All Dragons & Their Riders in House of the Dragon

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon Seasons 1 & 2.

House of the Dragon Season 1 featured several of the over-grown lizards that lend the show its name — and even more debuted in Season 2! So, to help you keep track, here’s a round-up of all dragons and their riders in House of the Dragon.

Related: Who Is the Father of Rhaenyra Targaryen’s Sons in House of the Dragon?

Syrax (Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen)

Syrax is Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen’s golden-scaled dragon. Named after a Valyrian goddess, Syrax is a decent-sized mount, albeit smaller than Caraxes and outright dwarfed by Vhagar. Syrax also lacks the battle experience of those dragons. But given the Dance of the Dragons civil war has properly kicked off as of House of the Dragon Season 2, both Syrax and Rhaenyra will have plenty of opportunity to practice aerial combat maneuvers soon!

Caraxes (Prince Daemon Targaryen)

Nicknamed “The Blood Wyrm” on account of his crimson hide, Caraxes is Prince Daemon Targaryen’s dragon. Like his rider, Caraxes is no stranger to battle, as seen in some of House of the Dragon Season 1’s War for the Stepstones action sequences. Even so, Caraxes is far from the most formidable dragon in Westeros; that honor goes to the much larger Vhagar. He’s not exactly the quickest, either. According to House of the Dragon‘s source text, Fire & Blood, Princess Rhaenys Targaryen’s mount, Meleys, flies much faster than Caraxes (or once did, at least).

Meleys (Princess Rhaenys Targaryen)

Princess Rhaenys Targaryen may have been the “Queen Who Never Was,” but her mount Meleys ruled the airways over Dragonstone. Indeed, Meleys’ regal stature — with her crown of horns and red scales — earned her the moniker “The Red Queen.” As noted in the above entry on Caraxes, Meleys also had a reputation as a speed demon. In the years prior to House of the Dragon, Rhaenys’ dragon was one of the fastest in all of Westeros. Meleys wasn’t quite so sprightly by the time she died in House of the Dragon Season 2; however, she remained a force to be reckoned with until the end.

Related: How Does Alicent Die in House of the Dragon?

Vhagar (Prince Aemond Targaryen)

The reigning champ of the Westerosi dragon scene, Vhagar is Prince Aemond Targaryen’s mount. She is both the oldest and largest living dragon in House of the Dragon. Heck, Vhagar took part in King Aegon I Targaren’s conquest of Westeros over a century before House of the Dragon Season 1 kicks off! Her original rider was Visenya Targaryen. Subsequent riders include Prince Baelon Targaryen, Laena Velaryon, and finally, Aemond. Vhagar’s size, ferocity, and battle experience give the Green Targaryen camp the edge — nobody in the Black camp wants to face her alone!

Sunfyre (King Aegon II Targaryen)

Aegon II’s dragon, Sunfyre, has a rough go of it in House of the Dragon Season 2. The one time the king and his mount take to the battlefield, both wind up mortally injured. But then, most dragons caught between Meleys and Vhagar wouldn’t fare much better! Besides, we still got some great shots of Sunfyre flying around and looking pretty before all that unpleasantness at Rook’s Rest in Season 2 Episode 4. And “pretty” really is the operative word; Sunfyre is known as “Sunfyre the Golden” thanks to his dazzling yellow scales, which gleam as he streaks through the air.

Vermax (Prince Jacaerys Velaryon)

Another of House of the Dragon‘s winged firebreathers who’s largely doubled as a flying taxi so far, Vermax belongs to Prince Jacaerys Velaryon. In fairness to Vermax, his relatively short list of achievements is partly down to his youth. The green-scaled dragon only hatched in House of the Dragon Season 1. As such, Vermax is still too young to do much more than play courier (as is Jacaerys, for that matter). But as fans familiar with Fire & Blood will already know, it won’t be long until Vermax enters the fray properly in House of the Dragon.

Related: House of the Dragon: How Is Cregan Stark Related to Game of Thrones’ Ned Stark?

Arrax (Prince Lucerys Velaryon)

Poor Arrax and Lucerys were both taken before their time. As chronicled in House of the Dragon Season 1’s finale, “The Black Queen,” both dragon and rider died after a lopsided encounter with Prince Aemond and Vhagar. The much younger and smaller Arrax never really stood a chance against an oversized firebreather like Vhagar, and flipped out. Just as Lucerys regained control of Arrax, Vhagar — none too happy about Arrax spitting flame in her face — chomped them both. Arrax plummeted into the bay below in pieces, while Lucerys wound up in Vhagar’s belly!

Moondancer (Lady Baela Targaryen)

Baela Targaryen’s dragon, Moondancer, doesn’t get a lot of screen time in House of the Dragon. She’s mostly on recon duty whenever she appears, too. Presumably, this is a case of the Black Targaryen camp playing to Moondancer’s strengths. This she-dragon’s all about speed and agility, not raw power. That’s if Fire & Blood is any guide, as in the book, the light-green scaled Moondancer is far smaller than the likes of Vhagar and Caraxes, but also a heckuva lot more nimble.

Dreamfyre (Queen Helaena Targaryen)

Following her fiery introduction in House of the Dragon Season 1, Dreamfyre largely stays on the sidelines. Other than protecting a mound of eggs at King’s Landing’s Dragonpit, the only other thing of note that she does in Season 1 is ferry future queen Helaena Targaryen home from Laena Velaryon’s funeral. This scene establishes Helaena as Dreamfyre’s rider, while Season 2 Episode 8 later explains why she spends so little time on screen. It turns out the queen isn’t big on leaving the Red Keep or killing people, so she’s not exactly inclined to let Dreamfyre off her leash that often.

Related: Why Were There No Guards in the House of the Dragon Season 2 Blood and Cheese Scene?

Seasmoke (Addam of Hull)

Seasmoke has two riders over the course of House of the Dragon to date. The first is Ser Laenor Velaryon; together, they mix it up during the War for the Stepstones. Indeed, the pair play a crucial role in the conflict’s final battle, the siege of Bloodstone. After Laenor exits the picture, Seasmoke spends the rest of Season 1 and most of Season 2 riderless, until he bonds with dragonseed Addam of Hull in Episode 6. We’ve yet to see the Addam/Seasmoke team-up cut loose, but expect big things from them in House of the Dragon Season 3.

Vermithor (Hugh Hammer)

Vermithor is one of the biggest and baddest dragons ever to soar Westeros’ skies. Also known as the Bronze Fury, his size is eclipsed by only one other living dragon, Vhagar. Vermithor’s original rider was King Jaehaerys I Targaryen. Following Jaehaerys’ death, Vermithor chilled out in his lair (alongside his mate, Silverwing) without a rider for years. Even after Daemon Targaryen wakes Vermithor up in Season 1’s finale, there’s nobody to claim him — until Hugh Hammer comes along. Hugh bonds with Vermithor in House of the Dragon Season 2’s seventh installment, winning over the Bronze Fury with his bravery in the face of certain death.

Silverwing (Ulf White)

Vermithor’s other half, Silverwing, was once the mount of King Jaehaerys’ wife, Alysanne Targaryen. Much like her mate, Silverwing doesn’t bond with anyone new for years after her original rider’s death — and the person she settles on is a surprising choice, to say the least! As shown in House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 7, Ulf White — a guy with seemingly little in common with noble Alysanne — claims Silverwing. But hey: that’s the vagaries of dragon bonding for you!

Related: Does Rhaena Get a Dragon in House of the Dragon?

Sheepstealer (Rhaena Targaryen)

Sheepstealer is one of the three wild dragons first teased in House of the Dragon Season 1. As the “wild” label suggests, he’s never had a rider. That’s about to change, however, as Season 2 Episode 8’s closing montage indicates that Lady Rhaena Targaryen is now bonded with Sheepstealer. This marks House of the Dragon‘s first major departure from Fire & Blood‘s dragon rider-centric canon. In the book, a dragonseed character, Nettles, claims Sheepstealer, while Rhaena rides around on another dragon, Morning. Perhaps Rhaena will rename Sheepstealer in the show? We’ll have to wait and see!

Balerion (Deceased)

Widely regarded as the GOAT, Balerion was the dragon King Aegon I Targaryen rode when he conquered Westeros. Called “The Black Dread,” Balerion has taken on near-mythical status by the time of House of the Dragon. It’s not hard to see why, either. Aside from his key role in shaping Westerosi history, Balerion was massive. His shadow was supposedly so vast, it blanketed whole towns as he flew over them — and based on the size of Balerion’s skull (as seen in House of the Dragon Season 1), that’s probably no exaggeration. Aside from Aegon I, the Black Dread’s other riders included Maegor I Targaryen, Aerea Targaryen, and Viserys I Targaryen.

And there you have it: all dragons and their riders in House of the Dragon. To see these winged beasties in action, stream House of the Dragon on HBO and Max now.

The above article was updated on 8/11/24 by Leon Miller to include Sheepstealer and Silverwing and adjust Vermithor and Seasmoke’s current riders as of the House of the Dragon Season 2 finale.