What are the Stepstones and the Free Cities in House of the Dragon?

Trouble is certainly brewing around King’s Landing in House of the DragonA succession plot that is almost as vast as one of these dragons looms over the episode. But as we see in this week’s episode, there are other parts of the continent that have Game of Thrones’ danger going for them already. The main plot is mainly about shipping lines that are sea-based. This could be confusing.

[Ed. note: This story contains spoilers for House of the Dragon episode 2.]

Corlys Velaryon’s rant toward the beginning of the episode sets up his troubles with shipping, but it also includes a flurry of proper nouns, enemies, allies, and cities that are all pretty easy to miss. Corlys and other Westeros merchants are being robbed by a pirate named the Crabfeeder, whose base is on the Stepstones. Viserys points out that it is far more complex than that.

To help you keep up with Westeros’ newest conflict, here’s a breakdown of Daemon and Corlys’ war and why it matters, even if Viserys can’t officially sanction it.

What are the Stepstones? And why is it important?

Photo: Ollie Upton/HBO

The Stepstones are a small rocky island chain south of King’s Landing between Westeros and Essos near Sunspear. They are basically worthless on their own. They can’t really be built on, and there’s no soil to farm and no minerals of any value. However, because trade between Westeros and Essos is a critical part of both continents’ economies, the Stepstones could provide a suitable base of operations for any pirate who wanted to harass ships as they travel the southern part of the Narrow Sea or charge outrageous tolls for safe passage. The Crabfeeder is the perfect example of this.

Who is the Crabfeeder

While the show doesn’t go into much detail, Fire & BloodThe novel House of the DragonThe book (which it is based upon) mentions that Crabfeeder was actually Craghas Dharahar, a Myrish prince. Drahar was the one who actually rescued the Stepstone pirates and set up a system to charge ships safe passage. Although the merchants in Westeros initially accepted the toll system for a time, they soon became frustrated by the rising prices.

This is all a bit different on the TV show. For one thing, it seems that the Crabfeeder isn’t so directly connected with the Triarchy in House of the DragonIs instead supplied covertly by free cities. He is acting more like a pirate and harassing vessels than the wealthy landowners he claims to be.

It does make the show look better (or worse). significantly is the Crabfeeder’s look. We don’t get many details about how Drahar looks in Fire & BloodHowever, House of the Dragon it’s clear his journeys across the sea have left him scarred and burned and maybe even with a bit of Greyscale from quests in the ruins of Chroyane. A cool mask is also his.

What is the Triarchy? How are they related to the Free Cities.

The Free Cities of Essos are made up nine city-states. They include Braavos and Lorath as well as Lys, Myr (Norvos), Pentos. Qohor. Tyrosh. Although these cities continue to fight each other for power, there was briefly a time when Lys and Myr formed an alliance and called themselves the Triarchy. They became the most powerful in the region.

Why can’t Westeros go to war with the Free Cities?

Although the Free Cities can sometimes be a bit rocky, they have a combined force that is greater than anything Westeros has. Additionally, the Free Cities act as an important trading ally for the Seven Kingdoms. The Iron Bank of Braavos also houses a significant amount of Westerosi wealth. In other words, there’s really no upside to fighting the Free Cities openly and plenty of downsides.