How Big Is Vhagar Compared To Balerion & Drogon?

Summary During House of the Dragon, Vhagar is the largest dragon in Westeros.

Vhagar is the second-biggest dragon in history behind only Balerion, the Black Dread.

Vhagar is much bigger than Drogon from Game of Thrones, and only Vermithor can match her size during House of the Dragon.

House of the Dragon is living up to its name by delivering plenty of the titular creatures, including the monstrous Vhagar, throwing into question how large she is compared to other dragons from the Game of Thrones universe. Vhagar was introduced initially as the dragon of Laena Velaryon, Daemon Targaryen's second wife, before her untimely death. By the time of House of the Dragon season 1's ending, Vhagar was claimed by a new rider: Aemond Targaryen, son of Viserys and Alicent.

As the Targaryen Dance of Dragons has raged, one thing House of the Dragon has made clear thus far is the sheer size and scale of Vhagar in comparison to the other dragons in the show. Aemond and Vhagar are depicted as the most formidable pairing in the war, with the bloodthirsty prince riding the biggest dragon in House of the Dragon​​​​​​. With that being said, it is interesting to compare Vhagar's size to some of the other more notable beasts of Westeros that will not be featured in House of the Dragon.

Related Every Non-Targaryen Who Rides A Dragon In House Of The Dragon House of the Dragon season 2 has teased the future involving dragon riders that are not Targaryen, with the show already having set some up.

How Big Is Vhagar Compared To Balerion?

Vhagar Still Cannot Match Her Partner From Aegon's Conquest

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As established in Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, Vhagar is one of the dragons used by Aegon the Conqueror and his sister-wives to conquer the Seven Kingdoms. Vhagar was ridden by Visenya, while the other two dragons, Meraxes and Balerion, were ridden by Rhaenys and Aegon respectively. Balerion - nicknamed the Black Dread - is widely known as the largest dragon to have ever lived despite never being seen alive on screen. That said, there are hints from both shows and descriptions from George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire book series that attest to this.

The Black Dread's size was formidable, and only Vhagar is regarded as being the closest dragon to have ever matched up to Balerion's sheer scale. During the time of House of the Dragon, Vhagar is the largest dragon in the world, given Balerion's death around seven years before the events of the series. Only the unclaimed dragon of House of the Dragon named Vermithor comes close to Vhagar's size, which is touched upon with the Game of Thrones prequel show itself.

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How Big Is Vhagar Compared To Drogon?

Daenerys' Primary Dragon Was Big, But Not Even Close To Vhagar's Size

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Undoubtedly, the most famous dragon in the Game of Thrones franchise is Drogon, the mount of Daenerys Targaryen throughout the series. While Drogon was not hatched until over 150 years after House of the Dragon's timeline, it is still interesting to compare his size with Vhagar's. Drogon was known to be big for his young age, dwarfing both his siblings Viserion and Rhaegal. That said, he is still nothing in comparison to Vhagar. Drogon, when last seen in Game of Thrones, was slightly smaller than Daemon's Caraxes from House of the Dragon, who is less than half the size of Vhagar.

This means that Vhagar is much bigger than Drogon, as evident by Drogon's head being around the same size as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones season 8, compared to Vhagar's completely dwarfing the likes of Aemond in House of the Dragon. The smaller size for Drogon is to be expected given the history of the dragons during his time. The dragons dwindled in size after the Dance of Dragons due to the catastrophic consequences the war had on the Targaryen's faithful beasts.

Prominent Dragons In House Of The Dragon Notable Rider Vhagar Aemond Targaryen Syrax Rhaenyra Targaryen Caraxes Daemon Targaryen Moondancer Baela Targaryen Sunfyre Aegon II Targaryen Dreamfyre Helaena Targaryen Vermax Jacaerys Velaryon Meleys Rhaenys Targaryen Silverwing Ulf White Vermithor Hugh Hammer Sheepstealer Nettles (Book) Seasmoke Addam of Hull

Can Any Of HOTD's Dragons Match Vhagar?

Some Dragons In Westeros Can Match Vhagar's Size, But Not Exactly

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While Vhagar is known as House of the Dragon's biggest creature for most of season 1 and the former half of season 2, the latter installment of the show introduced some who could match her scale. One such dragon is Vermithor, a dragon who was the mount of King Jaehaerys, Viserys' grandfather. Although the beast was riderless in House of the Dragon season 1, House of the Dragon season 2 saw Hugh Hammer become Vermithor's rider. Vermithor is still not quite as large as Vhagar but certainly offers more of a threat to the latter than smaller dragons like Caraxes or Syrax.

In Fire and Blood, the book on which House of the Dragon is based, it is mentioned that a wild dragon named Cannibal is almost as big as Vhagar, but it is never claimed during the Dance of Dragons. Another dragon who is claimed, however, is named Sheepstealer. Sheepstealer is smaller than Vermithor and was claimed by a dragonseed named Nettles in the book. In House of the Dragon, either Nettles or Rhaena Targaryen will claim Sheepstealer, introducing another of the reptilian creatures who could stand up to the formidable Vhagar.

The following section contains spoilers for Fire and Blood and likely House of the Dragon's future seasons.

What Happens To Vhagar In The Dance Of The Dragons

Vhagar Fights In One Of The Dance Of Dragons' Decisive Battles

Custom image by Yeider Chacon

Toward the culmination of the Dance of Dragons, Vhagar and Aemond face off against Caraxes and Daemon. The battle that has been brewing for years comes to a head, with the two men and their dragons clashing in the Battle Above the Gods Eye. The battle sees Caraxes and Vhagar mortally wound each other, and the two dragons crash into the eponymous lake below. Vhagar, along with Caraxes, Daemon, and Aemond, all perish in the battle, which promises to be one of the most climactic in House of the Dragon.