Recaps

Viserys celebrated the Empire’s new capital with a ceremony attended by delegates from across Essos and Westeros, while fourteen dragons displayed his power overhead. At the feast, Oberyn confirmed Dorne was ready to march on King’s Landing, and Margaery said Highgarden stood ready to answer Viserys’s summons despite her father’s separate plans.

• Charlie Longmoss, Ser Caste Stone East, and delegations from Westeros and the Free Cities arrived for the capital relocation assembly.
• Viserys, Daenerys, and Rhaenys attended the blessing ceremony as Kinvara prayed over the new Empire and fourteen dragons filled the sky with dragonfire.
• Viserys hosted a grand feast in the Valyrian Freehold and provided feasts for the people throughout the city.
• Oberyn congratulated Viserys and said Dorne was ready to move at any moment when Viserys marched on King’s Landing.
• Margaery told Viserys that her grandmother had pledged Highgarden’s support, while her father had his own ideas and remained aligned with Renly.

Viserys gathered his allies to plan the invasion of Westeros and set out the forces and landing strategy. He ordered the army to cross the sea in half a month, with Duke Clinton commanding the campaign.

• Viserys met with Ashara after the banquet and spent the night resting in her arms.
• Viserys reviewed the war in Westeros with the council and heard reports on the available armies and navy.
• Viserys chose House Crabb's harbor on Crackclaw Point as the first landing site and planned for the navy to seize Dragonstone and Driftmark.
• Viserys rejected concerns that Renly and Stannis would unite and said the army could face them in battle if necessary.
• Viserys set the sea crossing for half a month later and appointed Duke Clinton to command the army.

Daenerys asked Viserys to take her to Westeros, but he refused because her dragon was too young for battle. Rhaenys comforted her, and Daenerys eventually accepted his promise to bring her after they took King's Landing.

• Daenerys asked Viserys to let her join the campaign with Acmot, but he told her she had to stay in Valyria while Rhaenys went with him.
• Viserys explained that he wanted to protect Daenerys from the dangers of battle and asked her to guard Valyria with Ashara while he was away.
• Daenerys ran from the Council Chamber in tears, and Viserys told Rhaenys to let her have time alone.
• Rhaenys visited Daenerys that evening and explained how frightening real battles were, while reassuring her that Viserys cared about her.
• Rhaenys promised that Viserys would take Daenerys to King's Landing after they took it, and the two sisters fell asleep together.

Daenerys reconciled with Viserys and agreed to wait while he went to Westeros. Kinvara shared a prophecy of dragons ravaging Westeros and its great houses, then left Viserys alone with Margaery, who began undressing before him.

• Daenerys apologized to Viserys and agreed to stay behind until he and the others returned.
• Kinvara told Viserys her vision showed dragons burning King's Landing, Casterly Rock, Storm's End, and the Iron Islands, along with the destruction of several house symbols and an unclear figure on the Iron Throne.
• Viserys kissed Kinvara, but a knock at the door interrupted them.
• Margaery entered, and Kinvara left after warning her that she could not escape fate.
• Margaery told Viserys he would soon leave for Westeros, then removed her gown and stood before him in a thin silk slip.

Margaery confessed that she had come to offer herself to Viserys and secure a future for House Tyrell, and the two became lovers. Afterward, she asked to return to Westeros with his army as a representative of House Tyrell so she could witness him reclaim the Iron Throne.

• Margaery told Viserys she no longer expected to be his only woman and explained that she wanted to protect House Tyrell and pursue her dream of becoming queen.
• Margaery offered herself to Viserys, and he accepted her after confirming she had thought through her decision.
• Viserys carried Margaery to his bedroom, where they became lovers.
• Afterward, Margaery asked Viserys to let her return to Westeros with the army as a House Tyrell representative.

Margaery secured Viserys's promise to spare her family if they surrendered, and explained why she believed Willas should inherit Highgarden. As Valyria completed its preparations for war, Viserys's relationships with Daenerys and Rhaenys also came into focus, and the army's appointed day to march arrived.

• Margaery asked Viserys to spare her father and Loras, and he promised to pardon them if they surrendered and gave up Renly, or let them take the black if captured.
• Margaery said Willas was better suited to inherit Highgarden and that House Tyrell could survive by submitting to Viserys; Viserys told her that her gamble had paid off.
• The next morning, Daenerys found Margaery leaving Viserys's room in his clothes and confronted him about it, then ran off when he asked what she had wanted.
• Rhaenys teased Viserys about his busy night, kissed him, and went to check on Daenerys; Viserys said he would spend the night with them both.
• Valyria loaded supplies onto hundreds of warships, while Viserys spent time with Daenerys and Ashara; the appointed day to march arrived.

Viserys and Rhaenys prepared to lead the Empire’s fleet from New Valyria toward Westeros, with the army and supplies organized for a staged invasion. After Kinvara blessed the fleet, Viserys ordered it to set sail, leaving the gathered envoys to watch the start of a campaign that would change Westeros.

• Rhaenys told Viserys she was ready to avenge her family as they looked over the crowded harbor.
• Missandei reported that the fleet, troops, and supplies were ready, and that Duke Clinton’s army would meet them at Tyrosh.
• Viserys rode to the docks with Rhaenys and reviewed the gathered officials, Daenerys, and Ashara before addressing the fleet.
• Kinvara prayed over the departing army and blessed the fleet with holy fire.
• Viserys ordered the fleet to set sail as Margaery watched from the Dragonlord and envoys from the Free Cities observed.

Viserys sailed west with a vast fleet and ten dragons to reclaim the Iron Throne, while Daenerys stayed behind and began training with Arya. The expedition reached Crackclaw Point, where a young guard at the Whispers saw the dragons arrive.

• Viserys displayed the dragons over the harbor as his fleet departed, and Daenerys watched until the ships vanished.
• Kinvara told Daenerys that Viserys would need her, and Daenerys began sword training alongside Arya.
• Viserys's fleet crossed the Summer Sea, resupplied at Tyrosh, and embarked twenty thousand infantrymen and ten thousand Golden Company soldiers.
• Five days after leaving Tyrosh, the fleet reached Crackclaw Point.
• Willit saw the golden Three-Headed Dragon and the other dragons flying toward the Whispers.

Viserys Targaryen arrived at The Whispers with dragons and a vast fleet, and House Crabb pledged itself to him. As Viserys prepared to gather forces on Crackclaw Point before reclaiming the Iron Throne, the peninsula’s houses began responding, except for House Brune of Dyre Den.

• Willit and the soldiers at The Whispers saw the golden Three-Headed Dragon land as a massive fleet approached, and the castle fell into alarm.
• Old Lord Crabb ordered the gates opened and declared that House Crabb bent the knee to the returning dragons.
• Viserys identified himself, remembered House Crabb’s loyalty to Rhaegar, and asked Lord Crabb for soldiers and guides to help establish a camp on Crackclaw Point.
• Lord Crabb pledged House Crabb’s three hundred soldiers, and Iren Crabb knelt and offered his service to Viserys.
• Lord Crabb sent ravens to the other houses of Crackclaw Point, whose nobles sent men to verify Viserys’s arrival, while House Brune of Dyre Den did not respond.

Viserys secured the allegiance of the houses on Crackclaw Point and led a fleet and dragons to Dragonstone. Ser Axell Florent refused to surrender, but King Ghidorah froze him and the remaining defenders surrendered, allowing Viserys and Rhaenys to enter the castle.

• Viserys accepted House Brune's allegiance after its lord explained why he had delayed responding, and Brune sent three hundred soldiers to The Whispers.
• The houses of Crackclaw Point pledged allegiance and mustered more than a thousand men as Viserys's army established a camp outside The Whispers.
• Viserys and Rhaenys flew to Dragonstone with ten dragons while a fleet carrying five thousand Free Folk troops followed.
• Ser Axell Florent rejected Viserys's demand to surrender and challenged him to a duel.
• King Ghidorah froze Axell and the guards around him, and the remaining defenders surrendered.
• Viserys entered Dragonstone with Rhaenys as the defenders knelt at the castle gates.

