Westeros

This year’s nominees for the Emmys have been announced, and HBO’s House of the Dragon has done well for itself with six eight (or nine, sort of) nominations, contributing to the phenomenal HBO/MAX total nominations of 127, and tying a decades-old record (set by CBS in 1973 and matched by NBC in 1993) of 4 separate dramas nominated in Best Drama. See the categories below! https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/House_of_the_Dragon.jpg read on >>> View the full article

Over the last weeks, HBO has been releasing a series of videos titled “Inside the Craft”, exploring different aspects of bringing House of the Dragon to life. The latest entry focuses on armor, and particularly the armor of the Gold Cloaks. It features show runner Ryan Condal, armourer Simon Brindle (who worked on Game of Thrones), and costume designer Jany Temime. Some really good, close-up looks at a number of suits of armor, and some glimpses of armor from the tourney in the first episode that were seeing only fleetingly: The two previous videos were focused on the weapons and Dark Sister, and the costumes and Rhaenyra’s wedding dress. View the full article

As part of its Emmy awards coverage, Deadline has been publishing examples of episode scripts that have been submitted for consdieration as final nominees, and now we’ve come to House of the Dragon‘s turn as they have now published the pilot script for the first episode, “The Heirs of the Dragon”, and they’ve done so in a draft that includes various revisions, some of which were scenes or pieces of dialog that never made it to the final cut of the production. There’s some particularly interesting discussion between Viserys and Daemon regarding the Targaryens and their dragons that was dropped, and I notice that it seems like our first introduction to Daemon was supposed to be his commanding the City Watch on its violent purge (notice that all the detailed description of Daemon and Dark Sister in that section)... but then at some point it was decided that instead we should first meet him in a scene that focuses his relationship to Rhaenyra, in the throne room. https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/HotD_S01E01_Script.png View the full article

In King’s Landing, an air of unease blankets the city, as its inhabitants navigate the aftermath of King Aegon the Unworthy’s failed assault on Dorne. There have been fairs for the failed invasion’s widows to find husbands, pyromancers consorting with bankers and lords to find desperately-needed funds and support, knights dreaming of white cloaks, and more. The return from Dragonstone of the king’s heir Prince Daeron, married to Princess Mariah of Dorne and an outspoken opponent of his father’s ill-conceived campaign, has cast a chill over the Red Keep. Their chilly relationship hangs like a pall over the court, and while the prince is ever-dutiful, and the king no longer makes mention of declaring Aegor or any other bastard of his as his heir instead of the prince, there seems to be no true rapprochement. Daeron attends and participates in the king’s councils, but those who know members of the small council claim that father and son hardly spare a word for one another. Rumors swirl through the city’s streets, whispering of a forthcoming tournament to select a successor to the fallen Ser Aleyn Florent, the famed Foxglove of the Kingsguard who met his demise in the wildfire calamity during the failed invasion. The anticipation of a new White Sword of the realm has woken anticipation among many young, promising knights, and even now there has been a notable increase in the amount of lordlings hanging about the court, hoping to be well-positioned to impress the king while proving their skill in arms. And in the high halls of the court some say the king’s plans are not so much about a white cloak, but rather about holding a contest in honor of his mistress, the Lady Melissa Blackwood. Amidst the tumult, petitioners arrive at the royal court seeking answers regarding the fate of two noble seats: Stonedance and the Antlers. The lords of these lands, believed to have perished, have left their seats in a state that some have questioned. The king has chosen to affirm the new Lady of Stonedance and Lord of the Antlers, but there are kinsmen and neighboring lords who have raised questions and concerns and seek the king’s ear. While King’s Landing brims with intrigue, it is also a city of contrasting splendors. Merchants from distant Essos display their wares, enticing passersby with vibrant silks and exotic spices, and there are said to be emissaries from the Iron Bank and other institutions making now regular visits not just to the Red Keep but also to the Guildhall of the Alchemists, where the pyromancers grow ever more worried about the fate of their order after the disaster that some say the king has laid at their feet. Not coincidentally, the steady progress on the Great Sept upon Visenya’s Hill has notably come to a halt these last moons, its constructionn surely hindered by the king’s financial needs following the ill-fated invasion… [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

