw’s surrender demand and answered with a weak arrow shot.
• As the Ironborn prepared to storm Oldstones, a horn sounded and their longships caught fire at the riverbank.
• Two hundred heavy cavalrymen and an infantry force emerged from the woods, prompting the Ironborn to abandon their assault and attack the newcomers.
• Tytos led the battered defenders out of Oldstones in a counterattack, and the battle continued until nightfall.
• Dagmer withdrew into the forest with the Ironborn he could still command, leaving the battle over and the survivors facing the unfamiliar army.
• A young man rode forward, and Raymun recognized him as the rider greeted him.

After the costly victory at Oldstones, Suleiman warned that the allied army’s divided command and fleeing levies made it vulnerable despite its favorable casualty ratio. He secured Raymun Darry’s agreement to unite the East Riverlands’ forces, and the two clasped hands in trust.

• Rosso Brune reported that the allied forces had suffered 1,237 casualties, nearly 800 killed, while more than 400 levied soldiers had fled; over 850 Ironborn deaths were confirmed.
• Suleiman explained to Lymond Lychester that the allied army’s fragmented command meant it would likely collapse if the Ironborn gained the advantage.
• Raymun Darry arrived wounded with Ser Ronald and asked Suleiman why he had come; Suleiman said he repaid a drop of kindness with a flood of gratitude.
• Raymun Darry told Suleiman that Lord Balon Deddings had died in battle, and Ser Ronald handed over Balon’s bloodied sword.
• Suleiman proposed that the East Riverlands unite their forces to resist further Ironborn incursions, and Raymun Darry agreed on behalf of House Darry.
• Raymun Darry clasped Suleiman’s hand, signaling trust and House Darry’s commitment to the alliance.

The allied army debated whether to retreat to the East Riverlands or divert to rescue Raventree Hall, while Patrick Mallister argued that Tytos Blackwood should command because of his noble birth. The dispute over leadership grew heated and ended on the verge of violence.

• Suleiman and Raymun Darry urged Lymond Lychester to lead the army back to the East Riverlands before the Ironborn could surround them.
• Tytos Blackwood asked the allied army to detour and free Raventree Hall from its siege, but Lymond refused, warning that the mission would lead them into the Ironborn's main force.
• Patrick Mallister proclaimed Tytos the rightful commander because House Blackwood had the most distinguished lineage and pledged House Mallister's support.
• Lymond and Raymun looked to Suleiman, who silently opposed Tytos taking command, and Ser Old Lopin argued that Lymond deserved leadership for rescuing the survivors at Oldstones.
• A Mallister knight countered that Tytos was the better commander, and Ser Lopin challenged him by pointing out that Tytos had only three hundred men, bringing the gathering close to a fight.

Suleiman rejected Patrick Mallister’s bloodline-based challenge to Lymond Lychester’s command and left the deciding vote to others. Ser Keke refused to vote, leaving the command dispute unresolved.

• Suleiman insulted House Blackwood and sat beside Lymond Lychester, making clear where he stood.
• Patrick Mallister called for a vote to choose the allied army’s commander.
• A Blackwood warrior and Patrick Mallister voted for Tytos Blackwood, while Lymond Lychester’s knight and Lopin voted for Lymond.
• Ser Keke weighed tradition against the danger of Tytos Blackwood’s plan and the rewards Suleiman had given him.
• Ser Keke declared that he would not vote, leaving the result tied at two votes each.

Raymun Darry’s vote gave Lymond Lychester command of the army over Tytos Blackwood, but Ser Charl challenged Lymond’s fitness to lead. Suleiman killed Ser Charl and restrained the Mallister knights, leaving Patrick Mallister and Tytos Blackwood shocked.

• Raymun Darry overcame his hesitation and voted for Lymond Lychester, making the vote three to two against Tytos Blackwood.
• A young Lychester knight declared that the nobles must obey Lymond, and Ser Charl angrily objected to taking orders from a madman.
• Patrick Mallister tried to silence Ser Charl, but Ser Charl repeated his claim that Lymond was mentally unsound and unfit to lead.
• Suleiman demanded that Ser Charl repeat his insult, then swiftly cut off his arm and killed him when he did.
• Bryn seized one Mallister knight while Rosso held another at swordpoint, and Suleiman told Patrick Mallister and Tytos Blackwood that he had punished Ser Charl on their behalf.

Suleiman killed Ser Charl after Charl insulted Lymond Lychester, forcing the gathered Riverlands houses into an armed standoff. Lymond openly backed Suleiman, who ordered the army prepared to leave and told Tytos Blackwood they could part ways if he refused.

