House of the Dragon EP Hints Season 3 Adds Something Important From the Books (That Game of Thrones Left Out)

House of the Dragon Season 3 will introduce something very prevalent from George R.R. Martin’s books that has never been seen on screen — and fans think they know what it is. Showrunner Ryan Condal mentioned this new set piece in the latest episode of his podcast, The Stuff Dreams are Made Of, which is all about movie props and design. He said that the new season would include an “in-world thing” that was not featured on Game of Thrones, but is very present in A Song of Ice and Fire. He then downplayed it as “a smaller detail, it’s not a big thing,” but fans already have their hopes up. Read on for the most popular theory about what it could be.

WARNING: Spoilers below for A Song of Ice and Fire and possibly House of the Dragon!

“We have some very specific things we have to build, and one of them is a very in-world thing that we’ve heard a lot about over from the text of the books, but we haven’t really ever seen on screen in a specific way,” Condal said. “It’s a smaller detail, it’s not a big thing, but I just thought it was cool. It’s one of those things where you just have to go read all the little snippets that are in the books and you try to put the thing together, take all the information you have and then connect dots as best you can and then fill in the rest. So excited to see that come along, it’s a fun one.”

On Reddit and other forums, the most popular theory by far is that Condal is referring to a Valyrian glass candle. we’ve never seen these on TV, but they’re set up to be very important in the books. They’re also the kind of magical element that Condal has emphasized in House of the Dragon after they were ignored in Game of Thrones. The show has already shown us a Green Man at Harrenhal and taken us into some Weirwood visions with Daemon, so a glass candle would actually fit quite well.

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What is a Valyrian Glass Candle?

Glass candles are magical artifacts from Valyria, which come in the colors green and black as far as we know. They are made of obsidian — a.k.a. dragon glass — and they seemed to be a focus for Valyrians’ telepathic powers in the same way the Weirwood trees are focuses for Greenseers. Glass candles purportedly allowed sorcerers to see things happening all across the world, and to communicate with other sorcerers around the world. They could also give people visions and dreams, allowing them to communicate with regular people to some extent.

At the height of Valyria’s power, these candles could “burn” without melting away. In use, they would give off a harsh, mesmerizing light. By the time of A Game of Thrones, we don’t know of anyone who can still use a glass candle, though the maesters constantly try to make them light. Many fans theorize that the Targaryens could still use them in secret when they first conquered Westeros, and perhaps they still could by the time of House of the Dragon.

Glass Candles in House of the Dragon

Commenters on Condal’s new podcast are guessing that Helaena Targaryen may be the one to use a glass candle in the new season. She appeared in one of Daemon’s Weirwood visions at the end of Season 2, suggesting that the candles and the trees share one unified astral plane. This seems to be the case in the books as well, since Melisandre sees Bran and the Three-Eyed Crow in her fire, and they stare back at her.

The candle would also fit this show aesthetically since Martin has told us that they come in black and green — the signature colors of these two warring factions. It’s worth noting that, aside from the Targaryens, House Hightower is the group often theorized to have access to glass candles and similar magic. Their home is an ancient fortress created by dragon fire, and it is said that they can see the whole world from atop their tower. The books even describe the contemporary lord of House Hightower locked away up there studying ancient spells.

Burning New Fan Theories

If House of the Dragon Season 3 does employ glass candles, it would open up all kinds of new possibilities for fan theories and speculation. Confirmation that Targaryens could still use glass candles this late in the game would support the theories that other rulers had used them, and might even cast some of the “Mad Targaryens” in a different light. The visions and prophecies that consumed this monarchy might all have been coming from this access to an astral plane, and from other sorcerers trying to influence them.

This would dovetail nicely with the other Game of Thrones spinoff premiering this year, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. It takes place about halfway between the times of House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones, when all the dragons are extinct but House Targaryen still firmly rules over Westeros. There are a lot of cryptic prophecies to consider in that story, and the addition of glass candles could really light up the intrigue.

As for the books, fans are usually circumspect about applying TV revelations to Martin’s writing, but glass candles have been such a hot topic for book fans lately that this would definitely warrant some conversation. In recent years, Reddit user u/gsteff has been visiting a university library that hosts a collection of Martin’s drafts and correspondences. They noticed that the early drafts of A Feast for Crows gave a lot of background on glass candles, and hints about how they might play into the plot later on. These drafts aren’t canon, of course, but they provide a great jumping off point for theories and speculation.

Of course, Condal could easily be talking about something else here, and we’ll probably have to wait until House of the Dragon returns in Season 6 to find out for sure. The series is filming now. In the meantime, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms premieres in 2025 on HBO and Max, and Martin’s books are available now in print, digital, and audiobook formats.