Who Made It Out Alive After The ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 3 Finale
The eighth episode of ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 3 closed out the season with the kind of large scale destruction the show had been building toward all year, and it left behind a long list of characters whose fates now hang over the final season. The Battle of Tumbleton saw Rhaenyra and Daemon move to crush Ormund Hightower and young Daeron Targaryen, and once the dragonfire and dust cleared, the roster of who lived and who didn’t shifted the entire shape of the war.
The finale, which aired Sunday night, mixed a massive battle sequence with a handful of quieter, equally consequential scenes back in King’s Landing. Fans looking for a clean scorecard of survivors have plenty to sort through, since ‘House of the Dragon’ spread its casualties across both the battlefield and the palace this time around.
Battle of Tumbleton Deaths And Survivors
Ormund Hightower did not make it out of the episode. He spent most of the finale searching for the drunken Ulf White in hopes of taking his dragon Silverwing and turning the tide of the fight, and once he finally succeeded, Roderick Dustin, known as Roddy the Ruin, caught up with him and ended his run on the show.
Corlys Velaryon had a far closer call than expected. Rhaenyra’s uncle, lover and husband Daemon was finally cleared to attack Tumbleton and fought hard, nearly losing his life in the process, but Corlys warned him of Ulf’s betrayal in time to get him out safely. Corlys himself had already survived the Battle of the Gullet earlier in the season, and he made it through Tumbleton as well, despite being abducted by Ormund Hightower’s men along the way.
Gwayne Hightower and Daeron Targaryen both appear to have survived, though their fates were left somewhat ambiguous on screen. Gwayne pleaded with Daeron to stay indoors when Silverwing attacked, but both men ran outside to find cover, and the closing moments of the episode show Gwayne waking up and searching for Daeron among the ruins. Viewers never got outright confirmation that Daeron survived the dragonfire blast, but since he wasn’t shown dying on screen, and he hasn’t even had the chance to ride his own dragon Tessarion yet, most signs point to him returning for the next season.
Hugh Hammer also lived through the carnage, though not without personal loss. Hugh survived the battle, but he lost his wife Kat and other members of her family, which sets up a likely revenge arc heading into the show’s final run.
Deaths Back In King’s Landing
Not every casualty this episode happened on the battlefield. The High Septon was stabbed in the chest by Alyn on Rhaenyra’s orders, one of several politically motivated killings that defined the episode’s back half. The most devastating loss inside King’s Landing, however, belonged to the royal family itself.
‘House of the Dragon’ delivered one of its most talked about deaths of the series when Helaena Targaryen took her own life. This was one of the bloodiest episodes of the show to date, and Helaena’s death sits alongside the fall of major names like Jacaerys Velaryon, Otto Hightower, Ser Luthor Largent and Criston Cole across the course of the season. Her loss is expected to shake the loyalty of the smallfolk in King’s Landing, since throwing a beloved royal out of a window is not exactly the kind of image that inspires confidence in a ruler.
Where Aegon II, Aemond And Mysaria Stand
Perhaps the biggest twist of the finale had nothing to do with the battle itself. Rhaenyra’s grip on power took a hit when it was revealed that Aegon and his dragon Sunfyre, both presumed dead, are in fact still alive, immediately complicating her claim to the Iron Throne. Aegon later finds his brother Aemond at Harrenhal but chooses not to kill him, a decision that could carry weight into the final season.
Aemond himself survived an assassination attempt from an unlikely source. Alicent slipped nightshade poison into his wine, but Aemond appears to make a full recovery and is shown leaving his bed after hearing the sound of a dragon, presumably hoping Vhagar has returned to him. Alys Rivers’ skill kept him from succumbing to the poison in the first place.
Do you think Mysaria betrays Rhaenyra in the final season?
Mysaria’s fate is more about status than survival. She technically doesn’t die in the finale, but she’s effectively dead to Rhaenyra all the same, and she’s ushered away after word spreads that Sunfyre and Aegon are still alive. Analysts have noted it was a risky move to leave a schemer like Mysaria alive after casting her out, given how well she understands the underclass of King’s Landing compared to those currently ruling it.
What The Survivor List Means For Season 4
The finale’s body count and survivor list both point toward a brutal final chapter for ‘House of the Dragon.’ The next major events on the horizon include Aegon retaking Dragonstone, the Battle Above the Gods Eye, the Storming of the Dragonpit, the Second Battle of Tumbleton and Rhaenyra’s own death.
Rhaenyra’s position looks shakier than it has all series, and not just because of Aegon’s return. Ulf and Daeron remain active dragonriders following the Battle of Tumbleton, and neither appears loyal to either side at this point, meaning both could swing the balance of the war in either direction. Meanwhile, most of Rhaenyra’s own allies, including Corlys, Rhaena, Baela, Addam, Ulf and Hugh, appear to have turned on her in some form by the episode’s end.
Alicent’s role going forward remains one of the bigger open questions. Despite once being Rhaenyra’s fiercest rival, the show has arguably set her up to become Rhaenyra’s last real ally once Daemon is gone, which would be a significant irony given their history. Others believe Alicent, who understands Rhaenyra better than almost anyone else in the realm, may instead be seeking vengeance following her daughter’s death.
With so many characters left in precarious positions and a final season already confirmed to bring the Dance of the Dragons to its bloody conclusion, it’s worth asking which of these survivors you think has the best chance of making it to the end of ‘House of the Dragon.’