• Suleiman killed Ser Charl with a swift sword strike, and the Mallister and Blackwood forces drew their weapons against Suleiman’s supporters.
• Ser Keke and the other Vance knights sheathed their swords and returned to their seats, while the Deddings and Lychester knights stood with Suleiman.
• Suleiman offered to face any challenger in a Trial by Combat and warned Patrick Mallister that he would kill anyone sent against him.
• Lymond Lychester kicked Charl’s head away, praised Suleiman, and ordered a knight to cut out Charl’s tongue and feed it to the dogs.
• Suleiman ordered Tytos Blackwood to ready the army and said they could leave separately if Tytos was unwilling.

Suleiman led the coalition army toward the East Riverlands and explained that he had planned to use Tytos Blackwood and Patrick Mallister’s forces as bait for the Ironborn. He rejected the importance of noble bloodlines, frightening Lymond Lychester, before a scout reported a strange longship following them on the river.

• Suleiman, Lymond Lychester, and the retreating coalition left Oldstones, with Tytos Blackwood and Patrick Mallister’s forces following behind.
• Suleiman told Lymond Lychester that he had planned to split off Blackwood and Mallister’s forces and use false information to lure the Ironborn after them.
• Lymond Lychester condemned Suleiman’s plan as madness and said Maester Rooney should examine him once they were safe.
• Suleiman argued that the great houses’ blood was no different from a beggar’s and that noble bloodlines were merely lies used to preserve power.
• Lymond Lychester grew frightened by Suleiman’s beliefs and urged him to see Maester Rooney.
• A mounted scout reported that a strange longship was following the army along the river.

Evelyn struggled to manage the territory’s expenses and burdens while Suleiman was away at war. When veteran officer Tox was accused of forcibly taking a resident’s daughter, she faced a volatile dispute and uncertainty over her authority to punish him.

• Evelyn reviewed the territory’s mounting expenses and worried about Suleiman’s absence and the losses caused by Ironborn attacks.
• Olivier told Evelyn that Tox, a veteran appointed as a military officer, had gotten drunk and forcibly taken an unmarried resident’s daughter.
• Evelyn entered the Lord’s Hall and found Hek restraining Tox while the young woman and her father wept nearby.
• Evelyn recognized that punishing Tox could anger the veterans, but letting him go would violate the law and harm the residents’ trust.
• Olivier warned Evelyn that Tox could not be killed and urged her to wait for Suleiman’s return before deciding his punishment.

Evelyn settled the case against Tox by persuading the old man to accept Tox marrying his daughter, framing the officer’s crime as an individual failing rather than a reflection on Suleiman’s rule. After the family left, Evelyn’s kindly expression vanished and her gaze turned cold.

• Evelyn asked the old man whether the Wildlings had continued raiding his family after Suleiman defeated them, and he praised Suleiman for protecting them.
• Evelyn got the old man to confirm that the Wildlings had killed his son and caused his family greater losses than Tox had.
• Evelyn learned that the old man had three daughters and argued that Tox’s status and future made him a better match than a farmer.
• Evelyn offered to arrange Tox’s marriage to the girl, and the old man left the hall grateful and satisfied.
• After the doors closed behind the family, Evelyn’s expression turned cold.

Evelyn ordered Tox to make amends for his crime, but an urgent report of an approaching Ironborn longship forced her to decide whether to fight or retreat. The chapter ended with Lushen demanding that she assemble the troops while she hesitated over the risk.

• Evelyn ordered Hek to release Tox and demanded that Tox apologize publicly and make amends to the family he had wronged.
• Evelyn wondered why Tox had not asked Lord Suleiman for help, and Tox broke down in guilt over his actions.
• Lushen reported that an Ironborn longship carrying around one or two hundred men was racing toward them along the Green Fork.
• Lushen explained that the goods in Crossroads Town would take at least two more days to move into the High Mountains and requested permission to gather the troops and attack first.
• Evelyn hesitated between fighting the Ironborn and abandoning the goods to retreat, while Lushen urged her to order the troops to assemble.

Evelyn ordered the Military Towns to muster after Lushen confirmed that Ironborn forces had attacked, while Tox decided to make amends before facing the battle. Tox gave all his money to the old man whose daughter he had wronged, then left with Danny.

• Evelyn questioned Lushen about the enemy’s numbers, accepted his certainty, and ordered Olivier to light the beacon and relay Lion's Den's orders.
• Lushen rallied the soldiers, and Evelyn saw that they were ready to fight the Ironborn.
• Tox rode to Crevice Keep and ordered Danny to gather every man who could fight.
• Tox took his savings to the old man and apologized for wronging him and his daughter.
• After the old man refused, Tox forced the pouch of Gold Dragons and Silver Stags into his hands, then left with Danny for the Office of the Military Officer.

Tox dictated a remorseful letter to Lord Suleiman, resolved to die fighting, while Sawane Botley led the Ironborn inland and burned Riverbend Town. An ordinary soldier challenged the Ironborn to an open battle on the plain outside Crossroads Town the next morning, and Sawane accepted.

