As Game of Thrones gets nearer to its end, we can’t help but look back on some of the show’s best characters. Although he was only around for one season, Khal Drogo made a big impact with TV audiences of the fantasy series. He was imposing to his enemies, but also grew to be a caring husband to Daenerys before his death. The Khals we’ve seen since don’t compare to Drogo in terms of their on-screen presence. Here are 25 deadly facts about Khal Drogo.
25. Commitment
Like every Khal, Khal Drogo has bloodriders. These cool-sounding Dothraki are loyal followers who must die if Drogo dies.
24. Oracle
The scene where Dany is reunited with Drogo in a dream-like sequence at the House of the Undying was different and much more extensive in the book. Dany’s original vision included potential spoilers for future plot points, such as the Red Wedding, so showrunners were likely more hesitant to use it. Instead, they gave fans a moment of Drogo and Dany reunited, along with their baby.
23.Horsing Around
Horses are central to Dothraki customs and ways of life, and so it comes as no surprise that the word “Dothraki” actually means “rider.” Khals are almost exclusively weighed and measured by their ability to ride horses, particularly into battle.
22.Perfect Record
Drogo was known for never being defeated in battle (until, that is, the wound that felled him). Khals, or warlords, only cut their hair after defeat. Hence, Khal Drogo had luscious locks that went down to his waist.
21. Fairy Tale Ending
Drogo’s death cameat the hands of the witch Mirri Maz Duur. After sustaining an injury in battle, Drogo begins to fall ill from infection. Daenerys orders Duur to save Drogo’s life, but the witch sneakily decides to get vengeance on Drogo for the sacking of her village. So although Duur uses the energy from Drogo’s horse and his unborn child to save him, the horse dies, the child is stillborn, and Drogo ends up in a coma-like state. It is then up to Daenerys to suffocate Drogo with a pillow.
20. Escapism
Jason Momoa, who played Khal Drogo, said the key to playing the warlord was to “walk around like you’re a king,” which he admitted was a switch for him. Momoa isn’t the king in his own house, he claims, and he tends to walk around hunched over. Drogo required him to put a spring in his step.
19. Ballin’
Aside from being a fearsome warlord, Drogo was also known for having so much gold that his slaves wore it as well. It’s a small trade-off for being a slave, but you have to look on the bright side.
18. Guest of Honor
Author George R.R Martin actually showed up to Khal Drogo and Daenerys’ wedding in the show—but only in the original pilot,where key characters such as Catelyn Stark were played by different actresses.
17. Chief
“Khal” is a title belonging to the leader of a Khalasar, the group of Dothraki civilians and warriors. Dany’s famous title of “Khaleesi” came from her union to Drogo.
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16. Dazed and Confused
In the books, Drogo marries Daenerys when she is only 13. In the TV show, she is 15 when she meets Drogo. Much better, right?
15. When I See You Again
In the TV show, Drogo never gets a chance to meet the dragon Drogon, but actor Jason Momoa sent Drogon a cheeky message via Instagram later. “Dear DROGON Wish we would have met.” He wrote. “I think we have a lot in common. Unfortunately, your mother killed me with a pillow. It’s hard to explain. ‘But nevertheless, I still love her even though she hangs out with lesser men than me. Watch her back trust no one and Kill’m All For me. Yours truly. KHAL DROGO.”
14. Voter List
Express.co.uk conducted a poll to see what fans thought about the potential Season 8 return of Drogo. Out of 1,000 voters:
13% are convinced Drogo will come back to life.
38% are convinced Drogo will come back, but it might be as a ghost.
30% think there will be no reunion at all.
Some fans, 19%, are also convinced that Daenerys will ultimately end up with the King of the North instead.
13. You Speak American?
Jason Momoa says that he got limited roles immediately after Game of Thrones, since some of his peers thought he didn’t speak English. The Dothraki language was created just for the show, and Khal Drogo’s few English lines are heavily accented. According to Momoa, Saturday Night Live alum Fred Armisen was one of the figures who were surprised to hear Momoa speak perfect English.
12. Passing the Torch
Sound designer Paula Fairfield says she wanted the scene where Jon Snow and Drogon meet to have a “level of sadness.” Fairfield sees the scene as Drogo’s trapped spirit giving Snow his blessing as Daenerys’ new man.
11. No. 1
Jason Momoa, as of two years ago, called Khal Drogo the greatest role he’s ever played. Maybe Aquaman’s taken Drogo’s place since then?
10. Omen
Shortly after the Drogo and Daenerys wedding was filmed, a storm hit the filming location and carried most of the props off to sea. Maybe we can say it foreshadowed the Dothraki crossing the sea?
9. Silence
One of Drogo’s most popular scenes is one where he rips an insubordinate’s throat out. Jason Momoa was the one to suggest this scene since Drogo’s warrior chops had yet to be shown in the script at that point.
8. Jingle Bells
In the books, Drogo’s hair is a single large braid. As per Dothraki custom, his hair also had a bell added to it after each victory. So yes, he’s got long, luscious, jingly locks.
7. Encore
Jason Momoa performed a Maori haka (an ancestral warrior dance) for his Game of Thrones audition. Momoa got the ideabecause his character’s lines were few and far between in the script. As a result, he figured that it would make sense to use something non-verbal to get the part. The casting directors were scared the first time Momoa performed the haka, but they called him back in so they could record it. Bonus fact: The original scene that Momoa was told to read consisted of his character saying “no” repeatedly, albeit menacingly.
6. Slowly But Surely
Drogo was part of a culture that valued slavery and conquest. But Drogo became a very slightly better person after meeting Dany, with one of his biggest changes being an order to disallow the rape of Lhazareen villagers. Progress?
5. Poison Water
Though he never got the chance to, Drogo was willing to make history by crossing saltwater to invade Westeros. The Dothraki don’t trust water their horses can’t drink, so traveling across the sea clashed with tradition.
4. Oops
Momoa received some backlash after comments he made at 2011’s Comic-Con about his role as Khal Drogo: “But as far as sci-fi and fantasy,” he said, “I love that genre because there are so many things you can do, like rip someone’s tongue out of their throat and get away with it and[sexually assaulting] beautiful women.” The comments became viral years later, much to Momoa’s dismay, and he issued a deep apology.
3. Resurrection
During a recent interview, Emilia Clarke (who plays Daenerys Targaryen) invited a crew into her trailer, which had a roof covered with Khal Drogo’s star symbol. This has led to speculation that Drogo might return in a future episode, either as some sort of flashback, or possibly his character might pull a Jon Snow and come back from the dead.
2. Tribute
Drogo’s name lives on, literally, in Drogon, the largest of Daenerys’ dragons. Sound designer Paula Fairfield also says the dragon’s roars are meant to sound like Khal Drogo, since the dragon is a “metaphorical reincarnation.”
1.The Prince Who Was Promised
In season 2, Melisandre prophecized a “Prince Who Was Promised,” alternately referred to Azor Ahai. He would be a hero who is revived in the cold following a long summer, who would wield a sword called the Lightbringer and who would save the Seven Kingdoms from the ‘Others.’ While there has been much speculation that either Dany or Jon Snow could be Azor Ahai, fans have also noticed clues that point to a resurrected Drogo as a possible Azor Ahai. Even in season 1, the very woman who orchestrated Drogo’s death may have prophecized his return. When she said “When the sun rises in the west, sets in the east, when the seas go dry and the mountains blow in the wind like leaves,” it may have sounded like a “He’ll come back when pigs fly”-type statement, but many of the events she mentioned in her prophecy (not to mention Melisandre’s) have come to pass. There are many different tiny plot points that have gone into the whole of this area of speculation, but in one of the prophecies, Azor Ahai has to plunge the Lightbringer into his love’s chest in order for it to become the powerful weapon that takes on the White Walkers. Will Drogo eventually have to kill his love Dany, as she once did for him.
Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23
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FAQs
What kills Drogo? ›
Khal Drogo was the husband of Daenerys Targaryen and, like Ned Stark, didn't live to see a second season. The Dothraki warrior died after succumbing to an infected wound, with Mirri Maz Durr placing him in a catatonic state before Dany smothers him with a pillow.
What is Khal Drogo saying? ›Khal Drogo : ...and ride wooden horses across the black salt water as no Khal has done before! I will kill the men in iron suits and tear down their stone houses! I will rape their women, take their children as slaves, and bring their broken gods back to Vaes Dothrak!
What exactly happened to Khal Drogo? ›Realizing that Drogo would never return to his former state, Dany smothers him with a pillow and builds him a funeral pyre as his khalasar breaks apart. She burns his body on the pyre along with Mirri Maz Duur and enters the flames with her petrified dragon eggs.
