Summary
HBO’sGame of Thronesis a storehouse of incredibly powerful characters who inflict heavy damage on their enemies and armies. These individuals have wealth, or formidable armies, dragons, artillery, influential allies, loyal and capable aides, or all of them. AsGame of Thronesis a power struggle between noble families of Westeros, it is only natural that some Houses and their members wield more power than others.
WhileGame of Throneshas no dearth of highly influential, strong, and important characters, the fact remains: not all of them are equal in stature and power. The extent of each individual’s power varies. For example, between Tywin and Robb, the former, Tywin, had much more political clout, though Robb hada bigger armyat his disposal. So, where does this comparison leave the rest?
10Robb Stark
Starts Strong But Loses The War Against The Lannisters
Robb Stark starts as a powerful character, rallying a large army behind him to free his father, Ned, from the dungeons of the Red Keep. The noble Houses of the North pledge their allegiance to him, and after Ned’s beheading, Robb is chosen by Northmen as King in the North.
Robb defeats the Lannister armies in the Battle of the Whispering Wood and the Battle of the Green Fork. His victories are a slap in Tywin’s face, and his army marches on. However, Robb lets his emotions cloud his judgment. He uses Walder Frey’s bridge but breaks his oath. Robb angers Lord Walder by setting aside Roslin Frey for a foreigner, and beheads Lord Karstark, after which his numbers fall significantly. In the end, Robb walks right into the Bolton-Frey trap atthe Red Wedding, and his army is butchered at the Twins at the orders of Tywin.
9Olenna Tyrell
A Strong-Willed Matriarch
The tart-tongued Olenna Tyrell spearheaded House Tyrell’s rise to power in the capital. She allied with House Lannister, in which the Tyrell armies aided the Crown against Stannis Baratheon in the Battle of Blackwater. Following this, Olenna and her grandchildren, Ser Loras and Margaery, became influential in King’s Landing.
When Margaery was betrothed to the imbecile monster, King Joffrey, Olenna plotted to kill him. She managed to take him out, paving the way for Margaery to marry his younger, naive brother, Tommen. Olenna eventually fell victim to Cersei’s machinations, and in the end, the Lannister armies sacked Highgarden. Jaime gave her a clean death. Yet, she went out like a true lady, telling him that it was she who killed his and Cersei’s vicious son usingthe Strangler poison.
8Lord Baelish
Master of Coin And Master Manipulator
Once, Robert’s Master of Coin, Lord Baelish, dreamed of placing himself on the Iron Throne, with Sansa by his side, but she saw right through him. Though she took her sweet time recognizing his true nature and learning his machinations, she eventually had Arya end his life.
Baelish’s endgame was simple— he used people as a ladder to reach the top. A few of his victims included Ned and Catelyn Stark, and Lysa Arryn, among others. He sowed discord and built his empire on chaos. He benefited from Ned’s presence at court, Sansa’s naivety, Catelyn’s trust, Joffrey’s stupidity, and Cersei’s impulsiveness. He was given Harrenhal, becameLord Protector of the Valethrough his marriage of convenience to the unstable Lysa Arryn, and had control over the little lord of the Vale, Robyn Arryn. Baelish only got so far, and his dreams remained unfulfilled.
7Tywin Lannister
A Political Heavyweight In The Realms Of Power
Tywin Lannister was once the richest, most powerful man in the Seven Kingdoms. The crown owed him a huge debt, forcing King Robert to bend to his will. Tywin’s loyalists, such as Ser Gregor Clegane, aka the Mountain, enjoyed impunity and were untouchable.
Tywin was a master strategist, a cunning politician, and a brilliant commander. He was a strong patriarch who wanted to leave a legacy for his children. He kept his enemies close and warned his daughter to proceed with caution. However, his lifelong animosity towards his youngest son, Tyrion the Imp, cost him his life. He sentenced Tyrion to death in Joffrey’s murder trial and wasshot by a crossbow in retaliation.
6Cersei Lannister
Survived While Strong Men Around Her Died Like Flies
Married to King Robert Baratheon, Cersei was a cruel, ruthless, and fierce tyrant who cared only about her interests, the interests of her House, and her three children. When the then-Hand of the King, Ned Stark, confronted her about the illegitimacy of her children and urged her to flee the capital,she stayed put and retorted:
When you play the Game of Thrones, you win, or you die. There is no middle ground.
