Why don't other Westeros houses use wildfire?Did Tyrion use all the Wildfire?Is wildfire magical or...
Don’t seats that recline flat defeat the purpose of having seatbelts?
Combinable filters
How to type a section sign (§) into the Minecraft client
Reducing vertical space in stackrel
simple conditions equation
What route did the Hindenburg take when traveling from Germany to the U.S.?
How to stop co-workers from teasing me because I know Russian?
Is the 5 MB static resource size limit 5,242,880 bytes or 5,000,000 bytes?
A Strange Latex Symbol
Do I have to worry about players making “bad” choices on level up?
What are the potential pitfalls when using metals as a currency?
Apply MapThread to all but one variable
Do I have an "anti-research" personality?
Pulling the rope with one hand is as heavy as with two hands?
Why do Computer Science majors learn Calculus?
How did Captain America manage to do this?
Is there a way to get a compiler for the original B programming language?
how to sum variables from file in bash
Critique of timeline aesthetic
Phrase for the opposite of "foolproof"
Is there really no use for MD5 anymore?
Shrinkwrap tetris shapes without scaling or diagonal shapes
If a warlock with the Repelling Blast invocation casts Eldritch Blast and hits, must the targets always be pushed back?
How to verbalise code in Mathematica?
Why don't other Westeros houses use wildfire?
Did Tyrion use all the Wildfire?Is wildfire magical or chemical?Did Melisandre use Wildfire (ADWD)?Why do the Houses have words?To what do the Great Houses of Westeros owe their longevity?Which of the great houses of Westeros are standing at the end of season five/ADWD? [Spoilers included]Did Tyrion use all the Wildfire?Why is wildfire green?Why don't they use dragonglass sword?Is there a common “curriculum” for children of noble houses in Westeros?Why didn't Jaime Lannister tell everyone about Aerys's wildfire plans?Do other Houses have a theme song like “The Rains of Castamere” for House Lannister?
.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__bot-mid-leaderboard:empty{ margin-bottom:0;
}
In Game of Thrones, the use of wildfire during the battle of Blackwater seems like an obvious (technically magical) advantage to have in a battle.
With news of the battle spreading, surely other houses would want that kind of power for themselves? Is lack of usage of wildfire due to some prohibition in the Faith of The Seven?
I haven't read the books, but maybe this is different compared to the TV show.
It doesn't seem realistic that the Alchemist Guild is able to keep the secret to the creation of wildfire.
game-of-thrones a-song-of-ice-and-fire
add a comment |
In Game of Thrones, the use of wildfire during the battle of Blackwater seems like an obvious (technically magical) advantage to have in a battle.
With news of the battle spreading, surely other houses would want that kind of power for themselves? Is lack of usage of wildfire due to some prohibition in the Faith of The Seven?
I haven't read the books, but maybe this is different compared to the TV show.
It doesn't seem realistic that the Alchemist Guild is able to keep the secret to the creation of wildfire.
game-of-thrones a-song-of-ice-and-fire
add a comment |
In Game of Thrones, the use of wildfire during the battle of Blackwater seems like an obvious (technically magical) advantage to have in a battle.
With news of the battle spreading, surely other houses would want that kind of power for themselves? Is lack of usage of wildfire due to some prohibition in the Faith of The Seven?
I haven't read the books, but maybe this is different compared to the TV show.
It doesn't seem realistic that the Alchemist Guild is able to keep the secret to the creation of wildfire.
game-of-thrones a-song-of-ice-and-fire
In Game of Thrones, the use of wildfire during the battle of Blackwater seems like an obvious (technically magical) advantage to have in a battle.
With news of the battle spreading, surely other houses would want that kind of power for themselves? Is lack of usage of wildfire due to some prohibition in the Faith of The Seven?
I haven't read the books, but maybe this is different compared to the TV show.
It doesn't seem realistic that the Alchemist Guild is able to keep the secret to the creation of wildfire.
game-of-thrones a-song-of-ice-and-fire
game-of-thrones a-song-of-ice-and-fire
edited 17 mins ago
user2357112
1033
1033
asked 14 hours ago
andrybakandrybak
201110
201110
add a comment |
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
TL;DR - Wildfire is difficult to produce and very volatile.
Wildfire is created by Alchemists Guild which is a secret they posses alone. Their order is no longer prevalent in Westeros and the remaining members seem to be in King's Landing alone. This is the first reason why other houses do not use it.
The substance was the pyromancers' own term for wildfire. They called each other wisdom as well, which Tyrion found almost as annoying as their custom of hinting at the vast secret stores of knowledge that they wanted him to think they possessed. Once theirs had been a powerful guild, but in recent centuries the maesters of the Citadel had supplanted the alchemists almost everywhere. Now only a few of the older order remained, and they no longer even pretended to transmute metals...
...but they could make wildfire.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The Guild created the Wildfire under the direction of the Targaryen's namely "The Mad King" Aerys II (see the Wildfire Plot) which was then hidden underneath the city.
"There is a vault below this one where we store the older pots. Those from King Aerys's day. It was his fancy to have the jars made in the shapes of fruits. Very perilous fruits indeed, my lord Hand, and, hmmm, riper now than ever, if you take my meaning. We have sealed them with wax and pumped the lower vault full of water, but even so . . . by rights they ought to have been destroyed, but so many of our masters were murdered during the Sack of King's Landing, the few acolytes who remained were unequal to the task. And much of the stock we made for Aerys was lost. Only last year, two hundred jars were discovered in a storeroom beneath the Great Sept of Baelor. No one could recall how they came there, but I'm sure I do not need to tell you that the High Septon was beside himself with terror. I myself saw that they were safely moved. I had a cart filled with sand, and sent our most able acolytes.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
That secret involves spells that only the Alchemist's know and even for them it is difficult:
"We were, my lord Hand, my brothers and I have been laboring day and night from the first, I assure you. It is only, hmmm, we have made so much of the substance that we have become, hmmm, more practiced as it were, and also"—the alchemist shifted uncomfortably—"certain spells, hmmm, ancient secrets of our order, very delicate, very troublesome, but necessary if the substance is to be, hmmm, all it should be..."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XI
Cersei initially found these stores and then Tyrion recruited the Guild to make more for Battle of Blackwater.
The pyromancers kept their recipe for wildfire a closely guarded secret, but Tyrion knew that it was a lengthy, dangerous, and time-consuming process. He had assumed the promise of ten thousand jars was a wild boast, like that of the bannerman who vows to marshal ten thousand swords for his lord and shows up on the day of battle with a hundred and two. If they can truly give us ten thousand . . .
He did not know whether he ought to be delighted or terrified. Perhaps a smidge of both. "I trust that your guild brothers are not engaging in any unseemly haste, Wisdom. We do not want ten thousand jars of defective wildfire, nor even one . . . and we most certainly do not want any mishaps."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The second reason other houses do not use it is (as seen in the above quotes) a, Wildfire is time consuming and dangerous to make and has a shelf life. Once you have some, it may not work as you intend it to either,
An arrow could be aimed, and a spear, even the stone from a catapult, but wildfire had a will of its own. Once loosed, it was beyond the control of mere men.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XIII
Jaime also agrees with that assessment
Jaime ignored that. "If these flames spread beyond the tower, you may end up burning down the castle whether you mean to or not. Wildfire is treacherous."
A Feast for Crows - Cersei III
So if a another house wanted it use it, they would first have to hire the Alchemists Guild, which I'm sure during the Targaryen and Lannister reign would not have been taken kindly to. Next the would have to wait quite a long time for large enough store to be effectively used in battle to be made. Finally, they would have to hope and pray they stored and handled it properly without killing themselves.
Wildfire was Tyrion's last ditch effort to protect the city.
Further reading: scifi.stackexchange.com/q/132504/57310
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Thank you. Your answer explains how the wildfire used in the battle of Blackwater was created. It does not explain why it wasn't created elsewhere. I'll update the question.
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak Other houses couldn't use/create it because they don't have access to the Alchemists Guild.
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Does it mean that the Alchemists Guild is able to protect the secret to production despite there being a great motivation for other houses to get to this secret? Surely more powerful houses would be able to kidnap/torture/whatever any of the pyromancers?
