- "My lady, I would gladly fight the Imp's champion for you."
- ―Vardis Egen to Lysa Arryn
Ser Vardis Egen was the captain of the guards at the Eyrie. In Tyrion Lannister's trial by combat, he was the champion for Lysa Arryn and was killed by Bronn, who fought for Tyrion.
Biography
Background
Vardis Egen was captain of Jon Arryn's personal guard in King's Landing and then became captain of the guards in the Eyrie for Robin Arryn and his mother, Lysa Arryn. He is a knight of some reputation, but is no longer a young man.
Season 1
Vardis leads the group of knights who meet Catelyn Stark and her prisoner Tyrion Lannister before she enters the Eyrie.[1] Lysa orders Tyrion imprisoned in the sky cells. After having spent quite some time in a sky cell, Tyrion finally claims that he wants to confess his crimes and then demands a trial by combat. Though many men, including Lord Eon Hunter and a Knight of House Lynderly, offer to fight as Lysa's champion, she asks Ser Vardis to represent House Arryn. At first he says that fighting Tyrion would be unfair, but Vardis accepts when Tyrion asks that he be represented by a champion. The sellsword Bronn offers to be Tyrion's champion. Vardis fights dressed in full metal armor and carrying a large and heavy wooden shield. His speed and dexterity were easily outmatched by Bronn, who wore only a leather armored shirt. During the course of the fight, Bronn throws things into Ser Vardis's path and even trips him, while quickly dodging and weaving to avoid Vardis's attacks. Ultimately, Bronn tires out the more heavily armored knight, severely injuring him with a quick slash and disarming him.
Vardis is thrown through the Moon Door.
Bronn waits for Lysa Arryn to call for mercy, but she does not respond, so he stabs Vardis in the neck and pushes him through the "Moon Door" in the center of the throne room, sending him down a thousand-foot drop. Lysa snaps angrily to Bronn that he didn't fight with honor. The sellsword agrees, before pointing to the Moon Door and noting that Ser Vardis did, which is effectively what got him killed.[2]
Appearances
| Season One appearances | ||||
| Winter Is Coming | The Kingsroad | Lord Snow | Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things | The Wolf and the Lion |
| A Golden Crown | You Win or You Die | The Pointy End | Baelor | Fire and Blood |
In the books
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, Ser Vardis Egen is an extremely loyal servant and retainer of House Arryn. He had been the captain of the guard when Jon Arryn was Hand of the King. He is described as heavy, square, plain-faced, silver-haired, and having no humor. In the battle with Bronn, Vardis is not only quite a bit older and slower than Bronn, but Lysa has given him Jon Arryn's great sword to defend the honor of the House, which is a heavier and unfamiliar blade. He has one young son.
In the book, Bronn kills Vardis without pushing him out of the Moon Door (which is set in the wall, not in the floor).
Image gallery
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References
| | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lord: | Robin Arryn | Heir: | Unknown |  | |
| Seat: | The Eyrie | Lands: | The Vale of Arryn | ||
| Title(s): | Lord of the Eyrie · Lord Paramount of the Vale · Warden of the East | ||||
| Ancestors: | Artys Arryn · Sharra Arryn · Ronnel Arryn · Aemma Arryn | ||||
| Deceased members: | Jon Arryn · Lysa Arryn · Jasper Arryn · Alys Arryn · Ronnel Arryn · Ser Elbert Arryn | ||||
| Household: | {Ser Vardis Egen} · {Ser Hugh of the Vale} · Mord · {Petyr Baelish} | ||||
| Overlord: | House Stark | ||||
