In House of the Dragon, Vhagar kills Arrax because Aemond started a fight with Lucerys, and he is too inexperienced to control his dragon in the heat of the battle.
The rivalries between the different members of the Targaryen family are the main plot of the first season of House of the Dragon.
However, these rivalries take a new turn when Aemond, riding his dragon, Vhagar, chases Lucerys and Arrax down to challenge them to a fight.
It is evident in this fight that Aemond still has very little control over the battle-hardened Vhagar, and this is likely why Arrax is killed.
The rivalry between the Blacks and the Greens
The first season of House of the Dragon is based on the novels by George R. R. Martin, Fire and Blood, and it follows the rivalries between the members of the House of Targaryen as they struggle for power.
As the first season progresses, the rivalry splinters into two main separate groups. The first group is on Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen’s side, who are referred to as the Blacks, and they want her to rule over the Seven Kingdoms.
The second group is referred to as the Greens and they are headed by Queen Alicent Hightower, who places her son, Aegon on the Iron Throne after King Viserys’s death.
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House of the Dragon: Why does Vhagar kill Arrax?
The tension between the different Targaryens build and erupt all throughout the first season, until finally, in the final episode of the season, called “The Black Queen”, tensions reach a new high when Rhaenyra has to send her own children to try to convince various Lords to join her side.
Lucerys travels to Storm’s End to bid for Borros Baratheon’s support in the upcoming struggle for power between the Blacks and the Greens.
Aemond does the same for team Green, however, the fact that these two are on opposite ends of the fight for the throne is not the only source of their rivalry.
Lucerys stabbed Aemond’s eye in a brawl when they were younger and the two have been on poor terms ever since.
As they are leaving Storm’s Ends, Aemond, who is riding Vhagar, chases down Lucerys – Arrax’s rider and demands that his debt be settled – a literal eye for an eye.
Although they are both clearly inexperienced dragon riders, Vhagar is the biggest living dragon in Westeros and when Arrax is compelled to fight against him, Vhagar must respond.
It is evident that Vhagar killing Lucerys and Arrax was somewhat an accident, caused by two inexperienced and overreacting boys fighting, and that Vhagar’s vast size meant that Arrax really did not even stand a chance against him to begin with.
Did Aemond intend for Vhagar to kill Lucerys and Arrax?
In the novels, this encounter between Aemond and Lucerys atop of their two dragons plays out a little differently than it does in House of the Dragon.
However, in this scene of the series it is quite obvious that Aemond is struggling to control Vhagar, and even though this is a tall order anyway, given the dragon’s huge size, old age, and battle experience, this lack of control and leadership is what drives Vhagar to act so violently towards Lucerys and Arrax, which ultimately leads to their deaths.
Although Aemond may not have intended for Vhagar to kill them when the fight began, the fact that he could not reel Vhagar in when he needed to is what resulted in their deaths.
Why would House of the Dragon change the way that Lucerys and Arrax were killed in the books?
There are many reasons why the House of the Dragon creators stray from the lore in the novels now and then, and this is also true for this fight between Aemond and Lucerys and their dragons.
The choice that the creators made to have Vhagar kill Lucerys and Arrax instead of Aemon during this battle is likely a way to convey just how powerful the dragons are.
This serves as a reminder that the Targaryen dragons may be much more prevalent in this show than they were in Game of Thrones, but they are still a powerful weapon for both sides in this war, even though they are wild and sometimes uncontrollable.
What does Vhagar killing Arrax and Lucerys mean for the future of the series?
Although tensions were high during most of the first season of House of the Dragon, the last scene of the first season focuses on Rhaenyra as she finds out what has happened to Lucerys and Arrax, which clearly indicates that Vhagar killing them has officially started the war, at least from her point of view.