Cersei used Lord Baelish, provoked Ned into making one foolish decision after another, and weakened his position at court. While she ordered her cousin, Lancel Lannister, to keep filling Robert’s cup during the royal hunt, compromising his senses to a point where a boar ripped him open. With Robert dead, Cersei seized power and became the dowager queen, forming alliances that once again served her interests. She eventually became Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, but Daenerys Targaryen took the Iron Throne in the Battle of King’s Landing. Daenerys torched the city atop Drogon, while Cersei died underneath the rubble. That said, Cersei survived as the last of the wars and battles unfolded.
5Lord Varys
The Spider Who Spied For The Realm
All throughout his life, Lord Varys did not swear loyalty to any one particular person but to the one he believed was fit to rule the realm. An eunuch, Varys, came from nothing butended up as the Master of Whispererson the Small Council in the Red Keep.
Varys employed a vast network of little birds who brought him news from all nooks and corners. He lost faith in one ruler after another, and Daenerys executed him for betraying her in the final hours ofGame of Thrones. He held some of the most powerful positions in Westeros and later at Daenerys' court. He was a true servant to the people, but nobles kept disappointing him.
4Daenerys Targaryen
Ruled Essos With Love And Westeros With An Iron Fist
Daenerys' method of ruling and governance varied from that in Essos to Westeros, but she was born to rule, nonetheless. Her father, Aerys II, was killed by his Kingsguard, Ser Jaime Lannister, at the end of Robert’s Rebellion.
Daenerys lived in foreign lands with her abusive brother, Viserys. She believed the crown was his, but her marriage to the Dothraki warlord, Khal Drago, changed everything. Her journey began with Drogo’s death; she ruled over the remnants of his Khalasar as their Khaleesi, and became mother to three baby dragons born from petrified dragon eggs from the Shadow Lands beyond Asshai. Her rise to power came to a halt in the aftermath ofthe Battle of King’s Landing. She became Queen of the ashes and lost her sanity. She did not want to stop anytime soon, until Jon plunged a dagger into her heart, ending her short-lived reign of tyranny.
3Tyrion Lannister
The Imp Outlived His Family And Became Hand To Bran
Tyrion Lannister started offGame of Thronesas a sassy character, entertaining with his brand of tongue-in-cheek humor. The fandom loved Tyrion’s presence around the Starks of Winterfell, his nephews and niece, sister Cersei, brother Jaime, and father, Tywin. However, there was much more to Tyrion than just beingThrones' funny one.
Tyrion had craved his father’s validation all his life. He was the smartest of all Lannisters, but also the kindest. He knew leadership required determination, and a dozen more qualities—and he had most of them. The Lannister victory at Blackwater Bay was partly due to his trick with Wildfire. He briefly served on the Lannister-led Small Council, but his father and sister discarded him after their victory. In the aftermath ofthe Purple Wedding, Tywin framed him for Joffrey’s murder. Tyrion was innocent; he managed to escape with Jaime’s help, eventually serving as Daenerys' Hand. He nudged Jon to end her tyranny and helped the most powerful lords and ladies of the realm move forward with Bran as their new king.
2Sansa Stark
Grew Into Her Power
Sansa came a long way from being a little dove who dreamed of being Joffrey’s wife and giving birth to his children, to becoming Queen in the North. As a child, she believed her purpose in life was to marry the king and become another Cersei-like figure in the capital. But this idyllic dream began to fade slowly duringthe War of the Five Kings.
Sansa saw Joffrey and the Lannisters for what they truly were—monstrous people who stole her family from her, and had her father and brother beheaded. She survived the Lannister ally, Ramsay Bolton, in the North, used Baelish to win the Battle of the Bastards, and successfully brokered the North’s independence with her brother, King Bran. She was crowned Queen in the North—and that was that.
1Bran The Broken
King Of The Six Kingdoms
While powerful figures squabbled among themselves, Bran, who was paralyzed from the waist down, wonGame of Thrones. He began his journey as the little lord of Winterfell, ruling in the older Starks' stead.
Bran’s journey from a wanderer to the Three-Eyed Raven is incredible. He became the memory of the living world, played a pivotal role in defeatingthe Night Kingand his Army of the Dead, and ultimately took his place as King of the Six Kingdoms, remarking on his predestined role:
Why do you think I came all this way?