Viserys returned to Dragonstone, where Maester Cressen welcomed him and told him that the castle had no resistance left. Viserys went to confront Stannis’s wife and daughter, leaving Selyse fearful of their fate.

• Maester Cressen recognized Viserys and Rhaenys, welcomed their return, and said the people of Dragonstone were ready to swear fealty.
• Viserys asked where Stannis’s family was and learned that Selyse and Shireen were staying in his former room.
• Viserys and Rhaenys entered the room and found Selyse shielding Shireen and two maids.
• Selyse accused Viserys of coming to kill her and her daughter, but Viserys said Stannis’s rebellion had made them traitors.

Viserys took control of Dragonstone and allowed Melisandre to follow him after she said the flames pointed to him as a possible Azor Ahai and the key to ending the Long Night. He left her under strict orders as the Empire’s forces gathered for the war ahead.

• Viserys declared Selyse and Shireen prisoners but said they would remain safe on Dragonstone until they stood trial after the war.
• Viserys and Rhaenys explored Dragonstone, where he spoke of conquering the Seven Kingdoms anew, and watched the Three-Headed Fire Dragon banner rise over the castle.
• After the Free Folk's new army occupied Dragonstone, Viserys held a victory feast and met privately with Melisandre.
• Melisandre said she had waited on Dragonstone for the promised one and believed Viserys might be Azor Ahai reborn because the Lord of Light had marked him and he could command the Three-Headed Dragon.
• Viserys allowed Melisandre to remain at his side, ordering her to obey him and never act on her own.

Duke William surrounded Driftmark with the Imperial Navy and accepted House Velaryon’s surrender after promising to protect the family and island’s civilians. He took control of Driftmark’s harbors and ordered the Gullet blockaded, placing Blackwater Bay’s sea routes under Imperial control.

• Duke William brought the Imperial Navy to Driftmark and surrounded its harbors, including High Tide.
• Jorah Mormont reported that High Tide’s defenders wanted to negotiate, and Duke William agreed to meet their envoy.
• Daemon Waters told Duke William that Earl Monford Velaryon surrendered to House Targaryen and asked for guarantees of the Velaryons’ safety and the civilians’ protection.
• Duke William promised that the Velaryons would be safe and the civilians would not be harassed, and Daemon returned to convey the terms.
• Earl Monford and Driftmark’s defenders laid down their weapons as the Imperial Navy took over the harbors.
• Duke William ordered Jorah to blockade the Gullet so ships could not enter or leave Blackwater Bay without the Empire’s permission.

Viserys and his commanders planned how to take King's Landing as Margaery prepared to travel to Renly's camp and speak with her father and brother. After Margaery departed, Viserys and Rhaenys discussed their family and promised to wait until King's Landing fell before taking their relationship further, while alarming reports reached the Red Keep.

• Duke Clinton reported that King's Landing had only three thousand defenders and that Tywin remained occupied in the Riverlands.
• Viserys rejected a siege because Cersei and Joffrey would not surrender, and he outlined a plan to storm the city while warning civilians to stay indoors.
• Margaery asked to visit her father and Loras with Renly, and Viserys agreed she could leave after the troops finished landing.
• Margaery told Garlan that they would not persuade their father to surrender but would show him what he faced, then prepared to travel to the Reach.
• After Margaery left, Rhaenys thanked Viserys for bringing her along and agreed to wait until they took King's Landing before sharing a romantic moment.
• Ravens brought increasingly grim reports to the Red Keep as King's Landing descended into panic.

With Viserys Targaryen’s forces and ten dragons closing in, Cersei called an emergency Small Council meeting to decide how to defend King’s Landing. The council ended without a plan beyond asking Tywin for help, while Joffrey insisted he would lead the fight himself.

• Cersei sealed King’s Landing and blocked its people from fleeing as rumors spread about the Targaryens and their dragons.
• Joffrey dressed for battle and told Meryn Trant that he would kill the Targaryen himself.
• Cersei convened the Small Council, where Janos Slynt reported unrest and Petyr Littlefinger warned that the city had only three thousand trained defenders.
• Pycelle doubted that weapons could harm dragons, while Varys proposed negotiating with Viserys; Cersei rejected both men’s advice.
• Joffrey demanded to lead an attack, but Petyr urged the council to request aid from Tywin and muster the Westerlands’ army.

