[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for the House of the Dragon Season 2 finale.]
House of the Dragon Season 2 ended on the brink of a major battle from George R.R. Martin‘s Fire & Blood, teeing up the already greenlit Season 3 for a violent start.
In a change from the book, Alicent (Olivia Cooke) became the final pawn that put Rhaenyra’s (Emma D’Arcy) imminent strike on King’s Landing into motion. They met in secret once again, this time at Dragonstone, where Alicent begged for Rhaenyra to take King’s Landing and put an end to the war she started when placing Aegon on the throne. The tide had already shifted in Rhaenyra’s favor, as Daemon (Matt Smith) successfully raised an army in the Riverlands, she found three new dragonriders for Seasmoke, Vermithor, and Silverwing, and Corlys’ fleet stood at the ready to attack from the sea.
The next major events of the Targaryen civil war brewed in House of the Dragon Season 2, setting the stage for the major conflict to break out next season. But there were many changes to the book plot made in the process. Here, we break down all of them.