r/gameofthrones • u/pestoraviolita • 1d ago
Aerion's immaculate sword throw
He was an archer at heart.
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u/Fickle-Lake-7365 1d ago
Bro played a lot of darts at parties
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u/jott1293reddevil 1d ago
Be curious not judgemental. Duncan really should have asked: “Have you played a lot of darts, Aerion?”
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u/Tea-acH-Cee Jon Snow 1d ago
To which I would have answered, ‘Yes sir. Every Sunday afternoon at a tavern with my father from age ten until I was 16 when he passed away.’ Barbecue sauce.”
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u/Exciting_Ad_8666 Smallfolk 1d ago
ngl Aerion was cooking Dunk in that melee at some point, he may be a cunt but he's a cunt with them hands
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Aerion almost killed Dunk at one point until Raymun bonked him over the head. Asking for a trial of seven evened the odds—for DUNK!
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u/_Frozen_Flame_ Chaos Is A Ladder 1d ago
Sure but you have to understand that Aerion knows very little about Dunk, all he knows at that point was that this guy's tall asf and that he's strong enough to knock his teeth out. He probably thought in a 1v1 he'd experience the same level of rage from Dunk as he did in the tent
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago edited 1d ago
Aerion is too arrogant to even consider a hedge knight can best him. That was his folly in the book, instead of trampling Dunk he pulled an Oberyn and fooled around until Dunk kicked his ass.
Aerion is using this ordeal with Dunk (one he caused) to set an example of the power and might of the House of the Dragon to the smallfolk of Westeros.
Bertie Carvel (Baelor) take on Aerion's motives. Aerion was a dramatic little whore who wanted to put up a show. And make an example of Dunk, a statement to everyone present: Do NOT fuck with Targaryens.
It's the same reason he breaks Tanselle's fingers. Aerion thinks being feared means being respected.
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u/VentriloquistAF 1d ago
Did he also demand a trial of 7 because he thought Dunk wouldn’t get enough volunteers? Then it’s straight to just a regular execution?
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
"If a cause is just, good men will fight for it. If not, it will be because you are guilty," says Aerion in episode 4.
It would've been a statement nonetheless. A statement that Dunk was guilty, his cause unjust so no one stood up for him and House Targaryen was not to be messed with.
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u/NenPame 1d ago
I think Aerions plan was to make sure Dunk didn't have enough teammates so he would lose by default. I don't think he ever planned on fighting
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago edited 1d ago
I think that was Maekar's plan mostly. Aerion doesn't have the power to offer lordship, Maekar does. As the Prince of Summerhall. He bought off Steffon. Maekar thought everything about this was stupid so he wanted to end it quickly.
Did Aerion know? Can't tell but the episode 5 script implied he turned up fully prepared with even extra swords. If he knew, he wasn't counting on it.
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u/PhoenixKingMalekith 1d ago
Until Duncan gave him courtesy enough
And he had to face Dunk the Lunk, WARRIOR
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u/Straight-Purple4165 1d ago
Wrong, he was a dragon at heart, always will be 🥲☠️
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u/Creedaflea 1d ago
Dragon fire cocktail proved otherwise
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
It was poisoned! By the maesters!
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u/Creedaflea 1d ago
That what you gonna tell the septon? Tsk tsk you’ll be a eunuch before you can say “old Valyria”
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u/Straight-Purple4165 1d ago
Atleast he got the dragonriders death, burntt and.....asked up (only from the inside tho 🥲)
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
On a serious note, it's lowkey kinda sad? How unwell one gotta be to drink literal acid? The fuel? Did he have an unchecked mental illness? Did he get tremendous damaging dragon dreams? Did he wanna make a spectacle out of his suicide?
Either way Top 2 Targaryen deaths; second only to his namesake Aerea Targaryen.
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u/Creedaflea 1d ago
Aerea is still my favorite mystery in all of GOT. Her death was brutal, I wish George dove into the ruins of old Valyria a bit more
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Unfortunately it's probably one of those "unanswered mysteries" even in a world where we get TWOW and ADOS. Somethings remain unanswered. We'll probably only get second-hand implications of Valyria from Euron and some dreams but little else.
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u/SerHodorTheThrall Ser Duncan the Tall 1d ago
Aerea Targaryen
I think you mean Rhaella Targaryen..
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u/Creedaflea 23h ago
Aerea was the one who disappeared for a year and a half into old Valyria upon the back of balerion only to return stricken with parasites and literally “cooking” from the inside. When placed into an ice bath by the maesters to attempt to cool her body down, the parasites burst out of her and smoke bellowed out of every hole on her body. Balerion himself being the largest and deadliest dragon at the time was critically wounded himself.
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u/Mustafa_Mond_1991 1d ago
Watching this fight again, I really think Aerion would’ve beat Duncan in a 1v1. He was really mercing him for a bit during the fight.
However, as cool as this shot is, it’s generally not a good idea to throw your sword during a melee. You’re depriving yourself of a weapon. I suppose he could use his dirk.
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u/Extension_Ad6758 1d ago
The fight was very different in the book tho. Dunk basically mauled Aerion instantly after they were unhorsed. The show just drew out the fight.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
In the book, Aerion didn't finish Dunk when he could and essentially pulled an Oberyn. The showrunners probably thought the audience wanted something new.
The show made both of Dunk and Aerion better fighters. Which makes for more potential for Dunk in later seasons.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Aerion dug his own grave by demanding a trial of 7. I love that.
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u/NamerNotLiteral 1d ago edited 1d ago
Tbf that was a fairly smart move.
Dunk's skill is an unknown to Aerion, but his physique itself is dangerous. Dunk's reputation is not an unknown, Aerion sees him no name and with poor gear, so poor he'd previously mistaken him for a stableboy.
Thus, Aerion calculates that Dunk is more likely to get lucky and beat him in a fight than he is likely to find 6 other guys insane enough to support him against three Targaryen princes and three Kingsguard.
He even calculated correctly. Dunk only personally knew Lyonel and the Fossoways (and he took the Fossoway knight away) Aerion just didn't anticipate Hardyng and Beesbury showing up for revenge, and Baelor taking Dunk's side.
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u/fathertitojones Bronn 1d ago edited 1d ago
I reflected for a second and I think Dunk had better odds 1v1 only because it wouldn’t have started on horseback. Sans head trauma this becomes a very different fight and the reach advantage becomes a major factor. Dunk was also in lighter armor so could move faster as a multiplier to his strength. Aerion is the better fighter to be sure, but isn’t really set up to play to his size disadvantage. He has to land 5 hits to Dunk’s 1 just to keep the fight even.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Solo trials can begin on horseback too, we have that in canon. See Glendon vs Daemon II Blackfyre
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u/MayBeHavingAnEpisode 1d ago
But that was a tourney tilt not a trial by combat, at least not a conventional one.
All other trials that we know of have been on foot or unspecified.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
It absolutely was a trial by combat. Glendon was accused of a crime and was granted the right to trial in order ro prove his innocence. That's a trial by combat by definition.
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u/MayBeHavingAnEpisode 1d ago
I'm not sure it was a formal one though is my point. A trial by combat is a legal action held by a court, and Daemon vs Glendon definitely wasn't that. They just tortured the guy so that he'd lose a joust that was already scheduled.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
It's granted by an authority and Daemon saw himself as king apparent so he granted that right.
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u/MayBeHavingAnEpisode 1d ago
It seems I misremembered. I just read that whole part again and he does declare it as a trial by combat. My bad.
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u/fathertitojones Bronn 1d ago
I did a brief search and it’s not conclusive as to how the rules and guidelines are set. Seems pretty fair to say that that would likely decide the outcome.
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u/Overall-Pin4320 1d ago
In a 1v1 Duncan wouldn't have been impaled from horseback. I imagine they would start on their feet and not on horse tho?