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak I've expanded my answer a bit so I hope it answers your question better, but what "more powerful houses' would there have been besides the one controlling the Iron Throne and Kings Landing were the Guild operates? No doubt if another house kidnapped an Alchemist the Tarygaryen's nor Lannisters would have allowed that to happen without retribution. Also you run the risk with torture of then not having anyone left willing to tell you the secret and if you kill them, dead men tell no tales.
– Skooba
13 hours ago
add a comment |
It's probably not wise to transport any meaningful amount of Wildfire by road or ship any great distance as it's highly unstable and combustible.
Only the Alchemist Guild know how to make it. In Westeros at least, they are based in Kings Landing, where Wildfire is made in highly controlled conditions and stored in specially made chambers where a large amount of sand can be dumped on it if a fire does break out.
We know small amounts have left Kings Landing, Thoros for instance, used it to set his swords on fire.
The Alchemist Guild would try to keep the process to make it secret at all costs, it's their only real claim to power.
It's also possible that due to it's highly unstable nature, many people don't want to risk making it or storing any reasonable amount that could be used in a defensive or offensive capacity.
add a comment |
Your Answer
StackExchange.ready(function() {
var channelOptions = {
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "186"
};
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
createEditor();
});
}
else {
createEditor();
}
});
function createEditor() {
StackExchange.prepareEditor({
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader: {
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
},
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
});
}
});
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fscifi.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f210974%2fwhy-dont-other-westeros-houses-use-wildfire%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
TL;DR - Wildfire is difficult to produce and very volatile.
Wildfire is created by Alchemists Guild which is a secret they posses alone. Their order is no longer prevalent in Westeros and the remaining members seem to be in King's Landing alone. This is the first reason why other houses do not use it.
The substance was the pyromancers' own term for wildfire. They called each other wisdom as well, which Tyrion found almost as annoying as their custom of hinting at the vast secret stores of knowledge that they wanted him to think they possessed. Once theirs had been a powerful guild, but in recent centuries the maesters of the Citadel had supplanted the alchemists almost everywhere. Now only a few of the older order remained, and they no longer even pretended to transmute metals...
...but they could make wildfire.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The Guild created the Wildfire under the direction of the Targaryen's namely "The Mad King" Aerys II (see the Wildfire Plot) which was then hidden underneath the city.
"There is a vault below this one where we store the older pots. Those from King Aerys's day. It was his fancy to have the jars made in the shapes of fruits. Very perilous fruits indeed, my lord Hand, and, hmmm, riper now than ever, if you take my meaning. We have sealed them with wax and pumped the lower vault full of water, but even so . . . by rights they ought to have been destroyed, but so many of our masters were murdered during the Sack of King's Landing, the few acolytes who remained were unequal to the task. And much of the stock we made for Aerys was lost. Only last year, two hundred jars were discovered in a storeroom beneath the Great Sept of Baelor. No one could recall how they came there, but I'm sure I do not need to tell you that the High Septon was beside himself with terror. I myself saw that they were safely moved. I had a cart filled with sand, and sent our most able acolytes.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
That secret involves spells that only the Alchemist's know and even for them it is difficult:
"We were, my lord Hand, my brothers and I have been laboring day and night from the first, I assure you. It is only, hmmm, we have made so much of the substance that we have become, hmmm, more practiced as it were, and also"—the alchemist shifted uncomfortably—"certain spells, hmmm, ancient secrets of our order, very delicate, very troublesome, but necessary if the substance is to be, hmmm, all it should be..."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XI
Cersei initially found these stores and then Tyrion recruited the Guild to make more for Battle of Blackwater.
The pyromancers kept their recipe for wildfire a closely guarded secret, but Tyrion knew that it was a lengthy, dangerous, and time-consuming process. He had assumed the promise of ten thousand jars was a wild boast, like that of the bannerman who vows to marshal ten thousand swords for his lord and shows up on the day of battle with a hundred and two. If they can truly give us ten thousand . . .
He did not know whether he ought to be delighted or terrified. Perhaps a smidge of both. "I trust that your guild brothers are not engaging in any unseemly haste, Wisdom. We do not want ten thousand jars of defective wildfire, nor even one . . . and we most certainly do not want any mishaps."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The second reason other houses do not use it is (as seen in the above quotes) a, Wildfire is time consuming and dangerous to make and has a shelf life. Once you have some, it may not work as you intend it to either,
An arrow could be aimed, and a spear, even the stone from a catapult, but wildfire had a will of its own. Once loosed, it was beyond the control of mere men.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XIII
Jaime also agrees with that assessment
Jaime ignored that. "If these flames spread beyond the tower, you may end up burning down the castle whether you mean to or not. Wildfire is treacherous."
A Feast for Crows - Cersei III
So if a another house wanted it use it, they would first have to hire the Alchemists Guild, which I'm sure during the Targaryen and Lannister reign would not have been taken kindly to. Next the would have to wait quite a long time for large enough store to be effectively used in battle to be made. Finally, they would have to hope and pray they stored and handled it properly without killing themselves.
Wildfire was Tyrion's last ditch effort to protect the city.
Further reading: scifi.stackexchange.com/q/132504/57310
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Thank you. Your answer explains how the wildfire used in the battle of Blackwater was created. It does not explain why it wasn't created elsewhere. I'll update the question.
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak Other houses couldn't use/create it because they don't have access to the Alchemists Guild.
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Does it mean that the Alchemists Guild is able to protect the secret to production despite there being a great motivation for other houses to get to this secret? Surely more powerful houses would be able to kidnap/torture/whatever any of the pyromancers?
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak I've expanded my answer a bit so I hope it answers your question better, but what "more powerful houses' would there have been besides the one controlling the Iron Throne and Kings Landing were the Guild operates? No doubt if another house kidnapped an Alchemist the Tarygaryen's nor Lannisters would have allowed that to happen without retribution. Also you run the risk with torture of then not having anyone left willing to tell you the secret and if you kill them, dead men tell no tales.
– Skooba
13 hours ago
add a comment |
TL;DR - Wildfire is difficult to produce and very volatile.
Wildfire is created by Alchemists Guild which is a secret they posses alone. Their order is no longer prevalent in Westeros and the remaining members seem to be in King's Landing alone. This is the first reason why other houses do not use it.
The substance was the pyromancers' own term for wildfire. They called each other wisdom as well, which Tyrion found almost as annoying as their custom of hinting at the vast secret stores of knowledge that they wanted him to think they possessed. Once theirs had been a powerful guild, but in recent centuries the maesters of the Citadel had supplanted the alchemists almost everywhere. Now only a few of the older order remained, and they no longer even pretended to transmute metals...
...but they could make wildfire.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The Guild created the Wildfire under the direction of the Targaryen's namely "The Mad King" Aerys II (see the Wildfire Plot) which was then hidden underneath the city.
"There is a vault below this one where we store the older pots. Those from King Aerys's day. It was his fancy to have the jars made in the shapes of fruits. Very perilous fruits indeed, my lord Hand, and, hmmm, riper now than ever, if you take my meaning. We have sealed them with wax and pumped the lower vault full of water, but even so . . . by rights they ought to have been destroyed, but so many of our masters were murdered during the Sack of King's Landing, the few acolytes who remained were unequal to the task. And much of the stock we made for Aerys was lost. Only last year, two hundred jars were discovered in a storeroom beneath the Great Sept of Baelor. No one could recall how they came there, but I'm sure I do not need to tell you that the High Septon was beside himself with terror. I myself saw that they were safely moved. I had a cart filled with sand, and sent our most able acolytes.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
That secret involves spells that only the Alchemist's know and even for them it is difficult:
"We were, my lord Hand, my brothers and I have been laboring day and night from the first, I assure you. It is only, hmmm, we have made so much of the substance that we have become, hmmm, more practiced as it were, and also"—the alchemist shifted uncomfortably—"certain spells, hmmm, ancient secrets of our order, very delicate, very troublesome, but necessary if the substance is to be, hmmm, all it should be..."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XI
Cersei initially found these stores and then Tyrion recruited the Guild to make more for Battle of Blackwater.