Among the podcasts I listen to on a weekly basis is the prop collecting-focused “The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of”, in part (but only in part!) because one of its hosts is House of the Dragon show runner and co-creator Ryan Condal (the other co-host? David Mandel, of Seinfeld and Veep fame whose White House Plumbers recently completed its run on HBO). Their areas of interest when it comes to collecting are very similar to what I—and I suspect many fans of A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Thrones, and House of the Dragon—consider pretty central parts of my favorite cinema: big genre works of the late 70s and through the 80s like Conan the Barbarian, Alien and Aliens, Blade Runner, Indiana Jones, and (of course) Star Wars. Their latest episode (embedded below) features a semi-regular feature of the podcast, where Condal and Mandel discuss an upcoming props auction and go through its catalog together, discussing bits of information they know about a piece or similar ones, speculating on whether the expected sale price is on the mark or too high/low, and whether they’ll be pursuing any particular items themselves. But color me surprised when they mentioned that Propstore’s upcoming Entertainment Memorabilia Live Auction from June 28 to June 30th included two lots of scripts from Game of Thrones, apparently from Aidan Gillen (Littlefinger). I decided to examine what information Propstore provided about them, and discovered some fun details regarding scripts that Gillen had personally annotated. https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/Props_Podcast.jpg read on >>> View the full article

Very interesting report from Deadline Hollywood‘s Nellie Andreeva following an interview with Franesca Orsi, HBO’s head of drama. It’s a wide-ranging interview covering a lot of HBO’s shows, but for our purposes, the most interesting tidbits relate to House of the Dragon, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, and potential other Westeros shows. Addressing the on-going production of season 2 of House of the Dragon, Orsi noted that HBO was fully prepared to rewrite and reshoot anything that needed fixing once the WGA strike ends and the writers can take up their pens again to do writing work, but until then they are confident with the completed scripts they had to work with and have not dealyed producation at all. Speaking of a potential season 3 approval, it sounds like they’re not far from giving an immediate go ahead to season 3 to try and improve the turnaround from season to season. That said, how many seasons for the show in total remains a question: “George and Ryan are going to meet after the writers strike. They had originally planned to meet before the strike took place and that was to figure out at what point the series itself was going to end. Is it four seasons? I don’t think from where I sit at this point will be any less than four. But could be more. We’ll see.” https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/Knight_of_the_Seven_cover.jpg read on >>> View the full article

Major news out of Hollywood has been the strike of the Writers Guild of America after the breakdown of negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers; more details can be found here. In the wake of that, news of various productions started to come out regarding how they were dealing with the strike, with variations from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power‘s showrunners completely stopping working on their production to House of the Dragon‘s Ryan Condal remaining on set but in a strictly non-writer capacity (this apparently has caused some umbrage among WGA members, who argue that . George R.R. Martin has now weighed in on the strike, and one particular sticking point—so-called “mini-rooms” which have upended what was once a long and successful means of developing and promoting writers—and in the course of it has laid out where various Hollywood projects stand (for those who don’t want to read it all: everything Hollywood-related is on hold for him, as he’s a proud WGA member and thoroughly in agreement with the strike). To quote him: “(Many of you will be wondering, rightfully, about the impact of the strike on my own shows. The second season of DARK WINDS wrapped several months ago. Post production has been completed on five of the six episodes, and will soon be done on the last. The show will likely air sometime this summer on AMC. No decision on the third season will be made until after the strike. Peacock has passed on WILD CARDS, alas. A pity. We will try to place it elsewhere, but not until the strike is over. The writer’s room on A KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS: THE HEDGE KNIGHT has closed for the duration. Ira Parker and his incredible staff of young talents are on the picket lines. Across the ocean, the second season of HOUSE OF THE DRAGON started filming April 11 and will continue in London and Wales. The scripts for the eight s2 episodes were all finished months ago, long before the strike began, Every episode has gone through four or five drafts and numerous rounds of revisions, to address HBO notes, my notes, budget concerns, etc. There will be no further revisions. The writers have done their jobs; the rest is in the hands of the directors, cast and crew… and of course the dragons).” https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/GRRM_Headshot.jpg read on >>> View the full article

