Who is Vermithor in House of the Dragon? The Realm’s second-biggest dragon explained

Vermithor in House of the Dragon season 1 episode 10 — (Image credit: HBO)

The penultimate episode of House of the Dragon season 2 is here, and it was all about dragons, with one in particular stealing the show – Vermithor. We have actually met him before, but since he has been in hiding for quite some time you might have forgotten about The Realm’s second-biggest dragon. But don’t worry, we are here to fill you in on everything you need to know about our new (old) scaly friend.

Warning, major spoilers for House of the Dragon season 2, episode 7 follow, so make sure you are all caught up with the series before reading on.

Throughout the second half of season 2, Rhaenyra has been looking for dragonseeds to claim dragons to strengthen her army. However, after exhausting her options with high-born dragonseeds, in episode 7 she decided to turn her attention to bastards. The White Worm’s messengers then rounded up all of the silver-haired halflings in Kings Landing and brought them to Dragonstone to see which of them could tame unclaimed dragons Vermithor and Silverwing.

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But, things once again turned messy when Vermithor rejected pretty much all of the bastards, burning them and even eating some alive. The carnage came to a halt though when he met Hugh Hammer (the son of Baelon Targaryen’s daughter). Hugh was able to claim the beast, adding major brawn to Rhaenyra’s infantry. Now the questions on everyone’s lips are who exactly is Vermithor, and can he help beat Vhagar?

Who is Vermithor?

Kieran Bew as Hugh Hammer in House of the Dragon season 2 — (Image credit: HBO)

Known as The Bronze Fury due to his glistening brown scales and ferocity, Vermithor is an extremely old dragon, almost 100 years old at this point in the series to be more exact. He was King Jaehaerys I Targaryen’s dragon until Jaehaerys died. After that, he remained riderless all throughout King Viserys I Targaryen’s reign and made a home in Dragonstone, that is until Hugh showed up.

This is not the first time we have seen Vermithor in the show though, as in season 1, episode 10, Daemon finds the bronze beast while looking for dragons to add to Team Black’s army. After Daemon sings to Vermithor in High Valyrian, Vermi blasts fire into the air but then looks into Daemon’s eyes and calms down.

Could Vermithor kill Vhagar in House of the Dragon season 2 finale?

Aemond Targaryen in House of the Dragon season 2 — (Image credit: HBO)

Now, just by looking at Vermithor, you can tell that this is a very large and formidable dragon. But could he beat Vhagar? Well, it looks like he may be Team Black’s only chance to kill Prince Aemond’s pet and make Team Green utterly defenseless. But could he do it?

We know Vermithor is smaller than Vhagar, but many in the realm think he may be more powerful, as Rhaenyra says when introducing the beast to the bastards: "The dragon named Vermithor is the largest in the world after Vhagar, and perhaps the most fierce. He's called the Bronze Fury." Plus, Vermithor seems a little easier to control as opposed to Vhagar who often acts on impulse, in the season one finale for example.

On top of this, Vermi looks to be in good fighting shape, unlike Vhagar, a plump beast who has more holes in her wings than she has teeth in her head. And let's not forget that Princess Rhaenys Targaryen‘s dragon Meleys managed to injure Vhagar before she died, and she was notably smaller than Vermithor. So if you ask us, The Bronze Fury has a fighting chance of offing the biggest dragon in The Realm, especially if he has the help of the other dragons of Dragonstone.

House of the Dragon season 2 continues weekly on HBO in the US and Sky and NOW in the UK. For more on the show, check out our deep dives on: