House of the Dragon is finally heading into full-scale war, and is expected to expand the conflict across nearly every corner of Westeros.
House of the Dragon season 2 ended with armies marching from all fronts, alliances shifting, and dragons preparing for battle. Now, season 3 is ready to give us epic battles.
George R.R. Martin’s Westeros is a vast continent made up of nine regions, technically united under the “Seven Kingdoms”—the North, the Vale, the Riverlands, the Crownlands, the Reach, the Westerlands, the Stromlands, Dorne, and the Iron Islands.
Unlike earlier seasons, which focused heavily on political maneuvering in a few major locations, this next chapter of the Targaryen Civil War will transform Westeros into a continent-wide battlefield.
As season 3 premieres soon, keeping a close eye on the map will be essential for tracking the shifting tides of power and the movement of the Blacks and the Greens during the war.
So, here are the major locations expected to shape season 3 of House of the Dragon. Spoilers ahead!
1. The Gullet
Region: The Crownlands/ The Narrow Sea
Faction alignment: Team Black
The Gullet is a vital maritime gateway connecting King’s Landing and Blackwater Bay directly to the Narrow Sea. Geographically, it is the narrow stretch of water between Dragonstone and Sharp Point. As repeatedly seen throughout the series, whoever controls the Gullet controls the throat of King’s Landing, dictating everything that enters or leaves the capital- from food and trade to reinforcements.
Throughout season 2, Lord Corlys Velaryon and his fleet enforced a suffocating blockade across the Gullet, helping Rhaenyra strategically starve King’s Landing by restricting food, trade, and supplies, ultimately contributing to riots in Flea Bottom. Later, Rhaenyra also used the blockade to gain public support among the smallfolk by sending food into the city.
Season 3 is expected to open with one of the biggest battles of the entire series: the Battle of the Gullet. With the Velaryons controlling the sea routes around Dragonstone, Blackwater Bay, and the shipping lanes to the capital, the Greens turn to the Triarchy for naval support.
The result is expected to be a massively destructive sea battle involving Tyland Lannister, Sharako Lohar, the Triarchy fleet, Corlys Velaryon, Alyn of Hull, and dragonriders attacking from the skies, turning the waters of the Gullet into blood and ash.
2. King’s Landing (The Red Keep & Dragonpit)
Region: The Crownlands
Faction alignment: Team Green (contested)
The capital of the Seven Kingdoms and home to the Iron Throne, King’s Landing remains the political heart of Westeros. Located along Blackwater Bay, close to Dragonstone, Driftmark, and the Gullet, the capital city has served as the seat of Targaryen power since Aegon the Conqueror.
The main castle, the royal residency, is the Red Keep, which sits at the highest point in the southeastern corner of King’s Landing, overlooking both the city and the waters of Blackwater Bay. This is also the castle that became the site of the horrifying “Blood and Cheese” assassination orchestrated by Daemon.
The city officially became the center of the Dance after the Greens crowned Aegon II Targaryen inside the Dragonpit following King Viserys Targaryen’s death. This season too, King’s Landing will be at the core of the war. According to Fire & Blood, season 3 could adapt the “Fall of King’s Landing,” where Rhaenyra Targaryen and Team Black successfully seize the capital. With Aegon fleeing, Alicent and Halaena preparing to escape, and Aemond and Criston marching toward the Riverlands, the city becomes vulnerable.
The Dragonpit is also expected to become increasingly important later in the dance as the site of the devastating “Storming of the Dragonpit,” one of the deadliest uprisings in Targaryen history, which could potentially arrive in season 3 or season 4.
3. Dragonstone
Region: Crownlands/ Blackwater Bay
Faction Alignment: Team Black
Dragonstone is the volcanic island fortress located at the entrance of Blackwater Bay, right beside Driftmark. Originally built as the westernmost outpost of the Valyrian Freehold, the castle is known for its visually distinct, dark architecture carved from volcanic stone and the long bridge leading to the castle gates. As the Targaryen ancestral seat for the heir apparent to the Iron Throne, Dragonstone becomes Rhaenyra’s primary headquarters and base for Team Black during the Dance.
The volcanic mountain known as the Dragonmount houses numerous dragons, making Dragonstone the center of Targaryen dragon power. It is also where Rhaenyra was crowned queen and where the dragonseeds claimed Vermithor and Silverwing during season 2.
This season, as Rhaenyra and her forces leave Dragonstone and move towards King’s Landing, this fortress could become increasingly vulnerable to future Green attacks. According to Fire & Blood, Aegon and Larys Strong flee to Dragonstone itself, hiding in plain sight before eventually seizing the castle.
4. Driftmark (High Tide & Spicetown)
Region: Crownlands
Faction alignment: Team Black
Located beside Dragonstone, Driftmark is the rocky island seat of House Velaryon and sits directly at the Gullet. Its strategic position makes it crucial for controlling naval trade, naval movement, and access to Blackwater Bay and King’s Landing.
This island contains two major landmarks: High Tide, Lord Corlys Velaryon’s lavish and decorated castle, and Spicetown, the commercial, wealthy port city built on sea trade. Driftmark is also home to Hull, a small market and shipyard town, which is the birthplace of Alyn and Addam of Hull.
Season 1 featured Leana Velaryon’s funeral at High Tide, where Aemond claimed Vhagar and lost his eye, while season 2 showcased the bustling docks of Spicetown as Corlys’s ship, the Sea Snake, was being repaired and prepared for battle.
This season, during the Battle of the Gullet, Driftmark is expected to become a major military target for the Triarchy due to its history with Corlys Velaryon. According to Fire & Blood, Dritfmark takes a big hit at the battle, as Spicetown is heavily destroyed and High Tide is aggressively sacked. Throughout the Dance, this island becomes both the shield for Rhaneyra’s cause and one of the primary targets for the war.
5. Harrenhal
Region: The Riverlands
Faction alignment: Team Black
Harrenhal is the largest, ugliest, and most cursed castle in Westeros, placed northwest of King’s Landing near the center of the continent. Originally built by Harren the Black and melted by Aegon the Conqueror’s dragon, Balerion the Black Dread, this castle remains a stronghold that is permanently ruined, and forever under repair.
Its central location between the North, the Vale, and King’s Landing makes it strategically critical. Whoever controls Harrenhal controls the heart of Westeros. Situated above the Gods Eye lake, which surrounds the mysterious Isle of Faces, the haunting atmosphere and its dark magic have driven generations of lords toward madness in Harrenhal.
Season 2 followed Daemon in Harrenhal as he gathered the Riverlords while being haunted by visions seemingly induced by Alys Rivers and the magic of the weirwood sap leaking all around the castle.
The nearby Gods Eye also carries major prophetic importance, foreshadowing the eventual fate of both Daemon and Aemond. Daemon’s visions and Halaena’s warning to Aemond heavily hint that the lake will ultimately become their destiny.
According to the book, Daemon eventually abandons Harrenhal to join Rhaenyra in King’s Landing while the Riverlords continue fighting the Greens. However, early season 3 images suggest the show may alter this storyline by placing Daemon directly on the battlefield alongside the Riverlands forces.
6. The Twins
Region: Riverlands
Faction alignment: Team Black
The Twins, ancestral home of House Frey, consists of two identical castles connected by the Crossing over the Green Fork (river) of the Trident.
The Crossing makes the Twins a strategically important landmark in the Riverlands, as it is the only major transit point over the river. Through this, the Twins control the flow of armies and movement between the north and the south. Whoever controls the Crossing can effectively slow armies, deny passage, or choose sides in the war to help or cripple any faction.
During the civil war, the Twins became a crucial military checkpoint. After Jacaerys Targaryen secured House Frey’s support in season 2, Stark-led northern troops were granted passage south to support Team Black. As the Riverlands are expected to become the primary battlefield in season 3, the Twins could likely emerge as a vital logistical hub for Rhaenyra’s war effort.
7. The Red Fork
Region: Riverlands
Faction alignment: Team Black
The Red Fork is one of the three major branches of the Trident river system, stretching from the mountains of the Westerlands, flowing across the Riverlands before joining the Blue Fork and Green Fork.
The river also separates House Blackwood and House Bracken, whose long-standing rivalry already exploded during season 2.
Because the Riverland lacks natural defenses like mountains, river crossings become essential military choke points during war. According to Fire & Blood, the Battle of the Red Fork sees Lord Jason Lannister leading his massive Westerlands army east toward Harrenhal, clashing with the Black-aligned Riverlands army at the crossing of the Red Fork. Although the Greens technically win the crossing, Jason Lannister dies in battle, severely weakening their western forces and losing the Greens an important ally.
The first images of season 3, showing Daemon fighting alongside Rivermen, suggest HBO may alter the timeline or merge Riverlands battles for the adaptation.
8. The Lakeshore (The Fishfeed)
Region: Riverlands (Western shore of Lake Gods Eye)
Faction alignment: Team Black
The Gods Eye is the largest lake in Westeros, directly south of Harrenhal. Dense reeds and deep mud surround its shores. In the previous seasons we’ve seen Gods Eye from afar during Daemon’s residency at Harrenhal.
The Lakeshore becomes the setting for one of the bloodiest and most merciless battles of the entire Dance: the Battle by the Lakeshore, better known as the Fishfeed. According to the book, following the Battle of the Red Fork, the surviving Lannister forces march deeper into the Riverlands towards Harrenhal before becoming trapped against the shores of the massive Gods Eye. The Black forces—a host of Riverlords and the Winter Wolves led by Lord Roderick Dustin (Roddy the Ruin)—surround them from three sides, using the lake itself as a deadly trap.
Without dragons, the Lakeshore battle becomes pure ground warfare and brutal carnage. Soldiers are slaughtered in the reeds and drowned in the lake, and the battlefield leaves the lake filled with corpses, earning the battle the grim name “Fishfeed”—essentially feeding the fish.
The battle devastates the Greens’ western military presence and could become one of season 3’s largest ground battles. Images of Daemon fighting alongside Tully's bannermen also suggest the show may alter or combine parts of the battle storyline.
9. The Kingsroad (The Butcher’s Ball)
Region: Riverlands/ Crownlands border
Faction alignment: Contested
The Kingsroad is the main highway and literal spine of Westeros, stretching from Castle Black (the Wall) in the far north to Storm’s End in the south. It’s a massive highway connecting Winterfell, the Riverlands, King’s Landing, and the Stormlands, making it essential for military movement during the Dance.
In season 2, Ser Criston Cole used the Kingsroad to launch campaigns across the Crownlands, including the attack on Rook’s Rest. Season 3 is expected to adapt another brutal and infamous conflict tied to the road: the Butcher’s Ball. According to the book, after discovering Harrenhal abandoned, Aemond and Criston split forces. Criston then retreats south to King’s Landing via the Kingsroad, before being ambushed by Riverlords (led by Benjicot Blackwood), Freys, and Winter Wolves (led by Roddy the Ruin).
The massacre eventually becomes known as the Butcher’s Ball because, as Fire & Blood describes it, it was “butchery, not battle.”
10. Oldtown
Region: The Reach
Faction alignment: Team Green
Oldtown is the oldest, second-largest, and culturally one of the most influential cities in Westeros. Home to the Citadel, headquarters of the Order of Maesters, and the Starry Sept, the center of the Faith of Seven, it is also the ancestral seat of House Hightower.
Strategically, Oldtown serves as the Greens' southern power base and military engine. Although it has mostly been referenced in previous seasons at the war council meetings and revealed to be where Otto Hightower was headed from King’s Landing before mysteriously disappearing into captivity in an unknown location.
Season 3 is expected to finally make the onscreen debut of Oldtown, introducing Lord Ormund Hightower and Prince Daeron Targaryen and making this city one of the most important new locations in the series. Even though the Reach battles do not occur inside the city of Oldtown, it becomes a crucial political, military, and logistical center for Team Green.