The Writer’s Guild of America has begun a strike, which means members of the guild will not be writing for any productions they’re working on. There’s a lot of questions about just what this means for many productions, questions that Variety has tried to answer with its FAQ. But fans of House of the Dragon have worried about the show being delayed because of the strike, and as it happens, Variety has an answer for that question as well. Per Variety, all the scripts for the season have been finished ahead of time, and production will continue. So, good news! However, as some may realize, most scripts are not completely done and in final form when a show is produced. There’s often talk of rewrites and the need to ADR (“Automated Dialogue Replacement”) to insert new dialogue or change existing dialogue. As Variety notes, it’s unclear just how that aspect of things will work for programs already in production. Will they take different footage from different angles to give them more wiggle-room to add entirely new dialog when a character’s mouth can’t be seen? Will they employ some of the new tech out there to simply dynamically change a character’s lips to the words they’re saying? We live in fascinating times, as it were. https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/HotD_Daemon-Throne_01.jpeg View the full article

A month has passed since the return of King Aegon, Fourth of His Name, with the remnant of his great army that had so boldly marched but two months earlier for Dorne and a renewed attempt to conquer it. All the realm now knows of the debacle that followed, the news writ in the jade green flames of wildfire that set the kingswood alight and left thousands dead and a third of the forest turned to ash. That the king escaped with his life had been chance, and the valiant efforts of his loyal knights and men-at-arms, though some paid the greatest price that could be paid to see their king live. The flight to Tumblestone, the respite found there as Lord and Lady Footly hosted the king’s host, all were relatively uneventful… but colored by some by the realization that the king now promised to attack Dorne next year, or perhaps the year after. The return to the city had relatively little pomp and circumstance, especially when compared to the brave showing the kingslanders had made to see their king and his glittering army, with its wooden “dragons”, departing for their campaign. Lord Bracken, the King’s Hand, made sure that the City Watch was in great force, and few were able to get more than a fleeting glimpse of the king as he rode directly to the Red Keep. It was there where the recriminations would begin, as word began to fly about the court that the king blamed the maesters who had helped design the engines… and especially the pyromancers, who swore the engines would be safe to pull even up onto the Boneway, much less the kingsroad. Some of those the king blamed were, conveniently, already dead, killed in the wildfire disaster. But others remained in the city. The maesters were, on the whole, the safest from the king’s wrath, as the Grand Maester himself interceded and took whatever blame the king wished to mete out to his order, and he swore that the archmaesters at the Citadel would hear of all the king’s complaints. The pyromancers, however, were less secure. Indeed, when a rumor ran that the king had commanded Luthor Rivers to round up the senior Wisdoms, most of them fled with a surprising alacrity, taking ship to the Free Cities in terror for their lives. As it happened, no such order was given… but the king immediately showed his displeasure by refusing to pay the remaining costs for the wildfire that the alchemists had made, and swore that in his reign wildfire would never again be used. This cast the guild into great confusion, buried under debts that would not be made good and many of its elder leadership fled. There are now rumors that the guildhall itself may have to be sold, unless some solution can be found. As to the rest of the court? The king did have praise for some, for their leal efforts and bravery. There are still knights and lords missing, but now they are thought to be dead, among them the lords of the Antlers and Stonedance, and the king has given thought to their disposition under uncertain circumstances. The Antlers is presently ruled by Lord Jarmon’s widow, Lady Jannia, on behalf of their son… but the child is little more than an infant, and there is a thought that mayhaps a stronger hand is needed. As to Stonedance, both Lord Massey and his heir are presumed dead, and the king’s favor to Ser Luthor Rivers seems to extend to supporting naming Ser Luthor’s wife, Lady Pennei, as Lady of Stonedance, with their son as heir. Yet Rivers’s bastard birth has raised eyebrows at Stonedance, and some argue that Lord Maslan would have preferred his brother Ser Harmon to succeed him instead of a daughter wed to a bastard-born knight of infamous lineage, however high he has risen in the king’s service. [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

