Vhagar, the she-dragon of Prince Aemond Targaryen, is undoubtedly the single force that kept Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen and her supporters on their toes in the violent Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons.
The Black faction is right to be worried about Vhagar, not only because of her size as the biggest living dragon at the start of the war, but also her battle experience and fiery personality.
Following the finale episode of the third season of HBO’s House of the Dragon, let’s take a closer look at the Targaryen dragons who had a real chance not just to compete with Vhagar, but also to beat her in a one-on-one fight.
Balerion the Black Dread
It is a no-brainer that, among the Targaryen dragons who have ever lived, the most powerful has the best chance of taking down Vhagar in a do-or-die combat.
Monikered “The Black Dread”, Balerion was the mount of Aegon the Conqueror.
Official lore says that Balerion was the biggest Targaryen dragon ever, being large enough to swallow a whole auroch.
His fangs were reported to be as big as swords, while the shadow of his wings is known to engulf an entire town, from which he earned his nickname.
Balerion is also the last of the Targaryen dragons to ever see Valyria before the catastrophic event known as the Doom that sent the entire continent beneath the sea.
It was this dragon that destroyed Harrenhal during the Conquest.
Among Balerion’s most notable riders are Aegon the Conqueror, Maegor the Cruel, and Viserys I.
Vermithor the Bronze Fury
Among the living dragons during the war, perhaps it’s Vermithor that stands the biggest chance to eliminate Vhagar.
Vermithor, also known as the Bronze Fury, is so named due to his colors and renowned ferocity.
This male dragon is a hatchling in the cradle of Prince Jaehaerys Targaryen.
Jaehaerys flew atop Vermithor when he claimed the crown in King’s Landing after the death of his uncle Maegor Targaryen in 48 AC.
Jaehaerys ruled for 55 years. His reign was marked by peace and prosperity that some fans claim was the golden age of the Targaryen dynasty.
Despite this, Jaehaerys did not shy away from riding his dragon to battle, such as when he crushed a naval invasion from House Martell.
Along with Caraxes and Vhagar, ridden by his princes Aemon and Baelon, Vermithor bathed the Dornish fleet with dragonflame.
This ended the Fourth Dornish War, started by Prince Morion Martell.
While Hugh the Hammer’s loyalty is in question following the episode finale of Season 3, it is guaranteed that a combat encounter between Vhagar and Vermithor will be fatal due to their near-peer sizes.
Caraxes the Blood Wyrm
Book spoilers alert!
According to the book Fire and Blood, from which HBO’s House of the Dragon was based, Vhagar ultimately met her demise against Caraxes.
Though smaller and with an irregular, elongated body, Caraxes makes up for his disadvantage with sheer aggression and brutality.
He is the best war-fighting dragon in Rhaenyra’s arsenal.
Caraxes’ serpentine-like body allows him to coil and attack his prey while airborne.
In the book, Prince Daemon sought out Prince Aemond at the tail end of the war, resulting in a bloody Battle Above the God’s Eye.
The two dragons lit up the skies above Harrenhal and the God’s Eye with dragonfire.
According to the lore, Caraxes slammed his body into Vhagar before he dug his teeth into the bigger dragon’s neck.
Even after Vhagar opened Caraxes’s belly, the Blood Wyrm tightened his hold on her as they crashed into the God’s Eye below.
Vhagar’s skeleton will be found years later, with Prince Aemond’s body still grappled on the dragon’s saddle, and the Valyrian sword Dark Sister stabbed in his skull by Prince Daemon; it was actually Caraxes who managed to emerge alive from the lake shortly after the fight.
But his gruesome injuries proved fatal, as he died soon after.
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