Who would you want on your small council?

[Sailing the sunset sea]

-Hand of the King: Mance Rayder. Above average military leader, savvy politician, experienced in recruiting and utilizing personnel of diverse origins, seems fairly open-minded concerning his agents' lifestyles. Grant him a salary, and a yearly vacation in Dorne and the man has no reason to rise in rebellion.

-Lord Commander of the Kinsguard: Archibald Yronwood. Already knighted, trained and experienced fighter and mercenary, heir to no throne, loyal to a fault, and willing to accept suicide missions and clandestine operations. The Kinsguard needs some new blood.

-Master of Laws: Rodrik Harlaw. A sensible, fair-minded individual. And one of the few Lords in Westeros I'd trust to actually read the damn laws before starting with the executions on instinct.

-Grand Maester: Ebrose. I appreciate Marwin, and I think there are several characters who should be maesters. But the Grand Maester de facto serves as the royal physician, and I'd actually want one with actual medical training. He is elderly, kind and "renowned for his soft voice and gentle hands".

-Master of Coin- Tybero Istarion. Experienced paymaster and bureaucrat, carefully keeps track of the paper-trail (Baelish doesn't). And, as he tells Tyrion, "I always pay my debts as well. It is expected of a paymaster".

-Master of Whispers- Wyman Manderly. He has a proven talent for gathering tidbits of information and seeing the larger picture, spreads misinformation like its second nature for him, fairly good actor, picks his agents carefully. Not to mention making the world at large think said agents dead and buried. Making sure that nobody is out looking for them. And all this under the nose of the savvy Roose Bolton. Give him more resources and he can surpass Varys. Too bad the man is a cannibal, but what you can expect of wolves?

-Master of Ships- Paxter Redwyne. The only admiral interested in both maintaining warships and a merchant navy. His trade network extends to Meereen. This is the right guy for the job, not a glorified pirate like the Greyjoys.

I like your list, there is lots of reason to it. Harlaw as Master of Laws is a particularly excellent choice.

[pitakon]

Hand - Littlefinger easy to bribe just give him his choice of a tully.

Lord Commander - Randyll Tarly easy to bribe just give him a war every other year

Master of Law - Onion Knight not easy to bribe.

Grand Maester - Sam easy to bribe just give him random wildling girl to save.

Master of Coin - ME!!!!!!! i'm bribing myself.

Master of Whispers - Arya easy to bribe just keep Cersei Lannister alive so she has something to play with every night.

Master of Ships - random summer islander - Queen should come from the Summer Islands.

Fool - get Qyburn to animate dead Joffrey.

[Sir Cortnay Penrose]

Am astonished how many kings are willing to let Littlefinger on the Small Council. My first act as king would be to kill him, I don't care how good at money he is.

I don't think we can put married people into the Kingsguard, or members of the NW anywhere. They have other priorities.

Hand: Tyrion would not be acceptable to the populace, as he is a kinslayer. Davos, provided I can trust the rest of the Council. Alternatively Daenerys (living in a house with a red door).

Lord Commander: Barristan training Brienne, Loras, Jaime, the Hound (if any of these survive).

Master of Coin: Tycho Nestoris

Master of Whisperers: Wyman Manderley (seriously, only Dirnadick thinks this? He's obvious!)

Master of Laws: Jaime Lannister would actually be my choice, but I suspect he can't/won't leave the Kingsguard. In this case, Edmure Tully or Doran Martell. (The Reader is a good suggestion, but do the Ironborn understand the concept of law?)

Master of Ships: The Serry guy Victarion fought if alive; if not Paxter Redwyne.

Grand Maester: Pylos seems like the only decent one left (apart from Sam, ruled out as above).

Create a special role on Council for Tyrion if he's alive, and also Mance Rayder.

[The Last Martell]

Hand: Doran Martell - Very politically savvy guy, but also loyal to his friends

LC of Kingsguard: Barristan Selmy - duh

Master of Laws: Davos Seaworth - Maybe not great to have a former smuggler, but the guy is smart and loyal

Master of Whispers: Arya Stark - I'd like to see her new abilities put to use

Master of Coin: Tyrion Lannister - He is a Lannister after all, and I bet he would have done the job a lot better and enjoyed it more without the presence of daddy Tywin

Master of Ships: Wyman Manderly - He's like Doran Martell, savvy and loyal to friends, and he can apparently secretly build a lot of ships. Paxter Redwyne would be a good choice too, obviously.

Grand Maester: Samwell - after he's done with training, of course

[Jon Flowers]

I think Ned was the ideal Hand. He is an able and honorable Lord to be sure, but above all, his loyalty is what is needed in that position. A hand like Littlefinger or Tyrion may be more effective but they would bring the very real danger of betrayal with them as well.

[pitakon]

I don't think we can put married people into the Kingsguard, or members of the NW anywhere. They have other priorities.

I'm the king why not? Hell, I would put the wife's father on the kingsguard.

[WhenLifeGiveYouCamel]

Hand of the King: Joffrey Baratheon

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard: Bran Stark

Master of Laws: Walder Frey

Master of Coin: Robert Baratheon

Master of Whispers: Ned Stark

Master of Ships: Patchface

Grand Maester: Rickon Stark

[Mikken's Mark]

Living people...tricky.

Hand of the King: Brynden Tully- He has plenty of experience in combat, he seems like a down to earth man, and is loyal. Also, he just seems nice.

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard: Balon Swann - Good fighter, honorable, and loyal. He is a capable leader, as he lead men at the Battle of the Blackwater.

Master of Laws: Alysane Mormont - Loyal, honorable, strong. She also has a merciful streak which is important when dealing out justice.

Master of Coin: Doran Martell - He's from Dorne (I want at a council that represents the whole of Westeros) and is incredibly intelligent.

Master of Whispers: Tyrion Lannister - From the Westerlands, intelligent, and is willing to shell out the gold for information.

Master of Ships: Willas Tyrell - From the Reach, intelligent, kind. He is correctly guessed Euron's strategy for attacking the Shield Islands and he ultimately commands the Redwyne fleet.

Grand Maester: Maester Pylos (He helped Davos smuggle out Edric Storm)

I don't have anyone from the Vale or the Iron Islands. I could not find a place for anyone from the Vale so I'll probably have Bronze Yohn Royce on the council as an adviser.

I just don't like the Ironborn.

[jblair]

If you sat the Iron Throne of Westeros, who would you choose to be members of your small council? Living people only and if you can, state your reasons for each member.

My small council:

Hand of the King - Brynden Tully: superbly talented in all areas, and everyone respects him. Not too nice for a dirty job. Doran Martell would be my second choice, but he's too hobbled by gout to handle the physical rigors and travel.

Master of Laws - Rodrick Harlow: an atypical Ironmen with uncommon foresight and a good moral code.

Master of Coin - Willas Tyrell: Highgarden excels at generating wealth, and by all accounts Willas is mentally capable of this job.

Master of Whispers - Queen of Thorns: who better to sniff out secrets and subvert plots? Besides, I'd rather have her on my side.

Master of Ships - Asha Greyjoy: Shows she can command respect and command ships ably, doesn't seem to fall prey to the worst of Ironmen personality traits. Also would help integrate the Ironmen (and their fleet) into Westeros as a whole. Victarion would be a good option, but he's too wedded to Ironborn ideals, which always run counter to the Seven Kingdoms.

Grand Maester - Archmaester Vaellyn: certainly wouldn't be just a suck-up sounding board. Once trained, Sarella would be the choice - she seems exceedingly clever.

[barbandazi]

Actually you wouldn't want people like Tyrion/Varys/LF in your small council, because they'll plot constantly behind your back. You want loyal/honorable people like Ned, Ser Barristan and Jon Arryn, Stannis. Robert should have never let Pycelle or Littlefinger in his small council.