Now that HBO’s House of the Dragon is in the full swing of production, casting news will start ramping up for new roles this season, and today provides us the first tranche as four actors have been revealed by Variety with their roles, all of which were first described in George R.R. Martin’s The World of Ice and Fire and Fire and Blood: Gayle Rankin as Alys Rivers, described as “a healer and resident of Harrenhal”. For those not concerned about spoilers, the Wiki of Ice and Fire has you covered on all we know of the character from George R.R. Martin’s writing. Veteran actor Simon Russell Beale (who has multiple Olivier and Tony awards to his credit) will play Ser Simon Strong, described as “the Castellan of Harrenhal and great-uncle to Lord Larys Strong”. the Wiki of Ice and Fire has more information about the character. Freddie Fox will play Ser Gwayne Hightower, “the son of Otto Hightower, brother to Queen Alicent, and uncle” to the queen’s children. The character appeared in the first episode of House of the Dragon, in the tournament, but wore a helm and was played by a stuntman. Again, this is a canonical character. Last but not last, Abubakar Salim will play Alyn of Hull, “a sailor in the Velaryon fleet.” There’s a lot more about him on the Wiki for those not afraid of spoilers. https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/Gayle_Rankin.jfif View the full article

In a big presentation to announce their upcoming plans, including the launch of a new streaming service combining HBO MAX and Discovery+ called MAX, Warner Bros. Discovery announced that they had ordered A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight straight to series (no pilot episode) with the following log-line describing the basic idea of the show, which is based on the Dunk & Egg novellas: A century before the events of Game of Thrones, two unlikely heroes wandered Westeros… a young, naïve but courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg. Set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes, and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends. Fans have long wanted to see Dunk & Egg brought to the screen, as they give a very unique look into the Seven Kingdoms and the Targaryens from the eyes of a man of low birth who rises to great fame over his lifetime. Notably, HBO has also shared details about the writers and executive producers for this series. https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/Martin_Knight7Kingdoms_title.jpg read on >>> View the full article

Variety has an exclusive scoop: HBO is actively considering a TV show about Aegon’s Conquest, which would take the Game of Thrones franchise back to the very beginning of the establishment of the Targaryen dynasty in Westeros. Per Variety: As the project is in its very early stages, no writer is currently attached, though sources say that the search is underway as HBO is keen to move forward and get it into development. Sources also say that there may be a feature component to the project, i.e. HBO and Warner Bros. would produce a feature film that would then lead into the potential series, though plans remain in flux at present. The full story of Aegon’s Conquest was first told in The World of Ice and Fire, which was later expanded with more information about the aftermath in Fire & Blood. https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Gallery/_medium/Aegon_Balerion.jpg read on >>> View the full article

Some significant House of the Dragon news reported by Deadline’s Nellie Andreeva, who has received word (and confirmed some parts of it with HBO) that for “story-driven” reasons the plan of a 10 episode 2nd season has been changed to an 8 episode 2nd season, which has necessitated some re-writing and likely has contributed to the slight delays to the planned commencement of filming (however, production is imminent and the prospective air date remains summer 2024). Per Andreeva’s report: “It has been reported that House of the Dragon‘s creative team had envisioned the series running for three or four seasons. I hear executive producer-showrunner Ryan Condal, working with author/executive producer George R.R. Martin, took a step back as Season 2 was being put together to take a big-picture view of the series, which follows Martin’s Fire & Blood, and figure out the overall narrative flow, including how to break up the stories season-to-season and what battles to include and when.” Interestingly, Andreeva notes that even with the reduction of two episodes, Condal and GRRM are still discussing whether three or four seasons work better. Her piece goes into some more detail about just what was moved out of the 2nd season for the prospective 3rd season, which we’ll quote below and speculate on a bit. https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Gallery/_medium/HotD_S01E10_ArraxSE.jpg read on >>> View the full article

Over at Not a Blog, George R.R. Martin has provided fans a lengthy update on The Winds of Winter, HBO’s successor shows, and more… and in the process lets the cat out of the bag regarding one project we here at Westeros.org have been working on for the last couple of years. We’ll provide a quick summary below: https://www.westeros.org/Graphics/Images/_medium/2023_Calendar_Chase-Stone.jpg read on >>> View the full article