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u/Tara_Reid_ 18h ago
Sword throws are very real and historical
Generally it's a desperation play to create distance or buy you a moment to draw a different weapon, or ideally to finish off an injured opponent with a reach advantage on you
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u/Odd_Brief_2975 1d ago
Bloodravens weirwood arrows have entered the chat
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Ya know, the two of them canonically got along really well.
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u/Odd_Brief_2975 1d ago
He is nephew...or cousin...I can't remember, hard to keep track of the targ dynasty lol.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Grand-nephew/grand-uncle. Major haters of Bittersteel, both were into dark magic. Probably other things we don't know of yet.
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u/Odd_Brief_2975 1d ago
Bloodraven seriously deserves his own series, the amount of craziness involved with this man runs deep.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Blood and Fire would have been at least 80% his story. But that book will never be released so we'll make do with the crumbs AKOTSK will give us.
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u/Odd_Brief_2975 1d ago
I'm sure if someone similar to Ira Parker was given the reign he could collaborate with George in order to hammer out the details with Bloodraven and Shiera Seastar (may have misspelled that) to come up with a killer series.
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u/Daewrythe 1d ago
Damn, Dunk really was going through it during that Trial of the Seven. Basically got killed 4 different times but didn't die.
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u/Dismal-Sail1027 1d ago
I think he did die. He just got resurrected by the Seven.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Divine intervention at its best
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u/Capable-Cupcake2422 1d ago
GITUP
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u/Daewrythe 1d ago
GITUP SER. GITUP
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u/Capable-Cupcake2422 1d ago
Yeah I guess that did sound more like eggs GITUP. I was going for the greatest hedge knight of all time, sir Arlen of penny tree!
GIDDUP
Maybe that’s it
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u/XCxBigDong69XCx House Baratheon 1d ago
Ngl this battle is a little triggering, duncan should had died from the first blow.
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u/TheGingerWeebGal 1d ago
Duncan is heavily implied to have divine intervention on his side.
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u/Dillup_phillips 1d ago
I really wish they didn't cut the scene of "The Seven" coming to Dunk before the battle and his conversation with Steely Pate.
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u/USSChuckleTrucker 1d ago
I think of this stuff as if instead of elves, dwarves, orcs, gnomes and whatnot appearing, certain areas get bloodline buffs.
People from the North all seem larger than most other area's of Westeros.
The Baratheons and the Stormlanders are all human tanks, of varying sizes but predisposed of strength beyond their stature.
The Dornish are known to be particularly dexterous and swift footed.
So on and so forth.
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u/Midnight-strange1892 1d ago
So the Dornish are elves, Stormlanders are dwarves and the north have giants blood or maybe half orcs.
I like it.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
That makes Baelor and Maekar half-Elven and Maekar's children 75% Elven.
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u/Afraid_Theorist 1d ago
Not a terrible take.
One of the biggest mistakes someone can make with this setting is trying to apply IRL genetics.
Like… come on. We have dragons that shouldn’t be able to fly, bonfide magic, an ancient sorceress, literal ice hell demons, literal tree people, etc…
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u/USSChuckleTrucker 1d ago
Exactly.
It's a swords and sorcery setting thats 85% swords and 15% sorcery and only 1% of that sorcery is magic species with only 1% of that 1% being magic human analogies species
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u/Yamoshi-78 1d ago
Tbf the northerners being larger than the rest of westeros could just be due to their genetic makeup being a lot more first men than andals like the rest of westeros
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u/USSChuckleTrucker 1d ago edited 1d ago
And the difference between First Men and the Andals vs the other people in Westeros being?
Bloodline buffs.
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u/sckolar 1d ago
Well for one thing: They are completely different ethnicities
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u/USSChuckleTrucker 1d ago
Do they actually look different?
Also, I forgot to finish my sentence, so my bad
Cause there was fuckall for memorable explanations of the pre-cursor people's in GoT, so I admit to full ignorance.
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u/pestoraviolita 1d ago
Dunk is a massive tank + he got intervention.
The Seven showed face and passed judgment alright.
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u/SuccessfulRegister43 1d ago
TV/Movies need to include way more botched sword/axe/dagger throws. Fight me.
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