Cersei’s council considered how to defend King’s Landing from the Targaryens, while an anonymous letter revealed that Arya Stark was alive in Valyria. As Targaryen ships watched Blackwater Bay, Cersei tried to steady herself and remained resolved not to lose.

• Littlefinger urged Cersei to ask Renly and Stannis for troops, and she ordered Pycelle to send ravens to them and Tywin.
• A guard delivered an unsigned letter for Sansa claiming that Arya was alive and safe in Valyria, and Cersei and Varys judged the claim likely true.
• Cersei gave the letter to Petyr to keep, and the council ended with little else decided.
• Jaime offered to fetch Tywin, but Cersei told him to stay in King’s Landing because she needed him.
• Cersei watched Targaryen ships patrol Blackwater Bay and recalled Viserys, then thought that marrying Rhaegar might have spared her these troubles.

Confined in Maegor's Holdfast, Sansa learned that Viserys Targaryen had returned with dragons and was blockading King's Landing. After receiving a letter confirming Arya was safe in Valyria, Sansa hoped the Targaryens would defeat the Lannisters and rescue her.

• Jeyne told Sansa that Viserys had taken Dragonstone and Driftmark, brought ten dragons, and blockaded King's Landing.
• Sansa considered her hatred of the Lannisters and the possibility that the Targaryens might destroy them, though she did not know what would happen to her.
• Jeyne gave Sansa a letter from Arya saying she was safe in Valyria and that Viserys would rescue Sansa after the war.
• Sansa cried with relief when she learned Arya was alive, and Jeyne comforted her.
• Sansa prayed for the Targaryens to breach King's Landing so she could escape and see Arya again.

Varys and Littlefinger discussed how they might survive the coming fall of King's Landing as the Targaryens returned with ten dragons. In the Westerlands, Robb gathered his bannermen after learning Viserys had landed with a growing army and blockaded Blackwater Bay.

• A Little Bird told Varys that Littlefinger had sent a letter out of King's Landing, and Varys later encountered Littlefinger in the Red Keep.
• Varys told Littlefinger that King's Landing could not withstand the Targaryens' dragons, while both men claimed they wanted only to stay alive.
• Robb's army regrouped near Castamere after two months of victories in the Westerlands, while Tywin remained held at Harrenhal by Edmure.
• Robb summoned his bannermen after receiving news that the Targaryens had returned.
• Robb told the gathered lords that Viserys had taken Dragonstone and Driftmark, blockaded Blackwater Bay, and brought ten dragons and an army of fifty thousand.

Robb weighed the North’s response to the Targaryens’ advance while his lords debated whether to let them fight the Lannisters. He agreed with Brynden’s warning and backed the plan to defeat Tywin first, leaving Catelyn to remind him that Sansa and Arya were still hostages in King’s Landing.

• Greatjon and Old Karstark argued that the North should let the Targaryens and Lannisters weaken each other before acting.
• Brynden warned the northern lords that Viserys’s dragons made him a threat and that the North might be his next target.
• Brynden proposed defeating Tywin at the Golden Tooth, then either considering an alliance with Stannis and Renly or retreating north to hold Moat Cailin.
• Robb agreed that the North and Targaryens had a blood feud and said the Lannisters remained his foremost enemy because they had killed his father.
• Catelyn reminded Robb that Sansa and Arya were still in Lannister hands in King’s Landing.

Robb chose to keep the North neutral while seeking a way to rescue Sansa and Arya, even considering bending the knee to Targaryen in exchange for peace. The chapter left him sharing a quiet moment with Jeyne as Renly's vast army camped near Bitterbridge.

• Robb rejected the urge to rush into battle against Targaryen and decided to lure Tywin back while the North remained neutral.
• Robb told Blackfish he hoped to exchange captured Westerlands nobles for Sansa and Arya, and would negotiate with Targaryen if necessary.
• Blackfish agreed to help Robb and urged him to protect his own safety.
• Robb returned to his tent, where Jeyne comforted him, and he held her hand as they set aside their worries for a moment.
• Renly's vast army camped near Bitterbridge, with Baratheon and Reach banners prominent among its tents.

Renly and his lords debated whether to ally with Cersei or seize King's Landing before facing the Targaryens. After Stannis invited him to meet near Storm's End, Renly agreed to go despite Loras's warning that it might be a trap.

• Renly received Cersei's appeal for help against the Targaryens and summoned his lords to discuss it.
• Mace Tyrell warned that the Targaryens had two grown dragons, while Loras urged Renly to take King's Landing and claim the Iron Throne.
• Renly and the assembled lords supported marching north, though Mace hesitated because Stannis's fleet still blockaded Storm's End.
• Stannis's messenger invited Renly to meet near Storm's End to discuss the Targaryens.
• Loras warned Renly that the meeting was a trap, but Renly told the messenger he would come.

Renly and Stannis failed to reach an agreement over the Iron Throne, and Stannis left to retake Dragonstone. Renly then prepared to march on King's Landing, unaware of what Stannis might do next.

• Renly met Stannis at a tavern, where Stannis asked for Renly's army to retake Dragonstone and offered to name him heir if he swore fealty.
• Renly demanded that Stannis swear fealty to him, and the brothers ended their negotiations without an agreement.
• Stannis warned Renly that the Targaryens would not spare the Baratheons and left the meeting.
• Cortnay Penrose reported that Stannis's fleet had lifted its blockade of Storm's End and sailed toward Dragonstone.
• Renly returned to camp, agreed to march on King's Landing, and heard Loras ask to lead the first assault.
• A raven brought a letter from Blackhaven as Renly's lords discussed the march.

Renly learned that three Dornish armies had invaded the Stormlands and threatened the Reach, forcing him to abandon his march on King's Landing. Mace then revealed that Margaery and much of House Tyrell had sided with Viserys, and that Olenna wanted Renly and Loras to take the black.

• Renly received reports that Oberyn Martell and two other Dornish commanders had led thirty thousand troops into the Stormlands and threatened Blackhaven, Nightsong, and the Reach.
• The Stormlands nobles urged Renly to deal with Dorne first, and Renly ordered the army to withdraw to Storm's End.
• Loras asked Mace what he had concealed in Olenna's letter, and Mace revealed that Margaery had persuaded House Tyrell and several Reach lords to submit to Viserys.
• Mace said Olenna had appointed Willas to manage Highgarden and hoped Renly and Loras would willingly take the black.
• Mace added that Margaery was willing to ask Viserys to let Renly take the black for Loras's sake.

Renly kept House Tyrell allied with him and retreated toward Storm's End as Targaryen forces advanced. Meanwhile, Stannis's fleet was trapped by the approaching Targaryen navy, and Tywin considered King's Landing's desperate call for aid while refusing to seek peace with Robb Stark.

• Renly reassured Mace that he would stand firm against the Targaryens and suggested he might marry Margaery, securing Mace's pledge of loyalty.
• Renly told Loras he did not blame Mace for fearing the Targaryens, and Loras vowed to help him claim the Iron Throne.
• Three days later, Renly's army retreated south toward Storm's End as scouts watched them leave and rode toward King's Landing.
• Off Massey's Hook, Stannis learned that Targaryen ships had appeared ahead and behind his fleet, cutting off its retreat.
• At Harrenhal, Tywin told Kevan that the Baratheons would not help King's Landing and rejected negotiating a truce with Robb Stark.

Tywin appointed Tyrion acting Hand of the King and sent him to defend King's Landing against the Targaryens. Tyrion realized Tywin meant to use the city to buy time for House Lannister, even if he and the royal family were left to fall.

• Tywin told Kevan that Tyrion would go to King's Landing to manage its defense and restrain Cersei.
• Tywin revealed that if King's Landing fell, he would retreat to the Westerlands and defend Casterly Rock to preserve House Lannister.
• Tyrion entered Tywin's study and accepted his appointment as acting Hand of the King.
• Tywin told Tyrion he would receive only five hundred guards, while King's Landing had three thousand troops and would need to raise more.
• Tyrion understood that Tywin was willing to sacrifice King's Landing and use him to delay the Targaryens.