Big news out of Hollywood today, as Variety first revealed that HBO is in early development on adapting the Dunk & Egg novellas (collected in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms [affiliate link]) to the screen: “The one-hour show would be based on the series of fantasy novellas by George R. R. Martin, which follow the adventures of Ser Duncan the Tall (Dunk) and a young Aegon V Targaryen (Egg) 90 years prior to the events of “A Song of Ice and Fire. “No writer or talent is currently attached to the project, but sources say it is a high priority for HBO as the premium cabler looks to build on the success of Game of Thrones.” This was followed up half an hour later by EW’s James Hibberd (author of Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon [affiliate link]) reporting that it goes beyond Dunk & Egg: “But that’s not all. HBO has been meeting with other top writers pitching others ideas based on Martin’s works. Among the ideas being contemplated is a prequel series based on Robert’s Rebellion, the war for the Iron Throne that upended Westeros a couple of decades before the events in Thrones. All the ideas are prequels; there are no sequels or spinoffs from the original series currently under consideration. “One of the writers is a name familiar to HBO genre fans: Bruno Heller, who created the ambitious historical drama Rome [affiliate link], a series that was seen as a bit of a short-lived precursor to Thrones. That said, no writer is yet attached to any project.” read on >>> View the full article

HBO’s now released a teaser for the next season, although it’s made up of material from previous seasons… except for voice overs at start and at the end, I believe: The first lines are obviously Max von Sydow as the last greenseer… and we’re quite sure that’s Isaac Hempstead-Wright as Bran at the end. [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

Our friends at Dark Horse occasionally send us some of their Game of Thrones-licensed products for review, and we’ve had the pleasure of highlighting them over the last few years. The most recent arrival was particularly apropos, though, because in the package we had not one but two figures: 8 inch figures of Brienne of Tarth and the Hound. These are just two entries in what must be well over a dozen figures now in these series of high-quality sculpted figures, but I admit to being always particularly drawn to the armored figurines because… well, I’m fond of most of the show’s armoring! Also quite impressed with the fact that the Hound’s visor can actually pivot up and down; it’s a very nice touch. If there’s any criticism to be made, I’ll admit that find Brienne’s face not terribly reminiscent of Gwendoline Christie. It’s a bit too lean—Christie’s she’s rounder-cheeked and the outfits she wears on the show deliberately pushes under her chin to give her a heavier appearance than she has in reality. The hair could have stood to be rather messier, as well, I think, to capture the often-unkempt appearance she has on the show. It’s unfortunate that it doesn’t quite match some of the other figures in facial representation, such as the remarkably good Hodor and Bran which is a great representation of Nairn and Hampstead-Wright as those characters. The Brienne and Hound figures are already available, with a new wave of figures coming this month, including Jorah Mormont, another example of Dark Horse’s fantastic way with the armor on the series. [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

The TCA’s winter press tour is in full swing, an as usual it’s proved a bounty of information concerning Game of Thrones as executive Michael Lombardo spoke with press. As expected, the sixth season of the series will premiere on April 24th, starting at its usual 9PM Eastern time, to be followed by the premiere’s of the comedies Veep and Silicon Valley.The Hollywood Reporter provides further news of note, as well: HBO’s negotiating for two more seasons of the series, taking it through its 8th season. As James Hibberd notes, this is news from Lombardo was hinted at last year when he said showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss saw the show running “two more years after six”. However, Lombardo apparently went a step further when discussing these plans when he indicated a full 7th season was not expected. Last year, following the remarks, both EW and we ourselves speculated that this could mean Benioff and Weiss were perhaps allowing for an extended, split 7th season,  to take the show through its 8th year. After all, this has been a common solution at networks to keep a popular show on the air for as long as possible. Now there’s the spectre of the 8th season being a full season in turn, or perhaps it, too, might be split across two years to take the show into 2019. And it must be said, though we do fully expect the 8th season (whether it’s season 8 in 2018 or season 8a followed by by 8b in 2019) will be the show’s last, it’s worth noting that none of these reports indicate that Lombardo named it the final season. What to make of that? It doesn’t really mean anything, given negotiations are still in the work. but HBO’s executives have previously made it sound like they’d be happy to see the show run for ten years, so perhaps they’re keeping their hopes alive. It will be interesting if the official announcement of two more seasons makes any statement about the end of the series. [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