[Franz95]

Hand of the King: Lord Davos Seaworth. Loyal, will always tell you the truth.

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard: Ser Jaime Lannister. He's a new man, he'll does things right this time.

Master of Laws: Lord Beric Dondarrion. A queer choice, I know, he should be master of outlaws, but he has a sense for justice. When the leaded the BwB they actually were trying to do something good.

Master of Coin: Garth Tyrell.

Master of Whispers: Ser Brynden Tully. My master of whispers will not sit back and listen to little birds, he'll go out there and find his whispers on his own.

Master of Ships: Victarion Greyjoy. The only male Greyjoy I wouldn't kill in an armageddon.

Grand Maester: Maester Luwin. I know, I know, he's dead. I'll go with Maester Vyman then.

[Batman]

Hand of the King - Stannis Baratheon

He is honourable, strong and ruthless. What makes him a better hand than Tywin is that he is loyal right down to the end. Tywin may turn on you, if it serves his purposes. He understands the politics of Kings Landing better than Ned Stark and is an excellent war time leader. Rather than playing the game with men like baelish and Varys, he would likely remove their heads, a far safer and better measure than Tyrion took.

Master of Coin - Tyrion Lannister

I want a Lannister on the small council. Any king who wants to hold the throne must make common cause with either the Lannisters or the Tyrells. Tyrion is clever and devoted to those who show loyalty. He is no Littlefinger but is much more trustworthy, which is a trade-off that is worth it.

Master of Laws - Yohn Royce

Strong, powerful and respected, Royce is the most prominent lord in the Vale and would serve well as master of laws. Stannis is better suited to the role but is already taken and Randyll Tarly possibly but is of questionable loyalty.

Master of Whispers - Wyman Manderly

Smart, cunning and loyal, all of the things you want in a master of whispers. He outwitted both the Freys, Lannisters (Cersei, not hard) and Boltons easily. he may not be as good as Vary, but again, he is infinetly more trustworthy.

Master of Ships - Davos Seaworth

Stannis is a better naval commander but since he is hand he cannot serve in this spot. I briefly considered Victarian, but he is not trustworthy and is not an intelligent commander. Euron planned his success against the Lannisters and when he was on his own he was smashed by Stannis. Davos saw all of the flaws in Florents plan to win Blackwater Bay and is a proven sailor. He is also loyal, honourable and can learn more about naval warfare from Stannis himself.

Grand Maester - Pylos

There are a limited number of quality choices for the position of Maester. Pylos is young, intelligent and has a sense of justice that will serve him well.

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard - Barristan Selmy

This choice was far tougher than the others. Barristan Selmy is supposed to be one of the best Kingsguard knights of all time. However, he has always held a torch for the Targaryens. If I am king, I dont want a Targaryen loyalist on my council. Balon Swann is probably the better choice and after a decade or two of service Gendry might prove worthy. Still, Selmy bring credibility, and thats really all the Kingsguard are good for. The small people love them (or used to) and Selmy wins support.

[pitakon]

Actually you wouldn't want people like Tyrion/Varys/LF in your small council, because they'll plot constantly behind your back. You want loyal/honorable people like Ned, Ser Barristan and Jon Arryn, Stannis. Robert should have never let Pycelle or Littlefinger in his small council.

LOL!!!!!!!!! Why not? At least you know this people are "plotting" behind your back. These supposed "loyal" people will stab you in the back at the most inopportune time and you wouldn't see it coming.

[Spiderweaves]

Hand of the King - The Queen of Thorns. She's a little old, but I would trust her, and she would give the best advice. Once she is gone, I would replace her with Doran Martell. Patient, smart, and willing, I think, to challenge me on my opinions.

Master of Coin- Tyrion, but only with close supervision. I would never know whom his decisions were really supposed to benefit.

