Mythical Astronomy of Ice and Fire

Prepare for an all new conception of how the Ironborn nation came into being! I’ve discovered some truly incredible Ironborn worldbuilding secrets - yes, new ones, and even more incredibler. @GreyWasteTim joins me to help explain the Great Empire of the Dawn connections to the Ironborn in this video, with more to come this week! And yes if you are looking for the stream that disappeared from last Sunday, this is part one of the edited version.

There's a reason for all the Bolton flaying in the story: it's not only horror and cruelty, but also the key to ancient magic which enabled the Boltons to rival the Starks for thousands of years. I will explain to you here in this brand spankin new Bolton theory, and yes this has to do with the Faceless Men.

What do the Others do with Craster's sons, whom he gives them as "offerings?" How does this unholy practice sustain the Others existence? How does it work, and why the weirwoods like magical drinking straws for the Others to... yeah this one is gonna get a bit gnarly, fair warning.

One part ancient mariner from across the Sunset Sea, one part rowdy First Men, and what do you get? The secret prehistory of the Ironborn. Tha's right, our Ironborn disaster hunters video has spawned a whole series, and in this video, you can find out about the Grey King and the two cultures who merged to become the bloody pirates we all know and love!Disaster Hunters playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmBTyeKzxuuBl2EmMW1QPgp8

Who are the Ironborn? Where did they come from? Are they just First men who are good at fishing and hate farming, or do they come from a lost land across the sea... or from the watery halls of the Deep Ones under the sea? Disaster Hunters of Ancient arrives at the Iron Islands, where we'll hunt sea dragons, storm gods, squishers, and seafaring strangers, and we'll be using a cultural anthropologist's approach as our weapons of war.Disaster Hunters playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmBTyeKzxuuBl2EmMW1QPgp8Use my code LIGHTBRINGER to get $5 off your delicious, high protein Magic Spoon cereal by clicking this link: https://sponsr.is/magicspoon_lightbringer_0923

Why did the First Men change their religion and begin worshipping the Old Gods of the weirwood? Why did they sign a peace treaty with the children of the forest when they were wining the war? I've got a great answer for you, and I'll also explain the real origin of the Night's Watch and generally just straighten out the timeline - but it might be a little bit of heresy.Disaster Hunters playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmBTyeKzxuuBl2EmMW1QPgp8

Moat Cailin is a big creepy abandoned (and ruined ) megalithic fortress whose origins seem more than a tad fishy... the official story doesn't add up, so let's see if we can figure out what's really going on here, who built, and why. We'll also end up solving the Yeen mystery on the way, for you Yeen fans out there.

What was the Hammer of the Waters anyway? It was something the children of the forest supposedly "called down" to smash the land bridge known as the Arm of Dorne, yes, but what was it? And did the children really do it? How much of Westeros did it affect - what about the Neck and Moat Cailin, for example? This comprehensive examination will explore all the possibilities and present a satisfying answer.

Is the dragonbond a form of altered greenseer magic? Were the children of the forest involved in the creation of the "blood of the dragon?" Is this why the Great Empire of the Dawn came to Westeros? Nimble Dick has the answers! Huge shout to @jamesjohnsonjunior , his page link is below!

This is kinda sorta my grand unifying theory of how all the Azor Ahai / Nissa Nissa / Lightbringer / dragons stuff directly connects to Westeros, the first Long Night, the Others, and the weirwoods. Renly's death at the hands of Stannis's shadow is the perfect role-play of the entire theory, so here it is! Enjoy!

Whether or not you buy my theory about Jon's body being stolen by the Others, there will no doubt come a moment when Melisandre is involved in some kind of fiery resurrection / freeing Jon from Otherish enchantment event coming in The Winds of Winter... but will this be Mels' final act? Or will she become something... more?

The chapter where Jon slays Qhorin Halfhand - and where Qhorin's body is burned on a pyre - contains very detailed foreshadowing of Jon Snow's resurrection pyre. Seems like it's gonna parallel Drogo's pyre and the waking of the dragons - only this time, Jon is the waking dragon.

The evidence is accumulating - that's an accumulating Snow joke - the Others are going to come steal Jon's body, they're going to use him to lead their invasion of the Others... and they might be planning to fill it with the spirit of Night's King - the original one - who may be lurking in the weirwoodnet somewhere (this would be the Great Other). Detailed foreshadowing of all of this, right here!

Lady Stoneheart - formerly known as Lady Catelyn Stark - has outstanding personal symbolism, and it's mostly information about one of the deep mysteries of the story - who is Night's Queen, and is she connected to Nissa Nissa?

Why did Alysanne shut down the Nightfort? Did it have something to do with Aegon's Prophecy? And what else happened when Jaehaerys and Alysanne visited Winterfell and the Wall? Featuring Alaric Stark, the Nightfort, Craster, Jon Snow, Skinchanging, the First Men, and of course, White Walker baby sacrifice.Aegon’s Prophecy Series:Part 1: Aegon’s Prophecy, Explained https://youtu.be/ODV0NCyCEksPart 2: From Aegon to Viserys https://youtu.be/qqMFTyW2QkcPart 3: Why Torrhen Knelt https://youtu.be/LuNXcu8TNqEPart 4: What Lyanna Told Ned https://youtu.be/U6dn1RX2L4cPart 5: Alysanne at the Wall https://youtu.be/KSe7CAgYYEgHouse of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Did Rhaegar Targaryen tell Lyanna Stark about Aegon's prophecy? And did Lyanna tell Ned at the Tower of Joy? Did the Starks already know, going back to Torrhen Stark?Aegon’s Prophecy Series:Part 1: Aegon’s Prophecy, Explained https://youtu.be/ODV0NCyCEksPart 2: From Aegon to Viserys https://youtu.be/qqMFTyW2QkcPart 3: Why Torrhen Knelt https://youtu.be/LuNXcu8TNqEPart 4: What Lyanna Told Ned https://youtu.be/U6dn1RX2L4cHouse of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Torrhen Stark, "The King Who Knelt," yielded the North to Aegon the Conqueror without a fight. Was it simply because "dragons," or might Aegon have mentioned "white walkers?" And what about Brandon Snow's offer to kill the dragons? Was he going to use weirwood arrows? All this and more in Aegon's Prophecy part 3!Aegon’s Prophecy Series:Part 1: Aegon’s Prophecy, Explained https://youtu.be/ODV0NCyCEksPart 2: From Aegon to Viserys https://youtu.be/qqMFTyW2QkcPart 3: Why Torrhen Knelt https://youtu.be/LuNXcu8TNqEPart 4: What Lyanna Told Ned https://youtu.be/U6dn1RX2L4cHouse of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

How did's Aegon's prophecy make it all the way to Viserys - especially given the violence and chaos of Maegor's reign? I'll answer that, and tell you where House of the Dragon got the idea of a prophecy carved in runes on a Valyrian steel knife. Featuring Rhaena Targaryen, Alyssa Velaryon, Maegor the Cruel, Jaehaerys and Alysanne, King Aenys, and more.Aegon’s Prophecy Series:Part 1: Aegon’s Prophecy, Explained https://youtu.be/ODV0NCyCEksPart 2: From Aegon to Viserys https://youtu.be/qqMFTyW2QkcPart 3: Why Torrhen Knelt https://youtu.be/LuNXcu8TNqEPart 4: What Lyanna Told Ned https://youtu.be/U6dn1RX2L4cHouse of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Aegon's prophecy of ice and fire - GRRM has said that it's true in the books too. Did other Targaryens know about it? Did Rhaegar? What does this mean for Jon and Dany, and all that Prince That Was Promised / Azor Ahai Reborn stuff? Part 1 will explain!Aegon’s Prophecy Series:Part 1: Aegon’s Prophecy, Explained https://youtu.be/ODV0NCyCEksPart 2: From Aegon to Viserys https://youtu.be/qqMFTyW2QkcPart 3: Why Torrhen Knelt https://youtu.be/LuNXcu8TNqEPart 4: What Lyanna Told Ned https://youtu.be/U6dn1RX2L4cHouse of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Daemon's dragon song that he sung to Grandaddy Vermithor was actually a spell to reawaken the dragonbond - I'll explain how it works, what the real meaning of "three heads has the dragon is," what the riddle of the Valyrian sphinx is, and what lemurs have to do with all of this. For real.House of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Did this war just start by accident? Who was responsible? Why couldn't these dragonriders control their dragons? Was it like this in A Song of Ice and Fire?House of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Why didn't princess Rhaenys have her dragon Meleys roast everyone on the royal dais? It's a complex question, but I'll untangle it for you, and give you some insight on Helaena's prophecy and the dragonpit in general.House of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Will the Greens try to pull a coup next week? Probably. Did they already try to pull one last week, with Vaemond as their trojan horsee? Why yes, yes they did. (NO SPOILERS!)House of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

