Every Targaryen – From Queen Aemma’s heartbreaking stillborns to Lucerys “Luke” Velaryon’s death that flips the Dance into open war, MISRYOUM ranks every major Targaryen death so far—starting with the Season 3 episode that kills Rhaenyra’s son Jacaerys during the Battle of the
The third season of House of the Dragon doesn’t ease in. It crashes right into the war, with the Season 3 episode “Salt and Sea, Fire and Blood” bringing the Battle of the Gullet—and Prince Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett) dying on the sea.
Jace’s death lands as the second time Rhaenyra has lost a child in the conflict. and it feels like the show is reminding everyone what this war costs. every single time the court tries to breathe. The sequence also makes a brutal truth hard to ignore: the Dance of the Dragons doesn’t just keep taking Targaryens. It keeps taking what they love, then asks the living to keep moving anyway.
Jace is only one of the major Targaryen deaths the show has already put on screen. Some have cut deeper because of how much time we had to know the people involved. Others hit harder because they’re staged like tragedy you can’t look away from. And some matter most not just as grief, but as fuel—turning one stage of the war into the next.
At the top of this grim ledger is Lucerys Velaryon (Elliot Grihault). the youngest child whose death in the Season 1 finale at the hands of Aemond becomes the decisive moment that turns the Dance of the Dragons into a full-blown war. The show frames Luke’s end as an accident provoked by Vhagar disobeying Aemond’s commands and killing Luke’s dragon. Arrax. Grihault’s performance captures Luke’s desperation. fear. and the shock of dying too soon—while the scene itself lands as one of the series’ high points. even as it’s dragged from you like a nightmare.
Luke’s death doesn’t stay contained to one family either. It’s presented as the key event that turns diplomacy into bloodshed. It leads directly to the Blood and Cheese incident, which then leads to Rook’s Rest. With House Velaryon left without an heir. Rhaenyra becomes extra cautious with her other children—an emotional tightening that feeds into Jace’s mounting frustrations and helps set the course toward his death later. In the arc of the season-to-season story, Luke’s death is the switch that flips the war into overdrive.
Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best) comes next in impact—not because her death lacks power. but because it lands with a different kind of sting. Rhaenys. Viserys’ cousin. had the stronger claim to the Iron Throne as the literal daughter of the Prince of Dragonstone. yet she was passed over in favor of Viserys and became known as The Queen Who Never Was. During the Dance, she sits on Rhaenyra’s Black Council and becomes among her fiercest and most tempered supporters.
Rhaenys dies during the Battle at Rook’s Rest. after fighting against both Aegon and Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) and successfully besting Aegon. Her death is described as the most iconic moment in House of the Dragon thus far. It doesn’t carry the same sheer horror as something like the Red Wedding. but it’s still heartbreaking—watching a loyal. courageous woman die at the hands of a coward and his manipulative. scheming brother. Best is said to capture Rhaenys’ bond with her dragon Meleys. The Red Queen. while the staging leaves her with resignation as death becomes certain.
Still, the broader war doesn’t seem to shift as dramatically beyond what it already costs Rhaenyra: she loses the ally who seemed to care most about her claim. The death is legendary on screen; its ripples through strategy are smaller than Luke’s.
Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy Considine) sits at No. 2 in this ranking, and the tone of his end is its own kind of tragedy. Considine is singled out for an outstanding, Emmy-worthy performance as the doomed king in Season 1. Viserys is portrayed as having no real temperament to rule from the Iron Throne. but he does a good job at maintaining peace largely thanks to his capable Hands of the King.
His crucial failure. though. is failing to identify the poison festering within his family—something that ultimately leads to the fall of the House of the Dragon. Viserys passes away following a long illness that left him deformed and debilitated. He dies in his bed. accompanied by his wife. Alicent Hightower. who misinterprets his final words as a request to crown Aegon king instead of Rhaenyra.
The episode where his death happens is described as “The Lord of the Tides.” Considine’s work in his last days is framed as affecting yet strangely peaceful. and the death is said to unofficially start the Dance of the Dragons. It doesn’t quite kickstart open war on its own—another death does that later, one far more shocking.