Was Khal Drogo a good man? ›Drogo is a powerful khal or warlord, of the Dothraki people, a tribal nation of horse riders beyond the free cities. He is an accomplished warrior and has never been defeated in battle. Drogo is most definitely not a good guy.
Who poisoned Drogo? ›A witch, Mirri Maz Durr, who pretends to be a healer, tells Dany that she could treat the wound and make Drogo well again. However, she practises blood magic on him and the wound becomes fatal, enough to take Drogo's life.
How old is Khal Drogo? ›So while Dany was made four years older, Drogo's age — somewhere around 30 years old — was unchanged. The second big change was having Drogo rape Dany on their wedding night. In the books, Drogo seems to extend much more empathy toward Dany.
Is Dothraki a real language? ›The Dothraki language is a constructed fictional language in George R. R. Martin's fantasy novel series A Song of Ice and Fire and its television adaptation Game of Thrones. It is spoken by the Dothraki, a nomadic people in the series's fictional world.
What do Khal Drogo and khaleesi say to each other? ›With many idolising the affectionate terms in which Drogo and Daenerys refer to each other - Drogo: ”Yer Jalan Atthirari Anni ("Moon of My Life" in Dothraki)" Daenerys: ”Sheikh Ma Shieraki Anni ("My Sun and Stars" in Dothraki)" - it might be worth re-evaluating the relationship between the warlord and the 'wife' he ...
How many lines does Khal Drogo have? ›| # of lines | Character | % Correct |
|---|---|---|
| 129 | Oberyn Martell | 86.4% |
| 46 | Khal Drogo | 86.1% |
| 159 | Ygritte | 85.1% |
| 141 | Grand Maester Pycelle | 85% |
For most of her life, Daenerys has been under the care of Viserys, whom she fears, as he abuses her whenever she displeases him. Viserys marries Daenerys to the powerful Dothraki warlord Khal Drogo in exchange for his military support to retake the Iron Throne.
Does Daenerys fall in love with Drogo? ›
But the characters never really treat it as such afterward, and Dany and Drogo go on to become everyone's favorite couple on the show. She's madly in love with him, she's devastated by his death, and she names her favorite dragon after him.
What does the name khaleesi mean? ›No, hear them out – Khaleesi isn't even a name! It's a royal title meaning "queen", which the Game of Thrones character Daenerys Targaryen receives when she marries Khal Drogo, leader of the Dothraki clan.
Is Khal Drogo a villain? ›Drogo, commonly known as Khal Drogo, is a character from A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones. He is a supporting antagonist in Season 1. He was a khal, a powerful warlord of the fearsome Dothraki nomads often referred as Khal Drogo. Daenerys Targaryen is promised to him at the beginning of the novels.
What happened to Khal Drogo and the baby? ›In Season 1, Daenerys married Khal Drogo and became pregnant with their son, Rhaego. The child was stillborn, presumably due to Mirri Maz Duur's blood magic. The witch ultimately used Rhaego's life to help restore Drogo, who remained in a vegetative state and never recovered.
Does Daenerys have a child? ›Rhaego was the son of Drogo and Daenerys Targaryen. According to a Dothraki prophecy, he would have been the Stallion Who Mounts the World.
Is khaleesi's baby a dragon? ›What happened to her baby Rhaego? Rather than use the horse as a sacrifice as she was meant to, Mirri used Daenerys' unborn child. She was seeking vengeance after the Dothraki attacked her people. Rhaego was severely deformed and covered in dragon-like scales.
Did khaleesi give birth to a dragon? ›The Khaleesi hatches the petrified dragon eggs in Khal Drogo's funeral pyre during season 1's "Fire And Blood," and against the odds, Daenerys survives the inferno with her newly hatched children, emerging from the ashes as the Mother of Dragons.
Who did Daenerys burn alive? ›Pyat Pree: The warlock from Qarth who agreed to help Xaro Xhoan Daxos conspire against Daenerys if he could acquire her dragons. When Daenerys recovered her three dragons in the House of the Undying, she ordered them to burn Pyat Pree alive after using the powerful command "dracarys."
Who does Khal Drogo marry? ›Khal Drogo
What did Khal Drogo call khaleesi? ›7. No One Has Called Khaleesi 'Moon Of My Life' In Way Too Long. Khal Drogo was "sun and stars" to his Khaleesi, and in turn, she was the "moon of his life." Whether it's in Dothraki or in the Common Tongue of the Seven Kingdoms, I need to hear him say "moon of my life" at least one more time.
How old is the dragon queen? ›
In the novel, she is around 22 when she is killed by Jon Snow, but on the show, she would be around 25 when she is stabbed to death.
How do you say love in Dothraki? ›...
How To Say 'I Love You' In Dothraki.
| English | Dothraki |
|---|---|
| I love you | Anha zhilak yera |
The good news is that to create a language, you don't have to be as much of a trailblazer as you might think. If you're looking to join a community of like-minded language crafters, you're in luck; the world is full of conlangers, or people who create and practice constructed languages for fun — or even for a living.
Can I learn Dothraki? ›You can indeed learn Dothraki and High Valyrian like any other language - they both have a large vocabulary and a whole grammar system to ensure eloquent communication.
What is moon of my life? ›Khal Drogo refers to Dany as “moon of my life.” The moon does not have its own light, it merely reflects the light of the sun. Dany shines brighter than the rest, but still less than he does, and only in direct influence from Khal Drogo.
What did Khaleesi call her husband? ›My husband danny is "My Sun and Stars" and he calls me "Moon of my Life". <3. I WANT THESE MUGS!!!! Khaleesi and her husband Khal Drogo referred to each other as each as these pet names on the show.
Does Daenerys love Jon Snow? ›Daenerys Targaryen cares about the Iron Throne more than anything else. Daenerys declared during the second episode of season 8 that she loved Jon Snow and even diverted her singular mission to capture the Iron Throne because of his war.
Who has the most lines in got? ›So, who speaks the most? Tyrion Lannister is solidly in the lead with more than 1,300 lines - 32% more than the first top female speaker, Cersei Lannister, who appears in third place after her youngest brother and Jon Snow. Men make up nine of the top 15 characters with the most lines.
How many named characters are in got? ›All 52 'Game of Thrones' Main Characters Ranked.
Who gets the crown in Game of Thrones? ›Bran Stark being voted in as the new king of the Six Kingdoms marked the first time in Westerosi history that a somewhat democratic system was used to select the ruler of the realm.
Who did Daenerys love the most? ›
1. Khal Drogo, Khal of the Great Grass Sea. As far as significant others go, Khal Drogo is probably the most significant.
Why do Targaryens have white hair? ›Why do Targaryens have white hair? Targaryens all have the same white hair thanks to generations of inbreeding and incestuous relationships. To keep their bloodline and genes pure, the Targaryens mostly wed members of their own family, therefore producing more children with the trademark white hair.
Why is Daenerys immune to fire? ›In the Game of Thrones TV show, it is believed that they have made Daenerys fireproof due to how, she had hatched the Dragons and the magic from the hatching had caused her to become fireproof, making her a one-off Targaryen who would be immune to fire.
Who did Jon Snow love? ›On season two, Jon Snow ventures beyond the Wall and meets Ygritte, a member a group called the Free Folk. He eventually lives among them as a spy for the Night's Watch, but he falls in love with Ygritte along the way.
Do Daenerys dragons forgive her? ›Dany's Dragons Reunited On 'Game Of Thrones'
That's right, Daenerys' dragons all reunited with her on Game of Thrones, and it was completely and utterly epic. After the masters backed Dany into a corner, she summoned everyone's favorite Drogon and rode off into the battle with him.
Following Daenerys' conquest of Meereen, she sends Daario to Lhazar to reopen trade routes between the two regions. After his return, Daenerys takes Daario as a lover but marries the Meereenese nobleman Hizdahr zo Loraq.
What is a unique female name? ›- Annalise. A combination of the name Anna and Lise, this name is simple, pretty, and unique.
- Brigitta. This name is the German, Dutch, and Hungarian form of Bridget, but here, it seems to have a more feminine ring to it.
- Charmaine. ...
- Constance. ...
- Geneviève. ...
- Larisa. ...
- Lorelei. ...
- Lucinda.
The name Sansa is girl's name of Sanskrit origin meaning "praise, charm". Game of Thrones author George R. R. Martin is a master namer, and this unusual choice from India is beginning to be heard in nurseries as well as on television.
How do I spell Khaleesi? ›Khaleesi is a title given to the wife of a Dothraki warlord in the universe of the George R. R. Martin's series A Song of Ice and Fire, popularly known as Game of Thrones after the name of the first book in the series and the television adaptation. It is roughly equivalent to “queen.”
