Prequels are coming: Meet some of the legendary figures from the Game of Thrones prequel series

Lann the Clever is known in legend as a trickster who swindled Casterly Rock from House Casterly and founded his own house, House Lannister in its place. During the Dawn Age, the founding members of House Casterly discovered gold on Casterly Rock and began to mine it. Eventually, this discovery would make them the richest family in all of Westeros.

During the Age of Heroes, Lann the Clever came along and somehow tricked the Casterlys out of their castle, land, and gold using nothing but his wits. Lann was described as a handsome man with golden hair — a trait his descendants carry to this day — and it was said that he had so many children, the town of Lannisport was created so the lesser members of his family would have a place to live.

Lann’s origins are a thing of debate, as some say he was an Andal adventurer who made his way to Westeros. Regardless, he was still considered a First Man, who did not style himself as a king, despite being possibly the richest man in all the land. It wasn’t until the Andals came to Westeros and married into House Lannister that they began to call themselves kings.