The pyromancers kept their recipe for wildfire a closely guarded secret, but Tyrion knew that it was a lengthy, dangerous, and time-consuming process. He had assumed the promise of ten thousand jars was a wild boast, like that of the bannerman who vows to marshal ten thousand swords for his lord and shows up on the day of battle with a hundred and two. If they can truly give us ten thousand . . .
He did not know whether he ought to be delighted or terrified. Perhaps a smidge of both. "I trust that your guild brothers are not engaging in any unseemly haste, Wisdom. We do not want ten thousand jars of defective wildfire, nor even one . . . and we most certainly do not want any mishaps."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The second reason other houses do not use it is (as seen in the above quotes) a, Wildfire is time consuming and dangerous to make and has a shelf life. Once you have some, it may not work as you intend it to either,
An arrow could be aimed, and a spear, even the stone from a catapult, but wildfire had a will of its own. Once loosed, it was beyond the control of mere men.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XIII
Jaime also agrees with that assessment
Jaime ignored that. "If these flames spread beyond the tower, you may end up burning down the castle whether you mean to or not. Wildfire is treacherous."
A Feast for Crows - Cersei III
So if a another house wanted it use it, they would first have to hire the Alchemists Guild, which I'm sure during the Targaryen and Lannister reign would not have been taken kindly to. Next the would have to wait quite a long time for large enough store to be effectively used in battle to be made. Finally, they would have to hope and pray they stored and handled it properly without killing themselves.
Wildfire was Tyrion's last ditch effort to protect the city.
Further reading: scifi.stackexchange.com/q/132504/57310
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Thank you. Your answer explains how the wildfire used in the battle of Blackwater was created. It does not explain why it wasn't created elsewhere. I'll update the question.
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak Other houses couldn't use/create it because they don't have access to the Alchemists Guild.
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Does it mean that the Alchemists Guild is able to protect the secret to production despite there being a great motivation for other houses to get to this secret? Surely more powerful houses would be able to kidnap/torture/whatever any of the pyromancers?
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak I've expanded my answer a bit so I hope it answers your question better, but what "more powerful houses' would there have been besides the one controlling the Iron Throne and Kings Landing were the Guild operates? No doubt if another house kidnapped an Alchemist the Tarygaryen's nor Lannisters would have allowed that to happen without retribution. Also you run the risk with torture of then not having anyone left willing to tell you the secret and if you kill them, dead men tell no tales.
– Skooba
13 hours ago
add a comment |
TL;DR - Wildfire is difficult to produce and very volatile.
Wildfire is created by Alchemists Guild which is a secret they posses alone. Their order is no longer prevalent in Westeros and the remaining members seem to be in King's Landing alone. This is the first reason why other houses do not use it.
The substance was the pyromancers' own term for wildfire. They called each other wisdom as well, which Tyrion found almost as annoying as their custom of hinting at the vast secret stores of knowledge that they wanted him to think they possessed. Once theirs had been a powerful guild, but in recent centuries the maesters of the Citadel had supplanted the alchemists almost everywhere. Now only a few of the older order remained, and they no longer even pretended to transmute metals...
...but they could make wildfire.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The Guild created the Wildfire under the direction of the Targaryen's namely "The Mad King" Aerys II (see the Wildfire Plot) which was then hidden underneath the city.
"There is a vault below this one where we store the older pots. Those from King Aerys's day. It was his fancy to have the jars made in the shapes of fruits. Very perilous fruits indeed, my lord Hand, and, hmmm, riper now than ever, if you take my meaning. We have sealed them with wax and pumped the lower vault full of water, but even so . . . by rights they ought to have been destroyed, but so many of our masters were murdered during the Sack of King's Landing, the few acolytes who remained were unequal to the task. And much of the stock we made for Aerys was lost. Only last year, two hundred jars were discovered in a storeroom beneath the Great Sept of Baelor. No one could recall how they came there, but I'm sure I do not need to tell you that the High Septon was beside himself with terror. I myself saw that they were safely moved. I had a cart filled with sand, and sent our most able acolytes.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
That secret involves spells that only the Alchemist's know and even for them it is difficult:
"We were, my lord Hand, my brothers and I have been laboring day and night from the first, I assure you. It is only, hmmm, we have made so much of the substance that we have become, hmmm, more practiced as it were, and also"—the alchemist shifted uncomfortably—"certain spells, hmmm, ancient secrets of our order, very delicate, very troublesome, but necessary if the substance is to be, hmmm, all it should be..."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XI
Cersei initially found these stores and then Tyrion recruited the Guild to make more for Battle of Blackwater.