• Tox tore up his first attempt at a letter, then dictated an apology to Lord Suleiman and vowed to repay his wrongdoing by dying bravely in battle.
• Tox asked Danny to pass his farewell to Mr. Duran, then left the Office of the Military Officer to join the assembled troops.
• Sawane Botley found Vicon Gorge’s town abandoned and ordered the Ironborn to burn it.
• Sawane led more than two hundred Ironborn toward Crossroads Town, where a lone soldier warned them to leave Lord Suleiman’s lands.
• The soldier announced that Lord Suleiman’s army would meet the Ironborn in open battle the next morning, and Sawane accepted the challenge.
• The Ironborn camped on the plain outside Crossroads Town, drinking and boasting while Sawane kept watch for a surprise attack.

Sawane Botley’s Ironborn faced Suleiman’s troops, who had fortified their position and refused to honor the promised open battle. After Lushen revealed that the Ironborn’s treasure and longship had been taken and their guards captured, crossbowmen attacked, leaving Sawane trapped and furious.

• Sawane Botley led more than two hundred Ironborn toward the opposing army and discovered its trench and sharpened stakes.
• Lushen told Sawane’s first mate that he was a farmer, not a noble, and had no sense of honor.
• Lushen revealed that Suleiman’s forces had recovered the stolen gold and silver and burned the Ironborn longship.
• Suleiman’s soldiers brought out and executed the captured Ironborn who had guarded the longship.
• Crossbowmen shot at Sawane’s men, and Lushen declared that all was fair in war.

Sawane Botley led the Ironborn in a desperate charge against Suleiman’s army, but its disciplined soldiers kept fighting after their commanders fell. Tox’s reckless attack wounded Sawane and broke the Ironborn’s resolve, sending them fleeing while Tox pursued them.

• Sawane Botley ordered more than two hundred Ironborn to charge Suleiman’s spear formation, but the soldiers held their ranks and closed around them.
• Sawane threw an axe that knocked Roslyn from his horse, then wounded Lushen and nearly killed him before soldiers pulled Lushen to safety.
• After Roslyn and Lushen fell, Suleiman’s soldiers reorganized into small groups and continued fighting under replacement leaders.
• Tox charged Sawane, took a sword wound to his shoulder, and stabbed Sawane in the abdomen.
• Sawane retreated under his crewmen’s protection, and the Ironborn broke out of the encirclement and fled as Tox chased them, shouting for them to come back and kill him.

Suleiman’s army failed to shake the Ironborn, and its lords debated whether to ambush them or keep retreating. As the army continued east, Ser Old Lopin proposed abandoning House Blackwood and House Mallister as bait so Suleiman could escape and eliminate future rivals.

• A messenger reported that the Ironborn were still pursuing Suleiman’s army despite Rosso Brune’s efforts to hide its trail.
• Lymond Lychester summoned the lords, and Tytos Blackwood proposed using the forest to ambush the pursuing Ironborn.
• Suleiman stayed silent because he doubted the divided feudal army would carry out the ambush or fight together.
• The lords agreed with Lymond’s suggestion to keep retreating east and look for a suitable ambush site along the way.
• Ser Old Lopin privately proposed making Blackwood and Mallister forces the main force in an ambush, then abandoning them so Suleiman could escape.

Suleiman rejected Ser Old Lopin’s plan to abandon soldiers as bait, arguing it would destroy the army’s morale. He then asked Tytos Blackwood to pledge House Blackwood and House Mallister’s support for House Lychester in exchange for promises to bring the force home safely and defeat the Ironborn.

• Suleiman rejected Ser Old Lopin’s proposal because abandoning soldiers as bait would shatter the army’s morale.
• Suleiman challenged Tytos Blackwood’s belief that crossbows were dishonorable, arguing that weapons should be judged by their effectiveness.
• Suleiman told Tytos Blackwood that he had gone to rescue Lord Raymun Darry and Lord Balon Deddings, while Tytos had merely been an extra, and that Lord Balon had died.
• Suleiman explained that the allied force was a vulnerable caravan of refugees whose soldiers mainly wanted to return home, not die fighting for other lords’ lands.
• Suleiman offered to lead the force safely back to the East Riverlands, lift the siege of Raventree Hall, and defeat the Ironborn if Tytos secured House Blackwood and House Mallister’s support for House Lychester.

Suleiman secretly took Bryn and his ten brothers into the forest, where they captured five Ironborn scouts and burned them in a ritual that triggered his full map vision. He saw the positions of Roderick’s fleet, Dagmer’s pursuit force, the scattered Riverlands troops, and the allied army, then returned to find Bryn and his men kneeling before him in awe.

• As Suleiman left the allied army with Bryn and his ten brothers, rumors that he had abandoned them spread until Tytos Blackwood and Patrick Mallister pledged their forces to Lymond Lychester.
• Tytos and Patrick’s support steadied the allied army, while rumors circulated that Lymond had Targaryen blood and that Suleiman used black magic.
• Suleiman’s group found five Ironborn scouts in the forest, and Bryn and his brothers swiftly captured them alive.
• Suleiman ordered the captives tied to a tree and their fire-oil-soaked wood set alight, then asked Bryn and his brothers to light the pyre.
• As the fire peaked, Suleiman’s soul rose above the Riverlands, revealing the locations of Roderick’s fleet, Dagmer’s pursuit force, the scattered Riverlands troops, and the allied army.
• Suleiman returned to his body, and Bryn and his brothers knelt before him in shock and reverence.

Suleiman revealed that more than 2,500 Ironborn were pursuing the allied army and proposed leading 300 cavalry west to draw them away while the main force retreated east. The lords and knights joined his plan, and he promised to make them knights of undying glory.

• Patrick Mallister wondered how Suleiman had calmed the camp so quickly, and Tytos Blackwood explained that Suleiman won people over by refusing to be bound by noble conventions.
• Suleiman showed Lymond Lychester a route map and called a military council.
• Suleiman announced that over 2,500 Ironborn were pursuing them and said he and Lymond would lead 300 cavalry west to draw the enemy away as the main force retreated east.
• Suleiman's mounted retainers, Ser Old Lopin, Raymun Darry, Lymond's knights, Tytos Blackwood, Patrick Mallister, and most of the nobles raised their hands to join the plan.
• Suleiman ended the council by promising the volunteers undying glory as knights.

Suleiman ordered the knights to ride without heavy armor against the Ironborn, leading Lymond Lychester to offer to die in his place. At the camp’s edge, Suleiman rallied the knights who stayed by promising them honor, power, and renown, then ordered them to mount up and follow him.

• Suleiman ordered the participating knights to bring only chainmail, food, and water for two days, leaving them convinced the mission meant certain death.
• Lymond Lychester urged Suleiman to use a rear guard instead and offered to take his place, but Suleiman promised he would not die and reminded him of their pact.
• Tytos Blackwood told Suleiman that more than sixty knights had fled, and Suleiman explained that he had wanted the wavering men to leave.
• Suleiman addressed the knights who remained, praised their choice to face danger, and promised them land, power, honor, and renown.
• Suleiman drew his sword and ordered the knights to mount up and follow him.

Suleiman’s knights ambushed and destroyed a fifth isolated Ironborn band, strengthening their faith in his uncanny command. With the Riverlands’ enemy movements clear to him through the flames, Suleiman prepared to advance the hunt to its next stage.

• Suleiman’s knights charged the Ironborn raiders by the river, and Rosso Brune killed their captain.
• The knights routed the band, while Suleiman stopped Bryn from shooting the few who escaped into the river so they could spread the news.
• The knights credited Suleiman’s success to the Seven Gods, while Bryn kept the truth of his lord’s power secret.
• Tytos Blackwood questioned Suleiman about his scouts, and Suleiman said the Old Gods were protecting them.
• Suleiman used the flames to see the Ironborn forces across the Riverlands and prepared to begin the next stage of the campaign.

Dagmer turned the Ironborn around to hunt the Riverlands cavalry that had been ambushing his raiding parties. Suleiman led the exhausted knights to the Ironborn fleet and planned to burn their ships, leaving the attack about to begin.

• Dagmer learned that another Ironborn raiding party had been burned and ordered his men to turn back and find the riders.
• Patrick Morrison praised the cavalry’s raids, while Tytos Blackwood warned Suleiman that the knights and their horses needed rest.
• Suleiman pointed out the Ironborn longships and said the Riverlands knights would burn them.
• Suleiman assigned Rosso Brune fifty men to make a noisy feint and ordered Tytos Blackwood and Raymun Darry to ambush the Ironborn who rushed to defend the ships.

Suleiman led a nighttime raid that burned the Ironborn longships and routed their defenders, earning the knights’ fervent admiration. At an Ironborn camp, Trigg arrived with news that the fleet had been destroyed.

• Suleiman used a false attack to draw the Ironborn away while he and Bryn’s men crept to the riverbank and shot the guards.
• Suleiman’s men set the longships ablaze, and 120 knights led by Raymun Darry, Tytos Blackwood, and Rosog charged and slaughtered the fleeing Ironborn.
• Tytos Blackwood recognized that the victory had followed Suleiman’s plan, while the knights began to revere their young leader.
• Suleiman told the knights that burning the fleet was only the beginning of the heroic epic he would write for them.
• Trigg stumbled into Dagmer’s camp and announced that the longships had been burned to ashes.