The entire fight with the kids in the cave was high symbolism, and Aemond One Eye - a character book readers have been waiting for - made a grand entrance by claiming Vhagar! Plus - Helaena's prophecies, Targaryen parenting corner, Nanny Vhagar hidden audio, and more!House of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

Rhaenyra's proposal to betroth Jaecerys and Helaena was promising, but politically loaded - could it have avoided war? Why didn't it happen? What what it have been like? Could they even have been a new Jaehaerys and Alysanne?House of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

King Viserys kicked the speculation about an Oldtown-based Hightower-Maester conspiracy into overdrive this week, so I thought I'd interview him - and one other mystery guest - to try to dig deeper! Plus new Vhagar memes!House of the Dragon Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDKN99XRXTtoHGCy1fHGHNX

That's right, the big one we've been waiting for, Alys RIvers! We've also learned who will play the mysterious Alyn of Hull, Ser Simon Strong (Larys Clubfoot's great-uncle), and Ser Gwayne Hightower (Alicent's younger brother). Spoiler-free analysis & character previews followed by a bit of Fire & Blood spoiler commentary!

HBO has ordered season 1 of Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and though it's still a couple years away, this video will give you a comprehensive look at what this show could bring us - the characters, the events, the mysteries, the tragedies, and the romances. I'll discuss the 3 published Dunk and Egg novellas AS WELL AS everything we know about their lives after the novellas. Some good memes and Bloodraven jokes.

Episode 4 of House of the Dragon was the best yet - and the hottest. My ep4 review will dive into the ideas behind Daemon's "big dragon philosophy" and how Rhaenyra experiments with putting that into play.

Daemon and Rhaenyra went on largely parallel journeys this week, overcoming some of their inner devils as they navigated a minefield of signs and portents. Viserys made a mess of his rituals and omens, did he bring a curse down upon House Targaryen?

Episode 2 was all about the game of thrones - the power game, in other words. Basically everyone was rising and falling, moving and shaking, so here's the breakdown and who's coming out ahead and how each character is developing their power... and why Rhaenyra was the most heroic character of the week! Also featuring Alicent, Corlys, Viserys, Daemon, and Ser Criston

The conversations between Valyrians stole the show in week 2, and the symbolism was shining bright! Full breakdown of the intro sequence as well! And yes this is a tad late, I'm updating the feed today and will try to get on top of it. I'm un the process of overhauling the feed to get more up here regularly, and don't forget that I do a live postgame show every week following the airing of House of the Dragon!

I may decide to make a separate House of the Dragon feed but for now, here's the 3 hours of therapy, fun, and analysis that I did with Grey Waste Tim and Girl Nettles after the first episode!

So... which team do we root for? Which lords, knights, queens, princesses, princes, or kings? Most importantly... which dragonlord? Can any of them live up to the standard Daenerys set?

Holy cow did I ever get behind on the podcast feed. Well get ready for tons of stuff this week. So sorry everyone. As always the video versions of these are on the David Lightbringer YouTube channel!Queen Alicent of House Hightower - is she one of the main culprits of the Dance of the Dragons civil war, or was she one of the wiser heads who made suggestions that could have avoided the war? or both? How will House of the Dragon adapt her story?

Did the maesters really help provoke the Dance of the Dragons Targaryen Civil War as way of killing off the dragons, and will this potential conspiracy plot-line be included in House of the Dragon? Apostate Archmaester Marwin the Mage directly accused the Maesters of this dastardly conspiracy in A Feast for Crows, so let's investigate in the first of 2 episodes.Check out the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/IQyNfnaNWyA

By the time of the Dance, Vhagar is by far the biggest and baddest dragon in Westeros, with a 132-year rap sheet of destruction. Let us walk her path of carnage so as to better understand the role she'll play in HotD, where she'll be ridden by Laena Velaryon and Aemond One-Eye Targaryen. Check out the full video on the David Lightbringer YouTube channel to see all the latest fan artwork!

Get a preview of the 10 (or so) dragons (and dragonlords) we are likely to see in Season 1 of House of the Dragon (premiering Aug 21), including one you might not expect! And including a dragon-related trivia factoid for each dragon! Don't miss the YouTube version: https://youtu.be/cjwtmxY5S7s

HBO gave us some TASTY new House of the Dragon photos along with the release date (Aug 21st), and one in particular hits on a big reason why I think HotD could be better than Game of Thrones, particularly from a storytelling perspective. I'll tell you about that, break down all the images, and give you a bit on what makes these characters tick. If you haven't seen the images, you can check out the video version of this podcast on my channel, or this link to my twitter thread about them: https://twitter.com/thedragonLML/status/1509326566366474241?s=20&t=ligc3_TyAiiQsHVvlJrdOw

Hey friends, there's a longer note on the beginning of this pod, but just real quick, please enjoy my first video for my new "regular mythology" YouTube channel, Mythic Concepts. Please check out the video on the channel and give it a sub! Just follow this link or search "Mythic Concepts" on YouTube :) https://youtu.be/No2w-7-SZqA

What are Giant Ice Spiders? Will we see them when the Long Night falls? Can they climb the Wall? All that, plus a brand new theory about Others and the weirwoods - 'white walker teleportation theory.' Be sure to check out the YouTube version, as I've created some pretty fun white walker teleportation animations with Photoshop that I'm perhaps overly proud of. Right on the front page of the David Lightbringer YouTube channel!

It's here, my magnum opus of Dany analysis. This was two months worth of work, a double-length feature, and I hope you'll share it far and wide wherever you discuss ASOIAF. DOn't miss the YouTube version which includes some 400+ pieces of Dany art! youtube.com/c/davidlightbringer

The exciting conclusion to the Melisandre's Secrets series is here! This one focuses on Jon and Melisandre, and more broadly on all the ways Melisandre's magics and secrets could translate into spectacular deeds at the end of the story. I decided to present the script live so as to flow into a discussion of all the possibilities, so enjoy a mix of scripted content and discussion!

Melisandre is probably going to make Jon into a fire wight, sure, but did you know that she's also going to create a fire wight strike force of resurrected Night's Watchmen to fight at his side? It's true, and you need to know about it. Get ready for some classic mythical astronomy in this one, and even a sash of Timett Son of Timett!

George R.R. Martin has called Beric a "fire wight" and a foreshadowing for Jon Snow's inevitable resurrection, and most people think Melisandre will give Jon R'hllor's "last kiss" at some point, so it's an important thing to understand... but it also turns out to help reveal the secret origins of R'hllorism - an origin that has roots in both Asshai and Westeros, and the events of the Long Night.

Fire Others - beings of living flame, the exact opposite of the white walkers - exist. And Melisandre is becoming one... just in time for the great war against the Others. The ones made of ice. The true secret at the heart of R'hllorism is revealed here in Melisandre's Secrets 2!

Melisandre of Asshai is both a shadowbinder and a red priestess of R'hllor, a powerful sorceress set to play a big role in the endgame. With Melisandre as our guide, we'll be able to unlock the all-important, Azor-Ahai-centric secrets of the shadowbinders and R'hllorists, and figure out why Jon and Dany are both being advised by shadowbinders. Part 1 of 4. And don't skip out on the YouTube version - the Melisandre fan art is AMAZING!

Moon meteor theory has been updated in grand style! Be sure to check out the videos on YouTube; I've done some of my finest cross-fades, and I believe there's a comet-penis animation you won't want to miss. All 5 parts are packaged together here for your convenience. Nightbringer series playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHvft-cyPmDUS-s6_uIR2XJ48k5eTl36

Time for a prediction / theory video: Dany will get her hands on a Valyrian glass candle and will use it for all kinds of fun stuff! I'm basically certain this will happen, so check out the evidence and just what it is I think she might use the candle to do.

New Theory Alert: Daenerys will be the one to sound the Valyrian Dragonbinder Horn! That's right - the foreshadowing is clear. Oh, and, that horn might do something much greater and much worse than simply "binding dragons," so we'll need to talk about that...