Roles and Factions
HOUSE STARK OF WINTERFELL
ROBB STARK, THE YOUNG WOLF (KING)
Although young and still proving his worth, Robb Stark is quickly establishing himself as both a war strategist and as a leader of men. The first son of Eddard Stark has been named King in the North by his bannerman, harkening to days of yore, when the kings in the Northlands of Westeros were true sovereigns. Unlike the other kings, Robb does not actually have a desire to sit upon the Iron Throne, but merely to not have whoever does rule over the North. So he has gone to war to force the issue. Robb is considered to be smart, honorable, and a good warrior. He has a massive direwolf named Grey Wind who goes into battle with him. His family home is Winterfell.
ROOSE BOLTON (Stark Bannerman)
Roose Bolton is the head of House Bolton and the Lord of the Dreadfort, his family home. He is a mirthless and quiet man, who makes careful and measured decisions. He is very smart and calculating. He is sworn to Robb Stark, but he plays the game well, and will certainly make decisions to his own advantage. It is rumored that he is privately a very cruel and heartless individual. He has a significant contingent of men and is a lord of significant means.
RICKARD KARSTARK (Stark Bannerman)
Rickard Karstark is the head of House Karstark and his family home is the Karhold. The Karstarks were born from an offshoot of the Stark family many generations prior and are very close to the Starks. Rickard Karstark is fiercely defensive of his family, but beyond that is a loyal and strong bannerman. He has a significant contingent of men and is a lord of decent means.
THEON GREYJOY (Stark Bannerman)
Theon Greyjoy is just a little older than Robb, and is very good friends with the King. Greyjoy was raised alongside Robb and Robb’s bastard half-brother Jon Snow at Winterfell, when Theon was given to Eddark Stark as a ward against possible rebellion by Theon’s father, Balon Greyjoy of the Iron Islands. Theon has not seen his family for several years and has essentially grown up as a Stark. He is a young man who is impulsive and given to more base appetites. While all Starks are wealthy, he wears it more obviously. In actuality, he has little money of his own. He is technically still a ward of the House Stark, so he only has a handful of Ironborn warriors he may call to battle.
HOUSE LANNISTER OF CASTERLY ROCK
JOFFREY BARATHEON (KING)
Joffrey is the impetuous and sadistic young leader of the Lannister faction, and is in fact currently the acknowledged King of Westeros. He is just 15 years old and ascended to the throne when his father Robert Baratheon was killed in a hunting accident. His mother, Cersei Lannister, is the Queen Regent, but young Joffrey has quickly established his own power in the throne room and rarely listens to his mother, whether on matters of state or personal issues. It is rumored that Joffrey is actually the result of an incestuous union between Cersei and her twin brother, Ser Jaime Lannister. Joffrey can draw on both significant Lannister holdings and the royal treasury for wealth, and also has a very sizable force of men at his command. He resides in the Red Keep within the capital city of King’s Landing.
TYWIN LANNISTER (Lannister Bannerman)
It is funny to refer to Tywin Lannister as a bannerman, because, really, he is THE Lannister. Tywin is the head of the House Lannister and the Lord of Casterly Rock. He has engineered his family’s rise in fortunes through decades of war and strife and multiple kings. He and his family are the richest in Westeros, and that’s a fact that is quite well known. Tywin is a brilliant political strategist and also a very strong field commander. He is cold and impersonal, and he is ruthless in pretty much all aspects of his life and in his dealings. He will literally do anything to advance the fortunes and glory of House Lannister. He is King Joffrey’s grandfather and the father of Cersei, Jaime and Tyrion Lannister. He controls a sizable army as well.
SER JAIME LANNISTER, THE KINGSLAYER (Lannister Bannerman)
Although still fairly young in his early 30s, Ser Jaime Lannister is one of the famous—or infamous—warriors in Westeros. The eldest son of Tywin Lannister, Jaime is reknowned and also reviled as the Kingslayer, an assignation given him for stabbing the Mad King Aerys in the back while serving on Aerys’s Kingsguard during Robert’s Rebellion many years ago. To this day, despite this past, Jaime continues to wear the White Cloak and is the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, sworn to protect the king from all dangers. Jaime is known to be a fierce and tested warrior and great swordsman. He is handsome and charismatic. As with all Lannisters, Jaime is quite wealthy, but as a member of the Kingsguard, he is actually forsworn from holding title or lands and has no men of his own. It is rumored that he fathered King Joffrey with his twin sister, Cersei.
SER GREGOR CLEGANE, THE MOUNTAIN THAT RIDES (Lannister Bannerman)
The infamous and ruthless Ser Gregor Clegane is known as the Mountain That Rides, or simply, the Mountain, for his great size and ferocity. He is actually barely more than a landed knight, and as the head of the House Clegane, he has little personal wealth or men. That said, he is reknowned for the fear the very sight of him can bring on a battlefield. He is brutal and cunning, and there is nothing he won’t do to defeat his enemies. He is a murderer, pillager and rapist. He does Tywin Lannister’s bidding as a Lannister bannerman, because the Lord of Casterly Rock allows him to do what he wants so long as he advances Lannister interests. His family home is Clegane’s Keep.
