Vermithor

Biodata

Power Progression

Recorded Buffs

The following effects are explicitly shown in the system update after the first level-thirty-nine attempt; the complete thirteen-buff list is not provided. 34

Appearance

• Bronze-gold scales gleam in daylight; his hide is deeply ridged and rugged 29 30 36.
• Black spikes beneath his chin distinguish his enormous head 30.
• Hooked claws at his wingtips scrape stone as he moves through caverns or supports himself on land 29 41.
• Two or three rows of teeth include individual teeth longer than the young Baelon’s arm 29.
• After enhancement, his 140-meter body and immense wingspan are described as large enough to overshadow a town 36.
• His golden eyes grow with his body, prompting Baelon to seek protective equipment for them 35 36 49.

Background / History

Jaehaerys’s Dragon

During Jaehaerys the Conciliator’s reign, Vermithor lived in the Red Keep’s inner court rather than the Dragonpit. He circled over King’s Landing for forty or fifty years, leaving many older residents familiar with him 9 37.

Vermithor fought alongside Vhagar and Caraxes in the destruction of Prince Morion Martell’s combined fleet during the Fourth Dorne Invasion. After Jaehaerys died, he left King’s Landing and settled with Silverwing in Dragonstone’s volcano 9 48.

Bonding with Baelon

Baelon chose Vermithor after Laena Velaryon claimed his original choice, Vhagar. He persuaded Viserys to accompany him to Dragonstone, insisting that he needed a full-grown dragon to protect him from his dangerous dreams 9 28.

Entering Dragonmont with Jaehaerys’s old, unwashed nightclothes, Baelon found Vermithor asleep in a cavern. Vermithor approached and sniffed him, then allowed the child to embrace his snout. Their connection formed without a struggle, and the dragon lowered himself to help Baelon climb aboard 29.

On their first flight, Vermithor responded to Baelon’s signals by slowing down, accelerating, and descending. The system recognized their bond and offered entry to the Trial Space 31.

Trial Space Campaign

Their first joint attempt ended at level thirty-nine, where a swarm of house-sized pterosaurs overwhelmed them. Vermithor initially restrained his movements to avoid crushing Baelon; after his rider fell, he engulfed the valley in dragonfire. Both awoke in reality with their injuries gone 34 35.

On their next attempt, they used a cave to prevent the swarm from surrounding Vermithor. They advanced to level forty-nine and killed a Balrog despite severe wounds, but Rodan decisively defeated them at level fifty. Baelon subsequently treated the earlier stages as a renewable feeding ground rather than expecting further immediate victories 35 38.

Return to King’s Landing

Vermithor’s sudden growth alarmed Dragonstone’s inhabitants. Viserys publicly called it a gift from the Seven, then later compared the enlarged dragon’s size to Balerion’s while noting that Vermithor could still sustain long flights 36 39.

Baelon rode him over the Vale, where his wingbeats gathered clouds and his dragonfire dispersed mist. Their cloud-shrouded arrival over King’s Landing later contributed to Baelon being hailed as the “Cloud Rider” 36 37 49.

Vermithor also carried Viserys and Maester Orwyle back to King’s Landing. He briefly entered the Dragonpit for a replacement saddle, while Baelon selected a separate territory for him to roost in 42.

Iron Islands

Vermithor carried Baelon and Ser Harrold to the Iron Islands, where he burned an Ironborn raiding ship and helped force its survivors to submit. Baelon remained close to him while dealing with the captives, recognizing that his own body remained vulnerable despite the dragon’s strength 52 54.

At the revived Kingsmoot, Vermithor’s appearance and towering dragonfire terrified the assembled Ironborn. The threat of his flames helped compel the remaining captains to kneel, enabling Baelon to proclaim himself High King of the Iron Islands 62 63.

Dragonpit Rescue

When Gold Dragon eagerly approached Baelon, Vermithor’s anger surged through their bond and he descended from the clouds. During the ensuing crisis with Vhagar, he broke through the Dragonpit’s dome and spread his wings as a bronze shield over those inside 75 76.

After the immediate danger passed, Gold Dragon nuzzled Baelon’s hand. Vermithor reacted jealously, narrowing his eyes as fire began glowing in his throat 76.

Personality

Vermithor is attentive to his rider despite his intimidating size. He slows when Baelon struggles with the wind, moves his neck to clear the boy’s view, and lowers a wing to help him climb aboard. He also learns quickly, mastering Baelon’s digging demonstration after only a few attempts 31 33 36.