As the sun rose on a cool winter day in Sunspear, the heir to Yronwood received his knighthood in the sept of the Princes of Dorne. His vigil through the night had been undisturbed and serene, as such things should be, and at dawn septons entered and with them also were Ser Quinlan Qorgyle, Farien’s mother Lady Linnet, and other lords and ladies of note from the court and from throughout Dorne. They witnessed as Farien was raised to knighthood by Ser Quinlan, the Lord Protector of the Realm, on behalf of his son Prince Marence. There were some who thought Lady Yronwood seemed not best pleased by Qorgyle bestowing the honor upon her son, but she made no apparent complaint—after all, it was her son’s wedding day. The wedding itself was conducted in the Tower of the Sun’s throne room with great pomp and circumstance, a glittering sea of Dornish nobility around the regal princess and the new-made knight. The feast that followed was extravagant and open-handed, a show of Martell largess (and Yronwood, as well, for it’s said Lady Linnet contributed substantially). Surprisingly, despite the bevy of Yronwoods present, no untoward incidents took place—not even with Prince Rhodry, who is well-known to feel a peculiar enmity to the Lady of Yronwood. The feast came to an end, and bride and groom retired to the nuptial chamber. Ser Farien was heard to jest with some of his kin that he would beg that his princess withhold her attentions, so he could be fresh for the wedding tourney, in which he intended to ride; whether Princess Ariana obliged him is, of course, a question. The next day proved less auspicious for a tourney than might have been desired: not only chill, but wet as well, a drizzle from the sea raining down cold and unpleasant. Despite this, more than three score competitors entered the tourney, chasing the prize of a 1,000 gold coins for the victor. When the field was whittled down to eight knights—each who had defeated three opponents—the contest shifted so that each knight would ride twice, first towards the victory and then, if defeated, for a second chance to prove victorious. Most notable of all was the fact that Ser Farien had managed the feat of reaching the narrow field; so, too, had his kinsman, Ser Kay Yronwood. Others of note included Ser Felix Sand, Ser Darion Fowler, Ser Valerin Dayne, Ser Tamlyn Toland, Ser Laurent Dalt, and the prince Rhodry Martell. The contests that followed proved notable, for Ser Felix seemed invincible, while Prince Rhodry won a hard-fought match against the Sand Dog only to be overthrown by Ser Kay Yronwood ultimately leading to a pitched with the famed Toland knight before Ser Laurent faced him once again and had his revenge. In the end, it came down to Ser Laurent Dalt and Ser Felix Sand, and perhaps the gods finally gave Ser Laurent their benevolence, or perhaps Ser Felix grew tired; he was unhorsed not once but twice, and the prize went the Keeper of the Sandship who proceeded to crown his wife, Caitrin of House Blackmont, as queen of love and beauty. [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

Despite speculation that HBO’s schedule has pushed season 6 of Game of Thrones into early May, brand new billboards put out by HBO in Los Angeles and New York reveal that the show will air in “April”. Given that the new Martin Scorsese show, Vinyl, will run into April as well, it looks like the sixth season will begin airing on the final Sunday in April, April 24th. See below for a couple of images of the billboard, along with the tweets from those who shared them on the social media website: read on >>> [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

Well, this is a surprise: one of the features on the Game of Thrones Season 5 Bluray will be a 20 minute animated feature on the Dance of the Dragons (or, as the show would have it, the Dance of Dragons), the brutal civil war two Targaryens over the Iron Throne following the death of Viserys I. Recounted in detail in our own The World of Ice and Fire, as well as in part in GRRM’s “The Princess and the Queen”, it’s an event full of murder, battles, betrayals, scheming, and (of course) dragons. IGN has the exclusive first look at the feature, with a section narrated by Pedro Pascal (aka Oberyn Martell) describing the Battle Above the Gods Eye between Prince Daemon Targaryen and his nephew Prince Aemond. And beyond his participation, IGN notes a number of other departed actors pitch in: “Also contributing their voice work are Kerry Ingram, who played Shireen Barathon; Harry Lloyd, who played Viserys Targaryen; Mark Addy, who plays Robert Baratheon; Michelle Fairley, who played Catelyn Stark; and Jack Gleeson, who played Joffrey Baratheon.” That certainly sounds like something to look forward to. The bluray set hits shelves on March 15th. [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