That brings the list to No. 3: Jacaerys Velaryon. The opening episode of House of the Dragon Season 3 sees the death of Jacaerys and his dragon, Vermax. Jace spends most of Season 2 trying to advise his mother on how to fight the war. His stances are aimed at keeping Rhaenyra’s fiery instincts in check—especially when she wants to expose herself on the battlefield. He’s desperate to contribute in a meaningful way. believing himself ready to go into the thick of battle and secure a major victory for the Blacks.
It doesn’t go that way. Jace dies during the Battle of the Gullet. a deadly maritime confrontation between Corlys Velaryon’s fleet and the Triarchy. who are seemingly fighting with the Greens but are actually there to kill the Sea Snake. Jace does admirably for most of the battle. Vermax is hit twice. and when Rhaena arrives with her newly claimed dragon. Sheepstealer. his feral instincts lead him to disobey her orders and actively attack Vermax. Vermax sinks to the depths. Jace is left exposed in open water and becomes a sitting duck for enemy arrows.
The Battle of the Gullet is called a showy sequence, and his death is tragic—but its long-term effect on Rhaenyra is left hanging for now, which is why it sits mid-ranking.
At No. 4 is Jaehaerys Targaryen (Jude Rock), whose death is shaped by how the show handles childhood in an unforgiving story. Jaehaerys is the oldest son and heir of Aegon II Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney) and his sister-wife Helaena (Phia Saban). He has a younger sister and is mostly a quiet. kind child. woefully unaware of the dangerous situation he’s born into. He dies at the hands of the infamous assassin duo Blood (Sam C. Wilson) and Cheese (Mark Stobbart), sent by Daemon to avenge another major death.
In the book Fire and Blood. the Blood and Cheese event is described as truly harrowing and among the cruelest and most violent in A Song of Ice and Fire. The show opts for a more nuanced depiction, likely because children dying is a big no-no for many viewers. That choice makes the scene more confusing, with things implied rather than shown. After Jaehaerys’ death, Aegon is enraged and deprived of an heir. The reaction goes further—helping earn public sympathy for the Greens until Aegon kills all the ratcatchers in King’s Landing in retaliation. a decision that doesn’t sit well with the common folk.
Laena Velaryon (Nanna Blondell) takes No. 5. Laena is the eldest daughter of Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) and Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best). She is Daemon Targaryen’s second wife and the mother of twins Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell) and Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia). She’s also the rider of Vhagar, the largest dragon in Westeros. Her demise comes in Episode 6 of the show’s first season.
After grueling labor, Laena learns she cannot give birth. She commands Vhagar to incinerate her alive, as per Valyrian customs. Her death is described as a great scene powered by standout acting from Blondell. with Laena’s desperate. guttural pleadings to Vhagar called both powerful and haunting—an earned sendoff for a proud Valyrian woman. even as the show didn’t spend enough time with her.
At No. 6 is Queen Aemma Arryn (Siân Brooke). Aemma is Viserys’ wife and the mother of young Rhaenyra (Millie Alcock). She is kind. deeply devoted to her husband and daughter. and determined to have a son so Viserys finally has a male heir. Her attempts result in two stillborns and two miscarriages. In the series’ opening episode, she does give birth to a son—but she dies in the process.
Aemma’s death functions as a catalyst. It leaves Viserys a widower and opens the door for his eventual marriage to Alicent. It’s still framed as tragic, especially because her son dies shortly after her, contributing to Viserys’ lifelong melancholy. Yet it’s also noted that the show spends very little time with her. which limits how affecting her death can feel.
All of these deaths—ranging from the private ruin of Aemma Arryn to the full-blown devastation of Luke’s demise—add up to a war that keeps rewriting itself through loss. One death reshapes allegiances. Another death breaks alliances. Some deaths burn in the memory because of the scene work. Others endure because they push the story forward in ways characters can’t undo.
And now. with Season 3 moving straight into the thick of it and Jacaerys Velaryon gone during the Battle of the Gullet. the tally isn’t just historical anymore—it’s immediate. The Dance of the Dragons is still climbing toward its bloodiest levels. and the show is already making it clear that the next “line of casualties” won’t stop growing.
House of the Dragon MISRYOUM Entertainment Season 3 Salt and Sea Fire and Blood Jacaerys Velaryon Lucerys Velaryon Rhaenys Targaryen Viserys Targaryen Aemma Arryn Laena Velaryon Jaehaerys Targaryen Battle of the Gullet Vhagar Vermax Arrax