He is fiercely protective. After a python threatens Baelon, Vermithor tears at its remains before gently checking his rider with his snout. Even after Baelon unlocks shared fire resistance, Vermithor deliberately directs his flames around him rather than burn him 34 35.

Battle excites him, particularly once the Trial Space allows him to recover from otherwise devastating injuries. He charges despite mutilated wings and shows no hesitation against Rodan. His affection can also become possessive: Gold Dragon’s attention toward Baelon provokes immediate jealousy 35 75 76.

Abilities & Skills

Dragonfire

Vermithor breathes intensely hot, golden flame 32 35.

• Before fire-temperature enhancements, Baelon estimates its heat at over 2,000 degrees, sufficient to melt a knight’s armor into molten iron 32.
• After enlargement, produces a flame jet more than fifty meters long 36.
• Can engulf forests, destroy ships, and disperse heavy cloud and mist through heat 34 36 54.
• Dragonfire is less effective against mature dragons whose scales withstand its heat; physical attacks remain important in dragon combat 35.

Physical Strength and Natural Armor

His size supports powerful bites, claw strikes, tail blows, and bodily charges 34 35.

• A giant porcupine’s quills fail to penetrate his scales 34.
• His tail incapacitates an enormous eagle in one blow 34.
• Baelon damages a fine steel dagger trying to cut one of his scales 36.
• His wings shield others from Vhagar’s dragonfire 76.
• His size can become a disadvantage when grounded, surrounded, or confined; Baelon avoids sending him into Cannibal’s narrow tunnel 34 41.
• Powerful trial enemies remain capable of injuring him: the Balrog severs part of a wing, and Rodan overwhelms him outright 35.

Flight and Air Displacement

Vermithor remains a capable long-distance flier after reaching Balerion-like size 39.

• Carries Baelon with additional passengers, including Viserys, Orwyle, and Ser Harrold 42 52.
• Generates gales strong enough to gather clouds and raise towering waves 36 65.
• Adjusts speed and posture to accommodate his rider 31.

Rider Bond — Blood and Fire as One

The system develops the emotional connection between Vermithor and Baelon into a leveled bond 32 34.

• Baelon can calm Vermithor by conveying his own calm emotions 32.
• Strong emotions and pain pass between them during battle 35 75.
• At Bond lv.4, Baelon gains Vermithor’s resistance to the heat of fire 35.
• The connection lets Baelon redirect Vermithor when he begins flying toward the Smoking Sea and Old Valyria 36.

Equipment / Items

• Original saddle and climbing ropes — Already attached when Baelon finds him; their fittings fail during his rapid growth 29 36.
• Temporary hemp ropes — Used to secure Baelon after the broken saddle is removed 36.
• Replacement saddle — Fitted by the Dragonkeepers during a brief visit to the Dragonpit 42.
• Proposed steel eye guard — Designed by Baelon and Ankatu with a narrow viewing slit, accommodating Vermithor’s prominent horns. Its manufacture or use is not confirmed in the provided chapters 49 50.

Relationships

• Baelon Targaryen — Rider and combat partner. Their bond develops into shared emotions, pain, and fire resistance; Vermithor is protective and sometimes jealous of other dragons’ attention toward him 29 34 35 75 76.
• Jaehaerys the Conciliator — Former rider. Baelon brings his old nightclothes when approaching Vermithor and credits his great-grandfather for the dragon’s considerate riding habits 9 29 31.
• Silverwing — Longstanding companion and fellow Dragonmont resident. She initially fails to recognize his enlarged form, then identifies his scent and affectionately nuzzles him 9 41.
• Viserys Targaryen — Former rider’s grandson and Baelon’s father. Publicly defends Vermithor’s transformation as divine favor and later rides him back to King’s Landing 36 42.
• Caraxes — Challenges Vermithor despite their vast size difference; both dragons reluctantly settle when their riders intervene 38.
• Gold Dragon — His affection toward Baelon provokes Vermithor’s jealousy 75 76.

Trivia

• Outside the Trial Space, Vermithor eats only five sheep a day, while obtaining much larger meals inside it 74.
• Baelon teaches him to dig with his hind claws, using his wings to support his weight 33.
• Baelon’s extravagant praise of Vermithor’s sulfurous scent earns Affinity +10 41.