House of the Dragon season 3 has premiered on HBO Max — and the high fantasy show’s latest entry has already highlighted that nobody will be safe from this point on.
Titled ‘Salt and Sea, Fire and Blood’, this season’s opener winds up being a blood-soaked and deadly chapter by virtue of one of the show’s most brutal conflicts to date. That being the naval clash famously known as The Battle of the Gullet.
So, who perishes during House of the Dragon season 3‘s first major bout? And are any major characters counted among the dead? I’ll answer those questions below — so, even though it goes without saying, be advised: full spoilers immediately follow for House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1.
Does Jace die in House of the Dragon’s season 3 premiere?
Yes. Jace — or, to give him his full name, Jacaerys Targaryen — is the most notable casualty of this season’s first installment.
Save for a couple of substantial changes from how his death plays out in Fire and Blood, aka the George R.R. Martin-penned book that House of the Dragon is based on, Jace’s demise is a direct adaptation of events that occur in said novel, too.
Indeed, in the aforementioned book and TV reimagining, Jace is killed after he’s shot multiple times by crossbowmen aboard one of the Triarchy’s ships. That happens after his dragon Vermax crashes into the sea and drowns, and Jace — who frees himself from Vermax before it sinks beneath the waves — finds some driftwood to cling to.
the way i screamed when that first arrow hit him even though i knew it was coming… oh jace 💔 #HOTD pic.twitter.com/83GzSuPhtdJune 22, 2026
The changes made to Martin’s texts come in how the build-up to Jace’s death is portrayed.
For starters, Fire and Blood doesn’t explicitly state how or why Vermax tumbles into the sea. It states that Vermax is seen flying too close to the waves, and that it might have careened into the waters below after being injured by a ballista bolt or pulled down by a grapnel. In the HBO Max version of The Battle of the Gullet, a combination of the two — a giant crossbow bolt with a heavy stone weight attached to it by a chain — is ultimately what drags Vermax into the sea.
Events leading up to that moment are the root cause of Jace and Vermax’s deaths, too, because the arrival of Rhaena Targaryen and Sheepstealer, aka the wide dragon she’s been trying to tame.
In Fire and Blood, Sheepstealer is part of The Battle of the Gullet, but it’s ridden by a mysterious individual known as Nettles. Incidentally, it seems showrunner Ryan Condal has combined Rhaena and Nettles into a single person for the purpose of House of the Dragon‘s narrative.
But I digress. After Rhaena appears to finally tame Sheepstealer earlier in the HBO Max series’ season 3 premiere, the pair stumble upon The Battle of the Gullet. Seeing this as a chance to prove herself, Rhaena instructs Sheepstealer to join the fray. Unfortunately, the actually still-untamed Sheepstealer takes a bilateral approach to proceedings, and starts raining fire on the Triarchy — aka the enemy — and Velaryon ships, which is who they’re supposed to protect.
Mistaking Rhaena and Sheepstealer as foes, Jace/Vermax, along with Baela Targaryen and her dragon Moondancer, move to intercept and take them out. Long story short: Jace/Vermax get so caught up in the sky-based skirmish that follows, they’re oblivious to the forthcoming weighted bolt attack that’ll soon take their lives.
Is the Triarchy commander Sharako Lohar dead in House of the Dragon?
Yes — and this represents another departure from Fire and Blood‘s depiction of The Battle of the Gullet.
‘Sea and Salt, Fire and Blood’ sees Lohar lose her life following a duel with Alyn of Hull, who seeks her out after what Lohar does to his estranged father and commander of the Velaryon fleet, Corlys Velaryon (more on him later). After a frantic scuffle aboard a sinking ship, Alyn eventually wins the day by fatally stabbing Lohar, and letting her body sink into the depths.
However, in Fire and Blood, Lohar not only survives The Battle of the Gullet, but is said to have won it. In the literature, Lohar is eventually murdered by a rival some years later following The Daughters’ War, aka a civil war between the Triarchy’s factions. With House of the Dragon not expected to cover this event as part of its overarching story, though, it makes sense for the Game of Thrones prequel to kill off Lohar during The Battle of the Gullet.
Is Corlys Velaryon, aka the Sea Snake, dead in House of the Dragon?
We don’t know yet, because Corlys’ fate is left unknown by the time that season 3 episode 1 ends. Indeed, after he’s thrown overboard during his own clash with Lohar, we never see him again.
So, is Corlys alive or dead? I’d prefer not to ruin that surprise, dear reader. All I’ll refer you to is the age-old entertainment business phrase “no body, no death” — that being, if we don’t physically see someone’s corpse on the screen, the chances are their time has not come yet…
What happens to Tyland Lannister and Jason Lannister in House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1?
The same principle applies to one of the Lannister twins in Tyland.
Indeed, after Lohar’s flagship — aka the Bitchfist — pursues Corlys’ vessel through a perilous, extremely narrow rocky passage during low tide, the former comes close to being dashed on the rocks. In a bid to reduce the Bitchfist’s weight and help it float better to avoid the jagged rocks below, Lohar pushes a heavily-armored Tyland overboard. Like Corlys, then, Tyland’s fate is unclear.
We can’t say the same about his brother Jason, though. At the end of a Riverlands-based battle that sees Daemon Targaryen’s forces triumph over Jason’s, we learn the latter has been slain and beheaded by Roderick Dustin. He’s the leader of the Winter Wolves, who swear their allegiance to Team Black, aka those who have sided with Rhaenyra Targaryen amid the Targaryen Civil War, otherwise known as the Dance of the Dragons.
Did you enjoy House of the Dragon season 3’s opening episode? And do you think Corlys and/or Tyland are still alive or not? Let me know in the comments.
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tom.power@futurenet.com (Tom Power)
