House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 recap: Who dies in the Battle of the Gullet?

House of the Dragon season 3 is finally here, and we're here to recap the season 3 premiere live.

After a two-year break between the second and third seasons, House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 hits HBO and HBO Max at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT on Sunday, June 21. Based on what we've heard about this episode, it sounds like we're all in for a treat.

I'll be watching the House of the Dragon season 3 premiere live and updating this post throughout the episode on Sunday night. If you need some help remembering these characters or sorting out where these characters are in Westeros and why, that's why I'm here.

The House of the Dragon season 3 premiere live recap will start when the episode goes live at 9 p.m. ET.

What happened at the end of House of the Dragon season 2?

Heading into the season 3 premiere, there are a few things you need to remember from the end of season 2. First of all, Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) and Alicent (Olivia Cooke) made a deal on the side to try to bring an end to this war. Alicent snuck into Dragonstone and made a plan for Rhaenyra to take the throne after Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney), her son who claimed to be the king, suffered serious injuries at Rook's Rest.

So, that's Rhaenyra's plan heading into the season, and she has her new Dragonseeds, including Hugh Hammer (Kieren Bew), Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty), and Ulf (Tom Bennett), to help make it happen. Alicent knows she's overmatched, and she's trying to end her family's suffering.

Unfortunately, things rarely go to plan in Westeros. Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) sneaks Aegon out of the city, which threatens to undermine Rhaenyra and Alicent's agreement. Plus, we're in the middle of a war, and there are other Great Houses in the mix outside of the Hightowers (Greens) and the Targaryens (Blacks).

The Lannisters also have dirty hands in this mess, and they're about to make their big move in the Battle of the Gullet, which is the big battle everyone has been talking about. There were reports it was supposed to happen in season 2, but the episode count was cut down to eight. Well, here we are about to witness the bloodiest naval battle in the history of Westeros.

House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 recap 

House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 begins with a new opening theme. The tapestry of Westeros is different than season 2, and it sounds like the conductor told the percussion section of the orchestra to turn it up a notch. It definitely sets the tone for what’s sure to be one of the most exciting episodes of the series so far with the Battle of the Gullet looming. 

The season 3 premiere begins with a character I was not expecting: Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell), where she’s not supposed to be. Rhaena, the daughter of Daemon (Matt Smith), is supposed to be in Pentos with her half-siblings, but instead, she’s in the wilderness of the Vale, I think, trying to bond with Sheepstealer, the massive dragon they say can’t be bonded. 

She climbs on, and Sheepstealer, takes her for a wild ride, trying to buck her off the whole way. 

After they take to the skies, we head down south to King’s Landing where Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) is also where he is not supposed to be. Remember, at the end of season 2, Alicent wants Aemond away from King’s Landing, which opens up the city to Rhaenyra and her forces. Aemond is looking for his brother, Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney), the king who was badly injured at the end of season 2 in the Battle of Rook’s Rest.

Aegon and Larys are taken captive 

Aemond finds Aegon and Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) have fled the city. Unfortunately, shortly after, they are caught on the road by forces who are partial to the Queen (Rhaenyra and the Blacks). They are forced to swear fealty to Rhaenyra to keep their lives, but Aegon won’t do it.

Instead, Larys reveals to their captor who they actually are, and he makes it clear that those who deliver them to the Queen will be rewarded for their loyalty. The man, who is played by Ring of Power star Dylan Smith, slaughters the men who were with Larys and Aegon, but he takes the pair alive and hits the road to Dragonstone to deliver them to Queen Rhaenyra.

Rhaenyra plans to take King’s Landing 

Speaking of Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy), she’s at Dragonstone with her allies and her son, Jacaerys (Henry Collett), also known as Jace. He tries to talk her out of the plan she agreed to with Alicent (Olivia Cooke) to head to King’s Landing to take the city while Aemond is in the Riverlands. 

She tells him that they’re flying to King’s Landing in two days. That’s that then.

