Past the shores of Westeros, where Blackwater Bay meets the Narrow Sea, there stands a solitary
island, devoid of crops, livestock, gold or gems.
Yet it was from this worthless rock that Aegon Targaryen set forth to unite the Seven Kingdoms.
Almost three centuries later, when Aegon’s dynasty lay in ruins and all of Westeros was
thrown into chaos by the death of its usurper, this island would once more bear witness to
a King’s plans to unify the realm or die in the attempt.
Beneath banners marked by the fiery heart of the Lord of Light, set forth the ships
and men of House Baratheon of Dragonstone.
Founded in the aftermath of the death of the Mad King Aerys the Second and the exile of
the last Targaryen survivors, the new Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, Robert the First, bestowed
Dragonstone upon his younger brother Stannis Baratheon.
Whether this was an act of deliberate malice or careless generosity might never be known,
but to be given Dragonstone while the traditional Baratheon stronghold of Storm’s End was
granted to the youngest brother Renly, was taken as a tremendous insult by Stannis.
For most of Robert’s reign, Stannis seethed in isolation.
Robert Baratheon’s death under suspicious circumstances, combined with a letter from
Ned Stark shortly before his own execution, roused Stannis to action, and he declared
his claim on the throne as Robert’s eldest surviving brother.
His brother Renly however, did the same, eschewing centuries of custom and tradition.
As Westeros collapsed around them, both House Baratheon of Storm’s End and House Baratheon
of Dragonstone claimed to be Robert’s true successor.
His position within the Baratheon family line and questions surrounding the legitimacy of
Robert’s sons made Stannis the natural successor, yet many of the lords sworn to House Baratheon
instead declared for Renly.
An alliance with House Tyrell gave Renly Baratheon the largest army in the Seven Kingdoms and
made him the strongest contender to the throne.
Worse still, even amongst Stannis’ loyal followers on Dragonstone, a rift had formed
between those who worshipped the Faith of the Seven and those who had converted to the
Lord of Light, the fiery red god R'hllor.
Stannis himself was among the converts, lured to R'hllor by the red priestess Melisandre
who was declared a witch by some and known to have great influence over Stannis’s decisions.
Most dramatic among these was Stannis's order that statues of The Seven, the traditional
deities of much of Westeros, be burned on the shores of Dragonstone as the first of
many sacrifices demanded by the Lord of Light.
Such actions concerned even Stannis’ most loyal followers, most notably the former smuggler
and “Onion Knight” Davos Seaworth who would be appointed as Hand of the King, despite
these misgivings.
Whether through the power of R'hllor, random chance, or perhaps something else, a string
of unlikely events would play out in Stannis’ favor.
An alliance with the pirate Salladhor Saan secured him enough ships to challenge the
Royal Fleet, while the death of his brother Renly at the hand of his own sworn royal bodyguard
secured Stannis enough lords and soldiers to march on the capital, King’s Landing.
House Baratheon of Dragonstone lay siege to the city and despite taking horrific losses
to a cleverly devised trap that unleashed wildfire across their fleet, seemed poised
to triumph.
But in this hour of victory, a surprise counter-attack by Lannister and Tyrell armies smashed through
Stannis’ forces, ending his campaign to win the Iron Throne in a single stroke.
Reduced to the few remnant forces which managed to limp back to Dragonstone, Stannis fell
into a deep depression and most other major powers contending for the throne dismissed
him as a serious threat.
Yet fires continued to burn on Dragonstone, and rumors began to swirl of strange rituals
and sacrifices performed far into the night by his Red Priestess.
Once more fate seemed to favor Stannis Baratheon with both Robb Stark and Joffrey Baratheon,
his main rivals to the throne, killed within mere weeks of one another.
Even more mysterious was the complete abandonment of Dragonstone, leaving many to wonder just
where Stannis would appear next.
The answer arrived in the seemingly least likely of places.
Far in the North, an army numbering greater than any fielded by the Kings to the south
lay siege to the Wall and the last survivors of the Night’s Watch.
In a masterful reveseral of his own experience at King’s Landing, Stannis led his forces,
augmented by sellswords paid for by the Iron Bank, against the Wildlings, achieving a stunning
masterstroke that earned Stannis his reputation as one of the finest military commanders in
Westeros.
With this victory, Stannis had hoped to secure the loyalty of the North in the fight against
an even greater threat said to be forming beyond the wall.
His actions had come too late however.
House Bolton had already assumed the role of Warden of the North, ruling from the ancestral
Stark seat of Winterfell.
With no choice but to seize the castle for himself or be left helpless once winter arrived,
Stannis marched to meet them.
Beset by the elements and dwindling supplies, hundreds and then thousands deserted.
Trapped by the elements, Stannis was forced to endure the unthinkable, sacrificing his
own daughter to R'hllor so that the snows might melt away before them.
When the Baratheon army finally arrived upon Winterfell, they were but a fraction of their
former number and quickly defeated by the waiting Bolton forces.
Stannis himself was said to have survived the battle, only to succumb to his wounds
a short time later, or perhaps, if the rumors can be believed, executed by the same sworn
sword who was said to have murdered his brother Renly.
It was frequently said of Stannis that he would fight to the bitter end and then some.
The audacious campaign he fought to secure the throne certainly attests to that.
In the end however, House Baratheon of Dragonstone was doomed to become a page in someone else’s
history book.
For new banners are said to be flying atop Dragonstone now, and they bear an emblem that
has not been seen in Westeros for almost twenty years, a three headed dragon that promises
to unleash Fire and Blood.
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