11. The Honeywine
Region: The Reach
Faction alignment: Team Green
Flowing directly through the ancient city of Oldtown, the Honeywine River begins at the hills above the Brightwater Keep before emptying into the Wispering Sound bay. The river directly cuts Oldtown in half, with the towers of the Citadel standing along both banks of the Honeywine and connected by a bridge.
Season 3 finally expands the map into the south, where the Honeywine River becomes the setting for the Battle of the Honeywine. According to Fire & Blood, the Black-aligned houses in the Reach nearly wipe out the Hightower army before Prince Daeron arrives on Tessarion and turns the tide for the Greens.
This battle is likely to serve as Daeron’s grand introduction while also showcasing his gorgeous blue dragon, Tessarion, known as the Blue Queen.
12. Tumbleton
Region: The Reach/ Crownlands Border
Faction alignment: Initially Team Black
Situated southwest of King’s Landing and on the northeastern edge of the Reach, Tumbleton is a prosperous, bustling market town and the seat of House Footly. This crucial location acts as the defensive barrier shielding King’s Landing from any army marching up from the south.
Season 2 briefly referenced the town when Hugh the Hammer’s wife, Kat, urged him to flee there to her family to escape the famine in King’s Landing.
In the book, as the massive Hightower host led by Lord Ormund Hightower advances from the south, Rhaenyra sends the Northmen alongside her dragonseeds, Hugh Hammer on Vermithor and Ulf the White on Silverwing, into battle. However, both dragonseeds betray Team Black mid-battle, turning the conflict into a devastating disaster for Rhaenyra.
While in season 3, Tumbleton eventually becomes the setting for destructive battles in the Dance, with the fallout of the First Battle of Tumbleton leading directly into the Second Battle of Tumbleton, which could potentially arrive in season 4.
13. The Vale of Arryn (The Eyrie)
Region: The Vale
Faction alignment: Team Black
The Vale of Arryn is an isolated, mountainous highland region naturally protected by the impassable, towering cliffs of the Mountains of the Moon in the eastern region of Westeros. Located at the east of the Riverlands, the Vale is ruled from the Eyrie, the mountain fortress of House Arryn, guarded by the Bloody Gate at its entrance.
Because of its geography, the Vale remains one of the safest and most isolated regions in Westeros, making it strategically valuable for protecting Black-aligned forces and dragon riders away from the central war zones.
In season 2, Rhaenyra sent Rhaena Targaryen and her younger sons to the Vale, alongside a clutch of dragon eggs for protection. By the finale, Rhaena ventured into the wilderness searching for the wild dragon, Sheepstealer. Season 3 is expected to continue this storyline as Rhaena attempts to survive the harsh terrain of the Vale and claim the dragon for herself.
14. Winterfell
Region: The North
Faction alignment: Team Black
Winterfell is one of the oldest and most politically significant strongholds in the Seven Kingdoms. Located far in the north, it is the ancestral seat of House Stark and remains geographically distant from the war in the south.
Season 2 opened with the scenic shots of Winterfell and then the Wall, where Jacaerys met with Lord Cregan Stark, successfully securing an alliance, officially bringing the North to Rhaenyra’s side.
Although season 3 might not return to Winterfell itself, the Northern armies and the Winter Wolves are expected to leave a major impact across numerous battles in the Dance. According to Fire & Blood, Cregan Stark will also continue gathering another host of young northern men, which could become increasingly important later in the war.
House of the Dragon season 3 is set to transform the Dance of the Dragons from a political conflict into a full-scale continental war. From the naval chaos of the Gullet to the massacres of the Riverlands and the southern campaigns in the Reach, nearly every major region of Westeros will become part of the battlefield.
With dragons finally entering large-scale warfare and armies colliding, season 3 is shaping up to be the most expansive and destructive chapter of the series. As the June 21 premiere approaches, scorched-earth battles and devastating dragon warfare are now just weeks away.
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