HOUSE BARATHEON OF DRAGONSTONE
STANNIS BARATHEON (KING)
Stannis Baratheon is the oldest living brother of the late King Robert Baratheon. If it is true that Joffrey Baratheon is actually the son of Jaime Lannister, and not Robert, then Stannis would be the next true King in line for the Iron Throne, a claim he is pushing to its utmost. Stannis is a joyless man who never smiles. He is a skilled war tactician and field commander, and he values discipline and detail above all else. He is a strict and harsh judge of men. In his quest for the Iron Throne, Stannis has turned from the Seven Gods of his youth to the fire god of R’hllor, a mysterious new deity that has given rise to a certain new following in Westeros. He is aided in his worship of this by the Red Lady Melisandre of Asshai. Although he takes his marriage vows very seriously and feels tremendous guilt for his discretions, Stannis has taken up with Melisandre over his own wife. Melisandre believes that Stannis is Azor Ahai, a messianic figure of the R’hllor faith who will return to save the world from the White Walkers north of the Wall. Stannis has less wealthy lands and gold than the other kings, but is still very well off and also has the largest contingent of ships at his command. His given home keep is Dragonstone, the ancient fortress of the exiled House Targaryean. Dragonstone was once the keep held by the heir to the Iron Throne, but it grates on Stannis that after Robert’s Rebellion, Robert gave their younger brother Renly the richer traditional Baratheon castle of Storm’s End instead of Stannis.
SER DAVOS SEAWORTH, THE ONION KNIGHT (Baratheon of Dragonstone Bannerman)
Whereas Stannis inspires no love from those who follow him, his long righthand man Davos Seaworth is well liked, if not entirely respected. The one time smuggler and experienced sailor was punished years before by Stannis for his piratical ways, who removed the fingers from his left hand. Davos always acknowledged it as a punishment overdue and well deserved, and to this day, he wears his removed knuckle bones in a pouch around his neck. Davos is utterly devoted and loyal to Stannis, whom has rewarded Davos’s service, honesty and considered counsel with lands of his own. The more nobly raised bannermen of Stannis, jealous of Davos’s closeness to Stannis, dubbed him the Onion Knight for smuggling onionsand other foods to Stannis’s men during a siege. Davos turned the mockery around on them and made the onion his sigil. Davos has a family home on Cape Wrath, which is poor in wealth and men, but he has a sizable fleet of ships at his disposal. Davos continues to follow the Seven Gods, not the Lord of Light of his liege.
SER AXELL FLORENT (Baratheon of Dragonstone Bannerman)
Ser Axell Florent is a member of one of the higher end noble houses of the Reach in the House Florent. His house remains in the vassalage of the powerful House Tyrell, under Renly Baratheon, but he himself is sworn to Stannis. He is Stannis’s long time castellan of Dragonstone, keeping his eye on the keep in the absence of Stannis in King’s Landing for many years. Axell is a fervent believer in the Lord of Light. As a Florent, his family home is Brightwater Keep and he does have a small contingent of men and wealth from House Florent.
THE LADY MELISANDRE OF ASSHAI (Baratheon of Dragonstone Bannerman)
Melisandre is a red priestess of R’hllor and the mistress to Stannis. She is not actually in vassalage to Stannis, but she is devoted to her faith, which she believes prophesies Stannis as being the coming of Azor Ahai. As such, she is completely loyal to Stannis, so long as he remains a man of the Lord of Light. Known by many as the Red Woman, Melisandre is a mysterious figure who is much feared for her prophecies and rumored powers. She is capable of anything she believes her faith demands of her. While she has little money of her own and no lands or men, Melisandre may have powers beyond the normal scope of the ways of simple warriors.
HOUSE BARATHEON OF STORM'S END
RENLY BARATHEON (KING)
Renly Baratheon is the younger brother of the late king Robert and of Stannis, which would put him behind his older brother in the normal succession to the Iron Throne. This matters little to Renly, who truly believes he would make a better, kinder king than Stannis. The Baratheon bannermen tend to agree, as they flocked to Renly's call to arms much more strongly than to Stannis's. Renly is a charismatic and handsome man, and most tend to like him. He has been sheltered most of his young life by recent peaceful history in the kingdom and the efforts of his brothers to keep him out of danger on the field of battle, but he is classically trained as a warrior, battle tactician and political strategist. He is married to Margaery Tyrell of the House Tyrell, one of the richest and most powerful houses in Westeros. It is rumored, however, that Renly prefers the company of Margaery's brother Loras when the curtains are drawn at night. Renly's home and base is Storm's End, the wealthy ancestral keep of House Baratheon. He is well off and also has a large army backing him.
LORAS TYRELL, THE KNIGHT OF FLOWERS (Baratheon of Storm's End Bannerman)
Loras Tyrell, the Knight of Flowers, is quite literally a beautiful man who makes hearts flutter throughout the kingdom. He is the epitome of chivalry, a knight who is reknowned for his abiliy with sword, shield and horse as well as his genuine and open nature and likeable charm. Although an extraordinary tourney fighter, he is little tested on the field of battle as of yet. He is the heir to the House Tyrell and his keep and home is the opulent Highgarden keep in the Reach. His sister Margaery is married to Renly. He is at Renly's side constantly, and the rumor is that he is with the King even after dark, much to the disappointment of young noble women everywhere, were it common knowledge. Loras has a significant treasure and a good sized contingent of men as well. While Loras is close with Renly, he is still very much a Tyrell and is always prepared to do what needs to be done to support the family fortunes.
SER CORTNAY PENROSE (Baratheon of Storm's End Bannerman)
Ser Cortnay Penrose is head of one of the more staunchly loyal Baratheon vassal houses in the Stormlands, and has long been a key advisor to House Baratheon. When Renly was attending to royal duties in King's Landing, Cortnay served as his castellan at Storm's End. Penrose is a stolid and determined man. He is skilled battle commander as well. His family home is Parchments, which is not as rich as his house is loyal. As such, he has little personal wealth and only a small contingent of men.
BRIENNE OF TARTH (Baratheon of Storm's End Bannerman)
Brienne of Tarth, also known as the Maid of Tarth and, mockingly, Brienne the Beauty, is a member of Renly's Kingsguard. She is unique in many ways, as a woman of unusual size and a freakish strength that is more than even most men can handle. Not surprisingly, she is also quite unattractive (hence the nickname). She is the heir of House Tarth, but she long ago shirked the ways of the noble woman to become trained as a warrior knight. She is one of the best fighters in Westeros. As a woman of little beauty and in a role traditionally held by men, she struggles to earn respect from most and has seen much from the ugly side of humanity, giving her a more grounded perspective. Despite that, she still holds to an almost naive view of chivalry and the role of the knight. She is in love with Renly and utterly dedicated to him, not that he would notice. She has little gold and no men follow her.
NEUTRAL CHARACTERS
LORD VARYS, THE SPIDER
The mysterious Master of Whisperers, Lord Varys is an intriguing and ambiguous presence in the kingdom of Westeros. Varys, known as the Spider and also as The Eunuch (for he is one), is an unassuming and quiet man from the Free Cities across the Narrow Sea who has served the kings of the Iron Throne as spymaster for decades. His web of spies seem without end and he has access to all sorts of secrets and information. The question has always been to what master does he give his services? His ways are hidden, his motives unknown. He professes only to be serving for the good of the realm, but what he defines as "for the good of the realm" is unknown. He is often underestimated because he does not raise his voice when he chooses to speak, he dresses and lives simply, he has no known friends, and he is always careful and deliberate. But those who underestimate him will often times come to regret it. There seems to be no secret he cannot uncover. He has an adversarial and yet respectful relationship with Littlefinger.
LORD PETYR "LITTLEFINGER" BAELISH
Littlefinger is the Master of Coin. He a lowborn noble from the smallest of the Three Fingers region of the Vale region, thus the name he has been belittlingly given. Petyr Baelish has built up his influence and wealth through years of careful political manipulation and wise investments and, yes, underhanded backroom dealings as well. He is a magician at coming up with money for the royal treasury, some of which ends up in his pocket. Not that he lacks for his own coin, as he is the premier owner of brothels, inns and gambling houses in King's Landing, on top of his role as the Master of Coin. Littlefinger has an easy smile ready to use to put his marks at ease, but you can never trust one thing coming from his mouth. He is a wizard of deception and manipulation. Although he is already enormously successul, he desires more. He wants to be a highborn noble and hold land and title and the power that comes with it. He puts forth a facade of at times altruistic behavior, but in reality, he is completely and utterly devoted to himself.
TYRION LANNISTER
Tyrion Lannister, also known as The Imp, The Dwarf, The Halfman and various other monikers, none flattering, both shames and yet personifies the family from which he comes. As an unrepentant drinker and whoremonger, on top of his physical deformities, Tyrion is an embarrassment to his father Tywin. But only in a noble house like the Lannisters would a child like Tyrion be allowed to continue living. The reality is that, while Tyrion has complicated relationships with his fellow Lannisters, he is proud of his heritage and generally wants what is best for the Lannister name. If only his conscience didn't keep getting in the way...
SER BARRISTAN SELMY
Ser Barristan the Bold is perhaps the most famous knight of the realm, a living legend among all people, big and small. He stood as Kingsguard to four different Kings, before Joffrey recently dismissed him for "old age". Although Barristan is indeed some sixty years of age, he remains a deftly skilled fighter, and he was removed for political reasons, not because of any loss in his legendary abilities. Ser Barristan has a tremendous sense of honor and chivalry, and takes his oaths very seriously. He is probably still the best swordsman in Westeros to this day.
CERSEI LANNISTER
Cersei Lannister is the Queen Regent and King Joffrey Baratheon's mother. While she is certainly suppportive of the Lannister cause, she is far more interested in her own survivial and that of her children and her brother and lover, Jaime. Cersei is sometimes victim to both delusions of grandeur and to bouts of paranoia, brought on in one part by the enormous wealth and power of her family and father Tywin, and on the other by the machinations of many around her playing at the game of thrones. She knows the game and she plays it, sometimes well, sometimes not. The one thing you can know for sure about her is... she can't be trusted.