Master of Laws - Stannis. Seems like a clear choice. Risky, though, as I would feel like he was always eyeing the Throne. I would have to find some ways to appease him.

Master of Whispers - Bran Stark. That warging thing will come in handy.

Master of Ships - Asha. She's brilliant, and she will only grow more able as she gets older.

Grand Maester Pylos. No other good choices available.

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard - Jorah Mormont. Seems experienced, and, when not blinded by love, wise. Brienne lacks a certain canniness that would be necessary.

[andrewside]

Assuming you can use dead people

Hand of the King: Jon Arryn, he ruled the Kingdom for Robert and made peace with Dorne.

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard: Barristan Selmy

Master of Coin: Petyr Baelish, He knew what he was doing.

Master of Whispers: Tyrion Lannister, one of the smartest men in the Kingdom, a very good judge of other's motivates and character.

Master of Laws: Randyll Tarly, he has a strict sense of justice and is an intelligent man.

Master of Ships: Davos, honest, just, and a great sailor/captain.

Grand Maester: Pylos, taught Davos to read and cares about his job and helping others more than politics.

[Last of the Darklyns]

Hand of the King: Rodrik Harlaw, Knowledgeable, no desire of power, seemed very loyal to Asha. Joins Iron Islands to Westerosi politics.

Master of the Kingsguard: Ser Barristan Selmy, obvious

Master of Coin: Willas, good, gets Highgarden on

Master of Laws: Davos Seaworth, smart, just, and loyal

Master of Ships: Stannis Baratheon, defeated the Iron Fleet. Gets the Stormlands loyal.

Master of Whispers: Bran Stark, can see most things. Gets the North.

Grand Maester: Samwell Tarly, loyal, smart, too cowardly to go against me or be a spy of the Citadel. Gets a useful connection to Jon, who would either be LC of NW or Lord of Winterfell by now.

Note that Willas Tyrell, Rodrik Harlaw, Stannis Baratheon, Bran Stark, and Samwell Tarly all double as hostages who secure House Tyrell, House Harlaw, House Baratheon, House Stark, and House Tarly to me. I need to find a Martell...

[Targaryen Northman]

Hand of the King- Jeor Mormont

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard- Quorin half hand

Master of Laws- Eddard Stark

Master of Coin- Tyrion

Master of Whispers- Cersei

Master of Ships- Victarion

Grand Maester- Qyburn

[The Crow's Eye]

Hand of the King- Davos Seaworth. Has an abundance of common sense, is not afraid to tell the King the truth.

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard- Barristan Selmy. Easy.

Master of Laws- Stannis Baratheon. Known for his iron will, and his stern justice.

Master of Coin- Littlefinger. Completely untrustworthy, but a damn good Master of Coin.

Master of Whispers- Tyrion Lannister. I am completely convinced that Tyrion has the cunning to be an excellent master of whispers.

Master of Ships- Euron Greyjoy. He has proved himself to be an excellent strategist, planning the raid on Lannisport during Balon's first rebellion, and masterminding the attack on the Shield Islands. His unpredictability is an asset.

Grand Maester- Marwyn the Mage. He would bring a much needed difference in perspective.

[Master Of Armies]

Hand of the King- Stannis Baratheon

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard- Ser Arthur Dayne, The Sword of the Morning

Master of Laws- Randyll Tarly

Master of Coin- Petyr Baelish

Master of Whisperers- Varys (as long as he doesnt talk behind my back t some pretender -.-)

Master of Ships- Victarion Greyjoy

Grand Maester- Maester Luwin

[Artos Stark]

Hand of the King - Tywin Lannister (easy choice)

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard - Barristan Selmy (again easy choice)

Master of Laws - Ned Stark

Master of Coin - Tyrion Lannister (LF is unreliable)

Master of Whispers - Varys (easy choice)

Master of Ships - Stannis

Grand Maester - Lewyn