The pyromancers kept their recipe for wildfire a closely guarded secret, but Tyrion knew that it was a lengthy, dangerous, and time-consuming process. He had assumed the promise of ten thousand jars was a wild boast, like that of the bannerman who vows to marshal ten thousand swords for his lord and shows up on the day of battle with a hundred and two. If they can truly give us ten thousand . . .
He did not know whether he ought to be delighted or terrified. Perhaps a smidge of both. "I trust that your guild brothers are not engaging in any unseemly haste, Wisdom. We do not want ten thousand jars of defective wildfire, nor even one . . . and we most certainly do not want any mishaps."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The second reason other houses do not use it is (as seen in the above quotes) a, Wildfire is time consuming and dangerous to make and has a shelf life. Once you have some, it may not work as you intend it to either,
An arrow could be aimed, and a spear, even the stone from a catapult, but wildfire had a will of its own. Once loosed, it was beyond the control of mere men.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XIII
Jaime also agrees with that assessment
Jaime ignored that. "If these flames spread beyond the tower, you may end up burning down the castle whether you mean to or not. Wildfire is treacherous."
A Feast for Crows - Cersei III
So if a another house wanted it use it, they would first have to hire the Alchemists Guild, which I'm sure during the Targaryen and Lannister reign would not have been taken kindly to. Next the would have to wait quite a long time for large enough store to be effectively used in battle to be made. Finally, they would have to hope and pray they stored and handled it properly without killing themselves.
Wildfire was Tyrion's last ditch effort to protect the city.
TL;DR - Wildfire is difficult to produce and very volatile.
Wildfire is created by Alchemists Guild which is a secret they posses alone. Their order is no longer prevalent in Westeros and the remaining members seem to be in King's Landing alone. This is the first reason why other houses do not use it.
The substance was the pyromancers' own term for wildfire. They called each other wisdom as well, which Tyrion found almost as annoying as their custom of hinting at the vast secret stores of knowledge that they wanted him to think they possessed. Once theirs had been a powerful guild, but in recent centuries the maesters of the Citadel had supplanted the alchemists almost everywhere. Now only a few of the older order remained, and they no longer even pretended to transmute metals...
...but they could make wildfire.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The Guild created the Wildfire under the direction of the Targaryen's namely "The Mad King" Aerys II (see the Wildfire Plot) which was then hidden underneath the city.
"There is a vault below this one where we store the older pots. Those from King Aerys's day. It was his fancy to have the jars made in the shapes of fruits. Very perilous fruits indeed, my lord Hand, and, hmmm, riper now than ever, if you take my meaning. We have sealed them with wax and pumped the lower vault full of water, but even so . . . by rights they ought to have been destroyed, but so many of our masters were murdered during the Sack of King's Landing, the few acolytes who remained were unequal to the task. And much of the stock we made for Aerys was lost. Only last year, two hundred jars were discovered in a storeroom beneath the Great Sept of Baelor. No one could recall how they came there, but I'm sure I do not need to tell you that the High Septon was beside himself with terror. I myself saw that they were safely moved. I had a cart filled with sand, and sent our most able acolytes.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
That secret involves spells that only the Alchemist's know and even for them it is difficult:
"We were, my lord Hand, my brothers and I have been laboring day and night from the first, I assure you. It is only, hmmm, we have made so much of the substance that we have become, hmmm, more practiced as it were, and also"—the alchemist shifted uncomfortably—"certain spells, hmmm, ancient secrets of our order, very delicate, very troublesome, but necessary if the substance is to be, hmmm, all it should be..."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XI
Cersei initially found these stores and then Tyrion recruited the Guild to make more for Battle of Blackwater.
The pyromancers kept their recipe for wildfire a closely guarded secret, but Tyrion knew that it was a lengthy, dangerous, and time-consuming process. He had assumed the promise of ten thousand jars was a wild boast, like that of the bannerman who vows to marshal ten thousand swords for his lord and shows up on the day of battle with a hundred and two. If they can truly give us ten thousand . . .
He did not know whether he ought to be delighted or terrified. Perhaps a smidge of both. "I trust that your guild brothers are not engaging in any unseemly haste, Wisdom. We do not want ten thousand jars of defective wildfire, nor even one . . . and we most certainly do not want any mishaps."
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion V
The second reason other houses do not use it is (as seen in the above quotes) a, Wildfire is time consuming and dangerous to make and has a shelf life. Once you have some, it may not work as you intend it to either,
An arrow could be aimed, and a spear, even the stone from a catapult, but wildfire had a will of its own. Once loosed, it was beyond the control of mere men.
A Clash of Kings - Tyrion XIII
Jaime also agrees with that assessment
Jaime ignored that. "If these flames spread beyond the tower, you may end up burning down the castle whether you mean to or not. Wildfire is treacherous."
A Feast for Crows - Cersei III
So if a another house wanted it use it, they would first have to hire the Alchemists Guild, which I'm sure during the Targaryen and Lannister reign would not have been taken kindly to. Next the would have to wait quite a long time for large enough store to be effectively used in battle to be made. Finally, they would have to hope and pray they stored and handled it properly without killing themselves.
Wildfire was Tyrion's last ditch effort to protect the city.
edited 13 hours ago
answered 14 hours ago
SkoobaSkooba
41.6k16216276
41.6k16216276
Further reading: scifi.stackexchange.com/q/132504/57310
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Thank you. Your answer explains how the wildfire used in the battle of Blackwater was created. It does not explain why it wasn't created elsewhere. I'll update the question.
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak Other houses couldn't use/create it because they don't have access to the Alchemists Guild.
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Does it mean that the Alchemists Guild is able to protect the secret to production despite there being a great motivation for other houses to get to this secret? Surely more powerful houses would be able to kidnap/torture/whatever any of the pyromancers?
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak I've expanded my answer a bit so I hope it answers your question better, but what "more powerful houses' would there have been besides the one controlling the Iron Throne and Kings Landing were the Guild operates? No doubt if another house kidnapped an Alchemist the Tarygaryen's nor Lannisters would have allowed that to happen without retribution. Also you run the risk with torture of then not having anyone left willing to tell you the secret and if you kill them, dead men tell no tales.
– Skooba
13 hours ago
add a comment |
Further reading: scifi.stackexchange.com/q/132504/57310
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Thank you. Your answer explains how the wildfire used in the battle of Blackwater was created. It does not explain why it wasn't created elsewhere. I'll update the question.
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak Other houses couldn't use/create it because they don't have access to the Alchemists Guild.
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Does it mean that the Alchemists Guild is able to protect the secret to production despite there being a great motivation for other houses to get to this secret? Surely more powerful houses would be able to kidnap/torture/whatever any of the pyromancers?
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
@andrybak I've expanded my answer a bit so I hope it answers your question better, but what "more powerful houses' would there have been besides the one controlling the Iron Throne and Kings Landing were the Guild operates? No doubt if another house kidnapped an Alchemist the Tarygaryen's nor Lannisters would have allowed that to happen without retribution. Also you run the risk with torture of then not having anyone left willing to tell you the secret and if you kill them, dead men tell no tales.
– Skooba
13 hours ago
Further reading: scifi.stackexchange.com/q/132504/57310
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Further reading: scifi.stackexchange.com/q/132504/57310
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Thank you. Your answer explains how the wildfire used in the battle of Blackwater was created. It does not explain why it wasn't created elsewhere. I'll update the question.
– andrybak
14 hours ago
Thank you. Your answer explains how the wildfire used in the battle of Blackwater was created. It does not explain why it wasn't created elsewhere. I'll update the question.
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
1
@andrybak Other houses couldn't use/create it because they don't have access to the Alchemists Guild.
– Skooba
14 hours ago
@andrybak Other houses couldn't use/create it because they don't have access to the Alchemists Guild.
– Skooba
14 hours ago
Does it mean that the Alchemists Guild is able to protect the secret to production despite there being a great motivation for other houses to get to this secret? Surely more powerful houses would be able to kidnap/torture/whatever any of the pyromancers?
– andrybak
14 hours ago
Does it mean that the Alchemists Guild is able to protect the secret to production despite there being a great motivation for other houses to get to this secret? Surely more powerful houses would be able to kidnap/torture/whatever any of the pyromancers?
– andrybak
14 hours ago
1
1
@andrybak I've expanded my answer a bit so I hope it answers your question better, but what "more powerful houses' would there have been besides the one controlling the Iron Throne and Kings Landing were the Guild operates? No doubt if another house kidnapped an Alchemist the Tarygaryen's nor Lannisters would have allowed that to happen without retribution. Also you run the risk with torture of then not having anyone left willing to tell you the secret and if you kill them, dead men tell no tales.
– Skooba
13 hours ago
@andrybak I've expanded my answer a bit so I hope it answers your question better, but what "more powerful houses' would there have been besides the one controlling the Iron Throne and Kings Landing were the Guild operates? No doubt if another house kidnapped an Alchemist the Tarygaryen's nor Lannisters would have allowed that to happen without retribution. Also you run the risk with torture of then not having anyone left willing to tell you the secret and if you kill them, dead men tell no tales.
– Skooba
13 hours ago
add a comment |
It's probably not wise to transport any meaningful amount of Wildfire by road or ship any great distance as it's highly unstable and combustible.
Only the Alchemist Guild know how to make it. In Westeros at least, they are based in Kings Landing, where Wildfire is made in highly controlled conditions and stored in specially made chambers where a large amount of sand can be dumped on it if a fire does break out.
We know small amounts have left Kings Landing, Thoros for instance, used it to set his swords on fire.
The Alchemist Guild would try to keep the process to make it secret at all costs, it's their only real claim to power.
It's also possible that due to it's highly unstable nature, many people don't want to risk making it or storing any reasonable amount that could be used in a defensive or offensive capacity.
add a comment |
It's probably not wise to transport any meaningful amount of Wildfire by road or ship any great distance as it's highly unstable and combustible.
Only the Alchemist Guild know how to make it. In Westeros at least, they are based in Kings Landing, where Wildfire is made in highly controlled conditions and stored in specially made chambers where a large amount of sand can be dumped on it if a fire does break out.
We know small amounts have left Kings Landing, Thoros for instance, used it to set his swords on fire.
The Alchemist Guild would try to keep the process to make it secret at all costs, it's their only real claim to power.
It's also possible that due to it's highly unstable nature, many people don't want to risk making it or storing any reasonable amount that could be used in a defensive or offensive capacity.
add a comment |
It's probably not wise to transport any meaningful amount of Wildfire by road or ship any great distance as it's highly unstable and combustible.
Only the Alchemist Guild know how to make it. In Westeros at least, they are based in Kings Landing, where Wildfire is made in highly controlled conditions and stored in specially made chambers where a large amount of sand can be dumped on it if a fire does break out.
We know small amounts have left Kings Landing, Thoros for instance, used it to set his swords on fire.
The Alchemist Guild would try to keep the process to make it secret at all costs, it's their only real claim to power.
It's also possible that due to it's highly unstable nature, many people don't want to risk making it or storing any reasonable amount that could be used in a defensive or offensive capacity.
It's probably not wise to transport any meaningful amount of Wildfire by road or ship any great distance as it's highly unstable and combustible.
Only the Alchemist Guild know how to make it. In Westeros at least, they are based in Kings Landing, where Wildfire is made in highly controlled conditions and stored in specially made chambers where a large amount of sand can be dumped on it if a fire does break out.
We know small amounts have left Kings Landing, Thoros for instance, used it to set his swords on fire.
The Alchemist Guild would try to keep the process to make it secret at all costs, it's their only real claim to power.
It's also possible that due to it's highly unstable nature, many people don't want to risk making it or storing any reasonable amount that could be used in a defensive or offensive capacity.
answered 12 hours ago
K MoK Mo
2,311916
2,311916
add a comment |
add a comment |
Thanks for contributing an answer to Science Fiction & Fantasy Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fscifi.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f210974%2fwhy-dont-other-westeros-houses-use-wildfire%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown