A red priest of R'hllor who came to Westeros years ago to convert King Robert and instead became a drinking companion. Thoros discovers his faith – and his god's power – renewed in the carnage of the Riverlands.

An apprentice blacksmith in King's Landing - tall, broad-shouldered, with the unmistakable blue eyes and black hair of a Baratheon. The Hand of the King takes a notable interest in him during a visit to the Street of Steel in A Game of Thrones, for reasons the boy himself does not understand.

Wife of Eddard Stark, born of House Tully of Riverrun. A fiercely protective mother and shrewd political mind, Catelyn's instincts about the dangers threatening her family prove sharper than her husband's trust in old friendships.