Here's What Was Changed In House Of The Dragon's Battle Of Tumbleton

Here's How House Of The Dragon's Battle Of Tumbleton Differs From The Books

Huge spoilers for the season three finale of House of the Dragon follow.The penultimate season of House of the Dragon ended in dramatic fashion, with the long-awaited Battle of Tumbleton finally depicted on-screen.

Fire & Blood readers will know that Ryan Condal and company have, at points, deviated significantly from the source material. These changes have polarised many, including George R.R. Martin himself, who criticised the omission of Maelor Targaryen (the third child of Aegon II and his sister-wife Helaena) in a now-deleted blog post following season two's conclusion.

And yet, other changes have been received positively. The increased involvement of Ormund Hightower and Daeron Targaryen in the show has gone over well with fans, who appreciate the former as a villain and the latter as a reluctant tool.

As for the season finale, the writers have made several changes that could have far-reaching implications in the show's final season. Here, we've broken down the deviations between the show's version of events and those of Fire & Blood.

The Blacks Actually Held The Town

In Fire & Blood, Tumbleton is actually controlled by Rhaenyra's Blacks. The market town is the Queen's last stronghold between King's Landing and the Reach, and, in The First Battle of Tumbleton, Ormund is actually the one advancing on the town.

This situation has been reversed in House of the Dragon, with Ormund using the town as a base of operations to weaken Rhaenyra's rule in King's Landing through various schemes. Ormund's entire plan is predicated on holding the townspeople hostage to prevent Rhaenyra from using her dragons.

In Fire & Blood, the town is garrisoned by Reachmen loyal to Rhaenyra and Lord Roderick Dustin's Winter Wolves. It's also guarded by Ser Ulf the White and Ser Hugh Hammer, and their respective dragons, Silverwing and Vermithor.

In the book, the garrison at Tumbleton is greatly outnumbered by Ormund's approaching army, but morale remains high because of the two dragonriders sworn to Rhaenyra. Most of the Riverlords, such as Oscar Tully (who has been merged with Fire & Blood's Kermit Tully), were not present at Tumbleton, as they are in the show.

The reason for the switch is largely to facilitate character development and because certain changes allow for better television. For instance, the Winter Wolves' brave charge over the walls of Tumbleton feels more in line with their show characterisation than the events of the book, which sees Roderick lead a sortie out of Tumbleton to charge down Ormund and the assembled Green army.

Daemon And Corlys Weren't There

Daemon Targaryen plays a large part in the show's version of events, leading the siege, refusing an offer of peace and burning down the gate of Tumbleton with Caraxes. We see him duel with Ser Jon Roxton before fleeing the city with Lord Corlys.

The movements of the Sea Snake, too, differ in House of the Dragon, where he is a hostage of Ormund. In the book, Corlys remains at King's Landing as the Hand of the Queen and isn't present at the battle.

As mentioned previously, Oscar Tully and many of the Riverlords were not present at Tumbleton. In fact, in Fire & Blood, the Riverlands don't actually declare for Rhaenyra until after the Second Battle of Tumbleton (more on that later).

Ulf's Betrayal and Hugh's Changed Character

The betrayal of Ulf the White has been telegraphed for a while, and we finally saw the inevitable come to pass during the season finale. However, we see Ulf get on the wrong side of Ormund before his defection, leading to another savage beating for the dragonrider. As a result, Ulf burns both Blacks and Greens with Silverwing.

To understand Hugh's part in the battle, one must realise the character of Hugh Hammer is far more sympathetic in House of the Dragon. In the book, Ser Hugh is a more ambitious and callous man, and his wife isn't mentioned. The bond with his dragon Vermithor gave the former smith delusions of invincibility—not unlike the relationship between Aemond and Vhagar—and he betrays Rhaenyra because she doesn't satiate his ambitions.

In the show, we see Hugh looking for his wife and then despairing when he finds her slain. He doesn't burn Tumbleton with Vermithor, as he does in Fire & Blood.

It may be that Hugh will defect later, or the showrunners are setting up a side conflict between him and Ulf.

The Events of Fire & Blood

In Fire & Blood, Roderick Dustin leads his Winter Wolves in a sortie and slays Lord Ormund Hightower. Following that, the town is burned by the two betrayers, Ulf the White and Hugh Hammer, and the leaderless Green army sacks and pillages Tumbleton.

Daeron Targaryen tries to convince Ser Hobert Hightower, the next senior Hightower, to stop the pillaging, but the latter isn't charismatic enough to control the army. In House of the Dragon, Gwayne (who remains at King's Landing in the book) and Daeron will likely be left to manage the aftermath of Tumbleton.

In Fire & Blood, a second battle occurs at Tumbleton shortly after the first. We won't give too many details just in case this battle is depicted in the final season of House of the Dragon. However, there's a chance the showrunners are moving in a different direction because aspects of the second battle were incorporated into the first.

All in all, many of these changes are appropriate when you consider that the motivations of certain characters differ between book and show. The additional characters present at the battle also make sense, considering House of the Dragon has an ensemble cast, and these characters need something to do.

We won't know the full consequences of Tumbleton until the show's final season releases in 2028. There are several storylines rapidly coming to an end, which should make for an exciting finish to the show.