While I’m still a fan of comics in general, I stopped collecting years ago. But back in the day, I remember some particular moments from those days (we’re talking—gulp—25 years ago now), as a kid in middle school trading comics with friends (we’d gather on a hillside besides the athletic field and swap comics around; got to the point that a teacher volunteered to run an after-school comics club), going to Adventure Comics in Monterey (right near the Monterey Bay Aquarium!) with my brother and father to get the weekly fix. One significant name in that time, among many significant creators who I admired, was Todd McFarlane. His fame initially came from his artwork, especially on Spider-Man. Then he was a founder of Image comics, championing creator-owned mainstream comics (and, eventually, non-mainstream stuff, giving a home to, most notably, The Walking Dead). McFarlane would go on to diversify his interests, and one of those would be McFarlane Toys. When word came out earlier this year that McFarlane’s company had received a license to produce Game of Thrones products, it was not a surprise: McFarlane Toys has often been on the cutting edge of pop culture properties; the aforementioned The Walking Dead has been a big success for them, by all accounts. Dark Horse and Funko and threeZero hold licenses for various figures… but McFarlane Toys has had real success with its construction sets, basically thematic “LEGO for adults” that helps fans recreate in miniature places and scenes from their favorite shows. This is all a long-winded way to saying that courtesy of McFarlane Toys, we received a copy of the Iron Throne Room Construction Set, and below we’ll be discussing some of its particulars!   read on >>> [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]

As you know from his post, Damphair will stepping back for the foreseeable future. He will remain on Staff, but his active involvement will be highly limited. This has raised the question among players whether we plan to recruit or open applications for new Staff. The short answer is no, we have no such plans at the moment. We’ve never entertained applications for Staff and we don’t feel that is the right way to go about things. We have always kept the possibility open of asking additional players if they are interested, but at the moment we do not have any such candidates in mind. We have a good number of experienced players, but we know from experience on other games that this is not the only important factor in putting together a functioning Staff team. Now, the reality is that this will mean we are somewhat understaffed, in particular when it comes to GMing scenes, which was something Damphair has been doing a fabulous job of for years. It is an area which neither myself nor Balerion excel at; our MUSH backgrounds involve minimal exposure to GMing, as either players or staff. Given this, that is an area which will see less staff involvement for the moment. Instead, we will be focusing on trying to cut back on the +jobs queue as well as looking at some larger projects that we would like to finish in time for the 10-year anniversary of the beta opening this autumn. These projects include some CharGen changes (how ambitious these can be depends on whether we feel that we can leave existing CGed characters with a different setup than future CGs; not in terms of numbers, but in terms of some of the written parts), the reputation/renown system, further house expansions and maybe (a very big maybe) the combat system. As we are quite unlikely to do the same kind of coverage of Season 6 of Game of Thrones as for past seasons, we won’t be as swamped during the show period as previously, though keeping the website from going down with some regularity will undoubtedly still take extra work. When it comes to plots, we are working on some long-term timelines for both areas, with the Dornish one being the furthest along so far. For King’s Landing, we have some canon events to build around, but we need to work on some more solid details. Considering the lack of a dedicated GM on Staff, we would certainly like to see more plot proposals from players willing to take the lead on such projects. However, we do have to stress that one reason we’ve been hesitant about this in the past is that we’ve often found that the requisite updates have been very hard to get out of players afterwards; any larger plots need submissions for Tidings and for the Chronicle, Events for any CDB NPCs that are used and so on. But players who are willing to step up and run plots with these requirements in mind are more than welcome to submit proposals. We’d also like to ask players to help us with the process of getting the +jobs queue shortened; make sure to check your +jobs regularly to see if we’ve submitted notes asking for additional information or any other kind of feedback. Its much easier to get a particular +job finished up if once we start working on it the responses come in fairly quickly. And if you do have any outdated +jobs that should be closed, do add a note letting us know that this is the case. If you have any questions or comments, do let us know. For example, is there anything really major we’ve missed in our list of potential projects for the year? And should we put out a guide/rulebook for GMing on the game and what should it contain? [url={url}]Visit the Site![/url]