Alicent returns to King’s Landing from Dragonstone to find Aemond on the Iron Throne 

Alicent returns to King’s Landing following her treasonous trip to Dragonstone to make a deal with Rhaenyra. When she returns, she finds Aegon has fled the city with Larys, but another has taken his place on the Iron Throne, her son, Aemond. 

Alicent learns that she’s very out of the loop on what’s happening. Aemond has arranged for Alicent’s cousin, Ormund Hightower (James Norton), to bring 15,000 men to King’s Landing to defend the city from Rhaenyra’s imminent attack. 

He also informs Alicent that the Lannisters have arranged for the Triarchy to bring thousands of men and their ships to break the blockade at the Gullet, which is currently in place thanks to Lord Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint). 

Daemon meets up with the Winter Wolves 

While it is not looking good for Rhaenyra and Alicent’s plan, things in the Riverlands are looking good for her side. Daemon and his men are slaughter the Lannister forces and sending them running. 

After the battle, he makes plans to hunt the Lannister forces who escaped when they are interrupted by another force from the North. Out of the trees, Roddy the Ruin (Tommy Flanaga), also known as Ser Roderick Dustin, leads the Winter Wolves, the men of the North who are allied with Rhaenyra and the Blacks. He throws the head of Jason Lannister at the feet of Daemon, and for now, the battle is won.

Finally, we catch up with Criston Cole and Gwayne Hightower 

Elsewhere in the Riverlands, Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) and Gwayne Hightower (Freddie Fox) hide in the forest with their garrison waiting for Aemond and Vhagar to return and protect them.

They don’t have much to do, but their men are engaging in debauchery and assaulting the locals. Gwayne tries to convince Criston, who is now something of an artiste with his little set of paints, to do something about their men, but Criston doesn’t bite. 

Ulf, Addam, and Hugh Hammer wait for Aemond and Vhagar 

Those two aren’t the only ones waiting for Aemond and Vhagar. Still in the Riverlands somewhere outside Harrenhal, we meet the Dragonseeds for the first time this season.

Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty) and Seasmoke, Hugh Hammer (Kieran Bew) and Vermithor, and Ulf White (Tom Bennett) and Silverwing are sitting around chatting about how boring their lives are at the moment. They also talk about just how Rhaenyra will compensate them for their sacrifice. 

Clearly, these guys are not in this fight out of the kindness in their heart, which could have some big implications as the season continues. 

Corlys apologizes to Alyn of Hull for not being a good father 

Near Driftmark, Corlys meets with Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim), his son, and explains that Rhaenyra has requested a few of their ships to join them on a journey to King’s Landing to claim the city. He explains that Alicent is giving Rhaenyra the throne, which makes no sense to Alyn. 

More importantly, Corlys also uses the moment to apologize for the past, not claiming Alyn and his brother, Addam, who now rides Seasmoke, as his own children. He tells Alyn that he’s going to try to right some of those wrongs. 

The Battle of the Gullet begins 

Right then, Corlys and Alyn are interrupted by alarm bells on deck. They go up to check it out, and they learn the Triarchy, led by Corlys’ foe, Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn), has joined forces with Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall). They are going to try to break the blockade. 

Lohar makes her intentions known immediately, though. She’s not just there to help the Greens’ cause. She has a personal vendetta, and she’s going to destroy Corlys’ home, too. 

Corlys sends a raven to Dragonstone asking for Rhaenyra to send dragons to their aid. 

Rhaena claims Sheepstealer, Aemond kisses Alicent, and Alys Rivers convinces the Dragonseeds to leave Harrenhal 

Quickly, a few important things happen. Sheepstealer returns to Rhaena after leaving her early in the episode, and he invites her onboard. So, Rhaena, now, has claimed one of the biggest, wildest dragons in the world. 

Alicent apologizes to Aemond for what she’s done, and she tells him that he needs to leave King’s Landing and return to Harrenhal or die. They share an incredibly awkward mother-son kiss fully instigated by Aemond. Gods, he is a weirdo. 

She promises to meet him at Harrenhal when she’s fled the city. 

Last but not least, we see Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin), who basically runs Harrenhal at this point, emerge in the forest near Ulf, Hugh, and Addam. While they are arguing about what to do, she tells them that they need to leave because there is a naval battle about to happen outside Blackwater Bay. They flee instead of waiting for Aemond, who we know is now headed for Harrenhal.

We meet Ormund Hightower and a special guest, Daeron Targaryen 

We also see Alicent’s message from earlier in the episode reach Ormund Hightower. Her message tells Ormund to make camp where they are, basically, and wait. Aemond will be joining them soon. 

For the first time, we also meet Daeron Targaryne, although it’s brief. The dark-haired young man behind Ormund is Alicent’s youngest child who was taken to Oldtown, where the Hightowers live, and raised by Ormund and the Hightowers. We also see his dragon, Tessarion, the blue one. 

Jace locks Rhaenyra in her chamber and flies to the Gullet 

At Dragonstone, Baela (Bethony Antonia) gets the news that the blockade is being attacked by the Triarchy and Lannisters. She tells Rhaenyra, and the Queen goes into battle mode. Jace, who is not really feeling his mom’s plans, makes Ser Lorent (Max Wrottesley) lock Rhaenyra in her chambers so she won’t join the battle. Instead, Jace and Baela hop on their dragons, Vermax and Moondancer, and go to support Corlys’ forces. 

Rhaenyra is so pissed off, but not as pissed off as she’s about to be. 

Jace almost dies immediately after arriving at the battle 

When they reach the Gullet, the battle is fierce. It’s hard to say who has the upper hand, but there’s death and destruction everywhere. 

Luckily, Jace and Baela arrive on their dragons to turn the tide. It works well at first, but Lohar shoots Vermax with an arrow attached to an anchor, which nearly drowns the dragon and Jace. Moondancer swoops down to cut the line connecting the arrow stuck in Vermax to the anchor. 

Then, the Vermax and Moondancer start to do their thing and burn up all the Lannister and Triarchy ships and fighters. 

Alyn kills Lohar, but Corlys is nowhere to be found 

During the battle, Corlys leads Lohar and the Bitchfist away from the battle and through a narrow strait. She follows with several ships, but they run aground because they are too heavy. Lohar throws Tyland Lannister, wearing heavy armor, and his men off the ship, which allows the Bitchfist to follow Corlys. 

The two ships collide, and finally, Lohar and Corlys fight it out. It’s a bloody battle, but the ships break apart and Lohar and Corlys are thrown into the water. We don’t see Corlys again. 

Alyn sees Lohar in the water, and he jumps off the ship, fights her, and kills her. 

Rhaena and Sheepstealer show up and ruin everything 

Rhaena and Sheepstealer enter the battle to help the Blacks, but there’s a minor problem. Sheepstealer is a wild dragon who doesn’t give an eff about nothin’, and Rhaena has no control. Sheepstealer starts burning up everyone, and it starts attacking Moondancer, even though Baela and Rhaena are sisters. 

Vermax tries to intervene. Luckily, he’s able to protect Moondancer, but Vermax and Jace stop paying attention to the Triarchy men below in the water.

Vermax and Jace die in the Battle of the Gullet 

For the second time, Vermax gets hit with the arrow attached to the anchor. Unlike the first time, Moondancer, because Sheepstealer keeps getting in the way, isn’t able to cut the line. Vermax and Jace are dragged down into the water. 

As Vermax sinks and drowns, it looks like Jace is going to get away. He unhooks himself from the dragon saddle and breaks the surface. Immediately, he is shot with three arrows from the Triarchy’s ship. He dies, and the episode ends. 

Obviously, this is a heartbreaking conclusion to an incredible season 3 premiere. Jace and Vermax are dead, and we still don’t know if Corlys is alive or if he drowned after the ships split apart. 

Following the premiere, House of the Dragon season 3 will continue with the second episode on Sunday, June 28. New episodes will air every Sunday night through the season finale on Aug. 9. Stay tuned for more news about House of the Dragon season 3!

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