How could Steffon Baratheon not find a Valyrian bride for Rhaegar?

[Platypus Rex]

2 hours ago, norwaywolf123 said:

Is there any descriptions of Mellario? I have not seen any description but i have seen a picture that portrayed her as looking similar tp her daughter Arianne.

No.  It is implied that Arianne, who initially was thought to take after her father, grew to resembles Mellario, apparently in the sense of being busty and beautiful.  This might imply that Mellario also has dark hair, like Arianne, except for what we've learned about Norvosi noblewomen.

[Bowen Marsh]

A Blackfyre bride would bring the two branches of the Targaryen family together.  

[Megorova]

13 hours ago, norwaywolf123 said:

Perhaps Patchface is not such a simpleton as he is presented as in the books. 

 

Besides we have seen face-shifting before. https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Jaqen_H'ghar

Or, if Patchface is not a Faceless Man, then there's another option - he could be Varys' little bird. Steffon died, and then shortly after that, Varys has arrived to Westeros, and got established in Aerys' court. If Varys is really a Blackfyre, then could be, that he was planning to get rid of Targaryens, so first he killed Steffon (maybe thru Patchface, or maybe he hired Faceless Men), and then he became Master of Whisperers, which gave him access to Targaryens.

[lrresistable]

On 11/10/2018 at 2:30 PM, Bowen Marsh said:

 It had to be a child of pure fire.  

 

Reckon Daenerys could have been conceived the night Aerys raped Rhaella after burning Rickard & Brandon Stark? or does that not fit the timeline

[Darth Sidious]

The faceless men are not powerful enough to call on a big wave to sink the boat.  I think it's just a nasty wave that came their way.  Bad luck.  

[Darth Sidious]

Just now, lrresistable said:

Reckon Daenerys could have been conceived the night Aerys raped Rhaella after burning Rickard & Brandon Stark? or does that not fit the timeline

My opinion only, but I think the rape happened a long time ago.  Daenerys was conceived shortly before the fall of King's Landing.  The rebels had already made gains towards taking the war so the king sent his wife and heir to the safety of Dragonstone.  The conception took place before the queen left for Dragonstone.  

[Megorova]

51 minutes ago, lrresistable said:

Reckon Daenerys could have been conceived the night Aerys raped Rhaella after burning Rickard & Brandon Stark? or does that not fit the timeline

Dany was conceived sometime after Aerys has burned his penultimate Hand, Qarlton Chelsted. On the night after Qarlton's death, Jaime was guarding Rhaella's chambers, when Aerys was raping her. After that, Jaime saw her only once, when she was departing from King's Landing, already after Rhaegar's death at Trident. Aerys burned Qarlton Chelsted, then named pyromancer Rossart as his new Hand. Rossart was killed during the Sack of King's Landing, and it is known, that he was the Hand for two weeks, and that Dany was born 9 months after Rhaella left KL. 

ACOK, Tyrion I: "Aerys Targaryen's last Hand was killed during the Sack of King's Landing, though I doubt he'd had time to settle into the Tower. He was only Hand for a fortnight. The one before him was burned to death."

AGOT, Dany I: "She had been born on Dragonstone nine moons after their flight, while a raging summer storm threatened to rip the island fastness apart."

Fullterm pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, that's 9 months and 7 more days. So Dany was conceived somewhere in timespan between 7th day after Qarlton's death and Rhaella's last night in KL <- that's if the pregnancy was fullterm, and lasted 40 weeks. Or, if the pregnancy lasted only 9 months/39 weeks, then Dany was conceived on the night prior Rhaella's departure to Dragonstone.

[Hiigara129]

Isn't it most likely that Aerys' reputation was bad enough to get the Houses of the Black Wall to say "naw we're not gonna send our daughters to a madhouse" rather than any conspiracy?

[Lucia Targaryen]

My question is - What about House Velaryon? Lucerys Velaryon was Master of Ships and a close ally of Aerys - and an ancient Valyrian family that often married Targaryens. Was there no female members available?

[Lion of the West]

As mentioned Aerys probably had very strict guidelines and Steffon simply wasn't able to find someone who fit them all, or enough of them, to be acceptable for Aerys.

[Lord Varys]

1 hour ago, EvanSol919 said:

My question is - What about House Velaryon? Lucerys Velaryon was Master of Ships and a close ally of Aerys - and an ancient Valyrian family that often married Targaryens. Was there no female members available?

It looks like that. Houses Velaryon and Baratheon were likely the first houses Aerys II looked for to find a bride for Rhaegar. But Steffon had only sons (and I think hopes were high that Renly might turn out to be a girl) and one assumes the Velaryons had no women of the right age to offer to Rhaegar. Which isn't that surprising - it seems the Velaryons are down to but a single branch in the family tree. We only know of Monford and Monterys Velaryon and Aurane Waters. Nothing about cousins and the like.

[norwaywolf123]

Many prospective brides that Aerys would accept due to their ancestry may have sunk low on the Westerosi nobillity totem pole. Such that they did not expect to get a chance to marry Rhaegar. Therefore these prospective brides may have already been married of or betrothed. Although families containing such potential brides may likely be willing to break a betrothal for a royal match.

[Unacosamedarisa]

I don't find it difficult to imagine that he just didn't find a suitable bride, of suitable age, who was free to marry, and whose family were willing to send her off to a foreign court. Women don't grow on trees, Steffon wasn't walking down a supermarket aisle with 100's of prospective brides on either side. There just wasn't a woman of the right age and breeding, who was free to marry at that time. 

Lets look at something similar... A foreign prince wants a bride from Westeros, around the start of AGoT. She has to be sufficiently noble, so we're talking about only those from the Great Houses, daughters of the Great Lords of the 7 Kingdoms (Stark, Tully, Lannister, etc.). At the start of AGoT you have, by my reckoning, 4 possibilities... Arianne Martell, Magaery Tyrell, Myrcella Baratheon, and Sansa Stark. Of those 4, maybe 1 is available... Arianne's father hopes to marry her to Viserys and bring back the Targs, so he isn't entertaining any offers of marriage for her, or taking them seriously; Margaery's family hope to get her into King Robert's bed and for her to replace Cersei, or otherwise have plans for her that involve solidifying their power IN Westeros itself; Sansa Stark is betrothed to Joffrey, the future King of the 7 Kingdoms. The only one who might be considered available is Myrcella, and that's not even definite... her parents may not wish for her to marry a foreign prince, and might instead have plans or hopes for her to marry within the 7 Kingdoms to cement alliances or whatever. Or, I imagine Cersei being completely against sending Myrcella to live on another continent, in a foreign court. Also, she's too young for marriage, though not betrothal I imagine. So, in the WHOLE of Westeros (a continent, not just a city), you have, maybe, 1 possible bride, who needs a few years before she's come of age. 

I can easily believe it was something similar in Volantis at the time... a limited pool of families who were deemed sufficiently "noble" or "well bred" or whatever, a limited pool of their children, who were women, of the right age, who were unattached, and whose families were willing for them to marry a foreign prince. And there were none who met those criteria.