Family feuds are fairly common in the Game of Thrones universe, and House of the Dragon (HOTD) will be no different. HOTD Episode 8, Lord of the Tides, ended with King Viserys dying and, more importantly, Alicent believing that Viserys wanted to name their son Aegon II Targaryen as heir. This will most likely spark a civil war between Alicent Hightower and her stepdaughter Rhaenyra Targaryen, who are around the same age and were very good friends as teenagers (so George RR Martin).
Many fans believe that House of the Dragon episode 9 will be a battle episode, which could very well be the civil war that episode 8 left us with. Here’s what you need to know before it happens.
who is on which side
HOTD civil war
At first glance, we have two teams forming in HOTD, one led by Otto Hightower and the other led by Rhaenyra Targaryen. You could say that Alicent Hightower and Daemon Targaryen are the counterparts of Otto and Rhaenyra respectively.
On one side you have Alicent Hightower with her eldest son Aegon whom she believes to be king now that Viserys is dead. Otto Hightower, her father, is also on her side, leading their side. He always wanted to see Aegon on the Iron Throne, which he revealed to Alicent in episode 7. Maybe that’s why Otto wanted Viserys to marry Rhaenyra and baby Aegon. This way he was looking to get Aegon on his side later and have more control over things. Our new one-eyed beast, Aemond Targaryen, equipped with an eye patch, and the world’s largest dragon, Vhagar, are also on Alicent’s side. He will be the most valuable asset for the Hightowers in the fight between the riders of dragons in the sky, or as the books would say, “Dance of the Dragons”.
Besides Otto and Alice’s family members, Jason Lannister would take their side, as it is a tradition of House Lannister to side with the crown. Tywin Lannister sided with usurper Robert Baratheon. Yet he also married Cersei with King Robert and sided with the crown. Most houses will side with the crown because no one likes to lose.
On the other hand, Rhaenyra has her dragon Syrax and her husband, Daemon Targaryen, as well as her dragon Caraxes. Rhaenyra’s bastard son (whoop! Better not say it) Jacaerys also has a dragon named Vermax, and his second-born Lucerys rides the dragon Arrax. Daemon also took three of Syrax’s eggs and kept them warm. These eggs may hatch and Rhaenyra’s side will have too many dragons to handle.
House Velaryon may not support Rhaenyra, as there is already a birth Targaryen sitting on the Iron Throne (if Alicent’s son Aegon becomes king) and also because Daemon cut off Vaemond Velaryon’s head in episode 8. Either way, the Hightowers seem to have the upper hand when it comes to support.
When will the HOTD Civil War battle take place?
Dragon Civil War House
It’s hard to say when the main battle that all HOTD fans have been waiting to see, the dragon fight in the sky, will take place, but small-scale fights could be seen in next week’s episode. It’s always been the tradition of the Game of Thrones family to make the ninth episode of each season the show’s cap, and the way episode eight ended, the buildup has already happened.
We’re sure to have an intense scene in the courtroom when Alicent announces that King Viserys told her he wanted their son Aegon to be king after Viserys died. Some people might draw their swords, and Ser Criston Cole will be one of them, as we saw in the HOTD Episode 9 preview.