Which episode Khal Drogo dies? ›| "A Golden Crown" | |
|---|---|
| Game of Thrones episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 6 |
| Directed by | Daniel Minahan |
| Story by | David Benioff D. B. Weiss |
Who killed Daenerys brother? ›
Game of Thrones: Season 8
After Daenerys and Jon reach Winterfell, Jaime Lannister, who killed the father of Daenerys and Viserys to prevent him destroying King's Landing, also arrives at the Stark ancestral home.
Yeah, Drogo died a pretty nasty death at the end of Season 1, when he was cursed to be in a catatonic state forever by a witch (who also caused his unborn child to die in Dany's womb) and his wife had to, uh, take matters into her own hands to put him out of his misery.
When did drogon leave Daenerys? ›Game of Thrones: Season 5
After the public execution of Mossador, Daenerys encounters an even further grown Drogon, who has become the size of an elephant, on top of the Great Pyramid. She reaches out to him, but Drogon flies away at the last moment.
7. No One Has Called Khaleesi 'Moon Of My Life' In Way Too Long. Khal Drogo was "sun and stars" to his Khaleesi, and in turn, she was the "moon of his life." Whether it's in Dothraki or in the Common Tongue of the Seven Kingdoms, I need to hear him say "moon of my life" at least one more time.
How did Drogo get injured? ›Drogo is injured not by Mago, but during a battle against another khalasar, by a bloodrider of a rival khal. Dothraki custom dictates that defeated warriors should shave their heads, but Drogo dies with all of his immensely long hair, having never once been defeated in combat.
Who died first in Game of Thrones? ›8 Mycah. Poor Mycah, the first child to be killed in the show (a statement this abhorrent should never be made, and yet...) When Joffrey invades Arya's sparring match with him, he mocks Mycah over his status as a butcher's son, going so far as to torture him with the edge of his blade.
Who killed Lyanna Stark? ›Lyanna is buried in the tomb beneath Winterfell. In reality, Lyanna's death was due to complications after giving birth to her son with Rhaegar. Her death was witnessed by Ned, two handmaidens and possibly Howland Reed.
Why is Viserys not immune to fire? ›First of all, Fire didn't kill Viserys. Rather, it was the molten gold that Drogo had poured on his skull after demanding a crown. Secondly, on the “immunity to fire”, Targaryens are not immune to fire, but they have a high tolerance of heat. This is both emphasized and implied in the books.
Why can't Daenerys be burned? ›The author has dismissed the idea that Daenerys cannot be harmed by fire in the past. “TARGARYENS ARE NOT IMMUNE TO FIRE!,” he said during a discussion with fans. 'The birth of Dany's dragons was unique, magical, wonderous, a miracle. She is called The Unburnt because she walked into the flames and lived.
Is khaleesi's baby a dragon? ›What happened to her baby Rhaego? Rather than use the horse as a sacrifice as she was meant to, Mirri used Daenerys' unborn child. She was seeking vengeance after the Dothraki attacked her people. Rhaego was severely deformed and covered in dragon-like scales.
What happened to Khal Drogo and the baby? ›
In Season 1, Daenerys married Khal Drogo and became pregnant with their son, Rhaego. The child was stillborn, presumably due to Mirri Maz Duur's blood magic. The witch ultimately used Rhaego's life to help restore Drogo, who remained in a vegetative state and never recovered.
Why did Khal Drogo marry Daenerys? ›For most of her life, Daenerys has been under the care of Viserys, whom she fears, as he abuses her whenever she displeases him. Viserys marries Daenerys to the powerful Dothraki warlord Khal Drogo in exchange for his military support to retake the Iron Throne.
Do Daenerys dragons forgive her? ›Dany's Dragons Reunited On 'Game Of Thrones'
That's right, Daenerys' dragons all reunited with her on Game of Thrones, and it was completely and utterly epic. After the masters backed Dany into a corner, she summoned everyone's favorite Drogon and rode off into the battle with him.
Drogon is the lucky one, the chosen child. He gets the most screen time in the show and the most pages in the book. He is also the only one currently still living. Drogon is clearly Dany's favorite too, since she rides him all the time.
Is Drogon last dragon? ›As far as the people of Westeros and the known world are concerned in the universe of Game of Thrones, Drogon is indeed the last known living dragon. But it is important to note that we said that he is the last “known” living dragon because, as far as the world knows, he is the only dragon that's alive.