Here’s How Much Targaryen Blood You Need to Ride a Dragon

The most recent episode of ‘House of the Dragon’ presented us with one very real problem. The Black have enough dragons roaming the slopes of Dragonmont however they lack the riders to ride them. Following the loss of Rhaenys and Meleys, one of the most experienced dragons and dragon riders, Rhaenyra decided to scour the history books in order to find potential dragon riders – Targaryens who married into noble families in order to claim unclaimed dragons on Dragonstone.

Rhaenyra said that only the purest Targaryen blood can claim and ride a dragon, and then Prince Jacaerys Velaryon presented one very strong argument, how much of that was propaganda spread by Targaryens to make them appear closer to gods than men?

If we’re going by what’s in the books, both Rhaenyra and Jacaerys are correct in their assumptions.

As you’re probably aware at this point the Targaryens are the blood of old Valyria, before Aegon the Conqueror, well, conquered Westeros, Targaryens were just one of many dragonlords from Old Valyria, they weren’t weak as far as noble families go but they were far from being the most powerful.

Old Valyria eventually went through a catastrophic event of mysterious origin called the “Doom of Valyria.” Plenty of theories were put forward on what happened to Valyria ranging from natural events to god’s wrath, but consensus has never been reached. Almost all dragonlords died during the doom of Valyria and almost all dragons. Targaryens managed to escape beacuse they were warned in the form of a vision.

Daenys the Dreamer had a vision that doom would soon come to Valyria and Targaryens sold most of their holdings in Valyria and relocated to Dragonstone, 12 years before the doom came. But what does this have to do with dragonriding?

It has everything to do with it. As you can see, Targaryens were far from unique when it came to “the power to ride a dragon.” There were numerous families in the Valyrian freehold who had access to that same power.

The general consensus so far is once again unclear. Some historians claimed that Valyrian heritage certainly played a part when it came to claiming and riding a dragon, and some claimed that old dragonlords used powerful spells and horns to bind and command dragons.

The fact that incestuous marriage was a common practice both in Valyria and among Targaryens once again tells us nothing. Incest was practiced to keep the bloodline pure, but once again it could be due to the dragonlords wanting to keep the power from being diluted or to keep other families from rising in ranks and claiming the secrets to riding a dragon for themselves.

That heritage is the most important part has several really strong arguments. The fact that we don’t know a single person of confirmed non-Valyrian descent who managed to claim and ride a dragon is evidence enough. But how much of that magical blood is necessary?

Let’s look at the case of Rhaena Targaryen, who failed to bond with a dragon and almost lost her life during the ordeal. Having Valyrian blood does not guarantee a successful bond with a dragon, regardless of how direct the lineage is and how pure it is.

Consider that several Targaryen and Velaryon bastards were able to claim and ride dragons, and bastards pretty much have the worst possible “lineage” when it comes to nobility. They are often born to prostitutes and destitute women. But apparently, having at least one parent or grandparent being a pure Targaryen is enough.

There is however one problem with this theory as well. Ulf the White, dragonseed, had Valyrian features but no one knew exactly who fathered him, so it’s possible that his connection to the mainline Targaryens was far more diluted than we can verify.

There’s also the dragonseed Nettles, who lacked Valyrian features altogether and no one could prove that she actually had some Valyrian blood in her. Yet she managed to tame Sheepstealer by feeding him sheep, which would mean that it is possible to claim and bond with a dragon by building a strong connection with it.

But, as you’ve probably suspected, we have a problem with this theory as well. Once a dragon and a rider are bonded, that bond is unbreakable until either the rider or the dragon dies. This means that there is a magic component to that relationship, and that magic stems from Old Valyria, leading us once more back to heritage.

So, what would the general consensus be? The more Targaryen blood you have the higher your odds of bonding with the dragon are. Having just a drop of Targaryen blood doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to bond with a dragon however, it just means that chances are extremely small, just like the chances of Targaryen being rejected by a dragon are small but never zero.

It’s likely a combination of magical and heritage factors, but in general, having at least one Targaryen parent or a grandparent seems to allow fairly decent odds of bonding with a dragon.

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